Month: April 2012

Atlantic City’s Newest Gem: The Revel

CarrieLeave a comment

Last Tuesday, I had the opportunity of checking out the Revel in Atlantic City.  Here’s a tip if you plan on checking out this new destination…plan on staying at another casino and take advantage of the cheaper room rates.  I happened to have a comped room at Harrah’s which allowed me to save money on the room and gamble it away instead.  I took a taxi over to Revel so I could take advantage of the complimentary drinks while playing the slots and table games.

When walking in the door of the Revel, here’s what you see.

 

This crazy escalator is only the first set of three escalators spanning the floors of entertainment that await you.  The first floor is the casino floor as seen in the picture below.
There are extravagant light fixtures and furniture everywhere.  This is the preview to the grand opening over Memorial Day weekend so not everything is open and fully functioning.  There is a band that performs every night off to the side of the casino in what I’d like to call a mini auditorium.  I am looking forward to going to the burlesque club in the fall.  It was not open when I was there last week but the sign said that it was opening over Easter weekend.  If it is anything like what I’ve seen so far, I’m sure it is every bit as extravagant as the lounge in the movie Burlesque.  Who knows? Maybe Christina will perform there some day.
Those are the bathrooms!  It’s so pretty I had to take a picture.
Beyonce is performing three nights over Memorial Day weekend for the grand opening.  The tickets start at $95 and go up to $500.  Better save up if you plan on attending that concert.  I think I’ll just wait until September and take advantage of the off-season…Sorry Sasha Fierce!

 

Nothing Beats a Classic

Sadie1 Comment

First order of business: Happy Birthday to my Best Best Friend Karla!

Sometimes when I’m in the mood to bake and I haven’t gone shopping for specific ingredients, I play the pantry game.  What can I make (that I would want to eat) with the items that I already have?  I’m usually short on anything perishable, but if I have butter, the answer is usually: shortbread.  And frankly, it’s hard to get better than shortbread.  Delicious.  Plus you can eat it with some tea and pretend to be British and sophisticated.

Classic Shortbread

Adapted from Ina on the Food Network

yeilds 20 cookies (depending on the size you choose)

Ingredients

  • 3/4 lb unsalted butter (that’s 3 sticks)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 1/2 cups AP flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 8 oz. Semi-Sweet Chocolate (Ina uses bitter-sweet)
  • chopped nuts or sprinkles for decoration

Method

  1. Cream together butter and sugar with electric mixer.  Add vanilla.
  2. Sift in flour and salt.  Mix until dough starts to come together a little bit.
  3. Turn the dough out onto the counter and form into disks to chill in the freezer.
  4. Allow dough to chill for at least 30 minutes.
  5. Preheat oven to 350.
  6. Roll dough out to about 1/4 to 1/2 inch think and use desired cookie cutters to cut shapes.
  7. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.  These are probably better a little on the blond side.
  8. Allow cookies to cool.  Heat chocolate up in microwave for 30 seconds at a time.  Use a fork to stir chocolate and make it shiny.
  9. Use fork to paint chocolate on desired portion of cooled shortbread cookies.  Dip chocolate portion into chopped nuts or sprinkles.  (During the holidays these look great with red and green bead sprinkles)
  10. Stick them in the frige or freezer to help accelerate the cooling process.

Italian Easter Pie

Carrie2 Comments

A few years ago, I made an Easter pie or what the Italian’s call a pizzagaina. It was a lot of work but well worth it in the end. I do not have any Italian in me but I would like to make this a tradition for my family in the future. It is a great dish to add to your brunch menu on Easter. Think about giving it a try next year and let me know if you have a different recipe for one worth trying. I must admit that I am not an expert when it comes to Italian cooking but I sure do appreciate it!

Ingredients
2 1/2 lbs ham (sliced thick from deli-counter or cubed pieces of boiled ham)
1/4 lb prosciutto
1/4 lb pepper ham
1/4 lb capicola
1/2 lb salami
1 lb fresh mozzarella cheese
1 lb mozzarella cheese (1 entire brick of whole milk mozzarella, cubed)
1 lb Farmer’s cheese
3 lbs ricotta cheese
1 stick pepperoni (sliced)
3 tablespoons parmesan cheese
15 eggs
4 lbs pizza dough

Directions:

Cube ham meat. Cut sliced meat by rolling & slicing or cutting with scissors. Cube mozzarella. In very large bowl, add ricotta & farmer’s cheese. Add 15 eggs. Stir with whisk. Add 3 heaping tablespoons Grated cheese. Stir in the cubed meat and cheese.

Brush pan with oil then melted butter. Roll out & lay dough. Add cheese/meat mixture. Add top layer of dough and pinch bottom & top dough seams together tightly.

Brush top with oil then egg. Sprinkle with grated cheese.

Bake 350 for about 90 minutes. To check if it is done, stick a knife in the center and see if it comes out hot.

Remove from oven. Brush top with melted butter. Cool 2-3 hours and then refrigerate. Serve on Easter.