Ribelle

Ribelle in Brookline has been hailed as the best new restaurant in Boston and it's just around the corner from my best friend's place in Washington Square so it seemed an obvious choice for a birthday dinner. It seriously did not disappoint.

We sat at a table by the open window looking out on to the street, or back at the cool interior that made for a great ambience:

Ribelle has a number of small plates, sort of tapas style, that you can choose from to share. We tried the caponata on grilled semolina bread:

The caramelized vegetables were like jam, the crunchy bread the perfect contrasting texture.

 The chicory salad with shaved egg, shredded so fine it was the consistency of shaved parmesan:

Then for the main we had the squid ink pasta topped with lobster and sea greens:

It was what I'd imagine mermaids eating at a banquet in Poseidon's castle under the sea, with sea horses pouring their wine. (If mermaids drank wine, which of course is ridiculous.) 

And for dessert the olive oil ice cream:

The saltiness of the rich earthy olive oil and the sweetness of the chocolate drizzled over top came together on such a high note to finish the meal.

The Boston Globe described Ribelle's chef as being on a "creative binge" - spot on, I'd say. The food was innovative, with interesting ingredients but still actually tasted good. Reasonably sized portions (though not cheap) - perfect date night restaurant.

Five stars.

West Coast Eats

California has great food; it's undeniable. On this trip to California (to friends' wedding in Santa Barbara) there were a couple of meals that really stood out:

1) Poke on the Venice Beach boardwalk (Los Angeles): is there anything better than a bowl heaping with buttery raw tuna? It's my favorite protein, hands down. We went back to eat it a second time, it was that good, and there were many options to choose from:

2) Sama Sama Kitchen (Santa Barbara): it's all fresh, local, farm-to-table with an awesome cocktail list to boot. We went there for drinks and appetizers and were so impressed. My munchies pick: the kale chips.

3) Luca (Carmel): this Italian restaurant tucked away on a side street of the quaint coastal town served, in the words of my Italian boyfriend, "the best meal I've had in the U.S."

First we shared the grilled octopus appetizer:

Tender grilled meat served over Israeli couscous with fresh vegetables, it was both light and filled with flavor. And not at all fishy.

For my entree I ordered the catch of the day, which was swordfish:

 Just a hint of char from the perfect grill marks, sitting in a broth of caponata-style vegetables, this was just how swordfish should be done.

For dessert we shared the cassata cake with pistachio gelato (all made in house, of course), and it was such a departure from the routine chocolate desserts that I've had at restaurants, it was excellent:

Game of Thrones Feast

If you're anything like me (that is to say, obsessed with the Game of Thrones series to the point of having all the books, the card game, and shot glasses) then you'll appreciate this culinary experiment. For Christmas last year I gave my sister A Feast of Ice & Fire, The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook, and we decided to make a feast for our family using some of the recipes. The cookbook was written by fellow fans who researched who consulted with George R.R. Martin and researched medieval cooking techniques, so it's as authentic as possible. Well, as authentic as can be when dealing with a fictional fantasy world, that is.

Here's what we made:

Sister's Stew:

For the first course of our Game of Thrones feast, we served the soup of the Sisters (like nuns in the books.) It was hands down the best chowder I've ever had - and I've been living in New England for the past decade - so rich and decadent. With white fish and clams simmered in saffron-infused cream with leeks, carrots, and turnips, the unlikely ingredient that really put this soup over the edge was the vermouth - each spoonful was velvety on the tongue. See the recipe at Inn at the Crossroads, the blog of the fabulous cookbook writers.

Bowl of Brown: 

This stew is the typical peasant's food in King's Landing, the capital city of the fictional Westeros. One of the great things about the Game of Thrones cookbook is that it organizes recipes by geographical region of the books' world, such as the hearty winter time food of the Wall or the North, or more exotic cuisine from the lands to the east. I chose to make this brown because it seemed the perfect kind of food for a cold, snowy day, and is certainly interesting: the running joke in the books is that a bowl of brown is brown liquid with mysterious meats floating in it - just about anything could get thrown in to the pot, whatever's available - so it really was a hodgepodge loose interpretation of a recipe. My brown had beef chuck, mushrooms, turnips, carrots, apples, pearl onions, spicy sausage (to represent the dog meat), thyme, a bit of molasses, and a bottle of beer poured in. I slow-cooked it for hours, using the spice mixture recommended as a derivation of a medieval seasoning base, which included some classic savory spices as well as earthy cinnamon and cloves, and then of course I added more paprika for heat since I can't help myself. The result was a really interesting stew with complex flavors that warmed you to the core, right down to the toes.

I served the brown over this grain mixture (as a substitute for barley):

As a side dish we made this white beans and greens mixture that reminded me of Tuscan food (not surprising considering most Tuscan food comes from medieval peasant dishes, like these recipes):

Broccoli rabe, white beans, bacon, and red onions

And we set the table for a proper feast:

We served the feast with seven grain bread (because of the seven kingdoms of Westeros ... I know, I'm a nerd) and plenty of hot spiced wine. It was a feast fit for kings.

Making Ravioli

Making fresh pasta from scratch is by no means a simple process. But the end result is so good, and the experience of making homemade pasta together with family or friends is great time spent together in the kitchen. Here's how I made fresh ravioli with my sisters:

1) Make the pasta dough. There are many recipes out there, consisting primarily of flour and egg, but the Italians will tell you the measurements are somewhat arbitrary because you have to eyeball each dough mixture and determine for yourself whether it's too dry or too wet. For this ravioli dough we infused saffron into the water for the pasta dough, for an elegant, delicate flavor.

2) Next you roll out the dough and feed it through the pasta maker:

3) Then we lay a sheet of dough over the floured ravioli tray:

4) Then take a teaspoon of filling and place in each indentation. (Be careful not to overfill! I was guilty of this. It will make your ravioli explode in the pot.) I made the "four cheese" filling from a mixture of ricotta, shredded mozzarella, asiago, and parmesan, seasoned with black pepper and chopped fresh parsley:

5) Then lay a second sheet of dough over the top and press down the sides gently:

6) Then carefully flip your ravioli out of the tray onto a floured sheet pan covered in parchment paper:

and separate the ravioli along the serrated edges:

7) Next drop the ravioli into a pot of salted boiling water:

the ravioli will float to the surface when ready, only a minute or two of cooking. Ladle out of the pot and toss with sauce of choice. We made a saffron-infused champagne cream sauce.

We served the ravioli with seared scallops and roasted asparagus:

It was a decadent, elegant, and delicious New Year's Eve Meal!

Thanksgiving Cooking

 This was my first year co-hosting Thanksgiving dinner! Here are a few highlights:

Sausage cornbread stuffing:

Brown sausage in large skillet. Saute onions, carrots and celery in drippings with salt, pepper, cajun seasoning and fresh thyme. Boil cubed cornbread until fluffy and then toss with sausage and vegetables; adjust seasoning and garnish with parsley.

Healthy pumpkin pie:

I learned from making this pumpkin pie that organic pumpkin puree (I used Trader Joe's brand) has much more liquid than the generic, so the pie batter came out much wetter than usual! Anticipate this when making healthier pumpkin pie, and adjust other ingredients accordingly.

Rustic-themed tablescape:

We also made cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, brussel sprouts, butternut squash roasted two ways (sweet & savory), biscuits, and gravy. Oh, and turkey!

Gnocchi!

I've wanted to make homemade gnocchi for years, and dating an Italian I knew that if I could pull this one off, then I'm officially inaugurated as a real Italian cook. So one Sunday afternoon my good friend and I set out to achieve our dream: making gnocchi! Here's how we did it:

1) Peel and boil the potatoes. (In this case, a couple pounds. We made a lot.)
2) Let the potatoes cool slightly and then mash them in a potato ricer. If you don't have a ricer then you can mash them manually, but I found that this nifty device gave the potato the right fluffy consistency that you want in gnocchi.

3) Next crack the eggs in flour, and begin to combine with the potatoes to form the dough.

4) When the dough is near play-dough consistency, roll into a log and use a knife to cut into pieces. *Note: remember to flour your work surface so the dough doesn't stick!

Me rolling dough

5) Press the tines of a fork into the gnocchi pieces to make indentations. (I have no idea if this has any practical purpose, or if it's just for aesthetics.)

 

I also made pumpkin gnocchi, using sweet potatoes and a roasted sugar pumpkin in place of the traditional white/yellow potatoes. This dough was wetter, so I rolled the gnocchi in more flour to keep from sticking:

6) Next drop the gnocchi into the pot of boiling water to cook, for only a few minutes each. When the gnocchi are ready they rise to float to the surface of the pot; fish them out with a ladle or a spider and transfer them to saute in your sauce of choice.

 

We sauteed the pumpkin gnocchi in sage butter:

 Then served our festive fall meal:

The classic gnocchi we served with a beef bolognese:

And finished with a salted caramel apple pie I made for dessert:

Gnocchi success.

Garden at the Cellar

Garden at the Cellar in Cambridge is a hidden gem. It's a tiny little place tucked away in a less-commercial block of Mass., so nondescript you might walk past without noticing it. It's above a dive bar, next to a wine shop, a gastropub-style restaurant. Inside it's understated brilliance: with a couple of tables lined up by a wood-paneled bar, an exposed brick wall behind the booths, the ambience is cozy and the food is fantastic.

For appetizers we started with the bacon-wrapped stuffed dates, one of my favorite snacks that I've tried all over the city (Brick and Mortar in Central Square and the Regal Beagle in Coolidge Corner also serve these incredible confections.) Next I had to have the beet slider:

I swear it's all veg, but tasted like a little burger.

For my entree I had the caramelized scallops over roasted butternut squash, topped with pickled radish and toasted pumpkin seeds:

The scallops were perfectly cooked, with the savory golden crust that paired perfectly with the sweet creaminess of the squash and the crunch of the pumpkin seeds - the flavors melded in every bite.

We got a number of small plates for the table to share so I was able to taste a number of different dishes, and all were great: lobster tempura, roasted pesto cauliflower, truffled mushroom flatbread with herb-whipped ricotta, roasted garlic, arugula, and lamb with lentils and curried carrot puree. The glazed shortrib came out late (served with a turnip puree, brussels sprouts, and crispy shallots), which was unfortunate mostly because it was so delicious when it arrived. Between the inventive cocktail menu and interesting food, we liked every single part of the meal, so we were disappointed to find there was no dessert menu. Because had there been, despite being stuffed to the brim, we definitely would have ordered dessert, since no doubt it would have been amazing, too.

I recommend this restaurant for a romantic dinner date, a girls night out, or a place to bring family visiting, as I did. 5 stars.