Pear & Almond Tart – My Favorite Baker

Thank you for baking us this beautiful and scrumptious pear & almond tart, C! You always amaze me by making such unbelievably good desserts from scratch…B and I love them all! :-9

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Being the ever thoughtful husband, B prepared a wonderful picnic for us in Tiburon. He woke up early in the morning and made a tangy shrimp salad with capers and fresh dill, a scrumptious chicken curry salad with grapes and almond slivers, and bought some St. George cheese and Acme Bread to round out our meal. We washed it all down with a bottle of 2005 Red Car Syrah, which we purchased from a trip to Sonoma a few years back (we fell in love with the wine during a dinner at Cyrus).
Eating food prepared from the heart and looking out onto the beautiful bay – I couldn’t ask for more.

Holiday Highlights

Beautifully carved Christmas goose and turkey by A.
Cream puffs by moi!! Three different flavors – coffee, chocolate, and vanilla. It is a rare sighting to find me in the kitchen, but I made an appearance since these are one of B’s favorite desserts.
S is the household chili master and made a guest appearance one night with his signature chili spaghetti.

Houston Home Cookin’ – Part Deux

N’s delicious (and relatively healthy!) brunch: Smoke salmon eggs benedict, roasted tomato and pesto pastry, fresh fruit

S’ special fried egg ramen: Nothing hits the spot at 2am after drinking like a piping hot bowl of spicy, salty ramen!

Seafood extravaganza with my parents: 2 steamed 4-lb lobsters (their claws were bigger than my hands!), 2 Dungeness crabs, and 8 sweet blue crabs…all for just 4 people!

Turkey Day

I hope everyone enjoyed gorging themselves on food as much as I did over Thanksgiving. A special thanks to my sister for preparing such a wonderful feast. Some of the highlights were...

Cajun Turducken Stuffed with Crawfish and Rice

Sausage & Cheese Biscuits

Green Beans with Onions and Almond Slivers

Hubby Home Cookin'

Since my husband rarely cooks, I wanted to give him props for the lovely dinner he made last night – lemon caper halibut over roasted brussel sprouts with mushrooms and pancetta. Thanks, B!
BTW – Great news. We’ll be celebrating the New Year in Napa…and got French Laundry reservations!! Chef Keller’s food is absolutely phenomenal, and I look forward to going back!

Home cookin' in Houston

Nothing tastes as good as a meal that has been made with love by family and friends. Below are a few of the tasty delights that I had from my weekend in Houston.

Serrano ham and brie crostini topped with a fried quail egg over a cauliflower puree – a scrumptious and sophisticated “snack” prepared by S after my flight.
A southern style feast at N and Q’s home. My sister caught the grouper herself and prepared it two ways: blackened and with a zesty mango salsa; while my brother-in-law grilled 3 racks of spicy honey bbq ribs.
However, my heart belongs to my parents' cooking. I always feel so happy and comforted by their food. Some of my favorite dishes include soy and honey glazed quail, jumbo prawns in sweet tomato sauce, braised pork and eggs in caramelized sauce, while B especially loves my mom’s fried rice (pictured).