Le Grand Bistro Brunch

Website
1512 Curtis Street
Denver, Colorado
303.534.1155

My parents and I went to Le Grand Bistro for brunch.  We had been there before and the restaurant has a wonderful brunch and bloody mary bar.

We started with complimentary peach almond scones with a salted caramel drizzle.  I ordered a Bloody Mary with vodka.  Equipped with my glass of ice and alcohol, I went to the bar.  I added the vegetarian bloody mary mix along with garlic, lemon, lime, celery, peppers, onion, and bacon.  I stole some of the bacon on a side plate to share with my parents.

 

My main dish was Steak Benedict ($15).  I love eggs benedict and I’m always up for trying a new twist on the breakfast classic.  This one had: English muffin, au poivre hollandaise, skirt steak, poached eggs, and breakfast potatoes.  The steak was very delicious and good quality.  The sauce was a normal hollandaise sauce with peppercorns added.  It tasted like it wasn’t prepared with the pepper in it.  I could have used more of a pepper flavor in the sauce outside of the corns.  I do recommend this dish as a nicer alternative to the usual benedict.

My mom ordered the Veggie Benedict ($12).  Hers had: English muffin, poached eggs, heirloom tomato, sautéed spinach, avocado, chives, hollandaise, and breakfast potatoes.  It looked beautiful and healthy with all of the colors of the vegetables.  She said it tasted wonderful as well.

My dad went the slightly less healthy route and ordered the Apple Pie Pain Perdu ($12).  This is Le Grand’s amazing French toast. It is house-made brioche made with apple pie filling and topped with Chantilly cream and maple syrup.  It comes with two eggs and house-cured bacon.  I got to taste it and I have three words: Oh.  My.  God.  This is dessert for breakfast.  The brioche is amazingly golden and has a texture that is heavy and light at the same time.  The syrup tasted like real maple syrup as well.  The apples were soft but retained a little crispness for texture.  It was delicious but not the healthiest dish one could order. 

 

We had a fabulous time there.  The restaurant is usually fairly empty during brunch since they are more of a lunch and dinner place.  I still recommend the place to friends looking for a fun, new place in Denver.

Halloween Potluck

Our office hasn’t gotten to celebrate in a while so we decided to do a Halloween potluck.  I made some tortilla roll-ups that I tried to stack to look like a spine.  However, the stacking didn’t work so well.  I found the recipe on Taste of Home.   The recipe calls for tortillas, ham, salami, garlic-herb cheese spread, baby spinach, provolone cheese, green peppers, and sweet red peppers.  I used whole wheat tortillas and low fat garlic cheese spread.  I also used some green chilis I still had instead of the green and red peppers.  The rollups turned out delicious if a little unstackable.

One of the other coworkers made chili (or as she calls it "chili beans").  Another brought Frito's, cheese, and onions to make Frito pie with the chili.  We also had a fruit tray, veggie tray, deviled eggs, larger tortilla rollups, and red velvet cupcakes.  We had lots of tasty dishes.  It makes for a well-earned afternoon slump.

Sushi Train

website

3460 South Locust Street

Denver, CO 80222

303.756.0708

Sometimes, friends just need to be kidnapped so they can have fun.  I picked up my friends Tom, Amanda and Katie and took them to dinner at Sushi Train.  Amanda’s birthday is coming up soon so I wanted to treat her to dinner.

Sushi Train is located near I-25 and Hampden in Denver.  It has a nice big sign to help you find it.  When you walk in, the chefs in the center of the restaurant all welcome you in Japanese.  At least I think that's what they're saying.  I can never understand them.  You can sit at the bar or at a table.  If you sit at the bar, there is an actual little electric train that will deliver your sushi to you.  Otherwise, it’s delivered by a waiter.  It’s easier to talk at a table so all four of us chose that.

The special deal at Sushi Train is the all-you-can-eat sushi.  At dinner, the cost is $24.99.  It seems expensive, but if you’re very hungry, you’ll cover that cost in a couple of rolls.  The last sushi restaurant I ate at I spent over $40.  It’s not required to do the all-you-can-eat option.  They do have regular menu items as well. 

I started off with some miso soup because I was cold and I had to stay away from the tea.  Last time I came to Sushi Train, I drank several cups of green tea and couldn’t sleep that night.  I also started off with some steamed gyoza (pork dumplings with dipping sauce).  The soup and gyoza are also listed on the all-you-can-eat menu along with other appetizers.

I ordered three rolls which is very ambitious because each roll is cut into eight pieces.  I got the Aspen Roll: crab and avocado on the inside and topped with salmon and lemon.  I really like having the salmon on top of the roll and the lemon makes it taste very fresh.  The second roll I got was the White Dragon Roll: tempura shrimp, cucumber, and crab inside and topped with white tuna.  This was the first time I tried this one.  It was nice to try but I probably wouldn’t get it again.  I don't think I'm a big fan of the tempura shrimp inside a roll.  I'd rather just have the tempura flakes.  The last roll I got was the Beef Lover Roll: beef teriyaki, jalapeno, cream cheese, and deep fried.  Beef in sushi?  Oh, it’s good.  The beef has great flavor and the cream cheese with the kick of jalapeno is to die for.  Since it's fried, it's served warm.  It’s super heavy so it’s hard to finish, but it’s damn good.  I was hurting by the end of my rolls and I had to stuff a few pieces in my face.  Anything you don’t finish, you get charged $0.25 per piece.  I may have pawned off a few pieces to my friends as well.

I also ordered pieces of nigiri.  I got two pieces of salmon, two pieces of tuna, one tamago (egg omelet), one spicy scallop, and one of the yellowtail.  I didn’t like the flavor of the yellowtail so I gave my second piece to Tom.  I loved the other nigiri though.  I stuffed my face with sushi until my sides felt like they would explode.

We got to cleanse the palate with a little orange slice when the check came.  As we left, all of the chefs told us, “Goodbye!  See you next week!”  They’re only partially joking since I go there quite often with Amanda and Katie.

Cherry Crest Seafood Restaurant and Market

website

5909 South University Blvd.

Littleton, CO 80121

(303) 798-2600

On the Friday before all of the Halloween parties, I took some vacation time to play hooky from work.  I had planned to have lunch with my parents before going to get some errands done.  My mom sifted through her folder of Groupons to help us decide where to eat.  I was craving seafood so we ended up going to Cherry Crest Seafood.

Cherry Crest is both a restaurant and a seafood market.  Along with the dining tables, there is a glass counter with fish you can buy to take home.  Even though we live in Colorado, they manage to get fresh fish for their menu.  Of course, being from Colorado, I may not know what I’m talking about.  I ordered one of my favorite dishes that I hadn’t had for a long time, Lobster and Crab Enchiladas.  These are corn tortillas stuffed with Main lobster, Canadian crab and spicy cheese. They’re served with rice and coleslaw.  I really like the spicy cream sauce served over these enchiladas.  There are also a few corn chips on the side to scoop up the rest of the sauce.  The insides of the enchiladas are nice and gooey with the cheese holding the lobster and crab together.

My dad ordered a dish that he gets often.  This was the Grilled Salmon & Thai Noodle Salad: Hot salmon fillets on a bed of noodles with cucumber, scallions, cilantro, peanuts, and spicy Thai dressing.  You can also order it with grilled shrimp instead.  I’ve always liked the taste of the salad when I’ve tried it, but I have yet to order it for myself.  Luckily, dad’s generous enough to share with me.

Mom ordered the catch of the day which was Tortilla Crusted Haddock with rice and vegetables.  The chef makes his own tortilla crust from crushed corn chips.  It tasted pretty delicious.  I can’t remember trying Haddock before.  It was a mild white fish.  Mom seemed to enjoy her plate.

The restaurant has a small town feel to it since most of the wait staff has been working there for years.  They recognize you when you come in.  I remember some of them from when I was a kid.  I also remember a time or two in my childhood when we got one of the restaurant’s specialties: the lobster pot.  You get a pot with live lobsters, catch of the day and other seafood to take home and cook.  My family made the mistake of letting my brother and me play with the lobsters before we cooked them.  It was a tearful dinner.  It would be fun to try it again, as long as we kept the lid sealed.

Domo

website

1365 Osage Street

Denver, Colorado 80204

303-595-3666

We continued Crystal’s birthday celebration with dinner at Domo restaurant in Denver.  Sarah, Carlo and Shan joined us for dinner as well.  The restaurant is kind of small and they don’t take reservations.  You just have to hope for the best.  Domo’s food and decorations are traditional Japanese.  There is even a working dojo attached to it where they teach Aikido.  I love the décor of the restaurant.  I feel like I have travelled in time and location to old country Japan.  The tables are big slabs of stone and the seats are padded tree logs.  The light fixtures are covered with brown paper and sticks.  This may not sound very amazing but it looks very dark and romantic.  See the picture to the right for an idea.  Out back of the restaurant, there is a small garden with stone paths and peaceful ponds.  It was a little chilly so we didn't get to sit out there, but we got to walk around.

We all sat and tried to decide what we wanted for dinner.  The menu is not as extensive as it used to be when I’d gone as a kid, but it’s still hard to choose just one of the options.  I started off with some tea.  I ordered the Matcha tea.  It’s a green tea that they serve sweetened with cream or plain.  I decided to try it with the cream and sugar.  It was actually a little too sweet for my taste.  It arrived in a tea cup that was more like a soup bowl.  It was huge!  The line of the night was when, in reference to the size of the cup, I said, “I want to bathe a kitten in it.”  By the time I finished that cup, I was buzzing from the caffeine in the green tea and the sugar.

I ordered hot sake with the dinner.  Yummy yum yum.  All of our dinners came with seven family style dishes that were the chef’s choice.  My favorite one was vermicelli noodles with cilantro and jalapeño pepper slices.  It was light and tasty.  The fish cake and mushroom dish was also good.  We were also served okra with seaweed and orange bell pepper slices.  I tried it but I kind of hate the texture of okra.  There was a plate of inari (fried tofu) and vegetables as well as a plate of potato and vegetable curry.  There were a few dishes that seemed odd to have at a Japanese restaurant.  They were the beef meatballs and the pork stew with potatoes and carrots.  Those seemed more American or Irish.  They were freaking tasty though.

For my main dish, I ordered the Domo ramen noodle set.  You choose your ramen broth style and meat as well as a smaller side dish (see above picture).  I ordered the Sukiyaki Beef Shoyu Ramen: shoyu ramen (soy sauce broth) topped with sliced sukiyaki beef.  For my choice of one mini donburi dish, I got the mini salmon teriyaki with brown rice.  The soy ramen broth was amazingly rich and flavorful.  I preferred it to the miso broth.  The ramen also included the delicious egg noodles, peppers, cabbage, and other vegetables.  The beef was tender from being soaked in the broth and it was seasoned with black pepper.  Every bite of this ramen was bursting with flavor.  The salmon teriyaki was also very good with the brown rice.  I liked the sweet teriyaki sauce on the salmon.

I hope to return to Domo soon to try some of their other dishes.  Crystal says she wants to try the nabe.  It's served in a small cast iron pot.

Celestial Seasonings

website

4600 Sleepytime Drive

Boulder, CO 80301

303-530-5300

Crystal’s birthday is in December but she likes to celebrate it in October.  I took the day off work so I could join her and celebrate in style.  Our friend Sarah also joined us for the whole day.  This year, we went to the Celestial Seasonings tea factory in Boulder during the day and ate at Domo restaurant in Denver during the night.  This was the first time I had ever gone to the Celestial Seasonings tour.  They offer daily free tours for you to see where they make all of their delicious teas.  When you walk in, you’re welcomed by the tea cafe where you can sign up for the tour.  We were on the Sleepytime tour.  Our tickets were little sample bags of Sleepytime tea.  They also give you a little ceramic cup so you can sample teas (for free!) while you wait.  I tried their new holiday tea: Sweet Harvest Pumpkin Holiday Black Tea.  It was really good and the spices in it reminded me of chai.  I also had some Morning Thunder black tea for the caffeine boost.  The variety of teas you can order from is quite intimidating.

We started the tour with a video about the history of the company and then we got to go in and see the different stages of production.  We saw the big sacks of ingredients they get from all over the world.  In the adjoining room, they have a special way of cleaning the tea.  They use something like an air hockey table to float the ingredients on air.  Lighter things like pollen will fly off.  Heavier things like sticks and rocks will fall down.  That was an especially interesting fact to me.  They use giant tubs to mix the ingredients of each tea together.  Then they have a taster, a man who’s been working there for over 30 years, taste the batch and tell them what needs to be fixed.

The most famous part of the tour is the Mint Room.  Since peppermint is so potent, they keep it sealed in a double-walled room.  When you walk in, you can immediately feel the mint sting at your eyes.  I was stuffed up from a cold and breathing in that mint helped soothe my throat and nose.  It smells so good.  Free aromatherapy!

Celestial Seasonings tea bags are little pillows with no tag or string.  We got to see where they fill the bags and then put them in boxes.  I can not even begin to describe to you how amazing that room smelled.  Tea dust was everywhere and it made the room smell spicy and fruity.

The tour, of course, lets you out in the gift shop.  It’s a dangerous place.  I bought an armload of tea.  I got the Sweet Harvest Pumpkin, Sleepytime Sinus Soother, Antioxidant Max Green Tea Dragon Fruit Melon, Sleepytime Decaf Lemon Jasmine Green Tea, Sweet Wild Berry Zinger Ice Tea, and Sweet Raspberry Zinger Ice Tea.  I also got a set of square tongs that are used to remove the tea bag since there is no string to pull.  It saves you some burned fingers.  After the gift shop, we went back to the tea counter in the other building for a few last samples.  Crystal and I ended up buying to-go cups of the Honey Vanilla White Chai Tea.

It was a great tour and I recommend it to anyone in the Colorado area.  One last thing to mention, I love the artwork they have on their tea boxes.  You need to check out their website and look at all of their designs and flavors.  Why are you still reading?  Do it.

The Original Pancake House

Website

5900 South University Blvd. Suite D

Greenwood Village, CO 80121

Phone: 303-795-0573

I don’t get up for breakfast often.  When I do, it’s a very special treat.  I had Monday off for Columbus Day and decided to have a fun day with my parents.  I made sure to wake up early so we could go to one of my favorite breakfast restaurants, The Original Pancake House.  Getting up early on a day off?!  Quelle horreur!

The restaurant is always crowded on the weekends so I was glad we could go on a week day.  The interior decorations are in a country comfort style.  The walls are paneled in blond wood and blue paint.  There are plates of all different sizes, shapes, and designs along the top of the wall on a shelf.  It’s a chain restaurant with locations around the country.  I don’t know if it has the same style in each one.

They do have a lot of pancakes on their menu.  The ones they’re known for are the Apple Pancake and the Dutch Baby.  I was looking for a relatively simple breakfast.  I ordered the sausage and eggs.  I got link sausages with over easy eggs.  These were served with home fries and pancakes.  The sausages were very tasty and the eggs were cooked to perfection.  I love an over easy egg that spills its yolk at the touch of a fork.  I really liked the pancakes too.  They were very fluffy.  I had a stack of three of them.  I ended up taking some of them home.

I also wanted some bacon so instead of ordering a side, my dad ordered the Bacon Buster breakfast.  This came with seven, count ‘em, seven pieces of thickly bacon.  My parents like their bacon cooked to a crisp so they ordered extra crispy bacon.  I personally enjoy my bacon with a little give to it.  The cooks at the Original Pancake House cook it perfectly on their own.  Dad’s breakfast also came with three eggs, home fries and three pancakes.

My mom ordered eggs and pancakes.  She also tried some of the bacon.  I’m a new coffee drinker so I tried a cup of coffee.  It was too strong for me and I didn’t want to embarrass myself by dumping the whole pot of creamer into it.  I would have been better off with my childhood favorite of hot chocolate.

The wait staff is always nice even when they’re busy.  It’s a great place to sit down and have breakfast.

Comfort Food

Our family had some sad news.  Our cat Ripley, an outdoor cat, was eaten by some kind of bigger animal.  He had been missing all day on Sunday and then my parents got the call that he’d been found in the neighbor’s yard that night.  Ripley was about 16 years old.  We’d had him since he was born in our garage when I was in middle school.  He was a bony tom cat with the longest fangs I’ve seen on a cat.  He would always welcome me back home to my parents’ house and would proceed to flop in my lap and purr.  It broke our hearts to say goodbye to him.  We’re going to miss him.

My mom decided to have a comfort food dinner so we could come together and say goodbye to Ripley.  Family and food are a good way to grieve.  My brother was able to join my mom, dad and me.

While my mom finished preparing everything, we ate chips and salsa.  Dinner was meatloaf from Tony’s meat market.  It was made with beef and pork.  My mom made it heart shaped in honor of Ripley.  The meatloaf was really flavorful.  We ate it with tomato country relish from Ballymaloe cooking school.  It’s a savory sauce that goes extremely well with the meatloaf.  On the side, we had some heated frozen peas, carrots and corn.  We also had my dad’s mashed potatoes.  My dad boils the potatoes whole and then scoops out the insides into a bowl.  He then adds butter, sour cream and milk along with Laury’s seasoned salt.  His mashed potatoes are the best I’ve ever had.  I’ve made them for my friends and they agree.  We drank Wiley Jack cabernet sauvignon from California.  It went well with the meatloaf. 

Goodbye, Ripley.  You were a good cat.  I miss you.

India's Best

website

1500 W Littleton Blvd

Littleton, CO

303-484-9535

Nothing breaks up the day quite like a trip to India at lunch.  India’s Best Restaurant is located on Littleton Boulevard not far from my work and apartment.  My parents joined me for a quick break from the work day.  The restaurant is located back in a strip mall.  It’s unassuming from the outside, but if you pass by, you can smell the wonderful aromas of their food.  The restaurant is a family business.  Luckily it’s a family of twelve!

Lunch time has the best deal in town.  They have an all you can eat buffet for only $7.99.  Each time I’ve been there it’s been delicious.  They switch up which menu items show up on the buffet but it’s always a good spread.  You do have to order the Naan bread separate though.  I shared one order of three pieces with my parents.

I started my plate off with some of the Basmati rice as well as the Biryani vegetable rice.  (You need a nice bed for all of the delicious sauces to soak into.)  I skipped over the salad bar and went straight for the hot dishes.  There were some fried appetizer dishes there.  I took the Punjabi Samosa.  It’s a deep fried crisp pastry that is filled with mashed potatoes and peas. 

Now onto the entrées, I took the Chicken Curry which had nice, big chunks of chicken in a yellow curry sauce.  It had good flavor but I could have used a little more of the curry seasoning in it.  They also served Tandoori Chicken which is the red, grilled bone-in chicken.  It’s served on an onion bed.  I had a drumstick and it was really good.  I liked the onions with it too.  They were cooked enough that they weren’t too strong, but they were still crunchy.  I also took some Butter Chicken.  This is smaller pieces of chicken cooked with herbs and ground spices in a homemade butter sauce.  The sauce was red and reminded me of the Masala sauce.  It was really good on the rice and with the Naan bread. 

One of the interesting dishes is the Saag Paneer: spinach cooked with homemade cheese in cream.  I’m not a fan of cooked spinach (as is evidenced by all of the uneaten spinach soufflés from my childhood) but I love the paneer cheese that is served in it.  I just try to get a larger ratio of paneer cubes to spinach.  One of the dishes I had not tried on the buffet before was Alu Gobi.  It is a vegetarian dish of cauliflower and potatoes cooked with herbs and spices in a yellow sauce.  The sauce makes the dish far from bland.  Another vegetarian dish is the Dal Makhni: lentils cooked with garlic, ginger, tomato and spices.  The lentils were very flavorful.  It makes you forget you’re eating something healthy!  There were a few sauces on the salad bar that I had overlooked.  I went back during my meal to get Mango Chutney.  I just love how tangy and spicy mango chutney is.  I also got the rich, red Tamarind Sauce as well as the Mint Sauce.

I finished off the meal with some of the Gajjar Halwa.  It’s sweet carrot pudding with cashews and raisins.  It tasted like there might be rice or condensed milk in it.  Either way, it was fantastic.  I was sad I was so full because I wanted to go back and get more. 

At the end of lunch, my parents and I all agreed that we have to do this again sometime soon.  It’s too delicious and well priced to pass up!

Sushi Basho

2700 West Bowles Avenue

Littleton, CO

(303) 730-9999

There is a wonderful sushi place right near Main Street in downtown Littleton.  It’s called Sushi Basho.  I’d driven past it many times and wondered what it was like.  I was told that the name translates to “Sushi Place.”  I had to try it for the name alone.  It looks very tiny from the outside.  It has a very small parking lot in front of it that it shares with the breakfast restaurant Toast.  You don’t know what to expect when going in.

Once you enter, you’re welcomed by a glowing aquarium.  It separates the fish eaters from the wimps right off the bat.  The dining area is small but bigger than it appears from the outside.  The tables have white table cloths on them at dinner and there are a few modern Japanese style art pieces on the white walls.  It's very well lit during lunch and can be a bit dim at dinner.

My friend Crystal and I tried this restaurant before and fell in love with one of the items on their menu.  This time, when we returned, I was in need of some comforting so I ordered it.  It was the Inari Soup.  It’s a soy sauce based broth with inari strips (fried tofu strips usually served sweetened and with rice like a piece of sushi).  It also has fish cake strips in it.  I was wary of the fish cakes the first time I tried it because I didn’t want a fishy taste.  These are amazing though.  The whole fish cake is a round circle that is white on the inside and pink on the outside.  It doesn’t have much flavor on its own so it soaks up the flavors of the rich broth.  It’s delicious.  The flavor of the soup varies on the day.  Sometimes it’s rich and salty.  This last time I had it it was a little less so.

I also ordered a hot large sake since it was starting to feel cool outside.  Nothing warms me up faster than some hot sake.  I wanted some sushi too.  I ordered the Queen Roll.  This has smoked salmon and avocado on the inside with salmon on top.  The avocado made it creamy and delicious.  I also ordered 2 salmon nigiri and one piece of salmon sashimi.  The nigiri is the little piece with rice on the bottom and fish on top.  Sashimi is a piece of plain fish usually served with some daikon or some other pickled vegetable.  I’ve found that I’m a salmon addict.  I often satisfy my salmon cravings with salmon sushi.

Crystal ordered the Yaki Udon.  This is another dish that we’ve become addicted to.  It has the thick udon noodles in a clear but flavorful sauce.  We usually get it with chicken and it also comes with cabbage pieces, fish cakes and mushrooms.  Crystal and I often fight over the mushrooms.  All of the ingredients have amazing flavor on their own.  They combine into an even better dish.  I really, really, really recommend ordering this dish.  Crystal and I will usually order Inari soup, the yaki udon and a couple of pieces of sushi to share.

Crystal also ordered an appetizer of gyoza for herself.  I didn’t try them but they looked really good.  She also got a piece of unagi nigiri (eel) and a Spider Roll.  The Spider Rolll also has unagi in it.

The meal was very comforting and very filling.  We kind of over ordered.  That just meant we had some leftovers.  The prices are a little steep but not outrageous.  The bill adds up if you order a lot of different things.  But usually, when Crystal and I share our regular order, it’s not too bad.

Crêpe Party

The French conversation group I attend convenes on Thursdays now.  We decided to switch it up and do a crêpe party instead of our regular conversation at the coffee shop.  One of the members was kind enough to offer her apartment up as a place to host it.  The apartment is a section of a red brick Denver mansion that has been split into multiple accomodations.  The host also prepared her special crêpe batter from a recipe that her host family in France gave her.  Another batch of batter was provided by our own native Parisian.  The two of them cooked crêpes up in the kitchen and took orders for what to put in them.

The crêpe party was an excellent idea.  I would like to copy it with my friends.  The host can provide the batter and the guests can bring the ingredients they would like to fill them with.  I brought a big wheel of Président brie and a jar of tomato pesto.  I wasn’t sure how brie would taste in the crêpes.  Usually, a melty cheese like gruyere is used.  It turned out to be hugely popular.  Not to toot my own horn but... most of the crêpes that were made were with my brie and tomato pesto.  The tomato pesto also helped add some flavor to the other mild cheeses.  I got the idea to bring it from the crêpes I’d had at the Fat Frog Café.  

People also brought plenty more savory crêpe options.  We had gruyere cheese, fontina cheese, and mushrooms.  There were many dessert ingredients as well.  We had Nutella (a chocolate and hazelnut spread), bananas, strawberries, whipped cream, apricot jam, and caramel sauce.  I had a Nutella and strawberry crêpe that was heavenly.  Melted Nutella is the only way to go.  And of course there was wine!  We had at least three bottles of different types of red wine.  One member even made an amazing chocolate cake with graham crackers in with the layers.

It was a wonderful social event.  We crammed in the small Denver apartment and got cozy.  We listened to French music bouncing out of the laptop.  Luckily, the host didn’t get tired of making crêpes for us.  That could be one downside of hosting.  The chef is stuck in the kitchen for most of the party.  But luckily, in a small apartment, it’s hard to feel isolated in the kitchen.  I believe the next social event the French group will have is a movie hosted in my apartment.  I have my eyes on a French horror movie for Halloween.

Mabon Festival

I was invited to a Wiccan equinox celebration by my friend Maya.  She was hosting the Mabon festival at her house.  The tradition is to serve vegetarian dishes during the fall equinox.  The guests all brought interesting treats they’d made.  I cheated and bought mine at the store.  I brought a little antipasto platter from King Soopers.  I got garlic olives and spicy olives.  I also got red and yellow peppadew peppers with sun-dried tomatoes.  To go with these treats, I got some hummus and pita chips.  It was all tasty and went very well together.

Maya made her curry couscous stuffed acorn squash that I’d gotten to try previously.  However, she made it vegan style since one of the guests is a vegan.  This meant replacing the butter on the squash with a vegetarian option and using vegetable stock instead of chicken stock in the couscous.  I didn’t taste a difference from the excellent dish I’d had before.  Still amazing.  She also whipped up a spinach salad with pine nuts, blueberries, and strawberries.  I think the dressing she made was cranberry pear vinegar and walnut olive oil.  I really enjoyed the combination of pine nuts and fresh blueberries.  Those two flavors alone would make for an amazing snack.  Maya also prepared hot apple cider that stayed warm in her crock pot.  I liked the spices in it.  There were big orange slices and pieces of clove floating in it.

Jana prepared lentils in a crock pot.  She said it was meant to be lentils but turned into mush.  It still looked appetizing to me.  It had great flavor as well.  I was surprised just how yummy it was.  Vicki prepared some saffron cookies that were supposed to be crescents.  Since they were round, we called them full moon cookies.  They tasted more like biscuits than cookies.  Another dessert we had was Rachel’s homemade mini cheesecakes.  I had one with chocolate and raspberry in it.

There were even more dishes that I didn’t have the room for at the time.  One was Hana’s pumpkin muffins.  They looked very good but were unfortunately hidden under the centerpiece.  I took one for later and ate it at home.  It was tasty and had flax seeds in it which I adore.

It was great meeting new people and getting to know them through their dishes.  We played card games until it was time to leave.  I’m so happy it’s finally fall!

Chili Poppers

The weather is finally turning into fall.  Even though it’s still a bit hot out, I know that sweater weather is just around the corner.  In the late summer and early fall, there’s an addition to the farmer’s markets that is hard to resist.  My parents bought some of the roasted Anaheim chilies.  I have a favorite appetizer that I invented using these.  It takes a long time to prepare but is always worth it.

I take the green chilies and tear or cut them into thin strips (about a half an inch wide at the thicker end).  I used to make these too large and they were hard to eat.  I put about a teaspoon or so of cream cheese on the end of the chili and roll it up.  Then, I take a strip of prosciutto and wrap that around the rolled chili.  I stick a toothpick in it to hold it all together and make it easier to eat.  If you want to be more environmentally friendly, the poppers can sometimes stick without the toothpicks.  I put these all on a baking sheet covered in foil.

I bake them at 350° or 375°.  I always forget how long they might take.  The batch I just made needed about 30 minutes.  Just keep checking on them until the prosciutto crisps a bit.  It’s up to you how crispy you want it.

We usually get medium chilies.  We’ve done these poppers with hot chilies before and they’re killer.  The cream cheese helps with the fire a little but usually the ratio isn’t enough to put it out completely.

I’ve brought these to book club and they’ve always been a hit.  I am thinking of trying a different version on a slice of baguette.  I would spread cream cheese on it and put the chili and prosciutto on top.  It might make it easier to prepare and eat.  Food for thought.

Ratatouille

This dish is my specialty.  Here’s a little background story on my cooking abilities.  The first time I lived on my own was in France in 2005.  The first time I tried making a meal for myself, I had chicken thighs that weren’t thawed completely.  I ended up overcooking it out of paranoia to the point of jerky.  Then I poured too much salt in it.  It was horrible but I forced myself to eat it.  I was depressed that I wasn’t an amazing cook like my mom.

Flash forward to 2008 when I returned to France to live in Paris for a year.  I had bought a frozen bag of ratatouille with all of the vegetables and frozen sauce cubes.  I loved it and decided to challenge myself.  Just by looking and tasting, I set out to make the dish without looking at a recipe or ingredients.  I was able to do it to great success.  That was when I knew I’d finally arrived at my mother’s intuitive cooking level.  I’ve tweaked it a bit through the years but it’s still my signature dish.

I find it easiest to prepare in a Crockpot.  First, I turn it on high heat and pour in a little olive oil.  I chop up about three large garlic cloves and a medium onion and throw those in first.  Next, I chop up two zucchinis, one or two yellow squash, one eggplant, five tomatoes, and half each of a red, orange and yellow bell pepper.  I also add a couple of cans of tomato sauce to help the juices along.  If I have to leave it unattended, I add water so that it can cook down without burning.  For spices, I add Herbes de Provence, pepper, salt, dried basil, and a little granulated garlic to help pump up that flavor.  I usually let it cook for about three or four hours until the vegetables soften and soak up each other’s flavors.

When I first made ratatouille, I instinctively served it over couscous thinking it would be a good match.  It turns out that this is a very popular way to serve ratatouille.  I recently made this dish for my brother and I served it on Near East roasted pine nut couscous.  The mixes are very quick and easy.  I would recommend using the garlic seasoning of this brand of couscous with ratatouille though.  I knew Tyler would also need some protein so I ended up cooking a couple of chicken breasts in chipotle and lemon olive oil with salt, pepper and garlic.  I think the ratatouille tends to go better with beef but chicken is what I had.  It was actually a good match as well.

Tyler raided my parents’ wine collection and brought a Mark West pinot noir to have with dinner.  It seemed to pair well with the ratatouille.  One of my favorite things about ratatouille is that it’s very delicious and very healthy.  You can eat as much as you want!

Oskar Blues

Oskar Blue's website

303 Main Street

Lyons, Colorado 80540

303-823-6685

After a fun day at the Highlands Festival in Estes Park, my friends and I stopped for dinner on the way back into Denver.  We ended up in Lyons at Oskar Blues.  It’s a brewery and restaurant that boasts Cajun and southern cooking.  I have been on a healthy food kick as of late so I had to resist the urge to order the burgers, sandwiches, and fried entrees.  I ended up going with the Portobello Pesto Sandwich.  This has a marinated and grilled Portobello mushroom with pesto, grilled peppers and mozzarella on focaccia roll.  It’s usually served with a side of fries but I went with the side salad with Italian dressing.  The sandwich was amazing.  I loved the melted mozzarella cheese.  The pesto and mushroom had incredible flavor as well.  I didn’t miss meat at all.  The Italian dressing was an interesting homemade variety.  It had a lot of herbs mixed in olive oil and a little vinegar.  The sandwich was a healthy option that I would be tempted to order again even if I wasn't on a diet.

The friend across from me ordered the nacho appetizer as his dinner.  It was a huge plate of food.  I was quite impressed by it.  I may have to go back and pig out on that.

Highlands Festival

Estes Park

A journey to the Highlands doesn’t have to be as long as you’d think.  My friends and I drove to Estes Park for the Highlands Celtic and Scottish Festival.  I must admit that I greatly enjoyed the sight of so many kilts.

The festival had many events such as caber tossing and jousting.  There was also plenty to eat in the food stands.  Some were typical American festival foods and some were attempts at more Scottish and Irish dishes.  I got to try a couple of different food items.  Megan, my Scottish friend, had described haggis to me when she was here.  The way she described it made it sound much more delicious than the typical description.  The description that I find on Wikipedia is that haggis is “a savory pudding containing sheep’s pluck (heart, liver and lungs); minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock.”  The traditional preparation is to cook this in the sheep’s stomach but commercially it’s usually cooked in sausage casing.  The one that I tried was served in a cardboard bowl with the sausage casing cut open and crackers on the side.  It was meant to be eaten with a fork and was also covered in brown gravy.  I really enjoyed it.  It does taste slightly like organ meats, but since I am a fan of liver pâté I’m used to the flavor.  It was well spiced and along with the oats in it, it made for a yummy lunch.  I recommend giving it a try if you get a chance.

The other dish that I got to try was the Scottish meat pie.  I can’t remember the exact meat that was in it.  I think it may have been a mixture of lamb and beef.  It reminded me of the pot pies I used to eat as a kid.  It was in a circular pastry shell much like a miniature pie.  When I bit into it, I tasted a peppery ground meat.  It also had some vegetables like peas and carrots in it.  I was a bit overzealous and probably burned the roof of my mouth on the hot interior of the pie.  I regret nothing.  It was a tasty treat I enjoyed while sitting in the grass.  Thinking of it makes me want one right now.

Balsamic Maple Glazed Salmon

This recipe was part of a healthy eating program through the county and promoted an Omega-3 rich meal.  Once I saw it I knew I’d have to try it.  I got the chance when the boneless, skinless filets of salmon went on sale at King Soopers.  I invited Crystal to join me at my apartment for dinner.

The recipe recommends using a grill or broiler to cook the salmon.  I just used a frying pan and it worked fine.  I combined ¼ cup orange juice, 1 Tbsp. olive oil, 2 cloves of minced garlic, and ¼ cup maple syrup in a saucepan.  I heated them on medium and brought them to a boil.  I cooked it for five minutes and then added 3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar.  Meanwhile, I took my two salmon filets and seasoned them with pepper and a tiny bit of salt.  I brushed them with the glaze and put them in the pan.  The recipe says to grill or broil for 10 minutes.  I think I ended up cooking them a bit longer on a lower heat.  I continued brushing glaze on them.  I cooked my filet just long enough to get the outsides cooked and kept a hot pink center.  Crystal wanted hers cooked all the way through.

I served the salmon alongside some microwaved frozen brown rice.  We used a little of the extra glaze to season and flavor it.  I also heated up a frozen vegetable mix of carrots, corn, peas, and green beans in a sauce pan on the stove.  I seasoned them with garlic and pepper.

The meal was amazingly delicious for being a healthy option.  I really liked the sweet and tangy taste of the maple syrup and balsamic vinegar.  The garlic also helped the flavor instead of detracting from it.  If I made it again, I would probably add fresh cilantro to the dish. 

Rice Bistro

website

The Orchards

5922 South Holly Street

Greenwood Village, CO 80111

303.221.1430

The Rice Bistro is located inside a strip mall tucked away across from a King Soopers.  The exterior is unassuming.  When you enter, it’s a modern decorated Asian restaurant.  Lots of gray and black.  My mom had a Groupon deal for the restaurant so I joined my parents for dinner there.  The menu offers different Asian dishes including rice or noodle dishes and sushi. 

I ordered the Sushi Combo A.  This included a choice of soup or salad.  I got the miso soup.  It was a pretty standard American restaurant miso.  It had tofu, mushrooms, and green onions in it.  The sushi started with four pieces of chef’s choice nigiri.  The ones I got were: red snapper, yellowtail, salmon, and tuna.  I also got to pick two rolls from a small selection.  I chose the salmon and avocado roll and the spicy tuna roll.  I like the creaminess of the salmon and avocado roll.  The spicy tuna was a little too spicy for me.  I think they may have used jalapeños in their recipe.  I gave my spicy tuna roll to my dad to have.  I was worried it wouldn’t be enough food, but after eating my meal and sharing part of the other sushi roll we ordered, I was quite full.

We also ordered the Modern California Roll off of the sushi menu to share at the table.  It had crab, cucumber and avocado on the inside.  It was topped with tempura flakes and a mixture of sauces.  It was delicious but very rich.  It definitely didn’t quite fit into my healthy diet.  But if you’re not on a silly diet, I highly recommend it.

I can’t quite remember what my parents ordered.  My mom got a dish with shrimp and scallops in it.  I think it was the Crunchy Cashew Shrimp and Scallops: lightly breaded shrimp and scallops cooked until golden brown with sweet lemon cream sauce and cashews.  I do remember that the scallops were not breaded and they were very tasty.

I also can’t remember what my dad got.  I think it was a spicy chicken dish.  It might have been the Yushan Chicken: stir-fried chicken with fresh vegetables in a spicy yushan sauce.  Whatever he ordered was yummy.

I would try the restaurant again.  Their sushi menu was extensive and had some very interesting rolls to offer.  It was a little over-priced for me, though.  The food was delicious but not quite worth the price without a coupon deal.  It looks like a location will be coming soon to the Aspen Grove area.  Since that's in my neighborhood, I'd be willing to give that one a try.