ROC - Tai Chi Bubble Tea (SUSHI BURRITOS!!)

That’s right. I’ve taken the plunged and finally tried a sushi burrito. It’s been a big step.

I know these have been a thing for a few years and I’ve seen them before but I’ve never had any desire to eat one. I’m JUST starting to get into raw sushi and pushing my food boundaries because whenever I watch videos/shows and people are eating sushi it looks so good but honestly, there’s only so much shrimp/eel/crab I can eat and it never feels as satisfying as raw sushi looks.

Then, introduce the idea of a sushi BURRITO which doesn’t FEEEEEL right. The point of sushi is to eat it in one bite and get a little bit of everything at once for the perfect flavor combination. A burrito is just impossible to do this with because you can’t get everything in one bite, it’s too large! I’ve had this discussion with a couple of my co-workers and they seem more open to the idea of a sushi burrito so I told them to try it and let me know if it was worth it, since a location of Tai Chi Bubble Tea opened nearby. One person took my up on this challenge. She took one of her sons (who loves sushi) to Tai Chi as a mother-son date day and they got sushi burritos for lunch and also ordered bubble tea for the first time. She said while it was messy (her son completely unwrapped the paper around the burrito and it disintegrated in his hands) she told me it was worth a try and not a bad experience overall. Since she went through the trouble of taking up my recommendation (and challenge) I promised her I would, in turn, give it a try.

It’s taken me a little bit of time but I’ve done it. I had to be in the mood for sushi and today was the perfect day. I’ve met up with one of my best friends, Julia, in Rochester and we went out for sushi burritos on this swelteringly hot day in May and it was a lot of fun.

I based my burrito on one of their pre-built burritos and modified it a little. Their ‘signature’ SALMONopoly is Spinach, Salmon, Spicy Salmon, cucumber, avocado, edamame, corn, carrot, spicy mayo, masago, and fried onion. It seemed difficult to me to put things like corn or edamame in a burrito and not have it fall out but they make it so customizable, that whatever floats your boat - goes. So, from the top, I ordered a Sushi Burrito with white rice, (skip the greens - i.e. lettuce, spinach kale or red cabbage), Spicy Salmon, cucumbers (for crunch!), avocado, (shredded) carrot, spicy mayo, masago, and fried onion and of course a seaweed wrap (you can get this with a tortilla to make it more burrito like. Looking back now, I wish I’d gotten some Tamago to fill it out a little more because it was very wet and could’ve used something else that was solid and absorbent.

Overall, our sushi burritos were pretty good. They looked smaller than expected when they finally came out but they were actually super filling and I was a couple of bites short of finishing it. My co-worker was right, you have to keep the paper on and peel as you eat or else it will disintegrate seeing as it’s a seaweed wrap that breaks apart as it gets wet. The last few bites of each half that I had were thoroughly a mess and the sauce and some fillings were seeping out but luckily the paper caught it all and i kept my hands pretty clean. I didn’t actually have an issue with not getting a little bit of everything in each bite. It worked out okay and it tasted as good as generic sushi would taste so I can see myself getting one of these again if I’m in the mood for sushi. Sushi burrito’s aren’t so bad after all.

ROC - Juicy Seafood

I’m going to start off by reminding everyone that I live in upstate/central/western New York (whatever you wanna call this region) and it’s a terrible thing when you crave seafood, but we find a way.

I’ve been watching Try Guy (Food Babies) videos involving seafood boils and amazing cajun flavors (curse them for living in LA with their abundance of good food) and I think it’s quite clear that I’m susceptible to wanting to eat food I see in videos. Advertisers must love me.. they get me all the time.. but it’s unfortunate living where I do and loving seafood because aside from lakes, theres not a lot of fresh catching to be had here, so I do take this review with a grain of salt.

I’m back in Rochester for the weekend and found a free lunch where I could order whatever I want. Cue the seafood craving that’s been brewing for weeks. I tried to do a quick yelp search and read some quick reviews and ended up at Juicy Seafood.

LOCATION: 3020 S WINTON RD ROCHESTER, NY 14623

Of course I had to order a bag of seafood boil. I placed an order on the phone and boy did the person who picked up talk fast. It took me a second to get up to speed but it was pretty simple to place and order for pick up and they were speedy about it all too.

I decided to quell my craving by ordering a little bit of everything and went with a Combo B which is 1/2lbs Crawfish, 1/2lbs Shrimp (no heads), 1/2lb of Snow Crab Legs and of course 1 corn on the cob and 2 potatoes (they snuck me in some extra and I wasn’t complaining). I also got this with their Juicy Special seasoning which is just a combination of all their seasonings (cajun, lemon pepper, and garlic butter) and I chose a hot spice level for that extra kick. Go big or go home.

Honestly, the quality of the seafood was a little disappointing but it’s Rochester in February so do I really have a right to complain? I’m not really setting myself up for success here but cravings will be satisfied!! I still happily ate everything in this seafood boil by myself and I was stuffed and happy as a clam by the end. The snow crab and the crawfish were as good as I could hope for under the circumstances but the shrimp actually blew me away. It was soo flavorful and juicy and there were solidly quality shrimp. The hot special sauce was great. It was a builder and I had to take a few breaks (bless the corn and potatoes) but it was such a good sauce and they gave me a container of extra sauce on the side which I happily dipped every piece of seafood into fully. I even saved the rest of the sauce and had it with some rice and some home-cooked shrimp for leftovers.

I think if I play my cards right and go in the summer, the quality of seafood might be better just based off of the seasonality of it. The seasoning was so good and the cook on all the food was perfect so I didn’t have any issues with that. Worth going back to if this is what you’re craving and you happen to be unlucky like me and live in a landlocked area.

The Date Night Cookbook - Spaghetti with Creamy Poblano

It’s Date Night Cookbook time again, kind of. Full transparency, this is not my first time making the Spaghetti with Creamy Poblano Sauce I just didn’t document it before. But I’ve gone on a cooking spree making eggplant parm and I’m in deep into cooking so I’ve decided to go with a twist for some of the eggplant that’s leftover. I decided to split the eggplant that I breaded into half regular red sauce and half creamy poblano. Two batches of sauce was well worth it, especially since I used jarred red sauce and because the creamy poblano whips up super quick.

The poblano starts off with charred poblano peppers, surprise! I cut 3 peppers in half, remove the seeds and broil them in my oven for about 5mins until they’re blackened and I start to question if the smell of smokey poblano peppers will set off the fire detector. So far we’re 0 for 2. I put the peppers in a bowl and cover it for 10mins to let them steam so the charred skin is easier to peel off when I’m ready.

While this is going on I boil some spaghetti. Easy.

Then I throw the peppers into my mini food processor with 1/2 cup of sour cream. Now the Fulmer’s go all in and use crème fraîche in their recipe which I tried the first time I made the dish. I’ve switched over to sour cream because it’s cost effective and once it’s mixed in with the rest of the sauce, I can’t tell the difference. Minor changes, in my opinion, but use the real deal if that’s what you’re in to. Once that’s all blended and pretty smooth, I sauté some garlic and I’ve actually started adding in a protein like pancetta or bacon for a more umami, meaty flavor. The original recipe also says to include corn but Caleb isn’t a fan so I leave that out. I think its a good swap with the meat but who says you can’t have it all i that’s what you like. Once the garlic and meat are cooked I carefully add in the poblano mixture and another 1/4-1/2 cup of my sour cream (I honestly just used a whole 8oz container of sour cream so I’m not sitting on a tiny bit of leftover in the fridge and it works out perfectly.) I combine the sauce and stir everything together and let it simmer before adding the pasta and coating it. Season with salt and pepper to taste (this needs a lot of salt because everything is so heavy and fatty but if you’re like me and add in bacon or pancetta be careful!) Then it’s topped with Cotija cheese and paprika. I never have cotija cheese and I don’t want to buy it just to sprinkle on top of this one dish so I skip that part and it’s all good. The sour cream makes the sauce creamy enough for us and I never need more but that’s up to you isn’t it?

On this special occasion I’ve topped my pasta with eggplant parm that I’ve made using some poblano sauce as well and it’s amazing though I can’t say I would put in that effort all the time. Eggplant parm is a PROCESS and I don’t know that I can make that kind of time commitment regularly but this pasta is in the rotation at least once a month for me though I have noticed a shortage of poblano peppers at our grocery store recently. I’m not sure about subbing in a different pepper but we’ll cross that bridge if it comes to it. Until then, creamy poblano sauce is my new favorite creamy sauce to make at home.

The Date Night Cookbook - Italian Shakshuka

I’ve recently gotten the Date Night Cookbook by the Try Guys’ Ned Fulmer and his wife Ariel for Christmas and I decided I would try my hand and one of their recipes. The appeal of this cookbook for me was that Ned and Ariel are just normal people, aka not professional chefs. So, a book of their favorite things to make feels much more doable than someone who cooks food for a living. These recipes feel easier to take on and honestly, i was hopeful that they would be appealing enough to Caleb that I would have ideas for what to cook us for dinner. This isn’t totally the case seeing as Caleb is quite picky but it’s given me a few more things to add to the rotation and some fun desserts I’d like to try and make to get back into cooking.

First up this fine morning, I decided to take on the Italian Shakshuka. I’ve made a Shakshuka before and thought it was fine. I used to see a café on campus in Chicago sold it around breakfast time and I was always intrigued but never got it. So here is my second brush at making a shakshuka and also my second taste at it.

A little unconventional for our breakfasts but I’m down to experiment. Everything in this was in Caleb’s realm too so I did manage to get him to share it with me as well. Score.

The great part of Ned and Ariel’s recipes are that they’re easy and quick. Throw some things together and boom, you’re ready to eat. In this case, you heat some garlic, onion, and chili flakes in a vessel and once it’s fragrant you add 26oz of crushed tomatoes and let simmer. They say to add basil, crack some eggs on top and season with salt. The Fulmers top it with feta and cover it to let the eggs steak for 5mins and it’s ready to go. Easy peasy. We also happened to have some tuscan garlic bread from Wegmans leftover so that was much better than regular white bread to dip in it. The eggs were a little over for us so our stove must run a little hot or I left it on a little too long (I do get a little nervous with baked eggs because they look raw up top but I have to live a little more free here for a better outcome.)

In the end, it was good, but not good enough to crave. It’s an easy dish to make and cooks fast with one dish quickly so I’m a fan of all of that but we’re not huge breakfast people so throwing this into the mix doesn’t seem very likely for us. I would recommend it though, I’m sure for some people, it would fit right into a regular breakfast routine.

FL - Litchi Delights!

We’re back for a limited time to see ALL THE FAMILY! And while we’re here in the Pines, we’re stopping off at Litchi. My cousin loves Litchi. He’s an honorary employee with how often he comes and how much money he spends at this establishment and recently the owners of Litchi Snow Ice have opened their own food spot, Litchi Delights (right down the plaza from their original boba location. So now that I’m here for a visit, we’re going to try out Litchi Delights and see what the fuss is all about

LOCATION: 15973 PINES BLVD PEMBROKE PINES, FL 33028

What really motivated me to come here was the signature foot-long fries!! Nothing screams Emily like a good ole potato and the novelty of a ‘foot long french fry’ is enough for me to make a dedicated stop. I’m sharing today’s snacks with my two cousins from Germany so we can have a little bit of everything and really test out the menu. We’re skipping on the ‘hibachi’ today for the ‘Asian snacks’ and a couple french fry toppings.

We decided to try the takoyaki and the Taiwanese-style popcorn chicken from their ‘Asian snacks’ portion of the menu and a couple of signature foot long fries one order with cheese and the other with their signiature sauce. For whatever reason, they gave us the fries with the sauces and toppings on the side but that’s fine with us. Our full group of 6 can be intimidating at once because we order a lot and it’s easier this way so we didn’t mind dipping instead of having the toppings on, especially since we were new to the fries and didn’t want to commit to the sauces if we didn’t like them.

Honestly, the snacks were alright. The fries were kind of disappointing because they’re quite oily and don’t taste like potatoes, just fry oil. From the way they ate, it seems like they were made into a potato batter/mash and then extruded into the fryer in order to obtain their foot-long length. This makes sense seeing as a potato isn’t typically a foot long in length to cut fries out of but it feels like there was a lack of seasoning in the potato mix at all because they just taste like oily air. The saving grace is that these end up being a vessel for for sauce or cheese but plain, it’s not a great taste. Even dipping it in a generic cheese sauce couldn’t save it and the signature sauce wasn’t anything to write home about. Thankfully, the Taiwanese-style popcorn chicken was seasoned well and flavored nicely as were the takoyaki which I always love getting at places.

In the end, Litchi Delights was a little disappointing, and while the staff and owners are nice and the establishment is clean and friendly, I think I’ll just stick to their bubble tea whenever I come to visit.