Thanksgiving brittle

Crisp and buttery, salty and sweet, simple and simply good.  I made brittle for the first time last week, then again to bring to a friend's house for thanksgiving accompanied by some prosecco.  Above is a photo of my first batch ever- I think it was beginner's luck and a good recipe.  Pumpkin seeds (forget about the tired peanuts) are light and bright and the whole thing has a nice crunch and good saltiness to balance out the candy.  I just can't believe how simple it is and my thoughts are wandering thinking of the range of flavors that could be married into a brittle.  Some kitchen laboratory work is definitely called for. 

 Raw pumpkin seeds, or 'pepitas'- much more fun to say

Lots of stirring, patience, and a close watch- like making risotto

For the thanksgiving day batch, I decided to elevate the excitement by adding a thin layer of semi-sweet chocolate sprinkled with fleur de sel.  The chocolate adds a lovely little velvety layer and the fleur de sel wakes up the flavor and cleanses out any chance of a cloying aftertaste.

It's now the wee hours of Thursday morning after spending the night in the kitchen.  However, having fresh brittle for the afternoon will be nice, and being able to enjoy a day of relaxation among friends will be great.  Happy Thanksgiving to all and to all a good night!

America

In the past two weeks I have apparently preempted my giving of thanks for modern America by partaking in things that are uniquely American and otherwise regularly disregarded by me.  Did I buy a shot gun for self-defense?  Nah.  Did I try to sign up for ObamaCare?  Nope, thanks.  Did I wear sweatpants for 24 hours and eat gas station nachos for dinner?  Hmm... no, not yet.

I went to my first NFL game and drank my first full can of PBR.  Woo!

The novelties were quite fun, but I doubt that I would perk up to do either again.  Given the millions of diverse raging fans that worship either of these, I'm left confused- not drinking the Kool-Aid yet, I suppose.  I'll work on giving more thanks tomorrow.  Until then...

Chargers vs. Broncos

PBR vs. a long night

Seattle Sunday

  

I heart Seattle.  The dreary weather invites me into their coffee culture and every visit tempts me to stay a while with delicious food and some of my favorite people in life.  This was a quick weekend getaway, but of course there was time to find a few new treats...

above: Ballard Coffee Works, cafe au lait

Dim sum on a Sunday morning has never done me wrong, and Din Tai Fung was no exception.   I filled myself with bite-sized morsels of dumpling goodness and walked out of there a better (or at least happier) person.

busy, busy...

 juicy pork and crab dumplings, fresh noodles with minced pork sauce

 shrimp and pork shao mai

very large shave ice with condensed milk, azuki beans, taro, boba, fruit jellies, mochi balls, and custard

We walked off brunch in the charming neighborhood of Ballard and visited their Sunday Farmers Market.  In contrast to the sunny, warm, and very "summer" weather still hanging out in San Diego, it was noticeably autumn at the market.  Balding trees wore leaves in all the same colors as the squash, boots and scarves strolled along the streets, and a patient dog shivered outside of a boutique store.  It was the one time I thought it would have been acceptable for a dog to wear a sweater.

One of the coolest things at the market: different varieties of garlic!

My present from the market: excellent handmade fleur de sel caramels, made just 2 days beforehand.
So soft and buttery... a little piece of Seattle in my San Diego pantry.

Babies and Calories

Babies and calories make me tired.
Normal life has been reinstituted after a week of tourist extravaganza and over-eating with my lovely cousin and her family.  San Diego was lucky and got to be this baby's first vacation destination!
We visited animals,  acted like animals, and ate like animals... while eating animals.

The dolphins and orcas at Sea World were incredibly impressive and clearly intelligent, but I couldn't help but feel sad for them.  An animal that large and beautiful is meant to swim in the big blue, not to perform a repetitive routine for hoards of overweight people eating fried foods in a venue that spews consumerism.  It's a nice place and I'm glad I checked it out, but I don't plan to go back anytime soon.

Despite all of the exciting creatures at Sea World, the San Diego Zoo, and at La Jolla Shores, no one was more elated than at mealtime.
Here's a glimpse at some of the food masses that dawned our tables:

Carnitas Snack Shack (North Park): beet/goat cheese terrine, Mexican coke, burger, seasoned fries, carnitas tacos, pork schnitzel sandwich, fresh corn salad

Extraordinary Desserts (Banker's Hill): vanilla bean creme brulee

Blind Lady Alehouse (Normal Heights): Assorted pizzas and mussels with fries.  SO GOOD.

Tajima (Kearny Mesa): fried squid legs, udon with shrimp tempura/poached egg, karaage chicken, vegetable tempura, yakisoba omelette, curry ramen

I'm happy to report that my visitors loved the food in San Diego!  As expected, the weather was sunny and beautiful the entire time... almost too hot sometimes, but nothing that a little popsicle from Viva Pops (top picture) couldn't cure.  On the last night of their trip, after saying my goodbyes and kissing tiny baby lips goodnight, I passed out on their hotel couch until I finally arose at 3am with the energy to drive home.  Babies and calories make me tired.

Hey Mama

Moms are awesome.  I've been feeling increasingly exhausted over the past 3 months as the newfound annoyances of becoming and being a homeowner added a new layer to an already challenging work-life balance.  The "you made an error in my documents, again" emails, "when are you actually showing up to fix my appliance?" phone calls, one sketchy plumbing company, and countless hours spent ironing out the wrinkles of transaction and habitation that a past, and naive me thought would be insignificant, had incrementally been chipping away at my faith in humanity.  Thankfully, my mom's visit to San Diego came with excellent timing and was instrumental in ushering out the tail end of this long, dull headache.  Moms are great because they don't just help, they want to help, and they do it with patience, without expectation, and out of love.  I'm typically very independent, so it was a luxury to chill out and feel taken care of for a week.  I wanted to ensure that the mama guest was well-fed on her vacation, and San Diego is full of tasty and unpretentious treats.  She toured the local coffee roasters and satisfied her annual quota for tacos and burritos.   We targeted places that were casual and markedly different from what's available in Hawaii.

The following is just a sampling...

BEST MUFFINS EVER from Thyme in the Ranch in Rancho Santa Fe.  Chunks of fresh fruit moisten the batter that is allowed to spill over the pan to create extra-large muffin tops!  Everyone knows the muffin top is the best part.

Two plates from D Bar in Hillcrest, a dessert-focused eatery run by Keegan Gerhard from Food Network. 
Southern Fried Belgian- buttermilk fried chicken/cheesy waffle/honey mustard/sweet potato waffle fries:

I like to sit at the bar and watch the pastry chefs turn the desserts from ingredients into art!
Tropical Fandango- key lime custard with graham crust/pineapple mango salsa/white chocolate cream/tropical granita/candied lime zest:

Late night smoked fish and scallop, spicy shrimp, and battered fish tacos, with fish stew from Oscar's Mexican Seafood in Pacific Beach:

Afternoon artery-clogger of carne asada fries from Tacos El Paisa in Barrio Logan:

The 11th commandment

Thou shalt eat a cinnamon roll. 

Ooey, GOOEY.  It's almost too sweet, but not enough to stop eating until I feel a slight stickiness in my veins and I start to regret my health decisions (YouTube Louis C.K. Cinnabon).  This cinnamon roll from Urban Solace in North Park is more of a twisted blob than a perky bun, but the taste is spot-on.  I don't mind the poor structure; I think these things were designed to be a buttery mess.  The dough was moist, the cinnamon goop generously layered so that you don't dare suffer a bite of plain bread, and I wondered if I might find an angel floating atop the fluffy cloud of what tasted like a combination of cream cheese frosting and whipped cream.

I also tried a natural hangar steak benedict, but it fell way short of the bar set by the cinnamon roll.  The poached egg was perfect and the banal fruit selection was eventfully ripe and sweet, but the hollandaise was bashful and the biscuits used in lieu of english muffins was a sad mistake, in my opinion.  They were dense (as could be expected) and robbed the benedict of the great contrast that classically exists between a crunchy English muffin and an oozing, saucy egg.  I understand wanting to be different, but with a plateful of soggy bottoms, no one wins.

Despite the lackluster main meal, I am definitely interested in returning to Urban Solace for breakfast.  The Bluegrass Brunch on Sunday offers a charming patio filled with live musical talent, and the resulting atmosphere is effortlessly relaxing.  Lazy Sunday.

Board Meetings

Sometimes all you need for a good meal is a good board.  It's almost laughably simple to prepare, but the image is an eye treat- pure ingredients, undressed, flaunt their naturally interesting colors and textures.  The minimalism finds a way to marry rustic with elegant.   The best thing about a board (besides how easy it is), is that if you are willing to eat the ingredients in such a plain and unaided form, you must (and hopefully do) have some darn good ingredients in front of you.  I love to visit the farmer's market for this sort of thing.  Strolling down a long and crowded street with guys jamming out classic rock at the corner and meeting a funky-looking vegetable that I've never seen before, always brings me a smile on a sunny, late-morning Saturday. 

My board, void of order:
- "Flagrant Seed" (fennel, sumac, thyme) handmade dry salami from Meatmen
- fig, pluot, blackberry, and raspberry from various farmers
- indigo rose tomatoes from Suzie's Farm
- triple milk robiola (goat, sheep, Jersey cow) from Nicolau Farms
- baguette from Bread & Cie
- side order: Festbier from Victory Brewing Company

# 1

The 1st time you do something is often the scariest.  Yesterday was the 1st day of September.  It was my birthday and the due date of my 1st mortgage payment (on my 1st home purchase).  It was also the 1st time I created a blog.  I had been craving a more spacious venue to ramble on food than the text messages and hallway chatter that previously sufficed.  Committing writing to the blogosphere feels a bit scary to me, but with the fresh feelings of "new" that yesterday represented,  it was finally time to create and share.

But why is my 1st post a day late?  A reasonable question.  After creating a mere title and photo to qualify as content, I scampered off to spend the next 24 hours on a celebratory camping trip.  With great company, a starry night sky, and a charming waterfall in the hot afternoon sun, it was the perfect way to welcome a new age.  Backpacking to a campsite never provides an easy means for a gourmet meal, but when you eat amongst Mother Nature after a good-and-sweaty hike, it all tastes better.

Dinner consisted of carne asada burritos and quesadillas made with fresh homemade tortillas and sliced avocados.  Breakfast was banana pancakes.  Tip: Add pancake mix and water to a gallon zip-sealed plastic bag, then mush it around from the outside until the batter is blended.  Cut a small hole in the corner to make a pastry bag, squeeze out perfectly round pancakes and never clean up pancake batter again!

Dessert was the expected, but never tired, s'more.  This one was special for two reasons: a Reese's cup and a wishing candle.