You know, it’s always funny how no matter where we live and what we have around us, there are always things we desire that just aren’t in our neck of the woods (but we experienced them somewhere else). For me, traveling to places like Slovakia, Greece, Austria, and Hungary made me appreciate smoked cheeses, natural [...]

OK, so the best laid plans never seem to always happen.  I planned on writing this while on vacation, but Zuzana and I were having so much fun that I just lost track of the time, and now we’re home.  My apologies to anyone who felt abandoned. While over in Zuzana’s native Slovakia, I was [...]

One of Zuzana’s biggest desires for this Greece trip was to sample fresh seafood caught from the Mediterranean.  She had fantasies of restaurants all over Greece serving amazing dishes full of flavor and yet light on the stomach.  This fantasy isn’t too far from reality, but a tourist in Athens does need to do their [...]

I want to first start off this post with a short apology.  Before I left for my month-long European adventure, I had planned to post three recipes I learned from my father, but I found myself busy tying up loose ends at work and packing, and thus forgot the notes I had taken.  Rest assured, [...]

With many cuisines I love to explore, the pub grub of the United Kingdom always fascinates me the most.  For years I’ve heard to death of how bland and dull food from Ireland and England always is, but I beg to differ in this culinary culture of the pub.  Perhaps it’s the beer, or the [...]

A burger that packs protein and taste for under 200 calories? You must think I’m joking…but I’m not. When I think of burgers I often think of fatty, greasy beef burgers that are slung in diners, pubs, and fast food joints. When I think of vegetarian burgers I often think of tasteless, unfulfilling gray looking [...]

Most people think of turkey and equate it with mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberries, etc., but turkey is not just for Thanksgiving anymore. I find ground turkey to be a great substitute for beef whether it’s for tacos, chili, and burgers. I feel like turkey is an underrated bird while chicken tends to revel in all its [...]

It’s summer time, and grills all around the world are firing up for the weekly (and for some people daily) return to how our ancestors cooked food…over an open flame. Charcoal, propane, or even wood, herds of cattle will be transformed into delicious meals for the millions. Most favored around the US is the hamburger. [...]

Summertime is all about grilling and chilling. From marinated skirt steak or fresh ahi tuna, salsas accompany my grilled meat, poultry, and seafood. Most people think of primarily vegetable salsas. However, fruit salsas can add flair to a typically standard dish. Fruit salsas are a fusion of onion, garlic, lime juice, tomato, and typically an [...]

In the last EXPLORE article, I went into the delicatessen’s origins in Eastern Europe and how that culture is alive and strong here in America with the Polish and Russian delis all over the country. Now we explore the change many of these delis undertook when they reached New York City, and how the grocery [...]