Hey V-Fans,

As promised, here's the fishy discovery we made regarding Michael's new restaurant, ink.

How fun! We love how inventive and playful Michael is when it comes to putting together his delicious and creative menus—we can't wait for ink. to open! How do you feel about his take on every kid's favorite fishy finger-food?

And now, at a user's request, we have for your viewing pleasure—an informative yet entertaining video of Michael making bread in a microwave!

That's it for this week's Voltaggio update. Check back next week for more delicious details about what the V-bros are up to. Enjoy!

Hey V-Fans,

Did any of you catch Michael's recent appearance on Top Chef All-Stars? Check him out going head-to-head with Mike Isabella in this clip from the Bahamas Quickfire Challenge:

Even though he wasn't deemed the winner; we thought his citrus-cured duck breast with duck leg in bacon vinaigrette, burnt leek, and coffee pesto, looked absolutely delicious! What did you think? Did Mike's cashew-dusted spiced duck breast with duck leg and mushroom jus, deserve the win? Or did Michael lose some critical cook-time due to butcher duty?

We also loved tagging along with Michael during his recent trip to see Bryan in Frederick, via this fascinating, late-night twitter pictorial:

So that's what chefs cook for other chefs! Also, is it just us, or does a chicken salad sandwich and chips, followed by Ritz crackers with Nutella for dessert, seem fancier when made by the Voltaggio brothers? At any rate, these twit pics definitely made us hungry. Nice work, guys.

That's it for this week's Voltaggio update! Check back next week for something we think you'll find a little fishy about Michael's new restaurant Ink. Until then, enjoy!

Hi V-Fans,

Did any of you watch the Superbowl (commercials) last weekend? If so, is it safe to say that you ate your weight in chicken wings during the game?

Well, it seems Best Week Ever went searching for the perfect Superbowl boneless hot wings recipe and found this Los Angeles Times video of Michael demonstrating how to make his “Boneless Chicken Wing Confit with Curry and Blue Cheese Disc." After watching the video, they deemed his recipe: “The Hardest Super Bowl Wings Recipe Ever Conceived.”

What's the matter, Best Week Ever? You don’t have liquid NO2 and an iSi whipped cream canister lying around your kitchen? Surely you have a slate platter to freeze?!?! No? Okay…so maybe they have a point. But difficult or not, we love Michael's inventive recipes and his ability to make the "impossible," possible! Keep up the good work, Michael.

Bryan is gearing up for the 2011 Taste of the Nation event in partnership with Share Our Strength on April 4. The culinary charity event will be held at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., where Bryan and other local chefs will be doing live cooking demonstrations.

General admission tickets are available for $95 at TasteOfTheNation.ord/Washington. All proceeds directly benefit Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign, which includes support for the Capitol Area Food Bank, DC Hunger Solutions and Mary’s Center.

That’s it for this week’s Voltaggio update! Have a delightful weekend and feel free to leave your Voltaggio questions and comments below. Enjoy!

Hey V-fans,

Like a true proud papa, Bryan announced via twitter this week that he and his wife (pictured above) are expecting their second child in July! Isn't that amazing news? Congratulations to the entire Voltaggio clan!

Meanwhile, Micheal made a special announcement of his own, revealing the official logo for his new restaurant Ink. (pictured above), according to the Food and Wine blog, Mouthing Off.

Michael also had customized plates made for the dining room with the restaurant's logo etched onto the back of each plate, according to Mouthing Off. Nice touch, Michael. We can't wait for your upcoming opening!

In case you missed it, Bryan appeared this week on a special "Ask a Celebrity" episode of the Nate Berkus Show. In the video above, Bryan talks backstage about his food style and how hard it can be—even as a Top Chef, to get his son to eat a variety of healthy foods!

In this video clip, Bryan surprises an audience member that feels like she's stuck in a cooking rut by teaching her how to make a delicious, quick and healthy meal!

And to further your viewing pleasure, check out this fun recap video featuring Michael hosting the K*Swiss Pinig Pong Classic at Sundance:

That's it for this week's super sweet Voltaggio update! Until next week, enjoy!

Hi V-Fans,

Did any of you make it out to snowy Park City, UT this past weekend? We hear that Michael was cooking up a storm at this year's Sundance Film Festival! Rumor has it, the lucky VIP's at the Stella Artois Cafe presented by Food & Wine at the Galaxy Tab Lift were blown away by Michael's dishes. For breakfast, Michael served up Japanese bacon and eggs with congee and pork belly. For lunch, Michael cooked his version of chicken shawarma, with pressed chicken thighs, yogurt spheres, fried chickpeas and black-garlic puree.

According to Variety, Michael compares his passion for cooking to filmmaking: 

"I'm an independent artist working on a passion project with a limited budget, hoping to share my art with as many people as possible."

In case you missed out on all the fun, check out the pictures below from msn.com, of Michael doing his thing at Sundance 2011.

Nicely done, Michael. What do you think about Michael's breakfast and lunch creations? 

In other news, Bryan is scheduled to appear at the 10th Cooking for Solutions celebration in May, where he will be competing in the Sustainable Seafood Challenge. The event will be held at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, where Bryan will be facing off against four other celebrity chefs in a race against the clock to create a delicious (and sustainable) seafood dish. There will also be wine and hours' devours. Tickets are priced a $150 each.

Lastly, we dug up this great video (below) that originally appeared on Delights and Prejudices, the official James Beard Foundation blog. Watch as Michael describes the inspiration behind his Pigeon Pastrami sandwich (and make sure your computer's volume is turned all the way up; Michael has the Kitchen Aid working over-time with this recipe!):

That's it for this week's sunny side up Voltaggio update! Let us know your thoughts, feelings and questions in the comment section below. Enjoy!

Hey V-Fans,

Happy New Year! Did you make any resolutions for 2011? Bryan shared the following resolutions with DC.ModernLuxary.com:

“I’d like to continue raising awareness and funds for the DC-rooted hunger-fighting nonprofit Share Our Strength, based on the successful Tasteful Pursuit dinner we hosted last fall. I also want to take a vacation with my family and somehow work exercise into the process!”

What a fabulous list of resolutions, right? We wish Bryan luck in all of his 2011 pursuits (although we're pretty sure he won't need it). Check him out in the ABC cooking segment below, in which Bryan shows you how to start your new year off right by cooking with ingredients that are said to bring good luck!

And as we've mentioned before, the Voltaggios have teamed up with Williams-Sonoma to share their expert advice and recipes with the masses. Here's one of our favorite recipes being featured on their website right now...

Michael's Spanish-Inspired Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3/4 cup diced yellow onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups (12 oz.) diced Spanish chorizo
• 1 1/2 cups Bomba rice
• Pinch of saffron
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 cup dry sherry, preferably Manzanilla
• 4 cups water
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 cups (9 oz.) coarsely grated soft Spanish goat cheese
• Kosher salt, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups (4 1/2 oz.) grated Manchego cheese
• 2 Tbs. chopped fresh chives

Directions:

Preheat a broiler. 

In a large sauté pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high, add the chorizo and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the rice, saffron and bay leaf. Cook, stirring frequently, until the rice is translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the sherry and cook until absorbed. 

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the water 1 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each addition has been absorbed and the rice is just al dente, about 20 minutes. Add the cream and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Fold in the goat cheese and season with salt. Transfer the rice to a casserole dish or large fry pan and sprinkle the Manchego on top. Broil until the cheese is golden brown, about 8 minutes. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Garnish with the chives. Serves 6 to 8.

That's it for this week's Voltaggio update! Be sure to leave your thoughts and comments below. Until next time...enjoy!

Hey V-Fans!

Did anyone see Michael on The Fran Drescher Show? What's that you say? Oh, you didn't know they gave the signature nasal-sounding actress from The Nanny her own "tawk" show? Well they did. Don't worry if you missed it, we snagged the best part of the episode to show you here!

In the AOL video clip below, watch as things get a little frisky when Fran asks Michael to spank her during a cooking lesson:

Also, thanks to the heads up from site member Mark Nguyen, we discovered that Micheal was recently listed as one of GQ UK's Top 100 Best Things In The World!  Thanks, Mark. Obviously, we (and apparently Fran Drescher!) wholeheartedly agree with GQ.

Okay people, the holiday season is officially upon us! And as the old saying goes, 'tis truly better to give than to receive. So why not consider giving to our favorite cooking-duo's charity of choice, Share Our Strength?  One dollar is all it takes to help feed a child ten healthy meals.

Click HERE to donate to their No Kid Hungry for the Holidays campaign. Who knows, you could end up winning this sweet Bryan Voltaggio Bobble-Head for donating as little as five dollars!

Need some giving-back inspiration? Look to our boy Michael! He recently took part in LA's Test Kitchen closing-night charity event benefiting both Gettlove and Share Our Strength. Food blogger Darin, of DarinDines, was on hand to snap this lovely pic of Michael's "EcoPez" Turbot, Earth, Ash & Sea dish...

And this is what he had to say about Michael's creation:

"Leave it up to Michael Voltaggio to create the dish that took the longest to explain. He created an ash by cooking down leeks and mushrooms, then pureeing them and drying them out. This created a strong mushroom flavor to accompany the fish. An interesting way to impart the earthy flavor, I thought it really worked. A mushroom chip added some crispiness to each bite."

Click HERE to read Darin's entire review.

BIG kudos are in order for Bryan and his restaurant VOLT.  According to their recent blog post, they're set to celebrate the two year anniversary for Table21 on Dec. 21 and announced that the special table is completely booked through 2011!!!

That's it for this sweet n' salty edition of your weekly Voltaggio update! Happy holidays, everyone.

Enjoy!

Hey foodies!

Thanksgiving is almost here and that means...TURKEY!!!! How will you be preparing your big, all-American bird this year? Are you keeping things traditional? Or daring to deep-fry or brine your bird? What about Sous Vide turkey?

Well, if you’re even considering the later, check out Michael’s instructions for Sous Vide turkey (finished product pictured above) in this 3-part video series by Williams-Sonoma.

PART I:

PART II:

PART III:

Not feeling the Sous Vide? Check out the WhiteTrashBBQ blog for Michael’s instructions on brining your bird HERE.

Yum! While your mouth is still watering from all of that turkey-talk, check out this excellent review of Bryan and VOLT from DMV Dining. This D.C. based culinary blogger recently had the pleasure of eating at Table 21, aka the chef’s table for his wife's birthday…read more about their "unforgettable night" at VOLT HERE.

Well, if the picture above hasn't already given it away, let us be the first to tell you that Michael has annouced that his new restaraunt will be called: "Ink." According to the LA Times, Michael even suprised the tattoo artist with the news:

"It's part of the name of my company, MV Ink., and it's [tattooed] on my arm," Voltaggio said. "I went to my friend's tattoo shop in Venice ... and when he was finished, I said, 'You just designed the logo for my restaurant.' "

The LA Times also reported that Ink. is set to open by the end of February, and will be located in the former Hamasaku space on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood.

Very cool, Michael! To see the entire LA Times article about Michael's new venture, click HERE.

So with plenty to celebrate, it's not suprising that Michael recently packed his bags and headed to Hawaii, where the Honolulu Weekly managed to score a quick Q & A with the vacationing chef. Read that interview HERE.

Please watch the great video below that Bryan and Michael made for Share Our Strength’s “No Kid Hungry” Campaign…

Don’t forget to do your part! Visit www.nokidhungery.org, and take the pledge to help them achieve their goal of ending childhood hunger by 2015.

That’s it for this week’s Voltaggio update. Check back next Friday for more about your favorite brothers and everything they’ve been up to! Please leave your comments or questions below. Enjoy!

Hey Everyone,

Great news! Bryan has been named Chef/Restaurateur of the Year by Share Our Strength’s Conference of Leaders. Bryan is receiving this award for his extraordinary contributions to SOS’s success and the fight to end hunger in his community. To learn more about this prestigious award, click HERE.

Meanwhile, at Food & Wine's annual Best New Chefs event in New York, Michael’s crispy chicken thigh with ”Buffalo sauce,” celery puree, and nitro blue cheese went over BIG. You can read about this event and Michael’s creative spin on the ol' buffalo wing HERE.

Photo: Jessica Torossian and BizBash.com

Have you heard about L.A.'s Test Kitchen? It’s a temporary restaurant on Pico Boulevard south of Beverly Hills, where the chef, along with the menu, bar staff, and even the style and music of the restaurant changes nearly every day! It's so hot right now, but our boy Michael managed to turn up the heat one notch higher when he recently took the reigns.

Thanks to a YouTuber by the name of rydka, you can experience the Test Kitchen yourself by watching the three videos below. Check them out!

In case the videos were'nt enough, here's a photo uploaded by Yelper Lisa F. from that night as well…

Also, you'll want to read this fantastic interview with Bryan by Thomas Rozwadowski for the Green Bay Press Gazette, during which, Bryan mentions a possible return to Top Chef:

 “Now, if they want to bring me on ‘Top Chef Masters’ so I can kick the old guys’ butts, because I know I can do it, if that invitation comes my way, then I’ll jump on it."

You can read this entire article by clicking HERE.

Last but not least, don’t miss Michael at the Philadelphia Food and Wine Festival, October 29 through October 31, at the Valley Forge Convention Center. The festival will include book signings, wine and beer seminars and Michael! Tickets start at $30, but you could win a pair of tickets from The Latest Dish blog by clicking HERE.

Well folks, that's it for this week's Voltaggio update. As always, we encourage you to let us know your thoughts and comments below and check back next Friday for your V-Bro fix. Enjoy!