poor sandra lee

love, love LOVE the food network. but how did they let THIS get on-air? 

still busy ...

i really want to BLOG but it is so difficult to find the time. work gets in my way, vacations get in my way. but what i have realized is i still got that lovin' feeling for food. so i have said this before and i'll say it again: i will be back. i just need to get my life in order ...

Soupe a L'ognion Gratinee & Classic BLT

French Onion soup is my favorite soup of all time! i love the onions, the cheese, the bread, the smell, even the cute little bowls that they are housed in.  This was one of my favorite projects because onion soup is actually quite tedious to make. You've got to make it from scratch, and by scratch i mean, using homemade browned chicken and veal stock.  After the stocks are done (preferably done in advance since the veal stock alone takes at least 6 hours of simmer time), the onion part is easy.

Martha has a great brown chicken stock and veal stock recipes

French Onion Soup

3 oz butter

1 tbsp olive oil

3 lbs yellow onions, thinly sliced

1 tbsp flour

4 cups browned chicken stock

4 cups browned veal stock

1/2 white wine

French Baguette

1 lb gruyere cheese, shredded

kosher salt & pepper

Caramelize onions in butter and oil, (Use high heat for the first couple of minutes until you see browning) then turn to low heat and continue carmelizing for at least 1 hour.  Add the flour to soft and caramelized onions and cook for 2 minutes.  Add white wine to deglaze, reduce dry.  Add chicken and veal stock, simmer 30 minutes.  Adjust seasoning. (You're going to find that you have to add more salt and pepper than you would expect to bring out the flavor of the stocks, since our stocks are made unsalted)

In the meantime, cut baguette into thick slices and toast.

When the soup is ready, ladle it into oven safe bowls, place a slice of toast and cover with cheese.  Place into a 500 degree oven until cheese is gratineed.

 MmmmmMm .. soo good ...

To be perfectly honest, I've never had a BLT sandwich. I know, i know, crazy right? well, growing up in my household bacon wasnt always avaliable and i've never ordered it whenever i saw it on a menu, it just so happens that ive never had it.  I decided to make a BLT since i was planning this "soup, salad and sandwich" dinner of ours, it seemed simple and easy enough.

But of course i had to toughen it up by making my own mayonnaise.  I dont really like the texture and taste of store bought mayonnaise, and when we learned how to make it homemade in class, it was game on.

Mayonnaise

3 egg yolks (use as fresh as possible, since we are consuming it raw)

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1-2 tsp. lemon juice (or vinegar)

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

salt and pepper

Combine yolks, mustard and 1 tsp. lemon juice whisking until mixture is smooth.

Drop by drop, slowly add oil while whisking. (this is the most painful part of making a mayo, you've got to slowly stream in the oil with one hand, while the other hand is whisking away, blending everything until an emulsion is established)

When all the oil is added, adjust flavor with seasoning.

homemade mayo

(will only last 3-4 days in the fridge, use it up quick!)

Classic BLT

Sourdough Bread ( I used Sara Lee Sourdough San Francisco Style Sandwich Rolls)

Butter Lettuce aka Bibb/Boston Lettuce (get the one that is still fresh with roots in a box at the grocery store)

Fresh Tomatoes, still on the vine

Bacon

Dinner is Served.

B Restaurant & Bar, San Francisco

Finally, vacay!! Jason and I have been working so hard at our jobs (2 jobs for me) that we really haven't had a chance to hang out so memorial day weekend we took off to our beloved SF.  We had an early flight and got all settled in at noon and decided to explore our surroundings.  Our hotel was on Market street and saw some huge building called the Metreon nearby and walked towards it.  We stumbled across this beaaaautiful glass house of a restaurant and oh my, the food was delissssh :)

Love On

Grey Goose Vodka, Fresh Raspberry Puree, Pineapple Juice

Such a great afternoon delight!

Halibut Ceviche

Fresh Halibut, Mango, Tomato, Avocados, Red Onions

Hands down the best ceviche i've ever had! it was so fresh 

and clean tasting, super refreshing and the homemade

potato chips gave it a modern taste

Truffle Fries

I've never had anything truffle before and one of my goals is to

eat up Spago's Roasted Chicken with Black Truffles, but for now

these yummy fries were a hit in my book! 

The truffle oil drizzled on top was light tasting but gave it great flavor, 

paired with the garlic aioli it was fantastic.

Panini with Prosciutto, Mozzarella and Mustard Seed

w/ baby green salad

Jason love love loves panini, so this was a great for him.

Farfalle Pasta with Pesto Chicken

i usually order pasta with a tomato sauce, but this stuck out to me

and i decided to step out of my comfort zone. i loved it! 

the flavor was bold, the pinenuts added a great crunch and

 the bowties reminded me of my childhood !

it was so nice to have lunch in a glass house, 

we will be back B Restaurant!

Glazed Lemon Pound Cake

oooh i can never say no to some good lemon cake. one of my fave things to do is go to starbucks and get their shaken green tea lemonade (1/2 sweet) and a lemon pound cake. and my favorite part of that cake? the thick, sweet, lemony icing on top.  too bad this particular recipe doesn't have a really thick icing, but it does have great flavor and i think one of the easiest and tastiest cakes i've ever baked. 

i learned something in cooking school this week that im really trying to follow: mise en place. it literally means "put in place" in French, and it means to gather all your ingredients all measured out so when you start a recipe, you can really go with the flow and not have to stop to get something measured.  a reason why i never did this was because well, i didn't know there was such a thing, and also because i didnt want to wash all those extra dishes. haha i'll admit it! using an extra bowl for 3 teaspoons of salt is a waste when i can just measure it out from the jar! but i completely understand this approach to cooking and will respect the French :)

look how pretty it is with sliced strawberries

Recipe

Daikokuya - Little Tokyo, Los Angeles

One of my favorite places to eat in J-town is Daikokuya. they are open until at least midnight so it totally fits into our weeknight schedule. there is almost always a wait, which i dont mind cause its just so yummy.  sitting at the bar at Daikokuya reminds me so much of the time when jason and i were lost in tokyo so we ended up at a ramen joint and had the best ramen of our lives.  we might never get the chance to go back partly because we are both so busy, but mostly because we dont remember what that place was called, or even which part of tokyo it was located at.  boo, but at least we will always have Daikokuya ...

i order tuna rolls ($4) almost everytime i see them on a menu cause they are my fave. 

i drench them in lo-so soy and some wasabi, yummmmy.

these gyoza (5.95) pork & veg dumplings, are the best things ever!

they are shaped differently than normal gyoza because they are made in-house fresh everyday, crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. perfecto.

aah, the long awaited Daikokuya Ramen (8.50).  A tonkotsu soup base made of boiling pork bones, fat and joints it is super flavorful and soothing.  Combined with the special ramen egg noodles, pork belly, bamboo shoots and my favorite part: the perfectly marinated hard boiled egg, this bowl of goodness truly hits the spot.

(i usually dont like photos of half eaten food, but i just had to show how perfectly boiled this egg is ... )

Go get some Daikokuya!

Cuisinart 11-cup Food Processor

YAAAAYYYY !!! i got it!!! my parents bought me this while they were at costco cause i obviously wouldn't stop hinting that i wanted it. i am SO excited to use this for so many things like pureeing meat for egg rolls or potsticker stuffing and shredding up carrots and lettuce to make a great salad.  but what i'm psyched about the most is the special PowerPrep Metal Dough Blade which is designed to use with the low speed setting to make the "most perfect dough". i totally love to bake so im hoping to make a great apple pie for summer!