Momed Atwater Village

A good friend of mine, Mr.John Quintus (Hi!) recommended this really awesome restaurant in Atwater Village. Momed (click) has 2 locations, one in Beverly Hills and the other in Atwater Village. I am the hugest fan of that area. I've had my fair share of potato burritos from Tacos Villa Corona picking up a friend of mine every morning with a stench of Vodka. Ain't nothing wrong with that.

But as time moved on, our ideas of life, neighborhoods, the amount of money we have, has changed. Atwater Village has really transformed itself into an upcoming neighborhood.

Going back to the story, my friend knew my deepest obsessions with food and highly recommended this restaurant to me. It took me no time to make a short trip to the neighborhood. The restaurant is a big restaurant in a small little neighborhood, has a modern feel with a very open layout that feels warm, inviting, carefree, and then, time just stops.

3245 Casitas Ave, Ste 120

Los Angeles, CA 90039

You will find Momed snuck in between a few studios and Theatres, literally. Walking up the steps, getting seated, being handed with the menu, I already had my heart set on a dish. And we all know what that's like. There's no changing your mind even though you think to "think about it" and look through the menu, you always end up ordering what you wanted the first time around. 

View fullsize

Shakshuka

This is my first time having Shakshuka. Shakshuka is a tomato/ragu based with eggs poached in. This Shakshuka was cooked on top of some spinach, which was crusted from the hot cast iron where you will find crispy bits around the edges! I can die. I am in heaven. And the egg? Organic, poached into the sauce. With a dollop of tzatziki sauce. Do NOT forget to ask for their spicy sauce that they also make in house. Wow. That really elevated the dish. The Shakshuka was served with some pita that was also made in-house. I don't believe I've ever had pita that was freshly made, but it was really delicious. The texture of the bread when you rip it apart, you see the hot pockets air out with each tear. I am crying right now thinking I've devoured this beautiful masterpiece and just like that it's gone. Why couldn't the Chinese be the ones to discover this? *LOL*

I know. Really? Bacon and eggs? at a place like this? Well let me stop you there for a second. And that's just a nice way to put it. I'm going to give an example with Chinese people. Because I am Chinese and I can make fun of myself AND my people (sorry dad... and mom... grandma (eeeeeps!) brother? you don't give a sh*t). But if we can't make rice correctly, it's like, wtf is wrong with you? Take that mentality to every cuisine that you try. If you are one of those, I order fried rice, I only order Pad Thai, I only order Carne Asada, I only order Gyro, I only order sushi (but we know that sh*t is California rolls), that mother f*cker we all know, and if you are reading this you should be a foodie and if you are not you are now because you have been blessed. Like, no. But if you are one of the people that does that above, well, you kind of get it... actually. You stick with safe choices for a reason.. right? Because if you can get the basics done right, then you are legit. And feels safe to maybe order that... Roast Duck, or that... Tom yum, or that Suadero, or that engawa (Click engawa).

With that being said. Eggs and Bacon is something that every chef should be able to master. And it was pretty perfect here. The smoked bacon was DELICIOUS. John Wan shared it with me and he could normally eat like... 1.. but he was scarfing all of that DOWN. A good cheap bacon is great when it's super crispy and sometimes, thin. A good quality bacon tastes so much better when it's slightly thicker, a little chewy, BUT crispy on some ends. Why I like bacon that is a little chewy? Because you really taste the pork. You really taste the smoke. The love and everything you can think of that went into it.

And the potatoes were spot on. I really envisioned myself on this place. I really hope that when I do come back, consistency will still be key. A lot of places don't have that. But I feel it in this place.

View fullsize

Wrecking BALL & Iced Green tea

OK. We had Starbucks before this, hence the lack of caffeine. Normally I would order a cappuccino, but instead I got their Iced Green tea, and John ordered the Wrecking Ball Coffee that is from the San Francisco Bay Area. The iced tea was good. It was light, refreshing, and imaginably sweet if you were to put sugar in mix.

The Wrecking Ball coffee was really good. I enjoyed how light it was. Not full bodied, but with a nice sharp roasty aftertaste. I would definitely have this again when I come back (breakfast or dinner).

By the way. They have happy hour. All I saw was $4 wine. BUT, I am down to come back. So, let me know if you are because I am ready, to try every single thing on their menu.

Give this place a shot when you have time. And if you like it, you can thank me by taking me with you.

Los Angeles. Trust me when I say you are difficult to find a really good place to have breakfast brunch.

Daiisies

Fish caper de provence

During Sunday, I had a weird epiphany that I was going to do a whole crap load of grocery shopping that will last throughout the next few weeks. This shopping consisted of purchasing a lot of protein from Costco which will be wrapped and tucked away in the freezer, and Veggies which will be purchased throughout the week if we run out. Not really sure what dishes I will create, but I wanted to prep some meals, without really prepping 5 daily meals in one day. With that said, I decided creating simple side dishes will be a leverage to assist me making home cooked meals throughout the week.

For a little over $1 a pound, you can get a huge bag of broccoli florets for around $4. That is extremely cheap. And since the florets are thoroughly washed, I literally place the whole bag in the microwave. 3 minutes on one side, flip, 3 minutes on the other. This will steam the broccoli getting the cooking process done quicker and less mess.

I take out a sheet tray and cram every single one evenly. I crushed about diced 5 cloves of garlic to top the broccoli. Drizzle with some olive oil, salt, and a little pepper. This was roasted in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Once you see some dark char on your florets, it's okay to take out, let it cool, and store in a giant container to be left in your fridge until ready to use.

For the Garlic mashed potatoes, I went to a local Albertsons and purchased one of those $2.99 bags of russet potatoes. These were peeled, diced, and then rinsed. The potatoes were boiled with about 6 large cloves of garlic until tender, as you would with your mashed potato recipes. You can always reduce the amount of garlic or completely remove it if you are not a fan. I can really taste the garlic with just 6 large cloves. After the potatoes are done, strain the water, add 1/2 a stick of butter and about 1 cup of milk. This really depends on the texture that you like your potatoes. I started mashing and seasoning the potatoes with salt and dried parsley. After you are happy with your potatoes, let it cool, and then store in your fridge until read to use.

View fullsize

Ok so I obviously made up the name. The seasoning I used was Herb De Provence which are obviously a a handful of herbs, but includes lavender. The lavender smell really stands out. The first time I purchased herb de provence, I was pretty intimidated by how it smells. But after trying it on chicken, I literally had a mind blown mouthgasm moment because I love putting that sh*t on everything now.

I seasoned both sides of the fish with Herb de Provence, garlic powder and salt. The fish was pan seared and finished with some capers. The mashed potatoes I made prior, was seared on both sides until golden brown. The broccoli was just heated and kissed with a little olive oil.

Going back to prepping your side dishes. It makes wanting to cook so much more convenient. Instead of frantically pulling out different pants, you might like I do, get discouraged to cook. But look at how you can transform delicious mashed potatoes into something even more heavenly.

Stay tuned for more recipes using prepped side dishes. You can either thank me now, or thank me later.

happy eating!

Daiisies

Hashbrown Breakfast

Here I go again. OK, so watching Homeland till like 2-3 in the morning has not been the best thing for me. I am groggy during the day and my blood pressure has possibly gone up from all the stress that has been going on from seasons 1-3. Now that I've completed season 3, I can relax for a bit, because there wasn't really a cliffhanger that begs me to start season 4.

Don't tell me I don't have a life. I have a life, and that involves watching whatever I want, eating whatever I want, and basically doing whatever I want. Don't you want this life too?

Breakfast was simple this morning. It consisted of Eggs, Bacon, and homemade Hash browns.

The video was shot on my iPhone 5S so please forgive the quality.

Everything is pretty much self explanatory. Eggs and bacon.  For the Hash Browns, I got one large russet potato which feeds 2 people and sometimes even 3 depending on how large it actually is. I scrubbed the potato under some running water making sure that it is clean. I didn't peel my potato, but you can always do so.

I grated the potato on the coarse side with a standard box grater (I used OXO < click for reference). A quick rinse will help relieve the starchiness of the potato. Make sure the potatoes are dried with a towel to relieve the moisture. On medium high heat with your choice of oil, layer on your hashes. I let it go for about 3 minutes before deciding to flip. You will know it's read to flip when the hash browns become a sheet from crisping on the bottom.

One important rule! Don't forget to salt your hash browns! I'd rather have NO hash browns than to have bland ones. AND! A nonstick pan was also used.

I sliced up a Spanish (Yellow) onion and sauteed it to pour over the hash browns. The dish is served with ketchup and hot sauce.

View fullsize

Daiisies breakfast plate

This face was inspired by all of you. Because this is how you make me feel. I don't even know how to explain the way it looks. Kind of like the cookie monster right? Gosh I feel so freaking creative right now. Give me a moment....

I am forever turned to home making hash browns. If you are going to make a big batch, use a food processor. I decided to use a hand grater instead since I didn't feel like washing an appliance for one potato.

Good Morning ;P

Daiisies

Breakfast Potatoes with Egg and Pretzel Bread

There's just something so special about breakfast/brunch on the weekends. I just love waking up early in the morning, to look forward to a fantastic day. Although I haven't had time to do much lately, this meal of the day is something I am always excited about. I love to eat out at restaurants. If you were to ask me what I did over the weekend, I will tell you something that involved something I made or a dining experience somewhere.

John and I went to a Sur La Table in Pasadena, which is by far one of my favorite places to go to. There's all kinds of inspiration I find when I go there, and finding things I never thought I would need. Basically, I need everything in that store. We were looking at pans, and the non-stick pan I currently have right now is failing to keep up with my massive cooking needs. I've been in need of a larger pan of some sort that has a lot of surface rather than depth. We ran into a pan made by "Scanpan" that seemed like what I was looking for. Not much hesitation even though it took us about an hour in the store to commit to this purchase. What's also great about this non-stick pan is that it's scratch resistant.

Low and Behold, I put this little beast to work for one of my favorite breakfast brunch items: Breakfast Potatoes.

View fullsize

Breakfast Potatoes with Pancetta and Pretzel Bread.

I made everything you see here with one pan. The Pancetta was rendered until crispy before the potatoes were thrown in to be coated. I always microwave the potatoes before throwing them in a pan to cook. Doing so just helps with making sure the potatoes are cooked throughout, there's nothing I hate more than a beautiful golden crust than a undercooked crunchy potato inside. Some shallots were also added with sharp cheddar. Everything was assembled at the end with a few eqqs on top finished in the oven.

View fullsize

Breakfast potatoes with Pancetta, Eggs and Pretzel Bread.

If you've never had pretzel, do yourself a favor and try it. I am changed forever. The one you see here is from Whole Foods. Light brush of canola on top with a sprinkle of Kosher salt heated in the oven. Oh and a dazzle of Parsley for color.

This was such a treat! I always love a breakfast that makes me want to take a nap, I guess that's why the coffee is there for.

If you decide to get it, let me know what you think. If you have any questions regarding it, feel free to ask.

Happy Cooking!

~Daisy.