Table Setting

My blogger friends Maryann of Finding La Dolce Vita and Marie of Proud Italian Cook suggested that I enter this table setting competition sponsored by Barilla Pasta.

For many years, my friend Lauren and I would enter the Los Angeles County Fair Table Setting Competition in September. We would arrive early in the morning. We had one hour to set our tables, then spent the rest of the day at the Fair. The LA County Fair is one of the largest in the country. Some of our fair highlights include: sampling the Gold Medal wines, the garden and flower exhibits, betting on the horse races at Fairplex, barbecued corn on the cob, falafels, the livestock and my favorite - the piglets! The LA County Fair is fantastic, if you are in LA in September, definitely go! And make sure to visit the Table Setting Competition in the Creative Living Building.

The neat thing about this online competition is that I don't have to schlep the entire table setting to Pomona California, or anywhere else for that matter. Set it up in the dining room, take some photos, then upload!

And let me tell you, schlepping your table setting is a process. Because you are using all your nice china and glass, you have to wrap everything just so carefully.

Now the inspiration for this table came from another blogger friend, Simona of Briciole. A while back she wrote a post about pears and Italian expressions.  The theme for our Romantic Italian table is:

Cascare Come Una Pera Cotta

To Fall Head Over Heels In Love

No Italian dinner is complete without wine, tonight's choice is a 1990 Barolo. That is a 750ml bottle - it is dwarfed by the over sized wine glasses and over sized candles, and humongous basket. It is neat to spend time setting a table when you don't plan to cook. The creative energy is spent on the table itself. But if we were to cook, our pasta course would be a fettuccine with pears, gorgonzola, and candied walnuts.

Last weekend, my dear friend Peggy from Denver, was visiting me. We spent hours collecting objects from all over the house (and under the house; the "placemats" are terra cotta floor tiles) arranging our final setting. These are the photographs we submitted to Barilla. Win or not, we had a blast!

A special thanks to Peggy, Lauren, Maryann, Marie, and Simona.

Shiitake Mushroom Risotto with Shrimp

I'm making no apologies for this dish. It comes from a box.

Cooking time approximately 20 minutes.

Active cooking time approximately 60 seconds!

Take raw peeled deveined shrimp from the freezer and run under cold water.

Active time 15 seconds.

Meanwhile add the contents of a box of shiitake mushroom risotto to a pot along with water and cook according to package directions (I substituted one cup of beef broth for a portion of the water), a generous tablespoon of butter, and a splash of tamari.
The beef broth and the tamari enhance the umami flavors.
Active time 30 seconds.

Stir occasionally, 10 seconds (5 seconds X 2).

Add shrimp to the pot about 5 minutes before the risotto is done.
Active time 5 seconds.

Gourmet, no.

Tasty, yes.

If I had some snipped chives, I might have added those...hmmm, and maybe a drizzle of truffle oil, 10 more seconds :)

This is Safeway brand risotto. Flavored with onion, garlic, herbs, and spices.

From the box side panel, "With Safeway Select you'll feel like a culinary genius."
Haha.

Your Culinary Genius, signing off...

Gina Lee's Bistro

Thai Marinated Sea Bass with Spinach, Baby Bok Choy, 

Chow Mein Noodles in a Coconut Lemongrass Broth

Crispy Fried Shrimp & Pork Won Tons 

Hot & Sweet Sauce, Cucumber Slaw

Korean BBQ Flank Steak with Spicy Dressing 

Scallion Fried Rice and Tofu Stir Fry

Bento Box: Selection Changes Nightly

Mini Ahi Burger, Crab Cakes, Chicken & Snap Peas Stir Fry, Beef Skewer on Mashed Potatoes

Ahi Burger, Selection from Bento Box on this Night

Korean Lettuce Wraps: Chicken and Tofu, Korean Red Bean Paste 

Daikon & Cucumber Relish

Pistachio Crushed Mahi Mahi with Three Sauces

Mandarin Orange Sauce, Creamy Sesame Splash, Soy Syrup

Scott & Gina Lee have been my dear friends for many many years. They opened Gina Lee's Bistro, an Asian Fusion restaurant in Redondo Beach, over a decade ago. A while back I offered to help Gina start a blog so on this night I took some photos of the food as it was leaving the kitchen.


For dinner, I enjoyed the Thai Marinated Sea Bass paired brilliantly with a glass of Etude Pinot Gris from Scott's eclectic wine list.


Irene Virbila from the Los Angeles Times wrote, "Everything from Gina Lee's kitchen tastes fresh and vivid. There's also a logic to how flavors are woven together."
I couldn't agree more. The flavors are just so vibrant...



When you are in Southern California, I recommend a visit to Redondo Beach to have dinner at my friends' fabulous and unique restaurant. And be sure to tell them Lori Lynn sent you :)

Restaurant Kitchen Photography

My photographs are of restaurant kitchens in Northern and Southern California, Chicago, and New York.

A note to the Chefs: Thanks for the fabulous meals!

Valentine's Passion

Would you ever consider something other than chocolate for
Valentine's Day?

Something creamy, musky, tropical, simultaneously sweet and tart, intensely aromatic, and entirely captivating?

Passion Fruit Cheesecake.

Share it with Your Sweetheart.

Happy Valentine's Day!

We enjoyed this luscious dessert at Gina Lee's Bistro in Redondo Beach, California.

An Extraordinary Dinner with Fellow Bloggers

A Salad of Steamed Baby Beets, Frisée , Cumin-Paprika Fried Organic Garbanzos, Shallots and Greek Feta

The inspiration for this dish came from our dinner at AOC. Here, organic garbanzo beans are fried in olive oil with diced shallot, smashed garlic clove, hot paprika, and ground cumin.



Organic frisée is layered with very thinly sliced shallots, steamed baby beets splashed with good red wine vinegar and sea salt and freshly ground pepper, topped with Greek feta cheese. Warm garbanzo beans with the cumin-paprika olive oil is spooned over the top. The red wine vinegar on the beets plus the fragrant olive oil on the beans makes a great "deconstructed" vinaigrette. (I am excited to submit this dish, too, to "My Legume Love Affair" Event by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook Blog).


Last week, the folks at Foodbuzz invited Featured Publishers to dine at Suzanne Goin's awesome AOC restaurant in Los Angeles. Ben of Château Petrogasm blog selected the refreshingly esoteric wines to pair with this extraordinary meal including one of the few domaines that make excellent red Sancerre, Domaine Vacheron 2005. Ben's wine blog of tasting notes through images is pure genius...

  
We dined together on a fabulous multi-course menu of:

chicken liver crostini with pancetta

roasted dates, parmesan and bacon

marinated beets, olives, fried chickpeas and feta

leek and cantal tart with thyme and pancetta

smoked trout, persimmon, endive and creme fraiche

petrale sole, split peas, ham hock and truffle butter

grilled skirt steak with roquefort butter

rabbit ragout with dijon, chestnuts and tarragon

chanterelles, ricotta gnocchi and sherry cream

sweet potatoes with bacon, romesco and spinach

sheep's milk cheescake with cassis compote and almond croustine

chocolate and hazelnut dacquoise with gianduja mousse and salted caramel ice cream

Strangers just a few hours earlier, we departed after hugs and well wishes. 

Wonderful photos of all these dishes are posted at Foodbuzz Los Angeles by Jen of eating plum blog. If you think these dishes sound delicious, you must see her outstanding photography.
 

You absolutely must visit Evie, she is hilarious. In her post on Mushroom Barley Soup, her advice on serving the soup is to "use a bowl, not a plate. These decisions can be so difficult."  Go to Hot Dish!  to see what I mean.

And Kat of Dirt Cake blog is the Pastry Cook at Spago Beverly Hills, lovely and very passionate about her craft...be sure to check out her yummy post on Oatmeal Cream Pie with a crème brûlée center.

What is Foodbuzz?

Foodbuzz: the first-ever community site devoted exclusively to food and dining content—an unparalleled resource for searching, surfing and sharing with fellow foodies everywhere.

Maybe you already know Ryan the Girl, of The Pink Spoon blog and Managing Editor at Foodbuzz.com? If the future of Foodbuzz is determined by the quality of the people involved, it cannot help but be a smashing success.

Before leaving AOC, I bought Suzanne Goin's cookbook, Sunday Suppers at Lucques in which she penned, "Don't wait til Sunday." In addition to her fabulous recipes, she tells many charming personal stories. Her cooking style is pure and fresh and the book is an inspiration to cook local, organic, seasonal dishes using all the senses. 

A heartfelt thank you to the folks at Foodbuzz for hosting this event and especially for fostering a unique camaraderie among strangers with a like passion for all things food related.

Rise & Shine! Poached Egg, Lentils, Béarnaise

Steamed seasoned lentils topped with a poached egg and béarnaise. I refer to Yann Chef of Food Lorists for fabulous sauce recipes, this one included. Thanks Yann!

This breakfast/brunch dish is my contribution to "My Legume Love Affair" Event by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook Blog. Do you have a legume dish to share? You can join in through February 9th.

Stuffed Chicken Breast, Mushroom Cognac Cream

Stuffed Chicken Breast

With Spinach, Mushroom, Leek, and Goat Cheese

Mushroom Cognac Cream Sauce

The Stuffing

• Spinach
  
• Mushroom
  
• Leek
  
• Goat Cheese
  

Chopped spinach, sautéed with butter, seasoned with fresh ground nutmeg, salt and pepper. Chopped crimini mushrooms sautéed until the water is evaporated, with salt, pepper and thyme. Chopped leeks are sautéed until soft. The stuffing is a mixture of two parts spinach, two parts mushroom, one part leek and one part fresh goat cheese. The vegetables are cooked separately, cooled to room temperature, then combined with the goat cheese. The chicken breast is stuffed, secured with a skewer, and baked at 350 for about one hour.



Mushroom Cognac Cream

Add butter and minced shallots to the chicken pan juices and sauté until the shallots are soft. Add about 1/4 c. cognac, flambé to burn off the alcohol. Add about 1/2 c. rich chicken stock, sautéed sliced mushrooms and fresh thyme. Finish by whisking in crème fraîche , adjust seasoning.


Le Menu

Mixed Lettuces with a Warm Goat Cheese Crouton, Toasted Walnuts, Thin Sliced Red Onion, Tarragon/Walnut Oil Vinaigrette

Stuffed Chicken Breast, Mushroom Cognac Cream

Rice Pilaf with Fresh Herbs

Chocolate Soufflé

A sincere thanks to some special Alpha Phis for helping make this a fabulous evening.