Zoe's Grad Dinner and Dessert

Zoe finally graduated from high school! I am so proud of her and in the words of my Dad "Thank the lord she made it".  To celebrate, she wanted the family to go out to our favorite mexican place in Ballard- La Carta de Oaxaca.  It's a little more difficult to find authentic mexican food in Seattle, than in LA. I've been told that there are some pretty good food trucks downtown, but I haven't had the courage (or time) to pinpoint them yet.  El Camión is supposed to be pretty good, I'll have to try it out.

Enchiladas Verdes con Pollo

After a brisk rollerblading adventure around Green Lake with my friends Hadley and Corinne, my parents picked me up at UW and we headed into Ballard.  Because it was a Monday night, the restaurant wasn't as packed as usual.  Of course, the Family P is still considered a pretty large party and we had to wait a couple of minutes at the bar.  My parents sipped their margaritas as we snacked on house made chips and guac.  Nothing particularly spectacular.  The chips are warm, but a little greasy.  The award for my favorite house made chips definitely go to Más Malo, on 7th in Downtown LA.  Their deep-fried salty taste is matched with a doughy and crunch-less texture.  I have still yet to find a guac that I enjoy more than my father's homemade jumble of avocado and various salsas, but what are you going to do?  You don't want to waste your appetite on chips and salsa anyways.

After we were seated, we all basically knew what we wanted and ordered promptly.  My parents always get the chicken mole, and Zoe ordered the Entomatadas.  The mole dish isn't my favorite, but my parents swear that La Carta has the best around.  I do enjoy the Entomatadas, but I wasn't in the steak mood after all of the red meat I've been eating at my new internship @ John Howie Steak (more to come).  I ordered the Enchiladas Verde de Pollo.  This is a new item on the menu and I thought I'd try it out.

I was hoping for some dense and cheesy filled tortillas with shredded chicken and salsa verde on top.  The home made corn tortillas came out rolled tightly and packed almost like taquitos.  They were actually a little crunchy and didn't taste as fresh as usual.  The chicken inside also wasn't very moist.  My favorite component of the dish was definitely the salsa verde atop, with sliced onion and crema.  The peppery salsa is cooled with a light cream and the onions bring a nice crisp to the overall dish.  The plate was served with rice and beans.  Nothing spectacular but I would consider ordering it again if I was in the mood for some verde chicken taquitos.

After dinner we headed next door to Hotcakes, the "molten chocolate cakery" Seattle has been raving about.  I've read about their "Boozy" Milkshakes and grilled chocolate sandwiches online and in Seattle Magazine.  My parents were enchanted by their bread pudding last time we went and craved more.

The Bread Pudding
Maple-Clove butterscotch, sautéed apples and pears, vanilla ice cream

"Peanut Butter Cup"
Molten Chocolate Cake
Theo milk chocolate cake, pb fudge,
pb ganache, vanilla ice cream

I ordered the "Peanut Butter Cup" Molten Chocolate Cake.  It was delivered hot in a cute little mason jar with a side of vanilla ice cream.  The cake itself was dark, rich, and chocolatey.  The type of chocolate that almost dries out your mouth it is so rich.  The slightly scorched texture may be due to the fact that it is gluten free. Inside the chocolate sponge is a peanut butter fudge and ganache.  To me, the fudge texture didn't really stick out, but I did notice a light brown molten ooze.  The whole cake was VERY rich.  I found myself constantly going back for more of the vanilla ice cream to mellow out the chocolate abundance.  Peanut butter and chocolate is a pretty typical craving of mine, and although I really did enjoy the dessert, it wasn't my absolute favorite.  I think just the combo of a heavy mexican dinner and then a rich cake threw me off.

My mom and sisters shared the bread pudding, while my dad had his own "Dark Decadence" Molten Chocolate Cake.  The bread pudding was spongey, caramel-y, and deliciously salty (will definitely be getting that one next time), and the Dark Decadence was basically my dish, minus the pb.

Hot cakes is a great dessert destination for you adventurous sweet tooths out there.  The atmosphere is really fun and it always seems to be jam-packed every time we pass by.  I really want to try the alleged "boozy" and regular milkshakes.  I think next time I make a trip it'll have to be not following a large plate of enchiladas.

My dad about to devour his "Dark Decadence"