This week's Culinary SOS: Cayenne's Moroccan chicken soup

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Melinda Siegel in Los Angeles:

The Moroccan chicken soup at Cayenne Restaurant on Beverly Boulevard is absolutely delicious and unlike any other chicken soup I've ever had. It is so good that I find it takes great effort for me to order anything else from the menu. Can you get the recipe?

Rich, yet delicately spiced, Cayenne was happy to share its recipe for this easy-to-make soup.

Thanks, Melinda! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Mac 'n' cheese recipes galore!

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: Nopa's goat cheese bread pudding

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Margaret Briggs in Altadena:

I'd love to get the recipe for goat cheese bread pudding from Nopa in San Francisco. It’s the best one I've had, and I'm eager to try to duplicate it.

Nopa’s savory take on this classic comfort food is wonderfully rich yet amazingly light in texture, the bread cubes breaking down into a luxuriously soft pudding. Served alongside a simple salad, it makes the perfect meal.

Thanks, Margaret! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Mac 'n' cheese recipes galore!

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo: Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: Lawry's Carvery's macaroni and cheese

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Arlene Rebuyon in Rancho Santa Margarita:

 I have been to Lawry's Carvery many times. I wish I knew how to make their baked macaroni and cheese. I hope you can acquire this recipe. They have many of their recipes on the website, but the mac 'n' cheese is not on it.

Lawry's was happy to share its take on this classic comfort food. This makes a lot of mac 'n' cheese, so it's perfect for a summertime get-together.

Thanks, Arlene! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Mac 'n' cheese recipes galore!

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: House of Bread's berry bars

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Gabby Robinson in Denver: 

I recently moved from San Luis Obispo to Denver. I miss the berry bars at House of Bread in San Luis; they were my favorite breakfast after a run or before class, and they were even my last meal before commencing the 18-hour drive from SLO to Denver! I'd love the recipe so I can have a slice of my old college town here in my new big city. Thank you!

These bars are rich and buttery, with nice tart and sweet notes from the jam, and you might never guess how easy they are to make.

Thanks, Gabby! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo: Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: Mucho Ultima's fresas mojito

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Diana Lecanda of Sherman Oaks: 

Mucho Ultima Mexicana Restaurant in Manhattan Beach makes the best strawberry mojito I have ever had. Can you please get the recipe from them so I can make and enjoy it at home? It's the perfect drink. Thank you.

Bright and lightly sweet, fresh strawberries are a perfect complement to the classic lime and mint in this mojito. Mucho Ultima changes its mojitos seasonally but was happy to share this recipe with us. Cheers!

Thanks, Diana! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo: Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: Purple Pig's pig ears with kale

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Mary Anne Hernandez of Vancouver, Canada: 

 We've just returned from a trip to Chicago, and I tell you, we were there for just five days, but we were at the Purple Pig three times. My fave is their fried pig's ears with crispy kale. What an amazing dish! Can you see if they are willing to share their recipe with your readers? Appreciate it very much.

Crisp, crunchy and unabashedly pork-a-licious, your unsuspecting friends might never guess they were actually eating deep-fried pig ears unless you told them. Sliced thin and breaded before frying, these bits of pork goodness are served with torn, fried kale and pickled cherry peppers. The dish is topped with a fried egg. Whether you're thinking breakfast or dinner or some snack in between — or maybe looking for the perfect Father's Day dish for the dad who loves all things pork — this dish is heaven on a plate.

Thanks, Mary Anne! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo: Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: The Cravory's cinnamon roll cookies

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Brian Boroff in San Francisco: 

 The San Diego bakery the Cravory (formerly 410 Degrees) makes the most amazing cinnamon roll cookies. Any chance of getting the recipe? Many thanks!

These little creations, which look and taste like a cinnamon roll but are neatly compact with a cookie crumb, combine the best of both worlds. The Cravory was happy to share its recipe for cinnamon roll cookies, which we've adapted below.

Thanks, Brian! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo credit: Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: Kuleto's minestrone

This week's Culinary SOS request comes from Elizabeth Reers in La Jolla: 

I was at Kuleto's in San Francisco recently, and we had the best minestrone soup. It was fabulous. I have called and emailed, and nothing. Can you please obtain the soup recipe? Thanks for your help.

Rich, hearty and amazingly flavorful, this is a great minestrone! Kuleto's was happy to share its recipe with us.

Thanks, Elizabeth! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Photo: Kuleto's minestrone. Credit: Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: Zengo's Thai chicken empanadas

This week's Culinary SOS comes from Joseph Gallana in Van Nuys: 

Recently, my boyfriend and I went to try Zengo in Santa Monica Place, and I ordered its Thai chicken empanadas. It was amazing, and I ordered another round. I was so tempted to ask the chef for the recipe, but I was, like, "Why would he give away his recipe to his customers?" If you guys can manage to get the recipe from the chef, that would be fantastic.

It's so hard to eat just one of these. The little Thai chicken empanadas are a project but are well worth the time and effort, and they make a perfect appetizer for a party or gathering.

Thanks, Joseph! You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

-- Noelle Carter
You can find me on Google+ and Twitter

Photo: Thai chicken empanadas from Zengo in Santa Monica. Credit: Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times

This week's Culinary SOS: 14K's tuna tartare

This week's Culinary SOS comes from Matt Euen in West L.A.: 

My wife and I recently dined at the 14K restaurant at the Crowne Plaza in Washington, D.C., during happy hour, and we had the most wonderful and addictive ahi tuna tartare. We had it every day we were there. Can you please get the recipe for this? It seems like a simple five- or six-ingredient dish with fried wontons, but I just cannot seem to figure it out.

Simple yet bold with bright, fresh flavors, this dish makes the perfect appetizer whether you’re planning for company, a party or even an intimate meal.

You can find the recipe here.

Click here for more Culinary SOS recipes. If you have a favorite restaurant recipe you'd like to request, feel free to email me at noelle.carter@latimes.com. I'll do my best to track it down.

ALSO:

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

134 recipes for your favorite restaurant dishes

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

-- Noelle Carter
twitter/noellecarter

Photo credit: Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times