Swai

 Travelin' Thru Time

     Here it is, another weekend gone by. Just imagine, in 4 years, 7 months and 2 days I will finally be in the non-workforce of individuals who call themselves retired. Hurry up time, I am chomping at the bit to be there! When it finally arrives, I can begin to really focus on my cooking and exercise regimen. Plus all that spare time to travel more. Lots of places to see, yet so little time right now. Oh well, at least there is a plan in place to get me there.

Happy Birthday to the Light of my Life

     We did a small getaway last weekend in Pasadena. It was Katrina's birthday so we met some friends at The Langham Hotel on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's dinner at The Langham's premier restaurant, The Royce, was superb. Several bottles of Domaine Canero`s Pinot Noir helped to elevate the mood and went rather well with all of the courses. We didn't even attempt to do a wine pairing meal because we all knew we would never succeed due to the variety of things we ordered.
     It isn't often that we get to dine in a place that brings you a pre appetizer and after the entree also servers up a pre dessert! I can seriously tell you that I would never want to be on that level of Chef-Dom. Wayyyyy too much work. I love to create dishes, some are good, some are spectacular, others not so much. But I like doing things in my own sweet time, not under pressure. Don't get me wrong, I can deliver tasty and eye pleasing meals in a timely fashion when I need to. Like a Thanksgiving Feast or a dinner party for friends, yet to do that on an everyday basis would take all the pleasure out of it for me.
So with that said, I can truly respect the level of creativity and dedication to fabulous dining that the chefs at The Royce displayed last Saturday evening. The presentation and taste was superb on all the dishes brought to our table.
     After dinner we got to go hang out at the Tap House Bar in the hotel and listen to some great live Jazz, imbibe a bit more on a Carol Shelton wine and down some tasty appetizers like Kobe Beef Sliders.  By just past midnight, the band was finishing up and Katrina was in jeopardy of turning into a pumpkin, so we stumbled our way back to the room for a restful sleep.

Tea Time

     Sunday was sleeping in, checking out just in time, enjoying a rejuvenating brunch at the Terrace restaurant and then heading over to Huntington Library and Gardens to wander the grounds and have tea in the Tea House adjacent to the Rose Garden. This was not like High Tea at The Empress in Victoria, but more on the line of a nice little tasty treat while perusing the gardens. The buffet table has all the requisite finger sandwiches, cheeses, fruits, berries and small sweets, plus some other treats to help fill you. Scones and tea cookies are also in abundance. I will warn you though. If you go on a weekend, be prepared to wait a bit. Even with a specific reservation time we still had to cool our heels for about 25 minutes before being seated.
     Rose and flower gardens are always among my favorite places to stroll and I will show you why with these pics:

     The recently re-opened Japanese Gardens are very serene and I would love to go back on a day that was less crowded to enjoy them a bit more. Perhaps after the newness has diminished it will be better. There are many features to that area that intrigue me. Not the least of them being the Bonsai exhibit. It appears they have more renovation within this garden to accomplish as some portions are fenced off or blocked from entry. I think by next year it will be just splendid.

     Now for the newest dish.

Simply Fish

I have recently been buying something new to come to our local fish market called Swai. It is mostly presented as a fillet and has approximately the same texture as Tilapia. While Tilapia can and often does taste a bit muddy, this flavor is just a little sweet.

The Recipe

1 clove thin sliced garlic
Pinch of Paprika or Cajun Spice
1 jumbo egg
1 tsp whole milk
1/3 cup sifted flour
3 tablespoons Canola oil
2 Swai fillets


     This is a simple egg dredge, flour and fry pan process. In a small bowl, whip one jumbo egg with a teaspoon of whole milk and pour the mixture into a shallow pan or dish. Sift the flour into another shallow pan or dish and place them assembly line fashion next to a 12 inch fry pan. Add the oil and sliced garlic to the fry pan and bring to a medium high heat. I think Canola oil is better to use as it doesn't tend to burn as easily as olive oil or other vegetable oils.
     Rinse and pat dry the fillets then lightly dredge them one at a time on both sides through the egg wash then the flour. Try not to overdo the flouring of them. Just a little dusting will do nicely. Place them side by side in the pan, sprinkle with paprika or cajun spice then cover and cook for approximately 6 minutes per side. They may burn slightly and that's OK, but if they burn too much then the heat is too high.
     The egg and flour dredge will help seal in the moisture of the fillets while the garlic will add a pleasant Twyst  to the paprika. When done, remove them from the pan, place on a paper towel to drain the excess oil, then plate them and serve with a vegetable of your choice.

This dish is light, not too fattening, low in cholesterol and tasty. Hope you all enjoy it.

WyckedPete

WOW !! 2 years !!

 As Time Goes Bye

So here it is over TWO YEARS later and I am finally getting back to this blog. A lot has happened in that time, not the least of which we lost Mama-san to cancer. She was just a few days shy of 84, and up until the last 4 months of her life she was still active mentally and somewhat physically. I can still hear her telling me, " Inside my mind I still feel like a 16 year old girl ! "
We all miss her whit, her spunk and the sparkle in her eyes when she spoke of things that brought her great memories. I can only hope that I have that spark when I get to that age.

Traveling

There have been many travel excursions and really excellent dishes that I got to try. Some of the most memorable of them came from our two favorite cities, Paris and San Francisco. Vancouver is a close 3rd in culinary treats though. Probably because of the abundance of extremely fresh Seafood available. We get to travel to these places because of timeshares we own and because of my Lady Katrina's ability to plan and schedule. Love that Lady and her tenacity. If it were just up to me, we would probably not go so many places. Golf, the Beach and Fishing would be my main activities. But that's because I am basically a slug. I'd be content to hang at the man-cave, cook, drink and putter around in the garage. Good thing I have a Motivator.
 As for the trip to Paris, the following photo typifies some of those memorable everyday moments we had at a corner Bistro sipping Espresso and enjoying a perfect pastry.

 I think one of the most artistically inspired days I had was when they let me unleash my camera in Giverney. This is the former estate of Claude Monet. This photo is taken where he painted many of his versions of "The Lily Pond'. This is my own photographic version.

On to the Important Stuff

So on to my latest favorite recipe. This is one I gleaned from the Food Network online pages and added just a few minor Twysts to. It comes from a post by Rachael Ray under Spinach Artichoke Salad. I must say this is a dish I just had to make twice because it tasted so good. All the people I have served it to seemed to be very pleasantly surprised at how complimentary the flavors are. Here is the original Food Network site where I found the recipe:

 http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/spinach-artichoke-pasta-salad-recipe/index.html

You will find by comparing the ingredient lists that I changed very little there. That is because either way you put this dish together it still comes out fantastic. Below is my list.

Ingredients

• 1 tsp coarse salt
• 1 package fresh three cheese filled tortellini  [most markets have Contadina or Butoni Brands available]
• 1/2 pound fresh baby spinach
• 1&1/2 (15-ounce) cans baby artichoke hearts in water, drained and quartered [don't use the ones marinated in oil as this makes the mix too oily. The baby artichoke hearts can usually be found at a Smart & Final Superstore]
• 1 red roasted pepper, peeled and chopped
• 1 yellow roasted pepper, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 small red onion, Julienne cut
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• zest from 1 whole lemon
•  juice from 1 whole lemon
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped, or 1/2 teaspoon ground thyme [ give the ground thyme 20 min to marinate in the lemon juice before mixing]
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaf
• pepper to taste [ I suggest 1/2 tsp]

The directions for composing this salad are:

Bring  water to a boil in a 5 quart pot. Salt boiling water and add pasta. Once the water begins to boil again, cook for 4 minutes, or until pasta is just tender and the tortellini all float. Do not overcook the pasta as the filling will come out, the pasta will taste soggy and they will lose all their flavor. I know that the directions on the package say to cook them longer, but it just isn't so. Drain & rinse in cold water, then spread them out to damp dry on a cookie sheet or parchment paper.

Lightly chop the baby spinach. In a large bowl, combine the spinach, artichoke, roasted red & yellow pepper and red onion. Mince the garlic, then add a pinch of the salt and mash it into a paste with the flat of your knife or with a garlic press. Transfer garlic paste to a small bowl and add the lemon zest, lemon juice containing the marinated thyme and also the vinegar to it. Add the oil and pepper and the remaining salt, then thoroughly whisk the mix together. Add pasta to the other salad ingredients, then lightly toss in the dressing. Serving immediately is preferred but you can refrigerate for later service and it will still be fine. If you do serve it later, be sure to re-toss to loosen up the mix. Yes, it does make a difference.

Just had to add another Twyst

In the back of my mind is an idea that next time I make this dish I may incorporate some chopped Jalap`eno or Haben`ero to the mix.

MMMMMM! I could really get on board for that one. 

 I hope you enjoy this re-creation of Rachael's dish. I know that we do!

 ps

I leave you for now with a photo taken at Jules Verne Restaurant in the Eiffel tower. We enjoyed not only the 5 course wine pairing meal, but also the showmanship of the wait staff. There was a waiter for every function within the dining experience! They even had a waiter who's only job was to change the silverware! By far the best 2 or 3 hours we could have spent that day. I'm not really sure of the time, it's all a fuzzy blur now. Must have been the wine.

This was taken on one of Katrina's Zero Birthdays, my present to her. You just have to do something special on Zero birthdays!

 

WyckedPete