Paris, Je t'aime

I had dreamt of going to Paris since college -- experienced such massive French wanderlust that I even became semi fluent in French over the course of those four years. I'm not sure if I was Parisian in a former life but there was something that really intrigued me about France.  I pictured myself living a' Paris, having that quintessentially French way of life. Well, I never made the move... But I did finally get to Paris, fifteen years post-college. After a several months of refresher courses in French, a great deal of planning and restaurant research and I was on my way.

It was my first solo trip ever and It was the perfect country to conquer on my own. I wanted to see and do so much and I didn't want anyone holding me back. I could walk fifteen miles in a day if I wanted to. Or have dinner reservations set most every night. I didn't have to sacrifice my own needs for someone else's, a reality of traveling with anyone.  This was MY trip. A well travelled colleague of mine gave me an article about traveling alone upon my return from France.  I really love one particular paragraph and wanted to share it: "Let me dispel a few myths. You will be lonely. No: you won't. My solo travels in Paris have brought many perfect hours of being alone but not a moment of loneliness.  People who depend on other people are often in hiding from themselves.  Two and a quarter million people live in the City of Light: you will see many of them and you will pass them in the street, but when you see Notre Dam in the dark and walk home and perhaps stop to have a drink in the Marais, you can feel that the only thing that is missing from your experience is the common dependency on someone to distract your attention.  You are living without it. You are on vacation." I cannot imagine a more perfect way of articulating how I felt as I floated around Paris.  And I truly felt like I was floating on my dream-cloud. 

I've had two framed posters of Paris that have moved with me between different homes and work places over the years.  They now hang on the wall in front of me at work.  Little did I know that I would capture almost exactly the same two places on my journey, they are the two photos you see here.  And they are taken in almost the exact same places the photographer had captured. I didn't plan this. I guess the photos are so ingrained in my mind that they overtook my hands and my camera.  But as I stare at the photos now, they mean something so completely different: they are symbolic of a very transformational experience for me.  They are reminders of what it means to realize a dream. 



    

Poor Girl's Seafood Cobb ala' Gwyneth Paltrow

Ok, here is my latest obsession: GP has a recipe for a similar salad in her cookbook, "My Father's Daughter" only hers is made with lobster so I am calling this the Poor Girl's version (me) as I am using shrimp instead.  I've been using her chive vinaigrette recipe on every salad I have made since the holidays and it's incredible.  Last night I discovered that I prefer the chive vinaigrette sans chives so I guess now it's just a vinaigrette.  She also suggests using duck bacon but where the hell am I going to find that?!  So I opted for another poor girl's ingredient, turkey bacon from TJ's.  This is so easy, so healthy and so incredibly delish.  Here is the recipe, serves 4:

• 2 bags butter lettuce from Trader Joes’s
• 1 avocado diced
• 8 pc. cooked turkey bacon cut into thin strips or julienned
• 1 lb. shrimps, tails removed & cut in half , I use Whole Foods pre-cooked & wild caught, I also squeeze some lemon on the shrimp before serving

Vinaigrette from Gwyneth’s cookbook, recipe makes about a ½ cup:

• 1 tsp Dijon
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• ¼ C plus 2 tbsp EVOO
• Salt and pepper to taste

I divide the recipe by 1/4 if it's just me and use about two tablespoons of dressing. And if you want more protein, go ahead and slice up a hard boiled egg! I'm sure tomatoes would be great too -- I just don't happen to like them in salads.  Beware, it's addictive! 

Pecan Pie

I'm a savory cook, not a baker.  The one exception to that rule is pie making, particularly pecan pie. To both bake and eat it feels so familiar and comforting.  Having grown up going to the back country of Idaho every Summer for vacation, with no TV or electricity, we kids had to find things to do - baking pies and riding horses were my chosen sport.  I made all kinds of pies, from fresh rhubarb to apple and berry pies --  made one just about every day. And it always takes me back to being that ten year old girl -- baking for my family, feeling so useful and proud as everyone ate their slice of my days work.  And I always knew it was one of my better pies when my Father would eat it for breakfast, when all traces of pie were gone.  But, I digress...

I've used many different recipes throughout the years but quick and easy pie crust recipe from the Joy of Cooking married with the tried and true Karo corn syrup filling recipe are by far the best.  I've tried many variations including adding chocolate but I prefer the simple pecan-only execution.  One change I have made and insist works best is that in lieu of using half cup of butter for the crust, which the recipe calls for, I use 1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup Crisco.  It makes the crust ever so light and crisp.  Here's the recipe:

Crust:

• 1 1/2 C all purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup chilled butter cut into 1/2" cubes
• 1/4 cup Crisco
• 4 Tbsp ice water

Filling:

• 3 eggs slightly beaten
• 1 C sugar
• 1 C Karo light or dark corn syrup (I prefer light)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 Tbsp melted butter
• 1 1/4 C pecan halves

For the crust: begin by filling a glass with water and several ice cubes, set aside.  Then mix together the first two ingredients. The recipe calls for a mixer but since I never had one, I do it all by hand and it's just as good if not a little more of a workout.  Add the chilled butter and Crisco and take a fork or a pastry cutter to the mix.  Make sure to get all the butter and Crisco clumps out with the fork so that there are no large pieces. Then add a tablespoon of the reserved ice water and add one by one, mix as you go.  The recipe calls for 4 Tbsp but I tend to need five.  It varies by elevation.  Once the mix begins to stick together, form into a ball.  Once ball is formed, wrap with wax paper and refrigerate for at least two hours.  This will make it easier to roll out.  You can even make the day before or even freeze if you really want to get a jump start.

For the pie filling: preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large mixing bowl add the eggs, sugar, corn syrup, vanilla and melted butter.  Mix so there are no clumps.  Then add the pecans.  Cover and set aside.

The last step is rolling out the pie dough.  My trick is to put two sheet of wax paper down: one vertical, one horizontal.  Add some flour on top and grab your pie dough from the fridge.  You want your pie dough to roll out to be at least 14."  Once it's rolled, put the pie dish on top of the dough and scoop underneath the wax paper with one hand and flip the pie dish over.  Then simply peel the wax paper away from the pie.  Easiest transfer ever!  I like to make the edges pretty.  Fold over any excess and make a waffle like weave with your index and middle fingers.  You can also use a fork.  Whatever you think looks pretty!

I've read many articles on cooking pies at different temperatures.  My most successful attempts have been cooking a bit longer on a lower heat: 15 mins on 350, bringing the heat down to 300 for about 50 - 55 mins. that way you don't burn the crust and the filling will still crack (which you want to happen).  You know it's done when you see cracks in the filling or when you stab the area between the middle of the pie and the edge with a knife and the knife comes out clean.  Allow to cool for 1 hour.  Reheat for 10 mins on 300 before serving alla mode. Have fun and enjoy!



Oscar's Cerveteca

A neighborhood joint

 

 

 

Oscar Hermosillo had been doing something very right over at Venice Beach Wines for years. That his lamb panini, pots of heated milky cheeses and charcuterie boards could have come out of a kitchen of it's size was mind boggling.  What started out as a small neighborhood wine store quickly sprung into a hot spot wine bar turned restaurant where waiting for a coveted spot on a bench could take well over an hour.  Going to VBW always means battling for a spot but you know the payoff is worth it.  And just when VBW hit it's pinnacle of popularity, Oscar decided to open a full service restaurant next door and call it Oscar's Cerveteca. To Venetians it's simply Oscar's. And it's good, damn good.

 

Breakfast is a smart if not delicious way to go at Oscar's.  Since breakfast service is relatively new, you'll beat the throngs of Venetians who begin swarming the place by late afternoon.  You must order the bacon, in fact order it straight away.  I've never experienced bacon quite like that at Oscar's. In fact, you can hardly call it bacon as it's  really more like pork belly, thick with the perfect ratio of meat to fat and a nice maple infusion. And perhaps some tator tots as well  -- if just to absorb that last sazerac from the night before. The machaca is excellent: light, fluffy eggs with lean shreds of beef and bell peppers. Even the tortillas are homemade. The frittatas arrive in cast iron skillets and are also very good. I didn't have the chance to try the chillaquilles but hear they are wonderful. And since I am not a sweets-in-the-morning type person, I did't try the pancakes or waffles but would imagine they are stunning as well.

Onto dinner: the must-have starter is the peruvian sashimi in an aji, key lime and corn sauce. I've been known to lick the plate. I cannot go to Oscar's without starting my meal with the sashimi and a draught IPA. They have a great beer selection, both draught and bottles.  The wines by the glass are mostly South American or European and very good yet to me, unfamiliar.  I stick to beer at Oscar's as it seems to compliment the Mexican spices quite well. For entrees my go-to is the churrasco flank steak.  It is seriously good -- albeit a bit on the expensive side at $24. When in a lighter mood, I like the fish tacos. They're reminiscent of trips down to baja -- beer battered and lighty fried with the proper Bajian sides. The quinoa and kale side is very good and a nice healthy addition to a table typically piled high with carnage and booze. 

Another great thing about Oscar's is they take reservations online, on their own website: http://cervetecala.com/.  Make a reservation, grab your buddies and go have a great night on their amazing patio.  It's a place to gather with good friends in a relaxed, unstuffy atmosphere.  It won't win a Michelin star but it's much more fun than a restaurant that will.  I can't stop going back.



 

 



Chicken in Hatch chile sauce

I've owned a slow cooker for almost two years and until yesterday, had never been taken it out of the box. I wasn't proud to admit this as it was a gift from my Step-Father. Every time he or my Mother would ask if I had used it, it was with horrible shame that I'd issue the same response, "no, not yet."  It took a recent trip to New Mexico to garner the proper motivation to unpack the poor, neglected kitchen tool.  I was blown away by the flavor of Hatch chiles I'd have every morning over my huevos rancheros on our trip. My Mom insisted that when we returned home, I must dust off my slow cooker and make her shredded chicken in Hatch chile sauce.  We bought several pounds worth of Hatch sauce on our way home and lugged them back to LA. Being that I am on a cooking spree, I finally attempted the impossible: I unpacked the Hatch sauce and the slow cooker! That I could just leave the slow cooker on and go about my day was almost the best part -- but the flavorful, yummy chicken trumped the simple cooking process. Here's all you will need:

This recipe requires three things, 2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, one can of Hatch chile sauce and a slow cooker. Another important lesson, if you can't find a seemingly obscure ingredient, always check whole Foods before lugging 5 lb's of sauce home.  Low and behold, Whole Foods had the same exact cans of Hatch sauce.  There is no fat in this recipe and you can do so many things with the shredded chicken. I made soft tacos with some shredded lettuce, shredded Mexican cheese from Trader Joe's and low fat sour cream.  You can also make enchiladas, tostadas or even eat plain, it's so flavorful and dare I say, moist. Pour the Hatch sauce into the slow cooker, set on low and add the chicken breasts. Cook on low for 3.5 to 4 hours. When done, remove the chicken only from the cooker and shred with two forks. Return chicken to the sauce once shredded.  Two chicken breasts will easily feed 4-5 people. I'll have plenty for the week!  

Barefoot Contessa's Bolognese

 

 

Making Bolognese can be a long, arduous process requiring hours of reducing, simmering and stirring -- but this is the quickest ragu or bolognese recipe I've come across. I'm not going to lie, it isn't going to be a speedy kitchen endeavor. Ina calls her recipe "Weeknight Bolognese" but as you can see from my title, I omitted "weeknight" as the only thing I'm doing on a weeknight is reheating! Mrs. Garten suggests 45 minutes total prep and cooking time whereas it took me a good hour and half.  But it's easy and totally worth it and the red wine in the sauce makes it taste like it's been simmering all day. The recipe serves 5-6 people so it's perfect for a Sunday family meal or even an intimate dinner party.  Here's the recipe:

 

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp good olive oil, plus extra to add to pasta water
• 1 lb. lean ground sirloin (I bought grass fed, 93% lean at Whole Foods)
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano
• 1/4 Tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 1/4 cup dry red wine, divided
• 1 28 0z. can crushed tomatoes, preferably San Marzano (Trader Joe's carries Cento brand)
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper
• 1 lb dried pasta, such as orecchiette or shells to hold up to the thick sauce
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, plus more for serving
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup freshy grated Paremesan cheese, plus extra for serving

Directions:

 

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground meat and cook, crumbling the meat with a wooden spoon, for 5-7 minutes, until the meat loses it's pink color and turns brown. Stir in the garlic, oregano, pepper flakes and cook for another minute. Pour 1 cup of wine into the skillet and then add the canned tomatoes, tomato paste, 1 Tbsp salt and 1 1/2 Tsp ground pepper stirring until combined. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat, simmer for 10 minutes.

 



 

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil, add a tablespoon of salt, splash of oil and the pasta and cook until desired doneness. While the pasta cooks, finish the sauce: Add the cream and the remaining 1/4 cup wine to the sauce and simmer for another 8-10 minutes.  Stir the sauce occasionally until thickened. When the pasta is cooked, drain it and pour into a large serving bowl. Add the sauce and stir in the 1/2 cup of parm.  Add basil to individual portions and have some parm on the table. One can never have too much parm!  Guess what I'm eating all week?

 



 

 



 

 

 



 Etta's Salmon

 

I knew it would take an absolutely stunning recipe to motivate me to update my little blog. I'm not quite sure how time slipped away or how I have failed to update for over a year, but I have made some seriously yummy dishes as of late and am hoping to get them all uploaded.  Since I have a tendency to become "obsessed" with certain dishes, so much so that I make them OVER and over, I may at times refer to these dishes, ingredients or even restaurants as my obsession of the week -- a saying perhaps borrowed from Mr. Andy Cohen.   So here is what I am obsessed with this week:

I went to a friends for a dinner gathering recently and they prepared what tasted to be the most excruciatingly laborious salmon preparation, as if they had slaved over the dish for an entire Sunday, it was THAT good.  Turns out all they did was get fresh wild caught salmon from Whole Paycheck and a rub made my one of my favorite Seattle chefs which also happens to be on the shelves at Whole Foods. Tom Douglas makes a series of rubs called Rub with Love. There are rubs for meats and shellfish, etc. Rubs for everything really.  I bought the rub created specifically for salmon called Etta's Salmon, Etta's being his seafood restaurant in Seattle, one of the five wonderful Tom Douglas establishments. I thought it would pair nicely with the carrots with dill recipe I posted last year (see 2011) but my friend whom I was cooking for loves my roasted brussel sprouts so that's what we had.  Here is the recipe:



• 1 1/2 lb salmon fillet, wild caught if possible
• Rub with Love salmon rub by Tom Douglas

Remove salmon from the fridge twenty minutes before heating, in fact, always do this when cooking a protein.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat salmon with rub, 2 teaspoons per 7-8 ounces. I used 8 teaspoons.  When the oven is ready, cook the fish 18-20 minutes using a fork to check it's doneness. It really is the easiest protein preparation I have ever encountered. The ingredients in the rub compliment the flavor profile of the fish so well, sweet and savory at the same time. I didn't even want any lemon squeezed on top.  Delish!

Arigato --Santa Barbara

I am no stranger to good sushi.  LA is home to a plethora of Japanese hot spots.  We've got the trendy Phillip Stark designed Katsuya sprinkled all over the city.  We've also got the celebrity ridden strip mall Japanese ala' Hamasaku. Venice locals flock to Chaya and Wabi Sabi, me being one of them.   All of these sushi restaurants are very good and unique in their own rights but none of them are Arigato.  Perhaps it's the combination of the amazingly fresh and unique dishes mixed together with the fact that I am in Santa Barbara, away from the madness of big city dwelling.  Arigato is doing something very unique. Their first location was situated in a teeny plaza on lower State. In recent years they upgraded to a much larger spot right on State Street.  It's an enviable piece of real estate and to most restaurants a scary rental proposition. What do they say, eighty percent of restaurants fail?  But not Arigato.  Each time I go I'm reminded by the two hour wait that Arigato will always be a Santa Barbara mainstay.

The dish I find myself thinking about every time I check in with the host is Miss Ebilyn's gyoza.  They are steamed postickers with shrimp, halibut, ailoli and ponzu.  I could eat only this and be satisfied.   I restrain at all costs to not fill up on the glorious dumplings or I will miss out on the fresh fish plates.  Their tuna carpaccio is fabulous.  The tuna melts in your mouth, never too tough.  Theirs is a fusion of EVOO and Arigto brand vinaigrette.  Also of note is the yellowtail and jalapeno carpaccio.  As far as rolls go, and I am not a big roll enthusiast, the Fiesta roll is other worldly: tempura halibut, avocado, tomato, cilantro, cucumber, jalapeno and habanero sauce.  It is a brilliant medley of Spanish flavors.  Really, you can't go wrong with a single dish at Arigato.  And it's a great reason to get yourself up to SB! http://www.arigatosantabarbara.com/fatcow.com/Home.html



 

BP Oysterette

 

Each trip to New York City begins with a visit to Pearl Oyster Bar, the seafood mecca nestled in the heart of the West Village.  Their lobster rolls are the perfect ratio of lobster meat to mayo to roll. The decor could not be more authentically east coast with the ship-like lanterns adorning the walls. It is the exact sort of place LA has always been missing. That is until BP Oysterette came along.  BP stands for Blue Plate, their flagship restaurant up on Montana Avenue.  Blue Plate is known for their local, healthy fare.  Patrons line the streets every Saturday and Sunday morning waiting to sink their mouths into "healthy comfort food."  L.A. is one of the most diverse food cities in the nation but why never a New England lobster shack?  BP heeded the call and readily stepped up to the task. 

I have not tried as many menu items as I would like to prior to writing any sort of blog entry but because I have gone so often and ordered pretty much the same thing with such consistent execution, I think it fair to expound.  Evey time I go, I simply have to order their muscles in red curry sauce.  The muscles are the best I have had in LA.  They even surpass those I have had at Bouchon.  They are so mild and not the least bit tough.  The red curry is best enjoyed by soaking big chunks of their sour dough bread into.  In fact, I often just use a spoon. This is a great way to start your meal.  Another menu highlight is the lobster mac and cheese which is unabashedly rich.  The amount of cheese they use should be illegal.  As good as it is, I am always searching for the chunks of lobster meat, which I'd rather wait for with my lobster roll. I would hate to fill up before getting to my lobster roll prize.

My typical order for two would be splitting the muscles and then sharing a lobster roll.  When you split their roll, they will serve you with your own basket of homemade sweet potato chips.  Since the lobster roll is made with mayo, like all good lobster rolls are, it is quite filling.  The muscles, bread, chips and lobster roll are more than enough food.  And you can always toss in some fresh oysters on the half shell...

The lobster rolls have nice sized chunks of lobster meat and mixed with the perfect mayo based dressing, not too heavy nor too sweet (see the lobster to mayo debate: http://blueplatesantamonica.com/2009/11/05/the-lobster-roll-debate-the-mayo-factor/) .  The roll is lightly grilled and really let's the lobster meat shine.  It is best paired with Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc or, my favorite and a bit more expensive, the Indaba Chardonnay.  It's a beautiful, buttery chardonnay from South Africa.  I even took a picture on one visit as to remember it by. 

BP Oystertte doesn't take reservations and it has proven very difficult to get in with a party over four. In fact, they have been downright rude at my asking.  I have found it best to go on a weekend afternoon and not at prime lunch time.  Sundays at four or five pm are really ideal.  This is a place to go and really take your time and enjoy the wine, multiple courses and atmosphere.  You will feel like you have boarded a plane and landed in the heart of the east coast.  Only you are mere miles from home if you live on the west side. http://blueplatesantamonica.com/bpo/home/

Roasted Asparagus

 

Asparagus is so good for you.  I like to keep roasted asparagus in my fridge at all times to snack on.  I'm always looking for the best way to prepare it and although my mother swears by steaming it, I like to roast it with some good EVOO, Maldon salt (or sea salt) and some cracked pepper.  If you want added crunch and flavor then toss on some bread crumbs.  Here is the recipe, it could not be more simple than this:

Ingredients (serves two):

• 1 bunch of organic asparagus
• Extra Virgin olive oil
• Maldon or sea salt
• cracked pepper
• bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Place the cleaned and stemmed asparagus in one layer on on cookie sheet and drizzle with EVOO, don't be afraid to use several tablespoons.  Sprinkle generously with salt and add some cracked pepper.  If you like that extra crunch then you can also sprinkle some bread crumbs on top.  If you are using thin spears, roast them for 8 minutes, if they are the fatter spears I typically cook them for ten minutes.  You can serve them hot out of the oven or you can even prepare them a day before a dinner party, simply reheat for several minutes at the same heat.  I have also written about my love of eggs.  If you want to make a complete meal out of this you can fry two eggs and place on top of the cooked asparagus.  It is divine and also very healthy.