Amy's Kitchen

My friend Amy can cook.  She makes amazing meals and my favorite thing to hear in the world is "when can you come over?  I want to cook for you."  She is so passionate about food and I love hearing her talk about food.  I love going to the restaurants that she adores because I know it is the real deal.  Here is her fabulous blog with some awesome recipes!  Below are some pictures from a recent dinner she hosted.

Blue Fin Sushi Buffet

I love this buffet, where quality and quantity merge nicely.  My cousin-in-law, who regularly goes to sushi buffets in LA, declared the sushi rolls and sashimi here to be the best of the bunch.  I loved the arugula salad and jelly fish that I could get, along with seared salmon rolls, salmon sashimi, as well as a respectable selection of chinese stir fries.  There was also chicken teriyaki, katsu, tempura, along with mini korean pancakes and a veggie soon-do-boo like soup.

Just be careful with the drinks - the cups are huge and the servers fill it up diligently, so don't get too filled up with the liquids.

Summer Salads

Salmon Nicoise Salad - Nordstrom Cafe

Greek Salad - Panera Bread

I love salad in the summer time.  It's so refreshing that it's no wonder that it's exactly what we crave to combat the summer heat.  I've had my share of great salads this summer and posted my favorite ones.

Solo Sushi

My mother-in-law relieves me once a week and practically kicks me out of the house for the day.  It is such a nice break.  I get to eat my meal in at my pace and actually taste my food.  I love being a mommy, but especially love it when Jayden is being well taken care of while I get a break!

5 years!

This past weekend was our five year anniversary.  We went on a road trip the weekend before - that's how we like to celebrate our wedding anniversary.  And this past weekend, we were happy to spend quality time with Joe's sister and brother.  We went to the flight museum and had a great time. 

Din Tai Fung

Another visit to Din Tai Fung.  It was one of my first outings with Jayden in April.  When I thought of which restaurant to go to, it wasn't about the food.  It was about which location was the most baby friendly.  Baby friendly qualifications include cleanliness, accessibility with a stroller.  I have found restaurants at the mall to be the most baby friendly - you also get a meal and an outing in one trip. 

Tofu

Stuffed puffy fried tofu

Soft tofu with meat and enoki mushrooms

I'm always amazed at all the different tofu products that are out there.  There is at least three different types of "plain" tofu - soft, medium, firm.  There are many different types of fried tofu - dense, puffy, and of course, stinky.  There is also soft tofu pudding, which is one of my favorite desserts.  I love the endless combinations you can do with tofu - there are ton of traditional ways to cook it - add it in soup, make mapo tofu, or be creative and come up with your own dish!