Quinoa Salad Tabbouleh-Style

My quinoa addiction started during my holiday in South America, where I ordered this refreshing quinoa at almost every meal.  I find the taste of quinoa itself to be quite mild, maybe slightly nutty, but I absolutely love the crunchy texture and fluffy consistency.  Sometimes I feel like I am betraying my natural affinity for white … Continue reading

Paprika, NYC

Paprika Cuisine: Northern Italian Neighborhood: East Village, Alphabet City Price: $30-40 per person total + drinks Phone: (212) 677-6563 Address: 110 St. Marks Pl, NYC 10009 Hours: Brunch: 11AM-4PM Dinner: Mon-Thu: 5PM-11PM, Fri-Sat: 5PM-11:30PM, Sun: 5PM-10:30PM Paprika is a rustic Northern Italian restaurant nestled on St. Marks Place.  The soft candlelight and the vines weaving … Continue reading

Spring Pea and Cabbage Slaw with Old Bay

Last year, Natalya and I attended the Meatball Master Class at the De Gustibus Cooking School which was taught by Daniel Holzman of the The Meatball Shop.  This refreshing Spring Pea and Cabbage Slaw was served with Mini Maryland Crabcake Balls, and it balanced the saltiness of the crabcakes quite well.  Daniel recommended to use … Continue reading

Mini Maryland Crabcake Balls

Last year, Natalya and I attended the Meatball Master Class at the De Gustibus Cooking School which was taught by Daniel Holzman of the The Meatball Shop.  The first item served were mini crabmeat and potato chip “meatballs” with old bay and pea and cabbage slaw.  I loved the addition of crushed kettle cooked potato … Continue reading

Hazelnut Aioli

We recently bought the Ninja Kitchen System 1100 (dual blender and food processor) and I was so excited to try my hand at making all my own sauces with my snazzy new food processor.  After my recent Hollandaise adventures,  I decided to try another classic French sauce: aioli.  Aioli is a traditional Provençal sauce made … Continue reading

Skool, CA

Skool Executive Chef: Toshihiro Nagano Cuisine: Seafood, Japanese, Asian Fusion Neighborhood: SoMa Price: Appetizers 1$10-20; mains $20-$30 Address: 1725 Alameda Street,  San Francisco, CA 94103 Phone: 415-255-8800 Hours: Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30am-2:30pm; Brunch: Sat-Sun 11am-3pm; Dinner: Tues-Sat 5pm-10pm, Sun-Mon 5pm-9pm Squeezed between two freeways in the SOMA/Design District neighborhood, Skool is a gem of a seafood … Continue reading

Red Velvet Crab Cake Pops

Red Velvet Crab Cake Pops I helped make these ridiculously cute crab cake pops with my friend Carol, who was taking these yummy treats to her coworker’s annual crab feed the next day. The process took a while because we made about 100 total pops, but it was well worth it! This post is mainly … Continue reading

Borsch

Borsch is a very traditional Russian beets-based stew. It is typically very heavy, savory, and perfect for cold winter nights. I think traditionally it came to be as a way to combine whatever vegetables were available with scraps of meat and fattiness into a hot stew. But I obviously had the option to use more … Continue reading

Palta Reina

Palta Reina was one of the first dishes Jen and I tried once we crossed the Andes into Chile last year. After eating some ridiculously delicious cows and lamb in Argentina, Chilean cuisine was a nice change of scene. Many of the dishes were still on the heavier side (Chileans LOVE their mayo), but we … Continue reading

Sweet Chili Glazed Meatloaf

“MA!  THE MEATLOAF!!” I had some leftover ground beef and was originally planning to make a beef version of the Meatball Shop’s Spicy Pork Meatballs; however, I realized I was out of tomatoes to make any kind of accompanying sauce.  I was way too lazy to run out and buy any missing ingredients so I rummaged through all … Continue reading