Bribe Me with a Muffin

steel cut oatmeal on a cloudy autumn day

2010-11-08T22:04:00.000-08:00

STEEL CUT OATMEAL TOPPED WITH PERSIMMON & WALNUTS

We all need more foods like steel cut oatmeal, food that is at its best when autumn has woken you up with its coldest, cloudiest day.

I can take little credit for the delicious bowl pictured above; cowboy made breakfast happen on Saturday. These steel cut oats were toasted and then slow-cooked on the stove top. Each spoonful was creamy with chewy kernels that popped in your mouth, in a way that rolled oats could simply never hope to do. On top: locally grown California persimmons (they are back in season!), toasted walnuts, and a generous sprinkle of brown sugar and cinnamon.

STEEL CUT OATMEAL
Adapted from Chowhound
Makes 4 servings

1 cup steel cut oats
4 cups boiling water
1 1/2 cups heated 2% milk (we used soy, which also works well)
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch salt

Toast the steel cut oats in a skillet over medium heat until they are golden and have a nutty aroma. Bring water to a boil. Add the toasted oats and return to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and allow to cook uncovered, stirring periodically, for twenty minutes. Add the hot milk, return to a slow boil and then reduce to a simmer for another five to seven minutes, stirring about every minute or so while the oats thicken. Stir in the brown sugar, spices, and salt. Turn off the heat and let stand five minutes before serving.

Toppings can easily be whatever you have on hand - sliced apples or pears, dried cranberries or raisins, toasted nuts, maple syrup, brown sugar...

On a side note, besides being such a creamy, nourishing treat, homemade steel cut oatmeal also reminds us of how cost-effective it can be to invest time in making good food. Whole Foods sells bulk organic steel cut oats at about $1.49 per pound. That translates to roughly $0.51 of oats for this whole batch (which serves 4 people).

Birthday Cheesecake

2010-10-24T18:29:00.000-07:00

CHEESECAKE WITH RASPBERRY LIQUEUR

A dear friend recently had a birthday, and I determined that I would make her a cake.

My first thought was "cupcakes!" And then I realized that cupcakes aren't really special anymore. Pretty, trendy "cupcakeries" have sprouted up everywhere (and I mean everywhere - they even travel by truck), making the treats ubiquitous, and too common. I'm ready for the cupcake era to be over (same goes for frozen yogurt).

So I turned in the opposite direction - to classic, old-fashioned, vintage cheesecake. A cake with a crust of crushed graham crackers and melted butter, and a filling made from 2 1/2 pounds of cream cheese, 7 eggs, and 1 1/2 cups of sugar. If that's not a celebratory food, I don't know what is.

The recipe for the crust and filling are courtesy of Ina Garten. The topping/decoration, which is done before putting the cheesecake in the oven, is my contribution. I took the incredible raspberry liqueur from Alameda, CA's St. George's Spirits (technically Aqua Perfecta Framboise Liqueur) and drizzled it in concentric circles on top of the cake. With a butter knife, I drew lines from the center to the edge of the pan, making quarters. Then I drew lines back towards the center, halving each of the quarters. (Be sure to wipe the knife often so you don't mess up the pattern. And don't cut deeper than you need to.) Jamie Oliver does a nice job describing this technique in his White Chocolate and Raspberry Cheesecake recipe - just another reason to be a fan of the man behind Food Revolution (check out his Ted Prize speech) and Jamie's Home Cooking Skills.

CHEESECAKE
Barefoot Contessa Family Style (2002)

For the crust:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (10 crackers)

1 tablespoon sugar

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

2 1/2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

5 whole extra-large eggs, at room temperature

2 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature

1/4 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (2 lemons)

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

To make the crust, combine the graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter until moistened. Pour into a 9-inch springform pan. With your hands, press the crumbs into the bottom of the pan and about 1-inch up the sides. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees F.

To make the filling, cream the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce the speed of the mixer to medium and add the eggs and egg yolks, 2 at a time, mixing well. Scrape down the bowl and beater, as necessary. With the mixer on low, add the sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla. Mix thoroughly and pour into the cooled crust. If desired, drizzle a topping on the cake and create a pattern as described above.

Put the springform pan on a sheet pan (to catch any leaks). Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the oven temperature down to 225 degrees F and bake for another 1 hour and 15 minutes. Turn the oven off and open the door wide. The cake will not be completely set in the center. Allow the cake to sit in the oven with the door open for 30 minutes. Take the cake out of the oven and allow it to sit at room temperature for another 2 to 3 hours, until completely cooled. Wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the cake from the springform pan by carefully running a hot knife around the outside of the cake. Leave the cake on the bottom of the springform pan for serving.

Top with raspberries and refrigerate until ready to serve.

When I started business school, I had nonchalantly declared that I would, of course, be cooking and posting more frequently. The writing part has only been semi-fulfilled. But the pleasant surprise is that fun food activities have become a regular part of the MBA experience. From making Tortilla Espanola with Chorizo last weekend for my class ("cohort"), to running a "donuts on a string" eating competition yesterday at the Haas Cal football tailgate, to visiting Chez Panisse Cafe for lunch with the Haas Culinary Club, to planning a Macaroni & Cheese Feast (everyone brings their own variation) for next weekend, there have been few dull moments in my culinary life.

healthy granola bars

2010-09-12T23:07:00.000-07:00

HEALTHY GRANOLA BARS

Before grad school started, I determined that I would make healthy homemade granola bars on a weekly basis, to enjoy with my morning brewed coffee (organic beans from Cole Coffee, brewed one cup at a time with my manual drip Melitta cone filter). I also planned to make healthy pasta salads with steamed mixed veggies that I would bring for lunch.

"Before" is the vital word. Healthy granola bar made it through one week of "math camp" (before classes even started). Healthy pasta salads made it through zero weeks. A high percentage of my diet last week consisted of Clif zBars and Extreme Pizza. And Diet Coke (huge fail).

I don't have a recipe for my granola bars, and I did not adapt it from anywhere. I simply went to Berkeley Bowl and let the bulk section inspire me (this is my idea of a Great Time). I can tell you that I used walnuts, dried cherries, toasted oats, toasted wheat bran, golden flax seeds, honey, butter, and little bit of salt. I do not know the ratios.

But I am committed to making them again. Next batch will be better (not as crunchy/brittle), and I'll keep track of the actual amounts.

fried green tomatoes

2010-09-06T20:03:00.000-07:00

PRE-FRIED GREEN TOMATOES

Tomatoes right now are just too good, and we have been consuming them in any form offered. After being re-introduced to the art of perfectly fried green tomatoes at Digs Bistro (Berkeley, CA) a few weeks ago and delighting in Boot and Shoe Service's (Oakland, CA) version a week later, I knew I had stumbled upon my latest audacious cooking adventure!

My usual obsessive searching unearthed a recipe that uses flour, panko bread crumbs, AND cornmeal, and it seemed that this triumvirate of breading would certainly result in the ultimate of fried green tomatoes. Thank you, Neely's! (First time I've used any of their recipes). This one is entirely worth the mess (wear an apron). The breading has a satisfying crunchy character, while still preserving the delicate flavor and texture of the tomato inside. Please start with good quality green tomatoes and note that a thermometer is helpful for regulating the temp of your oil (a meat thermometer will do for those without a fry one).

POST-FRIED GREEN TOMATOES

Fried Green Tomatoes
by Patrick and Gina Neely (Epicurious, April 2009)

6 hard green tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk (yogurt works fine, like Straus brand or Trader Joe's European Style)
Dash hot sauce
3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 cups Japanese panko bread crumbs
Vegetable oil, for frying

Season the tomatoes with salt and pepper. Place the flour on a plate. Whisk together the buttermilk and hot sauce in a shallow bowl or a pie tin. Whisk together the cornmeal and panko bread crumbs in a separate pie tin.

Working with one green-tomato slice at a time, coat the tomato first in flour (knocking off excess), then in the buttermilk, then finally in the cornmeal— bread crumb mixture. Transfer the breaded slice to a baking sheet, and repeat with the remaining slices. Preheat the oven to 200°F. Line a second baking sheet with paper towels. Heat 3/4 inch of vegetable oil in a medium skillet to 350°F.

Working in batches, fry the tomato slices until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked tomatoes to the prepared baking sheet, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Keep the cooked tomatoes in the warm oven while you fry the remaining slices. Serve the tomatoes warm.

PS. Digs Bistro also makes an incredible early girl tomato soup - subtle flavors of summer with a memorable garlic crouton. Our dessert came with the joy of Three Twins Organic Ice Cream - Madagascar Vanilla topped with hot fudge and whipped cream (plus a real cherry!).

memories from españa

2010-08-22T21:44:00.000-07:00

ZAPATILLA IN LOGRONO (RIOJA)

Bread rubbed with fresh tomato, topped with jamon serrano, drizzled with olive oil, grilled, and folded. The #1 most amazing food we ate. 2 euros each.

I went to Greece to see ancient ruins. I remember octopus salad, gyros sandwiches, chicken souvlaki, and ouzo. I remember in Japan golf cart-like trucks, loaded with whole tuna, dashing through the fish market...a steaming bowl of curry ramen...sticky natto...takoyaki carts on the street.

I remember that Laura and Mary in Little House in the Big Woods looked forward to homemade maple syrup poured over snow and that Bilbo Baggins served up scones and cake in The Hobbit.

Please, though, do not ask me what archaeological sites I saw in Crete, or what Bilbo actually did after tea time. I have a horrible memory for anything I can't taste.

Cowboy and I took two weeks this summer to eat and drink our way through Spain. We traveled from Madrid to Seville (and Triana) to San Sebastian to La Rioja (including Logrono) to Barcelona. Here are some of my best memories from the trip:

Cafe con leche, every morning with breakfast (desayunos). Like a latte, it combines a strong shot of espresso with steamed milk (whole by default - and worth it). Normally about 1.20 euros ($1.50 USD).

Tinto de verano, the most refreshing summer drink - one part unaged red wine (joven), one part lemon Fanta (con limon) or club soda. Typically 1.20 euro per glass ($1.50 USD). Paired here with a lomo montadito (grilled pork loin sandwich) at a little bodega in Triana, next to Seville.

San Sebastian was all about the pintxos, Basque for pinchos, or small tapas in the form of sliced crusty bread with delicious toppings, usually involving some - or many - forms of seafood.

According to the tourist books, the pintxos bars in San Sebastian all try to out-do one another in creativity. I found that the places in Parte Vieja (Old Town) served similar (good) fare - but in Gros, on the other side of the bridge, there was a lot more risk-taking (Bar Bergara pictured above).

Pan! Oh, I love a culture that takes bread seriously (I also appreciate Germany for this). Since bread is such a critical complement to so many dishes in Spain, the panaderias offer an awesome variety to choose from. There are no mediocre $4 bricks here. We're talking under $2 for any fresh loaf you fancy.

Jamon iberico, Spanish cured ham from the black-toed pig (the highest quality of which is acorn-fed, jamón ibérico de bellota). At the risk of getting food snobby, I'd describe the experience of eating jamon iberico as tasting a complex Bordeaux or Napa cab, where the flavors unfold, flex and change, and the finish is long. You can find jamon iberico for about 16 euros per platter at tapas bars (they carve the slices off the leg, right at the bar), and, as you can see from the photo of the carniceria above, you can buy it to enjoy at home from 85-168 euros/kilo (or about $50-100 per pound). Just remember that U.S. Customs does not allow you to bring it back to the States with you!

monkey bread

2010-08-11T00:20:00.000-07:00

GOOEY PIECE O' MONKEY BREAD

Some people wake up early on weekends to go biking (cycling) or running. Some people chase their kids around and feed their puppies. Cowboy and I, well, we make waffles...pancakes...and monkey bread.

Monkey Bread
Slightly adapted from AllRecipes
(we took the bread machine short-cut for the dough, but bread bakers could very well do step one - mixing, kneading, and rising - by hand)

2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup water
1 cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup raisins or 1/3 cup chopped, toasted nuts (like walnuts or pecans)

Directions
1. Remove baking pan from machine. Place yeast, flour, ground cinnamon, salt, white sugar, 2 tablespoons butter and water in the order that is recommended for the bread maker. Select dough cycle and press start.
2. When dough is complete, place dough on floured surface and knead 10 to 12 times.
3. In a medium saucepan on low heat, melt one cup of butter, stir in brown sugar and raisins or nuts. Stir until smooth. Remove from heat.
4. Cut dough in one inch chunks. Drop one chunk at a time into the butter sugar mixture. Thoroughly coat dough pieces, then layer them loosely in a greased Bundt pan, staggering layers so you're plopping each dough chunk over a space between two below. Let rise in a warm, draft-free spot until dough is just over the top of the pan, 15 to 20 minutes.
5. Bake in a preheated 375 degree F (190 degree C) oven for 20 to 25 minutes or till golden brown. Remove from oven, place a plate face down on top of the pan and, using oven mitts to hold plate on pan, turn over both until bread slides out onto plate. Serve warm.

This is the perfect buttery, sugary brunch party crowd-pleaser. (Much easier to make than sticky buns!) Let your happy guests pull away their own pieces from the loaf.

SO MUCH MONKEY BREAD

hello, here I am again

2010-08-10T19:42:00.000-07:00

I recently moved on from my role in marketing/product development at Jamba Juice.

Long term readers may have noticed the inverse correlation between my workload at Jamba and my attention to Bribe Me with a Muffin. Project complexity/pressures up, posts down.

As a graduate school student, I will write more. The year 2010 is also "Bribe Me with a Muffin's" 5th Year Anniversary, and I think it is time for some healthy evolution in my writing. Your feedback is very welcome.

I want to end by saying that working at Jamba was great in many ways. As you might imagine, somebody needs to taste the new smoothie flavors before final recipes are sent to stores, right? Yes. Sometimes 100 times over (and it never got old). Finding happy customers Twitter-ing about my products gave me a trusty, on-demand mood-enhancer (Boost?) at any time of day. But the best part was working with such talented, super cool, exceedingly kind teammates, who made amazing things happen. (Awesome people, thank you.)

a locavore's valentine's day

2010-03-03T18:21:00.000-08:00

ORANGE ALMOND TORTE WITH ORANGE SAUCE AND MARSALA CREAM

This year, cowboy and I challenged each other to a locavore's Valentine's Day.

Rules:
All ingredients to come from within a 50 mile radius of either San Jose or Oakland (yes, we gained about 40 miles in the N-S direction that way). Existing pantry items like salt, black pepper, and flour were allowed ("anything that wouldn't be called out in a menu description").

We split up the meal so that he was responsible for entree and I for salad and dessert. Beverage duty was shared.

Menu:
My ideal salads happen in the summer and fall - heirloom tomatoes and burrata...persimmon and prosciutto. Using my handy fruit and vegetable seasonality calendars from the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, I opted for a still unique - but more Bay Area winter-appropriate - selection:
Lacinato Kale and Ricotta Salata Salad from Gourmet

For dessert, there would be no cute chocolate cupcakes - no cacao trees nearby. I would have to take advantage of what we do have - citrus, nuts, and dairy:
Orange Almond Torte with Orange Sauce and Marsala Cream from Bon Appetit

And finally for drink, while there are certainly plenty of wines to choose from, I had always been intrigued by a certain distillery down in Alameda and its outstanding vodkas:
Kaffir Lime Vodka Gimlet from Hangar One

Shopping:
Trip 1: Berkeley Whole Foods Market. Friday night.
I actually thought I had done such a good job planning my menu that I could just hit up Whole Foods for everything I needed. 1.5 hours later, I had successfully gathered only shallots, butter (Clover Organic, Sonoma County), heavy cream (also Clover), and eggs (Judy's Family Farm, Petaluma). Almonds were unlabeled. Ricotta Salata was from Italy (the cheese guy did not seem amused by my challenge). Limes were from Mexico.

Trip 2: Oakland Grand Lake Farmer's Market. Saturday morning.
This is a pretty big farmer's market, bigger than downtown Berkeley anyhow. I started by circling the market, striking up conversation with the growers. "Where is your farm?" "Outside Fresno." "Where's that?" "Three to four hours." "More than 50 miles?" "More than 50 miles."

I picked up kale from Watsonville (50 mi from San Jose). I discovered Spring Hill Jersey Cheese (Petaluma), and its fantastic pepperjack goat cheese, which substituted just fine for ricotta salata. A kind almond grower from Fresno pointed me towards a Modesto almond farm (closer - around 80 miles - and good enough). Just outside Modesto was also the closest I could get for oranges and ginger. Most of the farmers nodded when I told them what I was doing - I was not the first they'd seen attempt this. Most agreed that 50 miles was ambitious.

Trip 3: Emeryville BevMo. Saturday afternoon.
Aside from picking up my local Hangar One Kaffir Lime Vodka, I also bought marsala wine (to flavor the whipped cream for the cake) and limes at my last stop. (Confession: totally cheated on these items, as the wine was from Italy and the limes probably from Mexico...)

Meal:
We ate excellently. Cowboy won points for buying a free-range chicken from Olivera Egg Ranch (and poultry house) in San Jose, which he roasted with locally grown turnips, carrots, onions, and potatoes.

garden in a box

2009-10-17T17:33:00.000-07:00

ALMOST-ORGANIC STRAWBERRY GROWN IN A BOX

I am 10 (!) years into living in a space with no garden. Periodically, I have thought wistfully about the joys of snipping rosemary for dinner, muddling mojitos when I fancy, and blending up pesto galore, only because I have so much basil I don't know what to do with it.

(Though I never did successfully grow anything when I had wide open spaces available to me, with perhaps the exception of the violets that my best friend and I kept for our 8th grade science project. These we gassed on a weekly basis with pollutants ranging from her brother's deodorant to exhaust from her mother's Buick, though most still managed to fare pretty well. I digress. Delicious basil makes all the difference, as does a boyfriend who happens to have a green thumb.)

Cowboy has a deck. And we learned from the helpful folks at Yamagami's Nursery this summer that there are a great many botanical things you can do with just a deck.

We bought a large box planter, filled it with potting soil and fertilizer (yes it was organic - don't really want to think about what was in it). Then we dispersed within it - sweet basil, crawling rosemary, chives, three heads of red leaf lettuce, a villancho pepper plant, and a strawberry plant.

Care included watering 2 times per week and initial spraying with a diluted soap (Mrs. Meyer's Basil dish soap in low concentration) as a bug repellent for the lettuce. As the herbs grew, the strong scents of basil, chives, and rosemary kept the bugs away.

Summer is over, and our lettuces are gone, but the others are still growing (in fact, our garden in a box is getting crowded!). For next year, I have visions of a Meyer lemon tree, which I know can be planted in a big pot, and a fig tree, which I will have to inquire about.

DAY 1: OUR GARDEN IN A BOX

how to order Taiwanese brunch

2009-08-16T21:31:00.000-07:00

SHREDDED PORK & VEGETABLE NOODLE SOUP
(Xue Cai Rou Si Mian)

So, as many young ABCs (American Born Chinese) may attest to, it seems that there is one thing that we will never fully grow into as adults. We may figure out how to file our own taxes and buy a used car, but having that true Chinese restaurant experience - the kind we used to despise when we were dragged along by our parents - that's extremely difficult to achieve.

My goal with this post is to encourage and empower anyone who feels this way to rediscover that Chinese restaurant experience. I am focusing on Taiwanese brunch - my personal favorite - and please understand that I am only talking about the kind of Chinese restaurant that's known to have a following of Chinese people (in Boston, this would include Shangri-la in Belmont, Mulan in Cambridge, and Chung Shin Yuan in Newton. It would not include "The Kong" - home of the Scorpion Bowl - in Faneuil Hall).

Truthfully, the first barrier is probably your company. Most likely you are not arriving at the restaurant in the company of three generations of chatty Chinese/Taiwanese family members. Most likely you are with a diverse group of friends from school or work, or a significant other who may or may not be Chinese.

What will happen is that the restaurant's host/hostess - who likely also serves 6 tables and makes the dumplings - will give you a once over, determine there is no Chinese-literate person in the group (correctly, in my case), and grab a handful of "American menus".

When you sit down, you must ask. "Do you have a Chinese menu? Can I please have one?" (Say it in English, if you'd like.) And it's ok to ask for glasses of water all-around. We all know Taiwanese brunch can get spicy, and it is difficult to chug hot tea (though no, Chinese people don't really drink glasses of water, especially not with ice in it). Also, don't forget to ask for chopsticks if they were removed from your table before you sat down.

The reason you want the "Chinese menu" is that it has more delicious stuff...the good, the interesting, the authentic stuff. I still haven't figured out why they leave all this off of the American menu, but in most places I've seen, they do (I hardly ever see preserved duck egg with tofu on the American menu). Note: the "Chinese menu" often has English words on it, too - you will know that you have the "American menu" if it is Saturday brunch time, and your menu has something like "Stir-fry Beef with Broccoli" on it.

So now you have the Chinese menu, which, of course, presents all types of potential language problems. Most often, the menu items will be written in Chinese characters, with English descriptions to the right. The issue is that the English descriptions are not very helpful - for instance, steamed pork bun could mean little steamed buns with translucent wrappers (xiao long bao), or big steamed pork buns with vegetables and fluffy white exterior (cai rou bao). Some restaurants excel at the first (xiao long bao done well means the bun actually bursts with broth when you bite into it), and it's a must-order. But if a restaurant is not known for this dish, you can rest assured it won't be pretty - better not to order it.

What helps the situation is that many of us ABCs, while illiterate, do a decent job of listening and understanding Chinese. As such, we can read and decipher Pinyin (the phonetic approach to Chinese using, well, our Roman ABCs). True, no restaurant would ever bother to write out their menu items in Pinyin, but I also have very nice parents who have done exactly this for the Taiwanese brunch menu at one of their favorite restaurants:

Please click here to download three pages (PDF) of delicious Taiwanese brunch menu items, written in Chinese characters, and translated into Pinyin with English descriptions.

So with this handy guide, you can be totally self-reliant the next time you need to order yourself some tasty Taiwanese brunch. For anyone who can read Pinyin, this reference tool should be very helpful; for those of you who are English only, hopefully this will be somewhat helpful (should you ever end up at a place with a Chinese-only menu).

Crispy Sesame Pan Cake and Chinese Fried Dough, anyone? (Yep - that would be shao bing, you tiao - yum).

why I am not cooking with bobby flay

2009-07-02T23:03:00.000-07:00

A TIRED ME AND MY CORKED WINE

Last month I had a big chance to meet Bobby Flay.

It started like this. My Twitter "following"/"follower" list of people is alarmingly short, and I wanted to build my network. Ashton Kutcher and Shaq didn't feel quite right - no personal connection. Jack Johnson: no Twitter. George Clooney: couldn't tell if it was the real deal. Bobby Flay: "Soft shell crab season is open at Mesa Grill NY. Tonight with red chile-cilantro sauce and they're crispy!" SCORE.

And previously, a tweet on April 29..."Win a chance to cook with me at http://www.foodnetwork.com/flayvors-of-washington-contest/package/index.html". Win a contest to meet Bobby Flay?!

The rest of the story goes like this. Should I do it? Should I not do it? Or should I? On Saturday evening I said to Cowboy, I'm gonna do it. I went to Berkeley Bowl for fresh blackberries, sweet red onions, halibut, hazelnuts, and a bottle of Columbia Crest Grand Estates Chardonnay (ok - I picked that up at Safeway on my way home). Columbia Crest was the sponsor, and the theme was Washington state ingredients (i.e. FLAYvors).

I finished my original creation just after 10:30pm - a pecan crusted halibut fillet with braised fennel and sweet red onion served with a blackberry-shallot wine reduction. The sauce was a bit unusual-tasting, so I ended up juicing a whole lemon into it, and tossed in the zest as well. The fillet fell apart in the pan, but I salvaged a large enough piece to make a pretty plate for the camera.

I put on a dress and re-did my make-up. I went to the contest's website - only two videos entered so far! And neither particularly impressive. I poured myself a glass of Chardonnay. Fruit-less, wet cardboard notes - corked (no wonder my sauce was so awful to work with!). Then Cowboy filmed 12 takes of me enthusiastically describing my dish to Bobby Flay, and we hungrily ate our cold dinner. I realized I had neglected to put any type of chilies in the dish...that was going to work against me.

When I woke up the next day I uploaded all my videos and watched them through, wishing I could just look normal and comfortable on camera. I tidied up my jumbled recipe notes, and I went online to enter my video.

Click - "Enter Contest".

"Contest is void for residents of California, Tennessee, Utah, Puerto Rico, U.S. territories, possessions and commonwealths, and where restricted or prohibited by law."

WHAT?! California? Why?! California is the biggest wine-drinking foodie state in the whole country!!

Add then I remembered the agony of being a wine marketer. Any promotional offering used by a wine company in the state of CA cannot be worth more than $1 to the consumer (hence the hokey things you often see attached to the neck of wine bottles at the grocery store). California Alcoholic Beverage Control Act Section 160.

The average retail value of "the opportunity to cook with Bobby Flay" was $5,764.95. (No!!)

The most embarrassing thing about all of this is, yes, I did work for over two years at a wine company in the Marketing department. Yes, I did sit down on multiple occasions with our VP Legal Affairs to discuss what can and cannot be done in various states, and I whined about the strict codes in California.

I guess I just forgot.

So, I am not going to be cooking with Bobby Flay. And, no. I don't think he'll be following me on Twitter anytime soon, either.

comida in costa rica

2009-06-16T21:39:00.000-07:00

COSTA RICAN "SMOOTHIE" OR REFRESCO - MADE WITH PAPAYA & YOGURT

Costa Rica, the travel books say, is no place to visit if you are interested in food. But let me tell you - you can have fun eating and drinking in this country. Here is a guide to some of the best food and drink that any visitor should check out:

"TIPICO" CASADO PLATE - BEANS, RICE, PLANTAINS, SALAD & CHICKEN

Beans and Rice
Gallo pinto. If you are trying to stay "tipico" with your food selections, likely you will be presented with beans and rice - if not with your meal, then as your meal. I encourage any traveler to experience as much and as many types of beans and rice as you can. Think about it like wine - when you first start drinking, any old bottle tastes the same. You try more and more, and you begin to appreciate the nuances. It's the same here - red beans, black beans, fried together/separately, different combinations of seasoning...you will quickly appreciate the restaurants that have really got their gallo pinto figured out.

Lizano Sauce
Or Salsa Lizano. For classic condiment lovers, this is the Heinz ketchup of Costa Rica, and you will quickly find yourself consuming embarassing amounts of this delicious dark brown concoction (or is that just me?!). It is all at once sweet, salty, and spicy, and ubiquitous at restaurants throughout Costa Rica. Delicious with gallo pinto and eggs. (Yes - it even beats Busha Browne's Spicy Tomato Love-Apple Sauce from Jamaica!)

Guaro
If we all could get our hands on Guaro here in the U.S., I swear the Guaro Sour would be the next caipirinha (which some predict to be the next mojito). Like Brazil's cachaça, the primary ingredient in caipirinhas, Guaro is made from sugarcane juice. It is 30-35% alcohol and has a subtly sweet flavor. Cacique is currently the only legally produced brand and unfortunately is not widely distributed in the U.S.

Guaro Sour
from Dowd's Spirits Notebook

2 ounces guaro
2 ounces simple syrup or 2 teaspoons raw sugar
5 to 6 lime wedges
Ice cubes
Sugar cane stick for garnish

Put guaro, sugar and lime wedges in a rocks glass. Muddle all the ingredients until you get lime juice. Add ice cubes.

Tropical Fruit
Fresh pineapples, papayas, coconut, mangos, and starfruit are so readily available that you could be at an American tourist trap ordering a $5 piña colada in a plastic cup, and the bartender would grab a handful of fresh pineapple spears, blend it with fresh coconut cream (plus rum and ice), and top with a slice of starfruit for a fresh, frothy, and tropical experience. (And the ice, by the way, is safe. We applied our "don't drink the water" practice rather inconsistently, particularly when it came to the ice used in our Guaro Sours, Pina Coladas and the like. We were OK.)

Regarding bananas - the bananas in Costa Rica are incredible, superior to any Costa Rican banana you might buy in the States. Why? Our tour guide at El Trapiche in Monteverde believes that it is because bananas in Costa Rica ripen naturally after being picked, whereas bananas in the U.S. undergo refrigeration while in transport (which halts the ripening process), followed by rapid ripening in rooms where they are sprayed with ethylene (a naturally occurring chemical that serves as a ripening agent). While I haven't been able to find any scientific evidence, it makes sense to me that this unnatural process would not do any favors for taste.

GREEN COFFEE BEANS ON COFFEE PLANT

Coffee
And finally, of course, the café. After tasting local offerings from various parts of the country, I am convinced that the best stuff comes from the Central Valley, around San Jose (regions: Tarrazu, Tres Rios, Herediá, Alajuela and Alajuela Poas Volcano). This area is known for its high altitude terrain, which supports growing high quality beans that make a coffee smooth, full bodied, with balanced acidity. I was interested to learn that the Costa Rican government only allows arabica (premium) beans to be grown, and only the highest grade is allowed for export. That's why the Costa Rican beans we are familiar with in the U.S. are generally very, very good.

cupcakes to buzz about

2009-05-12T21:20:00.000-07:00

MATCHA GREEN TEA CUPCAKES

Powdered green tea - best known as matcha green tea today - originated in China and traveled to Japan with the spread of Zen Buddhism in the 12th century. Matcha tea ceremonies grew popular among the Japanese upper class, and continue as a cultural tradition today.

In the 21st century, not monks but rather bakers, baristas, and ice cream makers have popularized matcha in the U.S. You can find matcha in green tea ice cream, green tea smoothies, green tea lattes, green tea donuts...

Matcha is made from shade-grown green tea leaves ground into a superfine powder with a stone. Only the youngest leaves are picked - new leaves are brighter in color and less tannic (thus producing a less bitter tea). Because of the high level of quality and great amount of labor that goes into matcha production, we see matcha priced relatively high, compared to other types of green teas.

When we consume matcha, we consume the entire tea leaf, and so the belief is that we benefit far more from the antioxidant quality of the tea.

I like matcha, because it is an exuberantly happy shade of green. I love the bright, clean green tea flavor, and how well it pairs with creamy textures, adding complexity to everyday treats.

My matcha cupcakes came from a recipe I found on eat, me delicious, which, I believe, came from Cupcake Bakeshop.

Green Tea or "Matcha" Cupcakes
1/2 sheet pan or 24 cupcakes
350 degree oven

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons matcha

1. Prepare sheet pan by rubbing with butter, covering with parchment, rubbing with more butter, and dusting with flour. Or, prepare cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
2. Beat butter on high until soft, about 30 seconds.
3. Add sugar. Beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
4. Add eggs/egg yolks one at a time, beat for 30 seconds between each.
5. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Add to batter and mix to combine.
6. Mix matcha in with the milk. (A bamboo matcha whisker is helpful for getting rid of clumps.) Add to the batter and mix until combined.
7. Pour into prepared 1/2 sheet pan and smooth flat or cupcake pan.
8. Bake for 22-25 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean.

I topped each cupcake, once cooled, with a basic vanilla egg white frosting and sprinkled some toasted coconut on top.

PS - Each cupcake should contain about 20 mg caffeine from the matcha powder (a can of Coke is about 35 mg).

THE HIGHER QUALITY YOUR MATCHA, THE BRIGHTER GREEN YOUR CUPCAKES

retro chic cream puffs

2009-03-06T08:01:00.000-08:00

THOMAS KELLER'S CREAM PUFFS

There are some baked goods and pastries whose names simply say delight - sticky bun, muffin, cream puff...And then there are some that call for thoughtful enjoyment - eclair, croissant, macaron...

Names matter. I prefer the former. So fun, so approachable.

Yet most "fun" pastries can't quite seem to earn the appreciation that say, a good croissant might command. You read heated debates about who makes a better croissant in the East Bay (Masse's or La Farine) - but no one can be bothered to comment on who makes a decent muffin.

The same is true for the cream puff, the ol' profiterole that's somehow made its way onto Bertucci's dessert menu. For the cream puff, raves are rare, the buzz factor, not so high. Which is why I was surprised to come across a Cream Puff recipe from who else but Thomas Keller of The French Laundry (Yountville, Napa), Per Se (New York), Bouchon (Yountville, Las Vegas), and seven-Michelin star fame.

So I made it for Valentine's Day.

Cream Puffs with Vanilla Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce
1 cup water
5 1/3 tablespoons (about 3 ounces) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 to 5 large eggs
1 1/2 cups Chocolate Sauce (see below)
1 1/2 cups Vanilla Ice Cream

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

Line one baking sheet with a Silpat and a second one with parchment paper (or line both sheets with parchment if you don't have a Silpat). Set up a heavy-duty mixer with the paddle attachment.

Combine the water, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, add the flour all at once, and stir rapidly with a stiff heatproof or wooden spoon until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan and the bottom of the pan is clean, with no dough sticking to it. The dough should be glossy and smooth but still damp.

Enough moisture must evaporate from the dough to allow it to absorb more fat when the eggs are added. Continue to stir for about 5 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary to prevent the dough from coloring. A thin coating will form on the bottom and sides of the pan. When enough moisture has evaporated, steam will rise from the dough and there will be the nutty aroma of cooked flour.

Immediately transfer the dough to the mixer bowl and mix for a few seconds to release some of the heat from the dough. With the mixer on medium speed, add 4 eggs, one at a time, beating until each egg is completely incorporated before adding the next one; scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Turn off the machine. Lift some of the dough on a rubber spatula, then turn the spatula to let it run off: It should fall off the spatula very slowly; if it doesn't move at all or is very dry and falls off in one clump, beat in the additional egg.

Place the dough in a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain tip. Pipe 15 disks (this will give you 3 extras for testing) about 1 1/2 inches across and just under 1/2 inch thick on the Silpat-lined baking sheet, leaving about 1 1/2 inches between them, as they will expand when baked. Pipe the remainder on the other sheet. (You will have about 4 dozen in all.) Bake the 15 puffs for the recipe and freeze the ones on the second baking sheet until firm, then transfer to a freezer container and freeze for another time.

Bake the puffs for 10 minutes, turn the sheet around, turn the oven down to 350°F, and bake 15 minutes more. Remove one puff and break it open: It should be hollow inside and not gooey or eggy; if it is still moist, return it to the oven and check in 5 minutes. Cool the puffs completely on the baking sheet. Store in an airtight container until serving time.

Chocolate Sauce
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, such as Valrhona Equatoriale, finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup light corn syrup

Place the chocolate in a metal bowl.

Combine the cream and corn syrup in a small heavy nonreactive saucepan and bring to a simmer. Pour the liquid over the chocolate and allow it to sit for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the chocolate has melted. Whisk to combine. Allow the sauce to cool slightly, then pour into a bowl or other container. (Stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, the sauce will keep for up to 2 weeks.)

To Serve:
Preheat the oven to 300°F.

Warm the chocolate sauce in a double boiler or a microwave. Warm the profiteroles on a baking sheet in the oven.

Split each profiterole in half and arrange 3 on each plate. Place a small scoop of ice cream in the bottom half of each profiterole and top with the lid. Spoon the sauce over.

I've made no changes to the recipes above. For some reason, I've got no qualms messing around with something from Alton Brown or Gourmet, but when it comes to something on the permanent dessert menu at Bouchon, I draw a personal line. I will mention, however, that things will still turn out great if you 1) cut down the butter by 1 Tbsp, 2) do not have a mixer (use a fork and mix in clockwise circles), 3) do not have a pastry bag (a heaping teaspoon gets the job done), and 4) choose to use agave syrup instead of corn syrup (that's what Omnivore's Dilemma does to you).

What Thomas Keller also does not note is that these cream puffs perform a most wonderful wobbly dance as you pull them out of the oven. And that those 25 minutes of baking fills your home with a sweet smell of eggy goodness that will last for at least 36 hours.

It seems that it's become increasingly trendy to appreciate a sticky bun or cupcake in recent years. Cream puffs may still be more retro than chic, but you just never know when the tipping point will come.

For me, I'm still waiting for muffins to re-emerge as the finest modern-day delicacy.

jamba oatmeal for a buck

2009-02-15T22:31:00.000-08:00

ORGANIC STEEL-CUT OATS

Two summers ago I blogged about estate-grown cabernet sauvignon at Stags' Leap Winery.

Working in wine was good. I liked seeing the vines bud in the spring...I liked pumping chardonnay at high velocity into 59 gallon oak barrels..I liked training to identify the different flavors of unripe peaches, ripe peaches, canned peaches, and cooked peaches in blind tastings. I liked becoming an early-stage wine snob...and getting a peek into a most fascinating culture that I will most certainly never join.

I've since left wine, and I'm now writing about slow-cooked, organic steel-cut oats with apple cinnamon topping and brown sugar crumble...our newly introduced Hot Oatmeal at Jamba Juice! So far from instant, Jamba Oatmeal is slow-cooked in the store - meaning it has an intense creaminess and satisfying chewy texture that comes only with 45 minutes of stirring a big, bubbling pot. Jamba Oatmeal also comes with a Blueberry-Blackberry topping or Fresh Sliced Bananas for a quick and tasty on-the-go breakfast.

And for all who could use a bit of cheer and warmth in these cold, gray and wintry days - I'll let you in on a little secret. Print out a coupon and you can get Oatmeal at Jamba for just $1 until 3/31/09. The regular price is $2.95 (plus tax in some areas).

Organic steel-cut oats...I mean, as far as oatmeal goes, this is pretty much your estate-grown stuff.

cooking with okara

2009-01-29T21:02:00.000-08:00

OKARA PANCAKES

When soybeans are made into soymilk (which can then be made into tofu), there is a byproduct created known as soy pulp or tofu lees - or okara in Japanese. Fresh okara is fluffy and white in color. It is low in fat, high in fiber, and also contains protein, calcium, iron, and riboflavin.

I discovered okara at San Jose Tofu over the weekend. (I may have found my Bay Area equivalent for Chang Shing Tofu back in Cambridge, MA.) San Jose Tofu is a neighborhood establishment in San Jose's Japantown district. The space is tiny - and expresses "open kitchen" in its truest form. Co-owner (I assume) Amy Nozaki collects orders three at a time (three is all that will fit inside), while Chester Nozaki busies among steaming pots behind her. Most regulars bring their own tupperware for Amy to fill. The tofu is pulled fresh out of its warm bath and sold at $2.00 a square.

A fluffy white mountain rises beside the register, next to the tofu bath. The couple in front of me informs me that the Japanese use this as a healthy ingredient in cookies and muffins. Muffins?? I ask for a small sample and am scooped a two pound bag...it costs me $0.50.

After perusing okara recipes of all sorts, I ended up adapting a simple pancake recipe. FYI - Okara Mountain is a great resource.

Okara Pancakes
1 cup flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup milk (or soy milk)
1/2 cup yogurt or buttermilk
¼ cup oil
2 Tbsp honey
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs

¾ cup fresh okara (lightly packed)

Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk together wet ingredients (except okara) in a medium size bowl, then add dry ingredients. Fold in okara.

Lightly grease a griddle and set over medium heat. Pour 1/4 cup of the batter onto the hot griddle and spread into a circular shape about 5 inches in diameter. Cook for about 2 to 3 minutes or until the batter bubbles and is golden brown. Flip over and continue to cook until golden brown. Repeat with the rest of the batter. Serve hot with maple syrup and butter.

I like okara. I like it because it made our pancakes light and fluffy, and I imagine it would do the same for muffins, waffles, and even croquettes, meatballs, and falafel. If we ever make our own soymilk (which I imagine we will - once we get yogurt figured out) then I will surely Okara-ize some more tasty items.

search for the "real" belgian waffle

2009-01-07T20:37:00.000-08:00

LIÈGE WAFFLES (BELGIAN SUGAR WAFFLES)

During college I lived in Germany for several months. On a weekend visit to Belgium I bought a waffle from a street vendor. It was piping hot, thick and crispy, with a roughly textured, caramelly crust. I ate it out of my hand, from a folded triangle of wax paper. My aunt had told me to check out these things - she was right - it was nothing like I'd ever known.

That was six years ago, and, since then, I've attempted - on average - 2-3 times per year to replicate this waffle experience at home.

Nothing I tried worked. I used all manners of recipes. I rose the yeast overnight. I beat too many eggs to stiff peaks. I beat one lonely egg to soft peaks. I made any unhealthy adjustment that was remotely promising - whole milk...brown sugar...gobs of butter.

They all turned out like ordinary Belgian waffles - too light, sometimes fluffy, and always lacking in that rich caramel flavor. I was nowhere close to the crazy delicious "real Belgian waffle" that nagged in my memory.

And then, this past Christmas, I visited Wikipedia:

Varieties of waffle

The Brussels waffle or Belgian waffle is prepared from a yeast-leavened batter. It is often, but not always, lighter, thicker, crispier, and/or has larger pockets compared to other waffle varieties. It is often served warm by street vendors, dusted with confectioner's sugar, and sometimes topped with whipped cream or chocolate spread. It may also be served as a dessert, with fruits or ice cream.

The Liège waffle (from the city of Liège, in eastern Belgium) is a waffle usually bought and eaten warm on the street. They are usually freshly made in small shops, but it is also possible to buy them in supermarkets. They are smaller, sweeter, and denser than "Belgian waffles". The last-minute addition of nib sugar to the batter produces a caramelized sugar coating. This gives a distinctive flavor. Most are served plain, but some are vanilla or cinnamon flavored, and can be served with toppings like fruits, creams, and chocolate. The Liège waffle was invented by a cook of the prince-bishop of Liège in the 18th century.

Liège waffles?? Had I been pursuing the wrong Belgian waffle all along?

As it turns out, yes. I found a recipe for Liège waffles on the Cook's Illustrated message board posted by a kind expat from Belgium:

Sugar Waffles from LIÈGE

Batter 1:
2 1/2 pkgs. active dry yeast
1/4 c. warm water (about 100 degrees F.)
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 large egg, beaten
1/3 c. warm milk (about 100 degrees F.)

Batter 2:
9 tbsp. butter, at room temperature
6 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 c. Belgian pearl sugar OR 3/4 c. crushed sugar cubes

1. Prepare Batter 1. In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water with 1 tbsp. of the flour and the sugar. Let stand for 5 minutes until foamy.

2. Sift the remaining flour into a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and add the yeast mixture, egg, and milk. Mix well with a wooden spoon to make a smooth batter. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until the batter has doubled, or tripled in volume (about 45 min).

3. Meanwhile, prepare Batter 2: In a medium-size bowl, mix the butter, flour, salt, vanilla, baking powder, granulated sugar, and pearl sugar into a paste.

4. With a hand-held mixer, work Batter 2 into batter 1 until well mixed.

5. Drop a large lump of batter into a medium-hot Belgian waffle iron. Don't let the iron become too hot or the sugar will burn. Bake until the waffles are golden brown but still slightly soft, 3 to 4 minutes.

6. Serve the sugar waffles lukewarm or cooled to room temperature on a rack. They are best eaten warm!

Makes 10 waffles.

And voilà! The key to Liège waffles is the Belgian pearl sugar, which can be purchased at specialty food stores such as Sur la Table, or online (www.larsown.com). However, for those of us in a pinch, I found that coarsely crushed sugar cubes make a great substitution. (I crushed mine in a mixing bowl with the handle of a large spoon - to square chunks about 1/8 inch on each side)

While the waffles cook, these sugar bits melt to create the sweet, caramelized crust that makes this waffle so outstanding and so memorable.

BELGIAN/BRUSSELS WAFFLES
(for comparison)

biscuit sandwiches

2008-12-30T10:47:00.000-08:00

ROAST BEEF, HEIRLOOM TOMATO & CRACKED BLACK PEPPER

It's been months and all I've got to show for it are three biscuit sandwiches.

For basic training fare like southern-style biscuits, Alton Brown's my go-to guy. That obsessive, know-it-all attitude of his has got to be effective for identifying the best biscuit recipe out there from the many thousands that exist.

Southern Biscuits

2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons shortening
1 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt, chilled

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using your fingertips, rub butter and shortening into dry ingredients until mixture looks like crumbs. (The faster the better, you don't want the fats to melt.) Make a well in the center and pour in the chilled buttermilk. Stir just until the dough comes together. The dough will be very sticky.

Turn dough onto floured surface, dust top with flour and gently fold dough over on itself 5 or 6 times. Press into a 1-inch thick round. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch cutter, being sure to push straight down through the dough. Place biscuits on baking sheet so that they just touch. Reform scrap dough, working it as little as possible and continue cutting. (Biscuits from the second pass will not be quite as light as those from the first.)

Bake until biscuits are tall and light gold on top, 15 to 20 minutes.

Easy, fast, and good for your periodic savory flaky pastry fix. As for those sandwiches...those happened after we cured our fix and still had 8 biscuits left over. We've crammed each biscuit with a slice of heirloom tomato, a slice of cucumber, a couple sweet "bread and butter" pickles, and a generous helping of roast beef (from Whole Foods). A swab of dijon mustard and some fresh cracked black pepper made for a spicy finishing touch.

i designed a cookie label

2008-05-08T18:46:00.000-07:00

HALEY HOUSE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES AT BC

Cookie Baker, I claim to be on occasion. Cookie Label Maker, I had never thought to try.

But when I received word from my friends at Haley House (my favorite non-profit Bakery Cafe in Boston) that they were in dire need of a cookie label, of course, I felt compelled to reach for my inner wannabe designer and see what I could do.

Boston College had agreed to sell Haley House chocolate chip cookies in packages of 5 (a la Dancing Deer), at one of its dining halls. The business case had been done (good market opportunity), the recipe tweaked and finalized (delicious), but, alas, no Cookie Label.

Now, for someone who claims to have worked at a design firm for 2 years, it's rather shameful that all I had by way of a design application was Microsoft Publisher (this is the type of program kids use to make their lemonade stand banners). Nevertheless, I managed to play nice with its eccentricities, and together we got the job done.

And so, the Cookie Deal closed successfully, and now you can find the most satisfying chocolate chip cookies at Boston College, fresh from the ovens of Haley House Bakery Cafe (Roxbury, MA):

Lower Campus Dining Facility
60 St. Thomas More Road
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
[Off Commonwealth Ave.]

Chocolate Chip Cookies - 5 Pack - $7

banana muffins to the rescue

2008-05-01T22:43:00.000-07:00

BANANA CRUMB MUFFINS

There are few things I find more bothersome than a bunch of neglected bananas. They become more freckled by day, and not before long, bruised and squishy. Their peels thin and overpower the air with a disturbing overripeness. Soon, I know, I will be raising fruit flies in my kitchen.

This is why banana bread is fantastic. It captures so gracefully the concept of "sustainable" baking - taking what otherwise would have been tossed out and turning it into a valued treat. Furthermore, mashed bananas provide moistness to quick breads, so that you can use significantly less oil/butter than you would for, say, something of the lemon poppy seed or cranberry walnut variety. (Of course you know, a banana muffin is really just banana bread with the cheerful disposition of a muffin.)

I recently came about a new cooking website called eatNation, where I scored a great Banana Crumb Muffin recipe from someone named Sprocket. There are actually a number of great recipes and cooking tips on the site. The concept itself is neat - it's a meeting place for people who love to cook (eatNation calls us "homechefs"), where we can exchange information about our experiences and epiphanies in the kitchen - whether in the form of recipes, photos, videos, etc. As more people get on the site, I can see eatNation becoming a go-to place for cooking inspiration and advice - for "mastering the art of the everyday meal".

I posted my favorite Classic Pancakes recipe. I've tried many-a pancake recipe out there, and this is by far the best basic pancake you can make for a lazy Sunday morning. (If anything - check out the site because I somehow made eatNation's "Star Chef" of the week. :)

CLASSIC PANCAKES (with strawberries)

Anyway - the Banana Crumb Muffins by homechef "Sprocket" were easy and delicious - I highly recommend them for the next time you encounter a overripening banana crisis of your own.

Recipe notes: I added 1/4 cup toasted, chopped almonds to give some texture to the crumb topping. And as always with muffins, I tried to mix the batter as little as possible to ensure that the muffins come out light and moist.

coconut pecan dream bars

2008-03-22T23:12:00.000-07:00

There is this guy I used to work with - we used to get Barbecue for lunch (there's only one Barbecue when you work in West Newton, MA, and that's Blue Ribbon). He was the first to discover the Dream Bar. The Dream Bar was very sweet and just a bit over the top, smothered in coconut, chocolate, and nuts. I don't think either of us cared for its taste all that much, but we liked it for its name..."Dream Bar".

I wonder how Dream Bar got such a very special name, when it sat alongside such plain-sounding desserts as "Sweet Potato Pie" and "Fruit Cobbler". The Dream Bar. What fun, what promise of hope! It was anything you wanted it to be.

I made a Dream Bar of sorts recently, with inspiration from Gourmet (December 1996). This version is slightly less sweet.

Coconut Pecan Dream Bars
Topping:
3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut
3/4 cup pecans, chopped
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Brownie Layer:
1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3 large eggs
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350°F and butter and flour a 9-inch square baking pan.

Make topping:
In a 1 1/2-quart bowl stir together topping ingredients until combined well.

Make brownie layer:
In a 1 1/2-quart saucepan melt butter over moderately low heat. Remove pan from heat and stir in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well with a wooden spoon after each addition. In a bowl sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt and stir into butter mixture until just combined well.

Spread batter evenly in pan and sprinkle with topping. Bake brownies in middle of oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering to it. Cool brownies completely in pan on a rack before cutting into 16 squares. Brownies keep, layered between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container at cool room temperature, 5 days.

flambéed desserts

2008-02-27T11:33:00.000-08:00

Chic Today, February 2008
"Two Scoops and a Flare on Top"
pages 25-26
By Genevieve Wang

My latest article is up. I had a lot of fun with this one. Thank you to the guys at my local BevMo who found me a most flame-worthy brandy for my Crepes Suzette.

vintage brews

2008-02-01T21:28:00.000-08:00

Chic Today, January 2008
"Vintage Brews"
page 21
by Genevieve Wang

The thought of certain foods brings me immediate feelings of comfort and happiness: mac n' cheese...Tollhouse cookies...buttered toast with jam...coffee, espresso, latte, macchiato...

I first met coffee in the frozen aisle of Star Market, in the form of Ben & Jerry's Coffee Coffee Buzz Buzz Buzz (honestly, couldn't Ben & Jerry's make anything taste good to a kid?). I developed a habit for after-school Frappuccinos in my high school years, and adopted my college dining hall's flavorless joe as the base of my nutritional pyramid every finals period. Needless to say, I entered my adult years as a junkie and have gotten no better since.

Though I've had many a cup in my time, nothing I've seen in my experience can quite compare to the obsession with coffee I've discovered in the Bay Area. Small in-house roasters are a dime a dozen. Organic "microroaster" Blue Bottle Coffee Co. draws long lines out the door. There are two camps firmly at odds with one another - "those who patronize Starbucks" and "those who patronize Peet's" (it all depends on which paper cup you hold).

Having moved so close to the birthplace of Peet's, where Arthur Peet himself opened his first store, I've been quick to align myself with Peet's brown colors and dark roasts. I've even spent the past year and a half steadily working my way through every single roast on Peet's menu (there are about 20, not including decaf and special blends). A recent trip led me to discover Aged Sumatra. Being in the wine business, this concept of aging coffee fascinated me, and I decided to investigate.

My article about aged coffee can be found in the January 2008 issue of the fashion/lifestyle magazine Chic Today.

they named umami after all...

2008-01-26T23:21:00.000-08:00

MOCHI WITH AZUKI BEAN PASTE AND TOASTED SESAME SEEDS

I believe that a great food culture is defined not by the number of Michelin stars it has received (though Tokyo did top the list in 2007*), but by the quality of an average meal that any individual - rich or poor, young or old - might expect to have on any given day.

Italy confirmed its place on my personal list of "great food cultures" when I was over my friend Cristina's house at age 15, working on math homework. Cristina's parents, who are from Turin and Sicily, were out for the night, and at any other friend's place, we would have ordered Domino's pizza for dinner. This didn't even occur as an option to Cristina; she made us spaghetti alla carbonara with salad.

I was in Japan in December, and I left believing that Japan could be the greatest food culture I have yet experienced. Great food is to be found, whether you are waiting at the train station, grabbing lunch on the 4th floor of your office building, shopping at a ritzy department store, popping into 7-Eleven...

BENTO BOX ON TRAIN TO TOKYO

PICKLE SHOP IN NISHIKI MARKET, KYOTO

TUNA FOR SALE AT HANSHIN DEPARTMENT STORE, OSAKA

My theory is that, it doesn't matter where you are, because Japanese people, in general, know their food. At least based on what I observed in Tokyo and Osaka, people have an elevated level of awareness and appreciation for high quality ingredients, subtle flavors, and careful preparation/presentation. And they use their yen to keep the good eating establishments places in business, allowing the less-than-stellar ones to die out (which probably doesn't take long, considering the price of property over there).

Inspired by the trip, we made mochi when we got home. We filled ours with azuki bean paste and rolled them in toasted sesame seeds.

MOCHI-MAKING

By the way, I've started to write a monthly food+drink column for the fashion/lifestyle magazine Chic Today. My first article, which ran in the December 2007 issue, was about sparkling wines:

"Let Your Holiday Season Sparkle"
Chic Today, December 2007
pages 19-20

*NOTE: 2007 was the first year that Tokyo's restaurants were rated by the Michelin Guide. Tokyo was awarded 191 Michelin stars in total. This was compared to Paris's 98, and New York City's 54.

poached quince

2007-12-24T20:54:00.000-08:00

POACHED QUINCE WITH BLACKBERRIES AND YOGURT

Inspired by a fabulous salad we had at Rivoli (hands down my favorite restaurant in the East Bay), cowboy and I spontaneously bought a quince at Monterey Market, with our best intentions to recreate the winning ingredient. I based my poaching technique on the advice of popular food blogger David Lebovitz:

Poached Quince
1 quince

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 vanilla bean

1. In a medium saucepan, heat the sugar and water. Split the vanilla bean and scape the seeds into the pan (you can add the pod as well). Bring to a boil.
2. Peel and quarter the quince using a sharp chef's knife and cut out the tough core with a paring knife. (Be careful! This is a very hard fruit.) Cut the quince quarters into halves or thirds, making 1-inch slices.
3. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the quince slices to the syrup as they are cut (they begin to brown quickly once cut). Cover the quince with a round of parchment paper, and simmer gently for about 1 ½ hours, or until the fruit is tender.

Once poached, the quince will keep in its syrup, refrigerated, for at least 5 days.

This is a simple and delicious way to enjoy fruit in these cold winter months. We had our quince with blackberries and a dollop of plain yogurt.

And now, to be completely honest, while poaching quince was certainly one of my most exquisite fruit experiences of 2007, it will probably not be making an appearance anytime soon in 2008. Remember how I said to be careful cutting the fruit? Well, I've also been wondering whether I should share my full ingredient list, which actually included "18 Band-Aids" and "1 tbsp. Neosporin". (No worries! I'm healed now...just about.)

CIOPPINO WITH SCALLOPS, MUSSELS, CLAMS & ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Oh yes. And as a prelude to our poached quince, we also made the classic San Francisco fisherman's stew, cioppino, for which we spent the afternoon shopping in North Berkeley's "other Gourmet Ghetto" - at Hopkins St. and Monterey Ave. We visited Monterey Fish for scallops, mussels, and clams (and some wonderful fish stock); Magnani's for Italian sausage; Monterey Market for onions, parsley, bell pepper, etc. This is the only dish I have ever made that calls for both red and white wine. Loved it.

banana muffins..cookies...`ono!

2007-11-12T21:42:00.000-08:00

BANANA MUFFINS WITH WALNUT TOPPING

Now that I have spent some time in the wine industry, I have become quite accustomed to my daily news feeds like "Unusual Snowfall in Chilean Wine Region" and "Bordeaux 2006 could be the new 1982". (There is an audience out there for every topic.)

Given the fundamental connection between food and wine, I have also deemed it a part of my job to stay up to trend on the latest happenings in food. (FYI: for anyone interested, Hardee's announced today that it will bring back its Philly Cheesesteak Thickburger, for a limited time only.)

I was particularly amused when, for the first time in my career, I received a business article about muffins in my inbox: Amos seeks fame with muffins.

Remember Wally's Famous Amos cookies? Well, with the Famous Amos brand now under the ownership of Kellogg, Wally Amos has turned his attentions to Uncle Wally's Muffin Co. He has also started a small cookie shop - Chip and Cookie - in Kailua, Hawaii.

Anyway, I actually do have more to say about cookies, wine, and Hawaii, but I will save that meandering for a later post...on to my recipe for banana walnut muffins!

Easy Banana Walnut Muffins
adapted from Bon Appetit
Makes 12

1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/4 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3 large)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup milk or soymilk
1 large egg
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted, chopped

2 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted, chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 12 muffin cups or line with muffin papers (or set out 12 individual silicone muffin cups on a cookie sheet). Sift first 4 ingredients into large bowl. Combine bananas, both sugars, butter, milk and egg in medium bowl. Mix into dry ingredients. Fold in 1/2 cup of nuts. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups. Combine remaining ingredients in bowl. Mix well, and sprinkle mixture generously on tops of muffins. Bake until muffins are golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Transfer muffins to rack and cool.

Thank you, Siri and Amanda, my Area 4 girls, for the adorable silicone muffin cups! They did a great job keeping my muffins out of trouble in my fickle oven. The finished product popped out easily when cooled.

hot pink organic food

2007-10-14T22:26:00.000-07:00

Vanilla Cupcakes with Organic Lemon Raspberry Frosting

These cupcakes I baked last week served as a useful reminder that even the best marketing tactics cannot reverse the damage of poor product design. I could create the earthiest looking package, printed with nutrition facts in enormous text and maybe an endorsement from Alice Waters, and still you would be hard-pressed to believe that these cupcakes are all-natural, made with organic fruit. In fact, you might just wonder whether Alice Waters has lost her way.

The real story doesn't matter - the one where I pureed the organic raspberries and zested the organic lemons in my kitchen, and whisked the fruit mixture into my bowl of handmade buttercream frosting until I achieved the perfect balance of sweet, creamy, and tangy.

These cupcakes are hot pink, and that says it all - assume artificial flavoring, high fructose corn syrup, Red 40...processed. Welcome to the era of the savvy consumer - we know how to spot fake food when we see it, and we're not afraid to judge.

Which poses an interesting dilemma for the natural food business, I realize. Do food scientists and marketers in natural foods actually have to design their products to look "natural"? (Is it not enough for the product to be intrinsically so?) Can an all-natural cupcake ever be topped with an all-natural hot pink frosting, or are such natural baked goods restricted to the earth-toned glazes of maple, chocolate, and vanilla?

the airport parfait

2007-10-04T23:26:00.000-07:00

Chicago O'Hare

I have had a particularly good week spending time in three of my favorite U.S. cities (including San Francisco) and working on an exciting new product for work. The highlights:

BOSTON
Magnolia Sandwich at Darwin’s Ltd. in Cambridge, MA
Each Darwin’s store names its sandwiches by its neighboring streets, so the “Magnolia” at their second location is really the same as the “Hubbard Park” at their first, which I have paid enough homage to in a previous entry. Darwin's also sells chocolate bars made in Somerville, MA (3 mi away), shortbread cookies from Arlington, MA (4 mi away), and sandwich bread baked in West Concord (18 mi away). How’s that for local flavor?

Delirium Tremens beer at Publick House in Brookline, MA
My friend Chris poured me my first Delirium two years ago. Since then, I have only been able to remember it by the picture on its label, and will probably refer to it as the “pink elephant beer” for the rest of time. To think- me -a victim of critter marketing! (The critter phenomenon has been a much-discussed topic among wine marketers ever since Yellow Tail "the kangaroo wine" took the U.S. market by storm in 2001). But honestly, besides the all-too-prevalent Chimay, I can recall no other Belgian I have enjoyed besides Pink Elephant Beer.

Goji-Granola-Pomegranate Frozen Yogurt at berryline in Harvard Square, MA
Pinkberry clones have penetrated the East Coast! As, apparently, has Berkeley grub - Goji berries at a student “froyo” shop? (Though I was also visiting the Berkeley of the East.) I have been eagerly following the spread of sour Korea yogurt up the California coast after my initiation to Pinkberry in West Hollywood, L.A. in April. I wonder if they've popped up in the middle of the country...

CHICAGO
Banh Mi and Che in Little Vietnam, Chicago
Banh mi is a Vietnamese sandwich made on French baguette and traditionally filled with pickled carrots, daikon, cilantro, and some type of meat (usually chicken or pork) marinated in a "special sauce". It is also notoriously cheap (e.g., 5 for $10). Five years ago, I had my first banh mi with my friend Dan in the Vietnamese neighborhood of inner Boston - this week, we met in Chicago's Vietnam Town and shared banh mi, noodles, and che. (I was completely delighted by che – a soupy, pudding-like dessert with various unidentifiable colorful ingredients suspended in thick coconut milk.)

Sushi at Sakura Restaurant, Mt. Prospect, IL
Fortunately, I have been traveling with a team that shares my passion for all things Japanese and edible. One of my team members managed to find a sushi restaurant in the middle of the country that ranks among the best and most authentic I’ve had on either coast. How’s that for market research?

Anyway, back to the title of this post. So the base of my personal food pyramid is a combination of three simple foods – yogurt, fruit, and granola, i.e. I cannot go too many days without having some form of the "yogurt parfait".

On Tuesday, I bought a “Yogurt with Fresh Seasonal Fruit and Granola” at Boston’s Logan Airport, which consisted of a considerable amount of yogurt weighed down by soggy granola and a half of one strawberry, cut in half again - $4.50. At Chicago O’Hare, for $3.79, I picked up a cleverly designed two-part piece separating the granola (Kellogg's Low-fat Granola with Raisins with 90% certainty – I can recognize the mass-produced stuff when I see it) from the sugary yogurt mixed with reconstituted frozen strawberry syrup and papery, flavorless blueberries. Yuck.

Smart Granola Packaging for Bad Granola

So yes, it’s been a great week of travels, but I’m also kind of looking forward to making my own breakfast at home on Friday morning. Even better, paying Café Fanny a visit on Saturday.

stags' leap winery

2007-08-11T20:08:00.000-07:00

STAGS' LEAP 2002 ESTATE GROWN CABERNET SAUVIGNON, THE LEAP

While there's no bad time or place for a glass of Cabernet from Stags' Leap Winery, a particularly good time would be sunset on a summer evening in August, and a particularly good place would be among the Estate Cabernet vines at the Winery. (And winemaker Kevin Morrisey would be particularly good company.)

"THE LEAP" ESTATE VINEYARD, STAGS' LEAP WINERY

I've always believed in immersing myself in the products that I work on. When I consulted for an air purifier company, I kept up to date on EPA regulations for ultra fine particles. I ran humidifiers, lit candles, and played ScentStories in my apartment to immerse myself in the experience of my personal indoor air.

For the three months that I worked on a project for a greeting card company, I scrutinized my own relationships with others in the world - and sent out more cards, emails, e-cards, text messages, and handwritten notes to friends and family in those months than I had in the previous three years combined.

Hotel bedding, GPS devices, breast cancer, birthday cards, nuclear power plants, bipolar disorder, ATV helmets, fried fish...my years as a consultant have allowed me to delve into a number of different worlds, each as fascinating as the last, to someone perpetually curious about different things and people.

Fortunately, the company I work for shares my belief that one must understand a product deeply - who makes it, where it is made, how it is made and why it is made in such a way - in order to market and sell it. As such, my work periodically involves "kicking the dirt" at our vineyards. Learning that story behind the brand is critical...and fun.

Stags' Leap has a particularly good story. (Have you heard about the ghost?)

CABERNET GRAPES AT STAGS' LEAP
June 29. 2007

CABERNET GRAPES AT STAGS' LEAP
August 15, 2007

vegan muffins

2007-08-08T19:21:00.000-07:00

with coconut, mango, & olallieberries

We felt very lucky when Didi Emmons, former chef at Pho Republique, Delux Cafe, and Veggie Planet, came on board at Haley House Bakery Cafe.

Soon after she joined, Didi invited me over for dinner to discuss some of the marketing and business planning work I had been doing for Haley House. I looked forward to the experience of eating in the home of a real chef, and when the day came, I arrived with a carefully chosen 7-Grain pullman from Iggy's Bread of the World.*

Didi introduced me to Henry her cat (for which one of her Veggie Planet pizzas is named). We stepped over her yoga mat and made our way to her kitchen, which was older, more cramped, and much more inviting than I would have expected for the work space of a chef. She returned to pulverizing walnuts with fresh arugula and parsley..."Pesto," she said, in between blasts of the processor.

"I always think pine nuts and basil when I think pesto," I said, trying to keep in step with a professional foodie.

"Walnuts are pretty fun to play around with." Didi shrugged and tasted the pesto. She paused in thought, then drizzled in some olive oil from a little green bottle.

________________________________

Didi's spunky and creative approach towards cooking is one that has had great influence on me over the years. Didi cooks with an open mind, without judgment, driven by personal intuition, curiosity, and hunger.

Didi and I once had a conversation about muffin making. A baking instructor had taught me about the grave repercussions of over-mixing (over-developed gluten toughens your product and creates those unsightly air tunnels). We were encouraged to implement delicate muffin batter-folding techniques.

As I watched Didi make muffins one day, I inquired about her carefree mixing, and its implications for her gluten structure. She looked at me inquisitively, "I stop mixing when everything comes together." Then she poured the batter into pans and baked them into perfect little strawberry muffins, moist with a soft and crumbly texture.

________________________________

So, back to California. Recently, twenty lovely friends joined me on an olallieberry picking expedition to Swanton Berry Farm in Pescadero, CA.

When we returned late in the afternoon with juice-stained hands, 30 pounds richer in ollalieberries, Johanna made cake, and Juliann made pies. Cowboy made pancakes. And I took out Didi's cookbook, flipped to "The World's Best Vegan Coffeecake", and, in the spirit of Didi, played around with the recipe until it suited my whimsy.

Vegan Muffins with Coconut, Mango, and Olallieberries
adapted from Didi Emmons' Entertaining for a Veggie Planet

1 cup almonds
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup dried coconut flakes
1 cup vanilla soy milk
1/2 cup canola oil
1 small mango, cut into small chunks
2 cups olallieberries (raspberries, blackberries, or boysenberries will also do fine)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or line 12 standard muffin cups.
2. In a food processor, finely grind almonds. Transfer to a large bowl and add flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt and mix well. Mix in coconut.
3. Make a well in the center and add soy milk and canola oil. Stir until the mixture comes together.
4. Gently fold in mango and berries.
5. Divide the batter among muffin cups and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of one of the muffins comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes. Let cool in pan about 10 minutes.

I don't believe a non-vegan version could be any better. And I have to say, there is something extremely satisfying about eating food you picked from a bush.

*Note: The 7-Grain loaf has been a favorite of mine ever since my summer selling Iggy's bread at the Boston City Hall Farmers' Market. For those who don't know, Iggy's is to Boston as Acme Bread is to San Francisco.

haley house update, summer '07

2007-08-05T18:59:00.000-07:00

SUNDAY JAZZ BRUNCH

I was recently back on the East Coast and was overjoyed to find the Haley House Bakery Cafe doing better than ever. Though I wish that I could be as involved with this program living out here in California as I was during my years in Boston, I am proud to report that, with the strong leadership of Didi, Bing, and Kathe, as well as the dedication and spirit of all the staff and trainees, this non-profit bakery cafe in Dudley Sq. has continued to grow and thrive, both with respect to its community-based social mission, as well as its sustainable food philosophy.

The Bakery Cafe has partnered with the Boston Police to host periodic cooking classes for inner city youth as part of the G.R.E.A.T. Program (Gang Resistance Education and Training). This programs uses cooking as a vehicle for teaching youths to appreciate different cultures (through making Chinese dumplings and Puerto Rican gazpacho, for instance), with the hope that greater understanding will stem prejudice before it is able to take root within the youth community.

Much through the dedication of Bing Broderick, Bakery Director, Haley House has also continued to deepen its relationships with the Boston arts community. The cafe walls exhibit unique and thought-provoking works by local artists on a rotating basis (most recently, self-portrait quilts made at Rosie's Place, a women's shelter in Boston). The cafe has also begun to host independent film screenings and live jazz performances during Sunday brunch.

SELF-PORTRAIT QUILT
from Rosie's Place

Both Kathe McKenna, Executive Director of Haley House, and Didi Emmons, Executive Chef, have been diligently testing new sources of local, organic ingredients to add to the menu. [Pssst! Organic beer and wine recently added!] Didi's cafe menu continues to change with the seasons, and, on August 15, Haley House will host a benefit dinner for the Federation of Massachusetts Farmers Markets.

The Job Training Program itself has grown, as trainees are now taught skills on the prepared foods and catering side of the business, in addition to the bakery side that has always formed the core of the program curriculum. This shift has given the Bakery Cafe the flexibility to continue growing its catering business to meet the unexpectedly high level of consumer demand.

I visited during Sunday Jazz Brunch and stayed the afternoon to catch up with the Haley House community over fresh strawberries, carrot raisin/vegan cranberry walnut muffins, and Fair Trade coffee (w/soy). I also picked up a copy of Didi's second book, Entertaining for a Vegetarian Planet, an IACP award-winner in 2004 (International Association of Culinary Professionals - my first recipe experience to follow in my next post).

I encourage readers in the Boston area to drop by Haley House to taste its delicious baked goods, organic/Fair Trade beverages, and creative selection of fresh and flavorful salads and sandwiches. Produce comes from local, organic farms (as much as possible), and prices are extremely neighborhood-friendly ($5.75 for a curried chicken wrap w/grapes+coconut and a side of "Haley's Healthy Slaw"). Haley House also has a great catering program - to support your needs at work or at play.

So please go to Haley House and have a muffin for me. Nourish yourself, and support the Bakery Cafe in its mission to become a self-sustaining non-profit organization supporting happiness, health, and economic independence in the Boston Dudley Square community.

12 Dade Street
in Dudley Square, Roxbury
Boston, MA
617.445.0900

Mon-Fri: 7:30am-4pm
Saturday: 9am-3pm
Sunday: 9am-10:30am Early Bird Special;
10:30am-3:30pm Jazz Brunch

Logo by Boston design firm Continuum (pro bono)

hola granola

2007-07-06T15:06:00.000-07:00

HOMEMADE GRANOLA
with cherries, coconut, almonds, cashews & ginger

The bulk aisle at Whole Foods (or Berkeley Bowl for that matter) is very compelling. Bins and bins of rolled oats, crystallized ginger, dried cherries, pecans, almonds, flaked coconut...

After years in the consulting biz, I've become obsessed with adding value. Making granola is all about creating value out of finite resources, and it can almost be guaranteed that your final product will be greater than the sum of its parts (note: this does not apply if you burn the batch).

Cowboy and I recently made a granola based loosely off a recipe from Bon Appetit. (The flaxseed was added for omega-3s, no joke - but its unique flavor also added a nice dimension to the delicious crunchy mixture of fruit and spice.)

Mission Street Granola
2 cups old-fashioned oats
1/8 cup flaxseed
1/2 cup whole almonds, halved
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup raw cashews
1/4 cup (packed) brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, chopped
1/4 cup dried cherries

Preheat oven to 300°F. Mix first 8 ingredients in large bowl. Melt butter with honey in heavy small saucepan over low heat. Pour over granola mixture and toss well. Spread mixture on rimmed baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add ginger and cherries; mix to separate any clumps. Continue to bake until granola is golden brown, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes longer.

We ate our perfectly toasted granola atop a bowl of Nancy's Organic Plain Yogurt, with fresh berries and figs.

cowboy ciao

2007-07-01T22:53:00.000-07:00

the stetson chopped

The other night I was feeling the need to bring some excitement into my regular salad repertoire - something new and different - when I came across this recipe from epicurious.com. Not only did the combination of pepitas, currants, arugula, avocado, couscous , and chicken sound fabulous, but the recipe had also received an average of four fork ratings, with 92% of reviewers claiming that they would make the recipe again. As a veteran user of epicurious (and market research data), I knew that this pretty much guaranteed that I would not be screwing up the dish at the culinary equivalent of 95% statistical significance.

Later on, as I was perusing the recipe in the kitchen, I realized that this dish had actually come from a restaurant called Cowboy Ciao in Scottsdale, Arizona, and that the salad was originally called "the Stetson Chopped".

First of all, I am definitely one to appreciate cute names. The fact that I was going to be sharing the meal with a cowboy software engineer made it even more interesting.

A week later, as I was catching up on my impressive stack of Wine Spectator back issues, I got to the annual Dining Guide (August 2006). Lo and behold, Cowboy Ciao, with a rating of two wine glasses (i.e. the "Best of"Award of Excellence) for its 2900 wine selections! (For context, Thomas Keller's The French Laundry also has two, while Daniel Boulud's Daniel in NYC has three).

Needless to say, I've checked - it's about an 11.5 hour drive from San Francisco (that's about 4x the farthest I have ever driven for food - see my previous post on the best pizza east of the Mississippi). Though I'm not sure if that will stop me. There'll be a right time and place. And when that comes, I'm going to order the Big Biceps Salad and a bottle of that Bründlmayer grüner veltliner.

destination dining

2007-06-06T19:04:00.000-07:00

BACKYARD AT AMERICAN FLATBREAD

When I was growing up, my family frequented Chef Chow's, Chef Chang's, and Mary Chung's. We were motivated to eat out when grandma wanted a break from cooking, and we needed to nourish our bellies. We expected decent food and drink and little else - bottom line was that it would never be as good as grandma's anyway.

But today most restaurants strive to appeal not only to our bellies, but also to our hearts and minds. They invite us to indulge in different moods and settings. They broaden our global awareness, exposing us to the unfamiliar spices, wines, utensils, and music of various cultures; they deepen our respect for nature and the environment as our teacher in the philosophy of eating seasonally; and they constantly challenge our understanding of how a "meal" can be defined.

Restaurants in the U.S. are delivering on more human needs than ever before. As such, many have become "destinations" that people are willing to traverse anywhere from 3 -or 3000- miles to experience. The Michelin Guide has finally granted its internationally-respected nod to those restaurants in San Francisco and NYC it considers "worth the journey" (more recently it also added LA and Las Vegas). Chicago has become a notable culinary destination in the U.S. after the city's Board of Tourism created an official position called the Director of Culinary Arts and Events in the late 90s.

Several years ago, I traveled to the Mad River Valley of Vermont, about 3.5 hours from where I lived at the time in Boston. Food and Wine had run an article about American Flatbread's primitive wood-fired stone and clay ovens set in a converted horse barn in Waitsfield. I felt compelled to witness this experiment in "post modern bread baking" founded on principles of environmental sustainability, community building, and "global forces of peace and understanding".

The pizza was good - it was as good as it gets for any handmade pizza topped with fresh, natural ingredients. But you can find pizza that good elsewhere (The Cheese Board in Berkeley, CA and Arizmendi in San Francisco, to name two). It was the flavor of the wood-fired crust coupled with the triumph of my journey, and the introspective and restorative nature of the property - that made American Flatbread such a fulfilling dinner destination worth every stretch of my 200 mile trek.

oysters, coffee, and wine

2007-05-06T21:21:00.000-07:00

TOMALES BAY OYSTER TASTING

What is so special about the oyster? Why do we delight so much in that shot of salty, chewy, sliminess that's gone with a single slurp? Why are so many restaurants east and west eagerly building raw bars and one-upping each other's oyster tasting programs?

Oysters are the perfect foodie food, because every oyster tells a story about the place from which it came, just like every coffee bean, and every grape. As I see it, Kyushu is to the Kumamoto oyster as Colombia is to café au lait as Côte-d’Or is to pinot noir. These are foods that take you places. Whether you choose to eat globally or locally (equally trendy, of course), it is possible to determine exactly what it is about that place that gave that particular morsel or drop its unique flavor and taste characteristics – be it the volcanic soil or cool breezes, calm tidal patterns or heavy water salinity.

Back in Boston, my favorite B&G Oyster House (Barbara Lynch’s restaurant in the South End) had a list of maybe 40 varieties of oysters, at least 12 of which were available, fresh, at any given time of day. I have whiled away hours at that bar, contemplating the differences between PE Island…Nantucket…Chesapeake bay (and perhaps throwing in a friendly New Zealand vs. California with that second glass of sauvignon blanc).

On Saturday morning, as we waited for a table at Rick and Ann’s, cowboy and I wandered next door to Peet’s, where I indulged in a tasting of two single-origin coffees that are a part of their current Anniversary Blend (Papua New Guinea and Rwanda). As I learned from Peet's friendly tasting guy, the most serious of customers have all refined their own personal blends of coffee beans - 20% Costa Rica…8% Sumatra…etc.

In the afternoon we headed out to Tomales Bay on Point Reyes, where our friendly oyster guy handed us a fishing net with 50 oysters, pulled fresh from the water. (An intelligent business person had developed a rather clever pricing structure - buy your oysters by the dozen, or by the 50-oyster bag. Obviously, any shrewd oyster lover would be unable to resist the fantastic deal of the 50-oyster bag.)

Armed with 50 oysters; limes, lemons, and cocktail sauce from my dear Berkeley Bowl; a loaf of pumpernickle-raisin bread from the Berkeley Bread Garden; and a bottle of Gloria Ferrer's Blanc de Noirs (Sonoma)…we drove along the Pacific surf to Drake's Beach, and started shucking our way to a very satisfying taste of California.

picnic if you're homesick

2007-04-16T22:06:00.000-07:00

DARWIN'S HUBBARD PARK SANDWICH

As much as I love California and all that I continue to discover about the Bay Area, I recently began to feel a subtle yet persistent longing for the plain and honest charm of the city I left back East.

Fortunately, thanks to the kind enthusiasm and understanding of a fellow former Cantabrigian, I was able to soothe my pangs of longing with a highly effective dose of Cambridge...in Carmel.

HOMESICKNESS
Definition
The distress or impairment caused by an actual or anticipated separation from home or attachment objects.

Symptoms
Inexplicable feeling of nostalgia for sports teams you never watched (Celtics), coffee you never cared for (Dunkin' Donuts), as well as miscellaneous memories that had - up until this point - only made your blood boil ("Aww...remember those days when I had no parking garage, and I would have to parallel park my car in the snow? And sometimes...I would wake up to the sound of my car being towed? I miss those days.).

Common Causes
Adventure seeking. Moving across the country. A 3 hour time difference from home.

Medication

Name: Darwin's Hubbard Park Sandwich.
Description: A favorite food item that is unique and special to your past. The Hubbard Park comes with Hummus, Avocado, Apple (we used pear), Carrots, Tomato, Sprouts & Honey Mustard. Since Nashoba Brook Bakery doesn't extend west of the Charles River, we used Acme Bread Co.'s seeded whole wheat.
Dosage requirement: One sandwich, at noon, preferably taken with a glass of wine.

Follow-up
Call Mom. And Dad.

We had our Hubbard Park sandwiches on the beach in Carmel, complemented by our favorite parsnip chips and a bottle of Beringer Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc, 2005, served in two plastic wine cups. Not a bad pairing...though I think something with slightly more body would have held up better to the hummus - like an unoaked chardonnay...or maybe a Sam Adams Octoberfest (Yes, people do think about beer and food pairing, at least people who make a living marketing beer.)

SAUV BLANC ON THE BEACH

P.S. Darwin's Ltd. is an amazing place worth visiting - it's got the hippest music, dreamiest sandwiches, and an outstanding selection of beverages (my favorites being Adina's Gin-jah juice, Irie's fair trade yerba mate tea, and Poland Springs' sparkling lime water). All of their sandwiches are named after local streets and points of interest around Harvard Square. I have a particular soft spot in my heart for the A.R.C., which is named after a local architecture firm (Architectural Resources Cambridge), where I know a highly talented designer! But also, roast beef and BBQ make a nice combo.

how to throw a wine tasting party...

2007-03-06T18:34:00.000-08:00

THIRSTY?

...for people who don't drink wine.

As much as I've settled into a world in which grape gluts and critter labels have become factors for long-term survival, for many of my closest friends, a restaurant wine list still receives as much consideration as another placemat on the table.

My mission was to create an enjoyable wine experience for everyone from the taro bubble tea aficionado to the Italian traminer aromatico devotee, to all drinkers of Grey Goose, Diet Coke, Hi-C, and vanilla lattes in between. Our goal? To find the best red wine under $20...and to challenge our own palates to a bit of friendly competition at the same time.

THE WINNER:
2003 Parker Station Syrah, Santa Barbara County

THE BEST RED UNDER $20

RUNNERS UP:
2004 the Little Penguin Cabernet Sauvignon, Australia
2004 Castello Banfi Chianti Classico, Italy

Here are my tips for how to host a wine tasting party that is fun, educational, and not at all pretentious:

THE GUEST LIST
Mix and match! A themed party is your best opportunity to get people to chatter and connect, even if they don't all work for Google (a Bay Area phenomenon I've encountered on an unnatural number of occasions). If you like 'em and they've got something to share, invite 'em. Just don't overcrowd. And be reasonable - each person brings a bottle...how many bottles can you realistically get through in a night? We maxed out at 18 (10-15 is probably ideal).

PICKING A THEME
Your best theme depends on who you choose to invite. If your guests regularly pepper conversation with phrases like "noble rot", then you might want to do a more focused/ advanced tasting - say, 2004 pinots from Carneros. I kept things open with "common red varietals from around the world for under $20" (with a list of specific countries and varietals to keep things manageable).

TOMATO EGGPLANT SPREAD

RULES OF THE GAME
1. Each guest brings a bottle of wine based on the theme. Each bottle is wrapped in aluminum foil and labeled with an arbitrary name, e.g., Barack Obama or George Clooney. The bottles can all be opened and left in a single tasting area, or scattered throughout your home.

2. Each guest is given a wine glass and score card and sent off to mingle with your fascinating friends, nibble on your fabulous food, and taste through the wines one by one (with spitting opportunities made available to those who desire). For my party, my guests guessed what country the wine came from and what varietal grape it was. I also had them take note of how much they liked each wine.

3. When everyone is finished tasting, each guest is given three stickers to stick on their three favorites bottles.

4. The host tallies up the stickers and has each guest unmask his/her wine for everyone else at the party, going roughly in order from least favorite to most favorite.

5. There are two winners at the end of the night - the guest who brought the most-liked wine (go Seth!), and the guest who guessed the most countries and varietals correctly (go Eric!). Give them prizes.

SCORE CARDS

MENU PLANNING TIPS
- Go easy on yourself - don't make it from scratch unless you think your guests will truly be able to tell the difference (or you've got Thomas Keller's kitchen staff for the afternoon). Thus, make the cookie dough but skip the puff pastry...and a note to you overachievers out there - your homemade potato chips are pretty much guaranteed to be underappreciated.
- Aim for finger-foods in bite-sized pieces - guests wielding paper plates means red wine on your carpet.
- Keep wine and food pairing in the back of your mind, but don't focus so much on it that it paralyzes you. So if your theme is bold red wines , then you might want to save the sushi for another time - but don't stress over BBQ ribs vs. kabobs. People are generally easier to please - and wine more forgiving - than you think - give them both food, and they are happy.

CHECK LIST
- Cheap wine glasses (e.g., IKEA)
- Score cards and pens (it's easy to make your own)
- Corkscrews
- Stickers (dots, stars, etc.)
- Aluminum foil
- Sharpie markers
- Spit/dump bucket
- Plenty of water and cups
- Prizes for your 2 winners

FAQs
How do I get out a red wine stain?
Baking soda and white wine (cooking rice wine will work if you've drunk all your chardonnay). And good friends to help.

How do I keep it unpretentious?
Limit the relative number of wine geeks on your eVite. Mix the jazz with Ginuwine for kicks

Is it possible to keep the food lactose-free?
Serve veggie-based spreads - using eggplant, chickpeas, pesto. (This isn't easy - I cheated and used goat cheese on my fig and prosciutto flatbread and mozzarella on the tomato, basil and pesto one...)

little havana

2007-01-31T19:03:00.000-08:00

MOJITO

For anyone who hasn't yet heard, South Bay is 2007's South Beach of the west. I say this, not because the Googleplex breathes sexy in that beachy-pastel/Art Deco-kind of way, but because Scott's awesome mojito recipe comes not from Mango's Tropical Cafe but rather La Bodeguita del Medio, which sits right along California Ave. in Palo Alto.

Mojito
12 mint leaves with stems
1 tsp sugar
2 oz citrus rum (I make a living marketing alcoholic beverages and am not afraid to suggest Bacardi Limon)
2 oz fresh citrus juice (lemon/lime)
2 oz soda water

In a collins glass, place mint and a teaspoon of sugar. Crush the mint using a muddler. Add rum and citrus. Mix again with muddler. (Scott actually has a muddler - and it did a great job releasing the flavor of the mint - but for those of you without, use a spoon.) Finish with soda water followed by crushed ice. Garnish with full stem of mint.

The original plan was to have a mojito-off, Berkeley vs. San Jose, limes, lemons, and mint. But considering each tasting amounted to two mojitos each, we never actually made it to Contestant No. 2. Though I'm fairly certain that Berkeley would have won.

I feel guilty saying that it was all very fun, given that it was a day of mourning for anyone whose heart belongs with New England. (And I would proudly describe myself as such).

Tom, Troy, Corey, if you wanted to drop by, we'd be happy to fix you a few, extra strong...for another kind of Miami experience.

baba ganoush

2007-01-24T21:56:00.000-08:00

بابا غنوج
[baba ganoush]

So it looks as if Blogger speaks Arabic.

Georgia's visit last week left me pondering the whole East Coast vs. West Coast thing...though less so from a Biggie/Tupac/gangsta rap perspective and more from a Alice Waters/Daniel Boulud/food philosophy perspective.

I am saving my complete thoughts for another space. But her visit did bring me to a deeper level of self-understanding with the realization that, if I could choose only three foods to eat for the rest of my life, they would be maki with white tuna and unagi, peshwari naan, and baba ganoush.

Which led me to a compelling desire to mash up some eggplant. I was pleased with my first attempt:

Baba Ganoush
1 medium-sized eggplant
Juice of 1 small lemon
1 tsp salt
2 cloves fresh garlic, finely minced
3 tbsp sesame tahini
2 tbsp olive oil

Prick eggplant all over with a fork and place whole in a baking pan. Bake at 400 degrees F for 30-45 minutes (eggplant should be very soft). Remove from oven, halve, and scoop the flesh into a small bowl. Add lemon juice and mash mixture with a fork. Mix in salt and garlic, then tahini. Let the mixture cool. Before serving, drizzle with olive oil. Serve with pita bread.

Georgia just graduated from the French Culinary Institute and will be starting next month as garde manger at Blue Hill at Stone Barns. And I love her for that. Congratulations G!

to fill a ramekin

2006-12-27T19:34:00.000-08:00

ROASTED VEGETABLE PLATTER

I'm spoiled. I mean, I still relish placing a thick slice of fresh white tuna in my mouth...biting into the sweet crunch of persimmon...swirling a tasty, full-bodied Napa Valley cabernet...but these experiences tend to happen a lot more now. It's hard to tell about them all.

But I could not let our annual Chinese fusion holiday dinner pass without comment.

Christmas was particularly good this year. This was the year that I woke up on December 24 with no recipes, no ingredients, not a single plan at all.

In my mid-morning state-of-the-kitchen assessment, I found six ramekins and a large, smooth wooden platter. And in a spirited effort to please my mother, I planned my portion of the menu around this stock of rarely-used Crate & Barrel dinnerware.

Off I went to brave the insanity that is Whole Foods on Christmas Eve (think Times Square, except people are armed with carts), sweeping up the more intriguing vegetables stacked in aisle 1, which I promptly sent into the oven to be roasted when I arrived home: eggplant, asparagus, fennel (this was blanched), summer squash, zucchini, red pepper, yellow pepper, garlic. I plated these with slices of toasted ciabatta, rubbed with roasted garlic, sea salt, and olive oil, all placed atop a bed of romaine, Kalamata olives, and cherry tomatoes, and dressed in a marinade from Gourmet:

Roasted Vegetable Marinade
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon crumbled dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried basil, crumbled
1 teaspoon dried orégano, crumbled
1/4 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
1/2 cup olive oil

Whisk until emulsified.

I had heard about Roy's souffle during a recent trip to Hawaii (thanks Scott). After much searching online, I found the prized recipe at Best of LA in the food blogging community. I've tweaked the recipe a bit. I know, I know - who am I to mess with Roy Yamaguchi's famous chocolate souffle? But I actually found his version slightly too sweet. Also, I felt that the original recipe should best be doubled to make 6.

ROY'S CHOCOLATE SOUFFLE

Roy's Chocolate Souffle
Makes 6 souffles

INGREDIENTS
12 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate
½ cup sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
4 eggs
4 egg yolks

DIRECTIONS
1) Melt butter and chocolate in saucepan over LOW heat. Set aside.
2) In mixing bowl, combine sugar and cornstarch.
3) In another bowl, whisk eggs and egg yolks together.
4) Add melted butter/chocolate mix to sugar mix. Combine thoroughly with wire whisk.
5) Stir in eggs. Whisk until smooth. Place in refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight.
6) Coat each ramekin with baking spray. Place ramekins in a shallow water bath in a metal baking pan (water should come about halfway up the sides). Fill each ramekin 2/3-3/4 full with batter and bake for 25 minutes in preheated 400° oven on the top rack.
7) Serve with powdered sugar and fruit.

It's good. Very, very, very good.
Merry Christmas!

the meat project

2006-10-02T22:02:00.000-07:00

CHINESE CHICKEN SALAD

Exactly one week ago I realized that I was dangerously on the verge of becoming vegetarian. Despite my rapidly growing list of poser Californian-isms, I decided that I would not be adding an air of tofu-lentil elitism to my image. And so I vowed to myself to make at least one meaty item a day, an endeavor that, among other things, has kept me quite busy and not blogging.

My seven-day carnivorous adventure started with a bacon frying marathon and culminated tonight in "Roast Capon with Chile Cilantro Rub". You know you've broken new ground when you repeatedly set off the fire alarm, and your roasting pan emerges from the oven a shape very different from what you recall 400 degrees ago. Nevertheless, a worthwhile exercise with rewards of wonderfully crispy skin and juicy meat. Note that I used chicken because I didn't have any cage-free capon at my disposal.

Roast Capon with Chile-Cilantro Rub
(from Gourmet with my modifications)

Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 2 hr

1 (4-lb) capon or roasting chicken
4 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon pure mild red chile powder such as ground ancho
2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 tablespoons olive oil

Rinse capon and snip away any excess fat from cavity using kitchen shears. Pat capon dry and season with salt inside and out. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F.

While capon is standing, mash garlic to a paste with salt using a mortar and pestle. Add cilantro, chile powder, cumin, and butter and mash to a paste again.

Arrange capon, breast side up, with neck toward you, and gently work your fingers between skin and flesh of breast, working your way down to thighs. Rub one third of spice mixture under skin of breast and thighs. Rub another third of butter mixture in cavity of bird, then tie legs together with kitchen string (or not - this is done to ensure even cooking with bigger birds usually, or for aesthetic purposes).

Put capon in a buttered roasting pan. Roast in middle of oven 30 minutes. Remove pan from oven and set oven to 450 degrees. Brush top and sides of bird with remaining mixture then return to oven (tent capon with foil if it gets too brown), until a thermometer inserted 2 inches into fleshy part of a thigh registers 170°F, about 20 minutes.

Let capon stand 20 minutes before carving.

I have very few pictures from the week, as meat takes a long time, and the reality is that I find it difficult to take my usual 100 post-cooking photographs on low blood sugar.

Tomorrow - something easy - like tuna sandwich. Or, maybe, leftover chicken with chile cilantro rub.

OUT OF THE OVEN
@ 180 degrees

breakfast and bubbly

2006-09-10T21:42:00.000-07:00

GOAT CHEESE & SALAMI TOASTS with TOMATO and BASIL

Entertaining in California is as good as expected. It begins with a hour-long trip to Berkeley Bowl, during which I muse over which of the 10 varieties of peaches I should buy for my cobbler, and which ones I might toss into my tropical fruit salad...

And don't even get me started on the papaya ponderings.

On the menu for this morning:
- GOAT CHEESE & SALAMI TOASTS with TOMATO and BASIL
- PEACH RED BERRY COBBLER
- BANANA NUT BREAD with BURNT CARAMEL SAUCE
- CHOPPED TROPICAL FRUIT with COCONUT MILK YOGURT
- PINK & YELLOW MIMOSAS (just launched!)
- and of course...PEET'S COFFEE

Soundtrack:
- Putumayo's Afro-Latino Party
- Buena Vista Social Club
- Pink Martini (Hang on Little Tomato)

GOAT CHEESE & SALAMI TOASTS with TOMATO and BASIL
from Gourmet (with a few adjustments)

mini bagels, halved
soft goat cheese
Genoa salami, thickly sliced and quartered into triangles
cherry tomatoes, sliced 1/4" thick
basil chiffonade
black pepper

Lightly toast mini bagels. Generously spread goat cheese over each toasted bagel half. Top with three slices of salami and three slices of tomato. Garnish each bagel toast with basil and season with freshly ground black pepper.

Not a difficult menu at all. In fact, can be done with spare time to take 3 photos for food blog before guests arrive.

BANANA NUT BREAD with BURNT CARAMEL SAUCE

AND MORE FRUIT...

Oh yes, and would you like to know what I ate yesterday? Cabernet Sauvignon. Right off the vine (talk about tannic). My visit to the vineyards has got me thinking about crushing and bottling some of my own.

BTW - Pink and Yellow do make nice mimosas. Then again, I've never met a mimosa I didn't like.

no food

2006-08-22T22:54:00.000-07:00

I keep saying the food updates are coming...and they are. But first I wanted to share a few pix from the road trip.

Working backwards...

Final destination: my new apt. I recently upgraded and got chairs and a bed. Fab.

This would be Tahoe. Pretty. Third prettiest lake on the trip (after Yellowstone and Michigan).

Yellowstone Upper Falls.

The bison, aka buffalo. Very cool. We had some in burger-form.

Scene of the flat: Acme, Wyoming. FYI: Verizon doesn't represent so well in the Acme vicinity.
Me and Caf: taking on the Badlands in flip flops and platforms. 110 degrees F. Nearest Starbucks 291 mi. away, according to GPS.

And this is how we roll.

no photo

2006-08-03T21:49:00.000-07:00

Lame, i know. The mattress is getting here on Saturday.

So the massive wine tasting part of the fun has slowed significantly (has it only been a week?), and I can finally resume my "sushi-once-a-week" resolution. (No sake necessary, thank you.)

Some favorites:
Beringer Private Reserve Chardonnay
Etude Pinot Gris
Stags' Leap Petite Syrah
St. Clement Oroppas Cabernet Sauvignon (2002)
Wynns Coonawarra Shiraz

Must be careful not to get spoiled.

Peet's is on my way to work. Did you know that the Peet's here puts soy milk in its carafes? They put it right there on the counter, next to the half & half. Just like the regular milk. And the nonfat. Equal opportunity for dairy and non-dairy alike. Now that's what I like to see.

transition

2006-07-26T21:01:00.000-07:00

I started training today. I tasted 17 wines. I am learning that it's all about the art of spitting. :)

The food is amazing here, from falafel to fish tacos to bbq'ed eel on my very street - to crepes at Betty + Ben's, Kiri's lemon verbena ice cream, and prime rib of lamb at the Hudson House.

Sorry - no pix, no details, no cooking. Not until I get myself a mattress.

cabot's

2006-07-09T17:18:00.000-07:00

ENORMOUS LEMON POPPY SEED MUFFIN

Intense. Unpredictable. Extraordinary.

Nothing like an over-reactive strawberry ice cream soda and gigantic muffin to nurse the delirium of working till 4am.

These photos were taken at Cabot's Ice Cream & Restaurant, the prime location for a power lunch in West Newton, where I worked until two Fridays ago as a Design Strategist for Design Continuum. I figured I should record this experience for the team (we're really into memories and everlasting friendships and such).

TAKE TWO PARTS STRAWBERRY SODA

AND ONE PART STRAWBERRY SOFT SERVE

ADD SOFT SERVE TO SODA WITH SPOON
pref. in center of table, far away from anything you might care about

OBSERVE UNSTOPPABLE FROTHING ACTION WITH AWE

I have finally decided to move onwards and westwards. Or more, I have finally found the courage to uproot myself from my safe and happy home of 25 years, eliminate 70% of my possessions, and drive 3500 miles across mountains and desert, all because I think I have found the right opportunity for a new adventure and career.

Over the next two weeks, my best friend and I will be driving from Boston to Berkeley, CA. At the end of the month, I will begin my new job in Napa Valley at a wine company. I am excited. I will keep you updated as much as I can.

radius

2006-05-21T18:57:00.000-07:00

VEGETABLES 5 WAYS

Last week was quite rough, but it ended brilliantly with dinner at Michael Schlow's Radius on Saturday night (thanks to my dear parents). I've been to Schlow's Via Matta in Boston - Radius is far better.

Though I've fought it for a while, I think I finally have to accept the label of "yuppie" now that I consider duck and fennel to be comfort food. My review is here on the Boston Chowhound site.

SPICED DUCK AND FENNEL SALAD

sports, sweats & sauce

2006-05-20T18:25:00.000-07:00

PING'S BBQ CHICKEN

This guy I know (Andrew) writes for the Dig and the Improper Bostonian, and he did this great piece on "things to do while your girlfriend is away". It's true, a guy's got choices. Some guys watch basketball. Some dust off the old XBox from college. The more proactive types might invest in a kegerator. My friend Ping - he makes BBQ sauce.

I don't have too much back story for the making of Ping's BBQ sauce. All I know is that it involved a 4-hour shopping trip that covered 5 different grocery stores - Super 88, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Russo's, and Costco, and that the yield was massive. Ping used a recipe from the Barefoot Contessa.

Ina Garten's Barbecue Sauce
from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

Prep Time: 55 minutes
Yield: 1 1/2 quarts

1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions (1 large onion)
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup tomato paste (10 ounces)
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup honey
1/2 cup worcestershire sauce
1 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 cup hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes

In a large saucepan on low heat, saute the onions and garlic with the vegetable oil for 10 to 15 minutes, until the onions are translucent but not browned.

Add the tomato paste, vinegar, honey, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, chili powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Simmer uncovered on low heat for 30 minutes. Use immediately or store in the refrigerator.

Ping marinated his chicken overnight, and the result was tender, sweet, with just a touch of spice. I was impressed.

I later found out that Ping has considered that kegerator as well, but, after playing out the scenario in his head, realized that drinking unlimited beer every night might not coincide well with the beginning of his rotations schedule (he's a med student).

happy pork-chops-and-ice-cream-cake to you

2006-05-10T18:59:00.000-07:00

COFFEE ALMOND ICE-CREAM CAKE WITH DARK CHOCOLATE SAUCE

I turn my first quarter-century next week, and have started to wonder if this is that year when it will become increasingly less fun to welcome the arrival of any subsequent years.

That aside, I still have no problem making a big deal of other people's birthdays. My dad's was at the end of April, and we decided to cook for the family instead of risk another mediocre meal at one of Boston's many generic, overpriced restaurants (no, I am not jaded by the restaurant scene in this fine city of culinary magnificence).

It is not easy for my dad (I call him Baba) and me to share a kitchen. "I am the best chef," my dad will periodically remind me, whether he is surveying the steak he scored at Whole Foods, tasting a spoonful of his seafood soup, or pouring himself a Sam Adams. "Really. I am."

"Whatever."

I like to create drama in the kitchen when I am cooking with Baba. "GET OUT OF MY WAY!! I NEED THE STOVE!!! arghhh...MOVE!" It's more interesting this way. My dad's too zen, and he spends 80% of his "active cooking time" on the couch, watching golf. Meanwhile, I am zigzagging, juggling my time between prepping veggies, mincing garlic, reducing sauces, rolling out and freezing dough, marinating meats, toasting almonds (I always burn the stupid almonds - arg)....it's just not fair.

For his own birthday dinner last weekend, Baba prepared pan-fried pork chops (Taiwanese-style) and miso-baked salmon. I took care of salad and dessert. Yes, yes, I know - it seems unfairly balanced, but honestly, I spent way longer preparing my two courses. Pathetic, I know. (And Baba washed the salad greens, too.)

BABA'S TAIWAN-STYLE PORK CHOPS

We composed our salad around a base of sliced honeydew melon and prosciutto, cushioned with frisee and arugula (my dad's favorites, after a particularly good experience at Lumiere in West Newton, MA). I topped the greens with blueberries and candied sliced almonds, then dressed everything with a blend of chili sesame oil, olive oil, cider vinegar, sugar, and toasted sesame seeds. The result was a satisfying mix of spicyness from the dressing and sweetness from the fruits and nuts. (I know it's overkill to post three photos for the separate steps I took in preparing the salad, but I happen to like the photos I took.)

BEGINNING WITH PROSCIUTTO & MELON...

...THEN TOSSING WITH CANDIED ALMONDS AND GREENS

SALAD OF PROSCIUTTO, MELON, & FRESH BLUEBERRIES
on a bed of frisee and arugula with toasted almonds and chili-sesame vinaigrette

For dessert, I attempted my first-ever ice cream cake. Despite its 4 layers, it was extremely easy to prepare (though if you try it, budget for at least a half-day, to allow for ample freezing time). I followed a recipe orginally printed in Gourmet in 1991. A springform pan is a must.

Coffee Almond Ice Cream Cake with Dark Chocolate Sauce
1 1/2 cups fine chocolate wafer crumbs (couldn't find any - I used Oreos)
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 pints coffee ice cream, softened slightly
1 1/2 cups well-chilled heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups crushed amaretti (Italian almond macaroons, though I used crushed biscotti)
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

For the dark chocolate sauce:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2/3 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
4 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
3 to 4 tablespoons Amaretto, or to taste (I substituted with Bailey's)

To make the cake:
In a bowl with a fork stir together the crumbs and the butter until the mixture is combined well, pat the mixture onto the bottom and 1 inch up the side of a lightly oiled 8-inch springform pan, 2 1/2 inches deep, and freeze the crust for 30 minutes, or until it is firm. Spread the ice cream evenly on the crust and return the pan to the freeze for 30 minutes, or until the ice cream is firm. In a bowl with an electric mixer beat the cream with the vanilla until it holds stiff peaks (do not overbeat!), fold in the amaretti thoroughly, and spread the mixture over the ice cream. Smooth the top of the cake, sprinkle it with the almonds, and freeze the cake for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the top is firm. Freeze the cake, covered with plastic wrap and foil, for at least 4 hours or overnight. Just before serving, wrap a warm dampened kitchen towel around the side of the pan, remove the side, and transfer the cake to a serving plate. Cut the cake into wedges with a knife dipped in hot water and serve it with the chocolate sauce.

To make the sauce:
In a small heavy saucepan combine the cream and the brown sugar, bring the mixture to a boil over moderately high heat, whisking occasionally, and boil it, whisking, until the brown sugar is dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat and add the chocolates, whisking until they are melted. Whisk in the butter and the Amaretto, whisking until the sauce is smooth, and let the sauce cool slightly. The chocolate sauce may be made 1 week in advance and kept covered and chilled. Reheat the chocolate sauce over very low heat, stirring occasionally, until it is warm.

I can't wait for my dad's birthday next year.

project cornbread

2006-05-07T08:37:00.000-07:00

SPICY CHORIZO CORNBREAD

If I say, "I work in West Newton", I get blank stares. But if I add "Down the street from Blue Ribbon BBQ", I get nods of acknowledgement and murmurs of envy. (This is a shared experience for many of us at Design Continuum, as I learned over yet another large platter of oysters last night).

Blue Ribbon BBQ is a local cult phenomenon, mostly because the food is really good. The pulled pork is really good...the mashed potatoes are really good...and the cornbread is awesome. My current diet regimen requires at least one large square of Blue Ribbon cornbread per week, whether as toasted croutons, baked stuffing, or crumbled into a bowl of white bean chili, simple and unadulterated.

I figured, if Blue Ribbon bakes something like 2 million squares of really good cornbread per day, it couldn't possibly be that hard for me to make 16 squares of my own.
(It was harder than I expected.)

Project Cornbread, Take 1 (shown below, right)
Variation on Joy of Cooking's Southern Cornbread
[with diced green chili peppers and corn kernels]
The crumb was moist, but the texture was light. The cornbread also lacked richness in flavor - I should have known something was up when I didn't see "butter" in the recipe. Cornbread should not be made without butter.

Project Cornbread, Take 2 (shown below, left)
Variation on Joy of Cooking's Northern Cornbread
[with rosemary and toasted pine nuts]
The butter played a nice role in rounding out the flavor and creating a crumbly texture, but omitting corn kernels from the batter (without compensating with more liquid) resulted in a dry product. Also, the additions were weird. Pine nuts are not exactly indigenous to North Carolina.

PROJECT CORNBREAD, TAKES 1+2

Project Cornbread, Take 3 (pictured at top)
Spicy Chorizo Cornbread
inspired by America's Test Kitchen

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup white or yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1 can (8 oz.) corn kernels
1 cup plain whole milk yogurt
2 large eggs
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and cooled slightly
1 medium chorizo sausage, diced

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 8-inch-square baking dish (preferably glass) with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, cayenne, and salt in medium bowl until combined; set aside.
2. Mix brown sugar, corn kernels, and yogurt until combined. Add eggs and whisk until well combined.
3. Using rubber spatula, make well in center of dry ingredients; pour wet ingredients into well. Begin folding dry ingredients into wet, giving mixture only a few turns to barely combine; add melted butter and chorizo and continue folding until dry ingredients are just moistened. Pour batter into prepared baking dish; smooth surface with rubber spatula. Bake until deep golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 35 minutes. Cool on wire rack 10 minutes; invert cornbread onto wire rack, then turn right side up and continue to cool until warm, about 10 minutes longer. Cut into pieces and serve.

Success! A fine cornbread made with the help of ample butter and corn, plus the spice of cayenne and the goodness of chorizo.

P.S. Hooray for everyone walking in Project Bread's Walk for Hunger today!

vote for haley house!

2006-04-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

HALEY HOUSE BAKERY CAFE

photography by Savannah Jacobson

Hi all,
I wanted to announce the happy news that the Haley House Bakery Café has been nominated for two CBS-4 A-List Awards!

Haley House is nominated in two categories: BREAKFAST and HEALTHY LUNCH. Look for these categories in the "CHEAP EATS" section on the CBS website. The winners will be determined by voting. So if you've enjoyed your visits to the Bakery Cafe, please go to the site and share your thoughts.

And if you haven't yet visited Haley House, I strongly encourage you to go. You will love it, I promise.

HALEY HOUSE BAKERY CAFÉ
2139 Washington Street
Dudley Square, Roxbury
(617) 445-0900
Monday to Friday 7AM - 4PM
Saturday 9AM - 4PM
http://www.haleyhouse.org/cafe/index.htm

And look for the Bakery Cafe's new logo and menus that my team at Design Continuum recently designed as part of our pro bono brand identity project for Haley House.

Thank you!

HALEY HOUSE BAKERY CAFE

photography by Savannah Jacobson

P.S. I cannot help but also give a quick re-cap of my last weekend of eating out. Those of you familiar with Boston would appreciate how I dedicated all three days to spoiling myself - Gigamoto oysters at B&G Oysters, a Ginger Rogers cocktail at Franklin Cafe (gin, ginger simple syrup, muddled mint, lime juice, and ginger ale, on the rocks), brunch at Union Bar & Grille, brunch at Metropolis Cafe, and finishing on Sunday with a wine pairing event highlighting French complements to traditional Taiwanese foods, held at Mulan Restaurant in Cambridge. My new discovery - a 2000 Bordeaux from Chateau La Cardonne (Medoc). Wine Spectator described it back in 2001 as "shows good berry, tobacco and cherry character, with well-integrated tannins and a fresh finish." The sommelier at Alexander Wine & Spirits says, "a mixture of spice, blackcurrant, and bilberry...round and flavorsome, introducing mineral and deliciously smoky notes." I would say that I found it "sophisticated, smooth, and really good with tea-smoked duck."

pb and t

2006-04-21T06:46:00.000-07:00

POPO'S COLD PEANUT BUTTER TOFU

T is for tofu. I have been practicing my own form of fusion at home.

Way before anyone was slathering hoisin sauce onto pizza dough or tossing mandarin oranges with romaine, my family was exploring the culinary frontier of East-meets-West with "Chinese Variations on Skippy".

The classic example is Shou-aie's (my "little aunt's") sandwich - peanut butter and pork sung on white bread. I have yet to meet anyone (Chinese or otherwise) who believes that this could be a good idea, but I tell you, it's genius. Visit your nearest dealer in fluffy dried pork (any Chinese grocery store) and see for yourself. I ate a lot of peanut butter-pork sung sandwiches growing up.

Meanwhile, my grandmother, or PoPo as I called her, assessed our peanut butter-pork sung-eating habits, sighed, and assumed the responsibility for nourishing our displaced family in Boston. With no cooks to rely on in the States (as she had had back in Taipei), she developed her own repertoire of dishes, relying on her memory, Chinese newspaper clippings, and the kindness of friends who included recipes in their letters.

Probably to PoPo's dismay, among all her tasteful, authentic creations, it was her quick and simple preparation of cold tofu that endured as one of my all-time favorites. PoPo granted my request for Peanut Butter Tofu only when our tofu was at its freshest (our family bought massive quantities, straight from the wholesaler that supplies the Chinese restaurants and grocery stores of Boston - Chang Shing Tofu).

I tried to replicate PoPo's recipe based on taste. It's close, but not quite right. It didn't activate my taste memory the way it would have had I gotten it perfect. I need to keep trying.

PoPo's Cold Peanut Butter Soy Sauce Tofu
1 square fresh, soft tofu ("silken" at an American grocery store)
3 tbsp. creamy peanut butter
2 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. warm water
2 scallions, chopped
sesame oil

Set the tofu on a medium-sized plate. With a sharp knife, slice into 1" cubes, retaining the tofu's upright shape. Mix the peanut butter, soy sauce, and water together in a small bowl, and smooth the mixture over the tofu. Garnish with scallions, and drizzle with sesame oil. Serve and enjoy!

My grandmother cooked with passion, and with resilience, and she lived the way she cooked. PoPo selected only the highest quality ingredients, and she never skimped in her preparation of them - if she was going to cook at all, she was going to do it right. When PoPo encountered a difficult dish, we ate it day after day, week after week, until she was finally satisfied with her results. Every day, PoPo happily spoiled those she loved, by feeding us with good food.

My grandmother's example remains a great inspiration in my life. PoPo was also a writer.

asian fusion

2006-04-16T18:24:00.000-07:00

KEN ORINGER'S SHISO BUBBLE TEA

"They're putting ginger and wasabi in everything these days!" lamented my friend Ping today. "And everywhere I go, there's mango on my fish."

He's right. Fusion is the food fad that won't go away. But I like mango. And I really like ginger. Fusion for the sake of fashion annoys me, but it sometimes turns out pleasant results.

I attended A Spoonful of Ginger two weeks ago, a food tasting benefit for the Joslin Diabetes Center. Given the cause - research for the Asian American Diabetes Initiative - the participating chefs, who included Ming Tsai, Jasper White, and Joanne Chang, made conscious efforts to give their dishes an Asian flair.

Joanne Chang piped ginger cream into her profiteroles. Ming Tsai topped his conch ceviche seafood bisque with crispy wonton strips.

But it was Ken Oringer (of Clio restaurant, Boston) who truly took fusion to another level with his Shiso Bubble Tea. His conception was a creative, unforced, and terrifically yummy combination of Japanese and Taiwanese ingredients - shiso-blended green tea floating atop a layer of sweet milk, suspended with tapioca pearls. He served his tea in tall shot glasses with oversized bubble tea straws. (Shiso is that jagged-edged herb that often garnishes a plate of good sushi.)

My take - fusion is worthwhile to the extent that it opens new possibilities for creating innovative and better foods. While I would have liked Joanne's cream puffs just as much filled with traditional whipped cream, and Ming Tsai's soup served with a piece of fresh, crusty bread, my Shiso Bubble Tea experience could not have been re-created in any other way.

(What I really cannot appreciate are dishes like Foie Gras Shiitake Shumai, which I once ordered at Ming Tsai's Blue Ginger. Sure, it's good. Of course it's good. But is it excitingly different from traditional shumai made with pork? Not really. Is the flavor of the foie gras completely transformed by the presence of the mushrooms? No. Is it $16 good? Really can't say...)

JOANNE CHANG'S GINGER CREAM-FILLED
CREAM PUFFS DIPPED IN CHOCOLATE

brownie bowl

2006-04-10T20:20:00.000-07:00

PRAIRIE STAR DOUBLE CHOCOLATE BROWNIE SUNDAE

When it comes to dessert, I like to write about my attempts at raspberry coulis and cardamom-ginger infusions. If the name sounds trendy and exotic, I will probably order it...(just throw in a flavor like rose, cayenne, or Earl Grey). Accented vowels help the cause, as do geographic references, like Mexican chocolate and Thai coconut. And I still, admittedly, believe that "flourless" means "awesome".

But Harvard Square's Pizzeria Uno, Chicago Bar & Grille is where I go for crispy fries, sugary margaritas, and my favorite dessert of all time - the Brownie Bowl. It costs $4.49 and is composed of three triangular Oreo brownies, weighed down by a generous heap of vanilla ice cream, liberal squirts of hot fudge, and a disproportionate mass of whipped cream, topped with a sunken cherry and, if you are lucky, an Oreo cookie. Every brownie bowl is different, because each one has been made by a different artist with a different style and level of apathy for his/her job. You never quite know what you are going to get.

The brownie bowl was a key part of my high school and college experience. My friends and I wagered brownie bowls. "I'll bet you a brownie bowl that George Clooney was in Revenge of the Killer Tomatoes." We bribed each other with brownie bowls. "I will buy you THREE brownie bowls if you come to my chemistry grad student halloween party." And, of course, we celebrated with brownie bowls - end of semester, end of exam, end of day. I owe brownie bowls to all kinds of people from school.

I have since found several respectable brownie bowl substitutes, most notably the Cheesecake Factory's (aptly named) Giant Brownie Ice Cream Sandwich and, more recently, Prairie Star's Double Chocolate Brownie Sundae, which I shared with my college roommates last weekend for old time's sake. Prairie Star is located on Dartmouth Street in Boston, between Back Bay and the South End. The owners' moist half-pound dark chocolate brownies are so popular that they are now available online for purchase.

And since I am in the mood for disclosing information...well if my no. 1 dessert is the brownie bowl, then the first runner-up is most definitely McDonald's vanilla ice cream cone. It is creamy, swirly, and delicious.

I promise I will start cooking again. I've been too busy eating the past couple weeks.

old school tea

2006-04-06T16:25:00.000-07:00

A SHOWY AFFAIR

OK, I admit it. Tea is a fad. Tea became a fad when we began drinking grande Tazo Chai Tea lattes out of paper cups.

But before the Body Shop sold tea tree oil facial wash, before we ordered our green tea purple with slimy gelatinous balls, and before yerba mate debuted as the new coffee for tree-huggers and hipsters alike, my mom was brewing lemon tea.

Her recipe: "Lots of lemon, lots of honey." The kettle was on the stove the moment I mentioned any kind of tickle in my throat.

I've always associated tea with having a certain healing power. Thus, when I started feeling a bit funny last week, I resisted my regular morning espresso and regrettably reached for our selection of non-caffeinated, herbal teas at work. As per usual, I began with chamomile and, as needed, moved on to the others with progressively greater virus-killing effects, sometimes indicated by the word "Zinger". I don't believe in cold medicine.

I knew things weren't getting better, however, as the frequency of my hot water runs increased and the tissues on my desk grew scarce. But I remained hopeful - on Sunday, my friends and I had reservations for the ultimate tea experience - High Tea at the Boston Harbor Hotel. If anything could beat this cold, it was three pots of mint tea, augmented by the curative effects of smoked salmon and caviar sandwiches, petite blueberry tarts, and flaky drop scones with miniature chocolate shavings.

Afternoon Tea was, indeed, exquisite. The dainty sampling of food, poised on three tiers of plates, did not disappoint. I enjoyed everything thoroughly...the orange-and-yellow rose petals scattered on our table, the sweeping view of the harbor, the overwhelming maturity and female-ness of the entire experience (quite different from our late-nights eating slices of Tommy's in the past)...but woke up the next day feeling sicker than ever.

After sulking through another day in bed, I gave in and drove myself back to my parents' home. Soon, I was cradling a mug of that steaming elixir - made with lots of lemon, lots of honey, and two thick slices of ginger. (How lucky to have my mom nearby!) I leaned my face in, breathed in the vapors, and felt my head finally begin to clear.

TIER 1 ...the quick breads

TIER 2...the sandwiches

TIER 3...the sweets

chocolate chip favor

2006-04-03T11:39:00.000-07:00

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE

Earlier in my blogging days, I posted a picture of Justin's French toast. Justin is still living in Beijing, but between the day of his Great French Toast Event and today, Justin did visit home and, while here, did me a huge favor. In thanks, I sent him a care package of chocolate chip cookies. (I figure he can't fill his whole food pyramid with just French toast and bacon).

They don't eat many cookies in China. Despite being over four times our population in size, the Chinese probably eat a tenth of all the cookies we eat here in the U.S. (note - this is not for work, so I am definitely making these numbers up...to the best of my knowledge). In fact, as far as I know, few Chinese desserts are baked. They are traditionally steamed, fried, or cooked as delicious sweet soups, served hot and cold.

Further investigation has led me to discover that "cookie" is a concept entirely "Made in USA".

"Cookie" is not actually a translation of anything - it represents a baked American invention, an icon of Yankee ingenuity, most notable in its glorious form bursting with chocolate chips. It has since become a word that we lazily apply to all other small pastries and sweets of the world... (apologies, on behalf of American English, to those who bake in other countries). So now it suddenly makes sense why there are French madeleines, German spritz, Italian biscotti and Florentines, Scottish shortbread...etc.

Anyhow, enough with the words. I was excited to have the opportunity to try Marilyn's chocolate chip cookie recipe from her blog cauponilla. She, in turn, found this recipe on page 776 of The Best Recipe. I have made more than my share of chocolate chip cookies in my time but could not resist giving this one a try, seeing as it has stood up to the rigorous scrutiny of America's Test Kitchen. I am re-posting the recipe below.

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (10 5/8 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until just warm
1 cup packed (7 ounces) light or dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts/pecans (which I omitted, per request)

1. Adjust the oven racks to the upper and lower middle positions and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment or spray them with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.
3. Either by hand or with an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed just until combined. Stir in the chips and nuts to taste.
4. Drop heaping tablespoons onto the baking sheet 2 1/2 inches apart.
5. Bake until the cookies are light golden brown, the outer edges start to harden, and the centers are still soft and puffy, 15-18 minutes, rotating the baking sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through the baking time. Cool the cookies on the sheets. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets with a wide metal spatula.

Not a bad cookie at all. I am happy to be using recipes posted by fellow bloggers, and am wishing that there were some smart central site that compiled all of these recipes into a friendly, searchable database...with a pretty interface.

A brief note about the practicality of sending cookies to China...the cost of shipping equals something around the value of 150 spicy roasted lamb skewers plus two beers in Beijing...and twice that in a city like Xi'an.

PACKAGING DESIGN

bloggers and maps

2006-04-01T20:48:00.000-08:00

WHERE DO YOU BLOG?

Hi everyone.
I've decided to try and initiate the creation of a Frappr map for food bloggers around the world. I am excited and awed that I have been receiving visitors everywhere from San Francisco and Chicago to Malaysia and Greece. Fellow food bloggers - please add yourself to the Food Bloggers group that I've created on Frappr. I think it will be interesting for us to have a visual representation showing just how global the community is.

Make sure you type in the name and URL of your blog when you fill out your profile, so others can visit your blog by clicking on your map pin!

Food Bloggers Group Map
http://www.frappr.com/foodbloggers

blogs and mags

2006-03-26T19:26:00.000-08:00

EAT ADVENTURE

I really think food and design are highly correlated interests. Just like travel and languages. Or videogames and sports.

Matt lent me an issue of Eat, the ultimate in funky food magazines, which, to my dismay, printed its final issue in 2004 (I learned this after extensive Googling...which eventually brought me to fellow blogger Santos's The Scent of Green Bananas...thanks Santos!). Matt picked up Eat in San Francisco back in April 2002. The fact that he's held onto it since says something. This magazine is cool.

While the magazine was published in Tokyo, contributors hailed from both Japan and beyond (primarily the UK). The result was a globally-oriented publication with a bipolar sense of humor (a mix of dry British wit and Japanese irony, which, as a reader, you keep wondering if you should attribute to something having gotten lost in translation).

This particular issue, themed "Adventure", covers all topics between the evolution of the plastic fork (with a good amount of discussion dedicated to the origins of the spork) and the opening of Ichiran ramen restaurant in Tokyo, where customers can savor a full bowl without ever speaking to another soul (they order electronically and eat in individual cubicles, or taste concentration booths). Eat also recommends a good Malaysian chicken curry in Washington, D.C. and features interviews with Jane Goodall ("Pursuit: Monkeys") and Akira the Hustler ("Pursuit: Sex Work") about the foods they eat.

The back-end of the magazine features two fine-looking multicultural urbanites modeling Prada and LV while eating rice balls and strawberry pie. This is followed by a detailed page of weight and volume conversions, listed by type of food, including fresh breadcrumbs vs. dried breadcrumbs and grated parmesan vs. grated cheddar.

Random, yes, but Eat captures just about everything I like through some fantastic writing - travel... fashion... design... people... cooking... and of course, food. I'm thinking I might just have to eBay those back issues.

PLASTIC FORKS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

RICE BALL ROMANCE

susan's red lentil spread

2006-03-20T19:45:00.000-08:00

RED LENTIL SPREAD

I have a lot of cookbooks. Chocolate cookbooks, retro cookbooks, cookbooks dedicated to the tart, Vietnamese cookbooks, yeast-based cookbooks, cookbooks for friendship, cookbooks for speed, cookbooks for Germans...But I rarely use any of my own cookbooks. As much as I delight in discovering them, buying them, receiving them, trialing them, and displaying them, I eventually tire of them. And in the end I'd much prefer using yours.

Reading someone else's cookbook is like watching their dog for a day. It's a fun and random peek into their lives.

Last week, Susan let me borrow Essential Vegetarian Cookbook by Diana Shaw. It's a heavy book, with no photos and only a few graphics of vegetables printed in green. (It was thus not a cookbook that I would have ever picked up on my own, as I am a great sucker for food porn.) Susan had marked the page for chuncky chickpea soup with a recipe ripped from a magazine for quinoa salad with apricots and pistachios. Chocolate buttermilk cake was tagged with a slanted xerox for sweet zucchini-spice bread. I have a new admiration for Susan's alternative sophistication in food and know that I would eat happily should I ever be invited to dinner at her place.

I chose an easy recipe, given that I had just about everything in stock, with the exception of red lentils, which, like every single other type of bean, nut, grain, and spice, can be purchased in bulk at my neighborhood Harvest Co-op.

Red Lentil Spread
(adapted from Diana Shaw's Essential Vegetarian Cookbook)

2 tsp. olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1 1/2 tbsp. finely minced ginger root
3 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro, divided
2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
1 cup uncooked red lentils, rinsed
2 cups water
1 1/2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Salt

Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. When it is hot, add the garlic, ginger, 2 tbsp. of the cilantro, cumin, and turmeric. Reduce the heat to medium and saute, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Stir in the lentils and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook until lentils are cooked through and all the water has been absorbed, about 20 minutes. Check often after 10 minutes to make sure that they aren't sticking (if so, add 1/4 cup water, stir, cover, and continue cooking).

Mash the lentils with the back of a wooden spoon. Stir in lemon juice and salt to taste. Let the spread sit at least 30 minutes at room temperature. Before serving, stir remainder of fresh cilantro into spread.

the quest for a better muffin

2006-03-16T19:53:00.000-08:00

MIXED BERRY MUFFINS

This is my first muffin post since the inception of Bribe Me with a Muffin.

It is difficult to explain why we like the muffin, just as it is difficult to explain why we like long, hot showers or, say, George Clooney. We just know we do, and, rather than deconstruct the reasons, I prefer not to spoil the magic and just live it.

Twenty-four years in Boston have led me to some pretty good muffin finds throughout the city. Petsi Pies's blackberry peach crumb muffin is superb (Petsi Pies is on the Cambridge/Somerville border). Sorelle Bakery & Cafe in Charlestown also does a nice job (I prefer the quaint location on Monument Ave.), as does Appleton Bakery Cafe in the South End (banana chocolate chip). And of course, I must mention Haley House's unique line of all natural and wholesome muffins. My personal choice is the pumpkin bran, topped with organic pepitas. While I am at it, I will also note that one of my most memorable muffins of all time was this piece of work from a cafe in the Upper East Side in NY (the name of this place escapes me at the moment - it was the type of place that had a serious thing for stainless steel). Memorable, partially because the muffin was indeed tasty, but more so because it set me back $4. Oh, New York.

Anyhow, I digress. There are thousands - maybe millions - of muffin recipes out there, many of them bad. I've been through my share of dispiriting let-downs. There's always something wrong - too cakey, too dense, too dry...I have high standards for muffins, and I always have my eye out for something better.

Joanne Chang, a personal heroine of mine, runs Flour Bakery + Cafe in Boston's South End. Joanne Chang is my heroine, because she is a Harvard applied math/ec major turned management consultant turned pastry chef/ restaurant owner. Flour is both hip and cozy and turns out excellent baked goods (not to mention a highly satisfying curried tuna sandwich). Food and Wine featured Flour as the Best New Bakery in Boston in 2001.

Fine Cooking recently printed Joanne Chang's muffin recipe. I adapted it for mixed berry muffins. This one's a keeper.

Mixed Berry Muffins
(makes 12)

3 1/2 c flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/3 c granulated sugar
10 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 c. whole milk
1 c. whole milk yogurt or sour cream, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 large egg yolk, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
1 1/2 c. mixed berries, fresh or frozen (blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries)

Put rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease top of standard 12-cup muffin tin and line with paper or foil baking cups.

In a large bowl, sift the first four ingredients and mix well. In a medium bowl, whisk sugar, butter, milk, yogurt/sour cream, eggs, egg yolk, vanilla, and lemon zest.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold gently with rubber spatula until dry ingredients are mostly moistened (a few lumps and streaks of flour are ok). Fold in berries.

Use an ice cream scoop or ladle to scoop the batter into the muffin cups. The batter should mound higher than the rims of the cups by about 3/4 inch.

Bake until the muffins are golden brown and spring back when you press the middle, about 20-30 minutes. Let the tin cool on a rack for 15-20 minutes.

The result is a worthy example of what is perhaps one of the most versatile and pleasing baked goods to ever come out of the American kitchen.

sand and dirt: equally delicious

2006-03-13T17:51:00.000-08:00

PETER EATS SAND CAKE

So they've got the BBC, and we've got CNN. They ride the Tube, I take the T. They take responsibility for the Spice Girls, and we for the Backstreet Boys. They eat English trifle, and I have my sand cake.

I happily came upon this recipe for sand cake whilst searching online for beach-inspired foods.

Sand cake is the ideal party cake. It is meant to be messy and is thus easy to serve (ideally with a plastic shovel). It's a fun conversation piece. And best of all, you really can't screw it up. The only point to note is that it needs to sit in the fridge for several hours prior to serving.

Sand Cake
(many variations exist - this is G+Siri's version)

2 packages (3.5 to 4 oz. each) vanilla-flavored instant pudding
4 cups milk
1 container (8 oz.) nondairy whipped topping
1 package (15 oz.) chocolate-chip cookies, broken into quarters
2 cups vanilla-wafer cookie crumbs, divided
Gummy lobsters, shells, flip flops (if you can find them - use fish if you cannot)
Candy rocks
Paper umbrellas

In a large bowl, whisk pudding mix into 4 cups milk until smooth. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the whipped topping, then fold in the chocolate chip cookies. Spoon half of the pudding mixture into a clean 2-3 quart plastic beach bucket (or glass trifle dish). Sprinkle with half of the vanilla cookie crumbs. Decorate with some of the candy items. Repeat the layers. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to allow the cookies to soften. Decorate the top with gummy candies, candy rocks, and paper umbrellas. Warn your guests that candy rocks can be hard on the teeth (sorry Peter!).

This fabulous example of sand cake above was made by my fabulous roommate Siri.

FYI - For those of you who may be wondering - sand cake is indeed the lesser-known relative of the other sediment-based cake, dirt cake. Dirt cake is similar in spirit, but with a few notable substitutions. It is made with crushed Oreos and chocolate pudding and topped with gummy worms. It is best served in a flower pot with a trowel.

the second best thing that's ever happened to a twizzler

2006-03-07T17:52:00.000-08:00

STRAWBERRY AND ORANGE TWERPS
(thank you Peter for the photo)

There are a lot of things I like in this world.
But there are more things that I could potentially like.

In our last post-sushi candy run to CVS, something new and different caught my eye - Twizzlers Twerps on display, front and center, orange and pink. Immediately, I thought of Twizzlers Sourz, those bite-sized "sour-coated chews" to which I developed an alarming addiction late last year. After my first taste of that sour berry blue, I knew I was hooked. Before I knew it, I was taking down an unnaturally large number of Sourz in a single sitting. I began making up false reasons to visit my purveyor, with my trips always ending up in the aisle with that cheery neon packaging.

I wasn't heading down a good path, and I knew it. After several weeks, I painfully resolved to cut myself off. I vowed not to buy any more Sourz. The decision brought a moderate degree of suffering early on, but eventually I did stop thinking about Twizzlers Sourz altogether.

Until that day. When bags and bags of Twizzlers "Twerps" lay before me. My regular sources of sugary delight - Snickers, Reese's, Twix - none of those seemed to matter now that I had been enticed by these "tangy filled chews".

I caved. I bought the Twerps. They weren't as good as Sourz (I'm not sure if anything will ever be). But I still ate too many.

parallel giant baking

2006-03-04T17:25:00.000-08:00

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES WITH PEANUT BUTTER FROSTING

40 mph winds and temperatures with a high of 20 transformed an exciting Saturday of beginner snowboarding lessons into an intense and gnarly day of baking.

Amanda, Cafa, and I first consoled ourselves with breakfast at Sound Bites, a somewhat overrated but still highly satisfying neighborhood joint in Somerville. (I've been spoiled by San Francisco, where places like Chloe's Cafe have made whole wheat walnut toast and farm-fresh berries a standard part of the hangover brunch...)

We then moseyed our way into the Saturday scene at Market Basket, which is completely different from what you might find at the local Whole Foods (Cantabrigians sampling cheeses after yoga) or Shaw's (MIT grad students towing personal shopping baskets on wheels). Market Basket is frenzied. Market Basket is disorienting. Market Basket is wholly human and astoundingly cheap.

I could have spent hours wandering the aisles, but my companions kept us focused on our mission. We gathered the necessary ingredients and headed home, and for the next couple hours dedicated our full attention to our chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting and chocolate hazelnut bars.

Since my visit to Magnolia Bakery in the West Village last month, I have been thinking about the meaning of the quintessential cupcake. Ostensibly, Magnolia's does make the quintessential cupcake - simple flavors, deftly frosted with a thick, sugary smear. But they also make a big to-do of your entire experience in their store, which, unfortunately, takes away from the cupcake's innocent charm (note the bouncer at the door). The price of fame, I suppose.

Our chocolate cupcake recipe came from Martha Stewart, and our peanut butter frosting was the classic healthful mixture consisting primarily of peanut butter, butter, and confectioners' sugar.

Martha Stewart's Chocolate Cupcakes
(makes 12)

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk or soy milk, room temperature
1 large egg, lightly beaten, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup boiling water

1. Place rack in center of oven and heat to 350°. Line cupcake tins (regular size) with 12 paper liners; set aside.

2. In a large bowl, combine cocoa, sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add butter, milk, egg, and vanilla. Using a hand-held electric mixer on medium speed, beat for two minutes. (I did this by hand.) Add boiling water and beat to combine (batter will be thin). Divide batter evenly between cupcake liners.

3. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Frosting
3 tbsp butter, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 tbsp milk or soy milk

Combine butter and peanut butter in a medium bowl, and beat until smooth (an electric mixer helps, but we did it by hand). Gradually mix in the sugar and vanilla. Add milk one tablespoon at a time until all of the sugar is mixed in and the frosting is smooth. Beat for a few minutes for it to get fluffy.

Don't frost the cupcakes until they are cool! We topped our finished cakes with chocolate nibs made from crushed chocolate chips. (We had trouble getting them to stay on the frosting, so we sprayed each cupcake lightly with vegetable oil first.) The end product was delightful and a joy to eat. As Amanda described, it was just moist enough to be good, but not so dishonestly moist as a cupcake from Duncan Hines. (Better than a mix - it's a low bar, but the unspoken goal of anyone who takes the time to make brownies or chocolate cake from scratch.)

Meanwhile, we also took on the challenge of developing our own chocolate hazelnut bar recipe, which I will not share with you just yet, as it is still somewhat a work in progress. I will say, however, that should you be without a food processor, Cafa has found it useful to keep the household tool chest handy by the kitchen.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT BARS
(a work in progress)

For a savory complement to our nutritious lunch, we added freshly popped popcorn, which our very resourceful Amanda made in a brown paper bag, and I buttered and seasoned with garlic, chili pepper, and salt.

Overall, the day was schwank, and I am beginning to wonder why Parallel Giant Baking has yet to be included as an event in the Winter Olympics. Would it be against the rules to seek sponsorship from KitchenAid?

the power of color

2006-02-23T20:04:00.000-08:00

SONY BRAVIA

One of the great joys of working at a design firm is being around people who are always trying to satisfy that constant craving for creative stimulus with the flavor of something new and different. I always welcome the samplings that land in my inbox.

I found two such recent tidbits to be particularly engrossing. As i struggle to learn about programming and html color codes to make this blog a bit more visually tasteful, I have started to think a lot about colors in general. These two items really helped bring color to life for me in a whole new way. (I'll try not to stray from food too often, but when there is something particularly good for show and tell, I cannot resist.)

The first is a visual mapping of the news, in the U.S. as well as in 10 other countries. It is updated real-time and color-coded by subject (world, business, sports, etc.). It's all information from Google, but made smart and swank.
http://www.marumushi.com/apps/newsmap/newsmap.cfm

The other is pure candy for the eyes and ears. View the extended version (make sure you have Quicktime). I found it wholly captivating.
http://www.bravia-advert.com

eating, drinking, and breathing

2006-02-19T20:16:00.000-08:00

CHRIS'S PORTUGUESE FISHERMAN'S SOUP
(with chorizo, mussels, clams, leeks, tomatoes, wine, shallots and garlic)

"Eating, drinking, and breathing - that's what it's all about." Our sagacious expert from the EPA spoke impressively about air when we interviewed him for my current project at work.

Chris and I spend our days at Continuum trying to define and design the ultimate experience around air. Air is difficult, because people really don't think about air. People do not invite each other to their homes to breathe. They do not have to worry about providing enough air for their families, or plan out which types of air to prepare for upcoming week. They do not watch TV to see who can whip up the best air in 60 minutes, and they certainly do not spend thousands of dollars on packages to sample the airs of Italy and France. For most people, air is really not what it's all about. And this is why work can get hard sometimes.

Luckily, we can always turn to eating and drinking when breathing gets to be difficult. Chris and I both revel in the much easier challenge of designing the ultimate experience around food. (Searching for the ultimate drinking experience is also a fine alternative.) People get food. They like it; they appreciate it. Here is a sampling of the latest from Chris's kitchen.

CHRIS'S GERMAN APPLE PANCAKE W/MAPLE SYRUP

xin nian (belated) kuai le!

2006-02-19T17:41:00.000-08:00

DUMPLINGS (JIAOZI) WAITING TO BE BOILED

Happy Chinese New Year!

(I'm a little behind, but i hope that you have taken advantage of this time to read my previous post about the Bakery Cafe at Haley House.)

So the Year of the Dog officially began on Sunday, January 29 (solar calendar), and it was 4 days of non-stop partying for me. It began Friday night, when I split eastern-style chicken tenders (with sweet and sour sauce) at Chef Chow's with 10 or so friends. Our marathon banquet highlighted Peking duck, which was served wrapped in pancakes filled with scallions and slathered with hoisin sauce (which I have learned today to be a "combination of mashed soy beans, vinegar and flour, seasoned with garlic, chili peppers, sesame and salt" - good to know, I love that stuff). Unfortunately, the banquet did not include a stir-fry or soup (traditionally duck is served in two or three courses). But the roasted duck was definitely better than the one I had had at Quanjude in Beijing last fall. I was happy. For a more detailed account of our meal (and other wonderful stories about local restaurants in Boston), please visit www.diningoutboston.com, from my good friend and fellow foodie Bridey.

Sunday night I went with my family to what I have personally decided must be one of the best Chinese restaurants in Boston, Shangri-la (at least for Taiwanese-style food). Happy for my mom, it is located in Belmont. Happy for me, it is modest, unassuming, and still relatively undiscovered. Note: The Taiwanese brunch is particularly good here. Order the silken tofu with preserved thousand-year-old duck egg, topped with pork sung (fluffy, shredded dried pork) and scallions. Sounds gross but is totally awesome. I swear.

On Monday, the Design Strategy Practice at Continuum had our own celebration. I don't know if it will become a yearly custom for our group to celebrate Chinese New Year, but I do see it as a progressive and open-minded tradition to embrace. I approve! Can I also suggest having a Seder at some point? I enjoyed two Tsingtaos with my meal. I have to admit that when it comes to Asian beers, I like Sapporo much better. (Please do not take offense, my people - I realize that some still cannot avoid mixing beer with politics.)

But it was Saturday night - New Year's Eve - that I hope will set the culinary tone for this upcoming year. Simple, delicious food, prepared with people I love. Saturday was dumpling (jiaozi) day at home. My family hadn't made dumplings from scratch for years, but my dad felt inspired this year, and he whipped up three types of fillings - pork and bok choy, beef and chives, and pork and chives. He also made fresh dough for the wrappers from flour and water. Fresh wrappers make all the difference.

I really cannot take much credit for the delicious boiled dumplings that resulted, but I did fully participate in the wrapping process. I believe you can learn a lot about a person by how they wrap their dumplings. Look carefully, and you will see that everyone has a different way of wrapping dumplings, even if they learned from the same master (in my case, my grandmother).

CHEF DAD MAKING WRAPPERS

MY DUMPLINGS

PS. If you should happen to be a Dog, please try to be extra vigilant, as this may be a tumultuous year for you. Wear red clothing to ward off evil spirits (don't be surprised to see George W. flashing some red flair on C-SPAN - he was born in 1946, year of the dog).
PPS. Hint - should you be stricken with a dumpling craving minus the motivation to wrap your own, check out Wang Fast Food in Somerville, MA for a bag of frozen dumplings (my favorite - pork, shrimp, and leek).

haley house bakery cafe

2006-01-31T20:28:00.000-08:00

THE CAFE IN DUDLEY SQ.

the haley house bakery cafe is an inspiring blend of all things that i love and care about - good people bringing greater good to society through good food. over the weekend, this unique little cafe, which opened in roxbury's dudley square last september, was selected as one of the "best of the new" in 2005 by the boston globe.

"Best of the New", Boston Globe Magazine

the haley house bakery cafe is a social enterprise run by boston's nonprofit organization, haley house. this retail and wholesale bakery cafe runs a training program that teaches underemployed individual basic job skills in the baking industry. the goal is to help trainees obtain and succeed in full-time jobs upon graduating from the 6-month program.

while the program has been in existence for 10 years, this expansion of the enterprise from a little corner bakery in the south end into a full-scale business and training program is recent, and i spent much of my time in 2004 and 2005 working on the business plan that stood behind this transformation process.

chef didi emmons now runs the Bakery Cafe. you may know her as the owner of Veggie Planet in harvard square, or for her stints at Pho Republique, Centre Street Cafe, Delux Cafe, and Hamersley's Bistro, among other well-known Boston restaurants. she has also authored cookbooks Vegetarian Planet and Entertaining for a Vegetarian Planet. didi has infused her passion for the creative use of locally produced and organic ingredients into both the bakery and cafe. vegan berry muffin anyone?

when you visit, you may hear sous chef rod singing opera as he tosses fresh mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, and grated carrots with anything else that arrived earlier that morning - beets, red onion, arugula - then shaking in a generous drizzle of thick balsamic vinaigrette. he caps the end of your plate with a square of warm, buttery cornbread, made with whole bits of corn kernels.

others who i love to see at the Bakery Cafe are bing and kathe, and christian, whom i miss dearly (after doing so much for Haley House, she has gone on to seek good beyond all the baked goodness).

HALEY HOUSE BAKERY CAFÉ
2139 Washington Street
Dudley Square, Roxbury
(617) 445-0900
Monday to Saturday 7AM - 4PM
http://www.haleyhouse.org/cafe/index.htm

by the way, you can also find haley house baked goods at a variety of cafes and specialty markets throughout boston, cambridge, and somerville - like toscanini's, 1369, diesel cafe, and b. good.

BANANA WALNUT MUFFIN

stewing like there's no tomorrow

2006-01-30T19:25:00.000-08:00

MOROCCAN VEGETABLE STEW

on TV, they've made their first course and have dessert in the oven before the first commercial break. in my reality, at that point, i generally have half an onion sliced and one foot in a sneaker, ready to head out for that stick of butter i could have sworn was in the fridge yesterday.

when it comes to cooking, i have yet to master any of the skills that actually matter when it comes to daily survival, that is, planning ahead, ensuring that i have the necessary ingredients, peeling and chopping efficiently (the veggies, not my fingers), etc. thus, i am actually completely helpless when i arrive home hungry at night. and that is why cafe podima, the whole foods salad bar, and tony the tiger are my friends.

so there, i've said it. since blogs are supposed to be all about confessing one's true selves to the world, i here fully admit to you that i have no idea how to cook dinner for myself at the end of the day.

fortunately, i have found a temporary solution in soups and stews. they are the perfect food to make the night before and feast upon the next day, paired with a fresh loaf of crusty bread. they also, for the most part, get better the longer they simmer.

and so moroccan vegetable stew was what i chose to make for potluck night with my college roommates. we had courses ranging from rachel's salad topped with apple, walnut, and goat cheese to feng's mexican corn to joanna's dream bars (did i get those names right...?). juliana's hot and sour soup is the only other dish that i managed to capture on film (i have learned that it is not the best party activity, asking people to hold their hot food really still while i try to capture it without using a flash). oh yes, and rachel brought yummy wine (an awesome pick, though i cannot recall anything about it, besides that it was a cabernet).

PREPPING FOR THE STEW

spices (cloves. cinnamon, cumin, tumeric, chili powder, nutmeg)

root veggies in spice

JULIANA'S HOT & SOUR SOUP

meyer lemons

2006-01-19T20:28:00.000-08:00

I have in my possession four precious meyer lemons. they grew on a tree in berkeley, ca and arrived at my desk by way of chris, my friend and manager of my current "air" project at continuum. the tree is his grandmother's.

meyer lemons are fragrant and petite, a cross between the lemon and mandarin orange, according to katharina, another fellow colleague and lover of all good things to eat. katharina and i once steamed artichokes in our company kitchen, dabbing the prized leaves in a blend of meyer lemon juice, olive oil, and sea salt.

as i have been told, i need to make good use of all parts of these lemons - rind, zest, juice, everything. and so i am currently searching for all good dishes infused with lemon. just as the eskimo appreciate the whale, i will appreciate my meyer lemon.

(thank you, chris and chris's grandmother!).

peking toast

2006-01-13T22:46:00.000-08:00

so i know this guy who has been spending the first year of his early retirement in beijing.

while he did make magnificent creations in college using only sandwich bread and chicken parm from our dining hall, i never quite remembered him to be a cooking-inclined type of guy.

well, i am proud to see that china has done him well. rendered penniless by "bank complications" he has been forced to survive off scraps from his fridge. the result: french toast with eggs and bacon! jwei, i am impressed. goes to show just how incredible the egg can be. and edible (except for that bird flu stuff).

mulligatawny soup

2006-01-13T21:25:00.000-08:00

when i was in high school, my guy friends were really into words. we traveled a lot by bus back then, and our waiting time at the stop provided ample opportunity to riff. "this really is an antiquated means of transportation..." one would say. [thoughtful pause among the four] "primordial", another would contribute. "antidiluvian." yes, they agreed. it was antidiluvian.

and so they would continue until a new synonomous challenge presented itself.

i never got into words as much as they were, and whether or not buses are truly antidiluvian, i still do not know. but one bit of vocabulary that i will always remember from those days is "procrustean". "procrustean" is a word Sam used to describe something "producing or designed to produce strict conformity by ruthless or arbitrary means".

but i heard "procrustean" as something "with the potential to taste really bad". "crust" conjured up the thought of bread. "pro", well that was obviously the latin root for "before". and "-ean"? that made me think of pre-historic eras, like the archaen period. bread before the archaen period? that couldn't be good.

anyway, it occurred to me a few days ago that words have a lot to do with our experience of food. "i'm on a quest for garlic," i informed my friend John over the phone. "what are you making?" he asked. "mulligatawny soup." i relished in saying it. "moo-lee-gah-TAH-ny? mulli-GA-tanee? i'm not sure."

"hmm..." he said. "you know what soup i like? bouillabaisse. BOO-yah-basss."

"ooh. that's a good one." actually, i had never tried bouillabaisse before. but just hearing the name made it sound damn good.

there are a lot of things i like to eat because i like the way they sound. think greens. radicchio. endive. mache. [who is the marketing genius behind all of these?]

anyway, my mulligatawny delivered on its promise. mulligatawny means "pepper water" in Tamil, a language used in southern India. i added apples, tomatoes, onions, ginger (lots, finely minced), and coconut milk. i have become a huge fan of chicken thighs (i swear i will never go back to chicken breast, ever). the spice came from the last little packet i had left from my visit to the veggie food festival with tim and juliana last year. i need to get my hands on more curry. if anyone has any suggestions...please help.

a very good sign

2005-12-30T21:14:00.000-08:00

what are friends for? well, among many good things, taking pictures of delicious baked goods. delicious auspicious baked goods, might i add, given the timing of this shot.

could it be...bread baked in the shape of a turtle?! found nowhere but in my favorite city (read my ode to my favorite city here).

thank you feng(a) and grant. this is most definitely a sign that 2006 will be thoroughly fulfilling, happy, and full of baked surprises.

big thick waffles

2005-12-25T09:34:00.000-08:00

for breakfast...at noon.

here is what i have learned. you can make your own baking powder from baking soda and cream of tartar, in a ratio of about 2:1. i guess cream of tartar acts as an acid. baking soda alone could work, but you would need to have something else in the mixture (like fruit or chocolate) to start the reaction. if you want to make authentic Belgian waffles, however, you need to use yeast, and you also need to seriously whip your egg whites. i have attempted Belgian waffles a number of times before, but i have yet to come across a recipe that delivers the same crispy, crumbly, buttery sweet waffle that I held in a square of wax paper walking over the bridges of Bruges. (please send me your secret if you have found it! i promise not to bake and tell. :)

anyhow, this is why i love being at home: i love being at home because i generally spend the first 60% of my day in my flannel pjs (back from high school), and inevitably around noon my dad will snap out of his sleepiness, wish me a good morning, and say, "hey - is that a new dress?"

merry week

2005-12-24T07:29:00.000-08:00

happy holidays.

sunday: fortune cookies for the first annual dsg cookie swap. martha stewart's recipe.

it took me hours to come up with fortunes for everyone. sean got my favorite: "Over the next 10 minutes you will grow even better looking." btw - my coworkers are phenomenal bakers. there seems to be a high positive correlation between design strategability and bakingprowess.

tuesday: butternut squash soup with cardamom, nutmeg, & cinnamon. my ideal was to make an onion foccacia to go with it but i was weak from hunger. no pix.

saturday (xmas eve): creme brulee infused with ginger and mint (the custards are cooking as i type!). mama will take care of the japanese curry. baba is setting up chinese hot pot (huo guo). i will also make braised root veggies, which i realize, is basically the western version of curry. (p.s. finally found russo's in watertown - visit for the produce experience of your life...in the burbs of boston. http://www.arusso.com/)

anyway...happy holidays. this is the first year i haven't listened to mariah carey's "all i want for christmas" on repeat for hours. have i entered a new stage in my life?? :)

belated potato

2005-12-03T22:41:00.000-08:00

it's december 4 and i still haven't posted about thanksgiving's sweet potato cake with cream cheese frosting! how will i ever become world famous baking blogger if i keep this up??

well brief summary: this was sincerely the BIGGEST CAKE i have ever made in my life. in addition to the artful mix of brown sugar, autumn spices, and sweet potato, and dense moistness of the crumb, i honestly do love this cake for its sheer weight and size. the only thing i regret is not overdoing the decoration to complement the overall theme of excessiveness. lack of planning, adequate support in the kitchen, and patience led me to shirk on the decorating (planning = didn't purchase any food coloring, but then again it didn't seem right piping little yams on top of the white cream cheese frosting anyway; adequate support = my dad threw away the toasted walnuts I had reserved for dotting the top of the cake; patience = i wanted to eat it).

anyway, the actual reason why i decided to post is to reflect upon my friday morning. yes, i have officially had the worst morning of my life! already! at age 24.5! i started the day at a bleary 7 am, pulling myself out of bed to go running. a half mile out, it started snowing, and my ears began to ring and scream in pain. i hurt all over (this quitting the gym thing has not done me well on the whole physical fitness thing), tripped and tumbled onto dirt and gravel. i skinned my knee. i was too numb to swear.

my dad needed to take my truck for the day. pulling his car out of the driveway, i took my first turn and found my pants in a pool of warmth. (no, i did not pee in my pants! gross). my honey lemon tea had spilled out of its cup holder and pooled around my lap. i drove back home, wiped down the leather, and changed my sticky pants. i decided to try a different route to work to make up for being late (ellen's way), but about 25 minutes into the commute i realized that i was lost. work was somewhere to my left, and i was still going straight, so i compulsively swung a turn. this also happened to be during a red light. within moments i was pulled over on the side of the road, frigid air and snow blowing through the open window as i waited for the cop to approach, wondering whether i should feel sorry for myself, or be grateful that if bad things were meant to happen, at least they were all condensed into a 45 minute period...and perhaps this was actually a dream? the cop requested my registration and waited as i searched desperately through my dad's glove compartment, pulling out a mess of hats, magazines, maps, receipts, and...what was this?...web print-outs on my ex-boyfriend. oh god.

i got off with a warning. and directions to work. (i love you, mr. policeman.)

but i was still very late.

brie

2005-11-22T18:34:00.000-08:00

i heard "santa baby" playing in cvs today. yes, the first snow has long come and gone, but i was still not ready for the images of waxy Whitman's chocolates (oh, Snoopy - sigh), mall craze, and perky poinsettias that were immediately triggered.

[i should have known it was coming with the return of eggnog lattes and red starbucks paper cups!]

but the rapid approach of the holiday season also brings positive associations to mind. for example, holiday cocktail parties. i am a sucker for all things that make the quintessential holiday cocktail party: the scattered flickering of tealights, the vaguely familiar ting of jazz, the obligatory assorted cheese platter. (i like wine too, but when it comes to parties, i prefer it sangria'd, not mulled.)

and so i welcomed the season by having brie with dinner. brie, the most peaceful and harmonious of the cheeses! what doesn't get along with brie...?

crusty bread
jam
pears
pecans
apples
walnuts
blueberries
dried apricots
flaky crust
almonds
grapes

yup. it's all a happy holidays once someone cuts into the ooey goodness of that perfectly circular little disk.

p.s. santa, i would not mind an outer space convertible as well, but in red, not blue.
thanks! :)

sequins, curry and banana crumble

2005-11-19T18:43:00.000-08:00

i had a very boston moment today. ice puddles formed on the street before my very eyes!!

so what are ways to bring comfort on a day like this in boston? jamaican irie ginger tea with generous honey treatment at darwin's. my once-every-5-months haircut, this time with michelle at james joseph (she wears her own hair assymetrical and purple - i went for the symmetrical look). beginner's flamenco with ramon (a slow, expressive, happy spanish dance with castanets). a sequined black tank from jasmine sola.

and of course, comfort food. i cooked tonight. i made an indian chickpea curry (though i cheated - i used this little unlabeled packet of indian spices i scored at the veggie food fest - check out my old blog for that story). i do need to get me some more of those packets. they rock.

i also saw a few over-ripe bananas on the kitchen table and decided to conjure up a worthy recipe for them. it is my philosophy that no banana should have to live a life of neglect, only to be reluctantly eaten, brown and mushy, by some unhappy person.

banana crumble

fruit:
2-3 ripe bananas, cut lengthwise into thirds
2 tbsp. sugar (white, though i'm sure brown sugar would work, too - i only had white in the house. but don't underestimate the power of white sugar - it can do amazing things.)
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. vanilla sugar
dash of nutmeg

topping:
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. milk

vanilla sugar for dusting

preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

generously grease a 8x8 square cake pan. lay cut bananas flat to cover the bottom of the pan. sprinkle 2 tbsp. sugar, cinnamon, vanilla sugar, and nutmeg over the bananas.

in a small bowl, combine flour, salt, and sugar. cut butter into the dry mixture until texture is crumbly. add milk and knead to combine. roll out dough to 1/8 inch thick. punch or cut out shapes (approx. 1.5-2 inches in diameter) and lay shapes on top of bananas in pan. dust with vanilla sugar.

bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, or until topping is golden brown. serve hot, with vanilla ice cream.

it's not bad. then again, i am always more forgiving when i come up with the recipe myself and there's no one else to blame for failure. :)

(p.s. for a while i thought i had actually invented the banana crumble. there are apple crumbles and blueberry crumbles, but i had never heard of anyone making a banana crumble. however, upon turning on my computer, i promptly googled "banana crumble", and unfortunately it looks like the sugartree inn bed and breakfast has beat me to it. as well as approximately 278,000 others. dammit...there goes another chance for fame, fortune, and legacy)

pic of me

2005-11-14T19:51:00.000-08:00

ok...so i wanted to put up a pic for my profile and for some reason it has to show up here first...google, you are so weird.

[Update] July 15, 2007
Want to change my pic...so am doing it here again!

nuts

2005-11-14T19:12:00.000-08:00

last night i watched eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. (v. good)

in celebration of this viewing i made candied spicy walnuts. which i burnt. toasting nuts is not something that should be done by anyone who is consistently 10 minutes late, particularly since the entire toasting process should not take more than 8 or so minutes. i thoughtfully tasted at least half of the batch to determine whether or not i had actually burnt it (after which i reluctantly admitted to myself that i had. although, had i not been having people over later that night, i might have successfully convinced myself that i had not actually charred the nuts, along with my brand new calphalon baking sheet.) i was not to be defeated, however, and immediately took on glazed cinnamon pecans to prove a little something to myself. this time on the stovetop, though, as i do burn most things that require any degree of attention in the oven. i melted my plastic spoon in the process, but was able to pick out the plastic pieces from the sugar mixture prior to adding the pecans. they came out pretty well overall.

why i did not tell anyone about this debacle later that night is a mystery to me, now that i have this blog to help me re-evaluate the little peculiarities of my life. perhaps because i was too eager to hear compliments for my apple upside-down cake. mmm apple cake.

hello

2005-11-14T18:55:00.000-08:00

hi!
this is my old blog.

http://www.xanga.com/homeyturtleG

i heard this site is better.

g