Tag: sweets

Amaya’s First Birthday Party at We Rock The Spectrum Kid’s Gym For All Kids

Amaya’s First Birthday Party at We Rock The Spectrum Kid’s Gym For All Kids

A first birthday in my family is nothing to be trifled with. For Amaya’s big day, we had to do something that would keep everyone relatively cool, since August in the San Fernando Valley can get up to 100 degrees or higher. My family has 

Andy’s Going Away Party

Andy’s Going Away Party

A couple of weeks ago, Brandon and I cooked for his dad’s going away party. He’ll be out of state for work for some time so we decided it would be nice to get his friends together and enjoy company while he was still in 

Family Dinner in Vegas with Sweets from Jean Philippe Patisserie

Family Dinner in Vegas with Sweets from Jean Philippe Patisserie

I love this time of year! It’s so busy and crazy, but there is just so much love in the air that it makes all the craziness worthwhile.  I just got back from an impromptu trip to Las Vegas with Brandon. Brandon’s family lives in the suburbs of Vegas, about 25 minutes outside of the strip. It’s nice to see the local side of Las Vegas instead of the normal craziness that ensues on the strip, although I do have to admit that we took a couple of quick strolls around down there to see what strangeness we could uncover and what restaurants were serving. Ever since our first trip to Vegas, probably about 6 years ago, we’ve always wandered the strip looking for new culinary inspiration. Some of the world’s top chefs have clumped together in that small strip of land, creating a culinary Mecca and once we get a pile of money, I’m sure we’ll try each one. Here are some previous dining experiences I’ve had in Las Vegas.

During this trip we took the locals route of eating and relaxation, which was all thanks to Brandon’s extremely loving and generous grandparents (Jerry and Carol) as well as his aunt and uncle (Daina and Mike) and cousin Noah. Brandon and I also got to put our cooking skills to use making dinner for the family at Daina and Mike’s house. I love family dinners—they are probably one of my favorite meals to cook because making food for people you love is one of the best ways of showing someone that you care about them.

Brandon and I took a trip with Grandpa Jerry to the local Albertsons and we started in the produce section like we normally would. I always like to choose the vegetables I want to make before the protein because I think, seasonally, it’s easier for me to make decisions on flavors from seeing produce. So we picked a couple of things and went on our way. I think initially we had two very different visions for what we were going to make, but we were ultimately able to bring together a delicious meal.

Menu

Ciabatta Crostini with Mascarpone, Mashed Cauliflower, Roasted Herbs, Garlic and Crispy Bacon

Ciabatta Crostini with Roasted Japanese Eggplant, Fresh Tomato, Basil and Sausage

Roasted Stuffed Chicken Breast with Button Mushrooms, Leeks, Thyme and Garlic

Panko-Encrusted Chicken Fingers

Whole Roasted Marble Yukon Potatoes with Herbs and Garlic

Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon Zest, Chopped Parsley, Garlic and Thyme

Pan-Seared White Zucchini and Japanese Eggplant with Basil and Cracked Pepper

Arugula and Baby Romaine Salad with Fresh Tomatoes and Cucumbers, Sausage, Bacon and Honey Dijon Balsamic Dressing

 

Brandon bought some beautiful pastries from Jean Philippe Patisserie. He bought a nice variety of chocolate cake, pumpkin cheesecake, flan, and hazelnut chocolate cake. The Pastry shop is located in the Aria Hotel on the Vegas Strip. They have an amazing variety of gorgeous beautifully sugary deliciousness. I suggest you check it out for yourself.

Cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

 

 

Sweets and Drinks in Vegas

Sweets and Drinks in Vegas

Sin City has its alluring qualities and flashy devilish charms, but hidden amongst the countless yards of alcohol and not so flattering clothing choices, are the sweet and deliciously decadent, which my boyfriend and I found on our trip around the strip. Brandon is the 

Cyrus’s 2nd Birthday… The Candyshop and Red Velvet Cupcakes

Cyrus’s 2nd Birthday… The Candyshop and Red Velvet Cupcakes

Today is one of my favorite little boys very special day. I remember the day my friend Katie called me to tell me she was expecting and thereafter, all the midnight to 2 a.m. phone calls and text messages with horrible stories of pregnancy woes, 

My favorite day in Seattle

My favorite day in Seattle

I’d have to say the best day I had in Seattle was the last full day I was there. An honest save the best for last type feeling occurred to me and I was able to get in an amazing amount of fun. My morning started off with breakfast at Toulouse Petit  this lovely eatery is located in Queen Anne, its décor is chic and welcoming. The food is fantastic and southern inspired, I love breakfast when I’m in the mood for it and here I was very happy with the outcome of my meal. I ordered Fried Oyster and Bacon Eggs Benedict. The absolute luxury of this dish was something to recoil at because it was such an early hour but seeing this item on the menu was too tempting to pass up the offer. I had chosen correctly and was happily on my way through three quarters of the platter before second guessing its lavish appeal on my taste buds. The influence of the south was present on my plate, thick cut crispy bacon, perfectly fried corn meal battered oysters flowing with runny egg yolk and Creole hollandaise sauce over a lightly toasted muffin take the cup on one of the best breakfast plates I’ve had in a very long time. Breakfast Happy Hour is an affordable and awesome way to start the day.

After breakfast I took the bus down to the city and took a stroll over to the market and looked into some shops. Later on I made my way back to my hotel and decided to stop at the Experience Music Project I absolutely loved this place, it’s a combination of music and science fiction. They have amazing exhibits on Nirvana, so many guitars, Jimi Hendrix, and also they had a really amazing exhibit on Avatar which is one of my favorite movies. I could have spent an eternity in there looking at all the music pieces and reading about guitars as well as playing in the sound labs. It was really one of my favorite museums I’ve been to.


After that I met up with a new friend I made at Ashley and Bryan’s wedding Lia. We had drinks and happy hour at Toulouse Petit because she said it was one of the best happy hours in town which I’d have to say was correct. We had a plethora of different dishes ranging from amazing mouth watering modern southern flavor to the classic down home fried bar grub. We chatted and made it through the menu, I love meeting new people who love food.

Fried Okra with Remoulade

Wild Mushroom and garlic bruschetta with arugula

Ahi Tuna Tartar with Quail egg and horseradish cream

Golden Beet Salad with haricot vert, blue cheese, kalamata olives, citrus vinaigrette and candied walnuts

Katie Mae pearl vodka, st germain, grapefruit juice, prosecco

After some awesome conversation and lots of good eats, Lia offered to take me the other side of Lake Union to Gas Works Park which had an amazing view of Seattle from across the lake. Before getting to the park we stopped at an awesome Pie Shop in Fremont called Pie. They specialize in all things pie, sweet and savory. I ordered a Raspberry Peach Pie and Lia got Banana Cream we sat in the sunshine and ate pie by the lake, which was delicious light flaky and wonderful. It was such a beautiful afternoon. After that Lia let me off at my hotel. I hope one day we’ll see each other again soon.

After I got situated I decided to take a walk on the waterfront and watch the sun set over the sound. I walked by the water front and along Olympic Sculpture Park.  I sat alongside the sculptures and watched the sun fade into the distance, taking note of the beautiful Washington sunset. Something I knew I wouldn’t see again for at least a little while.

I finished walking by the countless bustling shops and eateries got money for the bus in the morning and turned in looking into the cloud ridden skies at the space needle for the last night.

Cheers
Unrivaledkitch

Chicago; Friday The Dog Joint, Navy Pier, Churro Factory, Harry Caray Tavern, The Gage, BuddieGuy

Chicago; Friday The Dog Joint, Navy Pier, Churro Factory, Harry Caray Tavern, The Gage, BuddieGuy

As we got our stuffed together to exit the Belden Stratford Hotel, I looked out to the beautiful view of Lake Michigan with a happy feeling. This was by far one of the nicest places I’ve ever stayed. I’m very glad that we stayed outside 

Banana Vanilla Creme Wafer Pie

Banana Vanilla Creme Wafer Pie

I hope everyone’s having a marvelous weekend. I’m at my volunteer yoga studio gig trying to speed up time till I get in the car and am headed for Sin City. I haven’t been to Vegas in maybe 9 months or something like that but 

Easter Dinner

Easter Dinner

Easter was really wonderful I hope you all had a beautiful day with loved ones or just a relaxing day of rest. I know not everyone is allotted that time but i hope you were or if not you get a day like that soon.

We had family over for Maleeya’s 1st Easter. It was the cutest little thing ever. Everyone was flashing their cameras and fussing over her. My dad and mom really helped out with the dessert and meat and I made some side dishes for us to enjoy. Here are some photos of our Easter dinner. I love my family so much, my moms Easter bunny rice crispy treat was amazing shes so fun and creative now you see where I get some of my skills from 🙂

I made:
Roasted Zucchini casserole with crunchy onions
Green bean, mushroom and celery casserole with crunchy onions
Three cheese scalloped potatoes with broccoli
Roasted Corn on the Cob with black pepper compound butter and sea salt
Spinach Prosciutto and salami salad with mixed vegetables and Parmesan balsamic vinaigrette
Lemon and herb poached shrimp with lemon horseradish cocktail sauce
Veggie platter

My mom and dad made:
Roasted Ham
Tri tip
Bunny Rice crispy treat
Easter bundt cake
Chocolate covered strawberries and marshmallows

Bachan and grandma made:
triple layer jello
deviled eggs

My sister in law and my sisters mother in law:
chips and Hawaiian sweet bread
and cheese ball and crackers

Have an amazing week!

Unrivaledkitch
Twitter and Foodbuzz

Vegan clementine blueberry cupcakes with candied blueberry compote

Vegan clementine blueberry cupcakes with candied blueberry compote

Baking as you can tell is something I’ve grown to love. There is something that is to be said about a perfectly chewy cookie, a beautiful cake, or a wonderful sweet flavor combination and during my chef days I probably would of never said that