Kd Culinary Adventures

Sorry, Sorrie! Enchiladas y Tamales Tambien

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 05:10:00 +0000

So, once again, I have been terrible with keeping up with this food blog. My only excuses are that I had finals for school, summer has started, and I am preparing to transfer to New York for school next year! I am hoping to make up for the lack of updates with a good post now, and some good posts coming up soon!

Enchiladas y Tamales Tambien

One of my favorite things is finding hole in the wall mexican food. The mom and pop places always, in my opinion, end up being the best. Enchiladas y Tamales Tambien is the best I've ever been to, and boy am I glad my best friend introduced me to it.

This restaurant is incredibly small, open very weird hours, closed on Mondays, but regardless of it's shortcomings, it's the best Mexican food I've had in a long time, maybe even ever.

Here is a picture of the inside: Enchiladas y Tamales Tambien

Instead of serving you bowls of chips and salsa, they have a chip and salsa bar so you can serve yourself. Their chips are always freshly made, and you can tell because they're always nice and hot with the right bit of crunch.

Salsa bar. They have about seven different salsas, ranging from mild to spicy. They're very good.

Here's a picture of our chips and the salsa we chose at our table. If you notice the table, it is covered in paper, and you have crayons at your table so that you can draw while you wait for your food.

One awesome thing about this place is that they give you complimentary food. I would recommend going for dinner because then you get complimentary potato tacos, but it's also nice to have a complimentary bowl of fruit with your breakfast.

Bowl of fruit: assorted melon

Complimentary potato tacos. These are very hard to describe, and I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical at first, but I can't tell you how tasty these are. They are so good, crunchy but with a soft potato filling, then topped with cheese, sour cream, and tomato, served over some beans. Absolutely delicious.

I ordered the pick three plate. I got a shredded beef taco, mushroom and onion taco, and more potato tacos because they were so good! It was served with rice, beans, and different toppings as you can see. Everything was really good. Their shredded beef is not what you usually see, it's more of a reddish color, a bit similar to the way corned beef looks, though not at all like it tastes. It was actually very tasty, as was the whole dish.

We also ended up deciding to get dessert, which is like a cake tostada type deal. It was fried tortillas, brownie, strawberry, banana and cream. It was pretty good, though admittedly not my favorite part of the meal. I don't know that I would get it again.

Overall, this place is excellent, and totally worth checking out. It is incredibly tasty. Interesting side not: if it is your birthday, they hand everyone in the restaurant instruments and sing a big group Happy Birthday to you! It can get pretty loud, but it's also quite fun.

Cozze

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Wed, 06 May 2009 03:09:00 +0000

"Cozze" from Pomodoro's. I really love seafood, and there's something so good about having something as simple as mussels in white wine, herbs, garlic, and butter with some nice crusty bread. This is just a simple, good dish. The mussels have the slight taste of garlic, and are nice with the touch of butter and white wine, then finished off perfectly with some herbs. I love to dip the crusty bread in the tasty broth for a nice treat. I dig it!

So before my month hiatus, I posted a lot about our kitchen remodel, and I am pleased to say it is now finished. All we are doing now is putting everything back ... dishes, silverware, cooking utensils, etc. I will be taking some "after" pictures once it's a little cleaner, and then writing a big post about the before and after. Overall, I'm pleased!

Until then, stay foody!

A Month Too Much

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 15:29:00 +0000

So, it has been a month since my last post, and what can I say .... I have been a busy girl, with ice hockey nationals, school, roller hockey games and tournaments, etc. But I am hoping to get back on a more regular posting schedule again. Since it's been a while, today I am going to write about two seperate eating occasions.

I am a huge fan of mexican food. I love tacos, burritos, carne asada, guacamole, salsa, I could go on for days ... but I have to say one of my favorite things is Flautas. You can get 'em at most restaurants, but I have to say the little hole in the wall Los Amigos in San Diego does it best.

Their flautas are the perfect mix of crispy shell with tender, flavorful shredded beef. Not to mention the smooth creaminess of the sour cream and their guacamole is the best in the game. Finish it off with a little beans and rice, and you've got it made. Every time I go to San Diego, I make a trip .... they're so good, I'd make the two hour drive just to have them for lunch.

So a couple weeks ago, my mom, my friend, and I were looking for a place to eat after my hockey game. We came across this Italian restaurant, and truth be told, I can't remember the name. Anyway, I was lookin' around at the menu ... and all of a sudden this popped out at me: linguine with chicken, asparagus, artichoke hearts in a lemon garlic broth. It seemed like the perfect combination and it was, honestly, one of the best pastas I've ever had in my life.

The sauce, or broth would be more accurate, was delicious and though it was lemony, it wasn't overly done. The artichoke hearts were tender, the chicken well seasoned, and the asparagus still had a nice crunch to it. It really was the perfect combination, and the portion was big enough for my friend and I had to split and still feel comfortably fed.

So all in all, two very good dishes, for the month I've been absent. I hope to be posting much more in the coming weeks, so stay tuned...

'Til then foodies, live, learn, and eat good food!

Love,

A Duet of Sorts

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 20:30:00 +0000

Hello, hello, it's a beautiful day .. to talk about some food! So on a rare treat my dad, brother, and I went out to dinner the other night to the country club. It was rare, because my brother never comes, so it was nice to have his company.

Started off the meal with a crab duet. Absolutely delicious. On the left is some simply dressed crab in a little lemon, with a small sprout salad on top, and some avocado underneath.

After that, I had a caesar salad. Let me just throw this out there - I love caesar salad. However, it's all in the dressing. The dressing has got to be good. This totally fits the bill.

Veal with a polenta cake. Originally, I ordered duck with an orange sauce, but they gave this to me first on accident, so that's what I took a picture of. It was okay, but I am not a big fan of veal - I think it's sad. The duck was better.

Overall, good food, good company, good times! Hope you're all having a very foody Friday!

- kd

Reindeer Sausagelaska.

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 04:52:00 +0000

So, like I said before, I recently went to Fairbanks, Alaska. I had been to Alaska once before, to Anchorage, and one thing I remember very well about it is that the seafood there is outstanding. It's so fresh, it's got to be, right?

I started off the meal with a bowl of seafood chowder. It was good. Alaska is freezing, so the nice, creamy warmth of the soup was quite welcoming. It had a lot of salmon, halibut, and clams in it. Mostly it was just a jazzed up clam chowder, but man, I'm down for that! Especially with some crusty bread, well, it was good.

After that I decided to have the Pump House Steam pot, which had oysters, crab, clams, shrimp, salmon, reindeer sausage, potatoes, and broccoli in a little tomato broth. It was good. I mean, I can't ask for much more then seafood at it's finest - with just a little spritz of lemon. I will say that this dish lacked seasoning. It was just the seafood, which can really be a good or bad thing.

Overall, I liked it. Though it was good, it wasn't my favorite seafood I've ever had, but at least I got variety. Until next time folks, eat your hearts out!

Out of Town

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 20:17:00 +0000

Hello! So I know it has been a long time since I've updated, but I was in Alaska last week, then had to catch up on school work, then spent time with a friend before her going away party. Anyway, I am back, so let's talk about kitchen updates and some food!

First, let me just say how excited I am that the new appliances are finally in the kitchen!!!! After weeks of waiting, they are here, and they are beautiful.

The microwave and oven.

The new refrigerator.

So the new appliances are in, besides that, nothing has been done in the kitchen. It may seem like it's done, but unfortunately, it's not, and no one has shown up to do any work on it for about two weeks now. The cupboards still need their handles and baseboards, and there is just a lot of little finishing touches that need to be finished.

Like I said before, I was just in Alaska. I am no newcomer when it comes to being on airplanes or flying. One thing I hate about flying is the food. There is nothing good to eat. They charge you five dollars for a box of crackers and cheese, and I don't even want to talk about the horrific places they have at the terminals. McDonald's? Come on, really?

So instead of eating their bogus food, lately I have gotten into the habit of packing lunch pales for myself before every flight. Here are pictures of the one I recently packed for the 12 hour travel time to Fairbanks.

This is cowboy caviar. I pack things that are easy to make, easy to eat, and don't need to be hot. Cowboy caviar is the perfect thing to have with chips, or as just a salad.

Cut up strawberries and a chocolate bar for "chocolate covered stawberries"

Cucumbers and tomatoes as a snack

All packed and ready to go. Green apples and caramel dip.

Pocket full of eating utensils, some candy bars, gum, napkin, and tide to go.

I promise I have many posts coming up, it's just been a hectic two weeks. Until then, best of wishes foodies, talk to you soon!

Cheesecake Factory's Special Menu

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:49:00 +0000

So, unfortunately, there has still been no more work in the kitchen. They were supposed to put in the appliances today, but that got moved back to tomorrow, so who really knows when those will ever go in. After they do the appliances, they still have to do all the final touch ups, and then we can finally get our kitchen back into working order, and I can finally use the new kitchen!!!

On the bright side of things, Cheesecake Factory has introduced a new "Special Menu" and when they say "special", they ain't lyin'. This thing is brilliant! It's got a lot of appetizer type foods, plus some entrees, all for a really great price.

My friend and I went there the other day and got stuffed mushrooms, a sausage and ricotta pizzette, crispy artichoke hearts, and a wild mushroom crostini for $10 each, and we didn't even finish all the food because it was too much to eat.

This is the sausage and ricotta pizzette. My friend didn't like it very much, but I gotta say, I love this thing! The dough is not too thick and the ricotta is sooo creamy, it's an awesome taste bud experience with all sorts of textures and flavors. I totally recommend it. They also have two other pizzettes, "Wild Mushroom" and "Margherita", but this is my personal favorite.

This was my first time ever trying this, and I was impressed. All you see is fried little balls, but once you bite into one of these things, the artichoke hearts are so tender and juicy it blows your mind. I couldn't believe it.

The stuffed mushrooms were also amazing. It's the soft texture of the mushrooms that contrast with the crunchiness of the toasted breadcrumbs, in the smooth sauce, with the creamy cheese. It totally works! This was my friends favorite dish of the day.

Not shown is the wild mushroom crostini we had. My friend enjoyed it, but I just couldn't get too into it. Something about the sauce just didn't suit me the right way.

Other then that, the meal was delicious, and you've really got to try this new menu! Hopefully I will have good news on the kitchen soon, but until then, eat your heart out!!!

Love and Good textures,

Sea World Inspired

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 18:56:00 +0000

Hey everyone! So today was the projected completion date of the kitchen, but it came and went. Our garbage disposal is broken, so we had to buy a new one. The faucet for the bar was the wrong size, so we had to pick out a new one. There weren't enough electrical sockets under the sink for the new water heater, so we had to go buy an extension cord, and an extra socket connector. Then, there were broken pipes under the sink so those also had to get replaced. Basically, it's just been problem after problem. All I want is the kitchen to be finished so that I can get in there and get cooking! The kitchen appliances are supposed to go in on Wednesday, so hopefully after that they can wrap it up.

This past Friday I had the chance to go to Sea World with one of my best friends, Meaghan. Besides being a really fun and educational day, it really got us inspired to go eat some seafood. It's ironic, because you'd think after seeing all those animals we wouldn't go eat them, but we did. We ate shark, but the sharks there scared us anyway so no harm no foul, right?

King's Fish House in Corona, California

Meal started off similar to most in the fact there was bread for us. This bread was particularly tasty - a nice, bold sourdough that really hit the spot.

The bread was especially good dipped in a cup of the clam chowder we both got. It was a relatively cold day, and this warmed me up well. It was creamy, warm, and had decent flavor. No match for Sea Salt but still.

After that, we had some fried farm-raised willapa bay oysters. They were alright. My friend really didn't like them, but I thought they were decent. It was an interesting textural experience because you have the crunchiness of the coating, but then the somewhat gooey, slimy-ness of the oysters. It was good with a spritz of lemon, some cocktail and tartar sauce though.

After that we split a plate of wild local tresher shark, corn, and baked potato. The corn was good; buttery, salty, what more can you ask for, ya know. The baked potato was really good because the skin was super crunchy with sea salt in it's deep cracks. It was especially good with a little sour cream and chives on top.

This was my first real experience eating shark (pictured above). Overall, I enjoyed it. It's meaty and seems to lend itself to spices well because it doesn't have an incredibly powerful flavor by itself. However, I enjoyed it just being grilled with a little bit of lemon.

Overall, pretty good.

I hope next time I have better news about the kitchen, and I know next time I will have just as good or better food to talk about! Best dishes to all of you out there**

Kayla

Vapiano and Backsplash

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 21:40:00 +0000

Hey everyone! I just got home last night from Washington DC. I was there on a hockey tournament (we got third place), but now I'm back and ready to talk about the food and the remodel.

The kitchen remodel is finally winding down. This past week they put up the tile backsplash, but as far as major changes go, that's just about the last one!

On to pictures:

Tile backsplash

Tile backsplash with the socket protectors put back on

Backsplash contrast nicely with the cabinets. The white spot is where the microwave is going to go.

The kitchen remodel is just about finished, and should be completely down in about a week. They just have to finish electrical, plumbing, putting in all the appliances, and then final touches.

I can't wait!

So like I said before, I just got back from a five day tournament in Washington DC. One of my favorite things about traveling is finding good restaurants, little hidden gems. Vapiano's in Arlington, Virginia was no different!

This was not your typical italian place. It was not red brick with huge wooden tables and italian music in the background. Instead, it was a nice modern take on "Italian" with decor and the way you got your food.

You walk in, and they hand you a card. There are three stations you can walk to: Pasta, Salad, and Pizza. I chose Pasta. The card is used to pay for whatever you get from any of the stations. For example, if you wanted a salad and pasta, you would use your card at both stations.

You pick up a little menu for ideas, but basically, you could get anything you want added or taken out of your pasta.

Then, you pick what kind of pasta you want. They had eleven pastas, including two whole wheat choices. I personally chose Conchiglie. It was not a pasta I was very familiar with, but the chef recommended it, and I thought it looked interesting.

Picture of the different kinds of pastas you can choose from.

My pasta being cooked.

I chose a dish off the menu called "Granchi De Fiume". It's pasta, crayfish, lobster sauce, and fresh vegetables. Once you choose what you want, they begin to cook it right in front of you. The cool thing about this is you can watch exactly what they are putting into it, and how much. Then, if necessary, you can tell them to change things, like for example, how much chili peppers, or vegetables, or meat, etc you want.

A picture of my dish being cooked. Carrots, zucchini, crayfish, oh my.

The lobster sauce being added.

A picture of my dish all done and ready to enjoy! After the pasta is cooked, they hand it to you, and you go pick a table to sit at.

They also give you bread, and at each table there is olive oil and balsamic vinegar, as well as a little pot of fresh basil to pick and put on your food as you desire.

I really loved this place. My dish was good, though admittedly it was a bit too creamy for my taste. The real thing I loved about this place was the concept of it. The fact that you get to walk up, watch the chef cook your meal, tell them exactly what you want, and then get it. I hope that more of these types of dining experiences start to pop up, and I sure hope Vapiano makes a restaurant in southern California soon!

Peace, Love, and Creative Eating,

- Kayla

Tile Floors & Countertops

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 05:51:00 +0000

So I know I haven't done a real update in a while, but tonight that's going to change! After taking off a week, the guys are finally back and doing more work. This for me is the most fun stage of the remodel because it's when it really begins to look like our brand new kitchen.

The new floors have been put in.

Picture of the guys putting in the tile.

Final picture of the tile all done, grout included! I wasn't too sure about the floor at first, but now I'm really enjoying it because I think it warms up the space with it's brown tones.

So the floor happened about a week ago. Today was the first day the guys came back after a week holiday, and they started it off great by putting in the countertops.

Here's a picture of the new countertop with a plastic wrap on top so all the glue dries correctly. You can't see it very well but also there is our new stainless steel sink. Our new faucet was also put in.

Another picture of the new countertop from a different angle.

Here's a picture of the bar countertop and the stainless steel sink.

I really like the color of the countertops, I think it's warm, and is a good contrast to the dark color of the kitchen cabinets. So that was today, and tomorrow they are supposed to be doing the backsplash. Today they also put in the bathroom sinks and quartz countertop, which looks absolutely gorgeous!

Now on to the food.

Sometimes, I just want pizza. It's not healthy, it's not upscale, it's greasy, and calorie-laden, but sometimes it just fits the bill.

I am especially a big fan of Pizza Hut's thin crust pizza. It's not too doughy, and not too saucy, it's mostly justttt right.

I'm usually a fan of just plain old pepperoni (except at CPK) but my friend had just tried sausage and red peppers and really liked it, so we decided to get that. I'm pretty open to trying new things, so it was no big deal. Though I will admit after a couple of bites I was missing my good old pepperoni. It's not that this pizza was bad, it just wasn't good. It wasn't the pizza that I love to eat on a cold day while watching television and drinking a good beverage.

Luckily, we bought enough food to feed an army, and also got wings. These wings are from the Wing Street Pizza Hut. They are the Garlic Parmesan wings. They are decent. They weren't like traditional wings, but still pretty good. Very buttery/greasy, as you can see a little pool of the stuff at the bottom of the box.

My favorite thing alllll night! It's kind of sad, but it's true! I love Wing Street's tater tots. They're just greasy and crunchy and super delicious when you've got a craving.

Overall, 2.5, maybe a 3.

That's all for now, see you soon foodies!

It's been a while

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 06:07:00 +0000

It's been a while, crocodiles!

Sorry for the lack of posting this past week. It's been an incredibly busy one though not with the kitchen. We did get new flooring, which I will be posting pictures of soon, however, they are taking a week off the remodel while the granite countertops are being made.

So instead I thought I would just write a food review!

This is the kind of food we have been eating at home lately. Not much, really. A water bottle, a ham sandwich with mustard on wheat bread, some cheeto puffs, and a vanilla yogurt with chocolate pieces.

Although we don't eat spectacular food at home, we go out a lot, which is still nice though I do miss a good home cooked meal.

I will have a better review and blog post next time. Until then, foodies, best wishes, and dishes.

- Kayla

Sea Salt plus New Doors

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 06:13:00 +0000

Hellooo! So today is a fun post for me to write because I am talking about one of my favorite restaurants I have ever eaten at. As I wrote last time, I recently went to San Jose. The first night I was there, my friend and I drove down to Berkeley and ate at "Sea Salt".

A picture of the outside of Sea Salt. It is located on a fairly busy street with hardly any parking, but still very worth it. On the inside, it's very cute and quaint.

A picture of the table settings. We were sitting in a really nice corner booth tucked away from everyone else.

Sea Salt's menu. The one thing I do have to say about Sea Salt is that it's not for the meat lover. While they do have a couple of things for the non seafood lover, almost everything on their menu IS or has something to do with seafood. While I love it, I know many that don't, so there's a heads up.

Bread and butter. The bread was good, though it is very floury and powdery.

I started with a bowl of clam chowder. For a cold night in Berkeley, this really fit the bill. It was warm, and the easiest way I find to describe it is "soulful". It had beautiful chunks of potatoes, clams, and garnished with bacon and parsley. The bacon really gave it a smoky flavor that was a really nice touch.

My main course was a BLT: Bacon, Lettuce, and Trout Sandwich. I love this sandwich. It's on a roll with sun-dried tomatoes, mizuna and tartar sauce. The trout is juicy, and delicious, I just love it. On the side is what I would describe as a coleslaw, I guess, though it is more vinegary. The greens are bitter, but a strikingly good contrast to the smooth flavors of the sandwich. The pickles add a nice little bite of sweet, salty, and sour.

Here is a picture of the sandwich without the top.

Overall, this meal gets a four point five. If you are in the Bay area and like good seafood, I seriously recommend trying this place out!

Now onto kitchen updates:

Last time I updated they had framed out the cabinets and added the new paneling. This time it looks basically the same, though they have added the doors to all the cabinets.

Doors on some cupboards where the future dishwasher will be.

The bar cabinet, and where the future bar sink will go.

Inside one of the new drawers.

A cabinet under the counter. Very nice because now it's easier to get into the back of the cabinet.

The new light panels and outliner - it matches the cupboards which is nice.

A picture of all the cupboards.

A microwave we are using to eat some semi-normal food. Yes, it is on top of the stereo system. Gotta do what you gotta do.

Besides all the cabinets being done, they've mostly been doing interior work, which is nowhere near as fun as the exterior work! It's all necessary though. They hooked up some gas today, did some plumbing, that kind of thing. They've also been working on the bathrooms a lot; doing the floors, putting in cabinets, etc.

Tomorrow they are supposed to be putting the tile flooring down, so we'll see how that goes! Until next time, best wishes and dishes!

The Bay and Day Eight

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 05:08:00 +0000

Hello everyone! This past weekend I was in San Jose for an ice hockey tournament, which is why I haven't updated about food or the remodel. In the span of Friday - Tuesday, the amount the kitchen has changed is amazing!

Basically what's happened is that all of the cabinets now have the panels on them, and are their new color. They are really gorgeous.

Here is the framing of the cabinets under the sink.

Another framed cabinet.

The new panels on the back of some cabinets, and the wood that will go under the granite.

More cabinets and the space where the fridge will go.

The drawers that will go in the cabinets. No more shelf paper!

A picture of all of the cabinets framed, and ready for some doors!

Tomorrow they will be putting up some doors, as well as making a template for the countertops.

Also, on Tuesday I got to go to the granite store and check out the slabs of granite that will soon be our countertops! The color is absolutely beautiful. I would describe it as very warm.

Now onto food!

Breakfast eaten at the Holiday Inn in San Jose, California.

Orange Juice, and water. Good start, though the orange juice was much too pulpy for me.

Sourdough bread! No butter, thanks.

Bacon, scrambled eggs, and potatoes. It was really just a down home breakfast. Tasted good. I have no idea what the lettuce and orange were doing on the plate, as I would never have eaten either.

Overall, decent, it was breakfast. It hit the spot after a hockey game. Two stars.

In my next post I will be reviewing one of my favorite little places called Sea Salt in Berkeley, California. Until then, best wishes, and best dishes!

Cheesecake Factory/Remodel Day Two and Three

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 02:21:00 +0000

Hey, everyone. So today was day three of the Kitchen remodel, and it's been going pretty well. Overall day one was the most exciting and busy, but days two and three were pretty good too.

Day Two:

Day Two was alllllll about flooring. They ripped up the old floor in the Kitchen, and in all three bathrooms (we are getting them re-done too!). I am very excited to see the yucky plain white tile going adios!

The first strip of tile coming up. Cute little machine.

After a little more of the tile is coming up.

After all of the floor is up. Goodbye, nasty!

Day Three:

Pictures in all the spots where the appliances go. Here is the picture of our future refrigerator. They even had a picture for the faucet on the sink! Super cute.

Pictured above is the new frame work for the cabinets. It's so nice that it's real sturdy wood.

That is all that's been happening these last two days. Until Monday all that is going to be done is frame work and some shelf-fixing in the kitchen and bathrooms.

One thing about remodeling a kitchen is that it is not easy to cook anything. We do still have our refrigerator which is good, and soon we also plan on making a little "kitchen" with a mini griddle, our fridge, and a pizza maker. Until that's done though, we have been eating out a lot.

Cheesecake Factory - Riverside, California

The meal starts off with a sourdough bread roll, plus a delicious brown roll with oats that is not shown because it was eaten so fast!

I ordered the "Santa Fe Salad". It has grilled lime chicken, cheese, corn, black beans, tomatoes, and cilantro. I really like it. It's not a sissy salad, it is hearty and filled with delicious tastes, and textures.

On the side, the dressing for the salad. The brown is peanut, and the green is cilantro. Delicious mixed together!

I also got the chips on the side so that they wouldn't get soggy when I brought some of the salad home.

My mom and I also shared a plate of Chicken Potstickers which were really delicious, though the chicken fell out after only one bite!

Overall, 3 stars. I think I'll go eat my left over salad now!

Until next time folks, best wishes and dishes.

Kayla

Kitchen Remodeling: Day One

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 01:03:00 +0000

Hello, all.

Today and for the next couple of weeks, in addition to my posts and reviews on the food I eat, I will also be posting pictures and updates of the remodeling that is currently taking place in our kitchen.

Though it is only the first day of the remodel, so much has already been done and I can't wait for everything else that is in store for our little kitchen.

Here are some pictures:

Pictured above is our old cabinets, our old fridge, old dishwasher, and countertop/backsplash.

Our microwave that I accidently burnt a hole in (that little fireball like thing), plus something my Aunt Robyn painted on the wall.

Our old plain white countertops with the nasty grout lines.

Picture of the entire kitchen, with it's out of date oven, to it's dinosaur time period cabinets.

The hardest part about getting the kitchen remodeled, besides the fact that you can't cook in it, is that you have to find a place for everything that was in your cabinets. Pictured is just some of what filled our cabinets. It's not exactly glamorous living.

Pictures from day one of the remodel:

They took out the stove and microwave, and ripped up the countertops and backsplash, plus they took the sink and the garbage disposal out.

Here they are taking out the old light frame, going to be replaced with a nicer one. Also, the bar countertop is now gone, as well as the sink.

I will really be keeping up to date with all the new stuff that is happening in the kitchen, because as a lover of cooking, I find this to be an exciting time in life!

Tomorrow: new flooring!

Mom's Retirement Party

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 05:10:00 +0000

My mom retired this past Friday, so on Saturday my Aunt Cindy had a little party for her down in Carlsbad, California. It was a great time to spend with Cousins, Aunts, and Uncles, as well as my Mom, and best friend Ashley. It was very fun, and I am glad we could take a day to honor my mom and all that she achieved in her years of working. In honor of the occasion, my Aunt decided we would eat a meal themed around the food my Grandma Vivian (RIP, I love you) used to make all the time.

There were tons of hors d'oeuvres (pictured above) including almonds, sourdough bread rolls and butter, cranberry sauce and cheese, m&ms, Godiva chocolates, and my personal favorite pepper jack cheese and crackers.

There was a lot of food at this bash:

Salad with green bell pepper, cheese, tomatoes, and crutons, with choice of Ranch or Italian dressing. This was a nice starting point.

Deviled eggs with smoked paprika from Spain. My Aunt had some paprika from Barcelona, which was a really neat way to perk up traditional deviled eggs! Saying the paprika you sprinkled is from Barcelona is, in my opinion, much cooler than from here.

"I love the eggs"

"Ohhhh yesss, the paprika is from Barcelona"

"Oh my!"

Just a really nice touch.

Nachos with ground beef, salsa, olives, and beans with chips and cheese. This was actually a recipe in a fair cookbook from my mom that my cousin Scotty made. It was great! You can't really much but the chips, but basically there were beans layered all over the dish, topped with the meat, salsa, olive mixture, and then around the sides and on top is chips and cheese. Once this came out of the oven, everyone dug in like savage beasts. I mean, seriously, it was gone in like five seconds.

You can't completely tell what's in the crock pot but it's roast beef. So, we used to rolls to make our own roast beef sandwiches, but with all the tasty liquid, it was basically like a beef dip. It was tasty.

Bbq'd bean sidedish. Classic.

Zucchini Casserole. My Aunts, Uncles, and Mom raved on and on about Grandma's Zucchini Casserole, and I must say at first I was a bit skeptical. However, I was pleasantly surprised. It was like cheesy gooey zucchini madness, but it was good!

Here is a full plate of the meal I had, although really, this is only part of what I actually ate. Pictured on my plate is some nachos, salad, deviled eggs, beans, zucchini casserole, and my sandwich.

With how much I love fancy foods and exotic ingredients, it was nice to just eat what I would consider classic down home cookin'. It was a really great time, and I loved it!

Grandma, thank you for some great recipes. We had a great day as a family; eating, sharing stories and pictures. It was great to spend time together, and we were all thinking of you. I know you and Grandpa were smiling at us from above and were with us in spirit. I miss you and love you!

Four stars

Boar, Pork Belly, and Ragu

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 06:25:00 +0000

Meal eaten at Victoria Country Club in Riverside, California.

Every time I eat at Victoria, I start off the meal in basically the same way. I get an ice water with lemon, a caesar salad with the dressing on the side, and then we get a basket of different kinds of rolls. My favorite roll in particular happens to be the cheese one, but if you look closely in the picture below, you can see a half-eaten piece of a raisin roll. After the salad and the roll, I usually ask for the chef's special. This time was no different.

The picture is a bit messy, but the meal itself seemed to be quite well thought out. Considering the fact that even here in California it's been cold lately, heavier choices of meat make the most sense to serve when you are doing a "seasonal" dish.

In this case, I had boar with yogurt and bourbon sauce, pork belly, and a tomato ragu. You can make out the bourbon sauce in the left part of the plate, it's sort of a brown color. It was good, however, I liked the yogurt sauce (middle of plate, yellowish color) better. It just stood out more against the boar, and I really like the contrast in texture and taste.

The boar was good, but I liked the pork belly even better. I have eaten pork belly at Victoria before, and didn't find that I liked it so much, but this time it was really good. It was incredibly tender and juicy.

The boar was good, the pork belly was good, can't say that the meal could get much better, but, it did. The tomato ragu, though just a mere part of the dish, ended up being the shining star for me. It was delicious. It was tomatoes, onions, and yukon gold potatoes, and it was wonderful, especially all mixed together. It certainly completed the dish for me.

Boar is not my favorite meat, nor is pork belly, but I enjoyed eating this meal. On a cold day, it warmed me up just right.

Four stars, I'd say. Would have been a three without the ragu!

On a more personal note, Happy New Years to everyone and I hope you all have a great 2009! I look forward to a lot of good eating, cooking, and reviewing.

Peace, Love, and Best Dishes

Kayla

Bachi Grill

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 21:40:00 +0000

Haven't posted in a while because I was in Connecticut for an ice hockey tournament, but here is a meal I ate while I was gone at Bachi Grill in Cromwell, Connecticut.

Started off the meal with bread, and olive oil with spices and a garlic clove. It was really good, the bread had like some cheese baked into it. Super tasty.

Then I had some caesar salad, which was good, it had a different dressing, but it was still really good.

I got broccoli rabe and chicken sausage with tomatoes and penne pasta. It was alright. It looked fresh, but the problem with it was that it lacked any real seasoning. It didn't even have enough salt or pepper.

Someone I was dining with had the puttanesca, and it was a lot better than mine. It actually had flavor, and good flavor at that.

This place was alright, but certainly not one of my favorites. When the highlight of the meal is the bread, and the salad instead of the entree, you know something isn't right.

Two - two and a half stars.

Holiday Dinner

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 07:44:00 +0000

Home made

I decided that I would like to try and make a somewhat traditional holiday meal, similar to what we usually eat at Thanksgiving and Christmas. For my holiday menu, I decided on: Roasted Herb Butter Turkey, Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Caramelized Onion Cornbread Dressing, Green Beans with Red Onion and Lemon, and for dessert sugar cookies, and my friend made individual Strawberry Shortcakes.

Here is the table we ate, decorated for Christmas.

The turkey in the beginning, just covered in herb butter. Instead of putting stuffing inside the turkey, I stuffed it with herbs, onions, and lemon. It is in a roasting pan on top of celery, carrots, and onions which helped make some nice drippings for a good gravy.

Here's the turkey after it came out of the oven. To the left are some sugar cookies courtesy of Meaghan Schaible.

Here is what a full plate looked like:

Some turkey, green beans, crescent rolls, mashed potatoes, and stuffing.

Some sugar cookies I made. They weren't expertly decorated, but they were still pretty good.

Strawberry Shortcake

Overall, I thought it was a success. I'm not usually a big fan of turkey, but the recipe I used helped make a juicy turkey, which was nice, as opposed to the usual dry almost cat food like taste. The herb butter also helped make the skin super crispy. The mashed potatoes were good too, although I don't think I would add as much butter or cream as it seemed a bit too rich for me. However, someone else said they would have liked more butter, so it could have gone either way. I am used to a more traditional bread stuffing, so to try cornbread stuffing was a different experience, but I ended up liking it. The caramelized onions made it even better. The green beans were good. The red onions with them were not as good as I would have liked. I cut them the day before to prep, but I think in doing so, they let out a lot of moisture, so they just didn't get as crisp as I would have liked. The strawberry shortcake was also good, but by then I was just too full to eat anymore. The sugar cookies, especially the ones made by Meaghan were great.

Four stars

If you would like any of the recipes I used for this meal, feel free to leave a comment, or send me an email at kayla@kaylademint.com

Mexican Food

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 23:43:00 +0000

Ranchito Tacos Al Carbon at the Lincoln Plaza in Riverside, California.

Mexican food is definitely my favorite food of all time. Sometimes, I just need some good tacos. Ranchitos Tacos Al Corbon is perfect. It's in the Lincoln Plaza near my house, tucked away in the side of the center. It's also next to the Drive In/Swap Meet. It is delicious! This place is a real hidden gem.

(Pictured Above) Three Carne Asada tacos on Corn tortillas, with mild salsa. Plus black beans, and rice. Simple, but so good. This place just hits the spot.

Four stars, easy.

Young Pigeon?

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 07:55:00 +0000

Eaten at Victoria Country Club in Riverside, California.

Yet another meal at the Country Club. The Chef usually has specials for dinner, and I usually end up picking one of them (odd as they may sound). This was no different.

I had never heard the term "squab before" and I'm almost glad, as it turns out it means a young pigeon. You know those things in the park that poop on the benches everywhere, yep, that's them.

Anyway, pictured above is boar with ju, and a squab lasagna with a dehydrated tomato on top. The boar was excellent, moist, juicy, and cooked perfectly. However, the lasagna was nasty. The squab basically tasted like ... blah ... that's the only word that really describes it. It doesn't have a very overwhelming flavor, it's just kind of there. Mostly it taste like really gross chicken, only plainer. It is a very hard thing to describe.

Certainly not my favorite meal. Hated the squab, liked the boar. Three stars, only because the boar was so good.

Breakfast

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 21:56:00 +0000

Home made.

Haven't had a really good breakfast in a while so thought I would change that today. Basically, simple eggs and bacon. I made a red potato and egg scramble, put it between two pieces of the rosemary olive oil bread (also used in steak sandwiches), then topped it with a fried egg, some crumbled bacon, and a little parsley.

And, yes I eat on paper plates (easy to clean).

It was nice to finally have breakfast again .... Three stars.

Steak Sandwiches

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 22:35:00 +0000

Home made meal.

Had some sirloin the other day, so with the left overs we decided to make steak sandwiches.

Basically, just grilled up the steak again in some olive oil, added a little more seasoning, and made sandwiches. The bread was a rosemary olive oil loaf that we grilled. We also added caramelized red onions and a sauce I made that was horseradish, fat free mayo, a little fresh and easy ranch, dijon mustard, and a little garlic salt and cracked black pepper.

Sides were thinly sliced potatoes cooked in olive oil with spices, and topped with some parmesan cheese, and some antipasto salad.

Overall, it was pretty good, though I wasn't too big of a fan of the meat either night we had it.

One and a half to two stars, though the other people that ate it liked it much more than I did.

Orzo Scallops

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 07:40:00 +0000

Meal eaten at Yardhouse in Riverside, California.

Seared sea scallops over orzo pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto, shiitake, oyster and crimini mushrooms with white truffle sauce.

This was delicious. It was the perfect balance. The scallops were well cooked, and the orzo pasta was great. It had tons of flavor, and I loved the different mushrooms.

Five stars.

Skirt Steak and Potatoes

noreply@blogger.com (Kayla Demint) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 20:12:00 +0000

Meal eaten at Pasta Pomodoro in Corona, California

This meal started off with bread, and basil mixed olive oil. It was almost a pesto, but I don't think they put any garlic in it, or mixed it. Still, it was tasty.

My main dish was Skirt Steak with Green Peppercorn Sauce. It came with a side of roasted rosemary and garlic potatoes with basil in them. It was absolutely delicious. The skirt steak was tender, and well seasoned, and the potatoes had tons of flavor.

(The reason the plate looks kind of empty and the presentation looks a little lack luster is because I forgot to take a picture and ate a little first!)

This was a great meal, and for a great price! I really recommend the restaurant.

Four and a half stars