After an easy 7.6 mile run through Rock Creek Park, I checked my email to find out I got that part time job I interviewed for last Sunday! WOOOO! Very excited :)
So last night's dinner experiment was a Spanikopita Pie with Ham. I needed to use the last slices of the ham in the fridge, plus I had about 1/3 package of frozen chopped spinach that could be used. Here's the filling:
And here's the whole 'pie' ready to go into the oven:
AND Jamie's dinner...I snacked on some as well and it was quite tasty :) I only wish I could get it browner on top...
Anyway, I had a last minute birthday dinner for a friend of mine so I baked, snacked and ran to meet up with everyone at Policy, a new restaurant off of U Street. Before leaving, I browsed the Yelp reviews to see what everyone was saying. There were a lot of reviews saying it was overpriced and the music was bad. There were a few that listed must try dishes - definitely paid attention to these.
Got to the restaurant around 8:15 and my first impression was wow, this is like a trendy diner sort of place. Smaller than I thought it would be, but it could be fun! Our party of 6 (that we made reservations for) turned into a party of 4 and apparently the host didn't think that was okay. We ended up waiting for awhile while they sat the parties of 6 that DIDN'T have reservations. LAME!
Eventually they came over to us and said they had a table ready and took us up this random staircase to the 'loungy' portion of the restaurant. We sat in a booth with a low table (a la any lounge) and the music was surprisingly chill. We ordered a 5 "small plates" which were appetizer size, but not appetizer price.
First dish out: Vidalia Onion Rings with a Chili Aioli
They were good, but the onion inside the batter was a bit too hard for me. Maybe I'm a trashy onion ring lover, but I kinda like my onion to be a little mooshy in the inside. The chili aioli was a great dipping sauce - not too spicy.
Next up: Madras Curry Lamb Sliders
OH MY GOD. AWESOME! (sorry for the blurry pic, I felt weird using a flash) It was a trio of sliders (perfect since we had one vegetarian!) with gorgonzola and pesto. GREAT FLAVOR!
Third dish was the Trio of Spreads (Eggplant puree, roasted red pepper hummus, edamame hummus served with toasted pita triangles)
I liked the eggplant puree a lot, the roasted red pepper was ok and the edamame hummus was different, but nothing too exciting.
The next two dishes were Red Curried Lentils with Cauliflower Dumplings and Pea Shoots and a Gnocchi dish that doesn't seem to be online.
The lentils had great flavor and the cauliflower dumplings were super cheesy and delicious! I think my favorite dish by far may have been the gnocchi. They weren't too dense like other gnocchi I've had before...these were super fluffy and light. Plus it wasn't coated in a thick sauce. I loved that it was served with greens and diced tomatoes! (notice I decided to use the flash??)
In the middle of dinner, I was rude and checked my berry :( I think it was a mighty good thing though because I found out I SCORED A MARINE CORPS BIB!!!! WOOOOO! When I got home from work, I browsed Craigslist and found someone who got into the NYC Marathon and was looking to give up her Marine Corps number. Replied and she was totally willing to sell me her number! I'm all set for my fall marathon! YAAAAAYYY :) Ok. That was my happy, random paragraph :)
Since it was our friend's birthday, we got a dessert on the house!
I think it was this: Warm Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Peanut Butter Mousse, Milk Chocolate Semifreddo, Caramelized Bananas. The smear on the plate tasted like heaven - it was like a moussey/foamy concoction that tasted like the crust on a creme brulee. AWE-SOME. The caramelized bananas were pretty good too - good texture combination. My favorite part of this dessert was the Peanut Butter Mousse and Milk Chocolate Semifreddo (the square dish)....like a peanut butter cup!
Forgot to take pictures of our drinks, but they were quite tasty. I got the Griffin's Mango Mojito (Parrot Bay Mango Rum, Fresh Mango Nectar, muddled Lime, fresh mint) and the Open Door Policy (Parrot Bay Mango Rum, Watermelon Puckers, sweet and sour, splash of sprite). I usually don't go for fruity drinks, but these were pretty f-ing good! :)
I'd totally go back to Policy again. Maybe not to eat dinner, though. Although I did enjoy the stuff I ate, I didn't like the price. The music was legit (we stayed just to people watch and listen to the music) - when we first got in they were playing super chill, loungy music and as the evening progressed, the music got louder (boo) and switched to like old school stuff like a Jackson Five remix, Skee Lo and some other stuff that totally took us back :)
Spanikopita Pie with Ham
2 sheets puff pastry
1 c chopped spinach
5 slices deli ham, chopped
2 tbsp minced shallot
1/4 c pine nuts, toasted
1/3 c feta cheese
1 tbsp olive oil
Preheat oven to 425. Combine spinach, feta and pine nuts in a bowl. In a small frying pan, heat oil and saute the shallot and ham for 3-5 minutes and add to spinach mixture. Lay one sheet of puff pastry on a cookie sheet.
Pour spinach mixture onto the puff pastry, leaving a 1 inch border. Place the second sheet of puff pastry on top and crimp edges with a fork. Poke holes in the top and place in oven for approximately 20 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
So last night's dinner experiment was a Spanikopita Pie with Ham. I needed to use the last slices of the ham in the fridge, plus I had about 1/3 package of frozen chopped spinach that could be used. Here's the filling:
And here's the whole 'pie' ready to go into the oven:
AND Jamie's dinner...I snacked on some as well and it was quite tasty :) I only wish I could get it browner on top...
Anyway, I had a last minute birthday dinner for a friend of mine so I baked, snacked and ran to meet up with everyone at Policy, a new restaurant off of U Street. Before leaving, I browsed the Yelp reviews to see what everyone was saying. There were a lot of reviews saying it was overpriced and the music was bad. There were a few that listed must try dishes - definitely paid attention to these.Got to the restaurant around 8:15 and my first impression was wow, this is like a trendy diner sort of place. Smaller than I thought it would be, but it could be fun! Our party of 6 (that we made reservations for) turned into a party of 4 and apparently the host didn't think that was okay. We ended up waiting for awhile while they sat the parties of 6 that DIDN'T have reservations. LAME!
Eventually they came over to us and said they had a table ready and took us up this random staircase to the 'loungy' portion of the restaurant. We sat in a booth with a low table (a la any lounge) and the music was surprisingly chill. We ordered a 5 "small plates" which were appetizer size, but not appetizer price.
First dish out: Vidalia Onion Rings with a Chili Aioli
They were good, but the onion inside the batter was a bit too hard for me. Maybe I'm a trashy onion ring lover, but I kinda like my onion to be a little mooshy in the inside. The chili aioli was a great dipping sauce - not too spicy.Next up: Madras Curry Lamb Sliders
OH MY GOD. AWESOME! (sorry for the blurry pic, I felt weird using a flash) It was a trio of sliders (perfect since we had one vegetarian!) with gorgonzola and pesto. GREAT FLAVOR!Third dish was the Trio of Spreads (Eggplant puree, roasted red pepper hummus, edamame hummus served with toasted pita triangles)
I liked the eggplant puree a lot, the roasted red pepper was ok and the edamame hummus was different, but nothing too exciting.The next two dishes were Red Curried Lentils with Cauliflower Dumplings and Pea Shoots and a Gnocchi dish that doesn't seem to be online.
The lentils had great flavor and the cauliflower dumplings were super cheesy and delicious! I think my favorite dish by far may have been the gnocchi. They weren't too dense like other gnocchi I've had before...these were super fluffy and light. Plus it wasn't coated in a thick sauce. I loved that it was served with greens and diced tomatoes! (notice I decided to use the flash??)In the middle of dinner, I was rude and checked my berry :( I think it was a mighty good thing though because I found out I SCORED A MARINE CORPS BIB!!!! WOOOOO! When I got home from work, I browsed Craigslist and found someone who got into the NYC Marathon and was looking to give up her Marine Corps number. Replied and she was totally willing to sell me her number! I'm all set for my fall marathon! YAAAAAYYY :) Ok. That was my happy, random paragraph :)
Since it was our friend's birthday, we got a dessert on the house!
I think it was this: Warm Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Peanut Butter Mousse, Milk Chocolate Semifreddo, Caramelized Bananas. The smear on the plate tasted like heaven - it was like a moussey/foamy concoction that tasted like the crust on a creme brulee. AWE-SOME. The caramelized bananas were pretty good too - good texture combination. My favorite part of this dessert was the Peanut Butter Mousse and Milk Chocolate Semifreddo (the square dish)....like a peanut butter cup!Forgot to take pictures of our drinks, but they were quite tasty. I got the Griffin's Mango Mojito (Parrot Bay Mango Rum, Fresh Mango Nectar, muddled Lime, fresh mint) and the Open Door Policy (Parrot Bay Mango Rum, Watermelon Puckers, sweet and sour, splash of sprite). I usually don't go for fruity drinks, but these were pretty f-ing good! :)
I'd totally go back to Policy again. Maybe not to eat dinner, though. Although I did enjoy the stuff I ate, I didn't like the price. The music was legit (we stayed just to people watch and listen to the music) - when we first got in they were playing super chill, loungy music and as the evening progressed, the music got louder (boo) and switched to like old school stuff like a Jackson Five remix, Skee Lo and some other stuff that totally took us back :)
Spanikopita Pie with Ham
2 sheets puff pastry
1 c chopped spinach
5 slices deli ham, chopped
2 tbsp minced shallot
1/4 c pine nuts, toasted
1/3 c feta cheese
1 tbsp olive oil
Preheat oven to 425. Combine spinach, feta and pine nuts in a bowl. In a small frying pan, heat oil and saute the shallot and ham for 3-5 minutes and add to spinach mixture. Lay one sheet of puff pastry on a cookie sheet.
Pour spinach mixture onto the puff pastry, leaving a 1 inch border. Place the second sheet of puff pastry on top and crimp edges with a fork. Poke holes in the top and place in oven for approximately 20 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
1 comment:
Congratulations on the job!! I'm definitely going to try the luna bar you suggested! Thanks!
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