Grandmothers have a magical power. They can understand what stuffed animals are saying. When a stuffed animal says “take me home for your grandchild,” grandmothers listen. Spring Break!
Month: March 2011
This is the Spring Break!
Spring Break! When college girls leave their everyday responsibilities behind, let their hair down, and go wild. Cutie hasn’t been in school for some time, but that doesn’t stop her from hitting the road for a Palm Springs getaway with her co-ed grandchild. Let’s pay a visit and discover fashion do’s and don’ts for the savvy Spring Break-er.
Cutie Reviews Mumbai Ki Galliyon Se in Artesia, CA
This was a very different dining experience for me, at the suggestion of my grandchildren, who are adventurous. I have had Indian food before, but never like this.
Mumbai Ki Galliyon Se specializes in the street food of Bombay, very unusual dishes that surprised me coming and going. But I like being surprised, so I enjoyed the experience. We ordered a little bit of this and a little bit of that, to get an overview of what the kitchen can do, and we had help selecting items from the very nice husband and wife, Sailesh and Shruti, whose restaurant this is.
To start with we sampled DahiPuri, which was a delicate fried ball, like a cracked egg, stuffed with lentils and a splash of cold yogurt. I think the point of this dish was about contrasting textures and temperatures. I did find it tasty, but when I tried to describe it, I came up short — it was so unfamiliar, I didn’t know where to start! But it was salty, so I knew I wanted something to drink. I was served a very special beverage called Piyush, which is something like a milkshake, but a thousand times more scrumptious. Apparently it takes three days to make a cup of Piyush, and it contains all the delicacies of India: saffron, pistachio, yogurt and love from the kitchen. I liked it so much, I took one home for later!
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Dear Japan…
Cutie’s heart goes out to the people of Japan in their moment of great crisis.
Behind the Scenes with Cutie
Making movies with Cutie is always an adventure. Here’s a little peek behind the scenes featuring a momentary musical outburst. She’s a handful and don’t you wish she was yours?
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Cutie Reviews Farm Artisan Foods in Redlands, CA
On New Years Eve we took a family road trip to Redlands, which is a very charming little town outside of San Bernardino. Along the way we took old Route 66, where we stopped to see a giant orange at the side of the road, and a peculiar hotel with rooms shaped like teepees. I absolutely fell in love with the teepees, and hope to go back soon to spend the night in one. When we got to Redlands, the snow on the mountains ringing the town looked real, but I couldn’t believe it. It didn’t feel like we were up so high.
There is a very fine restaurant here called Farm Artisan, and they have a very, very wonderful hors d’œuvre of a little bowl of sticky black balsamic vinegar. Yes, vinegar–to swirl your bread in. I have had plenty of different vinegars in my 94 years, but not like this! The waiter told me that they have a secret recipe that involves cooking their special vinegar in a pot with some sugar and a lot of love. I could taste the love.
So what does this special vinegar taste like? Sweet, slightly bitter, fruity, then sweet again. It sticks to your tongue in the nicest way. It just tastes like… like MORE! Honestly, I would come here just for the balsamic vinegar, and I am very happy that I was able to get a little pot “to go” along with some extra bread for my breakfast. The crusty bread here is delicious too, but I think that it would be naked without the balsamic vinegar reduction.
As the dinner progressed, the edge of my vegetarian quiche was dipped into the balsamic. Every selection on my cheese plate was dipped into the balsamic. A little bit of vinegar was drizzled atop my soup bowl, As I discovered through this lovely meal, pretty much everything goes better with vinegar. And my family kindly indulged me as the vinegar bowl gradually crept over to my side of the table and remained there.
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