I can take you to Cheddar Bay.

I've been there. And it is glorious.





Even haters will admit that Red Lobster's Cheddar Bay Biscuits are bomb. And if you haven't tried them, you'll just have to trust me. Believe in the Biscuit.

RL's biscuits are more scone-shaped blob-shaped, but I personally love using a biscuit cutter for these. They puff up to reveal the cheesy, flaky and buttery layers. The baked biscuit is also easier to split for adding a dab of butter. Not that it needs it really, but who doesn't like their biscuit buttered?

Definitely use both a baking mix for the base AND buttermilk.

Take Me Away to Cheddar Bay Biscuits
Yield: 12-14 Biscuits

2 ½ cups Trader Joe’s Buttermilk Pancake/Baking Mix
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
4 tablespoons cold butter (1/2 stick), cut into small pieces
1 to 1 ¼ cup grated cheddar cheese
¾ cup cold buttermilk

To brush on top:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
¼ teaspoon garlic salt
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
freshly ground black pepper (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Stir together baking mix and garlic powder. Add pieces of cold butter to mix and combine using a pastry cutter or two knives. Do this until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, with small pieces of butter throughout. Add the shredded cheese and stir to combine.

Add buttermilk to the mixture, a little at a time, while stirring together with a fork. Stir until just combined; do not over-mix. Use your hand if needed to help the mixture come together.

Turn the dough out onto a floured workspace and knead the mixture gently a few times. Roll out the dough using a well-floured rolling pin to ½-inch thickness. Cut out biscuits using a 2-inch round biscuit cutter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, spaced 1 inch apart. Knead leftover scraps together and repeat until all dough is used. (This is where you'll have an opportunity to get a couple blob-shaped biscuits. I hate wasting biscuit dough! Just don't do it.)

Stir together melted butter, garlic salt and garlic powder in a small bowl and brush mixture on top of biscuits using a pastry brush. If desired, sprinkle top of biscuits with a little freshly ground black pepper.

Bake for 11-14 minutes, or until tops and bottoms of biscuits are golden brown.

Serve warm.

Next stop: Cheddar Bay. Bon voyage/appetit!

MMMMANGOES.

Disclaimer: I wrote this blog post back in March, but didn't publish it because I wanted to explain where the heck I've been all this time first. Well it turned out that I didn't even have time to tell you I haven't had time to blog (except I just did, I guess). So here's a post about mangoes instead.

A couple weekends ago I was suckered into buying 11 mangoes while making a trip to Kmart for some necessities. As one of my favorite fruits, mangoes could be considered a necessity. Probably not 11 of them, but that's how the guys were selling them.

Yes, I bought them from guys that were selling them out of the back of a van along with oranges (they are there every weekend and seem to have more fruit offerings every time I go -- this past weekend, they had pineapples!).

They were all extremely ripe (in fact, that's why I bought them -- I couldn't resist after sampling a wedge), so I had to figure out how to use them up before they went bad. I took this as an opportunity to use them in dishes I've always wanted to try out but never have because every time my family has bought mangoes, we just cut them up and simply eat them as is, or with mom-made rujak, as Indonesians often do.

Because I've mentioned it: Rujak is a spicy and sweet condiment/sauce made from ground tamarind and hot red chilies. It looks like brown sludge, but is terrific with juicy and fresh veggies and fruits, like jicama, pineapple or mmmango. Also, it is best when made by Indonesian moms that are related to me.

Anyway, since I didn't have any rujak on hand, I decided to make the following with my mango bounty:

• Mahi-mahi tacos with mango-cucumber salsa
• Mango-tango sorbet

I also made tandoori chicken with mango-jasmine rice, but basically followed this recipe. And I cut up the rest of the MMMMANGOES to eat as is. So sweet and juicy and delicious.

Recipes after the jump!

Veggie storage.

Today in Totally Unnecessary But Irresistible Kitchen Splurges:

These adoooooorable containers from Cost Plus World Market.

They actually weren't that much (I can already hear the scoldings from my sister and boyfriend); they were $12 for all three and you can buy them separately! And I can use them to store salads and things I make using veggies and herbs from my garden! For a picnic or potluck! Yay! Exclamation points!

Where I've been.

Because it's obvious I haven't been here, at my blog.

Well, I took a trip to Seattle.

Pike Place was my Favorite Place. More photos from my Seattle foodventures soon!

Spent a weekend sipping wines in Santa Barbara.

Beautiful Sanford Winery. And delicious Sanford wines.

But mostly, I've been in my little balcony, tending to my little garden.

Now, I'm notoriously terrible at gardening -- an attribute that is known by former roommates, old co-workers, friends and family. But I love the concept of growing one's own food. I love working the soil with my fingers, planting a tiny seed, and waiting patiently for it to grow into a beautiful plant. I love thinking about Mother Nature's amazing ability to do this. And I love semi-frightening people with my hippie talk.

Many, many times I have tried and failed to grow plants (and keep them alive). Herb garden kits, tulips, even bamboo plants have suffered and died from my gardening inability. But with a little inspiration and encouragement from my co-worker, whom I now call my "garden godmother," I decided to give it another go.

I started with edamame seeds I had bought in Japan a year ago. I was amazed and encouraged when they germinated quickly and grew so rapidly (considering they had been dormant for more than a year). They were doing incredibly well for a very long time, until...

Still clinging to life.

They got attacked by what I later figured out were leaf miner bugs (awful tiny things that burrow inside the leaves of the plant). I also read somewhere that edamame plants apparently need a soil depth of at least 13-15 inches. My poor plants, which were in a 5-inch planter, were seriously suffering from lack of soil nutrients. And I probably overwatered them, too. Oops.

BUT I was able to harvest four little pods from my entire set of plants. I steamed them quickly in the microwave and the beans were so sweet and tasty. They may have tasted just as good as a frozen bag of edamame from Trader Joe's, but I had to give myself a little pat on the back for keeping something alive long enough to produce something that was actually edible.

The edamame plants eventually died, but I've learned from my mistakes and I'm totally encouraged to try again. In the meantime, I've been growing, from transplants, strawberries (regular and alpine), purple basil, Italian parsley, piquin peppers and a variety of succulents.

My sempervivum tectorum began flowering!

I'm also growing daisies, sweet pea and cilantro from seed, and sweet basil from cuttings. One of my strawberry plants even produced a baby plant from a runner!

So, I guess the point of this post is: I'm sorry I haven't been blogging because I've been gardening, but really I'm not sorry because gardening is awesome and everyone should totally feel encouraged to garden and grow their own food.

Also, I'll post a wrap-up of my Seattle trip next.

Crushin'.

Sooooooo. This post is a week late. When does the busy craziness end? Please someone tell me so I can comfort and reassure my lonely blog.

Also, now I'm in Seattle. Vacationing and enjoying the lovely city, the clean air, the trees (SoCal is SoNot as green as Seattle), and of course the FOOD. More updates on Seattle later. First: Back to OC.

Thanks to an invite from awesome OC blogger and food blahg reader Suz (Alive in Wonderland), I attended a BlogCrush event at Lazy Dog Cafe in Irvine, where we were treated to menu items selected by executive chef Gabriel Caliendo.

Favorites (and definitely things I would get again):
Togarashi edamame - soybeans made even more addictive with a slightly spicy seasoning
Shanghai tacos (lettuce cups) - savory and refreshing
Wok-fired calamari - crispy, spicy and sweet
Spicy Moroccan chicken and couscous - only tried the couscous, but would have been content laying my face in the plate

I was also at Lazy Dog for lunch that day (inadvertently booked lunch and dinner plans at the same restaurant) and got -- and loved -- the chicken salad sandwich and parmesan zucchini fries. I'd probably have no problem eating at the Lazy Dog Cafe for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Too bad they're not open for breakfast.

Now: Back to Seattle! Food updates soon, hopefully.

* * *
Lazy Dog Cafe (The Market Place)
13290 Jamboree Rd
Irvine 92602
714.731.9700

I want to hug my Crock-Pot.

I've been trying hard to get into the habit of posting more frequently, but have been distracted with my TV show obsessions as of late. Luckily, they've all finished up their seasons, so I can finally get back to my LIFE. And this blog.

This slow-cooker stroganoff was something I made a while back, when it was probably a bit cooler. But with June gloom in full swing, a warm, meaty plate of slow-cooked beef and pasta is totally appropriate for dinner, I say.

Beef Stroganoff (recipe adapted from Everyday Food)

2-3 pounds beef chuck (with decent marbling), trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 sweet brown onion, chopped
2/3 pounds white button mushrooms, trimmed and halved
1/3 pounds cremini mushrooms, trimmed and halved
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup sour cream, plus more for serving
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Cooked egg noodles, rotini, or other short pasta
Chopped fresh dill, for garnish

In a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, toss beef, onion and mushrooms with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours. Turn off or keep on warm.

In a 2-cup heatproof measuring cup, stir cornstarch with 2 tablespoons water. Ladle about a cup of cooking liquid into measuring cup, whisk to combine. Pour mixture into a small saucepan over medium-low heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 minute, until smooth and thickened. Pour cornstarch mixture into slow cooker and stir well. Stir in sour cream and Dijon mustard.

Serve beef over noodles and garnish generously with dill and a dollop of sour cream, if desired (and you will desire it).

WWYD (FAKB)?

Things I would do(oo-oo) for a Neapolitan Klondike bar:

1. Tweet about craving it after hearing about Neapolitan Klondikes from the helpful mustached fellow employed at my local Paper Source.

2. Visit KlondikeBar.com and use its store locator in an attempt to find the Neapolitan bars, only to discover the closest store that carries them is located 50 miles away; tweet about my disappointment.

3. Say YES PLEASE after the kind folks at Klondike offered to me, on Twitter, a "free one-time shipment" of Neapolitan Klondikes in response to aforementioned tweet.

4. Stumble out of bed the next morning to accept a big cold package packed with dry ice while addressing my mother's quizzical stares.

5. Completely disregard my dentist's recommendations to eat only soft, lukewarm foods after getting my wisdom tooth pulled that same day.

6. Substitute my breakfast for one the following day.

7. Begin working on a strategy to somehow obtain future boxes of Neapolitan Klondikes.

(Unique) LA day.

Being primarily an OC gal, I don't get to explore LA all that often. But my cousin lives and goes to school there, and she is the perfect excuse to visit. Also, she knows her way about town, and I get to be her chauffeur for a day. It's a win for all.

I had scheduled an "LA day" on my calendar not really sure what was in store. But I did know that we were going to start the day with grilled cheese. I had been looking forward to this for weeks. Clementine was having "Grilled Cheese Month" specials the whole month of April, and I was lucky to make it for the final weekend.

Behold the baked potato melt:

Potato, bacon, broccoli and cheesy goodness between two slices of potato dill bread. I was able to eat about a third of the sandwich before my appetite succumbed to its richness and I could not take one more bite. Eating a tuna-cheddar salad and part of my cousin's ham and Gruyère on pretzel bread probably had something to do with that, too. 

Also, the sweet homemade pickles. Delicious. Take it from someone who hates pickles. Or don't. It's up to you. (But seriously, eat the pickles.)

Our bellies quite content, we boxed our leftovers and were headed to our next stop: the Unique LA expo. This show features clothes, art, jewelry, awesome things, etc. from hundreds of independent local designers and artists. And, of course, it's fun for foodies, too.

Yummy things we saw:

Friggen' cute plush fruit by Janie XY.

Graze reusable sandwich/snack bags.

Sugars and herb packets by Backyard in a Jar.

Yummy things we ate:

An avocado vanilla popsicle from the Popshop. My cousin had lime mint mojito.

A CoolHaus snickerdoodle and candied bacon ice cream sandwich. (Yes, we had ice cream and ice cream.)

Flying Pig's smoked chicken and short rib "tacos." I had only a bite of the chicken, and all I can say is: This truck better be coming to OC soon.

P.O.P. Candy's rich, buttery toffee. The thyme, walnut and cherries one was my favorite.

Yummy things I brought home with me:

An adorable steppie art print for my kitchen.

Strawberry chipotle jam by Backyard in a Jar. It's sweet with just the right amount of heat. It's been a little over a week and the jar's almost finished.

A Subeco shirt. For every shirt they sell, they plant a tree in the rain forest!

Yay LA!

Identity crisis now averted.

Question: What do you think Val is short for? Valerie? Valkyrie? Val Kilmer?

If you guessed any of these, I'm afraid you are incorrect. (I bet a few of you out there were kinda maybe hoping for Val Kilmer. Don't lie.)

The truth is, Val is a pseudonym. Well actually, it's kind of a pseudonym. It's a pseudo-pseudonym. Because it isn't completely fictitious.

Val is short for Valentina, my middle name. My first name is Inez.

There. It's out. You know my real first name.

I know it may not seem like that big of a deal (and many of you have already known), but it has been kind of a big deal for me. When I created this blog, I wanted to keep it completely separate from other aspects of my life (namely, my job). I wanted to be almost anonymous. That's why I went with Val: a shortened, ambiguous version of my middle name. Val was an alter ego, an online identity I hid behind to allow me to indulge in, without holding back even one tiny bit, what has been a serious passion of mine for years: food. Cooking food, eating food, rambling about food, food and more food.

But I'm outing myself now for these reasons:

1. (Most importantly,) I realized Val, this blog, and @myabsentmind do not make up an alter ego. This is me. And I don't want to be anonymous anymore. This is who I am, and I'm proud of it. YAY.
2. People in my personal life who later found my blog kept asking me why I posted as Val. I'm over explaining it, and the reason is no longer valid (as previously stated).
3. Many of the people I interact with at work already know about this blog anyway.
4. I was getting seriously annoyed with myself and my Val/Inez inconsistency in posting comments on other food blogs (Food Frenzy, Monster Munching, Furey and the Feast -- my favorite OC blogs). Sidenote: My photo of smoky beef stew with blue cheese and chives was totally on Food Frenzy a couple months back.
5. I love my first name. Kudos to my mama on that one.

So, that's pretty much it. Thanks for putting up with that, and sorry I kind of rambled. But that's how I do. That's why this is called food 'blah'g. (blah blah blah blah..)

This is my last blog entry posting as Val.

Wait for it...

This blog is coming back on or before May 1.

Get ready.

Happy New Year.

Here's to the start of a new decade!

And yes, this blog is still alive. But with a faint pulse for now.

All I want for Christmas...

I have decided that I want need the following items for Christmas:

A paella pan. Crate & Barrel, $30. With it, I will make Christmas paella. And/or New Year's paella.

And (of course), this paella cookbook. Amazon.com, $12.89 ($18.95 list price).

Ad Hoc at Home, by Thomas Keller. Amazon.com, $29.25 ($50 list price). Visit one of my favorite blogs, Furey and the Feast, for a recipe for brownies from this cookbook.

This deep-dish red lasagna baker. Cost Plus World Market, $20.

This ridiculously expensive Emile Henry pie dish (although this can wait as my mom recently discovered and gave to me a lovely blue Chantal pie dish among her seemingly endless supply of dishware/bakeware). Williams-Sonoma, $44.

Lunchbox Project prints by Lisa Orgler (in love with these right now). Etsy.com, $15.50.

Also, I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin chocolate fleck sugar cookies.

I meant to make these for Halloween.


Actually.. I've been meaning to make sugar cookies for Halloween for at least the past three years, ever since I bought Halloween cookie-cutters at a post-Halloween sale at Crate and Barrel. Those post-holiday sales are so very dangerous. My cookie cutter and cupcake liner collections are proof.

Anywho, as I had written in my last post, I have been doing a whole lot of pumpkin-hankerin' lately. And I wanted to make jack-o-lantern pumpkin sugar cookies that actually tasted like pumpkin. So here's a tried and true sugar cookie recipe from one of my favorite cookbook authors, Carole Walter, altered a bit with a little pumpkin-chocolate pizazz.

These cookies are sugar cookies with a hint of pumpkin -- not anything like pumpkin drop cookies that have more of a cakey texture. Also, I'm pretty particular about my sugar roll-out cookies. They've got to be firm (though not dry), and they've got to hold their shape -- 'cause cookies that spread out into indistinguishable blobs bug me.


But these.. these make me grin.


Pumpkin Chocolate Fleck Sugar Cookies
Adapted from "Classic Sugar Cookies," Great Cookies, Carole Walter

3 1/4 cups sifted cake flour (plus more if needed)
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly firm
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup finely shaved semisweet chocolate
1 large egg white, lightly beaten with 2 teaspoons water

To decorate:
Sparkling white sugar OR
Icing of various colors (made with confectioner's sugar and a bit of milk)

1. Strain together flour, baking powder, salt and pumpkin pie spice in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugar on medium-low.
3. Beat the egg and vanilla together and mix into the butter-sugar mixture. Add the canned pumpkin. Mix in the dry ingredients in two additions, mixing just until combined.
4. Measure out about 1/4 the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Lightly knead the chocolate into the dough, being careful to not overwork.
5. Empty out the rest of the dough onto the floured surface and lightly knead the all the dough together three or four times to create a marbled effect. Divide into quarters and shape into four disks. Wrap each disk with plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.


6. Using one disk at a time, roll the dough to a 1/4 inch thickness. Cut using various cookie cutters and transfer the cookies to a cookie sheet lined with parchment. Brush tops lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with sparkling sugar if desired.
7. Bake the cookies in a 350 degree oven for 12-14 minutes or until the edges begin to brown. Remove from oven and wait a few minutes before moving the cookies to a cooling rack. Wait until cookies are completely cool before decorating with icing, if desired.


These were yummy, but I think I'd prefer them just a tad sweeter. I might try adding 1/4 cup brown sugar next time, see what that does.

Summer and fall obsessions.

Hello! I'm slowly resurfacing and it's taken longer than expected. But, here we go. Up and at 'em.

Let's see. I think I still had a few posts left on Japan, but it's friggen' November for Pete's sake. I might do a wrap-up later.

For now: A few summer obsessions that have trickled into fall.

YummyEarth Organic Hot Chili Pops


Particularly, the Chili Mango Mambo pop -- a sweet, fruity sucker with a hot chili kick. And it's organic and natural and made with real, good stuff. Win! I get them at my local Sprouts.

Breyers Rocky Road Ice Cream


I practically lived off this during the hot summer months. I originally thought I liked Breyers ice cream in only strawberry and mint chocolate chip, and that the more traditional, richer ice creams just weren't.. rich enough. But their good ol' rocky road proved me wrong. Maybe it's just 'cause Breyers makes rocky road just the way I like it -- marshmallow swirl instead of whole marshmallows (a pet peeve of mine), chocolate-covered toasted almonds instead of just plain nuts, all in creamy chocolate ice cream. Mmm mm.

Pumpkin and chocolate

Oh, man. I have been craving this combo like mad recently. My boyfriend even offered to stack a brownie on top of a slice of pumpkin pie to help satisfy my craving, and I probably would have eaten it if it weren't for the root canal I had earlier that day.

Terrible experience, by the way, that root canal. I do not recommend it.

Rutabegorz has pretty much saved my life on more than one occasion with its gargantuan iced pumpkin cookie. It is thick and soft, almost cake-like, and my attempts to savor it slowly are always met with utter failure. I only wish chocolate milk was at the ready to wash it down.

The other weekend, I trekked out to Claremont for Some Crust Bakery's pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.


These are perfection -- the texture emulates a chocolate chip cookie over pumpkin cake, and the chips are always warm and gooey. I wanted to buy a hundred of them, but I walked away with only two. Whyyy did I buy only two?

It's ok though, because the following week I made these:

Pumpkin whoopie pies. Here's the recipe on MarthaStewart.com. When making the cookies, drop the batter in little spoonfuls unless you are planning to undertake whoopie pies the size of burgers.

I have been going pumpkin crazy -- expect future pumpkin posts.

Hi!

..atus. As in: hiatus. As in: this blog is taking a break (if you couldn't already tell), until October! See you then!

Happy belated anniversary to me.

I missed my own blog's anniversary by more than a week! I am ashamed. I can't believe I've had this blog for two years. I've had some big ideas for it mulling around in my head lately. I wonder if they will ever come to fruition. Only time will tell.

Thanks to all for reading!

Earth's bounty. On a tiny little island.

If you ever venture to Yoron, you simply must experience the fresh, wholesome, organic goodness that is Sharon Fruit and Herb Garden Restaurant.

This restaurant is situated on an organic farm, and wouldn't you know it, all the fruits and vegetables and herbs come directly from the farm. The farm right outside the restaurant's doors. The farm that is tended to everyday by the happy people of Yoron. And by the happy kids of Yoron, who come to the farm from the neighboring preschool to learn about how veggies and fruits and plants grow.

I just loved it. All of it.

On to the actual eats: to start off, we had two kinds of pizza -- one with corn and ham, the other with calimari and shrimp and peppers. You can start off any meal with pizza, I think. Especially if they taste like these did.


Then, spaghetti with pork belly and fresh okra, onion and tomato.


And just in case we weren't stuffed from the huge mounds of pasta, they gave us little sandwiches, too. These were as simple and as scrumptious as can be.


Dessert was just amazing: fresh mango pudding. SO fresh, and you could taste it. I felt like I was eating the mango straight off the tree.


And finally: refreshing homemade papaya soda.


And something that isn't shown here: fresh lemongrass herb tea. Made from fresh lemongrass. That is GROWN, right THERE, in the gardens outside. That they hand-picked just for us. You just can't get any fresher than that.

I tasted Earth's bounty that day. And it was delicious.