Restaurant Crawl

While waiting for my camera charger to return so I can post all the goodness I ate in Guatemala, here are some delights to enjoy on the Venice Beach Boardwalk and surrounding area of Venice, California. Forewarning: Pictures were not taken with a camera!

Hawaiian Style (no rice) Ahi Poke at Poke Poke

Fresh tuna right next to the ocean. Poke Poke may not be that fancy shmancy seafood restaurant most people prefer but don't judge a book by its cover. I love this gem on the boardwalk. Grab your cup of ahi poke with any ingredient that you want, sit back, relax, and people watch. I ordered the small ahi tuna poke with the additions of seaweed and masago.

And I give it four hearts: <3<3<3<3. The flavor was explosive, the vibrant colors in my bowl were visually appealing, and the perfect amount. Just not five hearts because I felt the fish could have/should have been a little more fresh. I'm guessing it tastes better the earlier you go but still it was fine. If it had not been fresh, of course that's another story. Since you are going raw, it better be held to high standards.

Next, We wanted shrimp tacos but sadly the boardwalk front kitchen was closed. Can't tell you the name of it but look for a taco place with a counter near muscle beach gym and you'll see what I'm talking about. And you'll love it too.

Which led me to remember my favorite burger place on the boardwalk. It had been an awfully long time since I had been there so decided to go and show that place some love. It's a long walk down the boardwalk but well worth it. It's a little bit after that whole creepy 'freak show' building. You have to look in every small alley until you find it. Eventually you'll come to one that has a few shops but at the end, you'll see a Chinese massage place and a burger place. The cafe you've been looking for -- Sean's Cafe.

Yes, Sean's Cafe. That's where you'll find the best burger on the boardwalk. Hands down. And well worth the wait. Because yes, it does take a while to get your meal but good things come to those with patience. The best part of this burger: Simple and fresh. It tastes the same every time. Haven't felt a downgrade with quality in the burger there ever. It consists of beef, mixed greens, and whatever else you want on it. I keep mine simple, with just ketchup and mustard. And the fries that go with them. Mmmmmm. Enough said. Get yours.

I don't really eat much on the boardwalk but I'd say the best place to get a greasy and huge slice of pizza would be at Big Daddy's. Pizza is great there but wasn't planning on ordering it. I got sucked in to the chocolate covered banana. Oh the chocolate covered banana! Always gets my thoughts going in the brain (I'm not the only one!) AND satisfies my frozen treat cravings. It was just okay for me. I prefer 45-70% (semi to dark) chocolate for anything I eat. And they use milk chocolate here. You'll like it if that's the chocolate you crave.

And lastly, we were going to split a burger on a pretzel bun at Three Square Cafe on Abbot Kinney but we were done, so we went next door to grab a pretzel at the adjoining cafe. Just needed that salt to counteract the sweetness of the milk chocolate banana.

It's a good day when you can relax on the beach for half the day, order different things at different places, split with friends, and be able to walk, not drive, on your restaurant crawl.

There are plenty of options to choose from that I've been to, but not mentioned above, when your at Venice beach. And pretty affordable too.

I take it all back

Remember what I said about sleep and how it's only for home? Forget what I said. Sleep IS for home AND for travel. You need it to function. Your body needs the rest and to be given the chance to rejuvenate for the next days great adventure. Of course when traveling there are plenty of times that this is not possible. It's okay. This is supposed to be part of the travel experience. It's a miracle if you are able to sleep on an overnight bus from one destination to the next. I try but I just can't do it!

With that said, by day 6 of my Guatemala experience, my friend and I were so sleep deprived, we couldn't even function. We spent most of the day exploring Tikal with no food, made time for a quick snack/lunch though I really had a hard time eating while feeling sick to my stomach, and went to freshen up and relax before New Years dinner and festivities. Then it somehow finally caught up to us.

Of course more me than her because she can fall asleep ANYWHERE and wasn't nearly as tired as I was. I really don't know how she does it.

Night time hit and we were planning on eating dinner around 8 and ending the year exploring more of Tikal.

But by 6 pm, she was telling me she no longer had an appetite, didn't want dinner, and was focused on the mosquitos flying in our cabin.

I was still really hungry but I was so physically exhausted I literally couldn't move and even go to get dinner. I could not get up, keep my eyes open, couldn't focus on her trying to keep our conversation going, my body was frozen, kept falling asleep while she was talking then waking up with migraines, feeling like throwing up nothing because I had nothing in my stomach, and really did not care about the flying mosquitos and the 3 not small spiders next to my bed and normally I DO! They could have attacked me and I would have let them. It was that bad.

All the days leading up to day 6 with barely any sleep finally caught up and it wasn't pretty. And that is how I ended the year 2012.

My plan was to wake up really early and spend New Years Day in the jungle and watching the incredible and 'magical' sunrise as described exactly to me by a few friends. It would be me alone because Vanessa was fine with not having to wake up at 3 am and wanted the sleep time. After hearing about this 'magical' sunrise more than once, there was no way I was going to miss out on the opportunity because I knew I would have regretted it. That and I love wandering around any jungle/rainforest any chance that I get.

Well then that sleep deprivation experience happened and I realized I really needed that night of sleep....so somehow I finally was able to reach over and turn off my alarm. I sadly 'thought' I made up my mind about not going to see the sunrise and continuing my exploration of Tikal. I didn't know what to do and I knew deep down it was the wrong decision.

And funny how things happen to fall into place. Vanessa got out of her bed to go to the bathroom and with the flick of the light, I woke up. I tried covering my face to make it dark but I was wide awake. I turned over to look at the clock and it was 3:50am. I all of a sudden got really worried and right away Vanessa could see it in my eyes because you can see EVERYTHING I'm feeling through my eyes and said: "Do you want to go see the sunrise?" And I responded with: "Yes, I really want to." I knew then I would have been so disappointed in myself if I made it to Tikal and didn't even go. And somehow I found my energy, quickly got up, changed my clothes, threw on my shoes, no make up, and grabbed my camera, flashlight, and Tikal ticket. I was out of there at 4 am. And just the night before, I couldn't even move a muscle!

The time spent in the jungle at 4 in the morning was absolutely amazing. There are not enough words to describe this experience. The sounds were just indescribable. The howler monkeys were so vocally vibrant and expressive. The bats flying around. I love and appreciate everything the jungle offers. Not just here but through my other experiences in the Amazon as well. Oh and the sunrise above the rainforest really was 'magical'. I'm keeping that experience for myself and won't post any pictures of it just to leave it as a surprise for anybody planning a trip there.

The other bonus for being up that early was that the area was nearly deserted! I got to spend more time within the Mayan pyramids with no distractions and tourists! I was able to really take it all in, take pictures, and see what I missed out on the previous day. Got a few cool pictures taken of me from some people there with promises of emailing them, in which I have received! I also helped out a couple from Mexico and Argentina who didn't have a camera and couldn't capture any Tikal pictures. I paid it forward and took some of them with promises of emailing them. Glad I got to help them out and give them a good memory to have on their journey.:) It was a day that I won't ever forget and am so glad it was meant for me to wake up without my alarm and to explore more. Being happy to wake up at 3:50 in the morning just sounds so silly!

So with all this, I won't change my style of travel and love of adventure. I also really love sleep and will continue to make sure I'm getting it but at the same time not sleeping through an adventure and missing out. All I can say is don't do what I did! Fit sleep in somehow! Time and the amount of days I had affected what I was going to do in Guatemala. I normally don't have this problem. I diagnosed myself with the case of the 'I have to see it all in this time period'.

Can't wait to revisit what I ate in Guatemala. Oh and one more thing I took from Guatemala--I should have been making my own tortillas a long time ago. That starts from now on.

On the road again...

On to another vacay.....oops, I mean ADVENTURE!

Guatemala

Will be doing so many things, I probably won't have time to sit! Sleeping is for home as I always say. ☺ Even with this cold that I've just caught, I can't let it keep me from climbing the volcanoes and playing in the jungle!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

My new years resolution(s): Run more races, bike more races, and try to stop using so many exclamation points!

❤

Egypt

Egypt. The country that won me over. I headed to Egypt with the excitement of seeing the pyramids, the Sphinx, the Nile, the bazaar, the history, the desert, Cairo, the amazing city of Alexandria, Mediterranean Sea, the crazy drivers, street food, food, the people, night life activities to stay away from the heat, and not being able to speak the whole time there!

I loved Egypt. So lively and always full of energy. Once you get past all the security measures you have to go through to get anywhere in Egypt, the vibe is just different than most countries. Places to go. People to see. Food to eat. Everyone is pretty much out at night and not much action during the day to avoid the heat when possible. In the city of Alexandria, you're right on the Mediterranean so the temperature wasn't too bad. I think it was hotter here in California at the time than it was there. Cairo, a whole different story. Hot hot hot! High humidity. Amazon status minus not messing up my hair as much!

I am so glad I made it there over the summer. I highly recommend it. I know it may not be so 'American friendly' now, but if you can go with someone who speaks Arabic ~me, not so well, if that, that would be the best or you're kind of stuck doing more tourist-directed activities, which still isn't even bad in Egypt because it is just plain worth it. It's a bonus to know someone because you can really get a feel of the culture and step into their norm.

Egypt really surprised me and completely changed my outlook on it through my previous unsure thoughts. It's just like going anywhere else in this world. Same old cat calls if you're light-haired, color-eyed like myself. Bargaining for everything. Friendly and hardworking everyday people. Expert drivers. People who love to go out at night and have a good time. Despite everything going on now, they really are happy people just trying to live a wonderful life like everyone else.

For now, I'm going to get into the Egyptian food I ate there. Honestly, I wasn't sure what I would think of the food. More curious about the spices they use there and how strong they are but I'm always openminded. I try almost everything at least once. My thoughts on the food... Way better than I had originally thought. I was happy with everything. I wanted to try it all. My eyes, my heart, and my stomach were eating everything in site! I really wasn't there long enough. I have to go back.


Homestyle Meals

LOOK at that shrimp!

Got to try a Saudi Arabian dish too. Pretty tasty!

Fruits and Veggies

Street CORN! Love love love.

Prickly pear/Cactus fruit - So sweet and so needed on the hot days in Egypt. I peel them now just like the guys over there!

Watermelon everywhere

I did not partake in this, mainly because I didn't know what it was but they are all over the place. Drinks in different colors.

Street food and Munchies

Nuts and beans

You will find these color coordinated boxes filled with chips all over the place

Street meat and sides

Must have condiments

Foul mudammas

Falafel! Really fluffy and made to perfection.

Corn dogs

KFC delivers. Yup, in Egypt. They also have delivery McD's bikers all over the place.

Desserts

Zalabiah with a white chocolate sauce. LOVE Zalabiah. And I'll definitely take it with white chocolate over the usual simple syrup or honey that's normally served.

Baklava and other delights

Not pictured..

• Zalabiah food carts all over the place being served with honey and/or simple syrup

• Baklava food carts around, as well

Restaurants and Drinks

Shwarma - Time for a refill!

Beef and Lamb Shwarma

Falafel, Hummus, Tabbouleh, Cucumbers, Condiment, and Pita Bread. Last meal. I preferred the previous falafel sandwich over this one.

Soda! Only when I travel I crave soda. I would love to be without this craving!

Mint tea. A must when you are in Egypt.
Okay, now I'm really hungry!

Sweet Treat

One of my Instagram friends emailed me the recipe to one of my favorites, Atayef, after I posted that I was craving it so so bad! I've seen recipes online but I prefer to use a recipe within a family/using a family recipe. The feel is just better receiving it that way than looking online. I've never had to make this because my aunt always does and makes TONS of it so I can take some for the road but now I find that I can't wait that long till the next time she makes it so I'm just going to have to make it today or tomorrow!

Atayef is somewhat similar to my other favorite, Knafeh, if you've tried that before. Just Knafeh uses shredded filo dough and the usage of sweet cheese combined with cream. I. love. them. both.

This is the recipe I'm using:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup of warm water

Big spoon of instant yeast

Small spoon of Sugar

Half of a small spoon of salt


Put a big spoon of flour, small spoon of sugar, and the yeast into a 1/2 cup of water, stir, and leave to ferment. I love the non-exact measurements!

Put the rest of the flour in a bowl, add warm water, and stir them together until you get a liquid dough. Then add the cup from the previous step and the milk; combine to remove any lumps.

Rub a hot pan with oil and pour the batter in small increments; batter will spread and get bigger, like a pancake. Don't flip it! It only gets cooked on one side.

Picture taken and sent to me from my Instagram friend.
Allow them to fully cool down before pinching half the 'pancake' together and *stuffing them with cream and pistachios or whatever you'd like to stuff them with.
*I saw different versions online like using a ricotta filling, chopped walnut-sugar blend, and the usual cream-pistachio blend. I prefer the cream-pistachio blend, I've tried the walnut-sugar blend and like it, and I'm interested in the ricotta filling as well. This just can't go wrong.

**Make a simple rose water/orange blossom syrup and pour over the Atayef when ready to eat.
**I prefer these without syrup. Normally my aunt doesn't sweeten the cream when she stuffs them and I'm fine with them that way but I will probably slightly sweeten the cream when I make these to make them more dessert-like.

***You can eat it like this or you can fry it after stuffing and closing them completely.
***I've never tried them fried! Maybe one day...

Take the time to make these today and you will love them too. A real treat.

Persimmon Banana Nut Muffins

So I woke up in the mood to bake today -specifically muffins- and when I get like that, I have to get in the kitchen STAT! What's sleeping in on a weekend? I don't know. I try. I even got in the mood to do the dishes too...my least favorite part of being in the kitchen!

I have my own tried and true recipes but I felt like finding another recipe and tweaking it because that's just what I like to do. I love kitchen science. That and everyone has to have a few good muffin recipes lying around somewhere! So after searching and searching, I found a recipe with positive feedback that somehow made me want to experiment with.

It's Giada De Laurentiis' recipe for Banana Muffins. Also comes with a frosting recipe but I like to leave frosting for cupcakes. Copy and Paste the links/Recipe Below:

http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2008/01/09/banana-muffins-2/ or http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/banana-muffins-with-mascarpone-cream-frosting-recipe2/index.html

Banana Muffins

(Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis)

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, peeled and coarsely mashed

Directions:
Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the banana. Add the dry ingredients and stir just until blended.

Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake the muffins on the middle rack until the tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out with no crumbs attached, about 25 minutes. Transfer the muffins to a rack and cool slightly. The muffins may be eaten warm or cooled completely and frosted.

My thoughts
Only three things here in the recipe made me want to change it: (1) The oil content, (2)the sugar, and (3) the flavor. I felt the oil is too much for a muffin --no matter how big the batter ends up being and the sugar was also just too high for me. Why not let the fruit add to the sweetness of the muffin? And I love utilizing spices in my baking. I'm no plain Jane. :)

This is what I did

♥ 2 cups sugar = 1 1/2 cups = 1 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup white sugar

I love the different flavor brown sugar gives on top of its sweetness. I prefer to add more brown sugar than white in most of my baking recipes. The muffins were just fine the way they were. Not too sweet but not under sweet. The recipe, although it says it makes 18 muffins, I got 24 out of it so I didn't want to chance taking out too much sugar.

♥ 1 cup vegetable oil = 1/2 vegetable oil and 1/2 cup milk

Perfect lowering of oil and love the addition of milk. Could have eliminated the oil and used applesauce but I'm not completely a fan of that. That and I would have had to wait awhile to bake if I ended up making the applesauce! I processed two soft persimmons just to add to the moistness of the muffin (mentioned below).

♥ 1 tsp salt = 1 tsp sea salt

Just for the heck of it. I only use sea salt now. Salt is not really good for you but sea salt is better than that iodized salt if you're going to use it.

♥ 4 ripe bananas = 2 bananas mashed and 2 bananas, chunky

Because I like muffins with chunky fruit.

Now you can leave the recipe as is and go ahead and bake for yummy and moist banana muffins or you can continue on and do more.

My add-ins to the recipe
♥ 4 persimmons = 2 firm persimmons peeled and diced. 2 soft persimmons, peeled and processed in the food processor

I like persimmon and banana together. There are other good combinations of course, but today I used persimmon. I processed the two persimmons because I lowered the amount of oil and sugar so I wanted to make sure I made up for that.

♥ Chopped walnuts. Yes please!

♥ And I added: Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Allspice, and Ginger. Got the hint of them but not overpowering at all.

The result?
Perfectly flavored and moist muffins. Fruity. Spiced up. Can't get better than that. Giada had a good recipe but I just made it a tad bit healthier and got a little creative.

Now to go outside and enjoy this beautiful rain...