a berry good cocktail

The 4th of July is one of those holidays where exceptional alcoholic beverages are called for. Feeling in the festive mood, I decided to make a drink centered on the "red, white, and blue" theme, minus the "white." It's a simple and cheap concoction, but tastes and looks as if you'd spent a lot. It's a good drink to make for guests, making them think you are some kind of drink wizard even if you have absolutely no skills behind the bar.

All you need is a bottle of rose sparkling wine, a bottle of good quality berry juice, and an assortment of fresh berries to let freely float around your glass. I went to Trader Joe's and bought a ten dollar bottle of sparkling wine, a three dollar bottle of "Triple Berry" juice, and a bag of frozen blackberries and strawberries for two dollars each. I put an equal amount of sparkling wine and juice in each glass, and put in a handful of berries. Frozen ones help cool the drink if you have no time to refrigerate, and also add a delightful freshness as they melt.

Seattle

Today my mom, sister and I made a trip to Seattle. Rather than going downtown, which we are bored with lately after our many Christmas trips, we went to the U-District. This neighborhood is more quaint and cozy than the busy and hectic downtown area. The thing I love most about it are the cafes. After walking around a bit, we discovered a pretty little restaurant called Grace Kitchen. They have fresh coffee, pastries, and sandwiches. I went with the eggplant & goat cheese sandwich on cibatta bread. Just thinking about it makes me want another one. And isn't that chandelier beautiful? Grace Kitchen is so modern and sleek but has touches of antiquity and warmth, like the brick walls and chalk boards.

We're going back tomorrow to walk around in the daytime. The sun sets so early in the winter, which is probably the reason I'm not a fan of this season. After Christmas, winter gets old quick!

gli spaghetti con i pomodori e parmesano

Pasta is always good to make when you don't know what to make for dinner. It's fast, simple, and you can easily throw together ingredients you already have to make it delicious. Tonight I was in the tomato mood, so I created a dish with a name that boasts about my Italian speaking skills. "Gli spaghetti con i pomodori e parmesano" sounds complicated but it's really easy. It's almost like regular spaghetti, but a little fancier. And yes, Bella the dog will show up if you add as much parmesan as I did.

Ingredients:

-Spaghetti noodles
-A large can of diced tomatoes
-Pesto
-Parmesan cheese
-One long baguette
-A clove of garlic
-Butter
-One to two cups of baby tomatoes
-Olive oil
-Sugar


Steps:

-In a large pot, boil three to four cups of water and add the noodles.
-While the noodles are cooking, pour the can of diced tomatoes in another pot and simmer with two tablespoons of pesto and about half a cup of parmesan cheese.
-Slice each baby tomato in half (use as many as you want- I used about a cup).
-Line up the halved baby tomatoes on a baking sheet.
-Drizzle about two tablespoons of olive oil over the tomatoes, making sure to spread it evenly.
-Sprinkle about two teaspoons of sugar over the tomatoes. This helps them caramelize and get that pretty golden brown color.
-Roast them in the oven at 320 degrees for around 20 minutes, or until they start to look light brown and wrinkly.
-While everything is cooking, cut up some bread.
-Dice the garlic clove and spread evenly over each piece of bread with butter.
-Sprinkle parmesan on each piece of bread and put in the oven for about 15 minutes or until the parmesan starts to brown.
-Once everything is cooked, put noodles onto plates, scoop sauce on it, top it with some parmesan cheese and baby tomatoes.

Buon appetito!