Il Weekend della Festa del Lavoro: Una Caccia al Tesoro e La Festa di San Antonio di Padova

           It has, amazingly enough, been about a week since I moved into my apartment, and things are finally coming together. We have nearly all our furniture sorted out (well, all except for the kitchen table that'll double as a desk), groceries bought several times over, the television finally set up and I've finally had a chance to reconnect with friends. I've thoroughly enjoyed Allston/Brighton Christmas-- even though I haven't found the right table yet, I found some awesome books and D found some really great stuff for his apartment. 

I'm adding to my apartment library! To the left are books I found on the curb during one of our hunts. They're in perfectly good condition, so I have no idea why someone would just throw them away rather than try to sell them! To the right are an assortment of textbooks for this year (it's going to be a fun time essentially taking three math classes! ;P)and books I've been enjoying in my spare time. 

I've also begun to get out of the pre-semester rut I've fallen into and gotten back to exploring Boston with D and my friends. Midway through last week, D and I went to an awesome outdoor concert at the Hatchshell. We lay on blankets looking at the sky while the Boston Landmark Orchestra played a set commemorating the end of the War of 1812. It was absolutely perfect, and I cannot recommend the Landmark Orchestra's Summer Concert Series more highly, but we unfortunately had to head back to his place early as a thunderstorm decided to cut the concert short. 

    I spent the next few days with D, S, and other friends just relaxing, cooking, and enjoying each other's company, and then yesterday, we decided to head over to the North End for Saint Anthony's Feast. Begun in 1919 by Italian immigrants, La Festa di San Antonio is the largest Italian religious festival in our area. 

    Just a few minutes' walk from the North Station T stop, on Endicott Street, you're greeted by a flower garland which tells you you're officially in the North End. As an Italian-American who grew up going to Little Italy and Brooklyn in New York quite frequently, the garlands that mark the Italian areas never fail to get me excited... And as much as I adore Brooklyn and Little Italy, I have to say I much prefer the North End! 

        As you make your way past the children's attractions, you're greeted by the intoxicating smell of grilling meats and Filippo Berio Olive Oil. Filippo Berio is the brand my parents almost always have in their house, and for me, seeing these stands was a wonderful reminder of my dad's cooking (and cooking lessons) as well as the general feeling of home. 

        
         We unfortunately weren't able to sample the olive oil until later in the day, but when they finally set out another tray of bread and oil, it was an amazing reminder of how satisfying simple things can be. 

Just a little further down the street, we saw this stand selling cannoli filled with gelato, and I. and R. couldn't resist their charms. 

         
         D and I decided to hold out for other dolci (sweets) later on, but don't these things look amazing?!?!?

         
       When we reached the area of the street dedicated to actual food, I couldn't resist the siren call of the frutti di mare for sale. While the guys grabbed polpette infilzate (skewered meatballs, which were reportedly very good), I went for vongole crude (this particular variety was Cherry-Stone) and of course calamari fritti.  The clams were unbelievably good (and cheap!), and the calamari were absolutely perfect. 

        We then made our way towards Prince Street, where I found a bancarella where a father and daughter were selling large cannoli. It certainly wasn't Mike's Pastry, but I will argue that the adorable father-daughter team, size of the pastry, price, and considerably lower traffic made this a much better decision than trying to make my way through throngs of people at Boston's most famous cannoli joint. 

Here's a beauty-shot of my gorgeous cannolo, impressively made by a six-or-so year old girl!

I., meanwhile, opted for a calzone at this amazing bakery, which he was thrilled to find is a permanent installation with an option for delivery. We all had a bite of the most enormous calzone we'd ever seen... And the consensus? Absolutely heavenly!

        D decided to get a Peanut Butter Cup bar from a stand run by two adorable kids, working for what was presumably the same bakery. It was a rich, chocolatey, peanut buttery concoction complete with a chocolate graham-cracker crust... So delicious, but so rich that we had to split the thing among the four of us!

                We then headed over to one of our favorite areas--Paul Revere Mall, a gorgeous brick courtyard near the Paul Revere House and Old North Church. While the Paul Revere Statue in the center of the Mall is definitely a tourist attraction (it's pictured on the front of a lot of Freedom Trail brochures), the Mall is usually fairly empty. Yesterday, however, throngs of people walked through the Mall, buying Lemonade, T-shirts, and looking at artwork for sale. 
       As the guys relaxed on the benches that line the mall, I popped into the Green Cross Pharmacy in search of some Chinotto. Sadly, they didn't carry it, but I ended up conversing with the proprietari, an amazingly sweet and helpful family, opting for San Pellegrino Pompelmo, and carrying out my entire transaction in Italian. The fact that I was able to keep up a conversation in Italian, despite a semester-plus hiatus from Italian courses (simply because my schedule is far too full at the moment), was really exciting, and I was maybe a little too giddy as I rejoined the guys in the Mall. 

        It was an absolutely perfect summer day, so we decided to continue exploring the North End. 

We made our way to another small neighborhood park, which had beautiful stonework, and an even more beautiful view of the Harbor. When we'd finally had our fill, we made our way back towards the festival. 

         
       I'm always floored by the beauty of the neighborhoods in the North End. It's filled with neo-classical architecture, scrolled faux-balconies, window-boxes overflowing with flowers, and just has a very home-y feel. 
        

Despite the tiny size of this house, I think it's absolutely adorable! It's just like a little hobbit hole on the corner--must be really cosy in the winter!

          All along the street, there are reminders of an older world. These window-boxes reminded me a lot of the neighborhoods I saw in Rome, especially near the Scalinata di Spagna. I'm living in the Fenway area now, but I'm already dreaming of the day I'll be able to move into the North End!

        On a whim, I decided to capture the wall of the Copp's Hill Cemetery, and I'm finding this shot rather entrancing. 

        
        After we found a great bathroom shelf (just sitting on the street!), we finally made our way to Prince and Salem Streets, where I stopped into Monica's Mercato for some Italian staples. I'd been there before, sometime last January, but it's recently re-located and expanded both the size of its store and its inventory. They have so many things I used to only be able to get at Eataly in New York, so I was in heaven!

I ended up getting a small filone, a  single-serve Panettone (which I sadly can't picture because it didn't last very long :P), some Sugo all'Arabbiata, some Prosciutto di Parma and Mortadella con Pistacchio, some Fusilli col Buco,  some Spaghetti al Nero di Seppia and some Baci di Perugina, which I ended up giving to the guys.

         Afterwards, we made our way back to our respective apartments and dorms, and I later headed out to catch up with friends and then returned home and cosied up with a cuppa to watch the latest episode of Outlander.

   This weekend isn't over yet, but it's been quite a whirlwind--both stressful and extremely fun. There's a lot of stuff to do for ΦΧθ (we've got a pre-petition meeting coming up, so I'm very excited for that, but there are a lot of pieces to put together before that can happen), and I'm honestly more than a little nervous about balancing classes and applying for jobs/working this semester, as it's going to be a really hard one. But overall, the past couple of days have been the perfect breather, and I couldn't be more excited for what's to come. 

  I hope all of you have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend, and to my fellow students, I wish you the best of luck in the semester ahead!!

Xx
Caroline

Mahrajan and Moving

          I admittedly haven't done too much besides work this summer, but now that I've given my notice and headed back up to Boston, I feel as though my summer vacation, however short it may be, is finally beginning. 

    On Friday morning, I boarded a train bound for Boston armed with two massively overpacked (and yet underpacked) suitcases, a duffle bag for the weekend, and my handbag. A few hours and a taxi ride later, I found myself in the heart of the Fenway area in front of my new apartment. I unfortunately didn't have too much time to hang out with my roommate, as I had to leave almost as soon as I'd come in order to board another train to see my gent and his family for his birthday weekend...

    So yes, things started out quite hectic, but I'm finally settling into what looks like it'll be an amazing week. 

    D's birthday was yesterday, and we all headed up to Mahrajan, a Lebanese Festival held by Our Lady of the Cedars Church in Manchester, NH. I've had some exposure to the Lebanese culture so far, but yesterday was the first time I felt truly immersed... and it was absolutely wonderful. 

   When we finally arrived, I was a little floored by the fact that there was a camel present... I'd never actually seen one in the flesh, so I may or may not have been like a kid on Christmas morning when I actually touched it. 

(Credit for this lovely shot goes to D's mom, who was probably highly amused by my slight freakout. :P)

    At what I will call the actual entrance to the festival, we saw a handful of bancarelle (IT: stands) where merchants sold religious icons, books, and jewellery, woven goods, and all forms of Arabic food and sundries. But before we got too distracted, we made a beeline for the big tent, where we met up with D's extended family and listened to some live music.

     

Arabic Instruments from L to R: Arabic-voiced Keyboard, Oud, Qanun, and Tablah.

    Before long, it was time for lunch, so we headed over to the food tent for some great Arabic food. 

The Kibbeh Platter
Kibbeh (ground beef, bulghur wheat, minced onions, pine nuts), Loubieh, and Rice.  

and a Spinach Fatayar and Majaddara


We didn't end up getting this, but I's food looked too good not to share...

He and A got Spinach and Meat Fatayar and Lamb Shawarma. 

   Alas, the Hommus and Tabbouleh we had escaped the camera, but everything was better than I can even begin to describe. 

   After lunch, L convinced me, A, M, and S to get henna tattoos with her. 

   And then, it was time for dancing.

We were total dorks on the dance floor, but we had so much fun belly dancing and doing the Dabke.

   When we were finally tuckered out, we decided to head into the hosting church for a look. 

Our Lady of the Cedars is a Melkite Church. It's a little bit Catholic, a little bit Orthodox, very cool, and absolutely beautiful. 

                There's iconography absolutely everywhere. 

It's all beautifully painted and is an amazing testament to the growth of the church.

 I'm not the most religious person out there, but there's just something awe-inspiring about being in a church like this. It was absolutely amazing listening to Fr. Thomas talk about about Our Lady of the Cedars, the Melkite Church in general, and the town, and I will contend that the entire building is a work of art.

(Also, I may or may not have fallen in love with these lanterns.)

    After we'd seen what we wanted to see and we'd thanked Fr. Thomas, we went back out to the big tent for farewells and headed back home for cake, The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, and movie night. 

   **For fashion lovers, I'm wearing an H&M dress (sold out, but similar here), Birkenstock Gizeh Sandals (don't knock 'em until you try 'em--they're really comfy), Alex and Ani Bracelets, and a golden honeybee necklace from Etsy (c/o Luxe Lovely Gifts).**

Easy Summer Meals: Loubieh Wa Hommus Bi-Ziet with Quinoa

Sorry about the long hiatus! The last bit of this year and this summer have been positively crazy, but I'm back to blogging since I'll have more time now.

I'm preparing to move, full-time, to my apartment in Boston, so I'm taking the time to enjoy a few last outings with my friends and a few last adventures in my kitchen. 

Lately, I've been on a Lebanese food kick, which has led me to make Sfeeha (Meat Pies, which G and my family so kindly tried and approved of), Hommus and Fatoush (which you'll see above in Tupperware containers, as I knew I'd be eating them for a week)...and today, Loubieh! 

For those of you who aren't familiar with Loubieh, it's a stew made with green beans, olive oil, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and spices. To tonight's pot, I added Ceci for a little extra protein. 

I've adapted the recipe from ones I found on Saveur, Rose Water & Orange Blossoms, The Moveable Feasts, The Old Ways, and a handful of other sites. 

For the Loubieh, you'll need: 

1/4 C Olive Oil (I used Organic EVOO from Costco)

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp minced garlic 

1 medium yellow onion, sliced very thinly

Sea Salt and Black Pepper, to taste

Approx. 2 Tbs. Tomato Paste (I added it to taste)

Smoked Paprika to taste (Simply because I have an insane amount of it in the house)

Lebanese 7 Spice Mix to taste...

         Or you can do what I did and mix together 1 tsp. each 

            -Ground Allspice

            -Black Pepper

            -Cinnamon

            -Nutmeg

            -Ground Ginger

            -Sumac

         And, again, add to taste.

2 lb Green Beans, Trimmed and Cleaned

1 Jar Marinara Sauce (I used Trader Joe's Traditional Marinara, simply because it's very, very plain and natural.)

1 Can Diced Tomatoes

1 15 Oz. Can Ceci (Garbanzo Beans)

1.5 Cups Water, or as much as you need. 

Here's what you do...

Get out an 8-Qt. Saucepan, and put your oil and cumin in. 

Turn on the stove and bring the mixture to medium-high heat, stirring for a minute until you can really smell the cumin. 

Add in your garlic, onion, salt and pepper, and cook until the garlic and onion are lightly browned. This should take 12 minutes or so. 

Add in your tomato paste, paprika, 7 spice mix (or my in-a-pinch modification), and stir the mixture until the tomato paste becomes slightly caramelized. 

Add in the green beans, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, ceci, and as much water as you'll need to bring the mixture to a boil. 

Reduce your heat (to medium-low) and cook until very tender (up to 1 hour). Cover the pot partially and stir every so often.

Then, let the mixture sit for a bit (15 or so minutes) so the flavors will meld together. 

Serve it over rice, quinoa (as I did), or your favorite grain, and enjoy!

This is a pretty simple recipe, and as I've been finding with the Lebanese food I've been making, is amazing even when reheated. 

Have fun!

Xx Caroline