Empanada's Place

Spicy Chicken, Beef Criolla, Potato Cheese... Sounds good so far... Now, take those things and wrap them in a tasty dough and fry up until golden brown. You've got Empanadas! Lately, I've been finding my Empanadas at Empanada's Place in Culver City. This tiny restaurant always seems packed at lunch, but the owner says some days it is, some days it isn't. I would recommend it either way, because you can always get your empanadas to go. Cocktail size empanadas are available by the dozen for about $15. Regular sized Empanadas are about $3 a piece and I find two to three to be plenty. The guys I lunch with sometimes get 5 but are stuffed at the end of the meal. They just can't resist the different flavors. Each flavor of empanada is crimped in a different way so you can identify what is inside. I love the care taken in making these Argentinian treats.

Empanada's Place has two other locations, one in Tarzana and one in West Hollywood. I've never been to the others, but the Tarzana location offers live tango music on Thursdays. Here are the addresses. The Culver City restaurant can be found on the Family of Food Map.


Culver City Location:

3811 Sawtelle Blvd.
Culver City, California
2 doors south of Venice Blvd.
Tel: (310) 391-0888

Tarzana Location:

18912 Ventura Blvd.
Tarzana, CA 91356
between Reseda and Tampa
Tel: (818) 708-8640

West Hollywood Location:

1040 N. La Cienega Blvd.
West Hollywood, California
1 block north of Santa Monica Blvd.
Tel: (310) 358-0588

Staving Off Hunger

Folks are finding it hard to make ends meet these days. Some people are finding it hard to eat out like they used to and buy the quantities of fresh foods they took for granted when times were better. Some people just want to know... what does it take to make it when you have very little.

I collected a few links to the experiences of those trying to live on on a budget for various reasons. Their experiences may help you if you are trying to tighten your belt.


Hillbilly Housewife $40 Menu
This menu complete with shopping lists and recipes has been around a while. Food prices in my area are much higher than on the list, but the basic principals still hold up. Hillbilly Housewife has also made a $70 dollar menu which is a bit more healthy for a family of 4.

Congressional Food Stamp Challenge
This page chronicles the challenge that many congress people and civic leaders took to try a month of eating on a Food stamp budget, $21 a week.

$5 a Day Food Stamp Diet
A reporter tries to live on $5 a day and fails.

One Dollar a Day Diet
A couple tries to live on a dollar a day each. They are able to do it, but not without a cost to their health.

Family of Food's Grocery Coupon Collection
Here is a link to our post about saving money at the grocery store.

Donate to the Family of Food Online Food Drive
Help those who really need it. Donate to the Family of Food Drive today!

Happy Holidays from Family of Food.

If you are lucky enough to need a tax break next year, please consider donating to The Family of Food Drive. This virtual food drive is raising money to benefit the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank. Los Angeles Regional Foodbank is a private, nonprofit, charitable organization that has been serving the disadvantaged of the Los Angeles community since 1973. Today the Foodbank provides food for nearly 900 member agency sites including abused and abandoned children homes, battered women shelters, senior centers, local food pantries, soup kitchens, AIDS hospices and more.

For every $1 you donate the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank can distribute enough food for 5 meals. Please join us in our attempt to give 10,000 hungry people a meal. If we beat that goal, even better. Any amount will help, even a dollar. Please click here on the Food Drive Link or at the bottom of the post to give.

Then tell your friends to visit our site and donate. You can even join the family and become a fundraiser too. You can make a whole lot of real people less hungry this Holiday Season. Thank you.

*Donate to The Family of Food Drive

*Become part of the Family of Food Drive Team.

Silly Twin Bento

I was trying to do the bento challenge again. I thought this one would be a perfect topic... twins.
Well, see for yourself, not so good. The girls barely ate it, too. Oh well, maybe I'll try this challenge again later.

Here are the ingredients: almond butter and jelly on small round pitas, provolone, cheerios, clementines, raspberries, string cheese, pineapple, and m&ms.

Wok Support in Action

A few weeks ago we had a post about a wok support called 5000 Years of Culinary Tradition.

Here is the Wok Support in action assisting Son of Food in making some Bok Choy.

You can see how this kitchen tool supports the wok so vigorous stir frying can happen without holding the hot wok.

Here is a cooking tip I read for Stir Frying Bok Choy:
Wok the Bok for about 5 minutes for stalks and about 2 minutes for leaves until the leaves are just wilted and bright green.

Family of Food Drive

We are so lucky at Family of Food, although times are tough for everyone this year, we can afford to eat. This is no small miricle. Many Americans are not as well fed as they used to be. People who may have gotten by in the past with a bit of scrimping are now slipping into poverty. The food bank demands in my home city, Los Angeles, are up 41% from last year.

As a gesture of goodwill towards our fellow Man, and a strong "Family of Food" desire to feed others, we are starting a Family of Food Drive. This virtual food drive will raise money to benefit the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank. Los Angeles Regional Foodbank is a private, nonprofit, charitable organization that has been serving the disadvantaged of the Los Angeles community since 1973. They are at the heart of a charitable food distribution network that includes over 1,000 charities in Los Angeles County.

For every $1 you donate the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank can distribute enough food for 5 meals. Please join us in our attempt to give 10,000 hungry people a meal. If we beat that goal, even better. Any amount will help, even a dollar.


Please click on the Food Drive Link to give. This will take you to the foodbank. Then tell your friends to visit our site and donate. You can even join the family and become a fundraiser too. You can make a whole lot of real people less hungry this Holiday Season. Thank you.

*Donate to The Family of Food Drive

*Become part of the Family of Food Drive Team.

Peace and Love in a Bento

This wasn't supposed to happen. I meant to make a quick lunch. The spirit just came over me. What the world needs now, is a Love Bento.



Ingredients:
Almond Butter and Jelly sandwiches cut with a cookie cutter into the shape of doves, corn, green beans, apple cinnamon rice cakes, ginger snap alphabet cookies, provolone cheese, and grapes.

The Best Burger I Have Ever Had

The first time I entered Father's Office at the Helms Bakery, I was a little disappointed. All of the reviews I read about it led me to believe it was an upscale restaurant with a decent bar. I looked forward to a nice sit down meal being served by a doting waitstaff and an elaborate menu.



It turned out that Father's Office is not a restaurant at all, but a bar with a limited menu. You are greeted not by a Matre D, but a bouncer, you are served not by waitstaff, but by bar tenders and bussers, your children are not allowed in. In addition, Father's Office is only open certain hours, not, let's say, for lunch on a Thursday. On the plus side, there is a huge selection of beer on tap. So, it's a bar. It doesn't matter. Father's Office is special. Fathers Office has a non-liquid attraction that lures me.

I have had only one thing and I want only one thing when I go to Father's Office; THE BEST BURGER I HAVE EVER HAD.

I admit, I am not a big red meat eater, I could ignore most burgers (I often go to In and Out and have the grilled cheese,) but this burger makes my insides happy. The cooked medium burger is served pink with crispy bits on the outside covered in barbecue sauce and blue cheese and onions caramelized perfectly soaking its juices on to a leafy lettuce and a fine roll. I am getting so hungry writing about it. There are two kinds of fries you could get to accompany this burger, sweet potato and shoestring. Although I do like the sweet potato fries, the shoestring fries are some of the best you can get. Garlicky, thin, crisp, I can think of no better side dish to go with the best burger in the world.

I took Husband of Food to try this burger, and he said "You know what would go great with this? A Beer." Well, Husband of Food, I know this great bar...

http://www.fathersoffice.com/

3229 Helms Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90034
TEL: (310) 736-2224