Pandora's Profile
Iowa City foodie gifts
Any recommendations? I'm looking for easily transportable non-perishables like jams, local honey, etc., but would like something really interesting or unusual. The catch is that the recipients are in San Francisco, so the bar is high. I would do prosciutto from La Quercia, but i think it would need refrigeration. Are Bochner chocolates any good? Any favorite vendors at the farmers market?
Cake in Iowa City
I've tried the cupcakes at cottage with mixed results. The buttercream was gritty and it tasted a bit like the refrigerator - I think their cupcakes may sit there for a day or two before being sold, so they aren't always super fresh.
I'm looking forward to the opening of Molly's cupcakes downtown though.
Cake in Iowa City
Just wanted to report back that Deluxe fit the bill. The frosting was much less sweet than some of the new pi cakes, and they don't load as much onto the cupcakes as some places do. I liked the croissants also, and the coffee was good as well (Intelligentsia). I did have a coffee cake that I thought was just ok, but am lookng forward to trying everything else they offer.
Iowa - Regional Food ideas anyone???
I just tried some and thought it was much less pungent than "real" prosciutto. So maybe that's why the ATK didn't like it? It had the mouthfeel I look for in prosciutto, but not the deep umami flavor.
"Cooking" with a toddler?
Feel free to ignore the ziploc suggestion if you don't want....I think they did do it to contain the mess, and also to make it less frustrating to combine all the ingredients since they are all easily contained in a bag. I thought it was pretty neat. Also, it may depend on how much an adult is helping. In this class, they had pre-measured ingredients and the kid pretty much combined all the ingredients and did all the kneading independently. My daughter was really young at the time - maybe 2.5, 3? So limited motor skills.
Vegetarian options in Iowa City?
I'd vote Motley Cow also. I don't know the Wig and Pen's pizza yet, but really ilke Pagliai's. Thai Spice is ok, not too bad, but not as good as some of the stellar Thai places in Chicago for example. I would do takeout there - the restaurant does not have good ventilation.
Hope you report back with your impressions.
"Cooking" with a toddler?
My daughter took a toddler cooking class. I can't remember all the things they made, but definitely pizza - knead the dough inside a ziploc bag, roll out and scatter toppings. Make sure to include veggies because he will eat them. I think she may have also made chocolate chip cookies and done the stirring by hand. I think she made butter at daycare in a ziploc bag, and maybe also ice cream once. Jello would work, although not really cooking.
Vegetarian options in Iowa City?
You can also check out the New PIoneer Coop and Bread Garden. New Pi has a great veggie burrito that I eat just about every morning, and some really yummy veggie sandwich options with tempeh, etc. I am not a vegetarian, but I always order a veggie sandwich from there because I think the way they combine ingredients is really interesting. I'm not sure about Bread Garden's veggie choices specifically, but they have a steam table and salad bar, so it's generally a nice place to hit for a casual lunch. I like their cous cous salads. Breakfast there is pleasant also as you can pick up a small portion of eggs, french toast, etc. at exactly the quantities you need. Both places are also grocery stores, so you can pick up food for those days you're not eating out. Oh - and both places are definitely the place to go to scope out local cheeses.
I do think most places here are will generally have a couple of decent veggie options. Other restaurants with good food you might want to scope out online to see anything if appeals to you are Atlas, Heath/126/moonmrakers, Short's burgers (black bean burgers, but I haven't tried yet), Leaf, and Stella's.
Cake in Iowa City
Looking for a source for birthday cake. I'm familiar with the offerings at New Pi, but am interested in branching out - any other suggestions? Would love to find a place with good, not sweet frosting - maybe even whipped cream instead of buttercream. Decorations don't matter as much as taste.
Classroom Birthday Treat Ideas - Help Needed
This sounds like a good idea for my kid's birthday at preschool. Her school doesn't really have any restrictions on sweets and I've seen a crazy number of cheap Safeway cakes - yuck. Since I'm always the one complaining about the amount of candy and sweets in her classroom, I'm looking to set an example of something tasty, but not junky. Anyone have any idea if this would travel well? I'd probably smear the cream cheese on in the am and drop it off in the around 8 ....it would have to be ok for an hour or two before it was served. To complicate matters, we are undergoing a kitchen remodel so any pie crust baking would have to happen in the toaster oven. I'm thinking I'd just make a couple rectangles rolled out and let the teacher slice it up.
Iowa City to Chicago road trip
Thanks! Bier Stube looks like the kind of place we'd like.
Iowa City to Chicago road trip
Is there anything to eat off I-80/I-88 between IC and Chicago? Maybe someplace in the quad cities? Preferably fast - good deli sandwiches or something like that would hit the spot, and easy to access off the freeway. We have tried the Machine Shed, but did not like it at all.
Remodeling - what food to freeze? Microwave, slow cooker, grill, and other non-stove cooking suggestions?
We are about to embark on a kitchen remodel and will be without a stove for about 5 weeks. Our fridge and micro will be in operation; we also have a chest freezer, a slow cooker, grill, and one of those butane stoves for hot pot. Would love suggestions for things we can cook and freeze now and heat up in microwave as well as recipes we can easily put int the slow cooker. Since we won't be able to brown meat, I think a lot of slow cooker recipes will be less than successful. And obvious candidates for frozen food such as lasagne seem like they would be difficult to heat up without an oven.
I'm probably overthinking this, but if you have suggestions that would be appreciated.
Des Moines trip report
Went to Des Moines for a whirlwind trip. Did research on here beforehand and thought I would report back.
Dinner (takeout) at Open Sesame: Not bad. Ali baba eggplant generally tasty, but I thought it was a little weird it used a big globe eggplant. I think I've had something similar at other restaurants and they used smaller, more delicate eggplants. The falafel unfortunately was way too salty and not very satisfying.
Breakfast at La Mie: fantastic. Total highlight of the trip. I could spend all day here if I weren't worried about accidentally eating all the pastries in sight on the big center table. Croissants had the nice shatteringly crisp crust that is so hard to find. French macarons were still good the next day also.
Lunch at A Dong: Just so so. The pho had a nice flavor to the broth, but was a bit on the salty side for me. The side of herbs was not very fragrant - perhaps the herbs were not as fresh? the bean sprouts hadn't had their roots picked at all unfortunately. Cha gio was a bit greasy and did not have the kind of filling I usually expect from a vietnamese imperial roll - seemed americanized. Any other recommendations for vietnamese that I should try in the area?
Dinner at Tasty Tacos: So we tried Flying Mango and a bunch of other casual sit down restaurants but they al had pretty long 1.5 hr waits at 5:30 pm on a Saturday night. Ended up figuring we would grab a bit here as it was reported as a Des Moines institution. Generally I didn't think it was all that tasty, although I could see that it might hit the spot if it is a local tradition. Tried all the fried tacos on offer, plus some other items. The fried tacos were a disappointment - was hoping for something puffy and crisp, but these were puffy, doughy, and soft. The fillings were very low quality meat - "steak" was a flat out misadvertisement. Maybe we ordered wrong. Figure it was good to have said we went once but we won't be back.
Pasadena and Arcadia Help
I wanted to report back.
Sushi Kimagure Ike was fantastic. We loved everything about it except for the single-use wrapped in plastic towels. but really the fish was excellent. The initial seafood salad was exceptional. If I were going to pick at anything, I would say that I thought the uni wasn't quite as good as some other preparations I've had, but that's really nit picking. I will definitely be back.
Ding Tai Fung was as good as always. I know it's controversial on this board, but I do prefer the lighter thinner XLB style to the kind we get in SF. (Although Yank Sing's is also good - just $$).
We did go to Capital Seafood. I'd been before actually, but wanted to go back. This time, it was completely swamped. Unable to get a high chair. A couple of the items we wanted were out, but they didn't tell us until much later....all told the meal took 1.5 hrs, which is unusual for us with kids - usually the benefit of dim sum is that you get in, sit, eat and jet. They tried to convince us that sesame balls were the same as egg tarts....uh, no. Good still, but not the same at all. I think they were unprepared for the holiday demand. I thought the dim sum was overall very high quality though. To the poster that commented it was up to SF level, I actually generally think dim sum in SF is very poor quality, except for a couple exceptional restaurants. So I went in with high expectations that were by and large met.
I really really wanted to try Pho-Licious, but ran out of time. Next time. Thank you all for the suggestions - we usually hit just a couple of the same places (Chang's Garden, Inaka are two that actually weren't mentioned here but others might like) and this helped mix it up a bit.
Kid Friendly lunch near Getty Malibu
Thanks for the recs. We got there later than expected so just ate at the Villa so we could go back to the galleries for a bit afterward. The food was just OK...we're probably spoiled by eating at places like the Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. burger was very good, but the accompanying fries were awful....lukewarm and very Sysco-like. The chicken wrap was a bit dry, but ok. The pizza was a hit with my daughter.
pro or semipro kitchen faucets - are they any good?
How do you make sure that they will work for home use? I read somewhere that not all commercial faucets will work at home, but not sure why....I'm totally open to the idea of buying from a restaurant supply store if it doesn't create additional problems.
pro or semipro kitchen faucets - are they any good?
Wanted to bump this thread up to see if anyone has any comments now ...I think these are a lot more common now and am wondering the same thing for our kitchen remodel. Any feedback? What did you end up with Manhattan01?
Kid Friendly lunch near Getty Malibu
Any recommendations? I'm looking for something on the casual side, but good food and convenient to the Getty Malibu. This is for a group of 7 too, so hoping for something that can accommodate a group without reservations. I've seen a couple recs for the restaurant at the Getty Villa, but would be interested in at other recs.
Thanks!
Fried Rice Question (moved from L.A. board)
I prepare the rice mine usual way, and eat it with dinner. I put it In the fridge after dinner overnight. I don't think it matters hugely whether it sits out for a while before sitting in the fridge. I will only make fried rice after the rice has been in the fridge overnight. It needs to be hard.
I don't think I use as much oil as the rest of the posters do, but I will add if it seems to be sticking. And I do make sure the pan is well coated - maybe 2-3 Tablespoons?
And I do scramble the egg first, although I take it out and then cook the rice. When the rice is ready, after it has gotten salted a but, I'll put the egg back in.
I sometimes put a touch of soy sauce, but never enough for the color to get dark. If you use soy sauce, it's important to make sure it is fully incorporated color-wise. You don't want bits stained or spotty.
Fried Rice Question (moved from L.A. board)
I actually don't use anything for moisture....I've always understood that you want your rice and wok to be pretty dry in fact. So I have always used dried out day old rice right from the refrigerator. That way it won't clump and will come apart in fluffy bits. The only moisture is from oil and I tend not to use much, just enough so it won't stick to the wok. I'll stir fry the rice alone for awhile to warm it up and make sure the kernels are completely separated and then add in salt. Then scrambled eggs, green onions and other ingredients.
Not sure about the Yang Chow fried rice thing...I think the BBQ pork makes rice Yang Chow style, but I am not really an authority on that. Fried rice for me is something to do with leftovers for lunch and not a dish that you would have at dinner or anything.
Pasadena and Arcadia Help
I'll be there over the holidays and am looking for recs for a couple of specific items. I did a search, but a lot of the posts seem to be from 2007 or so.
High on the priority list is sushi - real sushi, not a place that has a bunch of mayonnaise-y rolls. But, accommodating to children and not overpriced is a plus. I've seen recs for Sushi Roku, but it seems a bit fancier than what I'm looking for. For reference, in SF, we usually go to Oyaji, an izakaya in the outer richmond, and one or two small places in Japantown.
Is there any good ramen - hand-pulled - in the area?
And finally, vietnamese - bun, pho, and maybe a crepe or two?
Are there any can't miss items in the immediate area, particularly for authentic asian food? We will go to Ding Tai Fung definitely.
Thanks in advance!
Meals to prepare for new parents
I like the suggestions for soup frozen in smaller portions and emme's suggestion for one-handed food the best. While casseroles and lasagnas are great for freezing and are kind of classic for this situation, if you get a lot of visitors with food, you do get tired of them. Plus, sometimes you don't feel like you have that much time to sit and have a meal sometimes. That's when healthy granola bars or something that requires no prep time and can be eaten on the couch or on the way to the doctor's appointment comes in handy. I would have loved homemade granola bars or an empanada that could be tossed into the toaster oven for a minute or so. Soup's good for the added liquid needed when nursing.
Fried Rice Question (moved from L.A. board)
I just use salt. You want to make sure it's evenly mixed in, so stir it around a lot.
A New Beans Thread
They claim to be fresher for one, and they also have interesting varietals. I think they tend to have a better mouthfeel on average - not chalky or mealy. There are a ton of varietals offered by Rancho Gordo though, so ymmv depending on which one you try.
I know there's another heirloom bean distributor - Zursun - anyone ever try those?
Outer Sunset: What to Eat and Where?
The pizza place also has entrees - spaghetti and meatball nights or pork dinners. I love the italian subs at lunch actually. i think they use amoroso rolls and zoe's meats. Also, we always get a side of cauliflower.
Java Beach is nice to hang out at for a bit too. I think Trouble's coffee is better though. There's a little bocce ball court across the street on La Playa. Not sure where to get the balls - wouldn't be surprised if you could borrow them from Java Beach.
Noriega Market is a good neighborhood produce mart. They're owned by the same family as the larger Haight Street Market.
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Java Beach
1396 La Playa St, San Francisco, CA 94122
A New Beans Thread
I was never a particular bean fan until I tried Rancho Gordo's heirloom beans. He has a cookbook too, and you can order the beans online. The cookbook's directions can be a little inexact, but they give a lot of ideas. And the beans are amazing.
Glass food storage: Luminarc vs Pyrex vs GlassLock?
Crate and barrel has a nice glass storage container similar to the old style Pyrex. Wouldn't work for freezing, but I like that it is all glass, without the annoying lip that the current glass Pyrex lid has.
Iowa city ice cream
Everyone was so helpful with my coffee hunt, I thought I'd survey the group for ice cream recs. I've tried Whitey's - too sweet, chocolate didn't taste chocolate-y. Dane's drive-inn is very yummy....Capanna's gelato had interesting flavors, but a strange aftertaste. Anything else I should try? Saw ice cream at cafe del sol, but didn't try it - lemon verbena sounded interesting though.
I'd also be interested in recs for other frozen desserts - frozen yogurt, frozen custards, Italian ice, even smoothies. Figure I better get my fill before winter starts....
Japanese curry
in my search for easy weeknight dishes, I picked up a box of japanese curry. I'm looking for suggestions on favorite way to doctor the sauce. I've heard some people add apples? Thanks!
