TRATTORIA GRAPPOLO IN SANTA YNEZ

This past February, I got the chance to jet set to Santa Ynez Valley (wine country) near Santa Barbara, California. I absolutely fell in love! Click here to read more about my time there. While I was there, I ate at a restaurant right in the town of Santa Ynez called Trattoria Grappolo. It's an Italian restaurant hidden right in the middle of strip mall, but don't let this throw you off because it's excellent! The restaurant is owned by three brothers from Italy, and all the dishes are fantastic! I tried the Homemade ravioli stuffed with spinach, ricotta filled and parmesan cheese...Linguine Vongole which is linguine with clams (in a white sauce)...Rigatoni Bolognese with their traditional meat sauce...And for dessert, the Panna Cotta and the homemade tiramisu. Funny enough, I was watching Giada's Weekend Getaways this past weekend on the Food Network, and she headed to Santa Barbara for the weekend. Well, as part of her weekend trip was a day drive to Santa Ynez Valley, which included dinner at Trattoria Grappolo! She tried different things than I did (Rollino Veneto, Melanzane alla Parmigiana, salad, and lavender infused creme brulee and chocolate tartufo for dessert). Nevertheless, I was so thrilled to see that I had picked a place to eat at that was obviously good enough for Giada and Food Network!

ATLANTIC CITY FOOD AND WINE FESTIVAL 2010

The dates are out for the second annual 2010 Food and Wine Festival in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The event kicks off July 30th-August 2nd and will be held at different venues and hotels in and around Atlantic City. This year's celebrity chefs include Guy Fieri (Diners, Drive-ins & Dives), Sandra Lee (Semi-Homemade), Pat & Gina Neely (Down Home with the Neely’s), Ted Allen (Chopped), Sunny Anderson (Cooking for Real), Anne Burrell (Worst Cooks in America), Claire Robinson (5 Ingredient Fix), Alex Guarnaschelli (Alex’s Day Off), and Melissa D’Arabian (Ten Dollar Dinners). I'm sad my favorite, Giada, won't be there or else I'd go. It was amazing getting to meet her and cook with her last year at the 2009 New York City Food and Wine Festival. Read more about that here. Anyway, Atlantic City is fun, and it does sound like this event will be worth checking out! There's even going to be a Guy Fieri Cheesesteak Battle...love the sound of that! :)

GIADA COOKS UP A BULLSEYE FOR TARGET!

Those of you who know me, know that I am obsessed with Giada De Laurentiis from the Food Network! She is the t.v. chef who basically taught me how to cook! I watch her show everyday, own every cookbook she's written, and I very often share some of her recipes on this blog that I have tried myself. (I even got the chance to meet her and cook with her on stage at the NYC Food & Wine Festival- click here if you didn't read about it. One of the best days of my life! :-)Well now, she and Target (one of my favorite stores) have teamed up to create an affordable line of gadgets for the kitchen. Her stuff just came out in Target stores and on their website this month! You can find all "Giada things" from cookware and bakeware, to gadets, and even food like pasta sauces and flavored coffees! Her collection has stuff that starts in price from $6.99 for a cooking spoon, to $199.99 for a 10-piece Tri Ply Clad cookset. I will definitely be jet setting to my local Target to grab some Giada goodies for my kitchen. I was so excited...I just had to share. Giada and Target...what a great combo!