Author Archives: Administrator

Hard Knox Cafe

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http://www.hardknoxcafe.com/

I finally got to try the fried chicken at Hard Knox Cafe. Ron had talked about this place before and it always sounds really good but he’s never had a chance to bring me.

We had a bit of a hard time finding parking and then had to wait about 15 minutes inside. But once I got to taste the corn bread, that was already worth it. I loved the “muffin top”, especially with a little bit of butter, served warm.

I had the three piece fried chicken with collard greens and mac ‘n’ cheese. The chicken was very crispy and super moist. It wasn’t over seasoned so you could really just taste chicken (rather than say, spice or pepper). It was really good with the Crystal hot sauce.

Ron had the country fried steak with corn and potato salad. I didn’t like this as much since it was a bit salty and the sauce didn’t have much flavor (to me). The potato salad deserves mention though, it was sort of like thousand island flavored potato salad.

It was a good meal to end the day as we had spent all day in an 8 hour childbirth preparation class at Kaiser. It was a lot of information to digest but was very good in giving us an idea of what to expect. We also had a tour of the labor & delivery and post-partum area of the hospital. There’s still tons to learn but at least we’re not totally clueless anymore.

Hard Knox Cafe
2526 Third Street

Isa Restaurant – Dine About Town

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http://www.isarestaurant.com/

I met up with Patrick and Shirley at Isa Restaurant for Dine About Town. Although we might have gotten a bit cheated as their regular prix fixe for Mon thru Thur is only $28 while for DAT, it’s $35… I hope that these portions we got were larger…

Well for appetizers, we started out with salmon carpaccio (which I didn’t get to try).

The calamari with beans and cooked arugula. Very tender and had nice flavor.

The mussels with garlic, white wine, parsley, and grilled bread. A big portion and the “soup” was really good with the bread.

For main courses, we had the pan fried sole with broccolini. The sole was a bit sweet and fresh. I really like the broccolini.

This is the flat iron steak, nice and tender, with potato gratin, creamy and delicious.

Lobster bouillabaisse with fish and clams. The bouillabaisse was good but I couldn’t tell it was lobster.

For desserts, we had two cheese courses and creme brulee.

Needless to say, we were pretty stuffed. The bread they offered too was delicious, toasty on the outside and soft on the inside and served warm. I wish I could have eaten more of it, I can’t wait to have carbs again!

Isa Restaurant
3324 Steiner Street

Misu – Trapped!

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Our silly cat Misu:

He’s been really needy lately so has been bothering us every evening. He’ll sit right next to you and wait you for you to look at him and once you look at him and start speaking to him, his ears perk up. If you don’t touch him, he’ll rub his face on your arm or leg to coax you to scratch his head. He’s super sweet.

In this case, he was sitting right in front of me so I lifted my legs onto the table (excuse my swollen feet) with his head in between. He didn’t budge. He seemed happy that I was paying attention to him.

I wonder if he knows a baby is coming so he’s trying to get even more attention now than usual…

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

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http://www.beachboardwalk.com/

Ron and I went down to Santa Cruz just to get out of the city. We visited the Beach Boardwalk which was mostly closed except for the arcade and mini golf. It was quite a drive and it started to rain a bit but it was just nice to get away and see some different scenery and spend some time together.

We got there around lunch time so had lunch at one of the eateries. I enjoyed a smoked turkey leg while Ron had a hamburger and garlic fries.

It was very chilly down there so I was bundled up.

We went to play some video games before heading home.

Berry Corn Muffins

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http://www.marthastewart….ry-corn-muffins

Tried my hand at baking again, this time Berry Corn Muffins, using a recipe from Martha Stewart for Blueberry Corn Muffins.

Ingredients

Makes 6 large muffins

1 cup (2 sticks) + 2 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar + 2 tbsp for sprinkling
3 tbsp honey (substituted 2 tbsp agave syrup)
2 large eggs (substituted 1 egg + 1 portion Egg Beaters)
3 cups all-purpose flour (substituted whole wheat flour)
1 cup yellow cornmeal
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 cup blueberries (used 1-1/2 cups frozen berries)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place a Silpat (French nonstick baking mat) or parchment paper on a baking sheet; place six 2 3/4-by-2-inch pastry rings on it. Cut parchment paper into six 10-by-3-inch strips; use them to line molds (paper will extend above rims). I used 2 mini muffin pans (24 muffins) and 1 regular muffin pan (12 muffins) lined with paper liners.
2. Place softened butter, 3/4 cup sugar, and honey in bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add eggs; beat 1 minute more.
3. Whisk flour, cornmeal, and baking powder together in a medium bowl; add to butter mixture in mixer bowl. Beat until combined. Slowly pour in milk, beating on low, until just combined. Fold in blueberries. Divide dough among molds (do not pack too firmly; each will take about 1 cup). Brush tops with cold water; sprinkle 1 teaspoon sugar over each.
4. Bake until tops are browned, centers are set, and a cake tester inserted in center of muffin comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let cool in pans 5 minutes. Tie kitchen twine around muffins to hold parchment. Serve at once.

Here is my tray of completed muffins.

A closeup of the muffin, the sugary sweetness on top.

The muffins were a bit dense for my taste but went well with coffee or tea. My coworkers described it as having more of a scone texture as it was a bit crumbly and had the sugary top.

Next time I’ll try the recommended way but I can’t imagine how big they’ll be as I was surprised at how many mini/regular muffins I was able to make.