Hitting the Reset Button

Citrus pineapple juice--more nutritious and tastier than the carton.

Last summer we were inspired by the documentary Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead.  The film tells the story of Joe Cross and his now-famous trek across the U.S. in a quest to loose weight and get healthy by drinking only fresh fruit and vegetable juices. Along his journey, Joe met a few people who joined him on his fasting crusade, and as the story goes, changed their lives for the better.

While the film, in the beginning, seemed destined to be more like an infomercial for Breville Juicers than a documentary, the message of change was more powerful, emotional, and humane than watching any episode of The Biggest Loser.

If you want true inspiration to change your eating habits and lose excess weight, or just want to be healthier, then you should watch Joe’s film. Then you should go out and get yourself a juicer. You’ll be glad you did it.

Our first fast only lasted three days. We did it a week before we were to run the first half of the SF Marathon, and even though we could have continued on a diet of juice and fresh fruits and vegetables after three days, we thought it best to break the fast and go back to our regular food choices – albeit with the addition of juicing. We needed calories from grains to keep us going as we trained and that meant eating solid foods.

Those three days really changed our lives. The first day was the hardest, as Joe describes in the film. Jason suffered from a horrible migraine headache that included vomiting (we know, not a pleasant topic for a food blog). He spent the first evening in bed. The next morning, however, after a refreshing fruit juice and some green tea, everything changed. Energy levels increased for both of us and by the end of the second day we saw noticeable changes in our skin tone. The puffiness around our eyes was gone, wrinkles seemed to be fading away, and a glow came into our complexions. This was only after day two. By the afternoon of our third day we felt incredible, and each of us had dropped three pounds. A pound of weight per day! We know. This sounds like an infomercial. But this was our experience and we’re serious about it.

We were also preparing for our trip to Spain and our interest in traveling Spain’s countryside eating and drinking just fruit and vegetable juices started to wear on our food traveling souls. After our trip, the holidays came at us with a vengeance. We held many of our temptations at bay this year and for the first holiday season in the history of our lives together, we finally came to understand what moderation really means.

Now, after all the candy and treats, booze and cocktails, processed food and many, many bags of potato chips, were tackling the New Year. We’ve hit the reset button on our diets—even though it is with a gentle hand and a few weeks late. We are eliminating alcohol from our lives for the next few months. We’re also taking a clue from former President Bill Clinton and fellow foodie Mark Bittman by working on becoming vegans – even if it’s just part time. And of course, there will be more juicing. We’re not setting goals or keeping a dietary journal of everything we consume. Our plan is to just be more conscience of what we put into our bodies and to pay attention to the effects it has on our lives. In a few months you’ll probably read about an incredible elk roast that we prepared from a long lost recipe, but that is all part of the balance of our lives. If you’re life is off balance watch Joe’s documentary. We hope it will inspire you just as it did us. The goal is to find your balance in life.

Pineapple Citrus Juice

Yield 5+ cups

½ pineapple – peeled
2 grapefruits –peeled
2 oranges – peeled
1 lemon – peeled
2 limes – unpeeled and organic

Put the items in your juicer as suggested by the manufacturer. The juice will keep in your fridge for up to 24 hours without loosing many nutrients. However, with all fresh juice, it is suggested that you consume right away to maintain maximum flavor and nutrition.

Note about organic: Whenever possible use local, organic fruits and vegetables for juicing, especially if the skin or the peel is part of the juice. If organic produce is not available in your area, remove the skin before juicing.

Another note about organic: We know that many people are skeptical about the merits of organic produce. In our opinion, even if there isn’t a significant difference between commercial produce and organic for our own consumption, there are problems with pesticide run-off affecting water quality.  Even more, farm workers are exposed to extremely unsafe levels of chemicals known to be carcinogenic and we eat cheap food at their expense. In other words, if you’re not going to think about your own quality of life, at least think about the choices you may have on the quality of the lives of others.

Finally, The Big Eat – Part III: The French Laundry

We chose not to photograph inside the restaurant. Enjoy the pics of the grounds.

Day three in Yountville started with a modest breakfast in the hotel. In anticipation for our big dinner at The French Laundry, we enjoyed a relatively light lunch at Hurley’s, dining on olive oil poached tuna niçoise and Crab Louis salads. Both hit the spot without being over filling. We thought it best to go into dinner without hunger headaches and the salads were a refreshing departure from the big meals of earlier restaurant visits. After a long walk around the small town of Yountville and a trip to the sauna and steam room at the Spa Villagio, we were ready to sit and eat for the next three hours. Our meal at The French Laundry would soon be a memory and we wanted it to be perfect.

Reservations were set for 8:45. Arriving a few minutes early, the host seated us in the front room while our table was being prepared. The French Laundry is a model of service, as you should expect, and they work very hard to make sure every guest feels as though they should be there. As it turned out, we waited with a certain celebrity couple (Nicole Richie and Joel Madden –Happy Anniversary!) who did a very good job of keeping a low profile thanks to the discretion of the host. [We’re assuming TMZ is no longer interested in something that happened over a month ago, with no pictures.]

The French Laundry's garden with a view of the Napa Valley hills.

The restaurant is divided into three small dining rooms, one downstairs and two upstairs. We were seated upstairs with four other tables, variously populated with couples and groups, most celebrating some sort of special occasion. We were seated at a large round table next to one another with a view of the other guests giving us an opportunity to “see how it’s done” for those who were seated earlier.

The wine list is 112 pages long and is presented at the table in iPad form, open and ready for your review. We love to drink wine, but we don’t love wine as much as the people who composed the remarkable list. The sommelier patiently helped us reduce our choices to a couple of light reds, each in the $100 range. We selected a delightful French burgundy that we nursed throughout the meal. It was just enough and nicely suited to the evening’s menu.

The first bites, or amuse bouches,  arrive in the form of small, warm, cheesy, one-bite gougère. The gougères are quickly followed by the now ubiquitous Salmon Tartar Cornets – bite-sized dollops of fresh, minced wild salmon atop a light, crisp cone filled with red onion seasoned crème fraîche. The “dish” is gone in two delicious bites. That’s OK, because the meal is just beginning and the real starter was just a few minutes away.

Chef Thomas Keller is known for many things, but the one thing diners at both The French Laundry and Per Se, in Manhattan, have come to expect is his glorious “Oysters and Pearls.” Small, beautiful white covered porcelain bowls arrive warm, filled with delicate Island Creek Oysters swimming in a rich pool of “Sabayon” of pearl tapioca, topped with a remarkably large dollop of white sturgeon caviar. We’d heard about this dish from friends who have dined before at the FL, but we had no idea what to expect. While now “common” to FL and Per Se diners, nothing about this dish says “average” or “pedestrian.” Every bite was as good as the last.

Up next, an interesting Salad of Roasted Hawaiian Hearts of Palm with Petite Radish, Cilantro and Citrus “Vierge.” This precious portion stood out not for the flavor of the hearts of palm (simple, but not memorable), but for the fascinating use of citrus in the vinaigrette. We suspect the kitchen used finger limes to produce the capsules of fresh fruit that popped delicately with each bite.

We supplemented the “salad” course with the Moulard Duck “Foie Gras en Terrine” served with Cippolini Onions, Oregon Huckleberry and Celery Branch. The restaurant is known for its flawless execution, evidenced by the mid-course swap out of warm brioche toast. On cue, our server deftly removed the half-eaten portion of toast and set a new, warm piece of toast down to accompany the remainder of the terrine. We were impressed!

A beautiful head of cabbage.

The fish course consisted of Sauteed Fillet of Gulf Coast Red Snapper with Jingle Bell Peppers, young Fennel, Niçoise Olive, Arugula and Noilly Prat dry vermouth (adding vermouth to sauce is a tip we learned from Julia Childs). The fish, tender and oceanic, paired beautifully with the subtle Noilly Prat. Here again, the sauce was the standout.

Sweet Butter-Poached Maine Lobster “Fricassée” came next with Hobbs’ Bacon, Red Wine-Braised Cabbage, Chestnuts, Tokyo Turnips and “Beurre Rouge.” Lobster, once a peasant food and used as fertilizer, is now king of the seafood chain. The smokiness of the bacon played nicely with the crustacean. We could have eaten more, but then, more was to come.

Our next course stands out as one of the evening’s greatest successes: Georges Bank Sea Scollop with Sunchokes, Piedmont Hazelnuts, Fig Compote, Red Ribbon Sorrel and Guinness-Chocolate Sauce. That’s right, Guinness and chocolate in a sauce with scallop. We get the affinity between the two, but with shellfish? Seriously?!? This one blew us away. The scallop was grand! Seared to a perfect crust, tender and barely cooked at its center, this was a scallop to remember. Swiping a bite through the sauce added complexity without overwhelming the sweet, briny morsel. Our first thought was that we wanted more sauce. However, that might have overwhelmed the scallop and then we would have ended up with a chocolate dipped scallop. Less is definitely more with the sauce for this dish!

The friendly chicken.

Next up, a glorious Four Story Hill Farm “Poularde” with Baby Beet, Tardivo Radicchio, Walnuts, Watercress and “Sauce Périgourdine.” Sophie, one of our charming servers, assured us that this chicken didn’t come from the FL hen house nestled among the garden greens across the street from the restaurant. Good thing too, because Jason had a bonding experience with one of the curious hens the day before and we couldn’t bear the thought of noshing on one of those lovely ladies. The meat was savory and richly satisfying, balanced by the bitter radicchio and spicy cress.

What came next will be remembered as one of the evening’s biggest surprises. “Tripe a la Provençale” in a sauce of San Marzano Tomatoes, Capers, Black Kale and “Pain de Campagne” arrived with our curiosity piqued. Steve learned that Thomas Keller is particularly fond of this “scrap” meat when he read Grant Achatz’ (Alinea chef and former sous chef with the FL) book life, on the line, so we were excited to see it on this tasting menu. Tiny pieces of extraordinarily tender tripe stewed in a simple tomato sauce couldn’t have been more spectacular. We’ve only shared tripe once or twice before at one of SF’s taco trucks, just to say we tried it. And now that we have a taste for it again, we’ll be certain to give tripe another try, maybe at a taco truck, fine restaurant, or maybe even at home (a future blog post in the making).

Elysian Fields Farm “Cote D’Agneau,” Chanterelle Mushrooms, Nantes Carrot, Roasted Mizuna and Madras Curry shocked us not only because of its delicate flavor, but also because of the scale of the portion. This was a large lamb chop and the kitchen didn’t skimp on a thing. The meat was unusually “mild” and the fat … well, we could have eaten more and it took some restraint to resist the temptation to gnaw on the bone when all was said and done.

We’re now starting to get that over sated feeling, as I’m sure you, the reader are too. This is not a good thing because we still have cheese and dessert to come and we want, or rather NEED, to enjoy it. The cheese course consisted of a warm bowl of Andante Dairy “Nocturnes” served with Yukon Gold Potato, Flowering Quince and Burgundy Truffles. A ripe, sheep’s milk cheese, the Nocturnes represents some of the best local cheese making to be found. The standout of this dish was the potato. Cut to the tiniest dice, the crunchy toasty bits were packed with earthy flavor. They paired nicely with the rich cheese and the sweet quince. We confess, this composed cheese dish had more than enough flavor to satisfy any happy glutton.

The rest of the flock.

A palate cleanser of Sour Cherry Sorbet, Coconut “Petit Beurre” and Vanilla Soda took the edge off the rich, ripe cheese course. How were we ever going to get through two desserts and all the other lovely sweets we knew were coming at the conclusion of the meal?

First dessert consisted of Alpaco “Mousse Au Chocolat,” Spice Pudding, “Panna Cotta,” Fuyu Persimmon and Almond “Glacée.” Whoa! The marvel of this dish was the cylinder of panna cotta lying on its side, holding its shape as it gleamed and sparkled in the light of the dining room. How did they do that? Our guess, from watching way too many cooking shows, molecular gastronomy. Silky and cool, this one reminded us just how satisfying panna cotta can be.

We also selected the “Pommes Anna” served with Funnel Cake, “Pruneaux d’Agen,” Rum “Anglaise” and Salted Caramel Ice Cream. This was a beautiful dessert. The apple was sliced ever so thin, stacked into a multi-layer round and cooked to tender perfection. The funnel cake was a delicate, playful companion to the sweet apple. Salted caramel ice cream, now available everywhere (even homemade in our freezer), added just the right amount of richness, though we were finally at our limit and barely finished.

Some lovely blueberries that will one day be on the menu.

The menu complete, we sipped the last of our wine and savored the recent memory of the fifteen or so things we’d just eaten. Our server returned to the table with a “special treat” of coconut cake – a congratulatory gesture from the kitchen to say Happy Anniversary (19 years! We met when we were in preschool.). We know the staff is prepared to help lots of diners celebrate special occasions given the likelihood that many of the guests on any given evening have made this special pilgrimage to honor an important occasion. Nevertheless, we felt personally recognized by a group of professionals who care deeply about the service they provide.

Next came the restaurant’s signature “Frozen Capuccino,” a creamy mousse of coffee topped with whipped cream. That’s right, more cream … and chocolate … and sugar. And then a tray of house made chocolate truffles, each with its own uniquely flavored ganache filling. Oh, and a bowl of crunchy, chocolate covered macadamia nuts. No lie. We tasted a couple of nuts and promptly threw in the towel. Not another bite. Any more and we would be miserable beyond redemption. A cup of coffee was all that we could muster at this point in the evening. We asked our server to box up the truffles and the rest of the nuts.

Our goodie bag and a few extras from Bouchon bakery.

Before leaving, we were presented with a bag that contained our boxed up goodies as well as a couple of bags of short bread cookies. A copy of the evening’s menu is delivered along with the bill and the night finally comes to an end. It was about 11:30 when our server invited us to join him in the kitchen to take a look. We gathered our things and headed downstairs where we waited for another group to complete their kitchen tour before heading in. We were most fortunate to get some one-on-one time with Executive Sous Chef Philip Tessier who graciously congratulated us on our anniversary and answered our questions about the kitchen. This was a memorable end to an unforgettable evening.

Stuffed to the gills, we made our way back to the hotel in a cold light rain. Yountville was quiet and sparkling. Our food holiday was now complete and our bellies were full. Three days of total indulgence now behind us, it was time to return to the real world. Damn!

Everything Old is New Again — Welcome 2012!

They take the cake!

Before we start blogging about eating right, juicing, going vegetarian and gasp…veganism, we thought we needed to share a little story about our holidays. We spent the season with old friends and new friends, chatted with lots of family members and shared the first Christmas with the newest member, our grand niece Jayleigh. Mostly though, we spent a lot of time driving. We traveled to three states, Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming and trekked 1500 miles on the rental car with an average of more than 2 hours of highway driving a day, and even though it sounds like we’re complaining about the driving time a little, it was all worth it. Aside from celebrating Christmas with family and New Year’s Eve with friends, we also grieved the death of Steve’s grandfather at his funeral, reunited with college friends for dinner and drinks, congratulated Steve’s father on retiring after 47 years of working (at the same place), and celebrated the weddings (same couple, two ceremonies) of one of our dearest friends, Kathy, to one of the nicest guys ever, Michael. For anyone who doesn’t believe in true love, you must hear their story.

Kathy told us the story of how they met, but given the time that had passed since the telling of the story and our terrible memories, we had forgotten it. Kathy’s mother reminded us of their story right after they exchanged their vows for the first time (more on that in a minute). The story goes something like this: when they were in high school, Kathy’s junior year and Michael’s sophomore year, both of them were on the yearbook committee. There they spent many hours in a darkroom developing pictures. Both of them were shy, awkward kids with raging hormones and the setting was perfect for a little teenage canoodling. Alas, nothing shocking happened in the darkroom and there was very little said between them, but both wished and hoped something would happen.  Disappointingly, nothing ever did. Then in Kathy’s senior year her family moved away to the San Francisco Bay Area, leaving Michael in Green River, Wyoming regretting not having the nerve to kiss this beautiful young woman. She would be the one that got away.

Years passed and life continued as it inevitably does. Marriages came and went for both of them resulting in three very wonderful boys, now men. Kathy has two beautiful sons and Michael has one. Then one day, through the magic of facebook, they reconnected, befriending each other and wondering if they shared the same memories and feelings. The feelings were definitely there. They met in person and haven’t been apart since, emotionally. The evidence of their romance turns up in photo after photo of a giddy, giggling duo. One of their wedding guests commented on a photo of the couple, saying it was the first picture she had seen of the pair where they weren’t embraced in a passionate kiss.

We were aware that Kathy and Michael were engaged but the actual date was up in the air. Then in mid December we received an email that the date had been chosen – January 1, 2012 – just days away. No question about it, we had to be there. Then on a visit with Kathy only days before the big day we were informed that there would be, in fact, two weddings – one on January 1in Ogden, Utah (Kathy’s home), and the other in Green River, Wyoming (Michael’s home) on December 31, 2011. Yup, two weddings in two days. That wasn’t all. We were to be honored by  a request from the father of the bride to bake the wedding cake. With so many requests and so little time, we had to think about the trip to Green River and more importantly, the baking of the cake. Within minutes of discussing it together we knew both things were possible. We could attend both weddings and bake the wedding cake for the Ogden wedding. We sent the good word and the rest is now history.

Jacques Pépin’s Almond Wedding Cake

The cake decorations are as simple as syrup, berries, and jam.

When we married three years ago, we didn’t have a cake on our wedding day. The frugal one, Jason, decide that a $2 cutting fee per person was too much to pay the restaurant for a cake he intended to bake himself. However, we did have our wedding cake the day after at a brunch we hosted with our family and friends. The cake that Jason baked was an almond cake from Jacques Pépin’s cookbook Fast Food My Way. In the book, Chef Pépin discusses making this specific cake for his daughter, Claudine, for her wedding day. The picture in the book is probably the most beautiful and easy wedding cake either one of us has seen. Decorated with fresh berries and glazed with a simple apricot jam, the wedding cake is something that even a novice cake baker could create with little effort.

With the pressure on for baking the cake we went into action. We were lucky to find the most exotic ingredient on the list, almond paste, at a Walmart, along with the needed baking pans. The recipe we found on-line at KQED thanks to our iPhones and gradually we were able to find everything else we needed. One thing about these cakes is that they seem to only get better as they age, so we baked the cakes a few days before the wedding and kept them refrigerated.

There were two other ingredients one would think would be easy to find in almost any city, but in the middle part of the country it can be almost impossible to find in any store a mini bottle of booze and a tub of crème fraiche. Due to Utah’s ridiculous liquor laws, mini bottles are not for sale in the state. We didn’t need much alcohol for the simple syrup so buying a bottle of Grand Marnier (our original choice) seemed like too much. Since we would be in Wyoming for the first wedding we were hoping to find it there, at the very least we knew we could find a mini bottle of something. Growing up in Utah and Idaho, Wyoming was notorious for three things; 6 percent beer (it’s 3.2 in Utah and Idaho), drive up windows at liquor stores, and fireworks. (Insert your most obvious joke here.) We couldn’t find the Grand Marnier so we settled on a mini bottle of brandy. The crème fraiche we found at the Whole Foods in Salt Lake City, where we spent NYE after driving back from Green River for the first wedding.

A strainer for the triple berry coulis was the only piece of equipment we didn’t have. Steve has been requesting a cone shaped professional sieve (Chinoise) for years. Since we were staying at the Hyatt Place near the Gateway mall in SLC on NYE, and the mall had a Sur la Table, we thought now was the perfect time to splurge and buy the strainer. We now had everything we needed to finish the cake.

After a night of mellow partying in SLC on NYE (a mediocre and expensive martini that barely wet the glass [stupid Utah liquor laws], a shared bottle of wine between four friends, and a glass of sparkling wine) we traveled back to Ogden on the first to pick up the cakes, make the triple berry coulis, and get to the church with enough time to assemble the cake. It all went smoothly. The most difficult thing we had to deal with were the berries rolling off the cake layers, but once the apricot jam glazed the cakes the berries were set in place.

The happy couple.

The second wedding ceremony was just as beautiful as the first, and both the bride and groom seemed just as nervous – and joyous. It was a perfect pair of weddings for this sweet couple. And while the cake tasted just as good as it looked, it was the happy couple that took the center stage, as it should be.

We want to congratulate Kathy and Michael on pulling together two beautiful weddings with only weeks to do it and the help of plenty of family and friends. Cheers to both of them. Here’s wishing them 77 to the power of 10, multiplied by 2, years of happy and loving marriage, plus a day.

All our Love,
Jason and Steve

Jacques Pépin’s Almond Cake

Serves: 6-8

4 ounces almond paste (1/3 cup tightly packed)
3/4 cup sugar
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, 1/2 teaspoon reserved to butter the cake pan
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or almond extract)
3 large eggs
1/4 cup milk
Dash of salt
1 cup cake flour (5-6 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Syrup
3 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons whiskey, rum, or cognac
1/4 cup sugar

Garnish
1 1/2 pounds berries (raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries) or other available fruits (currants, diced dried peaches, or diced dried apricots)
1/2 cup good apricot jam, diluted with 2/3 cup water
8-10 mint leaves
1 cup sour cream or crème fraîche for serving

Preparation Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the almond paste, sugar, butter, and vanilla in a food processor and process for about 10 seconds. Add the eggs, milk, and salt and process for 5 seconds. Add the flour and the baking powder and process for another 5 to 10 seconds, or until smooth.

Butter an 8-inch round cake pan (2 inches deep) with the reserved 1/2 teaspoon butter.

Pour the cake batter into the pan and bake for 45 minutes. Cool on a rack.

At serving time, place the cake on a serving platter.

For the syrup:
Combine the ingredients in a small bowl.

Using a spoon or pastry brush, moisten the cake with the syrup.

Scatter the berries on top of and around the cake.

Spoon on the diluted apricot jam and garnish with the mint leaves.

Serve with the crème fraîche or sour cream.

Make Ahead
You can make the cake early in the day. Or make several cakes and wrap them well for the freezer. Defrost, still in their wrappings, in the refrigerator.

Variation
To make a large cake for a special occasion–birthday, wedding, or the like–triple the recipe (we actually quadrupled the recipe) and bake in different-size cake pans, perhaps 12 inch, 8 inch, and 5 inch.

Brush the largest layer with one third of the syrup, center the second largest layer on top and brush with one third of the syrup, and top with the smallest cake layer.

Brush with the remaining syrup and scatter the berries over the layers.

Spoon the diluted apricot jam over the berries and cake and garnish with the mint leaves and/or edible flowers.

Serve with crème fraîche or sour cream.

Snap, Crackle, Crunch AKA Last Minute No Bake Holiday Cookies

Let is snow! But only if it snows Rice Krispie treats.

We did it again. The holidays are fast approaching and here we are with only a day left until Christmas and we procrastinated posting our annual holiday cookie blog. This blog is dedicated to all those last minute bakers that want to make something semi-homemade. Cheers to all.

Rice Krispie ™ treats are yummy, gooey, cookies that we have loved for years. While most of our blog posts are dedicated to food made from scratch, we have tried to replicate these goodies before using puffed brown rice and homemade marshmallows with depressing results. Since it is the holiday season (we believe in many different holidays during this time of year, not just Xmas!) we decided to get off our food crate – er, soap box – and work with the classic, time-tested recipe as a guide.

Our current infatuation with the Rice Krispie treat can be blamed on our recent trip to Yountville and Bouchon Bakery. The bakery sells beautiful Neapolitan Rice Krispie treats featuring decadent layers of chocolate, strawberry and vanilla. They are delicious! But like most of the recipes that inspire us, we like to alter them, just a bit, and after finding Bouchon’s recipe online (these treats are very popular at Easter) and seeing the ingredients list, we knew that this one would be a very fun and delightfully easy challenge.

All the makings of snowball treats.

Coconut and White Chocolate Snowballs

Kellogg’s Rice Krispie website features a recipe for their version of “snowballs.” Home cooks rate the recipe a paltry 3 out of 5 stars and we knew that with a little help we could make them better. Using white chocolate, coconut extract, chocolate extract, and Valrhona white chocolate pearls (inspired by Bouchon’s crispies) we knew we could boost the chocolate and coconut flavors without going overboard. They turned out great rolled in sweetened coconut flakes and placed in individual paper cups. Of course, a few of the items used to make them so special are not so easy to find in most grocery stores. Lucky for us our, neighborhood grocery store is Andronico’s and as fate would have it, Jason found Valrhona pearls on display at the store. We doubt the average Walmart or town grocery store carries these candy treats, so feel free to omit them if you can’t find them.

Coconut and White Chocolate Rice Krispies Snowballs
7oz Marshmallow
1.5oz Butter
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1 teaspoon chocolate extract (optional)
3oz white chocolate chips
3.5oz Rice Krispies
2.7oz Crunchy White Pearls (these are dark, milk and white chocolate covered cereal from Valrhona)
4oz sweetened coconut flakes

Bring 2” of water to a boil in a saucepot and place a bowl on top to create a double boiler. In the bowl, melt the white chocolate chips and then stir in the butter, marshmallow and extracts until the mixture has completely melted together. In a mixing bowl, fold the Rice Krispies and crunchy pearls into the marshmallow mixture. When cool enough to handle, shape the Rice Krispies mixture into small snowballs. Place the coconut on a plate and roll the balls in the coconut, gently pressing the coconut into the balls.

Cordial cherry treats in the making.

Cordial Cherries

Our other Holiday recreation is an updated Cordial Cherry. Again, taking inspiration from Bouchon’s Rice Krispie recipe we have made a part candy, part chocolate Krispie treat that we think is kind of cleaver. Using Bouchon’s recipe for their strawberry Krispie we changed the dried strawberries to dried cherries and added a little Maraschino liquor adding a little kick to them. The chocolate version is completely Bouchon’s recipe. To make the cookies we rolled small balls of cherry Krispie and then covered those in the chocolate Krispie. The results were cute, fun and very festive.

Cherry Rice Krispies
1oz dried unsweetened cherries, chopped
2oz Maraschino Liquor
7oz Marshmallow
1.5oz Butter
4.5oz Rice Krispies
4 drops Red Food Color

In a heavy bottomed saucepot add the chopped dried cherries and Maraschino liquor, cook over medium heat until the liquor is almost evaporated. Add the butter, marshmallow and food coloring whisking together until everything is completely melted. In a mixing bowl, fold the Rice Krispies into the marshmallow mixture. When cool enough to handle, shape the Rice Krispies mixture into small tablespoon balls.

Yum!

Chocolate Rice Krispies
14oz Marshmallow
3oz Butter
7oz Rice Krispies
5oz Crunchy Pearls (these are dark, milk and white chocolate covered cereal from Valrhona)
4.2oz 64% Cocoa Chocolate
1oz 100% Cocoa Chocolate
0.7oz Cocoa Powder

Bring 2” of water to a boil in a saucepot and place a bowl on top to create a double boiler. In the bowl, melt the chocolates together and then stir in the butter, marshmallow and cocoa powder until the mixture has completely melted together. In a mixing bowl fold the Rice Krispies and crunchy pearls into the marshmallow mixture. When cool enough to handle, take one of the cherry Rice Krispie balls and cover it with some of the chocolate Rice Krispie, leaving the bottom of the balls with only the cherry Rice Krispie.

The Big Eat – Part II

Steps away from amazing food.

We woke up Saturday morning to Vintage Inn’s “Champagne Brunch” spread. After all we’d eaten Friday, we surprised ourselves by diving headlong into the omelet station. The jog we planned for later in the day became imperative if we were going to enjoy the rest of the day’s culinary indulgences. Because after all, we do live, breathe and write about food.

After a four-plus mile run through Yountville and a local vineyard, we still weren’t hungry for a typical lunch. We knew we’d be famished if we didn’t get a little something into our bellies before our Bouchon reservations at 7:45, so we tucked into Philippe Jeanty’s charming Bistro Jeanty for a cocktail and a bar bite to take the edge off.

Bistro Jeanty

Seated at the bar, we sipped our drinks and noshed on a hearty serving of Terrine de Lapin (rabbit pate) accompanied by céleri rémoulade (celery root and apple salad), cornichons and a tasty housemade yellow pepper mustard dressing. The thick slice of terrine was well balanced with the lean, meaty rabbit and pork fat. The pepper mustard was an elegant accompaniment to the rich charcuterie.

Rabbit terrine on the left, ratatouille on the right.

Terrine would have done the job of curbing hunger, but we’re on holiday and the ratatouille on the menu was irresistible. Served in a small casserole and bubbling hot, the ratatouille was beautiful with its thin neat scalloped layers of tomato and zucchini (very similar in presentation to the ratatouille dish in the Pixar film of the same name) concealing a savory, saucy vegetable mélange. We sopped up the juices with slices of crusty baguette, finished our drinks and headed back to our room to rest up for the evening’s main event.

Bouchon Bistro

Bouchon at night with the full moon on the right. Hey, that rhymes.

Day two in Yountville and we’re seated once again at a Thomas Keller restaurant. This is our second meal at Bouchon (the first was a brunch back in 2007) and this time it is to celebrate the nineteenth anniversary of the night we met. Still working off the rabbit, Jason recommended we take it easy and share a salad, an entrée, and a side of French fries dusted with truffles so we could save some room for dessert.

There are times when the lighting in restaurants needs a little help.

We ignored the evening specials and ordered a Salade de Cresson et d’Endives au Roquefort, Pommes et Noix (cress and endive salad with bleu cheese, apple and walnut). We love crisp, bitter leaves of endive and these were nicely dressed with a walnut vinaigrette that added a warm, nutty richness to the salad. Peppery watercress and small cubes of fuji apple gave the dish a bright tang and the bites of bleu cheese added a bit of richness. The rather tall pile of a salad was hearty and filling and once our plates were empty, we knew we’d made the right decision about sharing an entrée.

Using the iPhone flashlight app and Photoshop, this photo came out a little better.

Always suckers for short ribs, we ordered the Boeuf Bourguignon. Still haunted by the memory of the short rib hash we enjoyed back in ’07, Steve couldn’t resist the braised beef dish that so many consider quintessential French bistro fare. Of course, any foodie will tell you that Boeuf Bourguignon is Julia’s signature dish. Served with a generous slice of thick porkbelly (bacon), cipollini onions, root vegetables, butter noodles and red wine sauce, the dish was an ideal antidote to the chill of the evening. The braised beef was tender but not mushy and the red wine jus gave each piece a beautiful lacquer finish. Tender egg noodles sopped up the sauce and the bacon scented the dish with sweet smoke. We loved this dish, but the root vegetables need some work. We found the cubed veggies to be a little off, tasting of cardboard. But because they weren’t well integrated, we were able to push them aside without losing anything else in the dish.

The stand out star of the evening was the basket of truffle dusted French fries. Mind you, almost anything with truffles will shoot your taste buds into orbit, but these fries were crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside, just as they should be. The photo we took was too blurred to publish, but just imagine a cone filled with these beauties.

The best photo of the night, but sadly the most disappointing dish.

After finishing our half-carafe of the house red wine ($25 for 500 ml = bargain), we sipped coffee and attempted a slice of Tarte au Citron (lemon tart). The tart slice was beyond generous; double the size one would expect from a fine restaurant of Bouchon’s caliber. Alas, while the tangy lemon sabayon was refreshing, we didn’t love the pine nut tart pastry. We love pine nuts and we eat them regularly, but they are delicate and tend to oxidize quickly. We don’t know if the crust failed because of the nuts, but our server admitted that this desert was a love-it-or-hate-it gamble as some customers found the shell to exhibit odd, off-putting flavors, while others believe it to be wonderful. He graciously removed it from the table, and our tab, and replaced it with a lovely bag of the bakery’s signature Chocolate Bouchons (dense brownies), which we took to go.

Even with the minor meal infractions at Bouchon, we left very pleased with the experience, service and the food, which is exactly why we dine out.

Next up: The French Laundry

The Big Eat – Part I

At least once in every food-obsessed person’s lifetime, the opportunity to go absolutely nuts must be seized. This has been an amazing year for us and we’re celebrating our good fortune by indulging in what may be our most epic culinary splurge – ever! It’s Friday, December 9, 2011 and we’re sitting in our beautiful room in Yountville, California’s Vintage Inn, just steps from Ad Hoc, Bouchon and one of the world’s greatest temples of food, The French Laundry. Yountville is a diner’s paradise, chuck full of the best food California has to offer and we’re here to eat as much of it as we can stomach in three days.

Journey begins...

Bottega
We started this weekend’s celebration with lunch at Chef Michael Chiarello’s Bottega. Tucked away in a discreet, but easy to get to spot on Washington Street (arguably the globes most prestigious culinary address), Bottega fits right in with the stylized European-inspired architecture common to this short stretch of a town with its rich, earth colored interiors and old world sensibility – entirely appropriate in the heart of California’s wine country.

Our meal started with a nice hunk of crusty bread and a bit of olive oil embellished with bits of hard cheese and herbs. The antipasti menu had us agonizing over so many choices, but we managed to settle on the Wood Grilled Octopus and the Lamb & Egg. Both were excellent. The octopus was served with a slice of olive oil braised potato, pickled red onions and a salsa verde. While the dish was delicious, one of us was less impressed than the other because of his near obsessive adoration of the many octopus dishes we devoured in Spain this summer. Now nothing seems to meet his high bar.

The Lamb & Egg was amazing! The kitchen’s “house made” lamb sausage is served with a pepperonata (caramelized peppers) and a crispy soft boiled egg, red endive and smoked olive oil poached enoki mushrooms. The creamy, soft-yolked eggs are briefly boiled then lightly battered and finally quickly deep-fried. The crisp, slightly bitter endive tempered the richness of the egg yolk and sausage. The mushrooms, while texturally perfect, were a bit flavorless and superfluous with everything else going on in the dish.

Lamb & Egg; Wood Grilled Octopus; Red Wheat Tagliarini Bolognese; Paprika Oil Marinated Grilled Skirt Steak

Bottega’s pasta menu is inspiring. We opted for the Red Wheat Tagliarini Bolognese. Thicker than spaghetti, the tagliarini was cooked as it should be – toothsome and well seasoned. It came smothered in a rich, meaty sugo of veal, pork and porcini mushroom scented with rosemary and enriched with parmigiano reggiano. We wanted to lick our plates clean once it was gone, but thought better of it. We still had the Paprika Oil Marinated Grilled Skirt Steak to eat, after all, and we didn’t want the rest of the dining room to suffer a couple of poorly mannered chow hounds. The steak arrived just as ordered, medium rare and tender, accompanied by Yukon Gold potato chips, salsa rossa and a pile of arugula.

We washed the meal down with a Trumer Pils and a flight of zinfandels served to represent the diversity of styles available in a wine that has its origins in Croatia. The Italian was light and unremarkable while the Chiarello produced California zinfandel was typical of the region with its big, chewy fruit. The Croatian wine was the star of the trio. We would have been happy with a bottle.

Service at Botegga was spot on – informed, efficient and friendly. Our meal was memorable and a fine beginning to a long weekend of grand dining.

Ad Hoc

Our second course.

Our Friday dining splurge didn’t stop with Bottega. After lunch, we did a little shopping before returning to the hotel for an evening wine tasting and a walk. We needed to keep moving to work up an appetite for our next big meal at Thomas Keller’s Ad Hoc, a decidedly casual destination that serves hearty, four course, prix fix meals that change nightly.

Our first course was a salad of baby mixed greens, toasted sunflower seeds, shaved shallots, pickled baby fennel and cauliflower, olives, anchovies and crispy capers, dressed in a red wine vinaigrette. The Snake River Farms Pork Loin gave us pause until it arrived. The savory, juicy pork was surprisingly delicious as were the accompanying black eyed peas, roasted baby beets, toasted farrow and braised chard. In spite of all we’d eaten up to the point of the pork loin, we wanted to lick the pan it was served in and we still had two courses to go.

Salad of Baby Mixed Greens; Ubriaco; Sanke River Farms Pork Loin; Tiramisu

Our third course, a wine washed raw cow’s milk cheese, was as rich as you might imagine made all the more so by the accompanying paladin toast and black trumpet mushrooms. We couldn’t eat it all. When the tiramisu arrived at the table, we nearly fell out of our seats. Desert was presented in a big soup bowl that was filled to the rim with mascarpone and house made ladyfingers. We were ready to cry uncle, but we dove in anyway. While tasty, it wasn’t amazing. The cookies were tough to cut through with a spoon. It’s a small complaint, and after all we’d eaten, it would have taken nothing less than perfect to get us to finish desert. We simply couldn’t this time.

A Domaine Dupeuble Pere et Fils Beaujolais Nouveau washed the meal down, aided by an end-of-meal espresso. Our hats off to the staff at Ad Hoc. Our server couldn’t have been more charming.

A Thanksgiving Dinner (without the cans)

Look Ma, no cans.

When writing about T-day feasts, food writers like us have a quandary; do we make a separate feast weeks before and pretend it’s our Thanksgiving Day meal or do we have our meal on the fourth Thursday of November and write about it a year later? We chose to do the latter. The dinner we write about here is from 2010. It was just the two of us and from our notes last year, we were on a processed food kick. Meaning, we wanted to kick processed food out of Thanksgiving all together, and everyday of the year. To our family members: we will be home for Christmas and will be respectful of your food choices. Our goal with our blog is to be happy and healthy, to share our recipes, and to foster a dialogue about all of our food choices – not to pass judgment. Enjoy our little tirade and try out some of our simple recipes at the bottom of the post. We’re sure you’ll enjoy them as much as we do.

Forget about the hormone injected turkey and the Stovetop stuffing. We don’t need the boxed mashed potatoes, canned green bean casserole with fried onion rings, or the gooey sweet potatoes topped with multi-colored marshmallows. And please do not serve another jell-o salad with canned diced pineapple and cottage cheese.  This is the same menu our families have been preparing every year for Thanksgiving since we were kids and even before. And we’re sure we’re not the only ones in America who had to eat the exact same menu every turkey day. It’s not that we don’t like these things when they’re made from scratch, but when the definition of scratch means opening up cans of one thing and dumping it into a casserole dish with a packet of this and another can of that – well, we find it just plain wrong. The food the pilgrims ate did not come from cans, packets, or boxes, so why do Americans believe that by eating this processed food we are honoring our American ancestral settlers?

We’re sure we’ve already offended over half the family for our blatant rant against this so-called food. Of course, if the choice is to either eat processed food on a visit with family or not go home for Thanksgiving, we’ll choose to visit with family and eat what is available without a disrespectful word , but why must these be our mutually exclusive choices? Why not choose to prepare items from their most natural state first before grabbing the can opener, or the box? Is it really that much harder to peel some potatoes, put them in a pot of boiling water until tender, drain them and then mash all together with butter, milk, salt & pepper? A box of instant mashed potatoes requires some measurement. Why not measure one or two more things and prepare something truly wonderful, something real?

We know that we are all busy this year (when aren’t we?) and times are tough all around. We want to save time to be with our families, but also save some money. This Thanksgiving, we propose that instead of going for the convenience of the box, we learn to think outside of it. For starters, let’s pledge to only shop the perimeter of the grocery store, leaving the middle lanes alone, and if possible just the vegetable section. When selecting a Turkey, think local, think fresh and think organic. When making the stuffing, try using bread from a real bakery – it makes for a fine first step.  Try sautéing some green beans in brown butter and serving both sweet potatoes and russet potatoes mashed separately. No need to add tons of brown sugar and a bag of mini marshmallow to make the sweet tubers edible. Nicely roasted sweet potatoes with a good dash of sea salt and a healthy dollop of sweet, unsalted butter need little more. And, let’s forget about the jell-o salad altogether. Why not try something bold like a nice radicchio and apple salad with warm apple cider vinaigrette, topped with a crumble of bleu cheese and a few pine nuts?

Yes, you can use canned pumpkin and we also used the recipe on the back of the can. The crust, however, was made from scratch and yes, it did burn.

Whatever your Thanksgiving menu will be, there’s one thing that even we agree should come out of a can. No, it’s not cranberries. It’s canned pumpkin. We’re all for picking up a sugar pumpkin and roasting it, but if you’ve already made everything else from scratch, give yourself a break. The pie crust, however, should not come from the freezer section of a supermarket. If you haven’t made a crust before, now is the best time to learn.

As for those cranberries, anyone who buys canned cranberry sauce and prefers it to fresh cranberries needs to learn a quick and easy recipe for home cooked sauce. It takes a whole five minutes to throw a bag of fresh cranberries into a pan with a little sugar, or honey, some cinnamon, a little citrus peel and some water. Crank up the heat until it bubbles, cook for 5 minutes and then let cool. That’s it!

Martha Stewart–the ultimate diva of all things domestic – and others – have videos and recipes galore for any training you may need. During the holidays your family members are going to appreciate the effort even more, so give “homemade” a try. Not only will you be amazed by how great everything tastes, you’ll also appreciate that the food you’re eating is healthier for you, and that should give you another reason to be thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving!
Steve and Jason

Why roast when braising keeps the breast moist?

Wine Braised Turkey Breast
Serves 8-10
From cookbook author John Phillip Carroll

Active cooking time: 30 minutes

Total cooking time: 3 hours

1 whole turkey breast, skin on (about 6 pounds)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 ribs celery, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, mashed
2 cups turkey or chicken stock
1 1/2 cups dry red wine
3 tablespoons softened butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup heavy cream

Season turkey with salt and pepper. Heat oil over moderate heat in a Dutch oven. Add turkey skin-side down and brown in hot oil, about 5-6 minutes. Remove turkey, leaving fat in pan.

Add the carrots, celery, onion and garlic to pan and cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until wilted. Add the stock and wine and bring to a boil. Return turkey to pan, cover and simmer over low heat for 1 1/2-2 hours, or until a meat thermometer registers 170° when inserted in the thickest part of the turkey. Turn the turkey 2 or 3 times during cooking, and make sure the liquid is just gently bubbling. Remove pan from heat and set aside about 20 minutes, with the cover askew (turkey should be skin side down in the cooking liquid).

Remove turkey to a platter and keep it warm. Strain the cooking liquid; you will have about 3 1/2 cups. Rapidly boil it down to about 2 1/2 cups to concentrate the flavor.

Meanwhile, melt the butter and blend with flour until smooth. Add to the reduced liquid, whisking constantly until blended, then add the cream and simmer for 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with the turkey.

Radicchio & Apple Salad with Prosciutto
4-6 Servings

Bitter greens (reds) never tasted so sweet.

2 small heads radicchio, torn into bite sized pieces
1 medium sweet apple, cored, quartered, and thinly sliced
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2-3 thin slices of Prosciutto
1-2 tablespoons blue cheese crumbled
Salt & pepper

In a large salad bowl, add the radicchio and apples. In a small sauté pan, add the olive oil and pine nuts. Toasted until lightly brown then pour into the salad bowl and toss the radicchio and apples with the heated oil and nuts. Drizzle the apple cider vinegar over the salad and toss a little more. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Divide the salad among the plates and add torn strips of prosciutto to each one. Top with crumbled bits of blue cheese and serve.

Roasted Sweet Potato Puree
4-6 Servings

Leave the marshmallows for the hot chocolate.

3-4 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed
1-2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
¼ cup milk
Salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prick the sweet potatoes multiple times with a fork. Place in the oven on a baking sheet for 45-60 or until a knife can easily be inserted into the center of the potatoes. Remove from oven and let sit until cool enough to handle.

Heat the milk and butter, or olive oil, in a small saucepan. Once the taters are cool, peel the skin using a small knife. Place the peeled sweet potatoes in a bowl and mash with a potato masher for a rough rustic consistency, or use a hand held beater for a smoother consistency. Slowly add the milk mixture until the potatoes are the texture you desire. You may not use all the milk. Add salt and pepper to taste. The potatoes can be made ahead and kept warm in a low temperature (200 degrees) oven until ready to serve.

Smashed Red Potatoes
4-6 Servings

Lumpy or smooth?

8-10 small organic red potatoes (or 4-5 large ones)
1 Bay leaf
½ cup whole Milk
2-3 tablespoons Butter
Salt & pepper

Scrub the potatoes and cut out any black eyes or green tint. Place them in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Add the bay leaf and a large pinch of salt to the water. Place on the stove and heat over medium high until they come to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for about 15-20 minutes, longer for larger potatoes, or until a knife can easily be inserted into the spuds. Drain the water off of the potatoes, discard the bay leaf and leave the potatoes in the pan, uncovered, for 5-10 minutes or until the pan and potatoes are dry.

Heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan until the butter is melted. Using the back of a wooden spoon, press each potato against the side of the pan and smash them. Once all the potatoes are smashed, stir in the milk mixture and continue to stir until you have the desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste. The potatoes can be made ahead and kept warm in a low temperature (200 degrees) oven until ready to serve.

Note: for richer Smashed Potatoes add a tablespoon, or two, of cream cheese when heating the milk mixture.

Sautéed Green Beans
4-6 Servings

Green beans from a can, never again.

½ pound Fresh Green Beans, washed and trimmed
2 tablespoons Butter or olive oil
1 small minced shallot
Salt & pepper
Optional: 1/4 cup chopped nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts, etc.)

Fill a large pot with water, add a large pinch of salt, and place on the stove over high heat until it boils. While the pot is coming to a boil, fill a large bowl with ice and water. When the water in the pot is boiling, add the green beans and boil for 2 minutes. Remove the beans from the water and immediately plunge them into the ice water to “shock” them and stop the cooking. They will retain their green color. At this point, you can set them aside, or refrigerate up to 1 day, to be finished just minutes before serving.

When ready to serve, in a large sauté pan, heat the butter or olive oil over medium high heat until the butter has melted and the foam has subsided or when the oil is glistening. Add the shallot and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the green beans and nuts, if using, sauté for 3-5 minutes tossing them to evenly cook. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

Cranberry Sauce
4-6 Servings

So simple even a child can make this (with supervision).

1 12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries
½ cup water
½ cup sugar or honey
Small pinch of salt

Optional: 1-2” citrus peel (lemon, lime or orange), small handful dried fruit (blueberries, cherries, and even cranberries), small handful toasted nuts (pecans, walnuts, pistachios, etc.)

In a medium saucepan add the cranberries, water, sugar or honey, and salt (if using citrus peel or dried fruit add them now) and place on the stove over medium high heat. Bring the cranberry mixture to a boil then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.  If using nuts add them to the cranberry sauce. Refrigerate until ready to use. Can be made 2-3 days ahead of time.

The Ultimate Grilled Cheese Redux

All the fixings for the ultimate grilled cheese.

Sometimes, what might seem like a brilliant blog idea can lose momentum and fade away if we don’t just sit down and write it. Looking through many photos of our cooking we’re amazed at how many missed opportunities have gotten away from us – great ideas unwritten and unpublished. So to make amends we’re finally getting around to writing and publishing a blog that we started several months ago. We figure since the guy that predicted the rapture was wrong–twice, we have time to prepare for the next BIG party.

Back in May, the day before the “first” rapture was supposed to happen, Jason was in our kitchen making a big batch of grilled cheese sandwiches for an Artist Opening at Zannah Noe‘s Velcrow Studio. Making the sandwiches took hours, and as the time went by Jason thought about the type of food one would serve at a rapture party. We’re Gleeks (we’ve seen all the Glee episodes multiple times) and it seemed obvious to Jason that Grilled Cheesus would not only be the ultimate rapture food, but it would coincide with the season finale of Glee–assuming we were all still here. Alas, the season ended, the world didn’t, summer rolled over us like a truck and here we are, approaching Halloween, and this darned grilled cheese post is just now seeing the light of day.

So now we’re in our kitchen prepping more sandwiches again, for Zannah Noe’s Open Studio on Saturday, October 29, TODAY! We will be at her studio with our panini maker, bread, and lots of cheese. The Ultimate Grilled Cheese is a Ruth Reichl recipe that we fell in love with after seeing it on the PBS holiday special, A Moveable Feast, which featured several cooking show hosts preparing their favorite holiday food. Ruth’s grilled cheese sandwiches are wonderful and adaptable to any, and all, cheese. The point is to experiment.

With All Hallows Eve only a couple days away, and the holidays fast approaching, if you need a quick and easy appetizer that everyone will love, try the ultimate grilled cheese sandwich. They are so good that if the rapture does happen these sandwiches will be your ticket to Heaven.

The Ultimate Grilled Cheese

1/3  pound Swiss cheese, shredded
1/3 pound Irish cheddar cheese, shredded
1/3 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons onion, finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
freshly ground pepper
6-8 slices No-Knead bread or good quality bread

Mix the shredded cheeses with the onion, shallot, garlic, and ground pepper. Place between two slices of bread using a panini maker to grill the sandwiches, or butter both sides of the sandwich and lightly grill in a skillet over medium low heat.

Food Day 2011

At (y)our food choices, we’ve had the sort of year that might lead folks to think we’re on perpetual holiday. We’ve traveled, we’ve celebrated (often) and we’ve eaten very, very well. The food choices we’ve made have been, on the whole, good ones. Whole, organic foods purchased from local producers, home baked breads and wild caught fish and game represent the bulk of our food consumption. We’ve purchased more cookbooks than we care to admit and we’ve worshipped at the alter of molecular gastronomy. Along the way, we’ve shared what we’re learning with others and we’ve joined people in their efforts to fight the good food fight.

But as we reflect on our glorious year in food, we are reminded that far too many people struggle with food insecurity, poor or no access to fresh food and the pressure and misinformation of a food industry hell bent on getting us to consume more and more of the processed stuff that fills our bodies with garbage. These are tough, lean times for a lot of our neighbors. According to the US Department of Agriculture, 49 million Americans didn’t have enough food in 2009 for an active, healthy life. Many of the most vulnerable are children living in poverty. That’s outrageous.

On Monday, October 24th, we join others around the country in observing Food Day, an important awareness campaign created by Center for Science in the Public Interest. According to the Food Day organizers:

Food Day seeks to bring together Americans from all walks of life—parents, teachers, and students; health professionals, community organizers, and local officials; chefs, school lunch providers, and eaters of all stripes—to push for healthy, affordable food produced in a sustainable, humane way.

Food Day’s goals are ambitious and noble. It’s hard to argue with a movement aimed at addressing our most pressing dietary and food safety challenges. Take a look:

1. Reduce diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy foods
2. Support sustainable farms & limit subsidies to big agribusiness
3. Expand access to food and alleviate hunger
4. Protect the environment & animals by reforming factory farms
5. Promote health by curbing junk-food marketing to kids
6. Support fair conditions for food and farm workers

With our collective awareness heightened, join us Monday and every day in a quest to find and prepare the most nutritious food possible for you and your families and to work to make clean, affordable, real food available to everyone.

Happy Food Day!

Le Dîner à San Francisco 2011

Spectacular!

Imagine one of those rare, warm, still, clear evenings on the Music Concourse, between the De Young Museum and the Academy of Sciences,in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. With beautiful museums flanking, a centerpiece of fountains and dozens of beautifully sculpted trees providing cover, the sunken Concourse is beautiful in the warm, autumn night. Now imagine a thousand white-clad, champagne-swilling, food-obsessed Bay Area revelers waiving white napkins, toasting friends and munching on thousands of different picnic nibbles in the waining, pink dusky light. Cafe music ushers in the darkness of night and thousands of candles (mostly flameless) dapple the scene with romantic low light as flying paper lanterns rise up over the crowd into the night sky. People dance or take a stroll, illuminated by ambient light. Throughout the evening, corks pop, glasses clink and picnickers laugh and eat.

A sea of white.

Is this heaven? Ah, no. This is Le Diner a San Francisco, the City’s first effort at reproducing the famous Parisian Le Diner en Blanc. A sort of by-invitation-only flash mob, with a little costume party thrown in along with a good bit of decorative arts and fashion fetish to make it all fun, this is an event that will undoubtedly be harder to score entry to in the years to come. Dressed in white linen and cotton, the crowd enjoyed a remarkably comfortable night out of doors. The pop-up picnic organizers did a great job.

Bien manger et de bons amis!

We owe a debt of gratitude to Kris Corzine for inviting us to join her and friend Val, and for supplying much of the setup, including the flowers and table linens, a delicious Aperitif Ratafia plum liquor from the Perigord, foie de canard from the Dordogne (bought and brought from La Boutique de Badaud in Sarlat, France) and lentil salad a la KC. We supplied the crudité, anchovy-stuffed olives from Spain, charcuterie from Boccalone and a “tilted” four layer coconut rum cake. We all brought bottles of bubbly and still white wine to wash it all down.

A semi white array of crudite and more.

After three short hours of feasting, the party ends and everyone gathers up their stuff, leaving no trace and ghostly white parties slip into the dark of the park as they make their way home. It may not have been an evening picnic in heaven, but this year’s Le Diner a San Francisco was a smashing, heavenly success!

Coconut Rum Cake

Prepare the coconut rum pastry cream the night before. If you try to throw the whole thing together in a day, and you’re pressed for time, you’ll end up with a “tilted” cake, or worse. The cake and frosting recipes are from Martha Stewart (with minor adjustments) and the pastry cream is Jason’s, inspired by a combination of Martha’s and Ayse Dizioglu of Polka Dot Cake Studio in N.Y.C. via I like you, by Amy Sedaris (a must for entertaining).

"Tilting" Coconut Rum Cake

Layer Cake Recipe

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans
2 cups sifted cake flour, not self-rising, plus more for pans
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup superfine sugar
4 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
2/3 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon pure coconut extract
1 tablespoon dark rum
1 cup unsweetened coconut
Coconut cream filling
7 ounces (about 2 cups) sweetened angel-flake coconut
Seven Minute Frosting

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Arrange two racks in the center of the oven. Line the bottom of three 6-by-2-inch (or two 8-by-2-inch) buttered round cake pans with parchment paper. Dust the bottom and the sides of the cake pans with flour, and tap out any excess. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and set the bowl aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium-low speed until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually add sugar, and keep beating until the mixture is fluffy and light in color, about 3 minutes. Gradually drizzle in egg yolks, beating on medium-low speed between each addition until the batter is no longer slick. Beat until the mixture is fluffy again, about another 3 minutes.

Alternate adding flour mixture and sour cream to the batter, a little of each at a time, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Beat in vanilla. Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes, rotating the pans in the oven, if needed, for even browning. Transfer cake pans to wire racks to cool, about 15 minutes. Remove cakes from pans, and let cool completely on racks, tops up.

In a small saute pan over medium heat add the unsweetened coconut and toast until lightly browned 4-5 minutes. Toss and stir the coconut to avoid burning.

To assemble, remove parchment paper from the bottoms of cakes. Split each layer in half horizontally with a serrated knife. Set aside the prettiest dome; it will be used for the final layer. Place another domed layer, dome side down, on the serving platter. Sprinkle 2 to 3 tablespoons of toasted coconut over the cake. Spread a generous 1/2 cup coconut-rum pastry cream over coconut flakes. Repeat sprinkling and spreading process on the remaining layers until all but the reserved domed layer are used. Top cake with the reserved domed layer. Transfer cake to the refrigerator to firm for 1 hour. Remove from the refrigerator, and frost the outside of cake with seven-minute frosting. Sprinkle remaining coconut flakes all over cake while frosting is soft; do not refrigerate. Cake can be left out at room temperature for several days.

Coconut Rum Pastry Cream

6 large egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups milk
1 can full fat coconut milk
1 tsp coconut extract
1 tablespoon dark rum

Place egg yolks in a large bowl; whisk to combine; set bowl aside.

Combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a saucepan. Gradually whisk in milk. Cook, stirring, over medium heat until mixture thickens and comes to a boil, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat.

Whisk 1/2 cup hot milk mixture into the reserved egg yolks to temper. Slowly pour warm yolks into the saucepan, stirring constantly. Cook slowly, stirring, over medium-low heat, until mixture begins to bubble, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut extract and rum.

Transfer filling to a medium mixing bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic against the pastry cream to prevent a film. Chill until firm, overnight, or at least 8 hours.

Seven Minute Frosting Recipe

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
3 large egg whites, room temperature

In a small, heavy saucepan, combine 3/4 cup sugar, corn syrup, and 2 tablespoons water. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar has dissolved. Rub a bit between your fingers to make sure there is no graininess. Raise heat to bring to a boil. Do not stir anymore. Boil, washing down sides of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water from time to time to prevent the sugar from crystallizing, until a candy thermometer registers 230 degrees about 5 minutes. (Depending on the humidity, this can take anywhere from 4 to 10 minutes.)

Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk egg whites on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 2 1/2 minutes. Gradually add remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Remove the syrup from the heat when the temperature reaches 230 degrees (it will keep rising as pan is removed from heat). Pour the syrup in a steady stream down the side of the bowl (to avoid splattering) containing the egg-white mixture, with the mixer on medium-low speed.

Beat frosting on medium speed until cool, 5 to 10 minutes. The frosting should be thick and shiny. Use immediately.

Ferran Adria in Conversation

“If you think well, you’ll cook well.” Ferran Adria

The Bay Area’s food obsessed turned out in droves for last night’s sold-out Ferran Adria event at the Castro Theater. Chef Adria, founder of Spain’s El Bulli and recognized the world over as one of the most, if not THE most, important figure in the culinary world today, charmed the audience of 1,400 rapt enthusiasts as he moved from philosophical quip to video clip all in an effort to set the record straight on creativity and cuisine.

Perhaps the most remarkable thing to come out of Mr. Adria’s presentation was his insistence that he “know[s] nothing about cuisine.” So it comes as little surprise that in the chef’s ethical construct, cooks “have to be humble!” The new book, The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adria, while hardly humble, reminds us that creative genius in the kitchen relies heavily on a solid foundation of traditional cooking. Beautifully laid out and organized into three course menus, the photo-intensive work guides the home cook through hundreds of recipes and techniques using tools we’ve all come to recognize as equipment staples. There is no liquid nitrogen or agar agar, no cotton candy or frozen olive oil lollipops here. The recipes in this latest work inspire rather than strike fear in the hearts of the timid home cook. It is a fitting segue to the next iteration of El Bulli and its public mission to educate. We can’t wait to dive in!

A big shout-out to Omnivore Books for hosting and organizing this terrific event and to the folks at Phaidon for supporting the effort. We were inspired!

Squid and Paella Challenge

A new favorite dish!

We ate paella multiple times while in Spain, but our favorite pan was the very first one we tried at El Rall in Valencia. The restaurant sits in an old Medieval neighborhood square with several cafe tables in the center. The restaurant has two locations adjacent to one another. Beside having the best paella in Spain, and maybe the world, it also serves fantastic Iberico ham.

Our second encounter with paella was a nice reminder of how paella was intended to be eaten, with large groups. While in Barcelona, we come across a Spanish cooking class called Travel Bound that is geared towards the young backpackers traveling through Europe. This trip was a little like a backpacking adventure for us, except we could afford first class accommodations on the AVE (a minor splurge but worth the price) and didn’t need to stay in hostels, although our room in Barcelona was a small step up from one.

All great meals are shared!

The Australian girls we dined with were great company. Their youthful ambitions of traveling throughout Europe and living in London was refreshing to hear. It just reminded us of how short and potentially wonderful life really is. We wish our Aussie friends all the best on the remainder of their big adventures!

We didn’t know what to expect with our squid purchase. We’ve never cooked it before but decided we needed to try. The bag of squid at the market was more than we needed so we decided to forgo the rest of the seafood and “bunny” meat you might find in traditional paella recipes. We have enough experience with this classic dish to know there are very few rules when it comes to what “should” be added to the paella. We bet there are as many paella recipes out there as their are Spanish households cooking them.

Once you have the basics, add whatever inspires you!

This recipe is a combination of the Simple Paella recipe from 1080 Recipes by Simone and Ines Ortega and Las recetas de Garcima, a flyer included with the paella pan we purchased in Valencia, Spain. Our recipe takes traditional Valencian Bomba rice and saffron, along with what we had on hand and what we could purchase from our local farmer’s market. Just remember, if you can’t find all the ingredients for a dish, improvise. We hope you enjoy our first version of paella.

Our very first Paella San Francisco!

Squid Paella

olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 small – medium firm tomatoes, chopped (or 1/2 can of 14 ounces tomatoes without juice)
1 bell pepper, chopped (any color)
1/2 pound fresh green beans trimmed and cut into inch long segment
1 pound fresh squid, cleaned and cut (about.com has a great cleaning tutorial)*
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 garlic cloves
1 sprig fresh parsley
large pinch saffron threads
1 1/4 cup Bomba rice (or other short grain rice)
1/3 cup frozen peas

Clean the squid and place on ice in the fridge.
In a paella pan or large sauté pan, over medium high heat, add 2 tablespoons olive oil until glistening. Add the onion and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the tomatoes and allow to cook for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add to a blender with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Blend together until smooth. Set aside.

Return the pan to the stove top over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil until glistening then add the bell pepper and green beans. Sauté the vegetables for 3-5 minutes until slightly wilted. Add the squid and paprika. Cook about 5 more minutes or until starting to dry out.

In the meantime, place the garlic, saffron, parsley, and a pinch of salt in a mortar and pound together, or use a mini prep food processor.

Add the rice to the sauté pan and stir for a couple of minutes, making sure the rice does not stick to the pan. Add enough hot water to the tomato and onion mixture to fill 3 cups, taste and season with salt. Add to the rice and stir. Add the garlic saffron mixture and gently stir. Cook on the stove top over medium heat for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the peas over the top then transfer to the oven for 10-15 minutes more.

Once the paella is out of the oven there are two options. For a crispy bottom, allow the paella dish to rest for 5 minutes before serving. If you would like the bottom to be easier to release and the rice softer, allow the paella to rest on a wet towel for 5 minutes before serving.

Paella and Valencia – Hot!

A few of our favorite pictures of Valencia

Our first stop in Spain took us to Valencia, Spain’s third largest city. Few of the people we surveyed in preparation for our trip had much to say about Valencia. Friends who have traveled to Spain focus their adoration on either of Spain’s two urban hubs – Madrid and Barcelona. Too bad! We loved our time in Valencia and would recommend it to anyone planning to spend time along Spain’s Mediterranean coast.

The biggest food market in Spain. So much food, so little time.

The cab ride from the train station to the hotel was quick. We checked in, unloaded our things and headed out to grab a bite to eat in the Placa de la Reina. First stop, the pintxos bar La Taberna de la Reina on the square where we found all kinds of delicious bites of meat, fish and cheese atop slices of baguette. These ubiquitous morsels can be found all over Spain, and while the main event was yet to come in San Sebastian, we thought it worth a visit to get a sense of how it works before we find ourselves in the serious pintxos bars later in our journey (more on pintxos to come).

An array of tapas.

Feeling sated, we wandered the ancient narrow streets in Valencia’s old city center around the cathedral where we found innumerable cafes, tourist trinkets, and massive colorful graffiti-covered stone walls. All that walking worked up an appetite so we scouted about to find our next bite and happened upon Boatella Tapas, a tapas bar and cerveceria across the street from the Mercado Central, Valencia’s fresh food hub and one of the largest food markets in Europe. The tiny corner bar has a small counter and seating area indoors and a few tables set out on the sidewalk. Atop the bar inside is an array of platters with piles of various fish, some fried, some roasted, all incredibly fresh and delicious. Our eyes were bigger than our stomachs and Steve’s Spanish language skills were just good enough to get the servers attention but not quite good enough to explain that we simply wanted a mixed plate of various items from the bar. The “medium” plate of food he thought he was ordering ended up being several medium sized plates of each of the things he pointed at on the bar. We had a big plate of fried whole small fish, a plate of grilled squid salad, a plate of fried shrimp in their shells, a full plate of padron peppers and a nice big plate of chicharones. There was no way we were going to eat it all!

Valencia has the best paella in Spain.

Paella is a Valencian specialty. The rice most commonly used for paella, Bomba rice, grows in rice paddies near Valencia and the sea provides all the delicious squid, muscles and langoustines needed for a traditional pan of saffron scented rice. We had the best paella of our visit at Restaurant El Rall, a great little place tucked away in one of Valencia’s many medieval squares. While we waited for our paella for two, we noshed on a favorite Spanish blood sausage that had been topped with a dollop of pureed ham and cheese then toasted under the broiler. They were delicious. The paella was exquisite and we were careful to delicately scrape our servings from the top, avoiding disturbing the bottom of the pan so that the rice could continue to cook and ultimately crisp up. That crunchy, brown rice at the end is the best part of the paella. Ours was perfect!

The best tapas in Valencia. It was worth the bike ride to find this place.

Perhaps our most memorable meal in Valencia, lunch at Bodega Montana, was satisfying in every way. The bodega has a great atmosphere with its marble bar and several barrels lining the walls from which wine and sherry is dispensed. We stuffed ourselves with an assortment of perfectly executed tapas. Standouts included the marinated tuna, the anchovy stuffed green olives, the bacalao (salted cod) potato puree and the fried stuffed red peppers. But that wasn’t enough. We also snacked on slices of Manchego cheese and thin slices of Iberico ham – perhaps the best we’ve ever tasted. As with many of our meals in Spain, we washed it all down with glasses of rosé and beer.

Hot chocolate and churros. A must try when in Spain.

We took a break from traditional Spanish food on our last night in Valencia, settling instead for Italian at La Papardella, just a couple of blocks off the placa near the cathedral. But this was not our last meal in Valencia. Before cabbing to the train station on departure day, we got up at 6 a.m. and headed over to the L’Orxateria next to the main entrance of the Mercat for churros and chocolate. The outdoor temperature at that hour was just cool enough to make this decadent breakfast of fried pastry and thick hot chocolate the perfect sendoff.

Next stop: Barcelona!

¡El Splato!

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes!

Our desire to travel to Spain was born out of a desire to be a part of La Tomatina in Buñol, a small town about an hour outside Valencia; a bucket list item that we just had to be a part of, even though we were twenty years older than most of the participants. We’ve seen images of this event for years and each time we do, we swear we’re going to make the trip. Now we can gratefully cross the item off our list.

Tomatoes--good for eating and for throwing.

If you’ve ever been in a mosh pit (mosh pit:  for the AARP crowd, it’s a large crowd of hooligans at a punk concert that slam, push and bounce around) imagine being in the craziest one ever with 45,000 people who’ve come from all over the world to be packed into the narrow streets of Buñol for four hours or more–that’s La Tomatina. For hours we stood (if you can call it that) in the middle of a narrow street leading to the village square while being pushed from side to side as waves of bodies moved with a pulsing motion forward, back and from side to side. As more and more people pushed their way to the front of the throng, the crowd grew more and more dense until it was impossible to find a spot where you were not crushed against bodies. One wrong step and a fall and it could be the end. Luckily, neither one of us suffered any injuries. And, this was all happening before the beginning of the tomato fight.

45,000 people packed like sardines, waiting for the fiesta to begin!

We ended up next to a gang of thugs ripping off t-shirts from unsuspecting men trying to push by. And once the t-shirts were ripped from the men the shirts were tied in knots and thrown around the crowd.By the way, none of the men harassed any of the women and most of the young men were even protective of the women in the crowd. We eventually decided to just take our shirts off instead of having them torn off our bodies.

Hot messes!

As more and more people jammed closer to the square, the temperatures soared. All of those bodies produce a lot of heat and when you combine that with a hot, cloudless day in Spain in August, well  you can imagine the crowd’s growing discomfort.  We did get the occasional relief from the stench and sweat whenever the locals threw buckets of water and sprayed hoses from their balconies or rooftops down onto the crowd. This only made the knotted shirts that much harder as they grew saturated from the water accumulating at our feet. By the way, it’s no fun to get hit in the head with one of those. And someone had the nerve to bring a hollowed watermelon as a warmup. Another thing that hurts like a mother f#$%er when it hits you in the head.

Here come the tomatoes!

The actual tomato fight doesn’t officially start until some crazy young man climbs to the top of a greased poll and captures the jamon. And once he does, he’s then hand passed overhead through the crowd along with the jamon, as a type of hero, until he reaches the end of the crowd. Once he reaches the end, a huge cannon blast signifies the start of the tomato fight and all hell breaks loose! If the sardine packed crowds weren’t enough, the crowd gets pushed out of the square as huge trucks drive through the small street with huge rugby player-types (the forwards, not the backs) walking in front as they push everyone who is not on the narrow sidewalk out of harms way of the truck. Of course as they do this everyone is being smashed up against one another and the wall. Riding on the trucks are more rugby players throwing tomatoes (think of the hard Roma variety) into and at the crowd and that’s when the fun begins.

Watch those tomato seeds (and the wet knotted shirts).

We were pushed down a side street by the first truck and as each truck passed by we were pushed further and further down the street until the second blast signaled the end of the tomato fight. By that time we were standing in a river of red as water and tomato filled the streets. Once the trucks pass and the streets run red everyone who has not had enough will body surf down the streets and throw handfuls of red mucky whatever at who ever is around. (This is the part that most people see in images). After all those hours of being in the mosh pit from hell with smells of sweat, tomatoes, sewer (Buñol at the end of summer smells just as bad as any major city in the summer) and god only knows what else, we had had all we could take as we gagged our way out of the crowd. Our forty year old bodies had given up. We threw a few tomatoes and had a great time but we weren’t covered in red like many of the participants.

Will they ever be clean again?

At the beginning, just as we exited El Arbol’s bus and as we walked down to the city center, we thought that this might be an annual pilgrimage, but as we ascended back to our bus after the tomato fight neither one of us wanted to return to the event again. At dinner that night, it took all the muster we had left to gag down a few cherry tomatoes. Maybe our next bucket list item needs to be something more age appropriate and serene, like yoga in Bali.

Salsa-touille

Bright beautiful vegetables! ...and Steve can't spell.

In less than a week we will be enjoying the sun, food, wine, culture, and everything else Spain has to offer. It will be our first visit to Spain and our second trip to Europe and we can’t wait. It has been an extremely foggy summer in San Francisco’s Sunset District and we are in dire need of some rays. Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, and San Sebastian spread over 15 days. In preparation, Jason has been taking a beginning immersion Spanish class at Casa Hispana. Though his Spanish language skills are in their developmental stage, he’ll be doing a much better job with communicating than he did on last year’s trip to Paris. His French speaking skills were so pathetic that even the baristas at Starbucks couldn’t understand his simple request for coffee. Cafe con leche is our typical morning brew so we’ll at least get started on the right foot when we land in Madrid.

Susan and Jason at the Ferry Building's Farmers Market on Saturday morning. Thanks for all the help, Susan.

For the last ten years or so, Jason has been making a ratatouille (French) or pisto (Spanish), which is basically a summer veggie stew, that seems to get better and better with each batch. Neither one of us is a big fan of zucchini, summer squash, or eggplant, but when they are roasted and then stewed with onions, tomatoes, roasted peppers, garlic, thyme and lots and lots of olive oil it becomes the best thing in the world to eat. This year, with thoughts of Spain ever on our mind, an idea was hatched to combine the best that pisto has to offer with the spiciness of Mexican salsa.

As far as we know, there is not a salsa or other dish that combines all the vegetables mentioned above with the spicy peppers of Mexico. We imagine it must be because of a feud centuries ago that forbade adding squash or zucchini to salsa. We’re probably completely wrong, but since we’re gringos who are essentially biologically mutts we figure we can add just about anything to our salsa without upsetting any familial laws.

We describe it as Old World meets New World salsa or, in this particular case, a salsa-touille. We hope you try our recipe and let us know what you think.

Salsa-touille Recipe

1 small to medium globe or Italian eggplant, cut into 1/2” thick “steaks”
1 lb summer squash or zucchini, cut into 1/4” planks
1/2 lb red onions, cut into quarters or eighths depending on the size of the onion(s)
2 1/2 lbs firm tomatoes, roasted, skin on (dry farmed preferred)
1 head of garlic, roasted, skin on
1 jalapeños, with or without seeds, or more if you like it spicy
1 red bell peppers
1 small pepper from a can of Chipotle peppers in adobo
sea salt to taste
3 tbsp lime juice

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper. Place eggplant, squash, onions, tomatoes, and garlic on the two baking sheets. Roast in the oven for about 20 minutes, rotate and roast for another 10-20 minutes or until slightly -medium toasted. At the 20 minute mark the garlic may be toasted enough to come out of the oven. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

If you have a gas-burning stove you can roast the jalapeños and bell peppers on the stovetop over the open flames of the burners. If you cook with an electric stove, roast the peppers under the broiler, turning regularly until completely charred. Once the peppers are charred, wrap them in one or two paper towels and cover the wrapped peppers with a bowl for 5-10 minutes. Take off the bowl and gently wipe off the charred skins . Do not rinse under water. It’s OK, if there is a little charred skin left on the peppers. Cut off the tops of the peppers and discard the seeds and ribs for a more mild salsa. Include the seeds and ribs for one with more heat.

Once all the vegetables are cool, rough chop or tear apart with your hands and add them to a food processor with the chipotle pepper. Pulse 3 – 4 times then add salt and lime (or vinegar). Process for approximately 10-20 seconds or until an even , slightly chunky consistency is achieved.

Veggie Burgers

All the flavor without the guilt.

To paraphrase the 80’s  hit, “Turning Japanese,” I think we’re turning vegetarian. Yes, we do eat meat and fish, but for the last few weeks, ever since our first juice fast, we have eaten so little meat, fish, and dairy, that multiple days have gone by without any animal products showing up in our meals, and without either one of us conscience of our eating habits until days later. It’s been such an unusual change in our dietary habits that we’ve even started eating at vegan restaurants and, gasp, liking it!

In the midst of all that juicing and fasting, our thoughts drifted to daydreams of big juicy burgers. A trip to [your favorite burger shop] was tempting but we knew that if we were to succumb to the temptation we’d regret it.

Now, veggie burgers are not the sort of thing that either one of us likes to eat – usually – but after purchasing a big container of crimini mushrooms, Jason’s thoughts turned to creating the meatiest, meatless burger he could muster. Using a basic veggie burger recipe from a Vegetarian Times he swiped from the laundromat as a template, an idea began to take shape. The burger that was created has a similar taste and texture to ground beef but without the meat. Mushrooms, miso, and soy sauce gives the burgers the umami that many veggie burgers lack.

For those of you who are die hard carnivores, and aren’t willing to exchange a veggie based patty with your beloved beef, nothing we say is going to make you want to try our burgers. But if you’re willing to try something different, or if you’re looking for a hearty but easier to digest fast breaker, we suggest you break one of these burgers. It will help you ease back into the meat world and you won’t feel guilty for breaking your fast with that greasy cheese burger.

From beans to burger.

Black Bean, Mushroom & Quinoa Burgers

½ cup quinoa
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 ounces Crimini mushrooms
2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup Miso
1-2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 cup cooked black beans (1 15 ounce canned rinsed and drained)
Salt & pepper

Rinse quinoa in several changes of water. In a small saucepan, add rinsed quinoa with 1 ¼ cups water with 1/8 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 20 minutes (all the liquid should be absorbed when the quinoa is fully cooked). You should have about 1 ½ cups cooked quinoa.

Peel and rough chop the onion and add it to a food processor. Clean the mushrooms and add them to the food processor. Pulse the processor 5-10 times or until the onion and mushroom mixture comes to a small rough consistency.

Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the mushroom onion mixture and a pinch of salt, to draw out the moisture in the vegetables, and sauté until the mushrooms and onions are dry, 5-10 minutes. Add the soy sauce and miso and mix together. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

In the food processor, add the black beans, quinoa, and mushroom mixture. Pulse about 10-15 times or until thoroughly mixed together. Taste and season with salt and pepper or more soy sauce to taste.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. With about ½-3/4 cup of the bean mixture, form the patties. You should get about 8. Place the patties on a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the patties are crisp on top, then flip the burgers. Bake for 10-15 minutes more, or until the other side is also crisp.

Serve on top of a bun with all the usual “burger” condiments or on a bed of lettuce with a crumble of goat or feta cheese.

Note: The bean patties can be frozen after shaping. Add 10-15 minutes to the baking time for frozen patties.

Padrón Peppers

These peppers are like crack. There is no way you can eat just one!

We just love discovering new foods. The greatest thing to hit our local farmers markets this summer, or at least that’s new to us, is the Padrón pepper. Steve first tasted them at Bocadillos where they were served pintxos-style, cooked whole in a little olive oil until the skins blistered then lightly salted. He was hooked from the first bite.

Padróns have a unique flavor marked by an unusual meatiness and just a hint of bitter. They (usually) pack no heat in the tiny seed cluster that nestles next to the stem. But every once in a while, you get a hot one that reminds you that you’re eating peppers. The heat dissipates quickly. It’s spicy like cinnamon, not like a hot chili pepper, so there’s no risk that the capsaicin sensitive will be bowled over by these delicious nibbles.

The dark green peppers are picked when bite-sized making them a perfect finger food. And like other salty finger foods, they’re hard to push away from after only a couple of bites. We’ve eaten entire pints in a single sitting. But unlike potato chips or roasted nuts, we just can’t feel guilty about feasting on them.

These Spanish delicacies are, in fact, a New World food that made its way back to Europe a few hundred years ago. Popularized by Jose Andres, and other Spanish chefs, the pepper variety is enjoying its 15 minutes of fame and as such is now readily available throughout the summer at a growing number of farmers markets across the country.

Peter Piper may have picked a peck of pickled peppers, but we sautéed the Padrón peppers with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Which is much easier to say and do.

Even though we are late to this pepper’s fan parade, we want to give a big shout out to them for anyone who will listen. Now go out and find some Padrón peppers and give them a try!

Delicioso!

Padrón Peppers

1 pint Padrón peppers

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 good pinch of course sea salt

Wash peppers under running cold water until well rinsed, drain. Heat olive oil in sauté pan until just shimmering. Add peppers and cook on medium high heat, turning frequently, until skins blister on all sides. Remove from heat, drain on paper towels and plate, sprinkling with the sea salt. Eat warm or at room temperature.

Green Things & Popcorn

Crispy, crunchy Green Things.

If you need a quick, healthy, and delicious snack that will satisfy the pickiest eaters in your household, it’s time to try green things. You’re probably thinking: what are green things? We’re referring to leafy green vegetables, like kale and collard greens, slowly dehydrated in the oven with a little olive oil and salt. These crunchy veggies offer a fun way to eat your greens. If you haven’t had leafy green chips before, this is a must try. The leaves dry out in the oven and become brittle and crunchy instead of chewy and tough. With the addition of a little salt and smoky paprika, the flavors deepen, tasting like the delicate leaves have been slow roasted.

In addition to our oven toasted “chips,” we’ve recently rediscovered an all-time favorite American snack-food: popcorn. In spite of all the kernels that have been popped over the years, it’s one of those snacks that we haven’t embraced, until now. The air popcorn maker we own is a super cheap one that we bought for the purpose of popping corn that we then used as packing material (just another one of our dirty hippie tricks). Cheap works for popcorn poppers, and if you prefer to pop in oil, a pan and a little oil on the stovetop works well and costs pennies.

In the last couple of months, we have pulled out the air popper and started trying out a variety of flavors and spices on our popcorn. A little olive oil, salt and pepper is delicious. Add a bit of freshly grated Parmigiano cheese, even better. We’ve even had the occasional sweet tooth that requires something a bit more decadent than salt. Jason recently made a nice maple crunch popcorn that we couldn’t stop eating. Our favorite flavor, so far, comes as a result of an experiment with the green things described above, crumbled and added to a bowl of fresh popcorn. The result is a wonderful, complexly flavored crunchy snack that is packed with nutrients.

Green Thing Chips

Bunch of Kale, Collard, Chard (or any other leafy vegetable)
Drizzle of olive oil
Sprinkle of smoked paprika
Salt

Preheat oven to 250 – 275 degrees. Wash the greens and remove the stem. Spin the greens dry in a lettuce spinner. Lay the greens out on a baking sheet, or two, trying not to overlap the greens. Drizzle a little olive oil over the greens and toss with your hands. Sprinkle salt and paprika and bake for about 12-15 minutes, checking and rotating the pans every 5 minutes. Pull out of the oven and eat as chips or toss the chips in a bowl with air popped popcorn.

Go Yogurt!

More fun than a science experiment.

Whenever we travel back to visit our parents (Jason’s parents live in Utah and Steve’s are in Idaho) we end up at the grocery store in the dairy section looking for yogurt. With all the chips, dips, meats, sweets, and other bad-for-you foods that our parents serve us, our bodies get out of whack and in desperate need of repair. Yogurt, with its restorative probiotic cultures, seems to be just what the doctor ordered. But the problem we face is that the yogurt we find at the grocery stores outside our fair city is always crap. Sugary sweet concoctions with high fructose corn syrup as a main ingredient and low-fat or non-fat milk seem to be the only options available. It’s a tremor to the head, as Steve’s grandmother would say, that with all the obese people walking through the aisles with bags of processed “food” that they continue to think of yogurt as a diet food and something that needs to be free of fat to be good for you. And since there’s little or no fat to nourish and to satisfy hunger, manufacturers add lots of sugar to make the mess palatable. Why not just eat a little whole milk yogurt with fresh fruit or a nice drizzle of honey?

Plain, not boring. Homemade yogurt is rich and tangy.

Back in San Francisco we don’t have problems finding real yogurt. In fact, we have aisles of choices that may include the fat free and low fat options, but there are also real, organic whole milk yogurts, including increasingly popular creamy Greek yogurts, that are much tastier and keep the belly fuller longer. The problem with the “diet” versions is their lack of hunger busting fat. Those low cal tubs of sugar or artificial sweetener and non-fat milk  just don’t keep people full. And with all the processes  the sugary ones go through, there’s really no nutritional value left in the most important ingredient – whole milk.

Yogurt is natural. Its probiotic cultures help to repair the digestive system after we put it through the stresses of over eating crap and drinking too much booze, coffee and sugary soda. It helps to keep us “regular” and it’s easy to make. There is no substitute for organic whole milk in yogurt. We’ll revisit the whole v. low fat or skim milk argument in other posts, but believe us when we tell you that we do ourselves no health favors by cutting fat out of our yogurt, kefir or milk.

With fruit and nuts.

We started making our own yogurt about five years ago. It started with the purchase of a yogurt maker that had small glass jars and a warming bottom and cover. We made it a few times but found the machine to be just another cumbersome appliance that we just had to have. Like other specialty gadgets, the yogurt maker would be used a few times and then put into storage – out of sight and out of mind. We went back to purchasing yogurt in little plastic containers, but with our desire to go plastic-free a few years ago, we wanted to find an alternative. With a few web searches Jason found the perfect technique. Did you know you could make your own yogurt in your oven when it isn’t in use? It tastes better than anything you can purchase in the store and it takes no time to put together. Not all ovens will work, but if you have a thermometer in the oven and it’s registering something around 110 degrees when the oven is off, you’re set. The recipe is simple and easy. Give it a try, and if it doesn’t work do a web search for other methods. There are some interesting slow cooker recipes that look like they’re worth a try.

With multigrain pancakes and berries.

Yogurt

3 ½ cups whole milk
½ cup of whole milk yogurt

Using a candy thermometer and a medium pan, slowly heat the milk to 180 degrees. Prepare an ice bath by putting ice cubes and water in a large bowl, place the pan of heated milk on top of the ice and let sit until the temperature of the milk drops to around 110 degrees. Add the ½ cup of yogurt to the milk and whisk together. Place in a sterilized quart sized mason jar and place in the oven, turned off, for 12-18 hours. Remove from the oven and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before consuming.

When eating, top with your favorite fresh fruit, granola, or even a drizzle of honey.
Don’t forget to keep at least a ½ cup for the next batch of yogurt.

Cardoon Gratin

A bushel of cardoon at the farmers market.

We ventured out to the Ferry Building Farmers Market last month with visiting parents in tow to grab breakfast and browse the stands in search of something interesting to serve with brined pork, from our 4505 butchering class. We grabbed some asparagus from Zuckerman’s Farms (dad’s favorite spring veggie) and what has to be a too early to be real “heirloom” tomato (we’re suckers for a big, meaty tomato).

As we strolled through the stands, we saw a bucket brimming with big, wild-looking stalks of cardoon, a vegetable we’d seen at the market and on menus over the years but had never tried cooking at home. This Mediterranean thistle, and relative of the artichoke, was domesticated eons ago. It shows up in dishes throughout Mediterranean Europe, usually braised, often added to soups, sometimes deep fried. Enzymes in cardoon stamens provide a vegetable source of rennet used in cheese making in Portugal and Spain.

Cardoon’s flavor is subtle like artichoke-as you might expect. On its own, it isn’t terribly interesting. The vegetable provides a nice textural backdrop to some of our favorite flavors and textures – cheese, butter, cream, mayonnaise, garlic – but pungent herbs like rosemary, thyme and oregano would likely overwhelm its delicate flavor.

Cardoon stalk.

After scouring the web and our cookbooks for inspiration, I settled on a gratin of cardoon. A gratin is a simple, efficient choice for any number of veggies and, in this case, a good use of leftover sauce béchamel sitting in our fridge.  I made due with a single stalk, but more would have been better. After removing the leaves and most of the largest stringy fibers from the outside of the stalk, I cut it into two-inch lengths and blanched the pieces in salted boiling water for about 10 minutes.

I could have sautéed them in butter or olive oil with a little garlic and red pepper flakes, but I wanted something richer. I set the pieces in a single layer on the bottom of a small baking dish then spooned the béchamel over the cardoons, sprinkled the sauce with a good helping of micro grated Grana Padano and freshly ground black pepper and then popped it into the toaster oven for about 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

The dish emerged with a beautiful golden brown crust. The cardoon pieces retained their texture and though they were perfectly tender on the fork, they were still pleasantly crunchy and toothsome. We may or may not look for them the next time we’re in the market, but we’re happy we finally gave this new old veggie a try. Next, soup!

Eating veggies are easy with creamy, cheesy goodness.