Gerry Furth-Sides

Jose Cuervo Tequila: Improving with each Next Generation

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Tequila

(photo courtesy of Cuervo)

The Beckmann family who created the Jose Cuervo tequila company is one of the world’s leading examples of descendants of an immigrant keeping the original vision of a company while expanding it for two centuries.

Family-owned, the company today is run by the Beckmann family, direct descendants of Don Jose Antonio de Cuervo.    Juan-Domingo Beckmann, son of Juan Beckmann, is the sixth-generation leader of the company. Officially founded in 1812, it is the oldest active distillery in Latin America.  

We had a chance to try Jose Cuervo tequila again at RED O in both cocktails and in one solo drink in what could have been snifters for the brandy-like Family Reserve, so refined it was served with dessert.  The Passion Fruit Butter Cake (left below) features grilled strawberries, passion fruit custard, coconut crumble and coconut ice cream.

tequila

Familia Reserve “floor show” pairing  the most refined tequila, pairs with desserts

Reserva de la Familia, Cuervo’s first high-end offering is classified as extra añejo.    It owns the distinction of being 100% blue agave tequila,   matured in the La Rojeña distillery’s private cellars.  Reserva de la Familia is aged over three years in an oak barrel, giving it a deeper golden color with a richer flavor more typically tasted in scotch or brandy.  Reserva de la Family, introduced in 1995, its first edition sold out weeks after its release and earned a top ranking within four years

Red O restaurant paired Jose Cuervo cocktails from their bar list with their family appetizers.  Quesadillas, empanadas, and taquitos all worked well.

Cuervo cocktailsOur favorite was the Organic Skinny Cocktail with Sauza Tres Generations organic Blanco tequila, fresh lime, organic agave nectar on the rocks with a salt rim.  “Skinny” refers to nothing being added to the plant itself in the way of sugar.

Skinny cocktail

The refreshing Organic Skinny cocktail

Tequila must officially come from the blue agave plant, a species found only in Jalisco and four nearby regions in central Mexico.   All Jose Cuervo tequila continues to be made in the town of Tequila in the state of Jalisco.

Tequila 

(photo courtesy of Cuervo)

Jose Cuervo,  the best-selling tequila in the world, sells over a third of the tequila sector worldwide and the US alone consumes a fifth of the world’s tequila by volume.

(photo courtesy of Cuervo)

All Jose Cuervo are mixto tequilas.  Cuervo’s Tradicional has been produced since 1795.   Silver and Reposado and Platino varieties are 100% agave tequilas. The reposado achieves its amber color through six months of barrel aging.  Handcrafted Platino.  In 2013, Proximo launched Jose Cuervo Cinge, a cinnamon-infused 35% abv version of Especial Silver.

(photo courtesy of Cuervo)

Jose Cuervo Labastida, who married into the family in 1900, was first to produce tequila under the Jose Cuervo label.   The company was also first in 1873 to package the tequila in damajuanas (rope-encased jugs), replacing wooden barrels, for transportation purposes to the US.

tasting bar

The long tasting bar at Tequila (photo courtesy of Cuervo)

Tequila train

The famous, and the first, Tequila train (photo courtesy of Cuervo)

(photo courtesy of Cuervo)

Israeli Sima Cohen’s Healthy Indulgence Cookbook

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Israeli-born Sima Cohen’s energy seems to bounce right out off the pages of her new Healthy Indulgence cookbook.  Not two days after we met Sima at Melissa’s workshop, she had thanked each and every one of my emails and requested our permission to be put on her mailing list.  Clearly, a go-getter and we want to know her secret!

First, the dishes are clearly influenced by her childhood memories growing up in high-powered Israel.  They are filled with Mediterranean flavors, spices, and aromas. and are combined with healthy ingredients,  many new to this writer, such as mushroom powder.

Cohen’s Cohen’s 20 years of transformational work with clients as a celebrity trainer, nutritionist, wellness expert, author and life coach also come into play.  Both a fitness trainer and a mom, Sima is well aware of sweet tooth cravings and idiosynchronisities that are more common than rare.

Cohen’s Shakshuka, Za’atar Chickpea Pocket, the Kabobs, Cherry Tahini Bites, and the three versions of Hummus are new expressions of old time favorites. Each section of the book (all starting with S) is filled with delights and easy to make meals, snacks, sauces, and drinks. Sunrise section gives you not just smoothies and eggs but also dishes made with fruits, nuts, oats and plenty of superfoods.

Sections for Sandwiches, Soups, and Salads – providing alternatives and combinations for lunch.   For example, Skinny Mini Meatballs, Asian Persuasion Burger or Not So Guilty Grilled Cheese can be combined with Sima’s signature Butternut Squash Soup.

The sections for Snacks and Sauces features dishes as a little bit “cute” with  Grandma’s Sloppy Joes with pomegranate, Leggo of My Tacos, Tuna, Lemme Upgrade Ya!, and Muhammara. For dinner, you will see the section called Sunset where she presents ChimichurriOlé, Kabob-in Greece and Ahi-liveable Fennel and Apple. And this brings us to Sips with recipes for Limonana, Elegant Pomegranate, and Lavender coconut lemonade.

Desserts are as light and health.  The Healthy Indulgence Sweets section is filled with scrumptious dishes such as Superbark, Chocoholic Cups, Berry Nice Froyo, and Chocolate Dreamy Tart – Sima’s most popular recipes.

She brings together 100 recipes that cover six meals a day (three main courses and three snacks), for a grazing sensitivity.  They include nutritious and cleansing drinks and enticing desserts – all with less than 10 ingredients to be ready in less than 30 minutes.

These Healthy Indulgence recipes follow Sima’s nutritional guidelines for PCF combo (power protein, complex carbohydrates, and friendly fats).  This method is not just for detox or weight loss.  It her solution for people to increase their energy, improve metabolism, and satisfy sweet tooth cravings while maintaining or losing weight to arrive at the healthiest one.

SIMA life journey she learned the important elements that govern and influence health and happiness. She perfected her method to help people from all walks of life discover the elements she holds true.  And they paved the way for achieving sustainable health and happiness in life: Self, Sweat, and Substance.

Her expertise in nutrition (substance) and fitness (sweat) has helped thousands of overweight individuals achieve ideal weight – and the culinary part of that work resulted in the creation of this book. Sima resides in Los Angeles, California, with her daughter Kayla. //www.simacohen.com/

 

How My Dad Mastered Italian Cooking in the 10th Mountain Division

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(Gerry Furth-Sides) Admittedly my dad’s short-lived career with Italian cuisine catering was more ” front of the house” than a chef.  And Lee  (Zoli) Furth’s inspiration was to more to keep himself in his beloved Tenth Mountain division than culinary.  The 10th meant the best of both worlds after his escape from Europe:   revenge against the Germans – and on skis.  It’s a happy story; his officer’s catering project to the officers did keep him in.  It was one of his “funny” stories, plenty of ironies and no one dying in it.

The story take place after the division, exuberant after securing Mt. Belvedere, January 10, 1945 The troops were gearing up for the campaign north to Lago de Garda with no snow in the forecast.  The 10th had done “the impossible,” opening up the industrial Po Valley secured by the Germans for years.  The rout stunned the Germans.   The Americans proved their mettle after three years of winter mountain training in Colorado and Texas with the threat of being disbanding up until they embarked for italy.

But let’s go back first to understand how Lee Furth came to run a medic station in the first place.

During the final summer training at Camp Swift in Texas, commanding officer and physician, Captain Fricke needed “a couple of smart guys” to run the aide stations – and replace the career men there.  He “volunteered” my dad for one, adding college graduates Hal Jackson, Jim Snook and Lew Lange top the unit.

The cantankerous career army Oklahoma aide station crew, not surprisingly, hated the new order and repeatedly requested Sgt. Furth transferred out.  Their reason:  “he worked them too hard.”

But Zoli would do anything to stay in the Tenth.  He had narrowly escaped from Europe (securing a seat on the last civilian plane out of Italy was only the beginning of the last leg of this story) and had almost as much of a struggle with his Austrian “enemy alien” status to get into the Tenth, then become a ski and mountain climbing instructor/supervisor.

Stunned at the request, Zoli remembered  Colonel Ernst N. Cory admiring General Rolfe’s catering tent set-up at Mount Rainier when the colonel took him there to teach mountain climbing – and lose his European accent.

Colonel Ernst N. Cory took Zoli to teach the college boys and get rid of his Austrian accent. Instead, the boys loved it and imitated him.

So Zoli offered to cater in return for being allowed to stay.  As he tells it,  “I told Captain Fricke and Colonel Cory, ‘why don’t you get a ten-man cooking set and draw rations, and I gonna do the cooking.  You won’t have to walk down the road for meals.'”  They agreed.

The whole idea was preposterous.  Zoli grew up with fine dining in five major cities, home, and restaurants, where he “knew the menus forward and backward.”

Lee’s opulent family dining room in Vienna. I have the 16×18 oriental rug, four of the paintings. The table had a pedal under it to summon servers.

But Zoli had never cooked a day in his life.  He remembered, “I was studying the direction label on a box of jello for the first time so careful that the the ash on my cigarette burned to the very end.”

First, Lee rounded up the college guys – Jackson, Snook and Lew Lange.  He collected their ration slips for cigarettes and chocolate bars, powdered eggs and alcohol.   He used them to trade with the local Italian villagers for fresh eggs, milk, cheese, and vegetables.

“We stored the food in a little cafe across the road,” he said.  “And I told the guys to put sandbags there in case the Germans started firing on us. We were firing guns then but we weren’t seeing any Germans.

“We had one of those triangle pots holding the canvas water container on a tripod, and we had to dig a hole and put some rocks underneath.

“After a while, I didn’t like the insecure (tripod) position we dug so I moved it over a little bit to the right side.  He chuckled, “Why? The artillery officers used to come over late afternoon and have cocktails from the alcohol we got at the station for ‘medical purposes’.   When Colonel Cory would trip on the open old tripod hole he’d swear the same thing, “’goddamn these shell holes. One of these days I’m gonna break my leg.

“The ‘dining room’  in a bombed-out house. The first room was blown away entirely.  The kitchen had a big window that we used as a pass-through for the food I cooked outside in a small two-man tent.

“Once we got set up, we even had a couple of the villagers come over and shave the guys and do laundry. One of them even tailored my dress uniform!

“Naturally I varied the food and it wasn’t as dull as the mess cook. I learned to use the jello and put fruit in it.  We had wine. I set the table in the morning for breakfast and I put a candle in the middle of the table for lunchtime and suppertime.

“One night Colonel Cory invited a high ranking officer from the 616th artillery, and I made steaks.  When I was taking over the steaks, I tripped and the meat fell into the gravel. It was the last piece. I had to scrape the gravel off with a knife to serve it to him!

“Alongside it, I  made fresh spinach with bread crumbs and scrambled eggs.   The officer asked me, ‘what is this?’ and I told him spinach.  He said he never liked spinach, but this really tasted good.  He asked, ‘what did you put in this spinach?’  I told him breadcrumbs and eggs and bacon.   He just looked at me for awhile.  And then he asked, ‘So why the Hell did you have to put the spinach in there then?’

“After dinner, he told us he liked it very much.  He liked it so much he wanted to transfer me to the general’s headquarters over there to be a cook.

“But I didn’t want to be a cook.  Lucky, Captain Fricke and Colonel Cory needed me.  Besides, I didn’t know how to cook anything else.

“We stayed there about two weeks until we got our equipment. We didn’t see snow again.  But it was only the beginning of the warfare for us.

” The infantry used to pass by in jeeps and say, ‘look at those goddamn medics.  Nice life.’

“It was a nice life. Only minor injuries coming in then. By the next major combat, it became like a butcher shop. ”

Hal Jackson at the 10th Mountain Reunion

For me, the rest of this astonishing story came when I met up with retired Dupont chemical engineer, Hal Jackson.  It was on the stage of the Florence Cemetery at the only  Tenth Mountain Division reunion trip each of were to take.

His face lit up at the recognition of my name.   And the very same “college boy, and gentleman,” Hal Jackson, as my dad described him, recalled the catering tent exactly the same way as my dad, including the candles on the table for lunch and supper.

Our group of veterans and descendants during the hill country trip was treated as ceremoniously as though the war ended yesterday.  
I had the fresh eggs (with deep orange yolks) and the cheese, the pasta, and wine.  And they were every bit as good as my dad described.

A server at Lago do Garda carefully fillets a whole fish tableside at the last reunion meal

Kura Sushi’s New Traditional Yōshoku Katsu Sandwich Pop-up

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cutlet sandwiches
Our stamp of approval goes to Chef Daniel Son’s sharing his usual 4 perfect versions of  KATSU SANDO” “cutlet sandwiches” at Kura Sushi Sunset Sunday evenings only, from 6 PM until the food is sold out.  Chef Daniel became obsessed with the historic street food, Yōshoku translating into a Japanese twist on European cuisine while training at Tokyo ’s famed Nihonryori  Ryugin. Even the honey  Shokupan (white milk bread) is baked in-house.

katsu sando

We wrote about Daniel Son, second-generation owner-chef, and Kura as one of the city most under the radar sushi attractions. //localfoodeater.com/korean-father-son-perfect-japanese-sushi-at-kura///localfoodeater.com/korean-father-son-perfect-japanese-sushi-at-kura/

(photo courtesy of Kura Sushi Sunset)

Katsu (cutlet) Sando (sandwich from sandwich ) traditionally consists of panko-breaded and deep-fried chicken, pork, beef, or vegetables served between two slices of fluffy white bread.

(photo courtesy of Kura Sushi Sunset)

Meticulous, low key Chef Daniel’s mission of honoring Katsu Sando at his pop up is to prepare the ultimate, katsu sandwich with traditional techniques.  He uses Nama-Panko, freshly ground premium bread crumbs for a light flakey and crispy crust to the cutlets.

pillowy Shokupan

(photo courtesy LA GOURMET)

Chef Daniel cuts the crust off the pillowy Shokupan bread, making it the perfect textural contrast to the layers of panko-crusted ingredients and cabbage.

=Even the smaller Wagyu beef sandwich is a satisfying few bites.  The Wagyu shine,  seared to perfection.

beef sandwich

(photo courtesy of Kura Sushi Sunset)

Kura head chef, Daniel Son, became obsessed with Katsu Sandos while he was training at Nihonryori Ryugin in Tokyo, Japan. After long days in the kitchen, he would frequent the local convenient store where Katsu Sandos were his go-to “after work snack.”

Upon returning to the States, he had difficulty finding good-quality Katsu sandwiches and started to create his very own. His goal is to elevate the gem of the Katsu sandwich to its full potential starting with his L.A. patrons.

We opted for the more traditional “no cheese” from the Selections.  The Ton-Katsu Sando with Berkshire Pork was our favorite.  We also liked the Kinoko-Katsu Sando with Portobello Mushroom.

The menu includes:

Ton-Katsu Sando (Berkshire Pork Katsu Sandwich) + Chizu (cheese) includes the Sando sauce (very much like the Harissa and mayo aioli we make at home), Shiro-waifu cabbage shreds, name-panko crispy Berkshire Pork Loin, a small pickle sliced, house-baked honey milk bread and aside of pickles with juice.

Kinoko-Katsu Sando (Portobello Mushroom Katsu Sandwich) + Chizu (cheese) includes the Sando sauce (very much like the Harissa and mayo aioli we make at home), Shiro-waifu cabbage shreds, name-panko crispy Portobello Mushroom, house-baked honey milk bread and aside of pickles with juice.

Tori-Katsu Sando (Jidori Chicken Katsu Sandwich) + Chizu (cheese) includes the Sando sauce (very much like the Harissa and mayo aioli we make at home), Shiro-waifu cabbage shreds, name-panko crispy Jidori a small pickle sliced, house-baked honey milk bread and aside of pickles with juice.

The happy crowd on the second Sunday of the pop-up took up every table. Daniel’s sister, Annie (above) served the crowd. Menus are near the door; orders are taken at the register.

Nona Lim On-The-Go Global Bone Broth Soups

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(Gerry Furth-Sides) What I wouldn’t have done for Nona Lim on-the-go soups when I was a researcher for the LA Board of Education, both in the field and in their downtown office!  They provide a nutritious, tasty meal of bone broth and other flavors in a cup – no bowl needed — filled with Asian flavors that are both light and filling. //www.nonalim.com

Wholesome ingredients including whole, fresh vegetables, and high-quality meat, fish, and poultry are not only curated for their flavor, color, and texture; but for their health benefits and optimal nutritional profile.

 Nona Lim’s claims are backed up by it being the only bone broth brand to win two Sofi awards for flavor.  When you pour the chicken broth with turmeric soup into a porcelain cup, the mustardy turmeric color is very obvious when drained!

The traditional bone broths are simmered for 30 hours to bring out the flavor in slow cooking. have exceptional flavor from slow cooking, prepared from scratch in small batches, without additives and preservatives.  The care is obvious even in the shipping and are individual portions in a spoon-free, spill-proof sipping cup.  Flavors include Vietnamese Pho Bone Broth, Vegan Miso Broth, and Thai Curry and Lime Bone Broth.  

Each box is labeled with the name, lot number, date, and expiration date.  The soups can be stored in the fridge for weeks and in the freezer for six months.

Nona Lim was inspired by the powerful benefits of the most natural clean, nutrient-dense, plant-rich diet, evident in their trademarked label, “Closest to Whole”.

A corrugated paper holder prevents the drinker’s hands from burning.  A fitted plastic cup covers easily peeled off.

Nora Lim, a former professional athlete (a world-class fencer) is behind the product.  In her words, “I was constantly seeking natural ways to gain a competitive advantage; I discovered the power of food as functional medicine.
“I observed how inflammatory foods would hurt my performance: my body and brain would only function at peak performance or recover faster when fueled with whole, clean foods.   So I designed a healing, nutrient-dense, non-inflammatory meal program made with fresh, plant-rich, whole food ingredients.
 

 “Today, we offer a variety of prepared meals and soups, broths, and noodles. Infused with the Asian flavors and spices of my Singapore childhood, we focus on whole clean food minus additives, preservatives, low in sodium, and sugar. Our products are dairy free, mostly gluten-free, and 100% crap-free.”

Nona Lim responsibly partners with the most highly respected and like-minded purveyors of ingredients. Local farms Dwelley Farms, a third generation family-run farm harvests Nona Lim’s organic zucchini.  Tofu is sourced from  Oakland neighbors, Hodo Soy Beanery.   Their whole milled varieties of flour are from Community Grains.

Nona Lim soups, broths, and noodles are easily combined with a meat or vegetables for a complete meal.  I’ve even popped an egg into a hot soup for a breakfast on-the-go.  The Nona Lim website blog proves what inventive, inspired recipes their customers create and share from the products.

American Greensbury Market Beef: Paleo and Pocketbook Perfect

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Greensbury beef(Gerry Furth-Sides) Greensbury beef prepared simply in a skillet or broiled is so delicious and beautiful that this is the story.  The beef has the wondrously “clean taste” of grass-fed animals raised in a pasture.  This is because the cows are not fattened up by feeding them food they can’t digest well.

Greensbury Market’s policy ensures that the animals are humanely raised, pastured, grass-fed meats.  “Eating real food should be more accessible, because when we dine well we live well” has been the philosophy behind Greensbury since the company was founded in 2007.

Of course, Greensbury offer recipes for those who prefer their beef with sauces //www.greensbury.com (It still takes me back that one piece can serve 4 when we used to eat an entire steak apiece at home.)

There is also an interesting Indian recipe if you like spicy. //www.thespruce.com/spicy-indian-steak-478971

However, this marvelous eating experience did not surprise me as much as how it is also as practical to purchase by mail from Greensbury – which arrives frozen so it doesn’t have to be used right away.

The beef arrives thoughtfully packaged in a freezer bag within a secure box containing dry-ice packs.  There is plenty of notice and choice about when it will arrive.

I will always remember interviewing a historic butcher while doing an article on “red meat” for the Women’s Culinary Alliance newspaper.  He was very candid — I am the daughter in a family of 15, all meat brokers so we knew people in common.  Still, to my surprise, he revealed his disdain for a chic local market’s  inferior beef at a ridiculous inflated price (not Whole Foods, by the way) .

 Greensbury Market beef

More good news: Greensbury Market beef is as healthy as it is tasty.  Grass-fed beef has less saturated fat and more omega-3, mostly associated with fatty fishes.   It has a higher level of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a fatty acid, known from research to be a deterrent to cancer.  It also lowers cardiovascular risk, blood pressure and high cholesterol and triglycerides.

Greensbury has always guaranteed meats sourced from small farmers who are environmentally proactive, practice sustainable agriculture, and are focused on animal welfare.  Animals are not given synthetic hormones or antibiotics.

 

Founder Todd Horowitz has been in the meat and seafood industry for decades, long before the USDA began labeling our food organic.

Todd’s own revelation came while traveling through California.  He discovered a small farm producing grass-fed beef, and purchased a steak from the farm, as well as a grain-fed one from a market.  Cooking the two side-by side,  he noticed a stark contrast in the cooking and the taste.

Todd traveled the US searching for like-minded farmers and ranchers, researching the grass-fed movement, first purchasing cattle from an Amish farm in Pennsylvania.

Today Greensbury is a leading driver of the contemporary grass-fed movement. They are in partnership with Rastelli Food Groups, one of the largest suppliers of organic grass-fed beefto raise organic grass-fed cattle in a way that is sustainable, humane, and consistent in taste.

Greensbury Salmon: the Best, Healthiest – and the most PC

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(Gerry Furth-Sides) What can I say about Greensbury salmon after saying it is the best of the best. Salmon is already the most popular and about the healthiest fish in the world and Greensbury delivers the healthiest as fresh as it can possibly be.   And it is foolproof to prepare. How do I know? I cooked salmon on Tv for over two decades.  I ate salmon almost every day at one time for two years and I never tired of it.

Salmon

Greensbury Wild-caught Alaskan sockeye salmon (the healthiest of is sourced from a fishery in Bristol Bay. The fishery is committed to providing salmon that are harvested sustainably and protects the ocean’s eco-system. Granbury fillets are boneless, skin on, and full of flavor.  All of Greensbury’s seafood is sourced from oceans and fisheries that are certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) or rated either “Green” or “Yellow” by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch.

 Alaskan sockeye salmon 

Sockeye salmon is spectacular and foolproof, sautéed, grilled, or baked with a bit of oil in a very h to skillet, seasoned with salt and pepper.  We used flavorless grapeseed oil for its high smoking point.

Sockeye salmon

Salmon is one of the most nutritious foods on the planet.   //www.healthline.com/nutrition/11-benefits-of-salmon The tasty, versatile and popular fatty fish is loaded with nutrients and preventative ingredients that research shows reduce risk factors for several diseases.

While we prefer the salmon in its most basic form, it is easily dressed up in this popular Curried Couscous recipe.

 Curried Couscous recipe

CURRIED COUSCOUS WITH SALMON, BROWN BUTTER VINAIGRETTE

Ingredients

  • 2 6-ounce Greensbury Atlantic salmon fillets
  • 6 Tablespoons canola oil
  • 1 cup Israeli couscous
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken broth or water
  • 1/2 lemon (about 2 Tablespoons juice)
  • 1/2 head cauliflower (cut into bite-sized pieces, about two cups)
  • 1 small red onion (thinly sliced)
  • Slivered almonds (whole almonds or pine nuts are fine as a substitute)
  • 3 Tablespoons parsley (finely chopped)
  • 1/2 cinnamon stick
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 teaspoon yellow curry powder
  • Kosher salt

Vinaigrette:

  • 4 Tablespoons butter
  • 3 Tablespoons sultanas (golden raisins)
  • 2 Tablespoons capers
  • 1/2 lemon  (about 2 Tablespoons juice)
  • 3 Tablespoons Le Bon Magot purple aubergine with cumin and curry leaves
  • Kosher salt

Salmon Preparation:

  1. Defrost the salmon overnight in the fridge. Rinse and drain on a plate lined with paper towels at room temperature.
  2. Cut the Cauliflower in half and core.  Refrigerate one-half. Cut the other half into bite-sized pieces (1-2 inches). Cut the red onion in half, remove peel and slice thinly (1/4 inch slices).
  3. Heat a shallow 12-inch pot on high. Add 3 Tablespoons canola oil and heat until the oil is shimmering but not smoking. Add the cauliflower and allow to brown before stirring.
  4. Season with a pinch of salt and continue cooking the cauliflower until it’s evenly browned and cooked but still has a bit of crunch to it. Add the red onion, turn the heat to medium and sweat the onion until tender.
  5. Heat another shallow 12-inch pot on medium. Add 1 Tablespoon of canola oil.  When the oil is shimmering add the couscous and almonds. Stir over medium heat until the couscous and almonds are evenly brown (if using toasted almonds, add them to the couscous once it’s browned).
  6. Add the bay leaf, cinnamon, and chicken broth or water.  Turn the heat to medium-low, cover and cook until the liquid has evaporated and the couscous is tender and cooked through. If the liquid is evaporated and the couscous isn’t cooked through, add more liquid 1 Tablespoon at a time until the couscous is tender. Remove the bay leaf and cinnamon.
  7. While the couscous is cooking, prepare the vinaigrette.

Vinaigrette

  1. Heat a small 1-2 quart pot over medium heat. Add the butter, once the butter has melted turn the heat to medium-low and cook the butter until it is golden brown but not burnt.
  2. Once the butter is brown, turn off the heat and add the capers, sultanas, and the purple eggplant with cumin and curry leaves. Add a small pinch of kosher salt and stir until the sultanas are plump.
  3. Squeeze 1/2 lemon into the vinaigrette and taste for seasoning. Add more kosher salt and lemon juice if necessary.

Salmon Cooking

  1. Heat a 12-inch pan over high heat and add the remaining 2 Tablespoons of canola oil. Dry the salmon thoroughly with paper towels and evenly season both sides with kosher salt (about 1/4 teaspoon).
  2. Once the oil is shimmering but not smoking gently place it in the pan with the skin side facing up (the skin side is the flatter side). Move the salmon around in the pan to evenly brown it without sticking. Cook the salmon on high heat until evenly browned with an even golden crust ( 3-5 minutes). Flip the salmon and cook for another minute, baste the top while the salmon is cooking.
  3. Remove the salmon from the pan and place it on a paper towel-lined plate.
  4. Mix the cauliflower, red onion and couscous together over medium heat. Add the curry powder and stir until warmed through. Add three Tablespoons of vinaigrette and 2 Tablespoons of the parsley to the mixture. Stir to coat the couscous. Taste the couscous and season to taste with kosher salt and the other lemon half. Spoon the couscous onto two plates or bowls.  Place salmon on top.  Spoon the remaining vinaigrette onto the salmon and the couscous. Sprinkle the rest of the parsley on top and serve.

Salmon is rich in long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, high-quality protein, B vitamins, potassium, selenium and the antioxidant, astaxanthin.  It has been shown to lower inflammation and may help reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, and may decrease the risk of age-related memory problems.

And wild salmon is about one and a half times higher in the wild than farmed.  Sockeye salmon provides the highest amount. A member of the carotenoid family, astaxanthin gives salmon its red pigment.

Yes, you can also get a flash frozen person.  That is if you are lucky enough to be at the LA Farmer’s Market in Santa Monica or Howard Hughes Center – on the right day when Fisherman’s Daughter Seafood is offering their wares.

 

 

The Best, Biggest Día de Los Muertos at Hollywood Forever, October 28th, 2017:

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Día de Los MuertosSaturday, October 28th, 2017, NOON until MIDNIGHT at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, this year features vendors from all over Los Angeles, offering Mexican flavors with a wide variety of styles and twists.  just a few of the culinary vendors can be found below.  For a view of details and the spectacular sights from last year, see the website: www.hollywoodforever.com.

Tantalizing smells and children’s activities at the front gate of the cemetery attract all eyes and noses in passerby cars to the face painting and vendor’s sidewalk grills (above and below). 

 

The Tamale Shoppe, established in Phoenix by mother-daughter team Patricia Mendoza Lugo and  Irene Martinez is rooted in tradition that goes back three generations. Not surprisingly their joint love of tamales and family hospitality inspired them to create The Tamale Shoppe. The Day of the Dead has also been a long-standing tradition in the Mendoza family and has been their way of remembering and celebrating the life of Robert P. Mendoza, who gave them the gift of great cookery and love.
Romega Taqueria was founded in 2017 in Los Angeles, CA and is a branch of Romega, Inc. which is owned and operated by Chef Cameron Czekalla. Romega Taqueria specializes in authentic street style tacos while infusing flavor profiles such as American, Japanese, Mediterranean, French, and Korean
into our cuisine.
Aqualucha’s mission is to make the best and most authentic Mexican drinks. All Mexican food tastes better with real Aguas frescas (¡Sin Chingaderas!). Agua Luca is a Latino beverage company owned and managed by Latinos (from México). We develop and sell Mexican style Aguas frescas in ready-to-drink 15 oz. bottles. Our flavors are Mandarina, Jamaica, Limón, and Tamarindo. The theme of the brand revolves around Latino Culture, specifically Lucha Libre. We sell our products in Mexican restaurants, corner stores, events, and in taco trucks.
Pez Cantina is from the former Patina executive chef and co-founder of Milk Ice Cream Parlor, Bret Thompson. Pez Cantina is a sustainable coastal Mexican-style restaurant and bar serving the freshest sea-to-land dishes in an oasis-type atmosphere. Pez Cantina’s menu focuses on dishes from the many distinct regions of Mexico, from Baja
and Oaxaca to the Yucatan Peninsula. Pez Cantina is located in Downtown, Los Angeles at 401 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90071

This year 18th Annual Dia de Los Muertos, Hollywood  “tips its feather and flower-adorned hat to the Mexican artist Jose Guadalupe Posada”. Over 100 years ago, Posada gave us many of the foundational images of Dia de Los Muertos that are still venerated today and which have become treasured images of Mexican culture and identity. J.G. Posada reminds us that art is power – political and social speech – mass produced by the printing presses and now social media.

Posada’s La Catrina asks us to embrace the beauty and grace inherent in facing our own death and the inevitable loss of those we love. By facing loss with love, and art, we find transcendence.

Saturday, October 28th, 2017: NOON until MIDNIGHT

The Ceremonial Altar Set-Up: Friday, October 27th, 2017 – 3 pm onward

 

Premier Restaurant & Bar Makes “Old Traditions from New Russia”

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(Gerry Furth-Sides) “old Traditions from New Russia” is the motto of Premier Restaurant & Bar Banquet Hall – the old being the gorgeous, bountiful banquet tables and flowing “wodka” with new, refined Russian/French/middle easter fusion cuisine leading to a jam-packed evening of dining, music, dancing floor show and a parade of midnight birthday celebrations complete with sky-high sparklers.

Banquet Hall On any given week-end, Premier Restaurant & Bar combines the intensity of  “The Russians are Coming, the Russians are Coming”  with the lush royal banquets of “War and Peace”  It is worth the search to find the place on this unlighted stretch of Ventura Boulevard in Studio City   The only clue that there is a party going on inside the building with no signage in a non-descript dark strip mall are clumps of smokers in party clothes on the walkway near the door.

It is a world onto itself once you step into the banquet center to the liveliest, more delicious and seriously high energy level banquet party inside.  You know the party is serious when bottles of the finest  scotch and wine on the table. Tall cylinder vases topped with dripping flower bouquets call out, “celebration.”

Shaped like a backward “L,”, the room holds individual parties at rounder long communal tables. Everyone has a few of the bandstand in the center corner angle.

A breathtaking display of food on tiered wire holders on each table greets arriving guests. Friendly servers bring drinks, replace bottles  and change the platters throughout the evening. Beef tongue in garlic sauce, sea bass studded with pomegranate and a spiced cold cut platter were our favorites.

Beef Tongue

Beef Tongue in Garlic Sauce

Chicken Liver

Delicate Chicken Liver Paté with toast points

We expected lots of heavy dishes, laden with cabbage and potatoes.  Not this evening!  In fact, the only potato dish, prepared with mushrooms, was creamy and light.  Potato chips added to succulent shrimp in a creamy sauce added a new seafood definition to “fish and chip”!

fish and chip

About the only thing that was not unexpected was the Blintzes with Red Caviar. But his caviar was flown in from Siberia.

Red Caviar

The Fried eggplant studded with pomegranate and almonds, served with grilled red pepper shows the chef’s care, color, and unique combinations.  Skirt Steak with Fresh Garden Salad, Assorted cold cut Meat Platters, and Potatoes with Marinated Mushrooms were representative of the variety all evening.

eggplant

Chef Azat Hovakimian, who honed his experience at a number of European and Middle Eastern restaurants, is best known for his lamb chops, marinated meat and elegant fish dishes. The chef came out to greet us,  low key and cordial in the midst of serving 250 guests.

 Azat Hovakimian

But the drink and food is only the beginning!  First arriving guests greet each other at their own communal banquet tables, very single one of them dressed in their finest, with not a woman in a pantsuit in sight all perfectly coiffed.  Then the lights dim and the music begins.  The driving Russian rock draws guests to the dance floor until the tables are about empty – with a break only for the dramatic floor show.


As exciting as the floor show is, individual birthdays around midnight are the evening’s highlight.  Each birthday group plans their own music.  A birthday cake, each more towering and eye-popping than the one before, is paraded across the room lit with showy sparklers, to the party now at the stage.  The whole room sings to the honoree and dances to their music.  What fun!

Our hostess, Ekaterina Lesiuk, invited me because I had mentioned that my Russian would not take me to a Russian restaurant, claiming people only drank, smoked and put their cigarettes out in their plates of mediocre food. Ekaterina overheard me saying this and decided to prove me wrong!

Samvel Manukyan, Owner-Managing Partner, oversees the room and works all week on food and entertainment to see that parties run seamlessly.  Sam personally selects provisions and controls work of restaurant every day.  The stage performers eating next to us after their show his respect and appreciation for the staff.

Our hosts, Ekaterina Lesiuk, Marketing Consultant, and owner/managing partner, Samvel Manukyan.

Popular among Russian, Jewish, Armenian community for Birthday anniversary and special occasion parties, Americans are discovering it for the live music and floor show entertainment.  that makes it a private, communal.

I always said that “Russians work hard and play hard”.  The premier restaurant is proof.

For details and information about the À la Carte menu or Premier Super Banquets for  brunch, weekend evenings,p lease see www.restaurantpremier.com

Umami Burger Makes “The impossible” Happen Again

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(Gerry Furth-Sides) We’ve had Adam Fleishman’s business card filed almost since Umami burst onto the scene, as a reminder of his personal invite to Umami Burger and an interview.  We didn’t realize at the time that this enthusiastic, approachable guy was the owner-creator.
Thank you, Umami Burger’s “Jaden’s Impossible Trio” charity campaign to finally experience not only why his quality food, extraordinary service and inviting restaurant decor catapulted Umami to fame.
Umami’s hospitality extended to a face-off between the Impossible Burger trio (left) and the manly burger Manly Burger of house beer-cheddar cheese, bacon lardons, smoked-salt onion strings, Umami ketchup, mustard spread!
We found the two “just about” equal in taste,  texture, and mouthfeel with the impossible burger an entirely satisfactory, sustainable choice.

Umami Burger

Newest impossible burgers to try are the Vegan BBQ, Vegan Truffle and Classic Non-Vegan California Style Burger (final names to come). 
Artist series collaborations to launch the Impossible Burger nationwide included Jaden’s Impossible Trio in partnership with Jaden Smith in 2017. //localfoodeater.com/cindy-crawfords-new-mexican-inspired-casa-burger-umami-burger-art-series/
Impossible Burger
The sliders include (left to right) the “impossible slider” patty, caramelized onions, American cheese, miso-mustard, house spread, dill pickles, lettuce, and tomato.
The “Korean BBQ slider” features both gochujang glaze and Korean ketchup (which contains gochujang), as well as caramelized kimchi, sesame aioli, and scallion-cilantro salad. The subtle, smooth kick from the sesame aioli and the kimchi lends distinctive and appealing flavor.  The Gochujang (red chili paste) adds more layers, from long-term fermentation in earthenware on an elevated platform.
Smoked onion strings add intrigue to the Japanese inspired “u-bbq slider”.   Here, an “impossible patty” is layered with American cheese, Umami BBQ sauce, tempura serranos, smoked onion strings.

Jaden and mom, Jada Pinkett Smith, at the launch.

Umami Burger offers the exclusive Impossible slider trio ($15) through 2017, with $1 from each sale donated to the American Red Cross in support of hurricane relief efforts.

Joe, serving us up individual ” TRIOs”

The Impossible Burger is touted as the world’s only burger that “looks, handles, smells, cooks, and tastes like ground beef from cows – but is made entirely from plants.
 Impossible Foods in Redwood City invented and makes the nutritious meat and dairy products  — with a much smaller environmental footprint than meat from animals: 95% less land; 74% less water and 87% lower greenhouse gas emissions.
Impossible Foods
Impossible burgers are made from simple, all-natural ingredients such as wheat, coconut oil, and potatoes. 
The team discovered that heme is “the magic ingredient” that makes meat smell, sizzle, bleed, and taste gloriously meaty — yet remains sustainable.  Heme is a basic building block of life on Earth, including plants.
Even the condiments and pickles are carefully thought out. For a dissection of an Umami Burger, please see:  //www.eater.com/2013/4/18/6450109/anatomy-of-an-icon-the-original-umami-burger
Our satisfying meal was completed with staff favorites, Thin Cut (signature) French Fries and Cheesy Tator Tots.  Cheesy Tator Tots
Hostess Emma, happily giving us instructions to the door — for the third time!

Congenial manager,  Behan Petrossian, offers Jaden’s JUST WATER,  available only at The Grove and Japan locations.

  JUST WATER

Umami Burger, 189 The Grove, Los Angeles, CA  90036, (323) 954-8626.  For information and details on locations and hours, please  see The Original Umami Burger • Umami Burger