Kreation Organic: Appropriately Named Amazebowls: Delicious First, Healthy as Beneficial Side Effect

My philosophy has been: what is the point in living, if you're not actually going to live?

I use it shamelessly to indulge in whatever I want, in terms of food, and sometimes in life in general.

We all have a finite time here.  To me, it's pointless to try to do everything you can to prolong life, if my life would consist of abstaining from all that makes life enjoyable, and constraining myself to flavorless dry meat and/or saltless/textureless plants, and sacrificing every free moment I have to be in the gym in endless repetitions of repetitions, day, week, year in and out.

But of course, you still have to do something to enable yourself to keep going, you know, with the indulgence.  System breakdown would not be good either.

So it's fantastic when I come across that rare edible that is tasty FIRST, and healthy as a secondary benefit.

With thankfully tasty cold pressed juice as my 'gateway drug' to healthy alternatives, I was excited to come across Kreation Organic in Toluca Lake recently.

Their tiny storefront is to healthy drinkers / eaters, like a candy store is to sugar addicts.  Not only do they have a big selection of refreshing organic, cold pressed juice blends - some with fun names like 50 Shades of Green - they also have tonics as 'shots' that you can take for various concerns like Sleep or Decongestant (I love that they are labelled for their function, so you can pick up the right 'natural cure' accordingly without holding up the line with a lengthy consultation with the storekeeper).

But, beyond all this, my favorite 'discovery' (that probably everyone who eats healthy has already known about for, forever) is their Amazebowls.  These are so packed with fresh, perfectly ripe fruits and so skillfully balanced with just the right amount of housemade, perfectly crunchy granola - that you forget that they are also the much overused phrase that has become unfortunately 'trendy' and often associated (for people who don't actually have medically diagnosed food allergies) with food-fussiness, and anathema to foodies (who don't have diagnosed food allergies): gluten-free.

The Amazon bowl is my favorite so far:  it's made of blended acai juice, banana, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, almond butter, topped with apple, bee pollen, raw honey, strawberries, bananas, and gluten free granola.  It tastes like a happy, lucky farmer with access to perfectly ripened fruits plucked them from his backyard, put them in a bowl, which he then places under some gorgeous flowers and shook them to dust it with bee pollen, and toasted up some fresh oats to sprinkle on top. 

Açaí, for those unfamiliar, is a berry from a palm tree found in Amazonian rainforests.  It's delicious: a flavor-forward fruit that tastes like blackberries with a hint of raspberry and dark chocolate.  And it's gained fame as a superfood as it's rich with antioxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids. 

Bee pollen is the second superfood, which adds a clean, lovely crunch to this juicy bowl: it's packed with proteins, free amino acids, and vitamins including B-complex and folic acid.  Apparently if you took some bee pollen and put it next to beef, eggs, or cheese of the same weight, the bee pollen would beat all of those foods in amount of amino acids.

Textures and flavors are well balanced, and at a VERY generous serving that will fill you as either a mid-morning snack or even lunch, at $9.95 (think about how much organic fruit / superfruit you are getting in the bowl for that price!).

And yes, for those who care: there are still a lot of natural fruit sugars - but it's definitely a much better alternative to processed cereals, pastries, energy bars or any foods along those lines that you might have eaten instead.

I love it for being good for me, without me having to 'give up' anything.  I actually find myself craving the Amazon Amazebowl, and have already decided that this will be part of my new routine, after workouts that I enjoy (e.g. BarWorks / Sculptworks), to get my fix at Kreation Organic.

(Juice blends run from $7.95 to $10.95.  Premium juices ($10.95) are served in glass bottles, which you can return for $1 back: better for your wallet, better for the environment.  #Good)

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Kreation Organic 

10115 Riverside Dr., Los Angeles, CA 91602
Ph: 818.761.1348

(Many other locations including Brentwood, Beverly Hills, Manhattan Beach, Santa Monica,Venice..see website for more info)
Website: kreationjuice.com
Twitter: @kreationjuice  

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dineLA Winter 2015: Acabar

For food lovers who overindulged over the holidays budget-wise (good eats, you can never have too much of) - dineLA's winter edition has rolled around again to save the day.

If you haven't experienced it already, prix fixe menus are offered at reasonable prices at some of the most popular restaurants around the city, starting today January 19th and running through February 1st.  This year the price tiers are: Lunch: $15, $20, $25 and Dinner: $30, $40, $50.

I was excited to be invited to preview dineLA dinner offerings from Acabar in Hollywood.  This is the sort of 'whole package' restaurant that gets foodies / cocktail enthusiasts / fans of a great night out watching the clock all day counting down to 'GO time'.

The gorgeous, palatial Moroccan decor in itself makes for a great conversation starter from the moment you set foot inside the iconic doors. I'd been a fan of the space before Acabar arrived - back when it was Dar Maghreb and belly dancers were a part of the evening's entertainment.  Acabar brought a more elevated, modern, sexy vibe - a darker den that teases with a glimmering possibility of debauchery (at least of the culinary sort).  On the night of our visit, the opening act was a performance with a scantily-clad dancer sporting giant butterfly wings...(sorry, it was too dArK to capture video!)

Cocktails are not part of the dineLA menu, but the beautiful bar / lounge is definitely a place to make a pit stop on your way to the dining area - especially with a program run by Josh Goldman and Julian Cox. We got to check out a few of the latest concoctions, and a unanimous favorite that night for the fun factor as well as taste was the Zombie.  Made with El Dorado 8 year, lemon hart 151, lime, grapefruit, falernum and pomegranate - topped with a half-lime which is then set on fire: its flames made to dance with a dramatic aerial blast of salt (?) from the mágos-bartender. (At some point I need to write about the ever mesmerizing cocktails on fire...)

In line with the setting, Acabar's regular menu you would expect to be Mediterranean inspired, but really with a more-than-generous dash of 'anything goes'.  While dineLA for many restaurants can be about broad appeal and attracting potential new customers with the safe and just slightly different items - Acabar's event menu thankfully lets its personality belly up to foodies as well.

We got to try every item on the dineLA menu - but these were my favorites:

First course: Beef Carpaccio with bone marrow + black truffle arancini, crispy pulled beef, pickled radish and horseradish.  

Loved the plating, but this one is not just looks.  Tender slices of marbled beef were brilliant paired with arancini with skillfully crafted crusty shells, that crumble open to reveal a piping hot bone marrow and truffle center for super aromatic, 'meat butter' smooth bites. Pink petals of pickled radish added acidity to balance all the richness of other ingredients on the plate.

The kanpachi crudo option is fantastic as well, fresh, fresh fish with nicely balanced sides - that would be a great choice for non-meat eaters and seafood lovers alike.

Second course: Sweet Potato Gnocchi with hen of the woods mushroom, red cow parmesan, and brown butter.

I normally would not opt for the all veggie dish - especially in a prix fixe situation - but it's hard to resist hen of the woods when you see it on the menu. This was a lovely entree with toothsome bites of gnocchi with the slightest hint of sweet, and rich, lightly crisped hen of the wood mushrooms so earthy and robust that it made me not miss the protein.

The scallops and braised short rib are solid options, but not the most memorable - for those looking for something more unique, they would find it with the sweet potato gnocchi.

Third course: Parsnip Split with creme fraiche cremeux, parsnip ice cream, chiffon cake, milk crisp

I have to say this was the first time I believe I'd ever encountered parsnip as the key ingredient in a dessert.  Tasting this made me wonder why I haven't seen it used any place else???  Perhaps I'm ever biased to savory flavors in the course that is expected to be sweet, but I really loved the balance of flavor and textures in this dessert - and would have brought a bag of those airy crunchy delicious milk crisps home with me if I could!

The other dessert options on the dineLA menu are tasty as well: the coconut coulant was like a very robust custard with a flavor that reminded me of the 'coconut milk pudding' that you'd normally see in Cantonese restaurants for OG dim sum.  The Gimme S'more dessert would appeal to chocolate fans.  But neither come close to the Parsnip as far as I was concerned.

And for the grand finale that had my heart at first sight: foie gras macarons.  Foie. Gras. mAcArOnS.  A tray of them.  A perfect celebration of the return of one of my favorite foods ever - now legal to serve, but still generously given freely as a mignardise at the end of this media preview.  The luscious liver flavored filling may not be for everyone - but to the foie lovers out there - BLISS.  I'm currently confirming with the team whether this is actually offered during dineLA or if it was a one-time treat for the preview event...stay tuned.

In any case, the three course menu was fantastic - and a good way to 'taste drive' the restaurant.

[If you have the stomach space for it - check out their oyster selection too - the last time I was there (not during dineLA) they served my fav, Shigokus!]

Kudos to Acabar for stepping it up for dineLA!


*Disclaimer:  this meal was hosted.


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Acabar
1510 N Stanley Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046
T: 323.876.1400

Parking: Valet or street

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Happy Holidays, eh!

Happy holidays, this year from the Pacific Northwest!

This year, my brother (the one who used to make 'igloos' in the shoveled snowbanks with me, the one who understands our secret gibberish words, who was game to chase down food trucks at some unholy hour of morning, the one who will always be my 'little' in age even when we're old and gray - even though he will forever be far more mature and wise beyond his years) - moved his family to Vancouver - so we're up here to explore the city and hopefully help them some with the settling in.

It's sometimes hard for me, at least remotely, to imagine his life as a family man - vs. just my kid brother.  But when I see how amazing he is with the kids, I am in awe of the incredible human being he's become, outside of the roles in which we knew him, a brother, a son.  And it's inspiring to see the beautiful spirits of his children, one a toddler and the other just an infant - but already full of personality, good-natured resilience, sweetness and light.

If I'm brutally honest, this is not something I can handle year round - being around small children and giving over life completely to their needs.  I am still entirely selfish that way - and I do treasure my independence too much.

But I think that when I'm away, I forget what it's like to be around family - the good as well as the challenging - and every year around this time I am reminded.   It's been nice, so far, and I am grateful for good health for all and the ability to use this time to reconnect.

So, cheers to a peace and joy-filled holiday season, and wishing all some time well spent with loved ones! :)