Tried Erik the K’s Orrechiette recipe last night. Wow! Even better than I had expected. Just a few bites in and we were discussing who we should invite over for this dish in the future. Next time I will add a bit more thyme. Of course with me, thyme’s always short < /badpun>

Seriously, the ease of preparation of this dish is surpassed only by how good it tastes. If in Denver, you can get all ingredients at Marczyk’s Fine Foods, Whole Foods or Wild Oats – except the grappa, due to Colorado’s benighted liquor laws. For the grappa, try Colorado Liquor Mart in Belcaro. They have a Grappa de Montalcino that’s I prefer to any other grappe I’ve had. Then again, Brunello de Montalcino is my favorite wine, so that shouldn’t be a very big surprise. I'm glad I made enough to have leftovers for lunch today.

So, since Mr. K's most recent recipe is a drink recipe, I'll reciprocate. This is a fave from a steakhouse near Denver -- the Greek Martini. (With western and eastern components, it's even an ecumenical drink!)

Take an appropriate amount of good vodka (Wyborowa or Monopolowa would be my choices here, Chopin or Belvedere would be overkill), shake with ice, strain into chilled martini glass.
Add a slim float of Ouzo (Metaxa seems to be the preferred pour).
Garnish with a Kalamata Olive. The act of placing the garnsh and carrying the drink and toasting will cause sufficient mixing of the liquors.