Rubix Cube Cake

As a big fan of the rubix cube, I thought I'd share this fun cake idea with you!

This traditional "Battenberg" cake's creator gave the following instruction:

"Battenberg cakes are constructed of rectangular pieces of alternatively coloured Victoria sponge cake, sandwiched together by jam and held together with walls of Marzipan. We decided that the different pieces of cake could be dyed the traditional six colours of the Rubik’s cube – white, red, blue, orange, green and yellow. Then to make the cake a little more Rubik’s like, we decided to have each slice of the cake reveal a different combination of coloured squares, just like a Rubik’s cube. To achieve this, we cut the coloured rectangles of sponge into different lengths. This was definitely a case where I needed the engineering mind of my other half to figure out the maths of this cake."

Looks like it would take all day to make, but how fun!

Restaurant Review: Robust Wine Bar

Last week, the family met up at Robust Wine Bar in Webster Groves.  Our family is really into wine, so Robust was the perfect place.  The wine list is very extensive and has a variety of wines available by the glass.  The menu is also uniquely organized by type of wine, ranging from "Crisp" light bodied whites to "Robust" full bodied reds, along with some fun dessert wines and sparkling wines.  Robust also invented a menu numbering system (called the "Robust Factor") that pairs up the groups of wines with each item of food on the menu.  And for the adventurous wine drinkers, like us, there are some great wine flight choices where you can choose a group of three 4 oz glasses (roughly 1 and a half normal glasses) of wine.  I decided to go with a 3-wine flight of the pinot noirs (shown below)

Pinot Noir Wine Flight

From Left to Right:

2009 APALTAGUA “Reserva”, Pinot Noir – Curio Valley, ChileFirm cherries, deep red raspberries and dried rose petals, with a dash of black pepper and smoked paprika. Earthy and well-structured. (My favorite!)

2006 REX HILL “Reserve”, Pinot Noir – Willamette Valley, OregonDark cherries, orange pulp and baking spices. Black fruits and dried sage join in on the palate. 2006 was a warm vintage, contributing a great depth of color and flavor.

2006 DIERBERG, Pinot Noir – Santa Maria Valley, California (My least favorite)Blackberries, Provençal herbs and wet stone combine with coffee and vibrant acidity. Ripe, dense fruit with mouthwatering balance.

Robust also has a great assortment of appetizers and small plates that are great to share with a group.  Note: if you are looking for a meal, Robust lacks a big meal menu, and is more for light eating and group sharing.

We first ordered a fun flatbread and a couple small salads to share.  The Heirloom Tomato Salad, with Basil, Cipollinis, Shallots, Ricotta, Parmesan, Aged Balsamic and fresh Croutons, was really light and summery.  We also tried the Roasted Beet Salad, with Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese, Oranges with a Red Wine Ver Jus Dressing.  Jessie and Joe are big beet fans, and the salad was surprisingly not as "beety" as they expected, so you don't have to be really into beets to enjoy this salad..

We then ordered the Spinach and Three Cheese Spread, which contains Spinach, Roasted Artichoke, Cream Cheese, Mozzarella and Parmesan Cheese with Housemade Crostini.  It was Yummy!  One can never go wrong with spinach artichoke and cheese dip!

We also got the baked Camembert, which is kind of like baked brie cheese topped with Balsamic Strawberries.  Again, you can't go wrong with melted cheese!

Overall, I enjoyed the wine and all of the wine choices over the actual food menu.  Luckily I wasn't starving, because the menu lacked any heavy food options and a large portion of the small plates were mainly cheese based, which I cannot base my entire meal on (unless it is mac n' cheese ;-)).  Splitting with the family was fun and I would definitely go back with a big group or just some girlfriends for a drink or two.

Jessie v. Food

The Travel Channel's Show, Man v. Food, starring Adam Richman visited the town of Sarasota, Florida on a recent episode. Joe and I started to freak out because we would be visiting my Dad and Kelley in Sarasota in a few weeks. We found Adam at a dive bar/restaurant called The Old Salty Dog that sits right on the water of Sarasota Bay. The Old Salty Dog is famous for, what else, The Salty Dog. This is a 1/4 pound hot dog dipped in their special batter (includes beer) and fried. Adam decided he needed to kick this dog up a notch and added 4 slices of 3 different cheese (13 slices in total), grilled onions and mushrooms, and loads of bacon! We had to try this hot dog!

Adam of Travel Channel's Man v. Food

Joe and I told my Dad and Kelley about this place and how we had to go to try The Salty Dog "Adam style." They luckily agreed! Somehow I was the one who ended up ordering The Salty Dog "Adam style" and everyone else ended up ordering fish. You can see their full menu here. Dad and Kelley split a basket of group and chips (a play on fish and chips). The grouper pieces were huge and the bite I had was delicious. Joe had a mahi mahi sandwich (no surprise there) and he loved it as well! Then comes out The Salty Dog that Adam ate on Man v. Food for me.

That is a big dog!

I tried my best to eat it all but the 12 slices of cheese proved way too much for me! I think if I go back next time I would order The Salty dog with grilled onions and mushrooms like Adam but say hold all the cheese and bacon. I'm glad that Dad and Kelley took us here to try the legendary fried hot dog. It was definitely worth the trip!

If you ever end up in Sarasota I would also highly recommend you visit The Old Salty Dog on City Island because the bay views are beautiful and you are basically sitting right on the water. Our waitress was also very quick and nice. Let me know if you end up ordering the Man v. Food Salty Dog!

Restaurant Review: Sugo's

With all of the new Del Pietro restaurants popping up, Jessie and I decided to try the classic Italian cuisine at Del Pietro's Sugo's Spagehtteria, located in Frontenac.  We are a little turned off by the restaurant's location in a strip mall (with the door shut, you can't even tell the restaurant is open), but when you walk inside you get to experience a rustic setting with hearty wood tables and tiny tealight candles lighting up the large dim room.  Once our eyes adjusted, we ordered a glass of wine while we waited for a table (even on a Tuesday night, the place was packed).  There really isn't a bar, but rather a long wooden table with several bottles of wine sitting on it.  And no bartender, simply the hostess turning around and grabbing a bottle and glasses.  There is a make-shift waiting area off to the side with 3 taller circular tables, right next to the people eating. 

Front door of Sugo's Spaghetteria

Once we finally got seated, we didn't see our waiter for a while.  We were so thirsty Jessie actually got up and grabbled us some water from the side table, because no one would wait on us!  Although our wait was long, once we gave our order, the food came out in less than 5 minutes!  In fact, we didn't even have time to get bread.  Luckily a really smiley guy (who was not our original waiter) noticed we were missing bread but had our food and offered to get us some.  He continued to help us out the rest of the night... we named him "Smiley."  We liked him.

On one wall there is a huge chalkboard with the entire menu and the specials of the day.  The great thing about Sugo's is the simplicity, they really get it right.  The menu only has a handful of different items to choose from for each meal category (salad, antipasti, pasta, pizza), so you'd think it would be really easy to choose, but all of the items sound so good, it is actually hard to eliminate your choices down.  This post is here to help you choose: THE LASAGNA!  Jessie got Lasagna and it was to die for, not to mention the size of my head!  I definitely recommend splitting this item, or be smart like Jessie and eat half and save the other half for lunch the next day.  I think my favorite thing about the lasagna are the tomatoes they use.  They were really tangy and gave the lasagna a really big pick-me-up.  I also loved the big square shreds of fresh parmesan cheese on top.

Jessie's Lasagna

I decided to order the pasta special of the day, Pasta Diavolo, which is angel hair pasta with scallops, shrimp, mussels and clams in a spicy tomato sauce.  It was awesome!  I probably should have saved some to take home but I could not stop eating it.  And luckily Smiley brought us some bread, because the leftover sauce was so yummy to dip my bread in.  Like the Lasagna, there was something rich and tangy about the tomatoes that really added to the dish.



Josie's Pasta Diavolo

 Over all, Sugo's Spaghetteria exudes simplicity.  From the decor and ambiance, to the menu and food.  For people who like good rustic Italian food, I would definitely swing by Sugo's (and get the lasagna!).  And for all of you West County and St. Charles peeps, don't worry about coming out to Frontenac because Del Pietro also has Babbo's Spaghetteria in the Chesterfield Valley which is an identical clone to Sugo's, right down to the wooden tables, chalkboard menu and lasagna!  Note: Wine lovers, also try Del Pietro's contemporary wine bar, Via Vino, next door to Sugo's.

Watermelon - The New Black

Everywhere I'm looking (online, magazines, grocery stores) I am seeing watermelon recipes! So I just had to jump on the trend bandwagon and try a new watermelon recipe myself. I tried this drink two ways and to me there is a very clear winner, let me know if you agree!

Watermelon - Strawberry -Vodka - Summer Cooler (Serves 2)

• 4 cups seedless watermelon, cut into manageable chunks
• 1 cup hulled strawberries (aka green parts cut off) and cut in half
• food processor (or blender, mine is sadly dead)
• fine mesh strainer
• large bowl
• 2 shots of vodka (jalapeno vodka if you use Attempt #1)
• Lots O Ice
• 2 tall glasses
• straws optional but recommended

Throw the watermelon and strawberries into the food processor. 

Turn it on and let it crank for at least 2 minutes to make sure everything gets broken up well. Pour the mixture through the fine mesh strainer that is located over the large bowl. You want to make sure none of the seeds get through to your end product, the cocktail! 

Attempt #1: Fill your 2 tall glasses with lots of ice. Put 1 shot of jalapeno vodka into each glass. Pour the watermelon/strawberry strained mixture over the ice (should split pretty evenly between the two glasses). Get out a big spoon and stir to combine. Enjoy and hopefully your lips do not burn off of your face!

We used our Pat O'Brien's glasses from New Orleans!

Attempt #2: Fill your 2 tall glasses with lots of ice. Put 1 shot of regular vodka into each glass. Pour the watermelon/strawberry strained mixture over the ice (should split pretty evenly between the two glasses). Get out 2 plastic straws and stir to combine. Enjoy and you will not have your lips burn off.

The WINNING attempt!

Joe and I tried #1 and although the drink tasted very refreshing at first, the after effects were too much to handle. So Josie and I tried #2 and thought this drink was super cool, refreshing, and most of all trendy. Let  me know if you want to have any jalapeno vodka because I don't think we will be running out anytime soon!!

Chicken Cordon Bleu Dinner - J+J Style

Josie and I wanted to put an Italian spin on a traditional dinner. We made a creamy, lemony orzotto topped with sliced chicken cordon bleu with prosciutto, provolone and basil with a side of sauteed zucchini.

CHICKEN CORDON BLEU

We decided to jazz up chicken cordon bleu with the help of Rachel Ray's original recipe found here. Below you can see the recipe we came up with.

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts - butterflied then pounded to 1/4 in. thickness
• 6 pieces thinly sliced prosciutto (This only cost us a total of $1.17 at the Schnucks deli. This goes to show you that you can use a costly product if used in small quantities.)
• 4 pieces provolone cheese
• 4 basil leaves - sliced into small pieces
• Kitchen twine
• 1 tablespoon EVOO

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Lay the pounded chicken breasts on a flat surface and place 1.5 pieces of prosciutto on top, then a slice of provolone, then 1/4 of the cut basil on top of that.

Roll the chicken tightly lengthwise. Secure with 3 pieces of kitchen twine (1 at the top, 1 at the bottom, 1 in the middle) that you double knot then cut off the excess twine. 

Put a large saute pan over high heat and add the EVOO. Place the chicken in the pan with the seam side down. Sear on all 4 sides (approximately 1.5 minutes per side) so that there is no pink visible on the outside of the rolls. Move the seared chicken to a baking dish sprayed with PAM. Place in the oven and cook for 15 minutes. Let cool for at least 2 minutes after removing from the oven. Remove the kitchen twine. Slice the chicken at a diagonal.

LEMON-BASIL ORZOTTO

We love orzo and we love risotto...combining the two sounded AMAZING so we had to try this recipe from Kelsey Nixon. We made a few edits and you can see how we made our recipe down below.

• 2 tablespoons EVOO
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 cup orzo pasta
• 1/2 cup chardonnay 
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 5 basil leaves cut into thin slices
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 1 large lemon, juiced
• salt and pepper

In a medium sauce pan add the EVOO and shallots. Saute over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until fragrant and soft. Add the orzo and toast for 2 minutes while stirring. Add the wine and cook until absorbed.

Gradually add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Cover and turn the heat to low. Let cook for 10 minutes then remove the lid and let cook for 5 more minutes. By this point the majority of the liquid should be gone.

Stir in the Parmesan, basil, lemon zest, whole milk and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Heat on low for an additional 2-5 minutes for flavors to combine and more liquid to be absorbed. Serve immediately.

SAUTEED ZUCCHINI

This is a staple side dish we ate growing up and we continue to make now. Super easy and super tasty!

• 2 green zucchini
• 1 tablespoon EVOO
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Slice the zucchini into 1/4 inch thick rounds then cut the rounds in half (half moons). Heat a large saute pan over medium-low heat, add the EVOO, sliced zucchini, and season with salt and pepper. Saute zucchini for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 2 or so minutes. After placing the warm zucchini on the dinner plate top with grated Parmesan cheese. Beware, these zucchini will go fast, so yummy!

Here is how our dinner plate looked...

Mangia bene!!

Food Truck Friday

With the Food Truck trend growing around the country, St. Louis and Sauce Magazine have created a fun monthly event where all of the local food trucks come together in one location and serve the masses.  This past Friday, July 22, in Tower Grove Park, over 15 food trucks set up shop for the Second Food Truck Friday.  Despite it being 95 degrees out, over 800 people showed up to try the different cuisine and beverages offered.  The First Food Trust Friday, last June, sold out by around 6pm, so we decided to get there early, at 5:15, to beat the crowd.  Luckily we did, by 6 the lines were at least 15 people deep and walking space was limited.  So, the earlier the better!!!

We didn't know where to start first, there are so many options, so I grabbed a $3 Schlafly beer to sip on while I checked out each truck.  We first grabbed a yummy beef short rib taco with crispy red cabbage lime slaw and a light flavorful sauce from Cha Cha Chow.  Delicious, simple and not too filling.

Jessie in line at Cha Cha Chow

Beef Short Rib Taco

Next, we head straight for the truck we've been eyeing for a while, being Italian and all, the Mangia Mobile.  I pretty much wanted everything on the menu (including meatball sub, mozzarella tomato caprese panini, and St. Louis faves toasted ravioli), but we were intrigued by the arancini balls, which are balls of risotto rice with melted cheese and meat in the center with a fried crust around the outside and marinara sauce to dip them in.  Jessie and I split an order (warning: you have to wait 10 minutes since they are cooked fresh to order) and these arancini balls were monster sized!  We had to each them with a fork, but they fell apart really well and tasted amazing.  Several people in the crowd even stopped us as we walked back to our picnic table and asked what we had and where they could get it.  I would say it was the hit of the event.

Mangia Mobile

Arancini Balls

Inside the Mangia Mobile

While we waited the 10 minutes for our arancini balls, Joe went to go check out the hot dog selection at Papa Tom's Gateway DogHouse.  Joe came back with a Hawaiian hot dog and a Bavarian hot dog.  The Hawaiian dog had a good amount of fruity pinneapple on top of it (I'm not a fan, but if you like Hawaiian pizza I imagine that you'd love this hot dog).  The Bavarian hot dog was out of this world!  It had a pretzel bun, with a thick long pickle sitting on top of it and a slice of bacon underneath the dog.  It had a cheesy mustard sauce topping that I was a little worried about since I am not a huge mustard fan, but the sauce has a perfect saucy texture and a salty and spicy flavor that blended so well with the pretzel and hot dog.  I was in hot dog heaven!



Papa Tom's Gateway DogHouse

 

Top: Bavarian Dog

Bottom: Hawaiian Dog

To wash everything down, I tried the Basil Watermelon Lemonade from Southwest Diner.  It was crisp and refreshing and surprisingly had a strong, but clean, basil aftertaste.  It was very good.  Jessie and I really want to learn how they infused the basil flavor into the drink and would love to try to make some fun basil drinks ourselves!

Josie enjoying the Basil Watermelon Lemonade

Overall, Food Truck Friday was a really fun event and it was great people watching and seeing other St. Louis Foodies out and about, swapping stories about the food they tried.  Our tips for attending this event in the future would be (1) get there early, (2) bring cash (the credit card lines are a pain and some trucks don't even accept credit cards) and (3) share each thing you try with someone so you can try more!  Next time we go, we have our eye on the pear, goat cheese, honey, arugula crêpe at Holy Crepes and the Korean BBQ tacos at Seoul Taco.

In case you want a deeper look into the new Food Truck trend, MSN recently created a slideshow of popular food trucks around the nation.  Representing St. Louis (in slide #25) is the Pi on the Spot truck which has an actual pizza oven inside the truck and creates Pi's signature Chicago style pizza that you would expect to get at the restaurant.

Del Pietro's on Hampton will soon be Mathew's Kitchen

It seems that Del Pietro's on Hampton (where Josie, Joe and I ate not 4 months ago) has closed. But good news is coming in that a new restaurant called Mathew's Kitchen will be opening in its place!

This news was just sent to me by my city alderman:

Mathew and his wife Maggie are long time city residents wanting to start their new business in the city. They will be serving comfort food with a twist along with Napa Valley wine. Their menu looks awesome. They are planning on being open October 1.

Avocado Ice Cream

Disclaimer: I did not find this recipe delicious but maybe you will. I still had to share!!!!

After watching the first season of Top Chef: Masters I became a huge fan of Rick Bayless, the chef mostly known for his Frontera Grill in Chicago. When Josie sent me Rick's recipe for avocado ice cream I knew I had to try it. You can find the link to the recipe here and below is the recipe with a few tweeks I made.

• 1.5 cups avocado puree (Peel and pit 3 ripe medium avocados and process in the food processor until smooth.)
• 1.5 cups water
• 1 and 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1/3 cup tequila

In a small sauce pan heat all the water and sugar together until sugar is dissolved.

To the avocado puree in the food processor, add the water/sugar mix, lime juice and tequila. Pulse until well combined. Pour into a bowl and cover tightly with saran wrap (like put the saran wrap directly on top of the mixture to keep out any air. Pop in the refrigerator for at least an hour. After you puree your mixture should look like this:

Remove the mixture from the refigerator and pour into a prepared ice cream maker. It should stay in there for approximately 15-20 minutes until it firms up a bit.

Once it starts to look like ice cream (you will see the texture change from liquid to a bit more crystal like) move the ice cream into an airtight container. Once again cover with saran wrap. Pop it into the freezer to continue to harden up.

Serve the ice cream in small servings as the tequila gives it a rather strong flavor. Joe and I ate it after we had enchiladas. Josie and I had it after we had Italian sausage. Somehow no matter what you eat before will really prepare you for this unique taste. I have to say that Joe, Josie and I were not fans of this ice cream, possibly because of the strong tequila taste or possibly because we just couldn't wrap our heads around eating cold avocado as a dessert. The lesson learned is you will never know how something tastes until you try it! I love trying new and crazy recipes for fun and to broaden my taste horizons. Hopefully you will step out on a limb and try this dish or something else crazy that you have been wanting to try but never had the courage to. If you end up loving avocado ice cream please let us know!!!

Stuffed Sweet Piquante Peppers

This past weekend I was given the task of bringing an appetizer to my soon to be nephew's first birthday party. I am the only Italian in my fiance's family so I have been stuck in a rut of bringing an antipasto platter to the last couple in-law gatherings. Everyone loves Italian cheese, meat and olives so I figured I would be safe when I tried this new Italian appitizer recipe I found here: http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/hors-doeuvres/afternoon-snack-stuffed-sweet-piquante-peppers-080290

I love this recipe because it involves very few ingredients, the ingredients do not break the bank, my fiance found it fun to actually help me stuff the peppers, it is easily adaptable to other ingredients you might have on hand and most of all they are totally addicting to eat!

Stuffed Sweet Piquante Peppers

• 2 dozen sweet piquante peppers (I found them at the Whole Foods olive bar and also the Schnucks olive bar. You have to pay by the pound but in total I think it ended up being less than $8 for them all. The come already hollowed out, super easy! Note: These have a little bit of a spice kick to them, but nothing crazy.)
• 1/3 pound Grana Padano cheese (This was hard to find. I did find it at Volpi's on the Hill in St. Louis. I only got a 1/4 pound and found it wasn't enough. The 1/4 pound only cost about $3. This is a hard cheese very similar to parmigiano reggiano and is imported directly from Italy.)
• 1/2 pound Volpi Salami (1/2 pound is a little extra but I love salami and it made for a good snack for me and the fiance AKA Joe.)

First get all your prep work done. cut the salami slices in half, width wise. Cut the cheese into small rectangle chunks (like the size of your fingernail). Put all of the peppers on a paper towel to drain.

Next put a piece of cheese near the bottom half of the salami and roll it up. Stuff the pepper with the salami roll, cheese side entering first.

Load up your platter.

As I mentioned, I ran out of Grana Padano so I substituted fresh mozzarella. I used the extra mozzarella and salami to decorate the rest of the platter.

Everyone loved the appetizer and I hope you will try it too!

HARRY POTTER!

Happy Harry Potter 7, Part 2 Opening Day!!!

In honor of HP, Here are some cute "Golden Snitch Butterbeer" cake pops that you can make!

That's right, they are made with actual butterbeer cake!  How authentic!  Click Here to find out how to make these cute cake pops.

Also try these fun looking licorice wands.

Hope you all enjoy!  Happy Harry Potter Day!!!!!!!

My Trip to: Charlotte, North Carolina

Hey!  I just got back from visiting my law school loves, Heidi and Lindsey, in Charlotte, North Carolina!  It was such a fun (and short) trip!  Heidi was my roommate all three years at Wake Forest, is a vegetarian, and has literally transformed the way I eat and think about food, so I trusted all her restaurant recommendations and loved them all!!!

Our first night out I got to hang out with some of Heidi's DA friends and got to rekindle my romance with North Carolina BBQ!!! (Note: NC BBQ has more of a peppery vinegar base while KC BBQ is more tomato based with a sweeter molasses taste)  We ate at a place called Mac's Speedshop which also had a great local draft beer selection.  I told Heidi's friend I liked Hoppy beer and he ordered me the Hoppiest beer in the place. It was soooo good!!!  I'm also happy to say that I discovered that there is a beer named after me!!!  It is called "Sweet Josie Brown Ale" and it is brewed in Raleigh, NC.  Heidi's friends ordered it and I got to try it.  Unfortunately I'm not a fan of brown ales, but its got a cool name ;-)

After Barbeque we went went to a really trendy dessert and hookah bar called Crave.  I was stuffed from BBQ so I didn't get any dessert, but the menu looked amazing!  So tempting to get a cupcake or choose from their cheesecakes!!!  They have a huge selection of fun "girly" cocktails that no guy should be afraid to try.  I got a drink called "Clean Slut" (get it... not "Dirty" because no olives), which was Pear Vodka, pear puree, Apple Pucker, and pineapple juice.  So delicious! I had two!

On saturday we had a late lunch/brunch and went into a really fun hipster Plaza/Midwood area of Charlotte called Zada Jane's Corner Cafe.  Zada Jane's has all organic and locally grown food (their eggs are called "Happy Eggs" because they come from free range chickens) and are known for their breakfast, especially their biscuits.  They have a fun and colorful decor and local art is hung all around the walls, ceilings, your name it.  I ordered the Bunny Rancheros (see picture below) which consists of two fried happy eggs (I got mine scrambled), black beans, home fries, sausage, topped with white queso and pepperjack cheese sauce, quacamole and sour cream (on the side), salsa verde (not spicy) and cilantro crema - served with a tortilla (I exchanged a biscuit for a tortilla and ate mine like an open scramble).  It was too die for!  The queso sauce was delicious and I dipped each bite in the quacamole on the side and all the tastes blended so well together.

The Plaza Midwood area was really fun.  It has a bunch of cute antique shops and thrift stores that we took a look at.  And FUN FACT: Zada Jane's is right across the street from a small diner called "The Dish" which was recently featured on Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, which focused on their chicken and dumplins and shrimp and grits.

Later that night we went to the Historic Dilworth area and got dinner and drinks at Zen, an Asian Spanish fushion restaurant (I know... weird combination right?  But it worked!).  We split a craft of red sangrias, then moved onto white sangria (picture below).  I think we all preferred the white sangria.

I went the Spanish cuisine route and ordered the Vieras Chillindron, which is sauteed scallops in sundried tomato and roasted pepper sauce, with saffron rice (picture below).  It was to die for!  The sauce was so hearty and had tons of chunks of pepper, tomatoe and onion that mixed well with the rice.  And the scallops were the perfect size and cooked perfectly (but it's really hard to mess up scallops).

I'm new to sushi so I'm usually clueless what to order, but Heidi always knows good sushi and she ordered the Bruce Lee Tempura, which is flash fried shirmp tempura, cream cheese and scallions (pictured below).  The roll came out very presentable with a drizzle of sauce on top and the pieces were cut much thinner than normal. 

Overall, it was a very yummy trip!  I really enjoyed visiting what I missed so much about my law school days in North Carolina: locally brewed beer; great BBQ; fun cocktails; local, organic, quirky lunch spots; and great friends!!!

$24 Spaghetti?!

Would you pay $24 for spaghetti?!  Apparently thousands already do at Scott Conant's NYC restaurant Scarpetta (Italian for "Little Shoe").  I have to admit, I was a little skeptical once I heard the price... I make spaghetti dishes for under a couple bucks... what makes this spaghetti so special?!

Once you look at the recipe below, you may notice there is a tad more to it than your normal spaghetti-o's:

Spaghetti with Fresh Tomato Sauce and Basil
Makes 4 servings

• About 20 ripe plum tomatoes
• About 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more to finish the dish
• Pinch of crushed red pepper
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 ounce freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 1/2 cup) 
• 6 to 8 fresh basil leaves, well washed and dried, stacked and rolled into a cylinder and cut thinly crosswise into a chiffonade
• 1 pound spaghetti, either high-quality dry or homemade

To peel the tomatoes: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Have a large bowl of ice water nearby. Cut a small X on the bottom of each tomato. Ease about five tomatoes in the pot and cook, let boil for about 15 seconds, and then promptly move them to the waiting ice water. (Repeat this with the remaining tomatoes.) Pull off the skin with the tip of a paring knife. If the skin sticks, try a vegetable peeler, using a gentle sawing motion. Cut the tomatoes in half and use your finger to flick out the seeds.

To cook the tomatoes: In a wide pan, heat the 1/3 cup of olive oil over medium-high heat until quite hot. Add the tomatoes, red pepper flakes, and season lightly with the salt and pepper. (I always start with a light hand with the salt and pepper because as the tomatoes reduce, the salt will become concentrated.) Let the tomatoes cook for a few minutes to soften. Then, using a potato masher, chop the tomatoes finely. Cook the tomatoes for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tomatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened. (You can make the sauce, which yields about 3 cups, ahead of time. Refrigerate it for up to 2 days or freeze it for longer storage.)

To serve: Bring a large pot of amply salted water to a boil. Cook the spaghetti until just shy of al dente. Reserve a little of the pasta cooking water. Add the pasta to the sauce and cook over medium-high heat, gently tossing the pasta and the sauce together with a couple of wooden spoons and a lot of exaggerated movement (you can even shake the pan) until the pasta is just tender and the sauce, if any oil had separated from it, now looks cohesive. (If the sauce seems too thick, add a little pasta cooking liquid to adjust it.) Take the pan off of the heat and toss the butter, basil, and cheese with the pasta in the same manner (the pasta should take on an orange hue) and serve immediately.

We can't wait to try this recipe and let you know how it turns out!!!  Jessie has two of the Kitchen Aid homemade pasta maker attachments and so we will be making our spaghetti homemade!  Also, I gave out fresh basil plants as gifts at Jessie's bridal shower, so we'll have plenty of fresh basil to use!

Ryan and I are going to visit NYC in September and I am definitely going to put Scarpetta's on my list of places to go (if we have time in between all of the broadway plays :-P).  They also give you a complimentary bread basket that includes house-made focaccia, Sullivan Street Bakery filone and ciabatta, and a house-made stromboli with smoked mozzarella and salami (pictured below).  I can't wait!!!

Welcome to Mangia Bene!!!

Mangia Bene, meaning "Eat Well" in Italian, has been a common motto for us growing up.  We are twin sisters who grew up in St. Louis, Missouri in a large extended Sicilian family.  Our grandfather may or may not have been in the mob, so watch your back!

We enjoy cooking great meals, eating great food, and drinking great wine, here in St. Louis and while traveling.

Our blog will hope to share our experiences, whether new recipes we've attempted or new restaurants we have tried, or anything we'd like to try in the future.

We hope this blog will help you all MANGIA BENE!!!

XOXO
J+J