Day trippin' to Santa Barbara 2x in one weekend

Last weekend, my husband and I made two day trips to Santa Barbara for the Santa Barbara International Orchid Festival.  The trips would not have been complete without a stop at La Super Rica.  It's been said that when Julia Child lived in Santa Barbara, this was one of her favorite places to eat at.  I don't doubt it.  Look at that Chile Con Queso!  Mmm...Chile Con Delicioso!!!  

The dish that we could not get enough of was the Rajas.  Just imagine eating tender strips of roasted chile pasilla smothered in a creamy mixture of Monterey Jack cheese, grilled onions, and a mysterious herb.  They don't tell you what the herb is; but after some research, my guess would be epazote.  

I couldn't resist trying one of the daily specials.  This is the Tacos de Carne Deshebrada.  I quite enjoyed this simple dish.  There's not much to it; but to get the most out of this dish, I would recommend pairing it with other sides like the Frijol Super Rica, the Guacamole, and the Rajas.  

One of these things is not like the others.  One of these things just doesn't belong.  Can you tell which thing is not like the others by the time I finish my song?  Okay, so you probably guessed that the dish pictured above is NOT from La Super Rica.  It's actually from another Santa Barbara joint, The Palace Grill.  

The Palace Grill specializes in Cajun cuisine.  Now I'm no expert when it comes to Cajun dishes, so I can't tell you if the food here is authentic.  However, the Creole Chicken Picatta was very good.  The chicken was nicely seasoned, tender, and had a lovely, creamy, lemony sauce with capers.  We also tried the Sausage Jambalaya...good flavor, but a bit too salty for my taste.  

 My husband ordered the Blackened Fresh Norwegian Salmon with a Jalapeno Beurre-Blanc Sauce.  The sauce was amazing and had a sweet finish.  And for dessert we had the Louisiana Bread Pudding Souffle,which is their specialty dessert.  The Whiskey Cream Sauce that accompanied it was perfect.  Ah, Santa Barbara, we love you!

A tale of two sisters (plus a third, who fell asleep)

My baby sister just started her own food blog, and I'm so proud of her!  We are actually on the phone talking, as I type.  We have another sister; but as noted above, she fell asleep.   Anyhow, check out my sister's blog at www.uglytastytruth.blogspot.com.  Be prepared to ooh, ah, and chuckle all at the same time.  We've been up all night working on our blogs over speaker phone.  Just waiting for our sleeping sister to wake up and get on the blogging bandwagon. She's thinking about starting a cooking blog because...not only does she sleep well, but she cooks well too!

Blueberry banana cake revisited

I made another blueberry banana cake this weekend using Nick Malgieri's banana cake recipe from my earlier post.  This recipe is a keeper.  I recommend adding the fresh blueberries.  And don't forget, the key to a good banana cake is using very ripe bananas. 

Kiss the King Cake goodbye

Today my husband went to Porto's Bakery in Burbank and purchased the Mardi Gras King Cake for the TWO of us.  His defense was that today was the last day the cake would be available until Mardi Gras rolls around next year.  This is our first King Cake ever and definitely will not be our last.  I don't know if all King Cakes taste this good, but Porto's did not disappoint.  For all those that have tasted Porto's famous cheese rolls, the King Cake is like a giant one...light, moist, tasty pastry filled with cheese and dusted with colored sugar crystals!

The very first tale

This weekend, I had a couple of ripe bananas on my counter and a strong craving for banana cake; so, my search for a new banana cake recipe was on.  I've tested several recipes over the years, but results were underwhelming.  I am so thankful that I kept searching until I found a gem of a recipe by Nick Malgieri at http://technically.us/eat/x/nick-malgieris-best-and-easiest-banana-cake.   I added my own flair and threw in a couple handfuls of fresh blueberries into the batter before baking.  I also baked it in a 9 inch round cake pan, instead of a 9 x13 cake pan, and increased the baking time.  Not quite all the batter fit into the pan, but I'm glad I opted for the round pan.  The cake fluffed up nicely and was delicious.  The blueberries added a delicate tartness to round out the sweetness of the bananas perfectly.  I didn't take a picture of the cake this time.  But, I will definitely be making it again and will post a picture when I do.  Promise.

Time to start dishing

Anyone who knows me well, knows how much I love food.  After all, I am my father's daughter.  My husband and I joke that, whenever my father calls, it takes less than 15 seconds before he's talking about food.  He doesn't mess around with all the frivolous details of how our day has been.  He cuts right to the chase and wants to know what we ate for dinner.  But, guess what?  I don't mind telling him.  So, what does that say about me?

This blog is dedicated to my family for passing on their food-centric ways, to my husband for being my soul mate and partner in eating, and to my peeps on Facebook who have endured the plethora of status reports about what I ate, where I ate at, and what I'm going to eat next.  Thanks to everybody who encouraged me to start this blog (you know who you are)!!!