txaggie

cjsadler and I finally tried Brasserie Beck. We shared the charcuterie plate. For dinner, I had the pork tenderloin with a confit of cabbage and mustard sauce (I loved this dish). Chris had the mussels with fennel and chorizo... ...which, of course, came with fries and a trio of mayonnaises. For dessert, we shared the pear tarte tatin with cinnamon honey ice cream. The caramel sauce on the tarte tatin was a little too buttery for me and the ice cream's flavor was great but the texture was a touch icy. This was a rich ending to an already filling meal. Overall, this was a great meal. Everything was cooked well and the service was friendly and attentive. We'll definitely be back.

Some, but not all, Cosi's have free wirelss. Check out their website to find the locations with wifi.

On our way to visit friends who live north of Philly, cjsadler and I stopped by the Charcoal Pit for lunch on Saturday. The burgers were good, not great. Not as beefy as I would have liked, but the milkshakes (we shared a vanilla milkshake) were great. Rich, creamy, and very vanilla-y.

The brown sugar cookies are a recipe from the March 2007 issue of Cook's Illustrated. In my oven, I only bake the cookies for 10 1/2 minutes. INGREDIENTS 14 T unsalted butter 1/4 cup granulated sugar 2 cups packed dark brown sugar 2 cups + 2 T A/P flour 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1 large egg 1 large egg yolk 1 T vanilla extract 1. Heat 10 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium-high heat until melted. Cook, swirling pan constantly until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma. Remove skillet from heat and transfer browned butter to large heatproof bowl. Stir remaining 4 tablespoons butter into hot butter to melt; set aside for 15 minutes. 2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. In a baking dish or pie plate, mix granulated sugar and 1/4 cup packed brown sugar until well combined. Whisk flour, baking soda, and baking powder together in medium bowl. 3. Add remaining 1 3/4 cups brown sugar and salt to bowl with cooled butter; mix until no sugar lumps remain. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula; add egg, yolk, and vanilla and mix until fully incorporated. Scrape down bowl. Add flour mixture and mix until just combined. 4. Divide dough into 24 portions, each about 2 tablespoons, rolling between hands into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Working in batches, toss balls in reserved sugar mixture to coat and set on prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart, 12 dough balls per sheet. 5. Bake one sheet at a time until cookies are browned and still puffy and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft (cookies will look raw between cracks and seem underdone), 12 to 14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Do not overbake. 6. Cool cookies on baking sheet 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.

An update about the Grill-Off...Marc Silverstein, most recently of the Food Network and a former NBC reporter, will be our MC. GMs and/or chefs from Zola, Indigo Landing, Jaleo, Zaytinya, Cafe Atlantico, Butterfield 9 will be judging the competition and working with the Grill-Off teams. It's not too late to become involved in Brainfood's first Grill-Off! If you'd like to form a team, become a sponsor, or attend the Grill-Off, please PM me, and I'll send you more information. Thanks, Binni

After a long weekend of cooking (and eating) multi-course meals, Monday's dinner was a bbq chicken salad (topped with Trader Joe's flax seed tortilla chips). Tonight's dinner was a beet and goat cheese salad (not pictured) and roasted chicken (with Stubb's bbq sauce - my favorite!) and collard greens. We shared a bottle of Yalumba Wild Ferment Chardonnay.

Here's a picture I took at Homestead Farm this weekend...

Click I made my own pasta (1 cup flour, 1 egg, a splash of olive oil, a pinch of salt and some cracked pepper) and then followed the recipe from there.

On friday night, cjsadler and I cooked dinner for my sister and her boyfriend. While we made dinner, we munched on shrimp flatbread (with pineapple, roasted red pepper, cheese and bbq sauce). The first course was homemade cracked pepper pasta with corn and asapargus. Our main course was nut-crusted tilapia with mango sauce and scallion oil and oven-roasted green beans. For dessert, cjsadler made my sister's favorite dessert - creme brulee. There were two flavors - orange vanilla and cinnamon. On Saturday, we made dinner for friends who were visiting from Pittsburgh. We started with an antipasto platter that consisted of flatbread and crostini, marinated olives, roasted garlic, tomato chutney and cambozola (a creamy, mild blue cheese). The idea was from a lunch I had recently at a restaurant in Indianapolis. Our first course was the same as Friday night - fresh pasta with corn and asparagus. The main course was dry-aged strip steak with a red wine mushroom sauce, green beans and potato gratin. Dessert was strawberry shortcake (not pictured).

cjsadler and I will be there. We'll bring cookies and mini ham and cheese biscuit sandwiches.

I'm a board member and volunteer for a local non-profit called Brainfood. Brainfood uses food and cooking as tools to teach life skills and healthy living to DC high school students. The organization is in its 9th year and recently added a second location in DC's Penn Quarter. The original location is in Columbia Heights. We need your support! Brainfood will be holding its first annual Brainfood Grill-Off on Thursday, June 28, 2007 at the Hotel Monaco in Chinatown from 6:30-9:30pm. How you can get involved: Recruit a Grill-Off team and compete in the Brainfood Grill-Off ($3,000 for a team entry). Become a sponsor (there are various levels of sponsorship which include tickets to the event, team entry in the Grill-Off, ads in the program book, your company's logo on all event signage, and other benefits). Come enjoy the event as an individual ($75/ticket which includes dinner, open bar, and entertainment). Each Grill-Off team (comprised of no more than 5 people plus 1 Brainfood student and 1 professional chef from a local restaurant) will receive a surprise pantry and market basket of ingredients, cooking utensils, a grill and a sauté station and will have one hour to create a culinary masterpiece. The Grill-Off will be judged by a panel of local chefs, food writers, restaurant owners, and Brainfood students. If you're interested in sponsoring a team, becoming a corporate or individual sponsor, attending the event, or learning more about this organization, please PM me, and I will send you some additional information. Thanks! Binni

cjsadler and I made dinner for his family on Saturday. The unintended theme of the meal was things you can do with white sandwich bread... Appetizers were mini-BLTs (not pictured). The mini-BLTs were bread shells (rolled and cut-out white bread baked in mini muffin pans) with mayo, bacon, lettuce and tomato (a recipe from Jeffrey Steingarden). The first course was a mixed green salad with candied walnuts, dried cranberries, and a goat cheese crouton. Our main course was scallops, Corduroy-style (scallops with mashed potatoes and mushroom-wine-cream sauce). Dessert was an apple charlotte - apples cooked in cream, sugar, and butter in a shell of white bread dipped in butter and sugar (this works out much better than it sounds) - with dulce de leche ice cream.

If you can't make it to the fundraiser and would like to donate to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, you can donate online through either one of our websites: Binni or Chris

Dinner tonight was roasted chicken (Thomas Keller's method), roasted baby carrots, and potato rosti. The wine was Chateau Mourgues du Gres 2005 Fleur d'Eglantine. A good meal before the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler tomorrow.

Dinner on Sunday was spaghetti and meatballs and roasted broccoli. It's not the most appealing picture, but the meatballs sure were tasty. The recipe is from Cook's Country.

You could also call Louisiana Express in Bethesda or French Quarter Cafe in Germantown and see if they will make you a King Cake.

A couple of weeks ago, cjsadler, legant, a non-DR.com friend, and I got together for dinner to celebrate Chris and Louise's February birthdays. The theme was Italian, and each person was assigned a course (or two). Louise was in charge of the appetizers. Besan foccacia An Antipasto platter Deviled eggs The first course was a mushroom soup made by Eric. The main course was lamb stew (Binni) with creamy polenta (Chris). The side was Louise's cauliflower with tomatoes and olives. And for dessert, I made the Tiramisu cake from Dorie Greenspan's Baking From My Home to Yours.

Have brunch at either Morning Glory (on Fitzwater between 9th and 10th) or Sabrina's (910 Christian St) or both. A few blocks from each other, both are located in South Philly, and Sabrina's is right around the corner from DiBruno Brothers and a cool spice shop. Morning Glory is my favorite brunch place; cjsadler would recommend Sabrina's.

I went to graduate school in Ann Arbor and our regular places to eat were a microbrew called Grizzly Peak (I wish I drank beer then) and Zola's for brunch. Also, I've heard Prickly Pear (Southwestern cuisine) is quite good. I'm assuming all these places are still around.

Last Saturday, Chris and I made a birthday dinner for his dad and me... While we were cooking, his family munched on crostini with brie and caramelized onions and drank cocktails (Hypnotic, rum, and pineapple juice). Sorry, no pictures. The first course was a butternut squash, apple, and sweet potato soup (garnished with sauteed apples, bacon and basil), inspired by cjsadler's recent lunch at David Gregory. The main course was braised short ribs (from Happy in the Kitchen) and garlic mashed potatoes. And finally, for dessert...Fried poundcake with roasted fruit and whipped cream.

I made a long overdue birthday dinner on Saturday...We started with caramelized onions and brie crostini (no picture) and then had butternut squash soup. Roasted lamb with white beans And for dessert, chocolate bread pudding from Dorie Greenspan's "Baking From My Home To Yours"

I have a reservation at Farrah Olivia for 2 people at 7pm on Saturday, Jan. 13. We now can't make it. Before I cancel the reservation, I was wondering if someone had a reservation for Wednesday, the 10th, (preferably) or any other weeknight that they wanted to trade. Please PM me.

I'm in. cjsadler trained for his first 10K using the Hal Higdon 10-K novice program. There are also intermediate and advanced options as well as a training program for walkers.

Dinner a few wednesdays ago was potato and brie quesadillas. The sauce for the quesadillas was a combination of tomato sauce, chipotle peppers and honey. The recipe was in a recent issue of Bon Appetit (November?). Last night's dinner was manicotti from the December's Cook's Illustrated. It was delicious but did not photograph well.

I like Athens Grill in Gaithersburg. Like most other restaurants in the burbs, it's tucked away in a random strip mall.