I know I promised the first installment of Bittman Thursdays today but honestly, Shaw Girl is STILL sick.  I am thinking spending well over 12 hours out in the cold didn’t help any on Tuesday (but it was soooo worth it).  So due to illness, Bittman Thursdays will henceforth be rechristened “Bittman Mondays” (see the fancy logo…yeah that’s about as much as I could muster).  I actually made the recipe already and even took the photos.  I am just too exhausted to put together my usually (or at least in my mind) witty prose.  So check back in on Monday!  And send soup!

Yes it was freezing; yes the logistics were not the greatest; yes a lot of people even with tickets to the Inauguration didn’t get in at all.  But it was worth every bit of hassle to be a part of history.  Being a part of the huge crowd and witnessing President Obama take the oath of office brought tears to my eyes.  We met some wonderful people and everyone was so excited, joyful and happy.  The video I took wasn’t the best (and I still can’t get the video I took of Obama’s Inauguration speech to upload to YouTube or Facebook) but it is one of my proudest possessions.  I am humbled and honored to have been there.  And I wanted to share these pictures with you.  Whether you agree or not with his political stand, at least marvel at so many people gathering to celebrate our country!

I didn’t do a whole lot of cooking this past week…I was sick for a part of it and then the Inauguration excitement took over the holiday weekend.  But I will be back tomorrow with the first installment of Bittman Thursdays and I’m still on the hunt for DC’s best burger (thank you for all the restaurant suggestions…keep them coming)! Next up, my review of DC Chophouse’s burger.

So as you all know, I live in DC and right about now is one of the most exciting times to live here.  The city is alive with hope and promise and I am moved to tears at the majesty of it all.  Being here at this time in history only makes me love DC even more (and I wasn’t sure I could love a city any more than I loved DC before all of this).

I took a bunch of pictures yesterday while out and about in the city and I wanted to share some of them with you.  It doesn’t matter who you supported in the election…what matters is we all come together and celebrate how far this nation has truly come.  This morning, we’re heading down to the Mall to watch the Inauguration of our 44th President of the United States…and I am honored to be able to say “I was there”.  And don’t worry, I will take TONS of pictures so you guys feel like you were there too…

If only all resolutions were this tasty…whole wheat flour and wheat bran accented with lemon. Enough said…

As is evident from my many, many pancake posts, I have a thing for the fluffy little suckers. And what’s always bothered me is finding a good whole wheat pancake. They always seem to come out dry, flat or rubbery…basically frisbees with syrup. So with that in mind, I decided to alter a favorite pancake recipe to include whole wheat flour and wheat bran. The result? Pancake heaven. These are too good to keep from you guys…so jump right onto this recipe…like now!

Whole Wheat Lemon Buttermilk Pancakes

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup wheat bran or wheat germ

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon sugar

2 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 eggs

1 tablespoon lemon zest

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

In a small bowl, crush the lemon zest into the sugar to create a lemon sugar blend. Sift together the flour, wheat bran, baking powder, baking soda and the lemon infused sugar into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk and lemon juice. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk together until there are no more lumps.

Either spray a frying pan or griddle with Pam or melt a tablespoon of butter in the pan. Pour out enough batter to make a small or medium sized pancake and watch until bubbles form in the batter. Then gently flip the pancake and allow to brown on the other side for about 2 more minutes. Transfer the finished pancake to a plate and repeat the steps with the remaining batter.

I will be honest, I had completely forgotten about Commonwealth, the new gastropub in Columbia Heights. I was invited to the soft opening back in the Summer and was delighted by its take on British food (read: making British food actually taste good). I also really liked the fact that Jamie Leeds and his partner Sandy Lewis vowed to use a lot of fresh, local and in season ingredients in their dishes. But somehow the restaurant fell out of my mind until I was racking my brain for a Sunday brunch option. It was cold outside and a bit gloomy, so what better back drop for brunch than a British inspired pub? The fact that Commonwealth was only two stops away on the Metro didn’t hurt either, so we headed out after dropping off my purchases from the Takoma Park Farmers Market (for more on my market visit, head on over to DC Foodies).

I was actually surprised when we entered the restaurant because the place looked a bit different from my last visit. Where there was once bare walls were now murals and royal crests. The space now had a much more pub type feeling and was very inviting. There wasn’t a wait for a table, so we were seated immediately near the window (hence the great light for the Blackberry photos you see here). Unlike some restaurants who offer brunch, Commonwealth offers you the option of ordering from their regular menu as well as the brunch menu. And like my first visit, our waiter was attentive right from the start…both of these things were good signs in my book. Looking at the menu, I saw there was classic British fare like the Butcher’s Breakfast and Egg in a Hole, as well as a twist on breakfast with a baked pancake served with apples, currants, syrup and creme fraiche. The Boy opted for the Egg in a Hole while I went for the baked pancake.

While waiting for our food to arrive, the waiter brought out a board of bread, butter and jam. I am still not 100% sure what type of jam it was, but it was delicious. The bread was thick cut and had a slightly nutty quality to it (almost as if it were a whole grain bread). Coupled with the fresh butter and jam, the bread was an excellent accompaniment to my tea ,in lovely cups might I add (and I shamelessly asked the waiter the name brand of them…some people collect stamps, I collect tea mugs).

When our food arrived, I was immediately struck by the shear portion sizes. This was a hearty, work horse breakfast being presented before us. The egg in a hole was accompanied by enough home fries to keep one potato farmer in business for a month. My baked pancake was the size of a large dinner plate and the side order of streaky bacon was enough to feed a family of four. This was a LOT of food. I tried the pancake without the syrup first to get a taste of the actual dish without any embellishments. It was a fluffy pancake with an echo of cinnamon, baked to a golden brown. I took another bite, adding a bit of the apple and creme fraiche to it. The creme fraiche was, like the name suggests, very fresh and had a slight hint of sweetness to it. The apples were carmelized, giving them a somewhat smoky flavor that worked well with the coolness of the creme fraiche. I made the unfortunate mistake of adding the syrup to the pancake, something that was completely unnecessary. The flavors of the pancake itself and the toppings are well matched to each other, rendering the syrup useless.

The bacon was unlike most bacon I’ve had in the U.S. but reminded me instantly of the breakfast meats of my childhood in Germany. Thick cut and largely devoid of any fat, the bacon was all business…and cooked to a smoky crispness. If you are used to the thinner cuts of bacon found in most American homes, this bacon will come as a chewy surprise to you. For my personal tastes, I prefer the thick slices of bacon over the thinner, more fat riddled slices that seem more common to the American breakfast.

Now about the egg in a hole…let me start by saying I am not a huge fan of breakfast egg dishes. I am very particular about how my eggs are cooked, thus making it very hard for me to enjoy any egg dish placed before me at a restaurant. Cooked wrong, the taste and texture of eggs instantly kick in my gag reflexes. But the bread looked quite good, all thick and toasty. So I asked for a piece not contaminated by the egg. It was a nicely toasted and buttered sourdough that tasted amazingly fresh. Had it not been for the egg, I would have definitely asked for another bite. I pinched a home fry and found it to be lightly (but not under) seasoned and fried to a nice golden brown. The accompanying ketchup, like most of the condiments on the table, were pointless due to the deft care taken in the kitchen with the spices.

The meal was an absolute hit all around and the attentive service of the wait staff only made it better. I never once felt rushed, yet the waiter always managed to show up right as one of us needed something. Commonwealth has managed to create a great neighborhood joint with a unique twist: excellent food.

Unlike previous year’s resolutions, I decided to get started right away on my Culinary Resolutions for 2009. To the right, you will now see the “Ask Shaw Girl” box inviting readers to send in their cooking questions/dilemmas/cries for help. Hopefully there will actually be enough questions to make “Ask Shaw Girl” a monthly segment. If not, I guess I could get the kitties to offer up their queries (“Why do you make all of these things from scratch and then feed me from that bag you haul out? Where’s our homemade liver treats???”). I’ve also ordered Mark Bittman’s “How to Cook Everything” (Amazon says I’ll have it on January 16th!!!!!) and plan on cooking my way through it in a (hopefully) weekly posting I’ll lovingly refer to as Bittman Thursdays. And most importantly, I’ve slowly started cooking more with whole grains…which brings me to the lovely granola of which this post is about…

I love making granola because it’s not only simple, it’s delicious. It’s fairly easy to whip up a huge batch for the week’s breakfast and you can customize it to suit your tastes. Google “granola recipe” and you’re given hundreds of options, from fruit and nut granolas to totally vegan granolas. My personal favorite is a hearty maple granola that a friend from North Carolina showed me how to make a few years ago. I decided to throw in a few extra heart healthy ingredients for this granola and the result was not only delicious (if I do say so myself), but I’m almost positive my body thanked me.

Hearty Homemade Granola

4 cups rolled oats

1 cup wheat germ

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

2/3 cup chopped walnuts, pecans or almonds

1/3 cup whole flaxseeds (can be omited but I like the crunch of whole flaxseeds)

1/2 cup ground flaxseeds (for the nutrients not digestable from the whole flaxseeds)

2 teaspoons cinammon

1/2 cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 tablespoons canola oil

Preheat oven to 300 degrees

Lightly spray two cookie sheets with canola oil Pam (or a similar canola oil spray) and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the oats, flaxseeds (both whole and ground), wheat germ, coconut and nuts. Sprinkle the mixture with the cinnamon and toss everything to coat. In a small bowl, whisk together the syrup and the vanilla. Add the vanilla syrup to the oat mixture and using a wooden spoon, stir to coat. Add the canola oil and continue stirring until the mixture is well combined. Spread out the granola evenly among the two cookie sheets with a spatula.

Bake for 20 minutes and then rotate the pans in the oven. Using a heat resistant spatula, stir around the granola to ensure even browning. Bake for another 15-25 minutes or until the granola is golden brown. Keep a close eye on the granola to make sure it doesn’t burn.

On Friday night, the Boy and I headed out to Stoney’s Bar & Grill for a quick bite. It was a particularly chilly night (read: fucking cold), so we didn’t want to head too far. Luckily, Stoney’s is only a hop skip and jump away from Shaw in Logan Circle. Stoney’s is the epitome of a neighborhood joint: laid back atmosphere, friendly service and no pretenses of being anything more. This being our first time there, I wasn’t sure whether we just sat down or waited to be seated. A waitress smiled and told us to “sit anywhere”, so we planted ourselves in the dining area. Unlike most bars and grills I’ve been to in DC, the noise level at Stoney’s was low enough to actually be able to carry on a conversation. Our waiter came to the table fairly quickly and took our drink orders before I looked at the menu.

Although I was told Stoney’s had great burgers, I honestly wasn’t expecting much from it. And given that it was more of a tavern than a restaurant, I really didn’t expect anything more than bar food. A quick look at the menu, however, showed a good variety of items: everything from burgers (of course) to kosher franks and beans. Since I had a purpose for being there, I concentrated on the burger options. They have the usual cast of burger characters: the regular burger, a cheeseburger and a bacon cheeseburger. But they also have some different twists on the classic burger: the One Eye Burger, served with Swiss cheese and a fried egg; the Black and Blue burger, a blackened beef patty topped with blue cheese; and a Hamburger Special, a cheeseburger topped with (of all things) ham. But I chose the Texas Burger, which usually consisted of hickory bacon, cheddar cheese, barbecue sauce, grilled onions and coleslaw. However, me not being a fan of coleslaw, I asked the waiter to hold it from my burger.

When the burger arrived, I was a little anxious about its height. I am usually not a fan of burgers that require me to unhinge my jaw to eat, but the Texas Burger did have a lot going on. The bun was rather fluffy and high…and even though this may sound strange, it was a bit shiny. Yes, the bun was shiny…and this concerned me a little. I had forgotten to tell the waiter to hold the lettuce and tomato on my burger, which I usually do. I tend not to like tomatoes on my burgers because they make the bun soggy. However, Stoney’s does something rather interesting. Instead of placing the tomato right next to the bun, they put a layer of lettuce between said tomato and said bun. Because of this, the tomato doesn’t leave the bun a soggy mess. Inspecting the burger further before I ate it, I noticed the bacon wasn’t very crispy. In fact (as you can see from the picture), it was mostly gristle. I was starting to get a bad feeling about the burger. Another concern: the “grilled onions” were not grilled. The onions were thick cut, raw red onions piled onto the burger.

Finally done with my initial visual inspection (and taking pictures of it with my Blackberry – sorry, I forgot my camera), I decided to get down to the business of eating. And I was very pleasantly surprised. Having removed the “grilled onions”, my first taste was of the bun. And this was a pretty good burger bun…fresh tasting with a slight hint of sweetness. Mind you, it was not a sweetened bread, just a bread with a hint of honey (or a similar sweetener). Lightly toasted, the bun was hearty enough to stand up to the many toppings weighing it down. The beef was nicely seasoned, similar to the burger at Trios and you could tell it wasn’t a dethawed, pre-formed patty. Also like Trios, the beef didn’t have a charred taste to it nor was it dry. And unlike a lot of cheeseburgers, the cheddar was sharp enough to stand out in the menagerie of flavors. The combination of the bun and the seasoned beef almost gave the burger a one up on Trios…were it not for the bacon and the overly liberal use of barbecue sauce. The bacon was greasy and basically just fat, adding nothing at all to the burger. And although I liked the tangy flavor of the barbecue sauce, there was a bit too much on the burger.

All in all, this was a pretty good burger, especially considering it was from a neighborhood bar. I’m not ready to say it was better than Trios and I am still not convinced Trios has the best burger in town. Fear not, however, dear readers. My search continues this weekend with a trip to DC Chophouse! Stay tuned!

Cookography put out a call to fellow food bloggers for their Culinary Resolutions for 2009. Me being a band wagon jumper, I sat down and contemplated what I would like to accomplish in 2009 (culinary wise that is…we won’t get into my hippie notion of “finding my center”). So without further ado, I present to you Shaw Girl’s Culinary Resolutions for 2009:

1. Use more whole grains in my baking/cooking. Remember Andrea Beaman from Top Chef? Well she has a book filled with healthy recipes and tips on eating seasonally called The Whole Truth: Eating and Recipe Guide. I bought it a few years back and actually followed it religiously for a while. But then I fell off the wagon…and into a vat of lovely bacon. I’ve not been the same since. I can attest to the difference it makes incorporating more whole grains into one’s diet and I really need to get back to that.
2. Prepare better for the lean produce months of Winter. During the Spring and Summer I was awash in fresh fruits, veggies and herbs. But unlike the very smart squirrel outside my window, I didn’t store any of it for the Winter’s endless time of tubers. So this Spring and Summer, I will plan ahead and freeze berries for the Winter, make and freeze various pestos and study up on other ways to freeze the bounties of Spring and Summer.
3. Better organize my kitchen. At one point I had a very organized kitchen…then I moved into a basement apartment. My lack of space should have made me more organized, but it’s done the exact opposite. Well no more! This year I vow to organize my seemingly endless amounts of kitchen gadgets and supplies to make me a more efficient cook/baker.
4. Try to use more natural light when photographing my creations. I admit that I cook and bake whenever the mood strikes me, not in accordance to natural light availability. Because of this, I am often frustrated with the glossy look to my photos. Custom white balance and a dSLR can only do so much when fighting the tungsten present in most flourescent light. My best photographs are ones in which I shot in natural light. With that in mind, I am going to try to shoot more during the few snippets of good light available to me…in my basement apartment.
5. Start a new blog series. I answer questions all the time about cooking and baking but never think about addressing them on my blog. I have been meaning to open up my blog to questions from readers with various culinary conundrums but I’ve also been meaning to clear off the top shelf in my closet. Sure I’m good for laughs and food porn, but I would also love to help share my love of cooking with others. With that in mind, if you have any culinary questions, email me at adventuresinshaw@gmail.com and I will be more than happy to address them (or at least attempt to address them..or ask more experienced people to guest blog and answer them for you).
6. FINALLY get a copy of Mark Bittman’s “How to Cook Everything”. I have frequently used recipes from this cookbook but don’t actually own it. So for 2009, I’m going to get a copy and cook something from it once a month. Even more daring? I will try to select recipes I’ve never made before or (wait for it) even eaten! This is daring and a little risky but I am going to give it a go!

So there…I’ve put them in the public domain for all to see in hopes that I will actually follow them. I’ve already started using more whole grains (will be sharing a fantastic recipe for granola this week) and I’m reading up on properly freezing pestos and sauces. That’s progress, right?

For more culinary resolutions, check out Pete Bakes, The Bitten Word or Joy the Baker!

It all started when the Boy and I aimlessly wandered into Trio on 17th Street in DC. I wasn’t really expecting much from the joint…it was just a compromise decision because we were both very hungry. I usually don’t eat a lot of red meat (or any meat for that matter…especially if you take a look at my new recipe index), but that night I really, really wanted a burger. I ordered the bacon cheeseburger (because everything tastes better with bacon…and uhmm we all know my unholy love for cheese), thinking I could at least get a burger better than McDonald’s at a local joint. What was placed before me, however, was ohhhhh soooo much more.

The burger was amazing…excellent flavor, perfectly cooked with wonderfully crisp bacon. We were both surprised at the lovely melding of beef, bacon and cheese and really loved the fact that the burger came with mayonnaise on the side (usually I have to ask for mayo when I order a burger…yes, I put mayo on my burger. Don’t judge). I could tell the burger was made from fresh ground beef and not a frozen patty dethawed and thrown on the grill. Lightly seasoned, the patties were thick without being too chewy and although I order my burgers well done, it didn’t have a charred taste to it. In other words, it was fucking fantastic

Since that fateful encounter, I have been mulling over in my mind if Trio could in fact have the best burger in DC. Because of my fierce integrity and loyalty to you the readers, I have opted to sacrifice myself on the alter of beef in search of the best burger in DC. My research has already begun with a New Year’s Day trip to Annie’s Paramount Steak and Seafood with our friends Carmen and Aster. Carmen loves their sliders and several other foodies have extolled the virtues of “Annie’s Famous Burgers”, so I was curious to see how they stacked up. While the burgers were good, they weren’t as good as Trio’s. Blasphemy to some, I know, but this is my search not yours. Like Trio, I could tell the patties were made fresh but there wasn’t as much flavor to them. Had I not had the burgers at Trio first, I would have loved Annie’s burgers. However, the damage had already been done and the bar had been raised.

Someone suggested I consult local food sites, the Post and the Washingtonian to get their advice on the best burgers in DC. But I have decided to pick places at random and on a whim to keep my opinion unbiased. And no, I’m not going to Fuddrucker’s…or any other chain for that matter (and that includes Five Guys…I lived in North Carolina for seven years and still don’t understand the hype surrounding that place). I’m sticking to local restaurants in and around the DC metro area. If you have any suggestions, let me know and I’ll give them a whirl! But next up? Stoney’s Bar and Grill in Logan Circle….stay tuned!

UPDATE:  Based on some suggestions, I am adding Clyde’s, District Chophouse and Palena to my list of burgers to try.  Keep the suggestions coming!  Remember, help me help you!