Perfecting the Pizza Crust with Pizzeria Locale

Perfecting the Pizza Crust with Pizzeria Locale

The pizza crust at Pizzeria Locale is perfectly crispy and chewy thanks to the unique wood-fired oven used in the restaurant.

This method of cooking ensures the classic Neapolitan style pizza found in Italy.

Pizzeria Locale is the brainchild of Chef Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson and Master Sommelier Bobby Stuckey, who own Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder, Colorado. The name Frasca comes from Italy where Frascas are what Italians call their neighborhood restaurants.

With the success of Frasca, Patterson and Stuckey opened Pizzeria Locale next door to Frasca and it became a successful full service restaurant as well. With the help of friend Steve Ells, founder of Chipotle, they figured out how to make it a fast casual concept while still preserving the old-world flavor.

Kansas City has benefitted from the success of the local Boulder chain as they have expanded by opening three locations in the KC metro. Two are in Overland Park and the other is in KC close to Waldo.

There a few secrets to getting the perfect Neapolitan style pizza in just minutes and the first starts with the pizza crust.

I was lucky enough to attend a dough making class at the135th Street location in Overland Park and had a blast.

Chef Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson was there himself teaching us the tips and tricks to the perfect dough.

You will want to plan ahead for pizza night as once the dough is made it needs to sit overnight. You can find the pizza crust recipe here.

 

If you want to make homemade pizza but just don’t have the time to make made-from-scratch dough, just give the Pizzeria Locale that is closest to you a call and tell them you want some dough balls. They will hook you up with fresh pizza dough. If you get your dough to go, get your favorite pizza toppings together and follow steps 11 through 16.

I highly recommend grabbing some Nutella and take a stab at recreating their Nutella dessert pizza. It is so good!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The second secret to the amazing pizza at Pizzeria Locale is using top quality ingredients. They even have in house slicer that slices fresh prosciutto to order.

There are classic pizzas on the menu to order and mine is the spicy chicken, But with fresh basil, tomatoes, mozzarella and other fresh veggies and meats your choices are endless, allowing you to build your perfect pie!

Pizzeria Locale Menu

Lastly is the oven and method of baking. To achieve the wood-fired brick oven bake in just minutes, takes Pizzeria Locale’s state-of-the-art oven, engineered specifically for them. It simulates the cooking experience of old-world Italy, but in a way that meets the needs of a fast casual concept restaurant.

Pizzeria Locale’s Oven

The oven works by sending your made-to-order pizza on a journey around a center flame on a rotating hearth. This bakes the pizza on all sides and in three and a half minutes, your pizza is done!

Spicy Chicken Pizza

I was in Italy a few months ago and had my share of pizza. I have to say, the pizza at Pizzeria Locale is just as good as some I had in Florence and Pisa.

If you have not had the chance to check it out, I encourage you to stop in and create you perfect pie. Then take a stab at pizza night at home using their fabulous crust recipe.

Locations in KC include:

11875 W. 95TH STREET, OVERLAND PARK, KS
11AM-10PM DAILY (913) 438-9262

6455 W. 135TH STREET, OVERLAND PARK, KS
11AM-10PM DAILY (913) 851-5975

505 W. 75TH ST, KANSAS CITY, MO
11AM-10PM DAILY (816) 523-1161

In Good Taste,
Sharm

 

Casting Details for the Great Food Truck Race

Casting Details for the Great Food Truck Race

Food Network’s hit show The Great Food Truck Race is now casting is currently casting for their 8th season. If you have ever dreamed of owning your own food truck now is your chance.  Details are below!

*** Details of the Show ***
In short, it is a cooking competition tv show for individuals (teams of 3) who dream of opening and running their very own food truck, they do not need to own a food truck for the competition. The winner receives their very own food truck and cash prize!!

Those interested can submit their answers to the following questions to foodtruckracecasting@criticalshows.com
1. Names, ages, and city/state of all three teammates (note: it is ideal if you and your teammates live in the same location)
2. Tell us about the personalities of you and your teammates
3. What is the proposed concept for your food truck? Please list potential menu items in detail
4. What would your food truck be called? Why?
5. What skills do you each bring to the team (cooking/selling/marketing etc)?
6. What is your relationship to your two teammates?
7. Send a few photos of you and the teammates (separate photos are ok)
8. Contact info for all three teammates (phone and email!)

Good Luck!

Ticket Giveaway ~ TORUK – The First Flight – Cirque du Soleil Wichita, Kansas Tour Stop

Ticket Giveaway ~ TORUK – The First Flight – Cirque du Soleil Wichita, Kansas Tour Stop

Toruk – The First Flight is Cirque du Soleil’s newest show and will be running January 26-29, 2017 at Intrust Bank Arena and I have tickets to giveaway to the Wichita, Kansas tour stop.

With James Cameron’s input, Toruk – The First Flight is a prequeal to AVATAR, and takes 27 semi trucks full of props and equipment to pull off this visually stunning traveling show.

The show takes place in the majestic land of Pandora, thousands of years prior to AVATAR. This stage production follows two adolescent Omaticaya boys who are courageously trying to save the Tree of Souls from a natural disaster. In order to keep the tree safe they must travel through the Floating Mountains and find the red and orange predator, Toruk, who rules the Pandoran sky.

 

If you have ever experienced a Cirque du Soleil show you know the talent, detail and theatrical phenomenon these shows entail. The majority of the magnificent Cirque du Soleil shows primarily run in Las Vegas with a select few that tour different cities. How Wichita got lucky enough to get a stop on their tour I will never know. How exciting to have such worldwide sensation grace our town.

I am set to check out the show on January 26 and have a giveaway courtesy of the show for two 2-packs for the Jan 26 show as well! I also have a special link that gets you a $10 discount on tickets should you not win the giveaway but still want to go tot he show. This link discounts Scale 1 and 2 lower bowl. Tickets to the show would make a great gift this time of year for the AVATAR fan in your life. Full price and other seat section tickets can be purchased here.

To enter the giveaway for the tickets just comment below if you have ever seen a Cirque du Soleil show. Contest will end midnight December 20.  Two winners will chosen using random.org. Each winner will receive 2 tickets. Winners will be notified via email.  Tickets will be available under winners name at the Intrust Bank Arena will call booth the night of the show.

Good Luck!

Photo: Errisson Lawrence Costumes: Kym Barrett © 2015 Cirque du Soleil

Giveaway ~ Two Ways to Win a Famous Tippin’s Pie

Giveaway ~ Two Ways to Win a Famous Tippin’s Pie

 

If you were around the Kansas City area from 1980 to 2004, then you should be quite familiar with Tippin’s and are going to love this giveaway for two ways to win a fabulous Tippin’s pie. If you are not familiar with Tippin’s, here is a little history for you.

Tippin’s restaurants were sprinkled throughout Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas and were a staple to those areas being famous for pie, in about every flavor you could imagine. The last Tippin’s closed in the summer of 2004 and although the restaurants have been closed for quite some time, the pies live on.

Ball’s Food Stores rescued a piece of the Kansas City pie legend, by buying the brand and creating Tippin’s Gourmet Pies. The pies are made fresh all day long locally in Kansas City, Kansas. The pies are available at grocery stores in the Kansas City metro and beyond including St.Louis, Tulsa, Wichita and more.

If your local grocery store happens to be a Dillons or Hen House, now is your chance to win one just in time for the holidays.

Tippin's 9in Pumpkin pie HH 1113

Tippin’s Pumpkin pie

Details on winning the pie will come in a bit but first I have to tell you that if you were a fan of the pies, they are as good now as they were back then.

How do I know? My sister and I recently got together and since this opportunity came up for me to write about their pies, we decided we had better try one for old time sake as she used to work there in high school.

Not all pies are available at every store and some carry only the cream, some just fruit and others both. You can check the pie finder on the Tippin’s website for the closest store near you. If you find there is no store close to you, fear not as you can order them online and they will be shipped right to your door! My store happen to be Dillons in Wichita, Kansas where I found the beloved and classic French silk.

French-Silk

If you end up browsing the Tippin’s website, you will find a page with stories from devoted fans sharing their memories of the beloved restaurant and pie! So in addition to the giveaway, I must share my beloved memories with you, so, back to the French silk pie…

It looked just like we remembered with the fancy lattice design of fresh whip cream topped with hand-made chocolate curls. Although, it looked the same, the question was, did it taste the same?

french silk at home

Tippin’s French Silk

It did! And wow, how that first bite brought back a flood of memories. The chocolate filling was decadent, rich and smooth and there is no mistaking the taste of the real whip cream topping. The combination of the crust which is slightly salty and crunchy paired with creaminess of the sweet pie filling is one reason why this pie is their most popular seller.

I certainly had my share of Tippin’s food and their pies growing up as both of my sisters worked there in high school. After every shift worked, they got to bring a piece of pie home and many times being the little sister, they let me choose the flavor. Between the two of them working we literally had pie everyday!

Tippin’s peanut butter merengue pie was one of my favorites! I also loved the Boston cream pie, coconut cream, key lime, pecan, fresh strawberry when it was in season, German chocolate and of course the classic French silk. Really, I never met one I did not like.

Tippin’s was our families go to place for pretty much every occasion. My mom always gave her parents Tippin’s gift certificates when gift giving was in order and they loved it. When they passed and we were cleaning out their things, we found a stack of the old gift certificates in a cabinet which gave us a good laugh at that much needed time.

In addition to pie, their cornbread and frisco burger was my go to meal. I have mastered the corn bread recipe and still make it to this day for our family.

Years ago, my husbands grandpa was visiting us from out of town and whatever meal I was making included the cornbread. He was a sweet man who was just a little rough around the edges and leaned over to my husband and said, “God damn that woman makes good cornbread.” I can still hear him saying that to this day and is one of my fondest memories. One of these days I will get the cornbread recipe up on the blog for you. If you cannot wait for it just email me and I will send it your way.

Now that I have taken a walk down memory lane, we can get back to business on that giveaway!

If your local grocery store is a Dillons or Hen House you can enter to win! Hen House is offering a gift certificate, good for one Tippin’s Pie and Dillon’s, a gift card for $20.

To enter just leave comment of you favorite Tippin’s memory, favorite Tippin’s pie flavor or if you are not familiar with Tippin’s, your favorite pie flavor in general. Also please specify if your store is Hen House or Dillons.

Contest will be open for one week and close midnight Wednesday, November 16. Winner will be chosen using random.org. Winner will be notified via email and the certificate or gift card will be sent to you to use on your favorite pie, just in time for the holidays.

TippinsHolidayPies

If you do not have a Hen House or Dillons close to you but know someone who does, please feel free to share this giveaway with them.

Thanks for entering and while you are at it feel free to like and follow all of my social media channels:
Facebook: Discover Finer Living
Twitter: @SharminMeadows
Instagram:sharminmeadows
Pinterest: Sharmin Meadows

Happy Eating and Good Luck!

Dine and Discover Menu at Bonefish Grill

Dine and Discover Menu at Bonefish Grill

 

salmon

Cedar Plank Maple Bourbon Salmon

The new Dine and Discover menu from Bonefish Grill is the best deal in town, where two can dine on a three course dinner for only $50. In celebration of National Seafood Month in October, the new Dine and Discover menu from Bonefish Grill features items from their new fall menu.

 

This menu is only available for a limited time starting October 4. I’ve got a reservation to try out the new menu later this month so keep an eye out on a post that will describe my experience and a gift card giveaway to Bonefish Grill.

The Dine and Discover menu features a three-course dinner for two priced at $50 featuring a choice of entree, complemented by signature appetizer Bang Bang Shrimp and a delectable dessert to share. Entrees include fall favorite Fresh Swordfish with Pumpkin Ravioli, NEW Wild Snapper & Shrimp, NEW Cedar Plank Maple Bourbon Salmon and regional wood-grilled fish selections.

grilled-swordfish-pumpkin-ravioli

Fresh Swordfish with Pumpkin Ravioli

To accompany the seasonal dishes, a selection of wines given top 90 point ratings by well-known wine experts are available for $9 per glass to please even the most discerning palates. A 90 point rating indicates that a wine is outstanding and of superior character and style. Guests can enjoy Trapiche “Broquel” Malbec, Charles & Charles Cabernet Blend, Eroica Reisling and King Estate “Signature Collection” Pinot Gris, or choose from handcrafted cocktails including the seasonal Fall Apple and Fresh Pear Martinis, filled with the flavors and aromas of the season.

pear-martini

Fresh Pear Martini

Visit Bonefish Grill online to check out their full menu, find the location nearest to you or make a reservation.

Photos courtesy of Bonefish Grill.

 

 

 

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Chipotle Cultivate Festival Coming to Kansas City

Chipotle Cultivate Festival Coming to Kansas City

 

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On Saturday, July 23, Chipotle’s Cultivate Festival is returning to KC’s Penn Valley Park to celebrate music, food and ideas. Chipotle Mexican Grill’s annual summer event series brings together chefs (locally and nationally renowned), brewers, wine makers and musicians to create an engaging environment and inspire conversation about food and sustainability. To learn more about this FREE festival, check out this video.

Celebrity Chefs – Musician talent will be announced in early summer. Chefs include Andrew Zimmern (three-time James Beard Award-winning TV personality, chef, writer and teacher); Carla Hall (Chef and Co-Host of ABC’s Emmy Award-winning “The Chew,” chef at Carla Hall’s Southern Kitchen and author); Colby Garrelts (Chef/Co-owner of Bluestem and rye Restaurants, co-author of “Made in America” and “Bluestem” cookbooks); Gerard Craft (chef/owner of Niche Food Group: Niche, Pastaria, Porano Pasta, Brasserie by Niche and Taste Bar); and Michael Corvino (executive chef and general manager, The American Restaurant).

Eat – Chipotle will serve freshly-made burritos and tacos – including the return of Chorizo! – plus, ShopHouse Kitchen and Pizzeria Locale will serve up delicious food.

Drink – Chipotle has partnered with Boulevard Brewing Company of Kansas City, Mo.; Arizona Wilderness Brewing Company of Gilbert, Ariz.; and Cigar City Brewing from Tampa, Fla., to brew an original Mexican Lager that will be served exclusively at each of the Cultivate Festivals.