More Things To Eat

Since I last blogged about Jonathan Gold's article (refer to my Things To Eat post), a friend told me about a list of 100 Things You Should Try Before You Die in San Francisco (shout out to Ophs for the tip!) by 7x7.com. The list is driven solely by diners opinions and MH and I would have to agree with the items we've had so far.

Checked off the list:

• Morning Bun at Tartine Bakery
• Crab with Cellophane Noodles at The Slanted Door
• Porchetta Sandwich at Roli Roti
• Pizza Margherita at Pizzeria Delfina
• Salumi Misti Plate at Perbacco
• Tuna Tartare and a Gin Martini at Bix
• Salty Caramel Ice Cream at Bi-Rite Creamery

Over the weekend, MH and I took a road trip to the bay area and while we were there I found something thing that I would add to the list, a Reaper Bun from OctoberFeast Bakery. It was explained to me as something like a caramelized morning bun, but even as delicious as that sounds I think the actual thing is better. I imagine that the obscene amounts of butter and sugar used to make these delicious treats are what gives them their name, so they are definitely not a good fit for palettes sensitive to sugar overload. However, I would eat one or two in a sitting the next time I have the chance. I made the mistake of eating half to save the rest for later and the next day it just wasn't the same.

French Bread From A Vending Machine

Last week, the Associated Press shed light on a 24-hour vending machine in France that sells baguettes! You can read about it HERE and watch a video to see how it works HERE. I hope they make it over to the states. They are too cool!

Mmmmmm Donuts!

If you are ever in Glendora, or would like to make a slight detour on your way to Las Vegas like we did, you can stop at Donut Man and pick up one of these delightful fresh strawberry donuts!

It is the child of a fresh strawberry pie and a donut, the donut is split and filled with a generous portion of glazed strawberries. Boy oh boy is it good. Donut Man also offers a variety of other donuts as well. MH picked up a tiger tail (a donut twisted with chocolate) that he enjoyed and depending on the time of year, fresh peach donuts are available too.

The Apple Pan

Last week, MH and I headed over to the Apple Pan. If you live in Los Angeles, I'm sure you have seen it before, it is the cute little house with the giant Apple Pan sign on Pico Boulevard across the street from the Westside Pavilion shopping mall.

The restaurant is very quaint, with a counter seating no more than 25 some odd people at a time, and its interior design was the inspiration for the Johnny Rockets restaurant franchise.

MH ordered the Steak Burger with cheese (left), I ordered the Hickory Burger (right) and we split an order of fries. While the burgers and fries were tasty I thought the atmosphere was really what made the restaurant a gem. The Apple Pan is the kind of place where you feel like a regular even if it's your first time there. The waiters pour your ketchup, pull you extra napkins, and slide you an extra plate without you having to ask. All of their years of experience let them know what you need without you having to say a word.

It's a nice change in pace from having to flag down your aspiring actor/actress aka waiter/waitress to ask for a place setting to eat your meal or your check so you can pay and leave. Again, if you live in Los Angeles, I'm sure you know what I mean.

Things To Eat

Last year, Jonathan Gold wrote an article titled '99 Things to Eat in Los Angeles Before You Die' and after living in Los Angeles for 5+ years MH and I figured we should take advantage of our time here and start checking things off of the list.

Since the list includes "fugu to foie gras, pizza to panuchos" I doubt we'll make it all the way through. However, we've already been to over dozen of the places listed so we are off to a pretty good start!

Checked Off The List:

• Tito's Old School Tacos
• Langer's Hot Pastrami
• Casa Bianca's Pizza
• Kogi's Kalbi Taco
• El Tepeyac Burrito
• Philippe's French Dip
• Hot Dog on a Stick
• Akasha
• Oki Dog
• Mozza Pizza
• Lawry's Prime Rib
• Campanile's Grilled Prime Rib
• Border Grill's Green Corn Tamales
• Nickel Diner Maple Bacon Donut
• Bay Cities Godmother
• Bludso's Brisket

Falling With Style

Much to my surprise, MH and I went skydiving for my birthday! Cross another thing off of our bucket list, 2011 is going to be a hard year for us to beat.

MH and I All Geared Up And Ready To Go

The whole experience was truly something else. Since we did tandem jumps, we didn't have to worry about any of the technical details (e.g. pulling the rip cord for our parachute to open or landing safely). However, gathering the courage to jump out of the plane at 12,500 feet was a big enough challenge for me. Despite being a frequent flier, 12,500 feet feels much different when you are expected to launch yourself out of the plane.

After experiencing skydiving once, my favorite part of the jump were those few seconds after my tandem jumper and I left the plane. I don't know how to describe it but I would definitely do it again. I think there are a few other activities on the list to do first though so we'll just have to wait and see what our next adventure is.

A Lot Of Lattes

I've never been an avid coffee drinker. On occasion, I enjoy a white chocolate mocha or caramel macciatto to get my sugar fix, but I never drink a straight cup of coffee. I recently discovered that my quick morning pick me up is a hot tea latte.

In Africa and my recent work trips abroad, I became fond of drinking tea with breakfast, in the mid-afternoon, and after dinner, so when I returned home I decided to continue the routine. To indulge my new habit, MH convinced me to get a Capresso froth pro automatic milk frother and it has quickly become my most used kitchen gadget.

While my tea steeps, I pour some milk into the Capresso and in a quick couple minutes I have beautifully frothed milk for a tea latte. Finding the perfect ratio of tea, sugar, and milk took a couple of tries but I think I got it. So far, my favorite creation has been my earl grey tea lattes. Yum!

Pop Goes My Tart

I don't recall how or why I decided to make home made pop tarts. Making pop tarts from scratch is definitely not cost effective considering it took me several of hours to make them and you can purchase a box of eight from the grocery store for less than $3. However, it was a fun activity and I would do it again because they were such a delicious morning treat. They may just have to be rectangles/circles instead of animals to make the production time a little more reasonable.

Home Made Strawberry Compote Filled Pop Tarts

Shout out to T&J for MH and my new Silpat. It came in handy when I was making these suckers! We hope you enjoyed your pop tart samples.

Guten Tag From Austria!

To add some excitement to our schedule, my co-workers and I drove to Salzburg, Austria for the weekend. Unfortunately, we hit traffic leaving town on Friday evening so it took us a little longer than expected to get there, but once we arrived in Austria everything was great.

On Saturday, we took a historical tour of Eagle's Nest, Obersalzberg, and the Bunker System. Eagle's Nest is a tea house that was built on top of the Kehlstein mountain on the edge of the cliff as a 50th birthday gift for Adolf Hitler. Obersalzberg is a small community above Berchtesgarden that was taken over by the Nazi Party, and the Bunker System, is a series of underground bunker complexes that were built below the mountain as an air raid shelter, war headquarters and possible last refuge for the leaders of the Reich. It was interesting to learn about Hitler as a person and his role developing the country of Germany before leading it to its ruin.

Eagle's Nest

The rest of the weekend we spent our time exploring the city of Salzburg and visited a few of the spots that were made famous by the film The Sound of Music. I must admit that I have never watched the movie from beginning to end, but I was told that Fraulein Maria and the Trapp children ran down the hedge arcade along the Grand Parterre in the park pictured below.

Mirabell Park & Garden

As the sun set, we hiked up to the Salzburg fort and caught this breathtaking sight of the city. The section in front of the river is considered Old Town Salzburg where you can find most of the "must see" city sights.

If you ever visit Austria, please stop into a cafe and have an iced chocolate drink for me. I wish I were there enjoying one now! They are D-E-L-I-S-H!

Bonjour from Switzerland!

For the past two weeks I was working in Switzerland for an audit, and after my co-workers and I punched out for the day we would go exploring. Unfortunately, almost everything in Switzerland is closed on Sundays, Mondays, after 5 PM during the week. So, most of our adventures were limited to sight seeing and window shopping, but we enjoyed ourselves nonetheless.

Neuchatel Garden Park

Downtown Bern

Callier Chocolate Factory in Bulle

Unfortunately, the tour of the Callier Chocolate Factory is the epitome of lame. However, it is fun to be able to try all of the different kinds of chocolate they make in their tasting room at the end of the tour. Visitors beware, I only had a handful of samples and gave myself a stomach ache because they were so rich!