Month: June 2018

Lunch

The Foodies and Friend were out on a photo shoot and stopped at Cafe Habana in Malibu for lunch. We all chose the Eloté (Mexican Corn) and their Fish & Chips appetizer.

The corn, as always, was excellent, although we felt our version was somewhat better as we fully grill the corn (as opposed to boil first then a quick grill).

The mahi mahi fried fish had the lightest tempura-style batter and was probably the best fried fish we’ve had. We forgave the undercooked fries as a “bad day” in the kitchen. A great meal for $23.58 per serve.

Dinner

For dinner we returned to a favorite: top sirloin with peanut sauce. Tonight Foodie Greg built a salad out of what we had in the refrigerator: bean sprouts, watercress and cucumber in a tasty dressing.

• The top sirloin was $3.52 per serve
• The peanut butter was $3.99 and we used about 1/8,  or 25c a serve
• Other seasonings in the satay sauce add 35c per serve
• The Persian cucumber was $1.99 or 25c per serve
• Add 30c for watercress.
• Add 20c for dressing ingredients.

The steak (from our Keller Crafted meat delivery and therefore dry aged) was flavorsome and tender and perfectly grilled. The peanut sauce is a great spicy accompaniment which the wet salad ingredients perfectly offset. A great meal for $4.87 per serve.

Lunch

While the weather has warmed up, we’re still enjoying toasted sandwiches for lunch as toasting the bread transforms it in a very positive way. Today we took some of the chili from a couple of nights ago and combined with a slice of Swiss cheese.

• Sprouted Rye bread is 32c per serve
• Swiss slices are 12 for $3.99 or 33c per serve
• The chili is $2.77 per serve and we shared ½ serve, or 70c per serve
• Add 35c for garlic spread and butter.

Today’s sandwich cost $1.70 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight’s salad was designed to feature the burrata and was created by Foodie Greg as a riff on a Cobb Salad.

• The burrata was $4.99 or $2.50 per serve
• The Persian cucumber was $1.99 or 50 per serve
• Grape tomatoes were $2.49 for the pack, but we used half or 63c per serve
• We used one can of smoked trout per serve at $3.49
• Add 30c for watercress.

Dinner tonight was a good combination of smoked (and a little dry) trout with the freshness of the cucumber and tomato and creaminess of the burrata. The sprinkling of “Everything but the Bagel” spice (Trader Joe’s) really melded the dish. We enjoyed it for $7.42 per serve.

Lunch

Today’s toasted sandwiches featured a Tuna and Sun Dried Tomato pack in a pseudo tuna melt, and pastrami and sauerkraut. Both were fine lunch choices.

• The pastrami was $11.99 for 16 oz and we used 3 oz across two sandwiches, or $1.13 per serve
• The tuna was $2.99 or $1.50 per serve
• Sprouted Rye bread is 32c per serve
• Swiss slices are 12 for $3.99 or 33c per serve
• The Bubbies (natural) Sauerkraut is expensive at $6.99 or 22c per serve, but it is a very superior sauerkraut without the bad odor of most sauerkraut
• Add 45c for butter and garlic dip.

Lunch today cost $3.95 per serve.

Dinner

One of our culinary challenges is how to creatively use ground pork. We usually get one (or two) pounds of ground pork in our Keller Crafted meat box, but we don’t want to cook the same food all the time. So, tonight we tried Vietnamese Caramelized Pork Bowls.

We cut the sugar back from five, to two tablespoons.

• The ground pork was $8.35 and we’ll get four serves from that, or $2.09 per serve
• Add 50c for ginger, onion, garlic and chili, etc
• Add 33c for brown rice
• Bean sprouts were $1.49 but we used only ⅓ or 20c per serve
• The cucumber was 27c or 14c per serve
• We purchased shredded red cabbage for $1.49 and used half, or 38c per serve.

The caramelized pork had great flavor and was nicely offset by the fresh ingredients in the bowl. Plus we have ground pork for sandwiches. A good meal for $3.64 per serve.

Lunch

For lunch Foodie Greg wanted something “eggy” so we got scrambled eggs with some leftover grilled asparagus and spring onion, over Wild Caught Smoked Salmon, served on a piece of “fry bread” (bread toasted in the panini press).

• 2.5 eggs per serve is $1.25 per serve
• The asparagus was $3.69 and we shared about half a serve, or 46c per serve
• The smoked salmon was $6.99 or $3.50 per serve
• Sprouted Rye Bread is 16c per serve
• Add 50c for heavy cream, seasoning and spring onion.

The eggs were perfectly creamy, having been pulled off the heat just before they were ‘ready’ so that the remaining heat would carry them to temperature. The grilled asparagus and spring onion bought a little flavor and crunch, while the smoked salmon stopped the fry bread from going soggy under the scrambled eggs. An excellent meal for $5.37 per serve.

Dinner

Tonight’s Duck Massaman Curry was prepared yesterday and let sit overnight so it was able to get a long, slow cook, which made the duck tender enough to cut with a spoon!

• The organic duck legs were $8.99, or $4.50 per serve
• The curry is $3.38 per can or $1.69 per serve
• Coconut milk is $1.69 per can or 85c per serve
• Cashews were $2.99 but we only used half, or 75c per serve
• Peal onion adds 20c per serve
• Carrots add 15c per serve
• Add 33c for brown rice
• Add 20c for other ingredients.

The massaman curry had a totally different flavor with the change in protein. We felt the duck fat softened the curry heat a little and made the flavor more subtle, but more interesting, than when made with beef. A really excellent meal for $8.67 per serve.

Lunch

We’d been threatening a Bahn Mi several times this week, and today we had it. As always, a great sandwich for $8.75 per serve with tax and tip.

Dinner

Tonight we returned to the “too hot to handle” green curry of a few nights ago. The addition of additional coconut milk and bamboo shoots softened the heat somewhat, but also diluted the flavor.

• Each can of coconut milk was $1.99 and we used two or $1.99 per serve
• The curry paste was $2.29 for the can, or $1.15 per serve
• The eggplant was $1.03 or 52c per serve
• The bamboo shoots were 99c or 50c per serve
• Red Bell Pepper was $2.15 or $1.08 per serve
• Add 30c for onion and other ingredients
• Add 33c for brown rice.

I don’t expect we’ll buy this green curry paste again. The result was an okay meal, with the flavor diluted in order to make it edible, for $5.87 per serve.

Lunch

Once again, we baked off some rustic panini rolls and stuffed them with the some sliced roast beef (top sirloin from the Chateaubriand) and spread the roll with home made relish (Philip’s brother) and the garlic spread.

It was a really tasty lunch.

• The panini roll is 63c per serve
• We used half a serve of the roast beef shared between us, or $1.94 per serve
• The tomato relish was free
• Add 20c for garlic spread.

A really good lunch for $2.77 per serve.

Dinner

Thursday night steak night on a hot night is always a challenge. One easily met with a Fajita Steak Salad!

The onions and peppers were first sautéed on a cast iron griddle to soften and enhance flavor.

• The dry aged NY Strip steak is way overkill from our Keller Crafted meat delivery at $19.43 or $9.71 peer serve
• The tomatoes were $2.49 and we used half, or 63c per serve
• We purchased shredded red cabbage for $1.49 and used half, or 38c per serve
• The avocado was 99c or 50c per serve
• Bell peppers were $2.15 or $1.07 per serve
• Add 20c for onion
• Add 50c for seasoning and dressing ingredients.

The onion and peppers were exceptionally good and reminded both of us of an Australian BBQ where onions were always cooked on a steel flat top. The cabbage provided a crunch missing from the other ingredients, but otherwise seemed superfluous. The dressing provided a nice tangy balance. A good meal for $12.99 per serve.