Mushrooms and Orecchiette

On one pan is Daddy & Mommy's supper. Three kinds of mushrooms -- oyster, white beech and bunapi. They were sautéed in crushed garlic, thinly sliced onion and minced pork then seasoned with salt and pepper. 

On the other pot is the Little Guy's food -- orecchiette pasta with green peas in pesto sauce and shredded seaside cheddar cheese.

Sunday Brunch at Hugo's

In West Hollywood at Hugo's for Sunday brunch.

On the table... 

Desayuno Fuerte - two poached eggs over potato pancakes with sauteed spinach, garlic, onions, tomato and shredded Parmesan cheese.

Eggs Blackstone - two poached eggs over two black bean cakes with house-smoked pork loin and slightly spicy tomato chipotle sauce. Served with breakfast potatoes and turmeric rice. 

Sticky buns glazed with organic vanilla sugar icing and topped with caramelized pecan sauce. 

A glass of Bloody Mary and a cup of freshly-brewed coffee.

Pork Sinigang

A traditional Filipino soup usually served with rice.

On a large pot, I sauteed three pounds of pork ribs in garlic, onion and tomatoes.  Then I poured in about six cups of water and brought to a boil.  Added a packet of sinigang mix then simmered for about two hours until meat was very tender.  

Slid the taro, the daikon and the Anaheim chili.

After five minutes I added the eggplant and the okra.

Then the kang kong (river spinach) -- a popular vegetable in Southeast Asia.

So there you are... slurp!

On to the Slide... weeeee!

Swing was fun, but slide was even better... another weee!

The Little Guy never got tired climbing the ladder, standing on top and then sliding down.

Next time we'll try the see saw :-)

Swinging Into Autumn

After spotting some birds, we brought the Little Guy to the playground.  

He sure had an awesome time flying through the air on a swing.

Some snapshots...

On the First Saturday of Autumn

There is definitely a change in the air.  I had to put on a sweater this morning.

And Autumn migration is underway.  Birds are on the move back to the South as days get shorter, food supply dwindles and it gets colder across North America.

We drove to the lake to see some birds.  In the years past, I've photographed some herons, osprey, snowy egrets, black birds, blue jays and some I could not identify which I will post on a separate blog.

Today, we saw cormorants, mallards, cinnamon teal, mud hen/coots and an Egyptian goose.

Oh, and the white pelicans.  I have not spotted one yet.  I can't wait to see them back...

Sausage & Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon

Saturday! It's time to whip-up a hearty breakfast before we head to the park.

Polska Kielbasa and Cheddar Wurst on the grill pan.

Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, seaside cheddar cheese and organic greens on the cast iron pan.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Friday Date Night at Home

Ole! it's Friday! Let's kick-off the weekend with...

...smoked salmon
...diced pears
...artichoke hearts
...liverwurst
...cheese
...eggplant caviar
...seaside cheddar from Ford Farm
...crackers
...and, a bottle of Riesling.
 
Happy weekend!!!

Baked Ziti

I boiled the pasta on a large pot of generously salted water.  Then tossed into a pan with ground beef cooked in tomato sauce.

Added diced French soft cheese.

Baked on a pre-heated oven for a few minutes.

Then topped with torn basil from the garden.

A Walk on the First Day of Autumn

I can definitely feel the cool air returning as we step into Autumn.  Although warmer weather is in the  forecast for tomorrow and Thursday, today is glorious so I took a 2-mile walk during lunch break. 

Out on the street and up on the hill. Rays of sunlight shone bright.  Past these brilliant red autumn berries. The street wound upwards. Most trees are still green but some leaves are turning.  A steady slope followed. Then a slow downhill walk. Out onto the street again. And, back in the office. 

Love taking walks this time of year!

Moules à la Mariniere for Sunday Supper

On a large stockpot, I sauteed the thinly sliced onion, garlic and leeks in melted butter. Then I poured in about three cups of riesling wine. When bubbles started to appear I added the scrupulously cleaned mussels, a couple of bay leaves and some fresh thyme.

Cooked for another ten minutes over medium heat until the mussels have all opened.

Served with toasted baguette and a glass or Riesling.

Cheers to a wonderful week ahead!
 

Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino

... is what I'm having to bid adieu to the lazy days of Summer and welcome the cool air of Autumn returning like an old friend.  

Cheers!

this is happiness...

Hip, hip for Saturdays! Let's kick our feet up and toast to the good life!!!

The Venetian

Plop, he falls. Then he stands up.  Not a word is heard.  Then he continues running.  He falls again and stands up again.

If you saw a toddler on the loose and a mom running right next to him at The Venetian... that must be us.

The plan was to watch Cirque du Soleil with our friends until we found out that we could not take the Little Guy (below the age limit), so we ended up meeting for dinner at The Venetian.

While husband and friends were still chatting at the restaurant, the Little Guy started to grab stuff on the table, so I excused us. I thought I'd carry him and walk around.  Oh, no no... he wanted to run... so off he ran for like an hour.  I tried to pick him up several times but he cried so loud like he's being kidnapped.  I called the husband, he carried him and we walked around. Had gelato and listened to the Venetian Trio performing at St. Mark's Square.

 

 

A Visit at the Shark's Reef Aquarium

When  you have a toddler in tow, the casino floor is off-limit -- you can walk through it, but you can't stop.  So what to do?  Watch a show?  Under 5 year olds are not allowed in the shows.  Walk on the Strip? It's too hot and I don't think it's a good idea to have a toddler on the loose at the Strip.
 
I was browsing toddler friendly places to visit in Vegas when Shark's Reef Aquarium came up. We have brought the Little Guy to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach when he was eight months (photos here).  But we thought he would enjoy the marine life more now that he is a bit older. So off we drove to Mandalay Bay.  Admission is $18 per adult.

Right by the entrance is a Komodo dragon. Weighing up to 300 pounds and growing up to 10 feet in length, Komodos are the world's largest lizards.

Then there are turtles, and piranhas and stingrays.

And, the sharks.  Different species of sharks from the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans-- bamboo sharks, Galapagos sharks, zebra sharks, whitetip & blacktip reef sharks, sandbar sharks, sandtiger sharks among others.
 
Little Guy calls them (fish)  "shish" :-)

Yes -- shish, shish, shish everywhere! We definitely had an awesome time with the shish... big and small.

The Conservatory and Botanical Gardens at Bellagio

To walk off the calories from all the crab legs we devoured, we strolled at the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens.  

This year's theme is Autumn Harvest and it just opened a couple of hours ago.  On display were thousands of flowers, pumpkins of different sizes and shapes, a windmill, a 28- feet talking tree with moving eyes, a papa bear & a baby bear and two animated squirrels eating acorns. 

So magical!

Autumn is definitely in the air -- the scent, the colors and the pumpkins.  But once you step outside you realize that Summer continues to linger and warm weather is still upon us.

The Buffet at Bellagio

When in Vegas eat buffet.  

Snow crab legs, king crab legs, pastries and more crab legs! A not-so-heavy eater like me should just eat all crabs in a buffet to get our money’s worth.  Just saying…

The Long Drive

Signed off my work laptop. Packed our stuff. Then we hit the road.  Had to beat the Friday afternoon rush hour traffic when vehicles are moving at a speed of 1 mile an hour or in worst cases not moving at all.

We took I-405 to I-5 to SR-14 on to the Mojave Dessert on a scorching triple-digit weather. Temperature display on the dashboard said, it was 103 degrees outside.  

While looking at the Joshua trees scattered on the side of the road, I wondered… how did the American Indians, the pilgrims and the pioneers crossed this dessert thousands of years ago?

From SR-14 we took I-15.  Then on we drove for hours while the Little Guy, cuddling his toy truck, was snoring in the backseat.  He woke up a few miles before the California-Nevada border.

We stopped by at the Gold Strike to stretch our legs.  Husband went inside the casino, played for about ten minutes and walked away 100 bucks richer. He smiled and said, “told ya, there’s a better chance of winning outside the Strip.”

Then on the road again… Vegas seemed as far off as ever.

Sugarfish and Celebrity Sighting

We're back at The Commons in Calabasas for lunch. At Sugarfish.  The more laid-back less expensive spin-off of Sushi Nozawa.

Husband and I both had "Nozawa Trust Me" which includes organic edamame, tuna sashimi, albacore sushi, salmon sushi, yellowtail sushi, halibut sushi, toro cut roll, blue crab cut roll and the daily special which I forgot.

Oh, Kylie Jenner and Jayden Smith were there too. 

In Los Angeles, there's no shortage of celebrity sightings. I drove next to George Clooney on Topanga, Adam Levine and supermodel girlfriend Behati Prinsloo on Ventura Blvd, Mark Cuban on Coldwater Canyon, Jay Leno on 101 and Bradley Cooper on Cahuenga Blvd. 

I've seen Gerard Butler and Pete Wenz at Starbucks, Rob Schneider at Whole Foods, Ryan Gosling at Daichan, Cindy Crawford at The Peninsula... among others.

Back to Sugarfish, here's a snapshot of hubby giving the Little Guy  some sushi rice and edamame.

 

Homemade Breakfast for Three

We woke up late for Sunday's first Mass and next Mass was in four hours -- so we took it easy and had a lazy breakfast.

On the iron skillet -- leeks, cherry tomatoes, ham, cheese and eggs.

Happy Sunday to y'all!

A Busy Saturday

A busy day running here, there and everywhere!

Morning started early with a trip to the dentist for husband's appointment.  An hour later it was a run and a dash at Glendale Galleria for a little bit of shopping. Stopped by at the newly-opened Blaze for some pizza. I had the "Link In" which has sausage, red peppers, sauteed onions and mozzarella in red sauce.  Husband opted for the "Build Your Own."  Both were delicious.

Went home, dressed-up, then drove to a cousin's wedding at a historical building with no AC. Autumn, can you come anytime now?

 Anyway, here are some snapshots of the day...