Saturday, August 5, 2017

Super-easy, Tasty Sautéed Garlicky Broccoli Recipe

This tasty broccoli recipe is really easy to make. You could also modify it by adding any desired spice to add more flavor. I found it at: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/december-2007-garlicky-sauteed-broccoli

Ingredients

- 1 1/2 pounds broccoli, cut into 1-inch florets (I only used 1 lb)
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- salt
- water
- crushed red pepper (optional)

Directions

1. Put 1/2 inch of water in a large skillet and bring to a boil. Add broccoli and boil just until bright green, about 4 minutes. Drain well and wipe skillet dry.  (I avoided having to dry the skillet by pouring the broccoli into a colander to drain. The hot skillet immediately dried itself.)

2. Add olive oil and garlic to skillet and cook over moderately high heat just until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add broccoli, season with salt and cook, tossing occasionally until crisp-tender - about 3 minutes. Season with crushed red pepper and serve.


Friday, August 4, 2017

Darwin Evolutionary Cuisine - Wonderful

Darwin Santa Maria is a renowned Sarasota chef who's been involved in a number of Sarasota culinary endeavors. We've always loved his food and were anxious to try his latest - Darwin Evolutionary Cuisine. As always, he did not disappoint.

My wife and I both started with the Chilled Mango Gazpacho for $6. It was the most wonderful gazpacho I've ever had- richly flavorful. Every spoonful was wonderful. The gazpacho alone would be enough to lure me back.

My wife's entree was Entraña - grilled skirt steak, roasted sweet plantain, salsa beef criolla, and chimichurri sauce for $26. She is addicted to Darwin's skirt steak at whatever restaurant he operates. She keeps vowing to try something else, but can't pass up the skirt steak.

I had Andino Pesto Coated Lamb Chops with lentil stew, grilled asparagus, and roasted tomatoes for $38. The lamb was superb - tasty and perfectly cooked.

Our wine was a bottle of Pico Maccario Barbera d'Asti - a red from the Piedmont Region in northwest Italy for $34. It was very nice.

They did not have quite enough staff, so the service was a bit slow. There was also one diner who had no volume control.

The restaurant is located in the strip mall just south of Trader Joe's. almost next to the wonderful Peperonata Pasta empanada shop.

We highly recommend Darwin's latest.

Automobile Remote Key/Key Fob Battery Replacement - Be Alert

If the battery-operated key fob/remote key for your vehicle shows any sign of weakening, REPLACE IMMEDIATELY. Otherwise, you may find yourself in a situation where you can't open your car door or start your vehicle. Fortunately, many batteries are easy and inexpensive to replace. Signs of weakening are:
1. You have to be closer to the a trunk or hatchback to open it.
2. The key battery warning light is lit on your dashboard. (This does not always happen.)
3. The vehicle will not start when the key fob is in a place where it's always worked - like a pants pocket.

I had two recent personal experiences and witnessed another. In one case, the trunk seemed to open more slowly and I had to be closer. Also, the battery would suddenly not work when the battery was in my pants pocket. I had to take it out. The next day, the battery died completely. Fortunately, it happened at home. In the second case, the dashboard key battery warning light came on. The next day that battery died.

Fortunately, I found on-line videos that showed how to replace each battery. The owner's manual of one vehicle also described how to replace the key. However, it was not as clear as the video. Both replacements only took a couple of minutes. One battery was very common. The second battery was a little harder to find, but I located one at Walgreen's. One of the batteries was four years old and the other was only two years old.

As a precaution, you could replace the battery every two years.

The key fob for a previous vehicle had a battery that could not be replaced. One had to buy a brand new key for nearly $200. Luckily, that battery lasted the four years I owned the vehicle.