Simple lunch

I have a few posts brewing about NY eats but I just want to preface/post this entry first to tell you that I rarely go out to eat. It's expensive, I'm lazy and a homebody, and I can control my portions at home.

This is a meal that I make that is very versatile. You can exchange the beef for another protein (I also added tofu for heartier fare), you can add veggies, and you can make do without tomato sauce and eat it with rice (which I will also do).

I cooked three portions: one for lunch today, one for a meal some other time (also with pasta and sauce), and one without sauce to eat with rice.

Ingredients
(note: Since I just eyeball everything, the measurements are definitely not professional)

• Olive oil, salt, savory spices (I used Trader Joe's 21 Spice Salute)--to your liking
• Half an onion, diced or sliced--depending on your preference
• Ground beef--however much you want. I added more than I would eat because I was making three meals!
• Chopped tofu
• Pasta of your choice (I used fusili)
• Store-bought tomato sauce (I used Prego's Roasted garlic and Parmesan sauce to make it more flavorful and fragrant).
  

Directions:
1. Heat up pan and drizzle olive oil. In the meantime, chop onions and boil water for pasta. When the pan is hot, cook the onions until they are slightly brown (sprinkle some salt and seasoning).

2. While the onion is cooking, make little balls from the beef. Add these to the pan (Again, sprinkle some salt).

3. Add sliced tofu to the pan, mix gently.

4. When everything is cooked, you can either remove from heat and eat as is (with rice, optional) or keep it on the stove and add a little bit of tomato sauce to the pan. Stir until everything is coated.

For another meal!
5. Add cooked pasta and stir until your pasta is completely covered with sauce.

6. Add a side of salad or garlic bread if you choose.

Café Bizou [Pasadena]

Although I was only a quick hop away from Andi, I didn't want to bother/lure her away from premium grad school studying. Thankfully, I had a few hungry friends who wanted to take advantage of Pasadena Restaurant Week with me. We decided to go to Café Bizou, which has been around for awhile and probably written about a hundred times. But since we can rarely afford luxuries, let alone an ~expensive~ meal, on our pithy budgets, $25 for a 3-course meal was right up our alley.

First up, two types of bread. A nutty raisin bread which was not great, and a sort-of sourdough bread, which was bland. I suppose this is fine since it made it harder for me to be full before our meal.

We all got the lobster bisque to start. It was creamy and not too heavy. However, the lobster bits were really tiny--at least in my portion. Of course, I shouldn't compare it to the best lobster bisque I had ever had over at Craftsteak...but still. Couldn't you have spared a lobster bit bigger than half an inch in diameter?

For the main course, my friend Jessica and I ordered the same thing, steak au poivre, cooked medium rare as it should. The slices were thin enough and cooked just right, but I felt it was over-peppered towards the end. Perhaps I'm not used to this much pepper. It was served with a creamy brandy sauce, which tasted great with the mashed potatoes which were also creamy and fluffy. Usually I eat the veggies given, especially since these ones were dark and obvs good for you. But uh, who decided to cook spinach with NOTHING but pepper? Bland...and peppery. Broccoli was bland as well, but I suppose a dip in the brandy cream sauce would have done the trick.

Queenie ordered the lobster tagallini pasta. I don't think I've ever had black pasta before, so I decided to try one noodle. It does have it's own taste, although subtle. Interesting, and I can imagine, would pair well with the lobster vodka sauce.

Alicyn ordered the Alaskan halibut, served with mashed potatoes and a trio of veggies (carrots, snow peas, and green beans). Alicyn said that the green beans tasted the best. As for the tomato garlic sauce, it was light enough that the halibut really could stand on its own.

My favorite part of any meal: dessert! Everyone but me (because I'm a rebel) ordered the flourless chocolate cake. Alicyn, lover of all chocolate, really liked it and said that it melted in her mouth. I tried it, and I could tell it was flourless, but still tasty. Not my favorite though. The homemade whipped cream was great.

And my dessert, homemade tiramisu. The first bites were very rum-heavy, in a good way. After the initial bites, the rum gave way to the light flavors of coffee, chocolate, and mascarpone cheese. Really airy, and tasted great with the vanilla and raspberry sauces. Probably my favorite part of the meal.

Café Bizou
91 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena, CA 91103
(626) 792-9923 | www.cafebizou.com/

Fusilli Pasta, Veggies, and Prosciutto over an Onion and White Wine glaze & Roasted Potatoes with Mozzarella

The third and fourth dish of my Mother's Day dinner. The first recipe is adapted (heavily--the pasta) from Epicurious.

Fusilli pasta with broccoli, tomato, bell peppers, mozzarella, and prosciutto, drizzled in an onion and white wine glaze.

What you'll need...

• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus additional for drizzling
• 1/2 pound spring onions or green onions (dark green parts discarded); white parts cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices, pale green parts cut into 1/2-inch-thick slice
• Coarse kosher salt
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup low-salt chicken broth
• 1 1/2 head broccoli, cut.
  
• 1 tomato (or more, depending on your taste) and half a red bell pepper, chopped
  
• fusilli pasta--enough for 4 people (2-3 handfuls)
  
• 1 cup finely grated Mozzarella cheese plus additional for sprinkling
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide strips

What you'll do...
1. Melt butter with 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onions. Sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Sauté onions until tender (do not brown). Add wine and increase heat to medium-high. Simmer until liquid is reduced to a glaze, about 3 minutes. Add broth and bring to simmer; set aside.
2. Cook broccoli in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender. Strain and put in onion glaze.
3. Return water in pot to boil (the pot used to cook the broccoli). Cook pasta until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.
4. While cooking the pasta, reheat the onion and white wine glaze. Add tomatoes and bell pepper. Stir until heated through.
5. Add pasta, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and parsley to skillet with vegetables. Toss, adding reserved pasta cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls if dry. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Transfer pasta to large shallow bowl. Sprinkle prosciutto over; drizzle with olive oil. Serve, with more grated cheese to pass along!

Roasted potatoes with Mozzarella, oregano, and fresh basil.

What you'll need...

• 3-4 small red potatoes, sliced
• 1 cup mozzarella (grated)
• olive oil
  
• oregano, salt, and pepper to taste
• fresh chopped basil
  

What you'll do...
1. Preheat oven to 400°. Butter baking tray so potatoes don't stick.
2. Mix olive oil and oregano in bowl and mix in with sliced potatoes.
3. Place potatoes on baking tray. Sprinkle potatoes (both sides) with salt, pepper, oregano, and mozzarella.
4. Bake for 35-40 minutes.
5. Garnish with fresh basil.