braids are the new black

they're not just for hair-do's and pie crusts anymore. would you believe me if one of the most beautiful pastas i've seen was braided?? and a ravioli no less! i guess i have two exciting things to share in this post. forget the braids for a minute (hard, i know) and let me tell you that if you're any type of foodie at all, stop what you're doing and subscribe to the tasting table emails. food lovers of every type will find information about up-and-coming chefs, new restaurants, adventurous recipes and more with these daily doses of genius.  more recently, the emails have included short videos featuring the chefs behind these incredible restaurants and recipes. you can stop pretending you weren't thinking about braids now...


today's email put chef adam leonti and his culurgiones or sardinian filled pasta in the spotlight. i almost left work i was so excited to give this braiding technique a try. they're gorgeous! i know the foundation to any great dish is the quality of the ingredients and the depth of flavor developed but i can't defend either of these with just a video. no, all i see is the presentation and with that i put my faith in chef leonti's hands that this pasta is as decadent as it appears.

so what have we learned from this post? braids will never go out of style, a beautiful presentation can even make a mcrib look elegant, and lauren has to talk her self out of leaving her day job in the name of food. k, great.

here's chef leonti's recipe for culurgliones with brown butter. i also pulled this recipe for crab ravioli with shallot cream from my trusty food and wine bible. enjoy! and if you're braiding pasta this weekend let me know how it goes!