Restaurant Week: Sardine

My first restaurant of restaurant week was Sardine. I went with my bestie, Tamara and we had an amazing time!  So, this is how it works: each person pays $25.  This gets you an appetizer, entree, and dessert.  This is how Tamara and I worked it: we each got something different, and tried it all! We make a pretty fantastic team! I am excited to share our dining experience with you!  This last semester of college is going to be a lot of exploring Madison and since I LOVE food, I'm going to share some great restaurant experiences.

We started off with the fabulous house wine for our drink and then shared two different salads as our appetizers.  Both were light, fresh, and delicious.  I ordered the Mixed Green and Bibb Lettuce Salad which came with shaved shallots, crispy chickpeas, beets and a sieved egg in a champagne tarragon vinaigrette.  Tamara got the Apple Endive Salad which had toasted walnuts, blue cheese, crispy squash and a black current vinaigrette.  

Following our starters, we enjoyed the salmon and chicken as our main dish.  The salmon came with french lentils, sautéed spinach, and portobello mushrooms in a tomato and beurre blanc...can we just look at that sentence in awe...The chicken was stuffed with gruyere and leeks and serviced with bacon, lardons, roasted carrots, turnips, new potatoes, and brussel sprouts in a riesling sauce.     My goodness everything was amazing.

As if dinner and appetizers weren't enough, we then got our desserts! Gianduja Crunch Chocolate Hazelnut Ganache and Vanilla Creme Brûlée!  We left totally stuffed and crazy happy. We sang at the top of our lungs in the car in the way home and then went out on a Sunday since it was a long weekend!

It was such a fun night!

Charleston, SC Day 4

Happy 2013 everyone!  Last night I got to celebrated New Year's Eve with my family and Bri in Charleston.  It was a lovely evening where we had a lot of good food and a lot of fun.  It was a great way to welcome the new year!

But first, we spent the morning lounging around (after I ran), and then, my mom and I went grocery shopping because today (New Year's Day) we are going to be making dinner for everyone.  We decided to stay in today and eat yummy appetizers and snack foods since it is a big football day for the boys and then, of course, the Rosebowl is tonight!  Wisconsin is playing Stanford and I can't wait to watch the game!  On the menu is Crab Dip, Spinach Artichoke Dip, Grilled Cheese Sliders, Poached Salmon Sliders, and Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie!  Get pumped for some great new recipes to celebrate the new year!

After our grocery shopping trip, we all went to lunch at Five Loaves Cafe.  This place was on Yelp as the best place for lunch in Mt. Pleasant and the reviews did not lead us astray.  The food was fantastic!  Everything was fresh and light and we had an amazing lunch.  They had soups, salads, and sandwiches.  The portions are generous and we were all quite pleased.   Plus, you can order half sandwiches, half salads, and cups of soups if you want to mix and match! I got the half salmon salad that was on special and a cup of tomato tarragon crab soup.  It was great!

Bri and I headed out on our own after this to go visit Genevieve again.  We got to see where she lives and walk around the property a bit.  It was amazing how she lives only a five minutes outside of Charleston and yet we felt like we were out in the countryside.  We walked down to the dock to look out at the water and it was beautiful.  After a nice visit, we headed back to the resort to rest up before dinner.

Dinner was at Anson Restaurant.  This place was recommended to us by my Aunt and her family who say it is their favorite!  My parents had been here before and claimed that it was the best.  It was pretty fantastic.  I, of course, took pictures of all the amazing food, but the lighting was so dim that they did not come out great.  Sorry about that!

She Crab Soup

Golden Beet Salad

Iceberg Wedge Salad 

My Dinner: Pan Seared Salmon 

Bri's Dinner: Handmade Pasta 

Mom's Dinner: Crisp Flounder 

Zack's Dinner: Lamb with Gnocchi 

Dad's Dinner: Duck

Creme Brulee

Pecan Pie

Chocolate Torte

Mile High Apple Pie

We had a late reservation to start with and so by the end of dinner it was already almost 10:30!  We decided to walk over to our little midwest bar, Mac's Place, and get a few drinks before midnight.  The bar was quite busy, but we were able to find a spot to stand near the bar.  We were also able to watch the New Year's Eve party in New York.  As the ball dropped, the entire bar counted down and we all had a champagne toast right at midnight.  I got to share my fourth new year's kiss with Bri!  It was all very fun and exciting and I can't believe that 2013 is finally here.  This is going be a big year for me.  I'll be graduating, hopefully getting a teaching job, and moving out on my own!  I can't wait to see where 2013 takes me!

Roasted Beet Pecan Salad with a Cabernet Balsamic Vinaigrette

It's time for the third course in The Dinner Party.  This one was a total crowd pleaser and it was pretty funny because most people were a little surprised by the ingredients.  Chris and I put together a lovely salad with a Cabernet Balsamic Vinaigrette.  It was a super yummy salad and the dressing was amazing.  I seriously couldn't stop smelling it! I just wanted to stick my face in it...not kidding.

Rasted Beet Pecan Salad with Cabernet Balsamic Vinaigrette
Serves 4

Ingredients:
Beets:
2 medium beets, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Pecans:
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup pecans
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp curry
1/4 tsp kosher salt
Vinaigrette:
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp Cabernet Sauvignon
1/2 cup good olive oil (we used white truffle olive oil)
Salad:
4 cups baby spinach
1/2 cup Chevere, crumbled

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 and place a rack in the center.  Place beets in a glass baking dish and pour the oil and balsamic over them, turning to coat.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cover the pan with foil and place in the oven until beets can be easily pierced witha  knife or fork.
2. Toast the pecans by melting the butter in a large skillet over medium heat until it is foaming.  As the foaming subsides, add the pecans, sugar, curry, and salt.  Cook, tossing often, until pecans are toasted and fragrant, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer the pecans to a plate and set aside.
3. In a small bowl, prepared the vinaigrette by whisking the garlic, balsamic, and Cabernet.  While whisking, drizzle in the olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
4. To serve, place the greens in a large bowl and toss with 3/4 of the well-whisked dressing.  Divide the lettuce among 4 plates.  Divide beets among the 4 plates and sprinkle with 4-5 crumbles of the Chevere.  Top with a few toasted pecans.  Drizzle with more dressing if desired.
Enjoy :)