Dessert Adventure: Famous Cupcakes! in Beverly Hills

Famous Cupcakes have to be THE best so far.

Kind of a bold statement, since I haven't tried EVERY single place..BUT, out of the most of the popular places for this famous dessert craze, this is the best.  Red Velvet is a must have, the chocolate flavor in it is much more pungent then others!  They also offer coffee and other desserts, but what I found interesting was the "take home" in the tube cupcake mixes.  These cupcake are fairly large, when you compare to the others. Amazing ratios when you eat the the cream cheese frosting, not too sweet. If your around that area, it's definitely worth a try!! Also, the taste reminds me of Georgetown Cupcake in DC, except they're larger :)

168 South Beverly Drive

Beverly Hills, CA 90212-3003

(310) 248-2727

Saca’s Mediterranean: Falafel’s Falafel’s Falafel’s!

Saca’s is in the charming little downtown area in Claremont.  Small and quaint but very modern at the same time.  I’ve made several stops there last year and fell in love with the falafel’s.  But I finally determined that saca’s are the best by far with falafel’s.  I believe it’s family owed since 1992 and you can always see the “mom and pop” there always helping out.

However, dessert first!

The Baklava was good. Definitely buttery (but what is Baklava without the buttery-ness). The Filo dough was melt in your mouth and the filling of Walnut/Pistachios was in a perfect ratio. It’s a must try if you want a very rich dessert and only $1.29!

This is the Falafel Platter

Falafel definition directly quoted from the menu: “Saca’s Original Family Recipe.  Our famous Falafel are made fresh daily from Garbanzo Beans, Parsley, and Seasoned with a Secret Blend of Mediterranean Herbs and Spices.

About $7, but it’s more than enough for one person.  It comes with 6 falafel’s, hummus, pita bread, sesame sauce, and pickled turnips (the pink things!).

Look at the color! How do they make it so green!!

It has really great texture and it’s surprisingly not at all greasy.  It’s not stale or too hard.  It’s really filling too.  When I compare it to other falael’s, the others are always bland with no distinctive flavor.  But the falafel’s here have different components that are very distinctive.

Saca’s also serves shawerma chicken, beef, and lamb which is just vertically flame skewered.

www.gotosacas.com

248 w. second street

claremont, CA, 91711

AMAZING Beef Dish recipe using KETCHUP!!

Our father has made this dish for awhile now, it's kind of a special dish whenever we have some beef to cook.  It's a 'stew' like dish and uses only ketchup!!  Cooking with ketchup is super easy because all you do is simmer it down until it tenderizes the meat and the ketchup combo makes the stew extremely savory!  For this recipe you can use any kind of beef, but it's usually made with short ribs.        

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs of Beef Short Ribs/ OR Beef Stew Meat (for this recipe I used Beef Stew but it's a lot easier with Short Ribs.
1/2 Medium Onion
1 Garlic
Salt and Pepper
Large Bottle of Ketchup (44oz bottle), You will use 3/4 of the bottle of ketchup.
2 tablespoons of oil

Pan of Choice: Wok
Serves: 4-5 people

1. In a large pan add the oil, and sauté the garlic and onion on medium heat until the onions are transparent.  

2. Add a little salt and pepper to taste and add the beef to the pan and create a light sear (till it gets brown).  If you are using short ribs make sure to do both sides, if your using beef stew, browning just two sides of the cube is fine.  


3.  Add the ketchup to the pan until it covers most of the beef. Lower the heat to medium/low heat and simmer the beef and ketchup. 

4.  The ketchup will start to get dark red and evaporate slightly.  Once the ketchup tastes less sweet and more savory then its about done!!

   


yum!!

The Forgotten Onion!! ::tear:: :D

Quick Eats: Dragon Fruit or "Pitahaya fruit"

Here is the first of many "Quick Eats" which are small little posts of food I love.
Dragon Fruit has to be one of my favorite fruits!  It has the texture of kiwi and a subtle sweetness PLUS its PINK!  Depending on the color of the flesh (white and pink) the pinker; the sweeter!  They are usually available in Asian grocery stores, or specialty foods store.  I've also noticed that the longer you let it ripe the sweeter it gets.  If you ever come across a funny looking pink oval with green spikes while at the grocery store don't be a afraid get it a try it out!!

How to cut:  Slice the fruit from the top to the bottom, then cut the fruit into little slices (kind of like cutting a orange.)      

Quick Grilled Chicken Seasoned with Soy Sauce!

Here is a easy grilled chicken recipe that has turned into a staple in the household.  With this, there is no need to marinate, just season and enjoy!

When using soy sauce, it tends to give a very distinct flavor to any protein.  So using it as one of the main components to this grilled chicken, you will soon find yourself adding it to everything!

• 2 garlic, sliced (depending on your taste, you can add more or remove the garlic)
• 9 Chicken legs and thighs
• Pepper or Everyday seasoning
• 1/4 cup of Soy Sauce
• 1/2 of a large onion
• A sliver of Ginger (optional)

Serves: 5

1. Slice the garlic and chop the onion and ginger.  Grab your grill pan and sauté the vegetables until the onion gets transparent and the garlic gets brown.
2. Meanwhile, place the chicken in a large bowl and add the pepper to taste.  Pour the soy sauce on the chicken and it should make the chicken slightly darker.
3. Move the vegetables to one side of the grill pan and raise the heat between ‘medium/high.’  Raising the heat will make a brown crust on the chicken. Place the chicken on the grill pan and once the chicken gets brown and crusty on both sides it’s finished!!
4. Tips: With large thighs, cutting the chicken in half ensures that it will cook all the way through.  Also, heating up the onion, garlic, and ginger, leaves flavor in the pan, and once you add the chicken it will pick up the flavor and infuse into the chicken making it extra tasty!  Soy sauce has the tendency to be salty if you add a lot, so you don’t really need to add regular salt to season the chicken.
5. Serve over a bed of rice or vegetables and nom nom (eat & enjoy)!! 

Beef Stew with Roasted Red Peppers and Potatoes!!

Recently, I’ve been enjoying the agitating task creating new dishes for dinner and avoiding cooking chicken every night.  So at my family request, we finally settled on some beef stew.

Ingredients:

2.5 pounds of stew beef

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2.5 cups water

3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons of 21 seasoning or allspice

Button Mushrooms (any amount is fine, I put about 10 large mushrooms)

4-5 Small Red Potatoes, Diced

1 red pepper

2 tablespoons of flour

Serves 4 Pan of Choice: A Deep Large Pot

Directions

1. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon of 21 seasoning on the cubed beef.  Add the oil to a large pot and brown all sides of the beef on high heat.  Place the beef on a plate and let it rest.
2. In the same pot, add the water, chopped garlic, 1 teaspoon of salt and pepper, sugar, and the rest of the 21 seasoning (or allspice). Stir well and place the meat back into the pot. Lower the heat and simmer for 1 1/5 hours.
3. Meanwhile, place the red pepper using tongs on an open flame until it blackens and blisters.  Remove the pepper when it completely blackens and place it into a glass bowl covered with plastic wrap. Let it steam for 20 minutes and it will start to peel.  Remove all the skin and after the process is done, cut  the pepper into large strips.
4. Dice the potatoes into even cubes and slice the mushrooms. 
5. After 1 1/2 hrs, layer the potatoes then the mushrooms and the roasted red peppers.
6. Lightly stir the ingredients and let it simmer for another 35-45 minutes.  Check the stew until the potatoes are fork tender. Grab 1/4 cup of the stew and add the flour. Stir until well combined and add it back to the stew.  Raise heat to high until it starts to boil and the stew begins to thicken 
7. Place over a bed of rice or egg noodles and ENJOY!

The stew was such a nice change to our normal meals.  I find, also seasoning the vegetables every time you add more to a dish really enhances the vegetables.  The roasted peppers gave the stew a bit of spiciness. Pulling from various recipes, I found the dish included traditional ingredients and nontraditional ingredients.  Overall, it came out to be a very comforting and perfect meal for a cold night!

Once Upon a Time....

Today starts the beginning of my adventure with food...how exciting !!!!