Eat Arvada

Custard style eggs on Flickr.Via Flickr: I learned about the...

rjdollen — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 14:00:41 -0600

Via Flickr:
I learned about the custard-like eggs from non-other than Gordon Ramsey. Say what you want, the man is a legit chef and this style of eggs is a hit in my house. I took it a step further and added some fresh spinach, Dubliner cheese and fresh grape tomatoes. The result —> silence from all! That’s a good thing in my house. Mouths that are too full to make noise!

When pinches become handfuls on Flickr.Via Flickr: I love...

rjdollen — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 14:00:23 -0600

When pinches become handfuls on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I love chocolate. I really love chocolate after a long day, usually with a workout and eventually a few glasses of wine or tequila. Add an equal amount of fresh nuts to the mix and watch the pinces turn into fistfuls of pleasureful groans and eye fluttering approval for all things coco.

Sweet potato (GB&D) on Flickr.Via Flickr: The Golden Brown...

rjdollen — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 06:26:27 -0600

Sweet potato (GB&D) on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
The Golden Brown and Delicious magic that is caramelized sweet potato in coconut oil. For a bit of variety, add a little fresh sage!

The last of the Salmon Burgers on Flickr.Via Flickr: I’ve...

rjdollen — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:00:15 -0600

The last of the Salmon Burgers on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I’ve raved about these before and they are awesome tasting but as my food education improves I”ve become suspect of some of the ingredients in these lovely fish burgers and have decided to end of life the budget friendly tasty puck. For the curious “parfried in soybean and/or canola oil”. I’m just not a fan of either anymore.

if Apple (the computer company) designed and orange. on...

rjdollen — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 14:00:33 -0600

if Apple (the computer company) designed and orange. on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Looks minimal and it is. Simple stuff is a nice change-up pitch of a meal when you’ve got just above zero units of inspiration. Still, the flavor combos on this plate are pretty impressive and if you’ve never tried Sumo Oranges with brocoli, you’re just not trying hard enough.

Side note: Sumo Oranges are the most practical citrus ever made. The dragon like skins comes to a nub at the top of the orange and in a simple pinch-twist motion you’ve popped the top on a very easily pealed orange. Buy a few just to experience what would happen if Apple (the computer company) designed and orange.

Linner? Dunch? on Flickr.Via Flickr: This very normal looking...

rjdollen — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 14:00:42 -0600

Linner? Dunch? on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
This very normal looking meal has a very special guest star. This special guest pleased not just the adults in the house but had the uber picky and root veggie hating members of the family asking for more. It turns out that onions can be transformed from “gross” to “amazing” with just a bit of coconut oil and a quick bit of heat to caramelize the onion into it’s magical kid pleasing form.

Guac and Salmon on a lettuce-chip on Flickr.Via Flickr: I have...

rjdollen — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:00:38 -0600

Guac and Salmon on a lettuce-chip on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I have seriously cut-back on processed foods and in particular corn. Corn is just not very impressive when it comes to heath benefits. I’d much prefer to indulge in things like chocolate and tequlia when I’m wandering the boarders of my paleo diet. So in place of the trusty corn chip I typically go for a good romain lettuce and focus on the bottom third of the leaf in particular. It’s crisp, strong enough to handle a good load of food and a good fresh lettuce will ad a nice bit of flavor as you crunch into it.

Bacon and Eggs with a Chili Lime buter on Flickr.Via...

rjdollen — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 14:00:39 -0600

Bacon and Eggs with a Chili Lime buter on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Bacon and eggs are such a great pallet for flavor testing. I’ve been doing some reading on the weekends in the fourhourchef.com/ book from Tim Ferriss. I wanted to discredit this book the moment I heard he was writing it due to a number of horrible egg videos he’d posted on Youtube. He’s a brilliant dude who has proven himself in many areas and now we can add cooking to that. This weeks flavor profile - Chile, Lime, Cilantro.

Salmon and cauliflower curry on Flickr.Via Flickr: Chris Kresser...

rjdollen — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 14:00:26 -0600

Salmon and cauliflower curry on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Chris Kresser recently did an article about coconut milk that outlined the dangers of BPA in canning and some underlying issues with coconut that could have issue with some folks.

chriskresser.com/3-reasons-why-coconut-milk-may-not-be-yo…

Currently coconut milk and I are getting along very well.

"‘Look, we’re not going to screw around with the company jewels here and change the formulations..."

rjdollen — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 09:38:19 -0700

“‘Look, we’re not going to screw around with the company jewels here and change the...

Cheesy avocado on Flickr.Via Flickr: Creamy on creamy just...

rjdollen — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 14:00:34 -0700

Cheesy avocado on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Creamy on creamy just sounds dreamy. Don’t worry I am not going to break into a Muhammad Ali inspired rhyming fit here. But I could. Believe me I’ve got the skills to pay the bills. Okay, seriously, I’m done. Anyway, the creamy, just ripe avocardo is usually paire with something sharp and crisps. Onions, limes chips… they all have a contrasting texture and bite. So in the name of turning everything upsides down for a meal I thought it would make good sense to try and match the creaminess of the avocado with cheese. I know, it’s common, everyone does it. But, does everyone go through 5 cheeses to figure out which one melts closest to the creaminess of the avocado. Probably not and probably because I am the only one who really cares that much about the viscosity of two different fats. So, I did my littler experiment and was quick to remove the goat, breie and cheddar cheese. All good but not quite what I was looking for in a cream-cream pairing. Then it was down to the Dubliner and Asiago for an ultimate battle of famously fatting foods. It was tough, I had to go back and forth a few times but in the end there is indeed a clear winner. Behold the creamy cream dream team of avocado and Dubliner cheese.

Sauerkraut burger on Flickr.Via Flickr: I’ve never even...

rjdollen — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 14:00:33 -0700

Sauerkraut burger on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I’ve never even tried sauerkraut before today because it just didn’t look or sound good. That’s the kind of kid I was and the kind of adult I am trying to avoid being. So this weeks new ingredient is the infamous sauerkraut. I was careful to purchase the un-F’d with version from the refrigerated section. Seems to me you eat this stuff for the good bacteria so pasteurizing it kind of defeats the point. Turns out its pretty good a buffalo burger and it’s likely to become a part of my healthy-ish diet.

Creme brûlée on the way on Flickr.Via Flickr: The story goes...

rjdollen — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 15:50:27 -0700

Creme brûlée on the way on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
The story goes something like this. My family went to @udisglutenfree whom we’ve had a love hate relationship with for a while now. I love the food and the place when the service is good and when they are open. But, they choose random days to be closed and the service is spotty. The only real reason we go back is because my son who is Celiac loves their gluten-free creme brûlée and I love to make the kid happy. So imagine our disappointment when we found out that they’d stopped making the creme brûlée because “they are opening another store and want to make all of the stores a bit more sophisticated.” First BITE ME with your sophistication. Creme brûlée is as snobby as any other custard and removing one of the two gluten-free deserts from a restaurant that is know for being GF friendly is crap. Regardless, we didn’t kill the messenger but instead emailed the head chef explaining the situation and our desire for him to reconsider.

Now I am sure you’re thinking, this is a bit over the top for a damn desert. Maybe, but the waitress went on to explain why all of the dishes seemed smaller and a bit more expensive that we remembered. Any guesses? This is what I hate a bout a place like UDI’s. They were already pricey for what they were but now they are going to charge more money for less food to be more sophisticated. Again, BITE ME Udi’s .

Oh, the image :) Creme brûlée is easy enough to make at home, we just don’t typically keep the heavy cream at home because we find ways to use it a little too much. But for a dad, that just wants to reward a good kid, we’re becoming creme brûlée experts. We call this one the BITE ME Udi’s brûlée.

cookingkelly: This reformed chicken addict finds herself only...

rjdollen — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 16:14:20 -0700

cookingkelly:

This reformed chicken addict finds herself only wanting to eat salmon and red meat these days, so when I determined that my regular mom and pop supplier might be fibbing about where their product comes from, I went searching for another supplier (Hint: when the shop sign says wild caught in the USA, but the package says product of Chile and injected with dye, it’s likely farmed salmon and lacks most of the great Omega-3’s that we need in our diets). It was totally fate that I happened to be on another person’s blog and saw the banner for this company: I Love Blue Sea (http://www.ilovebluesea.com/)

Before we go on, let me say that I have never spoken to this company, nor have they offered me a discount or freebie for pushing their product…but I like to promote a good company or product when I find one and I’m so excited that I found this company!

I did some extensive looking on their website about their product: They contract with sustainable fisherman on both coasts to provide seafood, they guarantee buyer satisfaction, shipping is free (and super fast) on most products, they offer products only when in season, they have a variety of not just wild salmon, but crab, oysters, caviar, lobster, canned seafood and so on. A Google search also didn’t bring up any nasty reviews or accusations of false product labeling. Prices also compare nicely to what I was buying locally (just about the same for a 6 oz. portion).

I settled on ordering the sampler pack to be able to try a variety of salmon, including giving sockeye (I once tried sockeye that was supposed to be very fresh and found it fishy and nearly inedible). 27 servings of 5 different kinds of salmon for less than $200. That’s a lot of Omega 3’s for less than $7 a serving! I got to choose the date of delivery, which happened to be about 2 days later. The package arrived on time by Fed-Ex and was packed in dry ice (not that it matters much considering it is winter in Ohio). Inside I saw that my salmon comes from Loki Fish fishery out of Seattle, WA. (You can see a peek inside the packaging above - I had removed the dry ice before taking the photo. P.S. - Save the dry ice and use in some fun drinks for dinner!)

So far, we have only eaten one of the 1-lb filets of coho salmon (one of the milder salmon). After thawing, I removed it from the package and conducted the “sniff test” before even rinsing - ABSOLUTELY NO FISHY SMELL! It had skin on one side, which easily peeled off once cooked. The taste was amazing! No fishy flavor…didn’t even taste the like salmon I’m used to eating. It’s hard to describe the taste other than this - It had a very clean taste. My husband was late getting home and it was hard not to eat his half! (Short recipe, I prepared it on my inside grill on a cedar plank, seasoned with salt and pepper and covered in lemon slices).

This weekend I’m planning to cook one of the “fishier” salmon with my pecan and bacon crust - perhaps the sockeye. Can’t wait to see how fresh and flavorful it will be!

10 street coffee on a Colorado winters morning on Flickr.Via...

rjdollen — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 14:04:32 -0700

10 street coffee on a Colorado winters morning on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
If you live in Arvada or the surrounding area you’ve likely noticed an uprising in small coffee shops that don’t say Starbucks above the door. It’s a refreshing little movement and finding new spots with great coffee and atmosphere is a great time if you’ve got a good caffeine junkie of a friend with you. But, when you take the time to track down a coffee house only to get a poorly made drink with subpar ingredients you’ll experience the famous buzz-kill. Not just the buzz of the espresso pumping through your viens but the kind of buzz-kill that makes you want to dump your drink and find then nearest Starbucks again. Sadly this is the case with 10 Street Coffe on Tennision. They have a nice enough shop with a really cook plant that reaches all the way to the ceiling of the shop. When we arrived the place was vibrant with the local crowd enjoying and strangely warm Colorado winter morning. The set-up was perfect for an awesome new experience.

Here’s where it falls apart. I ordered my usual drink: 16oz mocha with half the chocolate. Simple enough right? Now, for context, I’d been to Two Rivers Coffee on 72nd and Wadsworth recently and to be fair, they are the coffeeshop to beat right now. No one takes coffee more seriously than they do in Arvada. When I order this same drink at Two Rivers I wait. Even if there is nobody else in the shop, I wait for a good 3 minutes for the the well dress barista to carefully craft my drink according to the specs that the shop has been dialing in all day to match the roast of the beans they got from their local roaster. The foam is carefully steamed with great attention to detail and then poured as if it was a delicate bomb disarming drill. By the time they are done making my 16oz mocha with half the chocolate, I feel like I got my monies worth. Once you’ve tasted this kind of craftsmanship you understand what that next level of coffee is. But I was not at Two Rivers, I was at 10 Street and things were falling apart quickly. As a mater of fact the coffee took all of 30 seconds to make before the bells on the cash register where ringing me up.

To recap: I ordered, paid and was sipping my drink in less than 60 seconds. How is there any time to make a proper coffee in 60 seconds. My milk shouldn’t be frothed in less than 60 seconds.

In short, I love the local coffee shop idea but its not about coffee. It’s a place for people to meet, drink something warm and steal some WIFI. Maybe that’s all it needs to be for the average joe (pun intended) but for me, I want the experience of quality ingredients prepared with care and skill. Give me that and I’ll return with my money in hand and a great appreciation for a job well done.

The strange shapes my meals take on Flickr.Via Flickr: Eating...

rjdollen — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 14:00:27 -0700

The strange shapes my meals take on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Eating the way I do these days make for some strange lunchbox buddies. Blueberries and cabbage in the same bed with carrots and almonds. Its like a little food orgy. The game is simple. You’ll have to pack-in everything you need to eat to feel satiated for 12 hours while your off at work. It’s not unlike camping and hiking in that sense. The advantage here is that you don’t have to lug the lunch around for long. Just get it to work and make sure you pack enough to keep you going all day and away from the endless collection of crap that sits in every break room of this utterly unhealthy place called corporate America.

Damn those little bubbles on Flickr.Via Flickr: Damn those...

rjdollen — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 14:00:33 -0700

Damn those little bubbles on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Damn those little bubbles. I love getting a coffee from the local coffeeshops when the barista is on their game and makes the perfect little micro-bubbles in my whole milk. My litte home espresso machine is just not cutting it. I get this foam cap that would make any beer drinker happy but kind of sucks if your a coffee kind of guy. The little bubbles are supposed to be mixed into each and ever sip. Not slurped off in the first few drinks. Once that foam cap is gone you’re left with cafeteria like coffee. Damn you little bubbles.

(via Hu Kitchen | Story) I wish we had a restaurant like this...

rjdollen — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 08:50:41 -0700

(via Hu Kitchen | Story) I wish we had a restaurant like this here in Colorado. While I don’t agree completely with the philosophy it’s lightyears beyond the Standard American Diet. Kudos to Hu.

Espresso with MCT oil on Flickr.Via Flickr: I love this picture!...

rjdollen — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 14:00:24 -0700

Espresso with MCT oil on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I love this picture! Mostly because I love this coffee. My wondering mind has taken me down some strange culinary roads but this was like walking into the backyard of the Playboy mansion of coffee. The MCT (medium chain triglyceride) oil froths up with its smooth yet crisp oiliness (I know, it’s odd) and blends perfectly with the coffees natural oils. Espresso with MCT in a bath of un-F’ed with milk is exactly what this picture looks like. A warm hug in a cup.

The spoonful on Flickr.Via Flickr: I am certain this is done all...

rjdollen — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 14:00:14 -0700

The spoonful on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
I am certain this is done all over the world and we’ve been doing it in my house for a while now. The game is this: Pack as much flavor as you can onto one spoon to be eaten whole. No nibbles ro savoring here. It’s all about flavor and combinations. Get ready for the diabolical twist!

This sucked. My kids tried some very healthy nutty mix from a company called Nude foods here in Colorado and they loved it. They wanted it so badly that we said WTF, and tossed it in. On further inspection we spent $18 for a pound of granola like cereal and yogurt topper that IMHO tastes horrible. So it begs the question, are the pallets of children and adults really so different? I’m not sure sure. I know they like sweeter stuff when younger and that adults have a bunch of other crap they consider but to have such a night and day reaction to the same food… something not right here.

For those keeping score, Looking at you Tommy, it’s greek yogurt with about $2 of ground almond, chia and other healthy stuff on top.