A Good Bite

It was a rainy evening in West Hollywood and I was at a pizza place with a group of friends… We were really there to hang out and escape the rain more than anything else.  When a deep dish pepperoni pizza was delivered to our table, I wasn’t particularly interested in having a whole slice to myself. But when a couple of my tablemates showed enthusiasm with such statements as, ‘Mmmmm,’ and ‘This is really good,’ I decided that I should probably try it to see what the fuss was about. Again, not wanting an entire piece to myself, I turned to my friend Erris and asked to try a bite from his plate. Our conversation went something like this:

Katrina: I want to try a bite of your pizza. Will you make me a good bite?

Erris: There is a bite on the fork right there. Go ahead and take it. 

Katrina: But I need you to make me a good bite. Like, a really good bite.

Erris: What in the world are you talking about? There is a bite right there on the fork.

Katrina: Erris. That is just a regular bite. I need you to make me a good bite.

Erris (in an increasingly annoyed tone): Seriously Katrina, I have no idea what you are talking about. You are not making any sense. Just take a bite. 

At this point, my roommate, who had been observing this whole exchange, decided to join the conversation and help me out. It was clear that Erris needed to be educated in the world of good bites and luckily, Jaime was there to intervene before he got completely frustrated with me and refused to let me taste the pizza at all.

A good bite is a carefully engineered forkful of whatever you may be eating. Good flavor combinations are important throughout a meal, but good bites are absolutely crucial when it comes to the first or last morsels of any dining experience.  These are the bites you are going to remember the entire meal by. Not having a good bite as your finishing mouthful is like a symphony ending on a wrong note: flat and anti-climactic.

Now you can see why a good bite of this deep dish pizza was extremely critical. I really only wanted one bite, so I had to take measures to ensure it was a good one. There are a few ways a good bite can be accomplished. In the case of the deep dish pizza, it needed to be a perfect balance of all of the elements of the pizza- just the right amount of crust, cheese, sauce and pepperoni. In other cases, a good bite can be an unadorned bit of your favorite part of the meal, say, one single, tender bite of filet mignon. Occasionally, an attempted last good bite doesn’t go as planned, and a second attempt must be made. But the solution to this is easy, simply try again!

After Jaime finished explaining all of this to Erris, he became much less put out by my request for a good bite. In fact, he now understood exactly what I meant and happily put one together for me. After tasting his creation, I came to one conclusion- it was a really good!

-Katrina

Late Night Munchies

With some Irish friends landing at LAX on a late night flight, I wanted to provide something yummy upon arrival for all to munch on, courtesy of Chez Jean. I chose to serve an assorted selection of cheeses, crackers, dips and chips, but I also wanted to offer my guests something more substantial, depending on their hunger levels. I decided some homemade crab cakes would be a good fit for all to enjoy, along with a fresh green arugula salad with shaved parmesan.

Asian Crab Cakes (makes 8 cakes)

Ingredients:

1 large Egg, beaten

2 slices Whole Grain Bread, crumbled

1 tbsp Light Mayonnaise

1 tbsp Fresh Ginger, grated

¾ c. Scallion, finely chopped

1 tsp Light Soy Sauce

12 oz. Lump Crabmeat

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 tbsp Sesame Oil

Method:

In a large bowl, combine egg and breadcrumbs until the bread absorbs the liquid. Add mayonnaise, ginger, scallion and soy sauce and stir to combine. Gently fold in crabmeat and season with salt and pepper. Working quickly, shape mixture into eight 2 inch patties and place on a plate, cover and chill for 15 minutes. In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook crab cakes in sesame oil, turning once, until brown and crisp. Do not crowd the pan. Serve as an appetizer with a spicy remoulade, with a salad or on a sandwich.

Polished off with a couple of bottles of red wine, the crab cakes were devoured by all.

-Jean

25 Degrees

Located in the famed Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, this restaurant’s name refers to the temperature difference between a medium rare and well done burger. Feeling the after effects from our New Year’s Eve celebrations, my boyfriend and I were craving comfort food on New Year’s night. So we headed to this joint after hearing rave reviews from friends. 

Upon entering, we were welcomed by some friendly staff passing by and told to seat ourselves anywhere we like, diner style. The décor is so fun with dark red leather booths and black chandeliers overhead with a fun bar/counter area for enjoying cocktails or some grub. There is a really warm tone to the place while it is eclectic at the same time. We began with cocktails at the counter while we perused the menu. I enjoyed a lovely glass of red vino while my other half enjoyed a stiff, very, very dry martini. My only bone of contention would be their stemless glassware, as I do enjoy my wine in a stemmed glass. But that is a personal qualm I guess.

I needed something soul warming, so I ordered the Tuscan Tomato Soup. My boyfriend ordered a Burger, of course, seeing as this is the main focus of the restaurant and what they are known for. When in Rome as they say. The menu really is quite fun with a gourmet twist on burgers, fries, shakes, and floats. They even have a ‘Guinness Milkshake’. The main focus is the “Build your own Burger” selection – ground sirloin, turkey, or veggie, with an abundant selection of cheese, sauces, and toppings. They also have what’s called the ‘Half & Half’ so you can have a half order of fries with a half order of onion rings or sweet potato fries. Of course, we had to be difficult and ask if we could have a ‘Third & Third & Third’ because we wanted them all! Jennifer, our server, couldn’t have been nicer and said that they typically don’t do that but that she would ask the Chef. She returned with a smiling nod of approval on our request which pleased us to no end.

Everything was absolutely delicious and just what we needed. We left the place a couple of hours later and headed towards the Roosevelt’s lobby bar for after dinner cocktails. Now that’s the way to start the New Year!

For those of you who are not located in Los Angeles, there are sister restaurants in City North Center in Phoenix, Arizona and Downtown Huntington Beach, California. 

www.25degreesrestaurant.com

 - Jean

A Cake for All Occasions

My boss, Don, loves carrot cake. More specifically, he loves the carrot cake that I bake. Don’s wife and son have also come to love the carrot cake that I bake. I made a cake to share with the office for his birthday last August, and a few slices made it home with him. 

Decorated with a little help from the pastry kitchen at work

Next thing I knew, his wife was requesting my carrot cake for their Thanksgiving desert! Unfortunately, I was traveling and was not able to make it happen. This week, as a thank you to Don for his generous Christmas gift, I decided to bake an entire cake for him to enjoy at home. No sharing with the vultures that are the hungry employees in our department. Just Don, his family, and the Layered Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting… and probably a few NFL games.

 My less professional decorating skills

Layered Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

Cake

1 ⅓ c. Sugar

1 c. Canola Oil

3 large Eggs

1 ⅓ c. Flour

1 ⅓ tsp Baking Powder

1 ⅓ tsp Baking Soda

¾ tsp Salt

¾ tsp Cinnamon

½ tsp Nutmeg

2 c. Carrots, Peeled and Finely Grated (about 4 large carrots)

½ c. Walnuts, Chopped

Frosting

4 c. Confectioners Sugar

8 oz. Cream Cheese

¼ c. Unsalted Butter

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

Extra Walnuts, Chopped, for topping

Method:

Cake

Lightly grease two 9” diameter cake pans. Line bottom of pans with parchment paper. Lightly grease paper as well. Preheat oven to 325°F. Blend sugar and oil in a large bowl with mixer until well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. Add carrots and walnuts and stir until evenly distributed. Pour batter into cake pans, dividing equally. Bake about 45 minutes, or until cake is firm and begins to pull away just slightly from the sides of the pans. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto cooling racks and cool completely.

Frosting

Using mixer, blend all ingredients until completely smooth.

Assembly

Place one layer of cake on platter. Using spatula spread ½ cup of frosting over the top, making sure frosting reaches all the way to the edges. Place second layer of cake on top. Adding generous amounts of frosting near the center of the cake, spread toward edges until top of cake is covered. Next, frost sides of cake, being very generous with the frosting so as not to get cake crumbs caught in the icing. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts as desired for decoration. Refrigerate when completed. Cake can be served cold or at room temperature.

Even for a novice baker, this cake is very simple to make, yet it tastes absolutely delicious. Just try it- you will be glad that you did! And…if you still need more motivation, just tell yourself it is a good way to get your daily dose of vegetables :)

Don’t Bite – The Fifth Amendment Alehouse

It was a Wednesday evening, and I was looking for a spot to have some bevies with a friend. We decided to check out a new venue in Santa Monica called The Fifth Amendment Alehouse.

A tin foil wrapped basket with pretzels arrived with our beverages. This was a less than appetizing presentation but it’s a beer joint so our expectations were not too high. When we asked the bartender what the turkey sandwich, “made how mama used to make” was like, we were told to stick to the burgers and the top half of the menu. He also said not to bother ordering the expensive Kobe burger but to stick to the regular beef burger as it tastes just as good, at half the price. The menu was very weird with its odd selection of gourmet sausages, ostrich burgers, and venison burgers. No fries were listed anywhere, and after trying to order them, we were informed that the deep fat fryer was not installed yet so a stand alone burger was the only option. 

In addition, the service was horrendously slow. We must’ve waited nearly an hour for our spinach artichoke dip with pita chips to arrive. It was tasty enough but nothing special. We waited another 30+ minutes for our burger and cheese plate. I honestly think the bartender ran to Ralph’s to get the supermarket cheese plate which was massive and loaded with cubed sharp cheddar and some other unknown cheese.

On the flip side, if you are a draft beer drinker then you are in luck. The bar has a few different unique types that are not always available elsewhere. Despite these downfalls, the bartender was as accommodating as possible and apologized on multiple occasions for the wait times and disastrous menu options. My final thoughts on this alehouse are that they opened far too soon, with inadequate equipment and service capabilities, and that they might be better off keeping food to the basics and focusing on what they are good at – beer!

 www.pleadfifth.com 

129 Broadway, Santa Monica, CA

 

-Jean

Poppin' Bottles

It seems just yesterday that the world was facing Y2K, yet suddenly here we are, ten years later, staring 2010 directly in the face. In the last decade some of us have grown wiser, all of us have grown older, but none of us (or at least in our circle of friends) have grown tired of a good old fashioned get crazy and party like a rock star New Year’s Eve celebration. As a tribute to this time honored tradition, we created a list of a few of our favorite bottles of bubbly for that infamous midnight toast.

Budget Bubbles:

1. Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Blancs ’04 $16.99

2. Dom Carneros Brut ’06 $19.99

3. Veuve Clicquot Brut Yellow Label $28.99

Spendy Sparkles:

1. Moet & Chandon’s Dom Perignon ’00 $121.99

2. Louis Roederer’s Cristal Brut ’02 $199.99

3. Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Rose ’98 $399.99

In the words of Oprah Winfrey, “Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right!” Happy New Year!

-Jean & Katrina

Oysters on Ocean

It was a Sunday night at 5 pm and already dark. After hanging around my house for several hours, doing nothing in particular, I decided enough was enough! I needed to get out of the house. So I made a couple of phone calls and Voila! Dinner plans with a couple of girlfriends.

We decided to try out the recently opened Blue Plate Oysterette on Ocean Ave.   The original Blue Plate on Montana is a staple in my weekend breakfast repertoire, so I figured any place related would be a good bet. The Oysterette is also on my route to and from work, so I had been curious about this new, bustling restaurant for some time.

We got to the restaurant around 6 pm, and the bright and cheery space was practically full. (Yes, I am aware that eating dinner at 6 pm warrants serious senior status. But the Suns v. Lakers game was starting at 6:30 and I wanted to watch it!) We were seated at the last empty table at the very back of the restaurant, but it was still a comfortable booth and a great spot from which to check out the scene.

After our very energetic waitress came to greet us and explain the extensive selection of daily specials and types of oysters, we decided to start with a nice bottle of Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc. As you may suspect, the wine list is dominated by whites, but there are also a few carefully selected reds to complement the mostly seafood menu. Since we were at the Oysterette after all, we decided to kick off the meal with a couple of Hog Island Sweetwater oysters. These were described to us by our peppy (and knowledgeable) waitress as a smaller and sweeter variety.  Upon ordering these, an elderly gentleman sitting at the table next to us commended our choice and proceeded to share that he had just returned from Hog Island. Turns out he was the father of the restaurant’s owner. Although my friends and I are fairly new to the world of oysters, the Hog Islands were great! The waitress’s description of the sweetness was spot on, and the small size of the oysters eliminated any brininess that might have been too ‘oceany’ for us novices.

After our oyster adventure, we went with the family style approach. We ordered two of the daily specials- an ahi tuna crudo and fried clams – and a lobster macaroni and cheese off of the regular menu. If there is macaroni and cheese on a menu, I order it. Period. The ahi came out first, and was served with thinly sliced avocado.  A faint hint of what seemed to be truffle oil at the beginning of each bite made the dish much more interesting and complex than I expected. I have eaten a lot of raw ahi dishes in my life, and I would definitely say this one was better than average.  The fried clams were up next and served with a lemony aioli. I was pleasantly surprised by my first tender bite. In the past, I have really only ordered fried clams from ‘seafood shack’ type places, so this gourmet version of the dish was an eye opener. The breading was light and coated the clams just enough to be perfectly crisp. The clams themselves had a brilliant, tender texture, not chewy as clams can sometimes be. I suspect this was due to more TLC and a shorter cooking time from a seasoned chef, rather than the usual extended hot oil bath on a greasy line.  The aioli accompaniment was tasty, but nothing I couldn’t live without.  The lobster macaroni and cheese was great. The amount of lobster in the bubbling cauldron was generous to say the least. The cheese sauce was just the right consistency to cling to each noodle. And the flavor of the cheeses was sharp enough to grab your attention but not to mask the taste of the fresh lobster.

‘Seafood and raw bar, and a few other American favorites,’ reads the tagline on the website. After my first experience at Blue Plate Oysterette, I definitely plan on returning (with Jean!) to try more items in all three of these categories. I wonder which kind of oyster I will try next…

http://blueplatesantamonica.com/bpo/home/

-Katrina