SANTA BARBARA: La Super-Rica!

Julia Child's favorite taco stand, located on an unassuming street corner off the US101 Freeway.  'Sup Julia Child, you know una cosa o dos about tacos.  Taking into consideration the plethora of taco stands in Southern California, this Jalisco style taqueria is exceptionally good.  It is so good that when my coworkers and I were driving up to Santa Barbara to work a catering event at LotusLand gardens, and we heard the truck bringing the ingredients up from Los Angeles overheated, all we could think was: we now have time to get tacos at La Super-Rica!  This transcendental mexican cuisine put us in a state of pure bliss, as we devoured our hand-made, fresh tortillas smothered with grilled marinated meats, gooey queso, roasted poblanos, avocado cream sauce, and salsa.  For a brief taco-filled moment, our minds were happily diverted from the nightmare of a catering event that lay ahead.  

Señora mixing, pressing, and grillin corn tortillas.  Señor grillin pasilla peppers and marinated pork.

Daily Special: Tamale de Verduras.  Freshly made tamale stuffed with squash, corn, and chilis, served with a cream sauce. (weekend special)

#16 Super-Rica Special: Roasted cheese filled pasilla peppers, marinated char grilled pork, and grilled onions.  Served with corn tortillas.

622 N. Milpas St, Santa Barbara, CA 93103

PARIS: Take me back

Huerture, the boulangerie of your dreams. Located on Rue du Bourg Tibourg in the Marais.

An assortment of marshmallows somewhere on Rue de Rennes

A 7eme picnic, complete with strawberries, grapes, fromage, et du pain gathered on Rue Cler

And I can't forget (I can't forget) 

No, I can't forget (I can't forget) 

Oh, I can't forget 

but I

I don't remember what.

-Leonard Cohen

Orecchiette with spicy fennel pork sausage and broccoli rabe

So we had a bit of leftover homemade spicy pork sausage.  Threw it together with orecchiette (means little ear in Italian) pasta, broccoli rabe, sauteed red onions, garlic, chili flakes, and leftover pork fat. Topped with pecorino romano cheese. Mmmm.

LOS ANGELES: Eastside Envy @ Silverlake Wine

Silverlake Wine is one of those neighborhood wine shops that makes you, uh...wish you lived in Silverlake.  The owner was once wine director at this little restaurant called Campanile on La Brea (you might have heard of it).  These people are serious about wine, and know more about it than both you and I, even if our brains somehow miraculously merged together.  They carry boutique, small production, high quality, artisanal wines that are different, exciting, and a good buy.  Not only is Silverlake Wine an excellent wine shop, they hold $12 tastings three nights a week (Sunday, Monday, and Thursday), where you get to enjoy a glass of 3 different wines that their brilliant wine-centric minds knowledgeably pick for your curious and impressionable palate.  

If that's not incentive enough: Joined by Let's Be Frank Gourmet Hot Dog Truck parked right in front of the store every Thursday from 5pm-11pm! (Tasting goes from 5-9pm)

The staff includes a cool Jew with red hair, a girl who was wearing a "Let's be Frank" shirt, and this guy who used to look like Hagrid but recently chopped off his precious locks to donate to Locks of Love.  Cool crew indeed!

At the Monday Night Wine Tastings they serve cheese and charcuterie from The Cheesestore of Silverlake.  This guy's goin' for the gold!

A nice collection of ABSINTHE, for when you're in need of a Sazarac

Angostura, Peychaud, and Fee Brothers Bitters

And last , but NOT AT ALL least, Silverlake Wine sells 

CAKE MONKEY bakery desserts.

Pictured above is a BLACK & WHITE CAKEWICH (a gourmet twist on the old Hostess Ding Dong, souped up with Valhrona chocolate pearls...seriously, yum).

2395 Glendale Blvd. Silverlake, CA

LOS ANGELES: La Playita

La Playita is serving up some killer ceviche and shrimp and fish tacos in Venice.  I would have to describe this establishment as somewhere between a taco truck and restaurant.  It is not mobile.  Hence, it is not a truck, but rather a stand with seating on one communal bench outside.  But the prices are not restaurant prices.  Only 4$ for a delicious shrimp ceviche brimming with juicy shrimp, tomato, red onion, cilantro, and lime? Only $1.25 for an awesome carnitas taco, the generous quantity of pork so very juicy, tender, and flavorful?  Anyway, whatever La Playita is, it is exactly what I want on a summer day with a side of beach and friends.

3306 Lincoln Blvd. (near Rose ave.) Venice, CA

A stand? A restaurant? An immobile truck?  You decide. 

(shout out to the two hotties on the left)

Shrimp ceviche

Shrimp ceviche *on a tostada*

Carnitaaaaas taco.  Um, excuse me? $1.25? This thing is HUGE.

*Plus, the guy called me Mija when I came up to the window to place my order, which is always truly heartwarming.

HOMEMADE SAUSAGE: Not the Wurst

My brother bought my dad and I a meat grinder and sausage stuffer attachment for our Kitchenaid.  Here's what we did with it:

Homemade spicy pork fennel sausage with sauteed bell peppers and onions, dijon mustard, and basil

Want a bite?

Look at all that pork fat permeating out of the links into the pan.  You BET we saved that to use in a future recipe.

A winning combination

Recipe for success: Grind 4.5 lbs. of boneless boston pork butt and 8 oz. of unsalted back fat.  Mix in toasted fennel seed, toasted coriander seed, paprika, cayenne, fresh basil, fresh oregano, red chili flakes, sugar, red wine vinegar, salt, and pepper.  Refrigerate overnight.  Stuff in hog casings (can be purchased at Palms Market or from your neighborhood butcher).  Seriously, not the wurst.

*Will make orreciette pasta with sausage and broccoli rabe later this week*

Kitchen Confidential: A sneak peak

Currently, I find myself working in a professional kitchen. Some pics from my day:

Seared Beef Shortribs...on their way to be braised

Stuffed jidori chicken getting rolled in caul fat (the fatty membrane which surrounds internal organs) for xtra flava

Vanilla Mille-feuille (to be served with cherries and toasted almond ice cream)

COCKTAILS: Jalisco Flower

I know, I know, this is not a cocktail blog.  Bare with me.  But this delicious cocktail, the Jalisco Flower, is made with Elderflower Liqueur and is seeing a resurgence in Los Angeles in such bars as Copa d'Oro in Santa Monica.  You will want to make it time and time again because it tastes like sunshine and flowers and it involves tequila, which is always an awesome thing.

St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur

Stunning bottle.  The sweet nectar comes from Elder trees in the French Alps.

Makes 2

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup fresh ruby red grapefruit juice
• 3 tablespoons St-Germain (elderflower liqueur)
• 2 tablespoons blanco tequila
• Ice cubes
• Chilled brut Champagne
• Grapefruit peel twists

PREPARATION

• Combine first 3 ingredients in cocktail shaker; fill with ice. Cover and shake vigorously 20 times. Strain into 2 flutes. Top each with Champagne. Garnish with grapefruit twists.

PARIS: We all scream for Glaces Berthillon

Floating down the cobblestone streets of Paris' Ile Saint-Louis, you will find Glacier Berthillon, opened in 1954.  This maison du ice cream opens its doors each day with a collection of 32 ice cream flavors, made with only milk, cream, sugar, eggs, and the highest quality natural flavorings.  As it should be.

Sigh..

Top scoop: Cassis (my absolute favorite).  Bottom scoop: Gianduja Chocolate with candied orange.  The cassis is like frozen blackcurrant jam, intensified.  It is insane.  You know those things in life that are so good you can't stand it? Berthillon cassis sorbet is one of those things.
Meg eats a scoop of framboise sorbet (on the left), and the mythical fraise des bois (strawberry of the woods) sorbet (on the right).

31 rue St. Louis en L’Ile 75004 Paris

BROOKLYN: Cut Brooklyn

This is a fascinating video from CHOWHOUND Obsessives which features knifemaker Joel Bukiewicz of Cut Brooklyn:

http://www.chow.com/stories/11729

"If on your journey, you should encounter God, God will be cut."

LOS ANGELES: MY FATHER's office burgers are better than yours

Stop drooling.

80/20 ground chuck, tillamook cheddar, big fat slice of red onion, ketchup, and mayonaise.  Ditch the lettuce and tomato. 

Cast iron skillet > a grill.  Grill buns with a little bit of butter, you'll thank yourself later. 

The humble beginnings of a fine burger

The man behind it all, my father.  He's one mean burger flipper.

Worth checking out: http://www.hamburgeramerica.com/ (Shout out to Apple Pan and Marty's)