Nibbles of Tidbits, a Food Blog

At some point the real Crab Claw Shell begins hidden under the breaded, pressed fake and real Crab combination.  Be careful when nearing the end of the Claw, as Crab Shells are hard.  Don’t get too happy — And there really isn’t need, since they’re not that remarkable, other than the fact they are different.  Although flawed, I appreciate the creativity of ’em and other unique offerings at Fresh & Easy, newly opened within walking distance.  Bite at your own risk.

Happy April Fools’ Day!  You better stay away from me today.  How about some Chocolate Covered Insects?  Perhaps you may want to add them to a bowl of Chocolates and step back and watch the unsuspecting.  Just kidding — Don’t do that.  I wouldn’t, anymore. 😉

I still feel bad about the Dog Beef Jerky joke I played on someone years ago.  Moving on to the suspecting… Our friend Ray volunteered to try the pictured Chocolate Covered Worms and Crickets, as I just couldn’t.  He described them as follows… 

They had no actual taste for the most part.  They were not slimy.  Kind of had the texture and taste of Chocolate Covered Pretzels!

Thanks for the report Ray!  You’re a trooper and certainly no fool.

The Deep Fried Butter at the Orange County Fair is kinda like the giant horse you pay $5.75 to see, but viewing the horse is more satisfying.  It’s at the Heart Attack Cafe, the Butter, not the horse (yet) — Who knows, maybe next year.  We weren’t gonna bother with the Deep Fried Butter, but someone in the group had to have it.  They found another sucka, haha.

The deal is this… It’s basically a Churro that’s injected with Butter in the center, then plugged at both ends and frozen.  It’s then re-fried to order and one big yuck!  Why would anyone want a Butter-stuffed, frozen then refried Churro?  They serve them sweet with Cinnamon, Sugar and Whipped Cream, or savory with Garlic Salt, Parmesan and Marinara Sauce.  Either way it’s ridiculous, but surprisingly the Chips underneath were okay with the Marinara. 

Note:  The Marinara Sauce was so unexpectedly yummy that we asked the brand.  We learned it’s San Benito and will be looking for it in stores.  It appears something good came out of the Heart Attack Cafe afterall — Check out other crazy OC Fair food options here.

Why did we feel guilty eating these Carrots?  It’s probably because they seemed to be in love.  We got ’em during our tour of Tanaka Farms.  Carrots are one of the amazing clues left by God — Read more about that here.

Would you believe ALL the food pictured in this post is fake?  It’s true — It’s all phony baloney!  Some of it looks close to real and some obviously counterfeit.  Nonetheless, it’s the best forged food we’ve seen.  It goes well with our favorite Twilight Zone episode titled a Stopover In A Quiet Town.  In it a couple wakes up in unfamiliar surroundings (a doll house) after a night of  partying.  They then discover that everything in the house and town is a prop and that they’re now living dolls for larger people on a different planet.  These party platters would be served there.

All photos were taken at The HoneyBaked Ham Company in Corona Del Mar.

11/09/11 Update:  The Corona Del Mar location is now closed.

Still hooked on Grilled Romaine Salad and busy working on a lot of exciting projects — Stay tuned and full.  Click here and above for the how to’s and more.

I recently came across this Rhubarb Dry Soda at Bristol Farms — And first must mention that the Bristol Farms in Corona Del Mar Plaza is an amazing store.  It’s a bit cramped when crowded, but I usually want to buy almost everything I pass by.  This visit the Rhubarb Soda caught my eye.  Have you ever seen it before?  I hadn’t and rarely eat Rhubarb, but had to try it out of curiosity.  And the verdict is… Next flavor please.  I like the carbonation and flavor options of the Dry Soda Co. Sodas, but this flavor not so much.  It’s described as refreshingly tart and complex, which is true, but it also tastes a bit like Grass and Dried Cherries.  The initial taste isn’t good, but the after taste isn’t bad, if that makes sense.  We’d like to try their Kumquat, Lavender, Vanilla Bean, and maybe Cucumber flavors next time.  They also make a Juniper Berry and Lemongrass Soda.  Overall, we’re excited to see such unique flavors.  Bravo to the fun of that!

I never thought I’d do this in a million years — Broil Romaine Lettuce in the oven before chopping it for a Salad.  Usually wanting the freshest, most chilled Lettuce for a Salad, broiling Romaine would seem out of the question.  After having my first Grilled Romaine Salad from a restaurant, I was hooked on the smokey flavor imparted into the Lettuce with a quick grilling.  It’s now one of my favorite Salads.

To copycat it, I made grilled Romaine on the BBQ, but this evening it was too cold and rainy.  We only have an outdoor grill.  Since Romaine was on hand and I really wanted this Salad, I desperately broiled the Lettuce in the oven for (1) minute.  It worked (a little) — It’s a simple runner-up if you can’t grill it on a BBQ.  The above Romaine was tossed in a bag with Italian Dressing before broiling it.  It wasn’t bad at all and I’ve already made it again.  It’s dubbed the Romaine Runner-Up.

We dared to descend the darkened stairway (freight elevator) into the depths of The Cellar Restaurant to celebrate their 3rd Annual Trick or Eat Halloween Dinner Party.  They report that the lore of haunted restaurants is talked about, but nowhere is it truer than in The Cellar.  The space in which The Cellar inhabits was home to untold mysteries and the haunting of The Cellar is a closely guarded secret that’s only revealed once a year.

Course One:  Radioactive abductor muscles in a pool of gamma charged ooze, black goop, and unearthed fungus AKA Pan Seared Sea Scallops with a Zesty Basil Sauce, Balsamic Reduction and Enoki Mushrooms.

Course Two:  Dissected alien seed pods, toxic forest leaves in slimy secretions, with rotten and moldy milk AKA Mission Fig Salad with Baby Oak Leaf Lettuce, Maple Vinaigrette and Aged Gorgonzola.

Main Course:  Fire charred boat deck aged fishing chum, steamed maggots, and finished with a gangrene and puss (yuck) sauce AKA Grilled Mahi Mahi with Savory Rice, finished with an Herbed Butter Sauce.

Or decayed cow muscles with slaughterhouse drippings and fungal growths AKA Grilled Flavorful Rib Eye Steak, with a Merlot and Mushroom Reduction.

Dessert:  Graveyard mud soufflé with dried blood and bloody sacks AKA Chocolate Soufflé with Melted Dark Chocolate and Fresh Raspberries.

We thought the $49 price for all was pretty great and the show was entertaining.  The Scallops were just okay, a little rubbery, but the Mahi Mahi and Rib Eye Steak were definitely The Cellar’s usual caliber.  It was so dark that we didn’t know the sauce on the Mahi was bright green, until viewing the photos — Sorry a couple are out of focus.  Overall, it’s a good deal and a fun experience.  It’s sold out for tonight, but worth booking next year.  Luckily we survived the zombies.  Happy Halloween!

 

I bought these fresh White Currants for less than a dollar at Grower’s Direct.  The price was good, like most of the produce there, and I’d never tried them before.  You’ll find great prices on fruit and vegetables at Grower’s Direct, if you can put up with the narrow aisles, people traffic and (sometimes) parking issues.  I went there for the makings of a Vegetable Platter and tacked on these White Currants for a try.

I quickly learned that White Currants aren’t too edible alone — They’re tart and have a lot of crunchy seeds inside.  So much for simply enjoying a new tasty Berry, HA.  I was hoping to eat ’em like a Blueberry, Raspberry, etc.  The next thought was to make something out of them.  What?  The obvious was Jam/Jelly, which I don’t use.  And I couldn’t see them enhancing the flavor of anything that’s quick and simple to make.

Since I didn’t want to waste all of them, I tossed some in a small batch of Rice Pudding, which isn’t as simple as it sounds.  I had the prepared (leftover) Rice, but it’s necessary to pick off both ends of the White Currants before adding to a recipe.  And by the time you pick off the bottom fur-ish part, you’re left with mostly seeds and skin, HA.  It’s real worth it, not. 

Overall, they weren’t bad in the Rice Pudding, nor good either.  I learned a lot, yet still don’t know the best thing to do with White Currants.  That’s okay, because it’s always fun to try new things — Some are fabulous finds and others just an educational story.  Next.

Each year the Orange County Fair serves up a new weird food item (E.g., Fried Twinkies, Fried White Castle Burgers, etc.), and this year it’s Chocolate Covered Bacon.   We’ve tried ’em all, thus had to sample the Bacon.  As you can see (above), it’s covered in thick Chocolate — And it’s kinda difficult to bite into, since it’s served from the freezer or fridge.

Overall, the flavor isn’t bad and is reminiscent of Chocolate Dipped Pretzels.  The Bacon has a salty flavor and crunchy texture that goes well with Chocolate.  The OC Fair’s Chocolate Covered Bacon is okay, but we would have preferred full strips instead of broken chunks.

It’s served in Chinese take out boxes with a packet of Salt on top, which seems odd, but whatever — We were done after a few bites, though think it’s better than some of the other crazy food items we’ve tried at the Fair.

More posts about Orange County Fair FOOD

For my Birthday a dear friend made this Lavender Pound Cake with Lemon Glaze.  She knows I like trying unique food combinations and Lavender in Cake is good, especially this Cake.  The recipe is put out by C&H Sugar and linked below — It makes two loaves or one Bundt.  After a few slices, she wrapped it in wax paper and foil for me to take home.  It kept so well and was a treat for breakfast all week.  Now I have to make it and wrap it the same. 🙂

Recipe PDF: lavender-cake

Recipe Link: http://www.chsugar.com/recipes/recipesearch.asp
(FYI: If you use this link, you must then search the Cakes to locate the Lavender Pound Cake with Lemon Glaze recipe)

Have you heard about Rubio’s New All American Taco?  It’s a Burger in a Taco.  I fell in love with the idea and Rubios’ photo of it.  My Taco wasn’t as pretty as the model, but it tasted good.  I especially like the Soft Flour Tortilla and Smokey Garlic Chipotle Mayo, but the Burger Meat on the Taco I had was pretty darn tough — That’s not good.  Overall, with a better Burger the All American Taco could be a home run.  And it’s worth trying again to see if the next one is less chewy.  I hope so.

I like the novelty of Del Taco’s Jalapeno Rings, but you can only eat so many.  A few of us ‘spicy food lovers’ recently tried this new menu item at Del Taco.  The consensus of 3 was that — They’re too hot and greasy.  As you may or may not know, some Jalapenos aren’t hot enough and others are way too hot, and you never know what you’re going to get.  Our taste included most of the hot ones, HA.  And we thought we were so tough.

As for the “Secret Sauce” they serve with the Jalapeno Rings, it’s best that it be kept a secret, since it’s basically just Mayonnaise — Yikes.  That’s what they told me.  Now we know why it’s called Secret Sauce.  And $1.99 is too high for this item — For $0.99, in conjunction with a Sauce change, we might include them in a future meal.

A friend sent me this 5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake Recipe via e-mail.  It’s touted as “The Most Dangerous Cake Recipe in the World” because it’s only 5 Minutes away and the ingredients are usually on hand — I guess one shouldn’t eat too many of these.  With that typed, here’s the Dangerous RECIPE:

1 Mug

4 Tablespoons Flour

4 Tablespoons Sugar

2 Tablespoons Cocoa

1 Egg

3 Tablespoons Milk

3 Tablespoons Canola or Vegetable Oil

1 Teaspoon of Vanilla

Combine the Flour, Sugar and Cocoa in a Mug – Add the Egg and mix thoroughly.  Pour in the Milk, Oil and Vanilla and mix well.  Place Mug in the Microwave and cook on maximum power (1000 watts) for 3 Minutes. Let Cake cool for a few minutes, then eat straight out of the Mug or empty onto a plate or into a bowl with Ice Cream.

The Cake will rise over the top of the Mug while cooking, but don’t be alarmed — It’ll be OK and it looks kinda funny.  The Cake is a little dense and dry and tastes best with Ice Cream, Powdered Sugar, Whipped Cream and/or a big glass of MILK.  Overall, it’s a fun, fast and warm Dessert that fills the air of Chocolate Cake within minutes.

FUN Related Links:

http://www.dizzy-dee.com/recipe/chocolate-cake-in-5-minutes

http://alladither.typepad.com/halfassedkitchen/2008/10/five-minute-chocolate-cake-yes-really.html

Newport loves its Dogs, so it’s a perfect location for the Three Dog Bakery.  It’s a chain, but this one is in the Corona Del Mar Plaza in Newport Beach.  It’s near Fashion Island, an outdoor shopping center that welcomes Dogs.  It’s hard to go there without seeing one.  The Three Dog Bakery ( I like to call it Barkery) bakes cute treats that are easily digested by Dogkind.  I’m not sure, but this location may be their best franchise.

Related Links:

http://www.ineedtext.com/FoodBlog/?p=1013 – Three Dog Bakery in Lake Arrowhead

http://www.visitnewportbeach.com/member_details.cfm?id=354 – Corona Del Mar Plaza

Grilled Bacon Wrapped Asparagus on the BBQ – Just wrap bundles of Asparagus with strips of Bacon.  I usually wrap one slice of Bacon around 3-4 Asparagus.  I’ll add a well placed toothpick to each bundle, so not to worry about the Bacon unraveling on the grill — That’s a bad thing.  Bacon Wrapped Asparagus is an easy tasty appetizer or side dish.  Everyone loves them.

Related Links:

http://www.ineedtext.com/FoodBlog/?p=380

http://www.ineedtext.com/FoodBlog/?p=377

I heard Carm’s Coneys on 17th Street in Costa Mesa is really good.  I hadn’t even seen it, since it’s sandwiched among many other small restaurants and businesses.  Its owner was born in Brooklyn, NY.

I stopped in tonight and tried The Original Coney said to be one of their most popular Dogs and is made with all white Veal.  You get a choice between a New England Roll or Bun.  Upon recommendation I had the New England Roll and Carm’s Award Winning Chili.  I liked it — It’s different tasting.  They say if you bite into a Dog you don’t like, they’ll give you something else.

The place is really cute and it had a lot of people inside.  Apparently I’m the only one out of the Famous NY Dog’s loop.  I found the service super friendly, helpful and happy.  I’ll go back and try a few more things.  I’ve got my eye on the Zweigle (Red or White Hot), Bratwurst, Salt Potatoes and Sweet Potato Fries.

And I’ll also try the Chili Cheese Fries, since I’m putting together a post all about Chili Cheese Fries.  Carm’s Coneys first opened in Newport Beach in 1985, closed in 1991 to pursue other interests, and is now re-open with an expanded menu in Costa Mesa.  It’s a nice little place with good food and service.

UPDATE (11/30/08):  The location is now occupied by Jimmy’s Burger Joint, which officially opened yesterday.  Jimmy is/was a partner of Carm’s and says Carm is looking for a new location to re-open.  I’m advised that the Chicago Dog is one of the things to try at Jimmy’s Burger Joint — I guess I’ll need to do that sometime.

Related Links:

http://www.carmsnyconeys.com/

http://www.hofmannsausage.com/home/

We saw this recipe in a cookbook I recent bought for my Niece’s Birthday  — We thought it was so clever and cute that we made it during a sleepover at a family cabin in Lake Arrowhead.  That’s us on the cake from left to right, my sister Ami, Niece Lexi, Mom, Me and Niece Bailee.    

We look a bit like zombies, but it was fun to make.  Our heads are Nilla Wafers, the pillows are Marshmallows, and the bodies are Twinkies.  We used Jawbreakers for the eyes, sweet and sour Candy Rope for the bed skirt and trim, and made a Milk Chocolate Cake instead of a Vanilla one.

Here’s a picture of the book cover and recipe.  The original looks more polished — It was harder to make than we expected.  It’s tricky frosting over the Twinkies, we added toothpicks to hold them in place.  The softer the Frosting and bed trim Candy, the better.  It was a cool experience together.

Our Cake was posted on Culinarty by Lore as one of (10) Original Food Photos.  Take a look at it there and check out her other picks.  They are all pretty amazing.  Thanks Lore.

http://culinarty.sapiensworks.com/articles/lores-choice-10-original-food-photos-5/

Related Links:

http://www.cookingwithkids.com/

http://www.kids-cooking-activities.com/

http://www.amazon.com/FamilyFun-Cooking-Kids-Deanna-Cook/dp/1423100867

Have you seen Soy Chorizo?  Do you like Chorizo?  I love Chorizo, but made the mistake of reading its ingredients one day.  And one I can’t get out of my head is salivary glands.  After reading that I didn’t eat Chorizo for several years.  I’ve since loosened up and will eat it in a restaurant — I just try not to think about it. 🙂

At home I use Soy Chorizo.  It’s almost as good as the real stuff, but the peace of mind makes it terrific.  I’m not grossed out making it and the Chorizo flavor is there.  I bought this one from Trader Joe’s and Mother’s Market has it too.

Here I made Chorizo and Eggs.  I removed the Soy from the casings (plastic) and fried it in a skillet.  It cooks differently than regular Chorizo, since no fat (oil) comes out.  It’s almost hard to tell when it’s done because it doesn’t get much darker.  I cooked it for about 10 minutes then added the Eggs and cooked until done.  I served all in warmed Flat Bread with Sour Cream.  It’s good stuff.

Related Links:

http://www.traderjoes.com/

http://www.ineedtext.com/FoodBlog/?p=839

http://www.mothersmarket.com/retailer/store_templates/shell_id_1.asp?storeID=EMAF4UHXAMV58MQM1LG58N4W74AAFP7A

I finally tried it.  To me it tastes like Cauliflower, but with less flavor.  I didn’t expect that.  It’s a pretty color and fun to try, but I wouldn’t go out of my way for it, unless I needed its color contribution to a dish. 

I prepared a dish I make often with Cauliflower.  This time it’s ‘Roasted Broccoflower’ with Lemons, Garlic, Olive Oil and S & P.  It’s so simple and good.  If needed, the exact cooking instructions from a previous post are linked below.

Related Links:

http://www.ineedtext.com/FoodBlog/?p=121

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broccoflower

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-broccoflower.htm

It’s a new cool convenience to fresh Herbs if you don’t have them on hand.  They’re pretty good and especially great for Soups and Stews.  I’ve seen them in Basil too at Trader Joe’s, but the manufacturer sells a larger variety.  Both links are below.

Related Links:

http://www.dorot.co.il/eng/

http://www.traderjoes.com/

A friend sent this to me in an E-Mail — I’m not sure where it originated, but I found it very interesting.  I’ve always been amazed and thankful for the bountiful foods from the Earth.  I like the photography and information here.

A Tomato has four chambers and is red — The heart is red and has four chambers.  Research shows that Tomatoes are indeed pure heart and blood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart.  Each Grape looks like a blood cell and research shows that Grapes are a profound heart and blood vitalizing food.

Sliced Carrots look much like an eye — The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye.  And science shows that Carrots greatly enhance blood flow to the eyes.

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums.  Even the wrinkles or folds on the nut look like the neo-cortex. We now know that Walnuts help develop over 3 dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and look much like human kidneys.

Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb and more look a lot like bones.  These foods specifically target bone strength.  Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium.  If you don’t have enough sodium in your diet, the body pulls it from the bones making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Grapefruits, Oranges and other citrus fruits look very much like the mammary glands of the female and actually assist the health of the breasts and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts.

Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics.

Eggplant, Avocados and Pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female – They look much like these organs.  Research shows that when a woman eats 1 Avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers.  And it takes exactly 9 months to grow an Avocado from blossom to ripened fruit.  There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods.  Modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them.

Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow.  Figs increase the motility of male sperm and increase the numbers of sperm as well as help to overcome male sterility.  

Onions look like body cells.  Research shows that Onions help clear waste materials from the body cells.  They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes, and they’re even shaped like tears.

Olives assist with the health and function of the ovaries.

NOTE:  The above information has not been verified for accuracy.  It has also been modified for grammatical accuracy and readability.  I apologize that I wasn’t able to correct the font variation and some formatting.