Taste of Georgetown 2009 -- Dish in the District!

My friends with our chocolate covered bacon lollipops! :)
Welcome to the first Dish in the District entry!  (See here for more dets)

Oh it was a cloudy, rainy day in Georgetown. But that couldn't keep us away from the wafting scents of grilled meats, pipin' hot noodle dishes, deep fried duck... Oh yes, the annual Taste of Georgetown arrived again on October 10th (check out the 2008 version here!). This year, I had a few more taste testers with discerning palates accompanying me -- Michelle, Elaine, and Joe. You've already met these fave people of mine in various other blog entries (here, here, and here) and I was so happy to have them visiting me that weekend!

The rain was kind of a blessing in disguise... unlike last year, which was brilliantly sunny and filled with bright blue skies, this year was MUCH less crowded, which meant less time waiting in lines! (Although, note that when I say less crowded, it was still CROWDED, but at least we weren't waiting in 20 minute lines!). We protected our heads with these pink Vineyard Vines WHALE hats (oh yes, see above)! I think I was a bit overly excited about the hats -- I had seen them before at other events, but finally had an "excuse" to wear one. We caught the attention even of a local photographer who captured our photo for all to see on a DC website. Hurrah!

In any case, the Taste of Georgetown was such fun this year. Lots of good options to eat (26 restaurants in all!), cute doggies being walked around to be adopted, and fun friends. We bought five tickets to share amongst the four of us for our lunch (plus scored a free dish from the Indian food stand!) -- lots of great options to choose from that we didn't get to try everything (for instance, lobster and truffle mac and cheese ... butternut squash agnolotti). Here are our picks and thoughts:

• Bangkok Joe's: Chicken Pad Thai: Ohhh, I could not resist the chicken pad thai. It called to me. It was so delicious last year, and without fail, whenever I'm actually eating at Bangkok Joe's, I want  the chicken pad thai. And this year did not disappoint. Although the serving seemed smaller than last year it was still a hefty amount. Verdict: Yes, yes, and yes -- have again next year! 
  
• Agraria: Chocolate Covered Bacon Lollipops with Apple Slices: Next to Bangkok Joe's was Agraria's stand... and we hadn't even been thinking about getting the chocolate covered bacon, but it caught Michelle's eye and we had to go for it. (Plus, they had these fun stickers: "I heart chocolate covered bacon" -- this sticker is residing on my fridge door).  The taste of bacon wasn't immediately evident -- mainly, it provided a bit of saltiness to complement the dark chocolate that covered it.  The juicy apple slices helped to balance out the flavors.  Verdict: Would try again, but maybe try something else next year.
  
  
  
• Clyde's of Georgetown: Lobster roll: I found this dish to be surprisingly satisfying.  I had a few lobster rolls in Georgetown over time, but never at Clyde's... this lobster roll was full of flavor, loads of lobster (as seen above!), and a tangy sauce binding all the ingredients together.  Verdict: Yes, would try again next year!

1789: Crispy duck confit with cranberry and fennel compote with Toigo Orchards apple turnover: Now where to go next... we saw people walking around with these plates of what looked like deep fried goodness and thought to ourselves, oh we could definitely share that... And very glad we did. This one was very flavorful, and the savory-ness of the duck complemented the compote and apple turnover well. Verdict: Open to trying again next year!

Mie n Yu: Bulgogi style local beef with housemade kimchi and rice: We had our eye on the bulgogi almost the entire time we were at the Taste of Georgetown and finally came back to it at the end of our "lunch." The bulgogi was quite tasty, although it didn't have the sweetness that we were familiar with other bulgogis. The kim chee provided just the right amount of kick and the rice tempered the kim chee's kick. Verdict: Very tasty, but may leave this spot open for something else next year.

Hurrah for the Taste of Georgetown!  Can't wait til next year for even more tasty eats...

BB: Blue Cheese Souffle

Oh dear, I fell behind with my Barefoot Bloggers posts, but here is my BLUE CHEESE SOUFFLE, as selected by Summer from the Sexy Apartment blog.   I baked this up this weekend -- I was really excited to try this recipe because I had never made a souffle before, although I love souffles (for your San Franciscans, I love Cafe Jacqueline with all their (her) souffle goodness!).  I was a bit nervous about how it was going to turn out - would it rise?  Would it be fluffy?  Would it be overly blue-cheesy?

Luckily, it turned out just lovely.  It rose -- although not too too much -- and it developed a beautiful golden color on top.  This was actually much easier to make than I expected.  Knowing that souffles are somewhat sensitive, I prepped everything before starting down the souffle road.  Took out all the spices, separated all the egg whites from the egg yolks, chopped up the Roquefort cheese (I used a Danish blue)...  It all came together so quickly and it was fun!  I got to play with my Kitchenaid mixer, whipping up those egg whites - -although I was unsure if I had whipped them enough (they looked "firm and glossy" to me!).

The flavor of the souffle was really good.  Just enough blue cheese, not too salty, and I looved the slight crust created by the Parmesan cheese on the bottom and sides.




BAREFOOT CONTESSA'S BLUE CHEESE SOUFFLE

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the dish
• 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan, plus extra for sprinkling
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup scalded milk
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• Pinch nutmeg
• 4 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 3 ounces good Roquefort cheese, chopped
• 5 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Butter the inside of an 8-cup souffle dish (7 1/2 inches in diameter and 3 1/4 inches deep) and sprinkle evenly with Parmesan.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the hot milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, the cayenne, and nutmeg. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, for 1 minute, until smooth and thick.
Off the heat, while still hot, whisk in the egg yolks, one at a time. Stir in the Roquefort and the 1/4 cup of Parmesan and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Put the egg whites, cream of tartar, and a pinch of salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on low speed for 1 minute, on medium speed for 1 minute, then finally on high speed until they form firm, glossy peaks.



Waiting to bake...

Whisk 1/4 of the egg whites into the cheese sauce to lighten and then fold in the rest. Pour into the souffle dish, then smooth the top. Draw a large circle on top with the spatula to help the souffle rise evenly, and place in the middle of the oven. Turn the temperature down to 375 degrees F. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (don't peek!) until puffed and brown. Serve immediately.

Dish in the District!

Hello lovelies!  So, much of my love of eating takes place here in Washington D.C. ... I live here, I play here, I work here... I EAT here.  I love love love exploring DC and all its delicious and frequently diverse eating options.  So, in part to remind me to post more often about my DC eating exploits, and also just to get more DC eats in here, I'm kicking off DISH IN THE DISTRICT (thanks Mich for the title idea!).  Every week, I'll post about eating here in DC under "Dish in the District."  I'm not sure if it will be the same day of the week every week, but will keep you updated!  Be on the lookout this week for the first "Dish in the District."

Happy Sunday!

VOTE VOTE VOTE!

My friend, Kate (our wonderful organizer of our monthly Cookie Carnival) is in the running for a fabulous job in the "Good Mood Gig Talent Search." Please please support her by just clicking on the icon above and voting for her! You can find out more about her here. Voting every day helps :) And also go over and enjoy Kate's blog (and all our cookie carnival-ness).

Cook Club: Giada's Kitchen

SEPTEMBER COOK CLUB: GIADA'S KITCHEN
FINAL SCORE: 3.87

Top Scoring Dishes: Asparagus Lasagna & Roasted Eggplant Salad

Lowest Scoring Dishes: Linguine & Proscuitto Frittatas & Whole Wheat Linguine with Ricotta, Green Beans, and Lemon

For our first Cook Club cookbook, I picked out Giada DeLaurentiis's "Giada's Kitchen." I ADORE Giada, got the chance to meet her at the SOBE Food and Wine Festival a few years back, saw her this past year in DC, just love love love her. Plus, I feel like she offers a good variety of dishes, something for everyone to make. I picked her newest cookbook, Giada's Kitchen, which focuses on her love for fresh flavors.

Below are all the dishes that we tried with our comments, thoughts, and various musings. Each dish is given a score by the chef -- the scores on a 1-5 scale with 5 being the best. These scores were tabulated to come up with the final cookbook score!

Enjoy all the dishes -- and let us know if you've also tried dishes from Giada's Kitchen in the comments :)


Jazzie's Pick: Mini Calzones
Score: 3.4 (average of her score -- 2.7, and her husband's score -- 4)

Jasmine's Thoughts: I made Giada's recipe for mini calzones, however when I completed this dish, it was more like 2 large jumbo calzones. I didn't do the best job managing the dough so instead of the 8 mini rectangles that the recipe calls for, I got frustrated and ended up making 2 giant rectangles and thus, 2 jumbo calzones (my husband didn't mind this, but I could only eat one half of a calzone).I love spinach (what can I say, I was a big Popeye fan when I was younger) so I substituted the arugala that Giada uses for the calzones with spinach. I also added a layer of marinara inside of the calzone prior to adding the filling (only because I didn't read the recipe all the way through and just assumed that the marineria went inside, lol). I also added a layer of fresh mozarella cheese on top of the filling inside the calzone.I like the way the mozarella cheese melted inside and stretched all out when I opened the calzone after it was cooked. It looked really tasty. I wasn't really a fan of the cream cheese filling and in the future, I will only use mozarella and parmasean (I think that will just taste more fresh and authentic). All in all, the calzones were good.

Lisa's Crostata with Pancetta and Mushrooms
Score: 3.5

Lisa cooked up two of Giada's recipes this month. The first, the crostata with pancetta and mushrooms. Her thoughts: The crust was rather dry compared to other crust recipes I have used previously. The topping, which consisted of thyme, garlic, shallots, mushroom, and pancetta was delicious.

Lisa's Linguine and Prosciutto Frittatas
Score: 3

Lisa's thoughts on the linguine and prosciutto frittatas: The texture of the frittatas was dry and the linguine was hard. Smoked mozzarella was the dominant flavor in this dish.


Michelle's Curried Chicken Sandwich
Score: 3.5
Michelle enjoyed the flavors but found that the sandwich was just too dry. Next time, she would definitely add more moisture with either some mustard or soy mayo.

Anjali and Amanda's Creations :) (Anj and Amanda threw a party together filled with Giada food. Below are their reviews)

Watermelon, Tomato, Basil Skewers with Balsamic Reduction

Score: 4.5

Anjali: So I picked this recipe when it was a bit more summer-ish, then realized it might be difficult to find good watermelon. And I was correct. Nevertheless, I have been curious about savory watermelon dishes, so I marched on. The recipe was straightforward, as was the preparation: a lot of chopping. The balsamic reduction takes time, and though it says to cool it down, I was in a rush and it wasn't exactly cool when I poured it on the skewers. We waited about 20-30 minutes until we actually ate; this may have been why the reduction was sticking to the top of my mouth. Odd feeling, but otherwise a great dish. Definitely simple, light, and fresh, and would be even better in the peak of summer. Discovering a way to keep the balsamic reduction from being too gooey would be nice. :)

Amanda: Nice pairing with the halibut and eggplant. The balsamic syrup sat just a little too long before being served, so it was a bit sticky. Giada should have a included a time frame for cooling the syrup. To be fair to my co-chef, we had a dinner guest who was running late; the stickiness resulted from that, not from her inattentiveness. Overall, we loved the classic combination of tomato and basil, with the fun twist of watermelon.


Roasted Eggplant Salad
Score: 4.75 (averaged between 4.5 and 5)

Anjali: Again, this was a very straightforward recipe with simple preparation. I must be honest, I just used regular eggplants instead of Japanese, based on availability. I don't think it changed the end result too much. The hardest part was grilling the eggplant, since I only have George Foreman grill (no grill pan to speak of). My guests and I really enjoyed the dish! Again, light and fresh. You cannot go wrong with goat cheese, pine nuts, and basil. Perfect for anytime of year.

Amanda: Awesome! Very flavorful, such a great combination. No complaints, except as my co-chef mentioned the ridiculous amount of chopping required... I think this dish is worth it though.


Roasted Halibut with Fennel and Grapefruit Salsa
Score: 4.0

Anjali: So I picked this dish because I have never had halibut and...I dislike fennel. However, as a foodie, I don't think it's realistic to dislike a food that is used so much, so I knew I had to get over my fear. I first discovered that 1) halibut is hard to find and 2) when found, it is expensive. Oh well, on we go. Again, the recipe seemed straightforward. Once I started the prep work, however, I realized it would not be pain free. The grapefruit work is tedious and was the most time-intensive part of the dish. I also felt like the recipe asked for too much juice (one cup), as my grapefruit itself was also juicy. However, I might have created too much juice due to lack of precision when cutting my fruit. So, depending on your skill, either cut the fruit/juice down or getting a highly skilled grapefruit carver. :) The rest of the dish was easy and came together nicely. The finished product was pretty and...delicious! It was light, the right amount of savory, sweet, and sour, and I managed to put together three ingredients I am not a fan of (fennel, olives, and grapefruit) and come out with a tasty dish! Success!

Amanda: Very flavorful, with nice contrasts. The salsa went well with the halibut; I think it would also be fantastic with salmon. The dish was very “juicy”. I think I would reduce or eliminate the grapefruit juice next time around.

Whole-Wheat Linguine with Ricotta, Green Beans, and Lemon
Score: 3

Amanda: This dish did not transfer well…it sounded fantastic, but was a bit bland. It needed more salt to bring out the lemon, and pepper. We were also curious…what motivated the choice of whole wheat linguine? I think this dish would be much improved if Giada had chosen regular linguine instead. Wheat pasta is a great base, but cannot handle such delicate ingredients. I will try it again soon and substitute the pasta.

Anjali: The pasta was bland, but when salt was added, the flavor of the lemon came out. Why did Giada decide to be a health freak with the whole wheat pasta, which notoriously does not absorb flavors well?

Amaretto Sour with Prosecco
Score: 4

Amanda: Confession…I did not make my own sour mix. Given that the dinner party was thrown on a weekday, and that most busy, working women would prefer drinking a cocktail to creating a sour mix, I thought Giada was a little idealistic with the recipe. Despite this fact, I give my interpretation of it a 4. As the dinner guests said, “anything with prosecco is fantastic!”

Hazelnut Crunch Cake with Mascarpone and Chocolate Score: 4

Amanda: Despite the heavy title, the cake was light. The mascarpone was a fluffy contrast to the chocolate cake, and the orange zest only added to the flavor. We would have liked more crunch, which probably means my caramelized sugar technique needs work. I would have liked the recipe more if Giada would have included how to toast and shell hazelnuts. This was not a huge deal, a little googling answered my question, but it would be nice if the information was included with the recipe. Overall, the cake was great, and fun to make.

Elaine's Smoked Mozzarella with Fig and Honey
Score:3
The recipe called for smoked mozzarella which the local supermarket near me didn't carry and the specialty cheese shop had run out as well. So the cheeseman suggested that I go with a brie or camembert (I went with brie) to acheive creaminess and instead of the smokey element he suggested I grate some truffled cheese over the brie as the shop sells a truffled honey that sells well and should acheive the same effect since this recipe also uses honey. When making the parcels, they seemed thin so for some I used 2 sheets of filo but this wasn't necessary as 2 sheets made them way too thick. One thing I might do different next time is try to bake them in the oven instead of frying them in oil. I though this was a very heavy starter but good for a winter night.

Elaine's Asparagus Lasagna
Score: 5

This lasagna was absolutely fabulous, everyone enjoyed it and was surprised at how well the asparagus remained quite firm. As I didn't have a food processor handy I didn't make the sundried tomato pesto according to the recipe. Instead I used a ready made one by Sacla which I tried out beforehand to make sure it wasn't too salty. This worked really well and complimented the other ingredients perfectly. One confusing thing about this recipe was that you are asked to brown pancetta and remove before cooking the onion, garlic, and asparagus but the pancetta isn't used in the rest of the recipe so I don't think you actually need to bother with that step since it doesn't seem to contribute much. This was a very easy lasagna to make and I will definitely make it again.

Jackie's Orzo-Stuffed Peppers

Score: 4.5

I went back and forth about which recipes to try from this cookbook -- too many to choose from! -- and narrowed it to a few and had Mr. J pick. He picked these orzo-stuffed peppers. I was pretty excited because I've never made stuffed peppers before and they presented so well in the cookbook. I must say, I was very pleased with how they turned out. The recipe was simple to follow (although included quite a bit of chopping as in Anjali and Amanda's recipes). I had read reviews that the recipe was too bland, but I didn't find that to be the case (even though I was sick was a stuffy nose, I could still taste all the rich flavors). I added in some ground turkey for protein and was quite generous with the cheese (how could I not be, I love cheese). I thought that the fresh mint was an interesting twist -- very flavorful, but I grew tired of the mint after eating several leftover stuffed peppers. Would probably use basil or another fresh herb in its place next time. In any case, would definitely make this again!

Jackie's Tuna Sandwiches

Score: 4

We're a big football watching house, so I wanted something perfect for game watching... and this recipe contained some of my most favorite sandwich ingredients -- tuna, artichokes, olives, a "hummus-like" spread, and arugula. The most time consuming part of this recipe was making the hummus, but believe you me, I had leftover hummus that I used on other sandwiches for the rest of the week! I enjoyed all the flavors -- they blended so nicely together. And be sure to get the right type of bread -- we got baguette rolls that were ideal with these sandwiches. Regular bread would have become instantly soggy. I would make this again!

So there you have it folks, Giada's Kitchen. That was a fun one to start with... tune in next month for another tasty round of Cook Club: Cook the Books. Cheers!