Persian Paisley 'Plants

On our way back from seeing Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (and Eric Nally <3) we needed grub and it had started to rain so we popped into a place I had Yelp-scouted earlier. Limoo Tea Bar has alcoholic Boba Tea, and small plates, which are perfect for post-show-noms. Their Korean Fried Chicken is the best I've had (so far), and their eggplant dip is amaaaazing. Rather than drive the two and a half hours back, I figured it was more economical to make it at home. This Mizra Ghasemi recipe comes from Serious Eats, as an adaptation from "The New Persian Kitchen." Rather than beat the eggs into the mix, I poached (and nuked) an egg. Limoo Tea Bar has a soft fried egg on theirs, and I would say that's better than my microwave poaching. 

Serve warm with warmed pitas or your favorite bread. I also made Mast-o-musir, which is yogurt and shallots. Yus!

Release the Calamari!

This post marks a milestone! It's the first entry written from a location other than home! Yay portable devices! At the time of this entry, I've been eating my way through Chinatown Boston and living it up at PAXEast, the largest gaming convention on the East coast. So check out the Steak and a Clam Instagram for photos of all the things I ate! 

Back to cooking!

Braised Squid is one of those meals that looks super fancy but can be done easily on a weeknight. The hardest part was getting raw squid to look photogenic. So I just used a cute bowl. The harissa adds a nice kick, but a dash of cayenne would do in a pinch. I definitely suggest getting harrisa though, as it's super versatile. The lemon zest really -ahem- brightened the dish up. Like, I hear that term all the time on Top Chef and such, but this was probably the first time I've ever actually thought that as I ate the dish. You can serve this with couscous, farro, rice, or any grain you prefer. We used Freekeh, because why not. The leftovers came out great too, and the squid didn't get rubbery upon reheating.