Author Archives: Trish

Restaurant Review: Camps Restaurant in Angel’s Camp, CA

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Camps Restaurant

676 McCauley Ranch Rd.
Angel’s Camp, CA 95222
209-736-8181
CampsRestaurant.com
Yelp

http://www.yelp.com/biz/camps-restaurant-angels-camp

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Off the beaten path, but delicious! After frustratedly being unable to find the restaurant we were looking for in old town Angels Camp, I remembered seeing this place in our motel’s visitors guide and looked up directions on my phone. As we drove down the long, dark expanse that Angel Oak Dr. and then McCauley Ranch Rd. we were beginning to think Google Maps didn’t know where we were going again. But then we found it.

For a Saturday night it was active, but by no means crowded. We were seated right away. We’d decided against a different restaurant that boasted live music on Saturdays because I had a headache, so at first I was leary of seeing the live keyboard and sax players, but we were sat in a back corner of the restaurant far enough away from the speakers that it was still clearly audible but their jazz stylin’ was pleasurable as my headache subsided (thank you Excedrin Migraine!)

Anyway, the outlook was dicey at first… we didn’t see a waitress for 10-15 minutes, and when she did come over she went to a table that had been seated after us before us. Once she came over and we aired that we were a bit miffed at that, she apologized and the evening was delightful from there out.

We ordered the tempura battered asparagus appetizer, the hubs ordered prime rib, and I ordered fettuccine Alfredo. Delicious! We were pretty certain that the batter on the asparagus was not a true tempura batter at all and more of maybe a beer batter, but it was still good. The hubs liked the chili sauce they were served with and I was happy with the lemon aioli.

The hubs reported that his prime rib was perfect, and my pasta was perfect as well. I loved the bits of asparagus in the pasta and that the chicken in it was seasoned simply and didn’t overpower the light sauce and didn’t seem like an afterthought.

The little bread they brought to the table was cheesy and lightly garlicky, which I appreciate not being slapped in the face with garlic, and our desserts were good, but a little different. The bread pudding seemed to be closer to a cinnamon french toast – good in it’s own right, to be sure, but not exactly what the hubs was expecting. My vanilla creme brulee had a somewhat odd texture – almost more whipped than custard. If I had to hazard a guess I think it might have been made just with egg whites and not the yolks too, but the flavor was good. The bruleed sugar on top was a bit thick and a bit dark, but not burned.

The quality of the food was great, we’d go again when in this area, and it definitely made up for the lackluster lunch we had!

Kerala Style Beef Stew

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Once you’ve added the coconut milk, be sure not to boil it too long or else the milk may curdle. You can substitute yogurt or plain milk for the coconut milk for health reasons.  Thank you to Chacko’s Kitchen for submitting this recipe.

Kerala Style Beef Stew
 
Author: 
Recipe type: Soups
Cuisine: Indian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
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Ingredients
  • 2 lbs beef
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 potato
  • 4 tomatoes
  • 1-1/2 c. shallots
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 2 c. coconut milk
  • 4-5 curry leaves
  • 1 tsp pepper
  • 2-1/2 tbsp cooking oil
  • 2-4 green chilies
  • 4 cloves
  • 1-1/2" cinnamon stick
  • 6 green cardamom
  • 1 star anise
  • salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Clean & cut the beef into 1″ cubes. Drain.
  2. Peel & finely slice the shallots.
  3. Finely slice the tomatoes & store separately.
  4. Peel, wash, & cut the potato & carrot into 1″ cubes.
  5. Heat 2 tbsp cooking oil in a non-stick pan. Add the Garam Masala ingredients (cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, & star anise) & saute for 1 minute.
  6. Add shallots (reserving about 1 tbsp) & saute until translucent, taking about 5 minutes.
  7. Add the drained, cubed beef, potato, & carrot along with the turmeric, salt, & pepper. Saute until all sides are seared & lightly caramelized and browned.
  8. Add the tomatoes, green chilies, & ½ the coconut milk. Transfer to a pressure cooker & cook on high heat until 1 whistle, reducing to a medium flame. Continue to cook for 20 minutes & then 10 more minutes on low flame.
  9. In a separate non-stick pan, heat the remaining oil & saute the reserved shallots & curry leaves. Add the remainder of the coconut milk & bring to a boil on medium heat. Remove from heat.

 

Pea and Leek Soup

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If you prefer the soup to be 100% Vegetarian, you can substitute vegetable stock for the chicken stock.  I prefer to serve with toasted sourdough.  A swirl of cream will make this look nicer and taste richer.

Pea and Leek Soup
 
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Recipe type: Soup
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Ingredients
  • 3 baby leeks, sliced
  • 1-1/2 c. boiling water
  • 1 c. petits pois (peas), frozen
  • 1 tbsp chives, chopped
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp chicken stock
  • 1 tbsp cider vinegar
  • salt & black pepper
Instructions
  1. Place the baby leeks in a small saucepan with the olive oli until the leeks are soft. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the chives, setting them aside.
  2. Simmer until the peas are cooked through. Add the chives to the pan & use a hand blender to blend until smooth, or your preferred consistency.
  3. Serve with warm bread.

Photo Courtesy of M. King on Flickr

Uncle Jim’s Alfredo Sauce

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Alfredo sauce is one of the best sauces – good on all kinds of pasta!

Uncle Jim's Alfredo Sauce
 
Author: 
Recipe type: Sauces
Cuisine: Italian
Cook time: 
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Ingredients
  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 4 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 1 c. cream
  • 1 c. chicken broth
  • 1 c. Mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • ½ c. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 3 tbsp fresh parsley, finely minced
  • 5 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • ¼ c. dry white wine
  • salt & black pepper
Instructions
  1. On medium heat, melt butter & add flour. Cook 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly to cook flour completely.
  2. Add cream & broth together, blending well. Add cheeses, parsley, garlic, & wine, stirring until cheese is completely melted.
  3. Add salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Photo courtesy of DenisenFamily on Flickr

Alaskan Baked Salmon

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The serving size depends on the size of the fish.

Alaskan Baked Salmon
 
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Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Seafood
Cook time: 
Total time: 
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Ingredients
  • 1 Alaskan salmon, approximately 6 lbs., cleaned
  • 1 med. red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 lemon, thinly sliced
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 4-5 sprigs flat leaf parsley
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • sea salt
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Rinse the salmon well under cold running water & sprinkle inside the cavity with salt & pepper.
  2. Stuff with half of the red onion slices, half of the lemon slices, & all of the parsley. Lay the salmon on enough aluminum foil wrap to enclose fully.
  3. Rub both sides with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper, & thyme. Scatter the remaining onion & lemon slices on top & seal foil tightly around salmon.
  4. Bake on baking sheet 40-45 minutes, adjusting time for size of salmon. Cool salmon in foil on cooling rack, then remove onion & lemon slices.
  5. Remove skin if desired & served baked salmon at room temperature.

Photos courtesy of bloomsberries and Ernesto Andrade on Flickr.