Lori Lynn, Author at Taste With The Eyes

Grilled Baja Fish Torta

Grilled Baja Fish Torta

Grilled Fresh Swordfish with Grilled Nopalitos, Pineapple, and Avocado
Caper Cumin Aioli, Pickled Jalapeño, Cilantro
On a Bolillo (Crusty Mexican Oval-Shaped Roll)

Baja California Dreaming…years ago we would take road trips down to Mexico. Fishing was a must. So, naturally, were fish tacos. But our fish didn’t always end up in a tortilla with cabbage, salsa, crema, and a squeeze of lime – sometimes we enjoyed it on a special oval-shaped roll that was crusty outside with a dense yet soft interior. Serving grilled nopalitos recently made me nostalgic for Baja, the fresh-caught fish, and the endless cacti along Highway 1. Baja is home to more varieties of cactus, perhaps than anywhere else in the world, with many exclusive to the peninsula.

A torta can be filled with many things from meat, to eggs, to beans and vegetables, but the true signature of a torta is that it is FILLED! My grilled nopalitos with caper cumin aioli were a big hit, so here I incorporate those ingredients into a sandwich adding various flavors from my memories of Baja.

Fresh local fish of course, plus avocado, pineapple, jalapeño, cilantro, lime – and nopalitos on a bolillo, do indeed satisfy my nostalgia for Baja California…And since we were camping back then, the ingredients for this torta were grilled over an open fire.

Continue reading “Grilled Baja Fish Torta”

Grilled Nopalitos, Caper Cumin Aioli

Grilled Nopalitos, Olive Oil, Sea Salt
Mexican Lime, Cilantro
Caper Cumin Aioli

Tired of grilled artichokes? No, neither am I.

I wasn’t looking for a surrogate but I found grilled nopalitos do bring something muy diferente a la mesa. Some think the flavor is reminiscent of green beans. But they must be talking about boiled nopalitos because grilled cactus paddle tastes a lot like a lemony grilled artichoke. So in the interest of continued summer grilling and using more interesting ingredients, I’m serving grilled nopalitos.

And since artichoke and mayonnaise are one heck of a duo, I serve these with a caper cumin aioli. Each guest helps themselves to a paddle, a half-lime, some cilantro leaves, and a little ramekin of aioli. The best way to eat these nopalitos is with a knife and fork. Squeeze lime juice over the paddle. Slice one of the “fingers” into a bite-sized piece, add a couple cilantro leaves, and dip in to the aioli. Muy Delicioso.

Continue reading “Grilled Nopalitos, Caper Cumin Aioli”

exquisite side: miso yaki onigiri

miso yaki onigiri flavored with asatsuki
sprinkled with furikake of blended seaweeds & sesame seeds

miso yaki onigiri stuffed with wasabi tuna
sprinkled with furikake of red pepper flake, sesame seed,
shaved bonito, nori, powdered plum

I substituted this popular portable Japanese snack dating back over a thousand years for a rice side-dish at a recent dinner party. The vegan style is flavored with asatsuki, spicy garlicky Japanese chive. The other style is the stuffed with tuna mixed with wasabi mayonnaise. These onigiri, Japanese rice balls, have been crisped on the outside, dressed with caramelized red miso paste, and dusted with flavorful furikake, a dry mixed-flavor condiment. The interior rice remains soft, warm and almost creamy while the exterior has a delightful contrasting savory crust. Two per guest is the perfect portion size, serve either one of each style per person, or two of the mixed-rice asatsuki for vegetarian guests.

Continue reading “exquisite side: miso yaki onigiri”

Wood-Fired Pizza & Pink Wine POOL PARTY

It’s about the heat. With temperatures between 750° and 800°F a wood-fired pizza oven delivers an exceptional pizza that simply cannot be matched by a regular oven. High heat creates flavors and textures that cannot be duplicated when pizza is cooked more slowly. A pizza cooks in under three minutes right on the oven floor. The crust is crisp on the bottom, the cheese is exquisitely melted and slightly browned, and the toppings are cooked to perfection. A thing of beauty, pure pizza bliss.

Our dear dear longtime friends, Chip & Pat, invited us all over for a pizza party. My nephews were thrilled to go swimming in their pool and hang out with the world’s most adorable dogs, Sophia & Luca. We brought along some pink wines to taste as well as ingredients for some pizzas. Chip had already prepared the dough and the pizza oven was heating up. We were looking forward to Pat’s caramelized onion and feta pizza, a perennial favorite…

Continue reading “Wood-Fired Pizza & Pink Wine POOL PARTY”

We LoVe LA & Wolfgang Puck

ritz-carlton, los angeles — The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles

We LoVe LA & Wolfgang Puck

Roll down the window, put down the top
Crank up the Beach Boys, baby
Don’t let the music stop
We’re gonna ride it till we just can’t ride it no more

From the South Bay to the Valley
From the West Side to the East Side
Everybody’s very happy
‘Cause the sun is shining all the time
Looks like another perfect day, I loVe LA

original spago c. 1989 — The Original Spago c. 1989

Spago in West Hollywood on the Sunset Strip

Back in the late 80’s, maybe 1989, my foodie friends and I first dined at Spago. For better or worse, the word “foodie” was coined in the 80’s. We worked, lived, and breathed restaurants – we were chefs (Aldo & Bruce), bartenders (Tamara), waiters (Lauren & Scott) – and I had the restaurant business in my blood – having been a restaurant cook, bookkeeper, manager, hostess, and waiter. At the time most of us were working at a cutting-edge restaurant in Redondo Beach called Chez Mélange. My friends from Aspen, Aldo and Bruce, were in town and we were dying to take them to Spago. Inspirational restaurateur and owner of Chez Mélange, Michael Franks, graciously called over to Spago to secure us a reservation. We felt like we were on the A-list. Upon arrival, Michael had surprised us with a big bottle of Champagne, and we were thrilled when Wolfgang Puck himself brought over a duck sausage pizza to welcome us. (It never occurred to me to take a photograph of the food, my how times have changed!)

Spago Hollywood wasn’t stuffy or traditional. Wolfgang’s then-wife Barbara Lazaroff designed it to be friendly, fun and colorful – where everyone could see and be seen! Were we really “hanging spoons” at Spago? She designed the first exhibition kitchen in the United States for a fine dining establishment, the view of the city from high above Sunset Boulevard took everyone’s breath away. It was so California!

Wolfgang Puck redefined pizza. That they came topped with everything from goat cheese and Black Forest ham to artichokes and exotic mushrooms was totally new back then. Duck sausage pizza was legendary as was his famous pizza of smoked salmon, creme fraiche, chives, red onion and a dollop of caviar.

Continue reading “We LoVe LA & Wolfgang Puck”