Tag: Coolidge corner

  • When Pigs Fly Bread for Inspired Grilled Cheese

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    Grilled Cheese is one of the great, quick meals. But with folks like Roxy’s Gourmet Grilled Cheese food truck around, you need to step up your game if you want to wow your family with your homemade combos. My secret weapon is When Pigs Fly Breads.

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    Some simple cheddar and farm fresh tomatoes became something special when I melted them into a couple of slices of “Red Pepper Hummus with Sesame Seeds & Garlic bread.” 

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    This board of sandwiches disappeared quickly. Another favorite tactic is to make a turkey sandwich on what we call their stuffing bread. You can have Thanksgiving in August with that flavor combo.

    If you have a favorite tip with a When Pigs Fly bread, please share it in the comments below.

    Related Posts:

    When Pigs Fly – Baking with Good Taste and Humor

    When Pigs Fly in Brookline

    Grilled Turkey on Stuffing Bread

    Here are our bread tools of choice. We bought this bread knife two decades ago and still use it daily. Friends who use it are quick to see the difference in this and lesser-quality bread knives. 

    The bread cutting board with crumb box lives on our kitchen counter where it saves us from constantly cleaning up crumbs from the crusty breads we love. 

    The oversized flour sack towels are perfect for wrapping breads to keep them fresh and still crusty. 

     

    Details:

    When Pigs Fly Boston Area Locations:

    378b Highland Avenue (Davis Square), Somerville, MA (map) Phone: (617) 776-0021

    1378A Beacon Street, (Coolidge Corner) Brookline, MA (map) Phone: (617) 232-1077 

    613 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain, MA (map) Phone: (617) 522-4948

    And, our readers in other parts of the country can order at www.sendbread.com (Don’t you love that address?) 

    Words: Penny Cherubino

    Photos: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

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  • Otto Pizza, Coolidge Corner: Our First Look (At This Location)

    We love Otto Pizza and were so happy about the arrival of their first sit-down dining spot in the Boston area, that we rushed over to Brookline on Friday to enjoy a few opening day slices.

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    Mashed potato, bacon, and scallion – Genoa salami, tomato, and scallion.

    Yes, there is a bite out of the "mashed potato, bacon, and scallion" slice. Penny, who normally doesn't eat the crust of her pizza, ripped off a corner and was chomping on it before anyone could grab a photo. That says a lot about the quality of the Otto crust. We think that without great crust, you can't have great pizza. 

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    (Click on the thumbnails to view any photo in the space above.)

    The newest Otto Pizza is one block from the Coolidge Corner stop on the Green line, across from the Coolidge Corner Theatre. (Now isn't that handy?)

    This corner location has large, arched windows that fill the space with light, and high ceilings that make the room seem far bigger than it is. The user-friendly design accomodates customers who want to dine-in with table service, order a slice and drink at the bar, or anyone who prefers to grab a slice and sit along a counter. You can even stand at a giant beam along the Harvard Ave window "people watching" while you eat. 

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    We always have to start with the mashed potato, bacon, and scallion. This is one of many white (meaning without red sauce) pizzas on the menu, and we both love this combination of flavors. Next up was the Genoa salami, tomato, and scallion. And, we finished with the butternut squash, ricotta, and cranberry which we think of as a dessert pizza.

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    A wide choice of slices ready-to-go after a quick heat & crisp in the oven.

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    A nice selection of pizza-friendly beer & wine!

    Best wishes, Otto for great success in this new location. You've given us one more reason to shop Coolidge Corner!

    Related Posts:

    Otto Pizza, Harvard Square and Portland ME

    TerraVino Wines: Places We Shop

    Michael's Deli

    When Pigs Fly Bakery

    Party Favors

    Brookline Farmers' Market

    What's on your Amazon shopping list? Father's Day is coming up! Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

     

    Details:
    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

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    Otto Pizza

    Coolidge Corner

    289 Harvard Street, Brookline MA (map)

    Phone: 617-232-0014

    www.ottopizza.com

    Twitter: @otto_pizza

    Facebook: Otto Pizza

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

  • TerraVino Wines: Places We Shop

    We live a city lifestyle. Our shopping trips are more likely to take us to three or four small shops than to one big box store. Here in Boston, and on the road, we'll share our great shop finds with you. -The BostonZest Team!

    Update: Alas we can't shop here any longer because the store closed a few months later.

    Name: TerraVino Wines

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    Address: 234 Harvard Street, Brookline, MA 02446 (Map & Reviews)

    Phone: 617-232-1180 

    Do you have a roster of small, well-curated shops where you find the best selections? Let us know in the comments below or send us an email. We're always ready to add new resources to our list.

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    Shop Description: Calm and soothing. You can see the thought that was put into designing the shop. What you may not see is that it is also very green– environmentally responsible that is! Here are the details about that aspect of this store.

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    People: Christopher and Rayna Carbone are the owners. Christopher (above) is a Certified Specialist of Wine. But, more important than the letters after his name is his ability to communicate his love of the wines he stocks to customers with any level of wine knowledge. He asks the right questions, tries to figure out what you like, what food you are matching, offers tastes, and refines his recommendations from there. 

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    What makes this shop special:  A very warm welcome. Great wine knowledge. A carefully curated selection. Plus, a great location right off the Green Line in Coolidge Corner. You know you'll be going there soon, for something, so stop by and explore this new shop while you're there. 

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    They say: "We believe in wines that are Real, honestly made, in the most Natural way. We offer wines that we truly believe in, allowing them to express their origins, the talent and commitment of the producers, and the inherent quality of the vintage. We put our dedication to work through our commitment only offering exceptional Natural wines that are sustainable, organic and biodynamic. "

    We Say: Our first visit was like walking into a room filled with old friends. As we circled the selection, we took turns saying, "Look they carry…." followed by the name of a longtime favorite wine, producer, or importer.

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    Nice Touch: They have four reds and four whites available for tasting. This allows you to try wines that might be a bit out of your comfort zone and helps guide the staff to offer better recommendations for you.

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    Regulars say: Richard Auffrey, The Passionate Foodie said, "This is very much a hand sell store where customer service is key. Many of these wines will be unfamiliar to the average consumer, and even the avid wine lover is likely to find plenty of wines they have not tasted before. It is a very intriguing selection of wines, and there were plenty of wines which interested me."

    Gretchen (@MoralBeast) and Urban Wine Dweller wrote: "The brilliant Thierry Triolet Champagne Brut from @terravinowines. Really great stuff. Perfect with sushi." Our thanks go to Gretchen for recommending TerraVino Wines.

    Did you know? Another part of this couple's green and natural lifestyle is a gluten-free, vegetarian diet. 

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    Don't Miss: Their sparkling wine selection on the center table. Here's a Grower Champagne we bought from TerraVino. You know how we love sparkling wines! 

    Phone: 617-232-1180 

    Website: www.terravinowines.com

    Twitter: @TerraVinoWines

    Facebook: Terra Vino Wines

    While you're in the neighborhood: Coolidge Corner is home to many great, local businesses, and a fabulous farmers' market on Thursday afternoons from mid-June to late October. 

    Here are reports on a few of our favorite places in the area:

    Michael's Deli

    When Pigs Fly Bakery

    Party Favors

    Brookline Farmers' Market

    While we love to support local shops, we also hope you'll support us when you shop on Amazon. When you click over to Amazon from one of our links, they put some change in our tip cup. It doesn't cost you anymore, but it helps keep BostonZest coming your way.

    Fine wine glasses that are dishwasher safe? While Ed insists on washing our stems, I can't swear to it but the manufacture says that, the Schott Zwiesel Tritan Crystal Forte Collection can go in the dishwasher. We do put our barware from the same line through the dishwaser all the time. How about this Stemless Snifter?

     

    Details:
    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

    Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.