Get President Johnson ready!

It's restaurant week! Depending if you have a flair for the extravagant you may want to snag a Hamilton as well. For 20 (or 30 dollars) you can have a three course meal at all of these hot spots. So when we were scheduling our girl's night we decided this would be the perfect thing for us to do. (Totally not my idea but props to my savvy friends who were in the know, oh and make a reservation before you go!)

It was decided we would go to La Volta, which is in the Progress Energy Center right on Fayetteville Street. It is an Italian Restaurant owned and operated by Mario Longo, who also owns Vics which is in the city market. After a quick google search, apparently Mr. Longo is quite the soccer star who played around the world with a lot of people I have never heard of. But let's be honest... I know Pele (cool name), David Beckham, Landon Donovan, and Renaldo Christiano, and the last three are only because they appear in the trashy gossip magazines.  And I like what I see. The website also states that La Volta means "the vault" which is fitting because we ate right beside one which un-fittingly stores wine.

My friends had some issues making the reservation, which should have tipped us off from the get go that perhaps this was going to be an entertaining night. My friend Kelly called to confirm the reservation, and the lovely young lady said she did not have that down as a reservation. When Kelly asked to make another reservation, the phone was handed off to another person, who once hearing what Kelly wanted to do, loudly exclaimed that the original young lady could handle such a remedial task.  When we arrived, our small party of 4 had 2 reservations, which were chuckles for everyone.

The actual restaurant is lovely with a large menu and ample space to dine. The dining room was quite empty, which was to our benefit since we double booked ourselves at the same place.

Before I describe our dining experience I must forewarn you all, I have done my best to hide it, but I am indeed cursed. No need to zoom in, you read this correctly, I am cursed. It does not matter what I do, at every restaurant, fast food and sit down, my order will be wrong. Some facet will be wrong. Without fail. I know what you're thinking, "Sara, you're from the south, it's probably that accent!" You would be wrong. About as southern as I get is saying "y'all" and other local idioms like "well bless your heart!" Besides that you would not know that I was born and raised below the Mason-Dixon line.  "Well... Sara it must be because you're one of them picky eaters, you're order is probably complicated." You would be wrong again. Oh, you don't believe me?

Example #1 pre-pescatarian
Location: Taco Bell
Order: Chicken soft taco
What came in the bag: Cheesy beef burrito

When I asked the lady if chicken sounded like beef, she kindly asked me to "contain my attitudes".
Pro: I was given a diagnosis of schizophrenic (Name one person who didn't love Sally Fields' rendition of Sybil? I was glad that I too could do that role justice in the dignified locale of Taco Bell)
Con: Who actually eats the beef at taco bell?

The examples go on and on, I say for my side order "I would like the black beans, and I get rice. I say egg and cheese biscuit, but those clairvoyant workers decided that was not for me and a sausage biscuit would be the better hang over cure. It goes on and on and on.....

At La Volta apparently "I'd like the Cabernet" translates to:  "I really want was a cool glass of Pinot Grigio." I'm more of a red girl, but I never turn down a fermented grape product.

Ok more fun to come, but back to the food.

Starters:
Green salad: mixed greens, tomatoes, red onion, kalamata olives, cucumbers with their homemade balsamic dressing.
Caesar salad: romaine lettuce, Romano cheese, croutons in their creamy Caesar dressing

Entrées:
Penne Rustiche: penne pasta with spinach, sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, garlic, feta, and EVOO
Pappardelle alla Bolognese: egg noodles, meat sauce with Romano cheese
Chicken Marsala: chicken breast in a Marsala wine sauce with mushrooms with sauteed vegetables and potato croquette
There was one more dish, but honestly I can't remember what it was

Dessert:
You have your pick of all their desserts:
A standard cannoli with a cream filling
A chocolate cannoli with a chocolate cream filling
A chocolate mousse cake
Tiramisu
Lemoncello pound cake
Strawberry cream pound cake

I had the green salad with the Penne Rustiche and the Tiramisu for dessert. The salad and pasta were very good. They also bring out garlic knots as well, which were unimpressive. Not much flavor, if we are being honest, it smelled better than it tasted, which I hate because it is such a tease. The pasta was my favorite part, my friend Katie got the same dish as I did, but my two other friends got the Chicken Marsala. My tiramisu was frozen in the middle, but other than that was pretty good.

The manager came by and suggested the Lemoncello cake, but my other friends went for the cannoli's and chocolate mousse cakes, which I tried and were very good. My two friends who both got the chicken marsala had an awkward moment with the waiter because they were supposed to pick a side. Unknowingly the waiter chose for them because "the menu recently changed and he forgot to ask." Not to fret, he alerted them of this after he had delivered the food. No turning back now! Apparently Kelly looked like she would like the potatoes and Amanda looked like she wanted the squash. Amusing, none the less.

I also feel like I should let you all know.... I was a waitress for the better part of my late high school and early college years, so I understand the plight of those in food service. For that reason even when things happen like food mix ups or what have you, I always tip well. I feel compelled. These are my comrades fighting the good fight. Hurts my wallet, but oddly makes me satisfied. It's good Karma.

Final thought: I would not go to La Volta again, but perhaps you all would want to try it out. Those of you who aren't cursed that is. The prices are reasonable and the location and atmosphere nice. Something tells me, this restaurant won't be open for long though, so get in while it is still open!  And by all means take advantage of restaurant week- it's happening until Sunday!

Mama Shute's Mac and Cheese

Nothing healthy about this dish. But it hits the spot, makes me think of home and is so good you'd eat the whole pan if you're not deathly careful. When I found out how easy this was to make I almost slapped my momma. Almost. Nothing this good could be this easy. But like my good friend Robert Pirsig always says, "The solutions are all simple after you've arrive at them. But they're simple only when you know already what they are." I just blew your mind didn't I? 

Our new laboratory manager decided we should have a pot luck. It was suggested that we bring something from our heritage. Being that this is a science community we have people from China, Poland, Italy... well I was born and raised in North Carolina, and nothing says North Carolina like baked carbs and cheese.  Ironically, this is my mom's recipe who was born in England and has never officially become a citizen here.  So I can play it both ways with this being from my heritage, my mom is still a card carrying Brit so I made baked macaroni and cheese? I know... the tie into my heritage breaks down very quickly. I am going to use British spellings/words to make the tie in on today's post. You will find these with an underline. Regardless, this was my contribution- hence the need to cook it in a disposable container. Ok let's see today's contestants! 

Butter. Evaporated milk. Fresh cracked pepper. 8 oz sharp cheddar cheese. 1 box elbow macaroni. That's it! 

Pre-heat your cooker to 375. Boil your pasta according to the box. I also like to salt my water because this is the only opportunity to flavour the pasta.

Time to layer. Divide your pasta into three parts. Put the first part in the pan. Add fresh cracked pepper and pats of butter.

Cover this first layer with cheese. Repeat three times. Pasta, pepper, butter, cheese. Pasta, pepper, butter, cheese. 

Now take that can of evaporated milk and pour all over the top of the layers. Bake for 30 minutes in the hob. And you're done.

So good! And such a beautiful colour when it's done. 

So, I'm not being shoddy in my meal choice to bring. This turns out to be quite brilliant and I am sure my colleagues will queue up in anticipation for this treat. Ahh fun with heritage!

Bull Shiitake

Of course I added on the Shiitake Mushrooms when I had the chance last week, and they arrived in my cooler on Friday. The brie and shiitake mushroom pizza recipe that came in the newsletter sounded promising, so that is what I decided to make- with the Sara spin, of course! (Well maybe Mama Shute had some input...)

I chose the baby brie because it was on sale. It was just that simple. $2.99 at Kroger? Well then! Let's go ahead and get you comfortable in my basket! Don't mind if I do! This was the basis of the whole meal. I pre-heated the oven to 350 and let that bad boy pre-heat. In the mean time I grabbed two tortillas and spread the brie on the tortillas. I left the rind on- because I like the flavor, but take that off at your own discretion.

Don't worry about making it pretty, the cheese will spread once the cooking process has begun. Go ahead and get your mushrooms ready. I take off the stems and store for a rainy day, then slice the caps. I also added some sliced roma tomatoes onto my pizza pie.

Mmmm. Next I sauteed some chopped white onions with garlic and thyme in about 1 tbsp of butter. Once these are soft I poured this over top the cheese and mushrooms. 

Put them into the oven and cook for ~15-20 minutes.

And they're done! So simple. So good! And if you're wondering what do do with the extra brie cheese- may I recommend reading up on Lady Bird's poor and hungry farmer sandwich's. 

I finished off the meal with my absolute. favorite. summer. dessert. ever. The end. Kiss the baby because you're d-o-n-e! What is it you say? So simple. So fresh. It's.....

GRILLED PEACHES WITH A HONEY LIME MINT DRIZZLE. 

Perhaps a little anticlimactic for you too? I tired. Anyways... What fruit screams "summer" harder than a tween at a Justin Bieber concert? Peaches. And let me tell you folks, a good peach could be the answer to world peace, just saying. (We could call it world peach... heh heh heh. I slay myself).

If you are anti-fuzz drop the peach in boiling water for 30 seconds and the skin easily peels off. I happen to like the fuzz so I just slice these in half and throw on the grill. You just want to grill them until they are warmed through and have nice grill marks- about 5 minutes. 

Put them on your plate and then drizzle your honey over top. Tip: if you store your honey in the refrigerator- microwave it for 30 seconds, and it makes it easier to handle.  Zest some lime and garnish with fresh mint. To. Die. For.

And they are so sweet already that the honey with the lime and mint makes it feel like a 15 dollar dessert at a fancy restaurant. So good. 

Holy Antebellum's Batman!

I love Oakwood. It is that simple. Why? Just look at this street view. That's right, you can't see very far because the lush tree lined streets prevent it. I love how you have to look where you're going when you're walking because the roots from the trees have pushed up the sidewalk over the years. It has character. But mostly this neighborhood reminds me of Roanoke, Va, where my dad grew up. The street where he grew up is quite reminiscent of the streets in Oakwood, minus the mountains (minor missing detail from Raleigh).  

So! Speaking of archetecture- Coop and I went on a walk and thought I'd share some of my favorite homes located on Blount Street. 

Here we go!

First stop: The executive mansion- currently housing ole' Bev and fam. Fun fact: when walking your dog, do not linger too long or you will be followed until you are deemed to not be a threat by obvious government vehicles. And yes this indeed happened to Todd and Cooper. Although Todd was unsure why he was followed home. Everyone knows that on the protective scale Golden Retrievers are rated low and the only weapon Todd had was a filled poo bag. Your tax dollars at work? You be the judge.

Governor Zebulon Vance (Hey oh! Those names sound familiar!) decided enough was enough! The governors needed a swanky place to call home, and thus Samuel Sloan designed this quaint shack and convict labor succeeded in bringing his vision to life.  You can tour the first floor and garden tours are available. If you are visiting the museums, may I suggest parking near Bev's abode. Why? Because when the gardens are full grown, they have a tendency to hang over the gate, and the kids and I have been known a time or two to sample the blackberries that always seemed to have an invisible sign that said "pick me" on them. 

Moving on down the street.....

This is the Heck-Andrew's house. My readings told me this is built from French influences after the civil war and is considered to be in the style of Second Empire. Now do what I did which was go to Second Empire restaurant and see if you can spot the similarities in style! And know you know where the restaurant got it's name from. (Bonus!) 

I think it looks like a gingerbread house, but then again, I have not studied architecture.

Now onto one of my favorite homes, and huh! How about that! It is for sale you say? Hmmm... if only I had the time and the financial backing, A girl can dream.  Behold! THIS is the Lewis-Smith house. 

This was built before the civil war and is the oldest home on Blount Street.  It needs a little fixing up. Understatement of the year.

Just so you can get a feel for how large this is. Check out the side view. Obsessed. 

Looking across the street we have the Merrimon-Wynne house. Now, don't judge, but this 200+ ton home was not a Blount Street native but is a transplant. That's ok I didn't judge the new guy on the block, either.  Blount street is an equal opportunity house acceptor, although those less than 2000 square feet need not to apply.  

With twin wrap around porches and 9 fireplaces, you wouldn't be judging either. 9 fireplaces? Someone is going to be hoping for some snow. This one is also for sale, if your looking to be in debt for the rest of your life. 

This house is the Jordan House and is the last of the gargantuan homes on Blount Street and neighbors Peace College. 

This is a Queen Anne style home, that like many of the downtown homes had been previously converted into apartments. I will say a redeeming quality is the large corner lot that it is situated on. This was the point where Coop and I turned around and took photos of a few home's we missed along our route.

The Capehart House is also a Queen Anne style home and is another mammoth residence. I am thinking I like the way people thought about their home's prior to 1900. 

Aldophus Bauer who assisted with the planning of the executive mansion designed this home, and like I said before, not bad, not bad at all.  This house is also a transplant home with it's original location being on Wilmington street. I think I just like the tower on this one. All homes should have towers. I think I should drop ole' Bev a note for some type of official decree on this matter. 

This is another house that gets stunna' points for it's height. This is the Hawkins-Hartness House. And I have to say if it didn't have the height factor I would easily confuse with the Capehart House.

I must say the porch on this one is also very impressive. But sadly no one lives in this home. It serves as offices, which I think is ashame because again I wouldn't mind adding my name to this deed.

This concludes Cooper and I's mansion mission. It should be noted that many of these homes are part of the newly visualized Blount Street Common's project. I'll believe it when I see it because the townhomes that were built are looking mighty pitiful in their abandoned area. I drive down Blount Street everyday on my way home from my place of employment, so I am keeping a watchful eye on the progress. 

No worries, tomorrow I'll review a downtown local eatery where I was able to get the inside scoop on some new developments! For those who are wondering, I had to return Cooper back to his owners. Sir Rupert will return to his rightful position as supreme male animal in our home.... at least for now.

The following sites were researched in the making of this post and can be referenced for further reading:

Executive Mansion

Heck-Andrews House

Lewis-Smith House

Lewis-Smith House

Moving the Merrimon-Wynne home

Merrimon-Whynne House

Jordan House

Capehart House

Hawkins-Hartness House

What do you call a nosy pepper?

JALAPEÑO BUSINESS!

I love a stupid joke. But seriously I am dying with what to do with all these peppers. I received some squash last week, so how about tri-peppers with squash? Now watch my pepper stash dwindle! 

Aside: And no I did not choose the box with more peppers, I decidedly chose the one without. 

Here we go! Tonight I channeled my inner Bobby Flay and came up with this little dish!

Here are tonight's contestants: squash, poblano pepper, banana pepper and jalapeño pepper. I had some lemon already cut because being that it is summer the citrus population in the house has a tendency to find their way into seasonal ales. More recently they have been spotted floating in brews poured from the Oberon Bell's mini keg Todd purchased from Total Wine. 

Chop these four and throw them into a bowl with salt pepper and EVOO.  Since I used lemon I thought this needed some spicing up.

CONFESSION: I googled "herbs that complement lemon." Gasp! Why? I couldn't remember if it was thyme, rosemary or oregano that went best. Turns out I was 2/3s right! So thyme and rosemary went in with the mix along with my trusty friend Trader Joe's roasted corn. 

While this cooked I decided to pair it with sea scallops. And then I decided I needed a sauce, preferably one that could use up some more produce. This is where I needed some good ole Bobby Flay in my life. Senior Flay loves toning down spicy with some sweet. Lord knows I have jalapeños coming out of my ears, naturally that was the pepper of choice, and I had some left over coconut from a cake I made. Perfect! (PS the cake got some pretty rave reviews: get this it was a pineapple, macademia nut coconut cake. Yum and it smelled like I would imagine Hawaii would).

Here we go. Few handfuls of sweetened coconut, splash of EVOO, 1/4 c vegetable broth, 2 chopped jalapeños and a few shakes of some habanero hot sauce. Sim sim simmer away.

Toss into the food processor and let it run until smooth. And when I say smooth I men until the hunks of coconut are no longer visible. In hindsight, I realize using coconut milk would have been a better choice, but you have to use what you have. The result is below.

Cook your sea scallops with a little EVOO, salt and pepper. 

Put your sauce down with your scallops on top.

  

Add your squash and tri-peppers and serve with sliced avocado. The avocado will cool down some of the heat, in a similar fashion to how the coconut offsets the jalapeños. Such a bright and colorful plate, almost too good to eat.

Final thoughts for the evening. I almost feel like I should rename this blog: cooking for the carnivore. Truth be told, I feel like I have to get extra creative so that my other half gets enough flavor in hopes he won't notice that there is not much meat being cooked nightly. Don't get me wrong, last night he spent half of the night slow roasting himself a half rack of pork ribs to get his meat fix and openly gaffed that the fact that the price of bacon is steadily rising. I can't remember the last time we bought bacon, honestly.  Not to mention I feel like I pass a truck full of sows or barrows on their way to the slaughter house daily on I-40.... so I know it's not a supply issue. And North Carolina IS the #2 pig producing state behind Iowa, so keep buying the pork? I am very conflicted with that last statement.... more on that in future posts!

Tomorrow's blog: Coop's on the loose! Blount street homes and why I love Oakwood.

Sara, what should I do with my acorn squash?

Just like your sixth grade bra....stuff it! 

This question was asked by TPrizzy today at work, and she is in luck because two of these bad boys arrived in my produce box on Wednesday. Acorn squash are really tasty on their own, with a natural sweetness that I feel many people ruin by adding extra sweetener via brown sugar or molasses. BUT when you scoop out the seeds it creates a little bowl which just seems like it is itching for something other than your fork to be placed in it.  I usually reserve most of my gourd eating for the winter, but apparently they are in season, or else I would have not received two of them. Being it is the summer time and I am still up to my eyeballs in jalapeño peppers, I thought I would do a zesty spicy mixture with my old friend quinoa.

Pre heat your oven to 350 and grab your squash

Cut it longitudinally and scoop out the seeds

Beep beep beep. That's your oven saying it's ready. Drizzle some EVOO over each halve and place bowl side down on a baking sheet and cook about 30 minutes, or until easily stabbed with a fork.

While your vessels are roasting in the oven, go ahead and start your qunioa. I like to cook mine in a broth, so you can choose chicken or even beef, obviously I choose vegetable. You can even cook the quinoa in water but remove half the water and sub a juice that complements your dish. For example: cooking Caribbean? Make 1/2 c quinoa with 1/2 c water, 1/2 cup pineapple juice. Cook and toss with cilantro and diced red pepper for an easy tasty side dish.

I did 1 c broth to 1/2 c quinoa. Boil your broth and rinsed quinoa and then simmer until the liquid is absorbed.

While the quinoa is bubbling away go ahead and begin your add-ins.

1/2 onion (I chose a red one, you can also use shallots)

1/2 c roasted corn (or regular fresh corn for all of you who have a ton frozen from earlier in the season)

1/2 c garbanzo or black beans 

1 diced pepper (a green one came in my box this week)

2 jalapeños (hahaha you're numbers are dwindling!)

bunch of chopped cilantro

2-3 cloves of garlic

salt and pepper

Add your garlic and chopped onion to a little EVOO and sauté over medium heat until it is nice and carmelized

Go ahead and dice your peppers. For the jalapeños I cut off the tops and take out all the seeds and membrane. If you want it spicier leave more of the membrane in or add some of the seeds in. The hubs is a spice freak, so I try to keep it spicy, but not burn off your taste buds spicy.

After the peppers soften, throw in the corn and beans. Go ahead and season with your salt and pepper and at the end add in the cilantro. For variations feel free to add in some chili powder, lime juice or cumin for some flair.

Looking pretty good huh? Well you're just in time because it's been about 30 minutes and the acorn squash are ready to make their entrance.

Yum yum! Let's stuff these suckers!

Now you're going to have stuff left over. I'm taking mine for lunch tomorrow, and it is just as yummy on it's own.  For the meat portion we had ahi tuna steaks flash marinated in fresh lime juice, ginger and red pepper flakes. So simple. So easy. So delicious.

Can't you tell which one is mine and which one is Todd's? Oh yea, I decide to add some cheese as a last minute addition to the goddess vessels. And you want to know something else? Todd announced at the end of the meal... "Sara? You know what was my favorite? The actual squash. Even without all the stuff on top." And if that is not enough to at least purchase one of these then I don't know what else is.

Disclaimer: Before Todd met me his relationship with fresh vegetables was limited at best. In fact it is safe to say the most interaction he had was solely with canned vegetables. Oh how things have changed!

Seafood sausage.... say what!?!

Before we get into today's blog post I would like everyone to give a warm welcome to Cooper. Sadly this hunk of fluff is not mine, but I do call him my pseudodog. He belongs to the kids for whom I used to nanny...but I not only get to still see the kids on the reg, but from time to time get to take care of Cooper as well. Just look at him! And also notice the vacuum on standby for his visit because when he comes so does a considerable amount of shedding.

Ok onwards to today's post. Side story:  Sir Rupert, our cat, had to have some surgery... with the surgery came twice daily syringe squirts of pain meds directly into his mouth (fun fun) and an antibiotic to be given in wet food. Sir Rupert usually only gets dry food, but when you need some dank pet food where do you go?

TRADER JOE'S!!!

For those of you who shouted pet smart just leave this website now. Fun Fact: Trader Joe's started in Los Angeles. I for one am not surprised in the least bit.

One cannot possibly go in and just purchase pet food, which is how the hubs and I found ourselves in the frozen foods section looking at this:

Once again, don't adjust your cheater reader's, this says: "seafood sausage." When Todd and I saw this my reaction was: "Ughhh", and his was; "Ewww! We gotta try this." So in the basket it went and in the freezer it stayed until last night when I decided this was what we were having for dinner.

I slapped those babies on the grill and waited to see what this "shrimp, scallop, and mild white fish" concoction tasted like. It is wrapped in pork casing, so those with strong aversions to pork products you can easily remove the casing and gently grill without falling apart.

As side items I decided to make spicy broccoli in order to finish up the pepper's I received in my produce box. I wish I could say I chopped a head of fresh broccoli, but to be honest I came home from work, started reading my book, passed out and napped like it was sophomore year of college.  Since it was almost 8 when I started cooking I went the fresh-frozen route. (Don't judge me too hard, I am human remember? I am the one who can't get themselves to the farmer's market). I cooked the broccoli and drained the water.

I then cut up one of these bad boys and tossed it in:

I then chopped 2 cloves of garlic and put that in the pan with 1 tbsp of olive oil and 2 tsp of red pepper flakes.

Mmmm- roasty. Other side item was a simple spinach salad with feta, cucumber, grape tomatoes and shredded carrots. And this my friends is what the finished dish looked like:

Ok let's get real. What did I think of the seafood sausage?

  (Disclaimer: I ate really weird things as a kid: in my lunch box there may or may not have been several instances of celery with cream cheese and olives or perhaps multiple sardine with a dab of mustard on a saltine moments) 

It was ok.... tasted mainly of shrimp. Now I am not a calorie maniac by any means (there's a good chance I let out a chuckle or too when I wrote that), but each sausage only had 110 calories, 370 mg of sodium and 3.5 grams of fat. So not bad health-wise when you compare it to a comparable size Johnsonville sausage which has 270 calories, 810 mg sodium and 22 grams of fat. I'm pretty sure I could feel my feet swell and cellulite virtually manifesting itself onto my thighs and just by typing that, but that is neither here nor there, the important thing is I would probably buy this again, but would not serve straight up. I would switch it up and serve over some type of noodle and perhaps a little of "Sara's Bangin' Noodle Sauce." 

Just to keep your interested piqued, Miss ladybird herself has agreed to guest blog with some of her food travels down in Nola (that's New Orleans Louisiana for those not down with the lingo). So get pumped!

Adventures in the produce box

Truth: People say they want to buy locally grown produce.

Question: Can all of you actually say that you visit your farmer's market on the reg? 

Fact: No.

This includes me. So, before all the hippies get their dreads in a twist, I found an even better solution thanks to my good friend Tiffany who introduced me to a little service called The Produce Box. What I get weekly is a box full of in-season fruits and vegetables picked the morning that and delivered to my door. Don't adjust your cheater readers, I said delivered to my door. No worries, it's still eco-friendly. They have neighborhood coordinators who pick up the boxes and then delivered them.  They also offer items made with the weekly harvest. So this week I will be getting a jar of spicy pickles made with cucumbers harvested just right down the road, and last week I ordered some honey to be included into my box for a few bucks extra. So for 22 dollars a week I get to pick from 3 options and bam just like that no trip to the farmers market needed folks.

What I have had to do is get uber creative with how to use all of my goodies in a week. So this week I am introducing you all to "Sara's bangin' noodle sauce." This is not copyrighted.... yet.

Disclamer: my food photography skills are lack luster at best. I promise to work on this.

Ingredients:

5-6 ripe tomatoes, cubed, skin on

A handful of basil, julienned (I roll them and then cut into strips (unless your pacman jones then I cut them into scrips)

Peppers of your choosing, these came in my box and are spicy, so adjust to your taste, I cut them into rings

While I know you are all marveling over the artistic placing of the above pictured items please know that this is my best work to date, but oddly food advertising community has yet to get in touch with me.

Ok! I throw these items into a large non stick pan and let them simmer for about 20 minutes. I then add 1 chopped red onion, ~tbsp each of raw chopped garlic,  garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper to taste. That's it. I was feeling funky the other night so I threw in some spinach just for funsies. I then put everything into my food processor and pulsed it until it was still chunky but was more or less the consistency of store bought Prego. I served mine with sauteed shrimp, freshly grated parmesan-reggiano and served over quinoa noodles. (Which is a tasty alternative to whole wheat noodles, quinoa being the awesome super food that it is)

So before you go and buy store bought pasta sauce- try making your own. I was pleasantly surprised! Oh and sign up for the produce box, you will LOVE it.

Sweet Treats Y'all!

OK! Impromptu birthday get together- quick! What do you bring?

Cupcakes! 

From where? 

Duh where any downtown gal gets her cupcakes- The Cupcake Shoppe!

This is a snap shot of their logo affixed atop a half dozen of these scrumptious treats. (Cute right? The old sorority girl in me berserks out at labels and things wrapped with ribbons) Cupcakes are $3 each or you can get a dozen for $33. They come in a variety of flavors but once they run out of that flavor for the day sorry you are shit out of luck. And no- they cannot make you a red velvet cupcake 3 minutes before closing, and yes I am talking to you miss "I just came from shopping at Charlotte's at Cameron Village and boy am I pooped! All those monogrammed goodies just spurned my appetite!" I saw you trying to hassle your treat of choice out of the counter lady Tuesday night... umm hmm don't play...

So which delectable treats did I choose for the birthday boy? 

Get your taste buds in gear because here we go! Top row right to left: we have simply cinnamon, peanut butter cup and coconut. Bottom row right to left: we have black and white, mint condition and you mocha me crazy.

Taste descriptions:
Simply cinnamon: Cinnamon spice cake with cinnamon cream cheese icing
Peanut butter cup: Chocolate cake with peanut butter buttercream
Coconut: Fresh coconut cake with vanilla buttercream rolled in coconut flakes
Black and white: Chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream
Mint condition: Chocolate cake with mint buttercream
You mocha me crazy: Dark chocolate cake with espresso buttercream

Yum. Yum. So what's that you're asking? Which have I had before? Sit down. Take a load off and let me tell you a story. Many moons ago when I was a graduate student whose job was escorting 3 adorable kids to various Raleigh outings we would come here usually after a day at a museum (side note: if you are a Raleigh nanny/sitter downtown museums are where. it. is. at. Weekly events and free entertainment? You're welcome.). Confession. I usually had 3 kids in tow. They were cake people. I am an icing person. So there is a good possibility that I have only sampled the icings.. in every flavor. Judge me if you must! But I can report the kids loved the cakes and I can report that the icings are to die for. Whew! Now that we are all open and sharing with our feelings, I can now say with great certainty that if you have NOT been to this little shop on Glenwood (across from DIVE bar) you have not lived. Now go forth into the great world that is seeking treats.

We wanted to eat at the Duck and Dumpling BUT

it is closed on Sundays. We had already parked at Moore Square so we wandered up to Wilmington Street and stumbled across Gravy. Gravy describes itself as serving Italian-American comfort food with a modern spin, which with a name like gravy, makes perfect sense. Gravy is owned by Bella Monica, a staple restaurant in Olde Raleigh.

The restaurant is a narrow two stories and is lit with track lighting which highlights the exposed brick which has been painted over with a muted gray. There is outside seating and a few high top tables near the front.

During our visit there were a few families complete with children ranging from infant to pre-teen, couples sharing a romantic dinner and groups of loud boisterous friends.

Via the Gravy facebook page you can look at their specials which are constantly changing and get a sneak peak at their upcoming special events.

We began with a 28$ bottle of red wine, which the name escapes me but luckily the wines are grouped by intensity and flavor and there is one to fit every budget. After our wine was poured the garlic knots arrived which were buttery and sprinkled with pesto and Parmesan cheese. Buttery is an understatement, because the little guys glistened under the lights. They were tasty, but on the dense side, which was contradictory because they appeared light and fluffy.

For our appetizer we selected the steamed little neck clams on a whim.  The menu describes this dish as "fregula, tomato saffron, fennel, celery, leek with crostini." If you order this, I hope you have some garlic knots left because only giving you two crostini is a cruel, cruel joke. I say this because the sauce is crack-like addictive. And when the bread runs out you will be praying that no one is looking because all you want to do is tip the bowl up and drink. Sadly, this is a public establishment and that my friends would be a breach in etiquette. Word of advice, use and abuse the knots. Those dense little buggers soak this sauce up like a sponge. Back on track: the clams were perfectly cooked and tasted just like the ocean. The sauce obviously is indescribable, but the tomatoes add an element of acid that cuts the richness.

For our entree's I ordered the sauteed potato gnocchi and Todd ordered the pork cannelloni. My gnocchi's were perfectly done and had the beautiful pillow texture as they do when cooked correctly. The sauce was earthy and rich, but was a bit on the salty side. The portion of portabello mushrooms distributed was appropriate and added to the earthiness of the dish. Besides the cankle-inducing salt content I could not complain. The cannelloni were draped in melted mozzarella cheese which had sat under the broiler to get just slightly burnt in the bubbled areas where the gravy had attempted to seep out. The dish was served in a bowl to account for the ample gravy served with the dish.  He said the pork was well-seasoned and moist and as evidenced by his empty plate- could have not asked for anything else.

Verdict: 

Would eat there again. 

Variety of vegetarian items, however vegan's beware, this is not a place for you. 

Atmosphere was modern, yet oddly comforting.

Range of prices to fit every budget.

Will take pictures at the next eatery. The idea to blog about my Raleigh food adventures came to me while in mid-orgasm due to the tomato saffron sauce. Damn that sauce....

 

Just a little preview....

I live and play in downtown Raleigh. As a resident of the beautiful Oakwood neighborhood I am at the epicenter of revitalization projects that are breathing new life in to this once decrepit area. This blog will represent my ventures into the downtown culinary world as well as sharing my own adventures in cooking. I believe in making locally and sustainably produced products full of flavor. I am a pesctarian, however I am married to a fully functioning carnivore so when I review a restaurant there will always be wide variety of opinions. There will be guest bloggers from time to time to offer up their culinary travels and I look forward to taking this adventure with you all!