11/6/10 - Jalapeno Margaritas: Spicy & Sweet Goodness

OK, these are not for the faint of heart. Laura got the idea for these when she had a similar cocktail at the Santa Monica restaurant Fraiche recently.

You have to start a few days ahead of time by infusing a bottle of good (but not too expensive) silver tequila with jalapeno peppers. We used a half-finished bottle of 1800. It will give you a nice spicy tequila base, probably not great for doing shots, but perfect for this cocktail. Infusing the tequila is very easy to do. Cut up 4 jalapeno peppers, sliced into fours. Take all the seeds out. Let sit at least 3 days. When you use the tequila, the peppers stay in the bottle.

From there, we follow the basics of our 3-2-1 margarita recipe:

JALAPENO MARGARITAS

3 shots of the jalapeno tequila
2 shots of lime juice
2 shots of fresh orange juice
1 shot of simple sugar syrup
1 shot of orange liquer

We salt the glass rim with a mixture of celery salt, sea salt, ground cayenne pepper & sugar. And add a slice of jalapeno for good measure.

Coming up next...Laura attempts her mom's split pea soup with a ham bone we found in the freezer....

SPLIT PEA SOUP

1 bag of green split peas
1 ham bone
2 large carrots, chopped finely
2 large celery stalks, chopped finely
1 medium onion, chopped finely
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1/4 tsp. sea salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1 bay leaf
10 cups of water

This soup is so easy and perfect for a fall afternoon. Just bring the 10 cups of water to a boil. Add the bag of split peas. Inspect them before throwing them in just to make sure there is no debris in them. You do not need to soak them first. Add the ham bone (it can still be frozen, it will defrost in the water), the diced carrots, celery, onion, garlic & the herbs and spices. Reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 90 minutes, partially covered. Keep stirring the soup so the peas don't stick to the bottom. The peas will melt into the soup and any ham left on the bone will fall off in small pieces. We like to eat it chunky, but you can also take the soup and blend it or put it in a food processor before serving. I've tasted split pea soup ruined from too much salt before so don't overdo it. The ham bone already adds a salty, savory flavor.

Thanks, mom....the soup came out just like I remember you making!!

10/30/10 - Opah Opah

 Sauteed Opah with Lemon-Miso-Honey Sauce

Serves 2

2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Opah fillets (4-6 oz)
a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp white miso paste
Juice of 1 medium lemon
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp cream (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp chopped parsley

-------------

Heat a medium saute pan over medium-high heat and add oil. Lightly salt and pepper fillets and cook over medium heat until done and fish flakes easily. (About 4 minutes per side depending on thickness). Meanwhile melt butter in a small sauce pan or skillet over medium-low heat. Add miso, lemon juice and honey and stir until blended, reduce heat to low and cook sauce for 5 minutes. Add pepper, cream if desired and chopped cilantro. Serve over fish, garnish with additional cilantro leaves and lemon wedges.

10/16/10 - Japanese Night!

fried shrimp roll,

California roll,

tuna and salmon sushi,

mushroom/broccoli/asparagus tempura,

tempura dipping sauce (tentsuyu)

Miso Soup

Servings:

2 cups

Ingredients:

2 cups dashi soup stock (or 1 c. water, 1 c. veg. broth)

2 tbsp miso paste

1 mushroom, thinly sliced

¼ cup cabbage or radish, thinly sliced

2 tbsp chopped green onion

Salt/pepper

Preparation:

Put stock in a pan and bring to a boil.

Scoop out some stock from the pan and dissolve miso in it. Gradually return the miso mixture in the soup.

Add vegetables. Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for a few minutes on low heat.

A word about Sake:  We don't know as much about sake as we do other wines... only that we like it, especially with sushi.  Mitsuwa market in Los Angeles has a great selection of sake at reasonable prices.  We've tried several in the past and are just beginning to find a few favorites. We prefer to drink our sake heated.

10/10/10 - Chicken Piccata!

One issue we have with LA that we believe we have mentioned is the lack of good Italian food at a reasonable price. So, we have taught ourselves to make some of our basic favorites. Tonight we take on the chicken piccata. Our version is very close to a chicken francese

The Wine Kitty recommends the Zaca Mesa '07 Z Blanc to go with the chicken dish. While Zaca Mesa is mostly known for their delicious Syrahs, this is a buttery, oaky, golden white drinks like a high-end Napa chardonnay but is a blend of 74% Roussane, 22% Grenache & 4% Viognier. You can only get this wine at their winery or through their online store. It retails for about $32 ($29 if you are a member of ZM's wine club).

Chicken Piccata


2 large skinless boneless chicken breast halves
2 Tbsp butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup dry white wine
¼ cup chicken stock
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp drained capers
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt/pepper

Place chicken between 2 large sheets of plastic wrap. Lightly pound chicken to 1/2-inch thickness. Salt and pepper chicken pieces. Coat each chicken piece in flour.

Heat 1 Tbsp oil and 1 Tbsp butter in a large skillet. Add chicken and cook until golden and cooked completely, about 3 minutes per side.

Transfer chicken to plate and keep warm.

Mix 1 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbps flour in small bowl until smooth. Bring wine, stock and lemon juice to boil in skillet over medium-high heat. Whisk in butter-flour mixture and stir for a minute until sauce thickens. Stir in capers and parsley. Season to taste. Pour sauce over chicken and serve or toss chicken in pan with sauce and serve.

We paired the piccata with our grilled romaine leaves. If you are carving some carbs, you can also whip up a side of spaghetti or penne and use the extra lemon butter sauce on the pasta.

Saturday, September 4 - Cocktail Time!

Here is a refreshing cocktail to get you through a hot summer day. Mike bought a variety pack of Absolut as Costco today for $30, so we had to figure out a fun drink to make while we were watching the US Open on television (all day).

RASPBERRY SUMMER PUNCH

2 shots ABSOLUT Vodka
1 shot Black Currant Liqueur
1 shot Fresh Raspberry Puree
1/2 shot Fresh Lemon Juice
1/2 shot Simple Syrup
Champagne
1 Whole Fresh Blackberry

Add vodka, black currant liqueur, raspberry puree, lemon juice, simple syrup and crushed ice. Stir. Fill with crushed ice. Top with champagne. Garnish with a blackberry.

We served with a small snack: pecans, topped with a mixture of maple syrup, salt and cayenne pepper, which we roasted in our toaster over for 8 minutes.

For dinner, we made our orange teriyaki salmon with grilled romaine.

GRILLED ROMAINE

1 head of romaine hearts
2 tbsp. EVOO
2 strawberries
5 cherry tomatoes

Dressing:
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
salt
pepper
celery salt

fresh oregano
fresh parsley

Halve romaine hearts. Brush with olive oil. Put on grill for 5 minutes.  Add cherry tomatoes, sliced strawberries, drizzle with dressing.

Saturday, August 21 - Ode to Syrah

Tonight, we'd like to ramble a little about Syrah. 

For dinner, we went with a favorite that you'll find in one of our previous posts, a big fat steak with our basic teriyaki/honey marinade.  We grilled a 16 oz. ribeye, split the steak between us and plated it with grilled onion, zucchini and mushrooms.  A simple and perfect meal on its own; an over-the-top meal when paired with an incredible small-lot syrah.

Tonight, we went with a 2006 Calcareous Syrah.  Calcareous Vineyard is located in Paso Robles, CA and they make several wines -- mostly cabs, pinots, syrahs and chards -- of under 1,000 cases. 

This wine is dark in color with big cherry flavors and a soft vanilla finish.  It's extremely fruity for a syrah, but it remains big and bold and worked really well with our steak and veggies.

Laura and I both love big red wines; syrahs and syrah blends definitely fall into that category.  Most of our experience comes from our ventures to California wineries, especially those in the Santa Ynez area, Paso Robles and Napa/Sonoma.  We'd like to talk about a few of our favorites.

Pipestone Vineyards is a small family winery in Paso Robles, CA. They make delicious, hand-crafted, small-lot Rhone-style wines.  Their 2006 Syrah and 2005 Reserve Syrah go for $32 and $45 respectively; they both rock! 

When in Paso Robles, we always make sure to stop at Pipestone; it's our go-to winery.  They have quaint grounds and cozy tasting room, and every time we have visited, the owners have both been in the tasting room pouring wine.   We love their friendly style and we love their wines.

This past trip to Paso Robles, we stumble on Calcereous.  We now have another must-visit winery on our list when we return.

Sunday, September 5 - Just for the Halibut

HALIBUT GRIBICHE

Ideally, this should be served on a bed of wilted spinach, but we didn't have any in the house.

We served with a 2007 Trefethen Harmony Chardonnay.



INGREDIENTS

For the gribiche:
1/2 cup diced tomato
3 tablespoons minced onion
3 tablespoons minced cornichons
2 tablespoons capers
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Salt/pepper
1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
1 scallion

For the fish:
2 - (6- to- 7-ounce) pieces of halibut fillet
Salt/pepper
Olive oil



To finish:
1/2 cup minced onion
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 pound baby spinach
Coarse salt
4 large eggs, poached

PREPARATION

For the gribiche:

1.Stir the tomato, shallots, cornichons, capers, olive oil, vinegar, and lemon juice together in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Leave it at room temperature.

For the fish:

Season the halibut on both sides with salt and pepper.

Cook fish in a frying pan with a few tablespoons of oil and a touch of lemon juice.

Just before serving, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion and garlic until soft. Add the spinach and saute, stirring constantly, until the spinach wilts. Season it with salt and scrape it into a strainer to drain.

Stir the tarragon, parsley, and scallion into the gribiche.

Make a bed of spinach on each plate. Remove the fish from the oil with a fish spatula and blot it dry with paper towels. Set it on the spinach and place a poached egg on top of each piece. Spoon some gribiche onto each egg and around the plates. Serve immediately.

Sunday, August 1 - Salmon with Orange Teriyaki Glaze

Cherry Tomato Salad

1 lb. cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

1 Tbsp garlic, minced

1 tsp crushed red pepper

5 basil leaves, minced

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

¼ lb mozzarella, cubed

Salt/pepper

Cut tomatoes in half and season with salt and pepper.

Combine salt, pepper, garlic, pepper, basil, olive oil and vinegar and whisk together. Refrigerate until chilled.

Combine tomatoes with mozzarella and spoon into 4 martini glasses. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the dressing over tomatoes and mozzarella in each glass.

We like to serve these in a martini glass. We got the idea from the amazing & delectable Lahaina Grill in Maui, where we went for our honeymoon. Mike still raves that meal was one of (if not THE) best meal he's had in is life. If you visit their website, their heirloom cherry tomato salad is shown on its front page!






SALMON WITH ORANGE TERIYAKI GLAZE


12 oz. of fresh Alaskan wild caught Coho salmon

1/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup teriyaki sauce
3 tbsp. sesame oil
2 tsbp. fresh chopped ginger
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice


Mix the ingredients together in a baking dish. Marinate the salmon in the liquid for 1-2 hours. As the fish is about to go on the grill, give it a light dusting of sesame seeds.


Grill the salmon no more than 5 minutes per side. A full 10 minutes will make the salmon a medium to medium well. If you like your salmon a bit rarer (which we don't), only grill it for about 7 minutes total.


We grilled a few mushrooms (with some extra sauce poured over them), and then steamed some broccoli to add to the dish. We tossed the broccoli with a little butter, lemon juice, salt & pepper. Also as a side dish, we added a lemongrass rice that we picked up at Sprouts for about $2 a packet. It was a cheap shortcut, and we wished we had put a bit more effort into the rice!


To offset the citrus in the sauce, we chose a spicy but smooth Pinot to go with the dish...(Sabrina helped us pick it out.)

We were driving through the Santa Barbara area and couldn't help making a quick trip up to Santa Ynez tp stock up on some of our favorites (Curtis & Gainey). When we were waiting for the restaurant in Los Olivos to open for lunch, we happened upon the Byron tasting room. We normally avoid tasting rooms in town since we much prefer the experience of visiting the vineyard, but sometimes that's not an option. Byron's wines were absolutely delicious. They are best knows for their chards, but they also make a killer Pinot. We pulled out their basic Pinot which retails for about $25, but we also HIGHLY recommend their Julia's Vineyard Pinot (more expensive at $40 a bottle)....this wine comes from the same clone vineyard as the Pinots we love from Cambria. Dare we say Byron does a little better job with their Pinot from Julia's Vineyard than Cambria does...

Sunday, July 18 - Surf and Turf / Zaca Mesa Syrah

Today, Laura and I indulged in a mid-afternoon dinner.  It was a big, colorful meal, a surf and turf dinner with 4 sides - grilled onion, green beans, spinach and sweet potato.

We did the usual with the lobster tail and the NY strip steak ... melted butter and paprika on the lobster and broiled for 7 minutes - teriyaki, honey and pepper on the steak.  The onion was drizzled with oil and seasoned with salt and pepper and grilled 6 minutes a side just like the steaks.  The spinach was wilted in a large frying pan and tossed with a touch of butter, salt and pepper.  The green beans were steamed for several minutes and tossed in a small frying pan with the same. Most of our veggies came from a new farmer's market that opened in Culver City called Sprouts. The lobster tails were on special this week for $4.99 each. The green beans we grew ourselves from seed in our outdoor patio garden. They were delicious!!

Our meal deserved a killer wine. We paired it with the Mesa Reserve Syrah from Zaca Mesa, an incredible central coast winery on Foxen Canyon Road in Los Olivos.  This particular vintage ... 100% syrah, ...726 cases produced ... 93 points from Wine Enthusiast .... delicious and smooth as silk.  Deep and dark in color with flavors of blackberries and smoky oak, it retails for $42 a bottle and can be enjoyed now or over the next 10 - 12 years.

Simple, easy, and delicious.

Now we're off to the movies to get our minds bent by "Inception"!!

Saturday, July 17 - Locanda Positano Review

OK, we've been gone a while. A trip to the Jersey shore with lots of yummy clambakes. Now we're back in LA-LA land, and decided to go out to dinner tonight to the newest restaurant in our neighborhood. Anything with the name "Positano" in the title, where the owners are from Florence, and everything is supposed to be fresh-fresh-fresh, sign us up!

Locanda Positano opened 3 months ago in a tiny space that used to be a dingy Mexican restaurant. It's on a less-than scenic strip of Lincoln Blvd. in Marina del Rey, a few doors down from Walgreen's. (In fact, we recommend parking in the Walgreen's lot, because parking in their lot is dodgy at best.) Make a reservation on opentable.com, because there are only 10 tables in the restaurant. The inside is decorated in shades of pale yellow and cream. It's quite charming, but the tables are very close together. You'll be greeted with a hearty "Buona Sera" when you walk through the door, and it seems like everyone working in the restaurant speaks Italian better than English. There are a few nightly specials written on a small chalkboard. We had to try the melone prosciutto with fresh mozzarella. In fact, we ate it so quickly, Laura forgot to take a picture! The melon was succulent, and the mozzarella was perfect.

We don't know our way around Italian wines as well as we do around California wines, so we asked our server for a recommendation. We love a big Amarone, but their least expensive Amarone was $88 on the wine menu. The server really didn't know what she was talking about, but recommended a Brunello that she said was similar to the Amarone. It was $60.

We weren't blown away by the wine...it was too licorice-tasting and acidic, but you can't win them all. This wine was also available but the glass, so we would have been better served by being offered a taste first before committing to the full bottle.

For our second appetizer, Laura ordered the artichoke salad and Mike ordered the simple insalata mista. Mike thought his salad was over-salted, and Laura didn't like the fact that they put red onions on the salad, because she is allergic to red onion. However, the artichoke salad -- in Italian the Carciofini Con Scaglie di Parmigiano e Arugola di Campo-- ($11.50) did not disappoint. It was quite unique and delicious. It was dressed with olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper and parmesan. It also came with a little bit of rocket (arugula) and some purple cherry tomatoes. Yum! Laura ate every bit of it as well.

For our entrees, we stuck with our favorites. Laura ordered the linguine con vongole ($18), because as she has said before, she can tell a good Italian restaurant from a bad one based on how they make either linguine vongole or a veal piccata. Mike got the seafood risotto -- the Risotto Positano -- for $20. Both our our seafood was a little disappointing. We both had a few soft and gritty pieces of clams or mussels.

The risotto was not cooked to perfection. It tasted a little bit like a rice pudding! So, both our entrees missed the mark a bit.

We were full after meal, so didn't have room for dessert. Still, dinner was $150 plus tip. Not cheap.

We couldn't help but compare Locanda Positano to Mosto Enoteca, which is right at the end of our street in an incredibly unimpressive strip mall. If anyone reading this has ever come to visit us, we have taken them to Mosto, and have never had a bad meal there. While we are always in favor of supporting local businesses, I think the next time we're craving Italian, we're going to blow our $150 at Mosto....

Sunday, June 20: Happy Father's Day

On this beautiful almost summer day, we are going to grill a filet and pair it with the wine that was the hit of our wedding. We got married a year ago at Sunstone Winery in Santa Ynez. Laura fell in love with the vineyard the second she stepped foot on it. It reminded her of Provence, with its lavender bushes and rolling hills flecked with sunlight. We had a very small wedding and our dinner was in what they call the Cuvee Cave, which is a cave cut into the side of a hill. It was quite a spectacular location.

The beauty of Sunstone is all of their wines are organic. Everyone's favorite was the 2003 Eros. It's a blend of 75% Merlot, 13% Cab Sav & 12% Cab Franc. This particular year has won many awards (and 90 points from Wine Enthusiast) and retails for a fairly whopping $75. However, they have more current releases for considerably less. Don't hate on the Merlot. This is a BIG wine with a jammy, smooth finish with a hint of cocoa. Perfect for pairing with red meat.

We headed back up to Santa Ynez last weekend and stayed at a vineyard cottage that we rented from VRBO. It was a stone's throw from Sunstone, and we love that they welcomed us back with a free reserve tasting and 20% off any wines we purchased. Of course, we came away with another 2 bottles of Eros, one of which will be gone after this evening!

Friday, May 28: Chicken & Shrimp Fried Rice

This is Mike's attempt to make Laura's favorite dish to order in a Chinese restaurant, but putting our own spin on it.

CHICKEN SHRIMP FRIED RICE WITH EXTRA VEGETABLES

We had a nice boneless chicken breast in our freezer, so we defrosted it, seasoned it, grilled it, chopped it and added it to our usual shrimp fried rice dish.  It worked nicely.

Typically, when we prep this dish, we mince/dice/chop whatever fresh vegetables we have in our refrigerator.  The prep picture is from an evening when we prepared our usual shirmp fried rice.  The rest of the pictures are from this evening, when we added the chicken, mushroom and broccoli and omitted the zucchini.

Shrimp Fried Rice

Ingredients

1 cup shrimp, chopped

1/4 - 1/2 cup of any of the following, diced

onion

celery

carrot

mushroom

zucchini

radish

red pepper

broccoli

one serrano pepper, diced

on clove garlic, diced

1/2 cup rice

1 cup water

soy sauce

salt/pepper

sesame oil

Preparation

Use rice and water to cook rice according to package directions. Set aside.Heat a small amount of sesame oil in a large pan. Stir fry shrimp for a few minutes until cooked. Remove and set aside.Add another drizzle of oil to the pan and cook vegetables on high heat for a few minutes unitl softened. Remove and set aside.

Add another drizzle of oil and add rice to pan. Cook on high heat for a couple of minutes, add several shakes of soy, toss and heat another minute.

Add the shrimp and vegetables, mix thoroughly and cook for another minute.

Serve hot.

Thursday, May 27: Coq au Vin

After returning from a week in Paris for the French Open, I was inspired to recreate this French Classic for Mike. This is not Julia Child's coq. I've tried this many times and I do have to say the secret ingredient is cooking everything in bacon fat. I know, I know. But it makes all the difference in taste. I also substitute sweet (Vidalia) onion thick slices for pearl onions, but feel free to use pearl onions if that's your preference. This takes about 2 hours to make from start to finish, so give yourself plenty of time. I bought a pre-cut chicken at TJ's for about $7. Since I'm not a butcher, this was the easiest way for me. This dish is obviously wine-based, so you want to buy an under $10 Burgundy or Bordeaux to use in the recipe. Don't use pre-opened wine for this. And then you can drink what you don't use while you're preparing the dish!

 

COQ AU VIN

1 chicken, rinsed and cut into 8 serving pieces

2 cups of thickly sliced onions

6-8 strips of bacon

1 stalk of celery

1/2 cup of sliced carrot

6 fresh parsley sprigs

1 fresh thyme sprig

1 dried bay leaf

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 1/2 cups of dry French burgundy or bordeaux

3/4 low sodium chicken stock/broth

1 lb. small mushrooms, halved

1/4 cup cognac or brandy

3 tbsp. flour

1 1/2 tbsp. unsalted, softened butter

Cook bacon in large heavy skillet until it's brown but not too crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels.

Sprinkle chicken with salt & pepper. Brown chicken in skillet with bacon fat. Depending on the size of your skillet, it might take 2 batches, so make sure you have enough bacon fat reserved for both batches. It will take about 5 minutes per side to brown the chicken. Transfer to a plate.

Cook onions in skillet, until starting to brown -- no more than 10 minutes.

Take a 5 quart pot.  Add the onions, a few pieces of chopped up bacon, the wine & the stock. Add the herbs and simmer (covered) to 10 minutes. 

Now, add the chicken to the pot and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, re-heat the bacon fat in the skillet to cook the mushrooms & carrots for about 5 minutes. Add the cognac and cook on high heat until the liquid starts to reduce, in about another 3 minutes.

Add the shrooms and carrot mixture to the chicken pot. Continue to simmer until chicken is tender and fully braised, another 30 minutes at least.

Once the chicken is cooked to your liking, remove the chicken, bacon & vegetables with a slotted spoon and place on a serving platter.

Mash the butter and flour in a small bowl. Bring the remaining liquid to a simmer and whisk in the butter/flour mixture a small but at a time. Whisk until sauce is smooth and thickened, about 2-3 minutes.

Season to taste with salt & pepper, then spoon over chicken. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley.

Bon Appetit!

Mike thought this was the best version of this recipe I've ever made. 

In the spirit of full disclosure, I don't remember the name of the wine I picked up for this meal. It was a decent bordeaux from the St. Emilion region.

For dessert, I brought home some overpriced La Duree macaroons from Paris. They were a hit and went quickly!

Sunday, May 16: Cannelloni & Amarone

Bruschetta

8 slices baguette

3 plum tomatoes

2 cloves garlic

10 basil leaves

1 tbsp shredded parmesan

1 Tbsp evoo

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

salt/pepper

Cut tomatoes in half and remove seeds and pulp.  Dice tomato.  Mince garlic.  Chop basil.  Combine ingredients in a bowl and mix together thoroughly.  Add evoo, balsamic vinegar, salt/pepper and shredded parmesan.  Mix thoroughly. 

Slice baguette on diagonal to achieve long, thin slices.  Brush bread with olive oil and toast until lightly browned.  Top toast pieces with mixture.  Top with a thin slice of fresh mozzarella.

Laura's appertif....A Lambrusco purchased today from Trader Joe's. It sort of tastes like a wine soda. It's a little addictive, as it goes down very easily.

We also bought the Amarone we've been craving since Friday night, to have with the meal. This one is smooth, strong and tastes a lot like licorice, which can be a good or bad thing based on your tastes.


Chicken Cannelloni

Cannelloni Filling
2 chicken breasts (about 8-10 oz)
1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
¼ cup onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
16 ounces ricotta cheese
3 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
salt/pepper
12 sheets home-made pasta (4”x4”)

Cannelloni Sauce
16 ounces tomato sauce
1 cup seeded diced tomato
½ cup half and half
3 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese
5 large basil leaves, torn
Salt/pepper


Preparation
Mix together sauce, cream, basil, salt/pepper in a large frying pan and bring to a simmer. Cook chicken breasts in sauce on low heat until fully cooked. Remove from sauce and dice or shred cooked chicken.
Place chicken into a large mixing bowl. Sautee garlic, onion and pepper in hot oil for 2 minutes. Add chopped spinach, sautéed vegetables, ricotta, mozzarella, pepper and salt, and mix thoroughly.

Roll fresh pasta and cut into 4” squares.

Place two rounded tablespoons of filling mixture down the center of each pasta sheet and carefully roll pasta around filling. Coat the bottom of a baking dish with a few tablespoons of sauce. Place the rolled cannelloni, side by side, into an shallow baking dish.

Pour sauce over cannelloni covering completely. Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese over top of sauce. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees F for approximately 20 minutes.

Remove foil and continue to bake for an additional 20 minutes. Remove from oven and serve family style or on individual plates.

Saturday, May 15: Dolsot Bibimbap

Tonight we will be making a bibimbap for dinner ... a dolsot bibimbap, to be exact.  Huh?  What the heck is a dolsot bibimbap?  Until about two years ago, I had no idea.  Then one night, Laura and I went out in our neighborhood to Wharo for some Korean barbecue. 

We ordered the typical stuff any Korean barbecue novice would order, kalbi beef and spicy shrimp for grilling.  We understood that the entrees would be served with a fine variety of Korean side dishes, including of course, kimchi.  We ordered some sake.  The server turned on our grill.  We had been to Wharo before and knew we were in for a treat.

As we sipped some sake, we spied a great looking dish at a table near us.  It looked like a sort of stir-fry - a hot stone pot filled with rice and vegetables.  However, after the server brought the food to the table, she cracked a raw egg into the pot, added a few spoonfuls of a red sauce and folded the the elements of the dish together in the pot.  You could see the food steaming and hear it sizzling.  It looked and sounded delicious.

So, we called our server over and asked him about this mysterious, delicous-looking, fun new food.  He handed us a menu and pointed to the item ... vegetable dolsot bibimbap - bean sprouts, carrot, radish, mushroom and spinach over rice, served in a hot stone pot - with egg, add $1.  We ordered one with egg ... and another carafe of sake.

When the food came, the server did as we had seen earlier.  He cracked the egg on top of the vegetables in the stone pot and asked how spicy we wanted the dish.  We're not afraid of the heat, so we told him to kick it up pretty high.  He added a few hits of the unidentified red sauce and mixed the ingredients together.  *sizzle-crackle-sizzle* 

We spooned some of this concoction out onto appetizer plates for each of us.  Delicious!  We scarfed down a few forkfuls and dove in the dolsot pot for more.  The rice was getting crispy against the sides and bottom of the bowl.  We spooned out a few more bites on each of our plates.  The rice is delicious as it continues to cook in the pot, similar to the rice in a properly prepared paella.  This rocks!  I'm hooked ... time to find some stone pots and a recipe and try this at home. 

Our bibimbap recipe has morphed over time and I can honestly say that after making it a dozen times or so, we have never used the same combination of ingredients.  We swap out and use different combinations of the meats and vegetables in the recipe depending on what we have in our refrigerator or freezer and/or what we pick up at the farmers' market or grocery store.

This can require a bit of prep, but it's worth it.  Think positively ... the more you prepare this dish, the better your knife skills will get.

Servings:

2

Ingredients:
Marinade
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp white sugar
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp green onion, chopped
Salt/pepper to taste

6 oz. rib-eye steak, thinly sliced
6 oz. shrimp, sliced or chopped

1 cup white rice
2 cups water

1/2 portabello mushroom, thinly sliced
1 cup fresh spinach, wilted
1 cup zucchini or cucumber, julienned
1 cup carrots, julienned
1 cup bean sprouts
1 cup onion, thinly sliced
4 large radishes, julienned

2 eggs

sesame oil
kochujang sauce (chili paste)


Preparation:
Make the marinade. Combine ingredients for marinade in a bowl. Add sliced beef and shrimp and refrigerate. 
Cook rice.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees and place 2 Korean stone bowls in oven for 15 minutes.
Wilt spinach in a work or large frying pan.  Set aside.
Preheat wok with sesame oil to high heat.
Cook vegetables separately until soft (i do two at a time).  Set aside. 
Cook steak/marinade mixture in wok for 4 or 5 minutes.
Remove stone bowls from oven and place on suitable heat resistant surface. Brush bowls with sesame oil. Put rice into bowls and gently pack to the bottom. Arrange the vegetables and beef over each portion of rice. Add one uncooked egg (or sunny side up egg as we prefer)  to each bowl.
Serve with Kochujang sauce.


Prepped and ready to cook.

Sabrina endorses the kochugang sauce.

The finished product.

To complement our meal tonight, we went back to our wheelhouse ... the Cambria pinot noir.  This particular bottle is a 2007 Bench Break Vineyard.  It retails for $30 and I can easily mistake it for one of the very limited production Cambria clone pinots that approach $50.   (NOTE: Sabrina is in the background pretending to watch TV ... she's just trying to get in the picture.)

This wine should work well with tonight's version of the bibimbap ... steak and shrimp in a sweet soy marinade, vegetables stir fried in sesame oil, a spicy sauce ... only a pinot can dance with such a wide variety of tastes and textures.  It worked perfectly.

P.S. We're very excited for the first Federer/Nadal clash in a year in the Madrid Masters final, tomorrow at 9:30am Pacific, only on Tennis Channel!! Feddy won the last one a year ago, but Nadal is looking like his old bad clay self. Even Sabrina is sending good energy by spending the day on the racquet Feddy gave Laura several years ago (and, yes, we keep it under the bed)....

Friday, May 14: Time To Make The Ziti

Tonight's meal that I'm preparing while I wait for Mike to arrive home from Austin... I pulled one of our house favorite reds from the wine rack,  a blend of the 5 classic bordeaux varieties (Cabernet, Merlot, Cab Franc, Malbec & Petit Verdot) the 2007 Double T from Trefethen, about $25. It goes well with red meats & red sauces. Normally I would pair the dish I plan to make with an Amarone, but we don't have one in the house, so this California red is very versatile for what it is.

When I moved to Los Angeles 7 years ago, I got a kick out the fact that no one out here had ever tasted baked ziti -- or  barely knew what it is (!!!) Growing up in Central NJ, you couldn't go to any sort of social event without a big tray of ziti being served. I'm not even Italian, but I love The Ziti. It's so easy to make and serves a small army, so it became my "go to" dish when I entertain or am asked to bring something to potlucks. I think by now almost everyone who knows me in LA has been served The Ziti. Who knew it could be such an "exotic" dish? It's always the first dish everyone digs into at the buffet table. And there are almost always leftovers. The only evolution I have made in the dish is making my own red sauce instead of using sauce from a jar. It's even hard to find ziti noodles in the grocery stores in LA, so whenever I stumble on some on the shelves, I usually stock up on a few boxes.


THE ZITI

1 box of ziti noodles
1 lb. ground beef
16 oz. part skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 28 oz. cans of San Marzano tomatoes
2-3 strips of roasted red peppers
16 oz. part skim ricotta
1 egg, beaten
handful of fresh garden basil & oregano, finely chopped
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp. olive oil
salt, pepper, ground red pepper & sugar to taste

Heat oven to 350. Boil water on stove. Start the sauce first: put olive oil, half of the onions and garlic in a deep pan or pot. Make sure they do not brown. When the onions start to get translucent, add the 2 cans of the tomatoes, along with the juice. Add the basil and oregano and bring to a boil. Once the tomatoes begin to soften, take a potato masher and mash down the tomatoes to break them up. (Be careful--they squirt.) To your taste, add salt, pepper, ground red pepper (optional) and sugar (optional). The need for sugar should be minimal since the onions considerably sweeten the sauce. Simmer for 30 minutes.

While the sauce is simmering...

1. Add the ziti noodles to the boiling water. Cook for about 8 minutes. You want the noodles al dente.

2. Brown hamburger meat with half of the onions & garlic. (You can also add more basil & oregano if you want.) Make sure the bits of meat are very small. When cooked, drain out the fat. In a large bowl, combine the ricotta cheese & beaten egg (the egg helps bind the filling). Fold in the hamburger meat. Add salt, pepper, a half cup of parmesan cheese, and a half cup of mozzarella.

The sauce should be ready now. If you like your sauce chunky, you can keep it this way, but I usually run it through the food processor for 5 seconds to smooth it out.

Take a 9 by 11 Pyrex dish and line the bottom with sauce. Take 1 cup of sauce and mix it into the meat & ricotta mixture. Add the noodles to the mixture & make sure all the noddles are covered. You can add a little more sauce if you want. Put all the noodles into the baking dish and smush them down. Pour the rest of the sauce on top of the ziti. Sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella on top so that it's fully covered. (Add cracked pepper or basil on top if it suits you.)

Bake covered at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, bake uncovered for another 10 minutes, or until cheese bubbles.

One of our favorite local Italian markets in the area is Sorrento's in Culver City. It's a little bit of a cluttered dump inside but they have EVERYTHING. They even own a farm in Central CA & always have produce from the farm available for a very reasonable price. Whenever I throw a dinner party, you can bet the antipasto platter or some cannolis or cookies came from Sorrento's. Mike was ecstatic to find a huge jar of the Lupini beans that his grandmother used to have on hand when he went to visit her (I find them fairly revolting, but to each his/her own). Anyway, their cannolis are solid, so guess what was for dessert!

Just for the record, we only ocassionally eat fattening foods like this. We do watch our weight, but it's all about balance. And we love pasta. I will imagine tomorrow's dinner will feature lots of vegetables!

Sunday, May 9: Mother's Day at Geoffrey's

We're going to venture into new territory today, by posting our very first restaurant review!

We took Laura's mom to the Mother's Day Brunch at Geoffrey's - Malibu. Geoffrey's as what we refer to as a "special occasion restaurant" as the food is delicious, but pricey. Laura had secured reservations a few weeks ago on opentable.com, which was a good move since the restaurant was packed. Located about 4 miles north of Malibu Canyon, Geoffrey's is mostly outdoors, with tables on the patio overlooking the ocean. It's the ultimate California fine dining experience. At night, it's quite romantic with the lights in the trees surrounding the patio. We would eat here once a month if our bank accounts could take it. But even brunch is a $68 pre-fix for 3 courses. Once you throw in a drink, tax and the valet parking charge, you're easily looking at $100 per person. The tip takes it north of that. For brunch. But the food is worth it. And our server Dee Dee was friendly and solicitous. She even tried to steer Laura away from ordering a watermelon mojito (but it sounded delicious!!) It wasn't. It was cloyingly sweet and medicinal tasting. Like an alcoholic jolly rancher. Instead of doing a condescending "I told you so," Dee Dee easily took the drink back and replaced it with a perfect Mimosa. Mike ordered his brunch standard, the Bloody Mary, which he deemed "good, but nothing special." Sandy went for a glass of chardonnay. There were 3 choices on the menu for chards, all between $10-$14 per glass, and she went with the Solaire chardonnay from the Santa Lucia Highlands, which was the oakiest & butteriest of the bunch. We looked the wine up and it only goes for about $13 a bottle, but it was quite good.

The brunch menu split the courses into a choice of an appetizer, an entree and a dessert. Geoffrey's largely specializes in steak and fish (California style) and the portions are large enough where you will not leave still feeling hungry. Here is what we ordered:

Mike: Porcini mushroom soup

Laura: Mixed green salad with pear, candied figs & blue cheese

Sandy: Crab cake

 

For our entrees, Mike ordered the crab cake benedict, Laura ordered the lobster quiche, and Sandy ordered the sea bass on a bed of pesto whipped potatoes, which is pictured to the right. We would have taken a picture of Laura's lobster quiche, if she hadn't torn in and eaten 1/4 of it before either Mike or Sandy took one bite of theirs....

Dessert was a choice of a berry tart, a lemon cheesecake and a chocolate hazelnut crunch tart, so of course we ordered one of each! Our collective vote went to the berry tart, which was light enough to be the perfect end to the meal. The chocolate hazelnut torte was extremely rich and fudgy, and nothing tastes better than just plain New York City cheesecake, so this one paled by comparison.