Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Labor Day Family and Foodie Weekend
It's rather exciting to introduce my first guest post, talking about some fun meal ideas in San Diego area. This post comes from Asif Khan of The Vaporware Blog (on cloud computing), which just goes to show that techies are foodies too!* * * *
I had planned to catch up on a whole lotta nuthin over the Labor Day weekend. The wife and kid were visiting relatives and I had the whole place to myself. Then my mom and sister called me on Friday and asked if they can come over. Fine, I said. We'll make it a dominos and Netflix night.
It didn't quite turn out that way.
We decided to turn it into an epicurious weekend by using whatever random items I had left in our mostly empty fridge. I made a quick trip to Sprouts Farmers Market to pick up some steak, salmon and chicken but not much else.
Here's a taste of what we ate.
Drinks
Squeeze some lime into a cup of Pellegrino sparkling water. Add a dash of your favorite rum with blue agave nectar and hand-crush strawberries to complement the flavors.
Steak and Salmon
I wanted to break in my new grill and try out a little technique that a grilling-fanatic friend taught me to get perfect grill marks. The entree was steak or salmon.
I sauteed some onions and portobello mushrooms in garlic butter for the side dish.
The salad was whole tomatoes from our backyard vine with a splash of chili-infused olive oil and kosher salt.
Spinach, capers and goat cheese omelet
I don't eat eggs very often so when I make an omelet, I use whatever ingredients I have in the fridge.
First I lightly sauteed some spinach, onions, tomato and green chili in olive oil. The onions were sliced so thin, that they practically melted into the mix.
Next, I whipped up the egg batter.
Here's my secret to making fluffy, light and tasty omelets. Vigorously mix two brown eggs (darker yolk) with sour cream, garlic paste, kosher salt and egg beaters and pour into a stainless steel (or non-stick) pan coated with unsalted butter.
Add the sauteed mix and add cilantro and goat cheese on top of the eggs at the very end, just before folding over.
Grilled Jamaican jerk wings
This was easy to make but tastes so good...especially if you like your wings extra spicy. I buy real jerk marinade from an authentic Jamaican restaurant in Solana Beach.
Rub a small (!) amount on the wings and throw them on the extra-hot side of the grill to keep the outside crisp and to allow the inside to stay moist and juicy as it continues to slow cook on the warm side of the grill.
Dessert - Greek Yogurt with Berries
We then had greek yogurt for dessert.
Drizzle with some blue agave nectar (notice the recurring agave theme?), powdered cinnamon, blueberries, walnuts and garnish with strawberry slice (to go along with the crushed strawberry in the cocktail).
Add a splash of rum if you're feeling adventurous!
Mojarras fritas
Our final meal before we said goodbye was at one of my favorite authentic Mexican mariscos (seafood) restaurants near our house, El Rinconcito.
This place is so authentic that we practiced how to order in Spanish using Google Translate because not everybody there speaks English!
This place is so authentic that when I first looked it up, it got only one star on Yelp. OK enough of my Bourdain impersonation and onto the food.
I insisted that we get the mojarras fritas (fried whole tilapia fish). Damn this fish is so tasty. You can have it with the arroz y frijoles (rice and beans) it comes with but I prefer to make a taco out of it.
Take a flour or corn tortilla, slap some frijoles and shredded cabbage on it then add pieces of crispy fish to it.Top this bad boy with some avocado/habanero salsa and dive right in.
I strongly recommend some ice cold Mexican cerveza (beer) to wash it down.
You won't be disappointed!
National Grilled Cheese Month: Eva's Grilled Cheese Night and the 2010 Invitational Retrospective
April is National Grilled Cheese Month. So to celebrate this cheesy month, I engaged in a Pleasure Palate dinner at Eva Restaurant for Grilled Cheese Night. Eva Chef/Owner Mark Gold partnered with Chef/Co-Owner, Dave Danhi, of The Grilled Cheese Truck to offer several courses of grilled cheese sandwiches and side dishes.
Course 1: Danhi's sharp cheddar and gruyere on parmesan crusted sourdough bread with Gold's cream of tomato soup.
Course 2: Danhi's triple creme brie grilled cheese, carmelized onions, prosciutto crust on black peppercorn bread, with Gold's braised artichokes. The artichokes sat in a creamy, lemony sauce that we all loved.
Course 3: Danhi's faux-ly cheesesteak sandwich with provolone, homemade pickles, crispy onions, French bread. Gold's prime beef over charcoal covered with Cheez Whiz sauce.
Course 4: Danhi's truffled fontina mac and cheese melt paired with Gold's butter poached lobster.
Course 5: Danhi's vanilla mascarpone cheese and balsamic strawberries on sweet brioche with Gold's chocolate fondue. The drinks were part of the cocktail pairing, which got rave reviews from my fellow diners. The ones pictured were called "cherry blossom" and contained brandy, kijafa cherry, lemon, cane syrup.
In celebration of this most comforting of comfort foods, and since my plans prevent me from attending the 9th Annual Grilled Cheese Invitational (GCI), I am sharing a 'retrospecitve' of last year's fun.
This year's festivities take place on 4/23/11 from 11:00a.m.-6:00p.m. at Los Angeles Center Studios.
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| Tillamook was the sponsor of GCI |
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| Judging Table |
With over 230 competitors, people spared no creativity in order to stand out, along with their creations. It was as much fun watching them than it was tasting the "sammiches".
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| The Cheese Ballers |
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| This one was called the Panty Dropper - oh my! |
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| Cute aprons and Tower Sandwiches |
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| 10 year old Jake was rocking out a delicious self-invented entry |
Sandwiches competed on originality, execution and visual appeal. With over 80 sandwiches, there was more than most people can get to. Here are some of my favorites from judging tastes.
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| The Jakester |
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| L: Duck confit grilled cheese R: Saigon Spice |
The competitive categories broke down into The Missionary Style, The Kama Sutra and The Honey Pot (this year they are adding a Love American Style category. My friend Cecilia Fabulich won Judge's Choice with the delicious entry on the above right. Her Saigon Spice sandwich contained pulled pork, mango, slaw and cheese of course!
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| Peanut Butter Jelly Cheese Sandwich |
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| The Honey Pot category |
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| Creative presentations |
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| Collecting ballots |
The judging instructions consisted of getting a sample from a runner, eating sammy, voting on sammich, putting vote in ballot box.
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| Mayor of Cheese |
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| More competitors in costume |
Overall, the GCI is definitely worth the trip, if at least one time. If these shots piqued your interest, by all means go and enjoy!
A Tantalizing Turkish Home-Cooked Supper
A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of enjoying a very special home-cooked dinner by my friends from Turkey, Ugur and Ozlem, along with their little sous chef in training, Taylan. The food was prepared with passion and precision that is worth sharing and remembering. |
| left: grilled, peeled eggplant; right: marrow bones grilled on a cedar plank |
The multi-course meal began with prep for one of Ugur's self-created dishes. It just happens to contain my favorite vegetable, eggplant, and the decadent, beloved ingredient of marrow.
To tell you the truth, after hearing about this dish from my brother and sister-in-law, I asked for the invitation to try it!
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| Ilikcan - a compound name of Turkish words for marrow and eggplant |
The finished dish involved several complex steps and ingredients which resulted in this savory, creamy, slightly spicy concoction which Ugur named Ilikcan (ilik = bone marrow and can is short for patlican = eggplant).
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| Ilikcan on Etimek toast crackers |
I could have eaten this dish in any way, but we spread it onto toasted crackers called Etimek, which provided the appropriate crunch and toasty contrast to the creamy spread. It was hard to stop, but remembered that this was the appetizer.
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| Tarhana soup with salad |
Ozlem prepared the next course of Tarhana soup. The translation into English was not clear, but my palate was detecting some tomato, onions, peppers, herbs, perhaps yogurt, all thickened with some type of flour base. It was comforting.
The salad, to be eaten with the main course, contained finely sliced greens, radicchio, avocado and nutty, peppery cumin seeds in a lemony vinaigrette.
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| Marinated lamb chops |
Undoubtedly, Ugur's most perfect dish are his famous lamb chops. He made these for me almost a decade ago, early into our friendship, and several times throughout. It is his unique, secret recipe.
I would have been happy with the Ilikcan alone. When he brought out the tray of chops marinated in spices, onion juices and other magical ingredients, I had to pinch myself. It was a lovely, unexpected treat.
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| Grilled lamb chops |
While we were eating the soup course, he began grilling these beauties in the patio, bringing out this delectable plate.
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| Lamb chops - detail |
While they were perfection before, he seemed to even improve upon this dish. I've had perfectly prepared lamb chops at many fine dining establishments, but these are hands down my favorite.
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| Poğaça - stuffed, puff pastries |
Also during the lamb preparation, Ozlem made these Poğaça puff pastries from scratch.
Half were filled with a type of feta cheese and half were filled with sliced olives, another favorite of mine. She brushed the tops with an egg wash and sprinkled more cumin seeds on top.
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| Poğaça and Sooji halwa for dessert |
According to Ozlem, these pastries are often eaten for breakfast. I enjoyed the savory, warm, light pastries for dessert since my sweet tooth is not too strong. They were served piping hot right out of the oven.
From home I also made and brought over the popular Indian sweet Sooji halwa, similar to Cream of Wheat, but richer.
There are many variations of this classic but my version was made of semolina wheat flour, ghee (clarified butter), ground cardamom seeds, sliced almonds, golden raisins and brown sugar. In this photo the halwa is cut into squares and warmed up.
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| çay - Turkish tea |
Along with Turkish custom, we ended this soul satisfying meal with several cups of çay, or Turkish black tea that is slowly brewed in stacked teapots. A more fitting close to a delightful meal I cannot imagine. With this post, I'd like to once again thank my friends for their warm hospitality by cooking this unforgettable meal with love.
Introduction
Welcome! In the About page, you can read a bit about these unusual boxes, my cultural roots and inspirations. It also might be helpful to start by answering some immediate questions that may come to mind.
My name: Wasima, pronounced wa-see-ma, with emphases on the 2nd syllable. The name is Arabic. Sometimes people associate it with wasabi. Whatever it takes to stick in someone’s head is fine with me.
What are tiffin boxes? They are, stacked lunch boxes, prevalent in India. Tiffin refers to both the mid-day meal, and the container that carries it. The round shape, stackable design and shiny metal surfaces always appealed to me. Not to mention the fact that they are called boxes but are actually round!
For context, a Southern California contemporary to the tiffin box is the Japanese bento box. It is usually flat and partitioned instead of stacked, often lacquered instead of metal. It serves the same purpose of separating but presenting together all courses of a meal.
For context, a Southern California contemporary to the tiffin box is the Japanese bento box. It is usually flat and partitioned instead of stacked, often lacquered instead of metal. It serves the same purpose of separating but presenting together all courses of a meal.
Food is a huge passion. One of my favorite lunches near work is the “Special Lunch” bento at Shaab. While the compartments are not stacked, you can get the idea with this shot below (click on it to enlarge the image).
Besides eating food, I cook. For me cooking rarely involves using recipes. I sometimes read them as a starting point and then improvise. I have been blessed with a good palate that allows me to discern most ingredients of a dish by tasting it. Sharing great local food finds is enjoyable, with many friends asking me for suggestions.
My family is one of travelers, and my parents definitely instilled the travel bug in me from childhood. I’ve been lucky enough to travel through many parts of the world, further refining my palate and propensity to try new foods. Another thing traveling always develops in me is a love and appreciation for home.
Home is a huge focus in my life. This past year, there have been a fair amount of these diagrams in my life.
While the whole design and construction process is exciting, the ‘after’ is the reward. Sometimes even noticing the ever shifting light and shadow in the house entertains me, as you can see from this shot of the shag rug’s shadow on the floor.
Gardening is another love, providing stress relief, exercise, compost and organic food. I often sow new plants in the yard, many from seeds and cuttings, because I love to see the entire growth process. Here is a small sample of this year's summer season, which was very yellow, but I assure you there were other gorgeous colors too.
These areas, and others (i.e. all things vintage, art, architecture, Mad Men), help keep me happy and in balance. Documenting them with photos and words is what I've started. As always, comments are welcome and encouraged. One thing I can promise you is that whatever topic is served up will be authentic. Feel free to join me for a snack or stay for the full meal.
