Restaurant Review 15 - Victorio's Oyster Bar & Grille

When talking about overcoming my food fears, I can safely tell you for 20+ years of my life I was TERRIFIED of raw meat and seafood.  As I became a more intense foodie, I realized I was going to have to overcome some of my food fears, and this included being able to eat raw meats/fish.  I was close to 30 before I ate raw oysters, tuna, and other seafoods for the 1st time.  I still have trouble eating some foods raw (mostly because of a texture issue, not necessarily because they're raw), but I LOVE raw tuna and oysters!
This brings me to the reason for my post... Victorio's Oyster Bar and Grille.  It's a restaurant that started in Longwood, FL and since has expanded to several locations in the metro Orlando area, including in Apopka, Titusville, and Oviedo.  My buddy Ed recently started working there, and after hearing how delicious the food is from several people, my boyfriend and I ventured over to the Apopka location.
Victorio's has an extensive menu, and if you want a sneak peak check it out at: Victorio's Menu
On my visit we started with... OYSTERS!  I prefer them raw to steamed or fried.  We got a dozen, at a fairly reasonable price of $9.95 (***disclaimer: this price can change according to current market prices).  They were HUGE!  I believe they were in from Louisiana, and I'm not going to lie, I had to cut a couple in half to eat them they were so large.  But they were fresh, cold, sweet, and juicy.  Topped with lemon, cocktail sauce, and horseradish (my condiments of choice) they were divine and a great starter.  Definitely get the oysters if you go, whether you get them raw, steamed, or fried, they are worth it.
For my entree I enjoyed the shrimp alfredo.  It was a huge portion of pasta that could have easily made two or three meals.  I brought some home and had it as my lunch the next day.  There were 6 large shrimp included, and from what I understand the sauce is made from scratch on premises everyday.  My dinner was also accompanied by garlic knots, and if you don't know, I'm a sucker for a good garlic knot.
My date ordered the unlimited fish and chips.  You can eat as much fish and chips as you like for 9.99.  The fish was fresh and flaky and fried to crisp perfection.  I tried the tarter sauce and it was scrumptious.  
Victorio's also has Italian food as well as the seafood options.  I've heard pretty good things about their pizzas and calzones.  I've also seen coupons for the restaurant so if you're on a budget, keep a look out,
For more info about the restaurant and its locations, visit their website at:
Victorio's

We Made Room For Dessert 10 - Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

As I am sure you know by now, I am a big fan of the show The Chew.  Previously I have brought you a recipe from one of the hosts, Clinton Kelly, for delicious chicken.  Today I want to bring you a recipe from another host, Carla Hall (former Top Chef contestant).  And this recipe is for dessert!  They are a delicious, sweet, chocolaty treat.
You can find the original recipe at:  Carla Hall's Crinkle Cookies

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Ingredients:
4 tbs butter
1 egg
1tsp vanilla
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips
1/4 cup powdered sugar (confectioners sugar)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.  Microwave butter and cocoa powder in a bowl together for 45 seconds.  Whisk until smooth and then set aside.
Whisk together egg, brown sugar, white sugar, vanilla, and salt in a bowl until mixture is well-blended.  Gradually add this mixture to the cocoa mixture until completely integrated.
Whisk flour and baking powder together.  Stir in chocolate mixture until fully incorporated.  Fold in chocolate chips.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes, or until dough is firm.
Place powder sugar in a shallow pan.  Form dough in to small balls and roll in powdered sugar.  Place balls on baking sheet and bake for 5-8 minutes.  Allow to cool for 1 minute then transfer to wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
Enjoy!

Simply Sides 5 - Oven Roasted Tomatoes

Summer is the time for tomatoes!  They are out in abundance, and are juicy and fresh.  A lot of people can them at the end of the summer so they can have them all winter long.  I decided to go with another approach, and that is to roast them in the oven.  You know I'm obsessed with roasting this year!  Roasting tomatoes gives them another dimension of flavor.  By caramelizing them a layer of sweetness and depth comes out.  Use them as a side dish with a nice fish or chicken dish.  You can puree them to make sauces or add them to sauces.  They are great toppings for wraps/sandwiches. And they make a nice healthy snack!
Here's how I made them:

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

Ingredients:
3 large tomatoes quartered (don't cut them any smaller or they shrivel up too much)
1 head of garlic, separated into cloves and peeled
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325.
Line a baking sheet with foil.
Place garlic cloves and tomatoes on sheet, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss so tomatoes and garlic are covered with olive oil and spices.
Roast for 1 hour, then check every 10 minutes after that until tomatoes are done.  See picture below as guideline.

Enjoy!

Special Post #5 - Blue Cheese Dressing

Every once in awhile I enjoy making a new sauce.  I recently made a homemade blue cheese dressing and wanted to share the recipe with my readers!

Tangy Blue Cheese
Ingredients:
2 oz blue cheese (I used Treasure Cave Buffalo Blue Wing Cheese)
pinch of sugar
dash of hot sauce 
dash of Worcestershire sauce
2 tbs white vinegar
salt and pepper to taste 
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 sour cream (I only use Breakstone's)
1/2 cup mayo (I only use Hellmann's)

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together and pour into a container (such as a mason jar).  Let sit at least an hour, but preferably overnight to let flavors meld together.  Use on salads, chicken wings, or as a dip for veggies.  Enjoy!

Baked Chimis - Home Cooked Recipe 39

I LOVE Mexican food.  LOVE it!  Salsa, corn tortillas, guacamole... These are a few of my favorite things.  Freshly made salsa with a bit of a kick can brighten any day.  Enchiladas make me smile, quesadillas are a great quick snack, and tacos make for a fun dinner.
I was scanning through Pinterest (big surprise, right?!?) and I came across some interesting recipes for chimichangas.  I usually don't like to go through the hassle of deep frying, so when I saw that some of the recipes were for baking I immediately pinned a couple.
Talk about easy! Making these baked chimichangas does not take a lot of time, and the ingredient list is fairly simple.  Plus, they are easy to customize, and you can use just about any filling you prefer.  I looked for recipes using ground beef (always need new ground beef ideas!), but you could fill yours with chicken, pork, steak, or veggie items.  Really, anything you want!  You could probably even make dessert ones!
Here is the original recipe I used as my basis:  
k99 Recipe Rescue - Baked Beef Chimichangas
Then you'll be able to see from reading my recipe how I customized them for my own ingredients/needs.  I will also give you some ideas for additional fillings I think would be yummy.

Melissa's Baked Chimis
Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef (shredded chicken, pulled pork, roasted veggies, mixed cheeses also make good fillings)
4 large burrito-size flour tortillas
4oz shredded cheddar
2 10oz cans of enchilada sauce (I use Old El Paso, I used both their mild red and their mild green chile, but you could use their spicier versions, only all of one kind, or your other favorite sauce - also, you can omit the sauce and use taco seasoning to flavor the meat)
1 small onion, diced
***Toppings (optional) - lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, sour cream, guacamole, diced onion, lime

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425.  Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray (I put foil down first then spray).
Brown up ground beef and onion (drain if necessary). Let cool for 5 minutes or so.
Heat tortillas in microwave for 30 seconds (this is to soften them and make them more pliable and easy to work with).
Mix 1/2 of the shredded cheese and 1 can of enchilada sauce in to the beef and onions.  
***If you want to try other fillings, here are some of my suggestions.  1) shredded chicken with green chile enchilada sauce, 2) pulled pork with spicy red enchilada sauce, and 3) roasted veggies with monterey jack cheese and taco seasoning***
Spoon 1/4 of the beef mixture on to a torilla.  Fold tortilla; bring the 2 longest sides in to the middle, then fold each end in toward the middle.  Place seam side down on to baking sheet.
Repeat with remaining tortillas.
Spray tops of chimis with cooking spray, then bake for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, pour other can of enchilada sauce over chimis, and top with remaining cheddar.  Bake 5 more minutes.  Remove from oven.
Top with your favorite toppings.

Enjoy!!!!