Frita Cubana Sliders (for Krystal’s Virtual Baby Shower!)

When I first started this blog back in 2007, I wanted to archive the recipes that we threw together on a weeknight in our little Japanese kitchen. I never gave much thought to the people actually reading it, except maybe close friends and family. But then something happened over the next year or two – [...]

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Beef & Green Chile Chili

October in Santa Cruz: 70-80 degree weather engages in a battle with the coastal fog. Usually they settle this amicably and agree to take turns. In terms of dinner (because it’s all about the food), this means a week of barbecues followed by a week of chili and soup, or “earthquake weather,” as we call [...]

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Flank Steak Tacos with Chipotle Sour Cream

It’s no coincidence that the last five post titles have the word grilled in them. We’ve been embracing warm evenings and hot coals while we can! A quick rub of cumin, paprika, and hot sauce gives this economical cut of steak lots of flavor. Then you slice it thinly and pile it on top of [...]

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Stout & Cheddar Meatloaf

Everyone has their favorite meatloaf recipe. It’s one of those classic American comfort foods that doesn’t photograph particularly well, but definitely deserves a place in a food blog. Every family adds their own special touch, like this Asian Meatloaf with a Sweet & Spicy Glaze that Dustin and I came up with last year, inspired [...]

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Ultimate Sriracha Burger

If you go through the Rooster Sauce bottle as often as we do, then you probably know that they recently came out with a Sriracha Cookbook, and in it you will find a variety of recipes ranging from “Srirachili con carne” & bacon-Sriracha cornbread to peach-Sriracha sorbet. This stuff is versatile!  (Photo from Amazon.com) They [...]

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Asian Meatloaf with a Sweet & Spicy Glaze

I have to admit I was more the souf chef for this one. Dustin comes up with the greatest recipes. I’m proud to have a husband who enjoys being in the kitchen! I had an idea a few weeks ago about making some sort of Asian flavored burger. He was thinking along the lines of [...]

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Egg-Noodles with Green Garlic, Chiles, Cilantro & Steak

Dustin thought up this comforting dish using my leftover steak from dinner the night before at Cafe Cruz, where I conquered the delicious (and unwieldy) open-faced “Bistro Steak Sandwich” – a piece of garlic bread, topped with a perfectly medium rare steak, and finished off with a handful of thin, crispy onion rings. Well, I [...]

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Flank Steak with Arugula Pesto & Roasted Fingering Potatoes

On the eve of St. Patrick’s day I inadvertently made a lovely green pesto as an accompaniment for pan-fried flank steak, roasted fingerings, and a salad with avocado and mushrooms. Using arugula for the pesto gave it a nice spicy edge; so easy to make and delicious on many things! Dustin made a creamy lime [...]

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Piroshki — Yippee!

Last weekend my family and I made piroshki–a recipe that’s been passed down from my Mom’s Russian side of the family. My brother and I have always loved making this meal. It generally takes 3 people. Mom was always the “roller,” rolling the dough to the perfect thin, oval shape. One of us was the [...]

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Open-faced Chipotle Cheese Steak Sandwiches w/ Avocado, Tomato and Red Onion

Sometimes just a single store bought ingredient can inspire an entire meal. That was the case here. My parents sent us a jar of chipotle cheese dip in our last package, and I jumped right on it because I have a weakness for cheese — especially the kind in a jar that you eat warm [...]

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Pan-Fried Steaks with Sautéed Mushrooms & Caramelized Cauliflower

We sure miss having a BBQ available to us, but meals like this can tide us over until then. A note on steaks: The selection at our supermarket is a little sparse. We got lucky with these petite fillets on this day. There are only a few packages of them available, so you never know [...]

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Feliz Navidad: Mexican Pizzas and Christmas Tree Decorating

There’s nothing tricky about making these. Eating something far different from stuffing and mashed potatoes was the goal here. At home my Mom makes turkey enchiladas the day after Thanksgiving, and we eat them in the same room as our decorated Christmas tree that we’d cut down earlier that day. Since we couldn’t find a [...]

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