Parmesan Chicken and Roasted Romaine Salad

When looking for dinner inspiration, I turn to a lot of places.  Recently, however, Pinterest has been a serious go-to for me.  Good weeknight meals are sometimes tough to find, but when I saw this Parmesan Chicken with Caesar Roasted Romaine on Pinterest, I knew I found a good one.  

Roasted Chicken and Warm Romaine Salad

The Necessities (adapted from Bon Appetit)

An Afternoon in the Souks in Old Town Dubai

When you go to Dubai there are two very different sides - the new and the old.  When a city, like Dubai, is going for the biggest and newest of everything sometimes the original city can get a bit lost in the shadows, especially the big one cast by the Burj Kalifa!  After we landed and got settled in our hotel, we jumped in a cab and headed to the Dubai Creek, and shopped at the Souks (where the gold, textile and spices are).

At the Dubai Creek

Based on the layout of the area, we first checked out the gold souk.  With tax free shopping and people ready to bargin there are deals to be had.  I did not indulge, though, since the gold was just a bit too much, and with this being my first time bargaining I did not bring the prices down (at all!).  It definitely was fun to look at all the inventory, that is for sure.  Some of the jewelry was so beautifully intricate.

Lucca Back Bay

When Nick and I were out at The Hawthorne, we originally were thinking we would head down to Sweet Cheeks BBQ for dinner, but with an hour and a half wait and not being able to put our name in ahead of time, we decided to look elsewhere.  With some help from Open Table, we ended up making last-minute reservations at Lucca Back Bay.

It was my first time at either of one of Boston's Italian staple (the other location is fittingly in the North End).  While we were on time for our reservation, they were running a bit behind, which was to be expected for a Saturday night.  We headed over to the bar, but before we could put a good dent in our wine we were ushered to our table.  With its high ceilings and open space, Lucca Back Bay is not where you go for a quiet dinner, but great for a lively evening out.

Lucca Back Bay

Upon seating, our server greeted us and shortly thereafter brought over some hearty bread and a hummus with olive oil - a perfect way to move us from craft cocktails to dinner.

Around Dubai!

After 10 nights in the Maldives (aka, the definition of paradise), we needed to somehow slowly reenter civilization.  Since we were already on the other-side of the world and had a layover there, it seemed like the perfect idea to extend our layover for two nights and check out Dubai, one of the seven United Arab Emirates.  I have a few upcoming posts that detail a couple of our adventures, but in the meantime, here is a sampling of photos from this fantastic city.

Burj Kalifa, view from our hotel balcony

Around The Palace Hotel

Burj Kalifa at Night

Dancing Fountains!

Around the new downtown area

More Dancing Fountains

Aquarium inside the Dubai Mall (with candy store reflection)

More Aquarium  (and Gap ad reflection)

Pee Wee Hockey Inside of the Mall!

They had every American chain imaginable!  

Dancing Fountains During the Day

En route to the Souk Al Bahar

More Burj Kalifa

Entry to The Palace Old Town

Inside The Palace

Being over in Dubai, we wanted to experience new restaurants that were native to the area.  However, with all the chains, it was actually really hard to do!  For lunch we managed to find Shakespeare and Co (partly because it was right next to our hotel), which is a chain, but native to the area at least!  With simple sandwiches, Shisha (hookahs) and outdoor dining, it was a pretty fun early afternoon!

Shisha!

Dubai has tons to offer and things to see that are completely different from what we see in the States, whether it be old or completely new!

Tri Lamb Dinner Night - Lamb Shank with White Bean and Tomatoes

When Tri Lamb Group contacted me to host another lamb supper club, I jumped at the opportunity.  Making the Lamb Pizza the first time around was such a great success and got a bunch of my friends to actually eat lamb (some for the first time) - exactly what the Lean on Lamb group intended.  Being the lamb lover that I am, I love getting to share it with others while getting more comfortable with making it at home.

Dinner is almost ready!

This time around I invited a small group of girlfriends on a cold night for Braised Lamb Shanks with White Bean and Tomatoes.

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and Cafe G

Back before the trees were green and the weather was warm, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum opened a new wing - a modern glass building with a glass tunnel that connects the original Fenway Court to the new wing, thereby satisfying the legacy and will of the museum's namesake.

Connecting Tunnel

On a relatively cool and rainy day we jumped on the E line (thank goodness that wasn't completely pulled on weekends!) and walked the quick trip to the Museum.  What is quite amazing is how unassuming the original Fenway Court is from the outside - its only upon entering the building to you see the inside out Italian Villa and architectural design Gardner created.

New Wing and Fenway Court