Nibbles of Tidbits, a Food Blog

A bib for the baby?  Here you go – Happy Cinco De Mayo!  It’s now on to La Espiga De Oro.

And we might want a big, fat, wet Burrito don’t you know.

Or we’ll make Nibbles of Tidbits’ Chipotle Barbacoa Beef Copycat Recipe?!

Or opt for Chinese take-out to avoid crowds and labor – TBD after the Cadillac.

Much to possibly do — Salud to a new Superman too!  Milk is good food.

Nibbles of Tidbits hopes to be at The OC’s “Golden Foodie Awards” and looks forward to a Summer of foodie events leading up to it.  We hope to be everywhere that’s happening to report about it – Please see the http://goldenfoodieawards.com press release below:

I’ve yet to experience the ideal Coffee Pot design.  Even when I focus on the pour, I still spill.  Is it just me?  Granted I haven’t spent a lot of money on a Coffee Maker, nor poured from the King’s pot, but it just seems that too many Coffee Pots have an imperfect design.  That’s it.

Warning:  Pictured spill may be exaggerated and is closer than it seems.

For whatever it’s worth, May is National Asparagus, Barbecue, Egg, Hamburger, Salad, Salsa, Strawberry, Chocolate Custard, Mediterranean Diet, Gazpacho Aficionado and Artisan Gelato Month — Linked sources say.  Why not observe by eating more (or less) of these things?!

Chilled Tomato and Cucumber Gazpacho with Shrimp.

A Fancy Smancy Steakhouse Burger – Our contribution to National Hamburger Month.

Party Salad from an earlier post.

Deviled Eggs, Salsa Baked Eggs and/or Huevos Rancheros will happen this month regardless.

Bacon Wrapped Asparagus on the grill – Enjoy May with or without these foods.

What up Cheese – You tryin’ to start something? Smile it’s Monday.  Cheese.

After seeing traffic resulting from Nibbles of Tidbits / I Need Text Company pins, especially from this post, I joined Pinterest.  In honor of our most popular pin, oddly a fake appetizer platter, we present the Super Platter (above), which looks to be real.  Pin this.  Photo credit.

I made a variation of these Baked Green Bean Fries — They question whether or not they can be called “Fries” since they’re not fried.  What do you think?  Are Fries determined by shape or cooking method?  I understand the debate, but can’t take a side.  We say both.

We dipped them in Ranch Dressing, just like French Fries, but call ‘em Stix if you insist.

Either way, I likely won’t be making them again, as they’re just okay for the effort. 

Heather’s RECIPE is HERE — The Green Beans are basically coated with Egg and seasoned Bread Crumbs, then baked in the oven.  I used Panko Bread Crumbs instead and seasoned them with Smoked Paprika and Ground Chipotle, Salt and Pepper.  They were of interest to try, but I prefer Green Beans simply made with Butter, Lemon Zest and S & P, or with Bacon.

Apologies for the poor copycat photos — Love to experiment with almost everything.

Have you been to Prime Cut Café & Wine Bar yet?

We happily discovered it down the street from the Honda Center.

The service is indeed warm and friendly, as described in The Prime Cut Difference (above).

Starting Monday, April 30th, they’ll be offering prix fixe Three Course Dinners for $20. 

Nibbles of Tidbits got to pre-nibble it — Somebody has to make sure all will be up to par.

For Starters, we opted for the Tomato Bisque.

And the Marinated Roasted Beet and Avocado Salad — The portion sizes are generous.

For our Entrees, we selected the Spice Roasted Chicken (top) and Shortrib Pasta (above).

And the Wild Berry Sorbet and Carrot Cake for Dessert.

I love the Café’s lighting — It just feels right and goes well with the classy food.

Dining at Prime Cut Café could save money on a movie ticket too — A Theater is next door.

Bar area (below), straight ahead as you walk in.

Cheers to a great deal — The Three Course Dinner MENU will be available M – TH.

Excellent Wine isn’t included in the price, but highly recommended.

What fortune would you write?  I was fairly uncreative, since I made them on a whim.

Though not perfect, from thought to fruition I had Fortune Cookies in 30 minutes.

Most recipes for Fortune Cookies seem to be the same – One of the many I stumbled upon.

And must give a shout out to the SILPAT – It’s perfect for Fortune Cookies (and much more).

RECIPE – While still warm, fold Cookies in half over the fortune, then bend ‘em over the rim of a glass (or similar), as blurrily shown (above) to cool.  Voila!  I may add Orange Zest next time.

You will soon receive a large sum of money said my Fortune Cookie.  What?  Is that legal?

Wow it’s right, I did blog about it — Illustration Credit.

Finally inside The Arboretum, our Los Angeles Fantasy Island this day – Ever been there?

We fed turtles (and crazy fish) Cheerios left on the dirt by others — They loved ‘em.

The turtles didn’t have much of a chance for a Cheerio with the big-mouthed fish in the water.

And birds stood by scouting for plentiful small fish (and whatever else).

Across the lagoon is the bell tower where Tattoo famously exclaimed “De Plane, De Plane.”

There’s beauty and wonder at The Arboretum — It’s an exploratory way to spend the day.

Bring a camera, cold beverage and good walking shoes to be prepared to see all comfortably.

Food Garden Coming Soon — For those who don’t eat insects, live fish and dirty Cheerios.

A peek inside the old Santa Anita Depot — In photo vintage cooking utensils weave between reflections of today, behind me and up close, as we reflect about life yesterday.  See it?

All this splendor is there for YOU to see.

Below is the Queen Anne Cottage seen on Fantasy Island.  Do you remember it?  Some outdoor scenes were filmed around the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden.

It sure was peaceful lounging on the Queen Anne Cottage porch.

Already an adventurous day, before heading to Santa Anita Park nearby for its last weekend.

Where’s the FOOD?  It’s here.  And you thought it meant something else…

We like the price of Burgers and Wine at The Counter during Happy Hour.

Mini Cheeseburgers are $2 for two, featured Wine is $3 a Glass and Starters are 1/2 off.

The service is good at Westcliff Village in Newport Beach – Its operators run this location too.

We relished 2 Glasses of Wine, 4 Mini Cheeseburgers, a large plate of Parmesan French Fries with Rosemary (not pictured, blurry) and a Coke for $16.15 — That’s super and all was terrific.

Responsibility never tasted so good they say — 100% of the profits from Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine & Cocktails go to aid people affected by vision impairment and blindness.  How often does that happen?  It’s a wonderful thing, as is the waterfall wall seen as you walk in.

It’s touching to see how loved Andrei was by his family – The restaurant was created in his honor and now helps others.  Read more about that here and you’ll want to dine there. 

The restaurant is upstairs and special events are hosted downstairs and up.

It’s an open, airy space with lots of big windows.

More about Andrei’s is told on the menu and more about the menu is here.

They have a Happy Hour, Free Corkage on Tuesdays and a Flamenco Guitarist some days.

It’s called Conscious Cuisine & Cocktails, as they “care deeply” about all aspects of food sourcing, serving, and creating an environment where sharing a meal enhances relationships.

During a Happy Hour pop in, we shared a few Small Plates.

Andrei’s Crab Cakes.

Vegetable Arancini.

And Grilled Tomato & Cheese — Our favorite of the bunch was Andrei’s Crab Cakes.

Bar and lounge area with cozy couches and pillows.

Everyone was so nice, without the mention of Nibbles of Tidbits, our regular M.O.

The valet parking area reminds me of Palm Springs — I like the feel and thought of it all.

What’s your State Food?  And do you agree?  Can you even read the list?  I’m not sure I can.  The photos definitely help.  CA Grapes for Wine sounds especially right with AK King Crab.