Tajrish Restaurant, Marina Del Rey, CA

I have had a lot of free time on my hands. I guess having the flu and being confined to my bed for four days will do that to a person. Haven't had a huge appetite until this afternoon when I started craving Persian food. I recently had lunch at my new favorite hidden find, The Ruby Room. Since that lunch I have been craving Persian food. So I am still confined to my bed but really, really hungry and determined to get Persian food. My google search returned ONE Persian restaurant, Tajrish, that met my simple criteria; first being they will deliver to my area and second, reasonable price point. Its a restaurant that I drive by often and have always wondered about their food so this was both my opportunity to give them a try and their opportunity to earn a regular customer. I ordered my favorite Persian combo plate beef koobideh kabab and chicken koobideh kabob with traditional saffron rice. Hold on, that's my food at the door. Time to eat...

Visually the food was picture perfect. Very generous portions, one entree would have been enough for two. Meal came with two pieces of lavash bread and butter. I ate about 1/4 of the meal. The taste wasn't what I was hoping for, it wasn't bad it just wasn't great. The rice was too dry and the meat was so so....not as fresh as I like it. The price was $12.99 plus tax and delivery was free. I will definitely give them one more shot...this meal wasn't my favorite but has potential! Maybe dinner one night next week:-)

Pros: Reasonably priced, generous portions, visually very appetizing
Cons: Rice was too dry, meat was so so

Comment: will give it one more shot!

When life gives you lemons...

Or a Ginger & Lemon Hot Toddy

Like most people this season I caught the flu and for the last four days-yes 1, 2, 3, 4 DAYS I have been in bed with the fever, sore throat, can't swallow flu. It has not been fun but like the sign says...when life gives you lemons, make lemonade or like I did make a Ginger & Lemon hot toddy. On Sunday morning when I realized that I had been caught by this flu I did an online search for homeopathic remedies for a sore throat and came across this a form called myhomeremedies. On this form was a recipe for hot water with ginger and so I sent Teddy to the store to pick up some fresh ginger root and lemons so I could get to work. It doesn't take the flu away but this Ginger & Lemon Hot Toddy makes the sore throat a little more bearable.

This has worked great for me and I just had to share it. One of the nicest things about this recipe is its easy to make and one batch can last a long time. Since ginger acts as an anti-imflamitory it helps with the swelling of the glands thus reducing the typical sore throat pain.

Ingredients:

3 Large ginger roots (purchased at local Grocery Store)

5-6 Lemons

Large pot of water

Honey (optional)

1. Use a peeler to peel the outside skin of the ginger. I don't know if you really have to do this but I feel like you get more from the root by doing it. It doesnt have to be completely free of skin but get as much as you can.
2. Slice and dice ginger into 1/4 inch-1/2 inch pieces
3. Place ginger in large pot and fill with water
4. Boil water and ginger on med for 10-15 minutes. The longer the ginger sits in the water the stronger the hot toddy.
5. Use a strainer or plate or whatever you have to fill your cup with some of the liquid.
6. Let the remaining liquid sit on the stove for 30 minutes and then transfer remaining ginger water to a container for later use.
7. Slice a lemon in half. Squeeze half a lemon in your hot toddy and sip while warm.

Your first hot toddy will be the weakest which is good because it will give you a chance to get used to the taste but as the ginger sits in the water it will make your next several hot toddy's VERY strong. For the last few cups I had to put a little honey to cut the tang of the ginger. Totally optional. You should feel some relief after the first cup is finished. Drink it throughout the day and right before bed. Always drink it warm.

Missing 2009 Sweet Treats...

A few projects that didn't make the blog but I wanted to share with you...

• Ralph Lauren Inspired Baby Shower Cookies
• Diamond Engagement Ring vanilla sugar cookies with sugar accented sugar crystals
• Louis Vuitton chocolate cake purse with Coffee buttercream filling.
• Individually wrapped Baby Bunny and Onesis sugar cookies
• Mini cupcake/cookie tower

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies!

What happens when you are given a great batch of strawberries and forget about them until its almost too late?

Three words- Strawberry Shortcake Cookies. Preliminary reviews from Mom, Dad and friend, Jay, say this is a recipe worth trying. We are having dinner with new friends tonight-I thought I would bring them a few wrapped in this pretty basket!

Recipe: Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

(from Martha Stewart Living)

12 ounces strawberries, hulled and cut into 1/4″ pieces (2 cups)

1 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1/2 c. plus 1 Tbsp. granulated sugar, divided

2 c. all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

6 Tbsp. (3 oz,) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

2/3 c. heavy cream

sanding sugar, for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 7 Tbsp. granulated sugar in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter, or rub with your fingers (which was so easy), until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the cream with wooden spoon until dough starts to come together, then stir in strawberry mixture either by hand or with spoon.

Using a cookie scoop, tablespoon or your hands, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment, spacing evenly apart. Sprinkle with sanding sugar and bake until golden brown, about 24 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool.

Cookies are great served immediately or several hours later once the flavors have had time to marry one another. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 day.

The only change I would make would be to serve cookies with either vanilla bean ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.