Sunday Brunch + Flore = YUM
Sometimes a girl just needs a Denver omelette, biscuits and gravy, potatoes with ketchup and hot sauce, and a friend to split it with her. every Sat and Sunday from 10am-1pm people line up for Flore’s hearty and tasty vegan brunch in Silver Lake. big ol’ plates piled high with some good food. oh, and they have TWO dessert cases. one with flaky pastries and cookies by the cash register and the other with cakes and pies. allison and i got a pain au chocolat and a blackberry puff pastry thing (pinwheel maybe?) to finish off our meal even though i swore “i’m gonna burst!”.. yum yum yum, the perfect ending to a great breakkie. i even had plenty of scraps for another meal later. So, if you go and they say it’s gonna be 30 minutes for a table, wait..it’s worth it.
THE BEST BAKLAVA OF MY LIFE..
vegan baklava is pretty hard to find (at least for me), so when i found a bunch of different flavors in the bakery case at Super King market last week, i freaked out! i had to control myself and not get a pre-packed container filled with about 15 pieces. instead, i opted for a make-your-own combo. i got 5 pieces. one was filled with cashews, another had pistachio, and 2 had walnuts. i couldn’t even wait to get home to try one. i was REALLY hungry and really excited and i ripped open the container as soon as i got in the car. (that’s why there are only 4 pieces pictured). this baklava was melt-in-your-mouth, sticky, sweet, and flaky.. perfection.
HALVA ..HALWA..CHALVA..HALEWEH whatever you call it, it’s melt-in-your-mouth goodness, as far as i’m concerned..
Sesame tahini is good on pita, falafels, and salad..but, you add a little sugar and then you have this marvelous candy- HALVA. I first tried this Middle Eastern dessert years ago, forgot about it, and then recently saw some and picked up a package of chocolate-vanilla marble flavor at my local ethnic super-store Super King. It’s really sweet and really delicate, melts in your mouth, and gets stuck in your teeth..and i love it!
Some brands contain egg and not good ingredients, like high fructose corn syrup. i tried to get a decent brand with alright ingredients (it is dessert after all, so i know it’s full of sugar) and not the cheapest one on the shelf. cheap usually indicates cheap ingredients, if you’ve never noticed. and don’t be scared of the word saponariae root, it’s just a flower. one of those desserts that is just accidentally vegan by default is always a good thing in my book.
ps. i’ve seen it at Gelson’s in LA too, but it’s gonna be way cheaper at an ethnic market.
FOOD PORN FRIDAY! strawberry whip pie! :) mmmm.
make this while you can still get strawberries…
i made this to say goodbye to the summer. i love strawberries and have fond memories of a strawberry cool whip pie my mom used to make for me. i made this one with my fave product, Healthy Top. just make or buy a graham cracker crust, mix pureed strawberries with prepared Healthy Top whipped cream and add to crust. chill for a few hours (who am i kiddin, i eat a slice within a few minutes) to set and serve. top with additional sliced strawberries to make it pretty. i hope you like it as much as i do.
*click pix to make ‘em big…
sunday scoops
Scoops opened in Highland Park recently and i went with my girls Cat and Bella to check it out. i love this place. now there are TWO near my place! HOORAY!
i got raspberry Tang and pistachio poppyseed. i still can’t tell you which was better. yum. AND, fun fact about Scoops, when u order the one scoop you get 2 scoops, 2 different flavors. each of our ice cream cones were $2.90. SUCH A STEAL!
ps. Bella eats her ice cream kinda funny. i do this too sometimes, chisel it down with the spoon. i love that picture. :)
Wedding Cake Toppers.
I made these for my good friends Melissa and Ted. Here is a behind-the-scenes look, for those of you who asked me..
2 sided Russian Dolls. Ted as a walrus. Meliss as a seal.
BBQs, Horseshoes and Fireworks…OH MY!
that’s how i spent my 4th of July.
*click on pix for full image.
SCOOPS! One of my favorite places in LA!
Scoops has THE BEST ice cream in LA as far as I’m concerned. Maybe it’s cos their flavors always change, maybe it’s because they have vegan and regular options, maybe it’s because it’s pretty cheap, or maybe it’s because it’s just fucking delicious! It’s pretty close to my house and always on the list of places to take out-of-towners. Over the years I have tried some crazy and some crazy good flavors like peanut butter Oreo, strawberry balsamic, pistachio rosewater, strawberry lychee, kabocha squash, blueberry lavender, coffee molasses, salty chocolate, and brown bread (made with Grape-nuts). They recently celebrated their 7 year anniversary and in honor of their most popular flavors did 7 kinds of brown bread and 7 kinds of Oreo, and yes, i went.
Here are some pix from over the years. click on ‘em for a close-up. MMM MM!
NORTH CAROLINA, part 2..Raleigh!
Walking around Raleigh was fun and mellow. We explored my friend Starr’s neighborhood with her dog Ruth on our first real day there. Then the next couple days we hung around in downtown Raleigh, visiting Videri chocolates, Raleigh Denim, a cool park with a weird statue( I love statues, especially this one), and of course if i’m in Raleigh, i’m gonna make another trip to Remedy Diner. mmm cheesecake.
FOOD PORN at its finest…oh man.
