April 2008 Archives

Last night I went to Bella Pasta for the first time since they moved locations . . . several years ago. When I first moved to Fresno, Bella Pasta quickly became one of my favorite restaurants. I especially loved their pumpkin ravioli with cream sauce and walnuts which allowed me to eat pumpkin pie for dinner without any guilt. I decided that it was time to break my long hiatus from dining at BP.

We were seated on the patio on a cool spring evening. Both Kristie and I had put in a long day at work and we had more work to do over dinner. Still, it was so pleasant outdoors that we chatted about life and summer (only tackling our work at the end of the meal). Kristie's good company--she's smart, funny, and always interesting. And when we got to the work part of the meal, it was great collaborating with her about teaching.

But first the food. When I perused the menu, I misread the description of one dish--so I almost ordered a pasta, chicken, mushroom, and pea dish. I thought it would be served with cream sauce, but when I read more closely, I realized it was a tomato based dish. Somehow, that combination didn't fill my need for comfort food, so I ordered my fall back of lasagna (the pumpkin ravioli is seasonal and this is not the season).

The meal began with Bella Pasta's signature focaccia with a new twist: oil, vinegar, and chopped garlic to dip it in. Neither Kristie nor I cared much about our breath last night, so we were both quite pleased with the addition of garlic.

Although I still love my own focaccia more, Bella Pasta's version is soft and chewy. I'd never tried adding garlic to the dipping oil--but I really savored the small chunks of garlic that left what at first was a pleasing aftertaste. This morning when I woke up with garlic breath, the aftertaste wasn't nearly as appealing!

Next, our waiter brought us the house salad. I always get the wet and dry dressing (oil, vinegar, and blue cheese), but last night they substituted gorgonzola, a trade up as far as I'm concerned.

This was a simple but quite flavorful salad.

I blogged a few months ago about the unearthly portions served at chain restaurants. When the waiter brought my lasagna, I found that Bella Pasta's servings are likewise gargantuan. I ate some last night, some for lunch, and I still have some left.

Although I enjoyed the taste last night, the more I think about this dish, the more I realize it was a cheesy, gooey mess. Sure, I love cheese, tomato, and pasta . . . but there wasn't much subtlety in this dish--no layers, no complexity, just goo.

Sometimes goo is good, but most of the time I'd prefer eating food with a little more sophistication. It may be a long, long time before I return to Bella Pasta, but I hope it's not a long time before Kristie and I go out for dinner again.

A little over a year ago, I went to an amazing restaurant in San Francisco, Burma Superstar. I've wanted to go back ever since, but every plan to do so has been foiled . . . until Sunday. Tom and Andre were in town--and it was my turn to take them to one of my favorite restaurants.

After a bit of chaos at the front door, we were seated at a great table for three. My whole reason for returning to Burma Superstar was the tea leaf salad made with tea leaves, tomatoes, lettuce, dried shrimp, fried garlic, sunflower seeds, peanuts, and split yellow peas. Our waitress brought this to the table:

After squeezing lemon on top, she mixed everything together for us. The result is an amazing salad: nutty, salty, multi-layered, and fabulous. I really love this dish and wish I could eat it every day. It bears repeating: I love this dish.

We also asked for an order of samusas, potatoes and curry spiced dumplings that are deep fried. These were also quite delicious, although not terribly photogenic (so I'll spare you a picture). The only true main dish we ordered was okra with hard boiled eggs. Tom's from Florida, and his okra was the first I ever remember having tasted. He talked about how difficult it is to make good okra, that too often it becomes soft and gooey. Burma Superstar knows what it is doing. The okra was firm but still well cooked--this dish was also quite good. The tomato sauce had a mild spiciness that served as a counterpoint to the less showy okra and egg.

The last dish that we shared was the sauteed pea shoots. We weren't quite sure what to expect, but this dish ranks with the tea leaf salad as something I will now have to get every time I go to Burma Superstar. The pea shoots were tender and served with a light, buttery sauce. It was both healthy looking and delicious tasting.

Two days later, my mouth waters as I think about this meal. I know I just went there, but I want to go back . . . NOW. There are still so many more things I want to try on this menu. I'm already scheming my next visit.

Linnette and I have been friends for over 25 years, first meeting each other in Portugal where we were assigned to work together for a couple of months. This past weekend, I had a meeting in Sacramento (near where Lin lives), so I went over to her house afterwards to hang out. Lin's son Jason was fun to play with, and it was great to see their friend Zippy, who lives in Santa Cruz.

In all the years I've known Linnette, she has rarely cooked when we've been together (the same could probably be said for me!). When we see each other, we almost always go out for Mexican food, since that's one of Lin's favorite cuisines. However, during this visit, Lin and Zip made a delicious dinner, harvesting some of the ingredients from Lin's garden. Yum!

Our meal began by snacking on fresh, steamed broccoli sprinkled with cheese. The broccoli came from Lin's garden and was so delicious--a nice texture, good stalk to shrubbery ratio, and flavorful. It was so good that it took me awhile to remember to take a picture, hence the half-empty bowl.

Lin had marinated some chicken, which Zip barbecued while Lin made the salad . . . and Jason and I watched. Zippy made sure not to grill the chicken too long so that the meat would be juicy. The salad included home grown spinach, almonds, pears, feta cheese and poppy seed dressing. I wouldn't have thought to put feta in this salad, but it was all so yummy. Lin also made a red pepper sauce in which to dip the chicken. Here's my plate of healthy food.

This was such a great meal! The salad had a nice combination of flavors, all of which were satisfying. The chicken was nicely cooked and the marinade made it quite tasty. And the romesco sauce made me feel like I was eating an elegant meal. It was such a beautiful orange color . . . and added such a dramatic counterpoint to the chicken.

Here's the chicken and sauce recipe, if you'd like to try it.

Grilled Chicken Kebabs with Romesco Sauce (from the July 2007 issue of Sunset)

2 lbs. boned, skinned chicken breasts, cut into 1 ½ in. cubes
½ c. chopped fresh cilantro
½ c. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 T. fresh lime juice
2 t. plus 1 T. minced garlic
1 t. each coarse kosher salt and smoked Spanish paprika (pimenton)
½ t. freshly ground black pepper
¾ c. peeled roasted red peppers (canned or fresh)
¼ c. whole almonds or hazelnuts (toasted)
1 slice crusty bread, toasted and cut into cubes
1 T. sherry vinegar
2 bunches green onions, root ends trimmed

If using wood skewers, soak in cold water at least 30 minutes before using. In a large bowl or resealable plastic bag, combine chicken, cilantro, 3 T. olive oil, lime juice, 2 t. garlic, salt, smoked paprika, and pepper. Toss to coat, then marinate, chilled, 25 minutes.

Preheat a gas or charcoal grill to medium-high (you can hold your hand 1 to 2 in. above cooking grate only 3 to 4 seconds). Thread chicken onto skewers, discarding marinade. Drizzle green onions with remaining 1 T. olive oil. Lay skewers on grill (cover if using gas) and cook 4 minutes. Turn skewers over, then lay green onions on grill. Cook 4 minutes, until chicken is browned and cooked through and onions are charred in places. Serve hot, accompanied by sauce.

For the second day straight, I've packed my lunch, inserted an ice bag, zipped the bag shut, and walked out the door leaving my lunch on the counter. I usually realize what I've done sometime during my drive to work . . . but by that time it's too late. So I've had to scrounge food, eating corn nuts or whatever I can find close by. I'm not sure why I've had such a hard time remembering . . . .

Monday, we had our last Writing Project Summer Institute 2007 meeting. At lunch, we all went to Pane on Cedar and Nees. I had a delicious turkey and avocado sandwich with dijon mustard, sauteed onions, provolone, tomato and pesto. It was tasty as was the salad that accompanied it. Certainly, if I packed a lunch like this I wouldn't forget it?????

Just wanted to blog about two more restaurants in Columbus, Ohio. Last week, Johnnie, George, Val, Tory, and I had dinner at the Blue Nile on High Street. We ordered a combination which included Doro Wat, Yebeg Wat, Lega Tibs, Kik Alicha.

Most of the dishes contained meat. Although I'm not vegetarian, I don't eat a lot of meat. This meal wasn't as good as the one we had at Lucy's Lair in Fresno, still I enjoyed the lamb dish and the company. Tory was especially cute as she flirted with Johnnie. George and Val told us that when she found out she would see Johnnie that particular night, she said, "Johnnie makes me happy." So cute. I really enjoyed seeing George's family again.

We also took some new (and old) friends to Japanese Oriental Restaurant. I'll spare you photos of another round of dishes that look quite similar to our previous visit. Here's our group, though, with food on the table.

I so enjoyed this evening with a group of academics who could also make good conversation. Talking with Lucilia about Portugal was lovely--she reminded me of some of the delicious food there, including canja (a chicken soup that I loved). I was also really happy to get to know Silvia and Roy better, as they both teach in Europe: Roy in Finland and Silvia in Austria. What a comfort to know that when I arrive in Norway, I will know at least two people on the continent. And it's always delightful to hang out with Samina, Amrijit, and Johnnie. It was also fun to watch Johnnie's pleasure when everyone enjoyed the food at his beloved JOR. As we were served plate after plate of divine food, a feeling of bonhomie pervaded my being.

I think we all left with full bellies and pleasant memories.