Ok, this is getting rediculous...

I have tried, and failed, to post some new dishes recently. The photos just have come out HORRIBLE. I guess I should stick to cooking instead of trying to be Ansel Adams. There will be some new posts coming soon, I promise. For the three of you that might read this here food blog. Cheers!

A work in progress...

I saw these beauties at my favorite stand at the farmers market, and couldn't resist. I used some queso fresco, caramelized onions, and panko crumbs for the filling. It didn't wow me, but like I said, a work in progress!

Trying to keep it on the "healthy" tip, I used some organic yogurt as the sauce. Good, but needed improvement, so I spiced it up with some smoky chipotle adobo sauce. Much better the second time around. I think I'll play with the filling a little more next time. Loved the baked Jalapeno, I got the temp/timing just right in the oven (360 degrees for about 14 minutes). The texture was perfect, just al dente, but not mushy at all. Can't wait for round two! (and three, four, five?)

Cheers!

Gone to Maui...

Wow, it's been awhile. Hopefully when I get back from mini vacation I will have something new. Cheers!

Smile!

Ok. So it wasn't until I looked at the picture afterward that it looks like the tomato is smiling at you/me. But it certainly did make me smile with it's juicy deliciousness. Even though my photo skillz really need improving.(Hello cutting the top of the garnish off!) Oh well. Next time!

Heirloom tomato, goat cheese, basil, Hidden Hills Olive Oil.

Roasted beet, goat cheese, green zebra salsa, pepper

Perfect for a sunny southern California day.

Porcini, smoked sausage, fennel, pecorino.

This was a quick little dinner I made recently. Just a quick saute' of the mushrooms, sausage and fennel. Added the mostly cooked pasta to the saute', and finished it off with the pecorino. Satisfying to say the least.

Porcini, fennel, green onion saute'

This was a simple saute' that I made for dinner a few nights back. Quick, and delicious. Trying to take advantage of the last of the porcini!

Cheers!

Rib Eye, Kim Chee, Asparagus.

To some/most of you, Kim Chee and steak probably doesn't sound like such a stretch, but let me tell you, if you haven't tried this? Do so now. Even if you have to try and track down the Kogi truck, although they use short ribs. Unless you don't like Kim Chee, or asparagus, or steak for that matter. In which case... don't know if I can help you. Cheers!

More springtime snackins....

This weekend was a little warm, so in light of that, I thought a little sweet, salty combo was in order. The sweet cantalope with the salty, thinly sliced prosciutto worked perfectly well with the coming of the sweltering summer heat!

And, just for good measure, the glorious food porn shot!

If you REALLY want to gild the lily, a drizzle of good Olive oil will do wonders.

Cheers all!

Springtime snackins...

It's been a pretty fruitful springtime so far here in the SoCal. A few days ago in the farmers market I spied these little green garlic gems, and the first of many heirloom tomatoes of the season. I got the steak from Whofoo and decided to pan roast with the green garlic cut into rounds. The result? Yeah...

After I let the steak rest, I deglazed the pan with some Madiera, reduced it and mounted it with some butter. Add some fresh arugula... man, you got yourself a tasty meal right there! The tomato? I just simply sliced it and drizzled it with some good olive oil, salt, and a toss of more arugula... again, a fresh, peppery snack!

Cheers all!

weekend eats, so to speak!

For those of you paying attention... that's a porcini mushroom the size that's bigger than my fist. Yeah... I love summertime! Or.. well, Late springtime if you get technical. And A wonderful new salami and Olive producer, the verdict is out on this one... I actually liked the jalapeno stuffed olive. It still gave me the olive *shiver*, but the flavor was spot on... I keep trying! More later!

The We Olive bounty...

You really gotta love a store that serves up the goodness that is olives and olive goodness. Yes, these are my friends, so naturally I'm a little biased, but make no mistake, they carry quality California olive oils people. I'm not even kidding around with this. As you can see in the picture, that's not ALL they carry. The two in the middle are an African Heat pepper mix, and a coffee rub that kick serious glutimous maximus. I used the African heat mix on some lamb loin chops, unfortunately, my picture doesn't do it justice...

So you will just have to take my word for it, or better yet Go buy some for yourself!! It's a shameless plug for a product that I truly endorse. I haven't used the coffee rub yet, but I did taste it, and... well, yeah, there's a post coming soon for that one! Cheers all, and go get to it!

Ok... just one more on that subject please...

Thick cut smoked bacon, poached eggs, arugula. Yeah... It was that good. : )

A simple breakfast...

Scrambled eggs, sausage, sriracha sauce. That is all...

A quick salad... well, sort of.

With all of the goodies I got from the farmers market... I had some left over goodies, and decided to be lazy and make a salad. Turns out, sometimes lazy is delicious! Roasted golden beets, fresh red bell, spring mix, goat cheese, cilantro, and We olive first press Olive oil, and golden balsamic. Yeah... I'll be making this again!

The farmers market bounty 5/9/10

It was a good weekend here in the Eman's corner kitchen! This delicious bevy of beauty came from the Hollywood Farmers Market this last Sunday. Golden Beets: Ramps, Almond Top mushrooms, baby squash, and squash blossoms, green garlic, and some delicious fresh peppers! Oh how I love springtime!

Quality control inspector...

Yeah, he's pretty picky too... Thanks for all your hard work buddy! "Now get off the !@#$ing table".

A simple sunday brunch...

It may not look like the most appetizing thing in the world, but rest assured, it was fuckin goooood!

Can you say roasted asparagus and chorizo scrambled eggs in the same sentence? I certainly can... and it was goooooood! Go do it for yourself people!

What the Quark?

Fresh organic strawberries from my fav. farmer at the market. Blueberries from a hand picked farm in the next stall, and fresh quark from Spring Hill Farms. What is Quark you ask? Well, check it out here. This particular brand of quark is a vanilla bean quark. (I just like saying that!) It's fantastic with fresh berries! It tastes similar to a nice cheescake filling, only slightly different. If you can get you hands on some of this fresh... I highly recommend you do!

Cheers!

Radishes, mint, chevre

Sometimes, you just need a simple salad to refresh you palette. The refreshing crispness of the radish, the rich creaminess of chevre cheese and the sharp hit of mint was just what the moment called for. A small drizzle of good Olive Oil would bring everything together nicely!

Roast lamb...

This was a boneless roast of lamb that I got an itch to make last weekend. I butterflied it out, stuffed it with rosemary, rolled and tied it, and roasted it in my cast iron skillet for about half an hour. The sauce is a madiera butter sauce with sauteed chanterelles. Frickin amazing all. 

With the leftovers, I got an idea for some lamb, chanterelle, and jack cheese burritos. I just bought some whole wheat flour tortillas for my mom when she visited for my birthday, so I decided to try them as well. The results? Well, you decide. They say you eat with your eyes...if that's true, Mine are bugging out of my head!

A gift from Central California...

 

I love chanterelle mushrooms. I found these beauties at the Burbank farmers market on Saturday. They were harvested from Buellton, just north of Santa Barbara. Can't wait to cook these bad boys up with a little butter and white wine. Cheers!

Food Porn

Braised short ribs with Campanille, Swiss chard and robusto cheese

Hum hum hummus!

The beautiful thing about hummus is, that it's so easy to make at home! Well, easy if you have a food processor and about 15 minutes of free time. I got a wild hair to make this last weekend and was amazed how good it turned out. I should probably be embarrassed at this, but I had never made it before.  So, I threw caution to the wind at just went for it.

I bought 2 cans of organic garbonzo beans, (make sure there are no "sketchy" things in there, it should just be water, beans, salt, THATS IT) two lemons, I had some good olive oil, a little water, and  S&P. That's it! Drain the beans, add to processor with a 1/4 cup of water and 1/4 cup lemon juice (give or take) a glug or two of good OO and start blending. And blending...and... well you get the idea. If it gums up in the bowl, drizzle in some more OO or a little more water to get it moving again, and let it go. Season with S & P to taste and adjust the lemon/OO to your liking.

The coolest thing about this is, the sky's the limit. Now that you have done the base recipe, next time you can add garlic, red pepper, whatever the hell you want to it. Now, go and make some hummus will ya!

Cheers!

Layers

It's that time of year That I love. It's getting cold outside. It's time to layer up. Not only with clothes, but with food. Great example of layering is one of my favorites. Lasagna. I do an herbed ricotta and homemade tomato sauce recipe. In the ricotta I use thyme and marjoram or Oregano. For the Sauce, I use crushed San Marzano or Centro tomatoes, cubed squash, onions, garlic, you know the usual suspects. Depending on my mood, I may or may NOT put meat in it. I know, Lasagna without meat!!!! Blasphemy! Well, sometimes you just need to go against the grain. So, As the New Year is here, and the cold continues. Layer up and make yourself something delicious! Cheers!