Author Archives: j

Northern Cafe Dumpling House

Top Leaf has some new competition just down the street and Westwood is *finally* getting some good food. Northern Cafe’s marketing needs some help and their service could be more polished but I want to return at least 5 times so I can try all the things on the menu. Speaking of which, I couldn’t find one online, so I posted it to Twitter. My 3 followers will be ecstatic. We ordered their xiao long bao, beef roll, and sides of potato and pickled cucumber. I was still hingry so we ordered their Fennel and Pork Dumplings. Turns out, these are dill and pork dumplings. Like I said, there are some QA issues that need to be resolved. 


I can tell the dumplings are homemade because of the soft, pillowy dough and rough, non-uniform appearance. And they crack in the same place as pierogies do. 

Next time, the hand grab roll, beef noodle soup, dan dan noodles and fried rice. Actually, m wants the pork and chive, the fish, and the lamb. I said, “Don’t you want to try the noodles?” “Yeah…”

homemade ceviche

our nephew, dmp, is in town and has been fishing off the coast of malibu catching grouper, sea bass, and snapper. he gave me the bones for stock and used the fillets to make ceviche. twice. 


nytimes salted tahini chocolate chip cookies

tahini, tahini, and more tahini. 

last night, m made hummus for a starter, we made chicken shawarma for dinner, and she convinced her nephew to make salted tahini chocolate chip cookies. what’s really awesome is after he mise en placed everything, he discovered the recipe said “let rest in the fridge for 12 hours.” we made them today and invited him over so he could reap the rewards of his hard work. 

wandering

i needed to get some fresh air, i’ve been wanting to take photos, and i needed a walk so i wandered up 17th street from Wilshire to San Vicente.

mimicking chipotle again

in honor of our mother’s day tradition, m made chilaquiles again and made her own version of sofritas:

Ex firm tofu. Dry it out. Coarse crumble. Dry it some more. 

Cumin coriander peppercorn. Toast. Grind. mex oregano crush into spice grind. Add chipotles in adobo and some of the sauce. Add roasted serrano and water to grinder to make a paste. 

Canola oil in pan. Add tofu. Lightly Brown To rmv water. Add onions. saute 1.5. add red bell pepper. And garlic. Saute 1.5 min. Add about 1/2 cup water with paste. Cover. Salt to taste. 

lollipops

Santa Monica palm trees

3rd floor view in Santa Monica gets you a view of a parking lot full of Mercedes Benz vehicles and “lollipops”

freebies

i turned in our free mcdo monopoly game pieces for a mocha frappe and medium fries. next, a free mcgriddle!

earth day 2016

Ralph Waldo Emerson: “The earth laughs in flowers.” 

This was written on the tag of the teabag — seems appropriate for Earth Day.