Culver City Farmer's Market

Although I've perused the Culver City Farmer's Market in the past, it was always quick trips; not really being able to take in the sights (funky people), sounds (homeless musicians) or taste (too many to list). Today was the first day it really felt like summer and it was the perfect day to explore the market. To be honest, I was really craving Carmela's Ice Cream but they were no where to be found! If you are ever lucky enough to run into them, there are two flavors you should try - cucumber (it may not sound appealing but it was clean, fresh and sweet) and the salted caramel. Oh my! Anyway, the produce today looked and smelled as if we hit that first perfect day of summer so I ended up buying a few heirloom tomatoes, white peaches, strawberries and even a mango-flavored nectarine (still a mystery). And tonight I came home and made myself a really simple Insalata Caprese. Although I almost ate the tomato alone. It was hands down, the best and sweetest tomato I've ever had.

June Anti-Gloom

June has felt like fall this year...a bit cold and overcast, but I have to say I kind of like it probably because I don't feel ready for summer yet. This morning was perfect. Clean, crisp sheets to lounge around in with a cool morning breeze sweeping through the room; the kind of morning that you don't ever want to leave. After a warm cup of coffee, I looked in the fridge and realized I had a bunch of blueberries and raspberries feeling neglected wondering if they would ever have any use in this life. So I decided to whip up a batch of muffins. It was a new recipe that I hadn't tried yet, simple and to the point. No fussy ingredients that I needed to leave my house for (i.e. buttermilk or sour cream) which was key on a morning like today. The result? Buttery, moist on the inside and slightly crisp on top. Quite a delightful Sunday morning start.

What?! It's been a year?

Time flies when you're counting sheep. Yes, it's been over a year since the last post and my excuse? Primarily a wedding. Last November, Monte and Marlene tied the knot in Hawaii and although the planning is over it was nice to kick it into cruise control for a bit, to just relax and soak in the normalcy of life. No details to worry about, colors to pick or family drama. Also took a trip to Italy (post to come soon). But I'm back, this year is about now and I'm looking forward to it (even if I am starting in June).

For Goodness Cake!

Happenstance. Thanks to Miki, Daryl and I got a catering gig through one of her co-workers who also happens to be an event planner. The event was for a girl's 13th birthday party, with a budget hefty enough to challenge a small wedding. The theme was New York (my favorite city!) and we were tasked to bake mini cheesecakes, raspberry tarts and mini black & white cookies for 50 guests. We tried to keep everything classic New York but it was a bit challenging since we enjoy experimenting with our own unique twists. Our specific direction for the cheesecakes were to make them appear that they were baked individually. Puzzling. There was no way we had enough of a budget to purchase 50 mini-springform pans. Instead we baked two ginormous (biggest we've seen) cheesecakes and used a cake cutter to create the minis. The raspberry tarts were probably my favorite, we did a pistachio crust with a light (think fluffy) creme fraiche filling - we didn't want them too heavy because of the cheesecakes. Finally after 2.5 days of baking, decorating and washing dishes we happily boxed the goods and off they went! Sigh. It was nice living out my dream for week.

Milk Money

Daryl and I are both enjoying an unexpected "vacation" so we decided to pretend like we were Whitney and LC from "The Hills." Go ahead, laugh all you want. In true Hills fashion, we headed to Milk on Beverly to spend the Milk Money Daryl received on his recent birthday. With so many sweets to choose from, we had a difficult decision on how to quench our (ahem) vacation woes. We ended up getting gelato sandwiched between french macaroon cookies and a blueberry danish. This was no ordinary danish, it had a cake-like consistency on the inside similar to a blueberry muffin and surrounded by a perfectly crisp pastry crust. I guess not so Hills like after all...wouldn't they just get a salad?

MILK
7290 Beverly Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323.939.6455

Finally, I wasn't left behind!

Yes, she finally remembered to take me to New York City; her favorite city in the world. We took an exhausting red eye and sat in front of an obnoxious woman who claimed she had "bad knees" therefore needed to stretch (kick) me every 10 minutes of the 5 hour flight. Not only did she make the flight physically uncomfortable but she also had two (yes that's 2) cats with her. To make matters worse, she strikes up an extremely loud conversation with her aisle-mates; a photographer and a model-Page Six columnist-Puma fashion designer (yeah, no joke). Their loud conversation then turned into a ridiculous photo session (with the model and two cats of course!); it was flashing, directing madness! Now, that's a red eye.

Happy Birthday Mari!

We celebrated Mari's birthday at Cobras and Matadors Monday (October 15th) night. Wine flowed as we dined on delicious small plates and chatted in the candlelight. Romantico! And then there was cake. A princess cake! I knew this one of Mari's favorites, man was I nervous! Especially since I've never made one before and have only had this cake a couple of times. It's basically a couple layers of a genoise with raspberry and custard, encased in fresh whipped cream and marzipan. Of course I had to make a marzipan Humphrey (her adorable bulldog) which I've heard is now living in the freezer. Humphrey forever!!! And of course, after I had already assembled the cake, I realized I was supposed to mix some of the custard with whipped cream. Live and learn. But it didn't turn out so bad afterall and was actually easier then some of the french buttercream cakes I've done in the past. Happy Birthday Mari! Also a quick shout out to Megan (October 10th), Leila (October 13th) and Todd (October 19th). October babies rule!

GRUB

I recently discovered Grub after searching on Yelp for a Los Angeles restaurant that serves a good bowl of tomato soup - a recent, but still unsatisfied, craving. I didn't make it to Grub for lunch but enjoyed an early Sunday morning breakfast there last week. It's in a completely random location and looks like a house serving breakfast on the corner. Actually it reminded me a lot of the Glenwood in Eugene, Oregon. The entire staff was friendly and welcoming, including the owners who took time to visit every table. Betty Fraser, one of the owners was on Season 2 of TOP CHEF. Unfortunately, I've never watched this season but am addicted to this Season's. Anyway, I struggled with deciding between the bacon, cheddar and tomato scramble and the Friggin' Amazin' French Toast...I went with the scramble. It was truly one of the better egg dishes I've had in Los Angeles, although I think it was mostly due to the bacon. Mmmmmm, this bacon was sweet and slightly salty. And the dish came with roasted potatoes that were seasoned to perfection. They didn't even need any additional salt or ketchup (which I ALWAYS tend to reach for). Grub has definitely made it to my list of favorites in Los Angeles. On my next visit, I'm ordering the Afterschool Special.