Friday High Fives (01/06/06)

This week's five items, ideas, and individuals that I am thankful for, appreciate, or admire.

Silver Spoon
Not a traditional Italian cookbook in the sense that it is a collection of recipes that you'll see on Molto Mario but more of a snapshot of 1950's Italian cooking done in the family home. The best thing about this book is that the recipes do not require exotic equipment or cooking techniques and covers a wide variety of foods. This is the perfect cookbook for someone that is just starting to explore cooking and maybe doesn't have extensive culinary skills or an extensive cookbook library.

Arrabiata Sauce
I had Penne Arrabiata for the first time last summer at Club Lucky and was hooked. When I had some time off during the holidays I decided to make my own version of the sauce and, following the traditions of Italian cooking, modified the recipe I got out of Silver Spoon to include a couple Chipotles in Adobo sauce to provide the heat. Yum!

B.Y.O.B.'s
Such a great way to enjoy and explore different wines with different types of foods and not have to worry about getting screwed by a gigantic markup. Having just started drinking wines within the last year or two I am still not really comfortable gambling on wines I am not familiar with off the wine list or able to talk intelligently with a sommelier yet (something to get over in 2006). So BYOB's combined with wine shops like Kafka, Que Syrah, and Howard's and their incredibly helpful staffs allow a wine newbie like myself the opportunity to "kick the tires" on a bunch of different vineyards and varietals affordably.

Rose Bowl
My absolute favorite bowl game. I love the Rose Parade, the history, and the meaning it has to Big Ten schools. I was a little sad to see them move away from the Big Ten vs. Pac 10 match-ups but it was only a matter of time before the Granddaddy of Them All took its place amongst the other elite bowl games in the BCS rota .

Cinnamon Dolce Latte
With the introduction of this flavor for winter season 2006 and coming off the heels of the Pumpkin Spice and Gingerbread lattes, Starbucks officially has me in a death grip.

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