The Painted Peach

This and That - Thomas Keller's Roast Chicken and Adapted Zuni Salad

2011-10-13T09:55:00.000-07:00

The travel portion of the year is basically over for me until Thanksgiving, and after a trip to Louisville, Kentucky to see my Boyfriend's family, we're settling into a fairly domesticated routine. I had never been to Louisville before. I got the grand tour, complete with apple picking at a local orchard, and a visit to Churchill Downs. I came back feeling like fall was in the air, inspired to make some of my favorite warm and comforting dishes.

That started with homemade pizza, hummus, and a beef stew. The weekend includes plans for homemade tomato sauce and a new recipe for lasagna. Last night, it was Thomas Keller's roast chicken, with a modified Zuni Bread Salad.

Roast chicken is really the perfect dinner. It requires minimal prep, you can toss in whatever you want, shove it in the oven for an hour or so, and you're done. It tastes like hours and hours of work went into it. Those are really the best kinds of dinners, aren't they?

Thomas Keller never steers you wrong. And his recipe for simple roast chicken doesn't disappoint. I washed the chicken, and put it in the fridge uncovered in the morning. Took it out at 6pm that evening, seasoned it generously with salt and pepper and a little oil, massaged the inside with 3 crushed garlic cloves and a couple sprigs of time, topped the breasts with a bit of butter, and stuck in in the oven on top of some potatoes, onions and carrots in a skillet at 475 for 25 minutes. When that step was done, I lowered the heat to 400 for 45 minutes, and took it out when the meat thermometer read 160.

I let the bird rest for 20 minutes, and re-heated the vegetables in the skillet over the stove. I tossed in some fresh arugula and croutons with the vegetables and served that on the side with the carved chicken.

It couldn't have been better, or easier.

How's that for a recipe? Easy enough, eh?

In Praise of Quinoa - Chickpea & Quinoa Salad

2011-09-26T11:10:00.000-07:00

My friend Denise called me out for neglecting this little blog. She's right, I have no excuse! I'm a rather pathetic blogger as of late. And the truth is, I've been returning again and again to old familiar standbys. Fresh tomato sauce over whole wheat pasta, salads with lemony dressings and lots of cucumber, simple roasted vegetables, and lots of help from the Trader Joe's frozen foods aisle.

It's true that things have been fairly busy lately with work. I've added pilates a couple times a week to the schedule, and with the days getting shorter, I feel worn out at the end of it all, and I haven't been inspired to tackle a new dish.

I think I'll start to feel that inspiration again with the turn of the season. More dinners eaten at the dining room table, with candles and music instead of the latest episode of Breaking Bad on the TV (though it will still be watched, so good!) And, a more concentrated effort to eat healthier. Smaller portions and more vegetables and grains. I'm trying to be much better about this, more conscious of what goes into my body, and less mindless eating of the things I don't need, or really even want. I'm sure we could all be better about this, but I think I'm going to need a bit of support and camaraderie in this effort. Any of you have any tips and tricks for healthy eating and meal planning? Maybe if you wouldn't mind sharing some of your favorite healthy recipes, it would inspire me to give them a try. I'd love some suggestions!

We've made a couple of changes so far: we've switched completely to whole-wheat pasta. I thought I'd never get used it it, but after a month, I crave it, and I've hardly missed white flour pasta. Sourdough bread is now a once in awhile treat, and whole-wheat has come to stay. Trying to cut out as much white flour and sugar as possible. I'm still looking for that perfect pizza dough recipe using whole wheat flour. That's tricky, it seems.

So here's a quick salad I threw together yesterday in the midst of an afternoon of errands. Healthy and quick, I just cooked the quinoa and tossed all the ingredients together. It had enough fiber and protein to keep me sated from noon until 6pm. Not bad!

Apologies for the lack of pictures. This was gobbled up before I got a chance.

Chickpea & Quinoa Salad

Serves 8

2 cups cooked quinoa, cooled
1½ cups cooked chickpeas or canned
2 green onions, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 cucumber, chopped
1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh mint, finely chopped
Baby Spinach (you can chop a couple cups and use it fresh, or use an entire bag by wilting it in a saucepan with a bit of olive oil over low heat)

Dressing

2 tbsp Dijon Mustard
3 tbsp olive oil
the juice and zest of 2 lemons
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 tsp honey

In a large bowl, combine the quinoa through the mint, toss together. In a smaller bowl, combine all the ingredients for the dressing, and whisk together with a fork. Pour over the salad, and toss, coating the salad. Taste for seasoning, serve while still warm.

Add the dressing to the salad and stir well.

Lists - Black Cod with Miso

2011-06-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

Hair of the Dog - Portland

Once again, it's been over a month since my last post. My apologies. Unfortunately, I'm not sure that this coming month will be much better, but in exchange for the irregularity of postings, I have lists. Curated lists for such exotic locales as Portland, OR. Headlsburg/Sebastapol Wine Country and Anderson Valley, CA.

I also have an amazing recipe for Black Cod.

So consider this my apology post. And I'll keep the lists coming to make up for my silence here.

First off, Portland.

Let's cover beer and wine, shall we? P-town has booth, in abundance.

Deschutes Brewery - Portland

If you're in Portland, I highly recommend the following in the beer category:

Hair of the Dog Brewery and Tasting Room - Our favorite of the trip. What a great place. Like hanging out in a very hip and modern garage. The beer was serious, meant to be sipped and drunk slowly, and while I didn't get to try the food, it smelled like it would be more than worth the trip back. I'd make this the first stop, next time around. They seem to be known for their dark beers, one of which is brewed with cherries in old whiskey barrels. We don't have breweries like this in CA. I'll have to come back.

Hopworks Urban Brewery - your basic neighborhood brewery and lunch spot...only with much higher quality beer.

Deschutes - numerous Portlandites might disagree with me on this one, but I like this place. A bit commercial, yes, but they make some of my favorite beers (Green Lakes, anyone?) and the location (heart of the Pearl district) is a good place to people watch.

Portland is a food town. We made our way to some great spots and I could go on and on, but my favorite of the bunch was a food cart: Pyro Pizza. Parked in a parking lot full of other carts; Poutine, Crepes, Waffles and more. The pizza was wood fired and delicious, and cost-wise, a bargain as well. I had the margherita, and the boy had some white sauce with truffle oil concoction. Stellar.

For cocktails, I like Rontoms. Especially since I discovered their excellent patio in the back. It's got a mid-century modern vibe. Always a winner with me.

For wine, out in the Willamette Valley, the following 3 are places I can't wait to get back to (and yes, it's all about the Pinots):

Lemelson Vineyards
Brick House Vineyards
Bethel Heights Vineyard

From Portland, on down to Healdsburg, CA. and surrounding areas. Here are my top 8 wineries in that area:

1. Preston Vineyards & Winery (I'm a sucker for the Barbera, the Madame Preston and the jug wine (only on Sundays))
2. Porter Creek Vineyards ( the old vine Zin is a standout)
3. Unti (all amazing)
4. Radio Coteau (some of the best CA pinots I've ever had)
5. Scherrer (I'm currently head over heels for their rose)
6. Taft Street Winery (started in Berkeley of all places)
7. Wind Gap Winery (it's all about the syrah)
8. Inman (great pinot)

I've mentioned several of these before. You can't go wrong with this list. I feel pretty good about sending you on your merry way with these.

So now you're set to take a trip. Be it a weekend road trip, or a mark your list for a west coast visit kind of trip.

Next post, I promise to cover the Anderson Valley in CA.

Onto the Black Cod.

I take no credit for this one, this is all Mark Bittman. One of his all-time favorite Minimalist recipes: Black Cod with Miso. Black Cod is an incredibly rich and buttery fish. The miso brings it to an unexpected and deceptively elegant place. The lucky person you serve it to would never guess how little actual work is involved. Just let the fish, the miso and the broiler do all the heavy lifting. The only hard part is choosing the wine to go with. I chose the Scherrer Rose.

Black Cod Broiled with Miso

1/2 cup sugar
1 cup miso, preferably dark (I used red miso, which comes as a paste. I found it at Whole Foods.)
1/2 cup mirin, sake or white wine (I used 1/2 mirin and 1/2 white wine)
1 1/2 to 2 pounds black cod fillets (skin may be on or off).

Heat broiler; set rack 3 to 4 inches from heat source. Combine first three ingredients in a small saucepan and, over low heat, bring almost to a boil, stirring occasionally just until blended; mixture will be fairly thin. Turn off heat.

Put fillets in an ovenproof baking dish or skillet, preferably nonstick, and spoon half the sauce on top. Broil until sauce bubbles and begins to brown, then spoon remaining amount over fish. Continue to broil, adjusting heat or rack position if sauce or fish is browning too quickly, until fish is just cooked through. Serve immediately.

The Best Vegetable - Brown Butter Rhubarb Bars

2011-05-09T11:32:00.000-07:00

Things are getting exciting at the Farmer's Market. English peas, pea shoots, bright green asparagus and purple potatoes, Meyer lemons, and best of all, rhubarb.

Rhubarb is by far my favorite vegetable. It might not be a surprise to you, but it's a cousin to celery (only rhubarb is so much better than celery.)

I'm constantly searching for new recipes to use it in. Last year, I topped a piece of salmon with it. It was a nice and unexpected sweet tart contrast to the rich and buttery fish.

What follows is one of those recipes that I've been waiting a long time to make. We visited Big Sur in November of last year, and had a fantastic breakfast at the Big Sur Bakery. I poured through a copy of their cookbook over our breakfast pizza and freshly baked bread, and stopped once I turned the page to this recipe. I promptly bought the cookbook, and I've been waiting for rhubarb season in order to try these Rhubarb Brown Butter Bars. Sometimes, every single thing about a certain recipe speaks to you, and you know that there's no way the recipe can miss.

I'm happy to report that that is indeed the case with this recipe.

I adapted it slightly, substituting lemons for blood oranges. If you're not a fan of rhubarb, you could substitute raspberries, strawberries, even plums or cherries. It's totally adaptable. I made two batches of the rhubarb jam, and strained the syrup off of the first batch, to reserve for rhubarb cocktails (priorities.)

Brown Butter Rhubarb Bars
adapted from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook

For the Jam

1 cup sugar
Juice and zest of 2 lemons
4 rhubarb stalks, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 vanilla bean

For the Crust

1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups flour

For the Brown Butter Filling

3 eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
zest of 2 lemons
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp flour
1/2 vanilla bean
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp butter

Begin by making the rhubarb jam. Combine the sugar, pulp of the vanilla bean and pod and lemon juice and zest in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir in the rhubarb, and cook over medium until the rhubarb begins to falls apart and the mixture is syrupy, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool.

Preheat the oven to 375 and start the crust.
Put a medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat and add the butter to brown it, whisking often, until the milk solids separate from the butter and it starts to smell rich and nutty. About 5 minutes. Pour into a bowl and stick in the freezer for half an hour, until solid.

Mix the powdered sugar and flour together in a medium bowl. Once the butter is solid, cut it into small cubes and mix it into the flour-sugar mixture using your hands. Combine until the mixture comes together into a crumbly dough. don't over mix. Press the dough into the bottom of a greased 13 x 9 pan. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, then bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Remove to cool, but leave the oven on at 375.

While the crust is cooling, make the filling. Whisk together the eggs, lemon zest, flour, and sugar and set aside. Spit and scrape the pulp and pod of the vanilla bean into a small saucepan. Add the butter and brown in the same manner as with the crust, then pour it into the egg mixture, stirring constantly. Remove the vanilla pod.

Pour half of the brown butter filling over the crust. Drop spoonfuls of jam over the filling and gently spread it evenly (reserving about 1/4 of the jam). Pour the remaining brown butter filling over the jam. Using a spoon, drop small dollops of the remaining jam randomly over the top of the bars, then bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the filling puffs into a golden-brown color.

Let the pan cool completely on a wire rack, then cut into squares to serve.

Recovery - Chana Masala

2011-04-20T12:35:00.000-07:00

I'm currently in recovery from a meal.

It's not what you might think. Certainly nothing bad or upsetting. This is the good kind of recovery. The kind that comes from delicious food, wonderful company and a bit (just a bit) of over-indulgence.

Guilty as charged.

As a belated birthday gift, Leah and Brian gave me the gift every food-obsessed person dreams of. The gift of Thomas Kellar. A trip to his restaurant Ad Hoc in Napa. The Ad Hoc of fried chicken fame. It's a family style restaurant that specializes in comfort food. I've wanted to go for years.

We decided to make a weekend of it, squeezing in a lovely hotel and a fantastic day of wine tasting prior to dinner. I planned ahead, and did my best to keep my stomach empty (except for wine of course) on the day of the dinner. A small breakfast, some tahbouli for lunch, and that was it. I wanted to have plenty of room.

In retrospect, I should have skipped all food prior on the day of. What came to the dinner table was a salad of French Laundry garden greens with green garlic dressing, radishes and torn croutons, fresh bread, Seared Pork Belly with Tomato Marmalade and a perfectly Poached Egg, Pork Rack with figs, potatoes and jus, a cheese course of Nicasio Valley cheese with Red Pepper jelly, and Panna Cotta with macerated Strawberries and Shortbread Twill.

Oh, did I mention the wine pairing for each course?

As I said. I'm in recovery.

We left the table having consumed nearly an entire pig. Stuffed. We practically rolled back to the hotel. My stomach hasn't quite recovered.

It was an amazing meal.

As part of my recovery efforts, I'm trying to stick to a couple weeks of mainly vegetarian cooking. Whole grains, vegetables and fruits. In that vein, I decided to break out what's been a recent favorite in my kitchen. Chana Masala. Something I attempted a few weeks ago, and was amazed to discover, is incredibly easy to make. It helps that it's both healthy, and extremely flavorful.

It was the first dish I cooked in my new apartment. And now it feels like home. I serve it over rice with some cucumber mint Raita on the side. Maybe some Naan if I feel like it. It's served as a great reminder that I need to incorporate more spices into my cooking. Be a little more adventurous, and not just stick with garlic and lemon (like I most often do). Just a hint of spice can really transform a dish and seem to heighten your skills as a cook. You'll be amazed at how quickly it comes together, and how delicious it tastes.

Chana Masala
adapted from Orangette

olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3-4 medium cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp garam masala
4 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 28-ounce can diced or whole peeled tomatoes
1 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
1 tbs cilantro leaves, roughly torn, plus more for garnish
A pinch of cayenne, or to taste
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
6-8 tbs plain yogurt, optional
lemon wedges, optional

Coat the bottom of a saute pan or dutch oven with olive oil. Heat to medium. Add the onions and sautee slowly until they start to carmelize. Stir occassionally, but leave them alone from time to time to really set. This will take 25-30 minutes, maybe more. You're looking for a dark caramel color. The onions should even be charred in some spots. This is what will develop the flavor, so have patience and courage to let them do their thing in the pan!

Once the onions are caramelized, reduce the heat to low and add the garlic. If the pan is a bit dry, add a bit more olive oil. Sautee for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the spices (cumin through cardamom seeds) and fry in the pan, stirring constantly for another 30 seconds. Add 1/4 cup of water to deglaze the pan and loosen any of the browning and flavor from the bottom. Sautee until the water has evaporated. Add the juice from the tomatoes, and then the tomatoes themselves. If the tomatoes are whole, crush with a fork in the pan. Add salt.

Increase the heat to medium, and let the pot come to a boil. Once it begins to boil, reduce heat to low, add the cilantro and cayenne to taste. Simmer the sauce gently, stirring occasionally until it starts to reduce and thicken. Taste, and adjust the seasoning to your preference. Add the chickpeas, stirring well and cook for low for another 5 minutes. Add 2 tbsp of water and cook another 5 minutes. Repeat once more, making sure the water is absorbed. This helps to concentrate the flavor and make the chickpeas more tender. Taste again for seasoning.

Turn off the heat. Stir in the cilantro and yogurt. Serve over rice with Raita and lemon.

Something New - Flat Iron Steak with Red Wine Sauce

2011-04-17T20:01:00.000-07:00

Oh, hi there.

It's been awhile. The truth is, I've been cheating on food with furniture. I recently moved into a new apartment, and I'm enjoying laying out my space, decorating, and scouring flea markets looking for those "can't do without them" pieces for my place. It's the first time since college that I've really had some room to spread out. It's quite the upgrade from my previous very tiny studio. I'm loving it. Here's a picture, a work in progress, but it feels like home:

My kitchen feels ridiculously spacious. And I'm thrilled to say that I've actually been cooking a lot, finally! My first week in the new place, I attacked a Chana Masala recipe with absolute gusto. The results were pretty fantastic (recipe forthcoming) but the most amazing thing was to be able to move about in the kitchen space! So different than the 4x5 space I was working with before! I took my time when putting things away in the new place, thinking about where I would stand to chop, where things should be placed to make for economical movement, and ease in preparation when it comes to food. It's made a huge difference in my cooking. Everything just seems so much easier now!

And I finally have a dining room table. My boyfriend and I sat down to breakfast there this weekend, and we remarked that it seemed like it had been such a long time since we'd actually sat down to eat at a dining table in the place we lived. Until now, neither he nor I had had a table, so it's a welcome, adult-like change.

I've now hosted a total of 3 dinner parties in my first month here. Very impressive, if I do say so myself. Tomorrow night will be the 4th, for the Sedar dinner. Something I'm looking forward to celebrating with friends. It feels right to be hosting it at my place, to share stories, partaking in a ritual in this new space, eating, drinking and celebrating together. I feel like there's a lot to be thankful for.

Until last weekend, It had been a long time since I'd been able to hit up my farmer's market. I've had a lot going on on the weekends, but it felt so good to be able to have the time to cook, the time to walk up and down the stands in the sunshine, to have my pick of the best of Spring's arrival.

I picked up a gorgeous flat iron steak from Prather Ranch, and I paired it with an adapted version of a red wine sauce that I'd made once before. Paired with kale and rice, it definitely hit the spot. It's not often that I make a pan sauce to go with a steak, but every time I do, I wonder why I don't do it more. It's such a great pairing, and so easy to do. A no fuss and delicious dinner.

Flat Iron Steak with Red Wine Sauce
adapted from Giada De Laurentis

2 small to medium sized flat iron steaks
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 tbsp cold unsalted butter
3 shallots, thinly sliced
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried oregano
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 cups dry red wine

Bring the steaks to room temperature. Heat oven to 350. Next, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the steaks with salt and pepper. Sear on medium high for 2 minutes. Lower heat to medium, flip and sear another 4-5 minutes on the other side. Put the steaks into the pre-heated oven for 2-4 minutes more. Test for desired doneness. When done, remove from the oven, tent with foil and let stand 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt. Add the garlic and oregano and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Whisk in the wine. Simmer until the sauce reduces by half, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter, and whisk into the sauce to combine. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Serve spooned over steaks, with rice or potatoes on the side.

Sunday in Dry Creek Wine Country

2011-01-25T19:18:00.001-08:00

This Sunday we drove to Healdsburg, dog in tow. It was spectacularly sunny and warm, the mustard was in bloom, and our spirits were high. It was also the day when one of our favorites (and Frannie's too!) Preston Vineyards & Winery, fills it's famous Guadagni, red table wine in a jug. Yes, a jug.

They limit the stuff to 1 per person, and 1 jug equals about 4 bottles. A more friendly and drinkable jug wine, you will not find. It's only available on Sundays, and yes, they offer refills. We discovered it by happy accident a few years ago, and now we're hooked. A couple of Sunday's a year, we make the trek to Preston. Such a hardship!

Preston is my favorite Dry Creek winery (just outside of Healdsburg). It's an organic farm as well, which you'll surmise from the farm stand on the front porch, where you can pick up apples, peppers, homemade sauerkraut, pickles, greens and rice, and pay on the honor system in a small basket on the table. There are a few picnic tables in the front yard, a bocce ball court, and a ton of cats running around the farm.

I love their wines, especially the Barbera, Syrah and Madame Preston (a white blend). I highly recommend making a stop there, if you happen to be in the area. And on that note, I need a some recommendations for Dry Creek wine country. Anyone have a favorite up there that I should check out?

We were missing a few partners in crime for this (Fledge, Les, Shem, Whit & Bri, next time!) and I wanted them to know that they were missed.

Dry Creek in Pictures

Frannie loves Healdsburg

Frannie loves the car (and Lauren)

Frannie loves open windows

Thoughts on a Monday

2011-01-24T15:19:00.001-08:00

I think it's time for some posts that are not food-related (though it tends to weasel it's way in) and this is what I'm thinking today:

1. I resolved not to buy a rice krispie treat one or more times a week from the cafeteria at work. 1 week + 1 day with 0 rice krispie treats and counting! So far, resolution has been very successful. I have willpower.

2. Saturdays in Dolores Park with friends +sun + picnic things are glorious. Even better when topped off with burgers at Benders and a dance party at Brian's.

3. Sundays in Healdsburg with the girls are wonderful. Sun + wine + vineyards full of mustard + Frannie = Heaven.

4.Sunny weekends in general are the best.

5.Brian took the picture above at our dinner at Pizzaiolo last week. I like it.

6.Feeling blue on Friday night, but Boyfriend took me to a movie, turned on a shower for me so that the water was hot by the time I got in it, and poured me a glass of wine when I got out. Then he watched an hour of very bad TV with me without complaining once, just because I wanted to. He is thoughtful. And the best.

7.I am addicted to this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X61BVv6pLtw

8. And lastly, this is a picture of my Best Friend Forever from my Birthday weekend/NYE. I heart it.

Plum in Oakland

2011-01-15T19:08:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since I've blogged about a restaurant, and that's not to imply that I haven't had some great meals as of late, I have, but it's been a long time since I've had one as memorable as the one we had yesterday evening at Plum in Oakland.

I'd been looking forward to going to Plum since it opened in early October. Now that I've been, I can't believe I even waited that long. I'm kicking myself for not taking a copy of the menu, but from memory, here's what we had:

Chickpea Fritters with Wild Green Panisse & Housemade Yogurt (Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, a great combination of spice and then the cool tang of the yogurt)

Leeks Vinaigrette with Radish, Fresh Goat Cheese, Ash & Cress (Interesting combination, I know the ash sounds a bit strange, but it was hardly detectable)

Young Carrots with Breadcrumbs, Pickled Garlic and Wood Sorrel in Brown Butter (Carrots should always be served this way, tender and soaked in brown butter with crispy, crunchy breadcrumbs to compliment. Wonderful)

Parsnip & Grilled Pear Soup (the standout of the evening. Winter in a bowl.)

Some Sort of Steak with Roasted Potatoes (it was amazing, but I can't remember the details on this one. Suffice it to say that it was gone in about 2 minutes flat.)

Cheesecake in Jar with Poached Quince & Persimmon (Whimsical, creamy, tangy, sweet and smooth. Everything a dessert should be, with a great sense of fun.)

I have a food blog, so it's safe to say that I'm pretty nuts on the subject. I remember a good meal or a particular dish as though it's a momentous occasion in my life. I never forget the name of a restaurant I liked (that tends to run in the family) and I've been known to go so far as to tear up in joy when confronted with a plate, or bowl of something that really blows me away. It's the same feeling when you come across a really great book, or see a movie or play that will stay with you forever. I love when this happens. It happens less often than I'd like, but it happened last night with the Parsnip & Roasted Pear Soup, which was like velvet, cream and the taste of winter all in one bowl.

If I were ever able to make a soup like that one, I could consider myself extremely accomplished. It would be the equivalent of a PhD in soup making.

The new Chef at Plum is Charlie Parker, who used to work for The Cellar Door Cafe at Bonny Doon Vineyard in Santa Cruz (I love that winery, but haven't been to the cafe yet). He's good at what he does, to say the least. He got two people who are fairly indifferent to carrots to suddenly take an extreme interest.

I highly recommend Plum. It's not cheap, but it's a great space for a inventive and delicious meal. Oakland scores another winner. I'm finding less and less reason to eat in San Francisco with such stellar competition rising in the East Bay.

30 - Chanterelles with White Wine, Butter & Parsley

2011-01-10T18:41:00.000-08:00

Oh my.

What can I say? I don't have much by way of an excuse. Life, I guess. A pretty wonderful one at that.

I realize it's been about a month and a half since I've posted anything. In that time I've been a bit busy, let's run down the list, shall we?

I started a new job, one that (so far) I absolutely love. It's brought about my first real morning commute, which strangely enough, I don't mind. There's actually something sort of enjoyable about joining the masses on BART with my coffee and a good book. Half an hour to read and mentally prepare for the day ahead.
3 weeks after I started said new job, I went on vacation for the holidays. I went home to Oregon, where I helped my sister prepare Christmas for her girls. I monitored Santa's progress on Norad with my 2 year old Niece, who was a bit torn by the idea of Santa. She liked the presents aspect, she didn't enjoy the idea of a strange, jolly, fat man coming sneaking into her house in the middle of the night. Smart kid, if you ask me.
I drove with my family to my hometown of Redding, CA. It's strange to go back to the place I spent my first 18 years, it feels like another life entirely. I enjoyed a pre-birthday dinner with my family and my best friend of 25 years, and spent the first hours of being 30 in Redding. Full circle you could say.
From there, we went to my favorite place on earth, Sea Ranch, CA, where we rented a beach house with many of my closest friends to celebrate 30 years, each other, and New Year's. So much to cover on this topic. Pictures will come soon, but suffice it to say for now, that I feel so very lucky for my family, my friends, and for all that I've been given. I never could have imagined feeling this good about turning 30. For one of the first times in my life, I can truly say that I feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. I can't tell you how wonderful that feels.

And now it's back to work, and that's not half bad. Although I did pick up the flu the day after vacation ended, Oh well. I'm recovering, and I'd say it was a fair price to pay.

So actually, I have been cooking a bit. The slow cooker has been a huge help, and a lot of what I've been up to has included old staples: Bolognese Sauce, Chickpeas with Spinach and Chorizo, Roasted Chicken and Kale Salad. There hasn't been a whole lot of experimentation going on.

But it's the perfect time for Chanterelles....butter, white wine and parsley...you don't need much else. Good quality chanterelles tend to stand on their own merit. This is a dish my Sisters and I make every Thanksgiving. And it's one I like to make as long as these babies are in season. Enjoy!

Chanterelles with White Wine, Butter & Parsley

1 tbsp butter
1/2 lb chanterelles, stems and tops sliced into good sized chunks
1/4 cup dry white wine
a generous pinch of salt
freshly ground pepper
a handful of chopped flat leaf parsley

Heat a large saute pan over medium. Add butter, once butter is melted, add the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper, and let cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. The mushrooms will start to release their liquid, that's normal. Add the white wine, and turn the heat to medium-high. Cook for about 3 more minutes or so, the mushrooms should be tender, but still slightly firm. Remove from heat, stir in parsley, and taste for seasoning. Serve hot.

Big Sur

2010-11-21T12:45:00.000-08:00

Due to life, I've been absent from posting. I confess, I've hardly cooked at all lately, and when I have, it's been a bit of a disaster.

So I haven't been cooking. But...I did go here:

and here:

and here:

Nepenthe

And thought I should share.

In lieu of a recipe, I'll instead recommend this cookbook as a gift for the holidays.

I knew I had to have it when I opened it up to a recipe for rhubarb bars. Big Sur has amazing restaurants, but Big Sur Bakery was our favorite. All the recipes in here look fantastic.

And if you're looking for a place to stay, I recommend Glen Oaks. It's a cozy place, with heated floors, a fireplace in each room, an outdoor fire pit and wild turkeys roaming the grounds. All in all, it was a beautiful first trip to Big Sur.

A Visit with Beth - Pasta with Arugula, Pine Nuts & Lemon Sesame Vinaigrette

2010-11-08T11:30:00.000-08:00

I have a serious love of hotel rooms. Sparkling clean, crisp white sheets, giant beds, mini-toiletries, mountains of pillows, and of course, mini-bars. I can't get enough of hotel rooms. If I could move into one, I probably would. Depending on the hotel, of course...

This weekend my dear friend Beth invited me to stay over in the hotel room she'd booked while she was at a conference in Sacramento. I was happy to join her and we reveled in lounging about, catching up, drinking champagne and splurging on dinner. It's not often that we get to see each other as we live on opposite coasts now, she in Georgetown and me in the Bay, but we've done pretty well this year as far as the visits go, 3 times now in the last 6 months. A record since college.

There's nothing quite like staying up till all hours of the night, chatting away with a best friend in a hotel suite in another city. Far from all responsibilities and reminders of being back at work on Monday. We had a lovely dinner at Grange in Sacramento, where we both got our fill of house-made pasta. Thanks to Les for the suggestion!

Which reminds me of a dish I started to throw together in college. One I still make fairly often. It combines fresh Arugula with pine nuts, a lemony-garlic vinaigrette and sesame oil. It's delicious, and every time I make it, it seems I can't get enough. It's a great week night dinner.

Pasta with Arugula, Pine Nuts and Lemon Sesame Vinaigrette

Your choice of pasta, enough for 4 people. I recommend bowtie or penne.
Juice of 1 large lemon
2 large cloves of garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp dark sesame oil
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
6 cups arugula or baby arugula
Kosher salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
Freshly grated Parmesan

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine lemon juice, sesame oil, garlic and a pinch of salt. Whisk together. Toast pine nuts in toaster oven or over the stove in a skillet. Place Arugula in a bowl, add cooked pasta and let sit for about a minute so that the arugula wilts from the heat of the pasta. Toss together with pine nuts and vinaigrette, top with Parmesan and salt & pepper to taste.

I Voted - Brown Butter Scrambled Eggs with Sage

2010-10-30T11:29:00.000-07:00

I always feel a sense of pride when I come out of the voting booth and collect my "I Voted" sticker. I leave the polling place feeling optimistic, and proud of democracy. Then the returns start to come in, and more often than not, my heart sinks, and disappointment sets in. The morning after is like a bad hangover. A headache that's impossible to shake. I've had the "why vote" conversation several times with a few different people over the past few weeks, and this morning I was at a bit of a loss to defend my position, until I heard how few votes it would have taken to pass some of the most important California propositions, and the statistic that if the younger population had turned out in the same numbers that they did for Obama's election, things would have been different.

When I stepped into the voting booth, there was a mother and daughter in the booth next to me. The daughter was 18, and voting for the first time. It was a shared moment of pride between the two of them. I remember accompanying my parents to vote at the church down the street from us. I remember those nights feeling so important and meaningful. Seeing that girls cheeks flushed with excitement and pride, I felt hopeful, and know that I'll do the same some day with my children.

I'm trying to keep the memories of Obama's election night in mind. To stay hopeful about the future. The Bay Area celebration of the Giant's winning the World Series feels a lot like it did that night. A renewed sense of hope and optimism for the underdog, and for the possibilities ahead.

There's not exactly a segue into this dish. All I can tell you is that brown butter lends a nutty flavor to anything you pair with it. Sage is one of my favorite herbs, and the two together with someone as simple as scrambled eggs, brings it to a whole other level. You'll love it.

Brown Butter Scrambled Eggs with Sage

4 large eggs
1 tbsp chopped sage
2 tbsp unsalted butter
Kosher salt & fresh ground pepper

Beat eggs with sage and a pinch of salt and pepper in a bowl with a fork until well blended.

Heat butter in a 10-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until milk solids on bottom are a dark chocolate brown. Reduce heat to medium-low, then add eggs and cook, whisking constantly, until thickened to consistency of soft porridge with small curds. Serve hot over toast.

Rainy Days - Apple Crisp

2010-10-24T19:39:00.000-07:00

The rain's been pouring down outside for the past two days. The wind's picked up outside, but inside I've got some homemade chicken soup on the stove, apple crisp just out of the oven, Ray LaMontagne on the radio, and, candles, in lieu of a fireplace. It's pretty cozy in here.

I love rainy days. They make a great excuse to stay in and cook. But they also lend a great moody quality to a road trip. Yesterday found us wine tasting in Dry Creek, just outside Healdsburg. We started the day at Preston Vineyards and ended at Unti. Stopping only for sandwiches, and for quick walk through the dripping vineyards. The valley was positively cloaked in fall, with golden leaves, heavy fog and pouring rain that never let up.

I wanted to stand out in between the vines forever, breathing in the smell of wet leaves, rain and woodsmoke. Simply fall. It's easy to love.

But back to the cozy indoors...where the soup is ready, Ray is singing, and the apple crisp is still warm, steam rising from the bubbling, caramelized juices. And I'm thinking, "This was a good idea."

Apple Crisp

For the apples:
2 Tbsp. lightly packed brown sugar
1 ½ Tbsp. all-purpose flour
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cardamom
5-6 large apples, roughly cut into same size pieces. I used half Rome apples and half Honeycrisp

For the topping:
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp kosher salt
1 egg, beaten well
7 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 375, with a rack in the middle of the oven.

In a bowl, combine the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, ginger, and cardamom. Add the apples, and gently combine. Arrange the apples in an ungreased deep 9-inch pie plate, cake pan or a large glass dish.

In a second bowl, combine the dry ingredients for the topping the sugar through the salt. Whisk to blend well and then add the egg. Combine by using your hands, mixing thoroughly and squeezing and pinching the dough together until it creates a shaggy mess. Spread the mixture evenly over the apples.

Spoon the butter evenly over the topping, and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is browned and the apples are tender. Cool.

Staying Sane - Panko-Crusted Chicken with Mustard Maple Pan Sauce

2010-10-21T00:00:00.000-07:00

Lately, if feels a bit as if I'm losing my mind. I forget where my car is parked on a regular basis, I'm constantly leaving my wallet or phone at home, e-mails and phone calls go unanswered, and trying to make even the smallest decision leaves me at a loss.

My friends who've delved into working from home before tease me about my good intentions at the start, "Remember all those yoga classes you were going to take? All the time you'd supposedly have to cook?" I dimly remember thinking I would have more time to do those things. So far, I have yet to make those activities materialize on a regular basis.

The nice thing about it is, there's no time to be bored. There's nothing worse than sitting at a job, watching the minutes tick by and not feeling challenged. That's certainly not my problem, but as you might have gathered, I'm still having some trouble finding a balance to it all. On Monday I blink, and all of a sudden it's Friday. The weekends speed by, too short as always, and all I want to do is get out of the house and onto the road, out into the woods, taking a hike, picking apples, visiting friends. The weekend trips are keeping me sane.

And there happen to be a few on the horizon, I just hope that when they come, I can find a way to stretch out the minutes and hours to make it last just a bit longer.

And if there's one victory to this day, it's that I managed to sneak in half an hour to cook dinner. That's all it took, and the results were delicious. Panko crusted chicken, kind of like a "healthy" fried chicken, but with an amazing sauce. Maple and mustard, oddly enough, they go together, and fit the season as well.

This is a sauce that I've used for pork as well, it's a favorite. Feel free to use chicken breasts or chicken thighs, both are great. Is there anything better than a good pan sauce? No...I think not.

Panko-Crusted Chicken with Mustard Maple Pan Sauce
from Bon Appetit

2 8-ounce skinless boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise in half (alternatively, you can use 4-6 skinless chicken thighs)
1 large egg
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 teaspoons plus 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup low-salt chicken broth
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon coarse-grained mustard
1 tablespoon chilled unsalted butter

Using meat mallet or rolling pin, pound chicken in resealable plastic bag to 1/3-to 1/2-inch thickness. Whisk egg, parsley, and 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard in large bowl. Place chicken in egg mixture; turn to coat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Dip each chicken piece in panko; turn to coat. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook until brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side.

Meanwhile, whisk broth, syrup, coarse-grained mustard, and remaining 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard in glass measuring cup.

Transfer chicken to plates. Add broth mixture to skillet; boil until reduced to 3/4 cup, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. Add butter; whisk until melted. Spoon sauce alongside chicken.

Lick the Spoon - San Marzano Tomato Sauce

2010-10-18T13:42:00.001-07:00

Lately I've been trying to make a concentrated effort to schedule things into my day aside from work; namely, cooking and having some sort of a social life. To that end, I've accomplished several things in the past week:

Attacking a Lamb Ragu recipe I've had in my recipe file for the past year or so
Driving up to Sacramento to visit a dear friend
Visiting the apple orchards on Apple Hill with said dear friend to try my first ever apple cider donut, oh so good!
Wine tasting for the first time in Amador, even the first rain of the season couldn't put a damper on this
San Marzano Tomato Sauce from scratch

I've been meaning to make San Marzano sauce for ages, and just never got around to it. Once I did, I finally understood why people say that these tomatoes make the best sauce. So, so good. It was such a comforting thing to have it simmering away on the stove all day while I worked, taking a break every so often to stir the bubbling sauce and inhale the savory fragrance. By the time I finished work I was practically crazy from the heavenly smell, I couldn't wait to dish it over fresh pasta...but I must admit, I snuck in a few spoonfuls before the pasta was ready. This sauce is so good, you'll literally be licking the spoon.

More on the apple excursion later, in the meantime, make. this. sauce.

San Marzano Tomato Sauce

12-15 San Marzano Tomatoes
2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 small to medium yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 dried bay leaf
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 sprig fresh thyme
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher Salt & pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to boil, and in the meantime, score an "X" in the bottom of each tomato and set aside a large bowl of ice water. When the water is boiling, slide each tomato into the water, blanch for about 30 seconds, and then remove the tomatoes and stick them into the ice water bath. Use your fingers to peel the skin right off. Set the peeled tomatoes aside.

Over med-high heat, saute the onion in the olive oil until caramelized. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, bay leaves, parsley, basil, thyme, red pepper flakes, 1 tsp kosher salt, and 1/2 tsp fresh cracked pepper; stir to combine. Simmer on low for about an hour or more , stirring once in awhile, and tasting as you go for seasoning (you can simmer for several hours for a deeper flavor) Remove bay leaf. Taste for salt & pepper, and add more if desired. Serve over pasta, or jar to save.

Coming 'Round - Cream of Cauliflower Soup

2010-10-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

I kept the sickness at bay for a good couple of days, enough so that I could enjoy beer with friends, the farmer's market and the long awaited Arcade Fire concert at the Berkeley Greek. Finally, this morning, it caught up with me. The aching neck and aching bones wouldn't be denied. There was only one thing to do: make a big pot of comforting soup and climb into bed.

And so I thumbed through the Ad Hoc at Home cookbook, and stopped on the Cream of Cauliflower soup recipe. It just sounded right; rich and velvety, comfort in a bowl. It doesn't matter if you're not exactly crazy about cauliflower, you will love this soup. It's just rich and creamy goodness. So good, it made me forget my aching bones for awhile. It came together easily, and made my apartment smell amazing. It's the perfect thing for a brisk fall day. Outside, the wind has picked up, and the leaves are swirling around in the street. The fog is low, and slowly rolling in from the other side of the bay. You can smell fall in the air. It's arrived. And this soup is the perfect greeting for it.

I've really come around to fall. I've pulled out the back issues of gourmet and am spending some time going over the best of the season, marking the recipes I have yet to make, and being reminded of a few old favorites that I haven't made in a year or so. I'm feeling good about it. As long as the next recipes live up to the standard this one has set, I think the transition will continue to go well.

Cream of Cauliflower Soup
adapted from Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc at Home

2 heads of cauliflower (4-5 lbs)
4 tbsp unsalted butter
2/4 cup coarsely chopped onion
3/4 cup coarsely chopped leeks (white and light green parts only)
1/4 tsp yellow curry powder, or madras curry powder
Kosher salt
2 cups milk
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups water

Remove the leaves from the cauliflower and cut out the core. Trim the stems and reserve them. For the garnish, trim 2 cups florets about the size of the quarter and set aside.

Coarsely chop the cauliflower and the stems into 1 inch pieces. Melt 3 tbsp of the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions, leeks, curry, 2 tsp salt, and cauliflower. Cover with a piece of parchment paper, cut into a circle with a small hole in the middle. This acts as a parchment lid for steaming the cauliflower. Cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are almost tender, about 20 minutes. Remove and discard parchment lid.

Pour in milk, cream and water, and increase heat to medium-high, bring to a simmer, and simmer for 30 minutes, skimming off the foam from time to time.

Using a hand-mixer (or a blender in batches) puree the cauliflower on the lowest speed, slowly increase until the consistency becomes smooth and velvety. Check for seasoning and adjust if needed. Transfer to a large saucepan and keep warm.

Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to boil. Add the vinegar and the reserved cauliflower florets and blanch until tender, 4-6 minutes. The vinegar will help keep the cauliflower white. Drain.

Melt the remaining 1 tbsp butter in a medium frying pan over medium-high heat, swirling the pan occasionally, until the butter turns a rich golden brown. Add the florets and saute until a rich golden brown, set aside.

To serve, reheat the soup. It should be thick, but if it's took thick for your taste, add water to thin it to the desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour soup into bowls and top with cauliflower garnish. Serve hot.

Easing Into Fall - Black Cod with Chanterelle Mushroom Ragout

2010-09-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

Just as I was beginning to accept the fact that it was fall, and that the Bay Area had completely skipped summer...the heat wave came. You will not hear me complaining about this: bring on the tubing and camping trips! Finally!!! As long as the temperature stays above 80, you'll find me by the water. Hello Russian River! I've missed you! I'm already planning my Sunday getaway. Everyone here is moaning about the heat. What's wrong with you people?! Break out the fans, sprinklers and sunscreen! It's so funny...this is my 7th October in the Bay Area...every October, I'm sure the temperature will drop, and the rain will start...and every October, I'm wrong. Thank god.

My trip to the Farmer's Market this weekend left me with the ingredients for a very fall like dish. Like it or not, I had to turn on the oven in this heat to make this dish I'd been thinking about all last week. Black cod with Chanterelle Mushroom Ragout. Garlic, shallots, chanterelles and white wine...on top of Black Cod. It just sounded perfect. The only possible way I could ease into fall. Now I've thrown the windows open and am taking a few cold showers...but still. It's worth it, to be able to cook my own lunch on a weekday, and enjoy a long awaited summer day. And to top it off, it was easy. Amazingly simple. Simple enough to become a weekday staple...

Black Cod with Chanterelle Ragout
adapted from Bon Appetit

3 tbsp butter
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 pound fresh chanterelles, cleaned, cut into 1/3-inch-thick slices
4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 medium shallot, sliced thinly
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 tsp grated lemon peel
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 large black cod fillets with skin (about 2 pounds)
2 tbsp dry unseasoned breadcrumbs
2 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400°F. Melt butter with 2 tablespoons oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until beginning to color. Stir in garlic, shallot, and parsley. Add wine; simmer until almost evaporated, scraping up browned bits in skillet, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon peel and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.

Brush 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish with 1 tablespoon oil. Place cod, skin side down, in baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover with mushroom mixture. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and Parmesan; drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Bake until fish is opaque in center, about 20 minutes.

Week 6 - Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

2010-09-22T18:35:00.000-07:00

Lately, my perception of time feels exactly like the summer we've had here in the Bay Area this year: non-existent. I start to work around 8 every morning, and the next time I look at the clock, it's just past 1pm, I haven't eaten, and I feel pretty confused about where those 5 hours went. I get up, try and scrounge together some semblance of a lunch, and then go back to work. Next thing I know, it's 6pm. It's a bit of a vicious cycle at the moment.

They say it takes 3-5 months to finally feel settled in a new job. I'm on week 6. And I'm thinking I need to try and find a balance. Also: don't talk to me about fall. I'm sick about it. We had exactly 3 days this summer where the thermometer climbed above 80. Ridiculous.

When Bon Appetit magazine fell out of my mail box yesterday, I sort of sighed, and put it on top of the growing pile of things I'd like to read, but just haven't had the time to delve into. When a break rolls around, the last thing I want to do is stay inside. To that end, some friends and I found ourselves in the middle of San Francisco Bay this weekend, passengers on the boat The Pegasus. We sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge, accompanied by a pod of porpoises, around Angel Island and past Sausilito. We had front row seats to the Rolex Regatta race. It was a memorable experience. Especially due to our Captain: Captain Richard, who taught me this little ditty:

What a marvelous bird is the pelican
it's beak can hold more than it's bellican
in it's beak it can hold, enough food for a week
but I don't know how the hellican.

I have a thing for birds. So much so that it has earned me the nickname "Ladyhawk" amongst my friends. Captain Richard also has a thing for birds.

He and I got along famously.

Anyway. Check out this city, would you? From the boat, everywhere we looked was a beautiful view.

As far as weekend plans go, it was pretty good. And I managed to keep work at bay for an entire day.

I have cooked exactly 0 times this week. Thankfully Leah had sent this recipe for her Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies. I had them. They were divine. Thanks to Leah.

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from RecipeGirl.com

2 1/4 cups All-Purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 sticks unsalted butter
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
1 cups dark brown sugar (packed)
1 Tbs half and half cream (or milk)
1 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 cups chocolate chips

Sift together flour, salt and baking soda; set aside.

Melt butter in medium saucepan over low heat. Continue to cook on low heat, stirring often, until butter is browned. Turn off heat and stir in white and brown sugars.

Scrape into a medium mixing bowl and use electric mixer to cream the butter and sugars together. Add half & half, lemon juice, vanilla extract and eggs. Mix in until well combined. Add half of the flour mixture and incorporate into the batter with electric mixer. Add the rest and mix until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. The cookie dough will be very soft and buttery. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill until firm (an hour or two).

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop up heaping Tablespoonfuls of cookie dough and use your hands to roll into balls. Place 12 balls on a sheet, keeping about an inch and a half between each ball.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes, depending on how large you’ve rolled your balls (mine took 11 minutes).

Yield: About 2 1/2 dozen

*Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Absent - Peach Upside Down Cake from Leah

2010-09-13T00:00:00.000-07:00

I've been shamefully absent in blogging lately, and can't provide much by way of an excuse. Other than the fact that I've been eating out quite a bit lately, and when I'm not doing that, I'm eating handfuls of cherry tomatoes like they're going out of style (or season, as the case may be).

Friday was an embarrassment of Bay Area riches. Literally. Breakfast AND dinner at Pizzaiolo, and what may be one of the best sandwiches I've ever had (Pulled Pork BBQ) from a new place in Berkeley, Ironwood BBQ. Go there. Trust.

It's always fun to bring a person to Pizzaiolo who's never been there before. I talk it up beforehand quite a bit, and people are always skeptical, thinking it won't be quite as good as I've promised, but it always, always is. It was a stellar meal on Friday that included padron peppers with burrata cheese, halibut carpacio with avocado, and a squid and cherry tomato pizza with a farm egg on top. Not once have I ever been anything less than extremely impressed with a dish there. I hadn't been in quite awhile, so I figure 2 meals there in one day make up for it.

Man, am I lucky to live here.

I did stop by the farmer's market this morning to stock up on more tomatoes and peaches. Not sure how much longer they'll be in season. While picking out some juicy and fat looking peaches, I remembered that Leah had sent me this recipe for Peach Upside Down Cake. It comes highly recommended. Just thought I'd pass it on...make it while you can!

Peach Upside-Down Cake
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen by Leah

Topping:
3-4 peaches - skinned and sliced thinly
1/4 stick unsalted butter - cut into small cubes
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

Batter:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup peach juice or apple juice

Special equipment: A well-seasoned 10-inch cast-iron skillet or a 9″ spring form cake pan. I used a fluted one because I had it.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Make topping: Arrange peaches in the bottom of the pan in overlapping concentric circles. Sprinkle brown sugar and butter over the peaches.

Make batter: Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, then gradually beat in granulated sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Add half of flour mixture and beat on low speed just until blended. Beat in juice, then add remaining flour mixture, beating just until blended. (Batter may appear slightly curdled.)

Spoon batter over peach topping and spread evenly. Bake cake in middle of oven until golden and a tester comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let cake stand in skillet/pan for five minutes. Invert a plate over skillet/pan and invert cake onto plate (keeping plate and skillet/pan firmly pressed together). Replace any peach stuck to bottom of skillet.

Serve cake just warm or at room temperature.

BLAT - Iceburg Wedges with Bacon, Tomato, Avocado & Buttermilk Dressing

2010-08-31T09:47:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's all the Mad Men I've been watching lately, or maybe it's the fact that since I left the office life, I also left the sandwich shop my co-workers and I all held so dear, and my beloved BLAT sandwich (bacon, lettuce, avocado and tomato) but for awhile now, I've been craving a hunk of iceberg lettuce dressed up to the nines with all kinds of goodness.

If you're confused about the Mad Men reference, just think 1960's and salad. End result being iceburg with ranch.

Back to that sandwich shop. Our patronage of that place was a full-blown addiction. Since their opening a couple years ago, not a week has gone by that failed to see each one of us at the counter. Quick, cheap and damn good sandwiches. Now that I'm working from home, I thought I'd try to recreate some of the magic of "The Sandwich Zone."

This salad is basically a deconstructed sandwich. The recipe is also another Thomas Keller from the Ad Hoc cookbook, lest you think I alone was crazy for craving a salad of iceburg and other things. Nope. Keller agrees. This salad is magic. It's a meal. In my version, I omitted the croutons and added the avocado, but next time, I'll throw the croutons back in. I highly advise you to do the same.

BLAT Salad - Iceburg Wedges with Bacon, Tomato, Avocado & Buttermilk Dressing
adapted from Thomas Keller's Ad Hod at Home

1 head of iceburg lettuce, cut into 6 wedges
1 ripe tomato, cut into wedges
4-6 slices cooked, crispy bacon, crumbled
1/2 avocado, cut into slices
croutons

For the Buttermilk Dressing:
1 cup greek yogurt
1/4-1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup creme fraiche
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp minced chives
1 tsp minced flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp minced mint
Kosher salt to taste

Whisk all ingredients together, taste for salt. Dressing can be refrigerated for up to one week.

Place lettuce wedges, tomato, avocado, croutons, and bacon in individual bowls. Dress with the buttermilk dressing, serve with remaining dressing on the side and freshly ground pepper.

When the Tomatoes are Ripe - Tomato Basil Pasta

2010-08-24T15:40:00.000-07:00

When August rolls around I only crave tomatoes. It seems they've been later than ever in coming around this year. But they're finally here. And that means one thing: Tomato Basil Pasta. It's my all time favorite. It tastes like summer, and it's about as perfect as a simple dish can get. My friends request it time after time. It's what I always make to impress whomever it is that is I want to impress. And it can only be made in the late summer months when each ingredient is at its very best.

It reminds me of late summer dinners on the porch, still dripping wet from our swimming pool. Of a warm Mediterranean night in Corsica when dinner started at 1opm and ended around 2am. Of a summer in Santa Cruz, cooking in the most gorgeous kitchen I've ever seen for people I loved. Of cooking for one in a stuffy studio apartment over the plaza in Ashland, Oregon with the first bottle of wine I got for free from the winery I worked at. Of a late night dinner eaten out of Tupperware in a caboose in Dunsmuir, while the rain poured and the wind howled outside, and we were on our first road trip together.

There's something about a dish that brings about that kind of nostalgia. It's comforting. And it feels important when you make it.

But be forewarned. Do not even attempt to make this dish when tomatoes are not in season. You will be sorely disappointed.

This is less of a recipe, and more of a set of guidelines. This is all about how it tastes to you. Measuring out tablespoons and teaspoons would just ruin it:

Tomato Basil Pasta

Pasta (I used fresh porcini pasta from Phoenix Pastaficio) bowtie and penne shapes are especially good for this.
good tomatoes, roughly chopped (I used 4 medium heirlooms, green, gold and red)
3-4 cloves of garlic, I mince the garlic and then create a sort of paste with the back of my knife and some kosher salt. You want the garlic to mix well with the juice of the tomatoes, almost like a salsa. If you don't make the garlic paste, mince it very finely
Basil, torn into small pieces, about 3/4 a cup to 1 cup
good extra virgin Olive Oil, a few tablespoons
Fresh Parmesan

Mix the tomatoes, basil, garlic and olive oil together. Add kosher salt to taste and let sit to sort of macerate for a half hour or so. Do not refrigerate.

Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted, boiling water, according to package directions. If you're using fresh pasta (which I recommend) this should only take a couple minutes. Drain the pasta and toss with the tomato mixture. Taste, add salt and freshly ground pepper if needed. Top with grated or shaved Parmesan. Serve and enjoy.

Russian Roulette - Grilled Padrón Peppers with Olive Oil & Sea Salt

2010-08-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

It was naive of me to think I'd have more time to cook now that I'm working from home. Nope. Definitely not the case. The whole work from home thing has so far equaled some very, very long days. I'm quickly learning that I have to schedule things like breakfast, lunch and dinner, or I just don't get around to actually eating a meal. Now, more than ever, things will have to be scheduled, and spontaneity will be taking a back seat, for now.

The most spontaneous thing I've done this week was to buy these Padrón peppers. When 6pm rolled around I shut my computer, rose from my desk and started to heat up my grill pan for a decidedly unique dinner.

I first had these peppers as an appetizer at Pizzaiolo. I couldn't get enough of them. It's like playing Russian Roulette with these, some are hot and some are not. I can't seem to pop them in my mouth fast enough. They're the epitome of a quick dish. Just toss with olive oil and sea salt, grill and serve. Your guests will think you're very fancy.

Grilled Padrón Peppers with Olive Oil & Sea Salt

1 bunch of Padrón Peppers
enough olive oil to coat the peppers
sea salt

Heat an outdoor grill or grill pan on the stove to medium-high. Meanwhile, toss the peppers in a bowl with the olive oil and salt. The peppers will start to char and blacken after about 4 minutes or so. Keep an eye on them to gauge when to turn them with some tongs. Char on both sides. When done, transfer to a plate, add more sea salt if necessary, and serve.

Pimientos De Padron

Four Little Words Nearly Everyone Hopes to Hear - Crispy Braised Chicken Thighs with Olives, Lemon & Thyme

2010-08-15T19:30:00.000-07:00

After 3 days (roughly 30 hours) of intensive training in a Westin hotel just outside of Washington DC with my 20 fellow trainees, we were cut loose at 4:30 on Friday evening. We sat in the hotel conference room, blinking in surprise and exhaustion. We were free? To do what? The last 72 hours had been under strict schedule and direction. It seemed as though we couldn't remember exactly what we did when we weren't absorbing and brainstorming together.

We packed up our new laptops and training manuals and headed up to the hotel lounge like zombies. Waiting for the cars that would whisk us off to the airport. We collapsed into the overstuffed chairs and ordered a round of drinks, unable to stop talking about work. My brain felt several tons over capacity, and when I headed over to the bar for a refill, the bartender took one look at me and said the words you always hope to hear a bartender say: "This one's on me."

God bless him.

It's true, my eyes were bloodshot, with some serious dark circles parking under them. I must have been a seriously pitiful sight. But if it's pity that leads to a free glass of Sauvignon Blanc, I have no problem with that.

There are other stories from the past week and a half, of course, but I choose to start at the end for now. From Washington/Dulles airport I boarded a Virgin American red-eye, and more than four hours of Top Chef later, I landed at SFO. My head hit my pillow at 2am, and the next day I gathered myself together to head to my friend Brigid's wedding in Mill Valley. It was a fairly surreal 24 hours, and a very lovely wedding filled with old friends and co-workers from my first couple years in the Bay Area.

When Sunday rolled around, I reveled in my first truly free day in what seemed like months. Feeling ambitious, I whipped out Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc at Home cookbook and opened it up to this recipe. I'd been eying it for months, but just hadn't gotten around to making it. Not that it's difficult, but sometimes tacking a recipe from a master chef can seem a bit intimidating for a weekday night. Surprisingly, this is a one pot mean that would translate nicely to any given Wednesday.

It felt so good to be back in the kitchen. And it feels great to be embarking on a new job, even if I am too nervous to sleep much. But here's hoping to less hours of the week commuting, and more in the kitchen.

Crispy Braised Chicken Thighs with Olives, Lemon & Fennel
from Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc at Home
serves 2-3

2 large fennel bulbs
6 chicken thighs, skin on
kosher salt
canola oil
1/2 cup coarsely chopped onion
1/2 tbsp finely chopped garlic
4 tbsp dry white wine
1/2 cup large green olives
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 dried bay leaf
4 strips of lemon zest, removed with a vegetable peeler
4 fresh thyme sprigs
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley leaves for garnish

Cut off the fennel stalks. Trim off the bottom of the bulbs and peel back the layers from the core. You can use the cores for another recipe. Cut the fennel layers into 2 x 1/2 inch batons. You'll need roughly 2 cups of fennel. Reserve any leftover fennel for another recipe.

Preheat the oven to 375 and set a cooling rack out over a baking sheet for later use.

Season the chicken thighs on both sides with salt. Heat a couple tablespoons of canola oil in a large oven-proof saute pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the thighs, skin side down and cook until brown on that side, about 4 minutes. Turn and cook for about a minute more to sear the other side. Transfer the thighs to a cooling rack and set aside.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the onions. Cook for about 1 1/2 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for another minute, stirring often until the onions are translucent. About 5 minutes. Add the fennel, turn the heat up to medium and cook, stirring often until the fennel is crisp-tender, about 10 minutes.

Add in the wine and simmer for about 2 minutes to cook off the alcohol. Sir in the olives, red pepper flakes, bay leaf, lemon zest, thyme and chicken stock. Increase the heat, bring the liquid to a simmer, and cook until the fennel is tender, about 1 minute.

Taste the stock and season with salt to taste. Return the chicken to the pan, skin-side-up, in a single layer. When the liquid returns to a simmer, transfer the pan to the oven and cook 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.

Turn on the broiler and put the pan under it for a minute or two to crisp and brown the chicken skin. Remove, transfer to a serving platter, garnish with parsley and serve.

Simple - White Peaches in Muscat Wne

2010-08-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

I spent my freshman year of college at a small liberal arts school smack in the middle of Boston. My dorm was at the corner of Boylston and Tremont, right across from the Common and the Boston Gardens. The year before, I was attending my final year of high school at a tiny school for the arts in the wilds of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and to go from the nearest town being 15 miles away, to being in the heart of a bustling city like Boston was a bit of a shock to my system. My hike to class in Michigan was literally just that, a hike through the woods on campus, past a gorgeous lake with the sounds of students practicing their instruments all around. In Boston, it was a stroll across the Commons, pushing past droves of people to the sounds of construction, sirens, and basic city life.

There weren't many places to escape the constant drone of the city that year. I didn't have a car, but occasionally I would take the T across the river to Cambridge and find a quiet park somewhere. But more likely, I was taking full advantage of the student offer at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Free admission. I was there nearly once a week, taking in the hush of that place. Peaceful, open and bright, with it's towering ceilings and stark white lines. It's where I discovered my favorite photographer, Edward Weston. In particular, it's where I discovered this photo that has haunted me ever since:

I stood in front of this photo for hours, collectively. Marveling at it. So many shapes in one body. I loved coming back to that exhibit. Taking some time out from the noise and activity to walk peacefully throughout the museum and take in all the beauty. Always starting and ending at this particular photograph.

So imagine how ecstatic I was to walk into the Oakland Museum for the first time, and stumble upon the same photograph in the back of the art section of the museum. I gasped out loud. It's famous, to be sure, but for me it's personal. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised that it was there, but I was. I couldn't help but grin.That was a difficult year, and seeing the photograph brings me back to being 18 years old and on my own in the big city for the first time. It was so many things at once. Exciting and frighting, full of activity but lonely at the same time. In the end, I learned to embrace being on my own in the big city, and it's something I take pleasure in doing every once in awhile now.

I especially love spending time alone in museums. No one to rush me, no one to wait for. Just me, taking my time to look at whatever I want, for however long I want. It feels positively decadent.

The Oakland Museum is a beautiful place. I wandered around for a few hours, and spent a good deal of time in the current Pixar exhibit, which was spectacular, to say the least, but when I was ready to go, I headed back into the art exhibit, to look at the Weston picture one more time.

What's so beautiful about the piece, I think, is it's simplicity. The duality of curves and straight lines, the exposure of skin and the face concealed, the gradation of color in the simple black and white.

There's something so elegant about beauty extending from simplicity.

That might be the same reason why I like this dessert so much. Simple. Peaches and Muscat. Maybe a little sugar if I feel it needs it. It's less of a recipe than it is a good idea.

White Peaches in Muscat Wine
from the Zuni Cafe cookbook
serves 4-5

1/2 bottle sweet muscat wine (about 1 3/4 cups)
sugar, if needed
4 medium, ripe peaches
red berries for garnish

Bring a few quarts of boiling water to a boil, and in the meantime, prepare a large bowl of ice water for the peaches to sit in after they come out of the hot water. Once the water has come to a simmer, add the peaches in with a slotted spoon, one by one. After about 15 seconds, remove the peaches with the slotted spoon and slide them into the ice water.

Remove the skin from the peaches, it should come off easily at this point.

Add the wine to a large bowl, and add sugar to taste. I added about a teaspoon, since my wine was already quite sweet.

Using a small knife, cut the peaches into 1/2 inch wedges over the wine, and let the fruit drop into the liquid. Once all the peaches have been cut, cover the fruit and wine with plastic wrap or a piece of parchment paper, and let macerate in the refrigerator for up to an hour.

Remove the peaches from the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving and taste. Sprinkle more sugar over the peaches, if needed.

Spoon into wine glasses to serve. It looks beautiful garnished with red berries.

Leading Lady Red - Cucumber Salad

2010-08-04T13:18:00.000-07:00

This is a case of good intentions leading to a likely ill-advised shade of red lipstick. Leading Lady Red, it's called.

In the almost two weeks of my in-between employment, I've tried to have a mix of the responsible "get er' done" kind of stuff, and the more enjoyable vacation things. Guess which list I prefer? Compare sectioning off an area of my studio to write off on taxes for working at home, to a hike with a good friend at Muir Beach. Or closet cleaning, to a gorgeous concert by the musician Nathaniel Rateliff at Cafe du Nord. File organizing, in order to justify drinks with friends at Smugglers Cove in San Francisco.

Yesterday the plan was to exchange book donations, oil change and car wash for an afternoon meandering through the SF MOMA. I hopped off BART and ran over to the museum, only to find myself sadly locked out. I then tried the Contemporary Jewish Museum, same story there. San Francisco museums are all closed on Wednesday afternoons, for some strange reason. My afternoon of culture was not to be.

Hence the red lipstick.

This is what in-between employment me does when her plans are thwarted. She makes an odd impulse purchase. I am now bound and determined to wear the stuff...despite the images of Bozo the Clown it conjures. Not to mention the fact that I'm terrified to pair it with any green article of clothing, lest I end up looking like some kind of deranged Christmas tree...

So today, Thursday, it's deep cleaning time for the kitchen in exchange for the Pixar exhibit at the Oakland Museum. I hear good things. I'm actually pleased with the progress that's gone on in my little studio. I think we're both ready to greet these new experiences.

You'd think I'd be doing a bit more cooking these days, what with a bit of free time on my hands, but mostly, it's just been quick and easy old favorites. This cucumber salad is something my oldest sister makes fairly often. I'm not sure if I have her recipe exact here, but it's at least inspired by her, and it's totally refreshing and delicious. Not to mention easy...

Cucumber Salad

1 English Cucumber (about 1 lb)
1/2 small red onion
3 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil (I stand corrected by my sister, I had written canola oil originally, mistake!)
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp parsley or dill, chopped

Cut the cucumber and onion into paper thin slices, and layer on top of each other on a serving dish.

In a small bowl, combine the vinegar, oil, salt and sugar with a fork. Whisk together, and pour over the cucumbers. Garnish with dill or parsley. Serve.

Mid-Century Modern - Old Fashioned Cocktail

2010-07-28T00:00:00.000-07:00

Well hello there, Don Drapper. I've missed you so...

We celebrated the beginning of the 4th Season of Mad Men on Sunday at Amber's with a cocktail hour. Old Fashioned's were served. It seemed to be the most appropriate (not to mention delicious) choice. And then the new episode started, and seemed to last all of 10 minutes. It flew by and barely served to whet our appetite. In reality, it was 45 minutes of sheer mid-century modern bliss. Just a glimpse of the gorgeous sets and costumes on that show makes me positively giddy.

Like this:

I would like to own Don Drapper's chair. Come to think of it, I could make do with his entire office, really.

Or this:

Now that is a dress.

I think we all need a little more Joan Holloway in our lives, wouldn't you agree?

And now I'm itching to run down to the Alameda Flea Market to snatch up yet another chair. The mid-century modern addiction is a serious thing. It often results in impulse furniture purchase. I think I'm going to have to move on to lamps.

In the meantime, my recipe for a proper Old Fashioned...

Old Fashioned Cocktail

2 ounces bourbon (I used Makers Mark)

1 sugar cube

3 dashes Angostura bitters

1 orange slice

1 good-quality cocktail cherry (I used Trader Joe's brand)

2 large ice cubes

*club soda (optional)

Place the sugar cube in the bottom of a cocktail glass, and soak it with the bitters. Add the orange slice and the cherry, and muddle together until the sugar has thoroughly absorbed the liquid and melted a bit. Add the bourbon and the ice, and stir well. You can also add a splash of club soda if desired. This is also the point where I add another cherry. Just for fun.

*Tip: If you want to get really fancy with it, try making ice by boiling the water before you place it in the ice tray. This makes the ice cubes turn out perfectly clear. They do this at the restaurant Flora in Oakland, one of my favorites. It's always an impressive trick.

Music Break - Arancini (Risotto Balls)

2010-07-26T00:00:00.000-07:00

There are few things better than trotting home with a hard-drive filled with new music. Thus begins the discovery process: sifting through the new collection to find that rare gem that becomes your favorite song of the next few months. The one that, when you hear it in the years to come, brings back the memories of that point in time forever. The one that perpetually finds itself smack in the middle of nearly every future road-trip mix, a constant on compilation cd's for friends, the one that's on repeat on a lazy Sunday morning. The one you lend an earbud to a friend for..."you gotta hear this," you say as you share a pair, watching their face in happy anticipation and expectation, hoping they'll share your elation on discovering for themselves their own new favorite song.

A few months ago, it was this one:

and now, it's this one:

This blog has been in desperate need of music. By all means, if you have something you can't get out of your head, feel free to share in the comments. There's nothing I love more than new music.

But Arancini is a close runner-up.

I was excited to take Leah's class at Kitchen on Fire in Berkeley, I was even more excited when I found out we were going to be making Arancini. I've had a strange fear of deep-frying, and have been much too reluctant to try it out on my own...so much oil. But it wasn't nearly as intimidating as I'd thought it would be. In fact, it was easy. Not to mention delicious. It's the perfect appetizer. Once you have risotto hanging out in your fridge, it's just a skip away from Arancini. And honestly, who doesn't love a deep fried rice ball?

Arancini (Risotto Balls)

Enough vegetable oil for deep frying

2 eggs, beaten to blend

2 cups cold risotto (recipe here)

1/2 cup grated parmesan

1 1/2 cups panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

assorted ingredients for filling: we used goat cheese, fig, proscuitto, parmesan chunks...use whatever sounds delicious to you!
thermometer for monitoring the oil temperature

baking rack for cooling the arancini

In a large, heavy saucepan, heat about 3 inches of oil to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, risotto, 1/2 cup of the breadcrumbs and the Parmesan till well mixed. Place the remaining breadcrumbs in a medium sized bowl, and place about 2 tbsp of the risotto mixture in your hand, flattening it out into a disk. Make an indentation with your finger in the middle of the risotto disk, and place a small amount of your filling (goat cheese, fig, prosciutto, whatever) into the middle. Form the rice into a ball around the filling, and gently roll until firm and well-formed. Roll the balls in the bread crumb mixture to coat and set aside until you've formed them all.

Using a slotted spoon, add the balls to the oil in batches, cook until lightly brown and heated through. Cooking time will depend on the temperature of your oil, so keep a close eye on the color. It can take anywhere from 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Possibly longer. Remove the balls with a slotted spoon and place on cooling racks with paper towels placed under the racks. Do not place directly on paper towels, or the arancini will become soft. You need air circulating all around to keep the crispy texture. Season with salt, and let rest for about 2 minutes until slightly cooled. Serve hot with a marinara dipping sauce.

Record Lows - Risotto

2010-07-21T12:02:00.000-07:00

People in the Bay Area are feeling gypped right now. It's the end of July, practically August, and yet, the weather has been stubbornly hovering between a frosty 50-65 for the past couple weeks and the fog is constant. "Record lows," are the words falling out of every meteorologist's mouth.

It's a strange state of affairs when you're looking forward to leaving freezing California for warm and sunny Oregon.

Even the tomatoes seem to have gone on strike due to the weather. The good ones are nowhere to be found. Stonefruit is here, but the weather calls for something you can curl up with, warm and comforting.

Risotto helps. But the only way I'll be ok with this weather is if the sun and high temperatures return soon and extend into November or so. And there's another reason for making it, an Arancini (fried risotto balls) recipe courtesy of Leah that's perfect for the leftovers. Stay tuned for that...and hopefully some decidedly more summery recipes.

Basic Risotto

6 cups chicken broth

2 cups white wine
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups aborio rice
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
*note: you can also substitute a bit of water in the broth/wine mixture if you'd like

Bring the broth and wine to a simmer in a saucepan on a back burner. Keep broth warm over low heat while you're cooking the rice.

Heat the butter & olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until tender, add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains evenly, continue to cook for about a couple minutes more to toast the rice and then add about 1 cup of the hot broth. Simmer over medium to medium-low and stir often until the liquid is absorbed, about 3 minutes or so. Continue to add about a cup of broth, stirring and letting it absorb until the rice is creamy and tender. The whole process should take less than half-an-hour, and you should have used 6-8 cups of the broth. Season with salt & pepper to taste and serve hot, right away.

What Next? - Quinoa, Tomato & Cucumber Salad

2010-07-19T22:27:00.000-07:00

I'm in preparation mode. Cleaning out my desk at work, organizing my files, creating the necessary paper trail for the person who comes into my current position next, trying to get my apartment ready for the work-from-home transition. It's all very cathartic actually. And so far, it's a terrific distraction from the fact that I've set into motion a fairly drastic change for myself.

I'm not a person who comes around to change very easily. I wouldn't call myself impulsive per say...impromptu road trip, yes. Impulse purchase of that thing I want but don't need at the check out line in the grocery store? Often enough. The occasional late night piano bar karaoke session? It has been know to happen. But when it comes to the big decisions; a move, a job, a relationship, I tend to take my time to carefully examine the facts, and then do it again, and again, and again, until I'm so sick of thinking about it I just make up my mind to decide. I can be a tad over-analytical, and as much as I wish it weren't the case...cautious to a fault.

I don't know if this current path I've chosen will work out, but I do know it was time for me to move on. For now, at least, I have the organization of my life to keep me from pondering to death the idea of, "what happens next?" Well...I have that and True Blood, also a terrific distraction. I'm trying to just let go, take it a day at a time, and enjoy the fact that I'm about to have almost 2 weeks vacation. Unheard of. The last thing I want to do with that time is over-analyze the fun out of it.

When you clean out the desk you've worked at for the last four years, and you come across things that remind you of something that seemed to happen only yesterday, you tend to realize how quickly the time has gone by. And hopefully, how much fun you had in the process.

Quinoa, Tomato & Cucumber Salad
adapted from the NY Times

1 cup quinoa
1/2 large english cucumber, diced
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 small red onion, minced
1 avocado, sliced for garnish
1/2 cup basil, chopped
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
salt & pepper to taste

Soak the quinoa in cold water for 15 minutes, cook according to package directions. When the quinoa has cooked and is tender, drain and set aside and let cool to nearly room temperature.

In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar and lime juice. Pour the vinaigrette over the tomatoes, onion & cucumber and let sit for about 5 minutes to marinate. Add salt & pepper to taste.

When the quinoa has cooled, mix together with the tomato mixture and add the herbs. Taste for seasoning and then garnish with avocado and serve.

Ch-ch-ch-changes! - Creamy Tomato Gazpacho

2010-07-14T00:00:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago, this was my view from the Washington/Dulles Airport:

I was in Washington D.C. for less than 24 hours for a job interview with LivingSocial.com...several interviews in fact. It was a complete whirlwind, but I'm happy to say that they went very well! Today I gave notice at my current job. As of August 9th, I am the Oakland Account Executive for LivingSocial. I'll be scouting out my city and other parts of the Bay Area to find the things I love to do and share. They're going to pay me for that. Crazy.

There's something unbelievably frighting and exhilarating about taking a new job. A leap into the unknown. You never know if you're making the right choice....you just have to go on instinct. Mine is telling me to leap. I'm overwhelmed, nervous, excited, relieved and, of course, I feel incredibly lucky to have the chance to move on to a new opportunity, especially with the economy being what it is.

I'll be working from home and able to set my own schedule. It means that I'll have more time to take the classes I want to take, to do all those extra activities I've been thinking about, to go the gym at 10am if I want, and, more time for this blog. To be able to photograph during daylight hours! I can't tell you how exciting that is. Even to just be that person in the coffee shop working on their laptop at 11am. I have always mocked that person...yet secretly, I always wished that was me.

And now it will be.

Crazy.

In a few weeks, I head back to D.C. to start my training. I plan to take a long vacation in the meantime. Get my head together, visit with family and friends, enjoy a bit of free time, and get my apartment in shape for the work-from-home transition. Wish me luck! Here goes nothing...

This NY Times recipe for Gazpacho came at a fortuitous time. The evening before some friends and I had shared an unbelievable bowl of Sungold Tomato Soup at Boot and Shoe in Oakland, and I couldn't get over my tomato soup craving. I had a pound of cherry tomatoes in the fridge, along with all the other ingredients laying around the kitchen. It called out to me. I made it in about 20 minutes for a weekend lunch...savoring the fact that making my lunch with care at home will be a regular occurrence soon. It was delicious, creamy, savory and tangy...everything I want a soup to be.

Creamy Tomato Gazpacho
adapted (slightly) from NY Times

1 lb cherry tomatoes (I used red, but the sungold would be amazing in this soup)
1 1/2 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
10-12 basil leaves, roughly chopped, reserve some for garnish
3 large garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1/2 medium cucumber, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
2 ice cubes
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1 3/4 tsp kosher salt
freshly ground pepper to taste
pinch of Cayenne pepper

Blend all of the ingredients in a food-processor, blender or with a hand blender. Puree until smooth. Taste, and season with salt and/or vinegar if needed. Pour into bowls, garnish with basil and serve.

An Intensive - Cultured Butter

2010-07-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

Recently some friends asked me to come along on a hike. "I can't," I replied, "I'm taking a 6 hour cheese intensive that day."

You risk some raised eyebrows and prolonged stares when making a statement like that. But then again, this is the Bay Area. A passion for cheese (or really anything food related) is not uncommon, and more often than not the response is something like:

a. Awesome, where's the class and when can I take it?
b. Cool! I did a (insert butchery class, knife skills, pasta making, bread, etc.) last week.

The culinary arts are well respected in this part of the world. Otherwise 6 hour cheese intensives wouldn't be a possibility. Luckily for me, they are. My friend Elisa kindly invited me to join her in the class. I can safely say we didn't really know what we were in for, which was, roughly, five different cheeses (ricotta, mozzerella, camembert, chevre, feta, yogurt) and 2 different kinds of butter.

It was a long day of dairy at the Institute of Urban Homesteading in Oakland, ending in a feast of our labors. With the feta, we assembled a beautiful caprese salad, pictured above. The feta was my favorite of the bunch, tangy and mild. I've always been somewhat intimidated by the cheese making process, having only attempted ricotta and chevre. My ricotta turned out great, the chevre, not so much. It's a fairly precise art. You need the right ingredients, the right tools and above all, the right temperatures. Some of the cheeses require more time and effort than others, of course. I thought I'd share the recipe for cultured butter, totally easy and incredibly delicious.

I don't know why I hadn't considered making my own butter before. Now that I realize how simple it is to do, I'll certainly be doing it again. It's far superior to store-bought, especially the cultured butter, or yogurt butter. Basically, you just add yogurt to the milk, let it ferment a bit, and then whip it up. It was delicious.

Well worth a 6 hour cheese intensive.

Cultured Butter

1 quart heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup plain whole milk yogurt
a couple pinches of salt

In a glass bowl, mix the cream and yogurt together. Cover with a hand-towel or cheesecloth and let the mixture sit out in a warm area of your kitchen overnight. The ideal temperature for this is between 70-75 degrees. It will still work if it's colder, it will just take a bit longer.

In the morning, the mixture should have thickened a bit, letting the yogurt cultures meld with the cream.

A couple options at this point, you can put the mixture in your cuisineart (if you have one) on high for about 3 minutes, until the butter has formed a ball, you can use a hand-mixer on high, or you can put it in a jar and shake it vigorously until it's turned (if you have very strong arms).

If using a hand-mixer, turn the setting from high to low once the cream starts to form stiff peaks. At this point, the milk solids are separating from the liquid and things can get messy if the speed is too high.

When the solid butter has formed, pour off any buttermilk liquid in the bowl, and squeeze the butter to release any additional liquids (you can reserve the liquid, which is basically just buttermilk, for dressings). This is where a butter press can come in handy. The picture above is of butter that has been pressed, the press had the bird design molded into it. Pretty, no?

The final step is to rinse your butter with cold water, do that until the water runs clear and it will keep it from turning rancid. After that, salt the butter on all sides.

Dish, and serve.

Peace & Quiet - Caramel Banana Cake

2010-07-06T00:00:00.000-07:00

Photo by Brian

While at the river last weekend, I stepped out of the house alone around midnight and walked a few yards away. The moon was just about full, the forest and river were lit just enough to see by it's light. I stood still and listened...total silence and stillness. I couldn't even hear the river.

I can't remember the last time I heard silence like that. So incredibly peaceful.

It's easy to forget that that sense of quiet and stillness even exists when you live in the city, amid the constant hum of fans, air-conditioners, motors, refrigerators, traffic, etc. After having been on the go non-stop for the 3 days prior to our river trip, it was an unbelievable relief to be able to stand completely still, and not hear a single thing. Just peace and absolute quiet.

After a few minutes, I did hear a car drive by on a road not too far away, and then a small splash in the river, and what sounded like a owl in a nearby tree. I can't tell you how peaceful that moment was, especially after 96 hours of being on the go, non-stop.

It was a good weekend. So good that we decided to head up again this Saturday. I can't seem to get enough river time these days.

Have I mentioned that summer is my favorite season?

So, more about that Caramel Banana Cake. A cake I'd never made before, but one that Leah had requested. She was quite specific, Caramel. Banana. Cake. Anything for her 30th! As I said in my last post, this batter would be perfect for muffins. It's like the worlds greatest banana bread. I mean come on, it has caramel in it!

Caramel Banana Cake
2 9-inch layers

3/4 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas
1 1/2 cups caramel sauce (recipe below)

Heat oven to 325. Grease two 9" cake pans.

Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy then add the eggs and beat until silky and lightened. Sift the flour with the baking soda and salt. Whisk the milk and mashed bananas in a separate measuring cup and add to the eggs and butter, alternating with the flour. Beat just until smooth.

Pour batter into the prepared pans. Pour half the caramel sauce into each pan, and swirl with a knife. The pans will be quite full. Put in the oven carefully and bake for about 60 minutes, or until the centers are set and a knife comes out clean.

Cool completely before serving. Optional, whip about 2 cups of heavy cream with 1 tbsp of sugar and 1 tsp vanilla. Whip until the cream until it forms stiff peaks. Coat the cake in a layer of whipped cream with a flat rubber spatula.

Caramel Sauce
makes about 3 cups

2 cups cream
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup water
Pinch salt
1 tbsp butter

Warm the cream in a small saucepan over low to medium heat. While it's warming, add the sugar and water to a large, heavy, high-sided pan over high heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves, then leave it alone to boil until it reaches a deep amber color. It's hot, but if you can, taste while you go, you don't want to caramel to burn.

Remove from heat and slowly whisk in the cream. The mixture will bubble and spit while adding the cream, so stand back and go slow! Add the pinch of salt and butter and whisk smooth. Simmer until slightly reduced.

Leah's Birthday - Russian River Trip

2010-06-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

This weekend found 14 friends piled up in a house on the Russian River together to celebrate our dear friend Leah's 30th birthday. She couldn't have picked a more beautiful spot, perfectly suited to this crew of avid innertubers, sunbathers, cooks and cocktail experts. We launched the tubes from a few miles up river, and headed downstream to end up at our own private beach, just down the bank from the house. From the tubes it was into the hot tub to warm up, and then onto the board game portion of the trip.

There's nothing quite like a getaway with friends. To just hang out, enjoy each other's company, cook and enjoy a heated game of Trivial Pursuit. It's just about the best thing ever, and I for one, did not want to leave that house.

And I think Leah had a good time. We all enjoyed some of her favorites through the heroics of group cooking. Bahn Mi sandwiches, fish and shrimp tacos, barbecued ribs, honeymoon pancakes and, as requested, a Carmel Banana Birthday Cake.

We're a very spoiled group when it comes to food.

Recipe for the Carmel Banana Cake to come later, and maybe Sonya's amazing Peach Gallette, and Sam's "Bomb Mi" Sandwiches...if I can persuade them to share their secrets! In the meantime, I'm recovering and planning the next river trip...

Pictures taken by Brian

Your Mother Was Right + A Birthday - Capellini with Shrimp and Tomatoes

2010-06-18T15:01:00.000-07:00

"Listen to your Mother." It's a common phrase, one almost all of us have heard at some point or another, some of us ad nausium. And yet...very often we didn't. We insisted on learning for ourselves the hard way. Even if we knew she was right. And that was the most frustrating part of it. Knowing she was right, and ignoring the advice anyway.

My Mother has an impressive track record when it comes to intuition and advice. As much as I sometimes hate to admit it, I know that when she has advice to offer, I should listen. I can't think of one boyfriend or friend she was ever wrong about. I didn't take her advice as often as I should have, but, these days, with her stats being what they are, hers is the advice I ask for and most often take. I wish I'd taken it more often growing up. Her many years of social work speak for themselves. Not for nothing!

When it comes to food, her instincts are pretty spot on as well. She has a way with seafood pasta, and it brings to mind weeks spent at the beach on the Northern California Coast. Buying live crab and bringing it back to the house where they would meet their fate in a pot of boiling water. My Father would don an apron and crack the crab (when we did this at home our cat would attach himself to my Dad's leg, clawing away in a crab frenzy) and my Mom would make the most basic of seafood pasta's. Good seafood, pasta, garlic, lemon and white wine. Toss in some parsley, maybe some capers and tomatoes, throw in some crusty bread, a bottle of wine, a leafy salad and we were set.

It's still one of my all-time favorite meals. It's not often that I see a seafood pasta on a menu that I can resist...and yet, it's never quite as good as my Mom's. There's nothing quite like homemade, especially when it's a team effort.

On a side note, yesterday was my Father's 70th Birthday. When it comes to the lottery of being born into a family, I hit the jackpot, I'm well aware. And I couldn't be more thankful, more loved, supported or lucky. Happy Birthday Dad, words can't express how much I love you, and how thankful I am that you are my Father. You are the best man I know, and nothing makes me more proud than to say that you are my Dad.

Capellini with Shrimp and Tomatoes

3/4 lb capellini
1 lb large shrimp, peeled & deveined (I used frozen)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup white wine
juice of 1 lemon
a pinch of red pepper flakes, more if you like a lot of spice
1/2 bunch of parley, chopped
3/4 cup cherry tomatoes

Heat the oven to 300 and roast the tomatoes on a pan for 20-30 minutes, until they start to shrivel and darken in color. You can also skip this part and just saute the tomatoes with the garlic.

Bring a pot of salted water to boil. In the meantime, heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium high. Once the pan is hot and the butter is melted, turn the heat to medium and add the garlic. Saute for about a minute, taking care not to burn the garlic. Add the chili flakes.

Add the shrimp to the garlic and cook until the shrimp is almost cooked through and turning pink, about 3 minutes. Add the wine and lemon juice and turn the heat to low. Remove the shrimp, and turn the heat under the pan to medium-high, reducing the wine, lemon and garlic liquid a bit. You should end up with about 3/4 cup of liquid.

At this point, the capellini should be ready to cook. Cook according to directions, about 3 minutes. Drain and add to the skillet with the wine, lemon and garlic. Add in the shrimp, tomatoes and parsley. Season with salt, freshly ground pepper and Parmesan. Serve hot.

To Eat Each Other's Cooking & Say it Was Good - Veggie Rice Bowl with Lemon Tahini Dressing

2010-06-17T18:24:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you catch yourself, when you're giving advice to someone else...suddenly you realize that it's also the advice you should be taking. In some way, you're speaking to yourself. And it's comforting to realize that you're in the same place as the person sitting across from you. That in some way, you're in it together. You're not crazy for feeling whatever it is that you're feeling.

And I realized, it felt better. To listen, to give advice if asked, to be supportive and out of my own head and helping someone else to realize what we both already knew, because, as we all know, advice is what you ask for when you already know the answer. But we want that reassurance that we're not alone, that we're not nuts, that we're in it together and that it's not for nothing.

In the end we agreed, to be as kind to ourselves as we are to our friends. Not to judge and beat ourselves up for the process we have to go through to get to the other side of things, to come to realize what we want and deserve.

And tonight, that made sense.

I came across this picture recently...I haven't been able to stop thinking about it.

I can't remember the last time I read something that made so much sense.

Sometimes I think there are only two things you can do when you're feeling down. Enjoy dinner made by a good friend or loved one, and listen to a hell of a lot of Sinatra.

I can't remember where I stumbled across this recipe, but it's been around for awhile. If you love tahini, it's one of those recipes that just makes complete sense. Totally satisfying. Filling, lots of texture and tons of taste. I can't get enough of it. And you can feel very smug about how healthy it is. Packing in the veggies and whatnot. Fill the fridge with 'em and go through them in a day or so. Sometimes I just make a ton of the dressing and put it on everything. Seriously. Everything. Fish, chicken, your basic carrot stick. Just give me the spoon.

Veggie Rice Bowl with Lemon Tahini Dressing

4 cups white or brown rice
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
3/4 cup plain yogurt (I used non-fat)
4 tbsp tahini
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/3 cucumber, seeds removed, cut into matchsticks
1 celery stalk, cut into matchsticks
1/2 carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1/2 cup chickpeas
1/4 red or yellow bell pepper, cut into strips

Cook rice according to package directions. Once cooked, put it in the refrigerator until cool.

Mix yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and cayenne together in a small bowl until well combined.

Toss rice and all vegetables together in a large bowl, serve with tahini dressing. Serve.

Aced!

2010-06-15T09:02:00.000-07:00

I'm not positive, but I would venture a guess that I might be the only person in history to go to Palm Springs for the weekend, and come back with bronchitis.

It just doesn't make a lot of sense.

It was hot in Palm Springs. Really hot. Sweltering and dry desert heat. The kind where you drive in to town, mouth agape as you watch the thermostat steadily climb and climb and climb up to 110. I mean, HOT.

The kind of hot where the thought of getting out of the pool is unbearable. Where the thought of venturing into a room where the air-conditioner is set any higher than 65 is ridiculous. Where ice becomes the most essential part of any beverage concoction. Well, except for the rum or gin, of course. We were all about priorities in Palm Springs.

My dear friend Brigid is getting married this summer. She suggested a girl's weekend in Palm Springs to begin the celebratory festivities. I had never been, thought it was a fantastic idea, and quickly did some research. I stumbled upon a room special for the Ace Hotel & Swim Club, which, on the website looked like some kind of hipster paradise. We booked, we went, it was and I can't recommend it highly enough. It's like they designed the place with the sole idea that you should never have to leave the hotel for any reason. Vespa rentals? Check. Free bikes to ride around the grounds? Check. Two luxurious pools with cushions, cabanas, misting systems, lawn chairs and umbrellas? Mmm-hmm. Old-school photobooth? Check. The ultimate desert dive bar? Oh yes. Great, kitchy restaurant? Yep. Stumptown Coffee? Oh man, yes. Pool side service from very good looking men? Yes. That too.

The Ace has just about everything you could want. Including BBQ's, DJ's and the most fantastic people-watching experience I've had in quite awhile. Everyone was friendly, everyone was looking to have a good time. All in all, it was one of the most vacationy vacations I've ever had.

Between the vacation, the bronchitis, and a trip up North for my Nephew's high-school graduation, you can probably understand why there hasn't been a whole lot of cooking going on around here. And by "whole lot" I mean none.

But as you can see. We did get to the roadside attraction outside of Palm Springs that is the Robotic Dinosaur Museum, so...there's that. I figure this picture alone is worth about 3 food posts. Right? Right.

Requirements - Asparagus Pesto

2010-06-09T12:26:00.000-07:00

There are so many things to like about Summer. Warm weather, picnics and BBQ's, swimming and long and lazy evenings where the sun doesn't even sink till 9. The summer road trip is another much beloved tradition. I like to do as many of these as I can throughout the summer months. This past weekend brought the inaugural trip, in which we headed to Palm Springs (more on that later) and I plan to continue the trend with two more upcoming trips. I've been hearing the siren song to get out of town, and I am more than happy to heed the call.

When preparing to get out of town, I require the following:

Access to a fast car with a full tank of gas, preferably with air conditioning
A well rounded supply of music, at least several good mix cd's, ipod playlists, mix tapes, whathaveyou
Snyder's sourdough pretzels (the giant kind)
Strong coffee and plenty of water
A necessary pit-stop at either Granzellas Italian Deli (if headed North on the I5) or In n' Out (if traveling in California)
A keen eye to be on the lookout for various road-side attractions (such as the Robotic Dinosaur Museum just outside of Palm Springs (again: more on that subject later))

The above is made even better when a few dear friends are thrown into the mix. But the solo road trip is not to be overlooked. It's good for the soul, for clearing one's head, and for just being still with yourself...all whilst moving 70mph.

There's not a lot of cooking going on in my studio this week. Too much going on in between trips. But I do have some leftover asparagus pesto, recipe courtesy of Mark Bittman. I ate this on crostini and in pasta, I confess I even had it straight out of the bowl in the fridge from a spoon. Pesto is something I hadn't considered making with asparagus before, but I think it's a good addition to the repertoire. Asparagus is everywhere these days, and I always seem to have an extra bunch in the fridge that requires something be done with it before I can hit the market again. I think this would be excellent served over pasta, with some roasted asparagus on top. Or, as I did, even just eaten straight off the spoon.

Asparagus Pesto
adapted from Mark Bittman

1 lb asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
3 cloves garlic (the recipe calls for 1, I love garlic and added 2, but found even that to be too mild)
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup olive oil
3/4 cups freshly grated Parmesan
juice of 1/2 lemon or more
freshly ground black pepper

Bring a pot of water to boil and salt it. Blanch the asparagus until just tender, about 6 minutes.
Drain, but reserve about 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Let the asparagus cool slightly.

In a food processor, combine asparagus, pine nuts, 2 tbsp of the olive oil, Parmesan, a pinch of salt, and a couple tablespoons of the cooking liquid. Process the ingredients , pausing to scrape down the mixture from the sides of the container so everything is well-combined. Gradually add the oil and a bit more of the cooking liquid to moisten, if necessary. Add the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Pulse to combine one last time, scoop into a bowl and serve with toasted bread, pasta, chicken and/or fish.

In Anticipation - Strawberry Chiffon Cake

2010-06-04T13:47:00.000-07:00

It's difficult, if not downright impossible, to speak of summer BBQ's without a certain tone of anticipation. In fact, I would venture to say there are only two tones of which they can be spoken about: anticipation, and nostalgia. There are BBQ's that have passed, and there are those that are yet to come.

I can wax poetic about the ones of yore, and present to you in dramatic fashion what was consumed, but in truth, I'm all about the anticipation of the next one. As long as that next one includes this cake:

I'm happy to say that this is a cake recipe that won't need much in terms of refining. Sometimes, a recipe turns out a home run on the first try. This is just such a recipe. Plunged into and devoured in mere seconds, as any good summer cake should be. And there is nothing about this cake that doesn't scream summer. Fresh berries, clouds upon clouds of whipped cream, and a light and moist crumb with just a hint of lemon. The cake is a similar texture to angel food...but better. It's a cake that comes together in a couple easy stages. I baked the actual cake mid-morning, let it cool on the windowsill (so cliche, I know) while I macerated the strawberries, and then finished it off at the BBQ by whipping the cream and assembling. Easy.

I'm going to go out on a limb and declare it the perfect summer BBQ cake. It's here. The search has ended, and I can anticipate many more of these to come.

Strawberry Chiffon Cake

adapted from Smitten Kitchen

For the Cake:

1 cup + 2 tbsp cake flour

3/4 cup + 1 tbsp superfine sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp cold water

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 tsp lemon zest

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/2 egg yolks, room temperature

4 egg whites, room temperature

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

For the Filling:

2 cups heavy cream

4 tbsp powdered sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

For the strawberries:

1 cup strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/2 fresh lemon

1 tbsp sugar

Pre heat the oven to 325 and grease a 9 inch round cake pan. You can also line the bottom and sides with parchment paper that has been lightly sprayed with cooking spray.

Sift the flour, baking powder, 3/4 cup of the sugar and salt together in a large bowl.

In another bowl, beat the yolks, water, oil, lemon zest and vanilla together on high until smooth. Stir in the flour mixture until smooth.

In another large bowl, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Add the remaining tablespoon of superfine sugar, and beat until stiff peaks have formed.

Using a rubber spatula, gently combine the egg whites into the egg yolk batter. Gently fold together until the egg whites have disappeared, taking care not to stir too much. If it's over-stirred, the egg whites will fall. You just want to combine the two mixtures.

Scrape the batter into the cake pan and bake for 40-50 minutes. Check at 40 minutes for doneness. If a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, and the middle has a soft spring to it, the cake is done.

Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for about an hour. When the cake has cooled completely, slice into 3 layers using a serrated knife. Separate the layers onto separate plates for easy assembly.

While the cake is cooling, macerate the sliced strawberries with the juice of 1/2 a lemon, and about a tablespoon of sugar. Stir together and let sit in the refrigerator until you're ready to assemble. The strawberries will release quite a bit of juice, which you'll want to spread on the cake layers.

Make the whipped cream filling by beating the egg whites, vanilla and sugar together on high until stiff peaks have formed.

Assemble the cake by starting with the bottom cake layer. Spread 1/3 of the strawberry mixture on the cake, top with some of the whipped cream. Add the next cake layer, and repeat the strawberries and cream on that layer. Finish with the last cake layer, adding berries on top of that. Finish by spreading the rest of the whipped cream over the cake until the cake is covered. Chill in the refrigerator for 1/2 hour to an hour until you're ready to serve.

Guest Post by Amy - Gin Shandy

2010-06-01T17:37:00.000-07:00

I'm guessing a great many of us attended some sort of function in the past couple of days where meat was grilled, sun was soaked up, and refreshing beverages were served. I was lucky enough to spend Memorial Day doing all of the above. Enter my friend Amy. Amy contributed the cocktail portion of our BBQ yesterday, and I'm very glad she did. Amy's known for coming up with delicious concoctions of all sorts, and her Gin Shandy's were no exception. I asked her to pass on the recipe with a guest post, and she kindly obliged.

Guest Post by Amy -

Memorial Day weekend, you are the devil! It's typically easier if your friends have their barbecues on SUNDAY so you get the full recovery day...but if you're not given that luxury, you've gotta show up with a drink that can pull the triple-duty hangover cure/ sunny day beverage/ I'm not gonna throw up at the office tomorrow. Hello, Gin Shandy. I will wear all kinds of white and drink up your business all day long. I just paid a big vet bill this weekend for my cat who had worms soooo it wasn't exactly the best time to be shopping for party supplies. The good news is that you don't need a top shelf gin for a good shandy. A) Because by the time I show up to the BBQ everyone is slightly tipsy, hot, and thirsty for some non-beer action and B) Because the magic shandy cauldron of awesome masks the taste of any mid-shelf gin, if it bothers you snobs. I went Beefeater- not plastic, not the end of the world, not too spendy. Hendrick's is good, or you can go for the old Tanqueray stand-by. But really, your money is better spent on a top shelf ginger beer and a tart lemonade.

Here's where the toil and trouble happens:

Gin Shandy

Equal parts (easy!)

- Ginger Beer (Bundaberg or Reed's)

- Gin!

- Lemonade (Santa Cruz is good, but a bit sweet for me. Newman's Own, Odwalla, or fresh-made are all good options if you're making a last-minute major grocery store stop, depending on your tastes.)

Ice it all up in a cute lookin' pitcher and call it a day (though you have to keep an eye on it because the ginger beer will go flat pretty fast. Feel free to splash in some club soda to bubble it up occasionally.) Best enjoyed out of a mason jar. A lot of recipes will recommend approximately 3/4 of a cup of gin, 12 ounces of ginger beer and 1 cup of lemonade, but I don't really understand math or conversions. Especially when math involves putting less booze in a thing or measuring liquor in cups. How many jiggers go in a shandy? Who knows. A damn tasty amount is what I know.

Garnish with a lemon wedge or a strawberry slice. I prefer a tarter drink, so I'd suggest squeezing some fresh lemon into each serving.

Be careful. Our soldiers didn't give their lives so that you could have a day off to sit outside and drink a strong ass cocktail that tastes like a Capri Sun.

USA!

More Adventurous - Daikon Radish Salad with Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette

2010-05-27T15:10:00.000-07:00

When it comes to how we see ourselves, there's always the possibility of a disconnect between who we are, and who we would like to be. I would like to be a more adventurous, spontaneous person. I am in awe of people who are both of those things nearly all the time. But in reality, I know myself to be a person that is terrified of many things that might be considered adventurous. Jumping out of airplanes for example. Bungie Jumping. Anything having to do with the combination of great heights and jumping from them. Even scuba diving, which in all honesty, I would love to try someday, but the truth is, it scares me to death. I have only recently conquered my fear of snorkeling (I had issues with the idea of fish getting too close, or rather, me getting to close to them) so I'm taking this fear step by step.

When it comes to sushi, I have learned it pays to be adventurous. I know this. I've known it since I moved to the Bay Area in 2004 and my friend Derek introduced me to Uni, Sea Urchin. It took two vodka tonics to even get anywhere near the briny, alien looking form on the plate, but with the help of some liquid courage, I conquered my fear, and learned that I in fact, LOVE uni. The taste, both salty and mild, the strangely unfamiliar texture? Love. It.

After having been in a sushi rut at the delightfully cozy sushi place, Mitama, which sits exactly 1/2 block from my apartment (bliss.) I ended up there one evening after work with Leah and Lauren, and was introduced to my new favorite. I went for my usual (always 2 pieces of hamachi nigiri and one roll with maguro) and Leah ordered a Daikon Radish Salad that I had never tried. One taste and I was hooked. I spent the rest of the evening doing my best to restrain my chopsticks from bogarting her entire salad.

It struck me how easy it would be to make at home. And so that's exactly what I did. Thinly sliced daikon radish and cucumber, combined with carrot and yellow bell pepper, drenched in a sesame ginger vinaigrette. It's love between this salad and I. I'm quite sure of it.

This is not to say that I've entirely broken out of my sushi rut. This past weekend I had only added the salad to my usual. Oh well. Next time. Next time I'll find my next new favorite.

Daikon Radish Salad with Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette

1 tsp fresh ginger, minced
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp canola oil or grapeseed oil
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 large daikon radish, peeled and thinly sliced into matchsticks
1/2 carrot, peeled and sliced into thin matchsticks
1/2 cucumber, sliced into thin matchsticks
1/4 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 tsp or so toasted sesame seeds for garnish
salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl, whisk together the ginger, oils, vinegar and soy sauce. Peel the radish and carrot, and slice all the vegetables into thin matchsicks. Toss all the vegetables in the bowl with the vinaigrette, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Top with toasted sesame seeds.

A Reinvention - Asparagus Salad - Raw & Roasted

2010-05-24T22:34:00.000-07:00

I was talking with a friend recently about reinvention, and how often and unexpectedly it happens. Like that song you've heard so many times...the one that takes on a whole new light when it happens to be the one playing in the background when you have your first kiss with someone you eventually grow to love. The last dish you make for your Grandfather. The stretch of beach where a dear friend is married.

Those things become the maps to our inner-lives. The markers of where and who we were, until something happens to change the way we see or think about something.

It's funny, how those things happen so unexpectedly. All it takes is one memory associated with a previously innocuous thing, and suddenly it's endowed with meaning and memory. It's why I never skip a certain Pearl Jam or Elliott Smith song when they make their way through my headphones, and why just seeing the words "Shrimp Louie" on a menu can make me tear up. It's both lovely, and bittersweet. You never know what that unsuspecting object, song or dish might become to you in the future.

It's spring in the Bay Area, and that means asparagus at the farmer's market. Last year I was all about the thick purple stocks, this year, I'm leaning towards the pencil-thin green ones. The normal go-to recipe is to roast the whole bunch, but I was feeling adventurous. I decided to try a salad of asparagus two ways: roasted and raw, tossed with lemon and olive oil, and shaved Parmesan mixed in. Skeptical of raw asparagus? So was I. But don't pass it up. I used a vegetable peeler to peel off long, thin strips. The combination is surprising and delicious. Asparagus...but reinvented.

Asparagus Salad - Raw & Roasted

1 bunch asparagus
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp good quality extra virgin olive oil
2 ounces or so shaved Parmesan
sea salt & freshly ground pepper
fresh lemon zest for garnish

Pre-heat the oven to 425. Roast about 2/3 of the bunch of asparagus for about 20 minutes, until the ends are crispy and brown. Peel the other 1/3 of the bunch into long strips using a vegetable peeler. Whisk the lemon juice and olive oil together with a fork. Once the roasted asparagus is done, toss both roasted and raw together in a bowl with the vinaigrette. Plate, and top with shaved Parmesan, sea salt, pepper and lemon zest.

Transformation - Roasted Radishes

2010-05-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been thinking about transformations. Specifically, about how to make them occur. Can change really occur with a simple shift in attitude? And if that doesn't work, what do you do next? What do you do when you feel like you are more than ready to make big changes in your life, and you take what feels like the necessary steps to do that, and the universe simply won't seem to throw you a bone? Do you take that as some sort of sign? Do you press on and double your efforts? Change tactics? And what about people, and that age old question...can people really change?

I admit, I feel like I'm in a rut. I'm out of ideas and I don't know what the next step is. I need something to work out. One thing. Something to encourage me, and maybe point me in the right direction.

I need a change for the better. I want the good things to start happening for the people I love, and for myself. 2010 has been rough so far. Enough is enough for one year.

I joked with a friend today about finding someone who can change your aura, and by that I mean someone to aid in some kind of subconscious shift in mentality. The power of suggestion. Maybe I'll burn some sage??? Learn to meditate for world peace like the dude from the Beastie Boys?

Obviously, I'm getting desperate. But the point is, I feel like I'm open to ideas. Change is good. Change is desired by this girl. Now, any suggestions?

But enough whining (it's my blog, I can do that) if I can't change my immediate situation, I can sure as hell change the state of a bunch of radishes. From bright and hard with a sharp taste to tender, muted and nutty. I am a master of transformation in my kitchen.

I was so intrigued by the idea of roasting radishes. The thought had never occurred to me before. It seemed like such a new and novel idea. They came out of the oven, onto my fork and had been magically transformed into something very much like a roasted turnip. Buttery and soft, with charred and crispy edges. I was impressed. It may sound a little crazy, but that's crazy as in delicious.

If only such a complete transformation was so easy for everything else, eh?

Roasted Radishes
adapted from Saveur

3 bunches mixed radishes
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
coarse sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 425. Mix the radishes in a bowl with oil, salt and pepper. If you have some fresh herbs (such as thyme) throw a few sprigs in. I had some scapes (fancy garlic) so I chopped those up and threw them in. Roast for 40-50 minutes, shaking the pan during roasting once or twice. Serve hot.

Nostalgia - Beef & Sugar Snap Pea Stir Fry

2010-05-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

This has been a weekend packed with nostalgia. Everywhere I went, every event I attended, every song on the radio seemed to yank me back to my teenage self. Starting with Mortified on Friday at the Makeout Room in San Francisco. It's amazing how compelling it is to hear people read their junior high and high school diaries onstage in front of hundreds of people. How hilarious and poignant the angst of those torturous years becomes over time. If you've never seen Mortified before (the events are hosted all over the country) I highly recommend that you go. It's totally cathartic. If only I'd held onto my ridiculous teenage scrawling and not destroyed it in a fit of...well...catharsis. I'm sure I could read those pages now and laugh. Crushes, homework, arch-nemesis's and radio dedications.

I think the only thing I miss is the radio dedications. I wish we still had those. And mix tapes! Actual mix tapes that you have to re-wind and flip over. Is there anything better than a well-crafted mix tape that follows a theme and tone from end to end? That is an absolute art in itself, and I personally am sorry that they've gone the way of the VHS tape. An ipod playlist just isn't the same. I wish I'd saved the tapes I made. The ones I listened to over and over again. I wish I had the ones I sheepishly gave to whomever I was crushing on at the time, hoping they'd listen and pick up on the hidden meaning behind the order of songs.

Junior high. The age when spoken words are so insignificant that communication must be channeled via music and notes passed in 6th period. Le sigh. Ok, so maybe I miss the 6th period notes as well. E-mail never quite does the trick. Nothing like a hand-written note passed in secret.

I'd like to pass Melissa Clark of the NY Times a congratulatory note for publishing this recipe for Beef Stir-Fry with Sugar Snap Peas. Berkeley and Oakland are seriously lacking in decent Chinese food establishments, and forget all about trying to have it delivered. When I saw this recipe while pursuing the paper this morning, it was a like gift from above. I literally tore out of the house and down to the farmers market to grab some good ingredients. Once back at home, it all came together in about half-an-hour, and totally satisfied my Chinese food craving. I have no complaints! And I'm feeling very smug about being able to cook my own healthy version of takeout. Nothing wrong with that!

Beef & Sugar Snap Pea Stir Fry
adapted from Melissa Clark's NY Times recipe

1/2 lb lean grass-fed beef, cut into 1/2 inch strips
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp dark sesame oil
pinch of kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 lb sugar snap peas, trimmed (snow peas would also work)
3 good-size green onions, chopped
3 green garlic bulbs, chopped (or 3-4 cloves regular garlic)
2/3 cups chicken broth
2 1/2 tbsp Madiera or sweet sherry
1 tbsp cornstarch
3 tbsp peanut or olive oil
toasted sesame seeds for garnish

In a medium bowl, mix beef, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, sesame oil, salt and pepper. Set aside.

Thinly slice sugar snap peas crosswise into disks. Thinly slice green onions and green garlic, reserving dark green parts for garnish.

In a small bowl, mix chicken broth, Madeira, 2 tablespoons water, remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce and cornstarch.

Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons oil. When pan is hot, stir-fry beef until browned, about 2 minutes. Transfer beef and any liquid to a plate.

Add remaining tablespoon oil to skillet and when hot, add garlic and white and light green scallion parts until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Add sugar snap peas and chicken broth mixture, lower heat to medium and cover. Let cook for 2 minutes. Transfer beef and juices to skillet and stir-fry 2 minutes. Serve over rice, garnished with more sesame oil, sesame seeds, and dark parts of scallions.

Painted Peach This Time Last Year - Popovers!

What it Takes - Roasted Mushroom & Bread Salad

2010-05-14T09:19:00.000-07:00

I think one of the milestones of growing up must be when you choose to do the right thing, even when that is the hardest thing to do. To follow your heart, because you hold onto the belief that if you do that, you cannot be steered in the wrong direction. To do your best to handle disappointment with as much grace as you can muster. To keep looking forward, believing in possibility and opportunity and to be ready to greet those things with a heart that is wide open.

It takes a lot of strength to do those things. It takes confidence, and peace of mind in knowing that you've learned from your past, and that those lessons weren't wasted.

It takes knowing that the possibility for change only happens when you let go. Clear the decks and open up. Letting go of the control you only think you have. Nothing changes when you hold on too tight. It's a scary thing to let yourself fall. To jump into the wide open of change and possibility without a net in sight.

It's scary. But I can't help but think I'd rather grow, and change, and learn. Even when it hurts. Maybe especially when it hurts. Another opportunity to make myself stronger.

How's that for a positive attitude?

It took years before I could look a mushroom dead on. Fungus. I hated the musty little things. I would never even think of eating one. There was something so creepy about them. I couldn't really put my finger on it, but I had an extremely healthy distrust of mushrooms.

Thank goodness for change and growth. Now I can't get enough of them. Especially when they're roasted with a bit of sherry, torn off pieces of bread, tossed together with loads of herbs and topped with a dollop of creme fraiche. It's a delicious dinner that comes together in a snap. I could eat this stuff for days.

Roasted Mushroom & Bread Salad

1 lb crimini mushrooms (a blend of mushrooms would be fantastic in this)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus 2 tbsp
salt & freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp dry sherry
1/2 lb chunky breadcrumbs
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
creme fraiche (or plain yogurt) for garnish

Pre-heat the oven to 475. Put the mushrooms into a baking dish and toss with 1/4 cup olive oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the mushrooms. Roast the mushrooms for about 20 minutes on the upper rack of the oven, toss the mushrooms once and de-glaze the dish with the 2 tbsp of sherry. Put back in the oven and roast for an additional 10 minutes, until the mushrooms have darkened and shrunk significantly.

Meanwhile, coat the breadcrumbs with the 2 tbsp of olive oil and some salt and pepper. Toast in the oven or a toaster oven. When the mushrooms and breadcrumbs are done, toss together with the herbs. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with creme fraiche and serve.

Possibility - English Pea & Pecorino Crostini with Mint

2010-05-09T17:45:00.000-07:00

I am a planner at heart: A menu, a road trip, an evening out. When you need someone to book a reservation a month ahead of time, I am your girl. I live for that kind of thing. A hard-to-book table, the most affordable airline ticket, a unique date, an out-of-the-way beer garden in the next county or the best sandwich on Interstate 5. When it comes to planning, I am up to the task.

If only I were so confident when it comes to mapping out my life.

But I suppose that's the point of it all. I mean where's the fun in knowing everything that comes next? I'd love to meet the person who's life has gone according to plan. To be honest, it sounds fairly boring. Although I guess it would remove the sometimes anxiety-inducing uncertainty...which I admit, does sometimes sound appealing...

Uncertainty is just possibility in disguise. Isn't that what they say? I'm trying to keep that in mind as I get ready to spring into a week that has the potential to bring great change, or not. When I think about uncertainty, it tends to bring up negative connotations. But the same isn't true for possibility. Possibility, in my mind, is about the future, about looking forward to great success and happy events.

And I'll try to remember; if it's not this week that brings great change, it may be the next. Anything is possible. You just never know. Those are my positive thoughts for the day. Let's see if I can keep 'em going.

This week has already brought a ton of great scores from the Temescal Farmer's Market. I have a ton of things up my sleeve and a kitchen counter full of asparagus, fava beans, radishes and strawberries.

Also, one of my favorites, english peas.

I've got a Tarragon Chicken roasting in the oven, and I've invited Amber over for dinner, with clear instructions to bring the wine. While the chicken rests, these English Pea & Pecorino Crostini with Mint will be just the thing.

And then we'll toast to all the future possibilities.

English Pea & Pecorino Crostini with Mint
adapted from Molly Watson

2 lbs english peas, shelled
3 tbsp good quality extra-virgin olive oil
1 large clove garlic
1 fresh baguette, sliced on the diagonal
Pecorino for shredding
salt & freshly ground black pepper
mint for garnish
1 tsp fresh lemon juice

Bring a saucepan of water to boil and add the shelled peas. Boil for about 1 minute until slightly tender. Drain and rinse with cold water to cool the peas. Dry as best you can, and set them in a bowl. Mash peas with a fork with a touch of salt, the lemon juice and 2 tbsp of the olive oil.

Toast the bread and rub with the garlic. Discard the clove. Spread the pea-mash generously over each toast. Sprinkle with pecorino, mint and black pepper and drizzle the remaining tbsp of olive oil over the toasts. Add more salt to taste and serve.

Death by Caramel - Salted Caramel Tart

2010-04-28T18:09:00.000-07:00

I nearly killed myself with caramel.

Perhaps that's a bit dramatic, but I need you to understand the severity of the situation. Caramel is not easy. It is treacherous. It took three attempts to get this tart right. THREE! By the end of it, I was so sick of looking at and smelling caramel, I was barely tempted to taste it. I was tired, no, exhausted, and so very. very. done with caramel. Was it worth it? Well. It's tough to say. I'm still having arm spasms from stirring.

Again with the dramatics.

My niece and I had discussed my Sister's love of caramel. I thought this tart would be just the thing for her birthday, served with a fluffy cloud of only slightly sweetened, fresh whipped cream.

So there I was at the stove, stirring away. About 10 minutes into the first batch, I noticed the caramel was turning an unexpected and disturbing shade of grey. I leaned in to examine it closer and removed the spoon: the spoon had half dissolved into the caramel mixture! I had thought it was silicon, but in actuality, it was plastic. Batch discarded.

I prepped the caramel once more. Wooden spoon in hand, stirring and stirring, watching carefully so as not to burn it. The recipe instructions said to bring the caramel to a distinctly dark color. I admit, I was skeptical: the picture looked so dark. I could have sworn the caramel shown was burnt, but, "have courage!" the recipe instructed. And so I did. I brought it to a dark color...and tasted it.

Burnt. Completely.

Batch discarded.

And so, onto the third batch, about an hour in at this point. Recipe for caramel committed to memory. Screw courage: at this point, I just wanted caramel that was neither burnt nor toxic.

And it worked. The third batch was perfect.

I'm told that the tart was good. Rich and buttery, as caramel should be. I had a bite. But the process had the unintended consequence of making me decidedly anti-caramel. But at the end of it, the tart had been completely devoured. And I guess, that's about as much of a recommendation as I can give for this recipe.

In the future, I will trust my own instincts when it comes to a recipe, and I will stick with silicon or wood when cooking candy.

So, if attempting this one, heed my warnings. Screw courage, trust your taste, and if all else fails, remember, caramel is tricky. It's not your fault.

Salted Caramel Tart
from the cookbook FAT by Jennifer McLagan

For the tart dough:

2 cups all-purpose flour
pinch of fine sea salt
2/3 cup cold unsalted butter, diced
1 large egg
1/3 cup superfine sugar

For the caramel:

1 1/4 cups superfine sugar
1/2 cup salted butter, diced
1 cup whipping cream
lightly whipped cream, for serving

Combine the flour and salt in a food processor and pulse to mix. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles very coarse bread crumbs. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together the egg and sugar. Pour the egg mixture over the flour-butter mixture and mix with a fork. Squeeze a bit of the mixture between your fingers. If it holds together, transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface; if not, add a couple of teaspoons of ice water and test again. Knead gently and form into a ball, divide the pastry in half, and flatten into 2 disks. Wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.

Roll out the pastry on a floured surface and line a 9-inch or 9 1/2-inch (23-cm or 24-cm) tart pan. Prick the base of the tart with a fork and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375. Place the tart shell on a baking sheet. Line the tart with parchment paper and fill it with dried beans. Bake until the pastry is just set, about 15 minutes. Remove the paper and beans and continue to cook until the pastry is a dark golden color, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer the tart to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.

Combine the sugar and butter in a deep, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Stir to mix and cook, stirring occasionally, until the butter and sugar caramelize, 10 to 15 minutes. The sugar and butter will go through several stages. First it will look like a flour-butter roux, then it will appear curdled, and then the butter will leak out of the sugar mixture. Don’t worry: It will all come together in the end.

While the caramel is cooking, pour the cream into a saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Keep stirring the butter-sugar mixture, watching carefully as it begins to caramelize and remembering that the heat in the pan will continue to cook the caramel once it is removed from the burner. You want a rich, dark caramel color, but you don’t want to burn the mixture, which will give it a bitter taste. When the caramel reaches the right color, remove the pan from the heat and slowly and carefully pour in the cream; the mixture will bubble and spit. When the caramel stops bubbling, return it to low heat and cook for 5 minutes, stirring to dissolve the caramel in the cream. Remove the pan from the heat and let the caramel cool for 10 minutes. Slowly pour the cooled caramel into the baked pastry shell and chill the tart for at least 2 hours.

This tart is easier to cut when it is chilled. Remove the tart from the pan and, using a wet knife, cut it into wedges. Serve the tart at room temperature, however, for maximum flavor, with a dollop of whipped cream.

Of Hot Tubs and Road Trips - Simple Lentil Salad

2010-04-21T22:46:00.000-07:00

I've been in a bit of a cooking funk lately. I can't seem to get myself to the market very often, and when I do, I come home missing an ingredient or two, and then can't force myself out again to retrieve them. Meals have mostly been eaten out or foisted upon me by friends with leftovers to spare. I have to admit, I'm actually enjoying the break. More time for other things, such as a hot tub and sauna night at Piedmont Springs in Oakland. Delightful! Living in an apartment building has it's disadvantages. Lack of hot tub is one of them, so it's very refreshing to know that tucked away on Piedmont Avenue, there is a small oasis of outdoor, private redwood tubs which can be yours for one hour, for about the price of two cocktails.

It's a bargain. Add a few minutes in the sauna, and I'm a happy camper. Maybe someday I'll spring for the massage as well.

But I have a confession. I have been spoiled when it comes to hot tubs. In college, my roommate Beth and I lucked out with a ridiculously perfect house, 4 blocks from school, complete with wrap-around deck and hot tub. In case you were wondering: studying for finals is not too strenuous when up to your neck in 103 degree water. It is also rather easy for the party to come to you, when you are the gate-keeper of a hot tub. Party attendance was always more than we expected, but our hot tub space was always reserved.

After college, when I moved in with my friend Ilsa, I lucked out once again, with a large redwood hot tub in our yard in Berkeley. I wish I could say I'd enjoyed that tub more, but our hot tub fun was cut short when we found a family of opossums living under said tub. Let me tell you, those things are mean as hell. They hiss! Sitting up to your neck in 103 degree water is considerably less relaxing when being circled by hissing opossums.

Luckily, there are no rodents of unusual size (or regular size for that matter) at Piedmont Springs. Nor are there gangs of rowdy college kids. Just pure, private relaxation in the middle of the city. Happiness. Sheer happiness.

So now, to extend my relaxed, meditative state, I'm off on a road trip up North for my Sister's 40th birthday. We'll see if this cooking funk continues. I'm happy to trade my tiny kitchen for the open road, a Superbird Sandwich from Grenzellas on I5, all of my favorite restaurants in Ashland, Oregon, and, what is sure to be some superb family cooking. Cooking for 14 people is always a bit of a challenge. I suspect we'll be combining forces.

Until I'm back, I leave you with a single, simple recipe. For an evening when cooking needs to be minimal, without fuss. There's nothing more satisfying than a simple lentil salad. And Alice Waters has the best simple recipe I know. A few tweaks here and there to make it your own, you can throw in just about anything you have on hand. It's hard to ruin lentil salad, and the red wine vinaigrette is so perfect on this. It's what to cook when you don't want to cook.

Lentil Salad
adapted from Alice Waters, The Art of Simple Food

1 cup lentils, sorted and rinsed (Alice recommends French Green or Black Beluga, I had brown lentils on hand and they worked just fine.)
1/2 cup carrot, diced
1/2 cup potatoes, diced
1/2 lb spinach
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
salt & fresh-ground black pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 finely diced shallots
3 tablespoons chopped parsley

Bring the lentils to boil in about 3 inches of boiling water. Simmer and cook until tender, it should take about 30 minutes. Drain, and reserve about 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Set liquid and lentils aside.

Heat about 1 tbsp of olive oil in a pan, and saute the shallots, carrots, and potatoes until tender. Add the spinach to wilt. Stir in the parsley and remove from heat.

Toss the lentils and vegetables together with red wine vinegar, salt & pepper and the 2 remaining tablespoons of olive oil. If the lentils seem dry, add a bit of the cooking liquid. Serve room temperature or cold.

Guest Post by Pearl

2010-04-19T23:36:00.000-07:00

My six year old niece, Pearl, has asked that her photo of her dinner be included on the blog. I am more than happy to oblige her. I happen to know that she is an excellent cook: masterfully arranging chocolate chips in cookies, raspberries in raspberry tarts, eating chocolate and licking spatulas clean.

I can tell you that her favorite meal is salmon sushi. She prefers it without rice. She also very much enjoyed the Pina Colada's (virgin) I made in Hawaii, but she prefers them without too much fresh pineapple, because the pineapple makes her tongue swell up.

So here is dinner by Pearl. Sweet potatoes, and chicken on peas. Very healthy and well-balanced, I must say.

It is obvious she has an eye for this thing.

Well done, Pearlyque!

The Old Familiar - Tacubaya Salad with Lemon-Lime Vinaigrette

2010-04-14T21:39:00.000-07:00

About once every year, I pull out my old, tattered copy of East of Eden, my favorite book of all time. I re-read and re-visit the paragraphs and characters I love so well. I never really plan on reading it again, but once the urge strikes, I have to indulge. And so far, every year, it happens like clockwork.

I like to re-read books. I do the same thing with The Great Gatsby, and a few others. It might sound cliched, but it seems every time I pick one of these books up again, I find something I missed the last time around. Something new. I think about a passage differently than I used to. And I never, ever tire of reading the last line of Gatsby, possibly the greatest ending to a book ever:

"Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter -- to-morrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther....And one fine morning --- So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."

That ending always thrills me.

I take no issue with the familiar, the well-trodden path. My friend Lesley tends to disagree with me on this. She thinks she'll miss out on something new if she sticks with what she's done before. Whether it's a book, an ice cream flavor...I see her point. But I still prefer chocolate ice cream nearly every time. I take comfort in the familiar, and in habit.

So it is with this salad. The Tacubaya Salad. Tacubaya is a Mexican restaurant on 4th Street in Berkeley. It's a favorite lunch spot of mine, not too far from where I worked when I first moved the the Bay Area. Once I discovered this salad on their menu, I committed. My order at Tacubaya is always, always: one chicken taco and the Primavera Salad. Which I have re-named, the Tacubaya Salad.

This salad is everything I want a salad to be. Bright, crunchy, filling, and tangy. There's a lot of texture going on here. Carrots, cucumber, radish, avocado, pumpkin seeds, baby lettuce and cabbage, all tossed in a lemon-lime vinaigrette. It's very possible that I could live off of this salad for quite some time, and be completely content.

I always feel a bit silly posting a salad recipe. I mean, it's a salad. You can probably see from the picture what the proportions are like, and to be honest, I don't measure for it. I throw it all together in the proportions I need. It's about an equal proportion of everything from the pumpkin seeds to the carrots to the cabbage to the lettuce. And the dressing really couldn't be easier. So, think of this as less of a recipe, and more as a few guidelines for this salad of salads.

Tacubaya Salad with Lemon-Lime Vinaigrette
adapted from Tacubaya Restaurant in Berkeley

1 bag mixed baby lettuce
1 bunch radishes, thinly sliced
2-3 carrots, shaved into strips
1 cucumber, thinly sliced
1 cup or more green cabbage, thinly sliced
1 cup or more red cabbage, thinly sliced
1 avocado, cubed
1 cup pepitas or pumpkin seeds, toasted (I usually get the raw ones from Trader Joe's)

for the Vinaigrette:
Juice of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp or more of sugar
1/4 tsp salt
olive oil (you need enough for that magic 3 - 1 ratio of oil to acid)

Mix ingredients to taste. It should be sweet, sour, and salty, all at the same time.

Toss everything together and serve.

In the Pouring Rain - Roasted Salmon with Rhubarb & Red Cabbage

2010-04-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

I braved high winds and pouring rain last Sunday afternoon to meet Brian for beer and lunch at the Monk's Kettle in San Francisco. Driving across the Bay Bridge, it occurred to me that I hadn't actually been over to the city since...well, mid-February. And it is now April. A very sorry state of affairs. The East Bay does its best (restaurant, food-wise and friend-wise) to make the trip unnecessary, but there's really no excuse for living so close to San Francisco, and yet making it over there so rarely. I couldn't help but feel slightly sheepish that it had been so long. And I have to admit, I'd missed the Mission in all it's grimy hipster-ness. Even in the driving rain, the mustaches, shaggy haircuts, fixie bikes and unnecessary eye ware were out in full force.

I love the Mission, but it always makes me feel as though I'm in some foreign country on a limited visa. I'mnot meant to stay, but just to visit, and staring in fascination at its inhabitants and culture.

I'm glad they let me visit. Elixir is still the only bar I've found in the Bay Area that serves my beloved Deschutes Green Lake beer, and it turns out they also have a make-your-own-Bloody-Mary-bar on Sundays. I think that's worth crossing a bridge for, as I've been on a serious hunt for the best Bay Area Bloody Mary for awhile now. Thus far, Zeitgeist has been the clear leader, but that may just be the sun, picnic tables, Tamale Lady and cheeseburgers talking...

Though we've been experiencing bouts of torrential rain for the last several months now, Bay Area residents still seem woefully unprepared for the weather. Umbrellas seem a rarity, the streets constantly flood, traffic comes to a standstill, and we run, diving under awnings and into shops, dripping wet from trying (unsuccessfully) to dodge the raindrops. I do have an umbrella but I must admit, it's more than slightly broken, and I think I must be a somewhat pathetic sight, running around with what is basically, only half of a working umbrella.

The best thing about torrential rain, is that it makes it easy to stay inside and cook. A horrible rainy day is actually a pleasant day to have the oven on.

I'd been eyeing this unexpected, and rather strange recipe in Bon Appetit: Roasted Salmon with Rhubarb and Red Cabbage. My on-going love affair with rhubarb makes it difficult to ignore any recipe in which it is featured. I'd been wanting to try it in something savory, and the pairing with salmon seemed like a good option. I was really happy with how it turned out too, as the sweet and sour tastes of rhubarb were a great compliment to rich and buttery fish.

I did, however, have a problem with the cabbage. My adaptation ignores the caraway seeds and most of the coriander: the original recipe called for several tablespoons of each, which I found overpowering and unnecessary. Next time I make this, I may omit the cabbage altogether and just top the fish with the rhubarb and orange.

Roasted Salmon with Rhubarb & Red Cabbage
adapted from Bon Appetit

2 tsp black or yellow mustard seeds
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup sugar
4 tbsp water
1 tbsp finely grated orange peel
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
2 cups 2-inch-long 1/4-inch-thick matchstick-size strips rhubarb
4 cups thinly sliced red cabbage
1/4 cup Sherry wine vinegar
1/4 cup dry red wine
2 6- to 7-ounce salmon fillets with skin 1 tbsp olive oil or grapeseed oil

Stir mustard seeds in small dry skillet over medium heat until beginning to pop, about 3 minutes. Transfer to small bowl; reserve.

Bring orange juice, sugar, water, and orange peel to boil in large skillet, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat to medium; add mustard seeds, coriander seeds, and ginger. Simmer until syrupy, 8 minutes. Add rhubarb; reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until rhubarb is tender but intact, 2 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer rhubarb to microwave-safe bowl; reserve.

Bring syrup in skillet to simmer. Add cabbage, vinegar, and wine; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium, partially cover, and simmer until cabbage is soft and most of liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently, about 45 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425°F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Place salmon, skin side down, on prepared baking sheet. Brush salmon with olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until salmon is just opaque in center, about 11 minutes. Rewarm reserved rhubarb in microwave just until warm. Divide warm cabbage among serving plates. Place 1 salmon fillet atop cabbage. Top with rhubarb.

Michael Bauer's 2010 List of the 100 Best Bay Area Restaurants

2010-04-06T10:20:00.000-07:00

The SF Chronicle's 2010 list of the Best Bay Area Restaurants was released this morning! If you are planning a trip to the Bay Area, or just looking for a great place to dine, this is an excellent resource. Currently, my only disagreement, is that Commis in Oakland was left off of the list. Commis has a Michelin Star, and the food speaks for itself. It's certainly of a higher quality than many of the places on the top 100 list. Of the others that I've tried, here are some of my personal favorites, or the ones I usually list when someone poses my favorite question, "Where should we eat?"

Cyrus in Healdsburg - The most memorable and enjoyable dinning experience I've ever had. A special occasion type place if there ever was one.

Pizzaiolo in Oakland - My favorite/go-to restaurant in the Bay Area. It beats almost every pizza place I've tried in San Francisco, including Beretta. I've never had a dish that missed here. It's just the best. The chef recently opened up Boot and Shoe Service in the Grand Lake neighborhood of Oakland. It's basically just a paired down menu of Pizzaiolo's offerings. Also great.

Adesso in Oakland - The salumi selection is mind blowing, they put out a free spread of several of their dishes twice every evening (around happy hour time, and then again late at night). The wine list is excellent and the cocktails are even better.

Bouchon in Napa - A Thomas Keller restaurant, need I say more?

Dopo in Oakland - Another Italian place in Oakland, but this happens to be the restaurant that really turned me on to Bay Area restaurants when I moved in 2004. It's a neighborhood place that's benefited from word of mouth, and yet, it still strives to be a neighborhood place. They've expanded recently, but have kept their integrity and intimate feel.

Flora in Oakland - California/New American cuisine in Downtown Oakland. This place is not to be missed. Best cocktail list I've ever seen, excellent service, great food and one of my favorite dining atmospheres.

Flour + Water in SF - Italian again. Are you sensing a pattern? I admit, I'm biased, I love my Italian places. Get here early and you'll be rewarded. One of the best meals I've had in the past few years. It's an absolute gem.

Foreign Cinema in SF - As the name implies, this place can best be described as cinematic. You'd think it was just a gimmick, but the food erases any trace of that notion. A stunningly romantic restaurant.

Nopa in SF - California/New American cuisine. If you can stand the wait and finally score a seat, you're in for a good meal. One of my San Francisco favorites. The owners are also responsible for Nopalito, just a few blocks away. Terrific Mexican food in SF.

Vik's Chaat Corner in Berkeley - A Berkeley secret that's not so secret. It's a favorite of just about everyone around here. Indian street food done right at a great price. I'd say it's the best we have to offer of ethnic cuisine around here.

Bistro Don Giovanni in Napa - My parents introduced me to this place, and I've been many times over the years. It's just such an enjoyable place to eat, especially after a hard day of wine tasting.

Rutherford Grill in Rutherford - If I don't go to Bistro Don Giovanni in Napa, it's because I'm here. Such a fun place to spend part of your day in the Napa Valley. You can't go wrong with anything on the menu, and their wine list is truly great. A wonderful place to bring friends for a more casual, outdoor meal.

So there you have it. My 2 cents.

Check out the full list of the Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area, here.

Everyday - Everyday Cake with Strawberry Rhubarb Compote

2010-04-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

The days slipped away from me, and I failed to notice that this blog just had its one-year anniversary on March 25th! That baffles me. I can't believe how quickly this year has flown by. So, thank you for reading, and even better if you tried something off of here that you liked!

I've been noticing lately how time seems to speed by faster than ever. As a kid, the minutes, hours, and days tended to drag on forever; the clock painfully ticking down the endless seconds till recess, till the weekend, till summer. Now, it seems I simply blink and an entire month has gone by. What I wouldn't give for a Saved by the Bell style "time out!"

I keep thinking about the play Our Town, by Thorton Wilder. For those of you who aren't familiar, the play consists of three acts: the first centers around the day-to-day lives of the community of Grover's Corners, highlighting two families who have a son George, and a daughter, Emily.

In the second act, George and Emily fall in love, and eventually get married. In the final act, Emily has died in childbirth, but revisits the town of Grover's Corners as a ghost. She is allowed to relive one day of her past. She chooses her 12th birthday, though other ghosts caution her not to go, as it will be too painful. When they cannot convince her, they advise her to, at the very least, chose an unimportant day to visit, "for the least important day will be important enough."

As Emily watches, unnoticed and unseen by her living family members, her Mother prepares breakfast, her Father reads the paper at the table, and the sights and sounds of what used to be everyday occurrences rush by her. Emily becomes more and more distraught and overwhelmed by all she took for granted. The pain quickly becomes too much and she says, "I can't go on. It goes so fast...I didn't realize. So all that was going on and we never noticed."

When Emily returns to her grave, she asks the narrator of the play if anyone ever realizes life while they live it--life as it is, "every, every minute."

"No," the Narrator says, "Saints and poets maybe--they do some."

I've read this play so many times over the years. I've seen several productions, but it wasn't until two years ago at the 2008 Oregon Shakespeare Festival production, that I finally started to understand. I found myself sitting in the outdoor theatre on a warm night, under the stars, with tears streaming down my face. I could hardly stand to see anymore. It was all so bittersweet, so uncontrollable, and much, much too fast.

It feels like the older you get, the more true it becomes. Time speeds up and slips away before you know it, and it's a struggle to simply live in the moment and appreciate everything for what it is.

Everyday Cake with Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote

adapted from the Busy Day Cake recipe by Edna Lewis
compote adapted from Smitten Kitchen

This cake's official title is the "Busy Day Cake." It's nothing fancy, it comes together in about half-an-hour: an everyday type of thing. I called it the "Everyday Cake" when I couldn't remember the official name, and for me, it has stuck. I couldn't be happier that rhubarb is back in season. This combination is very much like a Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake. Is there anything better than the smell of baked rhubarb? If so, it's hard to imagine.

For the Compote
1 lb rhubarb, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 lb strawberries, hulled and rinsed
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp lemon juice
2/3 cups sugar

Cut up the rhubarb and strawberries. Reserve about half of the cut strawberries and set aside. Put the remaining strawberries and cut rhubarb into a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat with the lemon juice, zest and sugar.

Let the mixture bubble and simmer for about five minutes. The juices will extract quickly. Stir from time to time to help everything breakdown. The rhubarb will fall apart and the whole thing becomes a beautiful fuchsia color. As soon as the rhubarb has broken down and become soft, remove from the heat, add the reserved strawberries and set in a bowl to cool to room temperature. Once the mixture has cooled, place in the refrigerator. It will keep for a couple weeks, covered. Makes about 3-4 cups.

For the Cake

1/2 cup (1 stick) of butter, room temperature

1 1/3 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 good pinch nutmeg, freshly ground

1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature

Preheat the oven to 375. Beat the butter and sugar together until lightly fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, until well mixed. Add vanilla.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Gradually add the flour mixture to the batter about 1/4 at a time and beat together. Add about 1/3 of the milk, and continue to alternate combining the milk and flour until all well incorporated.

Butter a 9x9 pan, and spoon the batter in, smoothing the top with a spatula. Bake for 30-35 minutes.

One of Those Days - Pasta with Peas, Parsley, Mint & Bacon

2010-03-31T00:00:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had one of those days?

You know, where you wake up after a long, restless night thinking it's Friday. But it's not. It's Tuesday.

You drag yourself out of bed to make some coffee, and realize you are out of filters. So you vow to get your coffee when you get to work, and you get yourself out the door and down to the bus stop. And when you get there it starts to rain. Actually, it starts to pour. And you're without an umbrella. And you're too stubborn to miss the bus and take the next one to go get it. So you get on the bus dripping wet and there's a fight halfway through your commute. So the bus driver stops the bus to break it up and all you can think is, "How is it possible that it is 9:30 in the morning, people are fighting and I haven't even had my coffee yet?"

So you get to work and you make it through the day, sustained only by a single thought: "Tonight, I will make cake." You rush to the grocery store and grab all the necessary ingredients, and you head home, pre-heat your oven...and then you realize...you forgot to get butter. A very necessary ingredient for cake. And you had the perfect blog post for this cake all ready to go. But there will be no cake. Because there is no butter.

Yeah. I had one of those days.

There was no cake. Instead, I went to the gym. And then I made pasta. Because dammit, one way or another, I was going to get my carb fix tonight.

Stay tuned for cake.

Pasta with Peas, Parsley, Mint & Bacon
adapted from Bon Appetit

1 16 ounce package pasta (I used Gemelli, shells would also be great)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 16 ounce package frozen petite peas (do not thaw)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus additional for serving
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley, divided
3 strips of bacon, chopped

Pre-heat the oven to 375. Place bacon strips on a foil lined baking sheet. Cook for 25 minutes, then drain over paper towels. Chop.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stir occasionally until just tender but still firm to the teeth. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Return the pasta to the pot.

While the pasta is cooking, place a large skillet over medium-high and bring the cream to a simmer. Add peas and simmer until just heated through, about 1-2 minutes. Add most of the Parmesan and stir until melted and the sauce thickens slightly, about 1 minute. Stir in the mint, and most of the parsley. Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to coat, adding pasta cooking liquid a little at a time if too dry. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with remaining parsley and Parmesan and serve.

Ease Into It - Brown Butter Risotto with Sherry & Poached Shrimp

2010-03-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

In the span of five days, I went from Maui's 90 degree temperatures, warm blue waters and white sandy beaches with palm trees, to the 30 degree snowy slopes of Squaw Valley in Tahoe. Life is feeling very full at the moment.

And as I always say, the best way to ease out of one vacation is to throw yourself into another. I have no problem doing that with gusto.

The problem is, now I'm out of planned vacations for awhile, with nothing to tide me over. That is not an enjoyable feeling. I think I'm going to have to come up with an affordable idea or two. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to summer.

Here's a confession: spring is probably my least favorite season. Oh, I know it's when things are blooming, starting to come out of the ground, everything has a fresh taste and smell to it. It's lovely, but it's just not summer. I'm looking forward to a hot sun; swimming, windows open and down, summer tomatoes, peaches and berries. I can't wait!

But, in the meantime, there's still enough chill in the air for cozy dishes like risotto.

My fridge looked pretty bare when I came back from Hawaii, and seeing how I was leaving again so quickly, I thought the thing to do would be to rummage through the pantry to come up with a quick dinner. I had Arborio rice, sherry, an onion, chicken stock, butter, frozen shrimp and some Parmesan. Great for a basic risotto, but how to make it even better? So easy. Can't believe I'd never thought about it before. I simply browned the butter. It lent a wonderfully nutty flavor. A great way to add a bit of flare to an totally simple dish.

Brown Butter Risotto with Sherry and Poached Shrimp

8 frozen shrimp
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken stock
3 tablespoon butter, at room temperature
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 1/2 cups Arborio Rice
1/2 cup dry sherry
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
salt and pepper to taste
chives for garnish (optional)

In a medium saucepan, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Keep hot over low heat. After the risotto has been cooking for about 10 minutes, add the shrimp to the remaining broth and poach until shrimp is cooked through. Remove from the broth with a slotted spoon and set aside.

In a large saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Cook until the butter begins to foam and then turns brown, about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Add the onion and cook, about 3 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with the butter. Add the sherry and simmer until the liquid has almost evaporated, about 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of stock and stir until almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue adding the stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each addition of stock to absorb before adding the next. Cook until the rice is tender but still firm to the bite, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the Parmesan cheese. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Top with shrimp and garnish with chives

Textilists - Citrus Marinated Mahi Mahi

2010-03-26T00:00:00.000-07:00

My Sister and I decided to spend one of our last days in Maui taking a dolphin snorkeling cruise over to the island of Lanai. We were promised said snorkeling with dolphins, whales breaching next to the boat, gorgeous colorful reefs and fish of all kinds. We lined up to catch our boat promptly at 8:15am, excited and ready. We noticed a large cruise ship docked offshore, and wondered if the passengers would be infiltrating our boat. Several lifeboats were making the trip from behemoth ship to shore (and getting swamped by waves in the process.)

10:30am and we still hadn't boarded our boat. They made an announcement to say that they were, of course, waiting for the cruise ship passengers who were having a hard time making it over by lifeboat due to the large surf.

When we were finally able to board at 11am, we had to wait even longer. The boat had to pull out of the harbor to let other boats in. A few of the cruise passengers who had made it over sat down next to us. At this point, there were about 20 people on board our boat, with 80 more yet to board.

"Are you two on the cruise?" asked a boisterous and slightly obnoxious older man. We answered no. "Oh!" He exclaimed, "You're textilists!"

Excuse us?

"Textilists! Y'know, you wear clothes!"

Turns out, it was a nudist cruise. A gigantic cruise ship filled with 1000 nudists.

We were baffled. And now two hours late in leaving, due to 80 nudists (thankfully clothed on our boat) but seemingly planning to disrobe once we donned snorkel masks.

At that point, our boat headed back into the harbor to pick up the other 80. My Sister and I had had it. The nudists had taken over our sweet little deck table, "You don't mind if we share this table with you, do you?" Errr...sort of? We jumped ship and got a refund as soon as we were back in the harbor. So much for our dolphin snorkeling experience.

It's not that I have a problem with nudists. Hey, if that's what floats your boat (so to speak) I'm all for it. Maybe not my personal choice (being a textilist and all) but whatever. It was more the fact that they were so pushy, loud, made us 2 hours late, and oh, the sheer number of them: 1000!!!!

I kept thinking about the David Sedaris essay where he stays at a nudist colony for 2 weeks to see what it's like. Being a germaphobe, he has a difficult time of it, as he can't sit down anywhere without bringing a clean towel along.

We did see dolphins later that day, just off the beach where we'd decided to spread out. Our textilist beach. And as we told each other that day, it makes for a good story, doesn't it?

And then, there's something about being next to the ocean. It makes you crave fresh seafood.
Does that seem wrong, somehow? Kind of morbid? Shall we just ignore the fact that I'm eating those friendly fish I was just snorkeling with?

Cool breezes, warm air, outdoor dinning: these things all screams for fresh and local, light and tangy, healthy and delicious with little preparation and mess.

The following was a collaborative meal. My Mother wanted Mahi Mahi, I wanted a citrus marinade. So I took care of that, and she did the rest.

Citrus Marinated Mahi Mahi

For the Marinade:
4 tbsp fresh orange juice (I used clementines, tangerines or any other citrus would work well)
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp fresh lime jice
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

4 Mahi Mahi steaks (about 1-inch thick)
1 tbsp cilantro, chopped
lime slices, for garnish

Preheat the broiler to high. Whisk marinade ingredients together in a bowl.

Place the fish steaks in a shallow baking dish. Pour about half of the marinade over them (reserve the rest of the marinade). Let the fish sit in the marinade for 10 minutes at room temperature.

Transfer the fish steaks to a broiler pan and broil, turning them once with a spatula, until the steaks are golden on the outside and done to taste inside, about 4-6 minutes per side. Drizzle with the reserved marinade, garnish with the chopped cilantro, limes and serve.

If your steaks are thinner than 1-inch, reduce the cooking time slightly. If they are thicker, increase the cooking time.

Maui - A Tropical Vacation is the Best Kind of Vacation

2010-03-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

I'm having phantom smelling spells. I keep getting whiffs of plumeria, sunscreen and coconut. I'm having Maui withdrawals, obviously. I don't think I would have survived the transition back to the mainland, were it not for my dear friend Amber, who works at the bar on my street. She has been feeding my Pina Colada addiction, gunning full speed with her industrial strength blender and trigger finger.

One of the most exciting things about my recent trip, was that I conquered my fear of snorkeling. To be fair, I hadn't tried snorkeling since I was about 8, and at that age I was terrified of being nibbled by fish. This time, I had a hard time getting myself out of the water, especially when I realized I could hear the songs of the humpback whales underwater. It was an amazing experience to hear that, and to swim through the coral reefs. Add tons of green sea turtles to that, a few pods of dolphins, some white sand beaches and palm trees, and it all adds up to a pretty great vacation. I'm feeling very relaxed, though I'm sad to be back. And actually, kind of refreshed work-wise.

Not only did I encounter all kinds of magical sea creatures, but I also had a magical creature sighting on land. While wandering through a tiny local market, my Sister turned to me and said, "See that guy at the end of the aisle? Isn't he on TV?" I turned and looked, and there was Mr. Big from Sex and the City. I'll admit, I stared a bit (he's pretty damn good looking) but aside from that and a quick perusal of what was in his shopping cart (Fig Newmans, yogurt, milk and water) there was no conversation. Just some ogling on my part. He's Mr. Big! Who wouldn't ogle!? Best celebrity sighting I have ever had.

And yes, there was the typical tropical fare. As previously mentioned, I downed more than my share of Pina Coladas; but also fresh pineapple and papaya with lime, fresh fish, bananas right off the tree...a pretty wonderful way to eat. When everything is abundant, fresh and healthy, it seems you need less, but enjoy it more.

Corresponding recipes coming soon...

Home, Home, Again - Pasta With Beet Greens

2010-03-22T17:36:00.000-07:00

I miss Maui. I missed it as soon as the airplane took off and the turquoise waters and lush green mountains disappeared underneath me.

I walked out of my apartment in Berkeley in a tank top this morning. That was wishful thinking. It was only about 65 outside. Lovely for the Bay Area in Spring, but no 85 degree Maui weather. I spun around and walked right back inside to change.

I tried to remember to enjoy every second of the trip. I haven't been anywhere tropical since I was 13. Time seems to move so much more quickly when you're hyper conscious about not losing a single second of it. It slips away so fast!

It was the quintessential vacation, and I hope to go back to Maui sometime soon. (A girl can dream!)

But, more on the trip later. For now, a recipe. A great one.

I made this pasta with the leftover beet greens from the beet hummus. I have to say, I was expecting it to be fairly good (I love beet greens) but instead I got something amazing. I could have slurped the balsamic reduction up with a spoon, it was so good. And it looked unbelievably pretty on the plate. All fuchsia and maroon. I sort of danced around after the first bite, wishing someone else was present to witness and taste this glorious dish. It's the kind of dish that's meant to be shared, so, in that case, I'll have to make it again.

Pasta With Beet Greens
adapted from Gourmet
serves 6

1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 medium red onions (1 lb), halved and thinly sliced lengthwise
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 lb beet greens with stems (from about 2 bunches beets), stems cut into 1-inch pieces and leaves cut crosswise into 3-inch-wide pieces, divided
1 cup water, divided
3/4 lb spaghetti, bowtie pasta or penne
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, halved

Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until it shimmers. Add pine nuts and toast, stirring, until golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon.

Add garlic to oil remaining in skillet and cook, stirring, until golden. Add onions and 1/4 tsp salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 8 minutes. Add vinegar and cook, stirring, until most is evaporated, about 2 minutes. Add beet stems, 3/4 cup water, and 1/2 tsp salt and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until stems begin to soften, about 12 minutes.

Cook pasta in a pot of boiling salted water (2 Tbsp salt for 6 qt water) until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta-cooking water, then drain pasta.

Meanwhile, add beet leaves to onion mixture in handfuls, turning each handful with tongs until the leaves are wilted before adding next batch. Add remaining 1/4 cup water and 1/4 tsp salt and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until just tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Add olives, then add pasta and cook, tossing and moistening with some of the cooking water as necessary, just until liquid has thickened slightly. Serve sprinkled with pine nuts.

Off I Go - Beet Hummus

2010-03-11T18:16:00.000-08:00

I love Fridays. I love them even more when they mark the start of vacation. And this particular Friday, for me, does just that. Time to record "away" voicemail messages at work, to send out emails with particulars for while I'm gone... I'm actually considering leaving my own computer behind and unplugging completely. Although, to be honest, that sort of scares me. Not sure I'm ready to go cold turkey yet...

I won't tell you where I'm off to. I'd much rather post a few pictures upon my return. I promise to make a few location appropriate dishes while I'm gone. Needless to say, I'm pretty excited about the trip. Although, it does mean I have to get on a plane again. Not. Going. To. Think. About. It. (Deep breaths.)

By the way, did you know you could make hummus out of beets? I had no idea, although it was amazingly simple and really just made so much sense. I stumbled across the recipe over on Simply Recipes, but honestly, you could figure it out yourself with a bit of common sense. I also think you could just make regular hummus and cut back on the amount of chickpeas when adding the beets. This has got to be a crowd pleaser for sure. Look at the color, so beautiful! I think it would be delicious with a dab of goat cheese on top as well. I finished the bowl pretty quickly. Feeling quite pleased that I now have another use for beets.

Alright, off you go. Enjoy it. See you when I'm back from vacation!

Beet Hummus
adapted from Simply Recipes

4 medium beets, cleaned and scrubbed
2 1/2 tbsp tahini
5 tbsp fresh lemon juice
zest of 2 lemons
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
pinch of kosher salt
fresh ground pepper to taste

Pre-heat oven to 375. Place the beets in a dutch oven, or baking dish covered with foil. Fill the dish with about 1/4 inch water, place the beets inside. Cover and bake for about 1/2 hour, until they can be pierced easily with a fork. Once the beets are done, set aside to let cool and then cut into cubes.

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender. You can also use a hand blender. Pulse until smooth and well combined. Season to taste.

Guest Post By Leah - Raw Dino Kale Saad

2010-03-10T23:24:00.000-08:00

There are some things in life that are just...great. Things like, a good gin & tonic. Italian Pizza. A kiss that makes you weak in the knees. Hearing your favorite song come on on the jukebox. Those are good things. Those are great things. Having your friend pick you up from work on your lunch hour so that she can recipe test on you...that qualifies as a great thing.

Enter Leah.

This Monday, she did just that. I'd driven home from Sacramento at 6:30 that morning. I could barely keep my eyes open at work, and was not so subtly trying to plan my escape, when Leah asked if I wanted to come over for lunch. I did. I am no fool.

And so she picked me up. And made me lunch. Made this salad, to be clear. I swooned over this salad. This salad was amazing. Had she not been looking, I would have gobbled the whole thing up in 5 seconds flat. I asked her to do a guest post for it, and she did just that. Enjoy!

Raw Dino Kale Salad - Guest Post by Leah

When Lily asked me if I was planning on watching the Oscars this year, I have to admit, I wasn’t that interested. But, then she pitched me the idea of making martinis and snacks and watching with a group of sensitive s**t-talkers. I was sold as soon as she said the word martini.

I love a martini.

Classic. With gin, of course.

I love the idea of it. I love trying to lift the awkward glass from the table to my mouth without loosing too much of the precious juice on the bar. I love the cold and crisp herby or citrus-y flavor. I love that it is uncomplicated. And I love that it comes with a snack. (ahhh, that emerald olive)

My dad introduced me to the best martini I have ever had about a year ago while I was with him on a business trip in Denver. The first night, we headed to his favorite restaurant in Denver, called Jax. We sat at the bar and ate red-curry muscles and drank martinis made from Cap Rock Gin. Cap Rock Gin is distilled at the Jack Rabbit Hill Biodynamic Farm in western Colorado's North Fork Gunnison Valley. It is made with apples, and so has a slightly sweet yet clean flavor. Oh, man, it is SO good!

And, I am digressing to the millionth degree. Martini’s make me do that.

So, the Oscars. We laughed, we cried. We discussed fashion, and the crazy white lady Kanye who stole Roger Ross Williams’s, (director of the best documentary short, Music by Prudence,) thunder. And we drank martinis. But, wouldn’t you know it, the real star of the show wasn’t the headliner, but the supporting actor. The raw kale salad I made as an after thought (we needed a vegetable dish to cut the richness of with our salumi and cheese-filled snack/dinner) stole my beloved martini’s spotlight.

I admit, I love this salad almost as much as I love a classic martini. It packs a punch of tangy-ness from the lemon juice and almost creamy-ness from the Parmesan. But the real treat is the raw kale. Dino kale is dark and bumpy, crunchy and satisfying, with a slightly sweet and herbaceous flavor, not completely unlike my favorite martini.

After a fall and winter of kale and leek pasta, braised kale, sautéed kale, and many, many other dishes of cooked kale, it was a pleasure to bring this back into the fold. I first read about this salad in the NY Times, and I have made it a few times over the years. It is always a winner It is the perfect accompaniment to just about anything, or it can stand out on it’s own, just like an Oscar dress or a martini.

Raw Dino Kale Salad
from the NY Times, October 2007

1 bunch Dino Kale (also called Tuscan or Lacinato Kale)
1/3 cup toasted, coarse breadcrumbs (from good white, sourdough, or Italian bread)
1-2 small cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/3 cup grated cheese, preferably Pecorino Romano (or Ricotta Salata)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus some to garnish as needed
Fresh juice of one to 2 lemons (about ¼ cup)
1/8 – ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes (to taste)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Trim kale removing stems and discard. Slice kale leaves, including ribs, into very thin ribbons (1/8 inch or so). You should have 4-5 cups.

For the breadcrumbs, tear bread into little pieces or pulse stale bread in food processor. Toast bread in 350* oven for 7-12 minutes or until the crumbs are dry and just browned. Let cool completely.

With a mortar and pestle or the side of a knife, pound garlic into a paste with the salt. Place in a small bowl with the cheese, oil, lemon juice, pepper flakes and black pepper, and whisk to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Alternately, place garlic, cheese, oil, lemon juice, pepper flakes and salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until it is all incorporated and the garlic is finely minced.

Put kale in large bowl, pour the dressing over and toss thoroughly (dressing is a little bit thick because of the cheese and so needs lots of mixing to get all the kale covered. Using hands for this is a good method).

Let the salad sit for a minute, mix in and top with cooled breadcrumbs, and more cheese if you want.

If you are holding the salad for a while, and it will keep very nicely for a few days in the fridge, add more bread crumbs when you serve it or they will get very soggy (which, I personally love)

Yield: four side-dish servings

In Other News - Sunchoke, Celeriac & Fennel Salad with Dried Cherries & Hazelnuts

2010-03-09T00:00:00.000-08:00

Not to brag or anything, but I did get 13 predictions right for the Oscars. Including all the big awards. Why do I never take my instincts to Vegas? I could make a killing! My thoughts about the show on a whole this year, though, are basically, "Meh, whatever." Except for two things: Jeff Bridges (he should have been nominated, and should have won for The Big Lebowski), who I am terribly excited for, and the clothes. I care a whole lot about the clothes.

While no one beats my all-time favorite Oscar dress (th is one), I did go crazy for both Rachel McAdams gorgeous pastel water-color confection, and also for Cameron Diaz's sparkly Oscar De La Renta number.

I am really in it for the clothes.

Thanks to Lesley for hosting me this weekend. We made a beautiful pizza together, so good that it was devoured before any pictures could be snapped. Then we headed up to Tahoe yesterday for a day of skiing. I'm not sure my legs will ever forgive me, not to mention my toes and feet. Ski boots are basically just torture devices. Will no one make a comfortable ski boot? Can anyone aid me in this search? The future of my participation in this winter sport depends upon the finding of a decent and comfortable ski boot. Otherwise my feet will go on strike. Suggestions?

In other news, I made this salad. Riffing off a recipe I saw in the San Francisco Chronicle, I never would have thought to shave sunchokes for a salad. To tell you the truth, I never thought about eating them raw. I'm glad I now know it can be done. Pretty, no?

Not necessarily Oscar dress pretty, but it does make for an attractive lunch.

On a side note, the mandolin (a gift from my Mother) worked so perfectly for this salad. I'm so excited to finally have one!

Sunchoke, Celeriac & Fennel Salad with Dried Cherries & Hazelnuts

2 Sunchokes, scrubbed and shaved/sliced thin
1 small head celeriac, shaved thin or cut into matchsticks
1 head of fennel, shaved thin or cut into matchsticks
1/4 cup dried cherries
1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
shaved Parmesan or Manchego for topping
coarse salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp chopped fennel fronds for garnish

For the dressing:
2 tbsp champagne or sherry vinegar
1 tbsp or less extra virgin olive oil
coarse salt and pepper to taste

Whisk dressing ingredients together. Arrange sunchoke, celeriac and fennel slices together in a serving bowl. Top with cherries, hazelnuts, cheese and chopped fennel fronds. Drizzle dressing over the salad and serve.

Form & Function - My Very Tiny Kitchen

2010-03-04T16:10:00.000-08:00

Earlier this week my friend and fellow blogger Kim posted some pictures of kitchens from around the blogosphere. I love sneaking a peak at other people's kitchens, both for inspiration and design ideas. People always say that the kitchen is the heart of a house, and I, for one, certainly believe that to be true. I love seeing how people's personalities are reflected in this particular space.

Kim asked me for a few pictures of my own kitchen. It took me awhile, but I've finally gotten around to it, and I thought I might as well post them here.

This is my tiny, nay, minuscule kitchen. This space is obviously not without its challenges. For prep space, I have a pull-out cutting board next to the sink. It tilts down at a good angle, and I'm still working at corralling all my ingredients so they don't roll onto the floor when things get cluttered, or when the angle becomes too extreme.

As you can see, there's not much space for a rolling kitchen-island type of thing. If I had the room, it would be the first addition on my list. Yet, as much as I can complain about a lack of space, it does force me to be creative and concise about what I bring into the kitchen area. Everything must have a place and a purpose.

In general, when you inhabit as small a space as I do, storage is at a minimum, and nearly everything is on display. If I don't want to look at it everyday, I don't buy it. While function is first and foremost, I've learned to combine it with form. The result is a small (tiny!) space that I like to spend time in, and that makes me feel good. You'd be surprised at the number of things you can cook and prep in even the tiniest space.

So now I'm curious. Anybody have a space that they'd like to share? Anybody have a space smaller that this?! If so, I'd love to see it! I'm sure there are kitchens smaller than mine, though it is hard to imagine...

That'll Fix Her Up - Fried Chickpeas with Spinach & Chorizo

2010-03-03T00:00:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday I slept late for the first time in recent memory. When I was finally able to drag myself out of bed, I enjoyed a lazy morning inside. I made myself a cup of coffee and turned on the TV to find that Julia Child's The French Chef was on. Julia was having an "omelette party" in her living room, cooking up dozens of omelettes on bunson burners. She listed her guests, and the kinds of omelettes she planned to create for them. "Oh there's my husband, spinach and cheese for him...there's so and so, ham and cheese for them," she said in her singsong voice, and then I heard her say, "And OHHHhhhhh here comes my Mother-in-Law, I'll give her a liver omelette, that'll fix her up."

I laughed so hard that coffee shot out my nose.

Oh, Julia! So enjoyable. I actually just finished her book, My Life in France, which was a birthday present from my sister. I loved it. It was amusing and entertaining. I couldn't believe I hadn't read it before. I highly recommend it.

On another note: thank you all so much for the words of encouragement after my post on knife skills. It's sometimes shocking to realize people actually read and recreate from this blog. It makes me very proud, and I'm always so happy to hear when people have enjoyed something, or have something to say about what was posted. And also, a huge thank you to Wendy. I opened up my blog email the other day to find a gift certificate to "Kitchen on Fire" from her. It was such a touching and thoughtful gift. Thank you so much, Wendy! It will be put to good use!

This Mark Bittman recipe caught my eye in The New York Times the other day: "Fried Chickpeas with Spinach and Chorizo." A totally affordable, quick and easy dish. I made it this weekend, and again tonight. I think it's going to become a regular around here. I tweaked it just a bit to my liking by increasing the amount of spinach called for, and also by adding lemon at the end. I think the lemon in particular adds some much-needed acidity to the dish. The best part of the whole thing? It's a one pan meal. Nothing better than that!

This recipe is easily amenable to for vegans /vegetarians. Just use soyrizo instead of chorizo. You can find it just about anywhere these days.

Fried Chickpeas with Chorizo & Spinach
adapted slightly from Mark Bittman

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 cups cooked or canned chickpeas, as dry as possible
Salt and black pepper
1/2 cup chorizo, diced
1 pound spinach, roughly chopped
1/4 cup sherry
1 to 2 cups bread crumbs.
juice of 1 lemon

Heat the broiler.

Heat 3 tbsp of olive oil in a skillet large enough to hold chickpeas in one layer over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add chickpeas, season with salt and pepper.

Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until chickpeas begin to brown, about 10 minutes, then add chorizo. Continue cooking for another 5 to 8 minutes or until chickpeas are crisp; remove chickpeas and chorizo from pan and set aside.

Add the remainder of the olive oil to the pan; when it’s hot, add spinach and sherry, season with salt and pepper, and cook spinach over medium-low heat until very soft and most of the liquid has evaporated. Add chickpeas and chorizo back to the pan and toss quickly to combine; top with bread crumbs, drizzle with a bit more oil and run pan under the broiler to lightly brown the top. Once the top is browned, remove from the oven, and generously drizzle with the fresh lemon juice. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Snapshots from Ubuntu

2010-02-28T18:56:00.000-08:00

A big, gigantic, nay, HUGE thank you to my friend and co-worker Rachel, who also works as a server at the Michelin Star rated Ubuntu in Napa. She mentioned I should bring some friends for lunch, and I thought that was a pretty good idea. It turned out to be a great idea. Maybe the best idea of the month.

So I took pictures. Because she said I could. Brian and Leah took pictures too. We were those people. Apologies, all around.

So I don't know what to tell you. This meal was amazing. The space was amazing. The wines were incredible. It was a memorable meal, and I think you can garner some idea of the explosions of taste from the pictures. They don't really do it justice, but they'll give you an idea.

We were advised that this was a small plates kind of place, and were encouraged to order generously and share the dishes. We thought that was an excellent idea.

If you had been at the table next to ours this afternoon, here are a few things you might have overheard:

"This is wrong. This is just dirty and wrong." - Leah (she was being sarcastic)
"If someone said 'Why eat at a vegetarian restaurant?' I'd put these carrots in front of them and say, 'That's a carrot. BAM!'" - Brian
"I want to slap this in the face it's so good." - Leah
"SHUT. UP!" - Leah
"Hey Sexy, let's hang out." - Brian
*High Fives* - All Around the Table

When you taste a dish, stare it down and feel compelled to tell it to shut up, that is a very good thing. It should give you some idea of the caliber of this meal. I mean, dessert came out in a jam jar. A JAM JAR!!! How awesome is that?

Very, is the answer to that one.

So here you go. Some snapshots. Be jealous, be very jealous. And the next time you're in Napa, do yourself a favor and book a reservation.

"French Breakfast" radishes, burrata and torn spring onion donuts

Borage and Lemongrass Curry - chard condimento & pickled stems, whipped coconut, preserved lemons

Marinated "Merlin" Beets with Goats Milk Labneh

Escabeche of Nantes Carrots, Local Citrus & Marash Chili

Celtuce ala Gringlia with Red Miso and Parmesan - Sardinian Pearl Pasta, Fresh Bergamot, Bitter Greens

Young Roots with their Braised Greens - Ritual Coffee Jus, Spiced Garnet Yam & Cocoa Nibs

Farm Egg 'a la Catalan', Stewed Chickpeas with Sauce Romesco

Yellow Corn Grits, Goat's Milk Ricotta

Meyer Lemon Sorbet Float - Orange Cream Soda, Beet Tapioca, Kieffer Lime Granita

Vanilla Bean 'Cheesecake' in a Jar - Sour Cherry with Verbena, Teeccino Crumble

Thanks again to Rachel, and to Ubuntu. It was the highlight of my week.

California ABC Cracks Down on Bay Area Beverages

2010-02-26T10:02:00.000-08:00

Photo by Kat Wade of the SF Chronicle

In San Francisco (and the greater Bay Area in general) the mixing of a good cocktail is considered an artform. People take it very seriously. They know who the good bartenders are, where they are, and what time their shift starts. Ask almost anybody around here where you can get a decent Gin & Tonic, and they'll ask if you like your tonic homemade. They can point you in the direction of a good Pisco Sour, the best Manhattan, or a proper Gimlet.

Small batch distillers tend to do pretty well around here, and there are a ton of places infusing their own liquors. Finding a house-made infusion on a menu tends to make my eyes light up (it's something I've attempted on my own in the past with Meyer lemons and vodka, and I loved the results...) but those concoctions may be a thing of the past in California, if the Alcoholic Beverage Control has it's way. They're cracking down on establishments infusing their own liquors: a policy that makes no sense, considering that these infused liquors pose basically no health risk.

The master distiller at one of my favorite local spots, St. George Spirits in Alameda, had this to say in response to the crack down, "alcohol is a fantastic solvent. Not only is it biologically intert - nothing can survive in it - it also has a way of pulling all of the flavorful oils from the skin of whatever you're working with."

Today's San Francisco Chronicle has a front page article about the crack-down and the response. The Bay Area is already up in arms about it. I'll be interested to see if the ABC has evidence of actual cases where house-infused liquors have made anyone sick. It doesn't seem likely, and in truth, seems like a totally frivolous use of resources and funds in this already cash-strapped state.

You can read the article here.

Knife Skills, Thoughts and Commis in Oakland

2010-02-23T11:05:00.001-08:00

Awhile ago, I started getting more serious about cooking. I began to notice that this was what I turned to, to relax. It's where I was doing my best thinking, chopping onions and mulling over whatever happened to be going on in my life at the time. It's also where I was having the most fun, and it's what I wanted to share with the people I loved. It's where my thoughts were more frequently turning to during the day . . . What recipe to try next? Which new technique to experiment with, and to hone? Which restaurant to try?

I tracked my obsession: sitting at a bars, craning my neck, trying to catch a glimpse into various kitchens to see what was going on in there.

I made my first loaf of bread. I made cheese. I perfected a chicken dish that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. I slugged my way through four different chocolate chip cookie recipes (which, for sanity's sake were then foisted upon friends) in effort to find the ultimate cookie. I fell asleep with cookbooks open across my chest, and Gourmet, Bon Appetit and Saveur magazines strewn across the floor. I poured over other food blogs, watched cooking demonstrations on youtube. I was more than a little thankful at that point not to have cable, as I'm sure if I did, the Food Network would have been on almost constantly, and I would have found Mario Batali's appearance on Iron Chef America a compelling reason to never leave the house.

(No cable for me!)

I toyed with the idea of culinary school, but at an easy 60k for 2-3 years, it didn't seem like the best option. I considered a smaller program in Berkeley, but when I sat in on a class there, I quickly realized it wasn't the kind of program I was looking for.

So I decided to start small. I took a cooking class at a company in Berkeley called Kitchen on Fire. I started with their Spanish Seafood cooking class, which offered 5 recipes. Seafood is something I love, but tend to be intimidated by when cooking it myself. The class was fantastic. It was so much fun, and I was so excited to be doing something really hands-on. After sitting at a desk and staring at a computer for most of the day, it was more than a welcome relief.

Last night I took their knife skills class. I figured I'd better be sure my fundamental skills were correct if cooking is something I'm going to pursue any further. Turns out, I have a lot to practice. Anyone need some onions chopped? I dove through about 10 of them last night, along with 7 carrots, 8 celery stalks, 10 cloves of garlic, half a bunch of parsley, cilantro, mint, basil, 3 bell peppers and 4 zucchini.

I've never been the front row student, you know, the one who turns in a paper a day early, or arrives a good 20 minutes before class to go over the lesson plan. The person whose hand shoots up at the request for a volunteer. I've never been that girl. Until now. I pounced on that bag of onions. I had no qualms about speaking up, asking questions, asking for advice or a demonstration when needed. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed it, or how excited I was.

I wish I had some pictures for you. It completely slipped my mind. But I can say that I'll be taking more classes there. They have a 12 week "Boot Camp" course that covers just about everything, starting with the knife skills, moving on to sauces and stocks, braising, bread, grilling, etc. I can hardly wait.

So who knows where this will go? If I had my way, I'd somehow be making my living off of this sort of thing, though I have no idea how. At some point, I'd love to do an internship in a kitchen, becoming an unpaid chopper of onions, and segmenter of citrus.

But until then, I'll continue with the classes, and I'll continue to sit at the bar of some great restaurants, trying to sneak peeks.

On that note, I did remember to bring my camera to the newly Michelin-starred Commis on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland. Unfortunately, the pictures didn't turn out so well (and also, I hate to be that person who takes pictures of all their dishes in a restaurant, and I try to avoid it as much as possible) so I only have a couple to indicate the quality and beauty of what we ate. If you get a chance, I can't recommend this place enough. It was truly a great experience. If you go, I recommend splurging for the wine pairings.

Duck cooked sous vide with sour cherries, mustard greens & parsnip puree

Panna Cotta with berry gelee & Muscat pairing

So Spoiled - Bolognese Sauce

2010-02-22T00:00:00.000-08:00

February in the Bay Area. It's a bit unreal actually. The trees are bursting into blossom, the hills are a bright and verdant green, the temperature hovers around 65 or so, every so often creeping it's way up to 70, and the chill of the winter sun starts to subside a bit, giving off a warm, gentle light that promises spring is just around the corner.

We're spoiled here. A light sweatshirt or sweater will do when walking around town. The farmer's markets are open year round, and the outdoor German beer hall, The Tourist Club on Mt. Tam, never closes. Even in the dead of a Bay Area winter.

To be fair, it was a bit cold on Mt. Tam yesterday. A jacket was required. But once you scrounged out a patch of sun on the big wooden deck, it was warm and beautiful.

The Tourist Club happens to be my favorite Bay Area hike. I'm a fan of destination hikes. Especially when they end in tasty and refreshing beverages. It just makes it all seem worth it. And if the beer wasn't enough, there's the view.

Not bad, eh? The picture doesn't do it it justice.

So, after a decent hike, and a pint of beer, the chill in the air gained a bit of a bite. Clouds were rolling in and the forecast called for rain. I knew a simmering bolognese was in my future.

I've been craving Italian food lately. Actually, I almost always crave a bowl of pasta and a good sauce. There's something so right about it. I turned my attention to my Le Cruset, laundry and the Olympics. A pretty good Saturday evening, if you ask me. I'd had more than a few nights out in the past week and I was dying to stay home and relax. This bolognese really hit the spot.

I sort of riffed off Macella Hazan (for her inclusion of tomatoes and her pinch of nutmeg) and Mario Batali (for his use of garlic). I wouldn't call this sauce strictly authentic. That would require less tomatoes and zero garlic, I think. Two things that, in my mind, always enhance a sauce. I really couldn't have been happier with the results. The epitome of comfort.

Bolognese Sauce
adapted from Marcella Hazan & Mario Batali
serves about 6

4 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 lb ground beef
1 cup milk
1 cup dry white wine
1 whole nutmeg, or a pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 tube tomato paste
1 cup canned Italian plum tomatoes, diced or torn into pieces, with juice
1-¼ to 1-½ pounds pasta, cooked and drained
salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
Parmesan for topping

Heat oil, butter and chopped onion in a heavy 3-½-quart pot and turn heat to medium. Cook and stir onion until it has become translucent, then add chopped celery and carrot. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring vegetables to coat well.

Add ground beef, a large pinch of salt and a few grindings of pepper. Crumble meat with a fork, stir well and cook until the beef has browned, and the red color has disappeared from the meat.

Add the milk and simmer gently, stirring frequently until the liquid has evaporated. Add a tiny pinch or grate of the nutmeg and stir.

Next, add the wine. Let the liquid simmer until it has evaporated, then add the tomatoes and tomato paste, and stir to coat all ingredients. Once the mixture beings to bubble, turn the heat to low and continue to cook at a low simmer for 1 1/2 hours. If time permits, simmer for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Taste for salt and pepper. Cook pasta in salted water according to directions. When pasta is cooked and drained, add half a tablespoon of butter to the pasta, top with sauce and Parmesan. Serve while hot.

I Couldn't Resist - Creamy Polenta with Sausages, Mushrooms and Marinara Sauce

2010-02-18T00:00:00.000-08:00

Some people give you the crazy eye when you tell them Valentine's Day happens to be your favorite holiday. At the very least, they give you the side eye. They'll tell you it's a fake, commercially created holiday that only serves to make single people feel badly about themselves. I think they must not appreciate baked goods, flowers and an extra incentive to hug it out. I tell them they must never have experienced the famous V-Day pillow fight on the Embarcadero in San Francisco. They must not enjoy drinking champagne (because that's just what you do on this day) eating steak and watching the classic romantic comedies (such as When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, and whatever else happens to be on AMC at the time). How can you not like Valentine's Day? Honestly! Who would refuse a cupcake on this day?

I may come off as a cynic when it comes to love and romance, but in truth, I'm a total sap.

Like I said. It's my favorite holiday. And I will not apologize for that.

So after my fantastic Valentine's Day weekend that included wine tasting with a friend in Sonoma; a visit with my favorite appetizer, the Pork Belly Bun at Heaven's Dog and several glasses of champagne, my body decided to go on strike. Most of Sunday and all of Monday were spent in bed with a glass of juice and little else. My body ached, I was feverish and my throat was unbelievably sore. So much for a good ending to the weekend of love.

So when 4 o'clock rolled around today, and I came across Mark Bittman's newest Minimalist recipe in the New York Times, I was relieved to discover I had my appetite back. His polenta with sausage looked amazing, and I could tell it would hit the spot. I topped it off with some purple basil.

Polenta is such an easy, quick-fix for a meal. The whole thing came together in about 20 minutes. It was savory and comforting. It's something I haven't cooked much of before this year, but more and more, it's becoming a go-to weeknight dinner.

More on the Sonoma wine discoveries next time, also, a visit to Oakland's Commis...

Creamy Polenta with Sausages, Mushrooms and Marinara Sauce
adapted from Mark Bittman
serves 2

1 tbsp olive oil
2 good-quality Italian sausages
1/2 cup medium-to-coarse cornmeal
6 mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup marinara sauce
salt
1/4 cup Parmesean
freshly ground black pepper
several fresh basil leaves for garnish

Heat olive oil over medium-high in a skillet. Add the sausages and cook for about 20 minutes, turning occasionally and lowering heat if necessary. After about 10 minutes, add the mushrooms and brown, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and marinara to the pan during the last 2 minutes of cooking.

Meanwhile, put cornmeal in a medium saucepan along with 1/2 cup water and whisk well to to eliminate any lumps. Put pan over medium-high heat, sprinkle with salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook, whisking frequently and adding water as needed to keep mixture loose and free of lumps, between 3 and 4 more cups. If mixture becomes too thick, simply add a bit more water; consistency should be similar to sour cream’s.

Polenta will be done in 15 to 30 minutes, depending on grind. Add the cheese. Taste and add salt, if necessary, and lots of pepper; serve topped with sausages, mushrooms and sauce. Garnish with pepper and basil leaves.

An Ugly Looking Thing - Celeriac, Fennel & Apple Salad

2010-02-10T00:00:00.000-08:00

Before tonight, I'd never had celeriac (also called celery root) any other way but pureed under a steak. It tried (and failed) to pass for mashed potatoes. You didn't fool me, celeriac, I know mashed potatoes when I see them. And you, are not mashed potatoes.

So I'd really never given it much thought beyond that. But, this morning I spent some quality time with my newest issue of Bon Appetit on the bus, and came across a charming essay and recipe from Molly Wizenberg which extolled the virtues of this ugly duckling of a vegetable. It peaked my curiosity, so I decided to give it a try. I was skeptical, it's true. Sitting on the shelf of my local produce market, the celeriac was an ugly looking thing. Covered in hair-like roots, dirt and dimples. But I then remembered several winning Top Chef recipes that put the vegetable to good use. I snagged one of the less offensive looking ones, and headed home to experiment.

And if you need a few more reasons to try it, how about this? The nutritional benefits include high fiber, high vitamin c, high in vitamin B6 and potassium. A good thing to eat if you're cautious about cholesterol and heart disease. The fiber makes it especially filling.

The taste was mild and refreshing. A perfect compliment to the apple and the fennel, the taste lying somewhere near a cross between the two. Doused in a sour and tangy vinaigrette, it was filling and delicious. It was also a welcome reprieve from the pounds and pounds of kale and chard I've been eating. I love those two things as much as the next person, but I've been eating them several times a week (if not more) for the past few months. It was time to broaden the winter salad options. And this is a perfect solution.

Celeriac, Fennel & Apple Salad
adapted (slightly) from Molly Wizenberg's Bon Appetit recipe

for the vinaigrette

1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp champagne vinegar
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1 small garlic clove, pressed
2 tablespoons olive oil

For the salad

1/2 medium celery root, peeled, cut into matchstick-size strips
1/2 medium fennel bulb, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced
1/2 peeled Gala apple, cut into strips

Whisk the vinaigrette ingredients together in a small bowl. Combine celery root, fennel, and apple in large bowl. Toss with vinaigrette. The original recipe calls for shaved Parmesan on top. I didn't have any, and I don't think it needs it, but next time I'll add it in.

A Winter Standard - Citrus Salad with Avocado and Micro-Greens

2010-02-08T00:00:00.000-08:00

The farmers market is an embarrassment of riches right now. Blood Oranges, Pommelos, King Grapefruit, Cara Cara Oranges, Meyer Lemons and Mineolas. Orange, gold, green and yellow orbs of all different sizes, filled with juice, sweet and sour. It's the perfect time to make my favorite late winter salad, which happens to be as beautiful as it is adaptable.

My standard version has avocado layered in with the citrus, however, today when I slid my knife through an avocado I'd bought a few days earlier, I saw that it was too late for that poor sucker. It had already gone brown inside, and was a waste. Spoiled avocados are truly one of the great disappointment of life. I cursed myself for not having used it earlier, and pressed on with a scaled down version.

If I'd had some fennel handy, that would have been a good addition as well. Thinly sliced red onions, fresh mozzarella, I've even had a version with squid and frisee at my favorite restaurant, Pizzaiolo in Oakland. But still, my favorite is the citrus, avocado and micro-greens. The fresh tart taste is a welcome reprieve from the usual heavy winter meals.

Citrus Salad with Avocado and Micro-Greens

It seems silly to write out a recipe for this. Just by looking at the picture, you get the idea. For this one, I used one pommelo, one ruby red grapefruit, one cara cara orange and one blood orange.

The trick to slicing the citrus is to cut the top and the bottom of the fruit, and then slice the peel from the fruit, making sure to remove as much of the white pith as possible. Once the peel has been removed, slice the fruit into disks, about 1/2 of an inch thick. Layer the citrus onto a plate.

If I'd had a good avocado, I would have sliced half of that and layered it in with the citrus. I drizzled about a tablespoon of good olive oil and a teaspoon of red wine vinegar over the fruit, and sprinkled some sea salt over that. Finally, I tossed a few micro-greens on top. I got mine at the farmers market, but you can also find them at Trader Joe's.

It Has It's Own Day.

2010-02-05T00:00:00.000-08:00

Did you know that today is World Nutella Day?

It's true. I read it on Google.

Look, here's a picture to prove it!

So in honor of this most holy of days, I've decided to re-post the only Nutella Cake recipe you will ever need. Fellow Bloggers, Readers, and Lovers of Nutella, I give you Nigella Lawson's Nutella Cake...

These days it seems I look for every and any excuse to make cake. I have been on a bit of a baking rampage, and my tiny studio kitchen is nearly groaning under the weight of so many cakes. It's gotten quite ridiculous. Not that I personally have a problem with cake for breakfast every day, my waistline, however, does indeed have a problem with that. There's the chocolate one resting comfortably in the freezer, the lemon berry cake on top of the stove (with enough slices taken out to cause it to bear an eerie resemblance to Pacman) and now there's the birthday cake on the counter. So. Much. Cake.

Pacman in cake form.

And so I pawn them off on friends and co-workers. I offered to make this latest cake for a friends be-lated birthday. When I asked what kind he wanted he mentioned something with hazelnuts and chocolate. That of course, brought to mind one thing. Nutella! Genius! Had anyone ever thought to make a cake out of nutella before? Of course. Nigella Lawson, in fact. I should have guessed. She cooks, she speaks in a gorgeous English accent, she's pretty easy on the eyes and she makes cakes out of nutella. This woman could obviously rule the world if she chose to do so. Luckily she chooses to simply share her recipes instead.

I poured over the recipe. It was madness, for sure. Not only does it call for a whole stick of butter, two full chocolate bars, and rum, but it uses an entire jar of nutella. This cake is obviously not for the faint of heart, but considering the culinary requirements for an earlier cake experiment (4 sticks of butter!) I was not to be intimidated. Now that cake was crazy!

It was a dreary, drizzling kind of day. I hauled myself off to the gym to try and make up for the breakfast problem of the week, and then started in with Elliott Smith to accompany me. Elliott makes a fine cooking companion. Of all the albums in my possession, his are the ones I never tire of. If only there were more of them.

And here is the result! So dense and delicious and full of nutella! I'm quite pleased with it, and it really couldn't have been easier. Nothing to fear...as long as you have plenty of people to share it with, of course.

Oh baby! Nutella in cake form!

Nutella Cake with Chocolate Hazelnut Ganache
from Nigella Lawson

Cake:
6 large eggs, separated
pinch salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 13-ounce container Nutellla
1 tablespoon rum
1/2 cup finely ground hazelnuts
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted and
cooled

Ganache:
4 ounces whole hazelnuts
1/2 cup half and half (she calls for heavy cream but I was out, half and half worked well)
1 tablespoon rum
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

Whipped egg whites, yolks, butter and the *secret* ingredient

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; butter a 9-inch springform pan. In a large bowl (preferably metal),
whisk the egg whites and salt until stiff. In another bowl, cream the butter and Nutella, then add
the rum, egg yolks, and ground hazelnuts. Fold in melted chocolate.

Add a blob of beaten egg whites to the chocolate batter, and mix gently until well-combined. Fold in the remaining whites, one-third at a time, very gently but thoroughly. Pour into springform and bake for 40 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting tester, which should come out mostly clean; lightly pressing finger into top to check for a slight bouncing-back; and observing edges beginning to separate from pan. Let cool completely, in pan, on a rack.

Toast the hazelnuts in a dry skillet, or toaster oven shaking them around frequently. Do it for about 4 minutes, or until they are lightly browned, then let cool completely. If hazelnuts came with skins on, put them in a towel after toasting and rub around; this will remove most of the skins.

Chop chocolate, and add to sauce pan with half and half and rum over medium-low heat. Once chocolate is melted and components are combined, whisk until mixture reaches desired thickness, then cool. Remove rim of cake pan and pour cooled ganache over, spreading lightly to create a smooth, shiny surface, and apply hazelnuts all over.

State of Mind - Pan Seared Salmon with Wasabi Mashed Potatoes

2010-02-04T00:00:00.000-08:00

"What do you think says more about you, the things that are under your bed, or what's on your bedside table?" - Overheard on the 51 bus today

I'm skeptical about this one. First of all, I cleaned out the contents of what was under my bed when Amber gave me my birthday present this year (like a Saint, she deep cleaned my apartment, which of course meant I had to clean it first to save myself embarrassment) and now all that remains are a couple old magazines, computer boxes and a printer.

Does that mean I'm boring?

Also, I think I heard Oprah say once that the contents and organization of your closet reflects your overall state of mind. So if it's cluttered and messy, your inner life probably is as well. Now that I think about that, it seems really depressing. What if the same goes for whatever's under the bed? I have a printer clouding my peace of mind?

Let's move on to the bedside table.

Several candles and candle holders
matches
lamp
3 giant white hydrangeas in a vase
an antique bottle
enamel tray
half empty glass of wine...or is it half full...

Hmmm. That's more like it. And I hope it's a bit more informative than whatever is under the bed.

Tonight I made one of those dinners that made me exclaim, "Oh hell yes," upon taking a bite. This, is what it's all about my friends. I improvised, knowing that I wanted wasabi mashed potatoes, I bought a beautiful piece of salmon from Ver Bruges down the street, and whipped up a sort of asian sauce to pan sear it with.

If you've never had wasabi mashed potatoes, you should really remedy that immediately. It's the kind of thing that might sound a bit strange at first, but then you take a bite and you wonder where they've been all your life.

This one is going to be in the repertoire for a good long time. Hell, yes.

Pan Seared Salmon with Wasabi Mashed Potatoes
For the Salmon

1 Large Salmon Fillet, about 1 lb, cut into 2, or 2 8 ounce fillets
1/4 cup plum sauce
1 tsp chili sauce (such as siracha)
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
3 tbsp red wine
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp fresh ginger, minced
2 tbsp canola or olive oil

Pre-heat the oven to 350. Season the salmon fillets with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tbsp canola oil or olive oil in an oven-proof saute pan over high heat and sear the salmon on both sides until golden brown, about 2 minutes for each side. Combine the plum sauce through the ginger in a small bowl, and whisk together with a fork. Generously brush the sauce onto the fish. You might have a little sauce left over. Put the pan into the oven to finish cooking. Baking time will depend on the thickness of your fillet. Check for desired doneness.

For the Wasabi Mashed Potatoes

1 lb russet potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and quartered
1/2 cup cream or milk
2 ounces of butter
2 tsp wasabi paste

Fill a large pot with cold, salted water. Add the potatoes and bring to a boil over high heat until done. Check with a fork for desired doneness. Use a ricer to mash. Add milk or cream, butter, and wasabi. Add salt to taste.

Serve fish over wasabi mashed potatoes.