End of Summer...?

The warm weather this week (record high in LA on Monday!) reminds that summer did, in fact, happen.  I might have spent most of it freezing in my Santa Monica office, but Monday proved that indeed Santa Monica can experience some warmth for the year and that summer didn't just up and disappear.  But while I'm basking in the sun on the patio of my office building, and wearing sundresses to work all week, I can't ignore the (3) calendars staring at me telling me that October is just a day away.  Don't get me wrong, I'm still gonna hit the beach this weekend and soak in every last drop of sunshine before I give in to Halloween decorations, picking out pumpkins, and bundling up in jeans, boots, and scarfs (time to go shopping!).  But nevertheless, it seems like a more than appropriate time to take a look back at my summer, as only one should, in iphone photos.

{a new home, in a new city}

{Down the street from new home}

{KROQ Weenie Roast}

{Work trip to Portland}

{Dinner for One at Stonefire Grill}

{car ride home from the Delta}

{Sonja and I working the ABC Fall Preview Red Carpet}

{lights and palm trees at The Shrine}

{summer brews}

{Teppan Birthday Dinner}

{Inside the truck for TV Guide's Emmy Red Carpet}

{Emmys}

{Five Guys Burgers}

{Naples Rib Company}

{Farmer's Market}

{White Buffalo show at DiPiazzas}

{rainbow}

{Santa Monica Sunset}

Summer flew by, and I thought I didn't have a lot to show for it, but I realize now that I have a lot: a new home to share with someone, a job that keeps me busy (too busy) - but constantly learning, a lot of good food that went in my belly, some short but fun trips, and a new favorite summer time beer.  

I'm looking forward to what's in store for the rest of the year!

peace, love, summer sunshine, and happiness!

Delightful Dinner and Easy too!

I love when dinner comes together effortlessly - a skill that I have yet to perfect, but am getting better at.  I didn't intend to blog about this meal, but it turned so wonderful that I had to share, even with my single, only, rather crappy iphone photo.

{Delicious Dinner}

For the chicken, which I call "Juicy Honey Garlic Chicken," I adapted Chef Adam Perry Lang's recipe for a whole butterflied chicken on the grill.  The recipe calls for brining the chicken - something I have never done before, or even thought to do - and I wish I had discovered this method long ago, being that it turns boring, dry chicken into something quite magical.  I followed the brining instructions for the whole chicken but substituted 2 frozen chicken breasts.  I also used dry herbs, mainly rosemary and a healthy sprinkle of herbs de provence.  Next time I will use less brine, or less salt, since the recipe was intended for a much larger amount of chicken than I used it for, and I felt my chicken turned out a touch too salty - but damn, it was juicy.  While grilling the chicken I basted it with the glaze from the recipe - and I've been using this glaze on everything lately since it is so versatile and delicious -  2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 crushed garlic cloves, juice of half a lemon (I like a whole lemon if it's a small one), 2 tablespoons honey, and 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar.  Try it on salmon substituting the white wine vinegar for balsamic vinegar, its subtle yet flavorful.

To go with the chicken I used my new kitchen side dish staple Smitten Kitchen's fabulous Quick Zucchini Sauté.  It's sure to be an instant classic.  I know this because my bf who wouldn't touch a green thing 6 months ago will actually pick it out of the pan with his fingers while I'm cooking and while I'm swatting his hand away.  I like to add a tiny squeeze of lemon and a dash of cayenne pepper, and I never top it with parmesan cheese as the recipe suggests - it just doesn't need it.  I suggest you try this recipe asap - it might change your world.  

And to finish the meal off, some beautiful mashed sweet potatoes.  Simple, healthy delicious.  I boiled my sweet potatoes the day ahead and had them in the fridge to use when I got home.  I just scooped the flesh into a pot with a little bit of butter (although I'm not sure they even needed it), a squeeze of honey, a spoonful of sour cream (I only had a little, and I think it really helped with the texture), and a healthy sprinkle of salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.  Voilá!  Dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes!

Peace, love, yummy dinners, and happiness!

Burger Blogging - Stout

Before I moved out of Los Angeles I wanted to say goodbye by hitting up all my fav LA spots and some new ones.  I, of course, never found the time to do all the things I wanted to do... but then again when do we ever?  And it's not like I moved all that far away - and I still work in LA, in fact quite near Father's Office... I need to go there...  Whoops, lost my train of thought, well only a little - this post is, naturally, about burgers.  What else would I eat for (what turned out to be) my last meal as a Hollywood resident?  After a stressful day and the beginning of a cold rearing it's ugly head, we ended up at Stout Burgers and Beer for a much needed night out.  And what works better to kill a cold than a nice juicy burger and a couple cold beers?  [Side note: turns out a lot of things might work better, since my cold only got worse.]   We luckily scored a table without waiting - and the place was packed!  After much indecision, being that I had tried the Stout Burger before and wasn't sure which route to go - try something new or stick with what I already know I liked?  Ultimately, bf decided on the Stout Burger - a tasty combo of blue cheese, emi gruyere, rosemary bacon, caramelized onion, and horseradish cream - minus the horseradish cream (no big loss).  And I settled on the Six Weeker - camembert, fig jam (I'm a sucker for anything fig), mild jack, arugula, and caramelized onions (that sealed the deal).

{Six Weeker Burger}

{Stout Burger}

I'm going to base my scoring on the "Six Weeker Burger" since that is the one I ate while having this blog in mind.

Score Card:

1. Bun: based on texture, taste, and the way it complements the burger. Things that just won't do are soggy and stale.

Stout: 3

2.  Meat: looking for good texture, flavor, quality, and seasoning.

Stout: 4

3.  Juiciness: applies to the overall juiciness of the burger including the patty, the sauces, and anything else that makes the burger juicy.  But beware being too juicy might drop the score down.  I want to be able to pick up my burger.

Stout: 4

4.  Cheese: mmm... cheese... do I need to explain this one?

Stout: 4

5.  Fixin's:  Everything else that comes on the burger from lettuce to caramelized onions and roasted tomatoes.  Whatever it is it better complement the burger and be delicious.

Stout: 3 - could have used more fig and onion taste. Needed to be to quote Emeril "kicked up a notch"

Overall factors are:

1.  The Perfect Bite:  how well everything on the burger comes together.

Stout: 3

2.  Creativity: use of unique ingredients and pairings.

Stout: 4

Overall Score: 25 out of 35

I wasn't in love with the big bun, the meat is really thick which would be fine if I had more fig jam and caramelized onion taste.  But a very nice burger nonetheless!

peace, love, burgers, and happiness!