Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Review: Stone Creek

This may be a somewhat biased review because I have been to Stone Creek a couple times before and have loved it, but also because I have two friends who work there. Having said that, I had seen a YoDeal offer for Stone Creek and snagged it right away, $50 for $25, definitely worth it. 

Stone Creek has two locations locally, one in Montgomery and one in West Chester.  I have only been to the one in  Montgomery and have had great dining experiences each time, and this past time was the same! 

If you have never been to Stone Creek in Montgomery, the parking situation could be confusing, but it really is easy.  There is a garage underneath the restaurant and elevators that take you right up near the entrance.  Walking in to the restaurant, we were warmly greeted by two hosts who were happy to seat us in either of our friends sections.  My friend was bartending, so we sat at a table near the bar. Of course I think the service was great, but I will note that I have always had great service at Stone Creek, even when my friends haven't waited on me.

Each table is given fresh warm bread and an oil and herb dipping sauce.  This stuff is DELICIOUS! I absolutely love it.  It has a tangy flavor in the sauce with a nice sweetness, and the bread was sooo soft, it just disintegrates in your mouth.  I had to stop myself from eating too much bread before my meal!

Stone Creek has a nice wine list, beers, and specialty drinks.  They also have daily drink specials which would be nice to take advantage of if you go.  This night, I opted for a glass of wine, and my husband went with a craft beer.

Stone Creek's menu is pretty varied.  They have salads, steaks, chicken, seafood, and pastas.  I like that there is also an option to get a combo of 2 entree items with a vegetable and baked potato.  This is a great idea to try smaller portions of two different items.

This night, I decided to get the Durango Beef Medallions which are served with garlic mashed potatoes, a portabella mushroom cap, tomatoes, applewood bacon, spinach and gorgonzola.  How good does that sound!?  These are all many of my favorite ingredients, so I love this dish.  I also ordered a side house salad with my entree.  The house salad is served with a raspberry vinaigrette that is light, sweet, and very refreshing.  This salad was great.

I ordered the medallions medium.  My dish turned out delicious.  A delicious bite with all those ingredients is perfection.  My only complain this night was one medallion was cooked perfectly medium while the other one was medium well....a  bit disappointing, but didn't affect my overall satisfaction with the dish.

Ross has actually said that he thinks Stone Creek is one of the best steaks he has ever had, but he decided to get a slightly different item tonight.  He decided to order the surf and turf which consists of beef tenderloin medallions, lump crab, leeks, garlic mashed potatoes, and balsamic tomatoes and a side Caesar salad.  His salad had just the right amount of dressing and was a more oil based Caesar dressing, which he likes.  The shaved parmesan was also a nice touch.

His medallions were cooked to order and lump crab was a generous portion that added a sweet and tender topping to the medallions.  He was very pleased with his dish.

Overall we both LOVE Stone Creek.  Many people have complained they think it's a bit overpriced, and I could see that. It is a bit pricey, but every time I have gone, I thought I got my money's worth.  I have left satisfied, pleased, and felt that I had a great dining experience.  I would recommend this place to anyone who would want a great meal and are willing to spend around $20-$25 a person....I'd even go just for the bread :)
~Kate

Food: 4.5
Service: 5 (can't beat having a friend serve you!)
Overall Experience: 4.5

Stone Creek Dining Company on Urbanspoon

Monday, August 29, 2011

Recipe: Asparagus with Balsamic Tomatoes and Goat Cheese

If you haven't already noticed, the Girls Who Grub looooove goat cheese! So, when I found a recipe for asparagus with goat cheese and tomatoes (three of my favorie ingredients) in my Cooking Light magazine in April, I knew I had to try it out. I am sure glad I did! This will definitely become a go-to side dish for me. It's wonderful and super easy!!

Ingredients: (serves 4)
1 pound trimmed asparagus
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1.5 cups halved grape tomatoes
1/2 tsp minced fresh garlic
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp crumbled goat cheese
Salt & pepper

Start out by boiling a pot of water. Once it's boiling, add the asparagus to the pot for about 2 minutes then drain. It doesn't say to do this in the directions, but I run it under a little cold water so it stops the cooking process and it stays nice and green.

Next, heat the olive oil in a skillet and add the garlic and tomatoes. Let those cook for about five minutes and add the balsamic vinegar. Let it cook for a few more minutes. Add the salt.

Place the asparagus on a plate and cover with the tomato and vinegar mixture. Top with the goat cheese and pepper and serve. How easy is that??!! And it's soooo delicious.

My picture is not the greatest...but you'll notice that I also topped a grilled chicken breast with the tomato and goat cheese mixture. It was wonderful with the chicken and made for a great dinner! Enjoy!

~Kris
 

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Review: Cancun Mexican Bar & Grill

My mom, sister, and I recently met up for lunch on a Friday afternoon.  My mom and I were both off work, and my lucky sister has a pretty flexible schedule, so we decided to go out for lunch!  My sister lives in Norwood, so we thought we'd try something close to her house.  My mom was craving Chipotle, but we wanted to go somewhere more "sit-down", so we decided to try Cancun Mexican Bar & Grill located on Montgomery Rd. near the Lateral. 

Walking in, we were immediately greeted by a very friendly and warm host who sat us in a booth.  The decor in this place was unlike any other Mexican restaurant, in a good way!  It was very vibrant and fun.  All the tables had unique artwork on them with a glass covering on top which I thought was really interesting.  The chairs had a similar motif to them as well.

While looking over the menu, our server promptly delivered some salsa and chips. I thought the salsa was a bit bland, I like to have a bit more spice in mine, but the chips were pretty good.  We ordered a side of queso (my sister's favorite) to go along, and this was a pretty standard queso.

The menu was a very typical Mexican restaurant menu in my opinion.  There was a lunch special for the day, but we had our hearts set on other items.  My sister always gets tacos, especially for lunch, but she did opt for the shrimp tacos to change up her typical order a bit.  She asked to get hard shells instead of soft, and they happily obliged.  She liked this just okay...there was hardly any shrimp in two of them and a lot in the third.  The first two tacos had mostly veggies, but she still liked them fine.

I also get tacos many a time when I go to Mexican restaurants, but I felt like getting one of my other favorites--a quesadilla (could have been because I had just watched Napoleon Dynamite??)  I ordered the fajita quesadilla which was stuffed with cheese, chicken, peppers, onion, mushrooms, and tomatoes.  This was served with lettuce, guacamole, sour cream and tomatoes.  I really liked this quesadilla.  It had plenty of chicken and vegetables.  I loved that the veggies were grilled and mixed together nicely with the melted cheese.  The tortilla was just crispy enough without getting soggy from all the filling.  I would definitely order this again.

My mom went with the "fajita" style nachos.  The portion was a big size, especially for lunch.  It was topped with similar items from my quesadilla: peppers, onion, chicken, cheese, tomatoes.  These were good as well.  I tried these and liked that the cheese had been melted on the nachos, it wasn't too runny.  I also liked that the chips didn't get soggy and it had a great amount of toppings.  My mom really liked this, there wasn't much left to share!

The prices at Cancun are very reasonable.  For all 3 entrees, queso, and 2 drinks, our total came to about $30 which I didn't think was too bad.  The service here was great as well.  Our server really went above and beyond to make sure we were pleased.  He was on top of our drinks, and even offered to get my sister a different meal when she didn't eat it all--she just wasn't that hungry :) 

I liked Cancun Mexican Bar & Grill; I'd like to back for dinner and see how their margaritas are, but if you're in the area, it's worth a try!
~Kate

Food: 3
Service: 4
Overall Experience: 3

Monday, August 22, 2011

Recipe: Bacon Ranch Potato Salad

I really love potato salad but had never made it before!  My mom makes the BEST potato salad and she usually is the one who will make it for various cook outs or family functions and I feel like making potato salad for two people usually makes way too much for us to eat.  However, I recently saw a recipe for a bacon ranch potato salad that I thought I would attempt.

This recipe turned out really good!! It was extremely easy for a first time maker like myself, and was a bit different from the traditional potato salad.

Ingredients:
2 lb. red potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
1 16 oz. container of sour cream
1 pack of dry ranch dressing mix
1/4 cup cooked bacon
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 bunches green onions, thinly sliced

I cooked the bacon first in the oven.  I learned a trick watching Food Network to use a cooking rack sitting on a baking sheet to cook the bacon.


1. Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with salted water.  Bring to a boil over high heat then reduce to medium low; cover and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes.  Drain the potatoes, then run under cool water.

2. Combine sour cream and ranch.  Mix all ingredients together.

This recipe was so simple, I think anybody could do it.  You can use any kind of sour cream, reduced fat, low fat, etc. depending on your taste.  I used turkey bacon baked in the oven, but you could use regular bacon and cook it however you like.  I also added some salt, pepper, and garlic powder. 

My husband and I both liked this recipe a lot!  We even thought it was better after two days in the fridge :)
~Kate

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Review: Orchids at Palm Court

You know you're in for five-star service and a real treat when the hostess is matching the napkins to your outfit! Not a joke - this really happened! Last week I went to Orchids at Palm Court for Downtown Restaurant Week, and there were white napkins on the table when my friend Lauren and I sat down. Lauren was wearing a navy blue and black skirt and I had on dark jeans. The hostess literally switched out the white napkins for black napkins so we wouldn't get remnants from the white napkins on our outfits! Now that is what I call service!

Of all the restaurants downtown, Lauren and I picked Orchids because it seemed like such a great deal for restaurant week and we've both been wanting to try it for a while, especially after hearing that the chef, Todd Kelly, was recently named the Best Chef of the Year by the American Culinary Federation. Not everyone has the "best chef" right in their backyard! Gotta take advantage - especially when it's a 3 course meal for $35! 

After ordering our three courses from the impressive Restaurant Week menu, we were soon presented with an amouse bouche (a bite-sized hors d'oevres from the chef). Not only was the presentation of the teeny tiny truffle custard amazing, the taste was out of this world. Truly the best thing I've ever eaten! I could go on that Food Network show "The Best Thing I Ever Ate".  They took the top of an egg off, and made a truffle custard right inside the egg. It was topped with creme fraiche, dried corn and chives and was the most decadent, amazing thing ever. The crunchiness and sweetness of the dried corn was perfect with the rich truffle custard and texturally made for the perfect bite. It was served with the cutest little demitasse spoon. What a great way to start off a great meal!

Next we got the slow cooked, sous vide tuna tonnato. This means the sushi-grade tuna was prepared in a vacuum sealed bag in a low temperature water bath for a long period of time so the outside is the same "doneness" as the inside. The tuna was seasoned with oregano before being sous vide, which was absolutely delicious. It was then combined with hericot vert and kalamata olives and served over a tuna mousse. The plate was drizzled with parsley oil and topped with frisee and crispy garlic chips. Makes me hungry just thinking about it! It was so delicious. I have never had anything that's been sous vide, but I've seen it on Top Chef many times. :) The combination of flavors was amazing and was like a present in my mouth after every bite.  And look how pretty the presentation was....


For our entrees, we both chose to get the pork cheeks. These were braised in white wine and chicken broth (and I think lemon) and they melted in your mouth like butter. They crumbled apart when you simply touched them with the tip of your fork. The pork cheeks were served with chanterelle mushrooms, tomato config and ricotta dumplings. The ricotta dumplings were the only thing from the entire meal that I was unimpressed with. They were dry and uninteresting. Lauren suggested sprinkling salt over them, which did help a little but texturally they were still dry and "floury". The rest of the entree was amazing. I was tempted to lick the plate to get every last drop of the braising liquid, which I'm sure Lauren's thankful I resisted the urge. Somehow I don't think that would have gone over well at Orchid's. ;) 


Last but not least was the dessert. There were two options on the Restaurant Week menu - Brown Butter Cake and Malted Chocolate Bavarian. Shockingly, I chose the brown butter cake. I almost always go with anything chocolate, but the brown butter cake sounded good to me - and I was right. It was perfectly moist and came with bourbon blackberries and a homemade cinnamon toast ice cream - that actually had chunks of crispy cinnamon toast in it. Yummm!



Lauren chose the Malted Chocolate Bavarian, which was three different desserts - roasted bananas, peanut streusel and the chocolate bavarian cake with dolce de leche across the plate. Minus the bananas (I'm not really a fan of fruit for dessert), the othe items were delicious - particularly the peanut streusel! I would have liked an entire order of that.


I started out this blog post by mentioning the amazing service, and I want to end on that note too...because it truly was worth mentioning twice. With every course we were served, there were two waiters - one on either side of us. They simultaneously set our covered plates down on the table, and with a quick and discreet nod to each other across the table, they lifted the plate covers off at the exact same time to "wow" us with the food presentation waiting underneath. Remarkable! Such a simple thing, but it made quite an impact. Lauren and I were certainly impressed, and we heard other tables comment on it as well.

Overall, this was truly one of the best dining experiences I've had. Both the food and the service were impeccable. I'd highly recommend Orchid's for the next time you want to splurge (at least it's a splurge for me) and treat yourself to a wonderful meal in a beautiful setting with outstanding service. And an added bonus - they have free valet parking!!

~ Kris

Food: 5
Service: 5
Overall: 5

Orchids at Palm Court on Urbanspoon

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Recipe: Slow Cooker Pork with Green Beans

I love looking up various recipes, either online or in magazines.  I save accounts on some food websites and if I'm looking through magazines, I have started just tearing the recipes out and putting them in a binder.  I recently went to the Newtown Farmer's Market and found some great looking green beans.  So, I wanted to find a recipe for the beans and wanted to make a pork tenderloin to go along with it; I get sick of chicken sometimes, so I wanted to use a different protein.  

I don't really use a slow cooker as much as people recommend.  I know it's really easy, but sometimes with my schedule, it really doesn't fit in. But, after finding this recipe for slow roasted pork tenderloin, I thought I'd give it a try! I should note that after going to the grocery store, and not finding any PLAIN pork tenderloins (only the pre-marinated ones) I decided to use boneless pork chops instead. 
I think it worked out okay, but probably not as juicy. Here it is:

Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1 cup water
3/4 cup red wine (I used a merlot I had on hand)
3 tbsp. minced garlic
3 tbsp. soy sauce
ground pepper

Place the pork in the slow cooker with the soup mix.  Pour water, wine, and soy sauce in on top.  Carefully spread garlic over the pork and sprinkle with pepper.  Cook on low for 4 hours. 

Some notes: Since I didn't have the tenderloin and I didn't have 4 hours, I cooked mine on high for about an hour and a half, which was fine.  Use the cooking liquid from the slow cooker as a side of au jus, this was delicious!

I also found a great recipe for the green beans on allrecipes.com.  It was for green beans with almonds and caramelized shallots, sounded delicious and easy!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup blanched slivered almonds
3 tbsp. butter
5 small shallots
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 tbsp. sugar
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 lbs. fresh green beans, trimmed and snapped

Directions:
1. Put slivered almonds in a skillet over low heat and toast for 6-8 minutes, stirring often.  Once you begin to smell the nuttiness, they are about done.  Take the almonds out of skillet and place aside.
2. Heat the butter in the skillet over medium heat and add the shallots and red pepper.  Saute for about 8 minutes or so.  Reduce heat to low and sprinkle with sugar, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for another 5-8 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, put a steamer basket in a pot with boiling water just below the steamer.  Once the water is boiling, add the green beans to the steamer and cover.  Steam beans for 7-8 minutes.  Strain the beans, then add to the shallot mixture, then add the almonds.



I really liked this recipe.  I loved the onion flavor from the soup mix for the pork and I thought the au jus was great.  I think the pork tenderloin would have been better though.  The beans were great as well!  Just a bit of sweetness from the sugar and the almonds added a great nutty crunch.  My husband liked everything as well!  We also served it with a side of tomato, mozzarella and basil salad which was also delicious!

Friday, August 12, 2011

Guest Blog: Noce's Pizzeria

This week, our good friend Abby offered to guest blog about a pizzeria in Montgomery.  This pizza looks awesome! I have eaten here as well and think it is great!  So thanks for sharing Abs, we hope everyone enjoys!
___________________________________________________________________________________

My husband Matt and I tend to do a lot with our families and this summer night was no exception. Matt’s niece and nephew are in town from Cleveland staying with Grandma for a few days, so our nights have been filled with swimming at the pool, riding bikes on the Loveland trail, and of course dinner!

With six adults and three kids do we go out to dinner or cook? Going to the grocery and making dinner was quite a challenge for grandma (also responsible for 3 little ones) and going out is most likely going to be a disaster (trying to keep them sitting, entertained and well behaved while 6 adults eat). So, our decision was Pizza night in!


In my opinion pizza can be one of the best or worst things out there. We’ve all had that quick, cheap pizza that tastes like cardboard, but this time we did it right! We ordered carry out from Noce's, a pizzeria in Montgomery.  It was delicious and worked out perfectly with our big family!

The biggest pizza we had was the White Dream.  It was a giant pizza with garlic and oil for sauce, topped with mozzarella and ricotta cheeses, tomato, broccoli and basil!  The lightness of the garlic and oil sauce was great for a hot summer night and the veggies added good flavor!

The second pizza we ordered was what our family calls “The Bill Special”.  My father-in-law is not so much of a health-nut but he can order a great pizza.  A no sauce pizza with extra cheese and bacon!  I hate to admit it but it’s delicious!  The cheese was perfectly melted and the bacon adds a salty crunch that is to die for!  With a hint of garlic in each bite, what more could you ask for?
The other two pizza’s we order were a bit more on the “typical” side but perfect for the kids.    One was a half bacon, half cheese pizza and the other was a good old pepperoni ‘za.  The kids ate it up and asked for more of the bacon and cheese, but the pepperoni was a bit spicy for their liking (okay for the adults). 

The only other thing we ordered were two Caesar salads which were nicely packed with the dressing on the side. Portions were enormous, but the salad itself was just okay.
Our total for one large specialty pizza, three medium pizzas and two salads came to $73!!!! Better than going out for a meal but a bit expensive for pizza!
All in all the experience of Noce’s was positive! I think it hit the spot, was much better than your average pizza joint and left us with plenty of leftovers for the other busy days and nights ahead with the kids! I’d say, give it a try and definitely get the “Bill Special”! :)


Noce's Pizzeria on Urbanspoon

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Review: Paxton's Grill

It has been so hot and miserable outside.  There is no other way to put this weather we have been having for at least two or three weeks now.  When my friends Alli and April and I decided to get together for dinner, we would have loved to enjoy a place with a nice patio and breeze, but that is not really a choice with the weather we have had.  April suggested Paxton's Grill, located in Loveland right on the Loveland Bike Trail.  This place has a great patio looking over the trail, but we couldn't take the heat, so we sat inside.

Paxton's is a typical bar and grill on the inside.  It is very packed in there. There are many bar tables, regular tables, and a bar.  I felt a little cramped, but not uncomfortable. I noticed that this place slowly got very busy, so I was glad we got there when we did.  After talking with my friends who have been there before, they said that Paxton's is almost always crowded.  I could tell that this restaurant has a lot of locals and regular customers.  The rest of the mood was lively, loud-but not too loud-with a variety of clients: teenagers, families, older couples, as well as twenty-somethings. 

Paxton's menu is a somewhat typical bar and grill menu with a couple dishes that seem unique.  They offer a variety of appetizers, including fried pickles, hummus, wings and nachos.  April is a fan of the zucchini slices so we shared an order of those.  These are beer battered and served with ranch dressing.  I thought these were pretty good...a pretty standard fried appetizer, but I did like the batter.  It wasn't too greasy and a bit crunchy which I like.

I had a really hard time deciding what to order.  Paxton's menu has a good amount of entree salads: cobb salad, mandarin chicken, and buffalo chicken salads to name a few. They all sounded good to me, but I just couldn't figure out what kind of mood I was in.  The rest of the menu offers sandwiches, burgers, paninis, wraps, and a few platters. I finally decided to try to the Bourbon St. Chicken sandwich.  The sandwiches are served with chips or you can substitute fries or onion rings for an upcharge.  I was in the mood for a side salad, so I got a side Caesar instead.  The salad came out first and was pretty good.  The lettuce tasted fresh and had just enough dressing.

My sandwich was grilled chicken topped with sauteed onions and mushrooms smothered in homemade bourbon glaze....so MESSY.  This sandwich was overall pretty good.  Nothing that I would really remember again though.  I liked the bourbon glaze, but would have maybe liked a bit more of it.  The onions and mushrooms were fine.

Alli went with the buffalo chicken wrap, which is served with waffles fries.  I didn't try the wrap but Alli liked it and it looked pretty good. I tried the waffle fries which I thought were very good!

April got the BLT and substituted waffle fries for her chips.  She also seemed pleased with her sandwich. It appeared to be a pretty standard BLT. 


I thought Paxton's was okay.  Like I said,  a pretty typical bar and grill.  Service was standard.  I liked its location and thought that was definitely a perk. I would like to go again when it is a bit cooler out to enjoy the patio, but otherwise, I probably wouldn't make the drive just for the food.

~Kate

Food: 2
Service: 2.5
Overall Experience: 3

Paxton's Grill on Urbanspoon

Monday, August 8, 2011

Recipe: Costa Rican-Style Tilapia

Today I want to share with you one of my favorite recipes! I found it on the Food Network website when searching for tilapia recipes. While it does have a pretty long list of ingredients, most of them are pretty basic things I usually have on hand. However - it does call for a lot of "fresh" ingredients, which I normally don't have on hand. I use fresh cilantro and lime juice, but store-bought orange juice and canned pineapple. I think it's fine without using fresh.

Ingredients (serves 4 - I cut in half)
1 cup long grain white rice (I used whole grain)
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 lime, juiced
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup finley chopped fresh cilantro
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp sugar
salt & pepper
4 tilapia filets
2 cups jarred or homemade tomato salsa
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinse
2 cups diced fresh pineapple
2 limes, thinly sliced

Start out by cooking your rice in the chicken broth -- I forgot to read this step and used water, which was fine but it probably would have been more flavorful with the chicken broth.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Next, whisk together the orange juice, lime juice, oil, 2 tbsp of the cilantro, the garlic, sugar and S&P. I just got a new garlic press, and used it for the first time on this recipe. It was amazing!! I can't believe I've never had one before! If you don't already have one, I highly recommend purchasing one to mince fresh garlic in seconds! :) Once those ingredients are mixed together, add the tilapia to the marinade and refrigerate for 20 minutes - turning occasionally.

Stir together the cooked rice, salsa, beans, pineapple and remaining 2 tbsp of cilantro in a baking dish.



Remove the tilapia from the marinade, reserve the marinade, and lay the fish over the rice mixture. Pour the reserved marinade over top of the fish, and shingle the lime slices over the fish.



Bake in the oven for 25 - 30 minutes, or until the fish is opaque. Garnish with fresh cilantro and enjoy!!

 

Friday, August 5, 2011

Guest Blog: Open-face Buffalo Chicken Pizza Calzones

Thank you so much to our good friend Anne for a great Friday Guest Blog today! Looks delicious - and great photos!!
___________________________________________________________________________

Many thanks to Kate and Kris for inviting us to guest blog!

As avid Internet recipe hunters, Ryan and I found this gem of a food blog called Baked Bree, where we’ve had good luck finding simple yet delicious and fun food to make.

One of our recent favorite recipes is a spin on her Pizza Skewer concoction, which is an ooey-gooey pizza roll/open-face calzone appetizer. But instead of making pizza-flavored bites, we substituted blue cheese, hot sauce and chicken to create a buffalo chicken version. But just to be clear, the pizza ones are equally as good so do yourself a favor and try those, too.


Ingredients
• Pizza dough (1 Trader Joe’s pre-made crust)
• ½ cup of flour for rolling
• 1 ½ cups of chicken (leftover rotisserie chicken chopped into bite-sized pieces)
• ¼ cup ranch dressing (plus additional for dipping sauce)
• ¾ cup finely grated, sharp cheddar cheese
• ¼ cup buffalo hot sauce (I like it spicy, so use less if you don’t)
• Crumbled blue cheese

Recipe Steps

Ryan and I have a bit of an obsession with homemade pizza, and we’ve been experimenting with what pizza dough gets the best results. I read on a blog that Trader Joe’s pre-made pizza crust is pretty tasty and easy to use. This has become our de-facto standard whenever we are craving homemade pizza or calzones.

Trader Joe’s pizza crust also works great in this recipe. Before you roll out the dough, you’re going to want to take it out of the fridge and let it sit for about 30 minutes until it becomes close to room temperature. This will make it easier to roll. Once the dough is ready, roll it out to about a 12” pie. Remember to use plenty of flour (on the rolling pin and cutting board) when rolling it out so it doesn’t stick. After the dough is rolled, layer the ingredients as you would a pizza – first spread the ranch, then the buffalo sauce and then sprinkle the chicken and cheddar cheese.



I know it might be tempting to throw this into the oven, but wait! Next, roll-up the pizza like you would a cinnamon roll as shown below.



Cut the roll into 1” segments and discard the ends of the roll. Grease a cookie sheet or pizza pan, and prop up the 1” segments with about 1” – 2” apart.



Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 20 minutes. Pull out the sheet, and make sure the dough is fully cooked before brushing additional hot sauce and sprinkling the blue cheese crumbles on top. Place back in the oven for an additional five or so minutes.



Serve with ranch dipping sauce and some carrots and celery to cool your mouth down and for a healthy touch. Ryan says he likes these just as much heated up again the next day, or a late-night drunken snack.

Thanks again to Kate and Kris for letting us share our yummy take on this appetizer! Enjoy!

Monday, August 1, 2011

Mac's Pizza Pub

I was recently craving pizza and wanted to go somewhere that I hadn't been in a long time. That made me think of Mac's Pizza Pub.  I have only been here one other time and didn't really eat, but I had tried their Gyro Pizza at the Taste of Cincinnati last year and loved it.  So, Ross and I decided to on a Friday night. 

Mac's is located on W. McMillan in Clifton on UC's campus.  It is definitely more of a college restaurant, but the crowd was definitely mixed.  There were students, couples, as well as people in there 30s and 40s.  One thing I always love about going to places near college campuses are the prices.  They always have better deals for drinks! Our server was great, she was very friendly and offered some of the specials that were going on. This night, well drinks were $2 and some flavored vodkas were $3.  Very reasonable.

We decided to have a drink or two before ordering.  While we were enjoying our drinks, I took in the decor and enjoyed watching the different patrons that were coming in and out. Mac's front room consists mostly of booths and the back has a bar with high tops surrounding multiple TVs.  The decor has some eclectic pieces as well as some UC memorabilia.  In a little "hallway" there is a shuffleboard table that seems to attract many people. 

We finally ordered and I had to go with the gyro pizza and a side salad.  After hearing some of our server's recommendations, Ross went with the "unhealthy" burger.

The side salad was good, it had plenty of toppings and just the right size for a side salad. 

Next our entrees came out.  The gyro pizza was just as good as I had remembered!  I don't even particularly like gyros, but I love this pizza.  It is cheesey with a combination of great Mediterranean-type flavors.  The crust is crispy on the outside and soft in the middle, which I like.  A personaly 8 inch pizza was around $8 or $9 and I had a bit left over as well. 

Ross' burger looked good but I didn't try it.  It had a bit too many toppings ofr my liking, but Ross seemed to be pleased.  It had jalapenos, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion and pepper jack cheese. This was served with waffle fries that were a nice alternative to regular fries. 

We continued to have another drink and attempted to play the shuffle board...however, some older guys were hogging the table and wouldn't let us play...they weren't even playing at that moment, they were eating!! So annoying...

Anyways, the service was great at Mac's.  I believe our server's name was Nicole and she was always on top of it, very friendly, and prompt.  I really enjoyed Mac's and would love to back again any time soon!
~Kate

Food: 4
Service: 5
Overall Experience: 4.5

Mac's Pizza Pub on Urbanspoon