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Add me to the Friday list. Thanks for setting this up!

I have to admit that I was baffled by some of the statements in the Roca/ Brugués book, but I mostly glossed over the confusing passages in favor of the seemingly definitive information about sous vide cookery contained in the book. I still value the practical application information in the book, and I think the discussion of sanitation issues is accurate, but MikeTMD's citation of the stuff about vacuum, etc., gave me pause. I had to go back to page 76 to see for myself. There's no question that Roca et al. state that water behaves differently under reduced pressure. However, it's implied that this applies to food sealed in a bag: (my emphasis added)This discussion is accompanied by FIGURE 1 / Effect of temperature-pressure relationship on water states. The figure shows the lowered boiling point of water vs. reduced pressure. As Sam has pointed out, this would only apply when the food is sealed in a rigid container. Roca et al. seem to be talking about sous vide cooking as we know it (food sealed in a bag). So this part of the "definitive" book on sous-vide would appear to be incorrect. Perhaps the very term "sous vide" is unfortunate, since it leeds people to think that the food is actually "under vacuum" when cooked, rather than just vacuum-sealed.

I love this place! I can finally get beautiful fresh scallops that haven't been treated with nasty chemicals. I knew someone had to be bringing them into the Cleveland area, since I've enjoyed them numerous times at fine restaurants like Fire and Lola. Never found them at retail until now. The last time I stopped by for scallops there weren't any in the display case. I had to wait for them to be unloaded from the truck. Those scallops were loaded on the truck in Boston that morning, and I was buying them in the afternoon. Not gonna get fresher scallops in Cleveland... I've also made sushi and sashimi with the sushi-grade salmon, tuna, and escolar. I wouldn't risk that with any other supplier here.

Another wine dinner at Baricelli. This time the featured winery was Villa Calcinaia. Count Sebastiano Capponi was on hand to introduce five of his wines, plus the estate-bottled olive oil of the same name. Chianti Classico Extra Virgin Olive Oil D.O.P. This is the olive oil served at Baricelli (in the tiny bottle shown) to accompany their bread service. It has an official E. C. Denomination (hence the D.O.P. label). More info on their web site. This oil has a beautiful peppery freshness and a supple, lingering complexity. Just gorgeous with the bread from Mediterra Bakehouse. Sautéed Halibut with Mixed Heirloom Tomatoes, Basil & Fennel Villa Calcinaia Comitale 2006 I hadn't realized that halibut is a seasonal fish until chef Minnillo noted that it was just coming into season now. He has been living by the "fresh, seasonal, local" mantra for many years now. Yes, I know you're thinking it's a bit early to be seeing fresh tomatoes in Ohio. Those were hothouse grown, and it's been warm enough for a few weeks now for the grower to open up the greenhouse windows to let in some fresh air and sunshine. They may not be quite as tasty as late-summer tomatoes, but tasty they were! The wine was a great match for this dish. It has a nice acidity and fruit. Count Capponi told us which varietals are used, but i promptly forgot. According to a web reference I found the grapes are grechetto and vernaccia. Pappardelle Puttanesca Villa Calcinaia Chianti Classico 2004 The pasta was freshly made and was cooked to perfection - just the right degree of "tooth", neither over- nor under-cooked. The Puttanesca sauce was appropriately zippy, with a touch of anchovy to give it some depth. Chef Minnillo brought around some freshly-grated cheese, explaining that this would be frowned upon in Italy due to the presence of fish in the dish (seafood and cheese never mix). Since the anchovy plays just a supporting role here, I wouldn't think that any "rules" were violated. The Chianti Classico has a pleasant tannic backbone, and was well-paired with this dish. A dining companion who doesn't especially care for Chianti wines was pleasantly surprised. Paul's Heirloom Pork Sausage with Swiss Chard & Ramps Villa Calcinaia Chianti Classico Riserva 2004 Everyone raved about this sausage. Deep porky flavor with subtle fennel spicing. I was delighted to see ramps on the menu. The polenta was creamy and delicious. As good as the Chianti Classico was, the Riserva blew it away. this is a gorgeous wine. Sautéed Duck Leg with Cannellini Beans & Spring Veggies Villa Calcinaia Casarsa 2004 The duck was more pan-roasted than sautéed - it tasted like a very good duck confit. the vegetables were intensely flavorful. I especially enjoyed the beans, which were fresh and tender. The Casarsa is billed as a "Super-Tuscan. It might more accurately be called a what-the-hell-is-that-grape? wine. Apparently the vines were supposed to be a traditional local varietal. When the leaves opened up, they just didn't look right. Wait a minute, that isn't Merlot. is it? Honestly, I would never have guessed the grape here. Another winner. V|C EVOO Ice Cream with Basil & Chocolate Truffle Villa Calcinaia Vin Santo I've had olive oil ice cream before, and this was a good one. The presentation was delightful, with a spoon-shaped tuille. The Vin Santo was awesome. It had that fortified / oxidized character, but with great dried-fruit notes. Delicious.

Her restaurant / catering operation is called Lady and Sons.

He said upwards of TEN, which sounds kind of improbable. How many shows are there in a season? Are the other IC's going on vacation for a year?

The restaurant will be called "Roast". Sounds like it's going to be a meat extravaganza. From Symon's blog:

Symon posted about the DI gig on his blog: Big News Times Two.

More info at the Cleveland Free Times: Yeah, it would work great here in Cleveland.

Looks like Michael Symon will be taking over the "impossible" role.

A wine dinner at Baricelli Inn in Little Italy featuring wines from Burgess Cellars Striped Bass with Fava Beans, Scallions, & EVOO Schramsberg Blanc de Blanc 2004 Since Burgess produces only red wines, the featured bubbly for the first course came from a neighboring vineyard. The bass was firmer than I expected, and had a pleasant, slightly nutty flavor. The favas were fresh and tender, and the olive oil drizzled over the dish was deliciously peppery. It was a Chianti Classico (registered DOP). A small bottle of the same oil was placed on the table for bread-dipping. NancyH has a picture on her blog. Cavetelli with Giancale & Roma Tomatoes Ilona 2002 The second wine was from a small neighboring vineyard but was produced at Burgess. It was a fine accompaniment to the cavatelli. I meant to ask chef Minillo if "giancale" is from a regional dialect - as far as I could tell, it was the same as guanciale (cured pork jowl). Come to think of it, this had a smokey flavor, and I think that guanciale is usually unsmoked. Maybe that's the distinction. Pork Tenderloin Scaloppine with Rapini Burgess Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 The pork was perfectly cooked - moist and a bit pink. I'm so glad that restaurants in the U. S. are no longer afraid to serve pork that hadn't been cooked to death. The rapini provides a nice counter to the slight sweetness of the pork. The jus was spiked with capers and enriched with caramelized onions. Nice! Lamb Ribs with Five-Spice Rub, Slaw & Mango Chutney Burgess Syrah 2004 An unexpectedly Asian flavor combination, and surprisingly spicy. The Syrah was a great match for this, and was my favorite wine of the evening. Chocolate Semifreddo & Biscotti Burgess Library Cabernet Sauvignon 1994 The semifreddo was light and airy. The 1994 Cab has aged gracefully. It was an interesting contrast to the 2004 current release. Little Italy is sort of off the beaten path for me. It's just far enough from home to make me think twice about driving there. This dinner was a reminder that there's a very good reason to travel the extra mile. Paul Minillo is one of Cleveland's most accomplished chefs, and the dining room at the Inn is a pleasant setting for some remarkable food.

Yeah, the pasta was fresh and made in-house. I believe that they get some of their pasta made for them by Ohio City Pasta, but our server mentioned that this was made at Lolita. Here's a slightly bleary picture: I should mention that our server Michael was new (at least to me) and quickly picked up on the fact that he had a bunch of foodies on his hands. He was clearly up to speed on the entire menu and sensed that we wanted all the details. Excellent service to go with the awesome food.

Dinner at Lolita on Friday. Pig's ears are back! Well, at least they were on Friday, as a special. Served with pickled fennel and roasted cipollini onions. There's yet another great pizza added to the menu: Shredded roast pork, smoked cheddar, salsa verde. The crust was perfectly crisp. What a heavenly pizza! Seared scallops on a bed of cauliflower purée. Just luscious. One of my dining companions had (house made) linguini with clams, and another had arugula salad with fresh goat cheese. Both were very tasty. I finished with a cheese plate with truffle honey and fig relish. My companions had the chocolate pot de creme and the stout ice cream with crushed pretzels. Smile all around.

nathanm posted some handy charts (discussion starts here). Unfortunately the formatting has gotten messed up due to changes in the board software. You can copy the HTML into a text file and view it in your browser. Some of the info has been transcribed by other folks (see here). Presumably all this info will be in Nathan's book.

I made falooda last night at a friends birthday party. The basil seeds swell up to an astonishing extent. Two tablespoons of the dry seeds made way too much soaked. The rose syrup at my local South Asian grocery seemed to be mostly citric acid. so I made saffron syrup instead as suggested in this Gothamist blog entry. I'm not sure how authentically Parsi that is, but it was tasty! I topped it with ice cream made with almond milk - again, maybe not authentic, but we liked it.

It's hard to tell from the picture, but the copper was all fogged up with condensation. The drink was icy cold. I don't know when the new menu is being introduced - it will be supplemental to the regular one, not a replacement. This drink certainly sounds like a summertime hit. Or at least it would be better suited to warm weather. Like I said, we were in denial about the weather. I can picture sipping one of these out on the patio.

They're getting ready to introduce a new drink menu at VTR. One of the additions is the Moscow Mule, which will be served in a nifty copper mug. Since the mugs had just arrived today, we had to try them out. I also enjoyed a lovely Rangpur Gimlet (already on the current menu). Trying all the while to pretend that it was warm outside... These will both make great summertime drinks.

There was a lovely story about Parsi food on NPR this morning: Sugar in the Milk: A Parsi Kitchen Story They interviewed Niloufer Ichaporia King, who shares some recipes on the linked page. Alice Waters was so enchanted with Parsi cooking that she decided to do a special Parsi New Year menu. It's on the Chez Panisse Downstairs menu for March 20:

Dinner at Lolita tonight. There's a new pizza on the menu. Spicy Pork Sausage with Fresh Mozzarella, Tomato Sauce, Olive Oil, Basil This was delicious - lots of fennel in the sausage and a perfect char on the crust. There was an appetizer none of us had tried yet: Grilled Zucchini Salad with ovendried tomatos, eggplant, pine nuts, basil. Tuesday is Pig Roast Night. Extra-crisp skin this time. The mostarda and fingerling potatoes were terrific. And finally, Lemon Semifreddo with Basil Syrup for dessert. The perfect end to another wonderful meal.

Now that the Lola and Lolita threads have merged together, it might help to point out to anyone not familiar with Michael Symon's restaurants that we're talking about two places here. Lolita 900 Literary Ave. in Tremont Lola 2058 E. 4th St. in Cleveland (downtown) I've got to get back to Lolita - I'm overdue for a visit. EDIT: Removed some thread-admin comments.

Eggs can absorb flavors and aromas through the shell. (If you put eggs in a jar with truffles you get truffle-scented eggs.) If they're cooking at a low temperature to keep the yolk liquid, maybe the process takes long enough for flavors to be absorbed through the shell. I don't know how you'd control the temp of a smoker precisely enough to keep the egg perfect though.

So this is sort of onsen tamago ("Hot Spring Egg"), only smoked? That's the first mention I've come across of the smoked aspect. I wonder if it's smoked in the shell.

Donbert and Kathryn have already posted pictures of similar (if not identical) dishes, so we can return to those for the visuals. Thanks for posting, Nathan. This was fun.

Nathan, are you live-blogging from your phone or PDA? Cool!

← * If and when you manage to beat out the other fourteen thousand people trying to make reservations when the system really does go live.