A Fall Getaway

Mr. M and I took a much-needed romantic getaway to the mountains last week. We headed out of Denver mid-day, heading out I-70 before turning south at Copper Mountain. We drove through Leadville, Twin Lakes, and over Independence Pass towards Aspen, where we were staying 2 nights at the famed Hotel Jerome. The fall colors were spectacular along the way, especially around the Twin Lakes and Independence Pass areas.

Aspen was pretty sleepy and quiet while we were there - everyone said it was "off-season", though with the beautiful fall color and gorgeous perfect weather, I'm not quite sure why. We dined that evening at The Wild Fig, joining only a few other people in the restaurant. Though there weren't many folks there, the dining room is cozy, intimate, and warm. It's really a romantic spot. Though our food (lobster linguini for Mr. M; Wild Fig salad followed by Clams and Chorizo for me) was good, it wasn't great, but we thoroughly enjoyed the evening anyway with the aid of a lovely wine called Atteca Old Vines 2005 (100% grenacha, Spain). I highly recommend.

The next morning, I did the most beautiful bike ride I've ever done. Though I was definitely feeling the effects of the altitude while pedaling up this road, it really helps when the views look like this:






This was, of course, Maroon Creek Road, a 12-mile climb from Aspen up to the incredible Maroon Bells. This is the view that greets you at the top:




Not bad, eh?

And the descent was as exhilarating as the views.

I spent the remainder of the afternoon at the Hotel Jerome pool. We were quite impressed with the hotel and would definitely stay here again.

To make up for our taxing, calorie-burning bike ride, we drove to Carbondale to visit Six89 that evening. Eating at this quaint place off Main Street almost feels like you are having dinner in someone's home - the dining area is all broken up into smaller rooms. This is a place that is nice (white tablecloths and imaginative food) yet doesn't take itself too seriously - a refreshing trait. They were having an off-season fixed price menu that was a fantastic deal - $26.89 gets you a small plate appetizer, a large plate entree, and dessert of your choice, anything off the menu!! I had an app of slow-cooked lamb shoulder with chevre agnolotti - wintry and rich, and a roasted halibut entree. Mr. M had a great spinach salad with sauteed wild mushrooms, and the filet of beef (of course). We sampled Riesling, Viognier, and Zinfandel by-the-glass, and by the time dessert rolled around, we were feeling merry. I topped the meal off with Hot and Spicy Ginger Beignets with dark chocolate ganache - yum! This was Mr. M's favorite meal of the trip.

The next day, we packed up and headed back towards Glenwood Springs, where we rode the Glenwood Canyon Bike Trail - an 18 mile ride from Glenwood Springs that runs along the river through the canyon to the other side. It's a beautiful ride on a paved bike path, with rest stops sprinkled conveniently every few miles.





We checked in at The Lodge and Spa at Cordillera, and immediately I wished I never had to leave. Our room and patio looked out to a beautiful quiet valley, tucked away behind the Beaver Creek/Edwards area and bursting with bright fall color. It was probably the most relaxing place I've ever been, and we'll definitely be making it a fall tradition to come back here every year. I swam in the pool overlooking this view and seriously thought I was in heaven.

We had dinner at Dish in Edwards. I've heard so much about this place and had really looked forward to trying it. We looked over the daily-changing menu while sipping a glass of bubbly and snacking on the tasty parmesan-truffle popcorn that's brought to every table. We decided to have the oft-discussed 7-course chef tasting menu for $40 per person. Our meal involved:
1. a slice of manchego and serrano ham served with a shot of sherry - a good start
2. a wonderfully thick and hearty five onion and potato soup - really good
3. a savory bread pudding with wild mushrooms, garlic, and truffle oil - pretty good
4. a roasted japanese eggplant with tomato sauce and white cheddar - not my fave. Mr. M said the tomato sauce tasted like Chef Boyardee (though I'm sure it wasn't). never a good sign.
5. spicy boiled crawfish - just ok. rather boring actually, for anyone who's ever had boiled crawfish regularly. and a couple of the crawfish had already gone off. at this point, my opinion of the meal and of the restaurant was that it was disappointing overall.
(A side note - we hit a really low point here, as our server told us we were done and that it was time for dessert. She even brought us our coffee and everything. I finally got up the nerve - again, I'm always a chicken about these things - to tell her that had we ordered each of the above off the menu, it would have amounted to $28 rather than the $40 they were supposedly charging us. She looked confused for a moment, and I offered her an out by supposing that maybe these portions had been bigger? Yes, that was it, she assured me. Five minutes later, she arrived back at our table explaining that she had made a mistake and there were still a few courses to come. I must have lost count, she said. I'm still not sure what happened here. Nevertheless, she then brought out the star of the evening...)
6. a pan-seared piece of fish served on a Asian-style soba salad and green onions. FANTASTIC. Truly great. Our server said it was sea bass, but it's really funny - this fish I'm sure was black cod. (If you've read my earlier post from Fruition, you'll see the irony in this situation...) This was the only dish that we were served that wasn't on the menu, though there was another black cod dish on the menu that evening. Anyway, this dish was so good that it redeemed the whole meal.
7. a buffalo sausage with a spicy bbq sauce. by this time, i was full, and i wasn't expecting this course. it was just okay to me.
8. cheesecake with homemade strawberry sauce. again, too full by now, but it was good, not great.

Overall, I'd say Dish didn't quite meet my expectations. Atmosphere-wise, it actually is pretty great - energetic, hip, and funky without being too noisy. But if I had it to do over again, I'd just go order what I wanted off the menu. I guess I thought that a chef's tasting menu would get you stuff that wasn't on the menu, but I guessed wrong, and if that's the case, I might as well pick out my own courses. I was also disappointed in the service and the snafu of cutting the meal short 3 courses before the end. I'll never know what would have happened had I not mentioned something to the server. Some of the food was so good that I'll have to go back and try it again, but this time, I'll be ordering for myself.

We splurged and ordered room service on our last morning of our mini-vacation, eating on the porch and looking out at the incredible view while wrapped in our comfy robes. I am sad to return home, but I wouldn't trade these past few days with my husband for anything.

Se habla espanol?

Mr. M and I have just recently discovered the joy of biking in our beautiful state of Colorado, and today we decided to attempt our first real climb. We drove out to Golden to ride up Lookout Mountain's Lariat Loop Road. I don't even think we actually thought we'd make it to the top, but we ended up doing it without even stopping! Not bad for first-timers, I'd say, though it was rather embarrassing to be passed so many times by so many people at such great speed on our ascent.

Anyway, after a hair-raising descent back down to the car, we were feeling pretty good about ourselves, but also quite hungry. We got back in the car and headed back to town on Hwy 6, looking for a place to eat.

I'd always wanted to try El Taco de Mexico, with numerous people claiming that it's some of the most authentic Mexican food in town. It happened to be right on our way home, at Santa Fe and 7th.

The actual restaurant is not a place for atmosphere. It's rather confusing how it all works when you go in - there's a long counter, but no real line or ordering station. I'm not convinced that any of the employees speak English (a place after my own heart). Eventually we placed our order, then opted to sit outside rather than in the small crowded seating area inside.

If you've ever been to Mexico, you'll know what I'm talking about when I say that eating on the street is exciting. The sights and sounds and smells, the knowledge that some of the very tastiest eats are being made right there in front of you. At the same time, it's not unlike playing Russian roulette. You never know what kind of "excitement" will be later afflicting your bowels. But some of the best tacos you'll ever taste will be the ones sold on the street.

For lunch, I tried tacos of 3 types - asada, carnitas, and lengua (tongue, for the uninitiated). All were very tasty - the type of taco you get on a street corner in Mexico, not at Taco Bell. The lengua was surprisingly my favorite - very tender and juicy. All tacos were priced under $2. Many of the other patrons were eating smothered burritos - I'll have to try those on the next visit.

So, if you're looking for a place to eat when arriving back from the mountains, stop by! It's fabulous that we can eat Mexican street food right here in Denver, and WITHOUT the "excitement."

A new toy!

I've wanted a Kitchen Aid mixer for a long time. I've dreamed about the beautiful shiny appliance sitting on my counter, like a piece of artwork - a sculpture really. I dream that when I'm old, I'll treasure it like a trusted and faithful friend, a companion in my lifelong quest to eat well.

I finally bought one on a whim the other day (if you can call wanting it for 7 years a whim...) when I was aimlessly shopping on Amazon. I picked the chrome finish, then anxiously awaited its arrival.

Two days later, I pulled it out of its box and admired it. Wanting to put it to use right away, I perused the contents of my fridge, trying to think of something to make without having to go to the store.

I decided to improvise and make a cheesecake loosely based on another recipe I had. I had a half a box of gingersnaps in the pantry, so I decided to use them for the crust rather than the usual graham crackers (which I didn't have). And I've made this with fresh blueberries in the past, but strawberries would have to do today. And I thought a lemon would be a nice touch.

To make the crust, I whizzed about 50 gingersnaps (I even counted for you...) in my Cuisinart, then mixed them with a whole stick (but who's counting?) of melted butter. I pressed it into the bottom of a 10-inch springform. I then washed, dried, stemmed, and chopped a pound of fresh strawberries, laying them over the crust in the pan. Finally, I zested one lemon over the top of the strawberries, then laid the lemon aside. I stuck the pan in the fridge to chill while I made the filling.

I threw 2 blocks (1 lb) of room-temp Philadelphia cream cheese (full-fat variety and all!) into the silver bowl of my new toy. I added a 1/2 cup of sugar, 1/4 tsp salt, 2 eggs plus one yolk, and the juice of the zested lemon. With great anticipation, I started the mixer and let it do its beautiful work. Easy, easy, peasy.

I dumped the cream cheese mixture over the top of the fruit in the pan, spreading it to cover evenly. I baked it at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

While it was heating, I mixed 1 cup of sour cream with a dollop of vanilla. After the cheesecake was done, I increased the oven heat to 450, poured the sour cream topping over it, and baked it an additional 5 minutes. I then removed it from the oven and let it cool on the counter until I could chill it in the fridge.

This improvised recipe turned out quite nicely (especially according to Mr. M, who still has not claimed personal responsibility for the entire half of the cheesecake that was missing when I came home from work.) Though I like cheesecake of any kind, my preference definitely tends toward the more creamy and soft ones instead of the drier, cake-y ones, and this one definitely fits the bill. Enjoy!

In the Presence of Greatness

A few weeks ago, I got an ad (via email from 5280) that Frank Bonanno, chef/owner of renowned Mizuna and Luca d'Italia, would be teaching a few classes on making fresh Italian cheeses. These small classes of 10 students would be held in the Luca d'Italia kitchen and then topped off with a small tasting menu and wine pairings. Being a fan of cheese, of Luca d'Italia, and of Frank Bonanno, I called to reserve a spot right away.

I showed up Saturday afternoon at 3pm at Luca, in great anticipation of learning how to make fresh mozzarella. Chef Bonanno is an unassuming guy, very down-to-earth and approachable given his stature as a nationally known chef. He took us right back to the kitchen, where we tried to stay out of the staff's way as they prepared for a busy Saturday night service. We were offered glasses of Prosecco to sip as we watched him work his magic. He talked as he worked, telling us some of his own story in the process. His passion for food was genuine and evident in everything he said and did. As he melted the mozzarella curd and then carefully worked it into spheres, I was transfixed - seriously enraptured.

He talked about his passion for the freshest and best local ingredients. "I hate recipes," he said. "You should just go to the market and buy what looks the best, what's ripe, what's good. Because if you go looking for something specific, you very well may end up with shit." Straight from the horse's mouth.

He waxed poetic about salting the water for the mozzarella. "The thing I always tell home cooks is their most common mistake is that they don't season their food! This water should be saltier than sea water; it should be THAT objectionable..."

He spoke about his training and apprenticing in some of the best kitchens of the world. The appreciation for good ingredients that came from working with Thomas Keller at The French Laundry. "Keller was really intense, really serious about food." He worked at Michelin-starred restaurants in Italy and France, at Gramercy Tavern in New York, each time saving up enough money to go work in these renowned kitchens for free for six months. Now that's dedication. That's passion. And having sampled the chef's tasting menus multiple times at Mizuna and Luca, I am the proud beneficiary of both his dedication and his passion.

He discussed his new venture, Osteria Marco (named after his second son, Luca being named after his first) which is slated to open in Larimer Square next month. It's to be a place that holds the values his other restaurants display (like using the best, freshest, housemade ingredients) while trying to be a more affordable, approachable place (than, say, Mizuna...) with nothing on the menu costing over $18. I can't wait.

He talked about Luca - that almost everything they serve is top quality, organic, local if possible, and the best and freshest available. They make their own grissini and breads, their own cheeses, their own salumi, which cures in their basement year-round except for July and August. They grow most of their own herbs, greens, and vegetables. And everything they serve is made fresh that day. Leftover mozzarella is either thrown out or smoked (in their own smoker, which Chef Bonanno bought at Sports Authority). Every pasta is made fresh daily (with the exception of the fusilli) then thrown out or given away at the end of the night.

What was also fascinating to me was the sheer number of people it took to run such an establishment. Their were seven people alone to work the line for the evening service. You add to that all the prep cooks who had been working all morning to prepare for the dinner service, all the dishwashers, all the waitstaff, the front of the house people, the sommelier. On top of all the hours and dollars it takes to get the best ingredients and make essentially everything in house, you're employing all these people just to serve dinner to 60 in an evening. Even though Luca would be considered by most people to be an expensive restaurant, chef Bonanno revealed that the profit margin in these fine dining establishments can actually be quite low. And I believe him, now that I've seen Luca's kitchen. And maybe I'm just a sucker, but now that I've seen all this, I wonder if they shouldn't even charge more. I'm not rolling in dough, but now I'll be a little more inclined to part with my money at places like Luca and Mizuna.

At the end of his cooking demonstration (that also included making a fresh agnolotti filled with fresh cheese and herbs), we were ushered back into Luca's dining room and seated at a table set for the ten of us. Sommelier Noel Martin poured three different Italian wines, giving a brief biography on each one. Our first course was a mozzarella tasting with two different levels of acidity. One was fresh mozzarella with heirloom tomato (salted well, of course, as "tomatoes really need a lot of salt!"), great extra-virgin olive oil, and 25 year aged balsamic; next to it was served fresh mozz with red onion and lemon cucumber that had been briefly (5 minutes) pickled in red wine vinegar. Both were good, but I preferred the former, as it just let all of the great ingredients just speak for themselves. The second course was a bruschetta of sorts, with gently melted mozz and some house-cured bresaola. This was heavenly - I could have eaten plates and plates. The final course was the agnolotti, dressed simply with a fresh tomato sugo and some olive oil.

All of this for just $45! Honestly, I would have paid that much just for the three courses of food and four tastings of prosecco/wine. Heck, I would have paid that much just to learn from Chef Bonanno for an hour or two and hang out in the Luca kitchen. And I got to do both...

Anyway, I was left this weekend with a profound sense of appreciation for his commitment and passion to his craft. Frank Bonanno truly inspires me, and I hope he remains in the Denver food scene for many years to come.

Perfection

Unfortunately, Mr. M had to leave town suddenly last week to attend to a family matter, leaving me home alone for five days as single working parent to our three and a half month old puppy. Suffice it to say that I was quite exhausted by the time he returned, and I hadn't really talked to him all that much either. I missed my friend.

I decided to snag some reservations for a special dinner the night after he returned home so that we could catch up. I booked a 5:30 table at none other than Frasca. I'm happy to note that it's still difficult to get a reservation here unless you book way in advance or are willing to eat very early or very late. At least I know they're doing good business and will continue to be around to satisfy my darkest food cravings, at least when I'm willing to drive to Boulder for dinner.

Denver saw just a hint of the winter to come just the day before, when temperatures never got above 60 degrees. Tuesday, though, was a beautiful warm day, and we elected to skip the elegant, airy dining room for the outdoor patio. Hey, we might as well enjoy it while we can...

I started with the fried lobster appetizer - a very simple dish served with some mortadella and fresh peach. It effectively transported me to the ocean while I was eating it. Seriously. The '05 Bisci Verdicchio paired quite well with it. Mr. M had the fresh tomato soup garnished with blue crab - which was beautfully elegant and pure in its simplicity - so refreshing, and tasted of summer itself. Mr. M then ordered the russet potato gnocchi - comfort food at its very best. On recommendation from our server, I ordered the Pork Leg, which had been slow-cooked for 24 hours and served with potatoes, cipollini onions, and fresh palisade peaches. It was quite possibly the best entree I've had this summer. Though summer is about over, you MUST go try this before the peaches are gone. The '05 Palama Primitivo was a good match for this. Finally, we ordered a chocolatey dessert that was good but admittedly not as "wow!" as the other food.

No better way to close out summer than with an amazing meal highlighted with the flavors of fresh tomatoes and peaches.

Service, as always, was impeccable. Professional and knowledgeable without an ounce of snobbery. This place truly amazes me in its seemingly effortless perfection. I guess the combination of the service with the outstanding food keep this place in business. And I hope it keeps it up.