Pasta Perfect: Rarely do you go back to a restaurant and relive a perfect experience. At Jonathan’s (15 Wall St, 631.549.0055, jonathansristorante.com) we have indeed discovered the perfect pasta dish — at least our favorite to date. More than a year and a half ago in this column, we wrote that Jonathan’s: “Pumpkin Ravioli with Butter and Sage (full portion, $17) was sprinkled with Amaretto Cookie Dust. It was true magic: shaved Amaretto cookies transform a superb pasta staple into a sweet and memorable experience. You gotta try it – get it as an extra to share with your companions.” We were back last week – been there about a dozen times since — with the fourth real foodie we’ve brought to Jonathan’s. The food is always superb, but the Pumpkin Ravioli with Butter and Sage, Parmigiano and Amaretto Cookie Dust, again stole the show. Go and try it as an appetizer, entrée or, better yet, an extra for the table to share. Tell Roberto that the Foodies sent you.

Cooking Class: Mirabelle Restaurant (404 North Country Road, St. James, 631-584-5999, restaurantmirabelle.com) will teach bi-monthly cooking courses throughout the fall and winter. In December, the focus is on cocktail foods for the holidays and students will learn how to make Potato Chips with Dill-Marinated Smoked Salmon, Tortilla Cup filled with Avocado Salsa, Glazed Carrots with Cumin, Chilled Cauliflower and Parsnip Soup and Miniature Crab Cake with Ginger Tartar Sauce. Co-owner and Executive Chef Guy Reuge is giving students two chances to catch the same class by offering it on both Monday, December 3 and Monday, December 10 at 6:30 p.m. The cost is $70. Call now to register.

Kick The Bottle: Economics may be the best spin Suffolk County Water Authority can put on its efforts to get consumers to kick the bottled water habit. Although they say tap water – at least in these parts – tastes just as good as bottled water, meets stricter quality standards, and doesn’t put thousands of tons of discarded plastic bottles into the waste stream, the most compelling reason to switch could be the price. According to water authority chairman Mike LoGrande, the $8 a gallon consumers pay for bottled water is twice the price (for now, at least) of a gallon of gas. And for the $1.89 you’ll spend on a single serving of bottled water, you could buy more than 1,000 gallons of Suffolk County Water Authority tap water! Hey, with the price of gas going up and up, you gotta save somewhere.

Pomegranate Wine: Rimon Winery, a new Israeli winery and producer of fine kosher pomegranate wines, announced that its new pomegranate dessert wine was awarded the top prize in the “Best New Wine, Beer or Spirit” category at the KosherFest 2007 held mid November at the Jacob Javitz Convention Center. The entries were judged on the basis of newness, quality, taste, salability, and retail price point. The Rimon Winery in Israel’s Upper Galilee region, has cultivated a “super fruit” that is sweeter, deeper in color, and richer in vitamins and antioxidants than other pomegranate varieties. They are the only pomegranates in the world that have enough natural sugars to produce wine on their own. Find out more about the Rimon Winery Dessert Wine 500ml (SRP $38), at www.rimonwines.com.

Shrimp Boat: H2O Seafood Grill (215 West Main Street, Smithtown, 631-361-6464, www.h2oseafoodgrill.com) features shrimp, one of Executive Chef Scott Szekretar’s favorite foods because of its taste and versatility - through December 24.  In addition to H2O’s regular and extensive seafood menu, special shrimp dishes include: Appetizers: Shrimp Grilled Pizzetta, with red onion, bacon and three cheeses, $11; Porcini Dusted Shrimp, ith leek and spec ham bread pudding and shiitake brandy cream sauce, $15; Orange Ebi Sushi Roll , with shrimp, salmon, cucumber, avocado, and orange mayo, $9. Entrees: Baked Shrimp with Dill en Croûte, with creamed garlic and spinach, $27; Millennium Shrimp, served over mashed potatoes, $30; Shrimp with Cashews, stir fried with pepper, onion, mushroom, and broccolini over rice with hoisin, $26.

Bearded: The crew from Ruvo Restaurant (63 Broadway, Greenlawn. 631-261-7700) served up lunch to a full house at New York City’s famed James Beard House on Friday, November 16. Executive chef and co-owner Joe DeNicola prepared a four-course meal that didn’t skimp on the truffels, and Banfi wines specially paired each course with a premium selection from its cellars. Sounds delish… though when this Foodie heads to the Greenlawn restaurant, it’s for Grandma DeNicola’s lentil salad. (You’ll find it under the crabcakes).

Eggsactly deviled eggs: Make them with ease — Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the corner tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done for easy clean up.
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