2:30 minutes of animated butterflies and dragonflies. Well worth your two minutes.
This was the holiday...
I made these cute little placecards that look like wheat sheaths, which ended up taking a lot longer than I thought, but I can use them again eventually.
Here's the day's menu. I did end up dropping one dish mainly due to time constraints (the green beans). I took Wednesday off to prepare, but it still ended up taking a little longer than I thought.
My turkey process was very simple - easiest part of the meal. I brined the turkey in saltwater for six hours, patted it dry, then let it air dry in the fridge, uncovered, for 24 hours -- that gets the skin super crispy. It took about 2.5 hours to cook, starting breast-side down for 45 minutes, then each wing side for 15 minutes, then the breast up for 30 minutes, basting with melted butter on each turn.
I just got through all the turkey leftovers, upon making a turkey tetrazzini the other night. And the bones made a bunch of rich turkey stock.
Here's some cranberry grappa jelly that I made. I wanted a homemade version of the canned jellied cranberry sauce. Everyone else seemed to prefer the whole berry cranberry sauce, but there's still a place in my heart for the jellied. The dish wasn't hard to make, but a little time-consuming because you have to strain it, and let it set in the fridge for several hours.
And the honey and I when it was all done... whew...
1. I tried to post a movie a long time ago, The Bat (epic fail).
2. I saw an advert for a book in the 100 years ago today New York Times called When A Man Marries by Mary Roberts Rinehart.
3. I thought Hmm, that looks like interesting... I checked gutenberg.org, and there it was/is.
4. Also in her list of books was a title I recognized, The Bat.
5. I thought, could that be the same story-line of that movie, The Bat, I tried to post so long ago? It was! I had no idea The Bat was based on a book.
Aside: Agnes Moorehead is one of my favorite actresses and she's way under-appreciated. She was such a good actress I feel badly that she's only remembered for her campy role as Endora. She was in an episode of the Twilight Zone called THE INVADERS that CREEPED ME OUT when I was a kid. CREEPED ME OUT, but I remember even at such a young age thinking she's a marvelous actress to pull that role off.
Oh My. LIFT!? Just what is that supposed to mean, lift?
December 4, 1939 Life magazine ad.
Here's a review for your North County residents. Leucadia Sushi is located on North Coast Highway, north of restaurants such as Jamroc and Cap'n Keno. Basically, where Leucadia really gets funky - not in a bad way, but in a decidedly low-brow, relaxed way. On a side note, I've been wanting to visit Cap'n Keno, for the hell of it. Spaghetti dinners are $2.95. I'm not expecting much, but it's intriguing.
I had a $25 gift certificate from Restaurant.com for Leucadia Sushi so we decided to try it last night when I was sick of turkey leftovers. It was empty except for a group of 4-5 diners, but I think it may be a new restaurant. Here's what it looks like; it's one of those sushi boat places.
The sushi was pretty cheap (around $4 for two pieces of nigiri), and a fairly decent quality considering the price. It definitely can't compare to nicer places like Sushi Ota, Station Sushi, Tomiko or Tajima... but if you're looking for someplace cheap, this is better than your typical cheap joint in, say, P.B.
Overall, I'd say it could be an ok happy hour spot if it attracts some more business. There's a coupon on their website, and of course, you can get a gift certificate off Restaurant.com. The honey and I ended up paying about $28 after the coupon, including tip, two teas, 4 orders of nigiri, and 3 rolls.
The restaurant doesn't offer enough to make me want to come back, because I'd prefer to hit the Tomiko happy hour, which is in Encinitas, which would end up being slightly more expensive, but much better sushi and a much better ambience.
The final word
(1-5 rating: 1=BAD, 2=mediocre at best, 3=ok, 4=wow, pretty good!, 5=one of my all-time favorites)
Food (Taste, Quality): 2.7
Value: 3.4
Service: 4
Ambience: 2
Memorable Experience: 2
Price: around $4 for nigiri, and $7-14 for rolls.
Menu recommendations: I liked the salmon nigiri and the albacore. The tuna wasn't very good. Their dynamite dishes had too much creamy mayo-like sauce.
Notes:
Would I make a point to go again, paying full price?: Probably not, given the other better sushi places that are closer.
The holidays are in full effect, so tell us: What's your favorite holiday song? Bonus points if you share it with us!
EDIT 2: As I went through my collection of Christmas Carols I was going to post Sleigh Ride, by the Ventures and then I saw this and had an Aha moment and this is the one - Santa Claus by Thee Headcoatees:
EDIT: I take back my answer, first I almost posted Sinterklaas Kapoentje, then decided on "The Misers" but I re-decided, and I really hate to admit it as I stopped liking REM years ago, but Christmas Griping has to be the best Christmas Carol ever....I am a big fan of the MR. MISER brothers...
Hey guys,
Hope y'all had a wonderful weekend!
I've probably mentioned before that I really like Restaurant.com. They sell $25 restaurant gift certificates for $10, and they often have 80% off sales, so I usually buy the $25 cert for $2. Deal!
They're having this nice little promotion now. I can enter up to 30 friends' email addresses and they'll send you a free $10 gift certificate. (Of course, expect to be getting emails from them.... that's why I use my spam email address). But they're not that frequent.
So, if you'd like the free gift certificate, let me know. If I don't already have your email address, private message me with it.
Much love,
HapaLove
