Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Fried Rice
We used to have a Friday night routine where we would go to this Vietnamese sandwhich shop for sandwhiches and then we would head to see a Hindi movie. Then we got tired of sandwhiches and discovered this one Vietnamese restaurant called Dragonfly. Karthik normally ordered their House Fried Rice and that would allow me to try different dishes while still having one safety dish that we both loved. Since we have not been going to see Hindi movies in that part of town, mostly because it is pretty far from where we live, a 30 min drive, I thought that I would make some fried rice to ease the cravings. It's simple to make, very quick and delicious. It's fried rice with sausages, mixed vegetables, shrimps, and eggs.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Kale & Sausage
I had wanted to try out kale because there was all of this buzz on kale recently from my food shows, my diet books, etc... so kale was on my mind. Anyways, after we hiked Camelback today, we went to Fry's and I was able to pick up some kale so here is what I made.
Kale & Sausage
(got a 4.5 out of 5 stars from Karthik, amazing because there was something GREEN in the dish)
Sauteed 1/2 an onion, 3 cloves of garlic in some olive oil. After they are soft, add 2 hot Italian turkey sausages (without skin) to brown. Sprinkle some red pepper flakes for some spice. Then add the a bushel of kale (leaves only no stems) to cook until wilting. Add some salt & pepper to taste....
Karthik was actually really sad because he wanted more but we only had one bushel of kale and once it cooked down it's only enough to make 2 small servings. Super quick to make and healthy.
Kale & Sausage
(got a 4.5 out of 5 stars from Karthik, amazing because there was something GREEN in the dish)
Sauteed 1/2 an onion, 3 cloves of garlic in some olive oil. After they are soft, add 2 hot Italian turkey sausages (without skin) to brown. Sprinkle some red pepper flakes for some spice. Then add the a bushel of kale (leaves only no stems) to cook until wilting. Add some salt & pepper to taste....
Karthik was actually really sad because he wanted more but we only had one bushel of kale and once it cooked down it's only enough to make 2 small servings. Super quick to make and healthy.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Cupcakes Galore
Today, I was craving for some CUPCAKES! After Googling for a bakery nearby, I stopped by Wicked Bakery to pick up 4 cupcakes. 2 of those are Red Velvet flavored cake with cream cheese frosting. The 2 remainder were Vanilla Creme Brulee, real vanilla cake filled with vanilla cream & topped with vanilla buttercream AND last but not least, Double Chocolate Molten cupcake - rich dark chocolate cake filled with chocolate sauce topped with chocolate buttercream and chocolate shavings...
The box they put the cupcakes in kinda squished the top cream so they looked kinda flat. Originally, they were pointy and squirrelly at the top. Anyways, after a seemingly long drive back to the house (5 minutes), I got to taste the cupcakes. I quickly ate 1/2 a red velvet, 1/4 a vanilla creme brulee, and 1/4 the chocolate cupcake. Delicious...
According to the clerk at the store, Red Velvet ANYTHING is VERY popular in the sugar/flour world...
I cannot bake anything right...so if I invite you to lunch/dinner, please please please bring dessert! hm...I can't make coffee either, so please bring some coffee for you...and for me too =o)
GAME DAY
On Saturday last week, I decided to have a little lunch with a couple of friends for GAME DAY- the first of many more to come. I have always wanted to throw little dinner parties for good friends where we can eat, watch movies, play board games or video games, etc... The idea was appealing to me because I like to experiment with different type of cusines and have people come over to play games with. I invited John, a close friend that I met during college and his girlfriend Trang. They drove all the way from Tucson and even brought a game (Killer Bunnies) for us to try out.
I got these recipes from this cooking show called Nigella Express. The menu was Crispy Squid with 2 different type of dipping sauces-garlic mayo and marinara. We also had Sesame Noodle Salad, Sweet & Sticky Ribs, and Chocolate Mousse for dessert.
The Crispy Squid was a little bit (ok a lot salty) because we couldn't find this particular spice, OLD BAY anywhere so I had to make my own. Supposedly this was the make it or break it ingredient aka the killer spice and she gave instructions on how to make it if you can't find OLD BAY. But while making it, my hand slipped and a lot of salt went into the mixture so it was super salty. I had to fix it (by removing some of the old mixture and adding new flour/semolina without salt) and John ended up liking it fine. The squids dipped in corn flour and semolina gave them a nice crunch when fried. When dipped with the marinara, it was not that salty and was quite edible.
The cold sesame noodle salad was a hit. Everybody liked it and most of it was gone eventhough I made quite a bit. It's cooked noodles with mangetout, beansprouts, red peppers, and spring onions flavored with a dressing composed of sasame oil, garlic, soy sauce, sweet chilli sauce, lime juice, and peanut butter.
The ribs had to be prepared the day before to allow the marinade to seep into the meat overnight. We bought some ribs, chopped them up and drowned them in sweet chilli sauce, cranberry sauce, dark sweet soy sauce, orange juice (and rind), and lime juice (w/ rind). Put them in the fridge to rest and the next day, you just bake it for an hour and a half. This was REALLY GOOD! Karthik's only complain was why did I buy the ribs with bones and not just slabs of meat.
Last was the chocolate mousse served in wine glasses. It's dark chocolate, condensed milk, marshmallows, butter, and cream (whipped). We left these in the fridge so we forgot to take pictures. Karthik helped with making these things and they were really good. John and Trang also brought a cheese cake for us which was delicious!
After filling our bellies, we proceed to play Ticket to Ride, Blockus, and Killer Bunnies. By an amazing stroke of luck, I won all three games, even the last one where the winner was selected purely on luck! Sadly for Karthik, when we played Ticket to Ride, Trang blocked his route on purpose and he was unable to complete two of his routes. He was very sad because he barely got 50 points.
Game day was a success! John and his girlfriend are interested in turning this into a monthly thing. I think next time I will invite more people, maybe 1-2 additional so we have a party of 5-6 people. I didn't want to overwhelm myself with the first lunch/dinner so I invited only 2 people. I think if I have a bigger than 5-6 people party then everybody cannot participate in the games that we have at the same time. We would have to start forming teams.
All pictures were taken by Kar!
I got these recipes from this cooking show called Nigella Express. The menu was Crispy Squid with 2 different type of dipping sauces-garlic mayo and marinara. We also had Sesame Noodle Salad, Sweet & Sticky Ribs, and Chocolate Mousse for dessert.
The Crispy Squid was a little bit (ok a lot salty) because we couldn't find this particular spice, OLD BAY anywhere so I had to make my own. Supposedly this was the make it or break it ingredient aka the killer spice and she gave instructions on how to make it if you can't find OLD BAY. But while making it, my hand slipped and a lot of salt went into the mixture so it was super salty. I had to fix it (by removing some of the old mixture and adding new flour/semolina without salt) and John ended up liking it fine. The squids dipped in corn flour and semolina gave them a nice crunch when fried. When dipped with the marinara, it was not that salty and was quite edible.
The cold sesame noodle salad was a hit. Everybody liked it and most of it was gone eventhough I made quite a bit. It's cooked noodles with mangetout, beansprouts, red peppers, and spring onions flavored with a dressing composed of sasame oil, garlic, soy sauce, sweet chilli sauce, lime juice, and peanut butter.
The ribs had to be prepared the day before to allow the marinade to seep into the meat overnight. We bought some ribs, chopped them up and drowned them in sweet chilli sauce, cranberry sauce, dark sweet soy sauce, orange juice (and rind), and lime juice (w/ rind). Put them in the fridge to rest and the next day, you just bake it for an hour and a half. This was REALLY GOOD! Karthik's only complain was why did I buy the ribs with bones and not just slabs of meat.
Last was the chocolate mousse served in wine glasses. It's dark chocolate, condensed milk, marshmallows, butter, and cream (whipped). We left these in the fridge so we forgot to take pictures. Karthik helped with making these things and they were really good. John and Trang also brought a cheese cake for us which was delicious!
After filling our bellies, we proceed to play Ticket to Ride, Blockus, and Killer Bunnies. By an amazing stroke of luck, I won all three games, even the last one where the winner was selected purely on luck! Sadly for Karthik, when we played Ticket to Ride, Trang blocked his route on purpose and he was unable to complete two of his routes. He was very sad because he barely got 50 points.
Game day was a success! John and his girlfriend are interested in turning this into a monthly thing. I think next time I will invite more people, maybe 1-2 additional so we have a party of 5-6 people. I didn't want to overwhelm myself with the first lunch/dinner so I invited only 2 people. I think if I have a bigger than 5-6 people party then everybody cannot participate in the games that we have at the same time. We would have to start forming teams.
All pictures were taken by Kar!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Kai - Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort Restaurant
I should have posted this closer to when we went to dinner because now, I have forgotten about some of the details...but here goes it.
On Friday (2/21/08) we had reservation at Kai at 8PM to have a nice dinner. We had heard great things about this place so we went in with high expectations. We arrived a little bit late because we got lost and couldn't find this huge resort in the boonies. After 35-40 minutes of driving, we arrived at our destination, without much help from our GPS system.
The resort and restaurant was beautiful. It was really spacious and was surrounded by windows that allowed you to see the pool outside that was designed to resemble a river, curving and wrapping around the hotel. The lighting was warm and cozy and we felt very comfortable there. We were seated pretty quickly after arrival.
After we were seated, our waiter came out to introduce himself and brought us hand painted menus that was done by a local artist. He explained the menu because at Kai, eating begin with "The Birth" which is basically their soup and salad section. Then, you move on to "The Beginning", similar to the appetizer section at regular restaurants. Next is "The Journey" where your entrees are. I thought it was good that they try to use as much of the local materials and food as they can in order to support the Native American community as this restaurant was on an Indian reservation.
We started the night out with a drink I think called "The Eastern Cloud" which was some fruity drink and I can't recall what was in it but it was pretty good. It was very sweet and fruity.
Then we were served an appetizer of sort, something seafood in a yogurt base with raspberry sauce presented in a shot glass that you pour over the bowl. I liked this dish because it was beautifully presented and very fresh tasting. Karthik thought it was alright mainly because the portion was REALLY small. The taste was tart and salty at the same time with a touch of raspberry sweetness. Very interesting and flavorful...
After this was bread and olive oil served in matching plate and dip bowl. We were served 3 different types of bread and locally produced olive oil with some type of nuts at the bottom. The waiter explained the different types of bread but we were seated next to this big table of 17 and it was difficult to hear so I have no idea what kind of breads they were...but they were delicious.
After the bread, we were served our soup. We ordered only one soup and they split up the portion and served us in a beautiful bowl that was hard to eat from. It was a creamy, smokey, and delicious Wood Grill Toca Squash Puree soup. The soup was pour over an arrangement of Aji Amarillo Scented Cotton Candy, Sweet Pork Nuggets, Rio Zape Beans, and Maitake Mushrooms.
Following the bread was the BEST appetizer we both have ever tasted. It was our Lobster Degustation - lobster prepared in 3 different ways. (Our fav was the middle one). To the left was the Butter Braised Tail, Avocado mousse, Tear Drop Salsa & Lobster Coral. The middle (and best) was Lobster Cobbler with Mesquite Meal & Farm Raised Local Goat Cheese. The right section was Lobster Knuckles in Sweet Corn Panna Cotta with Sour Radishes. They served this with "Indian Fry Bread" and this Indian is supposed to be Native American Indian, not Indians in India but Karthik commented that they tasted just like puris. Surprisingly, the puris went well with the lobsters. DELICIOUS ALL AROUND! Definitely worth every single penny.
We were then served some fruity sorbet to cleanse our palettes and of course, I forgot what flavor they were. Gorgeous presentation and very small. I love the egg shell looking bowl and twiggy spoon. By the way, we could get a sense of whatever the next dish was coming out by touching our utensil. They serve cold utensil with cold dishes and warm utensil with warm dishes.
Next were our entrees. Karthik had the Grilled Tenderloin of Buffalo from the Cheyenne River Tribe and that included Smoked Corn Pure, Barbeque Scarlet Runner Beans, Saguaro Blossom Syrup, Cholla Buds & Cool Weather Mushrooms. Surprisingly tender and very tasty.
Unfortunately, it was small in portion, at least in comparison to my Bone-In New York Strip Steak with "Kai Steak Sauce". Served with grated Horseradish Root and Russet Potatoes, Creamed Baby Spinach with Gruyere Cheese and Marinated Grape Tomatoes. It was pretty good, but the buffalo dish was better. I think that although this steak is a little more expensive than high end steak houses, the taste is on par with say, Capital Grille's Steak. The next time I am craving steaks, I think I will go to Capital Grille instead of Kai.
Then, they brought us some warm towls to clean our hands and prepare for dessert. At this point, Karthik was happy with the portion sizes (eventhough he was unhappy about it earlier thinking that it won't be enough food for him) because by now, he has room for dessert because he was satisfy but not painfully full as he'd be at a normal steak house. We ordered the "Fry Bread with Ibarra Chocolate & Kahlua Ice Cream". It was puri again...with ice cream. It was pretty good but I think I'd have prefer something like chocolate cake or creme brulee.
It was then time to see the damage and see our bill. They try to lessen the pain by bringing it out with 4 complimentary small balls of chocolate. They had 2 different flavors that I can't recall but it was really good chocolate! We ate the chocolate so quickly that we didn't get a chance to take pictures, so I borrowed this picture from Seth, author of a food blog called Feasting in Phoenix.
After we're done, we walked outside with food full in our bellies and smiling faces to get our car and there it was right at the front waiting for us. Inside our cars, was a bar of Kai Chocolate, 2 bottle of Voss water, and a card from our server thanking us for spending the evening dinning at Kai. Very classy and thoughful...They kept referring to us as Mr. and Mrs. Karthik...not yet, but very soon... =o)
On Friday (2/21/08) we had reservation at Kai at 8PM to have a nice dinner. We had heard great things about this place so we went in with high expectations. We arrived a little bit late because we got lost and couldn't find this huge resort in the boonies. After 35-40 minutes of driving, we arrived at our destination, without much help from our GPS system.
The resort and restaurant was beautiful. It was really spacious and was surrounded by windows that allowed you to see the pool outside that was designed to resemble a river, curving and wrapping around the hotel. The lighting was warm and cozy and we felt very comfortable there. We were seated pretty quickly after arrival.
After we were seated, our waiter came out to introduce himself and brought us hand painted menus that was done by a local artist. He explained the menu because at Kai, eating begin with "The Birth" which is basically their soup and salad section. Then, you move on to "The Beginning", similar to the appetizer section at regular restaurants. Next is "The Journey" where your entrees are. I thought it was good that they try to use as much of the local materials and food as they can in order to support the Native American community as this restaurant was on an Indian reservation.
We started the night out with a drink I think called "The Eastern Cloud" which was some fruity drink and I can't recall what was in it but it was pretty good. It was very sweet and fruity.
Then we were served an appetizer of sort, something seafood in a yogurt base with raspberry sauce presented in a shot glass that you pour over the bowl. I liked this dish because it was beautifully presented and very fresh tasting. Karthik thought it was alright mainly because the portion was REALLY small. The taste was tart and salty at the same time with a touch of raspberry sweetness. Very interesting and flavorful...
After this was bread and olive oil served in matching plate and dip bowl. We were served 3 different types of bread and locally produced olive oil with some type of nuts at the bottom. The waiter explained the different types of bread but we were seated next to this big table of 17 and it was difficult to hear so I have no idea what kind of breads they were...but they were delicious.
After the bread, we were served our soup. We ordered only one soup and they split up the portion and served us in a beautiful bowl that was hard to eat from. It was a creamy, smokey, and delicious Wood Grill Toca Squash Puree soup. The soup was pour over an arrangement of Aji Amarillo Scented Cotton Candy, Sweet Pork Nuggets, Rio Zape Beans, and Maitake Mushrooms.
Following the bread was the BEST appetizer we both have ever tasted. It was our Lobster Degustation - lobster prepared in 3 different ways. (Our fav was the middle one). To the left was the Butter Braised Tail, Avocado mousse, Tear Drop Salsa & Lobster Coral. The middle (and best) was Lobster Cobbler with Mesquite Meal & Farm Raised Local Goat Cheese. The right section was Lobster Knuckles in Sweet Corn Panna Cotta with Sour Radishes. They served this with "Indian Fry Bread" and this Indian is supposed to be Native American Indian, not Indians in India but Karthik commented that they tasted just like puris. Surprisingly, the puris went well with the lobsters. DELICIOUS ALL AROUND! Definitely worth every single penny.
We were then served some fruity sorbet to cleanse our palettes and of course, I forgot what flavor they were. Gorgeous presentation and very small. I love the egg shell looking bowl and twiggy spoon. By the way, we could get a sense of whatever the next dish was coming out by touching our utensil. They serve cold utensil with cold dishes and warm utensil with warm dishes.
Next were our entrees. Karthik had the Grilled Tenderloin of Buffalo from the Cheyenne River Tribe and that included Smoked Corn Pure, Barbeque Scarlet Runner Beans, Saguaro Blossom Syrup, Cholla Buds & Cool Weather Mushrooms. Surprisingly tender and very tasty.
Unfortunately, it was small in portion, at least in comparison to my Bone-In New York Strip Steak with "Kai Steak Sauce". Served with grated Horseradish Root and Russet Potatoes, Creamed Baby Spinach with Gruyere Cheese and Marinated Grape Tomatoes. It was pretty good, but the buffalo dish was better. I think that although this steak is a little more expensive than high end steak houses, the taste is on par with say, Capital Grille's Steak. The next time I am craving steaks, I think I will go to Capital Grille instead of Kai.
Then, they brought us some warm towls to clean our hands and prepare for dessert. At this point, Karthik was happy with the portion sizes (eventhough he was unhappy about it earlier thinking that it won't be enough food for him) because by now, he has room for dessert because he was satisfy but not painfully full as he'd be at a normal steak house. We ordered the "Fry Bread with Ibarra Chocolate & Kahlua Ice Cream". It was puri again...with ice cream. It was pretty good but I think I'd have prefer something like chocolate cake or creme brulee.
It was then time to see the damage and see our bill. They try to lessen the pain by bringing it out with 4 complimentary small balls of chocolate. They had 2 different flavors that I can't recall but it was really good chocolate! We ate the chocolate so quickly that we didn't get a chance to take pictures, so I borrowed this picture from Seth, author of a food blog called Feasting in Phoenix.
After we're done, we walked outside with food full in our bellies and smiling faces to get our car and there it was right at the front waiting for us. Inside our cars, was a bar of Kai Chocolate, 2 bottle of Voss water, and a card from our server thanking us for spending the evening dinning at Kai. Very classy and thoughful...They kept referring to us as Mr. and Mrs. Karthik...not yet, but very soon... =o)
Monday, February 18, 2008
Taco Soup & Mushroom Masala
Well, since I am normally very busy during the week, I try to cook during the weekend. It's a good set-up because we can pack the food for lunches and have healthy dinners after work. There is no need to think about what to make when you are hungry and tired at night. I have been making this taco soup which is basically a bean soup for 3x so far, and we both are still not sick of it. It's very filling and warms up nicely in the microwave. One batch of soup will last about 3-4 days for the both of us. Normally this soup calls for grounded beef, but grounded turkey is leaner and lower in calories.
In addition to the soup, I also made mushroom masala because we bought a HUGE package of mushrooms from Costco over the weekend because it was so cheap! I decided to use ALL of the mushrooms because I didn't want them to spoil. After cutting them up, there were about 10 cups worth of mushrooms and I have to pull out wok to cook them in because we didn't have any pans large enough. I imagine that we will both be eating mushroom masala for the rest of this week, maybe into next week too if it is still good. Hm, what can you add to reduce the spice if you added too much spice? I realize some of the pictures are a little dark, but I am not too experienced with taking pictures well yet, so hopefully I can figure out the trick soon.
See, in the last picture, HUGE thing of mushroom masala...is anybody hungry?
In addition to the soup, I also made mushroom masala because we bought a HUGE package of mushrooms from Costco over the weekend because it was so cheap! I decided to use ALL of the mushrooms because I didn't want them to spoil. After cutting them up, there were about 10 cups worth of mushrooms and I have to pull out wok to cook them in because we didn't have any pans large enough. I imagine that we will both be eating mushroom masala for the rest of this week, maybe into next week too if it is still good. Hm, what can you add to reduce the spice if you added too much spice? I realize some of the pictures are a little dark, but I am not too experienced with taking pictures well yet, so hopefully I can figure out the trick soon.
See, in the last picture, HUGE thing of mushroom masala...is anybody hungry?
Grilled Shrimp Salad
First - Happy Birthday Amma! I hope that you have a wonderful birthday over there with delicious food and fantastic time with loved ones.
We are both trying to adopt a healthy lifestyle and eat more vegetables and fruit but it is still a struggle at times to eat...plain salads. Since we both love shrimps, I decided to make grilled shrimps (flavored similarly to the prawns that Amma made) but instead of frying, I grilled them. It was a success because by using the shrimps, I was able to sneak in some lettuce, tomatoes, and corn for Kar's dinner! This was our meal on Wednesday of last week.
We are both trying to adopt a healthy lifestyle and eat more vegetables and fruit but it is still a struggle at times to eat...plain salads. Since we both love shrimps, I decided to make grilled shrimps (flavored similarly to the prawns that Amma made) but instead of frying, I grilled them. It was a success because by using the shrimps, I was able to sneak in some lettuce, tomatoes, and corn for Kar's dinner! This was our meal on Wednesday of last week.
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