Dessert and Decadence

Mango-Amaretto Dessert Sauce!

  
Nestled in the corner of a strip mall on 99th Ave and West Bell Road lies an Italian restaurant that’s extremely popular with the locals: Dominic’s Italian Bistro.  I’ve driven past it hundreds of times without noticing it, but one day a friend told me that I just “have to go there”, so I did. And I’m glad I did because they have an awesome dessert.

 

Italian Cheesecake with Mango-Amaretto Sauce.  Woo hoo!  That Mango- Amaretto sauce is outstanding!

 

The sauce has an interesting “layered” effect: the first taste you experience is the mangoes, followed by the almond flavor of the Amaretto.  The tanginess of the mangoes is balanced by the sweetness of the Amaretto to create a wonderfully flavorful dessert topping.  Debbie, the co-owner of Dominic’s, makes the sauce herself. She purees fresh mangoes, and then sautés them with butter and Amaretto just long enough to bring all the flavors together.  It’s all wrapped together with a slight hint of caramel without being overly sweet. In other words, it’s just what I like.

Real Italian Cheesecake
The cheesecake is excellent, too.  It’s light and flavorful, and not heavy like some cheesecakes can be.  When I asked Debbie about it she told me that it was “real Italian” cheesecake: there is no cream cheese in it.  It’s a combination of three sweet Italian cheeses including Mascarpone and Ricotta. It’s delicious!

Debbie and her husband Dominic have been at this location for four years, and in the restaurant business since 1962.  The bistro is warm and inviting; the walls inside are adorned with photos of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and many sports heroes.  The décor gives you the feeling of being in old Italy, from the checkerboard tablecloths to the small lamps on each table.  Dominic and Debbie are there every night they’re open and their kids and grandkids help with the tables and kitchen duties.  The food is excellent; pizza, pasta, antipasto, and especially, desserts.

 Here’s their website: http://dominicsbistro.com/

The next time you’d like a real Italian dessert, visit Dominic’s.  And be sure to ask for the Mango-Amaretto sauce!

Rating:

Halfway to Heaven        

 

...and well deserved!

It's da Bomb!

Amaretto Bombe' at Bombero's in Phoenix.

Bombero’s is a wine bar and bistro on Central avenue in northern Phoenix.  It’s an unassuming establishment with a simple brick front building and a wonderful tree-covered patio behind it where you can sit on cushioned wrought-iron furniture and enjoy the warm Phoenix winter days.  They feature South American food and have a chic, hip interior that is both upbeat and relaxing.

 And why would you go there, you ask?  Because, in the vernacular, it’s “the bomb”!  Or more specifically, for their Amaretto Bombe dessert.

The bombe is kind of like a truffle: A solid shell of white chocolate ganache supported by a base of lady finger cookies that surrounds a creamy Amaretto-flavored center.  Mixed in with the amaretto cream are slices of mandarin orange.  The exterior is decorated with sliced almonds and topped with candied orange peel.

How is it? Delicous!  The Amararetto flavor is light and enjoyable. The white chocolate has a nice crunch and the mandarin oranges add a tangy citrus flavor to offset the sweetness of the chocolate.  The combination of the crunchy almonds, the sweet Amaretto, and the tangy mandarin oranges is particularly pleasing. 

I tried to think of a wine that would pair with this and I couldn’t.  The chocolate ganache is pretty  sweet, so this really needs a cup of coffee to go with it. Fortunately though, Bombero’s serves up an excellent cup of Illy coffee that pairs perfectly with the bombe.

When’s the perfect time to enjoy an Amaretto Bombe?  At the end of a great date with your sweetheart.  This isn’t a first-date dessert. This is a “we’re in a serious relationship and I really like you” dessert.  The two of you can sit on the patio underneath the trees festooned with sculpted-metal stars on one of our typical Phoenix warm afternoons, gaze into each others' eyes, and have one bombe and two forks.  It's the perfect end to a perfect date.

Review: I just can't stop loving you.

Cant Stop Loving You

Check Bombero's out.  The food is excellent, the people are great, the atmosphere is wonderful, and the bombe is....well....you know.  http://www.bomberoswinebar.com/