Bouchon Bistro

Back in January we spent one night in Vegas with our good friends, Tom & Chanelle. Tom's brother Eric is the Sous Chef under Thomas Keller at the Bouchon Bistro inside of the Venetian. Wow. I had no idea what we were in for. We went for breakfast and were so excited to meet Eric...little did I know that he would spoil us with all kinds of goodness from the menu and with a tour of the kitchen! A real foodies dream come true. Had I known I would have taken my big camera, but I didn't, so the iPhone had to do.

I keep asking Tom for another chance at it though so I can take my real camera this time. :)

Seriously, this was some of the very best food I have eaten. Ever. And that is coming from a girl who has been to Paris 3 times. ;) What I wouldn't give to have another vanilla bean yogurt & berry parfait and apple croissant at this very moment.

We feel so lucky to have Tom & Chanelle in our lives. Their friendship has been a blessing to us in so many ways.

We love you Tom & Chanelle...we can't wait to do it again.

spring fever!

We had such a great weekend...and somehow it all revolved around food. No wonder I liked it so much. It was so fun to fire up the BBQ. It's official...we've got Spring Fever!

homemade artisan bread

I just baked this tasty loaf of rustic, crusty bread...I never thought this would be possible at home. I am used to paying $5-6 a loaf at Kneaders...not anymore...just some flour, salt, yeast, water and a little time...amazing! Next time around I am going to try mixing in some Asiago cheese. Click here for the "formula"...that's fancy for recipe!

(I got this recipe from A Little Sussy and she recommended increasing the salt to 1 1/2 tsp. and lining the baking pan with parchment paper...both of which turned out to be great suggestions. I also decided to bake it at 425 degrees.)

I did it! Yea me!!

This is a huge accomplishment for me. I mentioned before that I have suffered from yeast-phobia. I love to cook & bake, but whenever a recipe calls for yeast I shy away from it. I have attempted it in the past and ended up with yucky, ugly bricks that took a ton of time to make. Yesterday for Mother's Day my mom gave me some of the ingredients I need to make the recipe I told you about a few posts ago. (Thanks again Mom!) I woke up this morning excited to make some bread. I made cinnamon rolls and a strawberry-cream cheese braid. They are so yummy! (And, I think pretty good looking for my first attempt.) I believe anyone can make bread with this recipe! How exciting is that?
A few people have asked if I am going to post this recipe, but I think it is much easier to see it done for the first time. (It was a little confusing for me when I read it for the first time.) You can sign up for a class with the people that taught me, but I would also be willing to give anyone a hands on lesson. I am sure it wouldn't be as insightful and exciting as the demo that I got, but it would be free! You will have to let me know if you are interested.