Los Angeles Times Food Section

Growing up in L.A. my parents subscribed to the Los Angeles Times and The Daily News (which was called The Green Sheet when I was a kid). I didn't read the paper very much at all when I was little (except for current events projects), but I did read the comics and Calendar section each Sunday. My Dad read (and still reads) the whole paper and my mom would always read and cut out recipes from both newspapers (and she still does that).

As a grown up, I really do love the newspaper. I only subscribe to the Times but I read it every morning. I am the only one walking down my driveway barefoot-ed at 5:45 a.m. to get my paper. My feet are so cold that I've started to count the number of steps it takes to reach my paper and pretend I'm crossing over broken glass just to distract my freezing cold feet.

Anyway,one of my favorite sections is the Wednesday Food section. It has definitely lost its amount of content over the years and for the last few weeks it came in the Thursday paper not the Wednesday paper (which really threw me off) but it's still a great resource for recipes, wine and restaurants.

Last week there was a review for a hole-in-the-wall, Mediterranean restaurant called Hayat's Kitchen in North Hollywood.I went there the other day for lunch and there were 3 other tables of diners there from the same article. For a place that has 6 tables total, that is an amazing turnout!

Today's Food section was really great. After reading today's edition, I signed up for a free daily foodie newsletter (Blackboardeats.com) and made the recipe for Nutella Humentashen (for Purim) which sounds amazing.

I know the likelihood is virtually zero that a hard copy of a newspaper is going to be around for my kid to subscribe to, but I sure hope so. She sees me read the newspaper every day just like I did with my parents and she reads the Comics section every Sunday just like I did too.

Garlic Sauce & Foot Massages

When I was pregnant with my daughter, my husband and I would go to Zankou Chicken Restaurant for lunch after our doctor's appointment. It used to be cheap (not so anymore) and I'd always get a chicken sandwich with extra garlic sauce. The white, pungent, flavorful spread is/was my favorite part of the sandwich and I ate it up. I never had that sauce again until I found it at another middle eastern type restaurant in my neighborhood called Cedar House. They give the sauce as an accompaniment to their entrees in a little, tiny bowl. Never enough but I guess good enough.

However today, I found my favorite thing in the cold case at Jons Market in North Hollywood. There it was--a tub of the white fluffy stuff. Garlic Spread for $2.99. I could have my own spread anytime and on anything! Yay! Once I unloaded my groceries I immediately put it on some flat bread and savored the taste. It tastes just like the stuff at the restaurants. We'll see how long it lasts in my fridge.

Although the garlic sauce did make my day, I was pretty happy this morning anyway because of my hour long, $20 foot massage. When a friend told me about Nature Healing Center (across the street from the North Hollywood Target) and their amazing 60-minute foot massage, I had to try it.

I've been coming here for the past year at least once a month. It's really a great price and it's really a great massage.


This isn't a chic spa with white terry cloth robes, fuzzy slippers and cucumber water. However, it's a deep tissue, professional massage done in a reclining, comfortable, cushioned chair and I get to keep my clothes on. I've brought friends here and it works out great because each massage space has two lounging chairs next to each other. The treatment gives special attention to the pressure points in the feet which is perfect for my sore spots, but the masseur person also works the head, neck, back, arms and legs.

Even without the extras (including privacy), after this massage I felt like a million bucks.

The next big thing

If I could make money on trend spotting, I'd have some more money than I have now. I'm pretty good at predicting the next big thing, but I'm the only one who knows this (or probably who cares about this) so I can't really cash in. I told my family that Crocs would be very popular when I noticed everyone in the Denver Airport was wearing them a few years ago. When I got into Boulder, Colorado, everyone was wearing them there too. Not one person in L.A. even knew what a Croc was until about 6 months later, then Crocs got their 15 minutes of fame worldwide.

Last January I told my husband that 3D was going to be the next big thing. That was before Avatar, 3D TV's and every other 3D thing that came out. I couldn't invest in 3D but I knew it was going to be huge.

I'm back with my current prediction--French Macarons. I'm not talking coconut macaroons you eat at Passover. These are the beautiful, bright, crispy, light as air macaroons made with crushed almonds and filled with rich cream. The flavors are amazing--Lavender, Meyer lemon, sea salt and caramel, chocolate ganache and raspberry. I've seen these wonderful cookies in the prettiest of colors for awhile now, but just this week I've read about them on Tasting Table, heard two separate stories about them on NPR and saw them in the weirdest places.

It's the jewel colors of the French Macaroons that make them so unique. Shocking pink, tangerine orange, sunny yellow, lime green, etc. Crazy for a cookie but perfect for a special treat.

The next big thing is waiting to be discovered and I hope to figure it out before everyone else does too...

Eat Cake

I'm in a book club that meets once a month. Sometimes we go to a coffee house to meet and sometimes we go to a member's house. Sometimes we watch movies based on books and sometimes we just talk. In December we did a book swap--we just brought in books we were done with and traded for books we hadn't read yet. At that time I picked up a few books including "Eat Cake" by Jeanne Ray. I put it in my pile of books to read and forgot about it. The other day I was done with a book and didn't have another one at the ready, and found this book in my book shelf.

I have no idea who brought this book to swap, but I need to thank her, because I enjoyed spending a few days reading this book. The book involves a family undergoing change and the main character realizing her passion can also be a financial success.

I've never heard of this author before but have since discovered she's the mother of Ann Patchett, an author whose books I have loved (Bel Canto and Truth & Beauty). This is a really simple book but it combines two of my favorite things--baking and family. I love books that highlight cooking, baking and recipes. Although I read cook books for fun, I really like books that intertwine recipes and food into the story.

Some of my recent favorites are: School of Essential Ingredients (really great book), Julie and Julia (yes, the book the movie is based on. It was really very fun; better than the movie), Gourmet Magazine's Ruth Reichel's non-fiction books (Comfort me with Apples is the best) and anything by anyone that has lived in Italy.

However, one book that I was really disappointed in that is in this genre is "The Recipe Club"--this book has been highlighted on TV and in book clubs and I found it pointless and boring and included recipes that were just sub-par. Don't waste your time.