The Vegetti Spiral Slicer: My New Favorite Kitchen Toy

I have recently gone from being omnivorous to being pescatarian, but I have been eating vegetarian for the most part. Now it wasn't an easy transition: I was a meat lover for years and I would try anything on my travels and ate things that most people would never touch (eg: 7-Eleven hot dogs). But I decided to make the jump for a few personal reasons and I have been happy with this decision. I essentially only eat fish when I get a craving after a big workout or a long hike, but I keep it to a minimum. Who can forget Finding Nemo's most famous quote: "Fish are friends, not food". I had to change my way of thinking along the way and find new staple food to keep in my kitchen, while still making my cooking fun and delicious.

Going cold turkey was the only way to make this happen, but of course it meant that my first month of meatless dishes looked like....well... it looked like something was missing. As they often say on the show The Taste: "Where's the protein?" I still love to host diner parties and cook for my friends, and even though I will never try to impose my personal beliefs on others, I enjoy the challenge of treating them to a meatless but tasty dinner that hopefully will inspire them to cook more vegetarian dishes in the future. My quest for the perfect Vegetarian party dish had started. 

There have been some hits and there have been a lot of misses, but practice makes perfect and I persevered. Along the way I peeled, I boiled, I steamed and I puréed and green veggies don't scare me anymore: I have come to love every produce in the grocery store (except celery, now that's just nasty). I've also always wanted to keep having fun in the process, whether I'm having fun cooking or plating for a nice picture. And after too many visits to Bed Bath and Beyond, I finally gave in and bought myself a Vegetti Spiral Slicer.

Whether you're looking to cut back on the controversial gluten, or you simply want to find a fun way to eat vegetables for you and your family, the Vegetti will become one of your favorite kitchen utensil.

I have used it repeatedly with Squash and I have yet to experience with more veggies, but here are two of my recent dishes.

The picture on the left is a baked portabello mushroom with grilled cheese on a bed of yellow squash Vegetti with a homemade tomato sauce. The picture on the right is Squash Vegetti in a bowl of Gazpacho.

Grilled Feta

There are times when the will to cook is overpowered by the lack of motivation....especially after a few joints. Our primal stoner instinct tells us to pick up the phone and call the closest pizza place for delivery, but as long as you have a few ingredients in your fridge you can make something good and somewhat healthy in less than five minutes (which can be less than the amount of time spent on the phone with the person taking the order).

After watching Hell's kitchen on TV, I got hungry and decided to cook during the commercial break. I grabbed a big firm tomato from the fridge and cut it up in slices, I then grabbed the big block of Feta cheese that I had bought a day earlier and sliced it in the middle. I covered the tomatoes with the two thin halves of feta cheese, drizzled some olive oil on top, added salt, black pepper, basil and thyme and threw it in the oven at 425 degrees for 15 minutes (which is usually about two commercial breaks later). I resumed watching TV and 15 minutes dumber, I got up from the couch and turned the oven to "broil" for three more minutes. when the cheese is a little grilled at the top take it out and enjoy this easy dish with some fresh bread or some naan. Make sure you don't leave it too long though, or the yummy sauce at the bottom of the dish will be all gone.

"La Romantica" - Clichy

Paris is full of surprises. I was recently treatd to one of the best meals I had this year. At the end of the most dreaded subway line 13,  in a prestine location in the heart of Clichy, lies an Italian restaurant full of charm. Who knew they had fancy restaurants there?

We left early to get to the restaurant because taking the awful line 13 in the subway can be quite an adventure....especially during rush hours. It is the only line in Paris where people are paid to stand on the platform all day to help push people in the packed trains before the doors close on them (just like in Japan). It also usually breaks down at least once between two stations where the air conditioning stops working for a few minutes and the the temperature rises quickly. You will most likely be touched inappropriately, you will have to hold on to everything you slightly care about (like your wallet, cell phone, Ipad), and you might not even  be able to get out the train at your preferred stop if the train is packed with douchebags. But the ride was well worth it that night.

Needless to say, if you can avoid taking this line to get to the restaurant, I would highly recommend taking a cab. Then again, if you can afford this restaurant you can probably afford the cab ride there. Note: They even have valet parking is you decide to drive.

Once we reached our destination we stopped by my sister's place to enjoy a perfectly rolled spliff before meeting the rest of our group at the Restaurant. A much needed break after the subway nightmare.

The restaurant is located inside the courtyard of a residential building. There is an outdoor patio that is covered in the unlikely event of a downpour from the sky and the staff makes you feel like a thousand bucks the minute you walk in (probably because you're about to spend that much in the restaurant). The staff was fairly young, the waiters all sounded Italian, and the atmosphere was upscale. After we sat down and ordered our drinks the waiter managed to tell us what the specials were for the evening. When he was done listing the mouth watering items, he looked at our confused faces and asked us politely if he had talked too fast. I simply answered that it wasn't his fault and that we were probably thinking too slow. Our uptight waiter looked at me and my sister, stared at our eyes, and realized what we had done a few minutes earlier.....all of a sudden he turned from overly polite to very casual, even telling jokes and goofing around.

The friend who was treating us ordered the pasta tasting for the entire table which included an appetizer, four plates of pasta, and a dessert. He also ordered a delicious wine: Gregoletto Rosso. Since it was a blind tasting I couldn't write down the items and the waiter would tell us what he was bringing every time but I was too busy eating to listen to his shenanigans. However I did manage to take a few pictures.

Mango Purée with Asparagus Cream

Caprese Salad with Tapenade

Ravioli  dello scrittoe all' astice europeo

Tagliolini with Zucchini, tomatoes, and garlic

Rigatoni with eggplant, fresh tomatoes, smoked cheese, pine nuts

The last pasta dish was the main reason we went to this restaurant. Their specialty dish is the Leggera di taglioni "Romantica" (pasta with sage cream flambéed in a wheel of parmesan). Many people had ordered it before us around our table and we had had the chance to witness the ritual a few times before this dish reached our table. We got to know a little more about our waiter as he mixed the fresh pasta around in the melting cheese and even though it tasted a little bit like "fettuccine Alfredo" it was a great way to end the pasta tasting. 

But it wasn't over yet.

  

Fruit salad, Strawberries soaked in balsamic, Raspberry sherbet and chocolate mousse

Coffee and sweet treats

After almost four hours at the table, we were the last guests to leave the restaurant with a full stomach and great memories. 

www.laromantica.fr

"Les Piétons" - Paris

It seems like every year I have to travel to France for a wedding. It's always a good excuse to see my family and my friends, while binge eating along the way in some of my favorite restaurants.

There are a lot of things I look forward to when I go to France during the summer: The longer days (the sun isn't as lazy as it is in California), the bakeries, hanging out with my sister, riding my mother's scooter in the sun, the cheeses, getting home cooked meal from my pampering mother, laughing with old friends, the authentic restaurants, the Hash, the beautiful old buildings and the yogurt section in the supermarket.

There are also a few things I don't look forward to when I go back to France such as the Subway, the price of the beer in bars, Riding my mother's scooter in the rain, the smell of the subway, the exchange rate for my crappy dollars, the lack of good weed, Parisians in the subway, and of course, the "Zero tolerance" policy on Marijuana in a country where wine is served to Kids and Grogs (Rhum, lemon and warm water) are used to cure a cold....or anything you might want to cure if a bottle of liquor is laying around the kitchen.

There is nothing like waking up in the morning and smelling the scent of bread being baked in the next door bakery. I usually walk around the streets of Paris in my sandals and my hoodie, which can get tricky when the weather changes and rain starts to pour, but it allows me to bring a little bit of my Californian spirit back to Paris. Thanks to some of my good friends, there is always at least one joint waiting for me on the day of my arrival and there's usually more inhaled afterwards. The sunglasses are a great tool when going out in public after a toke, but they do look a little douchy when worn in the dark subway. But one thing is sure: Paris feels like paradise for gourmet stoners.

If you ever visit Paris, you will most likely end up walking by the famous museum known as "Beaubourg" (located in the center of Paris in the 4th quarter) at some point or another. No matter what time of the day you visit this neighborhood, you need to stop by this excellent Bar/Restaurant called "Les Piétons" serving original Spanish Tapas and a delicious Sangria at a reasonable price. They have an amazing lunch menu including three Tapas of your choice, one Dessert and one Glass of Sangria for 12.50 euros which is a perfect option if you have more than one person at the table because you will get to try a variety of Tapas.

My father and I ordered Chorizo cooked in Cider, Empanadas, Cheese, Charcuterie, Fried fish, and Potatoes with aioli. The portions were actually quite big and if the desserts hadn't looked so good I would have stopped after Tapas but when my Crème Brûlée came, I devoured it in less time than it took the waiter to bring it from the kitchen to our table. The staff is very friendly, which is somewhat of a rare occurrence in Paris and we got the chance to chat with the owner for a few minutes on our way out. It's harder to get a table at night because the restaurant is usually packed with a young crowd but it's located in a small street filled with cool shops where you can buy souvenirs while you wait for a table to clear.

http://www.lespietons.com/

Quick and Cheesy Snack

Being a gourmet stoner is often about finding an easy way to cook something tasty in the minimal amount of time. But is is also about cooking with whatever is left in my fridge since I was going to go shopping.....but then I got high.

Last night I was doing a few things in the apartment and I got a little hungry when my eyes stopped on the bad of olive bread sitting by the stove.

Since I had some Monterey jack cheese and some parmesan in the fridge I decided to grill some cheese on it. I turned the oven n, spread some pesto on the slices of bread, put the sclices of cheese on top, covered it with back pepper and parmesan and baked it in the oven for about ten minutes.

It was a great snack and I think it would be an amazing treat to have with a soup or as finger food during a party.

Homemade Moussaka

When I travel around the world some of my most memorable memories revolve around food. From street food to fancy restaurants, from munchies to locals cooking for us, food is always a catalyst for good times. One of my favorite cuisine so far has been Greek food, mainly because they use olive oil in everything. So when I get nostalgic I usually cook a mean moussaka that appease my withdrawal of Greek food for a while. My friends were coming over to spend the evening and I decided to make one.

Moussaka is the Greek version of the lasagna, (or maybe lasagna is the Italian version of the Moussaka....I don't know my food history very well) but instead of beef it's ground lamb and instead of layers of pasta there are layers of eggplants. It's an easy recipe and in Los Angeles the hardest part of that dish is actually finding ground lamb in a local store (I bought mine at Payless Internatioal Market - 10817 Venice Boulevard, Los Angeles -)

Ingredients (4 people):

- 2lbs of Ground Lamb

- 3 Eggplants

- Tomatoe Sauce

- One onion

- 200g of Feta Cheese

- 200g of Swiss/Gruyére Cheese

I would recommend preparing the eggplants slices first: Wash and cut the eggplants in slices with the skin on. Drizzle olive oil and let them roast in the oven for bout 15 minutes then sizzle them on a separate pan at a low temperature until they get a little soft. Keep the slices on a separate plate for later.

Cook the onions in a pan until golden, add the ground lamb and cook until the meat is almost ready, add red wine, crumbled feta cheese and a can of tomatoe sauce (or real tomatoe sauce if you have the time ;) and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

In a separate oven safe dish you will cover the entire bottom of the dish with eggplants, then you will add a layer of the meat sauce until you have completely covered the first layer of eggplants. Then you w ll add another layer of eggplants You will repeat that process until the dish is full. Add a layer of swisss/gruyére cheese at the top for a nice cheesy crust and put in the oven on 375 degrees for about 25 minutes or until cheese is browned to perfection.

Then enjoy this dish with a few friends and a nice glass of wine....mmmmmm. 

Happy New Year!

The new year started as every other year started: with a stomach ache....but the good kind. We celebrated new year's eve with a few close friends and had a fantastic time.

We started the night out with a few shots of Patron, which is probably not the best idea to start a night that is supposed to go at least until midnight. We then opened the first bottle of red wine and started rolling a few joints by the warm fire in the backyard. The night was still young. We started with some wild smoked salmon and a homemade dill dressing. The dressing was very much inspired by the IKEA dill sauce that you can buy in the food section. Last time I went to IKEA I wanted to buy some of that delicious dressing but they were sold out....there were probably a lot of other lazy cooks who had the same idea for their holiday meals. So I was forced to make my own.

Recipe:
- A Bunch of Dill
- Honey
- Sweet Mustard
- Olive Oil
- Black pepper and salt
- A few drops of lemon

It turned out to be good, even better than the Ikea version but then again trimming the dill into the bowl isn't the most fun thing to do one New Year's eve so here's the link to their awesome dressing: SÅS SENAP & DILL

After the salmon was done and we made a quick trip to the grocery store to get the paper plates that I had forgotten to bring, we shared a fe dozens of Jumbo shrimps cooked in white wine sauce. Note that at this point the white wine bottles are being opened and there is no stopping the mix of alcohol happening in my body.

- 30 Shrimps with shell on
- Onion
- Red pepper
- Cilantro
- Honey
- White wine
- Olive oil
- Black Pepper and Salt
- Some TLC

Cut the onions and the red peppers, sizzle in olive oil until golden, put a glass of wine, a teaspoon of Honey and let the shrimps simmer for a few minutes, throw the chopped cilantro in the pot and cover until shrimps are pink and ready to eat.

Everyone enjoyed the appetizers and it was then time to cut the cheese for the delicious cheese fondue we were about to have. after cutting the Comté, the Emmental and the Gruyère in pieces we poured some wine in the fondue pot, added a clove of crushed garlic and waited a few more minutes for the cheese to melt. Fondue is one of the best party food because not only is it fun but it also gets you drunk. believe it or not we did not have desert after the fondue but we did enjoy a digestive spliff.

Happy New Year Everyone!

A yummy breakfast after a "wake and bake"

I enjoy smoking herbs and I enjoying eating. I also happen to enjoy cooking when I'm stoned enough to want a delicious meal but not too stoned that I can't get my ass off the couch. I also love taking pictures of food. Not just the food I cook of course, but I do enjoy capturing images of my meals that will help me remember the cuIinary experiences I've had while I was stoned. Whether it is a delicious home cooked meal by my sister when she stays at my apartment, whether it's a hole-in-the-wall pizza place or some unforgettable take-out, or even a fancy restaurant where the waiters smile at the sight of our bloodshot eyes, tasty food is always a stoner's best friend.

I had talked about creating a blog for stoners who enjoy delicious food when they smoke instead of some cheap double cheese burgers from the fast-food restaurant closest to their place. And instead of taking the talk, I thought I'd just walk the walk.

Today I woke up and decided to cook breakfast. I don't usually get to have breakfast when I roll out of bed to get o work on weekdays. I celebrated the beginning on my three day weekend with a hot coffee and a joint and then I sat down in front of the computer. After a few minutes editing pictures from my last trip, I started noticing a growing need for some good food. I gathered all the ingredients for a tasty breakfast sandwich and got to work.

I did not take a picture of the first egg I broke that turned out to be all red inside. It was almost disgusting enough to kill my appetite. But I learned to overcome many instances in the past where my appetite should have been gone after witnessing things I should not have witnessed.

A slice of colby cheese on a toast in the oven, a cheese omelet with some cilantro, and some bacon on top. It could have been delicious if I hadn't burned the toast but I guess that's what happens when stoners cook: They forget things in the oven.

Note: The salad was just for the picture but I did eat it.