World Cup of Yum

Roasted Garlic Soup

Cookbook Club – Joy of Cooking This month was the one-year anniversary of our Cookbook Club! We used Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer. I chose the Roasted Garlic Soup. Go to my Cookbook Club site to see all the good eats we had at our birthday celebration. For now – my dish! I once had a…

Spicy Eggplant with Pork

Spicy Asian eggplant is a pretty common dish at Chinese restaurants. This is my re-creation of it, with pork added, because what’s good without pig is even better with it. This can be done more simply by skipping the salting, cornstarch coating, and frying of the eggplant – just sautéing it with the pork instead….

Soban Restaurant Review

Gold Dig #32 Soban is another Koreatown spot on Jonthan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurants list. They have his picture and review prominently displayed on the wall opposite the door. You can’t miss it, as Soban is a pretty small place. Half the restaurant is filled with a handful of tables, and the other half the bar seating…

Sesame Snow Pea Salad

Often snow peas come pre-packaged in a one-pound bag, so when I buy them to use in my Creamy Pea Salad (go here for the Guessipe), I end up with quite a lot leftover. I was looking for something other than stir-fry to do with them, and came up with a sesame salad that makes…

Gone Fishin’

A friend invited a bunch of us to go fishing and then head to his place to fry up a feast from whatever we caught. Since eating is one of my favorite things, I loved the idea of participating in the full journey of my fish – from catching, to cleaning, to cooking, and to…

Mango Lassi Pie

What would be in the running for my favorite holiday? Well, Pi(e) Day, of course. March 14, aka 3.14, get it? I had convinced a bunch of friends to help me celebrate this mathe-magical day. Even though it fell on a Tuesday, they had all agreed to make homemade pies (go here to feast your…

Odys + Penelope Restaurant Review

Gold Dig #31 Odys + Penelope is a grill and Brazilian churrasco spot. It’s on Jonathan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurants list, and in his review of the restaurant he says “Odys + Penelope I actually love”. It’s a large warehouse space with exposed pipe ceilings, a long bar on one side, and an open kitchen at the…

Get Your Grill On

When Nelson said he had a brisket that he’d been smoking for 12 hours and would anyone like to come over for a BBQ, we all agreed this seemed like a fine idea. For dinner on a random Wednesday night, I’d say we represented pretty well. Dinner Tim made this stunning fruit platter. I challenge…

Grilled Asian Eggplant

I love grilled foods, though I have to admit that it is one of the types of cooking I feel a bit timid with. I know it’s applying heat in a way not so dissimilar from the stove, but I suppose it’s not being able to adjust the heat in the same way that makes…

Tea Time

Coincidentally, a week after we did our Alice’s Tea Cup Cookbook Club (check it out here), I was invited to another tea party. One can never have too many tea parties in my opinion. We had an adorable tea table filled with snacks – kale and peach salad, crudités and hummus, cumin carrot tea sandwiches,…

Rice Bar Restaurant Review

Gold Dig #30 Rice Bar is a rare Filipino restaurant on Jonathan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurants list. I’m guessing this has mostly to do with the fact that Filipino restaurants in LA are scarce compared to say Korean, Chinese, or Thai spots. My best friend growing up was Filipino, so I spent much of my youth at…

Lemon Poppy Seed Scones

Cookbook Club – Alice’s Tea Cup February’s Cookbook Club was an afternoon tea party! We used Alice’s Tea Cup by Haley and Lauren Fox. I chose the Lemon Poppy Seed Scones. Go to my Cookbook Club site to see the snackable spread of scones, sandwiches and more at our adorable afternoon tea. For now –…