Be warned: if you make dinner plans with me and our get-together falls through, I’m still going to go out for that dinner. Especially if tacos are involved.
The smartest (and nicest) people work at El RanchitoYum.
Tonight I learned a new word in Spanish- “antojitos” are “little cravings,” and the word is generally associated with street food snacks. I like how Wiki jives with the exact same thing that the cashier told me. El Ranchito hires the best people as food guides, I tell you.
Antojitos are on their menu, and it comes as two little enchiladas and four small tacos- two each of potatoes and beans, a lot of shredded cabbage, salsa and cream on top to stuff in your tacos. I honestly think that El Ranchito is hands down the best Mexican food in the county!
At noon on Wednesday and The Husband and I were near the same neighborhood at the same time so we met at a new-ish spot for lunch. Handy, since I hadn’t decided what new adventure to have for the day. He’s rather accommodating if food is involved.
I really do have a list of things to try or do. I started compiling ideas last summer, probably grumpy after cancelling my plans to do one thing or another… boo hoo, poor me. My pity party got the crabbiness out of my system, and soon grew into the largest note on my phone logging all kinds of various things I have been meaning to do or try, but never seemed to get around to actually doing. I also decided to do what every other person between the age of 10 and 90 seems to have done with any half-baked idea…
Know anything about boba tea? All I knew was we see shops selling it everywhere, with the necessary wide straw to suck up the large tapioca pearls that make this such a unique drink. The Husband reported trying it once and that he didn’t like it. I did.
Keep in mind that I like tapioca. Why do people hate on tapioca? Boba tea is kind of like a sweet, iced latte, but with a strong tea instead. I can see why kids like this drink- it is highly interactive what with playing with the super wide straw to suck up the huge tapioca pearls. Interesting note- The Husband admitted that this was much better than the last boba tea he tried, he drank half of it.
Why did he drink half of my milky tea? Because, Sab-E-Lee serves its food HOT! When ordering, you specify the heat level, 1-10. His Drunken Noodles were requested at level #3. This half-Mexican loved his lunch, but admitted that next visit he will drop to a #2. The couple at the next table and the server all confirmed that Sab-E-Lee is one of the hotter places to get your chili pepper fix in San Diego.
Pad-Dee-Ewe, no heat, thankyouverymuch!
Sab-E-Lee was packed at noon, and for a good reason. I ordered Pad-See-Ewe with shrimp (#0!), and I loved it. Big, fat, rice noodles, stir fried with egg, Chinese broccoli, other vegetables and a delicious sauce. Mine was so good, I didn’t even try any of The Husband’s food. He reports that the Drunken Noodles were fabulous.
I spent the morning poring over college websites to prepare for the visits we will make for The Girl’s upcoming Big Decision. Although I knew that this talented, intelligent and witty, Chip off the Ol’ Block (HA! See what I did there?) would be making her choice soon, it still feels like a punch in the gut. This is my first-born to whom I frequently refer as my sense of humor. This will not be easy.
Enough with sobering topics- time to try something new to cheer me up. Today, I went with two new things- my birthday Japanese dinner ware and a new tempura shrimp I picked up from Costco. Yes, I am easily cheered.
Hamachi (Yellowtail) Sashimi, caught that morning- click the pic for a great poke recipe!
I finally used my birthday gift certificates in November that I received from The Mom- and Sister-in-Law way back in April last year. This new set of Japanese dishes has sat in the china cabinet, waiting for when The Sis-in-law comes with her family for one of our sashimi-fests we’ve enjoyed when the men have caught yellowtail or ahi. Thank you Husband and his Brother-in-law for braving what I won’t- sea sickness! Holy yum, it has been fabulous every time they have caught anything.
Tiger Thai brand Tempura Shrimp, click the pick for the link!Close-up of yum…
No one has been out fishing lately, but I did have that tempura shrimp and edamame in the freezer, and rice leftovers. It was Game On because I wanted to use that dishware. Tiger Thai’s Tempura Shrimp came in four plastic wrapped styrofoam trays, five per tray with dipping sauce packs. The shrimp crisped nicely in the toaster oven in about 10 minutes while the rest of lunch got thrown together. You know how a lot of frozen foods are often poor versions of what is available from a restaurant? I thought that was going to be the case here but, surprise, surprise- I can honestly say, this frozen Shrimp Tempura was definitely tasty. Great texture, great flavor, not greasy, which is always The Husband’s complaint with tempura. I’d get it again, for sure.
‘Twas dee-lish!
And I love my birthday plates, tea cups, leetle-bitty sauce dishes, rice/soup bowls and tea kettle. I picked up everything from Cost Plus World Market, and if you are interested, I believe they are still available.
Fuji Blossom Dinnerware from Cost Plus World Market. Click the Pic for the link…
The school play opened this Friday, which means this entire past week has been tech week. I have seen my 14 and (nearly) 18 year olds for a total of 10 minutes in the morning and another 10-20 at night, and hardly any time all day Saturday. I did have something new to blog about on Friday and today, but didn’t get around to writing up either post because of the ridiculous schedule the family has kept for the past week.
The only thing I was up to putting out to the blogosphere is the new wine I popped open right now.
Feudo Maccari Nero d’Avola
This is from one of the bottles we won in the school’s raffle last month. It is nice, but I think it needs more time in the bottle. If anyone knows about Sicilian red “Feudo Maccari Nero d’Avola,” please share!
This is a beautiful garnet colored red Italian table wine. Fruity but on the dry side, it will do nicely to help lull me to sleep after a busy, busy week.
While buying apples for tomorrow’s taste testing with the techies (teen techies, technically… I’ll stop the alliteration now), I found Purple Artichokes. I would have just walked past, but I’m on the lookout for the novel, new or unknown so, into the cart they went! With tech week going on and no kids to cook for, I’m much more willing to try something new with no teens saying “Ew, what’s that?!?”
Purple Artichokes, ready to prep.Trimmed, top and bottom.
I grew up eating artichokes and wondered if these tasted different. After a wash and trim, they were ready for a 30-40 minute steam. I didn’t trim the thorny top from each leaf… ain’t nobody got time for that. I highly recommend sticking around the kitchen to ensure your pot doesn’t boil dry (read: don’t go start writing your blog post for the night) . We can testify that your home and the outermost leaves will smell something reminiscent of an ashtray… yep. Once past the first three or four leaves, though, it was all a happy, butter-drenched extravaganza. Let’s admit it, artichokes taste great but are really just an excuse to eat more butter.
Purple Artichoke, Butter, Shrimp, Butter, and Butter
The Purple Artichokes were just as delicious as a regular Globe Artichoke. No notable difference in flavor or texture.
I remember EONS ago when I was in college but still living at home. This was when I started to cook- really cook, not just bake cookies. A produce company Frieda’s provided new, exotic fruits and vegetables to our local grocery stores that I had never noticed before. Frieda’s reminds me how I couldn’t wait to start shopping and cooking for myself. I still love finding bargains and cooking for our family. Frieda’s Inc. is still around and will you look at one of their feature photos from their site? It is the same purple artichoke that is on our menu tonight:
branching out... on a limb 