Restaurant Review: C&O Cucina

C&O Cucina - lunch on June 13, 2015

My niece graduated from college last month and we held her graduation lunch celebration at C&O Cucina, an Italian restaurant she and her friends had discovered when they were scoping out restaurants in the area. On yelp, C&O is rated 4 stars and almost all of the reviews rave about their garlic knot rolls. So does C&O because said rolls are prominently advertised via a banner at the front of the restaurant.

Garlic Knot Rolls

The restaurant itself, aside from the banner, doesn’t exactly scream “we’re a restaurant!” and it’s set on a busy street with no obvious street parking. There is a small lot for valet service next to the restaurant but it’s easy to miss if you’re driving by it too quickly *cough*. Still, if you do happen to turn in time, valet parking is only $5.50.

Antipasti

When we first walked in, a waiter was walking by with a huge platter piled high with fresh, warm, buttery garlic knot rolls. I almost followed him without bothering to check in and find our table but realized in time that that might be both tacky and gauche. But don’t think I didn’t consider it.

OMG, one bite and I understood why yelp mentioned these so prominently. They’re delicious. And that’s an understatement. Warm, soft but slightly crisp on the outside, perfect chewy bread texture, just the right amount of garlic. Bread lover’s paradise. Delicious, I tell you. I made myself stop after consuming two but I’m not sure that was a good move since I don’t live in the area and when am I going to be able to have these again? My niece advised that you’re not supposed to even consider stopping until you’ve had at least 3. She’s smart; she just graduated with honors from college. I should’ve listened to her.

Shrimp Ravioli

I feel like I can just stop the review there and let the pictures speak for themselves. I didn’t know what everyone else ordered (there were 13 of us) but I snapped pics of most of them. I do know everyone raved about the antipasti platters we ordered as appetizers. I ended up getting the Gnocchi Bolognese. I normally don’t order gnocchi dishes because they can be pretty heavy and most gnocchi entrees are pure carbs. But this came in a Bolognese sauce that was pretty meaty so I felt like I got some protein in. The gnocchi was fine but it was really the Bolognese sauce that made the dish. Also pretty freaking delicious.

Gnocchi Bolognese

Lasagna

Afterward, a few of us, including me (of course) ordered dessert. All of us got the molten chocolate cake with ice cream. If you’ve read a sample of my previous restaurant reviews, you’ll see the pattern emerge that this is the dessert I get most often. You’d think I’d go for a bit more variety but whenever I’m confronted with a new dessert menu, it’s honestly the most appealing choice on there 9 times out of 10. Although it is a pretty standard dessert and comes with the ubiquitous sprig of mint that I promptly take off as soon as I’ve taken the picture for posterity.

Seafood Salad

Lamb Osso Bucco

The dessert was good because it was served warm, the middle was appropriately molten and it came topped with ice cream. I tried, unsuccessfully, to put aside my dessert snobbery of thinking “I could make this” and just stayed in the moment, savoring my warm molten chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream. I mean, yeah, I really could make and have made this but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of it. Or from thinking about those warm, buttery garlic rolls. Props to C&O Cucina for the perfect place for a graduation lunch with great food and great service.

Chocolate Lava Cake

Parmesan Garlic Noodles with Shrimp

Parmesan Garlic Noodles with Shrimp - made June 27, 2015, recipe adapted from Happily Unprocessed

I recently hit my 1-year anniversary at work and because we’re fed breakfast, lunch and dinner (and yes, I’m pretty much at work the entire time those meals are served so it’s really nice to be able to get good food without having to take the time to plan, grocery shop and actually cook), I’ve very rarely cooked in the past 12 months. I’ve done it a couple of times for church potlucks but in terms of actually feeding myself, those incidences are rare.

And when I do cook, a simple, easy-to-make recipe is critical. Bonus if it tastes good and I don’t give myself food poisoning. Clearly, I have a low bar. I’m happy to say this is one such recipe that meets my criteria. Double bonus that it freezes well so I just made a batch, ate a serving and portioned out the rest for future meals, housed in my freezer for the upcoming weekends.

This was really easy to make and the ingredients were simple to pick up, meaning I knew what they all were and could get them without any difficulty. I think the longest part of the recipe was just peeling the garlic and mincing it so it wasn’t hard at all nor did it take up much time. The sauce wasn’t too cheesy or overpowering with the garlic. Instead, it was a nice “light” flavor. I added some shrimp for a bit of protein and voila, easy dinner. That’s my kind of meal.

3 teaspoons olive oil
3 tablespoons butter
5-6 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 cups chicken stock
1/2 box angel hair pasta
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup whole milk
1 cup shrimp, cooked
1-2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped fine (I used basil and it worked just fine)

1. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add the chicken stock
3. Turn the heat up to high and let it come to a boil.
4. Add the pasta and cook according to directions.
5. Take the saucepan off the heat and add the parmesan cheese and stir until completely melted.
6. Add the milk, shrimp and parsley (or basil).
7. Serve immediately

Frosted Chocolate Cake

Frosted Chocolate Cake - made June 12, 2015 from Delightful E Made

Loved the cake, thought the frosting was too sweet. That would sum up this recipe for me so I’m not sure what else to say about it.

In essence, it’s another version of Texas Fudge Cake. I think I’ve got chocolate cakes down to an art form as long as I can make it in a 9 x 13 pan and not worry about layers, stacking them or frosting them. This was a really good chocolate cake – great flavor and cakey texture that’s just right. Bake only until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with moist crumbs so you get that moist, fluffy texture. 

Some might like the sweetness of the frosting so I’ve included it as is below. If you’re like me and are not a frosting person, try substituting some of the sugar for unsweetened cocoa powder and thin with a little milk if it’s too stiff. The cocoa powder will give it more chocolate punch and temper some of the sweetness.

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup butter (1 stick)
½ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup cocoa
1 cup water
½ cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Frosting
¼ cup milk
1 cup sugar
¼ cup butter (1/2 stick)
½ cup chocolate chips
1 cup mini marshmallows (or 10 large marshmallows)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 13 pan with aluminum foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In mixing bowl, whisk flour, sugar and salt together. Set aside. 
3. In saucepan, add butter, oil, cocoa, and water and on medium heat, bring to a boil. Pour hot liquid over dry ingredients and stir until combined. 
4. Dissolve baking soda in buttermilk, and add to mixture. Whisk in eggs and vanilla. Pour batter into pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Let cool.
5. For frosting: In medium saucepan, heat milk, sugar, and butter stirring often. Promptly remove from heat after mixture comes to a boil. Add in chocolate chips and marshmallows, and beat until both are melted and smooth. Let cool for about 1-2 minutes, while stirring often. Pour frosting over cake, and let set. 

Pop Up Shop: Annie the Baker Cookies

Annie the Baker Cookies - pop up shop on July 2, 2015

I’ve written before about my culinary school classmate, Annie, who, after we graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in St Helena, went on to become the executive pastry chef at Mustard’s Grill then eventually opened her own business: Annie the Baker Cookies. She sells online and at local farmers’ markets in Napa Valley as well as supplies local businesses with her cookies.

I’m happy to say I was able to get her into our pop up shop at work as well. I love our pop up shop for exactly this opportunity it provides to small businesses to have a different avenue with which to sell their wares and get additional exposure. Annie went through the normal pop up shop vendor vetting process and set up shop the day before our 4^th of July holiday. I have to admit I was a little bit concerned about the timing as I didn’t know if a lot of people would be taking off early for the holiday and whether there would be enough people on campus. Annie bounced numbers off me on how many cookies she should bring – 400 or 500? She normally sells 300-350 cookies during a typical morning at the Napa Valley Farmers Market. I thought it was better to err on the side of caution, meaning it was better to have leftovers than to run short. Plus, let’s be honest, I’m a fan of Annie’s cookies so I would have been more than happy to buy up the leftovers. Because I’m a good friend like that….

It was the super busy period for my group but I managed to pop out early when Annie’s pop up shop was supposed to initially open at 11 so I could lend moral support and buy cookies for my hardworking team. They were just finishing the set up so I was her first customer and promptly bought an assortment of a dozen cookies. I had the double intent of sharing the goodness with my coworkers but also creating some buzz internally so if people liked her cookies, they could go to the pop up shop and buy some as well. I had also arranged for my friend K to come visit me for a late lunch that day as she’s met Annie and tried her cookies before so K could also provide some cookie business and moral support. 

It turns out all of my precautions and concerns were for naught. When K arrived around 1, Annie had been open for close to 2 hours. Pop up shop hours are 11-3:30. We stopped by to say hello and her cookie jars were about half full with most of the cookies and I knew she had backup containers to refill the jars so I figured we were fine despite the people now clustered around the pop up shop buying cookies. I was thrilled and relieved Annie was getting business and her pop up shop appeared to be a success.

Ha, turned out that was an understatement. When K and I returned after getting salads, we were greeted with only 2 cookie jars left that had any cookies. Everything else was sold out and it wasn’t even 2 o’clock yet. While we were standing there getting an update from Annie on how things went, more people kept coming by and buying up the last of her cookies. By the time we left (and we didn’t stay that long), she was down to a handful of cookies.Not surprising if you like great cookies and have tried Annie’s. She told me she had brought 425 cookies. She was sold out by 2:15 and had to close up shop early when she ran out of cookies to sell. K wasn’t even able to get her favorite (and mine) of the Milk Chocolate Toffee Cookies as Annie had run out. Good thing I had bought the dozen earlier that morning as that was all I was able to get as well. No, I didn’t eat all 12 since I shared but I ate the Milk Chocolate Toffee before K had even arrived because – you know – cookie.

The cookies I bought to share

Annie and I are kindred spirits when it comes to cookies. We both believe they have to be chubby not thin, chewy not cakey and moist not overbaked. She prides herself on erring on the side of cookie dough more than baked cookie. Apparently she’s not alone because I haven’t met a person yet who doesn’t like an Annie the Baker cookie. I’m hoping she’ll be asked back to have another pop up shop and the people who didn’t get to try them the first time will have another shot at it. If you’re not able to see her at the Napa farmers’ market, she does sell her cookies online and you can choose your own assortment. I will always go with the Milk Chocolate Toffee but it’s good to have choices. 

Peanut Butter Extreme

SugaRainbow

Milk Chocolate Toffee Cookies

Semisweet Chocolate Chip

Tuxedo Cookies

Milk Chocolate Toffee Cookie

Annie the Baker, almost sold out

This cookie got sold while we were standing there

SugaRainbow

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies - made dough June 6, 2015 from Big, Soft, Chewy Cookies by Jill Van Cleave

Second recipe I tried from Soft, Thick, Chewy Cookies and this one fared better than the standard one for Chocolate Chip Cookies. It’s all about adding that second “Chocolate” in the title and in the dough. Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies are easy to mix together for the dough. The trick is in the baking. You don’t ever want to overbake cookies (or they’ll be dry) and you don’t especially want to overbake chocolate cookies. Because, you know, what a waste of chocolate.

But it’s easy to do since you can’t go by the color of the cookies as they’re baking because, yeah, they’re chocolate. “Golden brown” on a chocolate cookie just doesn’t work. I time chocolate cookies but I confess, sometimes I forget how long a batch has already been baking so I default to the appearance test. You want to bake the cookies only just until the middle no longer looks raw and shiny. The cookies will be puffed up but there shouldn’t be too many cracks yet. It’s okay (more than okay) if the middles sink a little after you take the cookies out. If they stay puffy, chances are you’ve overbaked it. It’s okay to underbake chocolate cookies since the chocolate will set as the cookies cool and that’s how you end up with a moist fudgy texture.

These weren’t super-duper chocolatey (see Essence of Chocolate Squares for my chocolate standard) but were chocolatey enough to earn their moniker. They did live up to the source cookbook title in that they were soft, thick and chewy. 

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, cut into pieces

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

¼ cup whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup chocolate chips

1. Melt chocolate in the top of a double boiler over barely simmering water. Set aside to cool. 
2. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg, milk and vanilla and blend. 
3. Add melted chocolate and stir until just combined. 
4. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. 
5. Portion into golf-ball-size dough balls, cover and chill or freeze until firm, several hours or overnight.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and space dough balls evenly. 
7. Bake until middle no longer looks raw, about 12-15 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheets for 2 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.