Nobu Made Me Do It

Ten years ago, I walked into a Japanese restaurant. I had less than a year of Open Table experience and a referral from someone I never met. I learned quickly that if you want a job at Nobu, the phrase "fake it till you make it" are words to live by. I walked out with an audition on the books - a weeklong stint as a reservationist. I made it out alive and soon, I became a hostess.

A hostess gig meant more human interaction and the chance that someone might ask me about the yellowtail sashimi or the difference between wagyu or washu beef. This terrified me. I was the girl who pounded a bag of Cheetos and a Pepsi on my 10-minute break. I was not a foodie by any means. But in true New York City fashion, I was peer pressured into changing my eating habits. After all, who in their right mind eats Cheetos while walking the streets of Tribeca...besides me. So there I was, giving sushi a try, consuming sashimi with the tiniest jalapeño slice I've ever seen. My ten-minute break now consisted of string cheese, a Naked juice and some tic-tacs. My appreciation for food (when I wasn't forced to eat like a model) and the people who are skilled enough to prepare food grew tenfold. 

Today, I'm dairy-free and gluten-free - a decision I made only one month ago, but one I would have never even considered if it weren't for five years at Nobu. I'm now open to trying all sorts of foods, understanding how they break down in my body and respecting the origin of ingredients. 

Sushi is something I've always wanted to learn how to prepare since my Nobu days, and recently I made baby steps in this department. Like any gluten-free newbie, I was fooled by white rice and started to experiment with cauliflower rice. Avocado, cucumber and carrots made this roll vegan - even cooler.

Keep scrolling for the recipe!

• 1 half head of cauliflower
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 3-4 sheets nori
• assorted veggies  (carrots, cucumbers avocado)
• bamboo sushi rolling mat

Start by preparing the cauliflower rice. Cut the cauliflower in half and remove the thick center stem. Cut or break each half into smaller pieces and throw in the food processor. A few pulses is all you need.

Transfer the cauliflower rice to a microwave-safe bowl, add olive oil and cover with plastic wrap. Cook on high for three minutes. Remove from microwave, uncover and set aside.

Slide veggies into thin strips and it's time to make some sushI!

Lay a sheet of nori on the sushi rolling mat and spread the cauliflower rice onto the nori. You want to cover the nori from edge to edge, but leave a one-inch space at one end of the nori without rice. Add your filling, placing them close to the end of the nori where the rice comes all the way to the edge. 

Time to roll, but make sure to have a small bowl or glass of water on hand. Place the sushi mat so that the side of the nori with the filling is facing you. Start to roll by pulling up the mat slightly and tucking the row of filling into the first complete roll. Press down with the mat around this to help make a nice tight roll. Continue rolling with the help of the mat and pressing/tucking as you go to keep the roll tight until you get to the end of the nori sheet with the one-inch section without rice. Dab a bit of water on the end of the nori to help it stick to itself and then complete your final roll.

Using a sharp knife, cut the sushi into pieces and serve with tamari!

Enjoy, my friends!

Nutella Strawberry French Toast Rolls

I'm so excited to be going home for Mother's Day! It's a really special weekend because my entire family will be walking the Race for the Cure. We will be there in support and in honor of the amazing women in our lives who have been affected by breast cancer.

I'm also pumped because I'll have the opportunity to make brunch for everyone post-race! My mother LOVES strawberries - maybe more than me - so this recipe is perfect. Nutella. Strawberry. French. Toast. Rolls. I mean...it's so simple and so delicious. 

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 12 slices white bread (crust off and flattened with rolling pin)
• 6 strawberries, chopped
• Nutella or Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter
• 2 eggs
• 3 tbsp almond milk
• Splash of vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Maple syrup

Spread Nutella along one edge of the bread slice and layer with chopped strawberries. Tightly roll bread and repeat until they're all filled. 

In a shallow bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix the sugar with the cinnamon.

Melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet set over medium heat.

Add the rolls to the egg mixture, turning to coat on all sides, then place them in the pan seam side down. Cook in batches until golden brown, turning them to cook and brown on all sides. Add butter to the pan as needed.

Add the hot rolls from the pan to the cinnamon sugar and roll until completely covered.

Serve with maple syrup.

For more fun and delicious recipes to make for brunch this weekend, click on the images below!

acai bowl

Spinach cheese strata

pumpkin spice doughnuts

Honey Rum Green Tea Cocktail

I've been such a homebody lately and in no mood to drink, but now that the weather is FINALLY warm, my alcohol consumption is on the rise. I'm all about sipping cocktails al fresco and al fresco at home sounds even more amazing for the girl who is too lazy to go anywhere - ha!

Our backyard is just about ready for guests and I can't wait for our first little friends gathering. I usually just ask everyone to bring beer or wine, but I've been wanting to foray into the world of mixology. Making drinks of any kind is definitely new for me, so bear with me as I experiment. For this cocktail, I combined my love of tea with my love of rum. It was pretty refreshing and got a thumbs up from my man, so cheers to that!

Enjoy!

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Cranberry Newton Bars

I've been wanting to make some type of breakfast bar for a while and originally had a more granola-like bar in my mind, but I recently ate a cranberry newton at my favorite cafe and it inspired this recipe. The one I ate had sesame seeds sprinkled on top, but I forgot to add here - oops!

The one thing I have to say about this recipe is that it takes some time -  maybe that's just on my part because I can be a spaz in the kitchen, but I would highly recommend making the dough the night before. The stress of baking can drive you mad!

I hope you enjoy!

For the Filling

• 12 ounces fresh cranberries
• 1/4 cup orange juice - I used the juice of fresh Mandarin oranges
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
• 2 tbsp. unsweetened applesauce
• 1 cup sugar

For the Dough

• 1/2 c. all-purpose unbleached flour
• 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
• 6 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1/8 tsp. baking soda
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• dash of cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. orange zest
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tbsp. orange juice - I used the juice of fresh Mandarin oranges

Sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and set aside.

With a hand mixer, cream together the butter and orange zest on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy. With the mixer still running, add the yolks one at a time.

With the mixer on the lowest speed, add in the sifted flour mixture all at once plus the freshly pressed orange juice, honey and vanilla extract. Continue mixing until everything is incorporated. The dough will be very soft and wet. 

Transfer the dough to a large sheet of plastic wrap. Fold the wrap over the dough, flatten it into a disc, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. You can also do this step the night before. 

Meanwhile, make the filling. Combine the cranberries, applesauce, juice, orange zest and cinnamon in the bowl of a food processor. Transfer to a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. It will thicken more as it cools.

Preheat the oven to 325° and have a parchment lined cookie sheet ready.

Dust the rolling surface heavily with sifted flour to prevent sticking, and dust the surface of the dough generously as well.

With a pin, roll the dough to 1/4” thickness. Frequently lift and move the dough, redusting if needed, to ensure it does not stick and if any places do stick, slide an offset metal spatula between the dough and the counter to loosen and dust the problem area with more flour.

Use a ruler and a knife or pizza cutter to cut the dough into several 3 1/4” wide strips. It is easiest to handle the pieces if you cut these strips into 6” lengths. Gently dust away excess flour with a dry pastry brush.

Down the center of each dough strip, spoon out the cranberry filling. 

Fold one side of the dough up and over the fruit filling, then roll the log over to cover the remaining portion of dough. Repeat this folding process with remaining cookie bars.

Transfer the uncut bars to the prepared cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12 minutes or until the bars have puffed and browned lightly.