Roasted Corn & Grilled Peaches

I don't have regular access to an outdoor grill. My life is so hard. However, I do have an oven and a grill pan so I can still make tasty summer produce  treats like roasted corn on the cob and grilled peaches. Observe!

Roasted corn on the cob:

Preheat your oven to 350 and then put your ears of corn (husks still on) on the middle rack. Roast for 40 minutes. Leaving the husks on acts like natures tin foil! As an added bonus, roasting makes it super easy to get all of the corn silk off before serving. Add a little salt, pepper and butter and eat.

Grilled peaches:

Heat your grill pan or grill to medium high. Slice peach or peaches into quarters and brush lightly with canola oil or butter. Sprinkle peaches with cinnamon and then grill about 5 minutes per side. I served mine with blueberry Greek yogurt and it was pretty, pretty, pretty good.

Veggiewich

I made the best veggie sandwich for lunch the other day and again for dinner tonight. I want to eat one everyday forever. I used those weird sandwich thins for bread because I wanted something between a bagel and regular bread, but a pita would work too. And then you wouldn't have to have bought something called "sandwich thins" which kind of makes me feel like the bread people punk'd me. Anyway, I roasted a couple red pepper slices while I was getting my other fixings together and it is totally worth it. Just brush a couple of pepper sections with olive oil and broil 'em in your toaster oven. Spread mustard on one side of your bread and hummus on the other so they become a delicious glue that holds the other ingredients in place. Pile on cucumber slices, pickles, sliced tomato, and cheddar cheese. Slice your sandwich in half and admire it's artistry. Eat like Mr. Fox having french toast, or chew at a normal, relaxed, human pace. Your choice.

Black beans & brownies

I had a huge dilemma the other day. I really wanted a brownie sundae and had the ice cream, but no brownies. I really had to weigh my options and think the situation through. Should I buy a box mix, preferably a cheapy one and use that? Or should I make them from scratch? Or should I go back to school and get my masters, move to a less expensive city, fix up an arts and crafts style bungalow and get a dog? In the end I decided to give this brownie recipe from one of my issues of Martha Stewart Everyday Food a try. Black beans keep the brownies super moist and slightly less bad for you. If instead of making brownies, I had gotten certified for teaching, I would give them an A+.

You’ll need:

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1/4 cup black beans, rinsed, drained, and mashed with a fork until smooth

(on the site it suggests pureeing the beans in a food processor, but I found it was tough to do with such a small amount)

3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (1/2 cup)

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped (1/3 cup)

1 1/3 cups sugar

2 large eggs, plus 1 large egg white

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter or grease a 9-inch square baking pan (I used an 8-inch} and line with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides. In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine butter, bean puree, and chocolates and microwave in 30-second increments, stirring each time, until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes. Use an oven mitt or dishrag to take the bowl out of the oven when you’re checking it-the bowl will be hot! Whisk in sugar, eggs and egg white, and vanilla until smooth. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Stir into chocolate mixture until just combined. Pour batter into pan; smooth top. Bake until top is cracked and a toothpick inserted in center has moist crumbs attached, about 25 minutes (center will seem undercooked but will set further as it cools). I baked mine for about 28 or 29 minutes. Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Using parchment, lift brownie from pan and cut into squares.

Cheap snacks, free museums!

Ah Boston. It’s pretty great living here, right? You don’t need a car to survive and there’s always something to do. It doesn’t come without a price though, and that price is pricey. It’s expensive to live here, people, that’s what I’m trying to say. Here are some of my favorite things to do and places to eat that will make you and what money you actually have happy.






Happy Hour at Redbones
Every weekday from 4-6pm appetizers are half price. If you like hanging out at the downstairs bar better, don’t go until 5. My favorite apps are the nachos, the corn fritters and buffalo shrimp. Sadly, the giant sized cocktails that matched the giant sized portions at Redbones seem to be a thing of the past, so I’d recommend sticking to their beer list for drinks.
55 Chester St in Somerville  

Free Thursdays at the ICA
I’ve certainly seen some interesting work at the ICA, but I think my favorite part of visiting is the building itself. And every Thursday from 5-9pm you can go for free. If you want to double your thriftiness you could pick up a delicious $5 sandwich from the Clover truck at Summer and Atlantic outside of South Station and eat it on the steps of the museum. Nice!
100 Northern Ave in Boston

Clover
Clover Speaking of which, Clover is delicious and cheap. In addition to their fleet of food trucks throughout Boston and Cambridge, they have two brick and mortar locations-one in Harvard Sq and one outside of Inman. It’s true that the Harvard Sq restaurant has kind of a weird atmosphere-sort of like eating in a cafeteria crossed with a stock room crossed with a hospital, but after a couple of bites of your chickpea fritter, you won’t really care.

Cheap Date Night at Myers and Chang
Myers and Chang is one of my favorite places to eat in Boston. The staff is friendly and laid back, the food is amazingly flavorful, the drinks are potent and tasty and they have cheap date night! Every Monday and Tuesday, two people can eat well for $40. Everything I’ve ever had here has been delicious. Try the pork belly buns, the dan dan noodles, any of the vegetables, the mussels and the tiger’s tears.
1145 Washington Street in Boston

Pizza and PBR at the Newtowne Grille
The sign outside of the Newtowne in Porter Sq advertises a large cheese pizza and a pitcher of Bud for $13.95, but that’s just silly. What you really want is a pitcher of PBR and a large cheese pizza, which only runs you $11.95. Most importantly, THE PIZZA IS GOOD. I mean like, surprisingly good. The deal is any large cheese pizza is $4 when you get a pitcher. Even if you’re feeling fancy and get Allagash, you’re still able to do a tasty meal for less than $20.
1945 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge

Free Wednesday Nights at the MFA
Every Wednesday after 4pm admission to the MFA is by voluntary donation. On their website, the suggested donation is $22, which I like to translate into $1. You know, per person I’m going with. I’m not a total jerk. I love the Art of the Americas wing and I love going to the Squealing Pig for a drink afterwards. The prosciutto, fig jam and gorgonzola toastie is pretty great and I like their non mayo-y potato salad. Note that trivia night starts at 8pm, which to me says "get out before 8" but to you might say "stay and play trivia."
465 Huntington Ave in Boston

Beer Punch at Cambridge Common
A thirst quenching blend of lemonade, Sam Summer, and vodka, the Beer Punch at CambridgeCommon is both tasty and a bargain. Two people can get about 4 drinks a piece and spend around $25. You will be happy because you won’t have blown ALL of your money on booze. You will also be happy because you will be drunk. Unless of course you’re an angry or weepy drunk in which case a giant kool-aid shaped pitcher of devil juice is probably not the best choice for you anyway. My bad.
1667 Mass Ave in Cambridge

Free Sunday Mornings at the Harvard Museum of Natural History
If you’ve got a Massachusetts drivers license you can visit the Natural History museum for free every Sunday from 9am ‘til noon. Wednesday afternoons from 3-5pm are also free from September through May. Certain rooms can feel pretty claustrophobic here and I’ve freaked myself out by turning a dark corner and bumping into a case filled with terrifying taxidermied monkeys on more than one occasion. And yet, I keep going back. Museum highlights include: the rocks and minerals hall, live poison dart frogs, the New England Forests room, and the Harvard Mastodon.
26 Oxford St in Cambridge