The Mad Dash to Bouchon

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of helping my dad celebrate his 70th birthday in Vegas. It was wonderful to have the whole family together, if a little surreal in terms of places to gather.

I didn't have much money to spend, and after quickly blowing the cash that my parents so generously bestowed me with, I realized I'd better save what little I had left if I was ever going to make it to Bouchon.

Yes, amidst the heat and cigarette smoke and nauseating air fresheners and clanging dinging slot machines and overpriced everything, just knowing that there is a Thomas Keller restaurant on the Strip was like a breath of fresh, cool air. If I was going to lose the rest of my money, I was going to lose it at Bouchon. And lose it I did, in the most glorious of ways.

But first, we had to get there! Suffice it to say it was a bit of a haul, and that it took us nearly an hour to travel the roughly half a mile distance, and that by the end of that journey, we were nearly running in order to get there before they stopped serving breakfast. In fact, we got there 10 minutes late, but they were kind enough to seat us anyway.

First things first, Bloody Mary's were in order.


I had to stop myself from swilling the whole glass down in less than a minute; it was that good. And then, for some reason, the staff decided our breakfast was taking too long to arrive, so to make up for it, they brought us 4 pastries, a plate of fruit, and another round of Bloody Mary's. Uh, we were quite happy sitting there in the sunshine in front of the fountain sipping our drinks, but go ahead, twist my arm!

I'm not big on pastries usually, but the pecan sticky bun was in another league entirely. It managed to taste completely decadent and yet somehow light and not overly sweet.

And then there was the quiche.



I'm quite certain now that I've never in my life tasted quiche the way it was meant to be. The spinach custard felt like silk, and I can't even find the words to describe the pastry crust, except to say that it put to shame every other pastry crust that I've ever tasted.


The only thing that could've made this meal better, Dad, is if you had joined us!

Turn to Chocolate

I love it when the food theme lends itself perfectly to a musical theme. Today's theme happens to be Turn to Chocolate. Because truly, that's what I did. It was only about 80 degrees outside but I HAD TO BAKE BROWNIES. It was a bit of an obsession because I've had this bar of Green & Black's organic dark baking chocolate just waiting, sitting on the counter taunting me. Each night I would look at that bar of chocolate and want it to magically become a plate of brownies, but each night I found myself too exhausted to do anything about it.

But then there was today, a day when I went into work before dawn and finished my day shortly after lunch time, and I knew that today was the day to transform that bar of deliriously dark chocolate into something even more sublime....something I could sink my teeth into. So that when tonight rolled around, all I'd have to do was eat it, piles be damned. Tonight I needed a little comfort of the chocolate variety, and let me tell you, these brownies did the trick.




But wait! Turn to Chocolate happens to also be the name of an album by one of my favorite local bands, She Mob. And how lucky am I that I actually get to KNOW this band, and sometimes sing with them? This is a band that I like to listen to LOUD, a band that delivers catchy, heavy, funny, rocking songs. A band that I like to listen to sometimes when I'm not feeling quite right and I don't know what I need - their music just comes rushing in to comfort me in some strange way - kind of like chocolate can do.



And so, I turned to chocolate because like I said, I couldn't resist that bar of dark baking chocolate any longer, and I was happy to spend some time in the kitchen, my favorite room in the house.

I'm particularly happy about these brownies because I used more or less my own recipe, albeit one that is based upon several other recipes I've seen. I did quite a bit of adapting in order to utilize my entire bar of dark chocolate, no more, no less. It irks me that some recipes call for amounts of chocolate that don't happen to coincide with the amounts that are in the packages that I buy. For instance, this bar of chocolate was 5.3 ounces. I found various recipes that called for 8 ounces, or 3.5 ounces, but I wanted to use only the 5.3 ounces that I had on hand. So I did some adapting and this is what I came up with. Also I should caution you that these aren't the sweetest brownies you ever tasted - they are intensely chocolate-y though, and that's exactly how I like it. Most recipes that I found called for as much as 2/3 to a whole cup MORE sugar than my recipe. If crazy amounts of sugar float your boat, then go ahead and increase the sugar.

Put the oven rack in the middle position and preheat the oven to 350. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan and if you like, line the pan with parchment paper.

Set a heatproof bowl over a small pot of barely simmering water, and into the bowl, add 2 sticks unsalted butter plus 5 ounces (or 5.3 ounces as the case may be) dark baking chocolate (don't use unsweetened!). Stir occasionally until it's all melted and smooth.

In a small bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder.

In another bowl, whisk together 4 large eggs and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Then whisk into this mixture 1 1/3 cup sugar.

Now pour the liquid chocolate mixture into the egg and sugar mixture, and when it's well mixed, slowly add the flour mixture, and then finally, add 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for about 40-45 minutes. At this point, the brownies will be gooey in the middle, and cakey on the outside. You can bake them for a little longer if you want them to have a more cake-like texture.




Cool the brownies completely (if you can wait that long!) on a wire rack. Cut them up and try not to eat too many before bed, unless you really don't want to sleep!

Citrus-scented Yogurt

Sorry for the lack of postings as of late. The process of battling the piles continues to consume me, so I haven't spent as much time in the kitchen recently as I would like. But the good news is, the piles are shrinking, even if they aren't shrinking as quickly as I'd like.

Not only have I been battling piles, but I've been battling the anal-retentive control freak in me (did I mention she's impatient too?) that wants EVERYTHING PERFECT NOW. Ha - good luck with that! Anyway I came across this recipe for citrus-scented yogurt and thought someone out there might appreciate it. It makes a great topping for fruit or granola or french toast or pancakes, and it's quick and easy to make, a bonus for impatient types like me! Obviously you can double or triple the recipe as you see fit.

Add to 1 cup plain yogurt:

1 teaspoon grated orange or lemon zest, or a combination of the two

A drizzle or two of honey or maple syrup

A very light sprinkling of cinnamon and/or fresh ground nutmeg

Stir it up, and now you're ready to serve it.

If by chance you find yourself feeling a little bit patient, you can first drain the yogurt in a layer or two of cheesecloth over a fine mesh strainer for 30 minutes before adding the goodies. This will create a thicker, creamier consistency.

Everything Will Be Just Fine, as Long as We Stay in the Kitchen

Yeah, I'm moving. Leaving the Fruitvale Mansion (as I like to call it) behind. I'm going to miss the place, and I'm especially going to miss the kitchen. But the thing is, in recent months, the kitchen became totally infested with mice. Stubborn, ever-present mice. Mice that wouldn't leave despite my best efforts to humanely show them the door. I couldn't bring myself to kill them, and so I just left.

Ok, that's not entirely true. I left because the time has come to share a home with the one I love, and I'm mostly ecstatic about that. It's just that when you reach a certain age and you have two people attempting to combine their two homes into one home, suddenly, said home seems tinier than you ever imagined, and you find yourself wondering how on earth you're going to make this thing work. So if you're like me, you just make sure that the kitchen is the first thing you unpack, so at least you can still eat very well despite the chaos that is all around you.

But, I digress. I was planning to move anyway, just perhaps not as soon as this. But it's no fun living with mice, never mind cleaning up after the little vermin. It kind of takes the joy out of being in the kitchen. So I haven't cooked anything in the old kitchen for months. I started living in the new place awhile ago; I just didn't get around to moving all the rest of my stuff until this weekend.

What I should have been doing tonight was unpacking and organizing, but how can a person unpack and organize without the sustenance of a delicious meal? So instead of dealing with this....

...I tried out a recipe that has long been lingering in my recipe binder for a Mediterranean fish stew, courtesy of none other than Emeril Lagasse. I adapted it slightly by adding potatoes when none were called for, and using lemon zest instead of orange zest, and all I have to say is, screw the piles in the living room. This stew was absolutely reason enough to blow off the piles, and the recipe made enough to sustain us through the next several days while we're attempting to shrink the piles before they swallow us up. 

I'd much rather enjoy this beautiful and lively combination of saffron, crushed red pepper, fish stock, white wine, tomatoes, fennel, halibut and shrimp than try to figure out how and where things should go.  The piles will still be there tomorrow, but tonight I really needed to enjoy myself in the kitchen.


You might call this denial, but what did you say?  I couldn't hear you over the stereo and all my chopping and slicing and dicing, and besides, I'm intoxicated by the aroma of the stew, so intoxicated that I keep switching tenses in my writing.  Oh wait, maybe it's the wine that made me that way.  Who cares?  Just make this stew some time.  It'll make you the hit of the party or it'll make you forget the chaos that lies in waiting merely one room away. 

Here's how to do it:

In a large soup pot, saute over medium-low heat for about 6-8 minutes: 1 onion, thinly sliced, 2 celery ribs, sliced thin on the diagonal, and 8 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed. When the onions are soft, add 1/3 cup white wine, 3 pinches saffron, 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, the juice of 1 orange, a couple of thin strips of orange or lemon zest, 3 tablespoons tomato paste, and 8 cups fish stock. Bring to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, for about 45 minutes or until the stock is reduced by about one third.

At this point, add 1 bulb of fennel, cored and sliced thin, plus about 6-8 small red potatoes, quartered, and 1 cup of diced, peeled and seeded tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper, and cook about another 20 minutes or until the fennel and potatoes are tender.

Take about a pound of halibut and season with salt and pepper, and dice it into chunks that are about an inch or so. Peel and devein about a half pound shrimp. Add all of this to the pot, along with a small handful of chopped parsley, and cook just until the fish is done, which should take about 5 minutes.

Bon Appetit!

Maniacally Unhinged, Supremely Talented

Here's a cool article on the front page of this week's East Bay Express, and it's all about the Immersion Composition Society. I've been participating in ICS since 2002, and it has truly transformed my creative process in regards to songwriting. The Express article goes into great detail about what ICS is and how it works, but in a nutshell, a bunch of songwriters choose a day, get up in the morning and write and record as many songs as possible, and then meet up that very same evening to listen to the fruits of each person's labors. It's nutty, it's fun, it's sometimes terrifying, and completely liberating. No more waiting for inspiration to strike! No more excuses! You get up, you get to work, and somehow although you have no idea what it is you're supposed to be creating, the most fantastic things manage to spill out of your subconscious. Granted, a lot of crud leaks out too, but the theory goes that in the midst of quantity, eventually there's gotta be some quality too. And one of the cool things about ICS is that the participants aren't there to judge or critique. It's a very supportive environment.

Although my ICS sessions have been very few and far between over the last couple years, at a certain point in time I was doing it so frequently that I managed to write over 250 songs in a period of a couple years (granted, not all of them were good, or even listenable, but hell, I got more good songs written in those years than I would have otherwise!). God, I miss those days. I'm just about ready to kick myself in the butt and start doing ICS sessions again so I can write some new material. But in the meantime, I'll play a very small handful of those 250 songs as one of the many performers at Friday night's show at the Uptown, featuring a whole slew of ICS participants. The concert is presented by the Budget Cinema Suicide Mission, and is a benefit for local filmmaker Annmarie Piette, who's doing a documentary about creativity and the brain, featuring a segment about ICS. If you can't make it to the show, do check out the Express article - it's a very worthy read. I love the author's reference to ICS participants as "maniacally unhinged, supremely talented"! It turns out I am lucky to know quite a few people who fit that description.

Garlic Toast w/ Goat Cheese and Tomatoes

There's no special story to go along with this recipe, and in fact it's not so much a recipe as it is a guide, but no matter what you call it, the end result makes for a delightful appetizer in the summer, all the more attractive and tasty when you use heirloom tomatoes. And it goes something like this:

First, make the garlic toast. Slice a baguette or some italian bread, and brush with olive oil. Take a fat clove of garlic and peel it and smash it with your knife, and rub the garlic onto each slice of bread. Now turn the slices over and do the same thing to the other side. Toast the bread slices in the toaster oven or in your plain old oven on a cookie sheet, but be careful not to toast or bake for too long, or you'll end up with extra toasty toasts, like I did! They're still good that way cause they're extra crunchy, but some might aim to make them a little more on the perfectly golden brown side.

While the bread is toasting, slice up a few tomatoes. You can use heirloom tomatoes, romas, or even super sweet cherry tomatoes, in which case, you'd just cut them in half. Put the tomatoes on a plate, season with salt and pepper, drizzle with olive oil, and top with slivers of fresh basil.



Once the garlic toast comes out of the oven, smear each slice with a dab of goat cheese. I'm fond of Redwood Hill fresh chevre, but you could also use fresh mozzarella, or thin shavings of parmesan, or whatever suits your fancy.


Next, top each slice of cheesy toast with a tomato slice, or a half a tomato slice, as the case may be.





Eat, enjoy, repeat. Try to save room for dinner, which could prove to be difficult.

The Art of Simple Food and Camping

I want to be one of those really sturdy types of people who simply THRIVES in the outdoors, but the truth is, I find it a little challenging. All that dirt! All those crazy yahoos camping way too close to our camp site as they knock back cheap beer after cheap beer, followed by the sound of a sorority girl puking not too far from our tent - kind of a buzzkill! And then there was the constant soundtrack of classic rock blaring from the neighboring campers...I mean, whatever happened to campfire songs under the stars? HOW ON EARTH IS ONE SUPPOSED TO FOCUS ON THEIR SCRABBLE GAME STRATEGIZING WITH THE NEIGHBORING CAMPERS SITTING ON THEIR DAMN WHOOPEE CUSHION REPEATEDLY???




If we wanted dirt and noise pollution, we could've stayed in Oakland and camped in the back yard! But what can you do but make the best of it? We played a lot of Scrabble under the light of the moon, we splashed in the Russian River with two dogs, and we made ravioli with cherry tomatoes and fresh basil using our brand new camping stove. And we figured out how to set up the tent! And we didn't burn anything down!




It was fun while it lasted, but I could hardly wait to get home and cook something fresh (not to mention, take a shower and sleep in comfort again!). Since I've been enjoying the Alice Waters book The Art of Simple Food so much recently, I decided to enjoy it a little more. Dinner on Sunday night was a frittata with chard and onions, and green beans with almonds, garlic and lemon juice. Another delicious meal.





Simple food really is an art, and I've yet to find anyone who explains this art better than Ms. Waters, so I strongly suggest you add this cookbook to your own collection. I think you'll be glad you did, whether you are a beginning cook or a seasoned pro. I wish I had some suggestions about how to make your next camping experience more idyllic, but I guess I'm not the expert on that matter yet. But I'm determined to keep trying, oh yes I am....

Eat, Drink, Camp

Stumbled upon a couple of interesting articles today, about a couple of my favorite things - food and drink!

I've mentioned Mark Bittman here before; his writing and his recipes have been a great source of inspiration to me and have greatly influenced my food choices as of late. Here is a link to a talk he gave called "What's wrong with what we eat". Good food for thought, as it were.

Boy do I love a good margarita, and oh how I hate a margarita that is slushy, watered down, too sweet, or made with cheap tequila. What can I say, I'm a bit of a snob that way! Here's a good article in today's SF Chronicle entitled Mastering the Margarita, suggesting that there just might be as many opinions about a good margarita as there are brands of tequila. I tend towards the "premium tequila, Cointreau, lime juice and salt" variety, but this article features some recipes that seem worth trying.

And with that, I'm off for a weekend of camping near the Russian River. There won't be fancy food and there won't be margaritas, but with any luck there should be abundant sunshine, bright stars, and the company of a few of my favorite beings. That's my idea of a perfect weekend.

Stuffed Squash with Quinoa Pilaf

Well I'm no Tartine Gourmande, but Bea's recent post inspired me to try out this recipe, and oh, it was delicious. (Note - the recipe I linked to above is actually from 2006, but she referenced it in a posting from last week that included several recipes for stuffed squash.) I made a few modifications, and the recipe lends itself very nicely to using whatever you have on hand. The original recipe called for prosciutto, but I omitted that and added breadcrumbs. I also used a quinoa pilaf instead of the rice that the original recipe called for. I think toasted walnuts or pine nuts would be a good addition to this as well. As always, I say use your imagination and creativity, and use what you have on hand.

Pre-heat the oven to 350.

For the quinoa pilaf, first, dice half an onion and slowly saute it over medium heat in a small bit of butter. If you like, add a teeny sprinkling of brown sugar to help the caramelization process along. When the onions are golden brown, add about 3/4 cup of quinoa and stir it all together for a few minutes. Add a little salt, a little dried thyme, and then add enough stock or water to cover it by about an inch. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, put a lid on it and let the quinoa cook for about 15-20 minutes until the broth is absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Now, stir in about 1/4 to 1/3 cup chic peas.

For the squash: Scoop out the flesh, set it aside and dice it. Cut the kernels off one ear of corn and set aside. Dice one big fat clove of garlic. Heat a splash of olive oil in a medium skillet. Add the garlic and along with it, a small pinch of dried coriander and dried cumin (I like to toast the spices whole and then grind them). Now add the squash and cook for about 5 minutes, and then add the corn and cook for another 3 minutes, and finally, stir in about 1/2 cup sungold cherry tomatoes, cut in half. Remove from heat, stir in 2 or 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs (I used Panko in this case), a light sprinkling of parmesan and a smattering of chopped fresh parsley. Now, combine this mixture with the pilaf, and wow, it's good enough to eat just like this, but trust me, it gets better!

Spoon this delicious stuffing into the squash, place them into a baking pan and drizzle with olive oil. Pour about a half an inch of broth or water into the bottom of the pan. If you find you have extra stuffing left over, place it in a separate baking dish. Top everything with salt and pepper and a little more breadcrumbs and parmesan, and bake for about an hour.

This dish would be especially satisfying in the winter, but here in the Bay area, sometimes summer feels like winter, so this dish was perfect for a day like today, when the sun barely managed to squeeze through the clouds.

My Week in Pictures...

... and a few words. It's been non-stop action for about the last ten days or so. I saw, heard and played tons of music, from improv to country, and I ate a lot too. Oh, did I eat. I even cooked a little.  Too much to write about in great detail, but here are a few highlights:

Finally got to dine at Pizzaiola, courtesy of my fabulous employer.  Oh, that pizza.   Maybe you oughta try it for yourself since words seem to be failing me tonight.

This pasta was so good I had to enjoy it twice.  My friend Adam  made it for me one night, inspiring me to make it later in the week for my sweetie and the lovely Sabine, who adorned our table with this beautiful flower arrangement.

The pasta recipe came from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters, a book that I've had for awhile but not used nearly enough yet.  The pasta was a very flavorful, earthy combination featuring summer squash, walnuts, buttered cabbage and fresh parsley. 

Adam added toasted breadcrumbs to his version so of course I had to do the same, and fortunately I made a huge batch of it so I get to enjoy it again for lunch tomorrow, which will be here too soon... which is why I can't even stop to tell you about my recording session with Edith Frost... or the amazing set that Joe Rut played tonight at the Bazaar Cafe.... there is more, more, more, but my brain is too tired for many more words tonight, and the land of dreams is beckoning, so off I go until next time. 

A Few Good Blogs

I love reading food blogs as much as I love writing my own (sometimes even more!). Here are a couple that have inspired me recently, and if you're obsessed with food like I am, I bet you'll enjoy them:

First, there's the Gluten Free Girl - you don't have to be gluten free to love this blog. Shauna James Ahern has a way with food and a way with words that flows as beautifully as the photographs she takes. With each posting, you get the feeling you're being invited into her kitchen to share a little slice of her life, and what an inspiring life it is.

Cafe Fernando is a blog I've discovered only recently, and I'm especially fond of the current posting featuring David Lebovitz's recipe for Vietnamese coffee ice cream. Cenk Sonmezsoy resides in, and is a native of Turkey, and his blog features recipes highlighting the cuisine of his homeland, and much, much more. Many lovely photographs and great recipes for delectable baked goods.

Fresh Approach Cooking always features tasty recipes that seem to be simple enough to allow the flavor of the food to shine brightly. And Rachel's writing is funny and unpretentious. I'd love to meet that woman and share a meal knock back a few cocktails.

La Tartine Gourmande is just pure joy. Here again, the recipes are simple enough to highlight the star of the show - the food! But wow, what creative approaches Béa Peltre takes in seemingly all that she does. I love her writing, and good lord, the photographs! The photographs are so stunning. How can you not be in love with food when you look at those gorgeous photographs?

So my friends, next time you find yourself aimlessly surfing the internet or looking for some culinary inspiration, do visit these blogs. I think you'll be glad you did!

Armenian Cucumbers

Armenian cucumbers are in season, and, like so many simple things in life, this makes me very happy.   I'm not even going to post a recipe because my favorite way to enjoy them is to simply eat them whole, one perfect bite at a time.   They are so crisp and refreshing and cool in the heat of summer, and they don't need peeling.   Perfect for those long, hot, lazy summer days...

Summer Fruit Tart

It had been so long since I'd done anything inspiring in the kitchen, that I needed to make up for lost time.   So why not spend half a day and a little too much money making this incredible fruit tart?

I'm not much of a baker, and not all that into things like pies and cakes, but when a co-worker brought this tart into work, I was blown away by the fact that it somehow managed to taste and feel light, which is a perfect thing in the heat of summer.  And of course, I had a new tart pan waiting to be used, so this tart seemed like the perfect thing for a 4th of July barbeque. 

You'll definitely need some patience and some fine, fine music to keep you company in the kitchen when you make this.  My soundtrack of the day was James Brown, and it was a perfect way to pass several hours in my kitchen.  Not to mention that the tart was a huge hit at the barbeque!  Even my highly skeptical french friend, an experienced pastry baker, gave it a thumbs up.

This recipe came from my co-worker's partner, and I think she got it from a magazine called Cuisine at Home.  She suggested using much more lemon juice than the original recipe called for, and I heartily concur.

For the crust, process in your food processor with the pastry attachment:

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (I used a combo of white and whole wheat)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/4 t. salt

Minced zest of 1 lemon

Then, add and pulse:

1 stick cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 egg yolk (but be sure to save the white, because you'll use it later)

Pulse until the mixture resembles crumbs.  Don't worry about it holding together, because you're now going to press it into your tart pan.   Make sure to lightly butter the pan, and have the oven pre-heated to 400.   Bake the crust until golden, and cool completely.

Now for the filling, combine:

1 egg white

1/2 cup lemon curd (I used this brand - no preservatives and totally delicious!)

3 whole eggs

In a separate bowl, combine:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3 T. cornstarch

pinch of salt

Now mix the flour mixture into the lemon curd mixture and set aside.

Over medium heat, combine:

2 cups milk

1/3 cup honey

Bring the mixture to a simmer, and then slowly mix it into the lemon curd mixture.  Now pour the whole mixture back into the pan and cook over medium heat, stirring almost constantly, until it's thick and bubbly.  This should take less than 5 minutes.

Remove the pot from the stove and:

2 T. butter, cubed

Juice of 1 to 2 lemons, or to taste (original recipe called for juice of 1/2 lemon)

Stir it all up until it's smooth, and pour it into the cooled crust.

Cover gently, making sure not to touch the custard with whatever you use to cover it, and refrigerate and let set for 4 hours. 

Now it's time to make the glaze.  Melt about 1/4 cup apricot jam and whisk in the juice of half a lemon.  Gently glaze the tart and then it will be time to gently scatter the berries over the top of the tart:

1/2 pint fresh blueberries

1/2 pint fresh raspberries

1/2 pint fresh blackberries

Dab the top of the berries with a little more glaze, garnish with sprigs of mint, and it's time to serve!  Do your best not to dig into the tart before it's time to go to the party.  This may be harder than you think!

Kitchen, Sweet Kitchen...

... I have missed you so!

It feels like I've been gone for days and weeks on end, so yesterday it was good to spend the whole afternoon and evening cooking and stuffing myself. I swear, life doesn't feel right if I'm not creating things in my kitchen. Fortunately, life is right again!

After years of carrying around a ragged folder bulging with recipes on scraps of paper of all shapes and sizes, I decided it was time to organize the recipes so that I wouldn't have to sort through several hundred pages in order to find the one damn thing I was looking for. Now, everything is neatly categorized. The "quiche and tarts" section only contains a select few recipes, but upon sorting through them, I remembered that I've always wanted to make this fresh tomato and mozzarella tart with a puff pastry crust. Long ago, I had a tiny sliver of this at my dear friend Ari's house, and the mere thought of it has had me salivating ever since.




You can read about the recipe here, but be forewarned that Cooks Illustrated will ask you to sign up for a free trial membership in order to view the entire recipe. 

And also, be forewarned that this tart is NOT a low-calorie item! So of course, I had to make vegan ice cream for dessert.  Pics and recipe coming soon.

The Taste of Tea

In my last post I mentioned Phil Gelb, a local chef whom I recently spent the day assisting.  While we were chopping and slicing and dicing the day away, Phil made some of the most incredible green tea.  It was soooo smooth, not bitter, just perfectly robust.  I drank cup after cup, which is not something I usually do.  The name of the company that sells it is Cha-no-Aji - The Taste of Tea.

As far as I know, this tea isn't available in stores, so I had to order my own batch immediately!  Well truth be told, I bought it for my sweetie but he's been kind enough to share.  We've been enjoying both the Genmaicha (green tea with brown rice), and the Night Blooming Jasmine.  This is seriously the most fragrant and exquisite jasmine tea I've ever tasted.  I think this tea might transform me from a person who  likes tea into a total tea junkie.

In other news, for the first time in months, I find myself with nothing on the calendar for the next five days except work, and that feels luxurious.  I will finally find myself with time to get back in the kitchen, and hopefully will have delicious things to report about as the week goes on.  For now, I've gotta get back to my tea.

In the Mood for Food

Forgive the meager postings as of late. Besides a couple more attempts at making gnocchi (with some pretty good results, I might add!), I haven't been too creative in the kitchen lately. Since I've recently gone on the debt diet, I've been eating a lot more steamed vegetables, beans & rice. It's not so bad, in fact I'm still eating very, very well. But between being strapped for cash and short on time, there hasn't been a lot of room for fabulous dinner parties in recent months.

That being said, I did get to partake in someone else's fabulous dinner party recently. There was a memorial celebration dinner honoring the aforementioned Matthew Sperry, and I was fortunate to be able to assist the chef, Phil Gelb. Phil's personal chef business is called In the Mood for Food, and he makes the most delicious and beautifully presented vegetarian and vegan food, and it was my pleasure to spend the day with him chopping and slicing and dicing, helping to create a scrumptious, gorgeous meal for a small group of Matthew's family and friends.



The menu featured homemade fettuccine, and would you believe that I've never really made fresh pasta before (I can just hear my Dad scolding me from afar!!!)?

Well I didn't actually make it; I merely did my part to help it dry, but it sure was fun.

Some day, I'll get back to my Italian roots and get obsessed with making fresh pasta.  For now, I'm content to be the one who sprinkles the flour.

       

There was so much good food that night, including a salad of arugula and radicchio with roasted apricots, with a dressing of roasted apricot, basil and miso.
  

I could go on and on, but I have to head straight for dessert: a totally decadent, smooth as silk, dreamy chocolate ice cream - all vegan! I make a lot of ice cream myself and so far have had very limited success with the vegan varieties, but clearly I just hadn't met the right ice cream maker yet, and now I have. I'm still dreaming of this chocolate cupcake with chocolate ice cream and chocolate sauce, made with nary a dairy product in sight.

See, I told you I was still eating well!

Oh, and in case you were wondering, Phil's business name is inspired by the movie In the Mood for Love by Wong Kar Wai, which incidentally, I just saw over the weekend.  What a beautiful film - every set, every scene, just so perfectly perfectly presented and lovely to behold.  Definitely worth checking out.

Thanks for tuning in, folks.   More to come before too long.  I've been working on revising my Second Best Chili You Will Ever Taste to be both vegetarian and made in the pressure cooker, so I hope to be posting about that in the next month or so.   Until next time, cheers!

"The Mouse Went Squeak...

... and pooped in the potty. Poop poop, poopity poop!"

Oh, they just don't write lyrics like that anymore. Or wait, yes they do! Those particular lyrics were written by my friend Lily, who is just shy of three years old. They were written as part of the Treasure Mouth Children's Karaoke event on Saturday, in memory of Matthew Sperry. There was a live band improvising the music, and the kids improvised the lyrics, and I, along with my singing pals in Loretta Lynch, got to sing whatever the kids wrote. Some personal favorite lines, in addition to the brilliant musings on mouse poop, were:

"A: You're beautiful.
B: You're adorable.
C: You're a cup full of charm."

And sometimes, two words are all you need to make a song. In this case, the two words were "HOT BURP".

Also quite compelling was the line "I was born in this hole and I'll die in this hole".

Kids, gotta love 'em!

I never had the good fortune to meet Matthew Sperry personally, but he was and still is loved and dear to many people I know, and I'm sorry I never crossed paths with him. It was truly an honor to be a part of the memorial event honoring his life.

The Nicest Compliment I Ever Got...

So I was gone out of town and away from work for 3 days. Upon my return, my co-worker and friend said "I'm so glad you're back... when you're gone, this place goes to culinary hell!". Aw, thanks Berge!

I DO love that part of my job where I get to go to the grocery store every week and buy all manner of snacks and fresh fruit and beer and wine and strawberry shortcake and fancy cheese... for all of us to enjoy! And it's nice to know that my culinary obsessions do not go unappreciated :)

One of the Many reasons I Love living in California...

... yes, the real estate (even now as prices are dropping) is astronomical, gas is up to $4.25 a gallon, and we could fall into the ocean at any moment. But with beautiful organic heirloom tomatoes like these, I can hardly complain.

You Can't Buy Happiness, but...

... you can drink it!

Ok ok I know that's bad, but honestly, that's on a billboard that I pass every day on my way to work. It shows the Nestle's Quick bunny swilling back the chocolate milk. Drunk with happiness.

Well I was a little drunk with happiness when I recently found myself in Arizona at the Barrio Cafe, sipping the best damn margaritas ever, in the company of my sweetie and one of my oldest, dearest friends, Anita. I mean, the food was quite incredible on its own, but those margaritas were something else. Strong, made with good tequila, and not too sickly sweet. Good stuff.

So much more to report - this is just the tip of the iceberg but alas, the rest will have to wait. I can hardly wait till Sunday, for I have three new gnocchi recipes to try out, so stay tuned for an update about that, and wish me luck!