Toluu

The Blissful Glutton

your guide to eating in Atlanta

Food find: Cipriani dried pastasNovember 29

Let's face it. Few of us have the time to make fresh pasta. While there are plenty of places to get fresh noodles in town, I rely on dried varieties when I am cooking at home. My absolute favorite brand--aside from Bionature--is the Cipriani brand. Yes, that Cipriani. The noodles only take 3 minutes (at most) to cook, have the most delicate texture, but don't turn to mush after a few turns with your tongs.  Here is what owner Arrigo Cipriani says about his pasta: 

At Harry's Bar we have always made our own pasta and the experience we have gained over the years, has taught us that in egg pasta, there are three important elements. The flour must be made from durum wheat, the best grade eggs must be used and the pasta must be worked with care, rolled over and over again, never so much as to overheat it, but enough to give it that special quality. If all these precepts are followed, the pasta will have the essential characteristics of being both firm and soft. Two at

Check out my latest in this week's Creative LoafingNovember 27

Cheap Eats: Sublime Doughnuts

It all started when an executive visited Kamal Grant's Marietta high school to speak about his job in research and development for Dunkin' Donuts. The presentation inspired Grant -- playing around with ingredients for a living sounded pretty sweet.

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Mouthful: Shrimp and grits

JCT Kitchen & Bar: Chef Ford Fry's shrimp and grits preparations vary by the season, but they are always divine.

Cupcake Charm: MariettaNovember 26

I have a serious cupcake fetish. I don’t care if people think of them as an overblown food trend or boring. I like them. Moon and I were cruising around Marietta—still my favorite eating destination these days—and I spotted this new cupcake place in Marietta Square. I returned a couple of days later to check them out. It is a very new spot—one month new—and they offer a limited selection of cupcakes every day. It is quite the Mom and Pop operation and they still seem harried from the recent opening. I got three: a lemon, chocolate on chocolate and white on white with sprinkles. I really appreciated the packaging, which had a cubby for each cake so they didn't bounce around on the drive home. The flavor of the cakes was spot on. They were not too sweet and very moist. The chocolate frosting was pitch perfect and dense like I like it—I hate that kind of frosting that is too light and gone in one lick. The buttercream frosting filled my car with the most heavenly scent, but was ultimately too sweet for my taste. Some people may like it since I am a bit sensitive to intense sweetness. I’d give them another chance but

Photos from Alba, ItalyNovember 25

Our trip to India (finally got all my pics up) was very long so we had to make a stop to break up the trip. We chose Alba because the truffle festival was going on and none of us (including my incredibly well-traveled parents) had been. We were only there for a couple of days, but it was wonderful. Here is a taste of our short time there. Watch for the picture of the truffle sculpture--coolest thing ever.

Sending you all a big thank youNovember 25

I recently found out that I was voted "Best Blog" by the readers of Atlanta Magazine. And I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for your support and readership over the past few years. You really have no idea how much it means to me. Have a very happy Thanksgiving.