Showing posts with label 2012: Eat and Repeat. Show all posts

Sunday, January 6, 2013

2012: Eat and Repeat Recap

I really loved my 2012 challenge, which involved eating at one of the "Best New St. Louis Restaurants" and then recreating one of the dishes Ryan or I ate there. One of the reasons I like eating out is that it often inspires me in the kitchen. Putting myself up for this challenge ensured that I actually followed through on that inspiration. Ryan and I had fun talking about the dishes at each of the restaurants, trying to decide which would be the most fun to recreate. While none of my dishes were exactly like what we enjoyed in the restaurant, they were all close, which was not only a boost of confident but also a great reminder that you don't have to eat in restaurants to eat well! See below for the full year's challenge in detail--there are links to each of the 12 posts, 6 restaurant posts and 6 recipe recreation posts!

January--EAT: Salt
February--REPEAT: Bacon and Egg Risotto, inspired by Salt

March--EAT: Home Wine Kitchen
April--REPEAT: Arugula Salad with Browned Butter Vinaigrette, inspired by Home Wine Kitchen

May--EAT: The Block
June--REPEAT: Spicy Squash Pickles, inspired by The Block

July--EAT: Half & Half
August--REPEAT: Buttermilk Pancakes with Mascarpone, Berries, and Granola, inspired by Half & Half

September--EAT: Bogart's Smokehouse
October--REPEAT: Slow Cooker Applesauce, inspired by Bogart's

November--EAT: PW Pizza
December--REPEAT: Bacon, Steak, and Blue Cheese Pizza, inspired by PW Pizza

One Year Ago: Cheesy Pull Apart Bread
Two Years Ago: Pork with Spicy Red Plum Sauce
Three Years Ago: Peanut Butter Temptations

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Finding Time in 2013

(note: this is a picture of a picture--my sister took it for her film photography class!)

For the past three years now, I’ve self-imposed a challenge for myself and this blog that had two parts: one half dealt with St. Louis restaurants and the other revolved around me in the kitchen. A New Year’s resolution of sorts, it has forced me (and Ryan) to get creative both in our dining out, trying new places, and in our eating in.

2010 [Twelve in Ten] was a mishmash of sorts—restaurants I wanted to try and kitchen “challenges” I wanted to achieve.

2011 [Best of 2011] was all about the “Best Of”, using St. Louis Magazine’s list of best STL restaurants and the 12 Best Foods cookbook to guide where we ate and what I made.

2012 [Eat and Repeat] was a lot of fun; using the list of Best New Restaurants in St. Louis, the second half of the challenge required me to remake something we’d enjoyed. I’ll be recapping this more fully in Sunday’s post.

I struggled to come up with something for 2013 and even considered dropping the challenge altogether. I’m not quite ready to do that though, so I settled for a happy compromise. 2013’s challenge will be similar to the way I started things in 2010, but with even fewer “rules” or guidance. I’m calling the challenge “Finding Time in 2013” because so often I find myself with ideas about things to make or places to try, but opt out because we too often feel overwhelmingly busy. This year I refuse to use lack of time as an excuse. I’m going to take on some of the recipes I’ve been wanting to try and, similarly, we’re going to finally try some of those restaurants we’ve been eyeing, regardless of where they rank on any lists.

The lack of boundaries on this challenge will hopefully eliminate unnecessary stress while still allowing me the chance to try new things. What I insist on finding time for in 2013 may be laughable to you, but I’m eager for an excuse to finally make homemade pasta and éclairs and whatever else makes the list. I’m not going to predefine a list, but will instead develop a plan each month. Again, maximum flexibility, minimum stress.

Here’s to another year of adventures in eating and cooking on The Sweets Life!

Friday, December 28, 2012

2012 Eat and Repeat: Bacon, Steak, and Blue Cheese Pizza

Ryan and I have very different opinions when it comes to boots. It's not that Ryan doesn't like boots. He's actually quite fashionable and compliments me each time I bring home a new pair (which is, admittedly, a few times each 'season'). The problem is the scuffs that the boots leave on our floors. I'm constantly chided for leaving my boots on in the house, and the man clearly doesn't understand my need to keep my calves warm!

One thing we can agree on is pizza. We love all kinds, but both prefer a thinner crust with lots of toppings, just like we enjoyed at PW Pizza as part of our 2012: Eat and Repeat challenge. Our absolute favorite was the The Blues, which included bacon, steak, blue cheese, and red onion on a honey wheat crust topped with chimichurri sauce. When I set out to recreate it, I stumbled upon the recipe for PW's chimichurri sauce on STL Today's site which made the recreation much easier!

Ryan and I tag-teamed this pizza (I didn't wear my boots). I made the sauce in the food processor while he cooked the onions and the steak. This pizza could be made much more quickly if you made the various components (sauce, steak, sautéed onions) a day ahead of time...so plan ahead if you're in a hurry! Although we used sourdough pizza crust instead of honey wheat, our pizza tasted pretty darn similar to the original. This goes right up there with this pizza as one of the best (and most creative) pizzas we've made at home!

One Year Ago: Dark Chocolate Cake with Hot Chocolate Buttercream(best chocolate cake I've had!)
Two Years Ago: No Potato Venison Stew
Three Years Ago: Black and White Bean Soup

2012: Eat and Repeat - PW Pizza

Though I'm posting this two days into December, we did manage to hit our final restaurant of the year for 2012: Eat and Repeat challenge while it was still November. On Friday night, the last day of the month, we finally found time to try PW Pizza. We showed up at prime dinnertime--around 7 pm--but were seated at a table before we even had a chance to order drinks at the bar.

The space feels kind of like a warehouse, with a lot of exposed brick and large windows. The space was fairly dark and busy so I stuck to my iPhone for photos. We were seated near the open kitchen but it didn't feel particularly distracting. They had a handful of wines by the glass as well as a pretty huge beer selection. I had a glass of red while Ryan opted for a beer (Lefthand Sawtooth Ale, as he insisted I share). Although there were a number of roasted oven sandwiches on the menu, we were there for the pizza.

We started with a salad, which took a surprisingly long time to emerge from the kitchen, but was thankfully worth the wait. The fall salad (large) was more than enough for the two of us and included roasted butternut squash, spiced pecans, and pears atop greens and tossed in a cider vinaigrette. Even if this isn't my official "repeat" portion of the challenge, I will definitely recreate some variation of this!

I loved PW Pizza's willingness to split pizzas in half. We weren't hungry enough for two whole pizzas, but their mix and match option meant we could try two. After narrowing it down to a handful, we settled on Vegged Out and The Blues. Vegged Out was a pretty standard veggie pizza--roasted eggplant, red pepper, artichoke hearts, caramelized onions, black olives, mozzarella, and feta. What set it apart was the chimichurri sauce, a green olive-oil based sauce featuring fresh herbs and garlic. I'd heard of chimichurri sauce but had never tried it on a pizza. The other half of our pizza also included the chimichurri sauce, but was topped with prime rib, bacon, red onion, and blue cheese. Both were fantastic. We loved how heavy they went on the toppings, especially since the honey wheat crust was fairly light.

In the past we've been loyal to Dewey's and Pi Pizzeria when it came to pizza in St. Louis (neither of which is 'St. Louis-style pizza'), but we will absolutely be returning to PW when the craving strikes!

One Year Ago: Light Wheat Rolls
Two Years Ago: Pumpkin Biscotti with Cranberries and Pecans
Three Years Ago: Chicken Gyros

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

2012: Eat and Repeat - Slow Cooker Applesauce

I suppose it would have been the logical thing to recreate the chicken wings or the pulled pork after our 2012: Eat and Repeat Challenge visit to Bogart's Smokehouse. To be honest, I don't even know where to begin to recreate the wings--I'd rather just return for the real stuff!--and I've made a few different pulled pork recipes lately, so I decided to branch out. Besides, it's fall and apples are in abundance. As I write this, I think I have over two dozen apples hanging out in my fridge! Making applesauce was a given!

The applesauce at Bogart's was okay--certainly nothing to write home about--so rather than recreate it precisely, I set out to make homemade applesauce that was even better. At least a few times every autumn growing up, my mom would make homemade applesauce on the stovetop. My brother and sisters and I went crazy for the stuff which was warm and heavily spiced with cinnamon and melt-in-your-mouth chunks of apples. With this version in mind, I set out to make mine, but in a slow cooker instead. I kept the peels on my apples for a greater textural contrast but if you prefer a smoother applesauce, you can peel the apples first. This is actually pretty low in sugar and cinnamon, allowing the flavor of the apples to really shine (so pick your favorite variety!), but you can always add more to taste. I loved this warm over vanilla ice cream and straight from the fridge!

One Year Ago: Creamy Cauliflower Soup with Havarti Croutons
Two Years Ago: Pumpkin Granola Bars
Three Years Ago: Stuffed Acorn Squash

2012: Eat and Repeat - Bogart's Smokehouse

This month kind of slipped away from us, even more so than usual. With my sister Julia's wedding and our trip to Napa, September kind of happened in one big whirlwind. Realizing we had just a few days left to get in our 2012 Eat and Repeat challenge for the month, we quickly made it over to Bogart's Smokehouse yesterday, inviting Ryan's parents to join us. I was more focused on enjoying time with my in-laws than snapping photos, which is why this post is lacking many photographs.

Pappy's has been the heralded BBQ joint in St. Louis for many years, and Bogart's joined the scene in 2011, causing the ongoing debate: Pappy's vs. Bogarts. Having reviewed Pappy's as part of our Best of 2011 challenge, I was anxious to compare the two and weigh in. We knew Bogart's had to be good, making Sauce's Best New Restaurants list...the question was, was it better?!

We thought Pappy's was small, but Bogart's manages to be even smaller, with nothing more than a handful of tables. Showing up around 1:00 on a Saturday afternoon, I expected a long line and was pleased to find there were only a handful of people ahead of us. The line moves quickly and our few minutes in line were spent deciding what to order. Our decision-making was interrupted by a Bogart's employee who stopped by with a platter full of wings, which may have been my favorite part of the meal! The meat was tender, heavily smoked with a sweet finish...the chicken falling off the bone and causing my father-in-law to change his order at the last minute!

The four of us grabbed half of one of the picnic tables outside, taking advantage of the beautiful St. Louis weather we're having lately! The tables were equipped with four kinds of BBQ sauce with varying levels of sweet and spice as well as the very necessary paper towels! We had barely taken a seat when our trays of food were delivered. After our meals at Pappy's, Ryan and I knew better than to each order our own platter of food. We opted to split the half rack of ribs and got an extra quarter pound of pulled pork, which came with our choice of two sides. Having heard that the sides were the best part of Bogart's from a few other visitors, I had settled on the applesauce and their baked beans.

The rib meat wasn't falling off the bone, like we prefer, but it was still fairly tender, and well seasoned and sauced (I think I read that they use an apricot glaze). I mixed three of the BBQ sauces together and mixed that with the pulled pork, which was dry but nice and smokey. I wouldn't have minded bottling the sauces and bringing them home with me--the contrast of sweet and spicy had me wishing we had more than a quarter pound of pork! Ryan was underwhelmed by the baked beans, claiming none can beat his dad's (sounds like a recipe I need!), but I couldn't keep my fork out of them! The applesauce was spot-on in terms of texture (chunky), but I wouldn't have minded a deeper flavor.

I think Bogart's wins for location and outdoor seating, but if I'm looking for outstanding BBQ (and those to die for sweet potato fries!), you can find me at Pappy's! Then again, I would definitely return for some of those wings...!

One Year Ago: Zucchini Pumpkin Cranberry Bread
Two Years Ago: Pomegranate Banana Bread
Three Years Ago: Best Ever Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies (really. make these!!!!)

Friday, August 31, 2012

2012: Eat and Repeat--Buttermilk Pancakes with Mascarpone, Berries, and Granola (Homemade Clara Cakes)

After our mind-blowing brunch at Half & Half for our 2012: Eat and Repeat challenge, it was a toss-up as to which of the two entrees I was going to recreate—the Clara Cakes or the Veggie Hash with Eggs. In the end, I settled on the Clara Cakes, only because it was so different (and indulgent!) than any pancake recipe I’d ever had—at a restaurant or in my home. The Veggie Hash is still on its way, and is probably necessary after cleaning my plate of a large stack of these!

2012: Eat and Repeat Half & Half

Half & Half has been on my radar to try, long before it was recognized as one of the Twenty Five Best New Restaurants in St. Louis and consequently eligible for my 2012: Eat and Repeat challenge. However, we'd heard stories about long waits on weekends and sneaking away for breakfast or brunch during the week just isn't possible. We finally stopped by a few Sundays ago after church, determined to wait it out no matter how long it took! Though our wait was quoted at 40 minutes, we found ourselves seated within 15...a pleasant surprised. The first seats available were at the bar, but we snatched those up, having heard service at the bar is typically better than at a regular table anyway.

Sitting at the bar made me a little too self-conscious to pull out my DSRL, which is why all pictures in this post are via my iPhone. The place was packed and I decided not to be the obnoxious girl snapping photos throughout the meal!

Half & Half is known for their fancy coffees and brewing methods, but I'm not knowledgeable enough to explain what or why. Ryan opted for an iced coffee since it was so hot out, but wished he could've tried one of the pour-over speciality coffees. The iced coffee was on the sweeter side, with no shortage of half & half (no pun intended!). We mulled over the menu and as tempted as I was to order the giant burger that the guy seating near us at the bar was chowing down on, we'd come to try their breakfast foods.

The menu has a little bit of everything on the spectrum of classic (eggs and potatoes) to indulgent (fried chicken livers), savory to sweet (mango pancakes, one of the specials the day we were there!). We decided to split the much raved about Clara Cakes [pancakes with raspberries, mascarpone, and granola] and the Veggie Hash [brussels sprouts, spinach, potatoes, and onions with 2 eggs and toast].

Considering how busy it was (there was a steady stream of people in and out and waiting the entire time we were there), service was much better than we expected, especially after seeing some negative reviews about the service. We were never without water, a good thing considering how hot it was in there (which I attribute partially to the 107 degree temps outside!), and hardly had to wait for our food.

Had we had to wait longer for the food to arrive, it would've been worth it. Oh, the food!!! We started in on the Clara Cakes, which felt like we were being naughty and eating dessert first. Not normally a fan of thick pancakes, I couldn't get enough of their tender, fluffy cakes. I would LOVE that pancake recipe! The berries, mascarpone, and granola were all added in generous portions and put these pancakes over the top.

The veggie hash also won us over. It was definitely on the greasier side, but not overly so. Why have I never thought of adding brussels sprouts to hash before? Brilliant! The eggs were cooked just as we liked them, with plenty of runny yolk to drown the vegetables in.

Prices are a little higher than a typical breakfast joint (especially for the coffee!), but this isn't your average breakfast. The atmosphere is undoubtedly hipster--I felt like we were in Nashville, TN or Wicker Park, IL--but although the decor and the servers and the pretentious coffee might be hipster, you definitely don't have to be a hipster to enjoy this spot! We'll definitely be back again and again...and in the meantime you can bet I'll be creating one (if not both) of these recipes next month for the second half of the challenge!

One Year Ago: Blueberry Polenta Muffin Tops
Two Years Ago: Minty Cabbage Salad

Sunday, June 10, 2012

2012 Eat and Repeat: Spicy Squash Pickles

I don’t remember the first time I ate a pickle, but I know it was in the last two or three years. Year after year after year I had asked for them to be removed from hamburgers or sandwiches. You would never find a jar of pickles in my refrigerator, and if one was served to me, I immediately handed it off to Ryan or my sister. Again, I don’t know what prompted me to give one a try, but I’ve been hooked ever since one passed my lips. I’m now the obnoxious person asking for extra pickles or sneaking it off of your plate when you aren’t looking.

2012: Eat and Repeat - The Block

Another month, another new restaurant for our 2012 Eat and Repeat Challenge! Although we're only choosing 6 of the 25 restaurants from Sauce Magazine's Best New STL Restaurants list, I knew from the start that The Block in Webster Groves would for sure make the cut. I've heard nothing but positive things about this place which isn't just a restaurant, but has its own butcher shop as well! The restaurant strives to be a "cozy, community gathering space" (per their website) and after an excellent dinner there, I'd say they've succeeded.

2012 Eat and Repeat: Arugula Salad with Browned Butter Vinaigrette

A delicious explosion. That's what we'll call the near-disaster that took place in my kitchen the evening I decided to recreate Home Wine Kitchen's arugula salad tossed in brown butter. In case you're a new reader, I've taken on a challenge for 2012 that I've dubbed Eat and Repeat. The premise is simple, visit 6 new restaurants in St. Louis (taken from STL Mag's list of 25 Best New Restaurants). On the months I'm not trying a restaurant, I attempt to recreate something in The Sweets Life kitchen that we enjoyed out.

2012 Eat and Repeat: Home Wine Kitchen

Home Wine Kitchen has been on my radar ever since it's opened last year. In June, we tried to get a reservation when my grandparents were in town visiting, but found it impossible to do so. I then vowed to return, and soon! It took me a good eight months or so, and Ryan's actually the one who surprised me with the reservation, but return we did!

2012 Eat and Repeat: Bacon and Egg Risotto

You may remember that my personal challenge for this year is to visit 6 restaurants on the "Best New Restaurants in St. Louis" list and, on the months I don't visit a restaurant, attempt to recreate something off of the menu. We're calling it 2012 Eat and Repeat. I oohed and aahed over our January visit to Salt and had no idea which of the fabulous dishes we'd tried I'd end up recreating. Would it be the chocolate brulee? The butternut squash soup? The pig's tongue? Umm no, definitely not the pig's tongue.

In the end, it was the bacon and egg risotto. I've had this dish twice at Salt now and each time was wowed by how such a simple dish could leave me with such a memory. I blame it on the drippy egg yolk, which was the perfect dressing for the creamy risotto with specks of bacon.

I used my basic skills about risotto making and checked out a few recipes online before coming up with this version. I have no insight into Salt's recipe, but this captured many of the same elements: cheesy risotto, salty bacon, and of course the drippy yolk! Mine looks a little reddish in the pictures, I think because I ran out of chicken broth and had to use some beef broth (use all chicken broth as listed in the recipe below). This is a heavy dish--if serving as a side, you can probably feed 4-6 mouths. As a main, more like 2-3, depending on how hungry you are. If you're worried about eating uncooked egg yolks, buy pasteurized eggs!

Looking for other risotto dishes? Try Spring Green Risotto or Creamy Vegetable & Edamame Risotto.

One Year Ago: Split Pea Soup (similar to the Split Pea and Barley soup I just posted, but with bacon!)
Two Years Ago: White Chicken Chili

Bacon and Egg Risotto

Ingredients:
-5 cups chicken broth
-1 1/4 cup arborio rice
-5 slices bacon, diced
-1 cup onion, diced
-1 tsp crushed garlic (I used garlic paste from Trader Joe's)
-1 tbsp butter
-1/4 cup green onions, chopped
-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
-salt & pepper, to taste
-3 or 4 egg yolks

Directions:
1. In a large saucepan, heat chicken broth until simmering. In a second saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent (4-5 minutes).
2. Add diced bacon to the onion skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until bacon is browned and beginning to crisp. Add garlic and rice and stir for a few minutes to toast the rice.
3. One half cup at a time, add the warmed chicken broth. Stir frequently (you don't need to stir continuously though) until each half cup of broth is absorbed. Repeat until all broth has been added to the risotto and it begins to thicken.
4. Stir in white wine, cheese, and green onions. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper.
5. Immediately divide risotto amongst bowls and top with an egg yolk. Carefully break the yolk and mix it in with the risotto.

This post is linked to Eat at Home.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

2012: Eat and Repeat - Salt

For our first 2012: Eat and Repeat challenge of the year, I found myself at one of my all-time favorite restaurants in St. Louis. Yes, we’ve been there before. I’ve even gone so far as to recreate one my favorite dishes from last summer’s menu (asparagus goat cheese gratin). But Salt still made the list, for a few reasons. I wanted to introduce my parents, in town for a weekend in January, to the restaurant I’d been raving about. I also knew Ryan and I had limited time to hit up a restaurant this month, given our travel schedules. Finally, I know some St. Louisans use my restaurant reviews when researching local restaurants and Salt is one that should not go unnoticed!

Much like my other visits to Salt, our service was spot on. Our waiter was attentive, quick to recommend dishes when asked, and generally friendly. The more I spend time in restaurants, the more I appreciate good service and Salt has this down to a science!

Not wanting to pass up any of the delectable-sounding dishes on the menu, our party of eight found ourselves ordering nearly all of the small plates. For a leisurely two hours, we passed plates around the table, getting tastes of everything from smoked pig’s tongue (yes, pig TONGUE…which wasn’t all that bad!) to duck-fried frites to the most heavenly butternut squash soup I’ve yet to taste.

Seated at a large table in one of the back rooms, we sipped wine and shared stories, all while oohing and aahing over each new dish brought to us. It’s hard to pick a personal favorite, or to even predict which dish I’ll try to recreate next month for the “repeat” portion of the challenge. Everything was delightful—perfectly cooked (and yes, full of salt!), it’s easy to see why Chef Wes Johnson has decided to stick to simple flavors. He manages to make magic with just a few ingredients!

We of course couldn’t pass up dessert, not when chocolate brulee with a goat cheese oreo and an apple crostado with salted caramel ice cream were on the menu. A few bites of each and our group headed out into the evening with satisfied—but not stuffed—stomachs full of Salt’s fantastic small plates!

One Year Ago: M&M Dream Bars

Two Years Ago: Carrot Cake Pancakes

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