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Archive for April, 2010

Rainbow Cake

This recipe comes to me from Guest recipe blogger, Mandy Koch.  She is a friend from my good ol days in St. Clair, Michigan and moved to Arizona around the same time I did.  She lives here in Arizona with her husband and  little boy.  She loves to cook, bake, and experiment in her kitchen.  This latest adventure I knew had to be documented on the Food Tramp Diaries.  I think it is SO cool!! :)

six beautiful cake colors!!

awesome rainbow frosting

can't forget the mini marshmallow clouds!

Ingredients
 
1 box of white cake mix – following the instructions with only the egg whites, keeping the batter white.
food coloring
white frosting
mini marshmallows
    
Once cake is mixed,  separate the batter evenly into 6 bowls
Use food coloring to make each bowl of batter a different color (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple)
Butter or spray a bundt pan very well, then start layering the colors
Red (make sure to spread the batter around evenly) and repeat for each color…(o, y, g, b, p)
Bake at 350 for 38-40 minute (or as directed on the back of the box)
Let cake cool slightly and cut it in half
Using your favorite white frosting follow the same instructions to dye the frosting as you did with the cake batter
Frost when cake has completely cooled
Save a bit of white frosting for the ends
Once the rainbow has been frosted with the colors, frost the ends with the white frosting
Mini marshmallows can be added to give the look of clouds

Avalon, Scottsdale

I have heard about Avalon for months now… but wasn’t sure on its location.  Every Saturday I drive my little girl to ballet and since I live in Fountain Hills I have to drive down the b-line and through the reservation down McDowell rd. all the way into south Scottsdale.  Every Saturday I never knew I was passing Avalon.  Such a strange location for fine dining.

Strange or not, Avalon has beautiful, tasty cuisine, and one of the most intriguing restaurant interiors I have ever seen.  The interior of this place is just stunning with wood accents, crystals, amazing lighting among other intricate touches, it really adds the WOW factor.  My friend Alex and I were lucky to meet up one evening with the crew and executive chef Charles Stotts and find out more about Avalon.

Charles amazed us with five courses of some very tasty cuisine!  My first and favorite was his lobster and mushroom ravioli with a mushroom lobster bisque served in a beautiful little cappucino cup.  They brought us a spoon, but what for I was not sure?  That cup was so cute and tiny we just lifted them up and sipped the wonderfully creamy, hot, mushroomy bisque out of it.

mushroom/lobster duo

Our second course was a diver scallop and mushroom trio.  Again, hitting on one of my favorite things, (mushrooms), Charles hit this one out of the park for me.  I really loved the way the assortment of mushrooms were so tender and melted in your mouth just as the scallop did.

diver scallop/mushroom trio

Next, was a meat course.. and it was AMAZING!  Sous Vide pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon with caramel braised apples, corn and sage polenta with a black currant au jus.  Seriously, if you Sous Vide it, I’ll eat it.  This pork was very juicy and cooked to a perfect medium temperature.  Double bonus, pork wrapped in more pork…the bacon was GREAT.  This is on their menu and I highly recommend you order it if you go to Avalon.

Sous Vide Pork

Next up was New York strip steak.  It was grilled with a mini carrot and petite root vegetables confit and demi glace.  Again, cooked to a wonderful medium rare temperature and bursting with a juicy meaty flavor.  The carrots were a tad sweeter than a regular carrot and cooked al dente.

NY strip

Finally to finish off the five course delight was a red velvet cheesecake and it was DE-licious!! So cute and petite and perfectly plated.  This is not currently on the menu, but if it ever comes back, you need to try it out.

red velvet bliss

Just for a little background on executive chef Charles Stotts:  Charles graduate with honors from Scottsdale Culinary institute in 2000.  From there, Chef Ivan Flowers took him under his wing at Different Pointe of View.  Flowers’ was a major influence upon the attention to detail,  quality, and tecnique  that Charles uses today at Avalon.

Make sure to visit Avalon this Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 9 2010 for an amazing 3 course prix-fixe menu for only $35.00 per person and $15.00 for children 12 and under.  This brunch will include your choice of 3 courses, PLUS unlimited trips to their chilled seafood display.  The seafood display will include shrimp, mussels, clams, and snow crab claws along with remoulade and cocktail sauces.

Avalon

7077 E McDowell Rd.

Phoenix, AZ 85257

480.656.0010
Avalon on Urbanspoon

AZ BBQ Fest-go meat or go home!

Looking for something fun and cheap to do tomorrow outdoors?? Well, then pack up the crew and head to the Scottsdale waterfront for the Arizona BBQ festival!! General admission is only $10.00 pp and children 12 and under are FREE!  Only $2.00 for sample plates.  The BBQ  and beer will be flowin from 10am to midnight!  There will be a ton of local vendors, and over 60 BBQ teams.

Click here to get your tickets and don’t miss out on this meaty good Saturday!

Arizona Barbeque Festival
April 10th, 2010 at 10:00 AM
THE SCOTTSDALE WATERFRONT

7025 E Via Soleri

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Sur La Table new store and GIVEAWAY!!

Okay, here’s the deal.  Sur La Table is giving away one free cooking class to one of my readers.  So, if you live near a Sur La Table and would like to take an amazing cooking class that they offer you have three days to put in your entries.  Entries are super easy.  (You may enter as many times as you like, but you only need to fan SLT one time)

1) Scroll to the third to last paragraph of this article and become a fan of Sur La Table either on Facebook or Twitter.

2) leave me a comment on this post on why you love to cook or why you would love to learn.  Please include your name and email address.

3) Sunday night I will put all entries in and www.random.org will do the rest! Thanks for your participation.

 

SUR LA TABLE OPENS IN KING OF PRUSSIA

 New Store Features Cooking Class Program

Seattle-based Sur La Table, the premier retailer for creative cooking and artful entertaining, will open in King of Prussia on May 1, 2010.This will be the company’s second store in Pennsylvania; a Pittsburgh location opened in 2005. Additional retail locations throughout the country, including San Francisco, are under review for 2010. “We have found amazing retail spaces,” said Chief Executive Officer, Jack Schwefel. “Our new King of Prussia location will have a cooking class program. This will be the first Sur La Table store in a shopping mall to have a full teaching kitchen.” The 6,050-square-foot store will employ about 20 full- and part-time employees.

 The first Sur La Table store opened in 1972 in Seattle’s Pike Place Farmers Market, nestled in a tiny space that once held a speakeasy and barbershop. Sur La Table was inspired by the unique Parisian kitchen stores found during that time. Until it opened its doors, you couldn’t even buy a pastry bag in Seattle. Thus customers, including professional chefs and bakers, found their way to the quirky little store stocked floor-to-ceiling with hard-to-find, premium-quality culinary tools. Today the company remains true to its heritage and retains its reputation for providing an amazing assortment of high quality tools, many which cannot be found anywhere else, and superior customer service. Many of its employees hold professional culinary backgrounds and are eager to share their knowledge and passion for food and cooking. From home cooks to professional chefs, the company continues to attract a devoted and enthusiastic customer base.

 The King of Prussia store will showcase the newest look of the company’s design evolution.Its French-inspired exterior features wrought iron gating, striped awnings, copper finials and rolling pin door pulls. Inside the store, customers will witness an expanded knife presentation and French Mauviel copper beautifully displayed in a lighted case. With built-in wall units featuring select products, the store has a warmer look and feel while retaining the authentic industrial environment Sur La Table is known for (the store will still feature its signature Metro shelving). In addition to the teaching kitchen, the store will have a full cooktop and oven for product and technique demonstrations.

 Sur La Table’s cooking class program started in 1996. Today it is one of the largest nationwide, avocational cooking class programs in America. Most classes are hands-on and focus on seasonal cuisine and technique-oriented courses. Skill levels range from beginner to advanced, with special courses designed for kids and teens. Private cooking lessons and kitchen rentals are available in all programs. All stores are outfitted with beautiful state-of-the art Thermador appliances. Classes are taught by cooking class staff chefs or visiting chefs and restaurateurs who are professionally trained and excel at teaching. King of Prussia’s cooking classes begin on May 7, 2010. Guest chefs include best-selling authors Karen Tack and Alan Richardson of Hello, Cupcake! teaching decorating techniques in What’s New, Cupcake? (5/14) and acclaimed baker and teacher, Peter Reinhart, demonstrating bread making skills in Artisan Breads Everyday (5/15). Kid’s cooking camps begin in July.

 The company’s latest book, Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America’s Farmers (Andrews McMeel Publishing, June 1, 2010) was co-authored by award-winning author and journalist Janet Fletcher. The cookbook shows food lovers how to incorporate more local, fresh ingredients into their kitchens and how to celebrate the local foods from their CSA box or farmers market. Sur La Table hopes the recipes and farmer profiles will be an inspiration to experience the benefits of eating and cooking with food grown in their community. An Eating Local: Making the Most of Your CSA class will be taught in King of Prussia (5/16).

 Sur La Table’s buyers are known for introducing cutting-edge tools and are frequently asked by vendors to exclusively launch new products. The company recently introduced SousVide Supreme the first water-oven designed especially for the home cook. It also launched the fun new Kuhn-Rikon Decorating Pen and Le Creuset cookware in two fresh new shades Lilac and Cassis.

 Known for carrying the best knives around the globe, Sur La Table just launched the beautiful new artisan-made Shun Premier cutlery line. Additional new knife lines will be introduced in 2010. (One of the most innovative lines to hit the market this spring exhibits the perfect fusion of European and Asian design and technology—information will be released closer to launch.) For those in need of knife sharpening, Sur La Table stores throughout the country offer knife sharpening services. Complimentary knife sharpening is provided twice a year. The culinary program hosts various levels of knife skills classes throughout the year. An Essential Knife Skills class will be taught in King of Prussia (5/8).

 An industry leader in the BBQ category, the company carries grilling tools year-round. The grilling trend has grown into an everyday occurrence in many regions of the country. Being at the forefront of the trend the buying team looked for innovative ways to expand the category. Customers will be able to cook everything from appetizers to desserts right on the grill. Cast iron grill humidifiers, stylish stainless steel plank savers, stainless steel grill grids and woks, heat-resistant grill mitts, fruit and vegetable grilling racks, even a crème brûlée grill set are part of the product line. Sur La Table is also introducing ultra-durable, shatter-resistant melamine dinnerware and shatter-resistant BPA-free drinkware for outdoor entertaining.

 With one of the broadest assortments of espresso machines and coffee equipment in the country, customers may join an associate at the store’s “coffee bar” to learn about the benefits of different machines, test them out and even taste the coffee to make a truly informed buying decision. Mini Nespresso and Capresso coffee “shops” showcase the full lines of these brands within the electrics department.

 The company’s reputation as the trusted authority within the culinary industry is evident in the variety of tools showcased throughout the store: seafood tools, bar tools, measuring tools, vegetable tools, egg tools, thermometers, timers—everything is merchandised as one would find in a well organized home kitchen. “Color in the kitchen” continues to be a growing trend with playful splashes of color found on everything from prep tools to small electrics. A colorful new ice cream machine line with matching scoops will launch in May.

 Renown for its comprehensive baking collection, Sur La Table features the best baker’s tools for every baking project imaginable: barquette molds, brioche molds, bread pans (even paper pans), Bundt pans, cannoli forms, cake combs, cake turntables, candy and charlotte molds, cookie and biscuit cutters, decorating and baking ingredients, flan rings, madeleine plaques, pastry tips, pie weights, pudding molds, rolling pins, springerle molds, tart pans and more. Flirty cupcake wrappers and gift packaging is available to embellish home-baked goods.

 Presentation is just as important as preparation when it comes to serving meals. Step into the tabletop section, where 80% is exclusive, and experience an explosion of seasonal color in dishes, linens, glassware and other accessories, along with the largest collection of Revol white porcelain in the United States.

 Believing in the importance of giving back to the community, Sur La Table established a national partnership with Feeding America. In the greater-Philadelphia region, Feeding America provides hunger-relief support to Philabundance. The company expanded its community-giving program in 2010 to include an employee matching-donation program to the American Red Cross for earthquake-relief in Haiti.

 Being on the cutting edge in equipment, the company was also aware of the rapid shift towards social technology. In 2009, Facebook, Twitter and YouTubeaccounts were created. Tasty tidbits about the store opening will be posted on Facebook and Twitter.

Sur La Table offers a professional discount to individuals in the culinary industry, such as cooking school instructors, culinary students, employees of casual and formal dining establishments, food stylists, cookbook authors and food journalists. Customers should contact a store sales associate for program details.

 Sur La Table provides inspiration, tools and techniques for those who wish to enhance their lives through creative cooking and artful entertaining. Sur La Table’s comprehensive selection of products includes tools from around the world to prepare any cuisine, as well as beautiful dishes, linens and glasses to create a striking presentation. Sur La Table shops the world for new products providing the unexpected and a sense of discovery, whether you step into one of its stores nationwide, open the pages of its catalog or visit surlatable.com.