November 11, 2008
There are days I’m great at watching the food spending, like today, a can of tomato basil soup ($1) and a baked potato ($0.75) from grocery shopping.
Some days, a little less good: yesterday, bought a cheeseburger with extra veggies ($3).
Other days, I’m tempted to just throw caution aside and go for the gusto. Is it so reprehensible that the following announcement had me reaching for the phone and my credit card? (And we all know I only use credit cards because I want to, not because I have to, right?)
LA’s first Zagat Presents event takes place at Josie on December 2nd. For the night, chef Josie Le Balch’s eponymous restaurant will be all about pears. The four-course dinner will explore pears from Bosc to Bartlett showcased ripe in a pear salad, distilled as a sorbet intermezzo and roasted alongside a Maple Leaf Farm duck breast. And, of course, there will be a pear dessert. Plus, a pear cocktail will be paired with each course. If you’re interested, reserve quickly ($65 for four courses with cocktails; call 310-581-9888 and mention Zagat Presents).
I’m a sucker for all things pear. Mmm…. and duck? Plus pear? I’d try to deny being a gourmand, but that’s a lie. I love food. And I really love good food. It’s a bit of a battle, keeping the balance between budget and feast, though.
Image credit: Like a Local
November 9, 2008
it’s just that … I’m hungry now. And my dad has this sixth, seventh or even eighth sense where I + kitchen are concerned and always seems to head me off RIGHT before I can start cooking something up. If he manages that, he kicks me out of the kitchen because he has to prepare the food. It’s like I have to turn on super-stealth mode just so I can cook for m’own darned self and stuff something simple and easy into my system before I pass out.
I usually understand why he’s crippling my once burgeoning, nearly fantastic cookery skills because he has to provide for me in at least one way. But I’m staaaaarving and ramen or a quick curry will only take two minutes!! Not twenty!
I have got to be quieter next time I’m really hungry.
August 15, 2008
Some deliciousness from a little Cuban cafe we visited:
Ropa Vieja
Cafe Jerez
Triple Berry Chocolate Cake
August 14, 2008
As much fun as some of the travel has been, I’m starting to feel a bit turned around by so much of it. Already, I’ve got to pack tonight for another trip, this time for a wedding up north. Of course I’m looking forward to seeing and spending time with people but there’s been scarcely a moment to breathe between trips (or blog!)
I’m looking forward to a weekend or two of peace and quiet to catch up with myself.
I did get a nice 30 minute workout in last night. Spent some time on the treadmill, broken up by chasing the dog around the yard or being chased by him, and worked with some free weights for a while. It’s hot enough that it’s not hard to break a sweat, but at least some of that was from actually working out. The dog joined me because he needs a workout too, but I get nervous playing the chase game with him, he’s still a big galumph and tails me too closely. He nearly took me down last night and I’m not sure if that’s because he meant to or because he sprang too closely. Anyway, if I end up with some major injuries caused by falling during a run, you can blame the dog.
Also, I managed to fit in some studying before and after dinner. It wasn’t a ton, but it was good brain food.
Yodlee’s acting funny. It refuses to retrieve ING account information.
Regarding work: *sigh* All I can say is, I’m Kim Possible, “so not the drama.”
Lastly: I love Bin Bin rice crackers. (aka: MSG crackers, to some folks.)
Our tomatoes, while subject to a few cracks and holes early on, have been a most satisfying crop so far. It’s not just that they fruited so quickly, but they’re ripening very sedately. I was expecting a long wait, a sudden ripening and a rush to eat all the produce before they went bad. Instead, at most, one or two are ready for picking at a time, a few days apart.
I just picked a newly blushing one, and a still yellow one on my way into the house to make dinner. There are two very light yellow/orange tomatoes still on the vine that’ll be ready in a couple of days, with a multitude of green tomatoes varying from a wee thumb-sized one to a double-fisted behemoth.
I’d say we’ve picked an average of three to five tomatoes per week for the past three weeks. They’re no more than one or two pounds’ worth depending on when we pick them, so that’s about an average of $3 per week since our supermarket sells them for about $3/lb.
Considering the only expenditures we made were labor in replanting the poor vines several times thanks to the dog’s romping, and watering, I’d say this was well worth the trouble. (I don’t know if my dad’s doing anything them while I’m gone to make the vines produce so well and so quickly, but I’ll assume he’s not.)
July 31, 2008
This is a sponsored post.
I was recipe hunting last night (with the help of blogging puppy) because I’ve been in the mood to cook. For the last two weeks, I’ve been all about the steak: ribeye, prime rib, Santa Maria style BBQ. That last has been on my mind ever since my dear friend surprised us with a dinner party. Yummm ….
After looking at the price of steak, however, and of the green veggies that I was craving (green beans and asparagus) I’m reconsidering the entree. I know that shrimp is just as costly per pound, but I can use less of it in each dish.
I found this positively luscious recipe over at Closet Cooking for Thai Lemon Shrimp.
Ingredients:
1 pound shrimp (shelled and deveined)
1/3 cup sweet chili sauce
1 lemon (juice and zest)
3 kaffir lime leaves (sliced, substitute lime zest)
1 teaspoon chili sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
3 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 teaspoon palm sugar (or brown sugar)
1/4 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup cilantro (chopped)
Directions:
1. Marinate the shrimp in the sweet chili sauce, lemon juice, lemon zest, kaffir lime leaves, chili sauce, fish sauce, garlic and sugar for 10 or more minutes.
2. Heat a pan.
3. Add the shrimp, the marinade and the coconut milk and simmer (not boil) until the shrimp are cooked, about 2-3 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and mix in the cilantro.
I swear Kevin has a positive genius for finding delectable recipes, and most helpfully suggests a substitution for the kaffir lime leaves which are a bit difficult for me to find. I think it’d be an awesome contender in the cook off in New Orleans. I love love love fresh seafood, and even more so when it’s been locally harvested in an ecologically sound manner. After all, as much as I love to feed my tummy, knowing that there will be enough for years to come is just as important.
Do you have a go-to seafood dish that you would suggest? Or have any variations on the theme that I could try? I’m open to all new ideas!
July 3, 2008
So much for self control. I spent $15 this week on lunch fixings and had been making awesome roast beef sandwiches with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, cheddar cheese with salad and baby carrots on the side. With only a four day week, I should have been set!
Despite the well-rounded meals, I couldn’t kick this craving for something fatty, or (almost) greasy. Despite having a nutritiously-sound lunch, I was still finding myself needing sweets or snacks and still feeling hungry all day. What’s up with that?
Yesterday, my answer was: pizza. We all chipped in to buy a medium pizza and a few orders of Boneless Chicken Wings. I managed to find a 20% online coupon for a first time online orderer, so that was helpful. We split the bill among the pizza&wing eaters, and just wing eaters, to be scrupulously fair, and I assigned the bill collection to another coworker so I could get the order in. My share turned out to be $9 for three slices of pizza and several helpings of wings.
And actually, guilty though I feel for spending out of turn, I did feel better for having a tummy full of pizza and honey barbeque wings.
