Well, would you look at what we have here!

I came home from a walk and found a big box on my stoop, full of Zapp's chips for our Superbowl party!

Patrick and I usually grab a bag of the Voodoo Gumbo chips and snack on them on the flight home, so they taste a little like sad to us, but a very, very tasty sad.

Sometimes you go to Ikea for sensible, flat-pack furniture...

...but sometimes you just go for the meatballs. Ikea meatballs are divisive! You're either fanatical about them or you find them terrifying. I'm clearly on the pro-Ikea meatballs side. Where do you land?

Nigel Slater's Broiled Red Bell Peppers and Black Olive Conchiglie

Oh my goodness, this recipe is fantastic. It smelled great, it looked great and it tasted wonderful. Using a roasted bell pepper for a cup to hold pasta is brilliant and delicious. You might be asking where you can find conchiglie-- no worries, friendo. Conchiglie is simply shell shaped pasta, which Nigel likes because "its clever shape so neatly holds a good dollop of sauce, cream or olive oil."

This cookbook is really fantastic and everything comes together quickly and easily. I think this was our favorite meal this week.

Ingredients
2 large red bell peppers, halves, cored, seeded and stemmed
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
4 ounces conchiglie
4 tablespoons black olive paste (I couldn't find this, so we simply used chopped olives. Next time I do this, I think I'll use some minced Kalamata olives)
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

How To
Place the garlic and the halved peppers in a broiler-safe pan, skin size up, and pour over 4 tablespoons of the olive oil.

Broil for about 10 minutes, until the skins are blistered and a little blackened. Move the peppers to a plate and pour the cooking liquid and garlic into the blender. Whiz with the remaining oil. Taste this garlic dressing, adding salt and pepper.

Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and toss with the olive paste. Return the peppers to the broiler-safe pan, skin side down. Fill each pepper with the olive pasta. Pour the garlic dressing over the pasta and peppers. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese..

...then pop them under the broiler until they are nice and crisp and brown.

Heaven! For a copy of Nigel's book, click here.

Secret Weapon: Mason Jars

Here, have a glimpse into my not-so-clean fridge. The purpose of this photo is to show you my new obsession-- Mason jars. You can purchase a flat of these from almost any grocery store (look in the baking aisle or ask an employer) for $10-$20, depending on the size and quantity. Here's what I use them for:

• Food Storage. If you're trying to eat healthier, lose weight, be less wasteful or be thriftier, give this a try. I know when I'm hungry, I go for what's easy and what's easy isn't usually something that requires washing and peeling and chopping. Lots of foods come washed and peeled and chopped in little baggies from the market but they're expensive and, frankly, they're often not very well done or fresh. Get yourself some Mason jars and do your own chopping. Devote about an hour on the weekend to chopping up your fruits and veggies and you'll find yourself eating more of them and cooking more often on weeknights.
  
• Gift Giving. If you find yourself with a surplus of cookies or marshmallows or biscuits, you might feel inclined to take some to a neighbor or to work, but there's always the issue of how to take them. A Mason jar is a tidy and attractive way to give your treats and the container is useful once the treats are gone.
  
• Baking. Have you seen pie in a jar? Cupcake in a jar? Pumpkin bread in a jar? Mason jars are made of tempered glass, which means they can withstand more extreme temperatures than ordinary glass. I love being able to eat out of the dish something was made in and, again, it makes for an attractive gift.
  
• Drinking. I use a quart-sized Mason jar to keep track of how much water I've had to drink in a day. I fill the jar twice and with that, I get my 64 ounces of water for the day without thinking very much about it.
  

Another really great thing about Mason jars is how easy they are to clean-- just pop them into the dishwasher. You don't need to worry about melting them and they don't collect stains or odors, unlike plastic containers. You also don't need to worry about weird crud leaching out of the plastic and into your food. Give them a try!

Saints Go All the Way!

When did I become a girl who watches football? When did I become a girl who will watch a diaper commercial just because Drew Brees is in it?

Regardless of when it happened, it happened, and here we are, planning our very first Super Bowl party. What do you think of our menu? Can you sense a theme?

Zapps Chips and Dips
Muffulettas
Po-Boys
Wings
Andouille Sausage
Red Beans
Dirty Rice
Beignets
King Cake
Fleur De Lis Cookies
Sweet Tea
Abita and Dixie Beer

We're putting in an order for olive salad and every variety of Zapps. What else do we need?

Restaurant Week in LA starts TODAY!

Woohoo!!! Restaurant Week!!! I love Restaurant Week! And we don't just get one week in LA. No, no, that would not do. Restaurant Week runs from January 24-29 and then from January 31-February 5! I know, I know, that skips the weekend. Very crafty of them, no?

LA folks, what's on your hit list? I'm hoping to visit The Gorbals, BLT Steak and maybe Sweet Love Hangover. You?

See you in a few months, Coco.

The following has nothing to do with food. There just wise words from a classy guy.

To all the people watching, I can never thank you enough for your kindness to me and I’ll think about it for the rest of my life.

All I ask of you is one thing: please don’t be cynical. I hate cynicism — it’s my least favorite quality and it doesn’t lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen.

Conan O'Brien

Food Trucks for Haiti!

LA folks-- you can eat delicious mobile treats and help Haiti tomorrow! Just head down to 11500 Tennessee Avenue in Los Angeles between 11am-4pm tomorrow and a portion of your purchase will go to the Red Cross International Response Fund relief efforts for Haiti.

Participating food trucks:

Asian Soul Kitchen
Barbie's Q
The Buttermilk Truck
Calbi BBQ
Dainty Cakes LA
Del's Frozen Lemonade
Don Chow Tacos
Dosa Truck
Fishlips Sushi
The Flying Pig
Get Shaved
The Grilled Cheese Truck
India Jones
King Kone
LA FuXion
Nom Nom
Slice Truck
South Philly Experience
The Sweets Truck
Vesuvio
and more!

MMMMM... PHILANTHROPY

Bloody Mary

Doesn't a rainy day scream "Bloody Mary" to you? No? It did to me! I don't always want what I'm supposed to want.

I've searched high and low for a good Bloody Mary mix and have always been disappointed. The other day in the grocery store I was hit with a sudden "duh" moment-- what kept me from making my own from scratch? Absolutely nothin.

Ingredients
1 small can of tomato juice (about 3/4 of a cup)
1 jigger of vodka (about 1/4 of a cup)
the juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon horseradish
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
7 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
5 dashes of Tabasco (or more. I like more.)
a splash of olive juice

How To
Stir all the ingredients together. Pour into a glass with ice, a celery stalk and some olives to garnish. Caperberries are nice too. You can also skip the ice and vodka and add it to a beer (and now you've got a Red Eye or a Bloody Tom.) Sip and stare out at the rain and dream of summer brunches.

Nigel Slater's Pork Steaks with Lemon and Sage

Patrick picked this recipe out and it's one I would have never picked on my own. I have a weird thing about fresh sage-- I don't like to touch it. There's something about that leathery/velvety texture and for this recipe, you must use fresh sage. Nigel says "Dried sage is the most pungent of herbs, having a bullying effect on food. Fresh sage, used a leaf at a time is a much more delicate affair." Indeed.

This recipe is really delicious and I'll brave the texture of fresh sage leaves anytime to get it. I served the hot chops on a bed of spinach and baby tomatoes, using the sauce from the pork chops almost like salad dressing. Some roasted sweet potatoes rounded out the meal. Very tasty.

Ingredients
flour, for dredging
salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 pork steaks, weighing about 7 ounces each (I had some really beautiful bone-in pork chops I used instead)
2 tablespoons butter, plus a large knob to finish
2 tablespoons peanut oil (I used olive oil)
10 fresh sage leaves
2 tablespoons lemon juice

How To (Nigel's words)
Season the flour with salt and pepper, dip the steaks in it. Heat the butter and oil in a shallow pan with the sage leaves. When the butter is hot, slide in the steaks and fry quickly till browned. They will take 3 minutes per side if the butter is hot enough. Put the steaks on a warm plate. Pour the lemon juice into the pan and let it come to the boil. Scrape away at any crusty bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Stir in the large knob of butter, about the size of a walnut, and let it melt. Return the pork to the pan for a few seconds. Serve the steak with its juices and eat while hot.

For a copy of Nigel's book, click here.

Married Life

One of the sweetest things a husband can do for a wife-- even one who loves to cook-- is to call her up some nondescript weeknight and ask her out to dinner. I had a couple of different blog posts in my head this afternoon, but they'll have to wait. I've got a hot dinner date with my husband.

Test Drive: Domino's New Pizza Recipe

You've probably seen Domino's' new ad campaign, which was basically "We were making such crappy pizzas, only drunks and stoners liked it. Here, try this new recipe, it shouldn't suck too bad." With a pitch like that, who were we to resist?

We opened the box and the living room was filled with an appetizing and intense garlic-butter-herb scent. This pizza looks pretty good-- the dusting of cheese and herbs around the crust is a nice touch.

This is a floppy, saucy slice of pizza that folds easily, not bready and stiff at all. However, the bottom of the pizza is disturbingly flat-- it's like laying a warm and heavy piece of wax paper on your tongue. A little cornmeal would fix this easily and in the commercials, they show them shaping the dough on a pile of cornmeal-- WTF, Domino's?

The sauce is thick, flavorful and spicy and not at all like ketchup. These cheese is decent quality and the pepperoni was unremarkable. The edge of the pizza is really, really good and a nice way to end the slice. If the pie had been just a little more well-done on top, the pepperoni might have crisped up around the edges and pushed this pizza from "good" to "really, really good." It's nice to see a company actually trying to make a better product. Even the pizza box is sort of sassy--

I asked Patrick which he liked better-- Papa John's or Domino's? He quickly answered Papa John's and I agreed but it's remarkable that I could ask the question at all. In the morning, we each had a cold slice for breakfast (because that's what you do) and I think it was much better cold than Papa John's is when it's cold-- it doesn't turn into this wooden piece of bread with cheese and the sauce is really, really good.

Obviously, your best choice in any pizza situation is a local pizza shop that cares about quality and the community it's serving, but, all in all, I think Domino's has done something good here and it's worth trying. Just get the bottom of the pie right!

Soup Swap, Anyone?

A soup swap is kind of a bizarre concept but it's also kind of awesome. Basically, everyone makes some soup, puts it into quart containers, freezes it, then meets up for a soup exchange. The folks over at Soup Swap have some great guidelines for throwing a successful swap.

What do you think? Is this something you'd participate in?

Take a break from watching football...

...and have a little FOOD PARTY!!!

Oh Happy Day! I have books again!

Fact: There is no such thing as a quick and painless move. I've been without my books since June or July of 2009... far too long. I've finally got my books back! Hooray!

Help for Haiti

It feels like there isn't much I can do from my kitchen in Los Angeles to help ease the suffering of millions in Haiti after their devestating earthquake. From here, the best thing we can do is pray and to donate to the various organizations that are best equiped to help:

• Doctors Without Borders is already on the scene, working as hard as they can to treat victims. I was shocked to learn this morning that Haiti has two doctors for every ten-thousand people. Here, you can donate directly to their relief effort in Haiti.
• You can donate $10 to the Red Cross relief efforts by texting “HAITI” to 90999
  
• You can also text “YELE” to 501501 to donate $5 to Yele Haiti’s Earthquake Relief efforts.
• Google has created a page that lets you donate to UNICEF or CARE using a Google Checkout account.
• Here is a huge list of charitable organizations that are already active Haiti.

By donating directly to these organizations, online or by text, you can be sure your donations are going to legitimate organizations that are ready to help (sadly, there are people out there who see this tragedy as an opportunity to scam people.) If you know of any other ways to help, please share them in the comments.

Nigel Slater's Spiced Chicken with Brown Butter

This was easy, tasty, fragrant and BUTTERY. For those watching your figure, you might not want to do what we did, which was toss a bunch of raw, baby spinach in the hot pan after removing the chicken. Well, you might want to do that but you definitely shouldn't sop up all the delicious butter and juices with a piece of garlic naan. Mmm...

Ingredients
2 tablespoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon crushed coriander seeds
3 cloves of garlic, minced
salt (Salter just says salt-- I add about 2 teaspoons of kosher.)
4 tablespoons butter, softened
4 chicken thighs (I used drumsticks instead because they were cheaper and I could get the organic, fancy-pants chicken that way. This method would work really well for chicken breasts too.)

How To
Combine all the ingredients, save for the chicken, and beat them together. Spread the butter all over the chicken and place in a dish that will work under the broiler. Cook under the broiler (I set my to 450) for about 20 minutes, basting and turning the chicken every few minutes until the skin is crispy and the chicken is cooked through.

For a copy of Nigel's book, click here.

Things are gettin' fancy 'round these parts...

...you can now become a fan of Life Is a Feast on Facebook by clicking here. Wowee! Computer magic! I promise not to ask you to fertilize my tomatoes on Farmville. Pinky swear.

Winner: The Best Bites of 2009

You guys ate very, very well in 2010! This year's winner is Emily Clare and "Allison's Cafe in Ventura, CA, my all time favorite breakfast spot. I've been there with my parents, my in-laws, my sister, my brother, friends... We take anyone who comes to visit! The side of biscuits is as big as your head, their french toast is the absolute best, and the atmosphere is cozy and friendly. You're gonna love anything you order and if you don't, they'll get you something else." Sounds good to me!

My best bites for 2009 came on Christmas Eve. Every year, my mother-in-law and father-in-law prepare a feast. The incidentals change but the heart of the meal stays the same. We always have roast beef that my father-in-law ages, trims and roasts himself:

And we always have Yorkshire puddings:

Patrick always has a Flintstones-sized serving of beef, which is the right thing to do when it only comes around once a year:

I'm looking forward to another delicious year! Thanks to everyone for entering their best bites. Stay tuned for more contests in the coming year!

Blueberry Waffles!

Waffles are one of those things most of us don't make often enough. Getting the waffle iron down from wherever it's hidden, cleaning it up and then making batter seems like too much trouble most mornings. I've taken to keeping my waffle iron on the kitchen counter and suddenly, there's a lot more waffle making going on 'round these parts. The great thing about making waffles is they're much more hands-off than pancakes. I make one waffle and Patrick and I each eat half while the second waffle cooks. Much better than "the pancake dance" where one person gets to eat while the other person stands over a popping skillet.

Have you seen those fussy waffles recipes that call for egg whites to be beaten to stiff peaks and then folded into the batter? I have and I've sniffed at them. I didn't think they could possibly be worth the trouble. I was wrong. Wrong wrong wrong. This recipe (modified slightly) from Ed Levine over at Serious Eats is not fussy at all and it makes a crunchy, chewy, savory, sweet waffle that freezes beautifully.

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 egg yolks
1 3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 egg whites
1 cup blueberries, frozen or fresh

How To
Turn your waffle maker on to preheat. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. Combine the egg yolks, milk, oil and vanilla (I do this is a mason jar.) Beat the egg whites in your mixer until stiff peaks form. Stir the egg yolk mixture into the flour mixture until just moistened and still lumpy. Fold the egg white into the mixture, then fold in the blueberries.

Spray your waffle maker with non-stick cooking spray and pour in your waffle batter. This recipe makes two big Belgian waffles. I have to give some props to our awesome waffle maker-- VillaWare waffle makers are where it's at.

Orange Blossom Water

I bought this on impulse at Whole Foods the other day. Now what the heck do I do with it?

There's Still Time!

Ya'll are laggin'-- click here to nominate your best bite of 2009!

The New Bacon?

The blog over at Food & Wine asks-- Is chicken skin the new bacon? Chicken skin is such a guilty pleasure. I think of it as the treasure the carver of the chicken gets to enjoy-- little shreds stolen here and there while plating supper.

It's delicious-- salty, crisp and fatty-- and terrible for you but much more rare than bacon. You're hard pressed to even find a chicken breast with skin in the grocery store.

What do you think? Does bacon have a challenger?

Nigel Slater's Spicy Sauce in which to Toss Noodles

This is a quick, nutty, savory sauce, though I don't know if I'd call it spicy. I ended up tossing in a teaspoon of chili garlic paste and some green onion, then tossed it with shiritaki noodles because I was trying to be virtuous. However, I think it would have been much better over some rice noodles tossed with grilled chicken.

I love how Nigel introduces this recipe: "I once shared a kitchen briefly with a young Chinese cook. When it was discovered that he was working illegally, he disappeared into thin air. His legacy was this instant and exceptionally garlicky sauce, for which I never had the chance to thank him."

Ingredients
1/3 cup sesame paste (more commonly called tahini here in California)
5 tablespoons light soy sauce
4 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons dry sherry
1 tablespoon wine
1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
4 garlic cloves, minced

How To
Whizz all the ingredients together in the blender. Pour into a saucepan and slowly bring to a boil. Toss with hot noodles and serve.

For a copy of Nigel's book, click here.

Cookbook of the Month: Real Fast Food: 350 Recipes Ready-to-Eat in 30 Minutes

I tend to read cookbooks like design magazines-- I like to look at the pretty pictures and every once and while, do something similar but rarely do I stick to the plan in any meaningful way. Something new I'll be doing this year is selecting one cookbook each month to cook from and talk about.

This month, I'll be cooking from Nigel Slater's Real Fast Food. This book is fantastic if you are out of the practice of cooking up an evening meal and want some quick, healthy ideas. It's a bit British (he likes anchovies and sardines quite a bit) but the recipes are also very fresh and comforting. After the yearly bacchanalia of peace on earth and good will to men, these simple recipes seem like the perfect palate cleanser. I'll be posting results on Wednesdays.

Meatless Mondays: Baked Potato with Pinto Beans and Cheese

Meatless Mondays are back! If you're still in search of a resolution for 2010, this might be one to consider embracing. This meal is an easy, throw-together supper that feels like virtuous comfort food.

Ingredients
2 baked potatoes (you can microwave them if you're in a rush but I prefer to do them this way)
1 can pinto beans
1 green onion, chopped
1 small jalapeno, seeded and chopped or a few big squirts of sriracha sauce
salt
cheddar cheese, shredded

How To
Simmer the beans, green onion and jalapeno in a small saucepan. Taste and season with salt. Make it a little saltier than you might normally, since the beans are going to salt your potato as well and a potato without salt is a sad, sad thing. Split the potatoes and divide the pinto beans between them. Top with lots of shredded cheese.

Split Pea Soup with Ham

Soup... soup! Beautiful soup... There's something magical about a bowl of soup for a dinner that's sat for hours upon the stove. Split pea soup is one of my favorites. A hunk of crusty, buttered bread and a glass of red wine makes a perfect winter meal.

Ingredients
1 pound dried split peas, rinsed well
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup ham, cubed
2 onions, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
4 carrots, pealed and diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
10 cups water
1 teaspoon black pepper corns
2 big bay leaves
salt to taste

How To
Saute the vegetables and ham in olive oil until soft and fragrant. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the split peas are soft and falling apart, about 2 hours.

Predictions for 2010?

I learned last year that I am no soothsayer. But maybe 2010 is my year! Here are my very thoughtful and totally realistic predictions:

Savory waffles will be big. Gabby Hayes big.
Everyone will admit they hate quinoa.
Pigeon will briefly become a hip protein.
Scotch will be extolled for its health benefits
Thomas Keller will parade out a line of frozen burritos.

What do you think 2010 has in store for us?

Contest: The Best Bites of 2009

Happy New Year!

I remember being a child and the challenge of a new year was mostly just staying awake until midnight on December 31st. As a teenager, it was scrambling for somebody to kiss when the clock struck 12. In my twenties, it was a tragedy if I couldn't find a party where I could drink too much champagne and flirt.

Now I'm an elderly woman in my thirties and, while I enjoy a sexy New Year's Eve soiree, sleeping through the midnight countdown isn't some terrible thing. Now my focus is on the vast expanse of year ahead and the potential it holds.

Looking forward leads to looking back. What was your best bite of 2009? Where was it? Who were you with? Leave your nominee for 2009's Best Bite in the comments here and earn a chance to win a copy of Best Food Writing 2009.

In about week, I'll pick a winner and let you know what my best bite was. Good luck!