SATURDAY NIGHT @ BLUE CORAL

Blue Coral at Fashion Island - Newport Beach, CA. We really like this place. They have really good food - not out of this world, but very good - and the service is just outstanding. The service is just about as good as it gets. Over the top friendly, and not at all intimidating. They treat you almost as if your famous, no matter who you are. That's just something you really don't see very often anymore.





We had a really great table, perfect to peer into the kitchen (which I really like).



Theo had the pork shank which was pretty much what one would expect, tender and flavorful...


I had the swordfish oscar. Very good, not overcooked. It was put together a little oddly (separate from the crab and hollandaise and the fish with it's own pan sauce) but trust me when I say the taste was not disappointing. Oh, and that's a little bit of their lobster mac & cheese you also see on the plate. Very mellow for a mac & cheese, it almost tasted as if the pasta was mixed with some thickened lobster bisque then they added a little cheese. It was good, I really enjoyed it. Definitely much lighter in texture than what we expected.


And dessert - An espresso trio. A creme, some cookies with massive amounts of chocolate chips, and gellato. :) Super sweet. A little too sweet for me, but Theo didn't have any trouble finishing it.

EGG FOO YOUNG - MY VERSION

This is the way my Mom made it. She said she got this recipe from a Chinese cookbook, but it's really like no egg foo young that I've ever had in any Chinese restaurant. I hate restaurant egg foo young because it's usually too bread-like. I like this version much better.

This is not an exact science, and you can't really screw it up. Basically.... it's eggs, rice and bean sprouts. It can be thick or soupy and will pretty much taste the same once cooked up - but I suggest a medium consistancy.

Get a dozen eggs - use 8-9 whole eggs, then the rest just use the whites. Then 2 cups cooked rice sauteed with a bit of veg oil, 1 or 2 diced bell peppers, one bunch sliced green onions, and few slices bacon, diced, and cooked (leave bacon fat in pan to sautee rice in). Cook for about 10 minutes on medium heat, stirring frequently. Add a few dashes of soy sauce. SO... now you have fried rice, let it cool and then combine the eggs and the rice mixture. Add 2 cans (drained) bean sprouts (or fresh if you like but cook them first). Add a few more dashes of soy sauce, then mix.




Add a few good splashes of oil to a pan, then spoon in like pancakes.


I like to wait until the edges start to get brown and crispy before I turn them.


Make in batches until all done. You can make a sauce for them also with beef or vegetable stock, a few dashes of soy sauce, then thicken with corn starch. :)

HERB SALT

Ever make herb salt? I love it because the herbs stay much more flavorful than they do if you just dry them out.

It's so easy. Get some coarse sea salt and then add your chopped herbs. I mix half herbs and half salt. Thyme, parsley, a little bit of rosemary, oregano, some fresh ground pepper, and a few bay leaves. Put it in a jar or bowl and just stir it around once a day until the herbs are dry. I keep the jar on the counter and use almost daily it as my house spice. :)

SALMON FOR DINNER TONIGHT

So, I had a piece of salmon. But I know Theo is probably getting tired of salmon because we eat it once a week now and I always fix it the same way - plain, pan sauteed with a crispy crust a squirt of lemon and then some fresh greens - so I wanted to make it more hearty than the typical dinner that we normally have. Oh, speaking of vegetables, all I had was eggplant. Well, eggplant and celery and we all know the celery doesn't really qualify as a side dish leading role. Salmon and eggplant. Hmmm. Hey, how about I sautee the eggplant with some tomato, add a pinch of oregano, and toss with the salmon over spaghetti? A touch of truffle oil would be nice too? Oh, and a few shreds of cheese. But since parm regg always gets the gig when it coms to pasta - how about guyere this time instead.

And so a pasta dish was born.

The appetizer...


Vegetables cooked...



Salmon is getting it's crust...



THAT'S what I'm talkin' about!


No, dogs can't have salmon. I'm sorry Lulu. You can have a noodle, is that OK?


Ahhhh..... done! And, it was really good. I overcooked the noodles a tad, but I was too lazy and hungry to recook them, but it was still edible. I think a few olives in this would have also been outstanding!

WELCOME!

Welcome to post #1 on our food blog!

I thought a good place to start would be to just introduce everyone to my kitchen. 
So, here it is....






These three knives shown here are my favorites; (ignore the bread knife on the left) A vintage French artisian chef knife, my vintage Ed Wusthof carver and my French made vintage Pernot slicer. I recently found a Pernot Chef on eBay that I'm super excited about. They are very hard to find. And they are awesome. Nothing they make today, at any price, is as good in my opinion.