Small Plates: Dining at Andiamo, cooking kugel, making tea

Dining out

Andiamo, The D, 301 Fremont St.

Joe Vicari’s Andiamo Italian Steakhouse, which has nine locations in Detroit, now has one at The D, downtown Las Vegas’ extension of the Motor City. Here’s a sample of the menu:

Antipasti: carpaccio of beef tenderloin, $17; Andiamo Grande Meatball, $9; banana peppers and housemade sausage, $14

Pastas: pappardelle with veal ragu, $28; potato gnocchi, $21

Entrees: Pat LaFrieda burger, $21; Andiamo Tomahawk, $69; blue crab-stuffed shrimp, $39; veal osso bucco, $46; roast chicken, $23; cioppino alla calabrese, $39

Sides: housemade meatballs or Italian sausage, $7; white truffle whipped potatoes, $8; sauteed button mushrooms and onions, $5

Hours are from 5 to 11 p.m. daily. Call 388-2220 or visit www.TheD.com.

New books for cooks

KASSOFFS’ SWEET NOODLE KUGEL

½ cup golden raisins

½ pound broad egg noodles

4 tablespoons unsalted butter (½ stick), melted

16 ounces cottage cheese

2 cups creme fraiche

4 large eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Place the raisins in a small bowl. Add warm water to cover and set aside to soak for 1 hour. Drain in a mesh strainer.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat; stir in the noodles and cook for 6 minutes. Drain the noodles in a colander and transfer to a large bowl. Pour in the butter and toss until the noodles are coated.

Mix the cottage cheese, creme fraiche, eggs and vanilla in a medium bowl; stir in the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add to the noodles and stir until combined; stir in the raisins. Spoon the noodle mixture into the prepared baking dish. Bake until the filling is set and the top is golden brown — 30 to 45 minutes.

Serves 6.

— Recipe from “The New Jewish Table” by Todd Gray and Ellen Kassoff Gray (St. Martin’s Press, $35).

Twist and serve

Tea of a Kind offers a new twist — literally. Twist the cap and you’ll hear a whoosh as the proprietary pressurized nitrogen chamber (proprietarily called The Gizmo) releases tea, flavors and antioxidants into the water for a freshly mixed drink. Available as peach-ginger black tea, pomegranate-acai white tea and citrus-mint green tea, it’s $2.99 to $3.99 a bottle. Local outlets include Bellagio and the Four Seasons . Or, it’s $29.95 a case at www.TeaOfAKind.com.

— Heidi Knapp Rinella