VIETNAMESE STYLE SHRIMP COCKTAIL

This shrimp cocktail is to die for. The best shrimp cocktail I have ever had.

 Recipe???  Sorry :( 

It's TOP SECRET.

I'm testing recipes for Jaden Hair's new cookbook. That would be Jaden of Steamy Kitchen . I tested recipes for her last cook book and they were all fantastic.

I'll let you know when the book is published!!!

HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN MARTINI

                                

Please dear friends.....turn up the volume, press play on the video (be sure to hold cursor on video), kick back and enjoy my spiced pumpkin martini.

Thanks Sharon for the inspiration :)

Happy Halloween.

                                                                    SPICED PUMPKIN MARTINI

1 1/2 ounce Vanilla Vodka
1 ounce Amaretto Liqueur
1 ounce Half and Half
2 TBSP. Pumpkin Butter (Trader Joe's has it during the holidays )
1 dash Pumpkin Spice

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously (10-15 seconds). Pour into chilled martini glass and garnish with an additional dash of pumpkin pie spice.

Makes 1 drink.

Recipe from www.mylifeasamrs.com




















                 

PAYOYO GOAT CHEESE

We had dinner at our hotel in Jerez. We had read that the restaurant was really good. WOW...great meal, everything was fantastic. We ordered a starter (tapa) of Payoyo goat cheese with fig conserves. It stopped me dead in my tracks. I instantly fell in love with this cheese. It was a cheese I have never had before. It was slightly tart like goat cheese yet there was a sweetness to it. The fig conserve that was served on the side made this dish one of those dishes that one can only dream about......uh, not anymore :)

I left the restaurant and googled Payoyo cheese. It is a blend of goat's milk and sheep's milk. Payoyo is a breed of mountain goats native to Andalusia in Southern Spain. Grazalema is the name of the village and the name of the Andalusian Nature Preserve where the goats live and the  dairy resides. Payoyo goat cheese is made in this remote area by a 14 member cooperative begun in 1997. The cheese is hand crafted into 3 1/2 pound wheels that resemble Manchego cheese. It is semi firm and not quite as dry as Manchego.

Being the dedicated foodie that I am, I decided to go straight to the source and see those goats that made me so happy and meet the artisans that produce this delight.  I love the internet....it turns out that Grazalema is only 1/2 hour from Ronda, where we were planning on spending the night. Woo Hoo! Luckily Ron was happy to take me on my adventure.

We headed out to Grazalema in search of special goats and great cheese.

It was a small village in a National Preserve. I fell in love with this village. It was so quaint. We drove around town on cobble stone streets.

Up in the hills we spotted the Payoyo goats.

After some exploring we found the co-op building where they have their office. Not far from the office we saw an old building where they make the cheese and finally we found the cheese store.



Mission accomplished! I had hoped to see the cheese makers in action but we were short on time and the language barrier was a challenge.

I bought a small chunk for the road. We had a long flight to Germany later in the day so we didn't think a wheel would travel well. I loved this adventure and we were happy explorers as we headed down the mountain for a three hour drive to the airport.

I'm trying to find some of this cheese here in the states. The fig conserve that was served with the cheese at the restaurant was an English green fig preserve made by Wilkin and Sons. It was the perfect compliment along with a nice crusty baguette.

FOOD AND FUN IN SPAIN

Well, I haven't been able to upload any pictures yet but I can tell you that the food and weather in Spain has been incredible. So far Ron and I have been very excited about Pil-Pil sauce. It is an olive oil, garlic, chili pepper and paprika mixture that they heat until hot and then drop in some prawns. It is served bubbling hot with some French bread.

We had this a couple of times down on the beach near Malaga, close to our condo. Today we drove to Jerez. Very nice hotel here. We had beef cheeks for dinner. It was the speciality tonight. They were slow cooked until the meat melted in our mouths. This was wonderful.

Tomorrow we will go Sherry tasting, shopping, check out the Andalusian horse show and then 3 hours back to our condo. I checked my e-mail today and we are invited to a Fiesta party at the end of July. Fiesta attire encouraged....how perfect is that? A few miles from the condo is Fiesta attire central. We will be muy authentico!

We go out for dinner when the restaurants start to open, around 9pm. It seems like we eat around 10 pm every night, just like the locals. Tonight after dinner and a walk, we went to the roof of our hotel and listened to live music. It must be close to 1am and I'm still up. Something has happened to that person who is usually in bed by 9pm :)

More later.

OFF TO SPAIN AND GERMANY

We are off on our European adventure. If all goes as planned I'll be blogging during our trip, sharing our adventures and great food experiences. Haley plans on joining us and Kahlua is just going to miss us terribly (between naps.)

See everybody soon!

I MADONNARI 2011

It wouldn't be Memorial Day weekend without I Madonnari at the Mission. I think this year was the best year ever.

All the art work is done with chalk. This year the artists had to fight the hot sun and the roaring wind. I don't know how they did it.

If you have never been I highly recommend it. The crowds are fierce. We like to go early in the morning to avoid the crowds. It started on Saturday and ended on Monday. We went over early (6:00 AM) on Wednesday and it still looked great. It is supposed to rain on Saturday so hurry over and check it out. Amazing!

In case you can't make it, we took some photos today.

MEMORIAL DAY 2011

A day to remember those who sacrificed their lives for our country and those who made it out alive. All heroes.

Ron and I are lucky to have his father, my father, and my step father, our heroes, and all very much alive. We spent some time in the morning remembering what this holiday is really about. We thank them.

Later in the day we decided to play scrabble and BBQ some ribs.

Ron made a cocktail with melon liqueur, fresh mint, rum and some soda water. It was delightful and a perfect way to start the scrabble competition.

I love it when the stars line up.

Give thanks to those who keep us safe.

WE WENT TRUCKIN'

There was a lot going on in Santa Barbara this weekend. One thing that caught our eye was the truck stop.

It was a gathering of our local food trucks, the latest rage in S.B.

The first truck to come to Santa Barbara was the Burger Bus.

They really have great burgers. Everything is sourced locally and you can tell. Organic beef and fresh ciabatta rolls. There was a long line at the bus so we moved on.

I heard about one of the newest trucks to hit town, O' Street. They serve French-Vietnamese and French-Mex food. I was in the mood for a Banh Mi sandwich so we headed over there.



After waiting in line for a while we got up to the window only to learn that they had run out of bread. They said they would have more in about 15 minutes. There must have been more people than they had expected because the truck event ran from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm and it was only 2:00 when we were there.

We were getting hungry so we placed our order for a Banh Mi and some Pommes Frites and then headed over to Green and Tasty to see what we could find.



This truck promotes healthy food. We ordered a Tapada. We weren't sure what a tapado was and the nice lady who took our money had no idea either. When it came out it looked like a mini taco, a little greasy and filled with potato and cheese. Not very healthy. I googled it and I still don't know what it was that we ate.  While we were eating this mini whatever we spotted bread man!



So we hightailed it back to O' Street.

We were really hungry by then (we walked from home to the event) so we grabbed our food and then I remembered I wanted to take a picture. Oh well....

The Pommes Frites were really good. They had a nice seasoning on it. We loved dipping them in the wasabi mayo, not so much in the curry-ketchup. The Banh Mi filled us up but it was not authentic. It tasted rushed and thrown together. I went to their web-site and there is a picture of what a Banh Mi should look like. Way different than the one we ordered. I think they just ran out of food early and winged it.

I used to make Banh Mi with a Vietnamese woman who worked for me a few years ago. She taught me the authentic version so I know good Banh Mi.

We had a long walk home so we checked out a couple of other trucks. Lickety Splits was super cute and the kids were loving it.

and then we saw a wine bar.....but we were walking.

As we were leaving we saw the latest entry into the truck cuisine...Road Dogs. They really didn't have a truck and not really a sign so I didn't take a picture but as we were heading out behind their set-up I did notice something interesting.

They had live music too. It was a great afternoon.

I LIKE VEGETABLES

I dedicate this to my vegan niece Brittany.  Love you!  xxoo   

Make sure you have the sound on!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Happy Mother's Day to all! 

We had a wonderful lunch at Lynn's house.

Here is the beautiful table that Lynn and Brittany set.

For a starter we had Andalusian gazpacho and  bread studded with roasted garlic. The main course was salmon. On the side we had asparagus with arugula sauce, and Caesar salad. Lynn made the salmon and it was to die for. Brittany made the Caesar salad and put a vegan dressing on it from Lazy Acres. It was a great salad and the dressing was delish. I made the gazpacho (I'll post the recipe next) it was really yummy and then I made the asparagus with arugula sauce. That recipe it already posted under vegetables.

For dessert Lynn and Brittany dipped Strawberries in chocolate. OMG, they were awesome.

Here is Ron's plate.



CINCO DE MAYO

 Cinco de Mayo...any excuse for a party! This was all last minute but it hit the spot. Guacamole and chips.

 Margarita made with margarita mix, melon liqueur, and of course TEQUILA!!!!!!!



I think the party has just begun.

HAPPY EASTER

Hope everyone had a nice Easter. We had our usual family spread with everyone contributing something delicious.

Mom has a collection of hand painted and decorated Easter eggs from our family. She brings them out every Easter and we have a great time reminiscing. Four generations of hand made eggs.

Our meal was scrumptious as usual.

Mom cooked the delicious ham.

Brittany made the lovely fruit salad.

Lynn made the yummy scalloped potatoes, rich, cheesy, and creamy. She also baked the croissants, regular and chocolate. Ashley made the delicious quiche.

Ron and Lexi made the grilled vegetables with herb vinaigrette. Ron spent one hour cooking the veggies on the grill and discovered that slow and low is the best way to go.

For dessert I bought a cheese cake from Lazy Acres.  They make one of the best in town.

Happy Easter!