Back in the day when I lived in New York, I was more than a little homesick. I pined and yearned for my home state of California, and pounced on everything I could find that reminded me of home. I wore flipflops at the very first sign of spring in the city (and narrowly avoided frostbite in the process), I saw the movie Sideways 3 times in the theaters, and bought the DVD when it was released; I traveled all the way to TENTH AVENUE to find a tiny taqueria in the back of a bodega that sold real tacos; I listened to the Beach Boys on repeat. So you can imagine how happy I was when the last apartment we lived in in Manhattan was right next door to a California Pizza Kitchen (it also had a balcony, which means my poor husband was sent outside to grill in 50 degree weather. He was happy when we finally moved to California because I immediately started wearing black and wanting to see foreign films in a desperate cling to my New York days). Now I realize that California Pizza Kitchen is about as truly Californian as Red Lobster is truly a restaurant of Maine, but I was desperate.
And the truth is, I kind of liked their food. Sure, peanut butter is not my FAVORITE topping on pizza, and some of those combinations were just weird, but the barbecue chicken chopped salad was quite tasty and quickly became my go to order.
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Tags: chicken·Kid Friendly·leftovers·salad·weeknight
Spring has sprung. Sure, I live in LA, where a sunny day could just as easily mean December as it could April. People are always exhibiting various degrees of suntan (usually related to their house’s proximity to the beach), and flip flops are a year round fashion statement. Fortunately, I like to frequent the farmers’ markets (particularly the Hollywood Farmer’s Market, which I think is the best farmer’s market in Los Angeles), and the signs of spring are unmistakeable. Strawberries are a big tip off, trucked in from Oxnard, and so are the lilacs that are only around for the early birds. The very first tomatoes are appearing, but the vegetable that says “spring” to me is asparagus. The thin and tender stalks are all over the market.
Now, I love steamed asparagus with a little hollandaise, or roasted asparagus with olive oil, but sometimes I just don’t feel like going to the effort that steaming and roasting require. (And don’t ask me why it seems like a big deal to turn on the oven or dig out the two part steamer, but it does). That’s where pan sauteeing comes in. You don’t need a special asparagus cooker or a hot oven. Just a skillet, a little butter, and some quick knife work, and you have a dish fit for a king. The asparagus stay bright green and tendercrisp, with the flavor being undimmed by high heat roasting and undiluted by water. I like to add some leeks for a mellow oniony bite — the combination is really fantastic. Topped with some curls of sharp and grainy parmiggiano, this dish is simple, quick and delicious.
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Tags: asparagus·weeknight
I have vivid childhood memories of dyeing Easter Eggs. We always made my family’s traditional Craftsman flower eggs, but I also spent many a spring break waiting impatiently for the eggs to take on a deep color sitting in vats of vinegar with those little Paas tablets. Now that I am the mom, I try to recreate for the Nuni some of my own childhood joys, so I buy dozens of eggs each Easter, ripe for the decorating.
What I am faced with as an adult that I didn’t realize as a carefree kid is that after the fun of the Easter Egg hunt comes a long slong of trying to use dozens of hard boiled eggs. There are only so many plain hard boiled eggs you can eat, though a dash of tabasco helps matters immensely. Likewise, egg salad, although a love of mine, can quickly grow tireseome. Enter deviled eggs.
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Tags: Easter·eggs·holiday·lunchbox·Vegetarian
