Tinned Fish, Music and Events
Episode 22: I took notes so you didn’t have to….Today we are talking all about tinned fish, music and events with the amazing Corin Ashley from Murray Hill Talent!
If you want to hire Corin or his company for a wedding, event or play music just behind you as you walk down the street…you can! He’s pretty played every where with everyone for every occasion. Find him here and his company here. Follow him on instagram and on Spotify!
Are you looking to hire a band for a wedding or an event? Well we have thoughts on that! Both Corin and I have been in the events business for decades and we are here to give you all of our amazing knowledge.
If you want to save some money with your event, try hosting it either in the off season to your area. Or what about having it during the week or even on a Sunday. We know it’s not ideal but if you’re looking to save some money and maybe even cut down on your guest list these are ways to do it.
If you are debating between having a DJ or band at an event please think about how large the room is. Bands need more room and space at events in the room. Not just for their gear and people but also for the sound. If it’s a smaller venue with a smaller indoor room than you may want to think about having a DJ verse a band.
Try think about how you are seating your guests and where the tables are if they are going to be in front of the band and make sure that they are not in front of the speakers.
Lastly, make sure that hire a band or DJ who has done events before. They really do so much more than just provide music for the event. They help with timing, queuing the pace of the event and honestly can really make or break the event so both us really can’t stress enough to do your homework when you’re hiring someone.
Also you are hiring this band to entertain everyone at the event so when it comes to suggesting music for your event or things you “don’t want played”, you’d be surprised how much fun certain songs can be with a huge crowd. Yes, you hear these songs at every wedding but honestly they are there for a reason and a great band or DJ knows exactly how of the song to play and then how to transition to the next one. But obviously if certain songs or types of music might not be your thing that’s fine. It’s your event, you do you!
Tinned Fish…
So there’s a lot of tinned fish out there and in certain countries its much more popular than others like in Portugal and Spain but you can actually find these incredible things every where in the world. And even some incredible restaurants like the Saltie Girl in Boston on Newbury St. as well as Haley.Henry in Downtown Crossing. The top tinned fish that Corin loves and we both think you should try are Yellowfin Tuna, Skipjack, Tuna Belly, Oysters, Crabmeat, Squid, Mackerel, Herring, Salmon, Sardines, Albacore, Clams, Anchovies, Cockles, Periwinkles, Sprouts, Octopus, Trout and Baby Shrimps. There are some great health benefits associated with tinned fish, here’s a great article explaining more. Now neither one of us are health experts so please contact your health professional and really don’t listen to us, do what’s right for you.
If you want to pick up some of the beautiful tinned little numbers, beyond the ones you can find in your grocery store, check out this online store by the world famous Jose Andres, Formaggio Kitchen and another spot here in Boston, Haley.Henry.
Recipe Ideas For Tinned Fish…
Even this isn’t a tin fish tip, we did talk about it and we are from New England so we feel like we need to pass the lobster gospel on to the masses….
If you want to shuck a lobster this summer and don’t know where to start, check out this how to video.
Smaller is better with lobsters. The bigger ones aren’t nearly as sweet and tender. Do they look cool for a photo opt?! Hell yes they do! But when it comes to flavor and taste, don’t be a size queen and smaller is better. Go with 1.5lbs or 1.25lbs (chicks).
The thing that does matter is hard shell verse soft shell. Hard shell lobsters are found in colder waters so the fall and winter months here in New England and Canada. In the summer we have soft shell lobsters which are easier to breakdown but don’t have nearly as much meat so you’re paying for more shell than lobster. Will I still eat them?! HELL YES I WILL but hard shell are even better in my opinion.
Now go forth and cook some amazing food!!
Beth Fuller is a Boston based Food, Product and Lifestyle Photographer. One of the best ways to support the podcast and Beth is to write a review wherever you listen, like the podcast on your favorite platform and please keep Beth in mind for any photography projects as a gal has got to pay her bills!
If you have a question and want it to be featured on the podcast please email either the question or a voice memo to letsgoonafoodadventure@gmail.com. Are you on instagram? Tag me in your food adventures, @letsgoonafoodadventure. Do you want to work together with food and product photography, drop me a line here!
xoxo
Beth
Fromage
Episode 21: I took notes so you didn’t have to….Today we are talking all about French Cheese with the INCREDIBLE Jennifer Greco from @chezlouloufrance.
You may or may not know this about me but I am a MASSIVE Sex and the City fan. I have been since the beginning. I am old enough to have watched it as the series was unfolding live and pretty much legally able to drink cosmo’s with the gals! So every time I hear the word “Fromage” I think of the Sex and the City episode with Charlotte and Harry when they go out for a romantic dinner in season 6 and get food poisoning and all I can think of is Harry saying, “The F*%&ING FROMAGE!!!”
So you like cheese….or maybe you can’t live without cheese! Like if given the choice between giving up cheese and say anything else you will always choose anything else over cheese! Well my friends than this episode is for you! Jennifer Greco is truly living out her passion about french cheese every day of her life. She’s a teacher, check out her classes here, a writer, tour guide and honestly just an amazing human and someone I am very grateful to now call my friend! She whisked me away to Paris for this episode and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
You had a lot of amazing cheese questions so let’s dive into some of the answers!!!
Cheese 101:
There is a cheese 101 book out there by Steven Jenkins that if you are interested in deep diving more into the world of cheese Jennifer thinks is is a good place to start!
Don’t store your cheese in plastic. Cheese is a living, breathing thing you are consuming and needs to be stored properly in cheese paper like this. It’s inexpensive and totally worth the small investment for better cheese.
When it comes to mold on cheese there is a few rules, and again we are not doctors or food scientist so please use your own judgement. Pink or Black mold is a hard no, throw that out. Blue/Grey, Orange or Reddish mold on cheese…should be ok. If the cheese is a soft cheese then you should probably toss the cheese if it has any kind of mold on it to be on the safe side or talk to the cheese monger and ask them. If you get a little mold on a super hard cheese you can most likely cut it off if it’s not pink or black. But again use your own judgment and when it doubt, THROW IT OUT!
In France you won’t find people putting a ton of extra things on their cheese boards. The star of the show here people is cheese and so the french keep it simple with just the cheese, maybe some great baguette and that’s about it. Once and awhile you might see some dried fruits, a few nuts, maybe some fresh figs or apples (when they are in season), a little honey or maple syrup with certain blues or goat cheeses but honestly simple is best with the french and cheese.
Cheese in France is usually it’s own separate course and served at the end of the meal. Cheese is not usually done during their apéritif. If you are enjoying a happy hour style cocktail in the early evening then you would most likely have olives and potato chips but again you do you. If you love cheese, eat it whenever you want! We won’t judge you at all!
If you are serving cheese at say a cocktail recipe or happy hour with friends and the cheese is the main star Jennifer recommends about 2 oz per person for planning purposes.
Jennifer made a great point about why the French come across as being slightly thinner than those here in the US. Yes their food is richer, yes they use more butter, things with a higher milk fat than we do here in the states but because of that they more often than not eat much less of these richer foods. They find their food to be more satisfying and there for need less of it.
If you’re visiting Paris or France:
First book a tour with Jennifer, louloufrance@gmail.com
Or check out Flat Tire Tours in Paris
Jennifer loves Monumenta in Paris which has contemporary art exhibits
Don’t miss out on strolling through some of the most beautiful cemeteries in the world.
And of course do a night boat tour, yes it’s touristy but it’s also beautiful and you are a tourist. Blend in at other times of the day and enjoy being a tourist for an hour.
Also if you can get out of the city, go to Normandy and Cognac. Jennifer says both are just beautiful!
For French cooking there are many classics to make like Coq au Vin (Red Wine Braised Chicken), Boeuf Bourguignon (Red Wine Braised Beef), Croque Madame, Madelines or a fruit or savory galette. All of those are great but I thought why not try something a little different. Below are a few recipes that may get you started on your French cooking adventure or at least inspire you to try something to step outside your culinary comfort zone.
Savory Dutch Baby (this may not be French but my god do I love it!)
Choux Pastry (which you can stuff with sweet or savory things!)
Pear (or insert a different kind of harder fruit) and Red Wine Caramel Tarte Tatine
Now go forth and cook some amazing food!!
Beth Fuller is a Boston based Food, Product and Lifestyle Photographer. One of the best ways to support the podcast and Beth is to write a review wherever you listen, like the podcast on your favorite platform and please keep Beth in mind for any photography projects as a gal has got to pay her bills!
If you have a question and want it to be featured on the podcast please email either the question or a voice memo to letsgoonafoodadventure@gmail.com. Are you on instagram? Tag me in your food adventures, @letsgoonafoodadventure. Do you want to work together with food and product photography, drop me a line here!
xoxo
Beth
Food, Family and Traveling
Episode 20: I took notes so you didn’t have to….We talked about the following in this episode….Today we are talking all about Food, Family and Traveling with the incredible, Pamela Nedbalek Fraser
You guys have sent in some amazing questions about family friendly topics, from how to travel with kids, to how to get picky kids to eat more of a variety of foods and so much more. Since I don’t have any children beyond a 95lb fur baby I had to enlist a good friend of mine who is an expert at being a parent and someone who I love and adore!
Are you thinking of traveling with kids across country or maybe internationally? No fear Pam is here and recommends the following tips!
First and foremost, DO IT! Do travel with your kids. It’s so important to have this incredible experiences with your kids and it’ll help them want to travel more when they are older and also experiences cultures outside of your own is a wonderful way to open your eyes and understand the people of this magical world so much more.
With the kiddos make sure that they have a great meal before you get on the plane.
Make sure the kiddos have headphones with a jack so they can use it with their little tvs on the plane because even though you have a full iPad of stuff to watch they will want to watch what’s on the plane too.
Hold off on the iPad AS LONG AS YOU CAN before getting on the plane and try waiting as long as you can on the plane before you hand them the iPad.
Using something like Melissa and Doug Watercolor Painting and a watercolor paint brush like this one.
Kids Melatonin can also be a good option but speak to your doctor first before giving your kids anything.
You will be surprised how accommodating people in the world are when it comes to children. You might get some VIP treatment in places you didn’t expect when you have your little ones.
While you are out and about traveling with your kids think about activities and places they might be interested in going too. It doesn’t have to be Disney Land or anything like that but maybe it’s as simple as a bounce park for an hour, a museum that they would be interested in or a cool public outdoor park. But it’s their vacation too and if you do something they would like to do maybe once a day it’ll make your life easier that they will go along with things you want to do.
Trying to get your kids to learn another language:
Youtube kids shows that they love in the language you are trying to teach them, like Peppa the Pig!
Muzzy from the BBC is also a great learning tool as well as fun kids books in the languages you are trying to teach them.
Practice makes perfect. It’s not easy to speak to your kids in a second language when all of the parents don’t speak at a fluent level but keep at it. Your kids will thank you when they are older!
Also having podcasts, audiobooks and songs in the language you are trying to learn or teach your kids on in the background throughout the day. It’s the little things that make a difference
When going out to eat traveling or at home with kids:
Ask your kids what they want to eat before you guys are planning on going out. And get them whatever they want to eat, get them full and then go out to dinner with you and your partner.
Hold off on iPad time until you are at the restaurant
If they are still hungry at the restaurant, get them a snack and a drink they should be all set.
And if at all possible, get a sitter if you can. You and your partner deserve a quiet night out too!
We understand it can be challenging to bring your kids out but it’s a great opportunity to teach them manners in public and with some patience and planning it can be a great experience for everyone.
Picky eaters:
Pam started young with her kids. She would puree what she was eating for her kids to help broaden their tastebuds but again consult your doctor before giving your kids anything that may cause concern.
Pam likes to try a few tacts when getting her kids to try new things…patience is HUGE with this. Ask them many times to keep trying things. They might not like something one day but the next could fall in love with it.
Withhold things until they try it. Whatever they might love or want (i.e. dessert or new toys or iPad time).
Be firm and stay strong. Don’t give in to them and make them something else if possible.
And when in doubt, bribing and threatening is totally acceptable and no judgement on our end!
If your kids are older and picky or might have different dietary requirements than you do then go for those “make your own” style recipes. Maybe it’s tacos, different kinds of rice or salad bowls. People can make their own plates and put what they want on it.
Weeknight dinner for anyone who is busy:
Planning is your friend! Meal planning and meal prepping is a huge time saver.
Your slow cooker, dutch oven and instant pot are your friends here. Anything that can be more of a “set it and forget” style meal is helpful! (see a few ideas below)
Cookbooks like this Meal Prep Skinnytaste cookbook has some great ideas and tips!
Store bought sauces can be your friend too. Pam loves the Trader Joe’s Tikka Masala sauce with some chicken in her slow cooker. Cook some veggies and serve it over rice! Super easy!
If worse comes to worse get take out! Give yourself a break and a night off! You deserve it
Breakfast tips when you don’t have a lot of time:
Make ahead breakfast sandwiches or burritos and put them in the freezer for easy grab and go weekday breakfast.
Buttermilk pancakes batter that is ready to go in the fridge and you could also turn this into waffles in a waffle maker.
Or buttermilk pancakes that you already made, put in the freezer and pop in the toaster when you are ready to eat it.
Yogurt and fruit
Magic Spoon cereal
Make ahead egg cups, quiche or frittata
Turkey bacon, turkey sausage and other types of breakfast meats or non-meat proteins too
Snack ideas:
Hand fruit out all the time in the house
Crackers with peanut butter or another nut butter
Strawberries with chocolate hummus
Deli meat rolled up with a piece of cheese
Or just cheese
Carrots with peanut butter or another nut butter
Food, Food and more Food:
Now go forth and cook some amazing food!!
Beth Fuller is a Boston based Food, Product and Lifestyle Photographer. One of the best ways to support the podcast and Beth is to write a review wherever you listen, like the podcast on your favorite platform and please keep Beth in mind for any photography projects as a gal has got to pay her bills!
If you have a question and want it to be featured on the podcast please email either the question or a voice memo to letsgoonafoodadventure@gmail.com. Are you on instagram? Tag me in your food adventures, @letsgoonafoodadventure. Do you want to work together with food and product photography, drop me a line here!
xoxo
Beth