You know it's time to blog when.....

your husband makes a comment about how you haven't posted anything new in a week. :-)

So, my dinner at Mesa Grill was delicious. But between the two Iron Chefs, Mario Batali and Bobby Flay, I would choose Mario Batali. A few years ago, we went to Mario's restaurant, Babbo, and had the Pasta Tasting Menu. It was AMAZING. There is nothing like fresh pasta. The amazing thing was that each pasta dish tasted completely different and it was like a whole new experience when they put a new dish in front of you.

At Mesa Grill, DH had: Blue Corn Pancake with Barbecued Duck, Chipotle Rib Eye, and a side of Southwestern Fries. I had: Pear Cactus Margarita, Spicy Tuna & Salmon Tartares, Grilled Lamb Porterhouse Chops with Potato-Celeriac-Anaheim Gratin. The gratin was delicious, but very rich.

Like I said before, it was delicious, but I didn't feel that anything stood out that made it different than any of the other NYC restaurants in that price range or steak house for that matter. This is just my opinion and perhaps I didn't order the right things to highlight Bobby Flay's signature style. The two things that stood out for me was these two:Blue Corn Pancake with Barbecued Duck. This was DH's appetizer and I had a small bite, but I felt that this was keeping in theme with Flay's Southwestern style.
For dessert, we both had vanilla tea and shared the Warm Cornbread Pudding with Spicy Poached Cherries & Cherry Vanilla Ice Cream. I am not usually a bread pudding fan, but DH suggested it. It was fantastic. The outside was like a toasted corn muffin and the inside was warm and soft. Paired with the cherries and ice cream, it was a fantastic flavor combination in your mouth.

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You didn't think I had any knitting to show, huh? I know that I have been obsessed with sewing and quilt making, but I finally wove all the ends in on this sweater when I went to my local Knitting Group last week. I kept putting it off and finally just pulled it out of the basket and took a needle along. It took no time to weave in all the ends while I chatted and sipped on a icy cold coffee drink. Maybe I stumbled on a new thing? Doing my least favorite things during a knitting group meet up helps distract me from the actual chore.When I got home, I was motivated enough to sew on all the buttons, which is another one of my least favorite things to do.I am so glad I finished it. I love the sweater. The yarn is so soft (80% alpaca, 20% merino wool)! Since, I only had one skein of this yarn, I didn't want to waste any of it. I knit the sleeves sort of at the same time. I used the yarn from both ends and would knit one side a few inches and then the other side. This way, I made sure I had enough for both sleeves and was able to utilize all of the yarn.And here she is modeling it! It's still too big for her, but I think it will be perfect for her in the Fall.The sleeves are folded up, so there will plenty of room for her to grow. I hope to go back to Rhinebeck this year to get more of this yarn so I can knit a larger one for her when she outgrows this one. This pattern is really easy. Knit from the top down and no seams.
Pattern: Top Down Raglan Baby Sweater (free pattern)
Needles: US 3 / 3.25 mm & US 5 / 3.75 mm
Yarn: 1 skein of Decadent Fibers "Marshmallow" in variegated greens (315 yds)