Grilled Shrimp, Mango and Guacamole Bites

by kitchenrunway // September 20, 2010 // 16 Comments

I am very excited to announce that I am part of Kitchen-Play‘s first Progressive Party. The Progressive Party will feature six different courses created by six different bloggers. For the first progressive party we are using six different kitchen tools that are all supplied by Sur la Table. My kitchen tool is the Kuhn Rikon Swiss Chop and I can’t wait to show you what this little chopper can do. Everything has been a surprise and I’m anxious to see who else is participating, what tool they were assigned and what recipe they came up with.

My assigned course was Amuse Bouche. Some restaurants serve an Amuse Bouche at the very beginning of the meal to excite your palette. It’s a small serving of typically something savory and tantalizing, something to get your taste buds ready to eat more. It’s a little tease – a glimpse of what food journey is lying ahead. Living in California, Mexican food is a big part of our cuisine so I wanted to use this chopper to make fresh guacamole. I wanted to pair the guacamole with something sweet and savory. I like that this little bite play on textures and flavors. The crunch from the tortilla chip, the softness of the guacamole and the savory grilled shrimp with the sweet grilled mango makes for a satisfying bite before the meal.

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Marshmallow Pops

by kitchenrunway // September 11, 2010 // 18 Comments

I made these marshmallow pops for my friend Christine’s baby shower. She and her husband, Michael, are expecting their first baby. It’s a boy and I’m so excited for them! I was so happy to be part of the group of girls throwing the shower. We worked well as team and put together a lovely shower that I hope Christine and her guests all enjoyed! I was in charge of decorations while Ji was in charge of food. A crazy part of me wanted to do it all because I’m insane like that and tend to put more on my plate than I should. I’m so glad the girls convinced me that decorations and shopping was going to be more than enough to do. (Whew!)

Christine and Michael are avid hikers and love the great outdoors. They mentioned that they wanted to decorate the nursery in a “woods” theme. I knew this was the direction I wanted to go. At the time I didn’t know how difficult it was to find baby related woodland themed goods. There were tons of safari baby things with giraffes, elephants and lions and of course sports related goods. I quickly learned that the lack of creative options was probably the reason why a lot of baby showers have generic “baby” themes. We charged on – making most of the decorations by hand. It was fun and I can’t wait to throw the next baby shower. Woothoo! (I think I need atleast 3-6 months to recover though.)

Here are some pictures from the shower:

Like I said...it's real hard to find woodland critters...so bust out your needle and thread and start stitching!

While you're at it - stitch up some owls too. I love the herb plant from Trader Joe's. It definitely added a "woodsy" element.

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Vanilla Funfetti Cupcakes & Cake

by kitchenrunway // September 2, 2010 // 8 Comments

Our dear friends, Mike and Christa, asked if I would make a “smash” cake and cupcakes for their daughter’s 1st birthday party. I was happy to bake for their little girl’s birthday party, but I’ve never made an official birthday cake or worked with fondant before. Uh oh. Thank goodness fondant is not that difficult to work with. If you know how to play with play doh then you can work with fondant. I stuck with simple decorations since I really have no idea what else do with fondant besides cut shapes. Christa’s favorite childhood cake flavor was Vanilla Funfetti Cake. So that’s the flavor that we decided to go with for both the cake and cupcakes. The colors for the party were pink and yellow so I used pink sprinkles in the cake for the “funfetti” and topped the cupcakes with vanilla buttercream and fondant hearts and flowers.

I adapted the recipe from the Magnolia Bakery’s Vanilla Cupcakes. The cake is very buttery…almost like a pound cake. It is so good fresh from the oven without frosting. Make sure you do not over beat the batter or the cake will be very tough and dense.

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OC Foodie Fest

by kitchenrunway // August 30, 2010 // 14 Comments

Last Saturday was the first ever OC Foodie Fest. It was a gathering of 50 gourmet food trucks at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA benefiting Pretend City Children’s Museum, Child Share and Cart for a Cause. It was a sold out event with 8,500 people attending. I am so fascinated by the gourmet food truck movement. I find it very interesting how people and businesses adapt to the changing economy (can you tell I majored in Economics?). It is a difficult time to open a restaurant with the high overhead cost during this financial climate. No wonder restaurant entrepreneurs are taking their food and putting it on wheels! It is definitely a smart move and a concept that many people nationwide are embracing.

I was excited to volunteer at the OC Foodie Fest and got to attend as “Media” to help document the event through pictures. It was my first time interviewing and taking pictures for an event. It was so much fun talking to the owners, hearing their personal stories, and seeing the passion and love for their food and work come through. Owning and operating a food truck is no joke. The restaurant business is a tough and competitive business – with or without wheels!

Our first stop was the famous Nom Nom Truck. When we popped by they were still prepping. Wish I had asked to try a banh mi because when the event started the Nom Nom truck was by far the most popular truck there! The line for this truck was intense as people lined up to try the banh mi that has been dominating the Food Network Great Food Truck Race. These girls attended UCLA Anderson School of Business and it shows. If you have been watching the Food Network Great Food Truck Race then you already know that it takes much more than great food to succeed. You must depend on your business savvy to keep your food truck in the spot light, draw a crowd and keep a following. To my fellow Bruins – you girls ROCK!!

Our second stop: Crepes Bonaparte. Crepes Bonaparte is based in Orange County and is also participating in the Food Network Great Food Truck Race. Don’t let their friendly smiles and professional outfits fool you – these professional crepe makers are fierce competition on the show. Christian and Danielle gracious took a picture with my sister and me. Same issue as before – I was there an hour and half before the event and the trucks were conserving their propane so hot food was not ready to try. Once event opened their line was packed. My little sister really wanted to try a crepe. Good thing they are local because we are going to track down their truck the next time they are in the area.

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Braised Tofu

by kitchenrunway // August 19, 2010 // 7 Comments

Braised tofu is one of my favorite go to dishes when I’m in a hurry. Tofu is a great source of protein and excellent at absorbing flavor. My friend Alissa first introduced me to braising tofu and I’ve been hooked ever since. Braising is a cooking method where you first cook your main ingredient on a high heat then finish cooking it in a liquid. When you use this technique with tofu it makes it crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The soy sauce, garlic and honey mixture soaks in to the tofu during the cooking process giving the tofu a rich savory flavor. This satifying vegetarian dish can be served as a side or an entree. You can also easily add ground turkey or beef to the dish if you like. Just brown the meat first, set aside, brown tofu and then add meat and sauce.

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