My First Blog Award: Thanks, Sharon!

Sharon from Culinary Adventures of a New Wife gave me the "I Love You This Much" blog award! Thank you, Sharon!


Also, many thanks to everyone who has stopped by the blog. I've had a lot of fun writing it and it's come a long way over the last 9 months. Also, thanks to all of the food bloggers who continue to set the bar for excellent food writing and from whom I draw inspiration. Part of receiving this award is the fun of passing it on, so here are my picks:

Foolin' Around in the Kitchen- Follow Kim's entertaining adventures in the kitchen and the yummy creations that result from the occasional "oops". Like myself, she's new to the food-blogging scene and I think she's done a great job with her blog in the last few months.

Alice Q. Foodie- Alice's blog was one of the first I started following and she has inspired me ever since. She's also the first to put my blog into her link list, starting the transition of a quiet food journal with bad pictures to a public blog with slightly better pictures. Hehe. Thank you, Alice!

Thanks again, Sharon!

Kiyo's Japanese Restaurant

M. found this cozy little restaurant tucked away in the Gaslamp. I don't normally brave the crowded Gaslamp quarter for meals, so it was a rare visit to the area for me and D. Kiyo's seems to be a family-owned business, with Kiyo-san himself behind the sushi bar.

Sorry, the picture above is blurry. My camera freaks out a little during evening light conditions.

D. doesn't eat sushi, so he looked at the cooked offerings. We were both a little floored to see that the prices were pretty high for basics like chicken and beef teriyaki. These weren't combinations, either, just a la carte items served with salad, soup, and rice. D. went for the beef teriyaki, while I chose the chirashi sushi.

Beautiful, isn't it? My only complaint about this dish was that the fish could have been fresher. Despite the vibrant colors seen in the photo, once the slices were unearthed, it was clear they had lost a little bit of their color. The knife skills of Kiyo-san (who came to check on us and to inquire about our impressions of his masterpiece) are impressive.

It's pricey, but visit for a quiet and cozy evening of sushi. Avoid the cooked dishes. We sat at a table, but if there's a next time, I'd sit at the bar. Word on the interweb has it that the best of their inventory and repertoire are showcased at the bar.

Kiyo's Japanese Restaurant
531 F Street
San Diego, CA 92101

Pasta Carbonara with Carrots and Beets

This isn't anything outrageously creative, but I'm posting it because the pictures are so damn pretty. I've been itching to make this pasta carbonara recipe from Chow again. This time, I had baby beets and carrots from the CSA that were rapidly softening. I'm displeased with the quality of Tierra Miguel's root veggies. Whether we put them in the fridge, leave them out, cut the tops off, leave the tops on, they become soft within 2 days. I don't know why.

Anyhoo, I needed to use them, so I decided to throw them into the carbonara. I undercooked the linguine, making it really al dente, but it tasted pretty good. This is the pasta in the pan, right after the eggs were added. The heat needs to be off, unless anyone enjoys scrambled eggs in their pasta.

The final product:

This is a great quick meal. It takes 15 minutes to prep and 10 more to put together.