Food Trucks LA: Dogtown Dogs

Though the food truck race in Los Angeles has been picking up steam for a while, I have yet to venture out and try any. Somehow I never get it together in time to check out First Fridays, an event in the Venice district of Abbot Kinney, where merchants feature artists, music, drink specials and a wide variety of food trucks. (I will make it there someday.) Where food trucks were once known as "roach coaches", a cheap array of Mexican fare on wheels, the fad has exploded in the LA foodie scene. Partly due to our current economic decline, the mobile restaurants feature hip, gourmet street food. 

 

Kogi Korean BBQ was the front-runner in the food truck craze, an army of five Korean-Mexican fusion trucks that feature options of spicy pork tacos or kimchi quesadillas. After winning several awards and the hearts and minds of Angelinos, Kogi's success spawned hundreds of on-the-go eateries, from The Grilled Cheese Truck (note to self: try the cheesy mac & rib melt as soon as humanly possible), the Border Grill truck, an addition to the renowned Santa Monica Spanish restaurant at the 3rd Street Promenade, and my first venture into the world of food trucks, Dogtown Dogs.

 

 

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Healthy Eats: Breakfast For Dinner

Though most days I come home eager to try out some new culinary feat, occasionally a 50 hour work week, June gloom and a good ol' case of the doldrums can weaken my motivation. Last night I came home fully expecting to whip up something as equally uninspiring as my day. I considered my ultimate comfort food, caprese, but noticed my fridge has been rather neglected as of late. As I settled in to make scrambled eggs with some veggies, I had an epiphany. Why not make a frittata? My kitchen, however, is still vastly under-equipped since the big move, so I scoured the shelves for a suitable baking dish. Nestled in the back was my cupcake tin, sullenly neglected for months. I dashed into the living room to inform Quinn of my newest endeavor: mini frittatas!

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Stuff That Sausage! Or, Mushroom Appreciation Day

When I was a little girl, there were several vegetables I would not under any circumstances allow in my food. My parents tried to sneak them in to sauces, chopping up onions, chives or mushrooms into tiny bits in an attempt to dissuade me from my oh-so-healthy diet of macaroni and cheese. No matter how small the diced veggies were, I could taste them a mile away. "This has onion in it!" I would cry angrily, and proceed to pout for the rest of the meal. (What a charmer.) Mostly I've come to realize that my disgust for onions and mushrooms came from the texture ("too crunchy, too rubbery, get it away from me," etc).

This might be why my parents are still shocked to the core whenever I eat onions or mushrooms (often). I will add grilled onions to almost any dish and ever since my adventures grilling with Quinn and Daniel I've been doing the same with mushrooms. I add sliced white mushrooms to my healthier version of Fettuccini Alfredo, recreate my goat cheese & shiitake omelet from John O'Groats, and sautee large portobello caps in the balsamic-dijon marinade Daniel came up with.  The other night I  took my mushroom obsession a step further. As I sipped on some girlie moscato white wine and danced around in my kitchen with Scream 2 on in the background, I made sinfully bites of sheer happiness: stuffed mushrooms.

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Healthy Eats: Fettucini Alfredo with Spinach & Mushroom

 

At dinner the other night, my precocious little brother Louis asked me, "Why does it take adults so long to order?" I thought about that for a moment. When I was his age, the three main meals I accepted without a fuss were mac&cheese, spaghetti with meatballs and chicken tenders. I was not adventurous with my palette, nor did I find any reason to listen to my parents when they told me that I would like something new. I told him that as you get older, your tastes expand and so more items on the menu seem appealing. For example, I am currently addicted to mushrooms of any sort, so I took several minutes debating over my usual pick of pasta (carbonara, bolognese, amatriciana) or grilled veggies. (I ended up with the latter... summer is approaching!)

There is still the little kid in me that craves those rich, fattening meals I adored as a skinny-minnie string bean. (No, really. My family nickname was "Noodle".) Unfortunately, I can't scarf down high-calorie pasta the way I used to. Last night Quinn requested Fettuccini Alfredo for dinner, and I set out to make a lighter version -- while still retaining that abundantly creamy flavor.

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Healthy Eats: Arugula & Goat Cheese Pasta Salad

I've said it once, I'll say it again: there is something  so wonderful about cooking with friends. Opening a bottle (or 2, or 3) of wine, brainstorming dishes together, deliberating over spices, rubs and marinades... it can't be beat. This past weekend Quinn and I got together with two of his good friends from high school to grill high quality tri tip and chicken breasts purchased at the Los Angeles Original Farmer's Market.

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Iron Chef Potluck #1, Volume 2: Burgundy Beef Stew & Salmon Diane with Creamy Polenta

Next up on our potluck menu was Sam's Burgundy Beef Stew. It took some of the most prep work, with Sam chopping up onions, potatoes, carrots, and zesting oranges. He browned pounds of hearty stew meat and let an entire bottle of burgundy wine cook for an hour before adding the vegetables. The orange zest and a pinch of sugar were added "to balance out the acid in the wine", and the entire stew simmered for several hours before consumption. Topped with a horseradish sour cream, the result was a rich and tangy stew that I slurped down with glee!

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