Have you made your gingerbread house yet? Or have you taken a class this season to learn how? We’d like to see your pictures! (see below)

And if you’re out there baking your own gingerbread, chance are you’ll end up with a little extra dough. Here’s an idea for that leftover dough, inspired by Pinterest.

After baking a class set of houses yesterday, I had one tennis-sized ball of gingerbread left. My kids and I free-handed a few tiny gingerbread pieces and constructed miniature houses, the perfect accompaniment for a mug of warm cocoa. A generous dollop of icing on top and a sprinkling of crushed candy canes and the two-bite-sized treats were ready.

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Show us your gingerbread houses!

We invite you to post a photo of your house on our Facebook page by Dec. 19. Add a note to your post to give us a little information about your house and design. If you’re submitting a photo of your child’s gingerbread house, let us know your child’s name and age.

If you …

Continue reading Baking your own gingerbread? Use up leftover dough »

Credit: AJC Staff

I was a contender.

Almost.

Once upon a time, I had fantasies of being a chili champion. Not because I had any real experience that would deserve such a title, but because I had a team of friends willing to band together and compete in the Atlanta Chili Cook Off (now known as the Great Miller Lite cook-off, which is sort of embarrassing.)

We prepped for weeks. I spent that time trying to educate myself as much as possible on the nuances of competition style chili, versus the (what I later came to understand) abomination style chili that I grew up on. I made practice batch after batch in preparation. And then, only days from the official registration deadline, I find out that my team has fallen apart. Too many people had more pressing engagements pop up that prevented them from attending, and a team of one wouldn’t be all the much fun.

So, I didn’t make my foray into the work of competition chili, but during all of my prep work, I gained a new appreciation …

Continue reading Competition style chili »

A Caribbean restaurant in Lawrenceville was allowed to re-open last week after a malfunctioning cooler was replaced.

Footprints Café, 706 Grayson Highway, failed its routine health inspection with a 53/U because a prep cooler wasn’t keeping food temperatures at 41 degrees or below.

The facility was asked to close because it was the fourth repeated violation of the cold-holding temperature code, according to the inspector. Air temperature in the cooler was 48 degrees, and multiple food items were above the 41-degree limit. Pasta, chicken and shrimp were all discarded.

Oxtail, cooked the night before, was still above 41 degrees in the walk-in cooler. It, too, was discarded.

The inspector noted there were “multiple critical violations” in the facility and management needed to control food processes and train employees properly.

Multiple items in the walk-in cooler had no date markings, and some items had a discard date longer than 7 days. Food kept more than 24 hours …

Continue reading Restaurant inspections, Footprints Cafe »

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Sometimes, you just want a nice glass of rye and a Glitter Pizza.

Until a few months ago, those two things would never be found together. But no longer, now that brothers Jason and Hugh Connerty have opened Ammazza in the Old Fourth Ward — the newest hot Neapolitan pizza shop in town.

Ammazza brought with it a considerable amount of buzz, due in no small part to the fact that the Connertys at one point worked for the company that purchased the out of state franchise rights for Antico. As if a pizza place can open in this town without drawing comparisons to Antico, their brief affiliation with the Neapolitan heavyweight made things even worse.

But the similarities end with the fact that they both serve pizza. And I love that about Ammazza.

If nothing else, the Connerty brothers have created a genuinely hip vibe that their competitors lack. Diners order at

Credit: Becky Stein

the front counter and take a number back to the seating area. I was surprised when I first …

Continue reading Ammazza restaurant review, Old Fourth Ward »

credit: Bravo

Oh Top Chef, you were doing so well.

Just when I thought that you had shirked your irritating, shark-jumping ways, you heave all of your lamest tricks into the first 15 minutes of this episode. I can just imagine the producers meeting now: “Ok guys…we caught a lot of flak last season for really overdoing it on the cheesy product placements, unnecessarily gimmicky quickfires, and completely irrelevant judges. So, this season, lets fake out the audience and wait until the 6th episode to unleash the lame.”

Where should I start? Ah yes, the Olive Garden lady.

In case you found yourself Googling “Grand Forks” to see if there was one in Washington State, you were likely disappointed. Instead, this week’s guest judge is Marilyn Hagerty of the Grand Forks Herald in North Dakota, most famously known for her viral review of The Olive Garden.

Ms. Hagerty is certainly a sweet woman, and an unpretentious and honest judge, which is more than you can say for most of …

Continue reading Top Chef Seattle recap, Episode 6: Tacomales and the Olive Garden lady »

In December, families at my son’s school are invited to share a family tradition with the class. The tradition I’ll share is gingerbread house making, meaning that I’ll be baking 20 little gingerbread cottages tomorrow for class decorating on Friday.

Last year I shared the tradition with the Food and More blog and would like to do so again this year with our second annual parade of gingerbread houses. We want to see your masterpieces!

We invite you to post a photo of your house on our Facebook page by Dec. 19. Add a note to your post to give us a little information about your house and design. If you’re submitting a photo of your child’s gingerbread house, let us know your child’s name and age.

If you aren’t on Facebook but would still like to share a photo of your house, email your photo to Jenny.

Our dining team will choose our favorites and share them on the Food and More blog on Dec. 21. Anyone who submits a photo will be entered into a drawing for a …

Continue reading Time to bake the gingerbread; Share your photos! »

10th & Piedmont, a restaurant and lounge with a focus on late-night entertainment opens this week. Brothers Sean and Gilbert Yeremyan, who own Gilbert’s Cafe and Bar and Hobnob Neighborhood Tavern, are behind this new spot that will serve lunch, dinner and weekend brunch. Executive chef Brett Ring will use organic ingredients to prepare shareable plates and items like Southern arancini with blue cheese grits and tomato marmalade or lamb meatballs with red currants, tomato glaze and pickled cucumber spaghetti. Late nights will bring DJ entertainment and a vodka bar. 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. and 5-10 p.m. Mondays-Wednesdays, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. and 5-11 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Sundays. Late night menu available until 2 a.m. Mondays-Saturdays and until midnight on Sundays. 991 Piedmont Ave., Atlanta. (404) 602-5510.

Salt Factory Pub to open location in Alpharetta

• Capitalizing on their success in Roswell, restaurateurs Hicham Azhari and Fikret Kovac and executive chef …

Continue reading 10th & Piedmont now open, Salt Factory Pub expands to Alpharetta and more news »

Blame it on the flu season.

Experienced employees at Maritza & Frank’s Restaurant, 637 N. Central Ave., Hapeville, were out sick with colds and the flu on the same day a Fulton County health inspector showed up for a routine inspection.

It didn’t go well and the restaurant scored a 38/U.

“The cook was sick so we sent him home, everyone was sick. We had one new person who didn’t know how to do everything yet, and that was the problem,” said Rose Campbell, the restaurant’s certified food safety manager, who was also out sick with the flu that day.

The inspector noted that employees were wiping their hands on aprons, instead of washing them, and eating in the food prep area. And points were taken off because the substitute cook prepared a sandwich with bare hands. It was discarded.

In addition, gravy and raw fish were left out on a counter, instead of being held at the proper temperatures. And foods were left on the counter uncovered.

In other violations, raw meats were …

Continue reading Restaurant inspections, Maritza & Frank’s Restaurant »

One part PSA, one part auto-tuned remix, and one part Shatner-style weirdness, William Shatner wants to simultaneously creep you out and educate you on the dangers of fried turkey. As the resident Food & More fried turkey advocate, I thought I should pass this one along.

Last year, Shatner joined forces with State Farm to create a non-musical dramatization of an actual incident where he set a blaze during a turkey fry. Well, that has been remixed, and it kinda of creeps me out.

Also, what exactly is the dingle dangle? I don’t think my fryer set has one.

P.S. In all seriousness, be careful if you are going to fry any birds this holiday season. Here is a serious and much more useful video on fryer safety.

Continue reading Shatner’s fried turkey remix »

A Fulton County health inspector hit Lenox Mall last Thursday, but not with holiday shopping in mind.

She went straight to the food court just as the lunch crowd was beginning to gather, and two restaurants came out with failing inspection scores.

At the Farmer’s Basket, the inspector noticed the employee sink was bone dry. That could only mean that either employees weren’t washing their hands, or they were washing their hands in another kitchen sink.

Either way, it was a code violation and points were taken away. Farmer’s Basket received a failing score of 61/U, ruining its previous score of 100.

In other violations, raw meat was stored above vegetables, not all of the prepared foods were stored in a covered container, and some cold foods weren’t at the proper temperatures.

In addition, the facility needed cleaning from “top to bottom,” including the equipment, according to the report.

Signature Salad scored a 68/U on a follow-up inspection that same day. Items …

Continue reading Restaurant inspections, Lenox mall restaurants »