brussel sprouts anyone?

i used to hate brussel sprouts, they always smelled funky, and had a weird texture. as i’ve grown older, i’ve developed an affinity for them, and now i consider them to be one of my favorite veggies.

i’m not sure how i thought the grew before but it was only once i started shopping at farmers markets that i found out that this is how they look when they are growing.

i picked this bad boy up a few days ago and am thinking about different way to cook them. i’ll definitely give my tried and true method a go (pan seared with garlic and olive oil and, towards the end, a splash of balsamic vinegar) but i need a few more recipes. any suggestions?

birthday fun

last saturday was the first annual day long celebration of pete's birth. we started out with some delish sonic burgers and tots. i had never been to a sonic before so the whole experience of cute girls bringing me my tots while on roller skates was pretty much awesome.

pete was super excited to order his sonic burger. he had heard they were better than five guys! his professional verdict? it was good, but hard to tell if it was better. a side by side taste comparison may need to be performed in order to more accurately judge.

the tots though? those tots are good. crispy, potatoey, everything a tater tot should be.

the next item on the agenda was a visit to the long beach aquarium. one of my favorite parts was definitely the jellyfish. i could have sat and taken pictures all day, but alas, i had to make way for some kiddies to take a peek.

on the way back to the car, we caught the tail end of gorgeous sunset and i couldn't help but snap a picture.

and finally, it was off to dinner, where we stuffed our faces full of sushi, crispy pork belly, warm chocolate torte and wine. can't wait to do it all again next year.

what's been going on in our kitchen

pete’s birthday was on monday so on sunday morning i made him pumpkin pancakes with cinnamon whipped cream and a big french press with my favorite LA coffee (www.lacoffee.com). the perfect fall breakfast, even though it’s still in the 70’s around here.

i get into routines when it comes to breakfast. last month, it was all about scrambled eggs. but it's november now and time to change it up, and lately, it's been all about oatmeal for breakfast. i prefer to make it with milk, sprinkled with slivered almonds and a drizzle of maple syrup, it’s such a delish way to start the day.

last night i made chicken in a lemon, caper, artichoke sauce and at the last minute I stirred in a dollop of crème fraiche i had left over from another meal. i really think the crème fraiche was the star here, it gave the sauce a nice tang and creaminess. it was so good, I actually licked the palte. i read recently that you can make your own crème fraiche at home, and i intend to try it out soon. i’ll let you know how it goes.

sunday afternoon

sunday afternoons were made for hanging in your favorite coffee shop, sipping an exceptionally well made latte and reading a new book (not becoming my mother by the always amazing ruth reichl).

i love the scene here, there are four stations, and each one is staffed with a vest-wearing hipster barista to craft your delicious drink. it's pricier than most places, but they really know what they are doing here. intellegentsia, you have my heart.

special delivery

no, i'm not going vegan, i love cheese too much to do that.

yesterday i came home to find a package from amazon waiting on my doorstep! i love getting things in the mail, especially things that aren't bills. a few weeks ago i made the chickpea cutlets from this book and they were SO good that when i saw it on sale for half off on amazon the next day, i went for it.

boris and i teamed up in deciding on the first meal: chile cornmeal crusted tofu with southwestern corn pudding and green pumpkin seed mole? or maybe potato and kale enchiladas with roasted chile sauce? too many choices.

things i've been doing

The Hollywood Bowl is a magical place to see a show, it’s all outdoors and you can bring your own wine and food to nibble on as the sun sets over the Hollywood Hills. A few weeks ago, I dragged Pete to the Sound of Music Sing Along and joined 18,000 other people (the show was sold out almost instantly, that is how popular it is) to watch my all-time favorite movie and sing along to every song (they put the words at the bottom of the screen in case you don’t know them- as if!). Before the movie started there was a costume contest, with a grand prize of a 7 day cruise to Mexico! The winning costume? Three little kids dressed as “Tea with Bread and Jam”. So cute. It was loads of fun, even though we seriously underestimated the amount of wine we needed as we ran out before the movie even started! Oh well, there’s always next year.

what's for dinner

Smitten Kitchen's lemony zucchini goat cheese pizza. I officially want to spread lemony goat cheese onto whatever I can get my hands on.

While cutting off the tops of my radishes from the farmers market, I tasted one and discovered that the tops are totally delish. It made me so sad I had thrown so many away. The tops were tossed into the salad bowl with some other mixed greens, an impromptu lemon vinaigrette and some Parmesan shavings.

On another note, my garden is starting to finally show some life, which makes me totally excited, since I thought for sure this year was going to be a bust. I guess I need to learn a little patience. pictures to come.