I’d been wanting to check out the Boiling Crab for awhile since it was the newest restaurant to pop up in my neighborhood. My friend, Laura, and I tried to go once for lunch, only to discover they only opened for dinner. What!
A few weeks ago we were browsing around the farmer’s market in Mira Mesa and then decided to head over here for dinner to try it out. I’d heard kind of a mixed bag of reviews about the place, but I always believe that I have to try it for myself before I can judge.
Laura and I weren’t quite sure what to expect from this place. They place a big sheet of paper over the table and hand you some bibs and menus. No utensils for you, my friend! Here’s Laura with our bags of steamy food and disposable cups of water. I’m pretty sure everything in this place is disposable. Maybe they really hate doing dishes here – makes for an easy cleanup, anyway.
Everything here is sold by the pound – but you can get 1/2 pound amounts if you don’t want a full pound of something. One thing we did notice is the lack of vegetables – pretty much the only veggies they have are corn and potatoes. We kind of wishing for a salad or something, but I suppose that doesn’t really fit the seafood boil theme.
[shrimp, sausage and corn mixture]
We ended up sharing 1 pound of shrimp ($10 per pound), a half pound of sausages ($8 per pound) and 2 corn on the cob ($.75 cents each).
The seasonings they have available are Rajun Cajun, Lemon Pepper, Garlic Sauce or “The Whole Sha-Bang!” which is a combination of all three. We got it with garlic sauce. The shrimp and sausage came in one bag and we ordered the corn in a separate bag with just butter.
The shrimp are cooked with the shell and heads on. Shrimp heads don’t bother me exactly, but I’m not really into eating them (though I know other people are). The flavor was … just okay to me. The shrimp were a bit overcooked resulting in a slight rubbery texture. I didn’t think the shrimp soaked up the flavor of the sauce at all – they tasted like the shrimp were cooked first and then just tossed in the sauce later so not a lot of transfer of flavor. The sausage was fine, nothing to sing about, and the sauce wasn’t really detectable on there either.
The corn on the cob were really awful. The corn was really mushy and lacked any kind of flavor – it tasted like frozen corn on the cob tossed in a weird sort-of-butter-like sauce. I actually complained about the corn and the manager came by to ask me about it and I told him the truth. He said the corn was usually much better when it was cooked in with the sauce and he gave us another round of corn free of charge and didn’t charge us for the first two corns.
[corn with garlic sauce]
Yeah… these were not any better. At all. Still tasted really mushy and flavorless, with maybe slightly more flavor than the other set we got, but still not really enough improvement to entice me to eat it any further than one bite. Continue reading “the boiling crab / mira mesa – san diego, ca”
Let me just say right off the bat… I was skeptical. A gluten free restaurant with baked goods and regular food? Could this possibly be any good? As someone who doesn’t shun gluten at all and doesn’t have food allergies, I wasn’t sure how this whole experience would go down. But since I got invited to come in and check it out, I was willing to take the risk. And I have to say… I was pleasantly surprised.
[inside the cafe]
2Good2Be is a cute little cafe inside of one of the strip malls in Encinitas, CA. It’s a fast casual restaurant with lots of beverage options (coffees, teas), baked goods (cupcakes, brownies, cakes) as well as regular food – all gluten-free, corn free, corn syrup free and soy free.
[case of gluten free cupcakes]
The cupcakes that greet you when you walk in also very tempting looking – all pretty and decorated!
Jake and I ordered a few things from the menu to get an overall feel for their food and then, of course, saved room for cupcakes at the end.
[bottled sodas]
My initial beverage choice was rejected by Jake and he went up and got us some bottled sodas. I told him to surprise me and he got me this Cock ‘n Bull ginger beer which wasn’t too bad. I don’t normally drink full sugar sodas anymore but this one was decent with a good ginger flavor. Surprising to me, I actually liked the Cheerwine a little bit more. I thought it would be full on in-your-face-tastes-like-cough-syrup flavored cherry.. but it actually kind of reminded me of Dr. Pepper.
[cheese pizza]
We started off by sharing a cheese pizza. I really liked the HUGE dollops of ricotta on top. Ricotta makes me really happy, so this put a smile on my face.
This also had tomato sauce, mozzarella and just a touch of basil. I would have enjoyed a wee more bit of basil, but it was fine. The crust was a gluten free crust that was quite thin (like NY style thin) and quite a bit chewy. The outer edges of the pizza were kind of burnt which I did not like since it made the other edge too hard to eat. But overall the crust wasn’t bad – you could tell this wasn’t a normal crust, but it didn’t deter too much from the pizza (except for the burnt edges). Overall good flavor and good distribution of cheese.
I’m a bit proud of this one, my second post for the WorldFoods challenge. And I got this idea from thinking about beans.
Beans are not usually something I ever think about. I tend to shun beans, not really enjoying their flavor or consistency. But I did have a bean dish this summer that I really enjoyed at Isola Pizza Bar – it was made with cannellini beans and had a great punch of garlic and rosemary and served as a dip. I started thinking… what if I put that dip on a pizza?
And then what if I added shrimp to it?
This led me to make this White Bean and Sweet Chili Coconut Shrimp Pizza.
Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
This is about all you need – and some onion, which I forgot to include in the photo. Silly.
The first thing you need to do is crank your oven to 500 degrees. Put your pizza pan in there, too. Trust me.
The next thing to do is prep the shrimp – clean and devein those suckers and then use this Sweet Chili Coconut sauce to marinate the shrimp.
Then just set it aside while you prep the rest of your food! You should also take out your pizza dough to let it rest and come up to room temperature while you are making the bean sauce.
These creamy looking beans need a drain after the lid is popped off, but save that “bean juice”! We’re going to need it again while making the bean sauce.
Chop up about half an onion and five cloves of garlic. It seems like a lot of garlic but I think it gives the bean sauce a great, simple flavor.
Cook the onions in olive oil with a sprinkle of salt and pepper until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, until fragrant.
Add your beans and a few tablespoons of the reserved bean liquid. Add another dash of salt and pepper and cook until heated through.
Put the whole thing into your blender with the rest of the reserved bean liquid and a few good tablespoons of olive oil.
Whirl this mixture around until perfectly smooth. Be sure to taste it and season to your liking! It might need a little more salt & pepper love, if your tongue tells you so.
Smooth, creamy, bean stuff!
Time to prep the pizza dough!
Sprinkle a little bit of flour on the dough and then you need to stretch and roll it out.
I like to let gravity do all of the work for me. I start to twist the dough around in the air to stretch it out. I don’t do that tossing thing – I’m afraid of dropping the whole thing on the floor. I work quickly enough to get the dough out to a good size – though not quite round… but that’s okay!
Once the dough is a good size and the oven’s ready, pull the pizza pan out of the oven and carefully place the dough on top. Once it’s on there it will not move until cooked through, so be mindful!
The heat from the pan will sear the bottom of the crust and start cooking it right away, helping you to create a nice, crispy bottom.
After the dough goes down, I always put olive oil, salt and pepper on the bottom. I’m a firm believer in seasoning every layer!
The dough is ready for that beautiful white bean sauce to be spooned on top of the crust.
Plop your shrimp across your misshaped pizza and then pop it back into your hot oven. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Yummy pizza goodness is now at your fingertips! Even if it’s not a traditional round shape. That just makes it more “rustic”.
For a little “oomph”, add prosciutto and chopped cilantro to your pizza after it comes out of the oven. Totally optional, but also another little layer of flavor for your slices.
I turned 34 this year. It’s not a significant number. I can still say I’m in my early 30’s but I think I’m just shy of being bumped up to the next demographic group. I sure don’t feel like 34, not that I can really imagine what it should feel like. In my 34th year I can say that I’m happy. I’m content. I have a job that I enjoy, a boyfriend I adore, and I don’t feel like I’m lacking anything. I’m hoping for good karma and continued happy times.
As I do every year, I look forward to my birthday instead of shunning it away. I drag out the celebration by getting a bunch of free, delicious food into my belly. Or maybe I like hearing strangers wish me a happy birthday when I present my coupons? (Truth: It is definitely the former.)
I kicked off the year by getting lunch at Rubio’s.
[Rubio’s Street Taco Plate – $6.59 value]
Rubio’s Beach Club sends you email offers as well as a coupon good for 1 item up to $7.99.
This is the Rubio’s Street Tacos plate ($6.59) with one chicken, one beef and one carnitas taco, plus beans and chips. Of the three, I liked the beef the best, though really, I probably should have stuck to seafood here since that is their namesake. The chips were warm (a plus that has not always been the case) with a decent side of beans.
Coupon notes: Sent two weeks before birthday. Expires on birthday. Can use your phone to show coupon or you can print it out. Rubio’s Beach Club signup.
Panera Bread also treats you for your birthday by loading a “special offer” onto your My Panera card.
They don’t tell you what the offer is though, but let me spill the secret for you – it’s good for one bakery item.
When I found out what it was, I think I gave a little bit of a pouty face because I said, “Aw, I really wanted a bagel.” The guy serving me though instantly said, “What kind of bagel would you like?” and I told him I wanted the pumpkin bagel. He went ahead and rang up a chocolate pastry in it’s place, letting me get my pined for pumpkin bagel. How sweet!
Coupon notes: Free offer is loaded onto your My Panera card. Expires 60 days after your birthday. I got an email notice about my special offer 4 days before my birthday. Can pick up a card in store or join My Panera online.
I have skipped El Torito in the past but I decided it was high time to try out this deal. I haven’t been to El Torito in ages, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. The nice thing about this one – the free chips and salsa!
[Tableside Fajitas Salad – $12.99 value]
Signing up for El Torito’s Email Club yields you a birthday coupon that’s good for one item up to $12.99 – no other purchase necessary. I opted to get the Tableside Fajitas Salad with chicken which clocks in perfectly at $12.99. The salad and the sizzling fajitas are brought tableside and tossed together right before you – you have the option to get the dressing on the side, too, if you fear too much dressing. I walked on the wild side and let them do it for me. The onions and other fajita goodies are also tossed in with cojita cheese, chunks of avocado, roasted pepitas, pico de gallo, tortilla strips and a serrano-grape vinaigrette. Overall very delicious and fresh. I was surprised at how tasty it was!
My waiter also brought me a mini flan! Probably the cutest mini flan ever.
Coupon notes: Sent about 1 week before birthday. Expires 1 week after birthday. Doesn’t specify, but I printed this one out. El Torito Email Club signup. No other purchase required. Good up to $12.99.
[Mini Club Supreme with roast beef, turkey, swiss, bacon done “Mike’s Way”]
This is another one of the deals I haven’t used in years past because I thought I didn’t really like Jersey Mike’s. I went a couple of times when they first started popping up in San Diego and I tried their hot sandwiches – which I didn’t like. This time around I went for a cold sandwich and found it to be a much better experience.
The meats and cheeses are sliced fresh when you order your sandwich. I got the Club Supreme (roast beef, turkey, swiss, bacon) and I got it “Mike’s Way” – which is with lettuce, tomatoes, onion, mayo, olive oil and vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper. The cold sandwiches are way better than the hot ones with the fresh slices of meat and cheese. The bacon was also surprising good – very crisp and it tasted like real bacon, not like those flimsy pieces of “bacon” found in fast food restaurants. Glad I finally decided to drop in and get this deal!
I actually got the “mini” sub because I didn’t want to eat a regular sized, but this deal is good for the regular sized sub.
Waffle burgers. Say it with me – waffle burgers! Why hasn’t anyone else done this? I’m surprised this hasn’t popped up into the consciousness sooner – using waffles as a replacement for buns. The idea sounds awesome… but how’s the execution?
Pete Mayo’s Waffle Burgers is a tiny little restaurant located on Imperial Avenue in Lincoln Park aka not the best part of town. I grew up nearby so I know what it’s like. It’s one of those restaurants you could pass a million times without ever noticing it because it’s in such a weird location right on that busy, busy street.
There’s not much to it once you step inside, either. Two tables at best with a sparse counter and only paper menus to reveal what treats they’re cooking up in the kitchen.
[the menu]
The items are all cheap, too. The most expensive sandwich rings in at $6.25 for a cracked peppered turkey waffle sandwich which you can get served hot or cold.
[the small countertop/kitchen]
Jake actually discovered this one on Yelp with only two reviews to it’s credit. The name intrigued me enough to want to go by. Our first attempt failed when they were not open yet on a Saturday morning with no hours posted in the window. We took our chances this time around one October morning to find them open for business.
[the original waffle burger – $5.50]
I took the plunge and decided to order the “original” waffle burger which comes on your choice of waffle (buttermilk, blueberry, multi grain or cinnamon – I picked buttermilk) with a 1/4 lb patty, grilled onions, bell peppers (I asked for none), lettuce, tomatoes and cheese with a good bit of mayo, mustard and ketchup.
[waffle burger – once bitten, twice shy]
I loved the waffle as the “bun” but this burger could use some improvements. The beef was quite obviously a frozen patty and it was a bit underseasoned and wasn’t the freshest burger I’ve ever had. The condiments were fine, though it was a bit heavy handed on the mustard. Overall I wasn’t impressed, but I didn’t think it was awful either. The idea was more exciting then the execution in this case. On the other hand, there were these chicken waffle sandwiches…
[mayo’s chicken n bacon sandwich – $5.75]
Jake ordered a Chicken n Bacon waffle sandwich with a multiple grain waffle.
Let’s just say that I was jealous of his meal after one bite.
Hans & Harry is a local bakery down in Bonita that I have heard about forever, but never went to. Which is silly, since Jake and I are usually in the area every other week to pick up his kids for a weekend. We finally went by to check it out afternoon when I was especially in the mood to try some sweet treats (which, FYI, is pretty much every afternoon, ever).
[a wall of strudels greets you upon entry]
This is what greets you when you first enter Hans and Harry.
Be still, my heart!
All of the pretty, delicious looking strudels are waiting to enter to your belly.
[fruit studels]
Such beautiful strudels!
[one case of baked goods at hans & harry]
And this is actually only ONE of the cases at the counter. I think I must have zoned out because I didn’t photograph the rest of the offerings. Just know that there is MORE.
[peanut butter bar]
Though the strudel looked seriously awesome, I wasn’t in a strudel kind of mood. Instead we shared a variety of treats, one of them being this peanut butter bar.
The peanut butter bar was sort of a cross between a cookie and a brownie. It had a softer, chewier middle (like a brownie) with the outer crust a little crisper (and cookie-like). Overall though it was a little dry and not super moist – I guess I was thinking it’d be more like a fudgy peanut butter version of a brownie. Too bad it wasn’t. Continue reading “hans & harry bakery / bonita – san diego, ca”
This post contains: a product review, an easy peasy recipe, and asking for a little bit of help from you!
I recently joined up with a team of 5 bloggers from California to compete in a little contest vs. other bloggers representing their own states. Our goal? To showcase our recipes and reviews of sauces from WorldFoods! We were each given a hamper full of various stir fry sauces, pastes and dipping sauces to use in whatever way we’d like. The nice thing about all of these sauces is that they’re good for a wide variety of diets since they have no artificial preservatives, no gluten, no trans fat and no dairy in their products and are suitable for vegetarians, vegans and those with allergy restrictions.
Team California’s overall goal is to get the word out and obtain the most amount of feedback across all of our social networks! If you enjoy my post, please like this post on Facebook or share it on Twitter or pin a photo to Pinterest!
Okay, spiel over. Onto the food!
Out of the eight sauces I received, I decided to start with something easy: a little stir fry with WorldFoods Cambodian Pineapple Lemon Grass sauce. One of the neat things about this sauce? I can pronounce all of the items in the ingredients list! That’s always nice.
To make things interesting, I paired this with some freshly made coconut rice.
I don’t know about you, but I find plain old rice to be incredibly boring. Maybe it was my years of childhood being made to eat rice I didn’t really enjoy, but plain rice isn’t something I ever crave. But add a little flavor and seasoning to it – chicken stock, herbs, lemon – then I’m totally game. I created a simple coconut rice to pair with dinner – all I added to my pot of calrose rice was a big can of coconut water, a pinch of salt and a pinch of white sugar.
The coconut rice I started first since it takes about 20 minutes to do. The calrose rice is my preferred go-to rice as well – but this will work with a different type, too. The pinch of sugar adds another slight bit of sweetness – nothing to outrageous – but gives it a nice little touch that I really enjoy. Fluffy, sticky, and slightly sweet – mmm.
It’s not a really strong coconut flavor, either. It’s mild, a little nutty, and a little sweet. A nice base for a stir fry, if you ask me.
For the stir-fry, I really kept things simple. For my first review of one of their sauces, I really wanted to keep things simple and see how it would stand up mostly on it’s own.
I kept the veggies simple with some sliced up onions, mushrooms and snow peas.
Fact: I love snow peas. I hate frozen green peas. I have no idea what’s wrong with me.
For the meaty portion of this dinner, I sliced up a leftover New York steak that Jake had brought over and 1 piece of pork that had been marinating for a BBQ later in the week (I stole it for my dish!). I stuck the steak in the freezer for a few minutes while I prepped everything else, so it would be oh-so-slightly easier to cut into thin slices.
Annnnnd – that was it for the prep work! Onto to the wok!
Let the stir-frying begin!
After heating my wok to HOLYHELLTHATISHOT temperatures, I added the onions and cooked those for about a minute. Then I tossed in the mushrooms and sprinkled in salt and pepper. Another minute. Then I added the snow peas – another little dash of salt and pepper – I believe in seasoning every layer! Continue reading “stir fry with pineapple lemon grass sauce and coconut rice”
Halloween is right around the corner! And if you need a rockin’ cool cake to make for your Halloween party (or any other zombie related event), you should try your hand at making a zombie graveyard cake. It’s not too bad to make this sucker and the best part is that is doesn’t have to look neat – zombies like gorging on flesh, they’re not exactly concerned with how they look, you know.
This is a repost from my old craft blog that I decided to port over here for the holiday. Enjoy!
[zombie graveyard – view one]
The cake is a yellow cake with vanilla pastry cream (dyed red) and fresh strawberries in the middle with chocolate frosting.
I recently received the opportunity to review one of Martha Stewart’s enameled cast iron pots. My dad helped me out with this one as he’s the one that made this really deliciously simply New England Style Clam Chowder. With just a few ingredients, this soup together comes together really easily and is super tasty.
The cast iron pot helped to keep this chowder warm for hours after it was made, too. Impressive!
I choose the smaller 3 quart enameled cast iron pot for its size and versatility. They also have 6 quart and 8 quarts pots and I can only imagine how hefty those suckers are. The smaller 3 quart is a perfect size – and not too heavy to lift.
The enameled surface creates a beautiful rich color (if you know anything about me, you’d know that I would of course pick a green cast iron pot. “Hmm, what color should I get? Is green available? Hells yeah!”). The coating also prevents rusting and you don’t need to season the pot like you do with traditional cast iron.
Besides the pretty green color, the cast iron pots are available in red, blue, orange, purple, white and yellow – all gorgeous colors!
Okay, enough talk about the pot – onto the chowder!
We’ve had this huge ass can of chopped sea clams for awhile now. It was high time that it get used. This is a 51 oz can of clams – you can get this at Costco (Dad says it comes in a two pack). You will need the whole can!
You’ll also need a couple of bay leaves. If you’re like us, you’ll just go out to your backyard and get a couple from your bay leaf tree.
What? You don’t have a bay leaf tree? You should get one.
As a San Diego native I’m a little embarrassed to say that I’ve never dined at the Brigantine before! It’s a local chain of seafood restaurants and for whatever reason… I just never went. Probably due to the fact that the most of the people I hang out with are opposed to seafood for some ungodly reason. Oh, little sea creatures, come fill my belly with your delicious ways!
Ahem, you can just ignore me.
So, I was invited to come dine at the restaurant recently and I took Laura with me, since she’s my one seafood-faring friend who lives nearby. We met up at the Coronado location for a night of seafood treats!
[brown bread (wheat, rye & molasses) and sourdough]
Though we did start our seafood adventure with bread. I am not one who turns down bread. In fact I’m having a cheese and bread party very soon for my birthday, because, well… why not?! Bread and cheese, my two great loves. Mmm.
This complimentary bread was very tasty – served fresh and warm with a little vial of butter. The sourdough was crisp and the brown bread was delicious with that touch of sweetness from the molasses.
[lemon press – lemonade and ginger beer]
I wasn’t in the mood for any “hard” drinks, so I opted for this Lemon Press drink – a mixture of lemonade and ginger beer (or ginger ale… I can’t remember which, fairly sure ginger beer). Really delicious and crisp drink – a tad on the sweet side, but not overbearing.
Overbearing sweetness is so… overbearing.
Stop rolling your eyes at me.
[virgin mango margarita]
Laura wasn’t in the mood for the strong drinks either, probably because I wasn’t, and opted for this virgin Mango Margarita. I had a little sip of this frothy looking drink – had a good punch of flavor and was definitely very mango tasting. A bit sweeter than my Lemon Press. Maybe a touch too sweet.
[prince edward island mussels and littleneck clams in garlic wine broth]
We started off with appetizers after trying not to eat that whole basket of bread (it was hard). We started with this mixture of mussels and clams in a garlic wine broth. You have the option, too, of getting just clams or just mussels, if so desire. We so desired to have both though.
The clams and mussels were very nice with a tenderness and a slight chew. The garlic wine broth was a little on the weak side – I would have preferred a richer tasting broth with more garlic – but I’m kind of a garlic fiend. It was still satisfying though in it’s own way (though maybe I prefer Anthology’s version of this dish a bit more).
[crab & shrimp fondue with garlic toast]
Oh wow, I ordered something with cheese in it? What a surprise!
NOT!
If you put something with a lot of cheese on your menu, I’m gonna order it. I think I have a special stomach just for cheese.
Fall makes me think of things like falling leaves and pumpkins and warm soups and apples.
Apples! Sure, we can get apples year round but we don’t always get apples like these. I was recently given a few apples to experiment with from Frieda’s – two different varieties that I had never heard of!
The Pink Pearl (left) and the Cortland (right).
Pink Pearls were developed in the 1940’s by a Northern California breeder while the Cortland was developed at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva in 1898.
As you can see, the Pink Pearl has pink overtones within the flesh of the apple. It’s got a slightly tart taste. It’s not like “Granny Smith OMG tart” either – a bit more mild with a touch of sweetness. The cortland is very white and crisp and much sweeter than it’s counterpart.
These unique heirloom apples will be available at local Sprouts stores starting October 17th, so you can get some of these beautiful apples for yourself!
I decided to take these beautiful apples to produce this: a salted caramel apple galette.
Want to go on a apple galette making journey with me?
Of course you do!
First things first… we need salted caramel sauce.
Oh, I suppose you could just cheat and buy a jar of sauce. They do make a really wonderful one at Trader Joe’s. But I was feeling rather down in the dumps that day due the radiator in my car bursting and causing my car to break down that I wanted to do something therapeutic: like baking and making caramel sauce from scratch.
Caramel sauce it actually quite easy. Sugar and water, into a pan, set it to shimmer. And don’t touch it! No stirring!
Okay, maybe I swirl it around a little… but that’s just to see how amber it’s getting.
All of those crazy bubbles get in the way, I tell you.
