Healthy Habits Kitchen for Easy, Nutritious Meals at Home

I'm lucky (or unlucky?) enough to have plenty of time to cook. When I want to make a complex meal, I can take my time shopping and prepping, chopping and assembling. But I realize that I'm in the minority in this, and that a lot of people struggle just to put something hot on the table every night. And far too often, the things that are easy and quick to make are far from healthy.

Enter Healthy Habits Kitchen in Wellesley. Started in 2007 by Sue Schochet, Healthy Habits Kitchen aims to provide nutritious meals that (mostly) take under 30 minutes to cook. Every meal is packaged to go, with ingredients already portioned so you can just throw them together without too much work. The above meal, Triple M Chicken, took half an hour and almost no thought to make, and I loved every bite.

All of the meals are created by Sue and her team, then sent to a nutritionist for evaluation. Each serving contains under 400 calories, less than 30% fat, and a maximum of 800mg of sodium. The menu changes monthly, so there's always plenty of variety at Healthy Habits Kitchen.

There are a few options for getting meals from Healthy Habits Kitchen. You can schedule an assembly time, where you can assemble a whole meal, using the portion-sized containers in the kitchen. Alternatively, you can just pick up frozen meals for an extra $1 per meal (this is the option that most customers use). Healthy Habits Kitchen is also a part of the Natick farmers market on Saturdays, where you can pick up frozen meals (you can guarantee they'll have what you want by placing an order ahead of time). The kitchen can even be used for small parties, where a group of friends can spend time assembling their meals with each other over BYOB wine and provided snacks.

You know, even if you have enough time to do all your meal planning and prep on your own, it's nice to have someone do the work from time to time and to try new recipes without too much hassle. It's also great to know that you have a whole meal in the freezer that can be put together in no time.

Cheap Eats: Pizzeria Dante

Sometimes a restaurant's decor can be misleading. We've all been to places that seem fancy but serve up mediocre food. In the case of Pizzeria Dante in Coolidge Corner, the exact opposite is true - it may look like any other brightly lit pizzeria, but the food choices prove that there's more going on in the kitchen.

Dante's pizza is built on basics: a chewy dough with just enough crunch on the bottom, a tomatoey tomato sauce, and plenty of cheese that's not too greasy. Unusual toppings only add to the fantastic basics. The Rabe pizza is topped with bitter broccoli rabe, sweet Italian sausage, and roasted red peppers. The LA pizza is covered in thin slices of potato, bacon, and scallions (although why it's named LA is beyond us). And the Bianco features black olives, breaded eggplant slices, and some of the creamiest, sweetest ricotta we've had.

Pizzeria Dante also offers other tasty Italian dishes. This Bostonist really loved their arancini, homemade rice balls mixed with peas, shredded carrots, ground beef, and plenty of mozzarella cheese. For $5, the serving of arancini was huge and filling and sated our need for warm comfort food. To end your meal, try a scoop of gelato, piled high in little tubs next to the register, just like in Italy (or the North End).

Pizzeria Dante is located at 1398 Beacon Street in Brookline. They are open Monday through Saturday, 11:30am to 10pm, and Sunday, noon to 9pm.

Originally published on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Kupel's Bakery

There are plenty of places around to grab a bagel sandwich, but you're often limited in choices or end up paying more than you'd like. At Kupel's (pronounced "couples") just outside Coolidge Corner, though, you have a whole slew of options and get a tasty sandwich for just a couple of bucks.

Kupel's bagels are baked fresh daily in a wide range of flavors. They're chewy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. This Bostonist favors the jalapeno bagel, with just enough spice to make it interesting, but there are so many choices, you could take home a dozen with all different flavors. For the full sandwich experience, choose from a variety of spreads (like honey walnut cream cheese or hummus), fish (like white fish salad or lox) or eggs, and a variety of veggies. You can choose from a number of sandwiches, named mostly for local sports heroes, or pick your own toppings to get exactly what you want.

If you're still hungry after your bagel, pick up a pastry for dessert. The cases are filled with choices, and each type of pastry typically comes in 3 or 4 different flavors. Kupel's hamentashen are so popular, they're made year-round, with fillings like poppy seed and apricot, and they come in two different sizes. This Bostonist loves the flat tires, huge disks of puff pastry with layers of filling (like lemon or chocolate) and sprinkled with coarse sugar, because it's almost impossible to eat one in just one sitting.

Kupel's is located at 421 Harvard Street in Brookline. They are open Sunday-Thursday, 6am-8pm, Friday 6am-7pm, and are closed Saturday. They are also Kosher/Pareve.

Originally published on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Cafe Mami

Porter Exchange, located in Porter Square, is filled with Japanese food stalls and restaurants. Take your pick from noodles and rice bowls to pastries. Cafe Mami is just one of the small stalls where you can get great food for cheap.

With nothing on the menu over $9, Cafe Mami offers hearty meals that will warm you up as our days get colder. The Tokyo Hamburg and the Curry are some of the most popular dishes, and they both come with a side salad and miso soup. For real value, though, go to Cafe Mami during lunch (Monday-Friday, 11:45am-2:00pm) and take advantage of the lunch specials for only $5. The Yaki Don (above), slices of beef and onion in a spicy sauce and served over rice, is just one of the five choices (the others are curry, a milder beef, chicken and egg, and veggie and egg). The ingredients are fresh and delicious, and the meals are satisfying and will keep you full for a while. The lunches come with miso soup to warm you up.

Cafe Mami is tiny, with only 12 seats, so you'll probably be sitting with someone you don't know. If there's no room, you can always order take-out. Cafe Mami is located at 1815 Massachusetts Ave in Porter Square, and their hours are 11:45am-8:45pm. Cash only.



Originally published on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Mr. Crepe

Smack dab in the middle of Davis Square sits Mr. Crepe, a comfortable space with delicious and cheap food. Part coffee shop, part gourmet take out shop, Mr. Crepe offers sweet and savory crepes in traditional and unique flavor combinations.

Simple crepes start at $3.75 and are as big as a dinner plate (and that's after they've been folded). A cheese crepe for $3.85 is like a grilled cheese sandwich, wrapped up for travel, and a crepe with sugar and butter ($3.75) or Nutella ($4.75) is like a cheaper alternative to that vacation in France.

Sure, the specialty crepes on the menu are pricier ($8.25-$9.25), but they're huge and filled with interested ingredients like roasted carrots, merguez sausage, caramelized onions, and shaved fennel. If none of the supercrepes (the French equivalent of the super burrito?) strike your fancy, you can cobble together your own ideal crepe from the long list of ingredients.

Mr. Crepe is located at 51 Davis Square, right next to the Somerville Theatre. They are open weekdays, 7am-11pm, Saturday 8am-11pm, and Sunday 9am-10pm.

Originally published on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Morse Fish Company

Yesterday may have been the official start to Fall, but Bostonist isn't ready to let go of the summer just yet. And what's more summery than eating fried seafood while sitting on plastic chairs? Luckily, the Morse Fish Company in the South End serves up fresh fish in a clam shack-like environment year-round. The nautical decor, highlighted by a giant mural of fishermen on one wall, might even make you feel like you're by the beach.

Morse Fish is part fishmonger and part fast food joint. You can pick up fresh fish to take home and cook or order that same fish cooked for you in just a few minutes. The sandwiches ($5.95-$13.95) and the lunch plates ($5.95-$11.95), both served with french fries, are great deals and big enough to keep you full for quite a while. For fried seafood, the breading is light and doesn't overpower the flavor of the fish itself. You can also order seafood broiled for an extra dollar.

Morse Fish is also great if you're looking for a little seafood snack. Fish cakes ($.75 each), crab cakes ($1.75 each), shrimp cocktail ($5.95), stuffed clams ($2.50 each), and small side orders of things like calamari ($4.95) are priced just right to be a quick bite to tide you over.

Morse Fish Company is located at 1401 Washington Street in the South End. They are open Monday-Thursday, 11am-8pm, Friday 11am-9pm, Saturday 11am-8pm, and Sunday noon-8pm.

Originally published on Bostonist.

Cake, Lexington

Apparently the cupcake trend won't go away. This summer, the Back Bay's Sweet expanded into Harvard Square, and Todd English is about to open a cupcake bakery on Beacon Hill sometime soon. Quietly entering the cupcake market, on the other hand, is Cake in Lexington center.

Cake opened a few weeks ago on the first floor of a Victorian on Mass Ave, and their focus is meant to be on actual cakes, "made from scratch... using only the purest, finest, freshest ingredients available." But they seem to be doing a brisk business with their cupcakes. At $2 a pop, the cupcakes are a reasonable treat - a good size at a good price with delicious flavors.

For the sake of "research" (ah, the lengths I'll go to...), I picked up one of each cupcake when I was on my way to my brother's house for a full day of Beatles' Rock Band (we ended up playing for 8 hours, because the game is THAT awesome). We cut the cupcakes up into little bites so everyone could get a taste, but I still think I OD'd on sugar a little bit.

My favorites were the Midnight Delight (dense fudge cake filled with sweet chocolate pastry cream topped with Ghiradelli cocoa icing), the Berries & Gold (rich gold cake filled with fresh raspberry preserves and a whipped Chambord buttercream), and the Minuteman (moist gold cake layered with strawberries, fresh from Wilson's Farm, light whipped cream and topped with vanilla buttercream). The Midnight Delight was a powerhouse of chocolate - sweet, with just enough bitterness to highlight the cocoa flavor. The cake really was dense and super chocolatey. The Chambord buttercream on the Berries & Gold may have been my favorite aspect of any of the cupcakes. And the Minuteman was just a beautifully composed strawberry shortcake - yum!

I was not so fond of the Karat Topped (pineapple cream cheese icing set on a moist, full-bodied carrot cake), which I thought had way, way too many nuts (but really, I prefer my carrot cake with no nuts at all), and the Red Carpet (smooth, deep red velvet cake laid out with a decadent cream cheese icing), because I always find red velvet cakes to taste fake, no matter where I get it.

In the picture above, clockwise from the top, are the Karat Topped, Red Carpet, The Minuteman, Mocha Express (bittersweet chocolate cake iced in a cappuccino buttercream and garnished with a mocha espresso bean), Berries & Gold, Midnight Delight, Black Tie Affair (sweet vanilla bean cake filled with pastry cream and dressed in ganache), and in the center, chocolate with vanilla buttercream.

The full-sized cakes at Cake seem a little pricy (I think the sign said that they start at $20 for a 4-inch round), but the cupcakes are a fantastic deal at $2. Cake is located at 1628 Mass Ave in Lexington and is open Tuesday-Thursday, 10am-6pm, Friday 10am-8pm, Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday noon-5pm, and closed Monday.

Cheap Eats: Tacos Lupita

It may be a little more out of the way than many taquerias around town, but Tacos Lupita in Somerville definitely has food to warrant the trek. Serving both standard Mexican fare as well as Salvadorean treats, and with nothing on the menu over $9.50 (although most run closer to $5), Tacos Lupita is a delicious cheap eat.

As the name implies, tacos ($2.50 each) are an excellent choice. Two corn tortillas come piled high with ingredients, and the tomatoes, onions, and cilantro on top make every bite burst with fresh flavor. Choose from steak, pork, chicken, or chorizo to top the taco off. The tacos are served with a spicy green salsa, but you can also ask for a mild or a spicy and smoky red salsa. You can also order a taco plate for $8, which includes three tacos as well as rice and beans.

But there's more to the menu than just tacos. Burritos, quesadillas, tortas, gorditas, mulitas... there's plenty to keep your taste buds busy. Bostonist recommends the Salvadorean pupusas, which are like corn-flour pancakes stuffed with cheese and pork and served with a tangy pickled vegetable slaw. While this version is a little on the greasy side, the combination of the cheese, meat, and slaw are phenomenal, and at $2, worth a try.

Tacos Lupita is located at 13 Elm Street in Somerville. They are open from 11am to 9pm daily. It's not a fancy place, so while the weather is still nice, get your order to go and eat in one of the nearby parks.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Zing Pizza

There are plenty of pizza shops out there, vying for your pizza dollars. That's when something a little different can really stand out from the crowd. Zing Pizza in Porter Square offers up that something different with fresh, creative pizzas and salads.

Zing's pizzas are oblong, meaning that slices are not the standard pie shape. Instead, they're long slices that overhang the plate. Zing also only offers five choices at a time, although they offer them all by the slice or whole. How many places offer five choices by the slice?! Slices run $2.50 to $3.50, while whole pizzas are $14.50 to $19.50. Some, like the John Dough and the Holy Pepperoni, are always available, but the other flavor combinations change as they see fit. This Bostonist really enjoyed the Dracula's Dilemma (packed with, yep, garlic, as well as mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, caramelized onions, and pomegranate syrup), but other intriguing combos include the Blue October (with butternut squash sauce, spinach, and blue cheese) and the You Say Potato (with rosemary red bliss potatoes, sun-dried tomato pesto, and ricotta). You can always make your own pizza, too, but they only have the ingredients needed to make their five choices, so you'll have to stick to those ingredients. And for those with a gluten-intolerance, Zing also offers gluten-free dough (available for whole pies only) from local company Glutenus Minimus.

Zing Pizza is a tiny space facing Mass Ave, but it's kept cheery and bright thanks to bright walls, tables, and chairs, and plenty of sunlight. Zing is open Monday through Wednesday, 11am to 9pm, Thursday through Saturday, 11am to 10pm, and Sunday, noon to 9pm. They are located at 1925 Massachusetts Avenue, right next to the Dunkin Donuts.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Moody's Falafel Palace

Moody's Falafel Palace may not look like much - cramped quarters with little sitting room in a building that looks like a shack - but the food more than makes up for the lack of ambiance. Whether you're looking for a fresh lunch or a late night meal to sop up all that excess booze, Moody's will deliver your food cheap.

As the name suggests, Moody's specializes in Middle Eastern fare. Roll-ups cost between $3.99 and $4.99 and are the perfect meal to eat on the go. This Bostonist favors the lamb shawarma (below), filled with lettuce, onion, tomato, pickles, tahini sauce, and crispy and juicy shavings of meat. Plates, heaping meals that are sure to fill you up, cost between $5.75 and $8.99.

On a hot summer day, though, there's almost nothing better than a salad that is both refreshing and filling (often a tall order). Bostonist recommends the Mazza salad (top). It's a heavenly mixture of freshly-fried pita chips, crunchy cucumbers, soft tomatoes, and plenty of flavor, thanks to a boatload of herbs and a lemony dressing. The serving is huge, and for only $4.75, is an excellent value.

Moody's Falafel Palace is located at 25 Central Square, about half a block down Western Ave from Mass Ave. They are open daily from 11am to midnight and extend their hours until 3am on Friday and Saturday. There's a minimum credit charge of $15, so make sure to bring some cash (unless, of course, you want to pay for everyone in there). And because there are only a few people working there, it may take some time to get your food - you can always order a slice of baklava to tide you over!

Originally published on Bostonist.

Denian's, Lexington

I have officially left the semi-urban landscape of Brookline (where the T stopped right in front of my building) for the more suburban town of Lexington. I'd gotten so used to have amazing food within walking distance, and now... well, at least I have a car.

That being said, I was very happy to notice a new restaurant that had opened in Lexington. Denian's is a small take out shop that focuses on Chinese buns, located right next to the Royal Pastry Shop on Marrett Road. It's strictly for take-out - the only seats are a few along a small bar on the wall (although there is room for a couple of tables, which would definitely help the place out).

Denian's offers seven different types of buns - pork, beef, chicken, green veggie, carrot, sweet bean paste, and taro paste - and you can buy them in quantities of 1, 3, 4, 6, or 12. I opted for three, trying one each of the pork, chicken, and carrot.

The dough itself was light and a little fluffy. Each bun holds a decent amount of filling, which matches up with the amount of dough very well. As for the fillings, the ones I tried ranged from fine to very very tasty. The pork was pretty standard, much like you'd find in any potsticker - it definitely didn't wow me. The chicken (above), on the other hand, was delicious. There was lots of ginger and scallions in there, making each bite flavorful. My favorite of the three, however, was the carrot (top) - both sweet and savory, and wonderfully spiced with five-spice powder and a touch of sesame oil. The chicken and the carrot were both a little unusual, and the flavors were very well balanced.

My three buns made for a decent-sized lunch, but when I saw the scallion pancakes on the menu, I had no choice but to order them. They are one of my favorite foods, and although I make them at home, I prefer to order them out. Sadly, this version wasn't fantastic. They were a little on the chewy side, but that may have been because a miscommunication left them steaming in their take-out box a little too long. That being said, the flavor was good and I would definitely give them a try again.

Denian's also offers noodle soups and bubble tea. Since it's right down the street from Lexington High, I'm sure it will get a good deal of business from students once school starts back up in the fall. The bubble tea flavors are all powder, though, so if that's not your thing (I think the powders are gross), you've been warned.

Cheap Eats: Sofra Bakery

In a quiet spot just off the main road, with a menu that deviates from the typical fare, Sofra Bakery in Cambridge offers a wide variety of tantalizing eastern Mediterranean flavors. With so many choices, you're sure to find something you like.

The shining glory of the bakery is the mezze bar, which takes up a good portion of the area next to the register. Mezze (or often meze) is a spread of appetizers - and this is definitely a spread. Choose one (with crackers) for $3 or five (with bread) for $9. The whipped feta with sweet and hot pepper (a mainstay at Oleana and something you can make at home) is creamy and sweet, with not too much kick. The spicy Moroccan carrot salad is addictive, packed with flavor from harissa, ginger, olive oil and vinegar. Be adventurous - with so many options, you have plenty of room to try something you might normally order. But make sure to order an extra piece of bread - you don't get nearly enough.

If sandwiches are more your deal, try the stuffed flatbreads. Think of them as a Mediterranean burrito - a griddled flatbread wrapped around inventive and creative fillings, such as eggplant, leeks, and goat cheese, or chick pea, potato, labne, and za'atar. The sausage flatbread, with cumin, orange, olives, and feta is this Bostonist's favorite, packed with ground sausage and more flavor than you'd think the wrapper could handle.

And of course, don't forget that Sofra is a bakery above everything else. A variety of delicious treats are perched next to the register, and it's hard not to order one (or twelve) as you order your meal.

Sofra Bakery is located at 1 Belmont Street in Cambridge. They are open Monday-Friday, 8am-8pm, Saturday 8am-6pm, and Sunday 8am-3pm. It can get really crowded inside, so be prepared to visit at off hours or get your food to go.

Originally published on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Gourmet Dumpling House

This past weekend, Chinatown was abuzz with preparations for Chinese New Year, which begins today. Tables were set up on the sidewalks, selling flowers and paper lanterns, the line to get into Eastern Live Poultry was down the block, and large family groups were grabbing tables at the Gourmet Dumpling House.

Gourmet Dumpling House offers a wide array of homemade Chinese dishes, but as the name implies, the dumplings (and buns) are a particular strong point. The Mini Steamed Buns with Pork ($6.25) are also known as soup dumplings (or Xiao Long Bao, or just XLB), and are filled with a mixture of pork, vegetables, and yes, soup. Be forewarned that eating soup dumplings is not the neatest of processes, nor the quietest, as you're bound to end up with soup on your chin and clothes as you slurp it out of the dumplings. The broth is rich and flavorful, and the filling and dough make this a filling and substantial dish. Another wonder on the menu is the Scallion Pancakes ($3.95) - every Chinese restaurant makes them, but these are near perfection. Gourmet Dumpling House has managed to produce the lightest and flakiest scallion pancake that this Bostonist has ever seen. For more cheap eats, visit any day of the week before 4pm for the lunch specials, all priced at $7.25, for a full plate of food, including rice and soup.

Gourmet Dumpling House is located at 52 Beach Street, between Harrison Ave and Oxford St. They will be closed today and tomorrow to celebrate the New Year, but will be open again on Wednesday. Chinatown will be celebrating the New Year on Saturday with a lion dance parade, so if you're in the neighborhood, give Gourmet Dumpling House a try.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: The Battery

For a city known for its seafood, you would think that really good fish and chips would be easy to find in Boston. Unfortunately, this hasn't been the case. At least, until The Battery opened in Brighton Center three weeks ago.

Run by transplants from Cork, Ireland, this is the closest Boston has to the chip shops that are so easy to find across the pond. The menu is pretty basic - fries and battered things like fish and sausages. You can order a la carte or put together a supper with a main, fries, and a choice of peas, coleslaw, curry, or gravy. The fish (pollack) supper, shown above, is gigantic for only $8.95 - you really need to be starving to be able to put all this food away. The fish is flaky and steaming inside the crisp crust, and the hand cut chips are superbly crunchy on the outside and smooth on the inside. They're best enjoyed piping hot, though, as they lose some of their integrity as they cool. The Battery also offers Irish drinks, like Club Orange and Club Lemon, Lilt, Lucozade, and Ribena, if you want a truly authentic meal.

The Battery is located at 379 Washington Street in Brighton. They are open Sunday through Tuesday, 11am to 11pm, and Wednesday through Saturday, 11am to 1am.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Finale

Everyone knows that Finale, with four locations in the metro Boston area, is a great place for fancy desserts (albeit slightly pricy). But did you know they also serve up tasty lunches at a reasonable price?

Sandwiches at Finale in Harvard Square, Coolidge Corner, and downtown Boston run from $5.50 to $6.95 and are pretty hefty. They have traditionally offerings, such as egg salad, BLT, and tuna, as well as some more original compositions, such as the Apple Mango (sliced apples, mango chutney, goat cheese, caramelized onions, arugula, and walnuts on multigrain bread) and the Roasted Chicken (roasted chicken, Monterey Jack cheese, arugula, and sweet red onions on focaccia). The Chicken Pesto (pictured above) is stuffed with a whole chicken breast, sliced thin. The sweetness from the caramelized onions is a nice pair with the salty cheese and unctious pesto. Add chips and one of Finale's fresh cookies for The Finale Lunch, which runs from $8.50 to $9.95. Or go with half a sandwich and soup or salad for $7.95.

And don't forget to sign up for Finale's Sweet Rewards card while you're at it. You can rack up the points for every dollar spent, and you'll get $5 back for every $50 spent (plus free dessert on your birthday!).

Hours vary by location.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

- Downtown Boston
- Harvard Square
- Coolidge Corner

Cheap Eats: Bottega Fiorentina

Fall and the accompanying cooler weather mean apples, pumpkins... and comfort food like pasta. Luckily, Bottega Fiorentina (both on Newbury Street and the original location in Coolidge Corner) offers a multitude of fresh and fantastic pasta dishes daily to fill that need.

You could eat at Bottega Fiorentina every day for weeks and never have the same thing twice. There are five specials a day (like Tuesday's lasagna with meat and bechamel or Friday's pumpkin tortellini in a butter sage sauce), plus a made-to-order option with your choice of pasta and sauce. The penne with Fedora sauce (tomato, red pepper, garlic, rosemary, and cream), pictured above, is both sweet and spicy, and the pasta is cooked to a perfect al dente. The majority of the pasta dishes are under $10 and are available for dine-in or take-out.

Bottega Fiorentina is located at 264 Newbury Street in Boston (open daily 10am-10pm) and 313 Harvard Street in Brookline (open Monday through Saturday 11am-8:30pm).

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Brookline
Boston

Cheap Eats: Aceituna Cafe

Aceituna is a Spanish word for olive, and considering the use of olives and olive oil in Mediterranean cuisine, it's a perfect name for Aceituna Cafe in Kendall Square. The restaurant features Lebanese and Mediterranean food hot and fast.

The menu at Aceituna Cafe has lots of options, mostly under $10, ranging from pita roll-ups to heartier entrees with meat, rice and salad. The real deals, though, are in the vegetarian plate and the combo specials. The vegetarian plate has a choose-3 option ($7.79) and a choose-5 option ($9.79), although three choices provides plenty of food. Try the tabboule, predominantly made of finely chopped parsley and served in heaping scoops, or the falafel, large, crunchy, heavily spiced patties with a more chunky texture than at most falafel restaurants. Other choices include hummus, babaghannouge, rice with lentils, grape leaves, and couscous salad. If sandwiches are more your speed, try the combo specials, featuring fries, a soda, and a falafel roll-up ($7.25) or a chicken or beef shawarma roll-up ($8.75).

Aceituna Cafe is located at 605 West Kendall Street in Cambridge. Hours are Monday through Friday, 11am to 8pm.

Originally posted on Bostonist.

Cheap Eats: Canto 6

Bakeries can be a great choice for delicious meal options, but it often seems that the meal doesn't justify the price. Not so at Canto 6, a small bakery in Jamaica Plain. Their menu boasts some great sandwich combinations, all for under $7. But the real value lies in Canto 6's pies and quiches.

Personal-sized pies and quiches make a quick and easy meal that will definitely fill you up. The scallion, bacon, and cheddar quiche ($3.25) has a fantastic balance between all the different flavors. The crust is especially good - buttery and flaky goodness that surrounds the filling. The peach and berry pie ($3.75) features the same perfect crust, plenty of sweet, fresh fruit, and a tender crumble topping. Pair them together, and you have a huge, delicious meal.

Canto 6 is located at 3346 Washington Street (at Green Street) in Jamaica Plain. They are open Monday-Friday, 7:30am-6:30pm, and Saturday and Sunday, 8am-8pm.

Originally published on Bostonist.

Ice Cream Cakes from JP Licks

My friend Nathaniel, a fellow August baby, also shares a fondness for ice cream birthday cakes. So, to celebrate his birthday this year, what could be better than an ice cream cake from JP Licks?

We went for a medium Oreo cake - two layers of well-packed oreo ice cream with a layer of fudge between, crushed oreos on the sides, and oreo halves decorating the top. The medium is an 8-inch round - six of us ended up eating half of it, so there's plenty left for the birthday boy to graze on over the next week. The ice cream itself was, as usual, fantastic, and the layer of fudge - pure chocolate - was a much tastier alternative to that waxy frosting that is on so many other ice cream cakes.

JP Licks keeps other flavors of ice cream cakes in stock as well, or they will make a custom cake with 48 hours notice.

Cheap Eats: La Papusa Guanaca

Who doesn't love melted cheese? La Papusa Guanaca is a small restaurant on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain that focuses on the food of El Salvador, including the delicious, hot and melty papusa. The little crispy corn pancakes ($1.25), about the size of your palm, are stuffed with cheese, cheese and pork, or cheese and beans, and then fried on a griddle. They're really hot, though, when they come out, so save yourself from a burn and wait a minute before eating.

Between the papusas and the other goodies on the menu, it's easy to make a meal for next to nothing. Try the tostada ($1.00), a tiny, perfectly crisp tortilla topped with black beans and a sprinkle of cheese; the empanadas ($1.25), little pockets jammed tight with fillings like shredded chicken; or the fried plantains ($3.50), incredibly sweet, crispy on the outside, and creamy on the inside.

La Papusa Guanaca is located at 378 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain. They are open daily 10am to 11pm and are cash only.

Originally posted on Bostonist.