Fishing trip

Last week, the hubster went out fishing at the pier three nights in a row... apparently it was quite full of action with the bat rays and sharks. And supposedly he had caught a few sharks, as large as 3-1/2' long, but did not have success reeling the suckers in.

What he and his buddies did catch though, was a... bat ray...? Some mackerels, some smelts (???) and some crab things (just trying to remember what he was saying -- this is completely and utterly out of my comfort zone)... and some squid or octopus thing, I don't know. They're all "seafood" to me (I don't touch the stuff. Any of it.).

So what to do with all their riches? Grill and fry on Saturday at our house. So here's a little of what I had to endure:

Here is a bat ray wing that Trung had cut up and marinated. It was then tossed onto the grill (but I'm not quite sure if it was actually on the grill or in a pan)

Here is Trung slicing/peeling back the flesh off of the middle cartilage of the wing... (*covers mouth*)

Meanwhile the hubster has been frying up these little guys... some deep fried tentacles...

...and of course the mackerel (far left), the smelts (middle) and the crab things (right)... now I'm not sure if I got the names right, they kind of all fall into the "fish" group for me. With the crab things, the boys were all in agreement that it was one of the best things they've ever tasted as they popped the orange guys into their mouths and crunched down... shells and all.

I backed away and turned towards my baked pasta.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Early in the week I was at the grocery store picking up more chicken for the kid (our furry 4-legged kid who is on the raw diet) when I came across the stacks of packaged corned beef... going for only 97 cents/pound! I was intrigued. Even though I still have 2-1/2 more weeks to go before going carnivorous again, I could always save it in the freezer... yes. I'll pick one up. No, make that four.

So St. Patty's day came suddenly (yes, suddenly) and I completely forgot about the corned beef, even though it had only been 2 days since I bought them. It was too late to stick it in the crock pot, so I decided that when I got home from work, I'd defrost it really quick and stick it in the oven. Well, I didn't get home from work until about 7:30 and the 3-lb chunk of corned beef spent 25 minutes in the microwave defrosting. I peeled and sliced several potatoes and lined the bottom of the roasting pan with it (sprinkled with only some salt and pepper), and then finally got the meat onto the rack directly on top of the potatoes... spread the little packet of seasoning over the meat that came with it, and finally popped it into the oven. At 8:05 pm. The oven was preheated to 350F and I set the timer for 45 minutes. This was going to be one late dinner.

After the first round of beeps, I checked the meat and it was not quite ready. I looked at the clock. Really?! It was almost 9 pm. I closed the oven door, cranked the temperature up to 425F and set the timer for another 15 minutes. 

After more beeping, I decided I really needed to get the meat out and feed the family. I could hear pacing. If anything, I could slice around the outside and stick the inside back in the oven if it was way to rare. So I took the meat out and let it sit for a few minutes before slicing it... giving the knife a few slides against the sharpening stick, I pulled it across the meat and...

...it was the ultimate test of willpower to not inhale a slice that glistened at my fingertips. Ahhh the sweet aroma of beef sizzling in herbs...

I turned my attention to the potatoes with their crispy edges and insides softened by the meat juices... I attacked them like no other. Meat juices are technically not meat flesh, I concluded - I had not caved, I was still being good.

No more sandwiches!

I think I have hit my limit on the grilled cheese and tomato/mozzarella sandwich bit. The other night, Anna, Olivia and I met up to go watch The Blind Side (two thumbs up!) after work at Woodbridge Theaters in Irvine. We'll usually meet at Champagne Bakery right next door... it's so convenient! I considered getting the quiche, but what I really wanted was the chicken salad sandwich. So I ended up getting the Tomato Mozzarella Pesto flatbread (8.49).

When it came out, I was loving it. Served on a little painters' pallet-like dish (or, I suppose a bread baking handle thing), the flatbread was toasty and crisp, just the way I like it! Topped with pesto sauce and a bit of cheese all over, the three mounds you see is a layer of sliced tomato with a slice of fresh mozzarella on top, slightly melted. And it comes with a tomato dipping sauce, much like what comes with breadsticks. What is it called... I know it's not just "tomato sauce"...

The first slice I wolfed down. The second slice... it was still good. The third... I was getting sick of it. And the fourth... so over it. I scraped off the topping and ate the fresh mozzarella with the bread alone (no pesto). All I needed was bacon. It would have been perfect.

...Marinara sauce!

1.95 Happy Hour

I really needed a break and when the emails started coming in about meeting up for Happy Hour, I was all for it. Even though I don't drink. But they were meeting up at McCormick & Schmicks, right downstairs from the office. Walking there would take the same amount of time to walk to my car. Of course I'll be there!

While I waited for 6pm (even though they were meeting up at 4:30), I secretly hoped that by the time I got downstairs, Lent would be over and I could have their 2.95 cheeseburger & fries happy hour menu (although I think a year ago it was still 1.95). Though Lent did not magically let up before nightfall, I didn't mind. I looked at the happy hour menu and though the items were all varying in prices, there were still a few at 1.95 that I wanted: the bruschetta, and the spicy Irish eggrolls.

Bruschetta: they don't give a whole lot, but well, it's a 1.95 appetizer, you can't expect more. I really like the thin crisps of the toasted bread, and they definitley give you a heaping pile of the tomato, garlic and basil mixture... Which was way too much for me. I ended up eating the toast mostly bare.

Spicy Irish Eggroll: awesome. These roughly 3" long, 1"+ diameter fried goodies (2 came out but I scarfed the first one down before whipping my phone out for a photo) sat atop a bed of decorative cabbage (although I suppose you can eat it too) and with a side of ranch dressing. The contents: basically mashed potatoes with little bits of jalapeños (hence the "spicy", although it wasn't, really) stuffed in the crispy flakey shells. Absolute yum. Give it a try. McCormick & Schmicks happy hours are daily from 4:30-6:30 and again at 9-11... I think.

Tomato Mozarella

As I had found a grilled cheese that I liked at Boudin, and as I am still vegetarian for another few weeks, it seemed fair that I give the tomato mozarella a shot. After all, who doesn't love a slice of good fresh mozarella???

The hubster took me out to lunch at Corner Bakery and I found the tomato mozarella on their cold sandwiches menu. I was hoping for a panini. But I decided to give it a chance.

I'm glad I did. The bread was a thin baguette-looking focaccia and filled with sliced tomatoes, sliced fresh mozarella, some basil, some arugula (I think), some roasted red peppers and drizzled with a sweet balsamic vinegar. It was pretty good. Completed with some of Corner Bakery's crispy kettle potato chips and a pickle slice (6.39), it was a satisfying lunch indeed.



- Posted mobile-y (please excuse the typos!)

Evils of Quiche

So I've been getting lazy about making dinner... and making enough for lunch leftovers the next day at that... So over the weekend while at Trader Joe's, I picked up a couple of frozen quiches because well, 1) I like quiche, and 2) they didn't contain any meat.

Sitting in the kitchen at work, I popped the Broccoli and Cheese Quiche into the microwave and read the directions on the back of the box... 2 minutes later, I sat down to enjoy my quiche.


The crust was tasty and flakey, the filling was egg-y with pockets of cheesy creaminess... Not bad for something that's been frozen for who knows how long... And it was just the right size for lunch. Okay, maybe a little bit larger would have been better.

As I made my way halfway through the quiche, I paused. I got up and grabbed the box (it was sitting at the top of the trash can, so I wasn't digging or anything...!) and flipped it over. Some numbers had flashed across my mind, and I just wanted to see if it was correct.


Yep, I was correct. The box was telling me I should only have water the rest of the day :\
And if I recall correctly, this was the "healthier" of the three quiches I bought (I think the Mexican quiche was the crazy one).

So I finished the quiche, and washed it down with a couple of Girl Scout cookies that were brought in, for dessert. Might as well. :)



- Posted mobile-y (please excuse the typos!)

My sandwich hunt

Now that I had found a grilled cheese sandwich that I really enjoyed, my next one is the tomato mozzarella panini (or some variation of it). First stop, Champagne Bakery (this one is the one at Woodbrige in Irvine).

Their tomato mozzarella sandwich is actually on the cold sandwich menu, but upon asking, they were happy to toast it for me. So nice. As a side, I had a choice of fries, spring salad or potato salad. The girl recommended the potato salad so I tried it.


Satisfying, but didn't quite knock my socks off (well, if I ever wore socks anyway). As for the potato salad, it was thin sliced red potatoes with chopped red onions and sliced celery, all in a tangy bistro-y potato salad dressing. It was tasty and I dont ever refuse potato salad, but I remain iffy about the celery.

- Posted mobile-y (please excuse the typos!)