My Melting Pot Birthday Celebration

The Melting Pot is unquestionably one of my favorite restaurants to go. Unfortunately, I don't go very often because I don't find myself having $100+ dollars to spend on a meal.  Thankfully though, my family likes to treat me to dinner at The Melting Pot for my birthday.  


The meal consists of 3-4 courses, depending on what you order.  While the food isn't the most amazing cuisine, the ambiance makes up for it.  While at The Melting Pot, you get an opportunity to linger over your food and interact with those you are dining with.  


On this occasion, we got a cheese course, salad, meat and dessert ( my favorite!).


For the first course, we had Swiss cheese to dip a variety of 'dippers' in.  Dippers include bite size piece of bread, vegetables and Granny Smith apples.  The Granny Smith apples are my favorite dipper; the mix of salty and sweet is really good. 


My second course was a traditional wedge salad, which consists of a 'wedge' of iceberg lettuce topped with bacon and blue cheese dressing.


The third course was the meat course.  I had 6 oz. filet mignon, but I also photographed a family member's sirloin teriyaki.


The final course was the chocolate course.  I decided to use my birthday wish and get all white chocolate.  My family members, for comparison, ordered half milk chocolate and half white chocolate.  


The staff brought my dessert 'dippers' with a birthday candle in a mini piece of cheesecake.  Check out the photos below to see what a dinner at The Melting Pot is like!  

You can't have cheese without wine!  This is just a basic 'by the glass' Pinot Grigio.

For my main course I had filet mignon, asparagus and Portabello mushrooms. 

Will had sirloin teriyaki, which is his favorite.

This is what the meat course looked like before we demolished it.  The meat is cooked on the table in various liquids.  Ours had a white wine base, broth, garlic, mushrooms and a touch of cherry kirsch.

Ying-yang chocolate!  Yum.

The best part of the whole meal, dessert!  The Rice Krsipie treats dipped in chocolate are amazingly good.

This is the table before the havoc of our hunger wrecked the table setting.

I would recommend everyone try fondue at least once in their life.   I probably won't get to go back to The Melting Pot until my birthday next year, but it makes it all that more special.  


If I lived closer to Pittsburgh, The Melting Pot would be my regular Friday or Saturday evening hang out for dessert fondue and cocktails.


Chocolate covered everything,
Caitlin

Chaya, the Mayan miracle plant

On my journey to Mexico during spring break, I had one alterior motive:  find some cool, unique, interesting food that is only in Mexico.

This magical food presented itself as we took the 2.5 hour drive to Chichen Itza. 

After a long, hot (and I mean HOT) morning of touring the beautiful Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza, we cooled off in a nearby cenote.  There are more than 6,000 cenotes (sen-oh-tays) in Yucatan peninsula, Ik Kil is a short drive from Chichen Itza.



A borrowed photo of the Ik Kil cenote near Chichen Itza.  I was unable to take any photos due to risk of my camera going for a swim.



  After a cooling swim in this cenote, we had a chance to sample some authentic Yucatan/Mayan cuisine at the historic hotel Mayaland.  Mayaland is the world's oldest hotel inside an archaeological park, built in 1923 by the Barbachano family, who own and operate it to this day.

While at Mayaland, they had a full buffet of foods including hand made tortillas ( cooked on a hot stone), Mayan pork, churros, papaya as well as margartias.

It was at this buffet that I discovered this 'miracle plant'  chaya. 

I am unsure of how this drink was made.  I believe it was a combonation of water, sugar and chaya leaves.

According to the National Institute of Nutrition in Mexico City, ingesting chaya will:

• Improve blood circulation,
• help digestion,
• improve vision,
• disinflame veins and hemorrhoids,
• help lower cholesterol,
• help reduce weight,
• prevent coughs,
• augment calcium in the bones,
• decongest and disinfect the lungs,
• prevent anemia by replacing iron in the blood,
• improve memory and brain function and
• combat arthritis and diabetes.

A nutritional analysis shows that chaya is richer in iron than spinach, and a powerful source of potassium and calcium. 

For more information on the nutritional and health benefits of chaya, check out this website http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1996/v3-516.html 


While Mexico didn't offer many familiar food options to me, I was obsessed with the fresh fruits that were always available.  I can see why it is that Mexican's drink so many fruit based beverages, the fruit is everywhere!

The rest of my trip to Chichen Itza looked a like this:

A few of the homemade tortillas with Mayan pork.  Rice and beans as the side.

Fresh watermelon and papaya.  There was a lot of papaya available during my trip.  Papaya has many digestive properties due to its enzyme, papain.  You can purchase papain over the counter in chewable form.  Eating papaya fresh is also a way of absorbing this enzyme.

It wouldn't have been a trip to Mexico without a margarita. 

In front of the largest pyramid! Hola from Chichen Itza!

Green plants and Mexican adventures,
Caitlin Eats & Bakes

Sister Bakes' Snickerdoodles

For those who do not know....my younger sister has been hoarding the most perfect snickerdoodle recipe.  This recipe was 'borrowed' from a family member years ago, yet has never returned.  I have attempted to bribe and blackmail her to get a copy this recipe, with little success.

She has sent me photos of these fabulous snickerdoodles being made. 



After the dough has been mixed, prior to be rolled in cinnamon sugar (on the left hand side)  Apparently, another important aspect of making snickerdooles is an iced-coffee from Starbucks. 



Rolled in cinnamon-sugar and ready for baking!

*Ding* cookies are done!



I was going to go work out, but then I was like......is that a plate of snickerdoodles?


One day I will get my hands on this recipe.  It has the perfect balance of soft and crunchy. 

Until then....