Food Lush

Reader Help: Palm Springs Eats

By Dani

The Hubs and I are going to Palm Springs this weekend for a little anniversary getaway, and I've been pretty excited about it... until we caught up on the DVR. Did you guys see the Modern Family episode about going to Palm Springs?

Needless to say, I don't really want to spend my anniversary weekend playing poker with Billy Dee Williams (although that would be pretty cool) or eating Cherries Jubilee. ;) I haven't been out to the Palm Springs area since my childhood, so maybe my memory of paradise amidst swaying palm trees and glitzy restaurants is a little smudged by time?

However, I have faith in you, Food Lushers. I know a lot of us hail from the Southern California area and many of you have probably vacationed in Palm Springs at some point, so tell me: where should we eat? (We'll have fun no matter what, but even a sub-par location can be dressed up with lots of great food, obviously.) It doesn't have to be a swanky find - greasy spoon gems are fine by me. Advise away, and thanks in advance!

(Photo credit: TV Guide.com)

Hidden Gem: Museum of Appalachia Restaurant

by Elissa

This year, we spent Christmas with my husband's family in southeastern Kentucky. It's a 9-10 hour drive from our home in DC, and we were traveling with a three-year-old and a one-year-old. Fortunately my worst fears were unrealized and the kids did great in the car. On the way there we drove through the night and they slept most of the way. But on the trip home, we decided to risk driving during daylight hours.

Our strategy was influenced by this article I read on Serious Eats about the excellent restaurant at the Museum of Appalachia. The museum is just outside Knoxville, Tennessee, a little over an hour from my in-laws' house and on our way back to DC.  We decided to begin our journey mid-morning and stop at the museum for a visit and lunch before continuing on our way.

The museum itself is certainly worth a visit: it features a bunch of historic cabins and other structures that contain lots of interesting artifacts. The kids especially loved the free-ranging peacocks wandering the grounds and the live banjo music that was featured in one of the cabins. But the lunch we ate at the museum restaurant would have been worth a special trip.

Pictured above is homemade vegetable soup with cornbread and a vegetable platter of pinto beans, buttered corn, and fried apples (my daughter and I shared this). The restaurant serves a hot lunch from 11 to 2 every day. In addition to sandwiches and hot dogs, they offer at least one entree and a dizzying number of vegetable sides. You can tell that this food is made with love, and the atmosphere is really charming. Here is my son enjoying his chicken and broccoli casserole in front of the cozy fireplace:

And my daughter enjoyed her lunch in this adorable vintage high chair:

We got a large quantity of delicious food that handily fed the four of us for only $25 (the fast-food dinner we got at Wendy's later the same day cost the same amount). My only regret is that we didn't end up getting dessert--the post-church lunch rush led to a line at the counter, and we were in a hurry to get home. But given our regular travels to this part of the country I know we will get back to the Museum of Appalachia sometime soon.

If you live near Knoxville or ever find yourself in the vicinity, don't miss this special place for a delicious meal.

Foods to Welcome the New Year

By Tara C.

In the melee leading up to Christmas, I feel like New Year's festivities are sometimes overlooked. And it's too bad--New Year's Eve seems like a great opportunity to bring out our fanciest food and drinks. It's a time to reflect upon and celebrate the past year and welcome a new one, full of new beginnings and possibilities.

Lately our New Year's Eves have pretty been lame to tell you the truth. The last time I partied like it was 1999 on New Year's Eve probably was 1999. But back then I was a young, childless newlywed. Times have changed and today we're lucky if we can even stay awake until midnight.

Other than champagne toasts on New Year's Eve, which I assume are pretty ubiquitous, I'm curious about what other New Year's food traditions Food Lush readers follow. I assume there are a lot of regional differences in terms of the New Year's food traditions, even within the U.S.

When I was growing up, my mother always served black eyed peas on New Year's Day for good luck in the new year. In high school, I had a friend who insisted that we each eat twelve grapes at the stroke of midnight. At the time, I had never heard of this tradition, but I have since learned that it's a Spanish tradition.

I would also love to find something that would elevate our quiet New Year's celebration a notch or two. I'll be back here on Food Lush in the New Year with a review of the Unofficial Downtown Abbey Cookbook and a giveaway, so maybe I'll kick off my Downtown Abbey cooking spree with some "upstairs" delicacies for New Year's Eve. The Countess of Grantham's Moules en Sauce? Lady Mary's Crab Canapés? Who knows--maybe one of these dishes will become our new New Year's Eve tradition.

So, tell me--what are your New Year's Eve and Day food traditions?

(photos from: myrecipes.com, npr.org)

Maui Eats: Longhi's

By Julie

We ate a lot of fantastic food in Maui, a trip we took to celebrate our 10 year anniversary, but I’d like to start with a restaurant where we began and where we finished: Longhi’s. My parents suggested this place, and I’d read about it, so we knew we’d have to give it a try.

Longhi’s is billed as an Italian restaurant, but we never have Italian food there, so I can’t comment. The food looked delicious though, so I don’t think it would be a poor choice.  However, I can recommend both dessert and breakfast. On our second night (the first lost in a sea of jet lag), we hit Longhi’s for their famed macadamia nut pie.  Beware, the pie alone cost $10.50. At that price, it needed to be spectacular.  And it was.  The pie brought to mind more traditional pecan pie, but with a ton of macadamias in place of the pecans. It was arm and gooey and full of nutty crunch that contrasted beautifully with the vanilla ice cream served on the side. What a great way to kick off our vacation. I just wish I had remembered to take a picture before we devoured it.

Then, on our last morning, we returned, having read that their banana macadamia nut pancakes were some of the best on the island (are you sensing a theme here?), and I made a beeline for this signature dish. This is what arrived at my table:

So pretty. I am not normally one to go for so much banana, but combined with the fluffy flapjacks, snowfall of nuts, and the coconut syrup so good I would bathe in it, the dish was magical. That enormous pile of pancakes? Finished. By me. With only a tiny assist from my husband, who would also like to give a big thumbs up to the chef’s daily quiche offering.

There are two locations in the major tourist areas of Maui, and one in Honolulu, so if you’re headed to the islands, you can definitely find the fine folks at Longhi’s. Seriously, go. Especially for breakfast. That was my favorite.

I’d also like to add that at the time of our trip, Longhi’s was offering 15% off through the Maui Dining App (for iPhone and iPad). Even if you don’t go to Longhi’s there were several other terrific places listing discounts there, so check it out for free.

{Photo Credits: longhis.com and me}

Herbsaint: the key to New Orleans-style cocktails

by Katie

Like many other Food Lush and Style Lush writers, I was fortunate enough to spend the past weekend hanging out in New Orleans. And one of my favorite things to do in New Orleans is drink.

Wait. That sounds bad. Well whatever, it's true. If you can see beyond the neon-colored jello shots and the hurricaines-from-a-mix from Bourbon Street, New Orleans has a great and storied cocktail culture, and I always like to take advantage while I'm in town.

I could go on and on about my favorite cocktail bars, and what I drink at each, but instead I thought I'd highlight a common element in many classic New Orleans cocktails: Herbsaint.

(picture from: wormwoodsociety.org)

Herbsaint is a green, anise-flavored spirit that was actually created in New Orleans. It was originally used as a substitute for absinthe, which for nearly 100 years was banned in the United States and Europe for its supposed hallucenogenic properties. Absinthe has had a renaissance and is widely available again, but most absinthes are from artisan producers and can be quite expensive, so Herbsaint is still often used as a substitute.

Arguably the most famous New Orleans cocktail, the Sazerac, uses a rinse of Herbsaint in the glass that gets poured out before the rest of the booze is poured in- infusing the whole drink with a subtle herbal flavor that's really delicious. I drank several Herbsaint-using sazeracs this weekend, and give them an enthusiastic thumbs up.

A slightly lesser-known but also delicious New Orleans cocktail that features Herbsaint is the corpse reviver. There are as many recipes for corpse revivers as there are bartenders, but here's one very close to the one I drank at the Carousel Bar this weekend. It was delicious.

Corpse Reviver No. 2

1 oz. gin
1 oz. Cointreau
1 oz. Lillet Blanc (a french aperetif wine flavored with citrus peels- a worth addition to any bar)
1 oz. fresh lemon juice
1 dash Herbsaint

Shake all ingredients over ice; strain into a cocktail glass

Cafe Du Monde, New Orleans

by Maura

I consider myself a lucky, lucky girl to have spent the past weekend in New Orleans with sixty awesome women. Thanks to the organizers of the Blathering, I had a wonderful time socializing and eating delicious food. The epicurean highlight of my trip was the beignets and coffee at Cafe Du Monde.

(Image Credit: Wikipedia)

These delightful pieces of fried dough are better than any funnel cake you've ever had. They are slightly crispy on the outside, soft and doughy on the inside. Coated in a thick layer of powdered sugar, these beignets melt in your mouth. The beignets at Cafe Du Monde were different than any other beignets I've ever eaten -- slightly denser and square. You can buy the beignet mix at almost any souvenir shop in New Orleans, although I don't know how they could compare to the original.

(Image credit: Cafe Du Monde)

The coffee, too, was incredible; a mix of dark French Roast coffee and chickory. According to Cafe Du Monde's website, the combination of coffee and chickory was discovered by the French during the French Revolution. Coffee was scarce, and the French added roasted, ground chickory to improve the body and flavor to weak coffee. Additionally, the chickory -- which is the root of the endive plant -- softens the bitterness of dark roasted coffee. I brought back a can of Cafe Du Monde's coffee to share with my fiance. 

Have you been to Cafe Du Monde?

Restaraunt Review: La Siesta

By Dani

I'm in a constant hunt for great mexican food. Mexican food is not usually thought of as artful or difficult cuisine, but there is a special touch that you just can't find at chain restaurants. There's something to be said for homemade, slow-cooked refried beans, roasted carne asada that falls apart at the touch of your fork and warm, buttery-tasting fresh-made tortillas. Baja Fresh and Chili's, you are great, but you can't really play at this party.

In my opinion, you can't have a great margaritas without going classic - just give me tequila, homemade margarita mix, and lots of salt and I'm a happy girl.

La Siesta is just this kind of no-frills, homemade mexican food, with only one location (close to North Beach) in San Clemente. It's about a mile from the official downtown San Clemente, so it's funkily situated between a pharmacy, an auto parts store and an empty lot, but still manages to be consistently full of happy eaters.

The staff are friendly and accomodating (the bartenders especially are great) and it's become our favorite place to hang out for a relaxing Sunday Night Football outing, as the perfect end to a busy weekend. The other bonus is that it's very affordable - a gigantic dinner for two people (including a couple of margaritas each) will set us back less than $50 on average, and that includes tip and plenty of leftovers to take home.

Next time you're in south Orange County, you have to try it. You'll be so glad you did.

{Photo by me. I wish I would have gotten a good picture of my enchiladas, but they were blurry. And DELICIOUS.}

The State Fair of Texas and All the Fried Food in the World

By Julie

There are many things for which the State Fair of Texas (yes, capitalized) is known, but perhaps none so much as the cuisine. Which, in this case, is a fancy word for fried everything. Literally. And it is awesome.

I haven’t been to the fair in many years, so when I had the chance to partake this week, I jumped at it. They have a contest every year to crown winners in new food categories, and the list of champions is long, distinguished, and deeply weird. There have been fried bacon, fired butter, and fried coke. Sensing a theme here?

So I did my own little taste test of decadent delights. My criteria for selection were as follows: it had to be unusual and it had to have enough tickets to buy it. Let Fried Fest begin!

Let me just state from the beginning that all of these foods, ones tasted and ones left for another day, look remarkably similar because they are all created on the principle of “let’s see what bizarre thing we can wrap in dough/dip in batter and fry to oblivion.” Nothing wrong with that.

I started off with the fried banana pudding because I saw it and remembered I’d seen a coupon in the guidebook for it. Savings at the fair? Yes, please. My judging panel consisted of myself, my 4 year old daughter, and my dad. Our conclusion was that this was pretty good, basically a banana cream fried pie. The whipped cream frosting was the best part, in my opinion. My dad said that it would really be better with some crushed up vanilla wafers inside to give it the full banana pudding experience, and I wholeheartedly agree.

A bit later, we were joined by my husband (who’d been off on his own fried food expedition, and more on that in a moment) to try the fried pineapple upside down cake and the fried “taste of autumn” pumpkin pie. The cake was just a canned ring of pineapple battered and friend, and was incredibly difficult to eat with only a flimsy plastic fork. The pineapple just slid out of the coating and refused to be severed by said fork. The pie was ball shaped and merely filled with pumpkin pie filling, so it wasn’t all that spectacular and I have no idea why it required a special “taste of autumn” descriptor. It was merely fine. I guess I just prefer my pumpkin pie chilled.

Now, my husband had wandered off in search of this year’s best taste winner, the fried jambalaya. He said it was tasty, but that it was predominantly a disc of fried rice and couldn’t really find any sausage or seafood in it, as one might expect in jambalaya. He also said it was fairly teeny in portion.

All that said, the winner of the day was a classic: the good ol’ corn dog, a fair staple since forever. Whether you’re a purist and go for a good slather of mustard, or a renegade and cover yours in ketchup (like my daughter, whom I don’t even know anymore, because ketchup?), you cannot go wrong with a corny dog. So good.

And there you have it, my 2012 State Fair of Texas food roundup. If you’d like to join my next year, please being prepping your arteries now.

{Photo Credits: blogs.observer.com, sidedish.dmagazine.com, and eatsblog.dallasnews.com. I actually took my own photos, but my computer and camera are currently conspiring against me.}

Cajun Red Beans and Rice

by Jen L.

I grew up in Louisiana. Even though I haven't actually lived in Louisiana for nearly 14 years, I sometimes absolutely MUST have some Cajun food.  We have a decent Cajun restaurant close by that has great gumbo, good seafood dishes and a nice overall variety of Cajun and Creole foods.  Usually, though, I end up making it myself.  While I was growing up, my mom managed to get her hands on one of the best Jambalaya recipes of all-time, which I like to serve from time to time.  I make a mean Shrimp Creole, a recipe I concocted all on my own. It's kind of a fusion of versions from two favorite restaurants.  However, when someone actually requests Cajun food from my kitchen, it's usually red beans and rice with andouille sausage.

Now here's the thing--andouille is not the easiest thing to find outside the south.  When we lived in NYC, I usually ended up going with "andouille-style" smoked sausage, which tastes ok.  If you can get your hands on real andouille, go for it. (Bonus points if you can find Manda brand!)  If you are not into hot and spicy things, you can certainly replace the andouille with regular smoked sausage.  You can also omit the sausage completely for a hearty vegetarian meal.  I should point out that some recipes call for celery, but I don't care for crunching down into a piece of celery with my beans and rice. But if you like it, toss a couple of chopped ribs of celery in there.

CAJUN RED BEANS AND RICE

• 1 pound dry red kidney beans
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 3 tablespoons garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning (Louisianians like Tony Cachere's)
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (more or less to taste) or hot sauce
• 1 pound andouille sausage
• 2 cups long grain white rice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

For best results, soak dry beans overnight.  Drain and rinse beans when you're ready to put the dish together, and return them to your pot.  In a skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Cook onions, peppers and garlic until onions are transluscent.  Add to pot of beans.  Pour 6 cups of water over beans and vegetables.  Add Cajun seasoning and cayenne. Stir well, then bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours.  When the 2 hours is nearly up, slice andouille into rounds or bite-size pieces and brown in a skillet. (Andouille generally comes fully cooked, but be sure to check the package.)  Add browned andouille to beans and simmer for 30 minutes.  Cook rice as directed.  Serve beans and sausage over rice.

(Photo from Simply Recipes)

Off the Beaten Path: Gems in Downtown Napa

by Caitlin

Ask anyone about a trip to Napa and they'll probably start discussing all their favorite vineyards, tasting rooms, and restaurants. A trip to Napa most often consists of a trip to Napa valley and the towns surrounding Napa proper (Yountville, Saint Helena, Sonoma). What I didn't realize when I started planning my first trip out there (and asking for advice, which I received here in spades, and was very grateful for) is that Napa itself is a town, with a downtown area and everything. The past few years have not been kind to the city of Napa, and a lot of businesses have closed. So while the wineries and restaurants in the surrounding area seemed to have flourished (and please correct me if I'm wrong on that), downtown Napa can be a little depressing, with empty storefronts. My husband and I stayed in downtown Napa, though, and boy are we glad we did. We truly couldn't have picked better. 

To start, we arrived at our hotel (The Avia Napa) on a Thursday. Apparently we timed it well, as on the first Thursday of the month during the summer they shut off the street right in front of the hotel for a Chef's Market. We spent the evening wandering around listening to live music, drinking local wine and beer, and sampling all kinds of delicious food from various local vendors. It was a delightful way to start our trip. And I'm saying this as someone who normally finds street festivals to be kind of overwhelming and overrated. To me they're usually too crowded and it's not worth standing in line for mediocre food. Not the case here. We did stand in a few lines, but it wasn't suffocatingly crowded and we met so many great people; locals who were happy to stand around a table in the middle of the street chatting over a glass of wine with a couple of tourists. Including, oddly, a couple who had their two young kids with them named Zach & Caitlin. (This will only be odd if you recall that my husband's name is Zach. It also may be a lot funnier after 3 or 4 beers.)

 

Photo by me.

The next morning my husband woke up early and went in search of good coffee (necessary, on a number of levels). He found a place on Yelp with stellar reviews, and went to check it out. Molinari Caffe was everything Yelp said it would be and more. Zach struck up a conversation with the owner, Rick, and came back to the hotel room telling me what a nice guy he was, and how well he knew his coffee. And Rick does know his stuff: that coffee was perfect, let me tell you. We ended up going back there every day.

Photo from napavalleyregister.com.

We were actually in Napa for a wedding, so we went to plenty of other restaurants and wineries in Napa Valley while attending wedding events and celebrations. We also had a few extra days to spend on our own, and were constantly popping in and out of the hotel. At one point we found a flyer in our room for the Napa Valley Toffee Company, which was next door to the hotel. Again we turned to the yelp reviews, and again they didn't let us down. 

They also have a wine and espresso bar and one afternoon we were in desperate need of caffeine, so we wandered next door for some refreshment. While we were there we chatted with the woman who helped us, and told her we'd come by because of the blurb the hotel had put out. (It turns out she was the owner, and she hadn't seen the hotel flyer, apparently the hotel just loves the toffee?) (We brought one down for her the next day.) We sampled some toffee, and it was quuuuite good so we got a bunch for gifts, and while we were chatting, asked if she could recommend a nearby restaurant that was off the beaten path a bit, where locals go. She recommended Carpe Diem Wine Bar, and, you guessed it, it was another Yelp hit. 

 

Photo from tripadvisor.com.

We happened to hit it on the night they were celebrating their two year anniversary, and it was very crowded. We were lucky and surprised to find the last two seats at the bar. We were further surprised to sit down right next to Rick, from Molinari Caffe, whom Zach had met the day before. We ended up having dinner and chatting with he and a few of his friends at the bar all night, and it was a truly memorable evening. (As a bonus, he supplies their coffee and ordered one of his newest brews for us to try.)

As for Carpe Diem itself, it was my first chance to try what's become a favorite bubbly: Schramsberg Blanc de Blancs. It was recommended by a Food Lush reader, and I probably would never have tried it if not for her. Thanks, Elz! We tried a bunch of things, and our favorite was the boar meatballs. The crispy, goat cheese stuffed olives were great, and we also enjoyed one of the flatbreads and the alligator tacos, which were that night's specialty. Rick ordered the ostrich burger and when we saw it served we were sorry we didn't have enough room for one!

We hit plenty of the well-traveled places you've probably heard about in Napa (Ad Hoc, Bouchon Bakery, Domaine Chandon, etc.), and we really enjoyed them all. But we also loved making these memories of places we'd never have imagined or planned on going to, and we're so glad we did. We met some truly wonderful, gracious people and got to share delicious things with them in beautiful Napa. What's better than that?

Have you been to Napa? Have you found any hits off the beaten path?