Grilled Yellow Fin Tuna

It's nice to be blessed with good friends; especially ones that like to cook and share.  Nako and Amy's son went on his yearly expedition to Mexico via San Diego to go fishing. He always comes back with a ton of fish. Yesterday, Amy called me and asked if I wanted some tuna and before I could say "Yes", my car was already driving to her house.

I got there and they had some raw tuna all sealed up; they told me that it is very good the way it was, sliced thinly. I am not the sushi type so I had planned to broil it.  As she was handing me the bags of tuna, she asked if I would like "fish belly".  I said: "I don't know, what does it look like?".  She showed me several pieces of grilled fillet.  It looked good so I told her I would have one which was enough for me and my husband for dinner.  As she wrapped the piece, she handed me another plate of bread pudding which had raisins and apples.  Her sister-in-law made it.  How could I say no?

I had some ready made Macaroni and Cheese I got from Sam's last week so I thought it would be good with the grilled tuna.  I didn't have tartar sauce so I just made up a sauce using Japanese mayonnaise, mustard, Maggi, and Mafran which is a banana ketchup (a bit sweet- found in any Filipino market)
The fish was delicious. My husband commented that it didn't even taste like fish. Nako did a great job in grilling it; it was so fresh, flaky and moist. It almost sounds like I am describing a pastry!

After dinner, I served the bread pudding which I didn't even bother to warm. I, however had some left over salted caramel sauce from L'Amande Bakery which I heated and poured all over my pudding. I know most people just like a little sauce to not overpower the pudding. Well, I like my bread pudding swimming if not drowning in sauce.

Seems like bread pudding is a popular dessert this time of year; winter. I am left to wonder which of my other friends will be calling me soon to pick up some food!

Biggest Donut Holes

So you think this is better than eating a donut.....well, maybe so but  I can't eat just one of these even if they are a lot bigger than your regular donut hole.
I am talking about my favorite Bacon Donuts from Cafe Dulce in downtown Los Angeles.  I have tried a few from different donuts stores but nothing really comes close.  My old problem was Cafe Dulce in Little Tokyo is not exactly close to where I live but I have resolved that. I found out through experimenting that I could freeze these big babies; wrapping them in wax paper then putting them in a zip lock bag.  To defrost, I microwave them 10-15 seconds, then heat them in a preheated oven 350 degrees for 4-5 minutes.  It comes out perfect!

I am curious to see if James, the owner would consider making the regular bacon donuts bigger; so as to be more accurate. The donut hole should really fit in the current donuts and I doubt the bacon donut hole would fit in the ones they have now. Oh, but James, don't even consider making them smaller just to make them fit!

Amber Ale Turkey Chili

Yesterday was a rainy, cold day.  A day wherein one just wants to stay home and do chores or just relax. I did paperwork and my friend Sandi was in her usual cooking mode.  She asked me if I wanted to sample her experiments.  As a good friend who didn't want to hurt her feelings, said "Yes".  She suggested we meet half way at the Ralph's supermarket parking lot. I was already in my pajamas and robe, socks with slippers as it was really cold. I convinced my husband to drive his car and I went along for the ride in my pajamas ( I exchanged the robe for a coat). We got to the parking lot and Sandi was already there. It was still raining; we managed to park right next to her as we both lowered our windows to make the exchange. Felt like a spy movie!

As soon as we got home, I opened the numerous containers. There was some bow tie pasta, the chili and dessert.

She got the recipe from a healthy cookbook but she of course altered it; hence it turned out great. It was called Amber Ale Turkey Chili.  She ended up using spicy turkey sausage, some beans and tomatoes.  I put my chili on the pasta and my husband's went on left over mashed potatoes.  We both really enjoyed it as we constantly were blowing our noses from the spiciness. It was the perfect meal for a cold day.

Dessert was Louisiana Bread Pudding.  The recipe came from Emeril Lagasse. Instead of the Bourbon sauce, she made her famous Maple Vanilla Sauce.  It was delicious.  What made it special was her maple syrup from Vermont.

Would it be too much to ask for a neighbor like Sandi?

Cuppies

I heard about a cupcake store that opened in my area, and even if I'm not a cupcake fan except for "My Delight Cupcakery", I thought it was my duty to investigate.

I walked in there 2 weeks ago and it looked like a regular cupcake store. Nothing looked exciting so I asked the girl behind the counter what were their specialties and instead of educating me and try to entice me to their best sellers, she unenthusiastically said: "There's a list of all our flavors" as she pointed to their brochures.

I asked if they had bacon cupcakes and she said yes. I couldn't find bacon cupcakes on the brochure and idiot me didn't see it listed as Hot Cakes n Bacon.  They were just coming out of the oven so I bought one.  Got in my car; couldn't wait till I got home so I started eating it.  I found it to be too, too sweet. It did not even come close to the bacon cupcakes of "My Delight Cupcakery".

They do have a lot of flavors and cute names like Black Tie Affair which is rich chocolate-espresso ganache with vanilla frosting or Happy Monkey which is a chocolate cake with a creamy banana filling, topped with banana frosting or Key Lime Pie, a tart Key Lime cake topped with creamy graham cracker frosting.  Their flavors are certainly not as different and exciting as Fried Chicken or French Toast Cupcakes but it will do for most people who love cupcakes.

Cuppies is located at 3525 Pacific Coast Highway #F in Torrance, California.

New Kid in Town

Yes, there's a new kid in town.  It is the Blackberry Tart at the L'Amande Bakery in Torrance.  I guess, it is the season for blackberries. These babies are big and and are very sweet. There were 3 of us today that had lunch there and of course we had to order desserts.  We got 1 blackberry to try, salted caramel tart and 2 papiottes.

The blackberry tart is a must try, not only are they sweet but the custard is done to perfection as it is not too eggy, creamy, or overly sweet. The crust is just as flaky as all the crust they bake.

If blackberry isn't your fruit, then try the raspberry, chocolate, lemon, walnut, or pistachio tart. There is always something for everyone.

Ocean Tava; Better Than Ever

For those of  you who like Indian food and have not tried this restaurant in Redondo Beach, it is time to make time.....it is better than ever.

Four of us were to meet there last night for dinner. One got sick and the other got stranded at work; so it was just me and Cindy. We have been wanting to go but something always came up and just could not go any sooner.  There is a new chef, Vel Pitchar and although we did not order anything new ( a lot of new items on the menu), since there were just the 2 of us, we stuck to our favorites. We ordered the Tava Special Chicken and Tava Special Vegetables.  For appetizers, we had the Vegetable Samosa and the Vegetable Pakoras. The mint and tamarind sauce complemented the Pakoras nicely.  The order came with a choice of white or brown rice. Of course a meal is not a meal without naan. We ordered the onion naan to mop up all the wonderful sauce from the Tava chicken and vegetable.

Our server, Manish was very attentive. He asked us what number on a scale of 1 to 5 would we want our food to be spicy. We always settled for 2.  Somehow, 2 was more like a 3; I think our taste buds were on vacation for too long! We had our meal with a glass of sparkling wine.

The sunset menu is quite inexpensive. The drinks are $3.95 a glass, appetizers are $3.95, you may choose any chicken entree for $8.95 and any vegetable entree for $7.95. Their sunset menu hours are from 4:30 p.m to 6:30 p.m. and if you are early enough depending on the season you can see the sunset from there. Ocean Tava is located at 1212 S. Pacific Coast Highway in Redondo Beach, California. When our sick friend is well, and the other one can leave work early and  the other one is done with her diet, we shall all go back in full force and try the many exciting dishes on their menu.

Dilettante Fruit Medley

These fruit medley is not just pretty and enticing to look at....they are actually very good and addicting.  I used to buy these all the time at Trader Joe's and when I saw them recently...I seemed to hear them calling out to me.

The medley consists of cherries, apricots, strawberries and blueberries in premium chocolates. The company is from the state of Washington. The founder of Dilletante, Dana Taylor Davenport was a chocolatier & pastry chef from Europe so one could say he knew a little bit about chocolates.

Anytime I see words like fruit with chocolates, I feel obligated to do myself a favor by eating healthy.  Not only is daily consumption of fruit recommended for a healthy diet but chocolate is also proven to be good for you. Never mind the fat content. There is 1 gram of fiber per serving (7pieces) and that's good enough for me.