Tag Archives: food

Food in San Francisco

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We were recently in San Francisco and we ate great food!  As a couple, we are really lucky because we both love trying new restaurants and neither of us are picky. Thanks to YELP we found some fun and delicious places to eat.

The first day we headed down to the wharf and ate at the Fairy Codmother. It’s a tiny restaurant down a side street owned by some people from England and they fry the fish and chips while you wait. We got the chips with fresh garlic and Baja sauce! Yum!

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For lunch one day we stopped in at Cafe de la Presse that is located just outside of China Town. It felt like we just stepped into Paris. Our waiter was even French. We had a delicious shrimp salad and tarte flambee.

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Another fun place on Fisherman’s Wharf is Boudin Cafe. This restaurant is all over in San Francisco but the one on the wharf has a cute store and cafe on the main floor and a restaurant upstairs. They make delicious sour dough bread. They also have huge windows looking into the kitchen so you can see how they make the bread.

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We met our fabulous friends the Wilcocks at a fantastic Thai restaurant called Thai Basil. Always great conversation and great food!

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On our last night we went out searching for Italian food and were lucky enough to stumble upon this delightful alley of restaurants! We ate at Cafe Tiramisu. They had the best gnocchi I have ever had. It was the perfect size, shape and texture- melts in your mouth! I get hungry just writing about it.

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One last place I have to mention is Lori’s Diner. They have the most wonderful malts! I visited San Francisco the first time with my mom and sister Rachael for my graduation trip. We stayed at a hotel next to Union Square and just across the street from Lori’s Diner. It seems like we ate there everyday which included a malt, even if it was breakfast. At that time they had little old-fashioned jukeboxes at each table that you could choose songs from to listen to. We loved the song “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes”.

Anyways, the first day Greg and I were there we went in search of a dessert. I thought of Lori’s but couldn’t remember the name. We headed up that direction to see if it was still there and sure enough it was still there, the malts were still delicious but no more jukeboxes. It’s a great little diner that’s open 24 hours a day. San Francisco definitely doesn’t disappoint when it comes to great food. IMG_2438

Are you a lover of Chocolate?

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Since Valentines Day has just passed, chocolate is on the brain. I am a lover of chocolate! Not just any chocolate however.

I didn’t always have a love affair with chocolate, in fact I didn’t really care for it as a kid. I liked gooey candy or a good box of Nerds. When I was 21 years old I was a missionary for my church and they sent me to Strausbourg, France for 8 months and then up to Brussels, Belgium for another 8 months. That is where the love affair began. It was amazing to see a whole store dedicated to chocolate. There was chocolate everywhere. Godiva, Leonidas and Galler chocolates were some of my favorite. My sister Rachael carried these gorgeous Stephan Dumon chocolates home from Bruges, Belgium for me last year. They were delicious!

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Recently I stumbled across this beautifully written post by Lindsey Johnson titled 9 Secrets to Tasting Chocolate. If you LOVE chocolate, you must check it out.

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Posted by Andrea

Favorite Bran Muffins

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I was raised on these bran muffins. In fact, we even ate them at my aunt’s house every year on Christmas morning. She served them with grapefruit, eggs, bacon, ham and sausage.

I love this recipe because it’s packed with fiber and the batter keeps in the fridge for 30 days. I fix a batch and put it in a Tupperware bowl with an airtight lid and store the batter in the basement refrigerator. We get fresh, warm muffins all month. I love serving them with raspberry honey butter. Try them!

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Bran Muffins

4 cups All-Bran cereal
2 cups boiling water
1 cup margarine
2 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 quart buttermilk
5 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
5 cups flour
2 cups Bran Flakes cereal

Pour boiling water over 4 cups of All-Bran cereal and let sit. Cream margarine and sugar; add eggs then dry ingredients alternating with buttermilk. Mix in All-Bran and water mixture. Last of all, stir in Bran Flakes. This batter stores in refrigerator for 30 days and makes dozens of muffins. Bake at 400 degrees for 16-18 minutes in greased or paper-lined muffin tins. Bake time 10-12 minutes for mini-muffins.

Posted by Andrea

Barefoot Contessa

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If you have read my blog for very long you may have realized I am a huge fan of Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa!

She’s probably my favorite cookbook writer. I also love her show. I record them and I watch them while I fold clothes or I watch them to unwind. I love to get lost in Ina’s world, she lives in a beautiful house in the Hamptons, visits fabulous markets and makes food that I want to eat.

My sister-in-law Jen introduced me to the Barefoot about 8 years ago. I borrowed her cookbook and after a month or so she decided to just give it to me for my birthday. I was thrilled! The photography in all the cookbooks is phenomenal. They aren’t so overwhelming because they aren’t super long. I have most of her books and Greg surprised me this week with her latest book called Barefoot Contessa Foolproof!

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I have glanced through it and these are some of the recipes that I am dying to try:

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These are the recipes on my blog so far that are from the Barefoot Contessa or originated from one of her recipes:

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart
Herb Roasted Turkey
Vegetarian Lasagna
Roasted Asparagus
Caramelized Butternut Squash
Gourmet Mac and Cheese
Roasted Potatoes
Coconut Macaroons

Check back often and I will let you know how the recipes from Foolproof turn out!

Posted by Andrea

Baked Tilapia

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Our family loves fish! Tilapia is a very mild fish and super good for you. I found this recipe from Taste of Home at the beginning of December and we have made it many times since. First of all its super easy, few ingredients, and you can make it a head of time. My mom served it at a family Christmas party this year and got fabulous reviews.

If you have joined with the rest of us to eat more healthy this 2013, than this recipe is for you.

I usually buy my tilapia frozen in a bag out at Costco. Thaw in cold water for about 20 minutes and then remove it from the individual wrapping and place into an ungreased glass pan.  In a small bowl, combine the butter, lemon juice, garlic powder and salt; pour over the fillets. Sometimes I double the sauce for a little extra to go on some rice. Sprinkle with capers, oregano and paprika. At this point you can cover them with foil and put them in the fridge to bake an hour or two later.

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Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 10-15 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

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Baked Tilapia

Ingredients

  • 4 tilapia fillets (6 ounces each)
  • 3 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons capers, drained
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/8 teaspoon paprika

Directions

  • Place tilapia in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. In a small bowl, combine the butter, lemon juice, garlic powder and salt; pour over the fillets. Sprinkle with capers, oregano and paprika.
  • Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 10-15 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Yield: 4 servings.

Posted by Andrea

Another Fabulous Harvest Dinner

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I blogged about my neighbors Harvest Party last year and I have to show you the fabulous decor and delicious food from this year!

I didn’t go over early so all my photos are in the dark.

This chandelier is so fabulously sophisticated with the white pumpkins and white candles.

Looking closely you can see this enormous squash growing from a vine that climbed the fence. Margaret called it her best of show!

 I brought a bowl of Carmalized Butternut Squash and I was thrilled that everyone loved it. It was nice and warm on a chilly night.

I couldn’t get good pictures of everything but there was a wonderful apple pie, caprese salad, pumpkin brownies, homemade salsa, soups and more.

I look forward to next years Harvest Party!

Posted by Andrea

Granny’s Drive-In

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What’s Granny’s you ask? A delicious burger joint up in Heber, Utah. They have great burgers, yummy fries and greasy onion rings with a fabulous shake to top off the meal. They used to only be open in the summer but as you can see they are now going to feed us all winter too! Bad news: Granny’s has changed their minds and will be closing this Winter. So you will be salivating till next Spring. :) We also love it because it is very family friendly and we can make ourselves right at home.:)

Posted by Andrea

Are Zucchini Taking Over Your Counter or Your Fridge?

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As a family, we love zucchini bread! We love it so much that we would like to eat it all year-long instead of an overdose in the summer since we need to use all that we have grown. So, I make a bunch of loaves now and then peel (I prefer them peeled when I freeze them) and cut up the zucchini. I measure it into 3-3 1/2 cups for the recipe and freeze it in ziploc freezer bags for later. Now, we have what is usually a summer treat, all year round.

Grab your zucchini and lets start using them up in some delicious bread. You can choose to peel your zucchini or leaving the skin on. (I think the flecks of green in the bread are very pretty and illustrate what kind of bread it is, but my children get nervous seeing green, so I always peel them.) Cut them in 1/2 inch to 1 inch cubes.

Put zucchini in the blender. Add the oil and blend till smooth. Add more oil or zucchini (if you have some left) to equal 3 cups. Blend again if needed.

Add sugar, eggs and vanilla. Blend well. Transfer into a mixing bowl and add dry ingredients. Pour into two greased and floured loaf pans. (I doubled the recipe, so I have four pans) All four pans can go on the same rack as long as they don’t touch the sides of the oven.

Do you like my random blue loaf pan? I received it as a wedding gift and at the time I wanted everything to match so it was in the returns pile. However, when I got to the store, I found out it was only worth $ .50. So the blue loaf pan came back home with me and has been serving me wonderfully well for almost 11 years! I learned pans don’t need to match to work great.

Cook zucchini bread for 60-75 minutes or until a toothpick can be poked in the middle and come out clean. After taking out the loaves, leave in pans for 5-10 minutes to cool. Then remove from the pans to cool completely.

Zucchini Bread

3 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups zucchini, cubed
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Put zucchini in the blender and add one cup oil and blend. Add more oil or zucchini if you have some to make 3 cups. Blend again if needed. Add sugar, eggs and vanilla. Blend well. Transfer into a mixing bowl and add dry ingredients. Pour into 2 greased and floured loaf pans. Bake at 325 degrees for 60-75 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Leave in loaf pans to cool about 5-10 minutes and then remove to cool completely.

Making Your Berries Last

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A few months ago my sister Rachael sent me this article about how to make your berries last longer especially after you spend $4 on a pint of strawberries. I filed it away on my gmail account and thought I would try it when the berries come out in full force. Well, here they are! The strawberries are gorgeous, the raspberries are huge and the fruit stands are slowly popping up all over so I thought I would give it a whirl.

1 part vinegar (white or apple cider work best)
10 parts water
Soak for 8-10 minutes

I filled up an ice bucket with my mixture and dropped in the berries.

This is a good project for a helper.

Let the berries sit 8-10 minutes and then stir them. Drain and put back into the refrigerator.

It really works! The raspberries last a week or more and the strawberries will last up to two weeks.

Hooray for summer berries!

Related articles: DIY Fruit and Veggie Wash

Posted by Andrea

Night Out in SLC

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Have you ever heard of Tastemakers? Well we hadn’t until this year. Andrea and I have to go to a lot of different fundraising events for my work and this was one of the best events we have ever been to. You start out the night in the parking lot next to Squatters. There are several tents set up featuring food from different restaurants around SLC. You get to go around and sample delicious food from each vendor. They pair it with, what I have been told, the perfect sampling of wine for each dish. Andrea and I did not partake!

They did however have a booth of non-alcoholic mixed drinks that were delicious. The company is called Concoxiones and they do corporate events and parties. Well worth whatever amount of money they charge!

The vendors in the tent area were Ichiban Sushi, Pagoda, Ruby River, Caffe Niche, Silver, Gracie’s, Bambara, Joffee’s Coffee, The Coffee Shop (Little America), and Garden Cafe (Grand America). My favorites out of that group were Pagoda with a Citrus Aioli Prawn – DELICIOUS! I could have eaten a whole plate full of them.

Next I liked Gracie’s that served Crown Ribs, super good. They slid right off the bone and the sauce was a ancho-chili BBQ sauce.

After you have sampled the food in the tent area you can then take a stroll around town and visit some of Salt Lake’s best restaurants for more good food. We went to Benihana for a Las Vegas, Spicy Tuna, and Shrimp Crunchy Roll. Then off to Caffe Molise for a marinated grilled chicken breast topped with artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes and gorgonzola cream sauce. Next we hit the Naked Fish for a Calamari with Temari Sushi. We could have also gone to J Wong’s, Squatters, Ruth’s Chris, The New Yorker, Market Street Grill, and Pallet, but we were totally satisfied already!

The event cost $30 per person and part of the proceeds go to support one of my all time favorite non-profit groups, Head Start. Such a fun night to be downtown in Salt Lake City. If you haven’t tried any of these restaurants, head on downtown and give them a taste. Call us and we’ll come with you!

Posted by Greg