Fettuccine with Prosciutto and Arugula

I love pasta. When I cook with my boyfriend, its usually pasta. He's the one in charge of cooking the pasta because I always tend to forget about it and it turns to mush. He always gets a perfect al-dente! A few nights ago we made fettuccine with prosciutto and arugula. I wanted to use pappardelle but the supermarket I went to didn't have any. The sauce is essentially leeks and butter thickened with pasta water, and seasoned with the melted fat from the prosciutto. The lemon cuts through the richness of the sauce, and the arugula adds a nice tang and pepperiness. There is some prep work to do, such as chopping and zesting, but nothing too laborious. Hope you will enjoy this pasta as much as I did! 

Chop up your chives and leeks

Zest two lemons and cut the prosciutto into 1-inch slices

Soften the leeks in oil and butter, but take care not to brown them. Keep stirring.

Add the pasta and arugula. Don't be alarmed by the amount! The leaves will wilt down.

It can get messy and tiring when tossing the mixture together. Here, the boyfriend takes a break from snacking and helps out.

It feels less guilty with all that arugula in it ;)

Recipe – adapted from here

For two to three

Ingredients

250g fettuccine or pappardelle (pappardelle would look prettier but the supermarket I went to didn't carry it)

Kosher salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 leeks, white and pale greens only, thinly sliced

¼ cup chopped fresh chives

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest plus more for serving

4 cups arugula

3 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan plus more for serving

Freshly ground black pepper

12 slices prosciutto, cut into 1-inch pieces

Method

1. Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil and butter in a large heavy pan over medium heat. Add leeks and cook, stirring often, until softened but not browned, 5-8 minutes.
3. Add pasta, chives, 2 teaspoons lemon zest, and 1/2 cup pasta cooking liquid. Cook, tossing and adding more cooking liquid as needed, until a glossy sauce coats pasta, about a minute.
4. Add arugula and Parmesan, season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine. Add prosciutto and toss again, distributing all the ingredients evenly. 
5. Plate, and top with the remaining zest and a sprinkle of Parmesan.

Caesar Salad with Parmesan Croutons

I try to make “healthy” things from time to time to keep the monster of gluttony inside me at bay. I usually make a salad as a starter for dinner, something simple like cherry tomatoes and arugula with balsamic and olive oil. But tonight I felt like splurging and making something I loved eating when I was young and still do: Caesar salad with crunchy croutons and bacon bits. It was the only salad I ate as a child. That creamy tangy dressing pretty much covered any vegetable taste (yay!) and there was bacon! I still remember my dad had this plastic container of bacon bits in the kitchen and we would sneak a handful like candy now and then.

Regardless of how delicious the salad is, it isn’t healthy to have Caesar dressing from a bottle and bacon when you are cooking at home and can make better choices. So I found a recipe online and tweaked it to make my own Caesar dressing. Much healthier and just as delicious! You can still have a whole bowl of this salad and not feel like you had a full meal. You can omit the Parmesan, but I think a little bit won’t hurt!

Recipe

Ingredients

Romaine lettuce, cut into 1-inch chunks

Croutons:

Bread, cut into small cubes (the recipe called for crusty bread, but I just used plain old white bread)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoon Parmesan, shredded

Dressing:

Olive oil

2 egg yolks

2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Splash of Worcestershire sauce

1 small can of anchovies, chopped

½ clove of garlic, minced

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Salt

Pepper

Parmesan, shaved

Method

1. For the croutons, heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the bread on low heat until golden and crispy. Add the Parmesan on top. When the cheese has melted, remove the bread and drain on kitchen towels.
2. For the dressing, blend the egg yolks, mustard, Worcestershire sauce. Then slowly drizzle in the oil, whisking constantly, until the sauce is of a mayonnaise consistency. Then mix in the anchovies, garlic and lemon. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Mix the dressing with the lettuce, and top with the croutons and more shaved Parmesan.

Los Angeles - Umami Burger

Did not get out of bed until 2pm I believe. Thank goodness I had eaten a hot dog before going to bed or I would've woken up with the worst hangover. We decided to hit up Umami Burger for a late lunch. Umami has multiple locations all over LA and around the US. We arrived at the La Brea location around 3:30pm and waited almost an hour for a table. We were starving by the time we finally got seated. The interior did not look like your average burger joint. This was a high-end restaurant with sleek modern decor. Overall, delicious food. I think their signature burger was one of the best burgers I've ever eaten. I hear some locations are better than others though. Now if only Umami would come to Hong Kong...

Iced Green Tea: a bit on the sweeter side

Market Salad: fresh crisp greens, tangy vinaigrette dressing

Truffle Burger: delicious patty topped with house made truffle cheese and brushed with truffle glaze. I think what makes Umami's burgers stand out is their soft, toasted, slightly sweet buns. It really brings the whole burger together.

Umami Burger: Their signature burger: patty + parmesan crisp + tomato + onions + Umami ketchup = burger heaven. All the flavors and textures combined really well. This burger had a slight Asian taste to it. I think it was probably in the seasoning of the patty and the homemade ketchup. The patty was juicy and well seasoned, the onions were sweet, and the parmesan crisp added a nice savoury crunch. They make their own ketchup, which tasted fresh and "umami" (sorry I couldn't think of a better word!). You have got to try this!

Truffle cheese fries with Umami ketchup:  Fries were not too greasy, and the truffle cheese was fragrant. They skimped on the cheese though, as you can tell from the picture.

Verdict: Delicious burgers, long wait. Looking forward to my next visit though!

Update (July 14th 2014): This location actually closed down, but there are still 9 other locations in LA.