I got roped into helping Angie arrange some flowers for her work conference this weekend. I love flowers but I am no florist. Luckily Angie has a good eye and I know a few tricks of the trade. We ended up make beautiful orange and yellow Mokara orchid arrangements for the table centerpieces. Along with the old world globes and cute worldly figurines, I think we accomplished the travel theme they were looking for. I made three tall arrangements for the front of the room using green cabbage roses, green dendrobiums, and green spider mums. I wrapped purple ti leaves around the vase, although it looked a little on the black side. I love the dark purple and chartreuse green color scheme.
Tofu steak, Spicy Tuna Salad, Miso Marinated Black Cod
Fresh Beets courtesy of Ann
Tonight I decided to make dinner for Kirk at my place. I had just received some fresh home-grown beets from my friend and co-worker Ann so I ventured to cook those up. You just boil them till you can pierce them with a fork, slip off their skin, and chop em up. They were quite sweet, tender, and just oh-so fresh. Along with that I made a spicy tuna salad, tofu and egg steak, and miso marinated black cod. I was happy with the tofu steak recipe I had just found on the internet. You marinate extra firm slices of tofu in this marinade, fry it and then I added beat up egg which is something Kirk and I had at Terried Restaurant.
Tonight we went to Campanile to celebrate my cousin Jen's birthday. It felt like we were dining with Chef Mark Peel as he basically greeted us at the door and walked around during out meal to see how we were doing. At the end, my cousin was looking at the menu at the front of the restaurant and he came out again to talk about his Family night dinners for the next month. He said something so poetic...and dangit....I can't remember. He was explaining his choices for the family night meals. January is a great month for seafood and since it is cold, he wanted to combine that with wintery, warm, meals. I think one week was Coq Au Vin with oysters as an appetizer and a chocolate souffle for dessert. Tonight's meal was excellent and since I had the $22 soup kitchen meal, I thought I got my dinner for a steal. We started off with a yummy basket full of La Brea Bakery Bread, probably super fresh from the bakery next door. We shared mussels and a roasted beet salad. My soup kitchen meal came with a soup du jour which was Asparagus. It was pureed to a creamy soup with a very mild asparagus flavor. My entree was the Coq Au Vin....perfectly cooked with the meal just falling off the bone oh-so-tenderly. It was accompanied with pearl onions and chantarelle mushrooms. Everyone else's dishes were tasty as we got a small sampling of each other's menus (Baby Lamb for Angie, Scallops for Jen, and Braised Kurobuta Pork for Masaki). For dessert my meal included a Biscott and some homemade vanilla ice cream. Our server even gave me some extra caramel sauce to drizzle (or douse as Masaki did) onto my ice cream. I think this is my new favorite reliable restaurant. I liked the homey feel (even though the restaurant is kind of fancy inside), the attentive service, the open kitchen where you can watch the chef cooking, and the fact that the chef-owner is so friendly and accessible to questions. I definitely want to go back on a thursday night for grilled cheese night
Kirkland brought me to Craft for New Year’s Eve dinner. It was a great way to end 2008 and start 2009. We went with the tasting menu which was supposed to be 5 courses, but we got all these extras some which were free and some that were an added cost (the $40 truffle risotto!). Here is is....I was stuffed afterwards!
Gruyere Puff: It was good except for the fact that mine almost exploded when I took a bite into it. Didn't realize there was a little hole at the bottom where the gruyere had been injected so mine almost got all over my dress.
Amuse Bouche fish: can't remember the exact fish but two raw fishes one topped with caviar and one topped with ground up fish. One one the left was much better.
Dungeness Crab Gratin and Verjus: I think this was one of my favorites. I had to look up what verjus meant (sour juice). It was extremely creamy and the texture was more soup-like. Very delicate flavor.
ConfitOcean Trout, Crispy Chicken Wing and Trout Caviar: Fish tasted poached but I guess that would be right since confit means to be cooked in fat. Extremely moist and tender. The chicken wing was a great little extra...tasted like karaage.
White Truffle Risotto and Quail Egg: This was a extra splurge. The guy came out with a huge piece of truffle and shaved in right in front of us. Does this look like $40 worth of truffle. It was the first time I've had fresh truffle grated onto my food. It was quite tasty, but I think the expense of it will deter me from getting it again. All I have to say is that it was decadent.
Duck Liver Tortellini Cara Cara Orange, Vin Santo and Hazelnut: The duck was salty but was offset by the sweetness of the orange. I felt like the tortellini could have been cooked slightly longer, but nonetheless was delicious.
Japanese Quail Polenta Sorrel and Cherry Puree: My favorite part of this dish was the tiny quail leg on the left. It was fun eating it because it was like a miniature drumstick. The polenta was fried like an eggroll. I ate the dish separate which was probably not the way to eat it.
Wagyu Rib Cap Braised Shortrib Savory Bread Pudding and Sweet Carrots: Yum!!! Excellent meat course. Loved the Wagyu, perfectly cooked and tender.
Cana de Oveja: Sheep's cheese served with crostini and a variety of items (honey, cranberry jam, dates, and walnuts). Poor Kirk couldn't enjoy this creamy cheese ( no cheese for him). Always love a cheese course at the end of the meal.
Lavender Panna Cotta and Aperol Ice: You wouldn't think Lavender would be a good flavor for a dessert, but it was so mild it went with the panna cotta smooth texture. I could have done without the ice.
Peanut Butter Cup Cocoa Nib and Caramel: Can you say gourmet Reese peanut butter cup? The cocoa nib was crunchy and chocolatey. The caramel jelly reminded me of this japanese candy.
Complimentary Dessert (Blood orange jelly, Salt and Pepper Macaroon, Nougat, and Chocolate truffle): Free dessert! I like the blood orange jelly and macaroon.
Muffin to go: So many freebies tonight. This was an extra way to say thank you. A cranberry muffin to go. We ate it the next day and it was good!
Chocolate covered Strawberries, Moet and Chandon Apricot Champagne, and Rocky Mountain Truffles: Kirk was sweet to provide a nice bottle of bubbly. I dipped strawberries in Lindt chocolate and bought some confections at Rocky Mountain.
Kirkland is quite the little chef. He is great at making dishes and kind of throwing together different ingredients. And to make things great, his dishes are pretty healthy but are packed with great flavors. One dish he has made that I love is his pork and eggplant dish. Today he made his lime chicken. He marinated chicken breast in lime juice, garlic, jalapeno pepper, and anaheim chile. Then he baked it in the oven. It was really tasty. I am so lucky I have a boyfriend who enjoys cooking and is good at it. Thank you Kirk for a great weekend together! Joni, Kirk absolutely loves the jellybeans. In fact, his hand is stuck in the jar.
When I used to live in Hillcrest, I discovered a great dessert place in San Diego called Extraordinary Desserts. Now, if you are a lover of desserts, this is a must try. Karen Krasne does wonders with flour, sugar, and chocolate. Using the most unique ingredients, she creates amazing cakes, desserts, and confections that just wow your eyes and your stomachs. She opened a new location in Little Italy awhile back which not only serves desserts, they also serve a variety of savory dishes and unique beverages. Today I enjoyed the Strawberry Dreams Forever cake….a cake with whipped cream, strawberries, a cake soaked in something, and a cream cheese filling. Heaven on a plate. My friend who loves chocolate got the Chocolate Pot de Crème topped with ripe raspberries. I am not the biggest lover of chocolate (gasp, yes I am not), but his pot de crème was so excellently made, I had to have a few bites before he gobbled it all up.
After leaving San Diego, I haven’t been back too often. So this weekend, I wanted to take Kirkland to visit my old favorite locations. We stopped at the Carlsbad outlet for some shopping, then headed to Roberto’s Tacos (now called Rigobertos) located on Miramar Blvd across from the Marine Corp Station. They have the best pollo asado I’ve ever eaten. They marinate dark meat and then chop it all up. I had it tossed onto some fries with cheese and guacamole. So good. After a hefty meal, we drove down to Hillcrest to visit my old apt. It pretty much looked the same with the old cars in the front yard, but the extremely cute cottage look. Next, we headed to BalboaPark to walk around and take some photos. Kirk is a great photographer so he took some nice artsy shots (see above). We ended the day with desserts at Extraordinary Desserts with Kirk’s San Diego friends.(see blog above).
New year’s day is a big holiday for Japanese people. My mom and aunt take turns every year cooking the traditional osechi-ryori. And every year, I say I need to learn how to make it. But of course this year, I failed to come home and wake up early to do so. My mom cooked the meal this year and it was great. Each food has a specific meaning and should be eaten with thought.
Kamaboko: broiled fish paste. Traditionally, slices of red and white kamaboko are alternated in rows or arranged in a pattern. The color and shape are reminiscent of the rising sun and have a celebratory, festive meaning.
Kazunoko: herring roe Kazu means "number" and ko means "child". It symbolizes a wish to be gifted with numerous children in the New Year.
Konbu: seaweed. It is associated with the word yorokobu, meaning "joy".
Kuromame: black soybeans. Mame also means "health," symbolizing a wish for health in the New Year.
Tazukuri: dried sardines cooked in soy sauce. The literal meaning of the kanji in tazukuri is "rice paddy maker", as the fish were used historically to fertilize rice fields. The symbolism is of an abundant harvest.
Ever since watching Martha Stewart back in 1999, I've become addicted to learning about crafting, cooking, and entertaining. I love exploring new restaurants and traveling around the country/world looking for my next culinary adventure. Aside from trying to be the Japanese Martha Stewart, you can find me running, swimming, and at the gym trying to burn off all the food I love to eat.
I got roped into helping Angie arrange some flowers for her work conference this weekend. I love flowers but I am no florist. Luckily Angie has a good eye and I know a few tricks of the trade. We ended up make beautiful orange and yellow Mokara orchid arrangements for the table centerpieces. Along with the old world globes and cute worldly figurines, I think we accomplished the travel theme they were looking for. I made three tall arrangements for the front of the room using green cabbage roses, green dendrobiums, and green spider mums. I wrapped purple ti leaves around the vase, although it looked a little on the black side. I love the dark purple and chartreuse green color scheme.
