Mimosa Restaurant

Before my birthday bar outing, I stopped into Mimosa, a little French restaurant I had been curious about for ages but never quite curious enough to stop in. After seeing their menu on their website, I decided steak frites would be a lovely way to kick off a boozy night.


Hanger steak with shallots

I was pretty pleased with my meaty dinner. The shallots were in a tangy sauce, which was unexpected and made me slightly wary, but it ended up working well with the steak. The frites were just like any other fries, although I did appreciate they were not mushy or undercooked. I was this close to ordering creme brulee, but decided against it.

They've got a 3 course dinner for $35 and considering one of the first course options is french onion soup, I will probably go that route next time around. Another potentially interesting option is their bouillabaisse, which is a dish I haven't had yet in life. Also, once the nights warm up a bit, I think it'd be very Parisian to sit at one of their outdoor tables in front (although admittedly, Beverly is not very picturesque).

Mimosa Restaurant
8009 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(323) 655-8895

Conchigli with Asparagus and Pecorino

I get hit with waves of "I need to get my life together" periodically and today was one of those days. First order of business: using up asparagus from the other night (I sauteed in a dry pan, threw in a little butter, then added some pasta water to steam the asparagus through).

The conchigli was purchased a few weeks ago when I made chicken noodle soup for Charles and it's been sitting in my pantry ever since. I thought the shells would be a good size for the small chunks of asparagus and I was right! Add in shaved cheese (from a wedge of pecorino I'm determined to burn through) and you've got a comforting and simple dinner with which the annoyances of the day fade away.

The best part of cooking asparagus is that it requires very little prep. For tonight's dinner, I didn't even break out a cutting board. I just snipped the asparagus with kitchen shears! Very Nigella, no?

Tilapia with Lemon and Asparagus

Tonight's dinner did not taste that great, but I still consider it a triumph.


Although simple can be a good rule for some seafood, just lemon with salt and pepper did not fare well for my tilapia. But, I am not dejected because two things happened:

1. I finally made fish, which is something I've wanted to do for a while. I've cooked fish before many times, but prefer not to in my current apartment (cooking odors tend to hang around). Steaming the tilapia in a foil packet got rid of the smell factor, but the texture was too soft for me. I'll have to try baking tilapia next time, maybe with breadcrumbs?

2. I cooked! For the first time in days! Not to state the obvious, but food tastes so much better when you make it at home. Especially because of the cost factor (yes, my battle with financial lunacy rages on).

At least, this fish turned out better than the ill-fated fontina mac and cheese I attempted a few days ago. That's what I get for playing fast and loose with measurements my first time making bechamel!

Recent Eats

I've been relying on leftovers here and sandwiches there, so I really do need to get back on the cooking horse. In the meantime, here are some photos of food I've eaten lately:

Green curry with chicken at Red Corner Asia

Soy-ginger-honey marinated chicken drumsticks

Goat cheese-prosciutto-golden raisin pita pizza (this one was a bit wacky, but sort of worked!)


I've had a wedge of fontina cheese in the fridge staring at me for the last several days, which needs to be dealt with. I had been pumped about making mac and cheese from scratch, but then laziness set in. Here's hoping I get around to making it this week!

Friday Night Tomato Sauce

Friday night was finally here and rain had descended on LA as if it were any other "normal" city. After driving home, I had no desire to venture out into the wet streets again. Lucky for me, there was an onion, some garlic and a can of tomato puree lying around. In went some sugar to balance out the tomatoes, some salt and pepper and dried oregano. And a boiling pot of spaghetti and a dusting of pecorino later, dinner was ready.


These days, I like going out more than holing up, but this week was far from a barrel of fun and all the elements were in play for a cozy night in. Let's hope this weather keeps up the entire weekend!

Spaghetti with Greens

Last weekend, I had two lovely friends in town, so I was too busy flitting about town to make home-cooked meals. But, now that life has settled back into its usual groove, I was able to make some wonderful greens last night. Then, for today's dinner, I tossed some spaghetti with them, grated pecorino cheese on top and called it a day.

I adore greens (kale and collard are my favorites) and even if I wasn't from the South, I believe our love is so meant to be that we would have found each other some way somehow. And... ending crazy talk. But, seriously, try making them at home; I made mine by heating olive oil, throwing in chopped garlic, and adding in a mix of kale, chard, and mustard greens. Once the greens wilted down, I poured in some chicken broth and cooked them for 20 minutes - 25 minutes more.

Although greens are supposed to be high in nutritional value, I admit I don't know how much is left after you cook the hell out of them. But, they're one of those rare comforting non-fried foods that make me very happy and are fabulous with pasta (spaghetti in this case as I haven't had it much lately and had a package in my pantry).

I am submitting my dish to Presto Pasta Nights, the brainchild of Ruth at Once Upon A Feast. This week's host is Erin over at The Skinny Gourmet. Looking forward to the lineup as always!

Thyme-Roasted Yams

I bought these yams with the intention of eating them with butter and brown sugar, but when I saw this Epicurious recipe, I saw a golden opportunity to make it through an entire package of fresh thyme (not a small miracle for me). As I adore sweet potato fries, it's no wonder that I also enjoyed this savory (and pretty garlicky) preparation of yams.

Obviously, I substituted yams for sweet potatoes and I only used 2 yams, which were sliced about an inch thick, so they'd cook up faster. My total cooking time was 25 - 30 min. (I checked obsessively because I was fearful of having burnt-to-black-bits garlic). These yams fit the bill of simple, but flavorful food I want to start taking to work, so I'm betting they're going to be in heavy rotation!