i am not at my best when i don’t have my food. HANGRY is an actual word in the dictionary now and i think the person who put it there must have followed me around when i have had low blood sugar. i don’t shop for clothes, makeup or shoes. i don’t get my nails done or spend money on spa treatments. but i love my food. and because i have literally been starving in my life, i try to avoid it at all costs. it takes me back to a dark place of poverty and neglect. i don’t like it.
i use food to show my love. i try to make sure people eat well, often and loads when they are with me. i want people to feel FED! and right now i am not feeling fed at all. i literally hurt from lack of food. and it has barely been 24 hours. but i am fasting for a test later today and under doctor’s orders to not eat or drink (except water or clear liquid, which is basically water right?) until after the test. i also have to drink some gross and awful stuff that is masked as a super salty diet 7-up that has gone flat. like 2 liters of it! not good. i am not a happy camper right now!
so i am trying to change my thinking, and look at this in a positive way. the doc is doing his job, trying to help me feel better physically. though at the moment it feels worse, like torture. since the beginning of october, on this day, i do a foodie fieldtrip friday. one of the highlights of my week (and those who watch my snapchat too). duh, that ain’t happenin’! but somehow when we are kept from something we so desire, so need and want, it makes us appreciate it even more, don’t you think? when i am allowed to eat, which will hopefully be this evening all things going well, i will be completely mindful, in every bite. often times i think we eat aimlessly and don’t even think about the movement of the hand to the mouth. we eat while we drive, watch tv, surf the net, talk on the phone. but to really engage with our food and take time to chew each bite and indeed savor it, that is being grate FULL!
i also think that the stomach’s response to hunger, the actual “rumbly in the tumbly” as winnie the pooh calls it, is really just a metaphor for something greater. we are humans, living beings like the animals and other inhabitants of this planet. but as i shared with you on thanksgiving, we are also special. we have opposable thumbs (this makes sense if you read the part of the post on FAITH). so we naturally have a longing for our CREATOR. but that longing, that hunger is in our soul. and when we aren’t fed, when we are fasting, our soul hurts. it is just manifested differently.
our SOULS might not have a physical pain as such, but there are pains, and you see them in the world today. people who are addicts and inflict pain on themselves through alcoholism and drug addiction, have starving souls. people who are violent and hurt others clearly have a void in their souls. if they lash out in pain, like what we see and read about in the news, they are not, cannot be, connected to their loving creator. a wishing and wanting, a longing gone unfulfulled will manifest itself somehow, someway. but sadly, it is not in a productive or positive way. even the 12-step recovery systems, which are non-denominational, recognize that it is important to engage with a “higher power” and the 1st step and 2nd step are reflective of that.
the strange thing is this folks. real food, edible food, which though seemingly readily available in our fast food, mega super market world, actually isn’t. we know that because even in rich cities people are malnourished. and in poor countries people are literally starving. but food for the soul is available anytime, day or night, past or present, here and now, forever ETERNAL! and interestingly enough, even poor people without food know that and are perhaps those most closely linked in their souls with their creator.
a perfect example of that is a story once told during mass by our then priest who was originally from Ghana. he shared a personal account of how their country was going through a famine and each night their mother would put a pot of food on the fire and tell her children to gather around her for story time. she would go on for hours telling great and wonderful african stories into the wee hours of the night. until finally all of her many children would be sound asleep at her lap. only years later did father linus discover the truth that in the pot was not food but water. his mother put water on to boil and lulled the kids to sleep with her love. that was in essence the most important thing they needed. it gave them COMFORT in the midst of chaos.
it is there for all of us folks, to give and receive. LOVE. i go on about it all the time, i realize that. the #lovefest contest was an example of it. thank you for reading/listening/humoring me. but just know that when people expect some bit giant flashes, explosions with fog machines and strobe lights, with pipe organs playing and choral voices for background music as their ‘soul moment’, that is what fiction tries to tell us. but it is the quiet, soft moment when someone shows you a bit of care, tenderness, respect and you say, “A-HA” love, that is it. that is GOD, my creator. that is what is gonna feed your soul, keep you going back for seconds and thirds etc, and in which you will be forever CONTENT.
Living “abroad” with my thick American accent I stand out like a sore thumb. I speak so differently from everyone else that people know straight away where I am from, or at least they have an idea. Only the Irish politely hint, “Oh are you Canadian?” knowing I’m probably American. But just in case, they don’t want to offend me if I’m not. I think that is funny because I’m surely not offended if someone thinks I’m Canadian. Anywho! But then I say, “I’m Irish” which really throws them off. Well I am. An Eire Passport carrying Paddy! But since I was born in America and spent most of my life in the U.S. that is what comes through. Plus my use of words such as AWESOME are dead give aways. Though I’ve touched on this topic before, it is just so pertinent in my life right now I couldn’t help myself to bring it up again.
Besides accents, how people pronounce words has always been an intrigue of mine. Of course being in different parts of the world, people call the same things by a different name. Take for instance Zucchini (in the U.S) which is Courgette over in this part of the world. An eggplant in America is called an aubergine over here. But it is hilarious the way some people actually pronouce the words. That is what brings the most humor in fact. Take for example my kids’ grandma (on their dad’s side). God rest her soul, but she was a hoot with the way she referred to things. In fact, my daughter made mention of it in a blog post she did as well, which you can find here.
An example of Grandma E’s unique word pronunciation was that she would call Mahi Mahi fish by the name of Maui Maui. She would be insistent if you tried to explain to her that Maui (said once) is a place in Hawaii and Mahi Mahi (said twice) is the the name of a kind of fish. And then the best was how she would call Zucchini (normally pronounced Zoo Kee Ni) in her own style “Zoo Chee Nee” and she might even try to correct YOU if you said it the proper way.
Well no matter how you pronounce it, lets face it, it is a super healthy and versatile vegetable. A member of the squash family that gets a bit slighted this time of year when all the attention goes to pumpkin and butternut squash which are in season. But it is still readily available in most shops, and is quite economical. At the moment, I see loads of folks using it to make noodles to replace pasta. It is called Courgetti and though I don’t have a spiralizer (which you need to make the courgette strands) this recipe for Couregetti Bolongnese looks amazing!
Since I am usually feeling the need for protein, I opted to use my long green squash for a quick and easy chicken topping perfect for dinner, hence my “Zoo Chee Nee Chicken” title. There are literally three ingredients in it! No joke! Okay well you need a bit of olive oil and salt, which most of us have on hand. The secret ingredient in this recipe is Borsin Cheese. If you can’t find it then mix some herbs and garlic into ordinary cream cheese. I serve this dish with a nice rice pilaf and a dressed mixed leaf salad. But you can boil up some pasta to have with it or even some mashed or roasted potatoes. Trust me, when you taste this chicken dish, however you say zucchini, or courgette or whatever, you will all be pronouncing W-O-W the same!
Zoo-Chee-Nee Chicken
This recipe serves 2 but you can easily double or triple depending on your need
Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless breasts of chicken (free range and organic if possible)
*48 g/3 Tbps Boursin Cheese (garlic herb flavor if possible)
1 Courgette/Zuchhini (grated and squeezed of the excess liquid)
½ Tbps Olive Oil
¼ tsp salt
Preheat oven to 200 C/400F/Gas mark 5, then prep the courgette by slicing off the ends, and grating. Then squeeze all of the liquid you can from it.
In a bowl mix the Boursin cheese, olive oil and salt, then add the grated/squeezed courgette and combine thoroughly.
Place chicken breasts between 2 pieces of parchment paper or cling film (plastic wrap). Bash with a rolling pin until it is 1 cm thick all over.
Put the courgette/cheese mixture on top of each chicken breast. Put on a tray and cook in the oven for 15 minutes until cooked through. Then pop them under a hot grill for a few minutes more until slightly golden brown bits form on top.
5. Serve with a nice dressed mixed leaf salad and some rice pilaf (recipe below) or potatoes.
*If you cannot find Boursin Cheese, just substitute regular cream cheese and add some dried or fresh herbs and chopped garlic to it.
Rice Pilaf
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp butter
1 medium yellow onion, minced
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
2 cups of chicken broth
3/4 cup basmati rice
1/4 cup spaghetti sticks, broken into 1-1 1/2 in pieces (can use gluten free if necessary)
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped
Preparation
Heat oil and butter together in a large skillet. Add onions and cook 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for one minute, stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper. Add rice and spaghetti, stirring to combine with garlic and onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes until rice and pasta begin to lightly brown. Stir in chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once the liquid is boiling, turn heat down to simmer and cover, cooking for 15-20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Add a pinch of salt and pepper if needed. Fluff the cooked rice mixture and add chopped parsley.
The last time I made this my Hubby said, “This is restaurant quality” so I knew I had to give it another rotation fast! Since there are so few recipes out there for only two people, this one is pretty handy for us. But it is simple enough to increase the measurements if you need more. While it doesn’t tick all the allergy warning boxes, it is gluten free. And that seems to be the big one these days!
I hope that you have so much time left over tonight from not spending it in the kitchen cooking dinner, that you can ponder all the words that you’ve heard pronounced differently that have made you laugh. Send me a little note in the comments section with some of your funny ones. Remember I love having a laugh too!
As a chef and baker one of the best parts of my job is of course the tasting…mmmm! But these days, the best part is doing these Woman Crush Wednesdays. Giving props to the ladies in the foodie world is not only fun, but also informative. I really get to learn so much about them and what they have accomplished in the culinary world. I get to try a new recipe and demo it for my snapchat followers (username: blissbakery) and Hubby gets to reap the benefits of all these tasty treats!
Most of you will be familiar with Giada De Laurentiis, unless you’ve been living under a rock. She is a world famous television chef with numerous best selling cookery books. She is also a restauranteur with her own self titled brick and mortar in Las Vegas! But what you may not know about her is that she was actually born in Rome, Italy. While she has spent most of her life in Los Angeles, my former home, she still has a great Italian style food ethos.
I’ve been a fan of hers for quite some time as her food is really delicious and not too complicated to prepare. As a busy wife, mom and career person, it is important to try new recipes that don’t leave you too exhausted to enjoy the food yourself. And Giada’s recipes are just the answer. Herself a mommy to a gorgeous mini-me daughter named Jade (which is the English version of Giada) she also has to balance so many things in her life. Yet, she seems to balance pretty well on the paddle board. I mean, what a rock star #WCW, as she is super gorgeous, talented and sporty!
I had a hard time deciding which of her recipes to demo and then when I received one of my Great Blogger Cookie Swap packages it sparked an idea. The cookies I received were almond ricotta cookies, but I remembered that Giada is famous for her Lemon Ricotta Cookies. And since it has been so stormy and grey here in London, I thought between her cookies and that mega-watt smile of hers, we might have a bit of sunshine today after all!
Lemon Ricotta Cookies
2 ½ cups (350 g) plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1/4 lb, 4 oz, or 115 g) unsalted butter softened
2 cups caster sugar (410 g)
2 eggs
1 container (15 oz or 427 g) of whole milk ricotta cheese
3 Tbsp lemon juice
Zest from 1 lemon
Glaze:
1 ½ cups (235 g) icing sugar
3 Tbsp lemon juice
Zest from 1 lemon
Preheat oven to 190 C/375F/Gas mark 4. In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and the sugar until creamy, light and fluffy, about 3 mins. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat to combine. Stir in the dry ingredients.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon the dough (about 2 Tbsp for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 15 mins, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 20 mins. .
Make the glaze by combining the icing sugar, lemon juice and the zest in a small bowl, stirring until smooth. Spoon about ½ tsp onto each cookie and use the back of a spoon to gently spread. Let the glaze harden for about 2 hours. .
Serve with a nice cuppa!
These are probably one of the most scrumptious and lemony treats you will ever taste! I know I’m gonna win some big points from Hubby tonight when he walks in the door. It smells incredible in the house from baking them. Plus, anything with lemon happens to be his preferred flavor of dessert. Given the fact that my secret santa cookie blogger’s almond ricotta cookies shipped in good shape, I think these will as well. And since the recipe makes about 28 cookies, you’d better check your mailbox cuz you might be in for a surprise. Just click on the comment button on this post, and tell me why you think you’d be the best recipient of these delicious delectable goodies! You’d better do it quick though, cuz Stella my pretty pit has her eyes on them!
A massive thanks to Giada for being our #womancrushwednesday! What an inspiration she is to all of us female foodies. She is such a hard worker, a talented chef, a dedicated mom and a beautiful woman inside and out. I’m not a big Vegas person, but I seriously want to go just to eat at Giada’s restaurant! But unlike the slogan, “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” you’d better believe I’ll be shouting from the rooftops about my foodie fieldtrip! I’ll just try to tone down the bad singing and bad dancing that I do on my snapchat tutorials! LOL!
Though you may think I am a bit serious at times with my sobering childhood stories, I’m actually quite silly and love to laugh. It really is the best medicine! I even choose social media that makes me smile. Lovin’ Dublin is one of those. Every now and again there is a bit of naughty language, but I just look at the source. I mean, when I lived in Dublin, I heard many an eighty year old Irish granny use the “F” word. However, they just use an “e” in place of the “u” since that version of the word is part of the Irish vernacular. But for the most part Lovin’ Dublin is fun, whimsical, and I get my daily dose of home to keep me going. Continue reading →
My son’s favorite childhood book was “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” and we would read it nearly every night. The book should have come with a warning, cuz all those pancakes and syrup falling from the sky made me hungry…hence, once the lights were out in his room, I had the urge for some late night snacking in the kitchen!
Even as a grown up, he humored me and we went to see the film version together when it came out in the theaters. As I matured I have become more enamored with the meatballs in the story. And though most people like to eat theirs the traditional way, with spaghetti and tomato sauce, I like to take the rebel road (surprise surprise). I like to have it with a different sort of flavor combo. Maybe that is why I am such a fan of Sabrina Gayhour’s Lamb Lollipops (just a cute name for the most incredible meatballs ever). Fresh herbs and spices, dried fruit and a lovely yogurt dressing topped with little Nigella seeds which look like black sesame seeds! OMG
I first introduced you to Sabrina when she was one of our Foodie Fieldtrip Fridays. Then again when she was chosen as one of our Woman Crush Wednesdays. Finally we met up with her again when we did a Foodie Fieldtrip Friday to the BBC Good Food Show. You may be thinking, hmmm is Yankee Doodle Paddy stalking her? No, but I just might be stalking her Lamb Lollipops/Meatballs! And tonight my friends, Hubby and I went to her pop up restaurant and feasted on her incredible food and those tasty meatballs!
Since I already gave you her recipe before, I thought I would share with you one of my many meatball recipes. This one is great to do this time of year when you can get fresh or frozen cranberries. It is a super easy recipe and adults and kids love them… and they can be made gluten free as well. It can be served with rice pilaf or mash potatoes. I made it here with a parsnip mashed potato combo. If you like tons of sauce you could always double that part of the recipe.
Herbed Turkey Meatballs
Serves 4
½ yellow onion, finely chopped
1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 lb. ground turkey
1 cup fresh bread crumbs (you can use gluten free)
1 egg
2 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano (if you can’t find fresh oregano you can use dried, just reduce amount to only 1 Tbsp and add a bit of fresh parsley to liven up the color. Parsley is usually easy to get all year)
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
2/3 cup fresh orange juice
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
¼ cup sugar
Preheat oven to 350 F/180 C/Gas 4.
Cook the onions and the celery in the butter over medium-low heat for 5-7 minutes until translucent. Spoon into a bowl and let cool.
Add the turkey, bread crumbs, egg, oregano, salt and pepper to the cooled onion mixture and mix gently but thoroughly with you hands. Shape the mixture into meatballs and arrange on a prepared baking sheet. Bake until cooked through, about 10-15 minutes
Meanwhile, combine the orange juice, cranberries and sugar in the pan and cook over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring often, until the juice comes to a boil and the cranberries begin to pop, about 2-3 minutes.
Divide the meatballs among the dinner plates and spoon the cranberry sauce over the top of them. Serve immediately with some mashed potato and sautéed green beans.
Ireland and the U.K. have been hammered these last few days with a storm called Clodagh. I love that Irish name and had a roommate with that name when we were both attending Ballymaloe Cookery School. I even wrote a post about her on my then blog. It was about a lesson in goodness. Well, this storm Clodagh hasn’t been so good! Cold, wet and windy! It is funny how the storms are getting names over here on this side of the world now too. It only changed over to that recently. This Guardian article from September even asked citizens to help name the storms.
I haven’t been feeling so hot lately (under the weather to be more apropos), and certainly on a stormy day, you kinda want to just stay inside where it is warm and dry. Unless there are some meatballs raining down. Oh, I’m all over that! And I’m so glad I ventured out to Sabrina’s pop up to get my weekly fill! Besides her amazing food of course, I got to see her gorg face!
Have you ever heard of an Energy Vampire? I heard that term years ago and it still strikes me at how visceral and descriptive it sounds. Basically, they are people or things that literally suck the life out of you with their negativity. Who signs up for that kind of torture? You know what? You can opt out folks. Delete! Boom! Done! And your health will thank you for it. Here is an interesting article that lays it out for you. Downer Debbies and Nasty News Neds are bad for your brain folks! There is enough stress inherent in life, so why choose to bathe in the the rest of it that is disposable anyway? I mean, people spend loads of money and time on anit-stress measures such as yoga, massage, and detox treatments. Then they allow toxicity to permeate their lives by reading Facebook posts by people they hate!
In the short time I have been on social media I’ve seen it with my own eyes. A tiny accidental peek. But I look away. Why should I read the vitriol spewed forth by some meanies out there who tear apart other people, restaurants, or even other sports teams? So in light of that I will be sharing an upbeat and happy list of some of my favorite things. It won’t be about the latest beauty secrets, on trend clothes, or tchotchkes for your Christmas stocking stuffers. Sorry, but I’ve already warned you I am not a shopper. But I love to eat and I love to travel and have been blessed to do both in some pretty incredible places.
In America, only half the population even have a passport. So this will be the first in an ongoing series of posts. It is designed to help those of you without the travel bug, but still have a curious mind, to read about some special locales. If you’re a mommy of little babies and can’t travel at the moment, but want a little info to help plan a future get away spot, here goes. Or if you just need a little reminder of some places you should go back to and re-live, this is the ticket, cuz sometimes there are deserving recipients..such as these!
I suppose I should start my ‘best of’ short list with America, since it is my birth home. And though I was born in Chicago and indeed lived in New York for a few years, I spent most of my life in the Los Angeles area. I have no desire to move back there at the moment. However, who knows what the future holds. But there are some things about it I miss. This is a positive post, so I won’t go into the negatives of L.A. Sorry, but WestCoast/SoCal haters, you can look elsewhere. But L.A. really does have some unique and cool things about it that you can’t see/do anywhere else. Not to mention the fact that you are within a couple of hours drive to the desert of Palm Springs, the mountains of Big Bear, and the ocean in Malibu.
When I think of L.A. I get sentimental. It is where my kids were born, though neither of them live there anymore. It is where my Hubby/best friend/soulmate and I got married, though we don’t live there anymore either. I still have family and dear friends living there though and I do miss them. L.A. is quite eclectic, and it has some incredible sun, margaritas and food! So I will share first hand some places I have been and I would recommend. I am not sponsored or paid to say any of this. But I do feel passionately about them. While I could write a weeklong ode to LaLa Land, I am just going to list my top three places to stay, to eat and to do. I know some of you might have considered going to visit California, but only to San Francisco. While I love it there too, and will definitely do a post about that, I really must urge you to take a trip to L.A. Even if just for a couple of days. You won’t regret it!
Places to stay:
Pricey: Bel-Air Hotel is one among many choices for luxury accommodations, but in my opinion it is the best. It is beautiful, classy and quiet. You feel a sensory stimulation when you walk onto the lushly landscaped property. The hotel isn’t a sterile building with an elevator, but a series of bungalows so you feel like you have your own little cozy oasis. There are ponds and bridges and swans and it isn’t any wonder many Hollywood types have had their weddings on the grounds. Totally romantic! The bar is in a class all on it’s own and I spent many a night there listening to jazz piano, though it was long before I ever drank alcohol myself. But it has such an old world feeling to it you are simply transported all together into another realm. You don’t need liquid assistance to get you there. But if you do, I’ve heard they have an amazing wine and cocktail list. I have a special place in my heart for this hotel and not the least of it is the fact that my daughter used to have her piano recitals here. I know right, pretty posh?! Then again, her piano teacher also taught Paris and Nicky Hilton, Nicole Richie, and Kidada and Rashida Jones just to mention a few. So those recitals were choc a block with celebs! But that’s L.A. for you!
Mid: The Inn at Playa Del Rey has become my home away from home when I go back to L.A. Sure I have tons of places to stay, and I do love to spend the night at friends’ houses too. It’s those early morning chats over coffee while still in our PJs that are priceless . But this little gem not far from the airport is a nice, clean, convenient place to regroup after a long journey. It is part of a group of top notch B&Bs and Inns, of which I have stayed at them all. There are freshly baked chocolate chip cookies upon arrival and the delicious breakfast and an afternoon wine and cheese reception (both included in the price) to make you feel so at home. The decor is very beach-y and you have a beautiful view across the protected Ballona Wetlands to Marina del Rey. Great selfie ops of the gorgeous sailboats docked in the distance.
Affordable: Air b &b is a great option here as it seems that finding an inexpensive hotel in L.A. might land you in a sketchy neighborhood. But since we had a great experience with Air b&b last year when my Hubby rented a house from them when we went to Austin, Texas, I can totally recommend it. Though I haven’t used it for accommodations in L.A. I know some people that have with great results.
Places to eat:
The Ivy: My all time favorite salad in the world (and I know a thing or two about salads) is the grilled vegetable salad at The Ivy. The salad comes with grilled chicken or shrimp if you need some protein. And with the squaw bread on the side you are good to go! So delish and I am never disappointed. They have two locations. The one on Robertson Blvd in Beverly Hills is where to go if you want to see some celebrities. The one in Santa Monica is great since you can see the Pacific Ocean if you sit outside on the patio.
Anything Mexican: Unless you are going to Mexico itself, L.A. has the best Mexican food in the world. And it is very authentic and pretty affordable at most places. They are easy to find, as L. A. has one of the highest Mexican immigrant populations in America. Multiple Mexican restaurants are sometimes located on the same street! Border Grill is across from Mercado. Both top notch establishments. My favorite is a dive called Hacienda Del Rey. It has a sentimental appeal. It is cheap and cheerful and on Sunday nights they even have live mariachi music. I love a nice basket of chips with salsa and guacamole and the supply there is endless. I could have that for dinner with a blended (no salt) margarita and I’d be good to go. But I usually order chicken fajitas and split it with my Hubby. It’s so cool to see the ladies make the fresh tortillas by hand while you wait.
In-n-Out Burgers: A California institution. Though apparently, they now have one in Las Vegas so I heard. But they were born just East of L.A. so when in Rome as they say! How convenient that they also have a location next to the L.A. airport, so you can go to the drive thru just after you clear immigration! I really don’t eat much beef, and especially burgers and fries. But there’s nothing like a double double with grilled onions. And if you are gluten free you can even get it “protein style” without the bun just wrapped in extra lettuce. And the fries (or chips as they are called over on this side of the world) are made from hand peeled potatoes. Worth every calorie!
Things to do:
Disneyland: Yep, you gotta go. It is the original. I don’t care if you’ve been to Euro Disney or Disney World. It just isn’t the same. And no you don’t have to have a kid to go. You can be a kid again yourself going on the rides and experiencing the Main Street Parade. It is expensive, yes, and the food isn’t great there. You are doing if for one thing only and that is for the memory of the amazing vision of Walt Disney.
Hollywood Walk of Fame/Mann Grauman Chinese Theater: The good news is that you will not spend any money here, unless you pay the guy dressed as Charlie Chaplin to have your photo taken with him. This is a must see, and whenever I had visitors in town I took them to see the Stars along the sidewalks of Hollywood Boulevard and the celebrity handprints in cement at Mann’s Chinese Theater. The movie business is what it is today because of the ingenuity and creativity that came out of Hollywood’s Golden Era. And this is the mecca of it all. You can even look up at the Hollywood Sign there on the hillside and think, wow, I’m finally seeing it in person! I have a deep attachment to the Stars on the Walk of Fame as my daughter’s Godmother has one (Janet Lennon with the Lennon Sisters) and so does my dear friend (Quincy Jones).
Santa Monica/Venice Beach: The upshot is, you have to see the Pacific Ocean. Sure people will say you should go to Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, and they are right, but I’m not the shopper. So if you must, then do a drive by on your way from Hollywood to Santa Monica. The best thing to do is to take a walk on the Santa Monica Pier, and soak up the sights. Then rent a bike and cruise along the bike path down to Venice Beach to see the muscle bound body builders and rollerbladers. Great people watching!
I hope this has given you a little taste of the fun you might have in my former home Los Angeles. The only thing I would say is you will defo need a car. Unlike where we live now in London, which has amazing public transport, you need your own set of wheels in L.A. And if you love the sun, get a convertible. That way you’ll be able to ditch the fake tan, cuz it is always hot and sunny in L.A!
Lovin in the Sun in L.A.,
YDP
P.S. Okay, so the “long story short” totally does not apply here as I realize I’ve gone way long! Yikes! But well worth sharing some of these gems and it makes me want to go back again soon cuz it has been a while! I’d be delighted to give you a tour if you need a guide:) And make sure to watch this classic Randy Newman video “I Love L.A.” to get in the mood ( or else just to laugh at the 80’s hair styles).
I’m a rebel. I always have been and I always will be. It’s the Irish in me, so they say. As most teens I was rebellious, but in a strange sort of way. My mom and her clan were bell bottom hippies, so I was a plaid preppy. They were hanging out with bongs, I was hanging with my Bible. Some of her friends were on the most wanted list, I was on the Dean’s list. Yet, I was still obedient.
So today, while the rest of the world is celebrating Black Friday, I will be obedient and recognize the day, but still be a bit rebellious too. Practically every blogger is posting tips on the perfect products that can be found at which super sales And the news media thrives on showing police in riot gear while shoppers duke it out for the latest Dyson Mini Vac. Me? Well, I’m not out in a mall or online shopping, but I am online posting the most incredible salad recipe ever. And just cuz I gotta be different, I made it with cauliflower, hence, the White Friday. None of those iceberg or rocket salads, which is about what you can find this time of year!
Cauliflower is finally seeing a blossoming (pun intended) in superfood popularity after being previously bypassed in the produce aisle. Sure people would cook it if there was nothing else, but of course they would then have to douse it with cheese sauce to make it palatable. I even have a friend who once said that she thought cauliflower was a pointless food. Okay, that hurts. But who in their right mind woke and said, “I’m craving me some cauliflower?”. That, my friends, will be you once you taste this quick and easy, healthy and pleasing salad made with our star, none other than the CAULIFLOWER! It’s the other white veg.
This recipe is loaded with vitamins and antioxidants, great brain food. I think its shape even resembles a brain! It is gluten free and can be made dairy free if you eliminate the cheese in the recipe. It is also super adaptable. So if you don’t care for tarragon, substitute fresh parsley or even mint. Also you can jazz it up, like I have here by adding pomegranate seeds, or some dried cranberries if you want to get all festive. It makes it super colorful. If you prefer hazelnuts to almonds, then have at it! And if you are all paleo you can add some chicken or tuna while you dosey doe!
This Yankee Doodle Paddy got the recipe from a German friend of mine when I was living in Dublin! Now I am sharing it with you from London. Talk about Global Gourmet! The trick to it all is making sure you grate the cauliflower. If you have a food processor with a grater attachment like I do, then fab. Otherwise you will have to use one of the old standby box graters.
Fake Cous Cous Salad (aka White Friday Cauliflower Salad)
Serves 4
500 g Fresh Cauliflower, cleaned and divided into florets (basically, 1 head)
6 sprigs of fresh tarragon, leaves only, chopped
1 large handful of watercress, roughly chopped (if you can’t find watercress, you can omit or substitute with spinach or another leafy green)
100 g almonds, roasted and roughly chopped
100 g parmesan cheese, grated
Juice and zest of a ½ lemon
100 ml olive oil
2 Tbsp shallot, minced
salt and pepper
Chop up the cauliflower in a food processor (or use a grater) to look like crumbs. Transfer into a bowl.
Add to the cauliflower the next 7 ingredients and toss. Season with salt and pepper (and a pinch of sugar only if needed to sweeten..unless you are sugar free ). Serve!
How simple is that? After all the cooking my American friends had to do yesterday, this is a nice break. Plus this recipe is oven free! Yipee! This is great too if you just aren’t big on Thanksgiving leftovers (and if that is the case, I’ll be right over to foil up a doggie bag). Or maybe you over indulged so much on turkey you need something that won’t weigh you down. That will give you ample space to carry out that giant flat screen tv from the big sale over at Walmart this Black Friday!!
Love and TGIWF,
YDP
P.S. Just to mention that most salads need to be eaten soon after they are made as they go soggy. This recipe is so handy because it is still nice and crunchy the next day, so you’ll have a healthy food choice for your lunch box. That’s assuming you don’t eat it all before you get to that juncture like we did!
