Broder's Pasta Bar

Last week Joel took me to Broder's Pasta Bar as a belated Valentine's Day dinner. So far, Broder's is my favorite restaurant of the year. The meal was incredible and the ambiance was very soft and inviting. From the minute I stepped in the door and inhaled the tomatoey, spicy, buttery smells, I knew I was going to be in love.

Why has it taken us so long to to go to Broder's? As a local favorite hot spot, I am sure you are very curious. Well, Joel doesn't do so well with gluten, and as it is a PASTA bar, I thought it unkind to drag him along. But the choice was mine and they did serve a very gluten-free risotto. His dishes were definitely not as spectacular as mine, but when you forgo their signature food you can't really expect to be blown away. I think by the end of the meal my constant mmmm-mmming with every bit was quite annoying, but I couldn't help it.

What we ordered:

- Marinated Vegetables
- Bruschetta Pizza (a favorite)
- Vegetable Risotto
- Linguine with Prosciutto and a Truffle Cream Pesto
- Flourless chocolate cake
-Coffee (Morningstar) and a 1/2 litre of wine

They have an incredible "after 8" menu for $26 which gives two people an olive appetizer, salads, two entrees, and 1/2 bottle of wine. For more info, check it out.

So, my quest to make the perfect pasta has begun. Everything I thought I knew about pasta is wrong. The stuff I used to make appears really dull and lifeless now. I actually spent 6 hours on Saturday reading everything I could get my hands on about pasta and have begun making batches of the stuff to see if I can wrap my head around it (no pun intended).


Don't let anyone fool you, good pasta making is an art. I look forward to sharing with you my pasta findings.

Perfect Homemade Gravlox

I have long been in search of the perfect gravlox recipe. I have tried many, even my own, and am ashamed to say, I have always preferred store bought. What is gravlox, you might ask? Gravlox is salmon that has been cured using suger, salt and dill. After it has cured it is usually sliced thinly and served as an accompaniment with breakfast foods or as an appetizer.

As a kid bagels and cream cheese with lox (short for gravlox) was one of my favorite breakfasts. Now that I think about it, it still is. :) Some things never change. My husband Joel loves to snack on gravlox, thus the quest for the perfect recipe.


One of the great things about gravlox is that it is an excellent way to use up salmon that you might not have had time to cook, or a way to take advantage of a sale on salmon. I like to serve it on crackers or mini blini with a spread of sour cream and chives or creme frache and garnished with roe or dill.

So, on to the recipe. You are going to love this. I actually found this recipe as a video bit done by a bloke with a dreamy accent. I am pasting the steps to the recipe here as he doesn't have it written down anywhere on the site. To watch the video, click here.
2 lb salmon
8 tablespoon salt
6 tablespoon sugar
zest and juice from one orange
2 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp allspice berries
1 large bunch of dill
1 tbls cognac
1 tbls olive oil

Combine all ingredients except olive oil and some of the dill. Apply to top and bottom of salmon. Wrap salmon in saran wrap and place in bottom of shallow pan. Refrigerate for 6 hours and flip over for another 6. Wash salmon and pat dry with paper towels. Garnish with olive oil and leftover dill. Slice and serve.

(I made this without the allspice berries, only half the orange zest and didn't garnish as called for and it was still perfect.)

A few good sites...

Over the last week I have been compiling some really great websites I encourage you to check out:

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cookbook

Wikipedia's answer to a free cookbook. One word of caution...recipes posted on the web don't have to adhere to the same testing standards as those you will find in cookbooks. Nonetheless, I just love this idea. The next time you are stuck and can't think of what to make for dinner, scroll through the recipes others have posted. I think the best part is that you not only get a recipe, you learn a lot about the ingredients the recipe incorporates.

I am just dying without the farmer's market and the fresh summer produce. To torture myself and all of you, I have included a picture of some beautiful vine ripened tomatoes.

Another site that I find intriguing let's you select the items you have in your refrigerator and they suggest recipes that you could make.

http://www.cookingbynumbers.com/frames.html

I went to the site and selected: butter, chicken, eggs, garlic and mushrooms. My results told me that I can make scrambled eggs and chocolate mousse among other things. So, not a fabulous match, but great idea nonetheless.

And finally, for those of you in the Twin Cities, I love reading a blog called Renee and Steve's Restaurant Reviews. They have eaten their way through the cities and each record their opinions on the establishments. They have a basket where they add names of restaurants they want to check out and each Thursday they pull one out and that is where they go. For a very unbiased and unsnobby review, click below:

http://www.reneeandsteve.com/index.htm

March and April Classes

Last night's hands-on Indian class at Cooks of Crocus Hill was a blast. If filled up pretty quickly....so if you didn't get a chance to sign up, there are two more wonderful classes coming up in March and April (www.cooksofcrocushill.com):

Belgian Beer Dinner, Monday, March 24, 6-9 pm

Here's how it works: Josh picks one of his favorite Belgian beers, offers up a couple of words to describe the flavor — sweet, spicy, rich, herbal — then Rachael builds a dish on that theme. You'll be amazed at how well the two go together.

Menu: Belgian Pale Ale Paired with Garlicky Herbed Steamed Mussels; Flanders/Soured Ale Paired with Mesclun Salad with Apricot Vinaigrette and Goat Cheese Crostini; Dubbel Paired with French Onion Soup; Tripel Paired with Grilled Veggies with Pesto Vinaigrette; Saison Paired with Cajun Rub Roast Chicken Breast.; Surprise – Banana CrèMe Brule.

Intro to Food and Cooking: Southern Cuisine (Hands-on)

Monday, April 7, 6:00 PM-9:00 PM, $65

Designed for the beginner chef, this hands-on class offers the perfect introduction to basic cooking. We'll cover a wide range of techniques, including pan roasting, reductions and meat cookery. By the end of the session, you will have prepared a fabulous meal and have new culinary skills to last a lifetime.

Menu: Cornbread; Corn Maque Choux (chorizo, corn and spices); Spice-Rubbed Baked Chicken; Potato Salad; Pecan Pie.

Friends with Ideas

I am blessed to have so many fabulous friends...and many foodie friends who challenge me and help me appreciate all kinds of foods. One my friends, Virginia has been working her way around the cities in some of the top Twin Cities kitchens. She was a fellow student in my Le Cordon Bleu class and since has been a contributing writer to a cookbook recently published by Tampa Medical Group.

The book is called Diet for a Pain Free Life. And if you are looking for a great healthy cookbook that has been proven to help people loose weight, I would recommend it.