Everyday Gourmet by Azi

I was at work, doing tasks on autopilot when JC asked in a very excited tone, "Do you want to go to a cooking class?" I didn't even move, I paused for a moment and just gave her my "Are you kidding me?" face, then very charmingly (by charming, I mean catty), I said, "Why would I go to a cooking class?" Then she said that it was an office outing, hosted by our bosses' friend. Ok, that's nice, but seriously, why would I go to a cooking class? It's not like I ever cook, and if I do, that's what recipes online are for, right? Well, she talked me into it, saying that I didn't have to learn anything, promising lots of wine and a delicious homemade feast.

After an unsuccessful after work shoe shopping spree, we arrived hungry and thirsty at this beautiful condominium with a gorgeous kitchen in Bethesda. Then a lovey, bubbly young lady drifted over and introduced herself as the hostess, Azi, and offered us wine and a seat at the kitchen counter (granite, naturally). She began by explaining the menu her concept - she was going to make a Persian-fusion 4 course dinner. As resistant as I was to learning or paying attention, her enthusiasm and charisma was difficult to tune out.

She must have sensed our hunger because as she laid out the plans of the evening, she served a wonderful puff pastry with roasted eggplants, tomato sauce, and a dollop of yogurt. As we noshed on those, she prepared a quiche-like dish: no crust, lots of fresh herbs, chopped walnuts, and barberries and spices from Iran mixed in with eggs, and baked in small molds. The herbs were aromatic to which the berries gave a nice contrast, and the nuts gave it substance and texture, and to anyone on a low-carb diet, it's carbs free! And wine flowed throughout the whole dinner. Happiness? Yes, oh yes.

Azi was lovely, answering all of our questions and making us feel comfortable with funny stories and sharing her aspirations as a culinary starlet. I was surprised to find out that she was a successful attorney when she decided that she wasn't really happy and culinary arts were her calling. Watching her, I could feel her passion and enjoyment for cooking and sharing her knowledge.

Next course was stuffed peppers with ground veal, lentil, rice, and wonderful mixture of spices, topped with pomegranate molasses. As the peppers were cooking away in the oven, she made a cucumber and tomato salad to go with the peppers. It was so simple yet, delicious - just the cucumber, onions, tomatoes, lime juice, and salt and pepper made a fantastic mix of flavors. Then she started on the dessert - chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream. As the chocolate lava cake was baking, we all sat down at her gorgeous dining table and devoured the peppers. Oh my gosh, not only were they pretty to look at, she had used red, green, and orange peppers, they were so yummy. We were all feeling pretty full and happy, but we were made even happier with the arrival of the chocolate lava cake and cardamom tea. The cake was warm and moist, and the tea was a perfect complement to the richness of the cake. If you've ever had cardamom, you'll be able to imagine its aroma - pair that with chocolate...mmmmmm. You're drooling, aren't you?

It was such a fun night with fabulous food and wonderful company. Azi does all sorts of events, like girls' night out, a romantic dinner, and obviously office outings. She's health conscious, so she offers tips on how to make her dishes more healthy. She's a fun and vibrant hostess, if you're looking for a fun night with food and wine while learning something, check out her website and set up an appointment! Tasty tasty!!

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everydaygourmetbyazi.com

Rock Bottom Brewery

JC and I had happy hour at Rock Bottom Brewery in Bethesda last week, and the deal was so good that we went back again last night, with our friend SW. On Wednesdays, they do a $6 23oz beer with $3 refills and at the end of the night you get to keep the gigantic beer glass. It's awesome!! Not to mention $5 appetizers and pizzas from 5:30 til 7:00pm. They have a fantastic fried calamari appetizer - calamari, green beans, pickle slices, tomatoes, shiitake mushrooms, baby corn, and whatever random veggie I may have left out are tempura fried then sprinkled with parmesan cheese and to be dipped in ranch dressing. It's delicious and goes so well with their light lager! We also got their buffalo wings, it seems only right that you have wings at happy hour with beer, right? I like their wings, they're not greasy and they don't have mushy skin hanging out all over the place like a lot of wings I've had at happy hour. They're not crispy either, but not too fatty or gross. The sauce is pretty good, it's spicy but not enough to make you cry. We have yet to get more than those two apps - with gigantic beers, we get way too full to eat any more. I'm lame and got too happy at happy hour to take pictures. But you should definitely check it out for happy hour with your friends!! Tasty tasty!!

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www.rockbottom.com