El Día de los Enamorados

It was kind of a drag that I had to spend Valentine's Day an entire hemisphere away from
my valentine, but I ended up having a great night with some friends in Santiago. My friend's host brother is a chef and he offered to prepare a little "gringo" feast for us!On the menu: caesar salad, ravioli puttanesca, garlic bread, and lots & lots of wine.It was a nice break from the traditional Chilean food we've been having every day. Did I mention I made red velvet truffles?? (which was nearly impossible, seeing asthe country I am in uses an entirely different measuring system, temperaturesystem, and does not know what the heck a red velvet cake is!)

 
 
 



 





I love big dinners with friends. I can't wait for Mexican night!!!

Feelin' Risky on Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day was last weekend and

I was feeling a little adventurous.

You know what that means...

I ACCOMPLISHED ANOTHER GOAL!

#006: Order what the person

at the next table is having

Last saturday Bryan & I went to Nicks,

an American style restaurant right on the beach in Laguna.

I have always wanted to order what the person at

the next table is having (maybe because I love surprises?),

but I could never force myself to do it because

I would get nervous that the person would order something disgusting.

I decided that I had to find someone with impeccable

taste, which resulted in a very intense screening process.

And that is when this beautiful family walked into the restaurant:

You can't really tell from this creepy rapist picture I took,

but this was easily one of the most beautiful

families I had ever seen in my life. There were

four girls, ages (?) 8, 12, 16, and 18.

How were they so beautiful?! They looked like models!

Even the baby!

At first I was going to order what the oldest

daughter ordered, but I was afraid she was

going to order a burger or something lame.

I thought the mom might order something exciting

and sophisticated so I went with her, haha :)

Drum roll, please!

Mama ordered Pan Roasted Salmon with

Sautéed Spinach, Caper Mustard Beurre Blanc,

and Butter Chive Mashed Potatoes.

Not bad!

I was half afraid that she was going to

order a stick of celery with some fresh grapes on the side.

The salmon was amazing; I loved the buerre blanc

that was drizzled over it. Strangely enough,

the best thing on the plate was the spinach. It

was all buttery and had slivered almonds in it.

As Rachel Ray would say, YUM-O!

Bryan decided to get in on the fun

and ordered what the father ordered.

Papa got Red Wine Braised Boneless Short Ribs

with Firestick Onions, Roasted Vegetables,

Horseradish Cream, and Mashed Potatoes.

Believe me, the pictures do not do this food justice.

I need a good camera, dang it.

Overall, this was a pretty exciting experience.

It made going to a restaurant really interesting

and I am definitely going to do it again.

♥ OTHER WEEKEND HIGHLIGHTS ♥

Disneyland on friday:

Beignets!!!

Beignets!!!

Beignets!!!

BEIGNETS!!!

Uggghh I wished I lived closer to Disneyland!

I had beignets at the Tupelo Junction Cafe in downtown SB,

but they pale in comparison to the ones they serve at

Jazz Kitchen in Downtown Disney. GO! NOW!

Valentine's Day with Bryan:

After dinner, we sat on the beach and waited

for the next showtime of Valentine's Day (the movie).

Comments: Celebrities were extremely hot/beautiful.

The actors were way too famous/hot/beautiful to be believable characters.

The overabundance of celebrities made it impossible to have a believable plot.

But... it was cute? Haha, kind of?

Valentine's Day with family:

No pictures, but it was great...

Visited Dad at home, who had approximately

3 dozen Sprinkles cupcakes waiting for us :D

Went to din-dins with Mom & sissies at

Woodranch in Santa Anita. One word: bread.

The most perfect bread any restaurant has ever served

(close second: garlic balls at Palazzio in Santa Barbara).

And then! We went to go visit Des at her work.

My little baby is all grown up!!!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

In other news, lent starts tomorrow.

What are you giving up? I am giving up

baked goods.

Seriously.

Lord, help me.

♥