I Ate My Way Through My Vacation

Instead of a bunch of souvenirs, I came home with a very full stomach and an iPhone full of food pictures. Yes, I ate my way through my vacation. Surprisingly, the weight gain was pretty minimal; thanks to all the walking I did. But this isn't about exercise, this is about food.

I really didn't expect to eat anything truly delicious until I got to Paris, but I was wrong. I was also wrong in thinking that the food would be pretty blah until I got to Paris. In Amsterdam, thanks to colonization I enjoyed my first taste of Indonesian food, and in Berlin there was Turkish food. The beer (as expected) was great, as was the wine in Paris.

Now for the photos.

Unfortunately, I have no idea what Dutch food is like. However, I do know that ZOUK is a decent place to grab a beer, and a lamb kabob. It's located away from the Leidseplein, so mostly locals hang out here.

Brouwerij't IJ zatte - a triple from Amsterdam

Lamb kabob at ZOUK

I managed not to eat anything Dutch for dinner either. When I asked the bartender at ZOUK for recommendations, he started talking about steak. I love steak, but not while traveling in another country, so I opted instead for Indonesian food. I picked Kartika because it had a sign out front, and it was crowded. It was dumb luck that I wandered into this yummy place. Full disclosure - I've never had Indonesian food before, so I have nothing to compare this against.

My first Indonesian dish ever

If my plate looks like I went to a potluck and tried a little bit of everything, it's because I did get to try a little bit of everything. They had a menu item which allowed you to try several different dishes all on one plate.

In Copenhagen the food experience was interesting. They too eat a lot of steak, and apparently béarnaise sauce. At the top of my list to try was smørrebrød, which is basically an open-face sandwich. 

Smørrebrød

I tried smørrebrød at Dag H in Copenhagen. The sandwiches are nothing to write home about, but it's Danish, so I think you pretty much have to try one while you're there. The best thing about Dag H is that they are always open; from what I understand this is pretty unusual for Copenhagen.

My best restaurant meal was at a place called Maven (which means "stomach" in Danish). The restaurant is in part of what used to be a church, and it's a great example of hygge (which roughly translates to "cozy"). The food is great, but I took no pictures because it was really dark in there. 

For my birthday, my friend, Ms. R. took me to a place called Salt, which serves Nordic cuisine. We enjoyed a rather large lunch, and tried several dishes. I had my first taste of herring, although Ms. R. said that I should have tried regular pickled herring instead of this fried version.

Three types of salt to taste

Herring disguised so as not to look like pickled fish

I love all charcuterie

My favorite meals in Copenhagen were at Ms. R.'s place. One day she made us panini with chorizo, and it was delicious. The chorizo was not the type of ground sausage I'm used to, but more like what you would find with charcuterie. Yum.

Onto Berlin. By this point on my trip, I was getting full easily, and it was so cold I was rarely hungry. My most memorable meals were at a Turkish restaurant called Hazir, and at a Bavarian place called Augustiner am Gendarmenmarkt.

Appetizer plate at Hazir

I couldn't tell you how to get to Hazir because my friend guided me on the U-Bahn, and I would never have gone there on my own. It was yummy though, so if you can make your way to this part of town, definitely eat here!

Bratwurst

I really wanted to eat what I thought of as traditional German food (sausage) in Berlin, so my friend took me to Augustiner, which he said was more Bavarian. I tried the bratwurst, and realized that I still just do not care for bratwurst, even in Germany. The sauerkraut was good, as was the beer.

One must have beer while in Germany

I am ashamed to admit that I don't really know what Czech food is like either. My main meal was at Red Pif, which is  wine bar and restaurant. The food was okay, but nothing amazing. I went there to try the Czech wines, which were good. I did manage to try a trdelnik, while walking from Prague Castle to the Charles Bridge. Trdelik is a rolled pastry.

Trdelnik

The jam-like substance is some sort of plum. There was a nutella option, which I'm sure would have been good, but I can get nutella in the states so I opted for the plum.

Finally, Paris. The food is as amazing as advertised. Don't get me wrong, I had a bad meal, complete with the stereotypical rude French waiter (stay away from La Coupe d'Or in the Hotel-de-Ville neighborhood); but as a whole, if you love food, you will love what Paris has to offer. For the most part, I steered clear of anything around the Eiffel Tower and the Champs-Élysées. I also ate a ton of bread (how can you not), and wish I had more cheese and charcuterie. Oh, and don't order an Orangina in Paris - it's a waste of money. Drink tap water and wine.

My favorite dinner was at Le Petit Niçois, a restaurant near my hotel, Les Jardins d'Eiffel. Technically it's near the Eiffel Tower, but it's a good 15-minute walk to the restaurant from the tower. The ratatouille (my entrée) was served with a poached egg and pesto on top, and this took the already delicious ratatouille to a whole new level. Plat du jour was a lamb dish. It was amazing.

Le Petit Niçois ratatouille

Lamb at Le Petit Niçois

I also made it a point to try two of the places recommended by Anthony Bourdain on the Layover: Berthillon (for ice cream) and Du Pain et Des Idées (for bread). 

Praline Citron Coriander flavor

Berthillon is at 31 rue Saint Louis en I'lle, and it was worth every bit of my long, lost walk. I picked the praline citron coriander because I didn't know how it could possibly work, yet completely trust the French.

L'escargot au citron et nougat de Montélimar

Strong cheese and smoky ham on the left, olive on the right

Du Pain et Des Idées is a boulangerie not to be missed. They are traditional, so you will find no patisserie here. Perfect for me because I have no interest in patisserie. Honestly, I could have ordered one of everything at this place, but I was good an only left with three items. Unfortunately, they were sold out of croissant by the time I got there (before lunch), but I enjoyed every bit of the flaky l'escargot and those savory rolls.

From left to right: pistachio, caramel with fleur de sel, and basil strawberry

I am ruined forever when it comes to the macaron thanks to Paris. These three delightful macarons are from Lenôtre. I don't know if it's possible to make macarons this amazing outside of France.

Pain au chocolat

My sister Mindy asked me to eat pain au chocolat for her. So I did. Even if I don't care for chocolate a whole lot. Again, totally worth it. And now I'm off to dream about macarons, bread, wine, cheese and Paris.

Salt's Cure Equals Yum

If you have ever eaten a meal with me, you know that I am pretty much a meatatarian.  Yes, vegetables can be tasty, and I know they're good for you, but they are generally secondary to me when it comes to food choices.  So I took a little bit of offense to one of Adam Richman's search for the "manliest" restaurant in America.  I know I'm a girl and all, but geez, I enjoy a good steak too. 

Miffed feelings aside, goodness did he pick a fantastic place when he went to Salt's Cure in West Hollywood.  All the discussions about meat, the hands-on approach of the two owners made this a must-try for the B and me; which we finally did on Saturday.  We thoroughly enjoyed every moment...well, almost every moment. 

The restaurant is located at North Vista and Santa Monica Boulevard, and it's a pretty small place.  We walked-in around 7:00 p.m., and they had two seats left at the bar.  Actually, we sat at a regular table, right next to the bar, but we faced their open kitchen.  The B likes to situate us like this because he enjoys watching the cooking process.  Which, I must admit, was a fun experience at this place, except for the part when the workers got in a little bit of a tiff.  It was a little disappointing to hear the exchange, but I guess that's what you get when you have an open kitchen.  We said we would pretend it didn't happen because the food was that good.

We shared the pickled vegetables (served with pretzel roll), a creamy goat cheese (with some sort of nutty bread), the mussels (with toasted rustic/country bread), braised Swiss chard, the bacon cheeseburger, and the bread pudding.  Everything was excellent.  They pickle their own vegetables, bake their own breads, cure their own bacon (truly thick strips)...you get the picture.  We had to roll ourselves out of there, but it was worth every over-stuffed moment I had that night.

Pickle Plate with Pretzel Roll

The atmosphere is quite nice, but I wouldn't call it romantic.  The menu changes everyday, so you have to look-up on a chalkboard that hangs near the ceiling.  Apparently they serve brunch on the weekends, and are open for lunch on the weekdays.  It's not the cheapest place, but it's not that expensive either; especially when you consider the lengths they go to for food preparation.  We plan to go back for brunch...if we can ever get ourselves away from the brunch scene at the beach.

Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Shells

In April I finally broiled something correctly, so I took a picture and posted it on Facebook.  The dish happened to be Real Simple's Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Shells recipe, and I guess it looked good because some of my friend's wanted the recipe.  I add prosciutto to mine because I am such the meatatarian, but this is supposed to be a vegetarian dish.  Of course this means I always have way too much stuffing leftover, but I just make a bigger dish and have more cheesy-prosciutto goodness.

My only caution to anyone making this is to be careful with the broiler.  Usually I am so scared to burn things I don't get the nice browning effect, but this time I just kept watching through the oven door.  Plus, this oven can broil on different temperatures (I don't think all ovens do this, but I'm not sure), so I had it on a lower temperature.
 

Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Shells
adapted from Real Simple 

20 jumbo pasta shells 
1 24-ounce jar marinara sauce
2 15-ounce containers ricotta
2 cups baby spinach, chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Kosher salt
Black pepper
1 cup grated mozzarella
4 ounces prosciutto (optional)

• Set an oven rack to the highest position and heat oven to 400 degrees.
• Cook the pasta according to the package, drain and run under cold water.
• Spread the marinara sauce in the bottom of a large broilerproof baking dish.
• In a bowl, combine the ricotta, spinach, Parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper (and prosciutto if you're going my route).  Spoon the mixture into the shells and place them on top of the sauce.  Sprinkle with the mozzarella and bake until the shells are heated through, 10 to 12 minutes.
• Increase the heat to broil.  Broil the shells until the cheese begins to brown, 2 to 5 minutes.  

Artichoke Bites

These yummy things are supposed to be an appetizer I think, but we have been eating them for breakfast. Did I mention they are super easy to make?

I do have some modifications on this one (mainly because I am lazy about fresh herbs). The recipe calls for one slice of whole wheat bread, but since someone is trying to minimize the carbs, I leave them out, and it still tastes good. However, I have made these before with the whole wheat bread, and as a lover of all-things-carbs, I would probably rather include them. I also use dried parsley because I never have the fresh stuff on hand, but I have a Costco-size container of the former. Finally, instead of chopped garlic, I used the pre-minced stuff. Yes, I am lazy!!!

Artichoke Bites
adapted from Food Network Kitchens

Ingredients
1 slice whole wheat bread, crusts removed
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1 (6-ounce) jar oil-marinated artichoke hearts, drained, rinsed, and chopped
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/4 ounce)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 large eggs

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly butter or spray a 6-cup nonstick muffin tin.

Toast the bread slice until crisp. Cool and cut the toast into small pieces into a medium-size bowl and add the oregano, artichoke hearts, cheese, and parsley.

Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat, add the onion, garlic, salt, and red pepper flakes, and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir into the artichoke mixture.

Lightly beat the eggs in a small bowl until foamy, stir into the artichoke mixture; spoon a 1/4 cup of the mixture into each of the muffin cups. Cook until lightly puffed, golden, and just set in the center, about 17 to 20 minutes. Let cool on a rack for about 5 minutes, then remove the artichoke bites from the pan and serve warm.

Kalua Pig

Sometimes I need a little bit of food from home. It might mean spam musubi, or mochiko chicken, but recently, I decided to make Kalua pig. I found a slow cooker recipe awhile ago, and it turned out pretty well. It is super easy, and I do love my crockpot. Enjoy!

Kalua Pig in a Slow cooker
adapted from allrecipes.com

Ingredients
1 6-lb. pork butt*
1 1/2 tablespoons Hawaiian salt
1 tablespoon liquid smoke

Directions
Pierce pork all over with a fork. Rub salt, and then liquid smoke all over pork. Place roast in slow cooker*. Cover and cook on low for 16 to 20 hours, turning once during cook time. Remove meat from slow cooker and shred. Add drippings as needed to moisten.

*My minor modifications: I use pork shoulder, and I place the roast in fatty side up, and do not turn during cooking.

Barbecue Chicken in the Slow Cooker

If I've already posted about this, my apologies. This is an easy recipe for barbecue chicken in the slow cooker, and I always get compliments when I make it. If you're wondering why there's no photo, it's because I don't think my camera skills do the dish any justice.

The recipe comes from allrecipes.com, and it is super easy.

Ingredients
6 frozen, skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 12-oz. bottle of barbecue sauce
1/2 cup Italian dressing
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Directions
Place the chicken in a slow cooker. Combine the barbecue sauce, Italian dressing, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce, and pour over the chicken. Cook on high for 3 to 4 hours, or on low for 6 to 8.

My Notes

• Most of the barbecue sauce I like comes in an 18 ounce size, and I use the entire bottle. I tend to use Stubb's Original barbecue sauce or the Kansas City barbecue sauce at Trader Joe's.


• I use Newman's Own Family Recipe Italian dressing.


• I have used both frozen and fresh chicken breasts. My cook time for the frozen ones was about 3.5 hours on high, and I cooked the fresh chicken for 5 hours on low.


• At the end of the cooking process, the sauce becomes pretty watery, so I shred the chicken and put it back in the sauce. I don't think using only 12 oz. of barbecue sauce will cut down on the watery-ness. Plus, you might also not have enough sauce at the end if you shred the chicken because a lot of the liquid is soaked up by the chicken.


• Normally, like to serve this with a mac and cheese dish, but it's also good on some sort of bread roll, or in a tortilla.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy birthday to my Dad! Hope you get to eat that yummy, yummy lemon crunch cake from Diamond Head Market & Grill.

Cleo in Hollywood

Earlier this week I did something I rarely ever do in Los Angeles. I went to Hollywood.

What? I know. It's just that I used to live in El Segundo, and now I'm holed up in the OC, so I tend to favor places off the 405, or by the beach. Hollywood can be a bit of a trek. But, friends were in town from the Bay Area, and so we met for drinks at AOC on 3rd; which then turned into a late dinner at Cleo in Hollywood.

This is all about Cleo.

Cleo was amazing. Located in the Redbury Hotel, on Vine Street, this is one Mediterranean restaurant that I would classify as definitely trendy. But who cares? It's in Hollywood. It should be trendy.

It's all small plates, so you get to try a lot of different things; and I think we made our way through the menu pretty well. The food comes out as it's prepared, so there's no traditional appetizers-salad-entree order to your meal. There's also a fun libations list.

Mezzes

• Lebaneh with feta—a yogurt cheese dip for this wonderful bread which comes in a brown paper bag. It was tangy, and so yummy. I would get this again.


• Dolmades—Cleo's version of dolmas. I'm not a fan of dolmas, so I can't really comment here.


• Chicken kebab—yum. What can I say? It's a kebab. The chicken was cooked perfectly, and tasted...well, yum.

Salads

• Pumpkin—one of the best and more interesting salads I have ever had. There is a little bit of a kick to the salad thanks to the spiced pepitas. The rest of the salad consists of roasted pumpkin, shaved parmesan and hazelnut vinaigrette. I'm pretty sure there were also pomegranates, and I forget what type of lettuce was served.

Vegetables

• Brussel Sprouts—our waitress told us that the brussel sprouts taste like potato chips, and she did not lie. I may have mixed up what part of the menu the brussel sprouts are from, as there are some that you can order under "mezzes." Just ask for the ones that taste like potato chips. They actually resemble chips because someone in the Cleo kitchen to the time to take the brussel sprout leaves apart. Thank you to whoever does that job because this dish is amazing!

Meats

• Lamb Shawarma—another delicious dish. Not gamey at all, and tender.

Flatbreads

• Seasonal Mushroom—this came out at the very end, and it did not disappoint. It was similar to a flatbread pizza, and the remains of the lebaneh with feta was a good compliment.

Seafood

• Grilled Octopus—normally I am not a fan of octopus as I have had too much of the rubbery stuff, but this was delicious and not at all like I have had before.


• Mussel Tagine—these mussels come in a broth of saffron, tomato, chickpeas and spinach. Another tasty dish.

Dessert

• Sticky Toffee Pudding—this was described as a toffee pudding with a bread pudding-like consistency. It came out exactly as described, and it was so, so good. I actually voted for this over baklava (which I love).

Bye Bye Bay

There have been some massive changes afoot, and one of them is that I recently relocated from the San Francisco Bay Area back to Southern California.

Just over four years ago I made the trek from El Segundo to Walnut Creek, and now I'm back. I can't honestly say that I loved living up in the Bay, but I did enjoy my time there, and I will miss my Walnut Creek life.

I know I should be talking about the wonderful people I left behind, but that's just too sad. Instead I'm going to talk about places to go and food to eat because others can easily enjoy those same things.

Wait, there is one person I want to talk about. My lovely hairstylist, Priscilla. She works at Tribez in Danville, and I love her. She almost never overbooks, she always accomodated my need to come in after work, and she cut my hair wonderfully. If you are in need of a hairstylist, go see her. The salon is fun and trendy, and Priscilla is a very calm person amidst the chaos of a hairstylists, clients and various personal care professionals. Just know that you need cash or a check.

Onto the other stuff I love:

• Nordstrom Rack, San Leandro—maybe one of the best Racks I have been patroned, it's off the Marina (East) exit from the 880.


• Wooden Gate Quilts, Danville—I am so sad I went here only once! Initially, I found this place online when I was looking for a quilting shop between work and home, but they were closed for renovation. When my mom visited in October, we stopped by. Wooden Gate Quilts was wonderful. I'll make it a point to visit when I'm next in the Bay...if I can manage to lower my fabric stash by then.


• Lafayette Library and Learning Center—this place is brand new, and it's like being in someone's big, beautiful home. There's a used bookstore (operated by the Friends of the Lafayette Library) just outside of the parking garage, and you can get a used hardcover for $1. In fact, I finally found a copy of Katherine Neville's the Eight there (and I have been looking for this book for years). The Lafayette Library is open on Sundays, and a wonderful place to spend an afternoon.

People in the Bay Area take their food seriously, so food deserves it's own little section today.

• Zachary's Chicago Pizza—I love and will eat all kinds of pizza, but this place is a favorite. I'm not sure how it rates against the real thing in Chicago, but I love Zachary's. I like the San Ramon location because there is parking, but I think the one in Oakland is the original.


• Lococo's, Piedmont—What you see on the menu, is what you get when you order, so please do not try and add chicken to a dish without chicken. I can't help but love my favorite little Italian place, Lococo's in Piedmont. You can bring your own wine, and please bring cash or a personal check (no credit cards). My go-to selections are the tortellini con sugo (tortellini stuffed with prosciutto and chicken) and Gilberto's Special pizza (all meat). Yum. I miss it already.


• Cha Cha Cha—I get my tapas and sangria fix here. It's all good, so I'm not even going to bother telling you what to get at Cha Cha Cha. The Haight Street location is the original, and has a totally different vibe from the one in the Mission, but both are fun. If you're on the Peninsula, there's also a new location in San Mateo, on Second Street, I believe.


• Saroor Indian Cuisine—Great samosas here! I drove by Saroor quite often, and finally decided to try it. I'm so glad I did because they are generous with the portions for takeout, and it's a nice little neighborhood spot on North Main in Walnut Creek.


• Hubcaps—I know it's a diner, but this is my favorite breakfast spot in Walnut Creek. It's my favorite because I love the eggs benedict at Hubcaps.


• Swiss Delices, Castro Valley—What a wonderful place for baked goods, coffee and lunch! Swiss Delices is a European bakery with locations in Hayward and Castro Valley, but I only know the one in CV. Everytime I went in, I pretty much always left with one or two of the following: an apricot or raspberry bird nest (macarron with jam); an apricot or raspberry humentachen; an Italian danish; and almost always, a peanut butter cookie.

There's actually a lot more that I love and like about the Bay Area, but that's for another time and future visits.

Things I Heart About Japan

Right now, so much of the focus on Japan is about the enormous disasters that have gone on over the past several days. Rightfully so. It has been a most awful time for the Land of the Rising Sun, and it hurts my heart every time I watch or read the latest news.

Instead of all the chaos and destruction, I want to think about the things I love about Japan. Here goes:

• Anpan—a sweet bread filled with an, which I guess is a red bean paste.



• Robotech—only my favorite cartoon and the first anime I ever saw.


• Mugicha—barley tea; I first had this when I spent a short bit of my summer, right around 5th grade in Fukuoka.



• Kuri manju— it's manju, but the outside is more of a baked bread than pounded-out-rice. Just go to your local Marukai or Nijiya and ask for it.



• Miyazaki Films like Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Howl's Moving Castle, etc.
  
  
• Obento—the best box-lunch ever.

Okay, so I realize this centers mostly around food and media. But, these will be important in the weeks and months to come as Japan struggles to recover. I wish I could do something more tangible to help, but I think buying Japanese products will go a long way.

I do love other things about Japan and its people. It is such an orderly and considerate society. One in which you care about how your actions affect those around you; and this is so ingrained that you see the culture shining through in the simplest of photos. Here is the the picture that warms my heart the most (open it in a new window so you can see a larger version:


Notice how many of them are sitting or laying on some kind of paper or mat so that they are not directly touching the floor? And do you see how some of them have taken off their shoes and lined them up just-so? It's so Japanese. I love it.

Eating With the Angry Korean Lady

Last week I went home for Christmas and New Year's, and enjoyed one of my most interesting dining experiences, thanks to my neighbor J, and the Angry Korean Lady.

J and I grew up next to one another, and he's like an older brother to me. Of course, now that we're grown and I live in the mainland, I rarely see either of the T-brothers, so I asked if we could meet up for drinks. For some reason we didn't think about food until a few hours before, and decided to get some Korean food instead.

Lucky me, J suggested Ah-Lang.

Located in the Imperial Plaza at 725 Kapiolani Boulevard, you will find a small Korean restaurant, operated by one woman. She calls herself "the Angry Korean Lady" and on the tables are notes that explain that she is "a one-woman show." Seriously. She does all the cooking, busing, etc. so she has no problem with you filling out your own order and bringing it in the back.

Feeling hungry? Becareful. If she feels like you ordered too much food, she'll come out and tell you that she's changing your order. Think you can handle a spicy rating of 10? You better be able to, because she will come out and tell you to scale it back. There's even more to the story, but I think you should experience it for yourself. One last thing...

Don't go here if you're in a rush. The service happens as its own pace; after all, there's just one person cooking. But, you can bring your own beverages (you gotta love Hawaii) and enjoy a leisurely meal.

In case you're wondering, we ordered kalbi and soon do bu. It was so yummy and affordable!

Great, now I'm hungry.

Mac and Cheese With Bread and Ham

The recipe is actually called Croque Monsieur Mac and Cheese. Basically, it is mac and cheese (gruyere and parmesan)with diced bread and ham. Hence, the use of "croque," which translates to "crumbs," or "crunch." But I have no idea what "monsieur" means other than "mister," or "master."

This is yet another yummy recipe for people who love a slightly fancier version of mac and cheese like I do. It's also easy.

I do have a few adjustments:

• I would do is melt butter over medium low heat, rather than high. At this point in the recipe, you are pretty much making a bechamel sauce, and Giada's way has worked better for me. In other words, I don't burn my saucepan with her way like I did by following the recipe's directions.
  
• The recipe calls for freshly grated nutmeg, and I totally missed "freshly grated" and used my regular nutmeg.
  
• I added the garlic after the onion had browned because minced garlic cooks so quickly.

As for the "deli-boiled ham", this is something you can find at the deli counter. I worried that Safeway would not have it, but they did! The lady behind the counter even knew what I was talking about.

Enjoy all the cheesy goodness, and don't forget a bottle of wine!

Croque Monsieur Mac and Cheese
by Food Network Magazine

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound ziti
  
• 2 C milk
  
• 2 C coarsely grated gruyere cheese
  
• 1 C finely grated parmesan cheese
  
• 2 large eggs
  
• 3 slices white sandwich bread, roughly diced
  
• 2 T unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
  
• 1 medium onion, diced
  
• 1 clove garlic, minced
  
• 3 T all-purpose flour
  
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
  
• 1/2 t freshly grated nutmeg
  
• Kosher salt
  
• 8 oz. thinly sliced deli-boiled ham

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the ziti and cook until al dente, about six minutes. Drain and transfer to a large bowl; toss with 1/4 cup of milk.

Meanwhile, combine both cheeses in a bowl. Beat 1/4 cup milk and the eggs in another bowl; fold in the bread and add half of the cheese.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over high heat. Add the onion and garlic, cook, stirring until just brown, about two minutes. Sprinkle in the flour, cayenne, nutmeg and one teaspoon Kosher salt; cook, stirring, about two minutes. Slowly add 3/4 cup water and the remaining 1 1/2 cups milk; bring to a boil; stirring until thickened. Remove from the heat and whisk to cool slightly. Whisk in the remaining cheese, then add the pasta and toss.

Butter a shallow casserole dish. Add half of the pasta, top with some of the ham and cover with remaining pasta. Top with the remaining ham, then cover with the bread mixture. Bake until golden and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Let rest a few minutes before serving.

Gumbo for Sunday Dinner

A couple of weeks ago I tried making jambalaya. It was not so good. I then realized that I really wanted to make gumbo. Really, I've been wanting the gumbo at The Kingfish Cafe in Seattle, but that's just too far away. It was time to give it a go in my own kitchen.

The recipe I used came from Paula Dean. Seth liked it, as did my co-worker, but I'm not quite sure how I felt about it. The one at The Kingfish Cafe is just so good.

The recipe itself was pretty easy; although it is time consuming. It makes for some tasty comfort food. A couple of notes on the ingredients:

• Instead of smoked sausage, I used Louisiana hot links, but if you like spicy, go for Andouille sausage.


• The recipe calls for margarine, but I only had butter. It turned out fine with butter

One more thing, the picture above lacks the shrimp. I did not add the shrimp until the last moment because I didn't want to mix it into the gumbo itself. The recipe makes way too many servings (eight to ten) for the two of us to eat before shrimp goes bad.


Gumbo
by Paula Dean

INGREDIENTS

• 3 large boneless skinless chicken breast halves


• Salt and pepper


• 1/4 C vegetable oil


• 1 lb. smoked sausage, cut into 1/4-inch slices


• 1/2 C all-purpose flour


• 5 T margarine


• 1 large onion, chopped


• 8 cloves garlic, minced


• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped


• 3 stalks celery, chopped


• 1/4 C Worcestershire sauce


• 1/4 bunch flat leaf parsley, stems and leaves, coarsely chopped, plus chopped leaves for garnish


• 4 C hot water


• 5 beef bouillon cubes


• 1 (14-oz.) can stewed tomatoes, with juice


• 2 C frozen sliced okra


• 4 green onions, sliced, white and green parts


• 1/2 lb. small shrimp, peeled, deveined and cooked

DIRECTIONS
Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken until browned on both sides and remove. Add the sausage and cook until browned, then remove. Sprinkle the flour over the oil, add 2 T margarine and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until brown, about 10 minutes. Let the roux cool.

Return the Dutch oven to low heat and melt the remaining 3 T margarine. Add the onion, garlic, green pepper and celery and cook for 10 minutes. Add Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper, to taste and 1/4 bunch parsley. Cook, while stirring frequently for 10 minutes. Add 4 C hot water and bouillon cubes, whisking constantly. Add the chicken and sausage. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Add tomatoes and okra. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Just before serving, add the green onions, shrimp and chopped parsley.

Baked Manapua

One of the things I miss about home is the food, and that includes manapua. Of course I can find manapua here in the mainland, but usually only at Dim Sum (and then it's called char siu bao).

Needless to say, I was pretty excited to see this recipe for baked manapua on the My Food Affair blog. It seemed manageable enough, so I tried it out tonight. Oh my goodness was it yummy. This is the first Chinese food I have made that actually tastes right.

As far as the recipe goes, I had a little bit of a hard time with the dough since it was so sticky. It probably should have been mixed more in the bowl...guess I am too used to using a food processor to make pizza dough. And then I had a little bit of a hard time with stuffing the char siu filling into the dough and making nice little bao. Tip for anyone else trying to make this recipe: don't worry too much about making the manapua perfect because the dough smooths out a bit when you let it rise for 30 minutes before putting it in the oven.

I did not know what is in an egg wash, so I checked the internet and found several examples. I used an egg wash of one egg yolk and one teaspoon of water; a mixture that I found on The Pie Maven blog. Finally, I was concerned about making the char siu tough/dry since it's already been cooked but the five minute saute was perfect and the filling turned out just fine.

I'm not posting this recipe, but you can find it on the My Food Affair blog.

Soupe et salade

I know I said I needed to take a break from la cuisine française, but I just had to try Julia's Soupe á l'Alil aux Pommes de Terre, or saffron-flavored garlic soup with potatoes.

The recipe for Aїgo Bouїdo was the first recipe that caught my eye in Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and it sounded simple enough; until I got to the part when Julia says "Beat the egg yolks in the soup tureen for a minute...Drop by drop, beat in the olive oil as for making a mayonnaise." No, it was not the word "mayonnaise" that deterred me, it was the instruction to "drop by drop beat in the olive oil."

Luckily, one of the beautiful things about this cookbook is that Mrs. Child provides a "basic" recipe, and then some variations. A variation of Aїgo Bouїdo is Soupe á l'Alil aux Pommes de Terre. Garlic soup is supposed to "be very good for the liver, blood circulation, general physical tone and spiritual health."

The soup is different, and is a nice change from the tomato-based soups I normally make. To go with the soup, I made a Baby Spinach Salad from the Food Network.

Overall, dinner was quite nice. It wasn't a heavy meal, but it was tasty. I forgot to say that the garlic soup, is not garlicky, and you can't really tell that it is the recipe's main ingredient.

Soupe á l'Ail aux Pommes de Terre
by Julia Child

INGREDIENTS
1 separated head or about 16 cloves of garlic (whole, unpeeled)
2 tsp salt
Pinch of pepper
2 cloves*
1/4 tsp sage
1/4 tsp thyme
1/2 bay leaf
4 parsley sprigs*
3 T olive oil
3 cups diced potatoes
Pinch of saffron

DIRECTIONS
Drop garlic cloves in boiling water, and boil 30 seconds. Drain, run cold water over them, and peel.

Place the garlic and the salt, pepper, cloves, sage, thyme, bay leaf, parsley and olive oil in 2 quarts of water. Boil slowly for 30 minutes.

After the soup has simmered for 30 minutes, strain it. Press the juice out of the garlic.* Return the strained soup to the pot. Simmer the potatoes in the soup with the saffron for about 20 minutes or until tender. Add seasoning to taste.

*The recipe calls for 2 cloves, but I only had ground cloves, so I used 1/8 tsp of the ground cloves.
*I can't seem to figure out if "parsley" means regular parsley or Italian parsley. I settled on regular parsley.
*Before I actually made the soup, I wasn't sure what to do with the garlic cloves once I "pressed the juice" out. It turns out that there isn't much left after you press the garlic in the strainer. Some of it falls back into the soup.




Baby Spinach Salad with Roasted Red Onions, Pecans, Dried Cranberries, Crumbled Goat Cheese, and Citrus Dressing
from The Food Network

INGREDIENTS
1 medium red onion
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Citrus Dressing, recipe follows
8 cups baby spinach
1/2 cup pecans, toasted and chopped*
1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese
1/2 cup dried cranberries

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Slice the onion into thin wedges, through the root end. Toss with the olive oil, season with salt, to taste, and spread out on a baking sheet. Roast until just soft and brown, about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Put the spinach and onions in a large bowl. Drizzle with some of the dressing and toss. Add more dressing as needed; spinach should just be lightly coated. Divide salad among 4 chilled plates. Top with pecans, goat cheese, and dried cranberries. Serve immediately.

CITRUS DRESSING
1 tsp lemon zest
2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 T freshly squeezed orange juice
1 T Dijon mustard
1 tsp honey, plus more to taste
1/4 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped
1/4 tsp fine salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Whisk the lemon zest, lemon juice, orange juice, Dijon, honey, thyme, and salt in a medium bowl until well combined. Gradually whisk in the oil, starting with a few drops and then adding the rest in a steady stream, to make a smooth, slightly thick dressing.*

*I made a mistake with the dressing and added everything to the olive oil, rather than the other way around. It turned out just fine. Seth actually liked the salad; which is saying something since he always chooses to get Caesar Salad at restaurants.

Spicy Salsa

Seth and I love spicy food, and we are always in search of spicy salsa. We don't usually care for the chunky, store-bought stuff, so I decided to try making my own salsa for Cinco de Mayo (May 5 also happens to be my dad's birthday and Boys'/Children's Day). I found a recipe on the Food Network site called Tay's Hot and Spicy Salsa, and it sounded like and turned out to be a good option.

It's not all that spicy, so it's more like medium for people who have high-tolerance for spicy foods. But, it's an easy recipe, and most importantly, Seth liked it.

Here's the recipe:

Tay's Hot and Spicy Salsa
by Taylor Veldhuis

Ingredients
2 fresh jalapenos
1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves (Chinese parsley for my Hawaii peeps)
1 clove garlic
1 banana pepper (a.k.a. yellow pepper)
1 lime, juice
1 teaspoon House Seasoning (recipe included)
1 can diced tomatoes (do not drain)

Directions
Put everything, but the tomatoes in a food processor. Chop until diced. Add the tomatoes*. Serve with tortilla chips.

House Seasoning
1 cup salt
1/4 cup garlic powder
1/4 cup black pepper

Combine ingredients and store in air-tight container for up to six months.

*I added the tomatoes to the food processor and chopped them for a less chunky salsa.

In Search of a Portuguese Bean Soup Recipe

When I was little it was a rare treat to get my grandma to make Portuguese Bean Soup. The recipe calls for ham hocks, and she hardly had them on hand. The other option was to wait around for February and the annual Punahou Carnival, which was a place to buy steaming hot, Portuguese Bean Soup. Now that I live in the mainland, it's even harder to come by one of my favorite Hawaii foods. Thank goodness I am comfortable in the kitchen and can make my own soup. I just wish I could find a recipe I like.

This was second try at making my own Portuguese Bean Soup, and this time I found a recipe online. I did change a couple of things because I don't care for mushy beans and noodles, and potatoes melt as they cook. Supposedly this is the recipe used at the Punahou Carnival, but it doesn't taste quite right. Don't get me wrong, it does the job, but it's just not what I remember.

If anyone has any recipes to share or ideas on how to make this one better, please share. I think perhaps it's missing a bay leaf and celery.

Portuguese Bean Soup Recipe
as found on recipezaar

INGREDIENTS
1-2 lb. ham hock or ham bone
2 15-oz. can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 large potatoes, cubed
3 large carrots, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 16-oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 16-oz. can tomato sauce
1 lb. Portuguese sausage (outside of Hawaii, it's known as linguica)
1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 medium head of cabbage, cubed (it sounds like a lot, but this is the right amount)

DIRECTIONS
Boil the ham hocks or ham bone in 2 quarts of water until tender, about 1 hour. Save the stock and cut the meat from the bones.

Bring ham stock to a boil and add the cut meat and all the remaining ingredients except the cabbage.*

Simmer for 1-2 hours, stirring frequently. If too thick, add a little water.

Add the cabbage, cook another hour until tender.*

Salt and pepper to taste.

ADJUSTMENTS TO RECIPE
*Fry the diced pieces of Portuguese sausage before adding to the ham stock to cut-down on the amount of oil in the soup. Add all ingredients except kidney beans, potatoes, macaroni and cabbage.
**About 30 minutes after adding the cabbage, add the beans and potatoes. About 50 minutes after adding the cabbage (20 minutes after adding beans and potatoes) add the elbow macaroni.

I just found an actual recipe from the Star Bulletin (the recipezaar site cites the Star Bulletin. Check it out because the recipe is a little different; including the use of celery!

A Little European Bakery

I just found a delightful little European bakery near my job. It's called Swiss Delices. They feature a variety of cookies, cakes, breads and other savory pastries. My favorite is the Bird Nest cookie, which is a hazelnut macaroon with apricot or raspberry jam in the middle. Yum. I also tried the Humentachen and Almond Toffee Bar. Both are excellent.

The woman at the Castro Valley location is really nice, and I love her French accent. There is also coffee or soup and sandwiches for lunch. If you are ever in Castro Valley or Hayward, please stop in and help keep this bakery open!

Lemon Ricotta Cookies for Easter

For my birthday I got a box of baking goodies, including little Easter-themed sugar figurines. It was perfect timing: last weekend Seth and I watched an episode of Everyday Italian on the Food Network, during which Giada was baking Lemon Ricotta Cookies. Since the cookies have a lemon glaze, I figured this would be a good opportunity to use the figures.

It's an easy recipe, and I just made two minor adjustments:

• The recipe says to spoon about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie onto a baking sheet. On the show, Giada appeared to make smaller cookies, so I only scooped about 1/2 tablespoon.


• I also adjusted the baking time down to 12 minutes from 15 (so that the edges were slightly golden) since I scooped out smaller mounds of dough

These are light, soft cookies. I happen to love lemon, so these are right up my cookie-alley.

Here is the recipe:

Lemon Ricotta Cookies with Lemon Glaze
by Giada De Laurentiis

INGREDIENTS
Cookies
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 (15-oz.) container whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

Glaze
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Cookies
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.

In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat to combine. Stir in the dry ingredients, about 1/3 at a time.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon the dough (about 2 tablespoons per cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 20 minutes.

Glaze
Combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Spoon about 1/2 teaspoon onto each cookie and use the back of the spoon to gently spread. Let the glaze harden for about 2 hours.

Best Birthday Card Year Ever

Yes, it's birthday time for me. To celebrate this year we had dinner at Angeline's Kitchen in Berkeley. It was great--if you go, get the hush puppies and the jambalaya.

When we got home I opened cards and presents; they were all awesome. In particular though, this was a fantastic year of cards. Between the Twilight card the Contreraseses sent to the "Everything you want costs money," card from Seth to the "Queen for a Day" card from Kris and Steve, I don't think I've ever laughed this much from my cards. And yes, the Queen card is my favorite. How can you not love it? The crown is made of cutout paper, costume jewels, and fuzzy feathers!

A giant thanks to everyone who thought of me.