Bart family Annual Thanksgiving Wine Trip 2011, Day 2

I woke up around 8am local time (16:00 UTC), feel completely refreshed. I have to admit: Fairmont beds give those Westin Heavenly mattresses a run for their money. I could have easily slept in longer, but new that would ruin my chances of acclimating to pacific time. Thus, I decided to get some coffee and scones for the Madre and I.

Caffe Cento: My new favorite coffee shop!

Located on level P of the Fairmont is Caffe Cento (pronounced ch'ento), a delightful coffee shop that serves Illy coffee (MY FAVORITE!!!). I picked up two cafe lattes and two blueberry scones, and headed back up to the Madre's room. While nibbling on the scones, we set about planning out the day. It was currently raining, which kinda precluded us from doing any outdoorsy activities. Instead, she read and I set out trying to get the internet working on this blasted laptop. After an hour of futility - including a long session talking to the internet help desk - it was 11am local time (19:00 UTC), so we headed to Yank Sing for a Dim Sum brunch!

I am a huge fan of dim sum, and who wouldn't be?! It's an endless offering of dumplings, rolls, and other friend or steamed delicacies! When we first arrived, we noticed the tell-tale sign that any asian restaurant is a good one: it was full of asian clients. Whether it's asian food, indian food, italian, etc.; the more people of said ethnicity dine there, the better it has to be. It's like a natural law of culinary dining!

Upon being seated, we were served a giant pot of tea, and then like clockwork, servers started coming around asking us if we wanted this or that. Shrimp dumplings, sea bass  fried in a sweet potato batter, fried soft-shell crab, chicken-stuffed mushrooms, chicken lettuce cups, etc. I could go on and on, so I invite you to check out the menu. Our favorite was definitely the Shanghai Dumpling: dumplings filled with chicken and soup. To eat them, you place one in typical asian spoon. Top it with a slice or two of ginger, and then drizzle it with some red vinegar. One then puts the whole thing in their mouth, and as one bites in, you get the soup bursting in one's mouth. Incredible! Just make sure to let it cool, otherwise the entire rough of one's mouth will be singed!

These servers won't stop unless you surrender!

Other favorites included the sea bass with sweet potato breading, fried soft-shell crab, and this delightful cabbage salad. By the end of it all, I was stuffed and had to constantly turn the servers down. I think if it was up to them, I would be stuffed for dead! It was an excellent meal - totally in the glutinous spirit of Thanksgiving - and completely destroyed my prior dim sum experience in Toronto (ask me about the Spicy De-Boned Duck Webs story sometime!).

After a meal like that, all I want to do is walk. Mom and I walked a couple of blocks to the Ferry building, snapped some pics, and then back to Market and California where she hopped in a cab back to the hotel. I continued to walk, first up California, then deviating west until I found myself in the red light district! A few blocks passing strip clubs, and I was on Columbus heading towards Fisherman's Wharf. I walked until I reached the Wharf cable car roundtable, hopped on the cable car heading back to the hotel, and made it in time for the next culinary event: afternoon tea.

From what I have been told, the Fairmont has an excellent afternoon tea that is usually on Saturdays. Today, they were offering a special Thanksgiving tea service, so we thought "what the heck." Of course neither of us was really in the mood to eat after the amazing dim sum. Still, despite living in England for two summers, I have never had afternoon tea. This was an opportunity I didn't want to miss! To be traditional, I went with the Earl Grey, while Mom went with some organic flavored tea. I had a scone, smothered with clotted cream and strawberry jam, as well as a cucumber sandwich. To top it all off, they served us a glass of decent champagne.

You have arrived at a propitious moment, considered to be your country's one indisputable contribution to Western Civilization: Afternoon tea. May I press you to a cucumber sandwich? - Hugo Drax, Moonraker 

After tea, I headed back to Caffe Cento to do some blogging, while Mom went back up to the hotel to rest. Next stop: McCormic & Kuleto's in Fisherman's Wharf for dinner! Located at Ghiradelli Square overlooking the wharf, it is actually a joint venture between the McCormick & Schmick's company and restauranteur Pat Kuleto. It is renowned for it's seafood, which is precisely what Mom and I were looking for.

We ordered a bottle of the 2010 Matanzas Creek (Sonoma) Sauvignon Blanc for the table. Crisp, not too sweet, and a bit of dryness; it had solid notes of pear and apricot. I started my meal off with a caesar salad, and followed it up with Atlantic salmon stuffed with local crab, shrimp and brie cheese. Mom went with the roasted beet salad to start, and followed it up with a spicy cioppino that was simply outstanding. All in all, it was an excellent non-traditional Thanksgiving meal.

McCormick & Kuleto's dining room is quite chic

After dinner, Mom headed back to the hotel, while I stayed around the wharf area looking for an open bar for a drink. I stumbled upon the Buena Vista Club. I was actually drawn into the place by a placard saying that the original Irish coffee was invented there. Always up for whiskey and coffee, I went inside to check it out. I left having tried the Irish coffee - which was amazing - as well as 2 other tips people had left on foursquare: a nutty Irishmen drink, and a "shot of Padron with a sangrita back." Add in the wine I had with dinner, and I was feeling pretty good. That's when I decided to head back to the hotel and check out the hotel bar.

Look at the line of Irish coffees!

A quick cable car ride brought me back to the hotel, where I made my way to the Tonga Room. Apparently it is a famous bar in San Francisco, and it is decked-out in a Hawaiian motif. I ordered the most ridiculous drink on the menu - the Pineapple Royale - which was served in a hollowed out pineapple! I got to talking to a gent sitting next to me - turns out he is moving to San Francisco from Charlotte (NC) to study at a culinary school - and next thing you know it's closing time. Back in the room, I ended up drifting to sleep with SyFy's Bond-athon playing on the TV. Here's hopping tomorrow is just as awesome as today was!

The band actually played some good tunes!

Bart family Annual Thanksgiving Wine Trip 2011, Day 1

This will be a rather lame/short post, given that it is a travel day. I finished up with work at noon, and made my way to DTW to spend an hour and change with the Madre at the Delta Skyclub. Skyclubs are the way to go, especially if one is an airport drinker (you know who you are!), because $25 gives you a comfy place to watch TV and unlimited booze. Given airport prices, that is a steal!

Boarding the plan was delayed due to mechanical issues - at least we hadn't boarded yet, so we could stay comfortable in the concourse - and soon we were off to San Francisco. This year's mission: tackle some culinary hotspots in the city for two nights, and then head out to Sonoma for wine and more food. Not a bad way to spend a long weekend, and since it corresponds with Thanksgiving, there is no guilt whatsoever!

We arrived at 6pm local time (23:00 UTC), fought a bit of traffic getting into the city, and ended up at the Fairmont San Francisco. A little history on this historic hotel; it was built at the behest of Theresa Fair Oelrichs and Virginia Fair Vanderbilt (of the prominent Vanderbilt family), and named after their father: James Graham Fair. Before it was finally complete, the great earthquake of 1906 damaged most of the interior. After extensive renovations (including the improvement of the superstructure with newer building techniques to withstand future earthquakes), it was opened in 1907 and became the flagship property of the Fairmont Hotel company. 

After checking in, and bringing our luggage up to the rooms, it was time for dinner. Tonight's restaurant: Venticello Ristorante, located just 4 blocks away from the Fairmont on Nob Hill. The air was cool and refreshing, making the stroll over there delightful. Upon entering the ristorante, we were greeted by an ambiance lit only by candles and the glow of the wood-burning stove. I ordered the 2008 Silvio di Nardi Rosso di Montalcino for the table; a delightful red wine with medium body, nice tannins, and notes of currants. It also happens to hark from one of the towns we visited in Italy last year. Oh the memories of Italia 2010!

My first course: Pasta Carbonara

The primi platti then followed, with the Madre having the insalate Venticello, and I having the Pasta Carbonara. Mom really enjoyed the salad - with the honey mustard dressing being particularly fantastic - while I found the pasta delightful. It wasn't too heavy, meaning they didn't use too much cheese and any cream, so one really got the flavor of the herbs and pancetta. Delish!

The secondini platti then arrived. I had the Filetto Toscano: Fillet Mignon wrapped in pancetta with a roasted shallot Barolo sauce. The pancetta provided a salty element, contrasting nicely with the sweeter barolo sauce. The steak was cooked to a perfect medium rare, so my only complaint was the fact that the steak knife they provided me was as dull as a butter knife! While the sharpness of the blade didn't impede cutting the tender steak, it did tend to hack the pancetta. A minor inconvenience, with what was otherwise a delightful meal.

And of course there has to be desert. I had a small slice of their homemade Tiramisu, which was just awesome. The lady fingers were completely drenched in marsala wine and espresso, which provided really good flavor. They also used excellent marscapone, adding a sweet element along with the cocoa powder. This desert dish was paired with a glass of my favorite desert wine: vin santo! Needless to say, I was thankful for the walk home, as I was stuffed!

That pretty much wraps up the first day. It's one of the problems of eating after a 3 hour time change. An 8pm dinner feels to the body like an 11pm dinner. Add in great food, a bottle of wine, and all you want to do is go back and sleep. This is precisely what I did! Buona sera!

Long time, no blogging

Sitting here on my 4.5hr flight from Detroit to San Francisco, I am afforded plenty of time to think. I have my iPod blaring Danny Elfman's Batman film score. To my right I have a glass of Dewars and ginger ale. The usual B.S. of the work week has finally subsided. I definitely am in my element for some deep thinking.

And what do I start mulling over? How I haven't blogged since June! There are a couple reasons why. First, my summer was primarily spent in Michigan bumming between cottages. Second, I haven't been on any exciting trips of late. There was a business trip to Minneapolis that was on the heals of that office being shut down (thus necessitating transition meeting. And last weekend I went to Richmond to watch my cousin Kevin play football (he plays for the University of Richmond). That weekend was certainly fun! Perhaps I will blog about that down below. Regardless, given the time-frame of the trip, and my current technological situation, I didn't write anything while I was there.

Speaking of technological situation, I currently am blogging on my Mom's MacBook Air. This thing is the perfect travel blogger's computer. Thin, light, and sports a full keyboard unlike an iPad. I currently am lining one up for Christmas, so future trips should be more blogging friendly!

Third, my booking has been very mundane as of late. Since July, I have been on Medical Weight Loss doing their program. I have to admit that it is super simple to do, but not convenient and definitely not gourmet. All my meals have to be prepared from fresh ingredients (no frozen or canned food), which means I am constantly cooking. Having said that, I cannot cook with oil or salt, making food not gourmet and at times extremely bland. Hence, not much cooking-wise to blog about. I have seen success though, which is what keeps me motivated to continue it.


And finally, work has been brutal these past few weeks. ALCO cycles always seem to run into each other, while reports get extended to incorporate "newer information." About all that does is push it into another deadline, meaning I have no downtime to tweak or improve my work. It's just churn-and-burn, and I hate it.


All this will change though, given the long holiday. I have Mom's computer, and the next few nights promise to be filled with great food and wine, yet mundane after that. This is just perfect, as I can eat and drink well, and then relax with a book or my blog. So expect some good stuff from San Francisco and Sonoma.


One thing I would like to do is give a shout out to my friend Ashley for an idea she gave me: eat something extremely exotic. We are going to a dim sum restaurant tomorrow for lunch, so hopefully I can make you proud!


So on that note, stay tuned for the upcoming installments of the Bart Family Thanksgiving Wine Trip, 2011!

Boston 2011, Pt. 1

"Hahhhhhhrvard Yahhhhhhrd. The Bruins play at the TD Gahhhhhhhrden." Those are the stereotypical sounds of the native Bostonians, and while they are completely accurate, they are extremely superficial. As is my own understanding of Boston and its people.

Had you asked me my thoughts of Boston a month or so ago, I would have given you the usual litany: colorful accents, die-hard sports fans, Sam Adams beer, the Kennedy family, liberals, etc. My perception of Boston was a unusual dichotomy between the die-hard Bruins/Celtics/Red Sox/Patriots fans of the common Bostonian, and the liberal intellectual Harvard-MIT types of the elite. Say what you want about my previous perception; I had never been to Boston, so it was almost completely shaped by the media and here say.

Given my preconceptions of Boston, you may be asking why the heck I would want to go there? Well there are really two reasons. The first: I LOVE to travel. Every city; every state; every country has its own unique flavor and way of life. It's kind of like barbecue. Carolina BBQ is different from Kansas City BBQ, which is different from Texas BBQ. They are all different; they are all delicious; and yet their differences make them unique and interesting. That is why I love to travel. To find those subtle nuances that make each destination unique and special.

The second reason for my visit to Boston is because a friend of mine - Danielle - had in the past couple of months or so moved to Boston for work. Being in a new city with a local always makes the trip more enjoyable. One just cannot trade the expertise and knowledge a local has. It allows you to not get caught up in the overly-touristy, and instead seek out the gems of the city that personify those beautiful nuances.

I also had a $99 Delta companion voucher, so I could take a mutual friend - Jessica -  with me, who had never gone out to visit Danielle. The proverbial planets had aligned! Thus, Jessica picked me up from my apartment at noon on Thursday (6/2), and we headed to Detroit Metro. Security was smooth, we grabbed a quick bite of lunch at Max & Erma's, and next thing we are air born. An hour twenty later we touched down at Boston Logan International Airport.

Named after Edward Lawrence Logan - a Lieutenant General for the Colonists during the American Revolution - Boston Logan is one of the cool airports to fly into (I would argue San Francisco is the other), especially if you have a window seat. Because of the development of Boston's central business district, there is only one approach over land (from the northeast). The rest fly due east to the ocean, south of the city, before turning north hugging the coast. This results in some cool views of coastal Massachusetts.

Once we land, Jessica and I make our way out of the airport and towards the Logan wharf, as Danielle suggested we take a water taxi to her hotel. Let me tell you; if you arrive in Boston on a beautiful day, take the water taxi. It essentially crosses the Boston harbor from east to west, and affords some of the best views of downtown Boston. Our day wasn't very nice, but the views were well worth it!

Crossing Boston Harbor via Water Taxi!

We arrive at Danielle's hotel, grab a drink at the bar while she finishes off the remainder of her shift, and eventually make our way to her apartment to drop off our luggage. Her apartment - a very spacious 1B/1BR 2nd floor walk up - is situated in the historic North End of Boston close to such landmarks like the Old North Church and Paul Revere's house. We relax for a moment munching on various cheeses and meats and enjoying a glass of wine or two, before meeting up with Danielle's friend Lauren to head out for the evening. The night's first destination: The Liberty Hotel.

Old North Church

Interesting enough, the Liberty Hotel used to be the Charles Street Jail, and its most famous prisoner was none other than Malcom X! Ironically, today it is a posh luxury hotel that happened to be hosting a fashion event that night. Because of this, it was hoppin' when we arrived, yet there were no models walking the runway. We waiting to see if it would begin, but after a few minutes, we decided to head down to the restaurant - Scampo -  for a bite to eat.

Inside of the Liberty Hotel. You can kind of see where the
jail cells were, surrounding the central atrium

We all split a bottle of the Badia Coltibuono 2009 Chianti Classico - one of the vineyards I had been fortunate enough to visit during my Tuscany trip last Fall - and I ordered a bowl of the crab bisque to start, and some beef carpaccio. The food, wine, and most of all company was just awesome. What a great start to this trip!

After dinner, we went back into the hotel to see if the fashion event was going on. No such luck! So we decided to leave the hotel and head more into downtown to a bar for some more drinks. We parted ways with Lauren, who had to work on Friday, and we found a nice pub with some live music. After jamming with the band a bit - they were actually pretty good - we headed home to call it a night.



What I needed was a rebound, and thankfully Danielle had an answer: Red Sox tickets! Fenway Park, built in 1921, is the oldest professional sports venue in the U.S., and one of two classic sports venues (the other being Wrigley Field in Chicago). It is named Fenway due to the surrounding fen - fen is Olde English for a marshy wetland characterized by its water chemistry, which is neutral or alkaline, with relatively high dissolved mineral levels but few other plant nutrients. Every consummate sports junkie makes it a point to visit Fenway park for a Sox game, and here was my chance!

Some observations: seating at Fenway Park, for big guys like me, is by far more uncomfortable than flying. It isn't because the seats are not wide enough, it's because of the lack of leg room. I am 6'3", and my knees were utterly crushed into the back of the seat in front of me. Definitely not comfortable!

Jess and Danielle enjoying America's past time!

Beer is also expensive: $8 for a draft of beer. Unfortunately, I spent probably a keg's worth of money on beer during the game. On the bright side, they have an excellent variety of concessions at Fenway. I found a place that served a lobster roll - think chunk lobster in a hotdog bun - while there were places for BBQ, Italian sausage, hamburgers, etc.

The outside of Fenway, with a view of Prudential Place

Surrounding Fenway is also a gem to behold, as it is built up with various bars and sports paraphernalia shops. And then you have the fans: by far some of the most die-hard I have ever seen. They probably only pale to Canadians and their hockey teams. It's a very diverse crowd too: high school or college kids sitting fore, while families sitting aft of me. I overheard a woman sitting behind me talking about her job over at MIT, while a few seats over to her left was a typical blue collar family. Without this diverse crowd, and their energy, Fenway wouldn't be nearly as nostalgic. It's kind of like Michigan Stadium pre-expansion, when there were no luxury boxes so you had bankers sitting next to Walmart Wolverines. Oh, and the Boston accents you tend to hear: priceless!

Anyways, we were there to watch the Sox play the Oakland A's. Despite Clay Bucholtz's forgettable 4 2/3 inning performance, the Sox were able to get ahead in the 7th frame on the strength of their bullpen and hitting by Big Pappy, Kevin Youkilis, and Carl Crawford. Jonathan Papelbon then iced the A's in the 9th for the save to win 8-6.

Big Pappy (David Ortiz) about to crush one of his doubles!

After the Sox game, we headed back to the North End, and grabbed some food at one of the trattorias in Little Italy. By the time we got there, it was getting late (meaning no going out for us), so after we finished eating, we headed back to Danielle's to crash. The next day - Saturday - would not be constrained by work obligations. Time to really see Boston!

Tonight at Chez Bart: Short Ribs Braised in Red Wine

Short ribs are one of my favorite cuts of meat. They are versatile, easy to cook with; and when braised slowly over low heat, yield tender and delicious results. Short ribs are prominent in both Italian and French cooking, and if you attend any restaurant worth a Michelin star, they serve them. My guess is the influence of wine in French and Italian gastronomy. 


Red wine is a perfect base for braising liquid, and it's not surprising that Barolo and Bordeaux - two of the most influential red wines in the world - are used by the world's top chefs to braise their short ribs. Their full bodied nature is perfect for braising, because as the cooking liquid evaporates over the meat, it leaves even further concentrated flavors. I have been told that Mario Batali, for his Oso Bucco, has used Barolos priced in the hundreds of dollars.


This recipe, which I found in an issue of Gourmet Italian Kitchen, looked amazing for all those reasons I mentioned above: slow cooked short ribs in a Barolo braising liquid. Let's see how it compares with Giada's recipe that I have made numerous times in the past!


*Note: I checked Gourmet Italian Kitchen's website, and it looks like this recipe is not fully in the public domain yet. Thus, I will not give exact quantities of ingredients. Sorry!!!


Store Notes: This recipe calls for Barolo wine. At first I considered it, but then after talking with the manager at my wine shop, I settled on a bottle of Vietti Nebbiolo Perbacco 2007. The manager assured me that it would be an excellent full bodied wine for braising, and at $23.99, was ten dollars cheaper that the cheapest Barolo. 

The other pricey part of this dish is the short ribs, not because they are an expensive cut of meat, but because you need to buy over 4 pounds of them! Since I have never made this recipe before, I figured I wouldn't deviate from the prescribed amount. Besides, I do not mind left-overs one bit!

4 1/2 pounds of beef bone-in short ribs!

Other items that you will need are as follows:

• Pancetta
• Fresh Thyme sprigs
• Fresh Rosemary sprigs
• Garlic
• Onion
• Carrots
• Celery
• Can of diced tomatoes
• Olive Oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Water

For equipment, you will need a large dutch oven.

Prep Notes: Ahead of time, chop the onions, carrots, and celery. Mince the garlic, and cube the pancetta. As for the short ribs, rub salt and pepper on all sides of the short ribs.

To reduce the wine for the braising liquid, pour the entire bottle of wine into a 3 quart sauce pan. Heat until boiling, and let boil until only 1 cup is left. Set aside for later.

Wine being reduced!

Cook Notes: Heat the dutch oven on medium-high. Use enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pot, and once the oil shimmers, add the short ribs in batches. Cook the short ribs for a minute on each side, removing after both sides have been browned. 

Once all the ribs are browned, set them aside and remove all but 1 tablespoon of oil from the dutch oven. Add the pancetta, and cook until the edges are starting to get brown. Next, add the onions, and cook until they just begin to caramelize. Add the minced garlic, and cook for a minute or two; then add the celery, carrots,  and herb sprigs. Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring every now and then.

Pancetta being rendered; there is nothing better than
using fat from pancetta to add a whole new dimension
of flavors to one's cooking. You can use less oil too!

Add the diced tomatoes, and stir so everything is well mixed. Add back the short ribs to the dutch oven, and then pour the reduced wine and 2 cups of water over top of the ribs. Bring the liquid to a boil, and then cover and place in a 325 degree oven for 2-2.5 hours.

Ribs, with the vegetables below, and the braising liquid
poured over top

Remove the dutch oven from the oven, and skim off any excess fat from the surface of the sauce. Now, if you wish to reduce the sauce a bit, carefully remove the short ribs and heat the sauce until to simmers. Once the sauce is at a desired consistency, return the short ribs to the pot. Plate the short ribs over pasta tossed in butter and fresh minced parsley.

Tasting Notes: The completely falls off the bone as I transport a short rib to my plate. The meat is incredibly tender and moist. The onions, carrots, celery & garlic provide zesty notes - sweetness from the carrots and onions balanced with the flavors of the garlic and celery. The pancetta lends salty notes to further round out the palette.

Dinner is served!

And the pièce de résistance was the bold notes lent by the red wine reduction in the braising liquid. The truly expand the dimension of flavors in this dish; the earthy notes of the vegetables, and buttery-salty notes of the pancetta/short ribs mingle with the big fruit - currant & blackberry - of the wine to truly offer a gustatory odyssey. Outstanding!


Libation Notes: This dish should be accompanied by a wine with equal to or greater body than what was used for the braising liquid. I would definitely recommend the Nebbiolo I used for the cooking, but if the occasion were special enough (date, dinner party, etc.), I could easily see myself buying a nice $40 - $60 BaroloMeritage. 


Overall: An excellent dish, definitely worthy of another go-around. Personally, I prefer Giada's recipe to this one, but that is akin to saying that I prefer Chateau Margaux to Chateau Haut-Brion. Both are excellent; I just think I prefer the composition of the braising liquid in Giada's recipe better. 


That being said, if I were to make this recipe again I would do the following:

• Substitute the water for beef broth
• Decrease the short ribs from 4 1/2 pounds to 2 1/2 pounds

If you were in the mood for more of a pasta-esque meal, I would recommend shredding the meat once you remove the pot from the oven.

All in all, a solid meal worthy of making again.

Last Night at Chez Bart: Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Many of my regular followers know that I love authentic Italian food. This is partly due to my culinary odyssey in Tuscany last September/October. It's also due to the fact that I loathe 95% of what restaurants call Italian food. For some pathetic reason, Italian has become synonymous with alfredo at practically all but the most authentic restaurants. And its not even good alfredo, rather a cream-based soup thickened by starch that tastes, quite frankly, like shit. The net result is that whenever I crave Italian food, I usually just make it at home. 

Another Italian culinary casualty that I often see in American restaurants is the classic dish Pasta alla Carbonara. While Italian tradition dictates that egg and cheese are the only ingredients for the sauce, denizens the world over have sadly added a lot of cream to the recipe - thereby ruining it's delicate balance of flavors and textures. Chicken and vegetables are also commonly added, further deviating form the original Italian design. I think this is primarily done because in Italy, pasta is an appetizer, while in other parts of the world it is seen as a main course (and thus chefs feel they need to make it more hearty).

So you all can see when I found this little gem in an issue of La Cucina Italiana, I was excited to try it out! The recipe is compliments of Paolo Parisi, who is a legendary farmer in Tuscany (his farm is located just south of Pisa). He was one of the first farmers to raise and breed from near-extinction the Cinta Senese pig, and his eggs are highly prized by top restaurants throughout Italy (the free range chickens are fed a combination of whatever they can forage, and a grain/goat's milk mixture!). 

Please note that the recipe does not offer specific quantities of ingredients. While I tried my best to determine the correct amounts, more refining still needs to be done.

Store Notes: The recipe calls for the following:

• Guanciale; in this case, I used Pancetta because I have no idea whether my butcher can even get guanciale!
• Fresh Eggs, and I mean fresh! No longer than 3 days from when purchased.
• Pecorino Romano cheese
• Parmigiano-reggiano cheese
• Fresh Marjoram
• Garlic
• Lemon for zesting
• Pasta, either spaghetti or linguine
• Olive oil

Prep Notes: Prep is incredibly important for this dish, because the pasta has to be perfectly cooked at the time it is added to the sauce. If the sauce is not prepared ahead of time, the result will be overcooked pasta!

In a large bowl, grate equal parts of Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano-reggiano (I did 1/3 cup each; grate more so you can tinker with the amount later if necessary). Next mince 3 cloves of garlic and 2 tablespoons of marjoram. Using a microplane, zest one lemon. Cube up the pancetta into small cubes, and set aside for sautéing.

In a large pot, bring heavily salted water to a boil, and in a sauté pan, heat up enough olive oil to coat the pan.

Cooking Notes: Once the water is boiling, place the pasta in the pot, and the pancetta into the sauté pan. The goal is to brown the edges of the pancetta, so stir occasionally. Next, in a small bowl, crack open 4 eggs and discard the shells. Give the eggs a quick whisk so that the yokes are broken up. 

After 7 minutes, the pasta should be close to done. Test it, and if it is al dente, remove from the stove. Save 1 cup of the pasta liquid, and then drain the rest through a colander. Working fast, shake the colander to remove any excess water, and then pour the hot pasta into the large bowl with the cheese/marjoram/garlic/etc. I emphasize hot because it really has to be hot. One cannot waste time from  when the pasta is removed to when it is poured into the bowl with the other ingredients. The reason for this is because next you are going to pour the eggs into the pasta, and the pasta's heat is going to cook the eggs!

So pour the eggs, the pancetta (including the cooking oil), and half the kept pasta water into the bowl. Toss the pasta so that it is well mixed. At this point, check the consistency of the sauce, and add more pasta water or cheese until the desired consistency has been achieved. Also, more marjoram, garlic, or lemon zest can be added to taste. To serve, plate the pasta, drizzle with olive oil and crack some fresh pepper over top. Buon appetito!

  

Tasting Notes: This dish is a veritable gut bomb, and thus perfectly suitable as an appetizer for a more protein-centric main course, because quite frankly you just wouldn't want to eat a huge bowl of this stuff. The eggs and cheese give it incredible richness, yet in a subtle manner compared with the cream/starch-laden globalized alfredo and carbonara sauces.

The pancetta compliments the cheese/egg by providing salty notes, while the marjoram and garlic provide further complexity with their zesty herb notes. The lemon zest rounds it out with sweet, citrus notes. A simple dish with complex flavors. Delish!

Libation Notes: While this dish is rich and complex, it's flavors are not overly strong to the palette. Thus, I would not recommend a bold wine with lots of fruit - you would just overpower the pasta and lose its incredible complexity. Ergo, I would recommend a nice, dry white Italian wine. A pinot grigio, or sauvignon blanc, would go quite well with this dish.

Overall: This is a gem of a dish, with a wide range of flavors, yet an overall simplistic preparation. I could easily see myself whipping this dish up as a starter, while my short ribs are braising. I will definitely make this one again, and continue to tinker with the quantities of ingredients, so expect future updates. Ciao!

Cayman Islands 2011, Day 7

The final full day of any trip always evokes melancholy thoughts. As much as I love the sun and diving, I am glad to be heading home. I miss my friends, car, apartment, and mild weather. All in all, I am just not cut out for perennial 85+ degree weather. Give me 70s with blue skies, and the occasional thunderstorm, and I am content. Also, the humidity is getting close to triple digits. And finally, I could really use time in the gym right now. The net result: I have enjoyed every moment of Cayman's 2011, but sure am glad to bidding farewell come 10am tomorrow morning.

The diving this morning was some of the best that I have done. Our first dive site was Shear Wall, and was 120 feet for 20 minutes. We dove down to the bottom of the anchor line - roughly 50 feet of water - and then followed James over the wall's crest and descended down to 115 feet of water. From there, we followed the wall observing various types of black coral. We then surfaced, and were greeted with a sea turtle gliding underneath along the bottom of the reef. Thus turned to be an omen for the next dive.

Caribbean Spiny Lobster: we saw dozens of these!

The next dive was at the reef of black coral forrest, for 30 minutes at 60 feet. When I first made my way to the bottom of the reef, I was greeted with two Caribbean lobster - one was absolutely ginormous! Another bit of an omen, as we saw upwards of 2 dozen lobsters in various nooks and crannies. The highlight of the dive - not to mention trip - then occurred. A hawkbills sea turtle came up to our group and started swimming with us! I rubbed his shell lightly, as did most of the group during the 15 minutes he swam with us, and he didn't spook! It was just so cool to be so close to such a tranquil creature in his own habitat. To finish off the dive, Nancy found another spotted drum. Then, while cruising back to the dock, a dolphin started swimming with the boat. By far the best dive day of my life!

Hawksbill Sea Turtle!

Afterwards, I gave the gear a thorough rinse down, before drying it out to pack. The afternoon was exceptionally lazy; I managed to finish my book and start another. Then James and the family - including Jolie - stopped over to say hi (and so James could collect for the diving). It was nice to see and catch up with her. Once they left, I packed up my diving gear, and we headed to Calypso Grill for dinner.

Calypso Grill, located in Morgan's Harbor, is by far my favorite restaurant on the island. It is consistently good, ever since the first time I was there back in 2002. They have this appetizer of mussels, steamed in a shallot-garlic-white wine-cream liquid. It is to die for, as they give you a basket of bread to soak up the liquid. Yummy!!! For dinner I had the Snapper Monte Carlo, which is snapper sautéed in this special garlic sauce, with shrimp and scallops, mixed vegetables, and shoe string potatoes. Desert was then chocolate bread pudding. What an excellent meal to finish such a good trip.

After dinner, we headed back to the condo. I quickly packed all my other junk, and then fixed myself a Cuba Libre. Tonight's cigar would be a Trinidad Fundadores. A medium bodied lancero, with a semi-oily wrapper and okay construction, it drew well but burned a little uneven. I think that was because the wrapper was too thin in spots. Still, the flavors were outstanding. Notes of sage, leather, and pepper. I would definitely smoke again, and it could have scored higher than the 93/100 that I gave it, had it been for better construction.

Trinidad Fundadores: One of my favorite Habanos!

Anyways, this will be the last blog posting from the Caymans for this year. It has been a marvelous trip, and I cannot wait to come back in 2012. Ciao!!!

Cayman Islands 2011, Day 6

Another day in the Cayman paradise. This morning, for reasons unknown to me given how late I stayed up - not to mention the excellent rum buzz I had going on last night - I decided I was ambitious, and woke up at 6am. Some coffee, an egg sandwich, a bit of packing, and I was off to the dive boat with Nancy (Bill decided to take a day off from diving).

Our first dive today was at Fishermen's wall, located on the north side. The dive called for 100 feet for 20 minutes. When I rolled over the side, I was greeted with nothing but blue. It turned out that because of the southerly wind, the boat was drifting off the buoy on the open-sea side of the wall. It was such a creepy sensation: rolling over the side of the boat and seeing nothing but deep blue of open water. After a few somersaults, I was able to spot the reef, and descended forth.

Soon enough, James was there to begin leading the deep dive. We went over the wall, and descended to roughly 100 feet of water. From there, we swam along the side of the wall due west. We saw a lion fish, which James tried to kill unsuccessfully with his implement. Then, as we rounded a point in the coral wall, we happened to spot an eagle ray swim along the top of the wall. From there, we were led through another groove in the coral back up to the top of the wall.

During that ascent, we passed over a huge lobster chillin' in a crevasse. That ended out deep dive, so the group headed to 15 feet to begin a safety stop. During our 3 minute off-gassing period, that same eagle ray swam right underneath us along the wall. A sort of farewell salute to the first dive of the day.

Spotted Eagle Ray flying in the water!

Back on board the boat, we headed 5 minutes south to Channel Reef, for another 50 feet for 30 minute dive. For this dive, I decided to try a new breathing technique: breathing out my nose. It worked great! I ended up diving for 40 minutes, and ended up using only 1,900 psi! During the dive, we found a treasure trove of fish, including 2 green moray eels (one was huge!!!), 2 spotted drum, a type of shrimp, and an anemone. It was a hugely successful dive, and I was sad to see it go - probably why I stayed out past the designated time (oops!).

Spotted Drum!

The rest of the day was spent reading "Raising the Titanic!" by Clive Cussler on my Kindle. Very low key and relaxing.

For dinner, we had our dive master James, and his two kids (J.J. - 8th grade, and Selena - 5th grade) over for our annual cookout. It is something we do every year: cook steaks and fish; as a thank you to James for the weeks of splendid dive service. Sadly, Jolie (pronounced Yo-lee), James' wife, couldn't make it because she was called to work (she works for Cayman Air as a flight attendant). The menu consisted of bruschetta and Nancy's famous guacamole for appetizers, followed by fillet mignon, salmon, and various salads for dinner. Desert consisted of rum cake a la mode, enhanced by a few shots of rum poured on top. Delish!

The best part of the night is just hanging with the kids. They have grown so much, and it is just nice to see them develop over the years. J.J. has grown a foot since last year, and Selena soon will be old enough to dive. Such great kids; it's just a joy to spend one evening with them.

After James and Co. left, Bill and I decided to light up a cigar and relax. My cigar for the night: a Vegas Robaina pyramid. A beautifully constructed cigar, with an extremely oily wrapper. It burned well, drew easy, and produced a nice, white, tight ash. A medium bodied cigar, I tasted notes of cedar, cinnamon, and leather. The finish was a bit stouter, with added notes of coffee and pepper. Overall I would give it a 94/100, and definitely make it a point to buy it again.

And that, my friends, finishes up another day. Tomorrow is my last dive day, as well as last night on the island.  My trip is starting to come to a close, as sad as that may be. Time to enjoy it while I can. Ciao!

Cayman Islands 2011, Day 5

"Go right through for MSU," was what woke me up this morning. I went down stairs, glugged some joe, and got ready for another day of diving. Arriving at the yacht club, I was greeted by the same diving contingent as the day before. We loaded up the boat, and motored out to our first dive site: Blue Chute.

I was one of the last of the group to go down. When I arrived at 70 feet of water, I chilled as James and the last of the group joined up. From there, James led us again down a 30 foot straight-down shaft in the coral. As I exited, I was greeted with the usual panoramic splendor of the wall meeting with both the open sea, and the tranquil dark blue deep. It's just so serene; a reason why I love diving so much.

And then to my surprise, we happen to land on a lion fish. This would be the first time I was able to catch James kill one, so I would be lying if there wasn't any adrenaline pumping through my veins. James, using his lion-fish-killing-implement, hooked it. Then, with his other hand, grabbed his metal dowel that he uses to clang for attention, and repeatedly stabs it. One lion fish down!

And that wasn't the only one. By the end of the dive, he must have killed at least 4 of them in similar fashion. We swam along the wall, and finally started to make our way back up to the boat. By the time I was doing my 3 minute safety stop at 15 feet, I had sucked my tank dry - down to 650 psi. It must have been he lion fish hunt, and all the adrenaline, because I usually end with close to 1,000 psi remaining! Still, what a cool dive!

For the second dive, we motored 20 minutes east to Tarpon Alley. During our 50 minute surface interval, we found a dead lion fish floating on the surface - evidence of another dive boat doing its part in the war against this beautiful-yet-deadly reef pest. Soon, a Thestril bird dove in and swooped it up. The lion fish was clearly too big for the bird, as it kept on dropping it. Well of course this caught the attention of 2 other Thestrils. What ensued was aerial ballet, with each fish taking turns picking up the fish, trying to eat it, and then subsequently dropping it. Definitely interesting to watch.

The second dive itself was really quite good. When I first descended to the bottom, I happen to find a green moray eel slithering from one pinnacle of coral to another. Bummed that I couldn't get a good view of the beast, I continued down the reef and was greeted by numerous tarpon. Some were huge - estimates put the larger ones at 50lbs! Nancy then spotted that green moray eel again. This time it's face was sticking out of one whole, and its tail the other. Eels are really cooling creatures: their mouths open, exposing their sharp teeth, as they breathe. It looks like a shit-eating grin! Nancy also spotted a spotted drum: a really tiny zebra striped fish with these long narrow dorsal fins that stick out of its head. A rare and interesting find!
So diving was certainly a success today. Once we got the gear rinsed off and somewhat dry, we brought everything in and headed out to Over the Edge for lunch. Located on the north east part of the island, they serve THEE BEST Cayman fried lobster. It's essentially pan fried lobster meat in this wine sauce, served with a side of mashed potatoes, red beans and rice, and plantains. One of the meals I look forward to every year; it's simply outstanding.

After lunch, we drove over to Rum Point, which is the eastern point separating the north sound and the Caribbean. They have a few restaurants, places to snorkel, water activities like wave runners, etc. I laid out on the beach to work on my tan, while Mom and Nancy went snorkeling. After about an hour and a half, we called it a day and headed back to the condo.

By the time we got back, it was 4:30pm. Dinner was slated for 5:45pm, as Beth Ruhlstone - the older gal who owns the condo building we were staying at - was joining us. I relaxed and read until she arrived, when we all sat out on the deck to enjoy the waning moments of the Cayman sun. I enjoyed a tasty Cuba Libre, and we had tasty bruschetta as an app.

Dinner consisted of rack of lamb with mushroom risotto and asparagus. Delish! Beth surprised us with desert, which consisted of flour-less chocolate cake. Someone give me an insulin injection! It was just a lovely time listening to Beth's stories - she was born and raised on the island - ranging from baby turtles that hatched in her beach, to the days of hurricane Ivan. It was just like dining with my grandmother. Story after story, yet all were captivating!

After dinner, I felt the need to light up the second cigar of my trip: a Bolivar limited edition petite belicoso. It is a full bodied cigar, with great construction and a nice, oily habano

And now I find myself finishing today's post under the stars. Tomorrow will be our annual cookout with James and his family - a little feast we put together to show our appreciation for his services (not to mention settle up the bill). Should be quite a bit to look forward to. Ciao!