Pappardella

My amazingly awesome nephew turned 2 in March.  To celebrate, we went to dinner at Pappardella on the UWS.  This is one fancy two-year old I tell you.  The weather was fabulous that day but we chose to sit indoors.  After he ran around a bit trying to pick up one of the many apples, we sat down.  We started with Caprino. 

Gotta love a good beet salad.  This one was fantastic.  The combination of arugula, roasted red beets and fresh goat cheese was exactly what we needed.  The beets were perfectly fresh and tasted wonderful.  We also ordered the Caprese.

The layers of fresh mozzarella, vine ripe tomato and basil were dripped with a rich balsamic reduction.

Taking a bite from every layer was definitely the best way to enjoy this delightful treat.  The birthday boy shared the Rigatoni Bolognese with his mom.

He loved the huge pieces of pasta that hid pieces of beef & vegetable ragu in every crevice.  His uncles went for the Pappardelle Manzo Brasato.

They love a solid beef dish.  This one with braised beef, swiss chard, caramelized onion and bread crumbs was well received.  There wasn’t a morsel left on the plate by the time they were done.  I had a hard time finishing my hearty portion of Spaghetti Frutti di Mare.

This is one of my favorite dishes to order at an Italian restaurant.  Big chunks of lobster meat, shrimp, calamari, mussels and clams topped with a fresh plum tomato sauce.  How can you go wrong?  This version was well executed, but the sauce could have used a bit more spice.

We decided to skip dessert so we could go buy the little one a cupcake and of course he loved it.  Good thing he likes brushing his teeth.  Pappardella is a restaurant I’ve overlooked a number of times, but turns out it’s actually worth eating there.  I look forward to going back for beet salad and the Spaghetti Frutti di Mare.

Hungry yet?

Jeanne and Gaston

So about a month ago I received an invitation to dine at a new French restaurant, Jeanne & Gaston. I was super psyched especially because I was able to bring MM with me. The restaurant is inviting with its French windows but the true  gem is out back. They have an outdoor space that was still being built, but will definitely be the site of many under the stars dining experiences this summer.   The inside of the restaurant boasts simple elegant decor. The exposed brick and ceiling tiles add character.

Our dining invitation allowed us to take advantage of the $40 Prix Fixe menu. This is probably the most  generous prix fixe ever.  We were allowed to order any appetizer, entree, and dessert that we wanted. Sweeeet!  We were greeted with a wonderful surprise in the chef's amuse bouche.

Bitter point oysters with sashimi! It was fan-effing-tastic! Seriously, I could have eaten that all night.

Thankfully there were several items on the menu that appealed to me. MM was kind enough to order items I wanted. The Tuna Tartare was fantastic!

Aside from the sushi grade tuna, it was made even more delicious because it was served with wasabi caviar which was the perfect complement.  The Escargot was also an amazing choice.

Not much to look at but truly was parsley heaven! I asked for more bread so I could truly enjoy every last drop.  It wasn't just the parsley either, the little snails were perfectly seasoned which just made for an even better dining experience.

Slimy yet satisfying! MM ordered the Salmon entree.

It definitely wasn't the most exciting menu item, but it was perfectly executed. The ginger and honey mustard emulsion added an unexpected flavor that wasn't decidedly French but still hit the spot. I ordered the Skate Wing special.

I always love ordering the fish special because it's bound to be the freshest item on the menu. This was no different, but unfortunately it suffered from being over salted. The potatoes and spinach were mild and helped neutralize the salt, but I would have liked to take a bite of the skate alone without tasting so much salt.

Of course I was stuffed after dinner but as usual I couldn't turn down dessert. We decided to try the Chocolate soufflé and the Creme brûlée.

The soufflé was fine, but probably would have been better in one of the other flavors that they had. I just wasn't that into it. The creme brûlée was also lacking.

The flavors were right but it likely wasn't chilled enough or there was a little more liquid than there should have been.  It was way too melty.

The food at Jeanne and Gaston definitely makes it a place worth going back to, but there are certain items I'm more willing to recommend than others. I had a chance to sample the Mac and Cheese and I put it high on the must try list!

Rich flavors, crispy bread crumb top, and not too cheesy. Definitely unexpected at a French restaurant but very well done.  As the weather slowly warms up, I recommend you check out Jeanne and Gaston and claim your space in front by the French windows or in the outdoor space.

Hungry yet?

My O May

April my friends has come and gone.  Which means I missed my second Blogiversary and for the first time in two years I went a whole month without posting.  As you can imagine that means my day job has gotten the best of me once again.  Not to worry, I have some special treats in store and you can expect plenty of posts in May.  The first of which will arrive this week.  Stay tuned!!

Le Pain Quotidien

It's not often that I blog about a chain restaurant, but on my last trip to DC I had brunch at Le Pain Quotidien and decided it was worth writing about. I was so excited to finally hang out with Cora and the future Mrs. Cora. We had to wait a bit before our party of 4 could be accommodated. The worst part of standing around was that I could see several of the sweet treats behind the glass. I held out from buying anything while waiting. When we finally sat down my stomach was screaming.  When I first realized where we were going, I was a bit surprised because their menu has never led me to believe they had much more than pastries.  It turns out not all Le Pain Quotidiens are created equal. This one had quite the expansive breakfast menu. (Apparently that's what they do in LA, CT, DC and 2nd and 50th.) We started with Belgian hot chocolate.  I've never had Belgian hot chocolate. They serve you milk in a large mug and give you a small vat of chocolate.  You pour in the chocolate and tada!

CoRa ordered the Belgian Waffle.

Pretty tiny portion if you ask me, but tastefully decorated with fresh fruit and powdered sugar. I'm guessing CoRa is watching his figure in anticipation of the wedding.  The future Mrs. CoRA also went all healthy on me.

That is an Omelette with Avocado. It wasn't on the menu, but apparently she's got the hook up.  Ms. O order the Paris Ham & Gruyère Omelette.

It actually looked pretty good. If not for the ham part, I might have gone for it too.  I decided to go with the Chicken Chorizo & Cheddar Omelette.

Yummers! The harissa on top was my favorite part! The chicken chorizo tasted great and it was just the right amount of cheese. I'm skeptical of omelettes because they add way too much cheese, but this one was just right.

Overall, it was a pretty good experience.  The wait was pretty bad, but the most annoying part of being in there was the constant reminder of "organic". It was all over the menu, on the servers' shirts, and even the jam. I mean jeez get over it!


Hungry yet?

Twiks Bars

To close out our fantabulous dinner spectacular, we made dessert! Earlier in the week, Bestie sent this recipe for Twiks bars. My mouth instantly began to water.  The recipe is really quite brilliant and for the most part easy to execute.  

Ingredients

For the shortbread crust:

12 ounces (3 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced, plus more for greasing the baking dish

15 ounces all-purpose flour

3 ounces sugar

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

For the caramel layer:

10 ounces sugar

4 ounces water

3 ounces heavy cream

4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, diced

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

For the chocolate layer:

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

3 ounces unsalted (¾ stick) butter, diced

We started by making the shortbread crust…which we actually made before the Thai Mussels. First, preheat the oven to 350˚F. And line a 9×13-inch baking dish with parchment paper. Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and knead the ingredients until the dough comes together. (The original recipe suggests a paddle attachment mixer, but since I don’t bake often I don’t have one. Turns out my hands work just fine!)  

Transfer the dough to the baking dish and press into an even layer. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool to room temperature.

The most challenging part was making the caramel layer. Combine the sugar and water in a small, heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil for 11 to 13 minutes, or until caramelized. The sugar will be fragrant and a deep amber color when it is caramelized. Remove the pan from the heat and dip the bottom into an ice water bath for a second or two.  Literally, only for a second or two.  Bestie and I got a little eager so we put it in the water again which was a mistake.  The caramel was all of a sudden hard and we had to take some time to heat it up again so it would melt.

After dipping it in water for a second, slowly stir in the cream and butter and then stir in the rock salt. Pour the caramel over the shortbread and spread evenly. Let cool to room temperature. I have to say I looooved licking the extra caramel out of the pot. I could eat caramel all day!

The last step, making the chocolate layer was pretty easy. I melt chocolate all the time; I could probably do it in my sleep.  Combine the chocolate and butter in a bowl and place the bowl over a small pan of simmering water.  Keep stirring until the chocolate melts. Pour the chocolate mixture over the caramel layer and spread evenly. Let cool for a couple of hours, or until set.  Okay I lied the caramel wasn’t the hardest part.  Waiting for it to set took forever!!

Once they were finally set, we lifted the parchment paper onto a cutting board. Cutting the bars was easy using a hot knife.

OMG the bars tasted amaaaazing! Everything from the shortbread to the caramel and the chocolate. It was the perfect combination! Actually, and this is tough to say, but I liked it more than the real Twix bars!  Hats off to Hungry Cravings for this special treat and a big thanks to my Bestie for bring so much cheer that weekend :)

Hungry yet?