Presley's Pantry

Snackas of the day: Lasagna Cups by HeirloomLA!  The most clever cup since the cupcake explosion.  Hand rolled lasagna noodles, various fillings, and fresh cheeses all fit neatly into a small tin.  I LOVE IT!  In the world of just wanting a bite, but really wishing for an entire serving, these lasagna cups are the perfect size.  I remember the first time I laid my eyes on these cups I thought “What a cute novelty, but what do they taste like?”  My answer is to the point: DELICIOUS!  Who knew that a hand sized package could hold a knockout punch?  They come in over 12 different savory flavors, and they are all outrageously exquisite. Pumpkin Brown Butter Sage, Sweet Corn, Short Rib, and Veal Osso Buco are the ones I fell head over hills with.  These lasagna cups will provoke a need for a celebration!  I propose you get your hands on some as soon as possible.

Photo taken by: Nicole Presley

Tonantzin, Myself, Sandra, Allison, Antonette, and Israel

I needed some bonding time with my sweet gal friends.  Tonantzin called at the right time and strung a thread of friends together for a brunch of closeness.  We sat and chatted over food that tasted like it was made in a home kitchen, simple but GOOD.  Croissant sandwich, french toast with berries on top, coffee with Frangelico cream, and a big juicy burger with fries.  Oh and not to forget the amazing HARISSA (north african spice) aioli we had smothered in our sandwiches and used as a dipper for our fries and potatoes.  Mmmmm.  I cherish times like these, and can’t wait to meet up with my girls again soon! Cheers!

The York

5018 York Blvd.

Highland Park, California 90042

323) 255-9675

Brunch Saturday and Sunday : 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

I remember the first time I tried pesto pasta salad, and who I was with.  My uncle Ron, the most exciting person on the face of this earth.  Not only does Ron make me feel like I could walk on the moon, he is also a wealth of information, and a experimental food lover/taster/cook.  His character is very playful and lives to push the envelope on all aesthetic levels.  Everyone who meets him is immediately taken by his talent, wit, and kindness.  Oh I wish you could meet him, or maybe your lucky enough to know him.

It must have been more than two decades ago, he was having a birthday party at his home in Silverlake.  Amongst all the beautiful tasty dishes sat a big bowl of pesto pasta salad.  The food was definitely a hot topic of the night, and had everyone in a social chatty mood, as it always does in his home.  But the pesto pasta salad was also the first to go, I recall being truly disappointed that a second serving wasn’t in the stars for me.  By the following weekend…. I was making my own version.  Thanx for the inspiration Ron!

All photos taken by: Nicole Presley

Ingredients for pesto:

6 – ounces fresh basil leaves (about 3 packed cups)

4 – garlic cloves (peeled)

1 1/4 – cups olive oil

1 1/2 – cups toasted pine nuts

5 – ounces shaved parmesan cheese

1/2 – teaspoon black pepper

In a food processor or blender add basil, garlic cloves and 1 cup olive oil. Pulse/blend until smooth.  Then take a spatula and scrape down the sides. Add pine nuts and pulse/blend some more until smooth.

Next add shaved parmesan cheese, black pepper, and remaining 1/4 cup olive oil pulse again till smooth.

Set to the side.

Ingredients for pasta salad:

1 – pound campanelle pasta (cooked according to box, and drained) (I use Barilla)

1 1/2 – cups pesto

1 – tablespoon chicken or vegetable bouillon (I use Knorr)

1 – cup sun dried tomatoes (cut into small strips)

1/2 – cup toasted pine nuts

2 1/2 – cups grilled asparagus (cut into 2 inch pieces)

1/2 – cups shaved parmesan cheese

In a big mixing bowl add cooked and drained pasta, bouillon, and pesto. Mix well.

Then add sun dried tomato strips, pine nuts, and grilled asparagus.  Mix well.

Mix in parmesan cheese, and garnish with a basil leaf and a sun dried tomato! That’s it your done! Enjoy!

It’s so easy being GREEN!

SNACKAS of the Day: Milk and white chocolate covered pretzel apple by “the Apple of my eye.”  So delicious.  So crisp.  So right. Premium chocolate, chewy caramel, salty pretzel all smothered on a crunchy green apple.  My favorite combination of sweet candy, tart crunch and a delicate touch of salt.  “Mmmmm” …. was the sound my son Max was making when he gobbled his slices down.

All photos taken by: Nicole Presley

Here are two photos of the only apple of my eye… Mr. Max eating his snackas.

the Apple of my eye…. incase you want to order your own: 714.310.3011

Cobbler is something I’ve been baking for years, but don’t make very often, because I feel that it’s too special.  It’s like going to the Griffith Observatory, I don’t make my way there all the time, but when I do I’m in awe of the views, remember my love for science, and blanket myself in the night sky!  That’s my relationship with cobbler, everytime I bake it I swear OFF all other desserts!  Why wouldn’t I?  It’s cosmic, it belongs to the STARS!

All photos taken by: Nicole Presley

Ingredients for Apple Filling:

6 – cups sliced apple (you’ll need about 4 apples, I use granny smith)

1/2 – cup water plus 3 tablespoons

1 – cup brown sugar

1 – teaspoon cinnamon

1 – teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 – tablespoons corn starch

In a big pot over medium high flame, add 3 tablespoons of water, sliced apples and brown sugar.  Mix to combine, then let cook for a minute or so.

Then add cinnamon and vanilla.  Give your apple mixture a nice stir, and let it cook for 5 to 10 minutes. It will look like a nice brown syrup is sitting at the bottom of all the apples.

Continue to let it cook, until it starts to boil. Then take a small cup and add 1/4 cup of water and cornstarch. Mix to combine, then slowly add it to the apple mixture. Mix constantly and once a thick gel forms around fruit then add additional 1/4 cup water and continue mixing.

Once apple mixture is well combined. Turn off flame and set to the side.

Time to preheat the oven: 350 degrees fahrenheit.

Ingredients for cobbler cake:

1 1/8 – cups sugar

3 – cups flour

1 – teaspoon baking soda

1- teaspoon baking powder

1/2 – teaspoon salt

1 – cup cold butter (2 sticks)

2 – large eggs

3 1/2 – tablespoons half and half

1 – teaspoon vanilla

1 – cup sour cream

In  a large bowl mix all dry ingredients (sugar, flour, baking soda and powder, salt) together.  Then add in cold butter, and with two butter knives start to cut in butter into the flour mixture in a criss cross motion.  This will take about 10 minutes. Flour mixture will eventually become crumbly with the butter pieces the size of peas.  Set to the side.

In a medium bowl add eggs, half and half, vanilla, and sour cream. Then take a fork and as DEVO would say… WHIP IT! Whip it good.

Now add egg/sour cream mixture to flour mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until combined/moistened. Divide cobbler cake batter in half.

In a 9 x 13 inch greased metal baking pan, add half of the cobbler cake batter, and spread evenly across.

Now take your lovely apple filling and slowly spread across the top a little at a time until completely covered.

Now add remaining cake cobbler mixture to top in big drops to try and cover top, leaving some apple filling exposed.

Ingredients for cobbler topping:

1/2 – cup sugar

1/2 – cup pecans (chopped)

Lastly take cobbler and sprinkle with sugar and pecans!

Bake for 60 minutes or until tester toothpick comes out clean. Your cobbler will be golden and your kitchen will smell sweet.

🙂 Cobbler Tip: I like to eat mine warm with ice cream on the side, and let it melt a little.

Apple Cobbler for you, my sweet
For Max, with Love!

What a fun day! Ericka my twitter bestie is featuring my egg rolls on Nibbles and Feasts! Kill two birds with one stone…. get the recipe and check out her amazing blog while your at it.

I love exploring at the farmers market.  I walk around looking at all the vegetables imagining what new dishes I could make and how to incorporate the fresh crop.  But most of the time all that walking, shopping, and reflective thought leaves my tummy hungry.  A few weeks ago, I stumbled across Ma Jasmin’s.  I was greeted by a lovely husband and wife team who were busy getting their goods out to the long line of hungry patrons.  The smell of the grill was hypnotizing.  The light scent of coriander cemented me in the queue. I looked over the menu and couldn’t decide.  It all sounded delightful.

With a giddy tone in my voice, I ordered the Madras Chicken Kebab!  Remembering all the delicious kebabs I had gobbled down in London, I waited with great anticipation. Turns out it was one of the best I had ever tasted.  Thank you Indian food gods for bringing Ma Jasmin’s into my path!  I’ll never have to wish I was overseas to satisfy my kebab cravings again!

Since then I have been back a few times, trying out all the flavors MJ’s has to offer. Making my rounds through the produce of the farmers market, but really there with the intention of having more gourmet Indian cuisine.  As luck would have it, I found several dishes that were unbelievable and pleased my palate to no end.  The Beef Samosa Rolls were a HUGE hit with my family.  Even an hour and a half after we had savored our meal, they were still the topic of conversation.  Couldn’t get them off our minds!

My mom is a vegetarian, and I live to make her happy, so I was thrilled to see that Ma Jasmin’s offered a couple of veggie dishes.  Two on the hot menu, but many more on the cold menu.  Mommy ordered the Tandoori Paneer Skewer wrap.  She’s hooked, and upset that she can only enjoy the wrap twice a week, when MJ’s shows up at the farmers market.  I tell her it’ll taste that much better! 🙂  The proof is in the tandoori…. it left us wanting MORE!

Here’s a picture of Sage and Sonny Sehmi, the genius creators behind Ma Jasmin’s!

Find them at:

LAMC Farmer’s Market at Barnsdall Art Park

4800 Hollywood Blvd. Los Angeles, Ca 90027

Wednesday 12p.m. to 6p.m.

Alhambra Certified Farmer’s Market

60 S. Monterey Street. Alhambra, Ca 91804

Sunday 8:30a.m. to 1:00p.m.

All photo taken by: Nicole Presley

You won’t be disappointed!