Happy Blogaversary

Hey!

It's this blogs birthday/anniversary I can't decide. *shrugs* YAY!

Restaurant Review #3

Lucky House Thai - Berkeley

I wandered into Lucky House for some Thai Food after not having been for a looooong time. I used to go here for lunch when I worked on the campus. My building was very close to this place so we lunched here quite frequently.

I always order the Pad See Ew medium spice and it is very tasty. The flavor of this dish is like a garlic ginger spicy mix. It has chicken breast, broccoli, large flat rice noodles and a scrambled egg. I was surprised that I liked this mish-mash of flavors but it somehow works!

Today they made it a little hotter, but it was still good.  My friends always order the BBQ chicken over rice.  No matter who I go with they order that! Weird!

Of all the Thai places I've been to, their Thai Iced Tea is the best!!

Today I ordered 2 since it had been so long.  I give them 4 stars out of 5. They would have gotten 5 stars but they took way too long to bring the food.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

I purchased a bag of chicken tenders from Trader Joe's. I freakin love those things, They are so easy to prepare in different dishes, but I mostly eat them when I'm doing the healthy eating kick. You can just grab 3, season and throw them in the oven and bake or roast for a quick easy lowfat meal.

Well this particular day I was tired of baked chicken. I wanted some good ole regular home cooked FRIED chicken, but all I had was strips. So like the kiddie plate on the kiddie menu I fried me up a batch of chicken strips!

To make the meal a tad more grown up I accompanied the strips with garlic peppered green beans with potatoes, regular buttered white rice (tired of brown) and cornbread with brown sugar cinnamon butter. As you can see I was rebelling against dieting and have lots of butter on this plate. *shrugs* This meal was prepared in my early withdrawal days of my Coke fast. not shown Heinz Ketchup and Banana Sauce for dipping.

Chicken Strips:

• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper
• Flour
• 8 boneless skinless chicken strips
• Canola oil for frying

Season all strips in a bowl cover and refrigerate for up to 2 hours or over night.
Dredge strips in flour and add to hot oil fry until done.
Garlic Pepper Green Beans

Green Beans:

• 1 16 oz can of no salt green beans 
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• In lieu of 1 clove garlic 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or regular
• a little sugar to taste
• 1 small potato peeled and cut into cubes

 Bring all ingredients to boil in sauce pan cook until done.

White Rice
I used Mahatma rice
Recipe on the bag

Cornbread
Recipe on back of cornmeal box

Brown sugar cinnamon butter
On this I winged it. It was all to taste
Half stick of softened butter
Cinnamon
Brown sugar

 

BANANA SAUCE

 

 

I'm that guy, you're so fly, Gotta get a piece of that sweet potato pie

Can you name the artist?

Change the guy to girl and pie to fries and you have what I made. LOL! I had some left over sweet potatoes that weren't used in the candied yams and decided to make fries. Chile, let me tell you... those fries were thebomb.com!!

I mixed together a seasoning that took them over the top! I eyeballed everything, so I'll say about 1/2 teaspoon of all the seasonings except the salt and cayenne. Taste the mixture and add the season salt as needed add cayenne in 1/4 teaspoons depending on how much heat you like.

Seasonings:
Morton Season All Season Salt (many of the seasonings are already in here. The extra just gives it that oomph!)
Chili powder
Cayenne pepper
Smoked paprika
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Sugar

Directions:

Cut the washed, unpeeled white potatoes and the washed, peeled sweet potatoes into 1/4-inch strips. Heat a pot with the oil (I used Canola)  to about 350 degrees.

Add the white potatoes and sweet potatoes and fry, stirring to avoid clumping together, until white potatoes are golden brown. Sweet potatoes will be done also.

Remove with a mesh strainer and drain onto paper towels. Season immediately!  Viola! Enjoy!

looks like boiling water

this dish set is from my mother complete with glasses

Thanksgiving 2011 ~ The Food

Okay so here is a rundown of the food. I never can take all the pictures before stuff starts getting eaten. I don't want to end up on The Plate so be kind. LOL! I will post a picture of the seafood stuffed jambalaya once if I get my sister's pictures.

Mabel the Turkey

Mac & Cheese

Collard Greens

Candied Yams

Cornbread Dressing

Potato Salad

Brown and Serve Rolls

The Plate

Cheery Cherry Cream Cheese Pie

Okay so this guy I met...

...asked me out on a date.


I met him on my college tour.
He was my tour buddy.
He was funny.
He didn't have on a ring.
We exchanged numbers.
He called.
He was funny still.
I laughed so much.
He asked me on a date.
I'm trying to be more open.
I said okay.
He said how about dinner.
I said okay.

Alice Springs Chicken entree, Coconut shrimp appetizers, bread and salad not shown.

We went to...Outback.
He LOVES Outback!
I like Outback.
He said next time I can pick.
I said okay. 
It was fun.

Okay so this man I like said...

"I haven't had a home-cooked meal  in a while."

I said, really?
He said yeah.
I said hmm...
He said what?
I said well what do you like to eat?
He just looked at me.
I said Umm sir? Food wise!
He said oh!
I just looked at him.
He said steak and shrimp.
I said really.
He said yeah.
I said how do you like it...(long pause) cooked?
He just looked at me.
I laughed.
He said well done.
I said I can do that!

So off to the store we went!


Steak and shrimp with a baked potato, corn on the cob and garlic bread

I personally don't like my steak well done, but he loved!

2 steaks, 1-inch thick

1 minced garlic clove

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Fresh ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I like spice)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil

Trim excess fat from the steaks. In a glass dish combine the ingredients. Cover and marinate the steaks for 1 to 24 hours in the refrigerator. Bring steaks close to room temperature 30 min. before broiling.

I broiled his steak in the oven until well done.

Green Bean Chicken Stir Fry Over Fried Rice

I've been contemplating taking an Asian cooking class for awhile now and just haven't gotten around to it. In the meantime, I've been playing around with Asian flavors and I came across this recipe and decided to try it.
Recipe found at Chinese Grandma


Chicken and green bean stir fry

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
• 1 pound green beans
• Cooking oil

Marinade:

• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sherry (I did not use this)
• 1 clove garlic

Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sherry
• 1 clove garlic

Optional

• Dash sesame oil (did not have, will use next time)
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated ( did not have, will use next time)
• Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste ( used this)

Directions

1. If starting with frozen chicken breasts, set in bowl of cold water to defrost.
2. Take end off green beans and wash.
3. Rinse rice in several changes of water until water is mostly clear. Add fresh water for cooking and set aside.
4. Dice chicken into bite-sized pieces (approx 1/2″ cubes). Place diced chicken in bowl.
5. Add marinade ingredients to chicken – soy sauce, sherry, garlic chopped. (Stir well to distribute marinade.)
6. Refrigerate chicken.
7. Start rice to cook before starting stir fry.
8. Prepare stir fry sauce. Add brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, sherry and garlic chopped in a small bowl. 
9. Add cornstarch and stir well, pressing out any lumps until sauce has a consistent milky brown color.
10. Heat two tablespoons of oil in an large skillet over medium-high heat. 
11. Add green beans. If green beans don’t fit in one batch, cook half at a time. Use long tongs to turn beans over while cooking so that they do not burn.
12. If beans are particularly thick, add two tablespoons of water to pan and cover skillet for a couple of minutes to steam-cook beans to desired tenderness. Do not overcook, as beans will go back in the pan briefly later.
13. Remove beans from pan.
14. Add two more tablespoons of oil to pan. Add chicken and stir to separate pieces.
15. When chicken is cooked (turns from pink to white), add prepared stir fry sauce and stir. Sauce will quickly turn from milky light brown to glossy dark brown as it cooks.
16. Add string beans and stir to combine. Add dash of sesame oil if desired.
17. Remove chicken and string beans to serving dish.
18. Serve over rice.

 Served 2

I wanted to try for the whole Asian experience and decided to make a quick fried rice instead of serving over plain white rice. I just fried the rice in a wok with soy sauce and egg.

This meal was actually pretty tasty!! I plan to make this again with the ginger and the sesame oil! Looked great on my Asian style plates.

Restaurant Review # Two: Mexican Yum

La Burrita-Berkeley

I went to a spot I like in Berkeley called La Burrita a few weeks ago for beef enchilada's. YUM!!! a favorite

They also have the thinnest crispiest chips and I love their roasted red pepper salsa.

I must remember to take the pictures BEFORE I start eating.

To be honest for the FIRST time EVER the beef was little over cooked so the enchiladas were just okay. But still edible. As you can see in the picture I ate one. The rest was lunch the next day! They get 3 stars for the chips being wonderfully delicious.

I Love Pizza

PIZZA!! I LOVE PIZZA

pizza pizza pizza mmmmmmmmmmmmm pizza

All kinds of ooey, gooey, cheesey delicious meat covered pizza. I try different pizza joints searching for the ultimate eating. I really like small mom and pop joints over chains...

BUT...

Pi.zza H.ut is making me want to to fight them right now! LOL! That's right I said it FIGHT THEM!

Do you see the MEAT!!!! in this crust?????  The CRUST!

What is wrong with them?? Why would they do this?? to me

I want to eat this! NOW!

Mmmmmmmm......Maple Bacon Cupcakes?

I think these would be sooo delicious. What do you think? They are adding bacon to everything!! Recipe found here

photo credit thefreshfridge.com

I wish I could buy them...today... and eat them....but I can't so I will try to make them. I hope mine taste good.

Mmmmmmmm......Pork chops

I love pork. I really do! After all it's the other white meat! LOL!

I fried pork chops marinated in a teriyaki sauce, seasoned with garlic powder, smoked paprika and red and black pepper.

hand floured

Showcased on a big ole plate LOL!

Pork chops, garlic mashed potato's and peppered green beans. This picture quality sucks so much you can't see the spices! Bummer! But it was deelish!

Easy Breezy ~ Nacho Cheesy

Hey ya'll

I'm going to get better about posting. I have to remember to take pics because I'm certainly eating everyday LOL!

This is a simple, easy, quick cheap plate of nachos I made for me and a friend for lunch on Saturday. I am sooo glad I worked out before I ate this! It looks super fattening but it's a little bit healthy.

The players:

You will need:
1/2 can Low Sodium Chili Beans I tried these for the first due to the lower sodium. I usually use Bu.sh's chili beans
Medium Salsa Con Queso of all the cheese sauces I 've tried this store brand Saf.eway is my favorite.
La Victoria Salsa Suprema (medium heat)
Sour cream
Jalapenos (not shown)
You could also add diced tomato and olives (I was out)
1/4 package of Ground beef (not shown)
and tortilla chips. I prefer Santitas. They taste less salty than other brands.

Brown the ground beef or turkey if you prefer.
Season meat with onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper and cayenne pepper.
Add 1/4 of a taco mix packet. If you need a bit more salt flavor add a shot of garlic salt. As you can see I like flavor.

Heat the beans in a boiler, add two shakes of chili powder. Allow beans to come to a full boil then turn down heat to low to simmer.

Arrange chips on plate. Pour on heated cheese sauce, add ground beef, chili beans, salsa and sour cream in that order. Add jalapenos here if wanted.

Voila! Nachos

my guests plate looked so pretty I had to take a picture



so nice I had to take it twice!


There you have it Easy Cheesy Nachos!

Restaurant Review # One:

Papalote Mexican Grill -  SF

I'm excited to be doing my first restaurant review since starting this blog!  Last Thursday the Food Network replayed an episode of  Bobby Flay's Throwdown against the Escobedo brothers owners of Papalote Mexican Grill in San Francisco. This was my first time seeing this episode. I love when the Food Network does shows about eateries in the Bay Area. The challenge was against their famous Triple Threat Burrito. Which Bobby Flay lost.

from the menu

Anyway, after being stuck inside for days due to the flood inducing thunderstorms, it felt great to have a clear day, so I decided to get out and about and go try this burrito that looked so deelish on TV.

So off I went to the Mission district to the original Papalote located at

3409 24th Street @ Valencia

 I like to try the original of restaurants first, then I venture to the more upscale versions. They have another one deeper in the city. It's the one showcased on the website.

The original

Okay on to the REVIEW:

There wasn't a sign on the place, so I missed it the first time around the block, and there was very limited neighborhood parking.

The place was so tiny. My friend grabbed the seats while I stood in line to order a 19.95 burrito that we decided to split. I read the price was probably inflated after Bobby Flay's visit. I placed the order, got my tag number 18 and went to sit down and wait for this masterpiece.

 While waiting, a small bowl of lukewarm chips and

the famous salsa

were brought out. The salsa was pretty good. It really helped the chips which were blah. But I was starving! I really like chips and salsa, and was disappointed when the server said it would be 1.55 for more.  We had already spent over $26.00 on one burrito and 2 drinks! I hate to sound cheap but ... so no Thank you!



chips and salsa

I have to say, the burrito was huge!!!  Not 20.00 huge but huge! I forgot to take a picture when it first came out. : (

I asked that they cut it in half and my friend had the larger side.

burrito with the famous salsa on the plate

Too be perfectly honest because I said I would keep it real. This was NOT the best burrito I've ever had. It was just okay. It truly needed the famed salsa to give it some flavor. I added the works for .99 to get some cheese, sour cream and guacamole. Which this burrito definitely needed. I asked for the guacamole on the side just in case I didn't like it. I didn't They forgot to bring the guacamole, so I went to ask for it and since you could not see the sour cream on the burrito I asked for that too. The cashier said "Oh they only add a little to the burrito" o_O! I think if you're paying extra for something you should at least be able to see it. AND on a burrito that big?? A little? Girl bye!

WRAP UP:  The only meat of the three that had flavor was the shrimp. Overall, it was just an okay burrito. The meat was fresh and nicely grilled. The burrito was so huge I only ate half of my half and after the flavors marinated the extra half, which I ate later was actually tastier. Definitely not worth the price. I'll probably go try the newer upscale place just cuz tho! LOL!

The Master Cleanse

As a self professed foodie. From time to time the pipes have to get cleaned out and refreshed for more adventure's in eating. This past holiday season I went no holds barred on eating. Because of this I'm currently doing The Master Cleanse,  a cleanse made famous by Stan.ley Bur.roughs and most famously done by Bey.once to prepare for her role in Dream Girl's. The Master Cleanse is a cleanse that can be used for weight loss depending on how much of the elixir (as it is called) is drank.  You can have between 6 - 12
8 ounce servings per day of fresh squeezed lemon juice, Grade B maple syrup and cayenne pepper.(Sounds crazy huh??) I thought so too at first, but the maple syrup has calcium, iron, zinc, magnesium, potassium and Vitamin B2 which is good. It also requires a daily salt water flush and a nightly diet tea. Those did not work out for me. I'm big on taste and they DON'T taste good.

The Grade B maple syrup was 17.99 at Who.le Fo.ods. I was like the hell???

Many people do this cleanse as a jump off to healthy eating, or a vegetarian or raw food diet. Umm not me! Okay yes too healthier eating! I  mostly just felt sluggish and full and wanted to feel better and lighter and after watching a few youtube vids. I decided to go for it. I plan to do it again in June.

http://themastercleanse.org/

I have six days left in this ten day cleanse. I had planned to try to go for 14 days, but I changed my mind. Ten is definitely enough for me! I can't really workout or exert myself to much because you can get weak. I don't want to look sick when I finish!! I am lifting weights so I won't lose muscle.

I started this food blog to chronicle my adventure's in eating. However I can't post anything until this is over. So bear with me. And wish me luck! Everyday is a struggle. LOL!

UPDATE: When I finished my cleanse. I had dinner with my mother she said I looked slim, refreshed and glowing! Yay!

Welcome to my food blog!

Hi All,

I love cooking, eating and dining at restaurants. Here's my place to share my love for food!

*Holiday* Macaroni with 6 cheeses

*said in Tracey Morgan voice*

A heart attack in a pan.

Mild cheddar

Medium cheddar

Asiago

Mozzarella

Monterey Jack

Provolone

Ingredients

• 2 (16 ounce) package elbow macaroni (B.arilla)
• 4 sticks of butter
• 5 cans of evaporated milk.
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package mild Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package medium Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package Provolone cheese
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package Asiago cheese
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package Mozzarella
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package Monterey Jack
• Salt and Ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Fill a pan with lightly salted water, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stir in the macaroni, and return to a boil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through but is still firm to the bite, about 7 minutes. Drain well.
2. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Grease a huge aluminum baking dish.
3. Melt the butter in a pot over medium-low heat.
4. Drain noodles and add to the aluminum pan. Salt and pepper to taste.
5. Add 4 of the cheeses and the butter to the noodles then mix (Asiago, Mozzarella, Monterey, Jack, Provolone.)
6. Add 3 cans of the milk, mix again. Add the last 2 cans don't mix
7. Cover with foil and place in oven to bake. Bake for 45-minutes or until milk is baked in.
8. Take pan out of oven. Remove foil and add last two cheeses on top. Put the pan back in oven until cheese melts. About 10 minutes
9. Remove from oven. Allow to cool  a little and enjoy!

This recipe feeds many. LOL!

My Favorite place to eat!

 I so love this place the food is amazing. It is known as Crustaceans around the world but in San Francisco CA where the orignal was established it is called Thanh Long. In the hood people call it Thang Long LOL! Here are a few pics. They specialize in this roasted garlic crab that is just amazing along with these fab garlic noodles everything is so Delish!!!! It is crab season and I will be eating here very soon.
                                                                                                  
the meal in all it's glory

the main attraction

fried banana dessert YUM!

I haven't had this but the presentation is so cute. People get sorbet to cleanse the palate

and you can get it all here!