Road Trip: Lake Tahoe

This weekend we headed to Tahoe to celebrate the 4th. I hadn't been to Lake Tahoe in a few years and was so excited to head north as it's one of my favorite places on earth. The combination of morning hikes through the forest, afternoons spent on the deep blue lake and evening BBQs made for one of the best 4th of July weekends I've ever had.

About to board the boat


Evening BBQ in the backyard of our cabin


View from our front porch

Berry Good

Now that it's officially Summer, I've finally been seeing my favorite Summer Fruits at the farmer's market. Last week, my local farmers market had some ripe sweet early season Blackberries. One of my favorite Summer Desserts is a super easy Blackberry Crumble Recipe from the late great Domino Magazine (RIP.. insert tears here). It's even better when served fresh out of the oven and topped with vanilla ice cream. Bon Appetit!

-1 cup plus 2 tbsp. all purpose flour
-1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
-1/2 cup dark brown sugar
-1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
-1/4 tsp. cinnamon
-1/4 tsp. salt
-1 stick cold unsalted butter cut into small cubes
-1 tsp. lemon zest
-1/3 cup sugar
-3 tbsp. creme de cassis (This can be hard to find at grocery stores and it can be replaced with Blackberry Bourbon)

Preheat over to 375 degrees. To make the topping, 1 cup flour, oats, brown sugar, walnuts, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl and mix with your hands. Add butter and lemon zest and mix by squeezing together clumps with your fingers until no loose flour remains. In another large bowl, toss the blackberries with sugar and the remaining 1 tbs of flour. Add creme de cassis and toss again. spred the berry mixture including any liquid, in a 9 inch pie plate and crumble the topping evenly over it Bake until topping is golden brown (about 30 mins). Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Quick & Delicious Dinner: Roasted Shrimp & Orzo

With the weather getting drastically warmer (Thank God) and my constant travel schedule, I've been finding myself cooking fast one dish meals lately that require little time in the kitchen and few ingredients. My good friend Emily of Cupcakes and Cashmere turned me onto this dish from Ina Garten for Roasted Shrimp and Orzo, which she made for Tony and myself when we lived in LA . This recipe is incredibly easy, very healthy and fresh and a great dish for a hot summer night. Especially if you have an apartment from the 30s with no air conditioning (did I mention I miss the central AC unit in my old apartment?). You can find the recipe here.

Might I also suggest a pairing of this dish with an episode of Arrested Development. I think the flavor in the shrimp really brings out the hilarity in the series. :)

Gone Fishing

Been traveling - will update soon.

Aloha

So okay it's been a while. Several business trips coupled with jam packed weekends have created a delay in my blogging, but as all five of you who read this know, this is typical behavior. After much heckling by certain people whose names rhyme with "Femily" and "Hisa" I realized I need to get my lazy butt in gear and get on my post. So where did we leave off? Oh yes, Hawaii.. wonderful, tropical Hawaii.

So nearly one month ago, Tony and I set out to the North Shore of Oahu to Turtle Bay. The North Shore was absolutely beautiful. The most intense waves I have ever seen (it is one of the premier surfing spots in the world ya know), water as blue and as clear as the sky and lush greenery all creating a little den of paradise. We spent the week snorkeling, kayaking, beaching, eating and did I mention eating? We ate at a few formal restaurants but our favorite eats were the local hole in the walls like Giovanni's Famous Shrimp Truck, Ted's Bakery and their amazing Haupia Pie that we ate at least 4 times during our trip and once even for breakfast (that's what vacation is for right?)and the Kahuku Superette, a run down convenience store with a fresh supply of Ahi Tuna from the local fisherman serving a lunch special of Ahi Tuna Poke with Sticky Rice for only $4. The biggest splurge and most was when we discovered that our favorite sushi restaurant in LA Sasabune, has its original location in Honolulu and we were fortunate enough to eat the best sushi of our lives - a 15 course Omakase Style Sushi Dinner prepared by the founder himself, Nobi Kusuhara. It was like meeting a rock star, if the rock star prepared the best sushi you ever ate in your life.. ever.

Needless to say, it was a grand time and I would recommend the North Shore of Oahu to anyone looking for beautiful scenery and tasty local eats.

Garlic Shrimp and Sticky Rice from Giovanni's Shrimp Truck


My Hawaiian addiction - Sugar infused Guava Juice in a can that I can never find on the mainland. Brought a six pack of this the first day and it was gone by day three


The man, the myth, the legend at the sushi bar


Lobster Tail was just one of the 15 courses at Sasabune in Honolulu


Ted's Bakery - If you go to the North Shore you HAVE to get the Haupia Pie. It's made of chocolate, magic and dreams.


Eating fresh Mango at the beach from the fruit stand across the highway

Blue Hawaii

Next week we head out on vacation to the North Shore of Oahu. I have never been to Oahu, but supposedly the North Shore is "True Hawaii." When I return, there will be posts with tales of beaches,tiki cocktails and shrimp trucks.

Aloha!

Happy Belated Passover

So as usual, the spring holidays of Passover and Easter snuck up on me without warning. Since it's been a long time since I lived near family, Tony and I had become accustom to non-traditional celebrations of Easter and Passover that usually involved picnics in Griffith Park or at the beach. This year, I am thankful to spend the holidays with my family and we kicked off the mixed faith fest with a week day Passover Seder with my sister-in-laws family. I was delighted to attend a real Passover Seder and when asked to bring a dessert, I had a mild panic as all of my best dessert recipes included flour, which is not suitable for Passover! So who do you turn to when you need a great passover recipe in a flash? The biggest WASP in cooking of course! Martha Stewart came to the rescue with her Chocolate Chunk Macaroon recipe which was incredibly easy and delicious. I could have eaten the entire batch myself! I highly recommend this recipe for any future Passover celebrations.

*Cooks Note, she says to mold the dough like "hay stacks" which of course made me think squares but it's more of a "sand dune" shape to get a true Macaroon form.

Before:


After:

Day Trippin'-Santa Cruz

Tony and I love to go on little adventures and now that we have new territory to explore, we've been making an effort to take day trips on weekends. Since Tony grew up in Southern California, he hasn't been to many of the treasures in Northern California. A few weeks ago, we decided to venture south to Santa Cruz to explore where the redwoods meet the ocean. We went to the infamous mystery spot (which was indeed, very mysterious), ate at the legendary vegetarian haven Saturn Cafe, and explored the beaches. It was a great way to kick off our first of many weekend expeditions.



The Mystery Spot in all its glory. I am actualy standing upright in this picture.

Go Green

One of the best things about my new hood is the awesome Farmers Market held two blocks from my house. I've made a Sunday tradition of grabbing a cup of coffee and walking over to see what's fresh. Many of my meals have been inspired by the seasonal goodies they've had lately and since it's the tale end of winter, there is an abundance of leafy greens. On last Sunday's trip, there was a special on Swiss Chard (a fantastic super food that doesn't always come to mind when I'm shopping). When I got back to my apartment, I had a mild freak out as to how I was going to use up all of this Swiss Chard but soon remembered that I had a killer recipe for Swiss-Chard, Potato and Chickpea Stew. This rustic Spanish Stew although vegetarian, is incredibly hearty and filling, super healthy and best when cooked with your loved one. Topped with a hard boiled egg, it's the perfect quick dinner on a cold night. You can find the recipe here.

Slow Cookin'


Finished Product

Everything Old is New Again

Alright , so it's been a while. We decided it was time for a change and in January 2010, we left our cozy westside neighborhood in Los Angeles and headed North to Oakland. So far, I am LOVING the East Bay and the city of Oakland. The local farmers market, the amazing food and wine culture in the Bay Area and having seasons again has inspired me to cook, travel and blog again. Also, with this move, Tony decided that it's time we got a DV-R (which I can't believe we ever lived without) and I've been able to nerd out and record all of my favorite cooking shows during the day so I've been exposed to even more recipes than before. So with this new year, comes the revitalization of Vanilla Pleasures, the Oakland Edition.

So... on with the show. Since I now live in an area that has normal seasons and it is Winter, I have been craving comfort foods lately. Tony surprised me this Christmas with a beautiful Lemon Yellow Kitchen Aid Mixer so I've been baking up a storm. After work last week I watched a recorded episode of Giada at Home where she made Peanut Butter Cookies with Blackberry Jam. This recipe combines all of my favorite ingredients (peanut butter, chocolate and berry jam) and tastes like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in cookie form. I made this recipe this past very cold Oscar Sunday and took them to a party and they were an instant hit. I highly recommend making these bad boys when you need to warm up your soul or you just need some comfort food.