M Cafe – West Hollywood, CA

What’s left when there’s no refined sugars, eggs, dairy, red meat or poultry? As bizarre as this probably sounds to most diners, there’s still a long list of other ingredients and intensely flavorful dishes to eat without these overused 5. I really think that we are so used to automatically reaching for these items without thinking about it and forget all the other great things to eat that are better and more delicious. Break the rut, open your eyes and expand your taste buds to a more interesting and diverse world of eating. The easiest and very motivating way to start is by heading over to M Cafe, the contemporary macrobiotic cuisine cafe with a global menu for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and more. Their kitchen uses wholesome, ecological ingredients like heirloom-varietal whole grains, organically grown beans, fresh fish and locally-grown fruits and vegetables. [...]

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Recipe Review: Soba Noodle Soup with Shiitake and Spinach

Here’s another childhood favorite soba dish that is incredibly simple to make. Martha Shulman’s Soba Noodle Soup with Shiitake and Spinach utilizes every cooking step towards a savory and complex broth to serve. The winning ingredients for me are the buckwheat soba noodles and plenty of scallions with maybe a few dashes of Ichimi Togarashi for a little more heat. This dish is undeniably healthy with the shiitake mushrooms, buckwheat soba, and spinach – even better is that it’s something I’ve always loved as a fast lunch or even late night comfort food.
Recipe: by Martha Rose Shulman
Yield: 4 Servings
Time: Total 1 hour 15 minutes
Ingredients:
1 ounce kombu seaweed
4 dried shiitake mushrooms
3/4 pound dried soba noodles
12 ounces spinach, stemmed and washed thoroughly, or 1 6-ounce bag baby spinach, rinsed
2 green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon sake
2 tablespoons mirin
2 to 4 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce (to taste)
1. Place the kombu and [...]

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Piccolo Ristorante – Venice, CA

I had one of the most delicious romantic dinners the other night at Piccolo Ristorante in Venice Beach. This cozy little Italian haven is in an unassuming spot right off the beach, tucked into the neighborhood. The place was busy before it was even open. The proprietor, Vittorio Viotti, made sure we had a perfectly comfy corner table in one of their dining room wings. Everything from the room, seating and considerate attention to the bread basket, Branzino Marinato (top pic) and Doppio Raviolo di Pesce Halibut (pic below), was as blissful as you would ever want a dinner to be. This is definitely a new favorite restaurant for me. Check out some of their menu items below.

(Doppio Raviolo di Pesce – Spigola, Halibut, and Eggplant with Mascarpone and Caviar)
Chef Bobo’s seasonal menu:
ANTIPASTI CALDI
Quaglia Arrosto – pan-roasted quail, stuffed with foie grás, Marsala reduction [...]

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Buttermilk Food Truck – Los Angeles, CA

Calling all fellow breakfast food lovers, those of you that consider french toast anytime of the day or night. Thanks to Gigi Pasqual and Buttermilk Boy Klippy, Buttermilk Truck brings us our favorite breakfast dishes all day and late night long. Some of my favorite items off their menu include Hawaiian Bread Cinnamon French Toast Sticks served with butter and syrup, Southwest Veggie Omelet with cornbread, Buttermilk Biscuit Breakfast Sandwiches with applewood smoked bacon and rosemary hash browns, Fried Chicken with Housemade Cinnamon Waffles. See below for more menu items and deets.
Find them participating in the Food Trucks for Haiti, Saturday Jan.23, 12-3pm, at TLofts – 11500 Tennessee Ave at Butler Ave, West LA with 20 other fellow foody trucks. Event runs from 11am-4pm. Portions of the proceeds will be donated to the Red Cross International Response Fund in relief efforts for the Haitian people.
More [...]

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Real Food Daily’s Organic Cuisine Menu Update for Jan.18-31

Here’s an update to Real Food Daily’s weekly specials for the 2nd half of January. I’m ready to find out what the forbidden black rice is all about in the Madame Wong’s Stir-fry Palace. My favorites include the Country Vegetable Miso Soup, perfect for this rainy week,Faux-stess Cupcake with gooey white filling, chocolate cake, and fudgy icing, and Peanut Butter Cookies!
Monthly Special Jan 4 – Jan 31
Hippie Love Loaf
Lentils, millet, butternut squash, carrots, onions, herbs, gravy and roasted parsnips, carrots, Brussels sprouts
WEEKLY SPECIALS Jan 18 – 31
Madame Wong’s Stir-fry Palace
Spicy, stir fried Chinese long beans, miso glazed tempeh, eggplant, onion, carrots, forbidden black rice, peanuts
Fajita Chop
Black beans, seitan fajitas, vegetables, corn, cherry tomatoes, shredded cheese, guacamole, salsa, romaine, chipotle ranch dressing, spicy tortilla strips
Week Jan 25 – 31
On the Mexican Riviera
Pecan-cornmeal crusted tempeh, coconut yams, sautéed chipotle greens, spicy black bean sauce, mango salsa
Pippi Longstockings
Chickpea polenta, corn, roasted [...]

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dineLA Restaurant Week is back for 2010

dineLA Restaurant Week is coming up starting Jan 24 – 29 and Jan 31 – Feb 5. Their live to eat line-up includes over 200 restaurants across Los Angeles offering up special lunch and dinner pixe fix menus ranging from $16-$44. Reservations fill up quickly so book yours right away.
Below are some of my favorite menus – Campanile (Grilled Duck Breast with fennel, lemon-thyme potatoes and crisp leeks), Susan Feniger’s Street (Susan’s Mother’s Peanut Butter and Jelly cookies), Joe’s Restaurant (Santa Barbara Black Cod with mushroom soy dashi, baby shiitake, and mezuna lettuce crispy rice) and Sugarfish by Sushi Nozawa (dinner for only $26).
To get the most out of the event, register and use your American Express card to get a $20 statement credit. See below for more details.
CAMPANILE
624 S. La Brea
Los Angeles, CA 90036-3568
323.938.1447
LUNCH $22
Choice of Appetizers:
Soup of the Day
Warm Beluga Lentil Salad – [...]

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Real Food Daily’s Organic Vegan Cuisine Menu for January

Good for you food and yummy comfort food can both be delicious and drool-worthy. Vegan and vegetarian food has come a long way but most people still think of them as tasteless boring vegetable dishes. That is so untrue and the complete opposite, especially with the abundance of choices in Los Angeles. So for 2010, I’m promising myself to remember to try out more new healthy delicious dishes. One of my favorite and very popular restaurant for this occasion is Real Food Daily. This place has done all the work for you in preparing yummy high maintenance food for vegans, vegetarians, macrobiotic dieters, organic eaters, kosher certified, low-calorie low-fat and low-sugar, and all foodies. My favorite is the Cold Soba Salad with soba noodles, julienne vegetables, cucumbers, cilantro, sesame seeds, peanuts, peanut dressing, and marinated tempeh. Check out their new menu [...]

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Recipe Review: Farro Beets Green and Feta Salad

I’ve eaten countless cookies between Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Eve. I wouldn’t ever say I’m giving up desserts, but I do feel the need to tilt my diet towards the healthier side for a bit. Just a bit. Something like a salad but more comforting. That made me think of my favorite farro salads with diced tomatoes, cucumbers, green onions, and feta. Farro is a hard wheat grain sometimes known as spelt and has a texture closer to a thick pasta al dente. It is as hearty and healthier than pasta and makes a very satisfying main dish ingredient.
Here’s Martha’s recipe for Farro Beets Green and Feta Salad. The addition of beets gives a little bit of sweetness to the mix of nutty and salty combination. I like adding diced cucumbers and sliced green onions to the mix with some squeezed lemon [...]

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Recipe Review: Simplest Roasted Turkey

Here’s one of my favorite recipe tips from Gourmet on roasted turkey. Of all the various turkey articles and t.v. episodes I’ve read and watched, this is the most helpful and intuitive set of basic recipe tips for a juicy and flavorful whole roasted turkey or stuffed or even just the turkey breast. It has actually been useful for following along whenever I needed to remind myself what to do next or check on. As usual, always check temperature earlier for lighter weight turkeys and add a cup of water to dark-colored metal roasting pans before putting it in the oven. I suggest using an oven thermometer, placing it on the same rack as your turkey in the oven to make sure the temperature is accurate. Adjust the oven rack so that your turkey, not the roasting pan, can be positioned in the center of [...]

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Recipe Review: Black Truffle Roast Turkey with White Wine Shallot Gravy

I honestly don’t think there’s any roast turkey better than my sister’s. When I think her roast turkey can’t get any better, she floors me, and there I am amazed and drooling with turkey in both hands. I’m not sure what the magic ingredient or trick is. It doesn’t seem to matter what kitchen she’s in. I think she has the magic touch with roast turkeys and I want to try every recipe with her. Here’s one that I love for a truly special occasion, Black Truffle Roast Turkey with White Wine Shallot Gravy.
For the gravy, whisking is very important when adding the flour to prevent lumps from forming and also to blend in as much flavor from the scraped caramelized bits of turkey meat. It’s a better idea to make the gravy ahead of time, so that you’re not rushing to get the [...]

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