Weekend Wonderland.

This picturesque view from our apartment last night sets a serene scene at the top of Noe Valley, but dont let that fool you friends - this weekend was an amazingly crazy San Francisco weekend that included:

A date with Shawn after work on Friday that included a post work quick dinner at Out the Door (the poor mans Slanted Door). We shared the dungeness crab cellophane noodles and the pork buns and even though it was super $$ even for splitting - it was great vietnamese food. Damn I love the Westfield Mall food court. (Here AND in LA).....

Then we saw Toy Story 3 was just a knock out of the park! See it. Best movie so far this summer - youll laugh, youll cry - youll thank the lords Pixar and Disney are still talking.


Then Saturday was a fun day - we went to go see the Red Sox versus the Giants with Kris and Darce during inter league play. If you look close enough you can see the ballpark in my sunglasses. They won, it was sunny - and I resigned myself to ONLY eating the the nachos and NOT overeating! Bless my heart.

Then we saw Steve Earle at the Great American Music Hall who was pretty rocking but we got there late due to the game and pride closing Market street and not being early bird specials like the other hippie Berkeley freaks - so we had to stand.


The BEST find of the weekend was brunch at this place called Pomelo on Church and 30th in Noe Valley. As you can see on your left I had 3 corn cakes filled with various brunchy things: beef with plantains and black beans, 1 with an egg and ranchero curry sauce and 1 with potatoes.

I am onto you Pomelo. We WILL meet again...Shawn had banana french toast with Coconut Syrup and Hazelnuts.






We ended the weekend with a hot afternoon game of Yahtzee and BBQ with our Noe Valley neighbors The Micholics. I have to say the meal was simple and divine and their wine club has reinforced my love for Rose.

Fatty Mc Fatterson.

When we went camping in big sur a few weeks ago I made corn bread for the Saturday night meal that was bland and subpar. I dont know if I blame it on it being in the car for 2 days while it hit 100 degrees or my own terrible baking skillz - but it was not my finest moment.

Luckily! Huzzah! I had a chance to redeem my cornbread cookery last night in the heart of Knob Hill at a potluck dinner party. Shawn's coworkers Brigid and Brad invited us and a few others over for Vegan chili and it was amazingly delicious. I hit a home-run, people.

I WILL NEVER MAKE UN-VEGAN CORNBREAD AGAIN! and I am going to tell you RIGHT NOW THE secret --- the usual egg substitute and veggie oil - but -drumroll - instead of using regular soymilk as the milk sub I used SOY COFFEE CREAMER!

..............and thats the moment everyone can use to reassure themselves the title of this blog (fat ass) is still aptly named. Bam.

Turkey Lurkey.

Ahhhh - its been a while comrades. The blog has been taking a back burner to some amazing times in REAL LIFE. Oh you know, that thing you wake up every day for? We've really been burning the candle at both ends on our weekends (money wise and energy wise) - which has brought a Post July 9th moratorium on traveling for the summer. No more trips for us! Here's just a small update on what we've been up to:...

Camping in Big Sur with our besties Jenny and Aaron from Los Angeles. Its such a paradise there, no question. We had perfect weather, perfect eats! Minus the fact that I had a grand idea of making sweet potatoes with brown sugar over the fire but a. I think I mistakenly bought parsnips and also they caught on fire and burned. I was embarrassed because I wanted to cook an amazing meal for my friends :( but - they love me anyway! My one camping observation for the weekend was: why is it so full filling to throw a rock in the water? People have done it for thousands of years and I am not sure WHY! There's not really a pay off but I love it!

Fabulous Weekend in Los Angeles with the most delightful friends a girl could ask for. I went down there to say goodbye to my girl Meagan and send her off drunken formosa style but what I got in return was a surprise engagement party at Coach and Horses and a lovely bridal brunch afternoon tea with the girls. Honestly, I am so blessed. Sad to think Los Angeles will never be the same again --- waa waaa.

.............and that brings me to my recipe! Shawn and I battled and to be honest he's the one who put this lovely concoction in a lettuce taco - I ate my own separate - in a bowl like a cozy chili. We were just looking for a quick meal to eat post-gym and this really hit the spot.

Quick Turkey Lettuce Tacos
1lb of ground turkey
1/2 can of corn
1/2 can of cannellini beans
whole can of diced tomatoes
1 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, sliced
2 tablespoons Cilantro or cilantro/mexican paste (I know, weird but we had it on hand!)
dash of cumin
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Butter lettuce for tacos!

Step One: Over medium heat cook onions and olive oil till soft. Add garlic and turkey and cook for 7 minutes until browned, stirring so turkey cooks evenly. Once browned add beans, corn, tomatoes and cilantro and cumin and let cook another 7 minutes covered. If you dont like it soupy dont cover it so the juices reduce.

Step Two: Put it in lettuce and eat it like a taco, son!

Just Plain Smaht.

Hello Healthy Living, where have you been? Have you been hiding under a pile of Funyons? Oh yes, I couldnt see you cowering beneath my love for everything processed. I have this idea of myself as the skinny girl who bopped around los angeles staying up late, boozing and being a gym rat - eating nothing but skinny cow cheese and turkey all day long - but alas, thats 25 year old kate - not 28 year old kate. Now, I am too tired to be on the elliptical past 7pm and I want a hearty meal when I come home. (plus a snuggle!)

Anyway - back to the drawing board. There were a few things Id change about this recipe if I ever made it again and something you may want to know in advance: the fish could have used more flavor or maybe even a smaller cut of fish. It seemed like ALOT of fish. Secondly, the beans did that bean thing when you cook them too long and started coming out of their shell and hardening. But - meh. I like that.

Citrus Garlic Halibut over Almond, Asparagus and Cannellini Bean Hash.

Ingredients

2 fillets of Halibut
Bunch of Asparagus
Can of Cannellini Beans
1 leek stalk
1 cup of slivered almonds
Olive Oil
2 tablespoons garlic, minced.

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 lemon

Step One: Preheat oven to 400. Cut up the asparagus into bit sized pieces. Slice up the leeks - put them in a bowl along with the (drained) beans and almonds and toss with olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Roast them for 25 minutes, tossing once. I like my asp super crispy so I let it go for a long time. After its done and plated, drizzle some balsamic vinegar over the top for flavor.

Step Two: Season fish before putting in pan. Over medium heat cook the fish in the olive oil and minced garlic for 7 minutes. Squeeze lemon juice over the fish, spooning the sauce over the fish consistently through cooking. Add zest of the lemon if you want to increase the flavor towards more acidic - then throw it under the broiler to get the crispy top - for 5 more minutes. Fish cooks quickly so depending on the cut just watch closely!

Whisper Savoury Little Nothings In My Ear.

In the words of Miley Cyrus Savoury Bread Pudding is the best of both worlds....it combines the heartiness of its original dessert name-sake with the fresh faced crispness of a quiche. I may be over doing it on the Leek front but better to beat it back into the ground where it came from than to ignore its terre existence. By the end of this summer youll be yelling uncle while I twist your arm to read yet ANOTHER leek recipe.

Before we left for Wisconsin on our engagement tour, I hosted book club for the 2nd time. We were reading my selection Truth and Beauty by Ann Patchett. If you are ever wanting a non fiction book that details love and friendship and is NOT cheesey you should read it.

I cant say I completely made up this recipe as it is loosely (well, mostly) based on a similar recipe at SmittenKitchen.com --- but if you want to look fancy, this is the recipe for you!

Other notable mentions at the book club were Shawn's absolutely devastatingly professional and delicious Dulce De Leche brownies (from Bon Appetit mag this month!) -- and Dawn's heart warmingly old school cobbler.

Leek Bread Pudding
Ingredients
2 cups leeks in 1/2-inch thick slices,
Kosher or coarse salt
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) unsalted butter
Freshly ground black pepper
6 cups 1-inch-cubed crustless brioche or Pullman loaf (I used a little less than one loaf)
1/2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
1 large egg1 large egg yolk
3 cups whole milk
Freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup Swiss cheese

Step One: Place a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat, drain excess water from leeks, and add to pan. Season with salt, and sauté until leeks begin to soften, about 5 minutes, then reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in butter. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks are very soft, about 20 minutes. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Step Two : Preheat oven to 350 degrees. While leeks are cooking, spread bread cubes on a baking sheet and bake until dry and pale gold, about 15 to 20 minutes (my already-stale brioche took less time to brown), turning pan about halfway through. Transfer to a large bowl, leaving the oven on.

Step Three: chives and thyme to the bowl of bread; toss well. In another large bowl, lightly whisk the egg and egg yolks, then whisk in milk or cream, a generous pinch of salt, pepper to taste and a pinch of nutmeg.

Sprinkle 2 tablespoons shredded cheese in bottom of a buttered 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Spread 1/2 of bread mixture in pan, and sprinkle with another 2 tablespoons cheese. Spread remaining bread mixture in pan, and sprinkle with another 1/4 cup cheese. Pour in enough milk mixture to cover bread, and gently press on bread so milk soaks in. Let rest 15 minutes.
Add remaining milk mixture, letting some bread cubes protrude. Sprinkle with salt. Bake until pudding is set and top is brown and bubbling, about 55 to 65 minutes. Serve hot or cold (because I’m weird and enjoy bread pudding cold).