Thanksgiving 2010 in Pictures

Although Thanksgiving was four days ago, I'm still feeling a smidge weighed down by the incredible feast my family had. And my pants have informed me that it's time I get back to a regular workout routine. I'm thankful I got to spend the holiday with my family and our neighbors, in addition to the multitude of other things that I'm thankful for and was able to reflect on last week. My mom cooked just about everything and after years and years of doing this, she's pretty much got it down to a system, a well synchronized schedule for what gets prepared ahead of time, popped in the oven on T-day and what gets made early that morning. So I thought I'd share some pictures of this year's Thanksgiving spread. I hope everyone had a great holiday; feel free to leave comments about dishes that you made this year and what the hits and misses were at your table!

Take a bite: www.bonappetitfoodie.com.

Food Truck: CapmacDC

A little while ago I tried one of the trucks to most recently start rolling in DC: CapmacDC, a food truck focused on giving warm, delicious pasta dishes (and most famously macaroni and cheese) to the people of DC. And of course, the truck has gotten considerable buzz as it's the creation of chef Brian Arnoff, who worked with David Varley at Michael Mina's Bourbon Steak.

I tried the signature macaroni and cheese dish, though I did consider getting two pasta dishes since I had waited in line and one never knows when a food truck will be back in your neighborhood. The mac and cheese from CapmacDC is the perfect comfort food for a cold day when you're stuck in the office. It's cheesy, but not in an artificial, slippery kind of way. I'm talkin' real melted cheese, the kind that solidifies nicely if you let your mac get cold. The taste of gooey sharp cheddar with the slight hint of spicy pimento is a savory combination. And then there is the topping, which you might be able to discern from the picture. Yes folks, those are crumbled Cheez-its. I was curious about how the commercialized favorite cheese cracker of my youth might taste on the gourmet mac and cheese. But the crunch of the Cheez-Its with the soft macaroni is surprisingly good. For six bucks, the mac and cheese from CapmacDC is not only delicious, but also an affordable, hearty-sized meal option for your next lunch break. If the mac and cheese is any indication, I'd bet that the other pasta dishes from CapmacDC would also be delicious. And according to a snippet of the shpiel I heard from one of their staffers, Arnoff is committed to using local, seasonal ingredients for CapmacDC, which not only yields variety for their menu, but also employs sustainable practices.

My only real complaint was that the line moved slowly and the staff hadn't quite gotten the whole cook-box-up-food-and-distribute process down. But as with all new food trucks I've been to, I trust that in time CapmacDC will become a well-oiled machine and get the whole serving process down pat. To find out if they're coming to your neck of the woods, follow them on Twitter: @CapMacDC.

Take a bite: www.bonappetitfoodie.com.

Changes at Bon Appetit Foodie!

Good morning, everyone! Not too long ago I changed the entire look and feel of my website, bidding a fond farewell to the old template and colors, and trading it all in for a new look. For the past month, one of my closest and oldest friends, Sarah, has been working on a logo for me. And now, as you might have noticed, the beautiful logo she designed is at the top of my website. She's in the process of designing her own website, so as soon as that's up and running I'll post a link for anyone that might want to throw some graphic design business her way. In the meantime, if anyone's interested in using her design services, shoot me an email at bonappetitfoodie@gmail.com.

Thank you, Sarah! You are incredibly talented and creative and I'm thankful to have you as a good friend who I've always been able to count on. Enjoy the new logo, foodies!

Take a bite: www.bonappetitfoodie.com.

Thanksgiving Recipe: Carmelized Carrots

Things have been busy, foodies. Well, actually they haven't been that busy, I've just taken to being a sloth the past week and sleeping for absurdly long amounts of time. Anyway, with Thanksgiving, the gut-busting foodophile holiday of the year, right around the corner, I've been wracking my brain trying to come up with some sort of recipe to post. Would it be overly ambitious to say that I dream of the day I get to throw myself into complete hysterics and pull of an entire Thanksgiving feast for my friends and family? If you've seen the Target commercials with the lady in the red tracksuit, that's a little like what I picture my pre-Thanksgiving preparations to be like someday--only replace Target catalogs with Williams-Sonoma and Sur la Table catalogs, and me practicing various recipes for Turkey and autumnal squashes with flour dust all over my face.

So here is a very simple, tried-and-true recipe that was the first thing that came to mind: carmelized carrots. The original recipe came from Marla Mendelsohn, whose cooking class I did when I was about 10-years-old (I'm not kidding). I've modified it, but it's always a yummy crowd favorite and it's pretty much foolproof. Consider it the side dish you don't have to agonize over while you direct more of your attention to not drying out that big fat turkey in the oven!

Carmelized Carrots (serves 4-6)

*Chances are you don't have a pan big enough for all those carrots, so simply do this in however many batches you need, dividing the butter, water and sugar.

Ingredients:

• 3 bunches of carrots (what unit is a bunch, you ask? About 10-12 carrots), peeled and sliced into circles about 3/8 inch thick. Word to the wise and infrequent cooks: make your carrot slices all about the same size so they cook evenly.
• 7 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• A pinch of salt
• Water (preferably room temperature)

Instructions:

1. Peel and cut the carrots into circles about 1/4 inch or 3/8 inch thick.
2. Put the carrots in a large skillet/pan, in a single layer. Add enough water just to barely cover the carrots (the carrots should not be immersed in water--we're not boiling them here! Just enough water to come up about 1/4 inch in the pan).
3. Cook the carrots over a medium heat, uncovered and add the butter.
4. When the water has mostly cooked down, add the sugar and the *pinch* of salt.
5. Cook the carrots, stirring every once in a while, until all the liquid has evaporated and the carrots are slightly browned and carmelized.
6. Serve warm (the sooner you serve them after cooking, the better).

As you are going along, if you find the carrots are drying out, or do not taste as sweet as you'd like them, add a tiny bit of more butter and sugar before all of the water has evaporated.

Enjoy and happy Thanksgiving, everyone! May your Thanksgiving be blessed and full of things and people you are thankful for.

Take a bite: www.bonappetitfoodie.com.

DCCK's 2010 Capital Food Fight

Before I recap what was essentially the best food night of my entire 22 years of existence on this planet, I have to say how thankful I am. I have met the most incredible people because of my blog, and the vast majority of them have been so very generous to me. Thank you Brian and Will from DCCK; I highly doubt I would have had even a bit of the same experience at Capital Food Fight had it not been for both of you introducing me to people and such. Now onto the greatest freakin' night ever.

Me and Jose Andres

I arrived early enough at the Ronald Reagan building to see the final details being worked out, people running around in headsets, the huge empty stage set up with two cooking stations, with the name "VIKING" plastered across the front. The entire place was packed with booths from more than 60 restaurants with chefs setting up, fanning out small plates with individual morsels of food (some pretty delicious food, might I add), waiting for the crowds to filter in and descend. I made my way over to the VIP reception and that's when the night really got started. One minute I was talking to a friend, and then next minute, Eric Ripert was standing in front of me, talking on his cell phone. The next, José Andrés was taking my camera so he could take a picture of me and Anthony Bourdain for me. There was champagne, there were smiles, there were a lot of people to the point that it was dizzying. It was unreal.

Me and Anthony Bourdain

In the end, all four competing chefs did a terrific job (can you cook something delicious in TEN minutes after just having about two minutes of banter between the hosts to think about what you want to make with the ingredient just revealed to you?!). There was also the special surprise battle between Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert vs. Tom Colicchio and José Andrés. The final battle came down to Spike Mendelsohn and Scott Drewno. In the end, Drewno reigned supreme and took the title of the 2010 Capital Food Fight champion.

Bourdain and Ripert cook together in the surprise battle

Colicchio and Andres plating their dish at the surprise battle

Bourdain at the stove

Ultimately, Capital Food Fight was an event to raise money for a charity that is making real strides in ending hunger in DC. It was moving to see graduates from DCCK talk about how the kitchen changed their lives. I wholeheartedly believe in DCCK because I've seen and heard firsthand what a difference this organization has made. I can still recall Mason and Greg telling me how DCCK was like family and how it changed their lives back when I interviewed them nearly two years ago. Congratulations to DC Central Kitchen for raising more than $500,000 from the food fight.

Frankly, there is too much to recap from the night. It was a total whirlwind, and I spent most of it probably with my mouth gaping slightly open, juggling my new camera, and having nerdgasms and foodgasms over every little thing. I took nearly 300 pictures if that tells you anything. And at the end of the night, everyone who stuck around broke out into one huge dance party, dancing to Michael Jackson (I am talking old school MJ, here). I'll let the pictures do the talking from here on out.

Me and Eric Ripert

The hosts and judges taking a sneak peak at the first secret ingredient

Bourdain introducing competing chef, Spike Mendelsohn

Robert Egger, DCCK founder, takes the stage

Bourdain and competing chef, Will Artley

The stage

Me and White House chef, Sam Kass

Me and DCCK founder, Robert Egger. He's the man!

Me and competing chef, Spike Mendelsohn of Good Stuff Eatery and We the Pizza

Me and competing chef, Victor Albisu from BLT Steak

Me and competing chef, Will Artley from Evening Star Cafe

Me and the winning chef, Scott Drewno from The Source by Wolfgang Puck

Take a bite: http://www.bonappetitfoodie.com. 

Bon Appetit Foodie Interviews Leland Morris from LobstertruckDC

By now we all know my unabashed love for the LobstertruckDC, "Maine-ly" (ha ha) because they simply have the best lobster and shrimp rolls I've ever eaten in my life. This is not hyperbole. So I wanted to find out more about them and their unique set up. After all, there aren't any other trucks rollin' through DC with lobster rolls.

Check out the interview I did with their president, Leland Morris. Thanks for talking with me, Leland! Keep on truckin'.

Take a bite: www.bonappetitfoodie.com.

Food Truck: Takorean

I've been on a food truck kick lately. I can eat on the cheap when I forget my lunch at work, and I'm gradually eating my way through all the trucks in the city. One of the recent meals on wheels I tried was Takorean, the Korean BBQ tacos truck. I had heard some good buzz and the menu's description sounded delicious, so my expectations were high.

The options at Takorean are bulgogi steak, chicken or carmelized tofu all served in corn tortillas. The toppings choices are kimchi slaw or romaine slaw, along with "the works" (sriracha sauce, lime crema, cilantro and sesame seeds). So I went for one steak and two chicken tacos with romaine slaw with the works (yeah, after a brief period of my life where I lived with a foreign exchange student who loooved cooking kimchi, I am no fan of that stinky stuff).

Looks good, right? Well, you would be correct to think that. But unfortunately it looked better than it tasted. Don't get me wrong, the tacos were good, but they were lacking flavor in a more ways than one. Let's break it down.

Corn tortillas are great, but tend to be dry, which was the problem here. The steak and chicken were good, but after reading the descriptions of how they were respectively marinated in a sweet and spicy soy sauce and a sweet chili sauce with ginger and soy, I was expecting to taste those flavors in the meat. Instead the soy and ginger flavors were completely lost for the chicken tacos, and there was a slight kick in the steak taco. Perhaps it all just needed to be marinated for longer. The romaine slaw was also on the bland side; I found myself craving and looking for more of the rice vinegar flavor. The works were a good idea in theory, but the sriracha and cilantro overpowered the lighter flavors of the tacos that were weaker to begin with.

Takorean's idea for Korean BBQ tacos is certainly an interesting one, and I only wish that the flavors had been more pronounced. As with the other food trucks I've frequented, the service was incredibly friendly. And for only $8, three tacos (or $3 for one) is a good deal. Plus, Takorean contributes 1 percent of their profits to a local charity, which I've started to see as a growing trend among the food trucks. So while I wouldn't exactly chase down this food truck, I might be inclined to try them again to see if the flavor factor was increased. Stay tuned for my post on the next truck that comes rollin' my way...

Take a bite: www.bonappetitfoodie.com.

Restaurant Review: Ripple

Driving up and down Connecticut Avenue, it can be pretty easy to miss some good restaurants distributed along the way. One such restaurant nestled in Cleveland Park is Ripple. Opened back in May 2010 as the brainchild of a former TLC executive, my trip to Ripple was a surprise from my boyfriend. Let's just say for this dining idea of his: "He shoots! He scores!" In other words, the meal was exceptional.

We started with a simple panzanella: September's last little reminder that summer was on it's way out. Panzanella for anyone who doesn't know is simply chopped tomatoes with cubes of crusty bread, and usually some seasoning like garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Essentially it's bruschetta but with the bread in the dish instead. The tomatoes were fresh and ripe, although the panzanella was probably the least exciting part of our meal.

The one thing that most people would probably choose Ripple for is their charcuterie (aka fancier cooked meats for you non-foodies) and cheese selection. This course also goes well with their extensive wine selection, and on the whole, the staff seems knowledgeable and helpful when it comes to pairing a wine with the cheese or meat you order. While I neglected to take pictures of our cheese plate, the chevre was the one that stood out most in my mind. Word to the wise: that cheese plate might look small, but it's quite filling for two people.

I had the steak with chimichurri and garlic mashed potatoes. In spite of the bad luck I had had with steak in restaurants lately, my steak at Ripple was cooked perfectly medium, the mashed potatoes were smooth and well-seasoned and the chimichurri sauce rounded out the entire dish. I could have slathered it on just about everything. It was not too oily or salty, and the parsley was chopped to the right consistency. The other entree I got to try was a pappardelle (thick cut pasta) with butternut squash. The squash was slightly sweet and went well with the smattering of grated cheese on top.

Defying all logic and the limits of the human stomach, we somehow had room (er, made room...) for dessert: sugar and cinnamon coated donuts with a blueberry compote. The warm donuts with a slightly crunchy exterior and moist interior were delicious, although I probably could have passed on them. The blueberry compote was a nice touch, although another topping might have gone better.

In addition to an all-around superb meal, our waitress was amicable and helpful. We got to eat at a leisurely pace, and Ripple offers a great wine selection. Ripple has a lively vibe, but without the type of atmosphere that requires you to be shouting across the table from your date. In their own words, Ripple is definitely a good spot to "eat, drink and gather."

Take a bite: www.bonappetitfoodie.com.