Pastis

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Posted on 22nd June 2010 by fasolane in Restaurant Reviews

This place isn’t cheap.  Kids meals (there are only 3 choices) are $5.95 and up and do not include a drink.  The homemade mac n’ cheese is delicious, but I’m not sure it is worth the $6.50 price tag.  You do get a small bowl of grapes and some fries with it, but for $6.50, I can make that at home and add Gruyère or Brie.  The chicken fingers on the kids menu are also delicious, but you only get 2 small fingers, grapes and fries.  Again, not worth the price tag.

If you leave your kids at home and go with some adults, you will enjoy yourself much, much more.  Crepes. Really, do I have to say more? Go for the crepes.  The menu itself isn’t too exciting. The martini’s had a soapy aftertaste.  Admittedly, I had eaten a small dinner at home with the kids before venturing out on our monthly ladies night out, so I wasn’t hungry.  The cheese plate was excellent, but very small.  Maybe in this day and age of over sized portions, that is a good thing, but when you are sharing an expensive cheese platter with 4  people, more than a slice of cheese is warranted.

We ordered the bistro medallions and they said they came with a creamy blue cheese fondue sauce. Not nearly blue cheesy enough.  The garlic mashed potatoes were bland and slightly watery.  The Gambero Pesto Pasta didn’t have near enough garlic in my taste.  The shrimp was well cooked and flavorful, though.

But as I said, the main reason for coming here? The crepes. I ordered the banana/Nutella crepe. You really can’t go wrong with Nutella.  I would eat Nutella on almost anything.  At $5.75, I could make these at home, but the ambiance, the friends, the world cup matches on the big screen made it worthwhile.

Shrimp Scampi with Quinoa Pilaf

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Posted on 12th June 2010 by fasolane in Recipes

Dinner tonight will be hard to beat.  It was so good, I didn’t want to share any with the kids!!  I modified this recipe from the geniuses of the “Cook This, Not That”
series.

  • 1 bag medium shrimp, peeled, de-veined and tails off
  • 1 T olive oil
  • 4 or 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • Pinch of red pepper flakes (at your discretion, I like a lot)
  • Juice and  zest of one lemon
  • Chopped parsley
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Add garlic and red pepper flakes, cook about 30 seconds.  Add shrimp and cook until shrimp is pink and starts to caramelize.  Remove from heat and add lemon juice, zest, and parsley.  Serve over a bed of quinoa pilaf. (Recipe below.)

Pilaf recipe:

  • I T olive oil
  • 1 small onion, chopped finely
  • 2 carrots, chopped finely
  • 1 cup Quinoa
  • 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
  • salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the Quinoa in cold water and drain.  Heat oil in medium saucepan.  Add onions and carrots and cook until soft.  Add Quinoa and cook for 3 minutes or so until Quinoa is golden brown and starts to smell nutty.  Add broth and bring to boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until all liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes.  Season to taste.

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is the new rice in our family.  It is high in protein, fiber, calcium, iron, and essential amino acids.  Quinoa cooks faster than brown rice and is much tastier, in my humble opinion.  It can also be substituted for oatmeal as a breakfast cereal.  Use it for any recipe you would normally eat with rice and you can’t go wrong.

Tooth Fairy

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Posted on 10th June 2010 by fasolane in Just Blogging

So we have finally had our first visit from the tooth fairy.  $1.00 is the going rate in the Bellomy household.  Apparently, our tooth fairy is stuck in the 1970′s and has not accounted for inflation over the last 3 decades.  What are teeth worth these days?  Do kids really need $5, $10, even $20 per tooth? He hasn’t said anything yet about what his friends get from the tooth fairy, but I am waiting for the comparisons to start.  Every family’s tooth fairy is different, right? According to Wikipedia (a fully trusted source), different cultures have different tooth fairy traditions.  I like the Japanese version, where when the child loses a tooth, he or she throws the tooth straight up in the air (if it was a bottom tooth) or down into the ground (if it was a top tooth.)  The belief is that the incoming teeth will come in straight.  No money changes hands.  No deceiving of the children.  I like it.

We’ve got another loose one.  Which has since fallen out.  The tooth fairy must have had a really busy night and completely forgot about the tooth under the pillow.  She made up for it the next night, still with $1.00 but with an accompanying note that apologized for missing the night before.  What an understanding kid!

Flatout Pizza

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Posted on 10th June 2010 by fasolane in Recipes

A favorite meal in our house is to make Flatout pizza.  http://www.flatoutbread.com/ (pronounce it Flat-Out, it is not French.)

I buy the Flatout Healthy Grain bread at Costco (where else?) and stick in the oven to crisp it up a bit.  Then, add toppings galore.  Each family member gets to make their own so there is no arguing over cheese, pepperoni, meatballs, etc.

My favorite toppings? I place a very thin layer of sauce (usually store brand spaghetti sauce or jarred pizza sauce) some mozzarella cheese, thin sliced roma tomatoes, very thin sliced red onions, a sprinkling of italian seasoning, ground black pepper, garlic powder, and parmesan cheese.  If I have black olives in the house, I will add them, too.  Just bake it for about 8 to 10 minutes in the toaster or convection oven (there is really no need to turn on the oven when it is 110 degrees outside) and let sit for a few minutes.  Sometimes I will throw the broiler on for the last 2 or 3 minutes.  Then slice it up and dig in!

Want more veggies in your kids diets?  Mix up your own spaghetti sauce using pureed carrots, zucchini, spinach, etc.  At only 100 calories and 8 grams of fiber per Flatout wrap, you can’t go wrong!