4th of July Week 2014 @ Hingham Beach house with the Girls

Beach house

4th of July Week with my Girlfriends

Hingham, MA

Our sunset view from one of the balconies.

Because I love them dearly, I decided to cook for my girlfriends on our first evening in the beach house during the week of 4th of July 2014.  I modified a recipe for summer seafood stew that I heard about on NPR just days before.

Once we were over the shock and awe of the beautiful, all white interior (reads intimidating) home on the water that one of my lovely clients loaned me for the week, we hit Trader Joe's and Ralph's Wine & Spirits Shop to prepare for the week of eating, imbibing, and enjoying each others' company to the max!

After a bite at Wahlburgers Hingham

Who can resist a man in a uniform???  Not I!

I purchased all the seafood (mahi, jumbo shrimp, scallops, and steamers), veg (heirloom potatoes, tomatoes, corn, shallots, garlic, summer squash, and asparagus), chicken sausage, and herbs (dill and basil) from Trader Joe's.  The white wine for the base (along with veggie broth) I purchased from Ralph's.  The shopkeeper helped me pick a pretty nice Pinot Grigio for my stew.

My Summer Seafood Stew

PREP

Shallots and purple potato

For the days leading up to 4th of July, we ate and drank extremely well!

Everyone else in the house took turns with breakfasts and grilled dinners.  We laughed and bonded over delicious food and the sound of high tide.  We sunbathed in peace and went out on the water on a neighbor's boat.  It couldn't have been a better week to relax and enjoy your girlfriends!

Here are a few shots of the week:

We focused a lot on breakfast, snacks, booze, and sun!

Trader Joe's Cold Brew Coffee was quite amazing.  I am a bitter-palated girl all the way and eventually drank mine without adding water to the concentrate...just ice and soy creamer!

So, agave syrup turns into candy in iced coffee...this should not be a surprise, but it was pretty

Time in the sun and on the water in a neighbor's boat was priceless!

Bulleit bourbon...it doesn't get more "Merica that that!

My version of "Lunch atop a Skyscraper"- the iconic photo of ironworkers lunching on a steel beam of the unfinished RCA building (now the GE tower) at Rockefeller Center, NY, NY.  Mine is the 'staycation version'.

 The Original

Lunch Atop a Skyscraper

Some of us were too adventurous with combining land and sea...I'd make a fab "paparazzi in a bush"

  
More yummy pics...Grilling on the 4th...Rain? What rain?  Let's just roll out the awning on the lower balcony...

Michelle's prep for the pasta salad,

 

Summer squash with coarse black pepper and smoked Spanish paprika

Final product:  grilled squash "steaks"

Imagine whiskey-soaked grilled peaches!  Never got around to placing them on the grill, but it will go down one of these days!

Finished product: bbq chicken marinated overnight, pasta salad with tuna and summer veggies, grilled salmon, grilled summer squash

Great times with great friends!  Can't wait to do it again!

El Oriental de Cuba, Jamaica Plain, MA

El Oriental de Cuba has been a staple Latin restaurant in Jamaica Plain near Hyde Square for a number of years. Restaurateur, Nobel Garcia moved his family to Jamaica Plain in 1955.  The space is cozy but vibrant in color, music, energy, and fragrance from the open kitchen. There's a palpable family and community vibe with a diverse circle of patrons including the neighborhoods deeply rooted Hispanic residents.

The food here is farm and sea fresh presenting familiar Latin flavors cumin, garlic, pepper, and flecks of cilantro and abundant tomato-based sauces.  

The menu boasts classic Cuban dishes like ropa vieja and the Cuban sandwich, culturally-shared dishes such as pernil asado, and Puerto Rican dishes like mofongo.

Mofongo (Mashed, unripened plaintain with pork rinds.  I've also had it with chicken and shrimp substituted for pork)

 

With typical pork and beef heavy dishes, on this particular night we sampled a couple of seafood dishes and the must have ropa vieja.

Loved their mixed ceviche and the fact that it included mussels, which was a new experience for me as an interesting component.

Mixed ceviche

A few Side dishes:Tostones (twice-fried plantain), crisp plaintain strips,  red beans and rice

Cuban pork tamale

Anyone who knows me personally or reads this blog knows how excited I am when my protein comes with it's head and body intact!  There's no flavor or level of moisture that can be added post cooking to fish, poultry or even pork for that matter, than when cooked intact.  Check out my previous heads-on raves at Suya Joint (Nigerian Restaurant) , a day in Chinatown Boston on a Foodie Tour , and of course prawns should never lose their heads and if you stuff them with delicious leek and liver mousse, like Chef Carey Dobies at Savvor, they're magic!

I've tried the whole snapper fried with tostones, arroz congri (Cuban rice & black beans) and mofongo as take out prior to ever eating there and was happy there are no corners cut when not dining in the restaurant.  

Whole fried red snapper with arroz congri, mofongo, and tostones

You can also order it with garlic sauce as below or coconut.

The meat is so tender, juicy, and abundant, it seems you can eat from the same dish for days!

The ropa vieja (a succulent slow-cooked shredded beef dish) was fantastic.  Its balanced flavors of onion, pepper, tomato, and garlic was made all the more great by the fall apart strips of beef and tender veg.  Even still, my favorite ropa vieja was in Vero Beach, Florida at The Wave.

Check out El Oriental de Cuba on your next visit to JP!

Succulent Sundays (Centre Street Santuary): A Weekly Celebration of My Favorite Personal Food Photography

Centre Street Sanctuary

Past Executive Chef (creator of this dish): 

Tim Hopkins

Jamaica Plain, MA

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