Pecan Tarts

We had a company potluck last week and I decided to make dessert.  Hubs picked up a great local dessert cookbook from Hawaii when he went back to visit last fall.  I found a recipe in there for pecan tarts.  My sister made pecan tassies using a different recipe a while back and I've always wanted to make them after I tasted how good they were.  I was excited that I could finally put my mini muffin pan to work!  The recipe was quite simple and did not call for a lot of ingredients.  The only time consuming part was having to press the dough into each individual cups.  The recipe yielded 4 dozen tartlets which was more than enough for everyone at work so I had extra to take home and bring over to share with my family.

Pecan Tarts
From Hawaii's Best Local Desserts

Ingredients:

1 package cream cheese (8 oz.), softened
1 cup butter or margarine, room temperature
2 cups flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven at 325 degrees.

Combine cream cheese and butter, mixing until well blended.  Add flour, mix well.  Divide dough into 4 parts; divide each part into 12 balls.  Press each ball onto bottom and sides of miniature muffin pans.

Combine eggs, brown sugar and vanilla; stir in pecans.  Spoon into pastry shells, filling each cup.  Bake for 30 minutes or until pastry is golden brown.  Cool 5 minutes; remove from pans.

That's it!  Enjoy!

Genki Sushi

A while ago, my sister told me that she had passed by Uwajimaya in the new Renton location and saw a sign that said Genki Sushi coming soon.  A few months later, Genki Sushi opened and I am happy it did.  Genki is a Japanese kaiten sushi chain with locations internationally as well as in Hawaii and has recently made its trek to Seattle.    

What I love and miss most about Genki Sushi is its spicy tuna (gunkan).  I tried it here but it was not as good as I had hoped for.  Don't get me wrong.  Overall, the food was good but it's just not the same as Genki's in Hawaii.  

Here, we tried the spicy bomb (inari sushi with spicy tuna).  The sweetness of the fried tofu overpowered the taste of the tuna.  I forgot to take a picture of my spicy tuna gunkan!

Spicy Bomb

One of their speciality rolls

  

Hub's favorite unagi sushi (eel)

Tonkatsu Ramen ($3.00)

I had to try the ramen.  This is the first time I've seen noodles on their menu.  For presentation, I topped off the ramen with a piece of shrimp tempura from the conveyor belt.  I liked the noodles but the soup had too much sesame oil in it.

Compared to their first location in Queen Anne, it seems like they have dropped their prices here with many plates ranging from $1.00 to $3.00.  The decor also more closely resembles the Hawaii franchises which is another plus.   Then after dinner, we walked over to Uwajimaya and picked up this for dessert! 

Steamed Cheese Cake

Aloha Ramen

Aloha Ramen has become my favorite ramen shop in Seattle since it opened last year.  It still doesn't beat the ones I've had in Hawaii, of course.  We recently went there for dinner and noticed that their menu has expanded.  I guess that some of their specials were popular so they decided to add it to their regular menu.  Aloha Ramen is a really small mom and pop shop (owned by a Japanese couple from Hawaii) so it means you have to go there early to grab a table or you'll end up on the waiting list.  They open only 5 days a week for dinner and if they run out of ramen, you're out of luck.

We were one of the first few customers in the door so we were seated immediately.  Hubs ordered the usual mini ramen + mini charsiu garlic rice combo.  Their portions are pretty big for a mini combo.  He had the tan tan ramen, a spicy sesame flavored soup with noodles, roast pork, bamboo shoots, green onions and yu choi.   The rice dish is pretty good and lucky me, we had enough leftovers for me to take to work the next day.  

My sister-in-law was in town which was the main reason we wanted to go to Aloha Ramen.  She ordered the mapo tofu ramen which was one of their specials that was converted over to their regular menu.  She really liked the ramen and told us that this was one of the best food she had in Seattle.  I need to try this next time.  

I had the Aloha Ramen special, a sesame flavored miso noodle soup with roast pork, corn, bamboo shoots, green onion and kamaboko (fish cake).  It was good but my favorite is still the tan tan men probably because I prefer the spiciness of the flavor which adds more depth.   

We also ordered the gyoza to start off with but it didn't get to us until we were halfway done with our bowl of noodles.  I didn't like the gyoza when we had it last time and my opinion this visit remained the same.  The pork filling is too soft and moist for my taste.  It almost tasted like it wasn't cooked through enough.  

Aloha Ramen is highly recommended.  The service is great and you get the bang for your buck.  I was initially attracted to this place because of its close ties with Hawaii and I still enjoy coming back here time and time again because their ramen is one of the best in the Seattle area.  

Mobile Chowdown III

A lineup of mobile food carts gathered next to Safeco Field for a foodie event last week.  When I heard that several Portland street vendors were going to be there, I made sure I circled the date on my calendar.  It also happened to be the first day that the Mariners game tickets went on sale so hubs, his little sis and I decided to head out early to beat the lunch crowd.  We learned our lesson from the first Mobile Chowdown event.  The lines were endless and we waited for over an hour just to get food.  We were not going to be fooled again.

We got there around 10:30 am and already saw lines forming for some of the more popular vendors like Marination Mobile, KOi Fusion and Potato Champion.  I've been wanting to try KOi Fusion (Korean Oregon Infusion BBQ) ever since our last Portland trip.  Their menu is very similar to Marination's without the Hawaiian influence.  We already tried Marination Mobile last time so we went straight for KOi.  We stood in line for about 20 minutes and ordered bulgogi taco, pork taco, short ribs burrito, and kimchi quesadilla.  We originally wanted K-sliders but they were all sold out.  Hubs said the food was overrated but I liked it.  However, we both agreed that Marination's tacos trumped KOi's.  I think it was Marination's signature slaw that gave it a nice kick.

While waiting in line at KOi Fusion, we took advantage of the other food vendors with little or no lines by sending one person to grab food while the rest of us remained in line.  We tried the mixed mushroom pizza with an ultra thin crust from Veraci Pizza.   The pizza was cooked in a wood fire oven on wheels!
 

Then we had a poutine from Skillet.  The poutine was a mish mash of fries, pulled pork, cheese, cilantro and gravy sauce.  The pulled pork was tender but lacking in taste.  Good thing for the sauce and fries!

After we finally reached the beginning of the line at KOi Fusion, we placed our order and tested our luck at a cornhole toss game right next door at Chipotle while we waited for our food.  We walked away with a gift certificate for a free meal, thanks to hubs.

I'm looking forward to the next foodie event!  Even better, it's finally spring and I can't wait for summer to be here!  

Shoki Ramen House

Shoki Ramen House was highly recommended from several sources I read especially from GO RAMEN!  When hubs suggested we go there before heading to the airport, I was game.  I love ramen.  I think noodles are the best food invented ever!  Anyone who knows me know that I dream of traveling to Japan one day to admire the abundance of cherry blossoms in bloom and eat authentic ramen.  I am praying hard for that day to come.

We arrived at Shoki around noon and all the tables were already taken. We waited for about 10 minutes before we got seated.  The service was fast and the staff was friendly. We brought our baby nephew with us and they were quick to accommodate our needs.  You can order the ramen in different sizes - small, regular, or large.  Hubs ordered the combo mini curry rice with regular tan tan men, a spicy shoyu based broth with minced beef and goma (sesame seeds).  Japanese curry is normally sweet but this had an odd sourness to it.  It was weird.

My sister-in-law ordered the combo mini chashu (roast pork) rice with regular shio ramen, a sea-salt based broth.

I was almost tempted to order the soy milk ramen but I opted for the tan tan men instead.  My ramen was topped with spinach, menma (bamboo shoots), green onions, and seaweed.  I was kind of disappointed that it didn't come with chashu.  Overall, it was good but not better than Aloha Ramen in Seattle.  Anyone hungry for ramen?

Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken Wings

I made these scrumptious chicken wings for my mother-in-law's birthday.  The chicken tastes good alone or with blue cheese dipping sauce.  I liked these because no frying was required and the combination of parmesan and basil was absolutely amazing!

Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken Wings Recipe
From Steamy Kitchen

Serves 4
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt (1/2 tsp table salt)
2 1/2 pounds chicken wings
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (or melted butter)
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt (like Lawry's)
1 cup blue cheese dressing
1-2 teaspoons Dijon mustard (or to taste)

1. Preheat oven to 425F. In a small bowl, mix together the oregano, rosemary, cumin and salt. Lay the chicken wings on a baking sheet and season the chicken wings with this mixture. 

2. Bake the chicken wings for 20-25 minutes. While the chicken is baking, mix together the oil, fresh basil, garlic, parmesan cheese and seasoning salt. 

3. In a separate bowl, mix together the blue cheese dressing with the mustard (this is your dipping sauce)

3. When the chicken is cooked through, toss the wings with the garlic/cheese/butter sauce. Serve with the blue cheese/mustard dressing.
 

Cold Somen Salad

On Day 4 of our trip, we drove to Lake Tahoe for some sightseeing.  The weather was nicer than we had hoped for during our entire stay and that day was no exception.  I learned many fun facts about the second deepest lake in the U.S. that I never knew before.  This trip was quite educational.  Did you know that Lake Tahoe has never been known to freeze over because of the huge volume of lake water?  Also, the lake holds over 39 trillion gallons of water, enough to cover the size of California to a depth of 14 inches!  Very interesting, right?  

After a quick stop at North Lake Tahoe, we rushed back home to prepare dinner for my mother-in-law's birthday.  I was in charge of the salad and appetizer so I decided to make Cold Somen Salad and Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken Wings. 

Cold Somen Salad Recipe

Somen salad is a Japanese noodle based salad served with a vinegar-shoyu mixture and variety of garnish.  I remember this as one of my favorite lunches back in the school days while growing up in Hawaii. You can eat this as a side or as a meal by itself and is very simple to make.  

Serves 8-9

1 package somen noodles

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 T seseame oil

1/2 head lettuce

1/2 lb. ham, slivered

2-3 eggs, beaten

1 pkg. komoboko, slivered (optional)

1 cucumber, slivered

1 stalk green onion, chopped

sesame seeds (optional)

Cook somen according to package, rinse and drain.  Be careful not to overcook.  In sauce pan, combine chicken broth, equal parts sugar, rice vinegar and soy sauce, and sesame oil. Bring to boil, let simmer for 5 minutes, turn off heat, add seseme seeds (optional), and let chill.  Cook eggs, let cool and cut into strips. Place noodles on a large tray or platter and garnish with lettuce, ham, eggs, komoboko (fish cake), cucumber and green onions.  You can add as little or as much garnish as you like.  Serve with sauce.  Bon appetit!