Lala’s Argentinean Grill

Posted on 05/20/2013 by unrivaledkitch

Lala’s is located in the trendy area of Ventura Blvd in Studio City. A hip little area of sushi, bars, small plates and burgers gives variety to the valley locals. On a very special evening with my sweet friend Bryn, we decided that we would like to dine at Lala’s Argentinean Grill. Both of us had passed it many times throughout the years, but never stopped to try it. On Monday night the outdoor patio of the warm spring evening was packed with people. Families celebrating special occasions, special events, couples out to dinner and large parties all enjoying the modern atmosphere, plates of food and good company.

Lala’s is modern in its appearance with subtle ambiance and plenty of seating. The menu is very large with many different options for diners. As we sat to share in a bottle of wine, our waiter was pleasant, but absent for water refills and the finer details of excellent customer service. The service wasn’t terrible, but just not something to really write home about.

As we looked over the menu, Bryn decided on Mahi Mahi and mashed potatoes and I decided that I would try an appetizer sampler of empanadas with one cheese, one spinach and one beef; a tortilla de papa and grilled chorizo; and an arugula salad. As we discussed celebratory events and enjoyed food, wine, and each other’s company, I found the food to be interesting and delicious. The empanadas had a wonderful crust and each of the fillings was piping hot. I liked the addition of deliciously garlicky chimmichuri and tomato salsa. The tortilla de papa was very different. It was a wedge of seasoned potatoes that were cooked till just tender, but still able to hold their shape. The chorizo was a little underwhelming, but the sausage had good texture—I just wish it had a bit more flavor. Bryn’s fish was cooked well and she seemed to enjoy her food. My salad had a light dressing, but was more lettuce than anything else. Overall, the experience was nice. It was good to have a different sample of Argentinian food with great company.

Congratulations on your new job, Bryn. I’m so proud of you and excited for your new journey!

Cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Mother’s Day 2013

Posted on 05/13/2013 by unrivaledkitch

I’m so grateful to take time out to acknowledge some really amazing women in my life. Mother’s day is always a special occasion, especially now that my sister is a mother too. I was lucky enough to help make Mother’s Day cards for all of Maleeya’s grandmas (Grandma, Granny, Bachan and Bubbe). They all received homemade cards, with probably more glue on them than stickers, but for a 2 year-old, they were pretty awesome. It’s so much fun to do little crafts like these for a special treat on Mother’s Day— we made a very special one for her mommy as well.

Mother’s Day wouldn’t be complete without a special Mother’s Day dinner. I taught yoga in the afternoon and then, even though it was over 100 degrees out here in southern California, we had a delicious Mother’s Day surf and turf bbq. My dad brought over some delicious seafood that I simply barbequed over a charcoal grill. We all had more food than would fit on our plates and a simple strawberry banana pie for dessert. I’m so grateful for all the strong, wonderful, sweet and loving women in my life who have shown how to love unconditionally. I hope all you mothers out there had a beautiful time celebrating with the people you love.

Grilled Lobster Tails

Pan-Seared Scallops

Barbequed Shrimp

Sake and Soy Sauce Grilled Chicken with Garlic and Green Onion

Baked Potatoes with Sour Cream, Butter and Green Onions

Pan-Roasted Green Beans with Button Mushrooms, Onions and Garlic

Green Onion, Broccoli, Cabbage and Carrot Coleslaw with Raisins and Red Wine Vinaigrette

Cucumber, Mozzarella, Cherry Tomatoes and Blue Cheese Salad

Grilled White Corn

Mozzarella Garlic Bread

Strawberry Banana Cream Pie

Cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Carrara Pastries

Posted on 05/07/2013 by unrivaledkitch

Years ago, I had a conversation with Damiano about his vision of bringing his family to the United States to build an Italian pastry business in California. Even then, as we spoke I knew that I would see his idea come to full fruition. Damiano is one of the hardest working and most driven persons that I’ve ever met. His passion for flair bartending, all things Italian, his family, and his business is exemplary. When I first met him, he was a bartender, but he’s put that passion on hold to build a family Italian pastry business called Carrara Pastries located in Moorpark, CA. With the help of his brother, Massimiliano Carrara, who is the Pastry Chef, the success of their business has lent to the expansion of a second location in Agoura, CA.

On 05.05.13, Carrara Pastries opened its doors to the Agoura community at their location on Roadside, just off the Kanan exit of the 101 freeway. Both new and old customers flocked to the beautiful and elegant modern storefront in Agoura to enjoy friendly company and beautiful Italian pastries and espresso. Large glass cases of freshly-made delicious pastries line the back of the store. Beautiful photographs and mirrored walls offer a modern, but warm atmosphere. Not only do they have mouthwatering desserts, everything is prepared fresh with the finest imported Italian ingredients and to accompany your sweets, you can choose from a variety of Italian refreshments and espresso drinks. As the community welcomed Carrara Pastries with open arms, I’m delighted that such hard work can and has developed into this beautiful reality for the Carrara family. As they cut the ribbon and served the deliciously large and gorgeous white cake with fresh fruit and white chocolate, everyone lined up for a slice.

While Brandon and I were there, we couldn’t help but pick up some delicious profiteroles with light pastry cream, a delicious cheesecake and a beautiful hazelnut chocolate cake. Carrara Pastries has something for everyone: large cakes for special occasions, small bites for an after-dinner sweet tooth and everything in between. Massimiliano and Damiano were born and raised in Lucca, Italy. There, Massimiliano studied with top pastry chefs in Italy and trained in the exquisite art of fine Italian pastries. As you take a look at the various pastries, you’ll see things you’ve never seen before and others that you’re very familiar with; this is all part of the charm of this lovely new bakery. The Carrara family is a model for the American dream and with lots of sacrifice, time and effort, they’ve manifested their dreams into reality. Please visit the Carraras at either of their lovely locations and explore the sweetness they’ve created.

476 West Los Angeles Ave, Unit A-13
Moorpark CA, 93021
Contact: 805.552.4250

28914 Roadside drive, Ste #107
Agoura Hills CA, 91301
Contact: 818.661.9006

Cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Two Dinners with Five Variations for Seven People

Posted on 04/30/2013 by unrivaledkitch

Some dinners at our table just turn into an experimental multitude of different dinner plates, especially if we have guests or if there is something my sister is craving and my brother-in-law doesn’t really prefer. I have no problem cooking different dinners for one meal every once in a while, but I think it’s really important for families to share the same meal as often as possible especially when they have children. Kids need to know that chicken nuggets and noodles are not the only things they can survive on and when we all eat the same dinner, this makes them understand that a little more.

Please remember that not forcing children to eat what we eat is also a good way to start to introduce them to different foods. Kids have a natural inquisitiveness to variety if we allow them to understand and investigate new foods. This is something I work on with my niece very often. She may have a preference for certain things, but she still tries different foods on her good days and she’s 2 years old. So even just giving a couple of pieces of a new fruit, vegetable, protein or grain may incite inquisitiveness in our children’s taste buds and if that’s as far as we get and we try something else later, well I think that it’s progress. Sharing our good eating habits with children is so important to the modeling of their behaviors with ours, which allows them to understand that they can like and eat foods that adults like to eat as well.

So on this particular occasion my sister had a craving for pork chops. My brother-in-law does not eat pork much at all, so I had to make a different meal for him so we could have pork chops. I love pork chops, but I only need a little bit to satisfy my pork craving. They are easy to cook, have a great amount of protein and can be a very flavorful vehicle for a family friendly meal. When you pick pork chops, choose lean cuts that are cut about an inch to an inch and a half thick. If you choose pork chops thinner than this, you run the risk of having very dry pork chops, so I don’t recommend having thin chops unless you’re going to cook, serve and eat them right away; otherwise, the natural juices will dry out rather quickly. The pork chops I made were with a celery, onion and spinach cream glaze. I used parsley and rosemary to compliment the pork chops and to make a little bit of an herb crust on the outside of them.

For side dishes I always enjoy roasted cauliflower and so does my niece, so I pretty much always have roasted cauliflower in the kitchen. I also roasted cauliflower with a little rendered pancetta, a bag of kale and some zucchini; high heat at about 400 degrees, some salt and pepper and a little bit of extra virgin olive oil. It’s a fantastic side dish if anyone needs a really delicious elegant dish to add along with any protein or to add with just about anything: toss it into pasta, serve it over brown rice or just eat it alone.

Seems like these days, if I get the oven on I roast more than just one thing because it saves time, gives flavor to veggies and makes them ready to eat, if you’re not into eating the raw variety. I like using dried parsley, garlic powder and salt and pepper to season my vegetables, but mixing up the seasonings helps keep it new and fresh. Maleeya, my niece, really likes roasted vegetables such as asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, red potatoes, butternut squash and so many more; all of these are rock stars in nutrition and when you cook them this way, kids have a friendly finger food to devour. If you haven’t roasted cauliflower, you’re missing out. It’ll be your new potato chips.

My brother-in-law loves fettuccini alfredo. Pasta with cream sauce is a luxury item in this family, but every now and again I pull out the Parmesano Reggiano and we have a feast. I knew my grandma would love to have a fettuccine as well, so I made a quick chicken stock, creamy sauce with broccoli and chicken.

So after roasting my way through the kitchen I ended up with dinner for seven people with about five different variations, all equally delicious for everyone. I’m pretty sure this is not normal, but cooking doesn’t have to be normal, sometimes we have to think outside the box and make what we really feel works and tonight I did just that.

Cheers to cooking your way in your kitchen. I hope you enjoyed my journey!

Cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

March’s Delicious Offerings And It’s Already The End of April…

Posted on 04/29/2013 by unrivaledkitch

I wrote this a while ago and realized it hadn’t been posted, their such beautiful memories I didn’t want them to stay on my computer. Enjoy!

I haven’t blogged in quite a while, but I’ve been writing a lot in notebooks and mental scratch paper because my words have been spent teaching and quieting down to prepare to teach. I’m loving the whole process, but sometimes I just need to make a fantastic meal and everything else falls into place. I’ve been quite busy—life’s comings and goings and all the other crazy business that comes with cooking and teaching yoga in Los Angeles, but I couldn’t be happier. My niece will be celebrating her 2nd birthday at the beginning of April so the thoughts for menu and preparations are working in my mind.

I had the great privilege of catering a sweet friend of mine’s (Lizzi) baby shower for her sweet new daughter Audrey, who is on the way. Her wonderful family and friends came together in a beautiful home in Lake Sherwood over food, drinks and anticipation of the families’ grandchild. Love definitely filled the whole occasion from the gorgeous photos to the intricate details of months of planning, it was a beautiful event and I’m so grateful Unrivaledkitch was able to partake in the festivities. Here are a couple of phone photos I was able to take from the event.

My sister celebrated her 30th birthday on 3/12. We had the family over for a huge lasagna party. And I’m not joking about “huge.” I spent about 5 hours making the perfect bolognese sauce with just the right amount of everything. A mental recipe that I’ve spent years crafting, but it makes it out for special occasions such as birthdays. I also made a very special creamy bechamel sauce with a hint of nutmeg and Parmesan cheese and layers of luscious meat and cheese sauce, over slowly baked pasta sheets and a touch of ricotta and mozzarella for an added richness. We had plenty left over and I think I probably had lasagna for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the next couple of days, which was perfectly fine for me. We also had an antipasto salad and finished the meal off with my sister’s favorite, pistachio pie, made by my mom from years of birthday tradition. It was so nice to have everyone around the table to share such a special day with my sister!

Last week I had the great pleasure of sharing my cooking with a fellow yoga teacher. She contacted me after a bit of a scare taking on a 70-person baby shower—for anyone, it is a bit of a shocker. I prepared a delicious roasted vegetable salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette for 70 people and she graciously picked it up from the yoga studio. I’m so grateful to be able to help take some of the pressure off of such a loving event.

I’m so appreciative of the opportunity to bring my food to my friends and family as well as extended acquaintances. I hope everyone is having a wonderful March! Though the time seems to be flying by, thanks for taking a moment with me to reflect on these special culinary events.
Cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Maleeya’s 2nd Birthday

Posted on 04/27/2013 by unrivaledkitch

My niece just recently turned two on Monday, April 8th. I can’t believe she’s already two! It really goes by fast and I know that’s a very cliché thing to say, but it does. It feels like just yesterday that my sister told me she was having a baby and now Maleeya is just so adventurous, ambitious and remarkable. She truly is an amazing little girl and I feel so fortunate to be able to see her every day and watch her little spirit grow.

Happy Birthday, Monkey! Auntie loves you very much.

So for Maleeya’s birthday we had everyone over to Encino Park for some food, of course, and lots of other fun things for the kids and plenty of catching up for the adults. Some of my sister’s friends brought their little children and we were able to get a little kids yoga session to happen while the adults watched. I’m so grateful to the little ones who decided to participate, even with everyone watching. It’s amazing how fearless young children are. So we had yoga, party favors, a huge Minnie Mouse piñata, cake and lots of food.

The menu this year was more manageable with my current work load and shortage of time, but still delicious and fun. I’m so glad I got to cook for over 50 of our closest family and friends. I’m so grateful for all the support everyone has shown me through my yoga and my cooking. I’m truly living a dream I could only have actualized with all of your help. Thank you!

Homemade Balsamic Cumin Barbeque Sauce Chicken

Rainbow Pasta Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette, Italian Herbs, Black Olives, Broccoli, Tomatoes and Roasted Peppers

Cobb Salad with Hard boiled Egg, Crispy Bacon, Roasted Garlic Turkey, Tomatoes, Avocado and Blue Cheese over Baby Mixed Greens and Balsamic Vinaigrette

Roasted Vegetable Platter

Fruit Platters

My mom prepared our grandma’s special macaroni salad and potato salad, as well as Bachan’s triple-layered Jell-O, which are all family traditions at any event. My boyfriend made delicious pork sliders with jalapeno coleslaw—needless to say, everyone loved them.

We had such a great time celebrating my beautiful niece, Maleeya! I can’t wait for next year.

These gorgeous photos are courtesy of the wonderful and talented Lyz Cooper, Brandon’s mom is an amazing photographer! Thanks Lyz for capturing such special memories for out family.

cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Aburiya Toranoko‏

Posted on 04/18/2013 by unrivaledkitch

Pressed under an apartment building high-rise in Little Tokyo is Aburiya Toranoko, a Japanese restaurant scattered amongst countless others in the downtown L.A. region. I hadn’t heard much about this place before my sister gave me a bloomspot certificate for my Christmas present—she saw the menu and thought it might remind me of our trip to Japan. The promotional expiration date on the certificate was quickly approaching,smooth so Brandon and I went on a date, not really knowing what to expect.

Toranoko has a gorgeous mural on the large wall, where most of their seating is located; it is adorned with paintings of Japanese characters, which gives a light and distinct nature to the dark dining room. The middle of the restaurant is home to a long communal table with small dividers, should smaller groups choose to dine with large chandeliers over the table. A large bar fills the opposing side of the restaurant with many illuminated bottles of liquor. The brightly lit sushi bar plays host to the most intriguing part of Toranoko: as a focal point, three sushi chefs line the bar and about 10 seats are available to witness the preparations of each dish. A large classic Japanese painting with a tiger holding a baby tiger in its mouth sets a tone of fierceness in the air.Toranoko is much different than the classic timeless sushi restaurants of La Cieniega, like Matsuhisa in Beverly Hills. But Toranoko offers delicious offerings with flavors and techniques that are on par with some of the best in the area. We were a bit adventurous in our selection of hot and cold dishes and to our delight, the aesthetics were very interesting and wonderful.Our waiter was polite, but very busy, seeing as there were only two servers in the whole front of the house for a Monday night. It seemed as if most of the emphasis was on the preparation of the food. We watched with anticipation as we sat at the sushi bar for the next dish and as we waited each dish that came out was, for the most part, better than the last. Executive Sushi Chef Seiji Nakano was preparing many different delicious dishes with beautiful elegance and graceful technique that highly skilled Japanese chefs are so well known for.Dishes

Egg Custard |free range egg | ikura| soy broth

This egg custard was a delightful little dish. I wasn’t expecting it to be as good as it was because I’m not very familiar with egg custards, but Brandon was very excited about this dish. The texture of the egg was very velvety with such a smooth cool texture. The salty addition of Ikura, salmon roe and soy broth added a level of texture and salt to the tender custard.

Uni Goma Tofu | fresh sea urchin | sesame | wasabi

I love Uni, I know that a lot of people don’t like its overtly seafood flavor, but I love it. Fresh uni was paired with a homemade sesame tofu. The soy sauce over the sesame tofu with the uni was really astoundingly unique. It was like something I’d never tasted before, which is always something I look for in a restaurant. The texture of the tofu was so creamy and smooth, without much of the watery flavor that is associated with tofu. A brilliant dish.

Sunomono | cucumber | seaweed

The sunamono consisted of pressed cucumbers with a various arrangement of other colorful seaweeds. The seasoning had enough acid to salt ratio and the vinegar was refreshing and light.

Steamed Foil Mushrooms | enoki | shiitake | shimeji

Steamed in a foil pouch, these mushrooms have a very simple clean flavor. Nothing was remarkable about them, but they were very high quality delicious Japanese mushrooms.

White Fish Carpaccio | Japanese shiso | pesto

The fish on this carpaccio was cut just a bit too thick, which made it a little bit chewy when consuming. The shiso gave the fish a very fresh quality and the pesto garlic oil added a bit of a different element to the dish.

Buta Kakuni | braised pork | spinach

This braised pork belly was deeply flavorful. The sweetness and salty balance of flavor in the dish was really well done. I loved the addition of hot dry mustard to mellow the fatty pieces of pork. Chopped green onion and sauteed spinach added brightness and a very fresh element to this intensely flavored dish.

Chicken Leg Confit | wasabi | green onion

I rarely, if ever, order chicken when I go out for a nice dinner, but Brandon loves chicken and how could we pass up something confit. The meat was fall-off-the-bone tender and extremely succulent, while the skin was crunchy and very flavor forward. A perfectly cooked chicken leg.

Toro Tataki Salad

Mixed greens with a deep purple toro that was a very rich piece of tuna. The flavor of the dressing was mild to really let the pieces of toro shine in the salad.

Aburi Kanpachi

This delicious amberjack fish was served sashimi style with ponzu and house soy sauce. The technique for warming the fish with Japanese charcoal and a torch, makes the lightly cooked fish contain a slight smoky aroma and faint flavor. The fish was sliced perfectly with small grooves cut into it to allow the flavoring to melt in. Fantastic.

Japanese Scallop

Dry packed Japanese scallops were super tender, completely delicate and delicious. The sashimi was paired with lemon and wasabi to add a bit of dimension to the clean simple flavor of the scallop.Overall, it was a fantastic meal. Everything had an attention to detail that seemed to carry the passionate artistry of fine Japanese food. I’m sure we’ll be back for another delicious meal at Toranoko. Thank you for a wonderful meal.

cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Yoga in Santa Monica, Ca. and 17th Street Cafe

Posted on 02/12/2013 by unrivaledkitch

I know I really shouldn’t spend money on lunch. I’m a yoga teacher (Kimberlyfujitakiyoga.com) for the most part and a personal chef here and there with odd jobs, caterings, and a million other ideas brewing away. If anyone is interested in my personal chef, private dining or personal grocery shopping please click on Unrivaledkitch Wellness for more info! It’s working out slowly, but surely because I’m living my dreams and it takes patience to make them happen, and it makes for me being on a pretty tight budget.

I don’t know about you, but the only thing I really spend money on is food. I was just talking to my sister about this. If my stomach wasn’t so curiously hungry, I would probably have more money in my pocket, but a less happy stomach, which makes for a less happy yogi, so I’ll keep eating. Let’s call it research and development and in this salad, it was just that because I have a feeling I’m going to be making this delicious lunch I had today at 17^th Street Café in Santa Monica, sometime very soon.

It’s the simple things in life. On Thursdays, I teach a mini yogis™ baby and me yoga class at UCLA Family Commons in Santa Monica. It’s an amazing establishment that fosters good social skills for children and family support for all types of situations involving children. They have summer camps and winter camps, as well as yoga and martial arts for children of all ages. My Thursday classes are baby and me yoga sessions, which consists of children ages 0-3. We have tons of fun in class testing limits, singing songs and being present. I’m so grateful to have this opportunity to teach at UCLA Family Commons. After the baby and me yoga class, I have a couple of hours to kill before I teach a really awesome group of kids in a private home in Santa Monica.

Between classes I have some time to explore Santa Monica, which is nice because I’m not very familiar with the area, but it’s just buzzing with delicious cuisine and amazing shops to look at. I made a quick trip down Montana Avenue where there were so many little places trying to make themselves stand out amongst the others. I walked down the block just viewing all the ambitious eaters in the area looking at menus and pondering if I was honestly hungry or not. Eventually I settled on 17^th Street Café. This charming little café is not very prominent amongst the other places, but I indecisively decided, after peeking in, that an afternoon salad wouldn’t hurt my next class and that I better hurry and eat so I could keep up with three, six and seven year-olds. I was seated right away, very warmly by a man standing at a bakery counter. I kept my eyes away from the pastries, though they did offer a second glance. My waitress was pleasant, but very busy and overall, the café was doing a high volume for its small dining room.

I ordered a passion fruit iced tea that was amply refilled. On the table came fresh hot bread that was delicious with some butter on it. After looking at their extensive menu, I found myself choosing the Oak Smoked Salmon Salad. I ordered a half portion because from the look of everyone else’s plates, the portions were quite abundant. The salad was lightly dressed with a sweet sesame vinaigrette, had chopped button mushrooms, radishes, daikon sprouts, feta cheese and oak smoked salmon. I really liked that the salmon was smashed up finely and mixed in with the feta. It made for a very salty, but refreshing flavor taking out some of the fishiness that is often associated with smoked salmon. I was rather impressed and completely satisfied with this simple and interesting salad, which made for a delicious beautiful lunch in the California sunshine. I’m grateful to 17^th Street Café for replenishing my strength for the next adventure in kids’ yoga!

1610 Montana Ave. Santa Monica, Ca 90403

cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Spencer Makenzies Fish Company in Ventura, CA

Posted on 02/07/2013 by unrivaledkitch

This little fish shack is a Ventura staple of food. If you pass by at 12, you’ll see the parking lot full and maybe even some people waiting outside to order their food to go. We’d passed by quite a few times and I always like to find a nice fish taco somewhere, so one day Brandon and I decided to stop in to Spencer Makenzies Fish Company. The atmosphere is very casual, just like most things in Ventura. We were able to order at the counter or there are a few tables in the back where you can sit down and eat. Loud TVs with the Sunday afternoon football game were on and many people were turned to watch what was happening.

We sat in the corner and decided on a couple of appetizers and a fish and shrimp taco. Brandon really wasn’t feeling good at all that day, but he humored me as I ate. The food was a little heavy, especially the tartar sauce they use, which I would ask for on the side if I went back. They had a variety of different delicious sauces that made the tacos really interesting. The shrimp taco we had was good, but nothing fantastic. We had some tempura fried vegetables, ceviche and a small clam chowder. I think out of everything, I liked the clam chowder the best. They have lots of different items to order. I wouldn’t mind coming back to try something different.

806 E Thompson Blvd, Ventura, CA

cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Cafe Nouveau in Ventura, CA

Posted on 02/06/2013 by unrivaledkitch

One beautiful Ventura afternoon, Brandon and I were out and about and decided to go into Cafe Nouveau , which recently opened back up after suffering from a kitchen fire last year. The dining room and whole restaurant is very quaint and cute. It looks like a perfect place for breakfast or an afternoon patio lunch.

Brandon and I decided to dine inside this afternoon. The restaurant is set up into smaller rooms instead of a large dining space. It’s almost like eating in someone’s home, if their home had a bunch of other strangers in it. Our service was very attentive and we enjoyed our meal very much.

Brandon had a really delicious salmon salad and I decided to get a bacon cheese burger, which sounded perfectly wonderful at the time. Both the salad and burger were good; not the best burger I’ve ever had, but still satisfied my craving. The salmon was very fresh and the plethora of fresh and roasted vegetables was a perfect lunch. Our meal concluded with complimentary mini chocolate cupcakes, but what we enjoyed the most was their delicious blueberry corn bread muffin. It was definitely more food than two people need!

497 E Thompson Blvd Ventura, CA 93001

cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

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