Thanksgiving 2013

Note: that is chicken, not turkey.

The Popcorn Diaries

I hadn't seen Popcorn since April and had forgotten how adorable he is. Cutie pie.

Boots

After a long search, I finally found the boots of my dreams. Happy happy.

Sourced Cities: San Francisco

And then I'm reminded why I heart San Francisco.

via Sourced Cities: San Francisco

Recipe: Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese

Maybe because I've been eating so many burgers and meat lately, I was really craving something fresh tonight. With leftover Trader Joe's steamed & peeled baby beets from this recipe the day before, I tried a different take on the beet salad.

Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese
Adapted from The Kitchy Kitchen
Serves 2

Ingredients
1 8-oz package steamed & peeled baby beets, sliced
1 oz goat cheese, crumbled
pistachios (optional)

Mustard and Lemon Vinaigrette
½ tbsp lemon juice
½ tbsp olive oil
½ tbsp mustard
¼ tbsp garlic
black pepper

Instructions
Combine lemon juice, olive oil, mustard, garlic, and black pepper and mix well.
Place sliced beets in a bowl and drizzle vinaigrette on top.
Add goat cheese and pistachios. Eat!

Treasure Island Flea Market and The Chairman Truck

To keep with the mellow weekend theme and because the weather was way too beautiful to spend indoors, two friends and I went to the Treasure Island Flea. I had never been before to Treasure Island, let alone know where it was, and so I was pretty excited. It was pretty easy to get to via bus. We didn't find anything interesting to buy and ended up just getting lunch from the many food trucks and sitting by the water overlooking the bay. It was so nice to eat, get some sun, and just talk.

I've been wanting to try The Chairman Truck for a long time now because I've missed the gloriousness of pork buns since the time I visited New York. I decided to get a variety of baos so that I could try different ones: Pork Belly with turmeric pickled daikon & green shiso, Coca-Cola Braised Pork with savoy cabbage & preserved yellow mustard seeds, and Spicy Chicken with toasted sesame puree & pickled carrots-cucumber & cilantro. My favorite was the braised pork bao and while good, it was nowhere nearly as good as Ippudo's pork buns.

Waraku

Tried a new ramen place for dinner tonight that's located across the street from Japantown Peace Plaza. There was a minor wait around 6:15pm on a Saturday night but no biggie. We started off with edamame and a bottle of Asahi. I got the Tonkotsu Ramen with chashu pork, green onions, bamboo shoots, kikurage-mushrooms, bean sprouts, and smoked egg. No photo evidence but just imagine a big bowl of ramen. It wasn't as good as Izakaya Sozai's but still acceptable.

4505 Meats

With a free Saturday morning, I went to my favorite place to be on Saturday mornings: the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. I was on a mission to try 4505 Meats Best Damn Cheeseburger with gruyere cheese, lettuce, sliced red onion, and secret sauce (too much mayo though). The sesame scallion bun was the best part! I appreciated that the burger was kind of small because I went around the Farmers Market after and tasted a bunch of samples of fruit and chocolate. Yum.

Best Damn Cheeseburger: grass fed, dry aged beef on a sesame scallion bun with gruyere, lettuce, sliced red onion, and secret sauce

Recipe: Goat Cheese & Broccoli Frittata

Along with the Goat Cheese & Beet Arugula Salad, I also made a Goat Cheese & Broccoli Frittata for Friendsgiving. I like to bake frittatas rather than do it on the stovetop because #1 I have a hard time flipping it without ruining it and #2 I like how set and firm the egg gets when baked. I kind of improvised with this frittata and was pleasantly surprised at how forgiving frittatas are. Just throw in whatever vegetable you happen to have on hand, top with cheese, and voilà.

Goat Cheese & Broccoli Frittata
Inspired by Food Network
Serves 6

Ingredients
1 heaping cup broccoli florets, chopped
salt and pepper
11 eggs, beaten with 2 tbsp water
4 oz goat cheese

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small skillet, season chopped broccoli with salt and pepper and sauté until slightly tender, ~3-4 minutes.
In a baking pan lined with parchment paper, spread the broccoli evenly over the bottom of the pan.
Top with the beaten eggs and add more salt and pepper to taste.
Place in oven.
After ~7-10 minutes, remove pan from the oven and crumble the goat cheese evenly over the top.
Place pan back in the oven until golden on top and fork comes out clean when inserted, ~15 minutes.
Slightly cool frittata and slice. Serve warm.

Recipe: Goat Cheese & Beet Arugula Salad

I've really been loving beets and goat cheese lately. I was inspired by a similar salad that I have at work sometimes and decided to make it for Friendsgiving. I've roasted beets before but because that takes too long, I relied on my favorite place in the whole world, Trader Joe's. Trader Joe's sells cooked beets that make this salad super quick and easy to make. I subbed dried cranberries for pecans because it's just what I had on hand, but I bet pecans, walnuts, or almonds would work well.

Goat Cheese & Beet Arugula Salad
Inspired by Skinnytaste
Serves 6

Ingredients
1 16-oz package arugula
6 small red beets, sliced
4 oz goat cheese, crumbled
dried cranberries (optional)

Honey-Balsamic Vinaigrette
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp honey
salt

Instructions
Make vinaigrette by whisking balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, and salt until smooth in a small bowl.
In a large bowl, toss greens and beets with vinaigrette.
Add goat cheese and dried cranberries and mix well gently.
Serve immediately.

Friendsgiving!

Had a great gathering of old and new friends for Friendsgiving!

There was a great spread of dishes. I made a broccoli & goat cheese frittata, beet & goat cheese arugula salad, and pumpkin bread. I heart pumpkin season.

1760

Had an epic meal at the recently opened 1760. I really liked the interior design of the restaurant, especially the floor-to-ceiling windows. Compared to Spruce though, 1760 had a much more lively ambience that reminded me a lot of Nopa's.

The food was amazing! The cocktail and wine menu is extensive and though I had a glass of red wine, I'd like to try their cocktails at some point too. The menu is kind of randomly composed of ~15 items and progresses from lightest to heaviest. Meant to share, my friend and I ordered a bunch of dishes. My favorites of the night were the Lobster Ceviche, Uni Bucatini, and Fried Duck Sandwich. Despite having been in Maine for college and having had lobster there, I really didn't like it. But now I know that well-prepared lobster is delicious! And also, I don't even like duck but the duck sandwich/burger was epic. The dessert menu looked good too but we were beyond stuffed.

Will definitely be coming back to 1760.

Lobster Ceviche

Beef Tartare

Crispy Octopus; Uni Bucatini

Fried Duck Sandwich

Izakaya Sozai

Despite arriving before the restaurant opened, we still had to wait over an hour for seats. Worth the wait though because the food was delicious!

The bacon wrap mochi yakitori was chewy and the chicken gizzard yakitori was crunchy and strangely good! The gyusuji braised beef tendon had an interesting texture and I surprisingly liked it lots. I didn't even think I liked ramen but the ritsu tonkatsu ramen with pork belly was amazing. That broth! Can't believe I actually contemplated not getting ramen.

Bacon Wrap Mochi Yakitori, Chicken Gizzard Yakitori, and Gyusuji Braised Beef Tendon

Ritsu Tonkatsu Ramen with Pork Belly

Berkeley Hills

Magnificent view from the Berkeley Hills that overlook the northeast side of the San Francisco Bay.

Suppenküche

I've been wanting to go to Suppenkuüche ever since I noticed the long lines for the place.

My friend and I shared an order of Pretzels with Obatzda, which were excellent. I got a Veltins Pilsener to drink and ordered the Half Roasted Chicken with Dumplings and Potato Pancakes (tasted like hashbrowns). My friend got the Cheese Spätzle dish, which to me just tasted like mac & cheese. I liked the restaurant's ambiance and the communal tables were different and fun but the food didn't really stand out to me considering its priciness. Maybe I'm not a German food person?

Pretzels with Obatzda

Half Roasted Chicken with Dumpling and Potato Pancakes

Cheese Spätzle

Brown Shoes

Unite!

I live in my Clarks Desert Boots and it's the best pair of every day shoes for me. I've gone through 2 pairs of shoelaces and the color is fading fast. Still the best.

At a friend's housewarming party

The Bitter End Part 2

Despite all the other choices, all I ever want lately is still a burger. The Bitter End's burger was super good last time so en route to a friend's housewarming party, my friend and I made a detour for a burger. We both got the bacon avocado cheeseburger and it was just as good as I remembered it. But after having Nopa's and Spruce's burger, The Bitter End's burger has been demoted. The thick french fries here are still best though.

Bacon Avocado Cheeseburger with French Fries

Burger Socks

I heart burgers.

Nopa Part 3

This is the first time that I've actually had a brunch reservation at Nopa! I was so excited that I wouldn't have to wait 3 hours and basically watch people eat so I can grab their seat!

The past times that I've been to Nopa for brunch, I've eyed the bread pudding and one lady even told me that it was the best thing ever. Although I truly wanted to get the burger, I felt like I should branch out and so today, I got the Goat Cheese Bread Pudding. It was very custardy and savory but also sweet with a crunchy crust. Despite it's small portion, the richness made it the perfect portion. My friend ordered the bagel with smoked trout and loved it. I had a few bites and while it was good, I'm not that into smoked fish. We also ordered the Custard French Toast which is always a winner.

All in all, it was a custard-y morning for me.

Goat Cheese Bread Pudding with persimmon, tarragon and pea tendrils

Smoked Trout with housemade bagel, dill farmer's cheese and radish

Custard French Toast with caramelized apples and maple butter

Recipe: Pasta Fagioli / Minestrone Soup

With the cooler fall weather I've really been craving hearty soup. This recipe is a cross between Pasta Fagioli and Minestrone Soup and is super easy and comes together quickly. It also makes a lot of soup, so now I'll be eating this for weeks basically. The woes of cooking for one I guess.

Pasta Fagioli Soup
Inspired by Shutterbean
Serves 4-6

Ingredients
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 chicken breast, bite-size cubes
½ onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 14½-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 15½-ounce can chickpea beans, drained and rinsed
pinch of dried oregano
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups water
1 cup dried pasta (small/medium shells)
1 ounce extra sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions
In a French oven over medium-low heat, warm the olive oil.
Add the garlic, chicken, onion, and carrots and saute slowly for ~4 minutes.
Add the celery and cook for another ~4 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, beans, oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper and let boil.
Add water and pasta and simmer until pasta is tender, ~15 minutes.
Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with cheese and serve immediately with a side of toast (optional).

Spruce

Wow, I really had no idea how fancy this place is. The whole ambiance of the restaurant is extremely classy.

My friend and I sat at the bar and ordered the Gem Lettuce to share and it came out split so that was really nice. Then we both got the burger with avocado. I love a good burger and the Spruce Burger is almost as good as Nopa's burger. And that's saying a lot really. The burger was cooked wonderfully and the english muffin as a bun was actually a nice complement because I don't like too much bread with my burger. The fries are fried in duck fat so of course those were delicious.

I would like to go back to Spruce but given the fanciness and priciness of the restaurant, it should probably be reserved for special occasions?

Gem Lettuce with avocado, shaved fall vegetables, ricotta dura

Spruce Burger with english muffin and french fries

Boot Hunting

Lately I've been on a hunt for ankle boots and it's SO difficult. How can there be so many boots but no styles that I'm after. Weird. Or maybe it's the simple fact that the boots I do like are way too expensive for me to consider purchasing. Sad panda.

Breakfast for Dinner

Breakfast throwdown! I made my tried and true sausage, avocado, & cheddar cheese scrambled eggs while my friend made granola banana pancakes. Who knew granola in pancakes was a thing. Yum I heart breakfast for dinner.

Chipotle Turkey Chili

Tried a new chili recipe tonight. It was my first time using ground turkey, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and beer for chili. I could really taste the Modelo in it, which wasn't a bad thing obvi but meh, it was otherwise pretty bland. I had expected the chipotle peppers to make the chili really spicy but it totally didn't. I like my tried and true Chili recipe more, I don't know why I tried to branch out. Lesson learned.

Cooking for one = there's going to be a lot of chili this week... I'll jazz it up with avocado and lots and lots of cheese.