Boston Pizza Tour and Other Good Eats

reginas pizza north endHappy Cinco de Mayo, everyone!

(For fellow fans of This is the End, Happy Sinkhole de Mayo!)

I hope you’re enjoying some Mexican fare today. I am working on my thesis today and doing a lot of other school work, so no cerveza for me, but there will most probably be a scoop of tres leches ice cream in my near future.

It’s time for another installment of my Good Eats series where I share some some of the great foods I’ve enjoyed but were previously undocumented. This latest one includes a pizza tour in the North End, more cheese, and a few of my latest obsessions.

north endLast month, I went on a pizza tour in the North End (Boston’s Little Italy) with Alaina. The tour is called Boston Pizza Tours and it’s a guided walking tour that lasts a little over two hours. (This was just something we decided to do ourselves, since we both love pizza and the North End – we were not compensated in any way nor given any free tickets or discounts.) We tasted three cheese pizzas, and learned a lot of history about Boston and the North End.

beneventos pizzaernestos pizza north endThe pizzas vary per tour, and on ours we tried: Regina Pizzeria (first picture on top), Benevento’s (which ended up being my favorite slice; no surprise since Benevento’s is one of my go-to restaurants in the North End), and Ernesto’s.

cemetery north end freedom trail north end

bovas north endWe had a really great time at the pizza tour. Our guide, Pat, was very friendly and knowledgeable, and it was fun hearing all sorts of trivia about the North End. We walked through cemeteries and parts of The Freedom Trail, and saw some other hidden gems. My only regret was not stopping at Bova’s Bakery for a slice of napoleon, but I have to make some sacrifices when I eat three slice of pizza in one afternoon.

The Pizza Tour is something I highly recommend – it’s a fun (and filling) way to get to know a historic neighborhood a little better, and also a perfect touristy activity for visiting friends and family. Another local tour I recommend is Boston’s Original Chocolate Tour.

Other tasty treats from recent weeks include:

harvest dessertKey lime tart from Harvest – this was almost too pretty to eat! (*almost*) The creamy tart was served with passion fruit curd, blood orange jelly, shortbread crumbles, and the teeniest tiniest basil marshmallows. Harvest is quickly becoming one of my favorite places for dessert (if you missed my round-up of Top 5 Desserts in Boston, the Taza Chocolate Cremeux there is my best, most chocolate-y dessert). Last Friday my friend Cathy and I bellied up to the bar for champagne and desserts – she got the panna cotta (also delicious) while I ordered this key lime tart, and as soon as we cleaned out plates, we planned another date so we can go back to Harvest soon.

Harvest on Urbanspoon

kerrygold cheeseA surprise shipment from Kerrygold, makers of natural Irish butter and cheese. I always buy Dubliner, which to me tastes like a cross between cheddar and parmesan, but I was certainly happy to try other Kerrygold cheeses. I especially liked the sweet cheddar (Skellig), which made my grilled cheese with orange marmalade taste extra special. I liked the butter, too. Good quality butter is extra silky and creamy, and Kerrygold butter is perfect. The unsalted butter has a higher butterfat content and is wonderful for baking. I used mine in some cookies (recipe coming soon!)

justins almond butterLately I can’t stop eating Justin’s Vanilla Almond Butter. This stuff is insanely good. I’ve been enjoying it on toast with a little bit of strawberry jam, adding a scoop to a smoothie, on top of a baked sweet potato, spreading it on apple slices, or (let’s be honest here) just eating a spoonful while blogging. I’ve tried many different brands and flavors of almond butter and this is the best. If you haven’t tried it yet, don’t blame me if you get addicted, too.

scrambled eggs with goat cheese and mushroomsThis is another one of my favorite simple lunches at home: soft and fluffy scrambled eggs with cheese and veggies. This one has goat cheese and sauteed mushrooms. I like making French-style scrambled eggs: on a sauce pan over low-medium heat, with butter, and whisked constantly until I get a creamy consistency with smaller curds. I add the cooked veggies and cheese at the last minute. Other combinations I like with scrambled eggs are: salsa and jack cheese, asparagus and feta, tomatoes and cheddar, and spinach and feta.

mangoes whole foodsLast but not least, I have been eating a lot of fresh mangoes. While I do like dried mangoes, nothing beats a succulent fresh mango. A few years ago I wrote about how I used to hate mangoes: Now, that doesn’t really sound like a big deal right? But if, like me, you’re from the Philippines,  then that statement is sin. Filipinos are extremely proud of Philippine mangoes (which we consider the best mangoes in the whole world, of course). Bright yellow, soft, lingeringly sweet, the Philippine mango can evoke the hot summer sun and a cool tropical breeze in one bite. It is sweet, so sweet, that if you close your eyes while eating it, and you let the tender flesh linger in your tongue, and you savor the saccharine juice of the fresh fruit, that you can imagine tasting… paradise.

Paradise, indeed. Brought to me by my trusty neighborhood Whole Foods.

Tell me about your latest Good Eats, too!

   

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