Things To Do In Denver Before You Die: Nomelie Cupcakes

I have a contagious passion for cake. On my recent visit to Denver, it was evident that R and his mom had caught my affliction. On our second day in this winter wonderland we discovered the cupcake shop of our dreams.

Tucked away in the sleepy town of Parker, just outside of Denver, is Nomelie Cupcakes. It is your quintessential cupcakery, pink and precious. Warm smells of sugar and sweetness greeted us along with vibrant and welcoming smiles from the staff.

Nomelie Cupcakes is a family owned bakery. They make their cupcakes on site in small batches baked fresh daily. They have a small rotating selection of cupcakes. On our visit they offered Vanilla Love, Chocolate Love, Coconut Dream, and Salty n’ Sweet. We got three of each!

Under a carapace of fluffy frosting, delicately sprinkled with translucent flakes of salt, lies the best cupcake I have ever had. A bold statement I know, but no doubt once you’ve enjoyed a Salty n’ Sweet cupcake from Nomelie Cupcakes you will agree. It might just be the best thing on earth!

The Salty n’ Sweet is a moist chocolate cake with salted caramel baked inside. The burnt sugar of the caramel is visible through tiny glistening caverns in the chocolate cake. The caramel creates a buttery, slightly sticky bite. It is prudently frosted with a caramel frosting that has an almost airy consistency. This cupcake from top to bottom is dessert heaven.

It is just sweet enough, without being tooth-achingly sweet. The salt is a perfect compliment to each bite. I have a penchant for caramel so this was the ideal cupcake for me. If I close my eyes I can still taste the rich filling, fluffy frosting, and chocolaty essence.

Nomelie Cupcakes

19751 E Main Street R5

Parker, CO 80138

** If you are planning a trip to Denver I suggest picking up an Eat/Shop guide, it is an invaluable resource. Or email me theletmeeatcake@gmail.com **

Things To Do In Denver Before You Die : Smash Burger

It has become a winter tradition to visit Denver with R. I generally meet him after the holidays just before the New Year. Unlike Los Angeles, Denver is a true winter wonderland. The cold biting weather, the snowy ground, the clear skies, and the mountains all around, let’s just say we’re not in LA anymore. It is the perfect mini break from the hectic pace of the city and the holidays. If you haven’t been to Denver before it is a beautiful city with bountiful gastronomic pleasures.

Since I have been back in LA, I haven’t stopped thinking about all of the memorable meals I enjoyed while in Denver. When I left I was satiated and eager for my next visit. Here is some of what I enjoyed.

I am not a regular patron of chain restaurants. I tend to prefer the mom and pop cafes, or the charm of a restaurant that only has one location. However, when I was in Denver a few weeks back, it was a chain restaurant, of all things, that stole my heart!

Known as the hometown of Chipotle, Denver is a city that is not lacking in chain eateries. My favorite of their local chains was Smash Burger. This is a restaurant the guide books are not going to direct you to, but you want to be sure not to miss.

Smash Burger is a burger joint with a modern feel. What sets a Smash Burger apart from other burgers is the plump, crisp, perfectly cooked beef. Not all patties are created equal; some are too thick, or too seasoned or just dry hard disks of meat, but Smash Burger is not any of these things.

I ordered the BBQ Bacon and Cheese. It had thin crunchy fried onions, thick slabs of apple wood smoked bacon, tangy BBQ sauce and the perfect beef patty. The flavors blended together collapsing with each bite. The bun was nicely buttered and grilled. It had a soft exterior with perfectly toasted edges. At $6 a burger, Smash Burger is the ultimate burger. A burger so good you ingest it in 30 seconds and then beg for more.

Smash Burger

S. Parker Rd & Yale Ave

2630 S Parker Road

Aurora, Colorado 80014

720-213-0012

Open 10am-10pm Daily

** If you are planning a trip to Denver I suggest picking up an Eat/Shop guide, it is an invaluable resource. Or email me theletmeeatcake@gmail.com **

Ain't Your Mama's Slaw

I find myself walking around exclaiming “Battle Napa Cabbage!” with such excitement, an excitement I never thought I would have for a vegetable.

January is the month of Battle Napa Cabbage. The monthly “food fight” held by Mel (Gourmet Fury) and Leela (SheSimmers) has done exactly what it set out to do. In just two months time it has gotten me excited about vegetables and eager to cook with vegetables that are not part of my normal repertoire.

Napa cabbage, also known as Chinese cabbage, is a pale green (almost white) elongated cabbage with a mellow, nutty flavor. It has tightly clinging leaves that are crispy and creased. I found that the Napa cabbage was a great canvas for an array of ingredients.

Since it is the start of a new year - a time of resolutions and new beginnings - I thought it fitting to prepare a recipe that was healthy and light. Rather than preparing the Napa cabbage in a soup, stir- fry, or kimchi as it is typically found, I decided to use the cabbage in a slaw.

This is not your mama’s slaw. In thick wedges or large chunks, the Napa cabbage is coated with a tart dill mayonnaise. It is spiked with slivers of carrots and paper-thin rings of red onions. Crack some black pepper over the top and you are done. Serve it with a salty shaving of smoked salmon or accompany it with delicate Sardinian parchment bread and you have a healthy, light, and satisfying meal.

The slaw has a delicate creaminess. The crunch from the cabbage, the sweetness from the carrots, and subtle spice from the onions marry well together. This slaw is the embodiment of simplicity.

Ingredients:

1 Napa cabbage

1 carrot

1 red onion

Smoked salmon (less than ¼ pound)

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Dressing:

¾ cup mayonnaise (a great store bought will do, or make it from scratch)

Juice of ½ lemon (or more to taste, the dressing should be really tart!)

½ cup of chopped fresh dill

Take ¾ cup of mayonnaise and add fresh squeezed lemon juice and stir to combine. Add ½ cup of freshly chopped dill and combine. Do not add salt! The salt will pull the moisture from the cabbage and make this slaw soggy. Who wants that?

Shred 1 carrot and shave ¼ of a red onion for garnish.

Pull the exterior leaves from the Napa cabbage and save for another use. Take the heart of the Napa cabbage and cut it into long wedges or thick chunks. Dress the Napa cabbage to taste. Add carrots, red onion, and pepper. Enjoy!

A Dosa or Two...

What is a dosa? A dosa is a South Indian crepe made from rice and lentils. It is typically filled with South Indian ingredients and served rolled almost like a burrito. In a city as ethnically diverse as Los Angeles, I was surprised to find myself unfamiliar with dosas. With an unyielding need to eat everything, my stomach and I were on a mission to find the Dosa Truck.

Dosa truck is owned and operated by Brooklyn born Leena Deneroff. While the menu focuses on dosas the truck also offers Masala fries, salads, and samosas. All dosas are priced at $6 each, a bit steep for food from a truck.

On my visit one dosa was not enough. Several dosas later I was full and happy.

The Mumbai Madness (Masala) dosa is filled with smashed curried Indian potatoes. The potatoes were tucked into the lean rolled crepe and it remained surprisingly crunchy top to bottom. The flavors were mild and creamy. With hints of fennel seeds sprinkled throughout, this dosa was crisp and light.

Sita’s Surprise is a dosa filled with sweet potato masala. This dosa was sweet and rich with a delightful buttery aftertaste. The rice lentil crepe was crispy yet soft and snugly sandwiched the potatoes. This was my favorite dosa.

The Shiva Shakti is a dosa comprised of 1/2 sweet potato and ½ malsala dosa. From end to end the flavors transitioned smoothly.

The Goa Goodness is a dosa filled with spinach, mushroom, and cheese. It was ooey-gooey good. The fresh spinach wilted slightly under the melted cheese with thick meaty slices of mushroom, the rice lentil crepe lending a subtle sweetness to the flavors.

Brahma’s Boon is a dosa filled with caramelized onions, mushrooms, and cheese. My least favorite of the dosas it was somehow too juicy and required the assistance of multiple napkins. The onions overpowered all other flavors and it felt uninspired. I could not find the South Indian influence in this dosa.

Dosas make a great lunch. They are crispy, light, quick and satisfying. On my next visit I will be sure to order the Slumdog rubbed with pesto and filled with paneer, spinach and masala potatoes, but for $6 a pop I will try to restrain myself to just one dosa.

Ringing in the New Year! Restaurants of 2009 Cafe Stella and Street

image credit: blog.wineenthusiast.com

A year of bacon, fat-fried everything, food trucks, cocktails, and breweries, 2009 in Los Angeles has been a great gastronomic year. Before we leave this year for the next I want to remember some of my favorites.

Café Stella

3932 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90029

(323) 666-0265

Tucked behind Sunset Junction and hidden next to the Silverlake Cheese Store, Café Stella is a neighborhood gem. The dinner menu is French Bistro perfection.

This year Stella began serving breakfast. With a short menu of pancakes, pastries, and egg dishes, the breakfast at Café Stella is simple and classic.

Lemon ricotta pancakes are fluffy and light, with the lemon subtly folded between the silky granules of cheese ($10). Add a light rain of maple syrup and you are in breakfast heaven.

The baked eggs with spinach and goat cheese are meltingly soft and delicate ($10).

When it comes to the spud for breakfast, few restaurants get it right ($4). At Café Stella the crispy breakfast potatoes are just that – crispy, and wonderfully so. Oven roasted and lightly seasoned with a dash of fresh parsley, they have a crunchy skin that gives way to mealy snowiness.

Breakfast at Café Stella is quaint and complete.

Street

742 N. Highland Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90038

Already a dedicated and loyal Susan Fenniger fan, I was elated for the opening of Street, her first solo venture. A veritable round-the-world tour of street fare, the menu is stimulating yet approachable. From tea cakes and dumplings to salads, noodles, stews and curries, the small plates offer diners a chance to explore the world of savory, sweet, spicy, and tart. It is a gastronomic adventure to be sure.

Street offers both indoor and outdoor seating, but I highly suggest the outdoor. Giant street-scene murals painted along each of the four walls enclose you with only the open air above. A stone fire pit in the middle of the patio keeps guests warm. Intimate, isolated from its surroundings and employing a sleek Modernist design, it is a convivial place for a meal.

Instead of bread and butter, diners are greeted with cumin-scented millet puffs. These bite-sized puffs have the texture of rice crispy treats but the taste of a spice market. They are pleasing and surprising to the tongue.

Paani Puri - small crisp orbs filled with spiced potato, sprouts and chutneys - is an ideal start to a globe-trotting meal. The flavors of the Paani Puri become more pronounced when dipped in the accompanying yogurt cilantro water. Each orb is crunchy, light, and delightful.

The Korean Rice Salad is sadly no longer on the current menu. It was a cacophonous mix of firm rice, wilted greens, fresh carrots, kimchi, seaweed and tofu, crowned with a soft cooked egg. The contrast of fresh, crisp, bitter and spicy flavors was incredibly enjoyable - a nice play on the idea of what a salad should be.

The Ukrainian dumplings are filled with spinach and a light layer of salted, boiled and pan-fried cheese topped with a heaping spoonful of sour cream and lemon marmalade. An explosion of taste and texture, each dumpling is certainly more than a mouthful and packed with bite. The dough is chewy and the filling salty. Be sparing with the marmalade as it can overpower the other flavors.

The Lamb Kafta with white beans and grilled artichoke is gentle and mellow. It certainly does not stand out compared to the other menu offerings, but is still a hearty and pleasing entrée.

Street’s Kaya Toast has become the toast of the town. All of Los Angeles has been raving about this Singaporean delight. A sticky coconut jam is spread thick between two pieces of lightly toasted and buttered pieces of bread, which are then topped with an over-easy egg drizzled with dark soy sauce and a touch of grey salt. The egg is a quiet background flavor, offering relief from the rich and gooey coconut jam.

The name ‘Street’ lends itself well to the menu, a celebration of street food of the globe. Street offers a memorable dining experience that will surely continue well past 2010.

I look forward to the gastronomic pleasures 2010 is sure to bring. Happy New Year!

* for restaurant suggestions you can always email me theletmeeatcake@gmail.com