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Canvas & Cabernet

December 5, 2012

One of my book club friends discovered that Omaha recently acquired a new art venue, called Village Canvas and Cabernet where friends can enjoy a glass of wine or beer or nothing if you so choose and discover their creative side. Each night there is a theme and an instructor gives step-by-step instructions while you paint your own canvas masterpiece.

After checking out the schedule the themed night we chose was “Krazy Kat.” Six of us were able to go and enjoy a night of painting, drinking, and lots of laughing. Do you like my abstract cat? I just couldn’t do it. I don’t have a cat, never owned a cat and planned on hanging the painting in our spare bedroom so I picked one of the other themes and just went with it on my own.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times | Tagged with: Book Club, Painting, Wine
Dinner at Bret’s Table

April 12, 2012

Last weekend we were in Minneapolis visiting Dusty’s dad, Dean and stepmom, Julie before I get overly busy with the end of the semester and Dusty gets inundated with last minute details for Big Omaha. Dean and Julie have some good friends, Bret and Jon who we have become close with, in part because they love food just as much as we do (if not more). Bret recently traveled to France and lead a culinary tour around the country, including Provence, where they went to the former home of Julia Child. He also runs private events and classes in the Minneapolis area as well as in his home.

It just happens that this past weekend Bret and Jon were having some friends over for a little day of cooking, eating, and drinking, and we got the privilege to attend. We got some excellent culinary lessons from Bret (who is an excellent teacher by the way) and then ate the beautiful masterpieces we had created. One of our prep jobs was to be in charge of choosing the wines to pair with each dish and I must say we did an excellent job. Minneapolis had this great wine shop, France 44, that had an excellent selection of French wines.

Here’s a look at the menu we prepared:

Aperitifs
Anchovy Tapenade with Crackers
Kir Royal (a popular French cocktail made with creme de cassis–black currant liqueur topped up with champagne)

Plat
Cuisses Poulet farci avec la saucisse avec jus (Stuffed Chicken Thighs)
Pomme de terre parisienne (Parisian Potatoes)
Steamed small carrots

Salad Vert
Fromage

Dessert
Tartelettes au chocolat individuels avec des framboises et crème à la pistache (Individual Chocolate Tarts with Raspberries and Pistachio Cream)

No Comments | Posted in: Family, Food, Fun Times | Tagged with: Cooking Class, Family, Food, Wine
Dante Cooking Class

April 11, 2012

Dusty and I really enjoy food and wine! We absolutely love eating at Dante Ristorante and Pizzeria. Nick, chef and owner, is brilliant and Andy, wine director, has so much energy and passion for not only Italian wine but all wine. The entire staff at Dante’s is the best. If you live in Omaha and haven’t eaten there you need to. Dusty likes to say that it’s a phenomenal pasta place disguised as a pizza shop. Seriously, the pizza is the best in town (Pitch being a close second) but the pasta and green salads are the hidden gem. All of their pasta, dough, mozzarella, and most everything else is made fresh in house. Most everything (if not everything) is locally grown and raised.

Dante’s started offering wine dinners a few month ago that Dusty and I started attending. It’s a great reason to try excellent food and wine and to learn how everything pairs together. For months Nick and Andy have been talking about hosting a cooking class where guests can do a little Italian cooking and end the night with a great dinner. A few weeks ago we were lucky enough to be able to attend and had an absolutely wonderful time. They closed down the restaurant for the night and we were able to go to four different food stations and two different beverage stations to learn about wines, beers, making fresh pasta, making neapolitan pizza, homemade sausage, and breaking down poultry and fish. I learned and did so many interesting things. It was a great date night out with Dusty. I can’t wait to do it again.

No Comments | Posted in: Food, Fun Times, Omaha Night Out | Tagged with: Cooking Class, Dante Pizzeria, Food, Wine
Camping Adventures

October 16, 2011

I don’t know what came over my husband but he decided that he wanted to take me camping. He said something about wanting to build a fire. I wouldn’t consider myself or Dusty big outdoorsy people but the weekend was a success. We drove a couple of hours away to Indian Cave State Park. Even though we had never been to the campgrounds and arrived after dark we got the tent set up and the fire started. It was a nice weekend away from our cell phones. We played yatzee, went hiking, watched the fire, and drank some wine.

No Comments | Posted in: Travel | Tagged with: Camping, Wine
Weekend Trip to Beaune, France

June 30, 2011

During our adventures this summer we spent a weekend in Beaune.Beaune is the wine capital of Burgundy in eastern France and one of the reasons we went to visit (Burgundy wine is one of our favorites). If you can believe it Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France. The town is surrounded by some of the world’s most famous wine villages. Beaune is a walled city, with about half of the battlements, ramparts, and the moat, having survived and in good condition, and the central “old town” is extensive. Beaune has a major food market on Saturdays which we were able to visit while we were there. There are a large number of stall holders supplying a broad selection of products and specialties from Burgundy and the surrounding regions. We had a great weekend of sightseeing, tasting wines, and eating delicious food.

No Comments | Posted in: Travel | Tagged with: Beaune, France, Holiday, Wine
Grape Harvesting

September 20, 2009

This fall a friend of mine, who’s interested in starting her own wine business, asked me if I wanted to harvest grapes with her at a local vineyard. So, here’s a few pictures from my day of picking grapes and drinking wine.

No Comments | Posted in: Fun Times | Tagged with: Grape Harvesting, Wine

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