Dupars- Point Loma

A valued coworker was resigning our office due to office politics and other issues.  So we chose to send her off with a hearty breakfast at Du-Par's.  Not only was it my first time there but I had only learned about its existence several days before.  Long story short, we had gone to Phils BBQ to catch a glimpse of the Man Vs Food show that was allegedly filming there last week.  If anyone knows if he ever showed, feel free to comment on that.  I will be doing a post on Phil's BBQ soon from a different perspective as I'm sure its been blogged many times over. 

They serve you a free helping of their "famous" banana bread while you wait for your order.  It was pretty good and had the sugar toppings on the crust.  They sell it by the loaf as well for about 4 bucks at the counter.  The premise of this place is that it is an old school coffee shop known for their pies, fresh homemade ingredients, etc.  They even have a souvenir menu from several decades ago where the food was pennies basically.  Here is a link to their website for menu, story, locations, etc. Du-Pars website

I ordered the veggie burger and fries (yes it was 8 in the morning), one of us ordered the Denver omelet, the other ordered bacon avocado and jack cheese omelet.  We will start with my order since that is the one I can comment most on. 

The veggie burger is basically a no frills simple choice.  I quote the menu directly when I write: "veggie patty with thousand island dressing and cheddar cheese"".  I believe it was a processed wheat bun and came with a side of fixins i.e. tomatoes, pickles, etc.  Had it not been the first meal of the day, its simplicity would have been disappointing.  The veggie patty was pretty high quallity with bits of corn, peas, carrots, and brown rice inside.  Everything was cooked nicely with grill marks and fries were reminiscent of the freezer variety--NOT the hand cut as promised on their website.  Their ranch was quite tasty though...probably made in-house?  Cost= 8.95 

My male coworker got this Denver omelet with sausage instead of ham.  Looked to be about a 2 egg omelet.  He only let me swipe one piece of sausage.  I liked that the size of the sausage pieces were decent instead of little crumblets.  It had a nice bite to it as well.  He ate it all and seemed to be happy with it.  According to the menu, it was 10.95.  Omelets come with choice of toast. 

This is what the Avo-Jack and bacon omelet.  She ate every single bite and seemed to enjoy.  All the omelets will run you 10.95 and come with toast as I mentioned.  I couldnt say anything else about this dish...sorry. 

So overall here are my thoughts on this place.  Meah.  A little pricey for the food quality.  I didnt try the baked goods- since that is supposed to be one of the main things they are known for, it might be a game changer.  I probably wouldnt go back unless I had a coupon or everyone else wanted to go there desperately and I was the only holdout.  The service was very attentive and the waiters all wear nice old fashioned uniforms.  Also they made an error on the order and fixed it quickly and without being snarky.  The parking sucks b/c the surrounding hotel commandeered all the spots.  Also a stupid limo company seems to have stolen all the curb parking spots.  By the way, the donuts on the counter looked FABULOUS.  Im going to try one sometime since they are as big as my entire hand with fingers spread out. 

One Pot Rice Meal

As part of my homage to korean food traditions ala my childhood, I have decided to revisit this dish.  It is kind of the Korean version of a crockpot style, one pot meal...made in a rice cooker.  I dont think my mom invented it but then again, I have never seen it in any K-food restaurant menu either.  My mom's version could probably most accurately be called Korean Bean Sprout rice.  I have taken it one step further and jazzed it up.  Brown rice instead of the traditional white.  Ready to go bean sprouts in lieu of the usual by the pound sprouts which require about a half hour of extra prep due to having to wash and trim the ends.  I have also added ground turkey which has to be browned up in a separate pan first to ensure appropriate texture and cookedness. 

Isnt my rice cooker the cutest?  It was a gift from my mom since I was stll using this cheapo one from college.  I love it cuz it has a setting for brown rice, mixed rice and porridge as well as the regular white rice.  It is completely in Japanese so it took me forever to figure out how to use it...between you and me, I randomly push buttons until it points to the brown rice setting and then I push COOK.  One day, one day.  So I measured out two cups brown rice, rinsed, added appropriate water.  Then I threw in a healthy handful and a half of the ready to go sprouts and kinda crammed it in there--you can add as little or much as you want, depending on the size of your rice cooker.  Mine leans toward the small end so I couldnt add as much as I would have normally wanted.  I added chopped green onions and just threw them in there too for extra flavor.  Then I browned about a quarter pound of ground turkey with just S&P.  Im not a big meat person so that is enough for me for the entire pot.  Dump that sucker in too, right on top of the rice grains, water, sprouts, and onions.  My rice cooker takes 2 hours for the brown rice so I had to go and busy myself for a few hours.

This is what you will see when you open the lid.  It doesnt look like much but just wait.  Make sure you mix the rice, sprouts, and meat around thoroughly to spread the goodness.  Im going to portion off the contents and freeze them so I can just reheat later.  It should stand up to the freezer and microwave later on since the sprouts arent cooked to mushiness. 

This is the final version of the rice bowl.  My mom usually makes a mix of soy sauce, sesame oil and korean paprika in a separate bowl hat you spoon onto you rice and mix it all around.  Im lazy and frankly was too hungry and impatient to care so I just threw some soy sauce (I usually only use low sodium soy), sesame oil drizzles, and a dash of chinese hot chili oil cause I'm spicy like that. 

The beauty of this dish is in its simplicity.  You taste each ingredient so you want to use good ingredients.  Only minimal seasonings really if you think about it.  And everything goes nicely with each other and you end up feeling full without feeling oily or just "too much".  Do it now. 

Oh yeah, and happy valentines day too. 

xx kiddos

Quasi Korean New Year

I remember when I was younger.  New Years always meant some kind of party with my parents friends and their kids.  The kids were all like cousins actually which was nice, since my immediate family has been the only blood relatives I have had in the states.  We would say the new year's greeting which roughly translates to something like "may the New Moon bring you many blessings" or at least my broken Korean translation of it.  We would eat rice cake soup with sprinkled on egg omelet, seaweed and for one of my friends--american cheese!  It sounds gross but the cheese mix in actually is actually pretty tasty.  My mom would make me my favorite fish fry which is cod slices dipped in flour and egg and fried up.  In lieu of cod, my nostalgia brings me to fried fish sausage cooked in the same manner. 

I dont know which other cultures eat fish sausage but apparently it is an acquired taste.  Hubby doesnt really care for it, but he has a very open palate.  My middle America, meat and potatoes friends usually dont even want to try it and when they have, they couldnt get over the fish sausage idea.  I used to eat this stuff by itself like string cheese! They come in different sizes and come individually wrapped as well.  There are also a few variations of the sausage as well but they are ready to eat right out of the packaging.  I just picked up the largest one...more bang for my buck! Take a gander:

This is the packaging.  I think it was about 16 ounces.  It comes wrapped in a protective plastic casing that you have to peel off before you eat or cut up. 

I slice them on the diagonal for several reasons: for more batter surface area, pretty factor, wider cooking area, etc. 

For extra flavor, texture and looks, I like throwing chopped scallions into the egg mix and spooning a bit of the onions onto each sausage piece in the fryer. 

So I used about three large eggs for the egg batter.  All it needs is a little S&P and the green onions to boot. 

Dredge the sausage in the flour.  A light dusting is fine but coat it evenly or else the egg wont stick right. You WANT the egg to stick as much as possible as the sausage's smooth not-so-porous surface tends to have the egg wanting to slide right off. 

So you coat in flour, bath in the egg onion mix and lay in a non-stick pan with a shallow covering of oil.  Please take the extra time to spoon some onions onto the sausage once the little monsters hit the pan.  Let  them brown up nicely because the egg will do a pretty puff up thing.  Obviously you want to flip these suckers once they tan up a bit. 

                          

Finished product.  My camera kind of uglies the presentation.  It really is yummy and a nice salty snack.  Eat it warmed up though.  You salty savory people will definitely like this...enjoy!

xx

RB&R fix (Red beans and rice)

Yesterday's rain brought several things along with it.  Nasty traffic, free sprinklers, and leaves on the streets.  It brought me the worst craving for creole food as well.  The worst.  I could not go get any food since I am made of sugar and would have melted in the rain, so I had to satisfy my craving by researching where and what I would order today with sunnier skies.  I decided to fill my RBR cravings at Bud's Creole Cafe in Tierrasanta.  This was my first time ever to frequent this joint in this location or its previous placement in Little Italy (or at least I think it was in Little Italy).  I had read the yelp reviews so I felt like I was prepared with my order.  The parking is of course sparse but I went after lunchtime so I found front row space. 

I walked in and all of a sudden, couldnt decide what I wanted! The reviews made it sound like this was the kind of place where the staff was very laid back and cool.  I kinda felt an annoyed vibe from the guy when I started asking about some of the menu items...and it didnt get better when I asked for a sample of the RBR and gumbo.  He only gave me the sample of gumbo in the end actually.  Still it was enough for me to decide that I was going to choose the RBR this time and wait on the gumbo. 

I ordered the red beans and rice platter with andouille sausage and caesar salad to go.  When I got my order, I was disheartened at the portion size.  It costed about 10 bucks for my food so I kind of expected a larger size container.  See for yourself:

So here is the order.  The bowl isnt very big despite the picture...the wooden surrounding area is actually a small tray, not a kitchen table.  The sausage was seasoned decently but wasnt very juicy IMO.  Plus I feel like that being an entree size, the sausage should have been more plentiful as well.  Also seemed to have too much rice versus bean ratio but that may just be my bias as well.  Flavor was good...creamy and nicely spiced with whole beans as well.  You can taste the fat from the hock that it was cooked in...but that is a gooood thing.  Overall, small portion was disappointing and too little bean/ sausage.  I knew it let me down when I didnt want to finish my food...like when something is so good that you eat till your gut busts!

                           

So in case anyone cares, this is the accompanying side of caesar salad.  It was just aight.  At least it had shavings of parm and the croutons were good.  I felt as if the lettuce tasted bitter...so sad. 

Overall, it barely met my expectations...dont you hate that?  When you read so many good reviews about a place, see the menu and get excited, have a mean craving, and then the place falls short?  super sad face.  Plus I live or work nowhere near this place so I went out of my way.  Ok I will stop.  I may chalk this up to an off day...but I think I will seek out another creole place before my next craving hits...just in case. 

xx

Captain Obvious to the Rescue

...wants to relay the following message.  Someone is trying to find the perfect blog layout so bear with us if it looks different on the outside.  Its whats inside that counts! =)
xx

I'm just saying...

(Warning: there are actually 4 blog entries from today...this is the newest.  They are all equally interesting IMO so either you will love them or hate them.  I have been uber lazy apparently and saved them all up for a rainy day)
I would like to let you guys into my house.  Not literally but through the mind's eye of course.  When I cook, I like a cute kitschy atmosphere.  I spent 3 months looking for the perfect cup of measuring cups to stagger along my windowsill.  Well I couldnt get them b/c they were 30 bucks and I am intrinsically opposed to spending that much.  I got a cute set of measuring cups that look like little china tea cups.  Only today was a dark day...I chipped the 1/4 cup one! Mourn ye with me please.  Another telling feature that would tell people that this is MY kitchen is the dispenser of Lysol wipes and antibacterial gel.  I may or may not have been described as a neat freak.  My kitchen also shows signs of compromise within a marriage.  Husband insisted that we needed a wine fridge although we dont really drink wine.  He uses it for liquor or beer so it is def getting used.  I guess it also frees up some of the valuable refridgerator real estate since I just HAD to get the swanky Euro model that barely fits anything inside larger than an orange. 

The piece de resistance?  The flower.  Kind of not real, maybe a little bit plastic.  In an ikea vase that is clear polka dot texture.  It says...I am colorful, kitschy, fun and still look good even if I am not perfect...I am a bit artsy and a tiny bit fartsy...I'm not rich but I still stand out and look cute doing it.  See:

xx kiddos

Zensei Sushi (North Park area)

As we are all tightening our wallet strings, I try to limit the eating out excursions I have--however I find that this can be a lonely experience since dining out is a major form of socialization these days.  That is probably why most of my blogging has focused on homemade items vs. eating out experiences.  Thanks to groupon and my awesome friend, I was able to try out Zensei Sushi in North Park.  She raved about their food so I was only happy to tag along since it was payday and I hadnt gone to eat in a sit down place for a few weeks at least.  It was hard to find but the inside was kinda funky.  Like a diner feel but with a sushi bar and an imposing sushi chef to boot.  They seemed to have lots of specials for lunch and happy hour as well but the groupon couldnt be used for lunch specials or happy hours apparently--this was not on the fine print.  I used the menu to copy off the roll descriptions FYI--here is a link: Zensei Sushi official menu

We had a total of four rolls and one order of edamame.  Edamame was cooked perfectly with either rock or kosher salt on it--that makes a big difference! Not over or undercooked, came out piping to our table.

Roll#1: Crunchy Roll- shrimp tempura, crab, cucumber, crunchies and sweet sauce

It was our first roll brought to the table so we were eager to dig in.  I was quickly disappointed.  Sushi faux pas.  Ice cold sweet sauce! It just doesnt taste right when the shrimp and crunchies are warm and the sauce is so cold.  Maybe its just me.  Maybe its cuz we were the first customers of the day.  Maybe shmaybe. 

Roll#2: Mango Delight: crab, avocado, cucumber inside, baked with a special spicy sauce and topped with mango salsa

This was the one my friend had to have.  It wasnt bad, but I usually like my rolls simple without baked/ crunchy/ fireworks.  I dont think I really like their sushi rice so that kind of ruins things to begin with.  Perfect amount of spice though. 

Roll#3: Mt. Fuji- smoked salmon, avocado, crab wrapped with snapper and topped with bonito flakes and baked with spicy aoli. 

I didnt realize that the little haystacks were the bonito flakes.  I could eat these by the bowl.  The roll itself was alright.  Not worth the sticker price though.  Good spiciness though.  Again with the cold sweet sauce!

Roll 4: White Dream Roll- spicy mix of cucumber, gobo, onions, masago, tuna, yellowtail, and cerab inside with avocado, thin edible lemon zest and seared ahi or pearl white tuna outside

Of the bunch, this one let me down the most.  Part of it was my fault since I obviously didnt read the menu right.  The gobo ruins this roll almost as much as the onion does.  Otherwise this would have been the kind of roll I would have devoured.  White tuna is my fave sashimi at this point in my life so I desperately wanted this to be orgasmic. I think I ate one piece only. 

The service was good and we even talked to someone who looked like the manager or owner (had an air of authority but wasnt doing much).  He was very friendly.  It apparently has been reviewed highly so I dont know if they were just off today or what but I cant rate it more than a B- or C.  I also dont like when restaurants try to pull a fast one on you by putting limits on coupons or gift cards. 

What is your favorite sushi joint people?  I have one that so far no one has been able to match...affordable, big rolls, fresh fish, and good roll creations.  It always get crowded--that is the only drawback. 

xx kiddos

Anyone in the mood for a quiche?

I had an extra frozen pie crust just screaming at me to be used up.  Normally this wouldnt be an issue but I feel like I have to explain.  My freezer space is tiny.  When I bought my house, I wanted everything to be stainless steel and modern.  I had a choice between a traditional looking side by side fridge/ freezer but I ended up getting the Euro branded one that is counter depth and has freezer pull out drawer on the bottom.  A year later and I regret this decision.  ughh.  Anyways I can no longer hoard in my freezer as much as I would like.  That brings us to this entry: quiche.  Today's version?  Tomatoes, mushrooms, kale and the last 2 slices of bacon that I had. 

So easy that I am not even going to post a recipe or instructions.  Google it if you want to make one.  I did use my countertop convection oven to make this quiche for the first time so that was pretty awesome.  Seriously, why havent you gone to Costco to get one for your house already????  It took about 20-25 minutes in my convection at 375.  This TOO freezes well for reheating later.  Waste not want not as much because lets face it, I am always going to want something else/more. 

xx kiddies

Soup weather

Let me preface this by saying that I understand the value of rain.  I understand we are in a semi drought and that there are many ecological benefits of weather change.  Still I am not a rain person.  I dislike how it keeps you inside, make people drive like 2 year olds, gets in the way of my current backyard project, gets things dirty and muddy, often bring with it good ole windstorms and flooding, makes it so I cant wear my cutest shoes, etc. 

Rain makes me want soup.  I have always liked soup and each season brought with them a different soup that I would make over and over again, each time a bit different depending on what I was wanting or had in my fridge at the time.  Today, it was kale, corn, and ground turkey soup made with a base of ham hock for stock.  I always add some red peper flakes because life is always better with a dash of spice.  Here is the quick recipe--I always forget to measure or take in between pictures!

You need:
- kale, chopped and cleaned
-carrots and celery for starting the base broth, diced
-2 small ham hocks (I've also used leftover ham bits)
-1.5- 2 cups of uncooked lean ground turkey
-1-1.5 cups frozen corn
-red pepper flakes
-S&P
-korean beef broth seasoning

This is so easy even a beginner can do this.  The trick is not to rush any of the stages.  Start by cooking the carrots and celery with a bit of oil at the bottom of a large pot.  I know this is only 2 of the 3 trinity in cooking but I left onions out since I dont really like to cut it.  Cook slightly until a bit softened.  Brown hocks for several minutes on each side.  You dont want to really cook either of these steps thoroughly at this point as you will be cooking this soup for about an hour or more.  Add ground turkey and cook partially.  Add 6-8 cups water and bring to boil.  I let it boil for about 45 minutes before I add the kale.  Add corn at the very end along with the pepper flakes to taste.  I love korean da-shi-da for my magic ingredient for many of my dishes so its a staple in my kitchen.   You want a savory flavor here so use it!  

I didnt add potatoes in mine this time because I knew I wanted to freeze the majority of the soup for reheating later.  Potatoes get funky for me as reheated ingredients so I wouldnt do it.  If you are planning to feed an entire family and not planning for lefties (leftovers), go ahead and toss them taters in--probably before the kale.  I have also made this soup in the past with collard greens and white beans....it went over very well too. 

The first picture is what the soup from today looked like.  As you can see, the colors give a nice presentation to the soup, even when shown in cheap plastic tupperware container.  You will be satisfied with the soup as a meal but it can also pair nicely with some toast or rolls.  The second one is the collard green version.  I wanted to use black eyed peas so that it would be like a twist on collard greens and BEP side dishes that usually is eaten in the south, but I didnt find any at Albies (Albertsons). 

Stay warm my pretties! xx

Kim chee me please

No matter how old I am, I think my mom will always try to feed me and send me home with mounds of food.  In a lot of ways I am just like her since I like to take care of others and send them home with goodies as well.  This time, my sister came to visit me and brought over homemade kimchee for my fridge.  Momma makes the best cabbage kimchee...garlicky, spicy, and cut into ready to eat pieces! I dont think that I will ever be able to live up to my mom's standards as I have yet to try to make my own kimchee.  So in my blog feed, I caught up on a blog from a great food blogger Wandering Chopsticks who listed her top recipes from 2007.  Among them were lovely Kimchee Pancakes.  Like almost anything in this world, mine will be a little bit different from hers but along the same grain.  Here is a link to her wonderful recipe and food blog: Wandering Chopsticks Food Blog- Korean Kimchee Pancakes

I like a runnier batter since I dont like the cakey texture of the finished pancake.  I also throw in some korean beef seasoning...my ultimate secret weapon! My batter is a mix of AP flour, water, beef seasoning, kimchee and for this time- diced potatoes.  I usually put finely ground pork raw into the batter since it works well with the kimchee and almost everything else.  But since I'm trying to use up my chicken (I had defrosted a bunch of chicken since I thought my friends were coming for dinner yesterday and today but they ended up flaking), not wanting to go to the grocery store for one item, and wanting to eat less meat when possible, the potatoes were given a trial run today.  I also like to make my pancakes into palm sized circles versus a giant circle that gets sliced up.  If you are going to use onions, I suggest green/ spring onions.  I have also used enoki mushrooms partly for their look and delicate taste.  I forgot to take a batter picture so here is one in the pan: 

So I'm a fan of the crunchy edges.  The point isnt to make perfect Sandra Lee or Giada-like circles.  You want the ridges and the brown splotches on the surfaces.  You do...trust me.  See how the color of your ingredients manage to peek through the batter and paint the landscape anyways? 

And voila...this is a perfectly cooked Korean Kimchee pancake in my humble opinion.  Well, also 31 years of eating this stuff too.  Go make this stuff...just wear your frying clothes! =)

I've never....

used an outdoor grill before.  Im almost 32 years old and I have never used the outdoor grill before.  At the risk of offending feminists everywhere, I always relied on the men around me to grill up the smokey, charred delights that i love.  I did have a decent panini press/ grill but it was a loaner and I had to return it to the rightful owner.  When we first got married, my hubby insisted that our first newly wed gift to ourselves should be...a man grill.  Now that he is still away on business...and I had defrosted a bunch of chicken meat under the mistaken guise that my friends were coming over for dinner, I was faced with the feat of acquainting myself with the grill.  My hubby even emailed me a quick easy how-to-turn-on-the-grill snippet!

Since it was my newbie effort...but more because its just me who has to eat all this meat once its cooked, I kept the seasonings simple with good old S&P.  That way, I get the health benefits of using the grill as the grease and fat is cooked off and the chicken doesnt just cook in its own fat AND the meat stays pretty neutral so that I can use the cooked meat and incorporate into other recipes.  Here is a closeup of the chicken only: 

See how the skin stayed crispy and the juice is shimmering?  Next time, I will use a sauce on this...next time. 

This final picture is the chicken with the potato I grilled along side.  Next time I have to cut the slices of potato wayyy thinner as most of the slices didnt cook all the way.  Bummer.  It looks really dismal in the picture but I like to think that I am just showcasing the essence of the bird and the bud.  Check:

Let me pose a Q to my expert grillers.  How do you keep the skin from sticking to the grill?  Is the foil spread over the grill rack and poked with holes even work?  I just remember that from my parents old school ways.  Also how do you clean the grates?  My grill grates seem to catch all the food particles instead of letting things fall to the bottom of the grill.  My OCD does not want to make a mess with the grill!!!!!!

Hasta la bye bye kiddos. 

NPP aka North Park Produce

After vowing not to go grocery shopping this weekend, I found myself yet at a grocery store.  This time, I checked out North Park Produce in Chula Vista after passing by the store several times while going to Costco and F&E before.  Obviously I bought some great cheap produce- tangerines, apples, collard green, red taters, tomatoes and cucumbers.  Why didnt I know that they also had prepared middle eastern food there?  I treated myself to Kebab Kafta plate from the prepared deli section.  It was a tossup between this and the beef stew over yellow rice.  Check out the pics:

So this is the closeup of the kebab.  It comes with two slabs of lamb/ beef mixture kebab off the stick and topped with a cream garlicky spread.  The lamb taste is pretty present in the dish but I enjoyed it.   I could have used some extra sauce on the side, but the guy wouldnt give me more.  Boo!  Since I dont eat alot of meat at one sitting, the plate lunch kebab I got will easily last me 3-4 meals.  Meat was not dried out or anything despite it being a solid piece of meat. 

Here is the yellow (saffron?) rice that came with the kebab kafta as well as a juicy roma tomato section that accompanied the dish.  Rice was a nice accompaniment with a light flavor and chewy consistency.  I couldnt really detect other major flavor components but then again, I'm not really that trained.  I wish they would have given more rice with the lunch pack.  Oh well. 

The prepared food section appears very popular there.  they madke other items such as shwarma, gyro, salads, baba ganush (the sample was very good), fresh salsa, baked on premise pitas and breads, tres leches cakes and pastries, roast chicken Lebanese style, etc.  If I would have been hungrier, I might have opted for something hot and fresh off the spit.  Plus, I noticed a coupon on the countertop on the back of their menu...who doesnt love a good coupon? 

On a completely unrelated note, does it make me a geek that I was shopping for 4 hours and all I bought was food, pillows, pills, discount Christmas stuff and a new pot and pan?  Gosh, either that or I am seriously getting old and domesticated!

Happy Eating...isnt there a game on right now? 

Antique Thai and Brand New Convection Oven

For Christmas, my mother in law received a convection oven from my parents as the first present between in-laws.  They loved the convection oven and the local Costco carries the oven.  Its supposed to use half the energy of a regular oven, cook faster and more evenly, and toasts as well.  My local Costco happened to carry the item WITH A $10 coupon so of course I snatched one up.  My first foray into a countertop convection oven was a recipe that may be the first one I actually learned as a teenager (minus watching my mom make dinner of course).  Home economics class taught me two life long skills, one of which was the recipe in question and the other, being how to sew a button and thread a needle.  I dont count the needle though since my mom taught me a better way to thread the needle.  Alas, here is my Bagel Pizza ala Home Economics class:

This is the countertop convection oven I bought from Costco. It already has the uncooked pizzas inside.  The three dials have the following options: broil, bake, toast and warm with temps ranging from 125 to 450 I believe.  Comes with a baking pan, fitted rack and crumb tray.  The glare is from the window of my kitchen sink. 

Cooking inside...so clean and pretty! Let me tell you that I was super glad to have put foil in the pan before cooking.. I forgot how cheese likes to stick when bubbly and gooey! Plus I like my cheese on pizza browned up nicely. 

FYI Its so easy to make this if you are ever inclined for a quick pizza fix without the freeze burn of frozen pizza and without spending a ton of cash on takeout.  I used leftover Einstein "Everything" bagel, leftover Classico pasta sauce, Monterey Jack cheese and bacon.  Oh yeah...and the red pepper flakes are the sprinkles on top.  You dont even have to cook the bacon before hand...it cooks up quite nicely on top at a high temp baking while the bread was nice and crusty.  Enjoy!

The other day I we shopping at a TJ Maxx near Rosecrans.  I was famished afterwards so I was drawn to the "4.95 luch special" sign at Antique Thai.  I had read a Yelp review on this place before andseemed to remember favorable comments but was honestly too lazy and hungry to check again.  I ordered the lunch special of the Basil Eggplant--Spicy level 5/10. 

                          

The starter soup.  Had a nice cabbagey sweet flavor.  Nothing too special but a welcome beginning to a 5 dollar meal.  I just would have preferred the white cabbage rinds to be cooked longer personally.  It also had carrots inside and some other green vegetable that must not have been that memorable after all.

Basil Eggplant. As usual the 4.95 option was the veggie as main ingredient option.  I have to say I wasnt that impressed.  Too many onions.  Only a few pieces of eggplant.  Sauce was too soupy in my opinion.  Flavor was decent but doesnt compare to the eggplant at Sab E Lee or Sang Dao.  Plus the sauce for eggroll fell into the other soupy sauce of the eggplant when they brought it to me so that ruined it even more.  They tried to charge me an extra 1.75 to substitute white rice for brown--I declined.  Salad was blah, dressing not that memorable.  But I was hungry so I ate most of it. 

Here is a super close up of the eggplant.  The sauce was so watery you cant even see it on this part of the dish.  Veggies were fresh at least. 

In case anyone cares, here is a closeup of the wonton that came with the special.  Standard issue.  Some kind of savory curry potato filling with a sweet undertone.  Like I said, I was terribly hungry. 

Overall, I wouldnt go out of my way to come back although I only did try one item so it might not be fair.  If arms were twisted, I would go back and try something else on a lunch special day or if someone else was picking up the tab lol.  Plus the parking lot is always full and a pain in the you know what every time due to several big name stores in the plaza. 

xoxo kiddos

What I did today by the Diligent Diletante...

Went out for GNO Friday night and came home at an absurdly late hour...so uncharacteristic of me actually if you personally knew me.  That led to a lazy Saturday which in turn led to a guilty reaction and a forcibly busy day today.  Cooked up a proverbial storm and the fridge is officially S-T-U-F-F-E-D.  Follow me....

Kimchi, pork chop and tofu stew aka Kimchi chi-gae.  Perfect wintertime stew from Korea.  It is a great way to clean your fridge out and warm the bones.  The meat can be interchanged--as a kid my mom would either put pork chops if money was good, canned mackerel or anchovies if we were stretching the bucks.  Use kimchi that is getting too ripe for good eats during regular eating.  Dont go too soft on the tofu or else you will have tofu confetti going on.  You can also alter the spiciness by adding additional hot pepper powder.  Best with a bowl of rice and some good company. 

   

                          

This is my novel efforts of making sinigang.  Sadly I used a packet from the asian market, but its only because I no longer live with a Filipino aunty who will feed me yummy treats like I used to when I was in my 20's.  Instead of fish, I used pork since that is what I had on sale at the market.  Hopefully I didnt break any tradition or do some kind of faux pas?  I did use tomatoes and bok choy as suggested on the packet.  No fish sauce at home but it seemed to taste pretty good anyways.

                           

This is just a snack item or an extra ingredient  for a mid week meal.  Eggplant cubed up, sauteed in EVOO and seasoned with salt, olive oil and garlic.  My salty tooth would rather have this than a cookie or pie so it works very well for me! Also a good way to get rid of the other half of a giant eggplant.  Dont overcook unless you want the consistency of baba ganoush. 

                             

Yes the picture quality is horrendous but try to ignore the yellowish tint and focus on the glistening broth and bacon bits.  My first attempt at collard greens came out splendid if I do say so myself.  Bought chopped and washed greens from F&E on sale on a whim.  I put red wine vinegar, garlic, bacon chunks, and secret southern seasoning and let it cook itself for 45 minutes.  Full of flavor and bite--a tiny bit of the collard green bitterness but seeing as I hate bitter flavor generally and it didnt bother me here... You gotta try this one.  Really.  I ate the leftovers with quiche, fed coworkers with this and mac n cheese, and ate it plain by itself too.  I had no idea they would be so versatile.  A friend of mine told me to try turkey broth next time....

                               

Ok now that I got your attention for the last time in the post.... On a particularly lazy night last week, this ended up being my dinner.  Edamame from costco and a can of vienna sausages.  To make it even worse, the whole meal was cooked completely in the microwave! And with that bit of humor, I will bid ya'll adieu....

Happy cooking...and eating out!

Buffet time

It had been quite awhile since I went to a buffet of any kind.  My friend's 33rd bday led to an occasion to stuff our face family style at the formerly Crazy Buffet...now Savory Buffet on Miramar road.  I didnt take pics of the food but I did manage to take one final picture of the food.  This was the birthday special...note the cute bunny rabbit made from grapes? 

Buffet itself appeared to have 4-6 different stations.  I noticed the usual staples such as fast food chinese food dishes, a few sushi rolls, some seafood items like crawfish, boiled shrimp to peel, desserts.  Overall I only liked a few of the things I placed on my plate: sesame ball, this triangle shaped spicy crab roll, chinese veggies and clams.  I didnt find out about the crawfish until later but it didnt have seasoning on it so I was too lazy.  Oh well...cest la vie.  Would I come back?  Only if I had to for an occasion or had a bomb coupon to use. 

xoxo

Enchiladas from a Chinita

In my repertoire of recipes, I have about 20 that I rotate and play with.  I learned this enchilada recipe online, used tips from individuals in my past and present and take chances on ingredients as fillers--while holding steadfastly to certain original components.  The fillers are usually what I take chances on, but I always do a green sauce and add some kick.  I know what a traditional enchilada takes from watching others make them but this is a healthier alternative.

I love using leftover rotisserie chicken and whatever cheese is in the fridge.  In the past, I've also added in nopales, jalepenos, etc.  This time, I used chicken, corn, green onions, sour cream and hard boiled eggs.  In the future I probably wouldnt go with the eggs but I really wanted eggs today, maybe b/c I just bought a new case of eggs from Costco. 

A rectangle baking dish holds about 8-10 fatly stuffed enchilada rolls.  I always put a generous dose of the sauce on the bottom of the pan for flavor and so that it doesnt stick as much on the pan.  Its kind of fun to stuff, roll and tuck. 

So you just keep rolling like so, cover with sauce and sprinkle with cheese.  I bake at 375 for about 40 minutes and then about another 15-20 min so that the top gets crunchy.  No frying! Isnt that exciting?  I recommend you either make your own green sauce or use El Pato.  I experimented and regret venturing outside my favorite brand in this case. 

So I didnt get a cross section of an individual serving...guess that means you will have to make it for yourself and eat up! Just remember, no boiled eggs and use El Pato brand!!!!!  So crunchy... thats what you want.  It also freezes well, which is what I end up doing since I hate cleaning baked on goo off pans more than I absolutely have to.  xoxo

Dinin' in a Dive

In my work, I tend to go into the community during the day.  I drive by many a mom and pop store around lunchtime but never want to part with my hard earned money if it will suck.  I'm sure you guys have that place where you always drive by and wonder if that place is any good.  So goes my taste test at one such dive.  It did have an A grade on their window so I felt ok in giving it the old college try.  I did a beginner's bid and opted for carne asada tacos.  They have a grill outside and I would often drive by and see the meat being grilled outside au naturel.  Life is short, eat fresh tacos.  I wonder if I should copyright that...

Stuffed with meat.  Im not an extra meat kind of girl so I had to end up taking some out.  Lovely tortillas.  Can tortillas be lovely?  Soft with the right amount of chew.  The meat was decent taste, which was improved by the lime wedges they gave along with the tacos.  The guacamole was pretty tasty--subtle, not overly mashed, and generously dosed out.  They also had chicken or pork tacos btw. 

I love the red hot sauce.  Nice heat, more of a liquid sauce than chunky.  I took a pic of the red and the green but I preferred the red by a large margin.  The green was too tangy for me and not enough spiciness.  I ended up giving my green back and asking for another red.  The chips were generic store bought--zero cool points for that however.  At least they were free!

Here is a closer pic of the red sauce. 

Here is a snapshot of the grilled spring onions, limes and radishes that came along with tacos. If i liked onions it might have been welcome.   The radishes were surprisingly palatable--the ones i have bought in the grocery store have always been bitter. 

If my post inspired you to check it out, the place is called Fruti Mundo in Spring Valley.  Family run business it seems, but nice service from staff.  Tacos will run you $1.50 a pop and they have other items too like tortas, juices, smoothies, etc.  Cash only.