Dining date: 12/25/13 Like Thanksgiving, Christmas has been one of the largest feasts of the year every single year. For some time now, my family has done Christmas just like Thanksgiving – lunch at my mom’s side and dinner at my dad’s. Double the gluttony. Lunch, at my aunt’s is a potluck, with a relatively…
Dining date: 11/28/13 The Thanksgiving post has become a sort of tradition on my blog – this is the fifth annual post. As has been the case over the last few years, Thanksgiving is a tale of two meals. Lunch is a casual buffet-style affair at my aunt & uncle’s (mom’s side) while dinner is…
Dining date: 9/1/13 A lobster roll is one of my favorite things to eat at casual seafood places. Lately, I feel like it’s been popping up more and more in local Los Angeles restaurants becoming fairly hip. Renditions from Hinoki & The Bird and Son of a Gun have received national attention, while we have…
Dining date: 8/1/13 I’ve chronicled a number of risotto dishes on this blog, but I’ve been meaning to prepare a sea urchin (uni) risotto for a while. I was recently inspired by a meal at Mexicali Taco & Co., in which an uni-diving friend brought pounds of fresh urchin to top off our tacos. With…
Dining date: 6/28/13 Risotto is one of the rich, luxurious dishes associated with fine dining. The single most expensive dish I’ve ever eaten was a risotto, but it’s also something I’ve found to be fairly easy to make at home without costing a lot. I’ve definitely made my share of risotto dishes at home (my…
Dining date: 4/13/13 While the most profound sous vide application may best represented in long-duration braises of the tougher cuts, breaking down connective tissues while keeping meat a medium-rare temperature, its applications for “simpler” cooking can be just as rewarding. For example, a steak can be prepared very well either on the stove top or…
Dining date: 3/24/13 A few weeks ago, I came across a sale in the Bristol Farms weekly ad for boneless leg of lamb. I’ve made leg of lamb the ‘traditional’ way a few times, but figured it’d be a good time to see what would happen slow-cooking the meat in a water bath. Of course,…
Dining date: 12/25/12 Christmas is perhaps the oldest family tradition I know of (well, maybe Chinese New Year). It’s a very similar setup to Thanksgiving, but we’ve been doing it for as long as I can remember. Lunch is at my aunt’s with my mother’s side of the extended family, while dinner is with my…