A La Carte

special touch

Your bosom brewing buddy

If you’re a tea lover, you’re probably challenged by soggy tea bags and what to do with them. Here’s one solution: the Tea Bag Buddy, a multifunctional device. As soon as you pour in the water, it helps out by holding the string. While the tea is steeping, it acts as a cover to keep it hot. When your tea is ready, you can use your buddy to squeeze the bag, and then flip it over and it holds it for you. In green, honeysuckle or white, it’s $7.99 at www.PrimulaProducts.com (quantity discounts available). And it would make a good Barbie doll hat.

Dining out

Honey Salt, 1031 S. Rampart Blvd.

This suburban spot from the husband-wife team of restaurant developer Elizabeth Blau and chef Kim Canteenwalla brings them off the Strip (where most recently Canteenwalla was executive chef at Society Cafe Encore) for a source-based restaurant with the subtext “From our kitchen with care.” A sample of the menu:

Brunch: XL Monkey Bread ($9), Crunch Nutella French Toast with caramelized bananas ($13), roasted Scottish salmon with quinoa pilaf ($20)

Starters: New England Fry ($13), Tuscan cannellini bean soup ($8), Yellowtail crudo ($14)

Sandwiches: Grilled Barely Buzzed Cheddar Cheese ($13), Backyard Favorite Burger ($13)

Pizzas: margherita ($11), charcuterie ($15)

Entrees: turkey Bolognese ($18), caramelized sea scallops ($28), pork schnitzel ($21), grassfed filet mignon ($32)

Desserts: Brown Bag Baked Apple Pie, upside down almond plum cake, warm bread pudding ($9 each)

The restaurant is open from 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. daily. Call 445-6100 or visit HoneySalt.com.

Array

New books for cooks

“CALIFORNIA ROLL” DEVIL EGGS

1 dozen hard-cooked eggs

½ ripe avocado

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 tablespoon purchased wasabi paste (or 1 tablespoon wasabi powder mixed with 1 tablespoon water)

¼ teaspoon salt

2 ounces crabmeat (1/3 to ½ cup)

24 small cucumber fans

Nori komi furikake (sesame seed-seaweed sprinkle)

2 tablespoons tobiko (flying fish roe)

Halve the eggs lengthwise and transfer the yolks to a small bowl. Set the egg white halves on a plate, cover and refrigerate.

In a mixing bowl, mash the avocado well with a fork, then add the yolks and mash to a smooth consistency. Add the mayonnaise, wasabi paste and salt and mix until smooth. (You can also do this using an electric mixer with the whip attachment.) Taste and season accordingly.

Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain or large star tip, then pipe the mixture evenly into the egg-white halves. Or fill the eggs with a spoon, dividing evenly.

Top each egg half with a little crabmeat, a cucumber fan, a sprinkle of furikake and about ¼ teaspoon of tobiko.

— Recipe from “D’Lish Deviled Eggs” by Kathy Casey (Andrews McMeel Publishing LLC, $14.99)

— heidi knapp rinella