Avacados are here!

I went away for the weekend to Chicago and came back to some fresh avacados from one of carolyn's co-workers. These were ripe and pretty tasty. Made an avacado mousse to go with some shrimp and asparagus.

Firefly

There is no shortage of places
in Los Angeles for a good drink and a great meal. Our most recent outing proved that Firefly in Studio City has both. We went here last week for drinks and dinner and we weren't dissapointed.


The ambiance is fantastic for a dinner for two with a nice fireplace in the middle and a covered outdoor dining area.

The meal started with a couple of tasty drinks (blood orange caiperinha and kumquat mojoto), followed by a chefs appitizer of chick pea purée and toasted bread. Our salad was an arugula salad with buratta cheese. For our entrees we ordered the seared duck breast with melted foie gras and the filet mignon with roquefort fondue.

The duck breast was cooked perfectly and the melted foie gras made a creamy sauce for the entire plate.


The steak was perfectly cooked and the Roquefort sauce was not overpowering and went quite well with the steak. Overall, I would say that the experience was a great one especially if you are looking for interesting cuisine and great ambience!

A sweet brunch

A year ago, my brother and sister in-law bought me an ebelskiver maker for our stove. My first reaction was "A what maker?". So enter the ebelskiver: half pancake, half doughnut, 100% delicious. We made ours with fresh raspberries or blueberries and topped them off with powdered sugar and a little lemon. We also served them up with mimosas since they are appropriate for any occasion!

A twist on tacos

I had some duck legs and wanted to find a fun idea to serve them. I ended up making these duck tacos (next time I will have to make the tortillas as well). In this recipe I used some tortillas from the Homeboy Bakery in Los Angeles.

Ingredients:
2 duck legs
1 cup red wine
1 cup beef broth
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 small onion diced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small cucmber julienned
Cilantro chopped
Sambal
Hoisin Sauce (or BBQ if desired)
Green onion
Salt
Pepper

Method:
1. Sautee garlic and onion in olive oil
2. Add the red wine and beef broth and reduce by 1/4
3. Add the duck legs and braise in a preheated oven (325 degrees) for 2-3 hours or until the meat slides off the bone.
4. When the meat is done, remove the duck from braising liquid and pat dry (this removes much of the excess oil from the outside)
5. Shread the duck meat and salt and pepper to taste
6. Baste a small amount of hoisin or BBQ sauce on warm tortilla and add duck, generous amounts of cucumber, some cilantro and sambal. Garnish with some fresh chopped onion and green onion.

Pork Tenderloin with Black Beans and Rice

Pork Tenderloin can be a quick flavorful meal during the week. This particular dish was seasoned with ancho chili powder, cayenne pepper, chipotle chili powder, salt and pepper. The meat was seared then finished in the oven. A home made barbecue sauce is painted on the plate for a little sweet and flavor.

The black beans are cooked in a small amount of vinegar, salt, pepper and some parsley. They are then added to a bed of white rice.