Brunch at a Pizzeria? Oh yes - Red Rocks Pizzeria

You + Me + Bottomless Mimosas + Pizza AND Brunch + Sun = Happy Sunday...

I seem to be on quite the DC pizza kick these days... It seems that everywhere I turn, there is a new place serving up pizza and I am quite happy to HAVE to go try all of them (yes, twist my arm...). Ironically though, my friend K and I ended up at Red Rocks in Columbia Heights to check out their BRUNCH. We heard rave reviews from a friend about their brunch (and bottomless mimosas...) -- plus, it was a gorgeous spring day here in DC, so a place with a sizeable patio for outdoor dining can't be beat.

We were happy to find a spot outside in the sun. We were both starving by this point (K from a good workout...me, I was just hungry). The service was very prompt and pleasant... despite our hunger and the quick service, it took awhile to pick out something to eat because everything on the menu looked great. And although I came for brunch and often can't resist brunch (I'm a savory brunch fan, and the prosciutto and mozzarella omelet was calling my name), I caught a whiff of someone's pizza and was done for.

RedRocks offers a wide variety of pizza options, with eighteen total (9 "pizze rosse" and 9 "pizze blanche"). I was tempted by many of them (I love my toppings), but decided instead to just go traditional and get the Margherita (tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella, basil, olive oil, and sea salt). K went for the brunch and had the "scrambled delight" (scrambled eggs with Italian sausage, mushrooms, parmesan, served with breakfast potatoes and toast). And two bottomless mimosas please.


Overall, the food was tasty and satisfying. The pizzas are thin crust (as I like them), not soggy, and very flavorful. I would have preferred to have a bit more mozzarella and basil on my pizza, but was pleased with the flavor. K enjoyed the egg part of her scrambled delight, but the potatoes were not as pleasing. K admitted to not being a breakfast potato kind of girl, but I surely am...and these weren't particularly noteworthy. I tend to like my potatoes a little bit crispier, these were almost too...doughy? And covered in an orange sauce that made them a bit too salty. The mimosas were quite tasty, although some batches were a little bit light on the champagne.


All in all, it was a beautiful day to be out and I was happy that we went to RedRocks. I would go back to try more pizzas and perhaps try out an omelet or two.

Barefoot Bloggers: Asian Tuna Salad

This week's Barefoot Bloggers recipe brings us Tuna Salad. Tuna salad you say? Isn't that just popping open a can and mixing it up with mayo (and perhaps a sprinkling of chopped celery)? Not for the Barefoot Contessa! This recipe, selected by Kate from Warm Olives and Cool Cocktails, includes much more -- fresh tuna steaks, avocados, wasabi, lime zest... Think, tuna salad with an Asian flare.

Now, I decided to tweak the recipe a bit and tried it out with canned tuna instead. I've posted here the original recipe and go into detail about my changes in the results/comments section.

RECIPE: BAREFOOT CONTESSA'S TUNA SALAD
4 Servings

Ingredients

• 2 pounds very fresh tuna steak, cut 1-inch thick
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus extra for sprinkling
• 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black, plus extra for sprinkling
• 2 limes, zest grated
• 1 teaspoon wasabi powder
• 6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (3 limes)
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 10 dashes hot sauce (recommended: Tabasco)
• 1 to 2 ripe Haas avocados, medium diced
• 1/4 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (2 scallions)
• 1/4 cup red onion, small diced

Directions

Brush the tuna steaks with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the tuna steaks in a very hot saute pan and cook for only 1 minute on each side. Set aside on a platter.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the olive oil, salt, pepper, lime zest, wasabi, lime juice, soy sauce and hot sauce. Add the avocados to the vinaigrette.

Cut the tuna in chunks and place it in a large bowl. Add the scallions and red onion and mix well. Pour the vinaigrette mixture over the tuna and carefully mix.

Results/Comments:

This turned out pretty well... although my tuna salad does not look particularly beautiful, I loved the flavor profile of the vinaigrette. I decided to cut the recipe in half (as that I'm heading on vacation soon, so didn't want too much leftover). I also used canned tuna instead of the fresh tuna steaks (I had a hard time coming across fresh tuna steaks and I also wanted to try it out in the way that I would most likely use it in the future).

A few other bumps in the road... I went to the grocery store on the same night that I made this dish and found very few avocados... and no ripe avocados. Normally I would buy avocados and bring them home to ripen, but I was short on time, so just in case my avocado wasn't ripe enough, I bought some guacamole to substitute. (I love avocados and guac, so I didn't want to omit this from the recipe!). As it turned out, my avocado definitely was not ripe enough, but I cubed a few pieces into the mixture and added in guacamole to taste. Oh, and I also used wasabi paste instead of wasabi powder -- accidentally grabbed the wrong thing when I was at the market, but this still provided the kick of wasabi in the salad.


I taste-tested the "vinaigrette" before mixing it in with the tuna and I LOVED it. It contains many flavors that I love and I could see myself using in a wide variety of dishes. A little bit salty, a little bit spicy, and a little bit of bite. I think next time I might try it with chicken.

This recipe was so simple to put together. A very quick dinner with leftovers to spare for lunch the next day. I wasn't bowled over by it, but I would try it again with different proteins. I think though that it would be quite delicious with fresh tuna, so I'll put that on my list of things to try.

Cheers!

Authentic mozzarella and pizza hit DC - Fratelli la Bufala

DC is no stranger to Italian restaurants... I think I could probably count at least eight Italian restaurants in Georgetown alone. This has not stopped the opening of (at least) two more Italian places in the past two months -- Fratelli la Bufala and Potenza. Now, I'm not complaining. Both of these restaurants were immediately added to my "must try" list and I happily checked off Fratelli la Bufala last weekend.

Back when I first moved to DC, we used to go to this restaurant called the Alamo Grill in Georgetown. It was on a side street off of M Street, served up Tex-Mex fare, and had a lovely outdoor patio that was perfect even in those humid DC summers for some margaritas, guacamole, salsa, and chips. The food may not have been top notch, but it was still a fun place to venture to on a nice day... and you rarely had to wait, which can be difficult to come across in the tourist-filled DC summers. But perhaps that was the first sign that the Alamo Grill wasn't going to make it... the second clue was when the restaurant closed and renovations took over that building.

And then, Mr. J came home one day and mentioned that he jogged past the old Alamo Grill and there was this new place, started with an "F", not sure what it was going to serve... Then I opened up my "The List Are You On It" email and read about "Fratelli la Bufala"... famous for their buffalo mozzarella? Second location to open in the US (first one in Miami)? Serving up 15-20 types of pizzas with the oven right there for all to see? Sign me up!

And so we found ourselves on a nice Saturday night at the doorstep of Fratelli la Bufala. The Georgetown location of Fratelli la Bufala is just off the canal, on the same street as two other Italian restaurants (Paper Moon and Piccolo Restaurant -- although Piccolo Restaurant is still currently closed due to the October fire). Fratelli la Bufala started in Italy and has spread around the world (Dubai, Rio de Janeiro, and Tokyo to name a few of the non-Italy outposts). Coming from a family that was in the buffalo milk and mozzarella business, the three brothers opened up these restaurants after their father passed away (the full story can be read on their menus!).

We were seated on the first floor, right next to the pizza oven and with prime seating to look into the glass walled kitchen. An antipasti bar was set up in front of the kitchen, the walls were decorated with various buffalo-type decor plus paintings of the family. The tables were a bit tight and although we liked the excellent views from our seats, we felt like we were in the middle of traffic between the two rooms on the floor.

Any concerns about tight seating though were diminished by the looks and smells of the pizzas. We eyed every pizza that came by as we tried to select our own pizzas from the menu. I was also quite distracted by the list of available pastas -- all their pastas are handmade in-house and I heard rave reviews about the pappardelle (which I am a sucker for...). But I tried to stay on track, because it has been a long time since I last had a pizza worth writing about.

With our stomachs rumbling, we decided to get a caprese salad for an appetizer (after hearing so much about the buffalo mozzarella, we wanted to try the mozzarella in its untouched form!) and then TWO pizzas, one selected by each of us. A forewarning -- it isn't necessary to get one pizza per person, they are bigger than a "personal pan" type pizza (and bigger than nearby Pizzeria Paradiso's pizzas), but with so many to choose from, it couldn't hurt to have pizza to take home, right? Mr. J selected the "Casertana" (bufala mozzarella, spinach, and bufala sausage) and I selected the "Capricciosa" (I butchered that name when I tried to order it, no worries though! tomato sauce, bufala mozzarella, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, and ham... I'm a sucker for artichoke hearts and mushrooms... photo of my pizza is at the top).


The caprese salad was fresh, the bufala mozzarella was flavorful and slightly tangy. The pizzas were mouthwatering. We saw them come right out of the wood-burning oven. Both were delicious. The tomato sauce on my pizza was not too sweet and all the toppings worked well together -- the richness of the mozzarella was balanced by the vegetables. I think my pizza was a little bit undercooked, or perhaps I picked a pizza with a few too many toppings, because the pizza wasn't quite as crisp as I expected (not that I expected super crisp, but it was a little bit soggy in a few areas) (added sidenote: I read recently that "sogginess" may actually be a sign of authenticity... that actual Neapolitan pizzas actually have that sogginess and require a fork and knife to eat the center of the pizza...). Mr. J's pizza held up much better (which is why I think that I had a few too many toppings on mine) and he loved it. I think he was about to pass out from how much he liked it. Both were fantastic, and I'm by no means a Neapolitan pizza expert, but this was some of the top pizza I've had in DC.

We were having such a nice time that we decided to get dessert too (might as well have the full experience, huh?). The cannolini caught our eye -- a cannoli with bufala ricotta cream, limoncello, and chocolate -- but the Carpaccio d'Ananas sounded more intriguing. Paper thin slices of pineapple, drizzled with chocolate, and buffalo milk ice cream on the side. It was the perfect light end to our meal.



I will most certainly be revisiting Fratelli la Bufala. I'm not exaggerating when I say that almost everything on the menu appealed to me ... so much left still to try! I'm dying to have another pizza, but then there are all the other pasta options, and then the different mozzarella appetizers, and I've heard that even the salads are delish. AND, word is that they are opening a "tiki" type bar on the outdoor patio... and if you know me, I do love my tropical themed bars, so a tiki bar WITH excellent food? How can I not come back?

On a quick aside, we also happened to hear from our neighboring table that President Obama was dining a block away from us at Michel Richard's Citronelle... needless to say, we ventured over there after dinner, and sure enough (after a little wait), there was President Obama, Mrs. Obama, and Chef Richard, with a motorcade entourage. It was exciting! We met some Secret Service people (who scanned the crowd with explosive detectors), bonded with other fellow on-lookers (none of whom were from DC!), and waved at the Obamas (they waved back!). All in all, a good night.

Fratelli la Bufala
1063 31st St. NW
Washington, DC 20007

Literally, almond joy! - Toasted Almond Lemon Bars (Cookie Carnival)

As life picks up, my blog seems to have fallen quiet for awhile! It's been weird not having blogged in some time, so I'm happy to come back with my Cookie Carnival entry for this month! This month we baked up some Toasted Almond Lemon Bars (thanks to Holly from Phemomenon for hosting this month!). Now, I've had some troubles with lemon squares before -- they never quite set up right or weren't lemon-y enough or were too sweet. So I was a bit nervous about how this one would turn out... I have to say though, this is probably one of my most favorite "cookie" recipes EVER. I mean it, EVER. I'll say, that these probably aren't for everyone, but for someone who LOVES LOVES LOVES anything almond, these are the perfect combination of citrus-y goodness and almond-y sweetness. But I'm getting ahead of myself... first the recipe:

RECIPE: LEMON ALMOND SQUARES

From The Sweet Melissa Baking Book by Melissa Murphy

Makes 1 dozen bars

For the Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1/2 cup sliced blanched almonds, lightly toasted

1/2 teaspoon salt

20 Tablespoons (2 1/2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

For the Lemon Filling:

4 large eggs

1 3/4 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 7 lemons)

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar for sprinkling

To Toast the Almonds:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the almonds in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly golden and you can smell them. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Before You Start:

Position a rack in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13 - inch pan with nonstick vegetable cooking spray. Make a parchment "sling" by cutting two pieces of parchment paper, measuring 16 1/2 inches long by 12 inches wide (you can also use aluminum foil). Place one piece across the length, and the other across the width of the pan, with the excess hanging over the edges. You will use this sling later to lift the finished bar from the pan. Spray the sling with the cooking spray.

To Make the Crust:

1. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, pulse the flour, sugar, almonds, and salt to combine. Add the cold butter in pieces and pulse until the dough comes together in a ball.

2. Turn the dough out into the prepared pan and press evenly into the bottom and 1 1/4 inches up the sides. (This crust, once it is baked, needs to act as a liner in which to pour the liquidy lemon filling. So be sure to do a good job of pressing the dough up the sides - no cracks!). Cover the dough with a piece of parchment paper or aluminum foil, and fill with pie weights ( you can use dried beans or uncooked rice as pie weights as well). Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly golden. Carefully remove the pie weights and the liner and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, or until the whole crust is golden. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

To Make the Filling:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until smooth. Add the almond extract and flour, and whisk until smooth. Add the lemon juice, and whisk to combine.

To Complete the Bars:

1. Pour the lemon filling into the prepared crust. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the filling is firm and lightly golden. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

2. When cool use the parchment sling to lift the entire bar from the pan and onto a cutting board. Slice into twelve 3 x 3 1/2 - inch bars. Remove from the pan and, using a small sifter, dust with the confectioners' sugar.

The bars keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. For longer storage, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 5 days, or freeze well wrapped in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil for up to 3 weeks. Do not unwrap before defrosting. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Results/Comments:
Alas, I forgot to take pictures of my lemon bars along the way... which quite speaks to the lemon bars themselves. I served the one batch THREE times in the course of a week! First, of course, Mr. J and I had to try them for ourselves (fresh and warm... I couldn't wait for them to cool ALL the way)... second, for my parents at our pre-Easter gathering (my dad loves lemon anything), and third, at Mr. J's family's Easter dinner.

I ran into some... let's call them technical difficulties. I apparently didn't read the recipe close enough (although I swear I read it multiple times!) and thought that the almond crust was meant to be just the bottom layer with the lemon filling as the top layer. For whatever reason - i.e. excitement to make these - I didn't realize that the crust was actually supposed to SURROUND the lemon filling until I already started baking the crust. No matter! The lemon filling still firmed up nicely on the crust (my fear was that it wouldn't firm up and would just ooze out) -- the crust was just a bit thicker than it should have been, but I didn't care, the crust was yummy.

These lemon bars were just delicious. The almond extract flavor was a (pleasant) surprise to everyone who tasted the bars, which was nicely complemented by the almonds in the crust. I loved how the sour lemon flavor balanced with the almond extract sweetness. Really, I could have eaten the whole tray. I admit that I think I might have loved these more than some of my family members, but these honestly were some of the best "cookies" I've ever tried. If you are a fan of almond, these are the bars for you.

Just Opened/Coming Soons - Keeping up with DC restaurants...

I finally got around to catching up on the latest food openings and coming soons to the DC area! And boy was I excited by what I found. Courtesy of "The List: Are You On It?", here are some places to whet your palate...

JUST OPENED:

Fire and Sage - This casual restaurant with an all-day-dining menu features American specialties with innovative twists, from fresh hand-carved sandwiches, to main course salads, brick oven-fired flatbreads and original seafood and meat entrees. Executive Chef Aaron Tootill's down-to-earth style and passion for simple dishes is apparent in a variety of dishes such as bacon-wrapped oak plank scallops, and char-grilled tea smoked halibut with corn salad. Desserts include a "Hot Bag O'Doughnuts" with honey butter and strawberry compote. Fire & Sage's wine menu features a good mix of California, European and other world selections, both big-label and boutique, moderately priced. Over 25 wines by the glass are offered in 6-ounce or 9-ounce pours. Regional microbrew beers such as Old Dominion and Dog Fish ales complete the restaurant's selection of American and international draught and bottled beers. (Marriott Metro Center, 775 12th Street, NW, Metro Center)

Fratelli la Bufala - The Italian company that has dozens of restaurants throughout Europe, has opened up it's second location in the US in Georgetown (first one in Miami). The restaurant's pizzas feature mozzarella made from the buffalo milk that is imported twice a week from Italy. The pizzas are Neopolitan-style and the same dough is used as the bread in the sandwiches. Chef Fabio Capestrano, originally from Italy, will also serve bison meat from animals who graze in Southern Italy. The restaurant has an open kitchen and buffalo-themed decor. (1063 31st Street, NW, Georgetown)

Nando's Peri-Peri - A second location of nando's peri-Peri has opened just off Dupont Circle. What makes Nando's Peri-Peri flame-grilled chicken unique is its use of Peri-Peri, a spice passed down through generations in both Portugal and Africa. At Nando's Peri-Peri the chickens are always fresh, never frozen and marinated for 24 hours, but diners get to select their own degree of heat from a range of bastes that are brushed on at just the right moment over an open-flame grill. Larger than the Penn Quarter location (819 7th Street NW), the new 18th Street space offers two levels of seating and a wine room upstairs, ideal for private dining. (1210 18th Street, NW; 202.621.8603)

COMING SOON:

Bibiana Osteria-Enoteca - Ashok Bajaj will be opening his seventh restaurant in the downtown area of DC later this year in the space formerly occupied by Luigiani’s. Known for his contemporary American and Indian restaurants around the city (Rasika, 701, Oval Room, Bombay Club, Aredeo/Bardeo), he decided to take on Italian cuisine, as it is one that he truly enjoys. Bajaj has yet to hire someone to head up the new kitchen. Stay tuned for more details. (1100 New York Avenue, NW)

Blue Ridge - Blue Ridge, a wine-focused eatery with unexpected East Coast wines and Southern-inspired cuisine will open this spring. And sustainability advocate Barton Seaver will be the executive chef. The 200-plus seat restaurant will take over the former Busara space. Look for menu items like pork terrine with preserved fruit, shellfish stew with smoked ham broth and a variety of burgers. (2340 Wisconsin Avenue, NW)

Buddha Bar - For those of you who are fans of Buddha Bar in Paris & NYC or Little Buddha in Las Vegas, get ready…a new Buddha Bar is coming to DC in the third quarter of 2009. Opening at 455 Massachusetts Avenue – just three blocks from the Verizon Center - the 9,400 sqft location will be a replica of the existing location in New York City. The Paris-based Asian-French restaurant and bar, created by George V Entertainment, has 10 locations worldwide. Buddha Bar is known worldwide for their eclectic Asian décor, hypnotizing music and magical food – and is sure to create a unique experience here in DC. (455 Massachusetts Avenue, NW)

Dupont Tequila - Here’s DC’s first tequila bar. Get ready for a variety of cocktails with fresh squeezed juices, sangrias of many colors, frozen margaritas and more than 20 tequilas. From the kitchen will come a mix of Mexican favorites like tequila glazed jumbo shrimp and tequila salsas. Live entertainment will be featured on the weekends. Originally slated to open in early 2009 at this time no details available.

Galileo - Roberto Donna has signed a letter of intent at the space that formerly housed Butterfield 9. He hopes to open a reincarnated Galileo, the formal Italian restaurant he ran in Washington for more than two decades. The restaurant should open in April or May, after a brief makeover. There will be an intimate restaurant-within-a-restaurant, Laboratorio del Galileo, featuring a tasting menu. Donna will be executive chef at the new restaurant. (600 14th Street, NW)

Mad Butcher - Bethany and Jonathan Umbel of Pure Hospitality LLC (Hook and Tackle Box) hope to acquire Havanamax cigar shop to open a butcher shop and restaurant. The Mad Butcher will bring in whole pigs and sides of cattle from local farmers and prepared on site. There will be an on site aging room, selling of raw meats and a casual cafe. (3249 M Street, NW)

Maoz Vegetarian - Maoz has now found a site for their newest outpost. It will open in downtown DC where Signature Cigars used to be in mid- to late-spring. The first Maoz branch was opened in 1991 in Amsterdam, Holland. The motivator behind this pioneer shop was the idea that it was time Dutch people were introduced to a new and nutritious vegetarian dish. Customers were served a pita-sandwich with daily-fresh, handmade falafel-balls fried in vegetable oil, topped with freshly made salads and sauces of their choice. Sure enough, the Maoz sandwich became a huge success in Amsterdam, leading to the expansion of Maoz both nationally and internationally. All menu items are strictly vegetarian, and are prepared daily with the freshest ingredients available. (1817 M Street, NW)

Pizzeria Paradiso Dupont Circle - DC pizza maven Ruth Gresser and the gang will be moving from their current location in Dupont Circle, but the move will only take them up the street. Look for a new space that is twice the current size with outdoor dining. Beer fans get ready, the new location will include a replica of the "Birreria" from the Georgetown locale. Look for a May/June opening. (2003 P Street)

Good Stuff Eatery – Parts 2, 3 and maybe 4? - Chef Spike Mendehlson and the extended family that has helped make his Capitol Hill burger joint such a success – have plans to open two more Good Stuff Eaterys. One will be in DuPont Circle and the other is planned for Union Station (post-renovation). Word on the street is that there is also a pizza concept in the works.