Well when I saw her recipe for these scones on her page, I most literally moaned out loud. I loveeeeee the Vanilla Bean Scones from Starbucks, which is surprising because I don't like scones all that much in general. 
Yields: 12 large scones/ 24 petite scones
Original recipe can be found here.
For the scones:
3 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
5 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 sticks (1/2 lb.) unsalted butter, chilled
1 large egg
3/4 heavy cream, more if needed
2 whole vanilla beans
For the glaze:
3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup whole milk
1 whole vanilla bean
dash of salt
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside. Split the vanilla beans down the middle and scrape out all the "caviar" inside. Stir into the cream, add the bean halves and set aside for 15 minutes. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut the cold butter into small pieces, toss into the flour, and use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles crumbs.
Mix the vanilla cream with the egg, then combine with the flour mixture. Stir gently with a fork until the mixture comes together, using more heavy cream if needed. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and lightly press together until it forms a rough rectangle (mixture will be pretty crumbly). Use a rolling pin to roll into a rectangle about 1/2 - 3/4 inch thick. Using your hands to help form them if necessary. Use a knife to cut into 6 even squares. If you want large scones, cut these squares diagonally to make triangles. If you want petite scones, cut each square cross wise twice to make 4 pieces each (24 total). Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 - 18 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool for 15 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
For the glaze. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the caviar. Stir the caviar into the milk and allow to sit for a while. Mix the powdered sugar with the vanilla milk, adding more powdered sugar or milk if necessary to get the consistency the right thickness. Stir or whisk until completely smooth.
Mmmmm smothered in glaze!
Of course, as with any good Korean restaurant, you get your assortment of side dishes. My favorite being the kimchi and kimchi cucumbers.
These side dishes go perfectly with kalbi. Mmmm kalbi. This came alongside the Soon Dubu in their lunch special. I have to say that's a good portion of kalbi, it being a side and all, but hey, there are no complaints here! More kalbi for me! This kalbi wasn't the best I've tried, but it did the trick.
Mad Greek is usually one of those go-to Vegas stops. There isn't much to look at or eat at on the way to Vegas. The Mad Greek Cafe is a stop you want to make not have to make, and trust me, there's a large difference.
Oddly enough, the shakes here are fantastic. Super thick and they use fresh berries, which is uber refreshing in the heat. Aren't the umbrellas a cute embellishment? Of course though, at a Greek restaurant, you have to try their Greek food! I love their Gyros, juicy and peppery and perfect. Especially with the fresh tzatziki sauce and rice pilaf, mmmm!
Many things brought us together. First of all, when you see a recipe pop up over and over again on Tastespotting or Foodgawker, you know that it's going to be good because good recipes have ways of migrating and finding their ways into the homes and hearts of people.
Second of all, this recipe is from Giada de Laurentiis and from my past history with this lovely lady, she can really do no wrong. Third of all, it's pound cake. We here (my family & I) sure do love our pound cake. Throw in some ricotta and bright citrusy flavor? Man, that's a done deal. 
Orange Ricotta Pound Cake
Yields: 1 loaf, 6 - 8 servings
Original recipe here.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/ricotta-orange-pound-cake-with-strawberries-recipe/index.html
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3/4 cup or 1 1/2 sticks butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cups + 1 tbsn. sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 orange, zested
2 tbsn. Amaretto (or 1 tsp. almond extract)
Powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)
1 pint strawberries, hulled and quartered
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with butter, set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine. Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, ricotta and 1 1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Then add the eggs, one at a time. Next, add the vanilla, orange zest and Amaretto (or almond extract) until combined. Add the dry ingredients, a small amount at a time, until just incorporated.
Pour the mixture into a prepared pan and bake until a toothpick comes out clean and the cake is beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 45 - 50 minutes. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired. Meanwhile, place the strawberries and remaining 1 tbsn. sugar. Let sit until the juices have pooled around the strawberries. Serve with a slice of cake and enjoy!
Serendipity is one of those things that all girls want to try once in their lives. It's classic NY and it's classic romance. If you haven't seen the movie, watch it and you'll see.
Since I've never been to NY (yet), I wanted to get a sneak peak of Serendipity so I decided to try their famous Frozen Hot Chocolate from their new Las Vegas location. It's a bit pricey, so my friends and I decided to get a large and romantically share our sips haha. Overall, I was a pretty dissapointed, I mean, in the end, it really just is a frozen mocha. One I could get from The Coffee Bean whenever and wherever.
So, next time I'll use a 'drier' version of the mochi cake if I want to add strawberries. I added my recipe below but here's a link to the other recipe I've been talking about.
