New Twists On Old Favorites...Spicy!

I love trying new food. Some of it's gross, but some of it is awesome. I think it's worth all the gross stuff to get to the awesome stuff. Here are two new things I've tried recently:

I love Tabasco Sauce. It's great on anything bland, but I particularly like it on mac n' cheese and pizza. I've tried some Tabasco-flavored products, like Fritos, but those tend to be "hot" without any actual flavor. But when a Whole Foods cashier suggested Chipotle Tabasco, I was game.

It's soooo good. It's better than the original, and you know that's not something I say very often! It's not as hot as original, but the smokiness from the chipotles substitutes the hot with flavor. My mac n' cheese is super happy!

As some of you know, um, I love Funyuns. I don't buy them very often because they really have no nutritional value whatsoever (awesomeness value is off the charts, though). The last few times I've been to the grocery store, Wasabi Funyuns have been staring me in the face, whispering, whispering, "Buy me, Michellephant. You're Asian. It's your duty."

I'm not a huge fan of wasabi (I generally dislike horseradish in all forms), but I finally listened. These are a truly bizarre snack. They're decent; they're hot; they clear out your sinuses. They're NOT as good as the original.

Both are worth trying.

Chipotle Tabasco: A+
Wasabi Funyuns: B

Bud's Louisiana Food Shoppe

2034 Kettner Blvd. #12
San Diego, CA 92101
619.239.4210

Snowman and I decided to visit with two former Louisianians from What We're Eating. They know Creole, right? We were all skeptical. With good reason. While nothing downright sucked, there wasn't much to sing about either. I mean, it takes a really skilled chef to make fried catfish...bland. I don't think any of us will be heading back anytime soon. Besides, I think there's better etouffe in WWE's kitchen anyway!

Food: Meh. My shrimp po' boy, WWE's etouffe, Snowman's jambalaya...all meh. The only high point was the bread pudding, which is apparently "famous." I'm glad I ordered it, because it was definitely the best thing anyone ordered the whole night.
Service: Unremarkable but adequate.
Decor: Vinyl tablecloths, ya dig?

Grade: B-

Chipotle-Seared Scallops with Butter Bean Salsa

It was Snowman's birthday yesterday, and in honor of my coal-eyed friend, I'm posting a dish he cooked from many moons ago. It was during my blog hiatus, and Snowman pleaded, "Please, please, please, bring your blog back for one night! Post these damn scallops, you stubborn elephant!" I swore that if the blog came back, the scallops would go up, so here they are:


This meal was so long ago, it's actually hard to remember all of the specifics. I know the salsa was a riff on the salsa Chef whipped up during a cooking class, but the scallops were all Snowman's own invention. It was all really tasty. The scallops were cooked just right (so easy to over cook those things!) and the salsa was yummy. I have no memory of the rice, but I'm pretty sure it came out of bag.

Grade: B+

Jasmine

4609 Convoy Street
San Diego, CA 92111
858.268.0888

Foiled again by that crappy period in between lunch and dinner! We just barely missed the much-talked about dim sum lunch, so we had to settle for the dinner menu. Turns out, it was actually really delicious. Unfortunately, because they assumed I would be sharing in Snowman's appetizers of short ribs and chicken lettuce wraps, I watched Snowman eat his lunch, and then he watched me eat mine. Watch out: the portions are huge!

Food: Excellent. My eggplant with garlic was delicious. Very spicy. I don't get how some people don't like eggplant!
Service: Capable.
Decor: Typical Chinese ballroom. A huge space, where they probably have a lot of weddings and new year's parties.

Grade: A-

Nine-Ten

910 Prospect St.
La Jolla, CA 92037
858.964.5400

It's pretty hard to find non-fast food at about 3:30 in the afternoon, that horrible time in between lunch and dinner. Snowman and I actually wanted to eat here because we are considering staying in the adjoining Grande Colonial for our wedding and might have our after-wedding dinner at Nine-Ten. Unfortunately, they were only serving a bar menu, so our sampling of their cuisine was limited. But quite delightful nonetheless.

Food: My mushroom panini was decent, but the real story here were the truffled French fries with grated Parmesan. How to make a fry more decadent...this is the answer! They were so rich and delicious. Snowman liked his flank steak, and we both liked our hibiscus-scented iced teas.
Service: Friendly and attentive, though the bartender would disappear for ten minutes at a time. A fellow patron, itching for vodka, said to him upon his return, "I thought you went on vacation!"
Decor: Sleek and modern without feeling cold or antiseptic.

Grade: A

Pacifica Del Mar

1555 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA 92014
858.792.0476

Snowman and I spent a lovely afternoon in Del Mar looking at possible wedding sites and hotels. We finished off with lunch at Pacifica Del Mar. We both really enjoyed our meals. In fact, my only complaint is that we were sitting on the patio which was glassed-in. This probably protects diners from the winds and errant birds, but it traps in the sunlight, so we were kind of roasting ourselves.

Food: I had a most delicious squash bisque with creme fraiche and chunks of apple. I also had a green salad with bleu cheese, candied walnuts and cranberries. A little too much bleu cheese for me, but otherwise quite enjoyable. Snowman enjoyed his turkey burger and we both enjoyed his fries.
Service: Very friendly.
Decor: Casual and beach-like. We had wooden fish for napkin rings. I made them kiss a little.

Grade: B+

Carrot Ginger Soup with Roasted Coconut Shrimp

I love soup. I love eating it and I love cooking it. Soups are usually very easy to make and the long simmer helps meld all the flavors together wonderfully. I think this may actually be the best thing I've cooked. Ever. Spicy, warm, healthy--everyone at dinner LOVED this. The only thing that didn't quite fly was the shrimp. I only had baby shrimps on hand, but you really need the big guys to get the roasting right. This recipe comes from Food & Wine.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, coarse chop
4 carrots, chopped
1 tablespoon finely grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 cups chicken broth [I used vegetable broth]
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 cup milk
1/4 cup coconut milk
Salt and pepper
16 large shrimp shelled
1 1/2 tablespoons flaked coconut
Pinch cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 425°. In a large saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the carrots, ginger and crushed red pepper and cook for 6 minutes. Add the broth and bring to a boil, then simmer until the carrots are very tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, peanut butter and sesame oil.

In a blender, puree the soup until smooth. Return it to the saucepan and stir in the skim milk and coconut milk. Season the soup with salt and pepper and keep warm.

Toss the shrimp with the coconut, cayenne and remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Spread the shrimp on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roast for 8 minutes, or until pink. Ladle the carrot-ginger soup into warmed bowls and garnish with the coconut shrimp.

Grade: A

Pumpkin Chocolate Tart

I'm bringing bloggin' back/Them other bloggers don't know how to act...

I missed you guys! But I'm back. Just not as much as before. And by "before" I mean over the summer when I was blogging every day, not "before" as in the last four months when I wasn't blogging at all.

So let's get to it! This here's a tart I made for my first San Diego Thanksgiving. It was a big hit with Snowman and the other guests, but I didn't love it. It was good, but lacking somehow. I actually attribute this to the fact that I didn't have any creme fraiche, so I jerry-rigged some with sour cream and buttermilk. I'm a big fan of the store-bought pie crust, but this one I actually made fresh. To me, the best part, by far, was the homemade spiced whipped cream. I added a pinch of nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves to echo all the flavors in the tart. It's such an easy way to elevate your whipped topping! This recipe comes from Martha Stewart Living. Long may she live!

FOR THE TART SHELL:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup + 1tbsp sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup unsalted butter pieced
1 egg
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flour, sugar, cocoa, salt, cinnamon, and cloves. Add butter; mix on low speed until butter is the size of small peas, about 5 minutes. Add egg; mix until ingredients come together to form a dough.

Preheat oven to 350". On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to just thicker than 1/8 inch. Brush off excess flour; transfer dough to a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press dough into bottom and up sides of pan; trim excess flush with edge. Lightly prick bottom of dough all over with a fork. Chill until firm, about 30 minutes. [I am an absolute moron when it comes to rolling out pie crust, so I didn't really roll this one out. I just pressed it into the shell with my hands. This worked out fine, just be sure you really press it fully up the sides, or the filling will overflow and burn.]

Bake shell until firm, about 15 minutes. Immediately sprinkle chocolate over bottom of shell; smooth with a spatula.

FOR THE FILLING:
15 ounces pumpkin puree
3/4 cup firm pack light brown sugar
8 ounces creme fraiche [As mentioned, I made my own. I do not recommend this method!]
3 eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 ounces semisweet chocolate

Preheat oven to 350". In a medium bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, brown sugar, creme fraiche, egg, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, and cloves until smooth. Pass mixture through a fine sieve set over a clean bowl; discard solids. Pour filling into prepared into prepared crust.

Bake until filling is set, about 40 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let at least 30 minutes.

Set a heatproof bowl, or the top of a double boiler, over a pan of barely simmering water. Melt chocolate in bowl, stirring occasionally; remove from heat. Dip a spoon in melted chocolate, drizzle chocolate over tart, forming decorative stripes. Refrigerate until well at least 1 hour and up to 1 day. [If you do not have a plastic squeeze bottle (like you see at BBQs for sauce), you really should get one! It makes drizzling anything so easy and very artistic.]

Grade: B