I got out of class early tonight and on the way back home, Mr. H and I were both trying to think of ways to get out of preparing dinner. Then Mr. H confessed that he got paid today – and we veered left into the parkinglot for Chihuahuas.
We live near Chihuahuas – and have for years, but for some reason we have never bothered to give the restaurant a try. How sad that we lived this close to such a good restaurant and didn’t know it.
I had the tortilla soup – the chicken was grilled to perfection, lots of vegetables, fresh avacados and the broth was very savory. I only got half way through the bowl and I was stuffed.
Mr. H had the fish tacos, and judging from the effort I had to exert to try to get a bite, they were pretty good. (I did eventually get a bite, but it was only the tiniest corner and mostly cabbage.) Mr. H was also quite pleased that his O’Douls was delivered with a frosted mug.
The flan did not live up to the standards set by the rest of the meal, but it was good nonetheless. We’ll be back.
Mr. H and I had dinner with his mother and sister tonight. This probably doesn’t happen as often as it should as we only live a few miles away from each other. Dinner went well and we introduced the inlaws to one of our favorite restaurants.
The Caspian Grill is on the Ave just north of 55th in the U district. The food is Persian and very well prepared. We like to share food, so they served it family style for us – chicken kabobs, koobideh, fesenjan, and gormeh sabzi, with a giant heaping plate of saffroned basmati rice for each – a standard order for us (well, we don’t usually get the chicken kabobs). The food was excellent as usual, but the service was quite slow. The help wanted sign in the window may speak to that issue.
I got out of class 2 hours early and as I was walking back to meet up with The Husband I saw the most amazing sunset. We made a snap decision and decided to lickety-split down to Salty’s on Redondo Beach for dinner.
Ordinarily we cant afford to eat there but we just got paid and all the bills were paid and we were just really feeling impulsively optimistic what with the beautiful sunset and all. (Yay for camera phones, by the way. I snapped both of these pictures with my phone.)
So we wind down the hill to the beach as as we come in to view of the sea-wall it’s lined with couples holding hands and making out. It’s just all to cute and we both let out an involuntary “Aawwwwwwwwwww.”
Salty’s is worth the visit for the bread alone, but they seated us right up at the window with this amazing view, and after the sun went down we watched the jumping fish and the scuba divers ascending out of the water – too cool.
The food was amazing – we both went for the special – halibut over wilted spinach and red potatoes with a delicate hollandaise.
It’s payday weekend so we splurged on breakfast this morning.
We went to Wild Wheat Bakery and Cafe in downtown Kent. I love the downtown part of Kent, it’s so old school. The shops are all independently owned and it’s a great pedestrian area where you can walk from the library to a wide selection of cafes while shopping.
Wild Wheat is a european style bakery with the really crusty breads. The decor inside the cafe is very simple, but punctuated with pieces from local artists that are available for sale.
Mr. H had the eggs florentine which was garnished with tomatoes and dill (the dill really added something special.) I had Stollen French Toast. The stollen bread is made with hazelnuts, raisins and currants and then stuffed with almond paste, and then battered and fried like regular french toast. The edges caramelized perfectly, and the meal was served with fresh fruit and real butter. Its a sad commentary in our world when butter is a pleasant surprise. We topped it off with 2 lattes and got out of there for less than $30.
1 tsp ground saffron dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water
1/4 cup rose water
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
Dough
2 cups all purpose flour
4 tbsp unsalted pistashios for garnish
1 1/2 cups ghee
make syrup: bring the water and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and add the saffron water, rose water and cardamom. Mix well and set aside.
Make flour pase: in a large dep saute pan, toast the flour for about 10 minutes over medium head, stirring constantly. Add the melted butter and fry, mixing constantly with wooden spoon for 7 – 15 minutes, until golden brown. Remove the pan from the heat.
Add syrup: gradually blend the syrup into the hot flour and butter mixture, stirring constatly with a wooden spoon for about 5 minutes. Transfer to a food procesor and process until smooth, about 5 minutes. The paste should set and become thick and smooth.
Chill: spoon onto a plate and pack firmly with a spoon. Garnish with pistachios. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours. Cut into small pieces and serve as dessert.
1/4 tsp ground saffron threads dissolved in 2 Tbsp hot water
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp black pepper
1 large onion, sliced
2 tsp salt
Baste
1/4 tsp ground saffron threads dissolved in 2 Tbsp hot water
juice of 1 lime
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup ghee or butter
Marinate: pound the lamb pieces lightly with a heavy knife to tenderize. Place the lamb in a ziplock bag. Add the onion, garlic, salt, pepper, lime, and saffron water. Seal and marinate for at least 24 hours and up to 72 in the refridgerator. Turn at least twice.
Make baste: combine butter, lime juice, saffron water, salt and pepper in a small sauce pan. Keep warm over low heat.
Grill: start a bed of charcoal at least 30 minute before you want to grill the lamb. Meanwhile thread 5 – 6 pieces of meat onto each skewer, alternating with cherry tomatoes. Grill for 3 -4 minutes on each side, turning and basting frequently. The total cooking should be 6 – 10 minutes.
Serve: Spread a piece of lavash break on a serving platter. When the meat is done, remove from the skewer and place on the bed of lavash, surrounded by tomatoes. Baste once and cover with lavash to keep warm.
– in a hurry? there’s an enzyme in the onion that helps to break down the meat. If your marinating for 24 hours or more, slice the onions. If you don’t have that much time, liquify the onion with a grater and the enzymes with break down the meat twice as fast.
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