Wedding Weekend

Apparently, sitting on my bum all day at the office is quite exhausting. I come home and cannot get myself to write a first real post. But I have mustered enough energy and motivation today to share some of my recent culinary activities.

This weekend Mr. Tall came up with the genius idea to make beer can chicken and mashed potatoes. Since we were only cooking for two, we got a young chicken (I know that might not sound to appetizing but it’s really just a small chicken). Slapped on some salt, pepper, and herbs, sat that baby down on a half-full can of PBR and popped it in the oven for over an hour. And voila, we had ourselves one of the juiciest roasted chicken I have ever had!

It was our second time cooking it and I must admit we most definitely did better. As our side dish, we made mashed potatoes with a potato ricer I had purchased from Crate&Barrel.

I don’t know if it’s just because I’m Asian, but this was the first time I had ever made mashed potatoes from scratch. Let’s just say the potatoes ricer made the process pretty fun … and would you like some butter with those potatoes?

On Saturday evening, Mr. Tall, against his will, and I met up with Andrea and Erika, and their plus ones to drive up to Pomona to attend a wedding. If you know me, you know that I was looking forward to the food and, more importantly, the cake. Both the ceremony and the reception were at a church. The ceremony was beyond spiritual to say the least. And the only thing I can say about the reception was that, to my disappointment, it was dry and there was no dancing. The cake was lovely but nothing spectacular. It was what Andrea and I called "Asian Cake." If you're Asian, you know what I'm talking about.

I blame "The Food Network Caters Your Wedding" for hyping up the culinary importance in nuptials for me. Mr. Tall knows that if and when I get married, my priority is to have a cake that not only looks but tastes to-die-for. And, of course, really good food, open bar, a rockin’ DJ/band—basically, a kickass party … How did this paragraph evolve into my wedding plans? Screw marriage, I’m just going to have a life partner, like Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell. I kid, I kid … Well, perhaps.

Nonetheless, the best part about the occasion was the Brown Eyed PEAS reunion. Parada, Erika, Andrea and Spencer (get it?) finally reunited and here is a picture from the reception for us all to reminisce … after our glory days at UCSD. One of my favorite restaurants in San Diego is undeniably Mama Testa in Hillcrest. Mr. Tall had discovered the restaurant while searching for an authentic Mexican joint while his dad was in town. Since then we have been devoted to Mama Testa for nearly a year now. They serve every sort of tacos in every way unimaginable by the average San Diego patrons. For most who are familiar with offerings at burrito shops or Mexi-Cali restaurants, Mama Testa is like no other. Here is their website if you’d like to check it out: www.mamatestataqueria.com. Mr. Tall and I stopped by there the past Sunday, but I was too starved to take any pictures. But, no worries, we will definitely make another trip there soon so look out for that in the near future.

Coming up: The 7, 8, 9 Dinner Club!

Enjoy,
Little Miss