Events of the Week

This past weekend was an eventful one.  We concluded the weekend with a dinner consisting of cheesey goodness, Brie and Carmelized Onions Fondue, savory Filet Mignon wrapped in Bacon with sauteed spinach and parmasean cheese (more cheesey goodness), then finished it off with a Caramel Apple Cake.

This night much like any other could have easily made us stop talking to eachother and ended in tears. HOWEVER we pulled it through and learned another valuable lesson...SPLENDA IS NOT REAL SUGAR. Splenda does not make caramel, INFACT it make rock hard candy while still in a skillet. Unbelievable.  Thank you Robin for trying but splenda is just crap.  Sweet, crap.  It refused to dissolve or even brown!  Frank was close to giving up, but i was determined! I drove, though probably not the best idea, down to the local Shop Rite for the real thing.  All in all the meal was a success, (even though Robin refused to try our delicate spinach) it turned out well...

HOWEVER! Tomorrow, Friday the 24th Frank and I have the opportunity to cook for the Brave Firefighters of New Brunswick!  My oldest brother is a member of the New Brunswick Fire Co. and got approval from the Chief to let us cook for him and the rest of his crew.  This is an honor for us, and a chance for us to show appreciation to theses brave guys.  And a chance for me to show my Big Bro what I can really do...assuming it all turns out right. 

Little Italy/Soho/San Gennaro

Last night we ventured into Soho for a night out.  Being excited about the impending Zeppolis we would be enjoying (and inevitably covered in powdered sugar) on the train ride from New Brunswick, we were debating on where to eat.  After deciding that a massive sausage and pepper sandwich would just be too difficult to eat on a crowded street, I came up with Carmines, almost drooling thinking of the HUGE Antipast appetizer, Zezhi said the most fantastic word ever..."L'ecoles",  The French Culinary Institutes restaurant.  A place of sentimental value for me, it was the perfect place to go.  Frankie had never been and I was more than excited to have my best friend share the experience I had almost a year ago.  After making our way to Soho we found out that L'ecoles was completely booked, with 3 remaining seats at the bar, we jumped at the chance.  "L'ecole", french for "school", had the perfect simple ambiance, soft music and the beautiful surroundings of sophisticated, trendy Soho apartments.  We dove into ordering our 5 course meals of appetizers, fish, meal, digestive salad, and dessert.  Artic Char Tartar with a yorkshire pudding, Scallops with a curried cauliflower puree and green apple buerre blanc, Papardelle with mushrooms and pancetta, Salmon with pureed sweet potato, Venison with red wine sauce and cheddar polenta, goat cheese sorbet with pickled plums and arugula, then a german chocolate cake with cherries, a passion fruit baked alaska, and a fig tart all that was absolutely to die for.  It was an experience that was summed up in "Wow...".
 We made our way down to Mulbury St. where the Italians met for their yearly meeting of Zeppolis, sausage and peppers, and "Ah Yo!"'s echoing through multiple wine and powdered sugar covered streets of New York.  The streets were adorned with the symbolic Italian colors of red, white and green with sparkling lights just to literally cap off the atmosphere of the night.

Very, very good weekend.

Rainy Days = Cooking Adventures

Although sunny days can bring on the desire to cook and try new things, rainy days off from work emphasize these feelings even more. With a cup of coffee and a cookbook, ideas start churning. After going through pages and pages of recipes, a menu was created: Linguine with Butter, Pecorino and Spinach followed by Chicken with Mozzarella and Prosciutto in a Sage White Wine sauce. Today, we get to cook for Frankie's brother and his friend. We always look forward to cooking for new people, and sharing our passion with as many people as we can.

Tuesday brings another night of cooking. I, Frankie, get to cook for and catch up with a friend after six long years. He has been supportive of my foodie adventures so we will turn him into one of our guinea pigs for the night. On the menu: Spaghetti with Asparagus, Smoked Mozzarella and Proscuitto. Hopefully, the food will be fantastic. It will be another night of good food and good friends.

Short and sweet

This posting is a prelude to another that I would like to write when Ive got more time... I recently started an Anthropology class, and of course in my mind I find ways to connect food and anthropology.  The sharing of cultures through food...sounds delicious! Kibbeh is an example of this.  For those of who do not know, Kibbeh is a Lebanese dish, consisting of raw lamb, wheat germ, and possibly onions and other seasonings...and it was actually very good, just dont think that youre eating raw meat!
I would like to write more about the experiences we have had with trying new foods and cultures and if any of you have good stories to tell we invite you to share them as well!

This is what happens when Frankie is allowed to write

Hello All,

It has been a busy few days for us so it may seem like we are slipping but we're still here, still thinking about our next menu! While looking through Mario Batali's cookbook, I came across some recipes that I very much want to try out. Although I am intrigued by almost every recipe in that book, his assortment of appetizers really caught my eye. I know that we shouldn't reaalllyy make a whole meal out of appetizers, I think we are going to tweak one of the recipes and change it into a main course. As of right now, the menu consists of:

• Appetizer: Stuffed rice balls, Roman Style
• Main: Egglplant Caponata, with a Toasted Baguette 
• Dessert: Chocolate Hazelnut Fritters

As usual, this meal will be shared with good friends. It will be a great night of eating, drinking and good times.

Pictures (and reviews..hint hint friends!) will follow.