Spaghetti (err Penne) con Vongole

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to cook one recipe out of each of the cook books I own. We only have about a dozen or so so it shouldn’t be toooooo hard.

I’ve only cooked out of one up until today and just because I want to be counter productive I decided to cook out of that same cook book today.

So not much progress made on the resolution front but I really adore that cook book and sometimes it’s hard to break away.

I made spaghetti con vongole (clams). Well that was the plan at least, of course the only thing we forgot at the store was spaghetti. oops. The penne worked fine but it wasn’t quite the same of what I remembered from a seaside trattoria we ate at in Positano.

Also a note to those who wish to try cooking this recipe, scrub your clams before using them rather than just soaking them. There was a bit of sand in the sauce…not my favorite. But the flavors were delicious at least.

Austin Restaurant Week

This year for the first time we decided to take advantage of Austin Restaurant Week. We’d heard about it in past years but never jumped at the amazing opportunity that it is.

Basically a handful of some of the best (and most expensive) restaurants in Austin create a set 3 or 4 course menu at a set price of $25 or $35/person. It’s such a fabulous deal because on most occasions you’ll walk out of any of the participating establishments with spending no less than $65-$100/person. So Yes, Sign us up!!!

So we dined like kings and queens on two Sundays in a row. First up was Hudson’s on the Bend, a restaurant known for its game fare. Highlights of the night were the duck and jalapeno appetizer that Alex ordered and a hazlenut brownie dessert that Alex also ordered…don’t worry my food was good too.

Then this past Sunday we ventured downtown to the famed Driskill Grill, always listed in the top three of Austin’s Best Restaurants. This place was a must for us because we normally would never eat at such an expensive place, unless it was for a special event. Our three course meal was complete with pretentious serving sizes and a pretentious British waiter. Haha, but the food was great. Besides being slightly disappointed with my sweat pea tortellini I had a great time eating the best lamb chop ever ordered (thanks Alex) and this sinfully, delicious raspberry chocolate mousse that thankfully I had all to myself.

All in all we really enjoyed ourselves and can’t wait to participate in Restaurant Week again, I believe the event will be taking place again this spring. We already have a few places in mind for when that comes around again!

oh orchid

This post is a bit overdue. But I wanted to gush about how wonderful Alex can be (ha). Last week when I was woozy from my flight home from Arizona (the plane was teeny and the landing was rough) Alex rushed me home to my awesome house that I missed oh so much while away and had cleaned it completely from top to bottom. Also waiting for me was this beautiful, purple orchid. I developed a thing for orchids awhile ago but could never justify buying one because they’re kind of pricey. Well now, I have one and her name is Olivia.

He also made me chicken kabobs on the grill with pasta and pesto. For dessert I was told about the cheesecake brownies he bought and ate before I made it home. But all was forgiven when he queued up Top Chef Masters for me to enjoy with a glass of sparkling water.