Monthly Archives: February 2012

A Time to Taste, Financial District, Boston

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A Time to Taste is a relatively new breakfast and sandwich shop located in the Financial District on Devonshire Street in between Winthrop Square and Milk Street. It took over the space once occupied by wrap-centric Roly Poly and is next door to Cafe de Boston.

A Time to Taste is owned and operated by a daughter, Tina, and her mother. They open for breakfast and lunch on weekdays from 7 AM to 4 PM and do catering as well. Their menu features soups, salads, sandwiches, panini, cookies, brownies, turnovers, and more. If a full sandwich at lunch is too much for you, A Time to Taste does offer soups daily which can be bought in a cup or bowl size. Patrons can request half a sandwich and a cup of soup. You can also request half sandwiches only. If you’re a bit adventurous or want variety, you can even request the halves of two different sandwiches.It’s clean, offers booths or stools for you to sit on and chow. Decor is unfussy and no frills, but this is a quick breakfast and lunch place that caters to Boston’s Financial District, so keep that in mind. Signs are clearly posted of the weekly specials as well as a calendar of upcoming specials and tastings. You can sign up for A Time to Taste’s email list in person if you’re interested in upcoming events.

Build Your Own Sandwich- turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato on white $7

Simple, basic, tasty and hits the spot if you’re hungry. The turkey tastes good too. The lettuce is fresh and crunchy, the tomato has flavor which is a good thing.

BLT Sandwich- bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayo on a choice of white or wheat bread $4.99

The key thing here is the bacon. No self-respecting BLT is quality unless the bacon is quality, and A Time to Taste delivers. The bacon is crisp, pleasantly salty and clearly not limp. The bacon has been cooked long enough so that the fat has rendered off to become crunchy. A great BLT overall when you throw in their fresh lettuce and flavorful tomato.

Meatball Panini- meatballs, provolone cheese on ciabatta bread $8.25

This was a solid winner. The meatballs are dense and packed with beef yet well-seasoned. The tomato sauce is slightly sweet, the way I like it and the bread is chewy and crisp after being toasted. What’s not to like?

Chicken Salad- chicken salad, cranberry relish on cranberry pecan bread $8

We got the lunchbox special which consists of the daily sandwich special, a can of soda, chips and a cookie. In this case, it was the chicken salad, which we would have gotten if it wasn’t the special of the day. I must say, this is a very popular sandwich because while waiting in line, there were 4 others who ordered it. The sandwich itself was delicious. The combination of the sweet tangy cranberries and the crunchy nutty buttery pecans in the bread went well with the meaty turkey slathered in cranberry relish.

In the lunchbox special there also was a large chocolate chip cookie, pictured above. These are really good and are made fresh. Initially crunchy at first bite, they are moist and chewy with a good ratio of chocolate to cookie batter.

On the day we visited there also was a dessert tasting which featured the following:

Mini cherry cheesecakes and apricot or strawberry brambles

The cherry cheesecakes were adorable. They were good for about 3 bites which is perfect if you don’t want to eat too much dessert after lunch. The brambles reminded me of something my neighbor would make, homey and comforting. The flaky dense crust on these were almost like a thin shortbread.

Peanut butter cupcakes, banana bread, brownies, and coffee cake

The brownies were an obvious standout item for me out of these 4 choices. They were dense and packed with rich, sweet chocolate. They were cakey and somewhat fudgy at the same time. The coffee cake was also quite good. It had a good ratio of buttery light cake to sweet coffee crumble. My dining companion adored the banana bread.

Our other favorite dessert, besides the chocolate chip cookie, was the housemade congo bar. I know, I know! Some of you will say, well those are cookies too! They’re cookies. They’re blondies. They’re brownies. Whatever you want to call them, they’re good. You get the flavor of chocolate chip cookies and the moist texture of a brownie. We heard raves about it from a good friend that works nearby and can’t help but concur. I’m not sure what recipe Tina uses, but it’s certainly mouth-watering.

Before our visit we had scoped out the 3 mediocre reviews on Yelp, since there were none on Urbanspoon, and were shocked at the mediocre reviews from last year. However, on the other hand, the Boston Globe had a very favorable review of A Time to Taste’s breakfast muesli the other day. It made us a little wary of the food at first to be honest, but our fears have been laid to rest. Don’t be afraid to check it out.

A Time to Taste is fairly new and only been in business for less than six months. We hope to see many more solid lunch options available as their business continues to grow. Perhaps have a seasonal sandwich and salad rotation? We would also like to return to check out the breakfast sandwich options, garden salads, the roast beef sandwich with BBQ sauce and have another congo bar.

For our readers, feel free to tell Tina that you read about A Time to Taste on Urbanspoon. She would love to hear your feedback about her food.

A Time to Taste on Urbanspoon

Chicken Stock

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Our first attempt at chicken stock went well and is a great base to add to other soups (Broccoli and Cheese Soup, Potato and Leek Soup or Roasted Acorn Squash and Apple Soup) and mashed potatoes.

We had leftover bits and bones after de-boning a chicken for chicken under a brick, so we made some stock. This chicken stock is a variant from the original recipe and yields flavorful broth.


Adapted from My Father’s Daughter
  • 1 pound chicken parts, carcass remnants, etc.
  • 3 stalks of celery, including some leaves, chopped
  • 1 medium onion, quartered
  • 1 1/2 tsp coarse salt
  • 3 whole cloves garlic
  • 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 6 cups of water

In a large soup pot, combine all the ingredients. Bring contents to a slow boil uncovered. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove chicken carcass and vegetables. Strain the stock and skim fat and scummy particles off the surface. To make a clear soup, strain through a cheesecloth. Let stock cool and strain into containers to freeze. Keeps 1-2 weeks in fridge, 6 months in the freezer.

Chicken Under A Brick and Mashed Potatoes

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Tender, herb flavored chicken with crispy skin, creamy mash and serrano cheese spinach is a great meal in my book. The chicken under a brick requires marination overnight and the heavy weight of a brick (or in this case pot) makes the skin of the chicken super tender and nicely browned. Be careful when removing the cast iron or pot from the oven. (I made this mistake once and burned the palm of my hand!)

Mark Bittman, New York Times and Fine Cooking

  • 1 whole 3- to 4-pound chicken, trimmed of excess fat, rinsed, dried and split, backbone removed
  • 2 tablespoons fresh minced rosemary
  • 2 tablespoons fresh minced thyme
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 6 cloves peeled and coarsely chopped garlic
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, optional

1. Place the chicken on a cutting board, skin side down, and using your hands, press down hard to make it as flat as possible. Mix together the rosemary leaves, salt, pepper, garlic and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, and rub this all over the chicken. Tuck some of the mixture under the skin as well. If time permits, cover and marinate in the refrigerator for up to a day (even 20 minutes of marinating boosts the flavor).

2. When you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Preheat an ovenproof 12-inch skillet (preferably nonstick) over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes. Press rosemary sprigs, if using, into the skin side of the chicken. Put remaining olive oil in the pan and wait about 30 seconds for it to heat up.

3. Place the chicken in the skillet, skin side down, along with any remaining pieces of rosemary and garlic; weight it with another skillet or pot with water in it (which the technique we did) or with one or two bricks or rocks, wrapped in aluminum foil. The idea is to flatten the chicken by applying weight evenly over its surface.

4. Cook over medium-high to high heat for 15 minutes, then transfer to the oven. Roast for 15 minutes more. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Variations:

– Use different herbs; sage, savory and tarragon are all great. Russians use paprika.
– Use minced shallots instead of garlic.
– Vary the acidic ingredient: balsamic or Sherry vinegar, or lime can all pinch-hit for the lemon, depending upon the other flavors.
– Use clarified butter or a neutral oil, like canola or corn, in place of the olive oil.
– Leave European flavors behind entirely and make the dish Asian, using peanut oil and a mixture of minced garlic, ginger and scallions. Finish the dish with lime and cilantro, or soy sauce and sesame oil.

Rosemary, thyme, garlic and olive oil
Marinate chicken in a freezer bag for minimum 4 hours or overnight
Foil covered bricks works well, but if bricks are not handy, use a large pot filled with water.
Boil 6 large peeled potatoes in salted water for 25 minutes, using a hand blender, add 1/4 cup of milk, salt, pepper and a 1/4 cup of chicken stock.
Chicken Under A Brick with creamy mashed potatoes and serrano cheese spinach.
We paired the chicken with Bavarian State Brewery Weihenstephen and Sam Adam’s Infinium, a beer similar to champagne. The fruity, spicy aroma had a citrus and floral flavor.

Stubb’s Serrano Cheese Spinach

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Stubb’s has some of the best creamed spinach ever eaten. The slight kick of heat from the roasted serrano peppers and garlic and the tang from the apple cider vinegar and cream cheese is a great combination. I could eat this with everything, chicken, ribs, with mac and cheese or by just by itself. Roasting the serrano peppers gives and additional charred flavor. Make sure you wash your hands after handling the seeds and the peppers. Be sure not to touch your eyes! Also using the whipped cream cheese makes the serrano cheese spinach even more fluffy.

Adapted from Stubb’s BBQ, Austin, Texas

  • 20 ounces (2 10 ounce packages of) frozen chopped spinach
  • 8 oz. whipped cream cheese (but can use a cream cheese brick, cut into chunks)
  • 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream or half and half
  • 2 roasted serrano peppers
  • 2 tbsp. minced fresh garlic
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
  • 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar

De-seed and roast serrano peppers in oven for 5 minutes. Chop serrano peppers, cream and garlic in food processor or hand mixer. Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Add spinach; cook and stir over medium-low heat until cream cheese melts and mixture is hot and bubbly.

Stubb’s Bar-B-Q, Downtown, Austin

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Happy Birthday to all the leap year babies out there and a special happy birthday to our little brother who is turning ofiicially 4 today!

Stubb’s Bar-B-Q has great bbq and also is a venue for live music and gospel brunches. Instead of traveling outside of Downtown Austin for bbq, which was just our own laziness, but s a definite must do for our next visit, we checked out Stubb’s. The antlers, Texas cattle landscapes and music posters were a nice touch to put us in a Southern bbq eating kind of mood.

There is a specific process to ordering and eating at Stubb’s. Get in line, order at the bar area and then chose a seat in the outdoor patio area or main dining room. The choices of Stubb’s meat include beef brisket, smoked chicken, pork spare ribs, sausage, turkey breast, chopped beef and pulled pork.

The sides include- fried okra, cole slaw, pinto beans, fries, sweet potato fries, potato salad, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes and serrano cheese spinach. We asked what were the best and our cashier suggested the serrano pepper cheese spinach and potato salad. We had the option to substitute one side for onion rings or small salad for just $1.00 and add homemade cornbread for $.75.

Colorful posters

My Bar-B-Q Plate had pork ribs, sweet potato fries and serrano cheese spinach and a slice of white bread for $11.95. The fries were perfectly crispy on the outside and tender yet slightly sweet on the inside. I thought the pork ribs were good, tender, but the serrano cheese spinach was phenomenal. The flavor of the spinach, pepper and cheese were mouthwatering. I wish I only ordered serrano cheese spinach and is the best spinach we have ever eaten. I would go back to Stubb’s specifically for this side.

The Minor Plate had smoked chicken and beef brisket with serrano cheese spinach and potato salad for $13.95. The spinach and potato salad were suggestions by the staff and the potato salad had a nice flavor.

Both the smoked chicken and brisket were amazing. The beef brisket was super tender, flavorful, juicy and was positively delectable. The smoked chicken had a nice smokey flavor and we gobbled the meats right up. We would be back for to eat the brisket time and time again.

The banana pudding is exactly as claimed, like grandma would make ($3.95). Slices of banana, a few whole Nilla wafers and smooth homemade banana pudding. We still prefer the 1886 Cafe & Bakery’s banana cream cake. This is granny’s version, simple and an old standard.

Stubb's Bar-B-Q on Urbanspoon