{TRY} One Very Lucky Hubbie

My friend John shared a photo this morning of what wifey surprised him with for Valentine's Day. How adorbs is that sugar bowl?!

BTW, as soon as I get my hands on the the recipe for the pumpkin-cran bread, I will share.
And the best wife award goes to...

{EAT} {TRY} A Brisket, A Basket

My friends Josh and Lauren Silversteinberg invited us over Friday night for shabbat dinner (read: excuse to make brisket and eat challah).  Every time I say the word brisket, in my head I start singing A Brisket, A Basket to the tune of Ella Fitgerald's A Tisket, A Tasket.  Now I am not one to say no to brisket nor the chance to butcher the first 10 words of the Sheva Brachot blessing that I memorized in 5th grade, so I happily accepted the invitation with a promise to bring good wine. We decided to share a bottle from our Napa 2012 Fall trip: an Alpha Omega 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon.

Lauren is a designer, so whenever she throws dinner parties, her table is impeccably dressed.  I just love these place mats- such a pop of color in the dead of winter!

The brisket was tender, the caramelized onions shined and the celery added great crunch. The brussels sprout salad was the clear winner for me though. Since brussels are a trending food, I'm always looking for a new take.  This Food & Wine slaw combines toasted hazelnuts, pomegranut seeds and raw brussels to make a light, textured, savory salad.  Lauren actually roasted half of the brussels to take away some of the bitter.

[recipe] Brussels Sprout Slaw with Hazelnuts & Pomegranate

1 cup hazelnuts
2 Tbsp. hazelnut oil
2 Tbsp. EVOO
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 tsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound brussels sprouts, finely shredded
Seeds from one small pomegranate
1 cup shaved Parmigiano cheese

Preheat the over to 350.  In a pie plate, toast hazelnuts until the skins blister, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a kitchen towel to let cool, then rub to remove the skins. Coarsely chop the nuts. 

In a bowl, whisk the hazelnut oil with the EVOO, vinegar, mustard, lemon zest and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Add the shredded brussels sprouts, pomegranate seeds and shaved cheese and toss well.  Serve immediately. ~

Chunky mashed potatoes were served along with challah.  You will soon learn I'm a lonely planet in terms of potatoes - meaning I can do without them (I know).  The challah was from Great Harvest Bread Co. in Rockville. Their menu changes monthly, but challah is a house staple, made fresh daily. It was airy yet dense, with a touch of sweet crust.  One can only assume they made challah french toast with the leftovers.

A-brisket, a-basket
She took my tender brisket
And if she doesn't bring it back
I think that I shall die. 

{EAT} Taco Rodeo: From "fine" to "Solful"

A few friends and I have been tossing around Taco Tuesday for quite sometime as a way to try out the areas best taco spots.  To be certain, I checked back in my email.  

Date: 11/28/2009
Subject: Tacos
Body: Link to a City Paper article about tacos in DC, followed by "New Years Resolution, try every taco place on the list" 

4 years later and several subject lines of "taco spot", "should we try", "taco tuesday", etc.  and not one taco consumed together, we finally gave it a try at a Taco Rodeo at the American History Museum.  For reference, Websters defines rodeo as "a public performance featuring bronco riding, calf roping, steer wrestling, and Brahma bull riding", none of which occurred, however there was a roundup of three (yes, only 3) taco trucks in one place- District Taco, Sol Mexican Grill and Rito Loco.  From best to worst, here's the roundup, sans bull ride. 

Solful Carnitas

The carnitas taco was a group favorite, stuffed with tender, slow-roasted pork accented with achiote paste and orange juice. The clear advantage here was the simplicity and flavor of the taco.  The tortilla, compared to the other 3, stood out with as warm and slightly charred.  The combination resulted in the most authentic mexican taco of the contenders. $7/3 tacos with unlimited toppings. 

Loco Ribs 

While Rito Loco seems to push burritos, we were on the taco hunt, so we opted for the "Ribrito", in-house recipe of pulled baby-back rib meat.  Their signature component is the tortilla which undergoes a flat press just before serving.  While the rib meat with delicious on it's own, the taco lacked texture and each bite too consistent.  The flat press tortilla was a bonus, but maybe next time I'd try the Mojito Rito (citrus infused pulled chicken with fresh mint). 

District-it-was-fine-Taco

I'm sorry to say, that I've decided to describe the carnitas taco at District Taco with one word: Fine. No one wants to be described as fine, not even a taco. Unless of course in the phrase, "Damn, she's fa-iiiine"

Bonus taco: Breakfast taco at District Taco

Stuffed with a mild chorizo, and topped with scrambled eggs, roasted potatoes and fresh pico de gallo in a flour tortilla, this was a group favorite.  It's served all day long so why not give it a try. 

All of these trucks can be found at http://foodtruckfiesta.com/, where their daily location is updated. 

{SEE} A view into Julia Child

What began as a trip to the National History Museum for the Taco Rodeo, surprised me with a glimpse into Julia Child's kitchen. Check how many cast-irons skillets she had! Do you think her kitchen smelled of fish skin?!

{EAT} Top 5 Winter Cozy Spots

I like a cozy, dark bar in the dead of February to warm my spirits.  Dark enough that you forget if you're on the 3rd or 4th glass of wine.  Cozy enough that you throw out your healthy new year's resolution for warm, comfort food. In no particular order, here are my top 5 winter cozy spot recommendations:

1905...because they got a new chef, Joel Hatton and I love their cow-hide bar stools.

Brixton...because even in the dead of winter, their heated roof top is slammed, not to mention the fire places on the second floor.

Tabard Inn...because of their fresh fried doughnuts and bloody's during brunch.

Maple...because 11th Street NW is the new 14th Street and Maple feels like a cozy, west village corner restaurant.

Taan Noodles...because for $14 you can get a big hot bowl of flavorful ramen noodles topped with pickled cucumbers, duck confit, and hanjuku tamago (the japanese way of boiled eggs w/runny yolks).  Start drooling now.

{SEE} Love People. Cook them tasty food.

Thanks for sharing Katherine.  I just love this bumper sticker found in Adams Morgan.

{TRY} DIY Pickling

Inspired by my recent run in with the ladies of Gordy's pickles and annoyed by the putrid saltiness of store bought, mass-produced pickles, I have decided to give pickling a try. Now, I've always loved anything pickled - cucumbers, okra, asparagus, carrots and the list goes on, but in searching for a recipe, I decided to start classic and basic with cucumbers. Using Bobby Flay's pickle recipe as the basis, I started off with English cucumbers.

Of course I didn't have the spices in seed form so I went to a local market that sells bulk spices. Just so much cheaper than buying an entire jar of a spice I rarely use. I like my food with a kick, so I added extra crushed red peppers as well as a whole dried hot pepper per mason jar. Bobby Flay's recipe called for 4 cups of vinegar, but after 24 hours realized the vinegar was too strong, so I tried half vinegar, half water. Much better!

They aren't Gordy's pickles, but for my first rodeo, I'd give them a 7 out of 10.