sweet and savory

carolina and i headed to sur la table this morning 

for an adventure in crepe making!

the menu:

-fresh sage crepes with apple- dried currant chutney

w/ blue cheese and toasted hazelnuts

-creamy chicken and mushroom crepes 

w/ frizzled leeks

-chocolate crepes

w/ vanilla-mascarpone cheese and strawberries

-banana and dulce de leche pastry creme filled crepes

when we walked in i was immediately in heaven. my kind of heaven at least. a humongous, commercial fridge. double decker ovens. gas stove tops. mixers everywhere. every little gadget and gizmo you could dream of. one of those instant, sanitizing dishwashers. ahhhhhh pure heaven!

we learned a lot of great little how-to's and tips for the kitchen, my favorite being the correct way to hold a knife while chopping veggies. so simple, yet it will take a bit of practice to master.

some other tips were to add dry ingredients into wet to minimize lumps. also, when sautéing veggies and chicken, use a combo of canola and olive oil so it doesn't burn as easily. and another awesome tip was to toast the seasonings before adding them to really amp up their potency.

something else that was fantastic was trying all of their fancy shmancy equipment. so SO fun. every single thing we used, i thought i wouldn't be able to cook again unless i had it. not to mention the fact that there were about 5 helpers running around bringing us ingredients and taking away our dishes to wash them then returning them. incredible. absolutely wonderful.

caro was a pro at cooking the crepes. she could flip those puppies and slide 'em right off the pan like a real pastry chef. that is why i hope its ok that i show this clip :) the one time i decide to tape...

mmmmmmm...

stinkin' delicious!
i am pretty sure we waddled out of there.

everything was so fun.

i would definitely recommend it to anyone and can't wait for another opportunity.

and, hands-down, the absolute best part was

doing it with my pal!

we have already decided next time we are bringing along the men to live it up in the kitchen with us. i can't think of a better double date night! the whole time i was there i just kept thinking, "chris would love this. chris would LOVE this!". I'm so thankful for a husband who would not only think and plan such a thoughtful gift, but also spend his whole morning and afternoon HAPPILY watching the kids so i could have some fun time with a great friend. he hit a home run with this one!