Taste With The Eyes

Ladrillo de Brisket, Modern Southwest Style

Ladrillo de Brisket, Modern Southwest Style
Rioja Chipolte Agave Black Bean Sauce

Smoked Wagyu Brisket @ Laurelhurst

Kirk ordered the 12 Hour-Smoked Wagyu Brisket/Ozark BBQ Sauce pictured right there behind the Grilled Romaine with Romesco at Laurelhurst Market, the exciting new steakhouse inspired brasserie in Portland, Oregon. I have been making brisket for years, but it never occurred to me to cut in any other way than against the grain, into long slices. Here at Laurelhurst was the inspiration for future brisket presentations – serve the brisket as a brick, leave the slicing and shredding to the diner!

Duck “Enfrijolada” with Poached Organic Egg @ Rivera

Another inspiration came from Chef John Sedlar’s Rivera Restaurant in downtown LA. We had a most delightful experience there a couple weeks ago. Our server mentioned that the duck sauce ingredients included chiles, piloncillo (Mexican brown sugar), black beans, and Spanish red wine reduction…it had just a hint of sweetness and a hint of smoky spiciness – a combination of flavors that was bound to be perfect with brisket at our upcoming Modern Southwest dinner party.

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Good Idea: Aji de Gallina Salad

Aji de Gallina Salad
Key Lime Cumin Vinaigrette

What to do with flavorful left-over ingredients from the Classic Peruvian dish Aji de Gallina? Ingredients such as sliced chicken breast, aji de gallina sauce, hard-boiled quail egg, walnut, alphonso olive, shaved Parmesan, aji amarillo pepper, and diced potato? Add butter lettuce and a key lime cumin vinaigrette to make a fabulous Peruvian salad!

Aji de Gallina Salad. It is just perfect for dinner during this record setting heat wave upon us here in Southern California. To prepare this composed salad, arrange butter lettuce on a plate, top with the chilled left-over ingredients from the aji de gallina dish. Drizzle key lime cumin vinaigrette over entire salad. Spoon aji mayonnaise over the chicken breast. Garnish with thinly sliced aji amarillo pepper and chopped parsley.

Key Lime Cumin Vinaigrette
Combine one part fresh key lime juice with 3 parts olive oil in a small jar.
Add a minced shallot, about 1/4 t. ground cumin, salt & pepper to taste.
Shake well.

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Classic Peruvian: Aji de Gallina

Aji de Gallina

sliced chicken breast plus shredded chicken meat
a creamy aji pepper sauce
white rice/ boiled potatoes
alphonso olives/ hard boiled quail eggs/ walnuts/ grated parmesan

the classic peruvian chicken dish, aji de gallina
alphonso olives/ the national drink, the pisco sour/ alfajores cookies/
hot condiments – aji amarillo paste, thinly sliced marinated aji peppers, and rocoto paste

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Noodle Soup with Shiitake & Moroheiya

fresh shiitake mushroom/ fresh moroheiya leaves/ baby bok choy
moroheiya green noodles in mushroom broth with tamari and toasted sesame oil
garnished with
bean sprouts/ fresh cayenne pepper/ cilantro/ scallion/ togarashi

fresh moroheiya and moroheiya noodles

Moroheiya (Corchorus olitorius), also known as Egyptian Spinach, has been touted as a super vegetable; high in beta-carotene, iron, calcium, Vitamin C, antioxidants, and dietary fiber. I’ve even read that it was the secret to Cleopatra’s beauty! After having discovered it at a local tasting, this ramen-style noodle soup has been a favorite of ours for months, but I just recently discovered the fresh herb. In soup, moroheiya takes on an intriguing okra-esque texture, and has a light fresh pleasant herbal taste.

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Super Savory Oatmeal

Thick & Rough Oatmeal
Walnuts, Non-fat Greek Yogurt
Olive Oil & Kosher Salt

Good Morning! Rise and Shine!

I’m pretty sure this oatmeal is not going to excite all of you. But for those of us who do not put sugar in our coffee, those who would order the egg-white Denver omelette over the blueberry pancakes with maple syrup – my savory friends – this oatmeal is for you!

Made with whole grain milled oats (I like The Silver Palate brand) topped with crunchy walnut halves, a generous scoop of non-fat Greek yogurt, a drizzle of high quality olive oil, and a sprinkling of Kosher salt. Super savory, super satisfying.

Alas, it is not low in calories, but it is high in many foods that are super-good for the heart (go easy on the salt though).

Extra virgin OLIVE OIL, made from the first press of olives, is especially rich in heart-healthy antioxidants called polyphenols, as well as healthy monounsaturated fats. Polyphenols may protect blood vessels.
A small handful of WALNUTS a day may lower your cholesterol and reduce inflammation in the arteries of the heart. Walnuts are packed with omega-3s, monounsaturated fats, and fiber.
Oats in all forms can help your heart by lowering LDL, the bad cholesterol. A warm bowl of OATMEAL fills you up for hours, fights snack attacks, and helps keep blood sugar levels stable over time — making it useful for people with diabetes, too.
While low-fat dairy is most often touted for bone health, these foods can help control high blood pressure, too. Milk is high in calcium and potassium and YOGURT has twice as much of these important minerals. To really boost the calcium and minimize the fat, choose low-fat or non-fat varieties.
COFFEE and tea may help protect your heart by warding off type 2 diabetes.
KOSHER SALT may be worth a try for people trying to control high blood pressure. It has half the sodium of table salt, thanks to its large crystals. You’ll still need to measure carefully; a teaspoon of Kosher salt has 1,120 milligrams of sodium — not too far below the 1,500-milligram daily limit for people with hypertension.

From WebMD: 24 Foods That Can Save Your Heart here.

Are you a sweet or savory breakfast person?