Blais-in' Through The ATL

Photo from johnmariani.com

My mom is in town this week (yay!) and we went to Atlanta yesterday for some high-calibur shopping and eating. We also happen to be huge Top Chef fans - especially Top Chef All Stars. So, we went to the only logical place to go - Richard Blais's (he won TCAS) Flip Burger Boutique in Buckhead. We were EXCITED.

How cool is the inside of this burger place? Very modern and very spotless. Awesome.

Our meal



Candycane Beet Salad ($4)



The Local: local organic grass-fed beef, tomme cheese, lettuce, yellow tomato,
red onion, coca cola ketchup, picked peach & pecans
($14)

Nutella + Burnt Marshmallow Liquid Nitrogen Shake ($6)

The meal was incredible - hands down the best burger either of us had ever eaten. What a flavor combo! Pickled peaches? Coca cola ketchup? The man has an imagination. Also, that beet salad was to die for! And who would ever put a beet salad with arugula on a burger menu. Richard Blais would. I might start salivating if I start talking about the milkshake. Holy moley it was fantastic! It was unlike any milkshake I've ever had in my life - rich, creamy, chocolatey - and the best part? There was no air in it like most milk shakes. It was solid deliciousness. And the topping of burnt marshmallows? Perfection.

It made my mouth glad. :) So, if you're in the neighborhood, go. And if you're not, figure out a way to get there.

~ Mari

Georgia Peach Salad with Arugula, Avocado, and Grapefruit

Before I moved to Georgia, I'd never eaten a peach before. I had eaten things that looked a lot like peaches, had fuzzy peach-like skin, and had that funky pit in the center. But, the flavor of these imposters was dull and the texture of the flesh was mealy. Nope. They couldn't have been peaches. I saw signs for Lane Farms (a peach orchard about 15-20 minutes from here in Fort Valley) that boasted fresh Georgia peaches and so I went - on a hunt for something that had flavor. And that, my friends is what I found. After eating one of their peaches, I knew that all the peaches I'd eaten before were faux fruit - peach imposters.

Since I got those peaches, I've put them on my cereal each morning, added them to salads for lunch, and eaten them with angel food cake for dessert. I was watching my favorite cooking show, Back to Basics with the Barefoot Contessa, and she made an avocado and grapefruit salad. It looked delicious, but I wanted to spice it up a bit (no offense, Ina. I love you.). I just made her recipe and added fresh baby arugula and some sliced Georgia peaches!

It was the perfect lunch - the acidity of the dressing and grapefruit went perfectly with the peppery flavor of the arugula and the sweet goodness of the peaches.

As you can see, I enjoyed it quite a bit. I encourage you to enjoy the last of this season's peaches... especially if they're Georgia peaches. The other ones in the grocery stores... well... we know all about them.

Enjoy!

~ Mari

Blueberry-Peach Pocket Pies

We had an abundance of fresh blueberries in the fridge, so I thought I would use them in these cute little pocket pies (I got the idea from this month's Fine Cooking). They were ridiculously easy because I just happen to keep frozen pie dough around. It's a good idea to make more than you need (I usually do by accident anyway) when you do make pie dough so you don't have to make it every time you need it.

Basically, all I did was mix fresh blueberries, roughly chopped peaches, about 1/4 cup granulated sugar, a splash of vanilla extract, and some ground cinnamon in a bowl. Then I rolled out the pie dough into circles, put a blob of the blueberry mixture into the middle, and folded the sides up all around it.

Then I took the leftover blueberry mixture and cooked it down (with a little water) and made a sauce.

Then I strained the sauce (to get all the peelings and stuff out).

Mmmmm... deep purple goodness...

After the pies cooled, I drizzled the sauce on them and put a dollop of fresh whipped cream (just say NO to Redi-Whip if you can!). DELISH!

Yummers! I loved it because it wasn't too sweet - it was just the perfect balance of sweetness and tartness.

Enjoy!

~ Mari

Bumbles

I'm quite a big fan of bumble bees (yellow jackets, wasps, and hornets - not so much) and I find that I really miss their buzzing in the winter. So, I was happy to hear them flying around our peach tree outside and I wanted to capture them in the act of pollinating (does that sound wrong?).



This guy, as cute and furry as he is, is the stinging kind of bee. That's OK, though, because he was much more interested in pollinating than stinging me. I like how he's lifting his little bee leg and anchoring himself to the branch.

And this guy... is your friend. He is a Mason Bee and doesn't sting! Gotta love him for it. See that white dot on his face? That equals friendliness. :) So, when you're swatting at bumble bees in your yard, don't worry about this guy.

So, I'm gonna buzzz outta here (horrible joke, but I couldn't resist because of the photo)!

Happy Spring!

~ Mari

Double Chocolate Chip

When Chef Hallman told us we could make any cookies (from the list) that we wanted... we went for the double chocolate chip ones. I mean... who wouldn't? They were DELICIOUS. Just so everyone knows.

We also made three peach pies (with double crusts - meaning there is a crust on the bottom and one on the top) in our group. We didn't get to try them, but ours looked amazing... as opposed to the other groups' pies that looked...well...sad. Haha. A trick that we learned is this:

- If you brush your pie crust with egg wash, it will brown & bubble

- If you brush your pie crust with heavy cream, it will look rich and shiny

We went with rich and shiny for something different. And, as I said before, it went over quite well. I hope that whoever gets to eat those pies appreciates them! (Granted, it could be me... tomorrow... in culinary cafe)

We also made Parker House dinner rolls - which were sorta fun, but not nearly as fun as making 2 lbs. of chocolate cookie dough. ;)

No pictures today - but, I'll try to take some on Wednesday. It will be our first production class. We will actually be serving real live people food that we made. Eeek! And... I'll be "chef of the day." Great. Haha. I'm sure I'll have some stories... and hopefully some photos to add to the blog as well.