Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort and Spa

Posted by Liz on Dec 2, 2009 in Blogging Events | 2 comments

On Friday, November 20 I had the wonderful privilege of joining a great group of OC bloggers for a cooking demo with  Chef Priscilla Willis.  We were invited to go to the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort and Spa.

I was in awe, of the beauty of this hotel.  It is absolutely breathtaking.  I arrived a little early and I got a chance to walk around the resort.  

Ugh.. these pictures really don’t give the resort justice…

The sun was setting and I was starting miss my hubby!  ha ha…  It’s just gorgeous, and the whole romantic atmosphere will put anyone in a romantic mood.  My cousin who visited the hotel a while back said she had her Cinderella moment here, and I don’t doubt it at all…. ok.. to the cooking demo…

Like I said before, we were there for a cooking demo of Sous Chef Priscilla Willis.  She holds this award winning title with the restaurant “The Californian” located inside the resort.  Chef Priscilla’s love affair  with health based cooking was rooted in her own battle to gain control of her health.. This is very evident in her cooking.  We started the evening with some non-alcholic drinks.  This a cranberry spritzer…

 Chef Priscilla, then showed us how to make Nori Wraps.  These were amazingly light with a crunch!  They had Firm Tofu, carrots, cucumber, avocado, and mango!  YUM!! 

Next, she took us to the heart of the restaurant: The kitchen!  Being a stay at home mom, who does all the cooking, I couldn’t help but be fascinated by a professional kitchen!  ( I know, total geek!)  Chef Priscilla demonstrated how she cooked this:

This is Poached Salmon with Soba Noodles and Vegetables in an Asian-Scented broth.  Those of you who know me, know that I DO NOT eat seafood.  I ate the noodles, and drank the broth.  I didn’t taste the Salmon, at all.  This was sooooooo good.  It almost tasted like PHO.  Of course with ever meal, there was dessert!

You guys will never guess the ingredients!  This is Fresh Strawberries with Balsamic Vinegar and Sorbet.  Yup, you read right.  Balsamic Vinegar!!!  At first, I was a little taken back by the taste of the vinegar and the sweetness of the sorbet and the strawberries.  It does grow on you though, and I ended up scraping the strawberries to make sure they had vinegar on them!!!  HA!

Like I mention at the beginning of the post, I enjoyed my time there with some fabulous OC bloggers.  I had the pleasure of meeting Rockin Mama,  OC Mom’s Activities, and Double the Adventure.  Also, last but not least I would like to thank Aracely of Daytripping Mom for inviting me!!!  Gracias Chica!!!

To close this off I would like to show you what I learned and did the day after this event:

BAM!!!!

I made the soup, but with pollo!  It came out awesome!!!  Watch out Chef Pricsilla!!!  (just kidding).  A special thank you to Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort and Spa.

and Chef Priscilla for a wonderful evening.

If any of you would like the recipes, I will gladly share them with you.  Just leave a comment.