No-Fuss Marinade

Next time you're at Trader Joe's, pick up the Trader Joe's Island Soyaki Sauce. It's a tasty marinade for meat, vegetables...anything, and is a great timesaver. One quick recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Generously cover 4 chicken breasts with the Soyaki Sauce.
3. Bake covered with aluminum foil for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.
4. Serve!

R23 - A Great Downtown Sushi Restaurant

I first heard about this restaurant, R23, from my sister. She and my brother-in-law went there for dinner one night and her description, "a sheek sushi restaurant in a converted industrial building in the heart of downtown LA," intrigued me. Then, a friend from work mentioned that she had been there and really liked it, so I added it to my list of restaurants-to-try. Particularly with sushi restaurants, I will only try them by referral. I figure it's safer that way :). I had an excuse yesterday to try it: my "goodbye lunch" as I leave my current job. My sister's description was perfect...the restaurant is in a converted building with exposed ducts, brick walls, big open windows, hardwood floors, and art on the walls. As you sit down, you realize that the surprisingly comfortable chairs are made out of cardboard. The eight of us ordered enough sushi to feed a small village. It all came out on a beautiful platter and plates, and tasted just as good as it looked. All in all, it was a fabulous lunch at a yummy restaurant that I will definitely try again!

One of my favorite things about spring is planting new plants, flowers, and herbs. There is just something wonderful about kneading your hands in soil and getting all the dirt in your nails. It's definitely a nice break from the concrete jungle. So, I recently went to Home Depot in search of some inspiration, and decided to add some herbs to my patio garden. I picked up rosemary, sage, and lemon thyme, three of my favorites. I use these in practically everything, just to add a touch of flavor. Here's one of my favorite new recipes that I saw in a Weight Watchers magazine:

6 chicken breasts (I use the frozen boneless,skinless, individually wrapped ones from costco)
1/2 Cup Balsamic Vinegar (I use Rosemary Balsamic Vinegar)
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
Salt to taste
1 Tablespoon grated lemon zest
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon garlic (either fresh and thinly sliced or the minced-in-a-jar kind)

1. Preheat the over to 400 degrees.
2. Mix the rosemary, garlic, oil, lemon zest, salt, and crushed red pepper in a bowl. Add the chicken and toss to coat.
3. Place the chicken on a 9X13 inch baking dish (I use a nice white bake and serve dish so I eliminate one added step of moving the chicken to a serving platter). Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees. Drizzle the vinegar over the chicken. Bake, unocvered, until the chicken is slightly browned on the outside and cooked through the inside (about 10 minutes).

This is a really easy recipe that takes about 10 minutes to prepare and leaves you with time to do other things while it is baking.

Kitchen Staples

For vegetarians or those who like meatless meals ever so often, you have to try the Morningstar Farms Meal Starters Grillers Recipe Crumbles. They are in the frozen foods section of the grocery store. These are fabulous in any recipe that calls for ground beef or meat crumbles. I use it in tacos, stir-fry, pasta sauce, and even chili, and continue to find new recipes in which to use it. Just add whatever seasoning you like and you’re good to go!

The EASIEST Hors d'œuvre

I tried out this hors d'oeuvre recently for my husband's birthday. I obviously go for tasty bites, but I try to do ones that I can prepare, at least in part, ahead of time. The combination didn't sound that appealing at first, but I figured I would try something new. I'm glad I did! Everyone complimented me on how GREAT they tasted. The combination of sweet date and pungent blue cheese is a nice balance.
Trust me, they'll be gone before you know it!!

Ingredients:
Dates
Blue Cheese
(I get the big tubs of pitted dates and blue cheese at Costco...Even if you have leftovers, they won't go bad for awhile)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Slightly open the pitted dates (if they aren't pitted yet, do that) and stuff a few blue cheese crumbles inside. This step you can do the morning of and leave them in the fridge.

Bake on a non-stick cookie sheet, or put parchment paper down, for about 5 - 10 minutes; just long enough that the blue cheese melts. Serve!

My Favorite Salt

When I was studying abroad in Spain in college, my parents and I went over to Mallorca for the weekend. We stopped at the La Residencia Hotel in Deia for lunch (by the way, the best lunch I've ever had...but that's for another post) and the waiter brought over bread, olive oil, and this wonderful sea salt, Flor de Sal Hibiscus, to accompany it. This fuscia-colored salt had such a wonderful taste and hibiscus aroma that we bought a few cans to take home with us. In the years since, I have been rationing it off, literally sprinkle by sprinkle, thinking it would be impossible to find once I had gone through my supply. Well, a few months ago, my mom stumbled upon it while exploring the Surfas Restaurant Supply Store in Culver City. If you can't make it to Culver City, it's available on the web, on sites like Amazon. So, no more rationing for me!! I would absolutely reccommend this to add to your kitchen collection.

P.S. 5 years later, the salt smells just as strongly of hibiscus (in a good way) as it did when we first bought it.

Budding Horticulturalist

http://heavypetal.ca/

This is a great blog for all the green thumbs or those aspiring to be. I especially like blogs, like this one, that are geared towards smaller spaces, whether it's indoors or patios or balconies. Don't get me wrong, gardening magazines, with spreads featuring houses in the hamptoms with acres of gardens are fabulous and lovely to look at, but I won't be able to replicate them anytime soon. So, it's nice to have examples and ideas that are more practical from a space, time, and money standpoint.

Foodie Websites

For those of you that like to try new restaurants and also get a great deal, sign up for Blackboard Eats. Enjoy!

Foodie Websites

My friend, Val, shared this awesome food website with me. It has TONS of fun recipes and food-related news. Beware: the pictures alone will make you salivate, so don't go on this website hungry :)!

http://www.tastespotting.com/

I heard about this book, Grow Your Own Drugs by James Wong, on NPR yesterday and it seems like a nice addition to my library (aka my one bookshelf packed to the brim with books). It's about using READILY AVAILABLE plant based remedies for common ailments. Now, I am all for western medicine...I practically have my internist on speeddial, but I also like more homeopathic remedies as well. I rely on things like Echinacea, and have a never-ending supply of Green and Chamomile Teas that, I swear, get me through flu season. It seems like more and more these days people are enjoying the combination of eastern and western medicine.

Book Club

I originally saw a blurb about this book, I Was Told There'd Be Cake in Shape magazine. The humorous title caught my eye, and I recalled how, when i look up restaurant menus online, I usually check out the dessert part before i look at the appetizer and entree parts. If there isn't something chocolate on the menu, I will usually move on to the next restaurant option. It's a quick, fun read with some definite belly laugh moments.

Vino

Whenever you're in the market for good, very-reasonably-priced wine, check out Lawineco.com. It's a shop in Marina del Rey that I can always count on. One of my favorites at the moment is Ninety + Cellars. They bottle everything from Sauvignon Blanc to Australian Blends.

Yummy Cake Recipe

What better way to start off my blog than with a very yummy cake recipe. This one is from the famous Magnolia Bakery. It is a traditional vanilla cake, but what I like most about it is that it seems to be "idiot proof" and reliable. The several times I've made it, it has turned out great and has gotten lots of compliments, especially on how moist it is. Enjoy!

Ingredients
CAKE
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened (I have used both Butter and Smart Balance Spread and they have turned out the same)
2 cups sugar (I substitute 1 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of Splenda Sugar Blend)
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour (For this, I usually have self-rising flour that I've made ahead of time and keep in the pantry- for 2 cups use, 2 cups of all-purpose flour + 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder + pinch of salt...all mixed together)
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

BUTTERCREAM FROSTING
1 cups (2 sticks) unsalted butter, very soft
8 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and lightly flour three 9- x 2-inch round cake pans, then line the bottoms with waxed paper.

2. To make the cake: In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flours and add in four parts, alternating with the milk and the vanilla extract, beating well after each addition. Divide batter among the cake pans. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Let cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire rack.
If you're making cupcakes, line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers. Spoon the batter into the cups about three-quarters full. Bake until the tops spring back when lightly touched, about 20 to 22 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pans and cool completely on a rack before icing. When cake has cooled, ice between the layers, then ice top and sides of cake.

3. To make the icing: Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and the vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, until icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency (you may very well not need all of the sugar). If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly. Use and store icing at room temperature, as icing will set if chilled. Can store in an airtight container for up to three days.