Aspen Food and Wine Classic

I've just come back from the 30th annual Food and Wine Classic in Aspen, Colorado.  It was a Christmas present from my husband this year and, WOW -- what a gift!  For starters, the weather was perfect -- low 80s every day, abundant sunshine and no humidity!  The evening's were cool with temps in the 60's, perfect for walking around this beautiful town.  Celebrity chefs were everywhere -- we attended seminars led by such icons as Mario Batali, Jose Andres, and Tom Colichio.  To have the opportunity to learn from these leaders in the industry was mind-boggling.  

Two tips from Chef Mario Batali:   pasta should be cooked in water as "salty as the sea," and meatballs should be half meat and half bread.  Who knew?

But the food....oh the food!!  The highlight of each day was the Grand Tasting.  In multiple huge tents,  wine vendors from all over the world offered tastes of their delicious wines paired with their chefs daily creations.  We tried everything from meatballs to grilled octopus and loved it all.  So many options that I wish we could bring back to the deli and share with our friends in Fort Smith.  I couldn't wait to get home and see what we could replicate in our kitchen.  

We may not be able to bring you fresh octopus -- but wait until you see the Green Eggs and Ham we're going to cook up for brunch!!!  Stay tuned for more lessons from Aspen!

See you at the Deli!!