mmm-yoso!!!

City Chicken (not a place; a food item)

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog about food.  On this day, Kirk is hustling, Ed(from Yuma) is engrossed and Cathy is busy writing a short post.

Do you ever watch the TV show/series Survivor? The premise is that people are left on an island without much and need to keep themselves alive for about 39 days, participating in various skill contests and situations while being filmed.  Sometimes part of the situation results with a "Tribe" awarded three chickens, to help them eat and survive.  

After a day or two with a few eggs, somebody always seems to convince the others to kill a chicken (or three) and just eat them, rather than continuing on with daily eggs... 

During the Great Depression, people kept their chickens alive as long as possible, using the eggs as a protein source and not killing or consuming the chickens until those birds were not producing any eggs and were therefore only useful as other meal sources (not only eating the chicken meat, but saving the bones to make soup). 

People wanted to also enjoy some sort of meat during those desperate/egg times.  Along came City Chicken, at the time, a much less expensive alternative to actual chicken. Years ago, when shopping at Seisel's, I saw signage.

This is the most current price, making City Chicken not the bargain it used to be, but it is still a craving we occasionally have. 

Here's an old photo I found of a purchase.

City Chicken, basically mock chicken drumsticks, consists of cubes of pork and veal placed onto thick short wooden skewers,

which are then dipped in egg wash and cracker crumbs then quick fried in some butter melted in oil,

then placed on top of some onions and baked until done.

A simple food, now a memory trigger for me.  I used to help Mom make it for dinner.  

Happy Mothers Day.

Pangea Bakery Café-revisit (more than just a bakery!)

Pangea has closed

mmm-yoso!!! is the name of the blog. It's about food.  Writers here are usually Kirk, Ed(from Yuma) and Cathy.  Today, it's Cathy's post.

I started writing this post in November. Then things happened and even though The Mister and I have been to Pangea Bakery Cafe regularly, there have been some 'technical difficulties' regarding phones, cameras, computers, hinges and various other mechanical things and the final photos are recent.  You'll have to take my word for it that there have been visits in the interim.

The weekend before Thanksgiving.  Here we were.  And what is that man doing on the front patio? With a grill next to him no less! 

Notice the poster under the cash register...grilled items.

 

Notice signage in the store...

This was the menu in November.  It has changed, but let me show you what we enjoyed that day.

The nice Young Man cooking held open the foil for moment as I snapped a photo.  You'll see what this was...skewerS-that's a clue.

There were other items available- that's a Chinese sausage.

Condiments used for the various grilled items.

Yes!  Grilled whole squid: the same as was being served at the First San Diego Night Market until it sold out within the first few hours...

This was HUGE (it cost $8) and tender, brushed lightly with a sweet teriyaki-like sauce before and while grilling. We took a good portion home and used it for dinner.  

Of course we also bought some baked goods...

Here it was, leftover squid with the ham and cheese bread and squash. Ah, the balanced diet of the Holiday Season...

 

Here are some bakery items we've purchased- that's a ham and cheese baked in a bread and a cream filled almond pastry.

Here's the most recent menu...ever evolving and probably more refined(although on some of these chilly days, I'd like to have some soup).

The Thai peanut and lime chicken plate ($3.99 that day, regular $6.99 - and worth it at that price) is  quite large. Fresh veggies stir fried with some of the rice, the bright flavors along with some crisped rice and cucumber and pickled onion... and the sauce had a nice kick...could taste coconut milk in the sauce-it was almost a curry...lemongrass more than lime flavors and a touch of heat that would creep up on you.  This was very good.

We also shared the appetizer popcorn chicken ($3.99) which is served with the pretty cup of sriracha/teriyaki topped with black sesame seeds.  Fresh, crispy and moist good size chicken pieces.

You can see this bowl was quite large and lined with baby lettuce, which could have absorbed any grease...but there wasn't any and so a mini salad was enjoyed at the end of this meal.

We've also enjoyed some day old pastries (half off; there's a small red mark on the packaging) and good cup of coffee for easy breakfasts here.  That's the raisin walnut bread and a cherry filling in a soft Danish pastry.

 

 

It's going to be Valentine's Day soon!

Drop in and see what the menu will be on your visit...

Pangea Bakery Cafe 4689 Convoy Street, Suite 100 San Diego 92111 (858)560-0688 website

 

Rosca de Reyes-Traditions

Thanks for coming back to read mmm-yoso!!! Today, Cathy is writing a short post.  Kirk and Ed(from Yuma)  will read it, as you are doing right now.  You may or may not comment on it.

Well, it is a New Year and officially the Holidays are over.  I was raised Catholic, The Mister is Lutheran and we have a few traditions which begin before Christmas Eve (when we decorate the house and tree and open cards and gifts) (that's a tradition). Another tradition that I have had since I was a child growing up in Detroit, is acquiring free advertising calendars -which are posted in just about every room as well as the garage work space in our home- from various merchants around town.

These are just five, I'll show you more in another post. The Mister and I have been under the weather and good friend and fellow blogger, caninecologne, of Pink Candles at Ridgemont High has been kind enough to pick up other calendars for me.  

Another tradition, which is part of the Christian celebration of  the arrival of Three Kings on the 12th Night following Christmas, January 6, (the first day of Epiphany, which celebrates the revelation that God's son is Jesus Christ) is celebrated in various ways with food.  

In many countries, a King Cake is a popular food from Christmas until Epiphany.  In the United States, King Cake can be acquired easily in the SouthWest areas along the Mississippi Gulf Coast from Epiphany until Fat Tuesday, the day before Lent begins.  

In Portugal, a Bolo Rei is the traditional dessert (it's sold in several Portuguese bakeries in the Point Loma part of town) and looks like a small jeweled crown, topped with glaceed fruits and nuts. It's more cake-like.

In other countries (Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Peru and Malta), a panettone is the traditional food consumed before Christmas until Epiphany. It's a sweet bread shaped like a cupola and filled with various candied fruits and raisins.

In Spain, a Tortell is the common bread, also round shaped, marzipan filled and topped with jewel colored glazed fruit, with a paper crown in the center.

In Mexico, a Rosca de Reyes, their common food, is more of an egg bread dough interspersed with citrus peel and decorated with dried and candied fruit to resemble a beautiful jeweled ring.  This day is also traditionally when children in Mexico receive their Christmas gifts. Mexico also has another seasonal, religious holiday based traditional bread, which I have posted about. There's also more to this tradition, which I'll show you at the end of this post.

Since we live close to Mexico, Rosca de Reyes (Literally "Ring of Kings") are seen in many grocers and Mexican bakeries before Christmas Day.  Various packaging and decorating abounds, yet it's ubiquitous. 

The Roscas come in various sizes and prices.

The in store bakeries are very busy, baking many, many roscas for rapid turnover in sales.

Northgate Gonzalez Market this year advertised various flavors of Roscas and had them for sale on tables throughout the market.

I ended up with the traditional flavors.

The Northgate Gonzalez was a heavier bread topped with a variety of dried and candied fruit. Dates!The morning of the 6th, I walked into Kaelin's Mi Pueblo (my favorite East County Mexican Market for both groceries and a quick meal) and the Roscas were hot from the oven.

You can see it's a light, fluffy eggy bread with some bits of citrus peel interspersed...but the surprise interspersion:

A small plastic baby Jesus is baked in the bread. There are actually three  of these trinkets in the small breads and more within the larger breads. The meaning of the hidden baby is of  the Holy Family's flight from King Herod's plan to kill all male babies who could possibly be the Messiah. Tradition is that each person cuts a slice of the bread themself, symbolizing the danger the baby is encountering. The people who get the figurine in their slice are in charge of throwing a party on February 2 (Candelamas Day) and provide tamales and atole (a hot corn-based beverage) to all the guests.

 

Last night, The Mister and I cleared up our Christmas decorations and enjoyed some hot cocoa with our Rosca de Reyes and rearranging all those calendars.  I hope all of you are enjoying the year so far. 

 

Here is a LINK to CC's current post about her Rosca from Pancho Villa Market.  There are links to her prior posts at the bottom and also a short video about the making of the Rosca.

 

Markets in this post: Northgate Gonzalez, Vallarta Supermarket, El Super .

Unusual sweet treats.

mmm-yoso!!! is a food blog.  We (Kirk, Ed (from Yuma), Cathy and a few others) try to share some sort of food centric post almost daily...no reason, other than we do indeed all eat and like to write about it.  Cathy is sharing today.

It's close to Christmas and people are probably using up vacation days and perhaps doing last minute shopping. Thought I'd share some sweet surprises found around town recently. Maybe you've seen something out of the ordinary in your shopping travels, too.

The Mister and I tend to stop in to K Sandwiches once a week, either for a sandwich (breakfast, lunch, dinner) or something from the steam tray, or a grab and go croissant, loaf of bread and tasty beverage.  A few weeks ago, while waiting in line to pay, I noticed this handwritten sign on the counter.

 

You know I had to.  

Crépes, made in the waffle maker, thin and rolled so they cool to a nice, light crispiness. 50¢ each.  The green one is pandan flavor (a light, floral, kind of nutty-like pistachio pudding is light, sweet and nutty in flavor) and the other is original flavor (pretty much tasted like it was made with coconut milk). Both with black sesame.  A nice treat and a box full would be a nice gift. 

K Sandwiches 7604 Linda Vista Road at Mesa College Drive San Diego 92111 (858)278-8961

Trader Joe's is carrying these frozen treats.  I saw them being put into the freezer the Monday after Thanksgiving.  $3.99 for a box of four.  Pronounced "queen yamman".  This pastry originated in Brittany, France; a popular Breton dessert.

These frozen treats are similar to the Trader Joe's frozen croissants (you have to proof overnight/6 hours and then bake).  (That's a pumpkin croissant starting to rise in the background.) 

The Kouign Amann will bake in its cup into crispy, sugary layers.

 Not as many layers as a croissant, but like a croissant dough-with sugar between the layers. The sugar caramelizes and is crispy.  I adore this basic, simple French dessert. That I can make it fresh- and one at a time- makes it perfect. 

Rose Donuts, all the way at the West end of Linda Vista Road, near USD (NOT the location in the same parking lot as K Sandwich) is open 24 hours. (it's in the same mall as Ryan's).  Rose's makes and sells wonderful croissant based sandwiches, grilled burgers, hot/grilled sandwiches, bagels, ice cream, a variety of beverages...and...not just donuts.

 Oh, these two items are NOT the same.  The larger one is your traditional 'apple fritter', which is, indeed, wonderful, large and filled with apples and cinnamon.  The smaller one...in the front of the above photo... 

An apple-blueberry fritter.  Oh my, yes.  A wonderful, surprising, fritter.  Unexpected and great.

Rose Donuts 5201 Linda Vista Road San Diego 92110 ( 619) 294-8856

I hope everyone runs across a delightful surprise.  Soon.

CDD Tofu & Grill (Inside Zion Supermarket)

mmm-yoso!!!  is a food blog. This post is being written during one of the food-iest weeks of the year by Cathy.  This is because the foodier guys, Kirk and Ed (from Yuma) are busy planning their magnificent Thanksgiving Day feasts.

The Mister and I try to have a bite to eat before grocery shopping and the Food Court area inside Zion marketplace  (as well as the small counter in the midst of the actual market) offers quite a variety of selections. 

 You can see the signage advertising $2 off any combo all day as well as the Fall Special of $6.95 Tofu Soup, which we decided to share on this chilly day.    We decided on a spice level of 2 (out of 5), since we knew the spicy here is very spicy. 

 The organic, non-GMO tofu in soup is handed to you on the tray, bubbling furiously.  It comes with the raw egg, and various banchan (sides) of fried tofu, seaweed and marinated bean sprout as well as some mild kimchi.  The 'Rice Lady' followed us until we found a table and had started scraping the rice out of a hot stone pot, presenting the rice in the dish you see above...

 as well as the hot stone pot, with the remaining rice stuck to the sides, which she filled with warm tea- another side dish. The rice is a bit more 'toasted' in this hot pot and scraping it off and eating it with the tea is yet another great flavor combination (if you like Japanese Genmaicha-brown rice tea- you'll get that flavor from this bowl with the bit of burnt scrapings).

 Here's a photo of the 'Rice Lady' leaving our table, heading to another table to deliver their hot pot of rice. 

The tofu soup here is particularly good, filled with bok choy, onion and thin sliced pieces of beef (as well as the cooked egg which is not in this photo).  The tofu is a perfect texture and the spice level was just enough that you can still taste the ingredients. 

 

CDD Tofu & Grill 7655 Clairmont Mesa Blvd San Diego 92111 Inside Zion Marketplace.
Here is a link to Kirbie's visit to CDD(includes a copy of the menu), and this is a link including Jinxie's visit to CDD.

After our shared lunch, we went shopping inside Zion. You'll notice we were here on 11/11---that special day is 

Pepero Day!!! Celebrated in Korea in a way similar to Valentine's Day here...exchanging Pepero cookie snacks to show affection for friends and loved ones is how to celebrate. (Pepero Day originally had the purpose of exchanging Peperos with the hopes of becoming taller and thinner...as if).

 

The flavors above were our purchases (although other flavors, box sizes and individual foot long Peperos as well as a collectible tin were being sold)..the green one is chocolate coated and rolled in almond,  the red is chocolate dipped and rolled in peanut and the yellow (my favorite) is "nude"- a plain biscuit, filled with chocolate (or as the label states: "chocolate is contained tightly in the stick biscuit").  

Happy Belated Pepero Day!

Sunday Soups and Stews

Well, you've found mmm-yoso!!! the food blog.  Here's a post written by Cathy.  The other folks who write here are busy today...

Those of us who live in San Diego County have endured mornings of frost covered plants and vehicles as well as chilly, windy days for the past few weeks.  The weather today should be considerably warmer, thank goodness.

On those cold days when The Mister and I have gone out to eat, it seems the food choices have had a similar theme of being served hot and in a bowl.  Here's a summary.

The Pho Tai at Lucky Pho is always a favorite.  Thinly sliced raw beef is placed onto the top of bowl of long simmered, flavor filled, hot beef stock as it is brought to the table, cooking as it sinks or gets pushed into the stock/noodle/onion mix.  The plate of add ins always contains a piece or two of sawtooth herb in addition to the bean sprouts, basil, jalpeño and lime wedges. One of our favorite restaurants.

Pho Lucky (inside Lucky Seafood) 9326 Mira Mesa Blvd. 92126 (858) 586-7979  

We have been going to the Sam Woo restaurant a lot lately, usually buying breakfast or lunch specials before shopping at 99Ranch market across the hall. One cold day we chose the bowl of seafood tofu egg drop soup as our meal...the broth is very flavorful and the bowl is large enough for us to share.

Sam Woo BBQ 7330 Clairmont Mesa Blvd 92111 (858) 505-9888

Another of The Mister's 'regular' choices at Chopstix is the mabo ramen.  Nicely cooked fresh ramen noodles topped with ground pork and tofu in the spicy/salty/sweet sauce that is mabo. Another favorite. 

Chopstix 4633 Convoy Street 92111 (858) 569-9171

The chicken curry, in the steam tray area at K Sandwich was an automatic choice for a chilly day.  The version here is magical, with the creamy, gently spicy, flavorful curry sauce covering chicken and potato pieces.  When you get it to eat inside the store, it's served in this low glass bowl with fresh bread.

K Sandwiches 7604 Linda Vista Road San Diego 92111 (858) 278-8961

Typically, Taco Shops serve more than tacos. If the signage mentiones "mariscos" then seafood is also served there.  La Casita Taco shop (and Mariscos) in El Cajon makes a great "Siete Mares" (seven seas seafood) soup.  Shrimp, clams, calamari, octopus, mussels, crab and fish are served in a wonderful tomato-vegetable base with hot tortillas on the side.  A perfect meal.

La Casita Taco Shop 1503 N Magnolia (at Bradley) El Cajon 92020 (619) 444-8228 

Yum Cha Cafe serves congee-with various add ins: I always choose the fish.  The thick, disintegrated rice based porridge is filling, flavorful and keeps me warm and happy until the next meal.  

Yum Cha Cafe 6933 Linda Vista Road (at Ulrich) 92111 (858)268-9988

 

My favorite item from Lucky Pho -the Bo Kho- beef stew, which is also Kirk's favorite version.  Having tried Bo Kho at just about every restaurant in town, I crave the version here - wonderfully flavored gravy covering tender tendon and beef chunks and soft carrot served with a hot, airy thin crispy crusted bahn mi baguette.

Pho Lucky (inside Lucky Seafood) 9326 Mira Mesa Blvd. 92126 (858) 586-7979 

I hope the weekend has been good for everyone!

Pangea Bakery Cafe

Pangea has closed.

Welcome (back) to mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog. Kirk, ed (from Yuma) and Cathy usually share their adventures in eating here. Your being able to vicariously experience is a bonus.  Cathy is writing today.

Well.  The Mister and I were some of the first people to go to Pangea Bakery Cafe when it opened, in about May of 2011.  We went here a few times and I was ready to post and looked around on the interweb and it seemed that just about every San Diego blogger had done a post.  So I put the photos in a very special place. Finding some of them brought back some memories and since The Mister and I chose this for one of our eight days of birthday snack stops, more recent photos should make this post complete.

Located on Convoy Street, just south of Engineer Road, right next to Tea Garden the visible storefront has a small driveway where you can park for 15 minutes if you are just running in to pick up a snack. Otherwise, passing through the gauntlet of cars leads to a small parking lot.  The one way parking lot exits onto Brinell Street, which usually has plenty of parking (depending on the day and time you are there) and since the lot is small, the walk isn't bad.

When the store first opened, the display racks of baked goods were pushed up against the walls and a small center island contained breads and trays. This Taiwanese bakery is filled with an ever changing variety of baked goods.

The display racks have now been brought inward and tables and chairs line the glass walls

and the center table now mostly holds day old baked goods.  In this above photo, you can see a heated glass display case on the coffee/check out counter in the background.   

On the other side of the cash register counter are refrigerated cases. 

 

On the inner display racks are trays with individually wrapped selections. The above are garlic knots. Buttery...

Although, from this 2011 photo, you can see that items were not always individually wrapped. 

There are trays stacked at the end of the cases are so you can place your selections separately without crushing any of the delicate pastries. 

Above is what we ordered on our very first visit. There was a paper sign at the register after we had selected the sweets we wanted, offering pan fried dumplings and a choice of beverage for $2.49. Beverage choices were coffee, tea and hot soy milk.  We chose the soy and also a coffee (there is (and was) an extensive list of espresso drinks available).

Above is a cross section of the dumpling.  It was wonderful, crispy and not gummy, filled with ground pork, cabbage, carrots cooked in sesame oil. At some point, they stopped offering the beverage special, as well as the dumplings.  You can still order a hot soy milk, but it isn't listed on the menu.

Here's a cross section of a cheese filled pastry.

Above is a photo of our birthday snack- at 12 o'clock is a red bean paste filled pastry, the item at 2 o'clock is pineapple filled and in the 6 o'clock position is a hot cheese pastry which came from the heated case on the countertop, next to the register. Fresh, still warm and all very good.  Sometimes there is more of a pizza in the hot tray; it's good.

Above is a little snack/meal we brought home the other day.   The 11 o'clock item is another red ben paste filled goodie, in the 5 o'clock position is a three pack of almond puff pastry...and that item placed at 1 o'clock

is a quite large loaf of ham and cheese bread.  We can get 3  nice slices from this bread and always grab it when it's available.

The prices here are reasonable (the puff pastry was $1.25 and the cheese bread was $2.50). There is a lot of seating and it's a nice place to share a snack and talk.

Pangea Bakery Cafe 4689 Convoy Street, Suite 100 San Diego 92111 (858)560-0688 website

Summer is almost over-even in San Diego. Meals change.

mmm-yoso!!! is the food blog you are reading.  Kirk and ed (from Yuma) are still busy this weekend, so Cathy is continuing to blog.

Despite this crazy hot weather we've had the past few weeks, the clock tells me that days are getting shorter. Waking at 6 a.m. with darkness broken only by the light of the moon (if there is a moon) and the sun not peeking over the horizon for another half hour or so means the chill I am enjoying only for another hour now will be the norm in a few weeks. A look at the calendar reminds me that menus will be changing.  I thought I'd post about some meals and/or snacks enjoyed over some of the warm Summer days.

One June day when I was volunteering, I chose the Pesto Chicken box lunch, thinking it would merely be the least offensive choice. 
This was the most surprising, delicious flavor combination and sandwich I have had in a very long time.  Not only was the chicken a full grilled breast half, served with lettuce, tomato and a mild cheese along with the pesto, but a grilled red pepper completed the flavor points. I learned to roast peppers over an open flame at home, pop the peppers into a plastic bag to steam and easily peel off that skin and have peppers available in the fridge to satisfy cravings and use on sandwiches made at home.
Starbucks re-released their green coffee based beverages called Refreshers (originally San Diego was a test market in the Summer of 2010), the Cool Lime and Very Berry Hibiscus flavors are available in packets and cans or can be made for you in the store- fresh mint leaves compliment the lime and small berries are in the very berry flavor.  Neither has a hint of coffee flavor or bitterness, and neither is overly sweet...they are refreshing Refreshers, but I think they will again go off the menu when other seasonal beverages are back in the rotation.

Cold noodle plates, like this Hiyashi from Yakyudori Yakitori, will be leaving menus soon.  So simple, refreshing and filled with flavor.  I always wait to see the signage on the walls of Japanese restaurants announcing the return of cold noodles.  Must get one last meal of these in before they disappear.

These most creatively delightfully flavored, thick and crunchy Lays potato chips, made in Canada and given to me from caninecologne after her vacation there this past summer are but a mere memory and now on my list when I will be able to visit Canada later this year. 
This ingredient list shows you how creative the meld of flavors are to make the chips 'merely' ketchup flavor. Radish concentrate, dehydrated garlic, black current concentrate?  Who would've thought?

The small shave ice bowl at Big Joy Family Bakery is only purchased one time a year, even though it is available all the time.  The shaved ice is topped with a very good vanilla ice cream, sweetened condensed milk, small mochi and sweet bean powder, surrounded by fresh fruit (pineapple, strawberry, kiwi and banana) for less than $5 makes this an affordable treat.   

I hope everyone made it through this hot (but not not humid) weekend and Summer. Another week begins and Autumn will be here on Friday!

A Plethora of Tomatoes-easy and quick meal

Hello.  You have found the blog mmm-yoso!!! -it's about food.  On this hot day, Kirk and ed (from Yuma) are doing things other than blogging.  Cathy is your blogger du jour.

It's getting close to Autumn and our garden, which started from seed, has begun to ripen at an alarming rate.  We planted a few different varieties of tomatoes:

These French cherry tomatoes have produced more than 25 stems like this one.

These are Genovese tomatoes, before changing color; six hidden in this maze of leaves. The plants are taller than me! 

We planted strawberries in three hanging pots this year, and picked whenever we wanted a snack.

Sweet peppers and Purple German tomatoes (that's how the seed packet was labeled) are in a total of five regular and hanging pots in our front yard. 

These are Japanese Momotoro tomatoes.  A 6 inch plant was being sold for $1.99 in front of Nijiya Market in April.  The plant is now more than 7 feet tall and has produced 24 of these extra large-egg size tomatoes. 

We've also planted eggplant, yellow squash, green beans and peas which have already been picked and enjoyed. 

There are also eight more ears of corn which will be ready this weekend.  Fortunately, we spaced the planting of those. We also planted basil, dill, sage, tarragon and mint which are regularly used when we cook. There are also 6 artichoke plants and 3 cardoon which have not done much but produce silvery leaves.

For a long while, we'd have two or three tomatoes ripe and ready to eat each morning.  Then it got to about six a day...then last Monday morning, and almost every day since, this happened:

The International Tomato Festival began: French, Italian, German and Japanese tomatoes, ripe and ready to eat each morning. What to do? 

Some shredded Mozzarella, a bit of onion, basil and tarragon are always used. This recipe can vary depending on what else is available.

You can make this with no added ingredients, starting out with olive oil and onion along with the tomatoes in the pan...

Or put some olive oil in a hot pan with the onion and tomatoes (and in this case spinach, sometimes chopped peppers, sometimes squash) and leave on medium heat, uncovered.

The above photo is what the only tomatoes look like when they have cooked down, after about ten minutes on medium.

I remove some of the juice, making small 'wells' in the tomatoes, and put an egg in each well.  Cover the pan.

After about a minute (and less than two minutes) the eggs are almost cooked.

Sprinkle the shredded cheese over the eggs (you can also put fresh herbs on top now) and cover the pan.  Turn off the heat.   The cheese will melt and eggs will finish cooking.

Pretty easy and the results are wonderful.  The concentrated tomato flavor is simple and complex at the same time.  We've had variations of this recipe for breakfast, lunch and dinner and it never gets old.

I hope everyone is having a good weekend.  Stay cool!

 

Current Obsession: Mango, Chamango, Mangoneada.

You are reading mmm-yoso!!!, a food blog.  Kirk is busy (with things to do and eat in an exotic part of the world), ed (from Yuma) is busy (with things to do and eat in Yuma) and Cathy is busy (blogging about things she did and ate recently).

So.  I was cleaning up 'my' area of the kitchen today and noticed something about my current snacks. There is a commonality in all of these items.

I'm not a chocoholic; never was. Sugary sweets don't interest me.  I am currently a craver of a combination of tangy mango with salty-savory-pickled-sour with chile powder heat and occasionally the sweet of gooey tamarind candy. Every possible receptor cell taste bud being active in a single food item.  How did this happen?

In December I went on a Major Food Crawl with fellow Bloggers caninecologne (Pink Candles at Ridgemont High), Carol (CAB Cooks) and Dennis (A Radiused Corner)-no, I never wrote about the eight or so places we stopped at; I started to and the post got *huge*.  Instead, I have returned to each of the eateries we stopped at and have been enjoying the specialties enjoyed at each.  There will be more posts.

This is where the spicy and mango comes into play.  We stopped at Teresita's Fruiteria.

Teresita's is located in a mall anchored by a KFC and McDonald's on the Northwest corner of I-805 and Palm Avenue. Technically, it is in San Diego City, but it is way South. 

There is an extensive menu, however, not only was it late in the very long day for the four of us, but CC knew what Teresita's sold that nobody else does- Chamango.  We ordered four.

A frozen mango smoothie-with chunks of mango, swirled with chamoy  liquid and topped with bits of Chaca Chaca- a gooey tamarind candy.  The combination of sweet-tart mango with the pickled sour saltiness and chili heat of the chamoy and the gooey fruit candy bits of tamarind was delightful, refreshing and a combination of flavors I had never tasted (and those who know what I do around this time of year know that I have tasted a lot of bizarre stuff). I have returned many times to Teresita's, even though it is a long drive from home.

I really only want the Chamango (small is about $4) but also order a small pico de gallo ($3.50) (the long white pieces on tope are slices of fresh coconut) (really good) and, on this visit a grilled cheese sandwich ($2.50) so as to appear to be eating a healthy meal. The pico, topped with Tajin, or a Tajin-like mix of salt, red chile and lime is a wonderful combination of fruit, vegetable and heat. The grilled cheese is particularly addicting for me.  There is only one bread, no choice.  It is a *really* nice, chewy whole wheat that is crisped up and...filled (you can see) filled with an unusually high quality sliced processed American cheese. Really.  I *hate* Kraft slices and don't even want cheese on burgers, but this cheese, slightly melted with this bread...heaven. Creamy and salty and a great sandwich.

Teresita's Fruiteria 4370 Palm Ave, Suite 5 San Diego 92154 

 So.  I have posted about Tropical Fruit Paradise, a fruiteria right down Mission Gorge Road, closer to where The Mister and I live.  

I do enjoy fruiterias because the whole concept of a fruit shop is fascinating.  Growing up in colder climates, the idea of walking into a store and finding fresh fruit, much less having it prepared in various ways was never considered by either myself or The Mister.  

In addition to the torta sandwiches mentioned in my other post, wraps are offered here.  

The chicken wrap costs about 50¢ more than a turkey or ham wrap.  All are made with a spinach wrapper and simply filled with lettuce, tomato and Ranch dressing.  But the chicken is heated on the grill and tastes that much better.

As with most fruiterias, Tostilocos is (are?) available ($3.99). The version here uses regular cucumber as well as jicama and the hot sauce coating everything is quite spicy hot.  A bit different and very good. 

The mango-chamoy beverage here is a Mangoneada.  It is made with frozen mango chunks and orange juice.  The chamoy is nicely distributed as the beverage is poured in the cup.  BUT instead of being topped with tamarind pieces- the straw is coated in Chaca Chaca, the chewy, salty tamarind candy...

That's a small Fruit Salad Freeze ($3.75). Also very good -strawberries, peaches and banana.

I hope everyone is having a good weekend and satisfying current cravings. Thanks for introducing me to this one, caninecologne!

 

Tropical Fruit Paradise 10387 Friars Road San Diego 92120 (619) 584-4786