Tampa Food Mom

I’ve been a huge supporter of a locally owned small businesses, restaurants and farms – way longer than I’ve been a blogger or Instagram poster. Before it was trendy. And way before our economy was disabled by the Coronavirus.

I have always preferred to eat at Mom & Pop restaurants and shop at locally owned kitchen boutiques like The Rolling Pin, my entire adult life. Sometimes we all fall into the trap of going out to a chain restaurant because it’s more convenient or somebody else in our group chose it. I go with the flow, but it’s usually not my first choice.

Somebody posted a list of the local businesses and restaurants they supported throughout the week on the Brandon/ Tampa food group I belong to on Facebook. I thought it was a great idea, so I’m doing that as well.

Wingspread Farm in Valrico. I purchased an order for myself and a friend… We ordered 2 farm fresh bread rounds, a baguette, plum jam, sour cherry jam and allergy blend honey.

Check them out : https://wingspread.farm/

Tasty Venues Italian Bistro in Brandon. I ordered the dinner for 2 to go… It was so hard deciding on what meal to get. But we finally settled on the delicious chicken parmesan, four cheese penne, salad, bread and cream puff dessert! I also ordered Chef Cinzia’s chocolate chip cookies!

Check out her meals to go here: https://www.mytastyvenues.com/

Pizza Haven never disappoints! I ordered the Gator special for my boys and I on Saturday for lunch. It comes with two large one topping pizzas, garlic knots and a 2 liter of soda.

They don’t have a website, I usually call my order in (813-689-0905) but you can find them on the Slice app.

Dixie Signs Inc. was by far my most anticipated local business visit of the entire week! They’re located in Lakeland near the executive airport, not too far a drive from where I live in Valrico. I had emailed Pam a few times earlier in the month, to order my graduating senior two lawn signs to celebrate his accomplishments. The order was accurate, affordable, quick and exceeded my expectations with the final product!

Learn all about them here : http://dixiesignsinc.com/

Since I was in Lakeland to pick up my sign order, I drove a couple extra miles out of my way just to grab my favorite sweet tea from the most unique beverage spot in the Tri-County area, HTea-o in Lakeland!

Y’all must try the sweet almond green tea, it’s fire! Worth the half hour drive from my house!!!

See what other flavor options this locally owned franchise offers here : https://www.hteao.com/https://www.hteao.com/

I’d love to hear where you’ve been spending your local dollars in my comment section! I’d also love some new local recommendations!

Spend consciously!

Rachel

I ordered the most delicious take out for Friday night dinner! And im dying to tell you all about it!!

I browsed the menu I found online https://www.mytastyvenues.com/ and saw several new dinner (for 2) specials to accommodate the new takeout genre (thanks to social distancing). I called my husband to see what tickled his fancy. We floundered between the lasagna, the penne with the bolognese and the chicken parmesan. Decisions decisions!!!

I got in touch with the chef owner, Cinzia and discussed my dinner order late in the morning. There were so many amazing options, she helped narrow down a few things I knew my husband and I would enjoy. I finally decided on the chicken parm, 4 cheese penne and salad. The dinner for 2 also came with bread & cream puffs all for $40! I added an order of her chocolate chip cookies after seeing some photos of them!

I have been chomping at the bit to try Tasty Venues Italian Bistro for several months now! A coworker raved about it and I’ve passed by it for a few years. I thought it was a catering business for some reason (I have no idea why I thought it was such a random business!) but it’s so not!!! It’s an amazing Italian restaurant tucked inside a strip mall store front sharing the dinining space with a quaint gourmet food shop! It’s eclectic and elegant in the same stroke! Such a unique and warm ambiance.

Best Italian food I’ve had in a long time! This was our first time and not our last! Our enormous meal did not disappoint! Dinner for 2 – ended up being dinner for 4! The chicken was so flavorful and tender, the sauce had a robust depth and the penne were creamy and cheesey! I absolutely loved the salad dressing on the fresh greens. My husband devoured the cream puffs, so imagine they were tasty!!

And the piece de resistance…. those gigantic chocolate chip cookies ❤️ HEAVENLY!

They are centrally located in Brandon at 951 E Brandon Blvd, Hwy 60 across from Super Walmart. Plenty of parking in the lot. Give Cinzia a call today to order your next meal, (813) 381-4999 and tell her Rachel sent you!

I’m so glad I finally got to try Tasty Venues Italian Bistro and meet Chef Cinzia!!! I now know there is an authentic Italian restaurant right here in my neighborhood!

Buon Appetito!

Rachel

*I was not paid or compensated for this independent restaurant/ food review. I paid for this meal and experience as any customer would have.

A few days ago I had a huge craving for crunchy sweet nutty biscotti. And there’s an old adage *why go to the grocery store and buy something for a few dollars when you can make it yourself at home for triple the price and more time consuming*?!

I accidentally bought unsalted pistachio nuts from Trader Joe’s last weekend and the recipe Im using called for unsalted pistachio nuts which was perfect except I had to Shell them all by hand. It wasn’t an easy task but I did it!

Ingredients :

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted pistachio nuts
• 1/2 cup almonds
• 3 eggs
• juice from 1/2 of the lemon you just zested
• 1 teaspoon almond extract

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (I always use parchment paper, makes cleanup so easy!)
• In the large bowl, stir together, with a fork, the flour, sugar, lemon zest, baking powder and salt until blended.
• Add the pistachios and almonds and toss throughout the flour mixture.

• In a measuring glass or small bowl, beat together the eggs, lemon juice and almond extract.
• Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredient bowl and stir. The mix will become difficult to mix with your spoon. With very, very clean  hands finish mixing the dough until the dough comes together.

• Place the 2 dough sections on to the cookie sheets. Shape the dough into 2 equal logs. Space them about 3 inches apart. Flatten the logs into 2 inch by 10 inches. The dough will be sticky, I wet my hands so the dough stays on the log and not my hands!
• Place the baking sheet on the center rack of your oven and bake for 40 minutes.
• Place the baking sheet on a wire rack and allow the logs to cool for 15 minutes. (Leave the oven on)

• Cut the logs into 1/2″ slices with a sharp knife.
• Place slices on the baking sheet cut side down. No need to worry about spacing them apart, they won’t spread out anymore at this point.
• Bake the biscotti another 20 minutes.

You can use the base of this recipe and change out the nuts to make a variety of biscotti flavors. Add chocolate chips and a 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder to make a chocolate chip biscotti. With this recipe your options are endless…. feel free to add dried fruit, other nuts you enjoy and any other flavored chips… Enjoy!

Rachel

Fresh bread!

My good friend likes to message me new and unique food finds. A few weeks ago she sent me the link for Wingspread Farms in Valrico. I was intrigued since it was in my hometown and I’d never heard of it.

I browsed through their website, https://wingspread.farm/online-ordering/ and decided to give their homemade bread round and sour cherry jam a try! I messaged my friend and added her items to my order since we all need to limit our trips out of the house right now. She also got a medium bread round, a baguette, plum jam and allergy blend honey.

Since there is limited contact due to the social distancing protocols right now, the farm is closed for tours and browsing but they are still able to take orders over the phone. I called the number on the website and had the pleasure of speaking with Ken, one of the owners. He was super sweet and helpful! After he took my order, he explained the pick up process (as explained online, and the reason I called the day before) my bread would be ready the next day after 11am and he would text me for pick up. Pick up was contactless, he set my order on the clean picnic table on the driveway when I arrived. He was wearing gloves and a mask and chatted with me from afar!

I anticipated the moment I would have the bread in my kitchen and left the butter out to soften. And it did not disappoint! So soft and well risen, as Paul Hollywood would say, it was a good bake!

I can’t wait to have the sour cherry jam and the toasted bread tomorrow!!!

Bon Appetit

Rachel

Edit to add…. For today’s lunch, my homemade chicken salad on Wingspread Farms bread! Scrumptious!

*I was not paid or compensated for this independent review. I paid for my farm stand goods and experience as any customer would have.

I recently made my family my homemade southern style fried chicken tenders for dinner and I had a few requests for the recipe after I posted it on Instagram and Facebook…

So I’m happily sharing my recipe with you!

A tried and true tip as you begin shopping and planning for this recipe…. I always use boneless, skinless, chicken breasts that I cut into tender sized pieces. I find that if I buy chicken tenders from the meat section of the grocery store, it will have the tendon running through it which causes more cleanup and prep of the chicken. And it’s always more expensive than breast. Using already cleaned up chicken breast is a welcomed time saver.

Ingredients:

• neutral oil for frying (I prefer canola oil)
• 4 boneless, skinless, chicken breast, cut into tender sized strips
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp pepper
• 1/2 tbsp cayenne pepper

Directions:

• In a generous sized bowl, mix all of the spices into the flour.
• In another bowl, beat the eggs and the milk.
• In a cast iron skillet, bring the oil temperature to about 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• While the oil is heating up, begin battering your chicken. This is a three-step process and a tried-and-true method that you will want to do anytime you batter and fry anyting. Dredge your chicken in the flour mixture, then move on to the egg mixture, then move back to the flour mixture. Once you’ve dipped it in the flour mixture for the second time, set it aside on a plate as it is now ready to fry.
• Using tongs, carefully lower battered chicken pieces into the oil. Do not crowd the frying pan/ oil. I fry about 5 tenders per batch in my 10′ fry pan.
• If your oil is too hot (smoking), you can lower the temperature. Ideally you want the oil temperature to stay around 350°. If you’re batter darkens too quickly, you’ll end up with raw chicken in the middle and burnt crust, so monitor the temperature closely. This should take about 8 minutes but you can cut into one to gauge your cooking time.

I often serve my fried chicken tenders with my mac and cheese and some green veggies! This week I served it up with cabbage, ham & potatoes, since I had all of the ingredients and time to cook it for a few hours!

Bon Appetit

Rachel

I had such a craving for fresh hot pita and tzatziki this past weekend! And since we are all on a shelter-in-place lock down, it was easier for me to make it than to figure out which of the few Greek restaurants were open for takeout around here. Luckily, I have a container of instant yeast in my refridgerator (thanks to my last trip to The Rolling Pin in Brandon!), so off I went to start my snack!

Pita Ingredients:

• lukewarm water
• 2 tsp active dry yeast or instant yeast (I always use instant!)
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Pita Directions:

• Add 1 cup lukewarm water, yeast and sugar to a large mixing bowl. Stir until yeast and sugar are dissolved. Add 1/2 cup flour and whisk together. Set bowl aside, in warm (not hot) place, I used a warm oven.
• Check yeast mixture after 15 minutes. When the mixture is frothy and bubbling, it is ready for the remaining ingredients.
• Add salt, olive oil and most of the remaining flour (keep about 1/2 cup of the flour for later). Stir until a scrappy ball forms. It will be tough to stir at this point. Dust with a little flour, knead the dough (inside the shallow, wide bowl for easy clean up!) for about a minute.
• Scatter a wooden cutting board with the reserved flour. Gently knead for 2 minutes or so until smooth.
• Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes, then knead again for a 2 more minutes. Add flour as necessary.
• Add a little olive oil to a clean mixing bowl and place the dough ball, wrap with plastic wrap. Place the bowl in a warm place. I like placing it in a warm oven. Leave it for 1 hour or until the dough rises to double its original size.

• Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F and place a baking stone (I use my Pampered Chef pizza stone) or a large cast iron skillet on the middle rack of the oven to heat up.
• Deflate the dough, place back on floured board and divide into 6 – 8 equal pieces (I use a bench scrapper for this step) and shape them into balls. Cover with a towel and leave them for 10 minutes.

• Roll each dough ball with a rolling pin, on the well floured board, into a circle that’s roughly 8″ wide and 1/4″ thick. If the dough starts to bounce back, set it aside to rest for a few more minutes, then continue rolling.
• Working in batches, place your flat pitas directly on the hot baking stone/ skillet. My stone fit 2 pitas at a time. Bake for 2-3 minutes on one side, flip and bake the other side for another 1-2 minutes.  The pita will puff at this point. Remove from the oven and cover the baked pitas with a clean towel while you bake the remaining the pitas.
• Alternatively, you can bake it on the stove top in your cast iron skillet. Do not grease before cooking. You would follow the same baking times and instructions as the above oven directions.

https://www.quicklybobatea.com/#/

I wanted to get back to my roots and the intended nature of this blog. I love sharing my recipes & the food that I make for my family … but this forum was supposed to be a good mix of my own recipes and my community reviews. Being that we’re on “lockdown” and I’m doing a lot more cooking for my family, naturally I had more recipes to share. But I truly miss writing about my enjoyment of going out to eat or a grabbing a coffee or a boba tea and telling all of you about it!

Don’t we all this the communal feeling of eating somebody elses culinary handiwork? Sharing it with a friend while we pour out our heart & soul to them? Escaping the everyday norm and sipping a chai latte at our favorite coffee spot? Eating something so culturally diverse that we have to post about it on Instagram? Craving a taco and remembering your favorite Mexican restaurant has the best chips & queso to compliment their tacos?

I cannot be the only one that misses all of these things!!??

Shortly before the “safe-at-home * social distancing” order was placed on the State of Florida, I had tried a local boba tea spot across from Brandon Regional Hospital. I had originally been driving out to a few placec near USF or all the way out to Riverview, and here was a place 5 minutes from my house and I didn’t even know about it! I was instantly hooked after that first sip!

I had the traditional Milk Tea and added the boba (black tapioca bubbles). That is my favorite Taiwanese boba tea…. I know it’s a little boring but it’s what I truly enjoy and I highly recommend it!! But they also offer several varieties of Milk Tea, Fruit Tea, Rose Tea, Slush and Milk Slushes! They serve food as well, like Grilled Pork Sandwiches and Rice Bowls.

They’re located south of Brandon Blvd at the corner of Parsons Avenue and Oakfield Drive. Order online for carryout or delivery! They’re open now!!! Located @ 218 Oakfield Dr
Brandon, FL 33511 (813) 548-1209

Remember right now it’s so important to support local restaurants, beverage purveyors & food delivery companies!

Now that you’ve read all about this hidden gem on Oakfield Dr. that you didn’t even know was there, nor did you know you were craving, let me share a little bit about how this drink came to be….

According to Wikipedia, Bubble tea (also known as pearl milk tea, bubble milk tea, or boba) is a Taiwanese tea-based drink invented in the 1980s. Recipes contain tea of some kind, flavors of milk, and sugar (optional). Toppings, known as “pearls”, such as chewy tapioca balls (also known as pearls or boba), popping boba, fruit jelly, grass jelly, agar jelly, alovera jelly, sago and puddings are often added. Ice-blended versions are frozen and put into a blender, resulting in a slushy consistency. There are many varieties of the drink with a wide range of flavors. The two most popular varieties are black pearl milk tea and green pearl milk tea.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bubble_tea

Be safe and be kind!

Rachel

*I was not paid or compensated for this independent restaurant review. I paid for my beverage and experience as any customer would have.

If I could come up with two positives out of this whole “Coronavirus-safe-at-home- quarantine”, it would #1 (and most importantly)- spending more quality time with my family and #2- being able to make more elaborate family dinners to share with the ones I love. I’ve been enjoying the process of sharing it with all of you as well! Hopefully you enjoy sharing my recipes with those you love, too!!!

Ingredients:

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts cleaned and cut into strips

salt & pepper, to taste

4 cloves fresh minced garlic

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons olive oil

3/4 cup dry white wine

3/4 cup chicken broth

2 lemon wedges

fresh shaved parmesan

chopped parsley for garnish

lemon wedges for garnish

1 lb angel hair pasta or spaghetti, cooked, to serve over

Directions:

For this recipe I always use a cast iron skillet, it gives the chicken a very nice sear. While I recommended it, you don’t necessarily have to use cast iron, but it gets the best results.

Salt & pepper the chicken, sear it in the butter and olive oil until it’s golden brown.

Lower your cooking heat to medium-low and add your fresh minced garlic. Be fast with this step as you don’t want the garlic to brown/ burn. Add the white wine at this time to deglaze your pan, use a metal spatula to help get those essential brown bits up from the bottom of the pan. If you’re using non-stick or Teflon pans do not use metal on them, do this step with a wooden spoon. Add the chicken stock and squeeze in the two lemon wedges. Simmer for 2 minutes, to burn off the alcohol.

Add your cooked pasta to the pan of chicken and sauce, mix thoroughly with tongs. Add the parmesan and toss so everything is coated evenly.

Plate in a nice sized pasta dish with more parmesan, parsley and lemon wedges to garnish. I also served this entree with fresh cut bakery Italian bread from my local grocery store with Italian seasoned olive oil & butter, fresh broccoli and peas as our healthy component!

For dessert my husband and I whipped up Zeppoles. This was a quick and easy dessert we made from store-bought pizza dough (Publix carries pizza dough in their bakery). We let the dough rise while we ate dinner. Punched it down after an hour, then stretched out the dough on a well floured board and cut into 1-inch squares. Deep-fried the squares in canola oil to golden brown and puffy. Loaded it with powdered sugar and enjoyed it piping hot!

Bon Appetite

Rachel

Since we prepared Passover last night and I posted a recipe on my blog, explaining that we are a diverse religious household, it was only fair that I made a meatless meal for my husband for Good Friday. And my boys will take any excuse for a shrimp dinner!

I won’t pretend we celebrate Good Friday but we needed a dinner option tonight and a food group I follow, on FB, posted several seafood dishes throughout the day. So when I presented the idea of shrimp scampi to my husband for dinner tonight, he took me up on the deal lickety-split!

Ingredients:

• 4 tbsp butter
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined (I recommend U15)
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 c (or less) of shaker parmesan
• Juice of 1/2 fresh lemon
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Few sprigs of chopped fresh parsley
• Your favorite pasta, cooked as the package directions advise

Directions :

In a large skillet, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute the garlic for about about 3 to 4 minutes.

Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. Add them to the pan and cook until they have turned pink, about 2 to 3 minutes each side. Add wine and lemon juice and simmer with the shrimp for a few minutes. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside.

Begin cooking your pasta, I made spaghetti tonight. I would personally recommend linguine but spaghetti won the house vote!

When the pasta is one minute from being done, place it in the pan with the garlicy wine sauce. Tossing well with kitchen tongs, mix in a few more dashes of salt & pepper, the garlic powder and the parmesan.

Plate the pasta in a large serving bowl, put the cooked shrimp on top of the pasta, garnish with the chopped parsley and few lemon wedges.

Bon appetit

Rachel

Tonight is the second Seder for the Jewish holiday, Passover. And in my household, we are very diverse as my husband and I were brought up with two different religious backgrounds. So tonight, we celebrate my Jewish upbringing and share this holiday with our children and all of you!

One of the most popular “dishes” of any Jewish holiday is always the traditional starter, chicken soup. Also affectionately known as “Jewish penicillin”. Once you master this easy soup recipe, you can use it to heal a sick loved one or enjoy with your guests at your next dinner party! It’s that versatile!!

Ingredients :

• 1 whole chicken (cleaned and bag removed from the cavity)
• Several bunches of fresh dill
• 5 carrots, peeled and cut into thick slices
• 3 stalks of celery, large cuts
• 1 lg onion, cleaned, cut in half with the last layer of dried skin on it still
• Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Directions :

Put all of the above ingredients in a large stock pot. Fill the stock pot 3/4 of the way with tap water. Bring to a slow simmer, skim the fat off the top- periodically- and simmer for about 3 hours. Before serving remove all of the chicken skin, meat and bones. You’ll want a clear soup with the cooked vegetables remaining at this point. You can trim the chicken off the bones and serve it in the soup to make it a well rounded and complete meal. Serve with matzo balls and pastina or your favorite chicken soup ingredients.

I do want to stress that I NEVER take shortcuts or time saving steps with my recipe. It is how my Grandma made it and how I learned by watching her. I make it her way still after all these years. No bouillion. No stock from a box. No Instant Pot. No Crockpot. I do it the old fashioned way and it shows from the first slurp!

Happy Passover/ Gut Yontif

Rachel