Today at Dr. Cloninger’s I was tested for almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, pine nuts, pecans and a couple others that I can’t recall. I wasn’t expecting any big news; until now I thought I had grown out of all nut allergies except for cashews, pistachios, and pecans. It turns out I’m no longer allergic to pecans!
Who wants to make my first pecan pie?
Allergy test passed!
Jessica and I are in north Lake Tahoe for a 3-day weekend in the snow. We’ve been staying at the River Ranch Lodge (our second weekend here), which is insanely convenient to get to Squaw, Truckee, or Tahoe City. Tahoe has just received 7 feet of snow and it doesn’t seem to be stopping any time soon. Some of these photos are from our trip two weeks ago. No joke – this storm makes it look like a completely different place from our last trip up.
At the Palisades.
Skiboarding!
Geared up.
Hanging out in the snow.
Mid-storm.
Peppermint Pattie.
Ninja Parms.
My mom found this bourekas recipe and made it for us over the holiday weekend. So good! Bourekas are Turkish, apparently.
Mom's bourekas.
Jessica made latkes last night (the first night of Chanukah) using this Martha Stewart recipe. They were awesome! We still have leftovers, which are delicious right out of the fridge. (Note: These are not to be confused with the meal worm cakes we accidentally bought in Vietnam. Oops.)
Jessica frying.
Resting latkes.
Plated latkes with asparagus and apple sauce.
Shawn with plate of latkes.
Last week Jessica made turkey tacos with cranberry ginger chutney.
Ingredients:
leftover turkey from T-giving (or cutlets)
tortillas
Swiss cheese
olive oil
Chutney:
1 bag cranberries
1 cup water
1/2 to 1 cup sugar (depending on desired sweetness)
1 ginger root
5 splashes red wine vinegar
1/2 cup chopped scallions
pepper
Add water, cranberries and sugar to pot and bring to boil. Add ginger, red wine vinegar and stir occasionally at a simmer. Add scallions, season with pepper and continue stirring until chutney thickens. For tacos, spread chutney onto whole tortilla. Put turkey onto half of tortilla and cover with Swiss cheese. Fold in half. Drizzle and rub olive oil on both sides of taco. Broil on high on lower rack until golden and crispy. Flip and continue broiling until golden on second side and cheese is oozing. Devour.
Thanksgiving Turkey Tacos with Cranberry Chutney
Yummy
Mom, Maer and I hiked the Hollyridge trail to the Hollywood sign this afternoon. The hike is probably only about 2 miles round trip… worth it. The drive there (braving LA traffic) from my mom’s is the hardest part; I was feeling a little car-sick by the time we finally got to the trailhead. Note the lack of smog today!
Sign from Afar.
Smogless sky.
Mom and Me.
Mom and Maer.
Sign's backside.
Yesterday was Jessica Loveman (my cousin) and Kevin Morten’s wedding in Newport Beach, CA. Here are a few shots of us. Welcome to the family Kevin!
Shawn, Jessica (gf) and Michael (step-bro)
Mom and Maer
Jessica and Shawn
Reception centerpiece. Pretty.
PARMS with bike and smile at Marin Headlands.
Shawn decked out to bike.
PARMS with the GG bridge.
Pretty.
Jessica and I ate at Ti Couz in the Mission for the first time this morning (we were thinking about eating Pho instead, but would have been faced with the decision of which place to choose from). We ordered potato and leek soup, served hot. It wasn’t vichyssoise, but we pretended it was so we could reference Monkey Island 2. I need to post about MI sometime.
We then ordered a mushroom/swiss crepe and a nutella/pear crepe. Being a fruit lover, Jessica preferred the sweet crepe, whereas I liked the savory one better. The savory crepe was smothered in a cream of mushroom sauce. The sweet crepe had homemade whipped cream on top and just the right balance of fruit to nutella. All in all, I dig this place. They don’t do take-out orders (to prevent excess waste), and they only serve you water if you ask. Nice work.
Highlights:
Shawn with the Boot at Essen Haus
Shawn Mouse
Greg, Parms and Shawn in Madison, WI
Greg and Carmen in Madison, WI