Author Archives: The Forking Truth

Cafe Nordstrom is Forking Better than the Food Court

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A few of the house made desserts at Nordstrom's Cafe

A few of the house made desserts at Cafe Nordstrom

At the Scottsdale Fashion Plaza in Scottsdale Arizona there is a very above average cafe located in the Nordstrom’s Department Store called Cafe Nordstrom. (On Nordstrom’s Webpage it’s called the Marketplace Cafe) All the food is made in house and they use mostly organic, cage free eggs and local food as much as possible. (It’s Arizona the forking desert not everything can come from forking here.) The cafe is really a cafeteria and that’s the only bad part if you are carrying packages. You pick up your tray and order from the station you feel like forking ordering from where they fresh make the food for you and then you slide your tray to the cashier and pay.

The bulk of the menu are these really interesting gourmet salads they offer. I’ve had many different ones over the years and am always impressed by how nice they really are. The Cafe offers about half a dozen different kinds of salads, a few sandwiches, soup, pizzas, pastas, couple entries, a special of the day and many made in house desserts. They also serve beer and wine and speciality coffees.

This time I tried the Berry, Blue Cheese and Chicken Salad.

Berry Blue Cheese and Chicken Salad from Nordstrom's Cafe

Berry Blue Cheese and Chicken Salad from Cafe Nordstrom

WOW what a great salad! This sure forking beats anything from the food court. Lots of plump berries, tangy blue cheese, fresh mixed greens, some sort of candied walnut granola croutons and perfectly poached chicken. This salad was satisfying but still seemed light because of the berries. I liked the sweet against tangy thing going on in this salad.

My husband had some sort of Steak Sandwich that came with potato chips.

Steak Sandwich from Cafe Nordstrom Scottsdale AZ

Steak Sandwich from Cafe Nordstrom Scottsdale AZ

The steak was topped with balsamic onions and havarti Cheese. looks like my husband pulled out the forking raw tomatoes. He said it was a really good for a cold sandwich. He would have preferred it warmed up.

When your all done your table attendant presents you with a wrapped mint chocolate.

Cafe Nordstrom is Forking Better than the Food Court!

Worth a Fork

Worth a Fork

Forking Truth

Forking Truth

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Have you Forking tried the Kale Sprout?

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I saw forking KALE SPROUTS at Trader Joe’s so I purchased them. They are a cross between Kale and Brussels Sprouts.

First I washed them off.

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Then I look at them and they seem like mostly forking stems with a little bit of kale. I taste one and it taste like raw cabbage so I decide to split them in halves.

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I boiled them in vegetable stock to infuse them with flavor with some thin sliced onions.

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When they turn tender I tasted one again. Now it forking taste like a brussels sprouts and I think they need a little roasting in the oven.

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I sprinkle them with extra virgin olive oil and roast them for 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

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They brown up and get a little crisp. I add sea salt and fresh ground black pepper.

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They taste good this way. A little crisp and nutty and a sort of sweet taste to them.

Are you going to try the forking Kale Sprouts?

Forking Truth

Forking Truth

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How to Forking Make Cannoli Filling

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To make the best cannoli filling you have to start with fresh made cheese that you forking made yourself.

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Fresh made cheese is only whole milk, heavy cream fresh squeezed lemons and a little kosher salt. You bring the milk, cream and salt to a slow boil and let it go a few minutes.

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To make it curd you slowly add the fresh squeezed lemon juice till it curds as much as you want.

For cannoli filling I want it to curd more than ricotta because I want my cheese thicker so when I add sugar to sweeten the cheese it doesn’t get forking runny.

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Now it’s time to drain the cheese.

So I get a paper towel lined colander.

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Let it drain.

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Now I have Cheese.

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I make three flavors of filling.

Vanilla, chocolate and cinnamon.

The vanilla is just vanilla extract, sugar with a drop of anise.

The cinnamon is just cinnamon, a small amount of vanilla extract and sugar.

The chocolate is coco powder, vanilla extract, a drop of anise, a pinch of cinnamon and sugar.

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I used one gallon of milk, 1 quart of cream, 2 fresh lemons and maybe 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt to make the cheese.

I saved somewhere between 1/4-1/3 of the cheese to make Cheese Gnocchi’s with the forking leftover.

Ricotta Gnocchi

Ricotta Gnocchi

On my search type in Ricotta Gnocchi for the recipe.

Forking Good!

Forking Good!

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Great Ethnic Casual Forking Inexpensive EATS in Metro Phoenix AZ

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A bunch of these little ethnic eaters are opening up all over the metro Phoenix Area. I’m talking about the kind of places where you order yourself, pay, and seat yourself kinds of places. All these places are forking inexpensive. These are places were the entree is usually less than $9.95. I have no forking idea how they can prepare quality food at such low prices. These are all places that prepare very above average foods that impressed me.

Suh Noi - The Little Thaiger Scottsdale AZ

Suh Noi – The Little Thaiger Scottsdale AZ

Suh Noi – The Little Thaiger  in Scottdale AZ serves up mostly serious Thai Cuisine in a fast casual atmosphere. This tiny cafe with a patio even has a drive thru. (i’m not forking sure how the fork that can work out)

Not many Thai places serve up Wild Boar. You can even oder your forking boar Thai Style. (Thai style means hand chopped meat with a crispy fried egg) Not every Thai Restaurant offers Thai Style.

Wild Boar Grapao

Wild Boar Grapao $7.99

I had the Holy Basil Chicken.

Holy Basil Chicken

Holy Basil Chicken $7.99

The Holy Basil Chicken is chicken, chili’s, garlic, fish sauce and fresh basil. My dish came out a little spicier than I wanted but was made with enough basil and it was Holy Basil to Boot! I noticed the majority of Thai Places in Metro Phoenix don’t use enough basil in their dishes (you actually need a certain number of leaves a person or a small bunch for this dish to be made correctly) and I haven’t been to another in the area so far that actually uses the Holy Basil that differs in taste from Thai Basil. The Holy Basil has some heat to it and supposedly has more nutrients in it. Anyways the food was forking good and very above average. Who knew from a little unassuming place with a drive thru you’d get some serious Thai Food. (that’s also forking cheap)

Another Great Quick Casual Eatery is Hummus Xpress in Tempe AZ

The Plate from Hummus Xpress Tempe AZ

The Plate from Hummus Xpress Tempe AZ

Hummus Xpress in Tempe AZ is a small Middle Eastern Cafe that serves up their cuisine “Subway” or “Chipotle” Style. They build up your Pita, Bowl, or Plate (priced $6.45-9.95) for you from behind a window front buffet line from what you pick. The Food is Chef Inspired Middle Eastern with a Lebanese flavor and the owner has been culinary trained and it shows.

This place is off my beaten path so we got Plates to try as much as possible. I tried delicious spicy carrots, lemon broccoli, flavorful moist brisket with au jus, Lebanese Falafels, beetroot hummus, regular hummus, (from my husband’s plate lemon ginger hummus ((P.S. there is a lot of hummus here,many flavors hence the name Hummus Xpress))  tabbouleh, pickled beets, some sort of onion salad, schug sauce (spicy complex herb relish unique to the Yemen Cuisine) and if that wasn’t enough it also came with seasoned rice and a fresh made pita bread. Everything was made fresh in house and everything was delicious. I just asked for a lid when I was done and had more than enough for another meal.

I never had a Banh Mi Sandwich before. So when the Banh Mi Bistro – Vietnamese Eatery opened not too far from me I had to give that a forking try. Bahn Mi Bistro is a small family owned business that specializes in the Vietnamese Sandwich called the Banh Mi.

1/2 of Pulled Pork Banh Mi from Banh Mi Bistro Phoenix AZ

1/2 of Pulled Pork Banh Mi from Banh Mi Bistro Phoenix AZ

I looked at the menu and noticed the very low prices. Not everything but most of the menu was priced at $5.00. I thought the food would be forking tiny and not very filling since it was so low priced. I ordered a grilled Chicken Bahn Mi and a lotus root salad. (also $5.00)

Grilled Chicken Banh Mi Sandwich from Banh Mi Bistro Phoenix AZ

Grilled Chicken Banh Mi Sandwich from Banh Mi Bistro Phoenix AZ

I soon receive my $5.00 Grilled Chicken Bahn Mi and it’s generously packed with juicy seasoned moist chicken, daikon radish carrot salad, fresh cilantro, spicy jalapeños, a flavorful magical sauce of some kind and house made aioli. I think the bread was made fresh in house too. This sandwich was forking delicious and tasty and I got the other half for latter.

I also ordered the lotus root salad.

Lotus root salad (with out the shrimp) from Banh Mi Bistro Phoenix AZ

Lotus root salad (with out the shrimp) from Banh Mi Bistro Phoenix AZ

Out came a BIG bowl of salad with Lotus Root.

I’ve never seen lotus root like this before.

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It’s like baby lotus roots. It so much more tender than what I have purchased from the Asian Market. They tossed the lotus roots in a mild Asian vinaigrette with crushed peanuts and fresh cilantro. This was a very nice salad that I think most people would like if they tried it. This place isn’t too far so I will be going back to try other things like a minty noodle bowl and the Vietnamese frozen build your own fruit desserts.

These are just a very few of the Great Casual Inexpensive Ethnic Eats in the Metro Phoenix Area.

Forking Truth

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The Forking Difference between Cream Cheese and Mascarpone

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Cream Cheese is a soft milk tasting fresh cheese.

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Mascarpone is  a soft mild milk tasting fresh cheese.

Both Cream Cheese and Mascarpone have  high fat contents.

Cream Cheese is basically milk, cream, skim milk, whey, stabilizers, gum and carrageenan.

Mascarpone (Belgioioso Brand) is made of milk, cream, and citric acid.

Forking Truth

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Cannoli Shells Recipe

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I’ve been making Cannoli’s for a long time now. A while back  back I tried out the basic five recipes for Cannoli’s. Some forking fell apart. One came out too hard and thick. Some seemed good but got baked on to my cannoli tubes. None of those were perfect and sometimes the batter was so dry you couldn’t make a dough out of it. I figured out how to do them best learning a little from all the recipes so I made my forking own recipe.

Ingredients (will make about 18 smaller sized shells)

1 cup flour

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon sugar

pinch kosher salt

about 1/8 cup water

about 1/8 cup wine

about 1 beaten large egg white (use 1/2 in recipe and half to seal)

A little extra flour for dusting your rolling pin and table or mat.

Mix up butter and sugar together. (doesn’t need to be creamed) Add flour and salt then combine. Add wine and water mix well. You will need to add about 1/2 of one large beaten egg white to form the dough. Mix well and let rest 1/2-1 hour.

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Roll out thin. Either cut into desired sized squares or cut in desired sized round shapes. I find it easiest to pinch off maybe a scant teaspoon size of dough and roll it out in sort of a round shape on a dusted silicone mat.

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Apply loosely to tube.

Use remaining 1/2 beaten egg white to seal shells together on tube.

Deep fry at 350 degrees in a neutral oil until crisp and desired color.

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When cool remove from tube.

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When still warm dust the shells with powdered sugar.

I recommend filling with home made ricotta cannoli filling. Other options are ice cream or whipped cream mixed with custard.

Since you fired up the fryer you might as well make potato or vegetable chips.

Rutabaga and Potato Chips

Rutabaga and Potato Chips with a light sprinkle of Sea Salt. (just slice thin, blot dry and fry till crisp)

Forking Good

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Stop# 3 – The Search for Lox in Metro Phoenix – Part 3 – Partial Success

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My forking search for Lox means a Deli that serves a proper tasting Pastrami on Real Rye Bread, A traditional Potato Knish and of course Lox. Since the closing of Abe’s Deli in Scottsdale AZ I haven’t found anyone that actually serves real hand carved Lox. The word lox is a lose term and all that I found available anywhere so far has been Nova or Nova style salmon to be technical.

We stopped in at New York Bagels and Bialy’s in Scottsdale AZ. I ordered a Whitefish Plate with an Onion Bialy.

I received forking this.

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Look close and notice all the bloodline and how DRY the fish is.

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I never forking seen a bialy that looked like this.

I was expecting something like forking this.

Picture from www.thefreshloaf.com

Picture from www.thefreshloaf.com

When the waitress checks on us I do mention how dry the fish is.

The manager soon runs over and is very upset because her help accidentally gave me the forking fish ends you don’t serve people and runs me out some fresh fish.

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The fresh fish is forking better and not dried out and fishy and condensed with salt.

My husband got a 1/2 corned beef, half pastrami on their house made rye bread.

The corned beef was a little weak tasting but OK and not bad. The Pastrami was almost the same in taste as the corned beef.  I didn’t taste the rye bread but my husband said it was the fluffy kind that doesn’t really taste like rye. I’m certain some people prefer the sandwiches this forking way and they are perfection to them.

We took home some lox, cream cheese and 6 bagels.

So the next morning I ate this.

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The fish was better quality than what I found at my previous stops and also cut much nicer too.

I liked the size of the bagel it wasn’t too big but it tasted like it was missing salt and lacked the chewy doughy texture that you look for in bagels. Maybe on some days it’s better than other days.

I didn’t try a knish on this stop but I do consider this partial success because the lox was good.

At this point I doubt I will be able to find Good Lox and a Good Pastrami on Rye in one location but I still will forking try.

Forking Truth

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Thomas Keller’s Chocolate Bouchons Recipe

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Thomas Keller's Chocolate Bouchon made by me

Thomas Keller’s Chocolate Bouchon made by me

I wanted to make something new and something forking chocolate for someone’s birthday.

So I googled Thomas Keller Chocolate and found this forking easy recipe called Chocolate Bounchons so I thought it was worth doing.  They are come out very chocolatey, rich and moist with chocolate chips that melt into the batter. I thought this recipe would be good since it’s satisfying without forking frosting that can be too sweet for some people who really don’t like sweets. I measured everything exact to the recipe but didn’t use the high quality 55% Chocolate Chips and could only find 45%. Timbale molds are suggested but I think a cupcake pan or molds would be fine.

This recipe is courtesy of Bouchon Bakery

Servings 12 set oven to 350 degrees and Butter and Flour your Molds

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Ingredients

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

12 oz. (3 sticks) melted slightly warm butter

6oz. 55% semisweet broken down into chip size

10x sugar for dusting the Bouchons

Directions

Sift flour, cocoa, and salt in a bowl and set a side.

In a large bowl mix eggs and sugar until pale in color.

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Then mix in vanilla, add about 1/3 of dry ingredients and then about 1/3 of butter and back and forth till mixed. Add chips and combine.

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Get mixture into molds and bake for 20-25 minutes.

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Let cool and dust with confectioners sugar. A suggestion is to serve with ice cream.

Thomas Keller's Chocolate Bouchon made by me

Thomas Keller’s Chocolate Bouchon made by me

OMG! these are FORKING AWESOME! This recipe doesn’t need a tweak anywhere. It so rich, moist and deep with chocolate flavor. It’s FORKING better than nearly every dessert I’ve eaten out.

Forking Good

Forking Good

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The Veggetti Spiral Vegetable Slicer verses The Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer

Veggetti

Veggetti

I just got a Veggetti spiral vegetable slicer. It’s basically built like a pencil sharpener for zucchini. You insert the zucchini and twist and then you have pasta shaped vegetable strands in spaghetti or linguini shape. They suggest you can use carrots but I tried one and got the forking thing all jammed up.

I also have the Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer.

Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer

Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer

The Paderno also promises to do carrots but it doesn’t. The Paderno has three easy to clean blades for small or thicker strands and it also can do ribbons.

Pros for the Veggetti

The Veggetti is easy to work

The Veggetti takes up less room

The Veggetti cost less (about $12.00)

The Veggetti does produce a thinner strand

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CONS for the Veggetti

The Veggetti is VERY HARD TO CLEAN. The Blades are almost impossible to clean and the vegetable gets the whole forking middle all clogged up.

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Pros for the Paderno

The Paderno is easy to work

The Paderno cuts the zucchini three different ways

The Paderno is very easy to clean

CONS for the Paderno

The Paderno takes up more room

The Paderno cost more (about $30.00)

I’m not so sure I’ll ever forking use the Veggetti again. I do prefer it’s thinner strands but I doubt I’ll ever be able to get it clean again.

In my forking opinion the Paderno Wins over the Forking Veggetti.

Forking Truth

Forking Truth

 

 

Dining with Dogs at Pei Wei in Glendale AZ

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We were forking on the way to AJ’s BBQ and forking discovered it wasn’t open. I’m not sure if it was closed because it’s winter here or if they only have it on Saturdays.

So we had to find another forking place with a patio that allows dogs.

I noticed a nice size almost empty patio only a few shops down from AJ’s. It was Pei Wei Asian Bistro. I know it isn’t the forking best for Asian Food but I thought I remembered it was OK for Green Curry. I walked in and asked if I could bring my dogs on the patio and was told yes. I found out they changed their forking menu and no longer serve Green Curry.  I ordered a few plates. Then I tried to get silverware and had a hard time finding silverware without forking paper stuck to it.

Then I sat on the patio with my party and waited.

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The forking food arrives.

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So here’s the Kung Pao.

Kung Pao from Pei Wei Glendale AZ

Kung Pao from Pei Wei Glendale AZ

I tasted one chunk of beef from the Kung Pao. The Beef was very spongy and very salty. I thought the dogs would get sick if they tried it.

And here’s the Ginger Broccoli.

Ginger Broccoli with Chicken from Pei Wei Glendale AZ

Ginger Broccoli with Chicken from Pei Wei Glendale AZ

I tasted a chunk of chicken. The chicken was tender but had a very strange taste from the sauce. The forking sauce was very salty and very sweet. It tasted like salty soy sauce mixed with some kind of sweet syrup laced with chemicals. I didn’t taste anything like ginger in this dish. The broccoli looked good but had a very strong taste to it like maybe it was decomposing. They gave me a very generous portion of brown rice but it just soaked up that forking flavor from the sauce and tasted forking contaminated to me.

I gave my dogs some to taste.

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He ate it but I could tell by looking at him what he thought.

My other dog was looking at a bird instead of the food.

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This is how my dogs look when they enjoy food.

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And this is how they forking look at Pei Wei

"What the Fork is this?"

“What the Fork is this?”

Even if it was just an off day.

I don’t think we will be going back to Pei Wei.

Not Worth a Fork

Not Worth a Fork

Forking Truth

Forking Truth