Don’t forget…

Leave a comment on one of our Blog Posts for a chance to win. Winner will be announced Monday, February 13, 2012!

Surprise!

If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen! [EAT. DRINK. CRAVE.]

Well, where do I start?! Deron and I have been slacking with the blog posts. But, we’re back and ready to blog more frequently. And to kick-off a new blogging commitment, I’m going to give you a little insight into our night out in Downtown Akron at Crave with friends.

Last Friday, we were invited to dinner with our amazing friends Kat & Tim. It was Kat’s birthday yesterday (Happy 25th!) and we were celebrating early because they are in CALI for Kat’s birthday. (Lucky Ducks!) We also got to the spend the event with Morgan, Erin & Jason. Somehow Tim scored the “Chef’s Table” at Crave which is located inside the kitchen. What an experience! Deron and I were extremely excited because we knew that it would be great to post about Crave and having the opportunity to sit in the kitchen.

We have all been to Crave before but never sat in the kitchen so all acted like kids in a candy store. The booth inside the kitchen (which is half a circular booth) seats about 10 people. We only had 7, so it was very comfortable.

Looking into the Kitchen from the booth!

Kat, Tim & Morgan had arrived before the rest of us and ordered drinks. Kat tried the Red Ruby Martini, Tim had the bartender make him a “manly” Martini and Morgan started off with  Pear Tini. When Deron and I arrived, I knew what I wanted and so did he. I had a Dirty Martini Up with Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives and Deron enjoyed Jack & Coke. My Martini was amazing…to say the least! 🙂 Erin tried a glass of Champagne and said it was delicious as well!

Vodka Martini with Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives

Jack & Coke

Now, onto our food. I decided that I wanted to have some appetizers as my meal. And everyone else decided to order a little something before their meal came. Tim & Morgan tried the House Wedge Salad. Kat had the Crave Side Salad. Erin had a side salad with duck. She thought the salad was great but it was her first time trying duck and wasn’t a huge fan. I was getting the Crab Cakes & Fried Green Tomatoes for dinner so they brought the Crab Cakes out first. We all were enjoying our food when we saw this server walk by with a bowl of these delicious looking fries. So, we happened to ask the waitress what they were. They were Sweet Potato fries. Kat & Tim decided they  had to have some. Next thing you know, they were at our table. They were the best Sweet Potato fries I have ever had and were served with a Cinnamon Butter. They didn’t last long. 🙂

Crab Cakes

Sweet Potato

Wedge Salad

The rest of our food finally came. Tim ordered the Scallops, which he let me try. I can honestly say they are the best scallops I’ve ever had. And Tim agreed that they were good. Kat tried the Blackened Mahi Mahi Tacos. Morgan had the Vegetarian Lasagna. Deron tried the Crave BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich. Erin had the Mahi Mahi Tacos as well and Jason tried the burger that was a special. I got the Fried Green Tomatoes as my entree. We all enjoyed our food.

Scallops

Blackened Mahi Mahi Tacos

Crave BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich

Burger

Fried Green Tomatoes

Lastly, we decided we needed to order dessert. Morgan & I went for the Root Beer Float with a shot of Whipped Cream Vodka. Kat ordered Chocolate Cake and Jason ordered the Chocolate Brownie with Peanut Butter & Ice Cream. We passed the desserts around. They were all so delicious.

Root Beer Float with a shot of Whipped Cream Vodka

Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie with Ice Cream

After all that food, I’m not sure how we all got out of booth. Haha! But, we all enjoyed everything we got. The portion size and prices fit hand and hand. The opportunity to sit in the booth in the kitchen was amazing. It’s definitely a place to sit for special occasions. Because everyone tried different things, it was nice to sample some items I may not ordered on my own. We all had a great night out, too! Stayed tuned for our next post as the group goes to dinner this Friday at The Office in Akron. It’s a post that you’re not going to want to miss, I just know it.

Until then, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!”

Christmas Tradition

I LOVE the holidays. Christmas is a favorite food holiday of mine. I love traditions and that is always what Christmas has been. For many years, my mom has made Christmas Cut-Outs that was my great-grandma’s recipe. One day before Christmas my mom, brother and myself bake & decorate cookies, all 12+ dozen. (Let’s be honest, my brother ONLY decorates and usually it’s less than 5. BUT at least he helps.) And for the last 2 years, Deron has joined us for decorating as well.

This is a recipe I can’t share…it’s a family secret. Well, we like to think it’s a secret! 🙂 But this year, it was fun to use old and new cookie cutters to make cookies. And the decorating was enjoyable as well. This tradition will never end. It just wouldn’t be Christmas if we didn’t bake & decorate. Not only did we have these cookies for Christmas but my mom proceeded to bake for the next two days. She completed a total of 7 other cookies/desserts as well. She was a baking machine.

For Christmas Eve, my family went to my Aunt & Uncle’s in Wooster. It was a festive time with a lot of great good. I made Oven Crisp Chicken Wings. Mom made Pizza Dip and Cheddar Bacon Pinwheels. On Christmas Day, I opened presents with my family. Went to Deron’s to open presents and eat. We had a delicious meal. And then back to my parents for dinner. All-in-all I ate WAY to much from Saturday-Monday. I need to detox.

Don’t forget — make a comment on any of our posts and you’ll be entered into our drawing. Winner(s) will be chosen/announced on February 13th! 🙂

What are some holiday favorites/traditions that you enjoy with your family?

Thanksgiving Dishes

As Thanksgiving & Christmas passed so quickly, I haven’t had much time to keep up with the blog post writing. Thanksgiving was filled with amazing food and some of it which I made or helped to make. It’s always been one of my favorite holidays. Because for me, it means the best food on the table & the most wonderful people around.

The first recipe I made was Mini Pumpkin Bites. I was a little scared to try this out for Thanksgiving since it was the first time making it. But they turned out quite delicious. And they are extremely simple to make, for the most part!

I used pre-made pie crust. Cutting out small circles to put inside a small muffin pan. I even added the stems to the top of the “pumpkins.”

Next, I mixed together the filling. Once that was ready I poured it into the muffin tin. And all that’s left to do is bake them. They came out pretty good.

INGREDIENTSPIE CRUSTCREAM CHEESESPICES, CREAM CHEESE & PIE FILLINGALL THE ABOVE & SUGARALMOST DONEBAKINGFINISHED

Here are some photos of the appetizers we served at Thanksgiving!

SAUSAGE FLOWERS & MINI PHYLLO CUPS WITH CHEESE & BEETS

BACON WRAPPED SCALLOPS

RELISH TRAY

I follow Lauren Conrad’s Blog pretty religiously. So, this year I decided to make the drink she had posted before Thanksgiving, called Pilgrim Punch. It was VERY good & a big hit! Simple to make and easily adjustable for other ingredients if you don’t have exactly what it calls for!

Enjoy what we had for Thanksgiving Dinner below. 🙂

SAUSAGE STUFFING

TURKEY

SWEET POTATOES

BROCCOLI CASSEROLE

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

In the spirit of Christmas & the season of giving, what better way to celebrate than to reward our readers with some great treats!

Stay tuned for great posts about holiday traditions around the table. A post still coming from Thanksgiving…sorry for the delay! And a few lucky readers will enjoy presents after Christmas! Leave us a comment on one of our posts and you’ll be entered to win a surprise!

“The Magic of Christmas never ends and its greatest of gifts are family and friends. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!”

-Allyson

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, it’s officially the holiday season and what better way to celebrate than with homemade dishes and giving thanks to those who shared them. Last weekend Deron and I were invited to a Pre Thanksgiving Pot Luck dinner at our friend’s Jenna & Matt’s new apartment. Everyone was to bring a side dish. So, I quickly put my thinking cap on and came up with a few ideas. The ideas that I decided on were because of time and convenience. And let’s be honest, they are two dishes that I LOVE eating. 🙂 Living in a new place with not all the resources I had at my parents’ house sometimes hinders what I can cook. I decided on Broccoli Casserole, something my Nana use to make at Thanksgiving growing up. And since her passing, my mom has taken on the role of making it year after year. It is truly one of my favorite dishes. And the other thing I decided to make was a Taco Dip that I’ve made several times, that someone *cough Deron cough* loves. The recipe was given to me by my mom who got it out of an old church cookbook. It’s a pretty delicious recipe for being so simple.

You may wonder how it all turned out, and I have to say, overwhelming good! The recipe for the Broccoli Casserole is listed below. The recipe calls for frozen chopped broccoli, cream of mushroom soup, mayonnaise, eggs, onion and cheddar cheese. Very simple to make — cook the broccoli, mix together the soup, mayo, eggs and onion. Add the broccoli to the mixture. Pour into a 9×13 baking dish and cover with cheddar cheese. Cook in a 350° oven for 30 minutes and voila! I had a cook it a bit longer so that the cheese melted all the way and became bubbly. I also doubled the recipe which still fits in the 9×13 dish. I would have to say, for the first time making it myself it was delicious. I think my nana and my mom would be proud!

As far as the Taco Dip goes, it’s beyond easy to make. Combine cream cheese with cottage cheese and add a little garlic salt to taste. Spread that mixture onto any size plate or serving dish. Cover with lettuce, tomato, cheese & taco sauce and enjoy! I’ve made this dish before so it was good as well. I doubled the recipe as well.

I’d have to say that if my grandmothers were alive today, I hope they would be proud of the recipes I’ve taken on that they made all their lives. And I hope that I’m living proof that anyone can be a good cook. It just takes joy, love and family and you can whip up anything you try. Hope you enjoy these recipes. It’s my chance to thank the women in the life who have made me who I am today. I love you all and thank you for inspiring me. Please let me know if you have any questions about the recipes. Happy Thanksgiving!

Broccoli Casserole
2 Boxes Frozen Chopped Broccoli
1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 Cup Mayonaise
1 Small Onion (chopped finely)
2 Eggs Beaten
Shredded Cheddar Cheese (enough to cover)

Cook the broccoli. Combine soup, mayo, onion & eggs. Add broccoli to that mixture. Pour into a 9×13 baking dish and cook for 30 minutes in a 350° oven.

 
Taco Dip
1 8oz. Cream Cheese (room temperature)
1/2 Cup of Cottage Cheese
Garlic Salt (enough to taste)
1 Small Tomato (cut into small pieces)
Shredded Lettuce (enough to cover)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese (enough to cover)
Taco Sauce
Tortilla Chips

Combine the cream cheese & cottage cheese. Add garlic salt to taste. Spread onto a plate/serving dish. Cover with shredded lettuce, tomatoes and cheese. Pour taco sauce over the dip. Serve with Tortilla Chips.

*Recipe pictures to come soon.

Gervasi Vineyard & Italian Bistro-Valentine’s Day Dinner

There was no better way than to spend Valentine’s Day at one of my favorite places with my favorite person. It was rather a shock to me that we (Deron & I) went to Gervasi Vineyard for Valentine’s Day. Last year we went to my favorite place Dontino’s and when Deron said he made reservations (a month early, shocker) I assumed it was for there. But to my surprise he took me to Gervasi. Deron and I have been there before so we knew what to expect but we were really excited for the V-Day specials and to enjoy the evening at this elaborate Vineyard. Once we arrived, it was great. Gervasi had hired a pianist to play music throughout the evening and they even had old black and white romantic movies playing on a few tv’s. It definitely “set the mood.”

After reading the wine list over and over again, we both decided what we were going to have. We would have ordered a bottle of wine but we both wanted different choices of wine. We actually saved money by ordering separately, which was great. Deron tried the Truscano, which he absolutely LOVED. It was reasonably priced at $9 a glass. Because I couldn’t make up my mind about white or red, I had a wine flight, two reds and one white, which was $7 in price (equivalent to a glass of wine.) I tried the Truscano, Velluto and lastly the Bianco Amabile. I loved them all as well. The Truscno was a bit heavy for my liking. Deron and I have tried the Velluto before so I knew I liked it. And the Lambrusco (Bianco Amabile) was delicious.

We were both starving by the time we got there so we wanted to order as soon as possible. We decided to try the Garden Verdure. It was a large list of vegetable and you choose three to enjoy. We went with the Roasted Portabellas, Balsamic Onions and Stuffed Peppers. They were great choices. Deron didn’t care too much for the onions but I loved it all, of course. The Stuffed Peppers were little red peppers stuffed with cream cheese and basil, so good! I loved the Balsamic Onions probably because I am obsessed with Balsamic. And the Portabellas were very sweet. The size of the appetizer was just right and only cost us $9.

For our Main Entrée, it was hard making a decision but we decided to try one of Gervasi’s Pizzas. We went with the Winter Pizza ($14), topped with Caramelized Onions, Roman Bacon, Arugula, Rosemary Cream Sauce, Aged Provolone and Egg. It was absolutely decadent. The thin crust pizza was perfect and Deron and I enjoyed every bite. We definitely recommend this pizza to anyone to try. The sauce although creamy with light and with the bacon, egg and cheese (plus other items) it definitely hit the spot. We also got a side of the Parmesan Mashed Potatoes ($6.) We had tried these at our last visit to Gervasi and fell in love with them. I am infatuated by the creamy taste and the large spoons they give us to eat every bite. The medium bowl was enough for probably three people to share but Deron let me enjoy most of it. 🙂

To finish our wonderful meal at Gervasi, we decided to try their Cheesecake. It came topped with strawberries and Carmel sauce with a delicious crust. It was so creamy and the strawberries and caramel definitely made it even better. We shared the one piece, because obviously from the sounds of all that we had already eaten, we didn’t need to each enjoy a piece. Splitting it was the perfect idea and it only cost us $7. Our entire meal: 3 glasses of wine, appetizer, pizza, mashed potatoes, cheesecake & cappuccino only cost of $66. It was the best $66 we’ve spent in awhile! I also enjoyed a cappuccino ($4) with dessert which was a nice way to end the meal.

After Deron paid (of course he paid, it was Valentine’s Day after all! ;)) every lady received a red rose from Gervasi. It was the perfect touch to end our very delicious and filling evening. Deron and I will continue to go to Gervasi, for “holiday” events and just to go. We are looking forward to going this summer and enjoying their patio. We hope you get to enjoy it as well. We’ve had amazing service, food, wine and time together there. It’s truly a place you want to treat someone to. It’s a must do! Valentine’s Day was perfect because of the great time Gervasi showed us…okay, just kidding. It was perfect because of Deron with the help of Gervasi!

Until next time, Ciao!

It seems as though a lot of what we do revolves around the question, where are we eating or what are we having for dinner?

Hello everyone! I’m Allyson and what can I say…I never thought I’d be much for a blogger but with the idea of eating at local restaurants and giving what we call a review, I’m up for the challenge and ready to blog. I’ve said for months, how cool it would be to blog, but of course never went any further then the idea. Deron is the real reason we are blogging about food in the Northeast Ohio area and hopefully from places outside of Ohio that we visit as well. And we’ll talk a little about our cooking experiences, what works, what doesn’t and more. I’m excited to say the least. Deron and I find ourselves going out to eat when we can and we love trying new places. It’s something that we have grown to do together and I’m glad we have the opportunity. I think we will definitely be checking out more places now since we are official bloggers.

A little bit about me…I grew up with food being in front of me anywhere I went. I had the great opportunity of growing up in the kitchen of my mom’s restaurant. And there I was in the kitchen with my grandma, having her feed me anything they were cooking. I was known to eat corned beef, at a young age and I’m sure there were some other items I enjoyed that most children didn’t eat. Ever since then, I’ve liked a lot of things and always wanted to try new food. Having my mom and grandma as amazing cooks has really made me appreciate food and not just going to a restaurant but enjoying cooking at home. I’ve definitely learned a lot from them when it comes to food. I’m excited to express how I feel about food and restaurants. I hope you all enjoy our blog. It’s definitely a learning process so please bare with us.

Bon Appetit!