nerdbreadnerd

International Waffle Day!

Happy International Waffle Day! We celebrated on this rainy Sunday at Bru’s Wiffle in Santa Monica. The rain definitely didn’t stop locals from coming out. There was a 30 minute wait at 9:30am!

The hustle and bustle at Bru's Wiffle

Bru’s Wiffle has a long list of sweet and savory waffles, including a separate section for dessert waffles (drool).  We opted to go with one savory and one sweet.

Savory: Breakfast sliders

Breakfast sliders - Turkey sausages with egg, smoked applewood bacon & cheese on mini waffle buns (with syrup!)

You can taste every item here which a testament to the freshness of the ingredients. The syrup doesn’t overwhelm the dish and actually works well the bacon!

nerdbread takes a bite

Sweet: Peanut Butter and Jelly

Peanut Butter & Jelly Waffle

Before you judge us for choosing peanut butter and jelly, know that nerdbread has an unhealthy obsession with all things peanut butter and jelly.  Also know that these were absolutely delicious! The saltiness of the peanut butter is a perfect compliment to the sweetness of the jelly and maple syrup (oh yes there’s maple syrup!)

Jealous?

How are you celebrating International Waffle Day?

Eat Slowly & Enjoy the Taste – Kobayashi at SXSW 2012

Last week I had the pleasure of going to SXSW for the interactive conference.  It’s always interesting when hipsters descend upon hipsters – especially in a hipster town with great food.

To celebrate the best food in Austin on wheels, Foodspotting hosted a street food festival in the heart of downtown Austin.  As a nerd who knows that some of the best grub in Los Angeles comes out of a truck (with love!), I knew this was something I couldn’t miss.

Food trucks included: Arancini, Chi’Lantro, Hey Cupcake, Lucky J’s, One Taco, Peached Tortilla and Yume Burger.

The scene:

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The real treat of the street food festival was an appearance by Kobayashi, the Hot Dog Eating World Champion – or Kobi, as he is affectionately called by competitive eating and hot dog enthusiasts worldwide. Kobi made his way to every food truck trying one hand selected item.

I was able to catch up with him after he made the rounds:

(loose translations provided by Kobi’s translator)

And which food truck was Kobi’s favorite? The Japajam burger at the Yume Burger truck!

Kobi's favorite - The Japajam burger from the Yume truck. All beef hamburger, Japanese tomato jam, jalapeño jack cheese, fried egg, Japanese BBQ sauce, crispy onion rings

Have you downloaded the Foodspotting app?

A full SXSW recap is coming soon!

Sunday Supper with nerdbread

I started eating spicy food at a really young age.  I remember being 8 years old and watching my dad take bites of raw chili peppers dipped in salt.  These chili peppers accompanied dinner – garlicky sauteed okra doused with cumin powder, chili powder and an assortment of other indian spices served with homemade chappatis.  We had meals similar to this pretty much on a daily basis (vegetables were interchangable but the flavors were the most important part!).  Since my father was (and is) the coolest person in my eyes (nerd!), I wanted to be just like him.  I picked up a raw green chili pepper, dipped it in salt and took a bite.  I can still hear my father’s laugh as I sat there and squirmed with discomfort.  It’s probably not normal for a kid to be eating food that would cause most adults to sweat but frankly, the more you eat, the more delicious they get.  Then all of a sudden, no meal is complete without them.

Nerdbreadkid thinking about eating chili peppers.

When I left for college, I also had to leave behind these intensely flavored dishes.  Who has the time to cook, the money for a long grocery list and the space for ingredients in a dorm room? I filled this void by eating chili flavored Top Ramen (which is really gross by the way).

Finally during my junior year, I took matters into my own hands:

College Budget Pasta (…with extra garlic and extra chili flakes)

Here are the ingredients you will need:

• 1/2 lb angel hair pasta (capellini)
• 4 minced garlic cloves
• 1/4 tsp crushed red chili flakes
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2/3 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan

Boil pasta for 4 mins and drain.

In a saucepan, add butter and olive oil.  The olive oil prevents the butter from burning as easily and the butter adds flavor and doesn’t make the pasta feel as “greasy.”

Saute garlic and crushed pepper.

Add pasta, salt, pepper and parmesan. Toss.

Turn up the heat for one last minute to really crisp up the pasta.  Do a taste test.  Does it need more pepper (red or black), salt, parmesan or garlic? Add to your liking.

Cooking is a living, breathing and forever evolving process.  In college, I probably would have stopped here and chowed down  Since I am now much older (and MUCH wiser), I decided to saute 1/2 cup of chopped crimini mushrooms in 1/2 tbsp of butter.  This adds a nice earthy meatiness to the dish.

This recipe is by no means groundbreaking or particularly innovative.  However, this is where my culinary journey began. This is where I started asking myself what flavors and cravings I wanted to explore.  How can I satisfy these cravings? What ingredients do I need? What do I want to make today?

Cooking is both a personal and a social experience.  What is your culinary story?

The beginning

Welcome to nerdbread.  I’m carving out a little space in the culinary world for another perspective.  We all eat and we all cook – and we all do it a little differently.  My goal is to celebrate your unique culinary voice.

Why do you cook the way you do?

Where did you learn this recipe?

What advice can you (you!) share with the world?

Here we go!