Innovative QR Code

This is old news, but we were talking about QR codes with our friends last night, and I mentioned Taco Bell's code made of avocados in an ad I'd seen in one of our food magazines we subscribe to.  They also have one made of lemons.  Use your QR code scanner on your phone and scan the image right here on my blog -- it works! 

By the way, Taco Bell's new Cantina Bowl (try the chicken one) is pretty good for what it is, being fast food.  However, I still prefer Chipotle.



Recipe: $4 Spaghetti That's Almost as Good as $24 Spaghetti

I was reading Food & Wine's August 2012 issue last weekend and came across the recipe on p.56 called '$4 Spaghetti That's Almost as Good as $24 Spaghetti.'  It's Lesson 8 in the article called Summer School:  Easy Chef Lessons.  It sounded intriguing. 

"'The $24 spaghetti from Scott Conant's Scarpetta in NYC is so delicious,' says Roy Choi of L.A.'s Kogi empire.  'My $4 version tastes almost as good.'  Roy's trick:  flavoring tomato sauce with a quick mushroom broth and slow-cooked garlic."

What does $24 spaghetti taste like?

The recipe was delicious, but not $24 per serving worth delicious.  Maybe $10 per serving.

A few tips:

• The recipe itself is really easy -- it just takes a lot of TIME. Make sure you have 2 and a half hours to hang around the house and cook. Or, if you make this during the weekday, prep the mushroom broth and garlic the day before.
• We used bucatini pasta instead of spaghetti.  I just love bucatini.  There's something about long, hollow pasta that is fun.
• We added meatballs (obviously from the photo) stuffed with mozzarella to add some protein to the dish.
• We were scared to use so much garlic.  We should've used all 4 heads and will do that next time.  We used about 3, and I couldn't taste much of the garlic.

OpenTable's Top 100 Scenic View Restaurants

Yesterday, OpenTable announced the Top 100 Scenic View Restaurants in the U.S.

Five Sixty by Wolfgang Puck (one of my favorite restaurants in Dallas) was a winner.  And I'm not surprised that Seven Glaciers in Alaska makes it on the list every year.  Blog contributor the woman who ate everything and I dined there a while back, and the view is amazing.

Happy National Tequila Day!

Today, July 24th, is National Tequila Day.  Tequila is not exactly my favorite spirit, but I do like it in the occasional margarita or other cocktail. 

Just a quick primer on this spirit:

• Tequila comes from the blue agave plant
• It must be produced in the state of Jalisco in Mexico to be called tequila  (Note: There is a city called Tequila in this region)
• There are 3 main types of tequila you'll see in the liquor store:
• Blanco (white)/Plata (silver):  un-aged or aged less than 2 months; is usually clear in color
• Reposado:  aged a min. of 2 months but less than 1 year in oak barrels; not clear but has a slight yellow tint
• Anejo:  aged less than 3 years but a min. of 1 year;  usually dark yellow tint and complex in flavor because of the aging

What is your favorite tequila?  Do you have a favorite margarita or cocktail recipe to share?

Recipe: Toast for Dinner

Friday night. . .we were trying to figure out what to have for dinner, and I didn't feel like a major cooking endeavor.  I flipped through a few of our cooking magazines and had marked p.16 of Bon Appetit's July 2012 issue.  It was Adam Rapoport's editor's letter called 'The Toast of Summer' where he recalls a backyard dinner party where he forgot to prepare an appetizer/munchies to eat pre-dinner.  So, he frantically rummaged through his kitchen and ended up grilling some bread and layering the toast with avocado, extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt and red pepper flakes.  This simple dish was the highlight of the meal.

This was the inspiration for our dinner which included the grilled toast below -- as well as burrata (didn't get a photo of that since I ate it with a spoon).  All of the toast was lightly rubbed with garlic.

Ricotta, lemon zest,drizzled with honey

Avocado, extra-virgin olive oil,
sea salt, red pepper flakes
Next time, we'll dice up the avocado.

Tomatoes, basil, extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt

Ricotta, lemon zest, figs

Truluck's Carrot Cake Haiku

I'm not a poet, but dessert last night made me want to write this haiku:

Truluck's Carrot Cake

No other dessert compares

Each bite is heaven

If you even remotely like carrot cake, you must go to Truluck's to try theirs.  It is an amazing, craveable dessert -- one of the best desserts in Dallas.

Defending Wine Snobs

I love this article by Lettie Teague at the Wall Street Journal that defends wine snobs:  Think While You Drink: In Defense of Wine Snobs

Foie Gras Retaliation

I thought this was interesting  -

California foie gras ban prompts French call for California wine expulsion
Source: Just Drinks by Stuart Todd 7/4/12

"A politician in France has called on retailers and restaurants in the country to stop offering Californian wines to their customers.

The call to arms follows California's ban on the production and consumption of foie gras in the state from 1 July. A law passed in the US state in 2004 declared that the act of gavage - the force feeding of corn to geese and ducks - was harmful to the animals' well-being."

Recipe: Double Cheeseburgers with Caramelized Onions

Our single (not double) cheeseburger
with caramelized onions

The Fourth of July. . . you have to have a burger (or a hot dog), right?! 

I had flagged the 'Double Cheeseburgers with Caramelized Onions' recipe in Food and Wine Magazine's June 2012 issue (p. 32), and only upon closer reading, realized that this is a recipe from Chef Ron Boyd who works at Daniel Patteson's Plum in Oakland, CA.  Plum is a wonderful restaurant that I dined at and blogged about back in September.

After making this burger and the Triple Smoke Burger , I just can't bring myself to order a burger in a restaurant anymore.  These recipes are out of this world, seriously, and beat any restaurant burger I've ever had.  Try them and you'll understand why.

For this recipe:

• We left out the cornichons and the fresh flat-leaf parsley, but I think we should include them next time to add additional flavor dimensions.
• As you can see from the photo, we made these with single, not double patties.  (Trying to be healthy!)
• We grilled the burgers instead of cooking them on a griddle.
• We used just a little EVOO -- the 1/4 cup isn't necessary.
• The fresh brioche buns and the mix of cheese along with the paprika mayonnaise make this burger incredible.

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/double-cheeseburgers-with-caramelized-onions

Recipe: Spiked Pretzel Chocolate Caramel Martini

Just a commentary about the dessert situation in Dallas.  Last night, we wanted dessert but not just any dessert, a phenomenal dessert that was worth the calories.  We racked our brain, thinking of all the places we've had dessert in Dallas;  looked at the Dallas Observer and D Magazine dessert "winners" (from their annual polls);  read suggestions on Chowhound. . .

The only phenomenal desserts we could think of were Truluck's Carrot Cake and their Chocolate Sack, La Duni's Quatro Leches Cake and the desserts at Fearing's, Abacus and Marquee Bar & Grill.  While we haven't been to Lucia or Bolsa (for dessert), both won many best dessert awards from Dallas publications recently.

Our big realization was how mediocre and unmemorable the desserts in Dallas are.  For instance:

• Stephan Pyles:  Heaven & Hell Cake;  Coffee & Doughnuts
• R&D Kitchen:  Carrot Cake;  Ice Cream and Banana Sundae
• Ocean Prime:  Carrot Cake;  Baked Alaska
• Wolfgang Puck's 560:  Sour Cream Apple Crumble
• Toulouse:  Beignets & Coffee;  Pear Tart
• I can't even think of other desserts we've had since they weren't memorable at all.

If you know of any desserts that are amazing, craveable, memorable, and all in all phenomenal here in Dallas, please post a comment with your reco!

All of that to say that my hubby suggested we resort to making our own dessert and try recreating the spiked milkshake that he had at The Cheesecake Factory recently -- Twisted Salted Caramel Pretzel made with ABSOLUT Vodka, Licor 43, caramel, pretzels and ice cream.  Using the provisions we had at home, we made our own version using vodka, Godiva Caramel, pretzels, chocolate ice cream and milk.  It was worth every sip.