Tacos Jalisco - Kings Beach

Mexican food in California is about as ethnic as french fries are. However once in a while you find a taco joint that seems to transport you to Mexico just by stepping through the door. There are many places in the Tahoe area to get a taco or a burrito, but the best is a small shop in Kings Beach known as Tacos Jalisco. This "restaurant" is barely more than a taco stand. Situated a few doors east of the movie theater, Tacos Jalisco occupies the first floor of a residential type building. In many ways it is like stepping into the living room of the owners. A few tables and chairs are provided for patrons to eat while Mexican soap operas blast from the television. During the summer months an outdoor table/nook allows for some patio dinning.

Tacos Jalisco in Kings Beach is not related to the one located in Truckee. Nor is it affiliated with any of the many other Tacos Jaliscos that can be found in California. From what I could gather from the lady who makes my food (I assume the owner): they are from the Jalisco region of Mexico and they make tacos. It is basically calling it a Taco Stand, but from Jalisco.

Not only is this eatery authentic, it is a fully stocked taco/burrito restaurant. Where it is common for such small Mexican restaurants to only serve chicken, steak, and pork, Taco Jaliscos serves the full range of meats and sides including lengua, cabeza, menudo, and even shrimp.

So next time you are in the area, and am looking for some authentic "ethnic" food. Do not pass up Tacos Jalisco in Kings beach. You won't impress anyone with this hole in the wall glorified taco stand, but you will get your fill of some tasty eats.

Pork Tenderloin and Sweet Potato Sandwich

This years Christmas dinner was comprised of pork tenderloin and sweet potato. The next day I made a very pleasant discovery when fixing a leftover lunch. The Pork Tenderloin and Sweet Potato Sandwich. For the most part I am not a sandwich lover. Sure it is an effective meal, but hardly am I ever excited when I hear that sandwiches are on the lunch docket. I considered sandwiches the human equivalent of dog food. Does the job of filling your stomach, pleasant enough to be eaten regularly, but nothing to blog about. That is until now. The pork and sweet potato sandwich I had the day after Christmas was the BEST sandwich I have ever tasted.

The pork tenderloin was pre-marinated in salt and pepper. Cooked on a grill. Then sliced into thin medallions the size of a 50 cent piece. The sweet potato, actually yams, were cooked in the microwave, finished on the grill and sliced up in the same manner as the pork.

In order for you to experience the same sandwich delight as I, you have to construct yours the exact same way as I. You can not make the tenderloin sweet po sandi to suit your liking, leaving out or substituting ingredients, and disagree with my "best sandwich in the world claim".

So let's put together this little marvel:

Since this is a hot sandwich and I was using left overs, the first step was to heat the pork and the sweet P. I used the toaster oven since I was planning on toasting the bread; this gave it a slight broiled/toasted aspect to the meat and tuber. The only bread I had at the time was a round loaf of a fancy whole wheat type. Sliced up and lightly toasted. On one slice I spread a thin layer of mayonnaise and on the other a healthy portion or dijon mustard. Next I put a single layer of pork on each slice of bread and a single layer of sweet potato on only one side. To finish off this master piece, grind fresh pepper on the sweet potato half and dribbled Sriracha hot sauce on the pork only side. Join the two halves together and take a bite.

The combination of flavors is amazing. Eating them individually does not compare . The mustard and the sweet potato compliments the pork and gives it an interesting pzazz. The contrasting texture of toast, pork and potato adds a physical element of oral adventure.

As my watering mouth is dribbling on the keyboard, I realize that I have not made this sandwich since the initial discovery. I will most likely go and purchase the ingredients for the sole purpose of making PSP sandwiches. This is one sandwich that I would not consider human dog food. Woof Woof.

Pesto, Pasta and Squash

One of the fun things about getting a CSA is that you never know what you might get. Rather than eating the same ol same olds, you get to be creative and explore. One item that has been showing up in our CSA often is basil. Basil is such a wonderful plant. It is considered a spice, but can also be eaten as a vegetable.


Though there is always a use for basil. We decided to take this weeks share and make fresh pesto out of it. Ever since moving out of my folks house at the age of 18, spaghetti is a staple diet for 90% of everyone I know. In our house, we still have it at least once a week. To give the noodles a flare, we occasionally mix in pesto instead of red sauce. What is even more exciting is when you make pesto out of fresh basil.


It always impresses me when my wife cooks. Though we cook nearly every night, last nights spaghetti dinner inspired me to post about it. Even a plain pasta dinner can be fixed so that it is not only exotic but delicious. The following is my wife's age old family recipe (ok just off the Internet but I am sure it is an age old family receipt) for pesto:


4c basil, 1/2 c olive oil, 1/3 c pine nuts, 2 garlic cloves, 1/2 c Parmesan cheese, 1t salt.


As with me and recipe sthis is just a guideline for approximate ratios of ingredients. This night we ran out of pine nuts so substituted with walnuts. We also deleted the salt cause there is way too much salt in everything we eat already. And just for poops and giggles, some sun dried tomatoes were thrown into the mix. The entire concoction was whipped up in a food processor.


I have been learning to like whole wheat pastas. Failing, but trying. Recently we found a whole wheat pasta that I think is decent. Garofalo by La Pasta Di Grangnano. Their 100% whole wheat organic spaghetti, has excellent texture and a complex flavor. One forgets that it is simply spaghetti that is melting in you mouth.


One final touch that can give your dull pasta a kick is to add some squash to it. I am not talking about some grilled squash to the sauce, but to add it right to the noodles themselves. This was a tip gained from some reality TV show. With a grater shred some squash up into long shreds. Dump this into boiling water the same time as you throw in the raw spaghetti. From then on out simply forget the you have squash in with your noddles and cook accordingly.

Bon appetit

Coffee Maker Care - a half cocked pot

Does this look familiar. The bottom of your new coffee makers gets corroded and rusty after a short period of time. I had always thought this is the way things were; coffee maker's heating bases live a hard life. However there is a way to prolong that heating surface.

I had some guest stay the night at my house once. In the morning they had made breakfast including coffee. Before they left they washed out my coffee pot. However instead of replacing the coffee pot all the way onto the seat they left it half cocked on the rim. I didn't think much of it, till I thought about it later. This was done so that the base would have a chance to air dry. Placing a wet coffee pot on a wet base never allows the surface to dry. The wet acidic environment causes the surface to prematurely eroded. I thought this was quite clever.

Monkey See Monkey Do - Peeling Bananas the Monkey Way

Most of us have grown up peeling bananas the human way; Stem side first. This is easy if the banana is ripe, you have nails, or a knife. However have you ever tried to peel a banana only to have the stem fold and not brake apart from the rest of the peel. This usually bruises the top portion of the banana.

If you have ever spent any time watching monkeys eat bananas, you know that they do the peeling quite differently. They peel it from the base side. Hey if the pros do it this way, why shouldn't we.

Since watching this video, my life has been forever changed. I now peel my bananas the monkey way, and am nery again frustrated with a banana that won't peel or becomes bruised by my effort.

CSA - Produce Box

We received our first produce box of the season. Boy am I excited. Recently I have become more aware of where my food comes from. Aware of the bad farming practices, the dangers of pesticides and genetic alternation of our food. Aware of the negative effects food has on our health and environment. Our family made a decision to put forth an effort to "eat better". Eating better does not simply mean what types of food we eat but where we get our food, and how it is grown. Spending more money on quality food is worth it. I rather not have cable TV, or wear designer jeans, in exchange for local organic food.

Our CSA, Community Supported Agriculture, comes from a small farm in New Castle California: The Natural Trading Company. Up here the growing season is too short and no farms exist. However just down the hill from us plants flourish. The farm is within 100 miles of us, and we get a box delivered once a week. Pick up locations are grouped. In today's box we received: arugula, squash, spring garlic, spring onions, Kale, sugar snap peas, lettuce, pea shoots, bok choy, kohlrabi, naval oranges, gala apples, and ruby grape fruit. Eating has become an adventure!

Find a local CSA in your area, and start reaping the benefits.

Happy St P's Day - Corned Beef and Cabbage

The first time I had Corned beef and cabbage, I was 18 and a senior in high school. I was playing tenor sax for our high school jazz band. To make a little money to help the band program, our director would hire us out of perform "gigs". On St Patrick's day we went to the local Masonic Hall to perform for the Mason's annual corned beef dinner. After performing for an hour or so, it was our chance to sit down and enjoy a meal: Corned Beef and Cabbage. What I knew to be corned beef to be at the time was corned beef hash. I was surprised when I was served beef brisket. What is so "corn" about this beef I asked. The only responds that I got was that it is salted beef.

I loved that meal. Everything about it was right. I was playing music for money, served good food, and was in the company of "wise old men" who viewed us with respect; for a change. Ok maybe not respect, but we were playing the type of music they enjoyed, and they very much enjoyed it. From that day on I have made Corned Beef and Cabbage every year at or around St Patrick's day.

Corned Beef is beef brisket cured in a brine (salt water) solution. Potassium nitrate is added to preserve the beefs pink color. So why is it called CORN?? The word corn is also defined as a hard particle or grains. Such as a grain of sand or SALT. So corn refers to the course type salt used to cure the beef, and not the yellow ears of corn used in everything else. Wouldn't it have been less confusing if they just called is Salted Beef? But I guess then I would not have been able to write this little article. Happy Saint Paddy's Day!

Pizza Night II - Trader Joe's Pizza Dough

A few nights ago I finally tried the fabled Traders Joe's Pizza Dough. Not having a TJ's in town makes their products slightly elusive. I have heard good things about their dough and was eager to try it out.

http://mrpulldown.blogspot.com/2009/03/pizza-night.html

Of the several doughs I have tired this is the best!! It even beats my mother in laws home made dough. shhhhh don't tell her, I don't think she reads my blog either.

Available in three varieties: Regular, Whole Wheat, and Garlic and Herb. We sampled the WW and GH. I was most impressed with the WW, though I prefer the GH, the WW did not taste like cardboard; something I think most WW products taste like.

Muumm Muummm Pizza!!

Cowboy Coffee - a tough cup o jo

During my high school years I developed a love/addiction for two things that today is still present in my life: coffee and backpacking. These two things easy go together and compliment each other well. Enjoying a fine cup of coffee out in the mountains is very pleasant, however making coffee without a coffee maker isn't always so easy.

Over the year I have used various methods to brew coffee. There are many drip filters as well as fancy espresso makers, I have even used an old sock, but after years of testing and countless numbers of devices, I ended up with using no special "coffee maker" at all. Instead I simply bring coffee grounds and my cook pot.

Like one would expect from a cowboy of yesteryear's, there is nothing fancy about his coffee. Hot water and coffee is all it takes to make mug full of our favorite morning beverage. By coffee I do not mean freeze dried instant coffee either. That is an option in making a cup, however it takes extra for thought to purchase instant coffee when I readily have coffee beans at home.

Making cowboy coffee begins at home. Ideally you already purchase your coffee by the whole bean and have a small grinder. I know fresh grinding your bean every morning doesn't sound very cowboy like, but then again I never said I was. Grind your coffee finer than you would usually for a drip maker. Large coffee bean chunks tend to float, while finer grounds will settle. You do not need to grind your beans as fine as you would, as when making Turkish coffee; though Turkish and Cowboy coffee is very close to being the same thing. If you already buy your coffee beans already ground, no sweat just use that.

At camp bring a pot of water to a boil and dump in your grounds at the first sign of bubbles. Once the coffee starts rolling remove from heat. It's not rocket science, however prolonged boiling of the coffee will lead to bitterness. I usually boil just long enough to get all the ground wet. Set the pot on the ground. Ideally tipped slightly down towards the pour spout or side. The key to Cowboy coffee is to allow the grounds to settle. I have heard that a dab of cold water, egg shells and even egg yoke will help the settling. I don't do any of that stuff. A minute or two is all it takes to settle out the grounds. When pouring be very careful as to not stir up the ground. Do not pour the last 1/10 of the coffee pot. Once in your mug allow time for a little settling, but the temperature of the fluid usually takes care of that. And the same thing do not drink the last little bit of coffee from your mug.

When planning to make CC, I usually bring at least two cooking pots. A coffee pot and a cooking pot since I usually will have several cups in the morning. You will also inevitably end up with a few grounds of coffee in your mouth which you need to spit out. Some find this aspect of CC unacceptable. However for its convenience, you need to give up some thing, and a few grounds in the mouth is worth it in my opinion. Anyways it is called Cowboy coffee, not Sissyboy coffee.

Update: This morning the power was out and I wanted a cup of coffee. Being Saturday, I usually make coffee at home. I had two options, one boil water and run it through the filter of the coffee maker, or two: Cowboy it up!! Thinking of this post I opted for the later. I discovered that I left a few thing out in my initial post.

After the coffee settles for a little bit, you might notice floating clumps of coffee grounds on the surface. You might blow on them and it might sink. However it is best to scoop these grounds out before pouring. Being so close to a mug full of morning delight, I often rush and pour the floating mass straight into my cup. I mean come on, I read on some blog that the grounds were all suppose to settle out right. Wrong. This floating mass is made up of grounds that are light and large or for some reason do not sink. Taking the time and doing it right, I did not have a single coffee ground that I had to spit out. Ahhh Perfect!

Drunken Monkey - Sushi in Truckee

As the new kid in town, I am eager to try out the local kicks. The Rock is a small business plaza close to our house with several restaurants, including the recently opened Drunken Monkey. The Rock is best known for its flagship restaurant the 50/50 Brewing Company. Being very successful, they went and opened a second restaurant in the same plaza, the Drunk Monk (he he). The other night my wife and I decided to try out this very close by eating establishment.

http://www.drunkenmonkeysushi.com/index.html

The first thing that I noticed was how full the place was for a Wednesday night. Typical Tahoe/Truckee restaurants are dead on Wednesday nights which cater towards the tourist crowd. But the DM had every table filled, I took an extra look around trying to get a feel of the local population. This was not the typical local Truckee crowd, but more of the Truckee Yuppies.

It was mixed blessing having the restaurant so busy, for we sat at the sushi bar, and was served by the head chef Sam. Sam was a real live, Japanese sushi chef. I think he is the only one in all of the greater Tahoe area. I started the meal with an order of miso and hot tea. To my surprise I was asked which tea variety I was interested in. Though the quality of my wholong was average the fact that I had a selection was amazing. The thing about Sushi is that there is only sushi and bad sushi. Mother nature makes the fish, and only the lack of freshness makes it bad.

What is unique about this restaurant is that the menu has many entries, rather than just sushi. I ordered a Tofu and Shitake Mushroom Nabe, and Leslie a roasted garlic clove for starters. Then some pieces of Nigri and some rolls. The food was simple but well put together. The fish was fresh and tasty. We did not order very much and our bill reflected so. I did try to order the monk fish liver, but they were out.

Overall I would say that this place is worth visiting. Food is good, prices are average. There are some interesting thing on the menu, and the attention to detail is superb. The restaurant has a very trendy bay area feel, and is popular with the locals. Service however is typical Tahoe/Truckee. If you don't know what that is then don't worry about it...

McDonald's Cheeseburger Variants

The cheeseburger, an American Icon. Mickey D's has been selling this bad boys ever since they first opened their doors in Des Plaines, Illinois 1955. Though the rest of their beef sandwiches are a variation of the cheese burger, two more recent variations have captured my attention. The double cheeseburger, once the corner stone of the eight member dollar menu was pulled off the line up. It appeared that they were not able to make a profit selling the double cheeseburger for 1 dollar. This is in light of the fact that a regular cheeseburger sells for $1.09. Now the Double Cheese sells for a reasonable $1.19. However to prevent a public out roar the double CB was replaced with the McDouble. The McDouble is a Cheeseburger with an extra all beef patty, or a Double Cheeseburger with only one slice of All American Cheese. I guess that one slice of cheese broke the bank.

It is however interesting to note, that a cheeseburger with two patties sells for 0.09 cents less than a single patty burger. The only downfall to this is that each all beef patty contains 0.5 grams of Trans fats. Thus the McDouble has 1 whole gram of the bad stuff.

This is one of those rare situations where you get more, by paying less.

Coffee Cup Lids

I have drank my fair share of gas station coffee. Though it is not my first choice, there is a time and place for everything. Not going into the quality of the coffee, I have noticed that there are three basic kinds of coffee cup lids. And some of them really just don't work. Let's discuss.

First there is the Starbucks style lid. The lid with the little hole you are suppose to drink though. How does one not burn their mouth with this lid. The little hole acts as a nozzle to spray scalding hot coffee into you mouth. Bad Bad Bad.

The next most popular lid is the MacDonald's type, lift and lock. This type doesn't work much better either. After lifting the tab, you are left with a gaping hole where the coffee simple sloshes out. No wonder that poor lady burnt herself.

But if you have spent enough time visiting the various gas stations across the country, you might have been lucky enough to come across the best coffee lid design EVER!! The sippy lid.

Made by DART industries, this coffee cup lid represents the cutting edge of coffee cup lid technology. Though it has been around for a long time, it seems that its existence has been held in secrecy. As if bad coffee cup lids are placed to discourage "to-go" coffee; coffee should be drank in dainty coffee shops out of giant ceramic mugs. What makes this lid so great. Well first you can actually sip your coffee with the lid on. The ridges introduce cold air to the coffee and cools it before you drink it. The flap which you sip from acts as a splash shield and prevents coffee from sloshing out, it careful meters the perfect amount of coffee for your drinking pleasures. Since drinking with this lid is so pleasurable, you do not find yourself removing the lid, to either cool the coffee faster to a drinkable temperature or to regulate the amount of liquid which gets dispensed. Keeping the lid on prevents spillage, and having your coffee get cold too fast.
I assume that DART must hold a the patent on this lid and thus no other company can copy it. But that patent must be running out. With any luck, this lid will become the standard coffee lid for all those to enjoy. So please do your part and encourage the purchase of the DART sippy coffee cup lid, and maybe one day, spilled coffee and burnt lips will be a thing of the past.

Pizza Night

One thing that my wife and I love to make and eat regularly is Pizza! When it comes to homemade pizza there are four options for dough. Boboli, Pillsbury, home made, or Betty Croker.

I started with the Boboli with my mom, when I was younger. Good, pre-made, but expensive for what it is: flour, yeast water, heat. Many years later we tried to make the crust from scratch. Very similar to making bread. The result however was not to our liking. Maybe be cause we were not good at it, or did not practice enough; regardless the effort was more than it was worth. At about the same time we discovered Pizza crust in a tube. That crazy Dough boy once again comes through. This pizza crust has been the staple for the past several years. But it is still expensive for what it is and compared to the other "bread in a tube" type products. Anyways there was always something unnatural about getting prefabbed dough in a tube.

This most recent trip to the market yielded the newest consumer product in our love affair with Pizza: dough mix in a pouch. Why is this any better, I don;'t know, it just is.

The pouch contains a white powder you mix with hot water. I assume it is simply flour and quick rise yeast. Beat the mix 20 times and let stand for five minutes. Then roll it out with "floured fingers" per the directions. I was even able to practice my pizza dough tossing. I think that this is the cheapest of the pre-made crust. It also gives you a sense of satisfaction. I was once told that according to consumer testing, cake mixes where you had to add your own eggs, milk, and oil, sold much better than the ones were you simply added water (the other stuff was already in the mix). In fact I think it was Betty who pioneered this marketing technique.

The other ingredients for tonight's pizza included: mozzarella cheese, spaghetti sauce, pesto, Canadian bacon, pineapple, parmesan cheese, onions, and a little Roster sauce for some kick. Grill the onions before placing them onto the pizza, they need a little extra cooking. Construct the pizza to your liking . 15 minuets in the oven, and voila: Dinner is served.

Crusco's, Heavenly food in Angles Camp

While I was working in Calaveras County last week, all haggard, tired and hungry, I came across a little Italian restaurant in Angles Camp. The food was well priced and the service was excellent. My meal started out with fresh focaccia bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Followed by a simple spring greens salad. I ordered the Crusco: penne pasta, hot Italian sausage, mushroom and red sauce. It was amazing. I usually don't give such great reviews for restaurants but this place was good. Next time you are in or passing through Angles Camp be sure to stop by this place, in old downtown.

http://www.cruscos.com/