Nori Wrapped Tuna

Nori, the seaweed used to wrap sushi rolls, is generally thought to be a one trick pony, if it's even thought of at all. People generally come across it as an addition to a sushi and ramen, but beyond that, one rarely sees use for it. I had bought a package of nori sheets to make sushi awhile back, and after reading a post about a nori crusted steak on Rooftop Gourmet I decided to use it with some fresh tuna steaks. It's surprisingly tasty on it's own. It has a very subtle salty flavor and has a lot of vitamins and other dietary benefits, so it makes for an interesting and healthy addition to a meal.

Lamb for Levi!

Three weeks ago, my sister gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby boy named Levi. She lives out in Colorado, so I flew from NY to go visit and see my little nephew. He is CUTE!! Obviously, I'm biased being that he's my nephew, but he is a really cute little baby.

On top of Levi being born, my father was celebrating his birthday that weekend as well (and my brother in law's birthday was later in the week, December birthdays abound!) As my father and I are accustomed to do, we decided to make a delicious meal in CO to celebrate all of the momentous occasions surrounding our visit. We decided on a nice Colorado boneless leg of lamb with butternut squash risotto and green beans. If you're reading this on Christmas, and you can find a store that's open, you still have time to make this dish!

A Spanish Fiesta

Paella is a really delicious seafood and rice dish that originated in Spain. One of the most interesting aspects of this dish is it's versatility. You can make paella with all different types of seafood and meat, from lobster or cod to ham or chicken. The one constant for all paella dishes is having rice and saffron. Saffron, though expensive to purchase, is a really great seasoning that adds a very unique flavor and a nice yellow coloring to a dish. For my paella, I decided to use shrimp, scallops, calamari, mussels, chicken, and chorizo sausage. I also want to thank my friend Tim for doing a great job as my stand-in food photographer.