A Pinch of March-ing On

Every year March comes around, and it feels like the month packs so much that I blink and it’s already wrapping up. No complaints, since the month has been packed with great memories from the start and a big one this weekend: moving back into Philly 🙌

The process of moving is never fun, but getting into a new space to fully make my own is exciting. (All of my social media ads have been taken over by home decor… and my bank account is fighting an uphill battle.)

If there’s one space I don’t need anything more for, it’s my kitchen. Wants are a different thing, of course. I’m now realizing that if there is anything I need, it’s plates and silverware oddly enough? Ice cream maker, check. Coffee grinder, check. Ravioli stamps, check. Sushi roller, check. Okay, I think you get it… I have a lot of random cooking things. (Maybe a baking rack will be next 🤷‍♂️)

One time I flipped my apartment into a coffee shop, inviting friends over for the morning to just hang out and enjoy the goods and great coffee. And of course because making four different pastries wasn’t enough of a challenge, I prepped cold brew and brought in a new way of making hot coffee with the Chemex. Thankfully the morning was a hit, and I can’t wait to do it again in my new space.

With spring welcoming in some warmer, brighter mornings, soon enough the door will open for round 2. 😎

What’s Cookin’

This past week was busy ahead of a weekend trip out to Chicago to celebrate a friend’s bachelor party. A damn good time with March Madness going on, and a highlight of riding around in The Barrel Run, a brewery crawl in a converted bus that looks like a barrel.

So while this week may be leaning on quick meals to prep, here’s what I’ve saved recently that looks great:

• Sheet Pan Chicken Pitas with Tzatziki by Pinch of Yum – a great weeknight meal that’s fresh and good for meal prep. Mix it all in as a bowl or throw it in a pita.

• Spring Vegetable Risotto by Serious Eats, Kenji López-Alt – this recipe is a reminder that I need to get back to reading the textbook that is Kenji’s The Food Lab. But more importantly, a risotto with some in-season vegetables sounds perfect right about now. It’s your choice of the combo from his recommendations including asparagus, fava beans, zucchini, snap peas and morel mushrooms.

• Herby Salmon and Potato Salad by Bon Appétit, Kendra Vaculin – another weeknight meal that you can simplify or mix-and-match with whatever combination of herbs, marinated vegetables and/or olives.

Happy National Cheesesteak Day

I really don’t know if there is a true answer to who has the best cheesesteak because there are the known favorites, the big names and the small town hidden gems that have it figured out.

But one thing I do know: my job has some very fun moments. Roll the tapes for our blind taste test featuring some of Philly’s best steak sandwiches. And since I called out West Chester as my home in the video, the cheesesteak above deserves a shout too as a favorite: Steaks West Chester.

Salads sounds awfully good to me after this past weekend, or maybe because they’re quick and easy meals to get to packing and prepping for the big move. We march on.

Make the most of the rest of March 🤘