curiously ravenous

How to Brine and Roast a Turkey

2010-11-22T17:52:00.001-05:00

2 cups kosher salt or 1 cup table salt
1 cup sugar
1 turkey (14 to 16 pounds), rinsed thoroughly; giblets, neck, and tailpiece removed

TO BRINE THE TURKEY:
Dissolve salt and sugar in 2 gallons cold water in a large stockpot. (You may also dissolve in warm water, but make sure the brining solution is COLD when you put in the turkey.)

Add 2 handfuls of additional spices of your choice. Here are some ideas:

sliced ginger, scallion, peppercorns, bay leaves
zest and peel of 1 orange, cloves, cinnamon sticks, juniper berries

Add in the turkey and refrigerate or set in very cool spot (not more than 40 degrees) 12-24 hours. Make sure the turkey is completely submerged in the solution.

TO ROAST THE TURKEY:

Remove the turkey from the brining solution, rinse inside and out, and completely dry. You can pat the skin with paper towels. Or you can additionally leave the turkey exposed in the refrigerator overnight, resting in the roasting pan, to dry out the skin. (Some people expose the turkey to a running fan for 1 hour!)

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.

Place the bird on roasting rack.

Add aromatics of your choice like apples, oranges, rosemary, and thyme to the turkey's cavity. Tuck the wings underneath the bird and coat the skin liberally with vegetable oil (you can use butter too). You can also slide some herbs underneath the skin of the breast, but be sure not to puncture the skin.

Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees F for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil or a large mixing bowl for 15 minutes before carving.

Spice Kit

2010-08-31T02:19:00.013-04:00

The banh mi is nothing new. If anything, it has infiltrated the food scene, especially with the business lunch crowd in the Fidi, Tenderloin, and SOMA. Only problem is, the lunch spots from which they emerge tend to be hole-in-the wall, mom-and-pop joints, which... are great and all, but if you are a self-proclaimed germ-aphobe, this may cause you all sorts of uneasiness over a meal that was prepared for you somewhere in the dark recesses.... I apologize if by saying that I've caused any worries...

Problem solved. Welcome Spice Kit, a relatively newly opened Asian street food-inspired quickie eatery, located in a prime business lunch locale- the Orrick building on 1st and Howard, in SOMA. This is the polar opposite of the aforementioned lunch counters. It is clean, bright, spacious (boasts sky high ceilings) and best of all.... plenty of seating!

How to describe the menu.... think Chipotle meets Asian street food (the kind that fits neatly in your hand). Organic, natural meats from happy animals, fresh herbs, spices, and veggies, prepared in an open kitchen.

Step 1: Pick your meat (or tofu). We tried the five spice chicken (with homemade pate!), kalbi-style beef shortribs, and roast pork.

Step 2: Pick your vehicle-of-choice: crusty and soft banh mi filled with pickled carrots, cukes jalapenos and cilantro, ssam rice paper wrap, or a mixed greens salad with jicama, radish, mango and peanuts. ($7-$8, with additional $0.75 for pate)

Step 3: Try a side: crispy, lightly fried lotus chips. Yes, that's right, lotus! ($1.50)

Step 4: Vietnamese iced coffee to wash everything down.

Step 5: Most important of all: DO NOT miss out on the steamed pork bun! A thick slice of delicious marinated pork belly, in a traditional steamed pocket bread. ($2.95 each)

Here is the added bonus. You get to tell your friends and coworkers that you ate food cooked by a chef who trained under Thomas Keller. The founder of Spice Kit, Will Pacio, a grad of the French Culinary Institute, worked at both per se and the French Laundry.

What a sweet (spicy and savory) deal.

Ambiance: Modern design, clean lines, wide counters, and open kitchen. High ceilings and large windows that let in plenty of light. The weekdays draws in the nearby business folk breaking for a healthy, power lunch. Lighter traffic on Saturdays.

Hours: M-F 10:30am - 8:00pm, Sat 10:30am - 3:00pm, Sun Closed

Spice Kit

405 Howard Street

(bw First and Fremont)

Bi-Rite Creamery

2010-06-15T01:47:00.000-04:00

Salty ice cream? You bet. I'm a big fan of sweet-salty snacks: kettle corn, apples and brie, melon and salt, maple bacon donuts....wait, that's a whole other post to talk about!)

I discovered the salted caramel ice cream at Bi-Rite Creamery when I first moved to SF and I've been a changed woman ever since. For the better. But your tastebuds will be ruined for all other ice creams.

There is even a cake version! We picked up this decadent chocolate cake with salted caramel mousse at Bi-Rite Market down the street:

There are some seasonal changes in flavors but for the most part, the menu stays consistent. Although Mr.S sorely misses his Fresh Cream ice cream from seasons past.

Sampling is a must!

Service: In spite of the massive lines, the staff is so friendly. Who wouldn't be if you worked around such delicious treats all day? Although if I worked there, I'd probably be let go the first day after they found me face down in a vat of salted caramel....

Ambiance: Smells like sugar! Small, but recently expanded next door. There is now soft serve! Limited flavors depending on the day of the week. On popular weekend evenings, spend anywhere up to 20-30 minutes in line.

Other Flavors: Strawberry balsamic (**hand trembling..), honey lavender (I am personally not a fan, but some swear by this), earl gray tea (tastes just like the real thing!), toffee chip cookies, coffee toffee ice cream cake (the crunchy toffee bits are the standout)

Important: Pick up a frequent-buyer card, and you can get your 10th ice cream scoop for free! And take home a pint for $7- pricey but worth the value.

Hours: Sun-Thurs until 10pm, Fri-Sat open late until 11pm

Bi-Rite Creamery

3692 18th Street

(at Dolores)

San Francisco, CA

Spices!

2010-06-15T00:39:00.005-04:00

Má là. Not your garden-variety spicy. This kind of spice comes from the Sichuan peppercorn, and its numbing effects can become quite addictive.

My remedy for an overly bland diet (which tends to happen when I overload on salads and sandwiches throughout the week) is overwhelming my tastebuds with a meal at Spices on the weekend. We also like to bring friends here, to show them what a truly authentic Sichuan meal is.

Here are some of my favorites...

Fried Chicken with Explosive Chili Pepper! ($8.95) (Seriously, there are "!!!" written on the menu.) These are mini chicken thighs, flash-fried then wok-tossed in a heaping mound of red chili peppers, garlic, ginger and scallion. Great with a Qing Dao beer!

Sizzling Lamb with Cumin ($9.95) These arrive nested in a foil lined hot plate, sizzling and encrusted in smoky cumin:

Fried Stinky Tofu ($4.25) On certain days, you can smell this pungent dish from around the block. People always ask me what it tastes like. Well, it's hard to say- it's like describing a well aged cheese. Ripe, a bit ammoniated, a creamy center surrounded by a crispy, light shell. Try it and even if you throw up a little in your mouth, you can at least brag that you've eaten fermented curdled soybeans.

Spicy Fish Filet Bowl with Flaming Red Oil ($9.95) Don't be surprised if you get the flaming red runs after eating this. Hey, if that's a sign it's good, I'm in!

Dry Braised String Beans ($7.95) The BEST vegetarian dish here- it's "dry" because they are flash fried over such a high heat, with no sauce, so the beans stay tender and crispy, with a smoky garlic finish.

Sichuan whole fish with hot chili bean sauce ($12.95) What a steal for a whole fish. I usually go for the head first - the best part.... This is not so spicy. The sauce is actually somewhat sweet and sour, and surprise! full of garlic.

Wontons in Flaming Red Oil (aka hong you chao shou) This is a great appetizer, or side dish, or just order two and make it a meal! As you can see, the flaming red oil sauce is ubiquitous throughout the menu.

Service: It will seem speedy and abrupt... if you are not Chinese. Dishes arrive as they come out from the wok - really in no apparent order. If they get a break, the petite Chinese girl servers will take a breather and chat away in Chinese. It's like being in China! (btw, I'm throwing my fingers up in a "V" sign.)

Ambiance: Small and packed on the weekend. Although clean, do not expect a fine dining establishment! You are here for Sichuan flaming red oil! Our favorite is the owner- Taiwanese pop star extraordinaire (picture flowing hair, shirt open a few too many buttons, and a Gucci mens carry-all) but so nice.

Other Must Tries: "Lion's Head" braised giant meatball, numbing spice beef tendon (appetizer), hot and spicy beef combination (fu qi fei pian) (appetizer), Shrimp "twin style"- spicy and walnut creamed

Neighborhood: Inner Richmond

Spices

294 8th Avenue

(at Clement)

San Francisco, CA

sebo

2010-06-10T01:44:00.175-04:00

Everything you've read or heard about Sebo is probably true. And there has been much written and talked about since it was featured on No Reservations.

The fish is clean and fresh to the point of being sweet. The izakaya dishes are simply composed, with hand picked ingredients that allow the seafood or meat's natural flavors shine. And yes, the portions are small, and after a few courses and a couple rounds of sake, your bill will leave you a poorer, albeit well-fed, diner.

The 5 Piece Chef's selection of sashimi ($14):

Assortment of nigiri:

Our favorites: the hotategai (scallops) are sweet and literally melt on your tongue, toro (fatty tuna), tai (sea bream) and mackeral. The fish is served at room temperature which maximizes the natural oils' flavors.

A plate of house-made pickles (daikon, lotus root, kobacha squash, carrots) ($5) were somewhat bland, but still quite interesting- very toothsome:

Although not on the menu that night, this grilled yellowtail collar was specially made, upon request:

On Sunday nights, the menu is all izakaya-style: delicious cooked small plates. Be sure to get there early, as the more popular dishes run out fast.

Grilled whole shrimp:

Seared big-eye tuna with a tomato consomme:

A salad of big-eye tuna and okra: (a bit slimy)

Service: a bit on the slow side, but we've never had a complaint.

Ambiance: small and minimal, with warm, polished woods. There are only a few tables, but if you are lucky to arrive early enough, find prime seating at the bar for a first-hand look at the chefs in action. (We hear that Wednesday evenings around 6 are the least crowded.)

Menu: constantly changes, so you may not find that same dish you so loved from a previous trip. And suffice it to say, do not expect to find a dragon roll on the menu, nor any such combination of spicy sauce, avocado, and cream cheese packed into a roll!

Sebo

517 Hayes St.

San Francisco, CA

The Sentinel's Reuben Sandwich

2010-06-10T01:34:00.001-04:00

MMMM with capital "m's." That's how good this sandwich is. (However it's still remains my 2nd favorite Reuben in the city.... I will reveal my top choice in a later post.)

I'm fortunate enough to live and go to school within 3 blocks of the Sentinel's sandwich counter. I am, however, not fortunate in that I live on a law student's budget, which is to say that I cannot afford an $8.75 sandwich every time I have a craving for delicious corned beef and gruyere, and that is pretty much everyday.

For those of you in the know, aka those who work within a 5 block radius of the small counter in SOMA, the Sentinel's limited menu of sandwiches and daily special are legendary. There are both cold and hot selections, most of which change with the seasons. The Reuben however, remains a constant, and is described as "corned beef with cabbage, russian dressing and swiss." (sometimes it is gruyere)

What the menu fails to tell you is how delicious the bread is! It's like a perfect marriage of a ciabatta and focaccia- soft chewy innards, crisp and salty on the outside....warmed.

I don't understand why some sandwich places make Reubens with pastrami, but luckily, this version is made with thin sliced corned beef - the best.

Service: Fast, unless there's a line around the back.

Other Must Tries: muffins in the morning, egg salad sandwich (although overpriced at $8.25)

FYI: Hours are 730 am to 230 pm.

THE SENTINEL

37 New Montgomery St.

(next to House of Shields)

San Francisco, CA

Universal Cafe

2010-06-04T01:27:00.001-04:00

We are a city of brunch-ers. In other words, we are a city who really likes to wait in line for 45+ minutes nursing a bloody mary, waiting for that coveted table at our favorite brunch locale, which just happens to be everyone else's in your neighborhood as well.

Vacillating between the #1 and 2 positions on my list of favorites (depending on the day and wait time) is Universal Cafe.

My go-to dish is the soft scrambled eggs with seasonal vegetable (asparagus, fava beans, spring onion yuuum) - the creamiest mountain of melt-on-your-mouth egginess I have ever consumed. However, it's not pictured here. I'm sort of on a kick to try new things.

From the lunch menu, the Grass Fed Flatiron Steak with Frites and Salsa Verde ($18.75):

The salsa verde was both herby and salty.

Grilled Flatbread with Spinach, Artichoke and Chevre ($11.75). Crispy and light crust. Toppings were fresh and did not cause the crust to be soggy.

And so healthy... bring me seconds! (any combination of the words flat, bread, and cheese gets my heart racing)

A salad that is both bursting with sweetness and savoriness- Little Gem Lettuces with Pickled Beets, Creamy Balsamic dressing, and cheddar ($8.25). I asked for the dressing on the side so I could taste the sweet earthy flavors of the golden yellow beets.

And finally, some brunchy dishes!

Yes that's a delicious side of bacon in the back there ($5.50). There is always a French Toast with seasonal fruit and Chantilly cream ($12). Here it is an orange marmalade with slivers of candied orange peel. Our favorite has been a thick huckleberry compote (with a generous sprinkling of powdered sugar of course).

This was the special egg dish that day- Fried Eggs with grilled asparagus, salsa verde, and prosciutto cotto- a delicious cooked ham ... It was a beautifully composed dish, but I sorely missed my soft scramble.

This is a rare shot. Normally on the weekends, there is a crowd outside and in, of all sorts of eclectic urbanites. Great for people watching and for spotting a celebri-chef every now and then. (We ran into a Top Chef contest here once, and spoke for almost an hour!)

Service: fair, but nothing to rave about

Ambiance: Like stepping into a friend's home for a (very crowded) brunch party. Opt for sitting at the bar that looks on into the open kitchen to see the weekend crew expedite the hell out of all those egg dishes!

Other Must Tries: Plate of local fruit with toast, fromage blanc, cinnamon and honey, and start your brunch with a generous slice of the toasted house banana bread with cream cheese

Neighborhood: Potrero Hill/Mission

UNIVERSAL CAFE
2814 19th Street
(between Bryant and Florida)
San Francisco, CA

Chez Spencer

2010-06-03T00:53:00.003-04:00

C'est mon favorit. Chez Spencer will always hold a special place in my heart and on my palate.

We have now dined here for my past 2 birthdays, in addition to other special occasions, as well as a private new year's eve seated dinner in the renovated loft next door.

Drinks: French inspired cocktails with an old school feel. Must try: Saint Germain Infirmary is a refreshing blend of elderflower liquor, cucumber juice, lemon and soda served tall.

I literally have dreams about this appetizer. Sauteed Veal Sweetbreads with sherry vinegar, truffle vinaigrette, watercress and a Parmesan crisp ($17). What are sweetbreads, you might ask? Well, before I tell you, you must promise that it will not deter you from trying it. They are the thymus glands of a young cow, lamb or pig. Chez Spencer's version is lightly pan-fried. They are meaty and somewhat buttery, but not unctuous due to the peppery baby watercress and acidic sherry vinegar dressing.

The Wood Grilled Filet Mignon with Morels in Cream, Shaved Truffles and Truffle Butter ($29). Is there a single word in that sentence that sounds wrong? I think not. The meat was beautifully cooked, and the morels were like small sponges that released an explosion of woodsy deliciousness and cream delicately flavored with truffles.

This is the Arctic Char Papillote with Braised Vegetables and Truffle Emulsion ($28). Honestly if the truffle emulsion had not reared its tempting head under the menu description, I probably would not have ordered this dish. I was disappointed with the lack of flavor. As the veggies and fish steam in the packet, they release an excess amount of moisture which watered down the truffle flavors. Moreover, the emulsion broke/separated with the heat. The fish was also slightly raw in the middle.

I feel like I am criticizing a dear friend, but I honestly was not happy with the presentation either. (However, I suppose there really is no attractive way to plate a piece of fish cooked in a foil packet though!)

We ordered the Steamed Asparagus with Truffle Emulsion and Shaved Parmesan ($11) appetizer as a side. Always a favorite.

For dessert, the Warm Apple Almond Tart with Cider Caramel and Glace au Lait ($8). Flavor was spot on, but I would have liked more apple texture.

Service: Not really fair to say when we personally know one of the servers, but it has always been consistently polite and attentive.

Ambiance: Has always reminded me of a cozy ski lodge. (Chef Laurent's father used to be a taxidermist.) The vaulted ceilings are bolstered by warm wooden beams. As you enter through the gates, you walk through a tucked-away patio area, as if you were entering a secret garden of sorts. A set of heavy drapes separates you from the crackling wood-burning oven within and soulful piano medleys (on Friday evenings). Parting them aside brings you into another world.

Other Must Tries: Pan Seared Sea Scallops with hearts of palm and sauce verte, Foie Gras Torchon with vanilla scented blackberry sauce, Hazelnut Parfait a la Neige, Escargot Puff Lollipop (Spencer on the Go Truck)

CHEZ SPENCER
82 14th Street
San Francisco, CA

SPENCER ON THE GO TRUCK
300 7th Street (parking lot)
(at Folsom)
San Francisco, CA

Anchor and Hope

2010-06-01T00:36:00.003-04:00

Nothing beats a juicy Maine lobster roll. I've been on the hunt for a good left coast version. They appear on several menus throughout SF- Nettie's Crab Shack, Woodhouse Fish Co., and at Anchor and Hope.

A crusty pull-apart epi with salted butter arrived first at our table:

Barbecue shrimp over a flaky biscuit. Props to A&H for leaving the heads on these lovely little guys smothered in smoky, sweet sauce. If only this appetizer could come in an entree sized portion!

And the main event.... the Lobster Roll on a sweet brioche roll, served with old Bay kettle chips and cole slaw ($24):

It was a fair sized portion of lobster meat, but unfortunately not a generous amount. However, it was sweet and fresh tasting, and lightly dressed. The kettle chips were perfectly salted and crispy.

Mr. S's love of scallops was rekindled by this dish- Spice Crusted Scallops with Israeli Cous Cous, Shaved Fennel, Madras Curry Sauce and Citrus Salt ($28): (curry sauce was rich and savory, served table-side and not shown here)

I call these "crack fries"- habit-forming and carb-fabulous served in a paper cone- fries tossed in salt and Old Bay ($6):

For dessert, a warm Apple Crumble with vanilla ice-cream ($8.50):

Ambiance: Renovated warehouse in SOMA. Warm woods, mixed crowd, unpretentious, and a beautiful brushed steel bar. Good selection of draft beers to pair with seafood.

Service: Our server was helpful, bubbly and attentive.

Thoughts: I came for the lobster roll and I got myself a delicious one, for an affordable pricetag of $24. The brioche roll was sweet and buttery, which complemented the savory meat. It left me only wanting more! (No lie, I wanted to order a second roll.) Bonus: the chef is straight up from Boston.

To try next time: Lobster roll (again), Old Bay fries, Warm Sea Urchin with dungeness and lemon beurre blanc served in the shell (appetizer), "Angels on Horseback" - bacon wrapped oysters with remoulade sauce (appetizer), and Jonah crab claws (oyster and shellfish menu)

ANCHOR AND HOPE

83 Minna Street

(between 1st and 2nd)

San Francisco, CA

curiously ravenous is BACK

2010-05-31T22:36:00.000-04:00

I've missed writing.

Like a fat kid misses bacon. Or rather, like a fat Italian kid misses prosciutto.

So I am blogging once again, but this time curiously ravenous will be focused more on all the wonderfully mouthwatering morsels I eat out, and somewhat less on my kitchen adventures. Let's face it, as a third year law student, my stove has been sorely ignored, while my coffee pot and microwave have seen the most love from me within these past two years.

I'm lucky to be eating my way through one of the leading cities in fine foods- San Francisco. I'll bring you all along for the ride, show you everything that I eat (well, certainly not everything), maybe make you envious every now and then (because I can) but primarily, to show you that to eat is to live, to breathe, and to fully appreciate the comfort of food.

As always, pictures will likely make salivating a natural occurrence.

So here we go. (again)

'wichcraft

2008-12-19T20:19:00.004-05:00

Ahhh the hunky, bald genius that is Tom Colicchio. He and Padma make me look forward to every episode of Top Chef. It just would not be the same without their clever little back-and-forth quips each week. I am someone who loves sandwiches, especially pressed, hot ones, that are smothered in interesting spreads and sauces... pestos, aiolis, it's all good. These past four months, I have had no fewer than 5 sandwiches per week. Hey, they are portable, delicious, and always a good balance of carbs and protein.

This is why I was super ecstatic that Colicchio had opened a 'wichcraft here in SF, just a few blocks away from us. Mr.S took me to see what it was all about, since he had gone by himself once, and was shockingly disappointed, and wanted to get my opinion. The menu reads like a farmers market lover's dream, all types of veggies, smoked meats, delicate spreads and rustic breads. There seemed to be a great amount of potential here for success. There are cool and warm sandwiches, breakfast foods served all day, salads and soups, and brownies and cookies. And to boot, the interior design at 'wichcraft is clean and streamlined, modern whites and brushed stainless steel.

My sandwich was filled with plump, marinated white anchovies, a soft cooked egg, roasted onion, salsa verde, and frisee greens. Does that not sound slightly off? Salsa verde? Well it sure wasn't a light and fresh green salsa. It was much more like an overly greasy pistou, made with way too much olive oil, which soaked into the bread, turning it into an oily mess. The anchovies and egg were gorgeous, but that was really the extent of it. The roasted onions were not soft and caramelized, but rather, fried to a stringy toughness, altogether unpleasant. Frisee is usually hit or miss as it is, it's good sometimes, but it just does not belong in a sandwich, it being tough and extremely bitter. All in all, this was not a hit with me.

Mr.S ordered the grilled cheddar, with smoked ham and pear and mustard. It could very likely have been a large sandwich, but after being pressed, it arrived at our table, looking very anemic and flat. I skipped taking a picture of it, because it just looked plain pathetic.

Taking a second look through the menu, I realize that many of the combinations are just off. Perhaps in theory they work together, but reality proves that hmmm... maybe not.

I did end my meal on a high note.

The house-made peanut butter 'creamwich was out of this world. It was a large soft sandwich cookie, with chunks of peanuts, crispy edges, and filled with a smooth peanut butter ganache spread that I would probably eat by the spoonful. And it was only $1.

I really had high expectations for 'wichcraft, since I'd heard from friends who have eaten at Craftsteak and Craftbar of how fabulous the food is, and how on point the service is. I feel like 'wichcraft could do much better if it simply just pared down their sandwiches to 3-4 ingredients, rather than trying to use 5-6 different complex ingredients that perhaps do not complement one another successfully. In the end, 'wichcraft did not wow me, and I would have to say given the choice, I would not go back, but rather go next door to the fantastic food court at Westfield...

stacks

2008-12-18T18:49:00.009-05:00

Hayes Valley is one of our favorite neighborhoods to explore; some of our most loved eateries are here... Absinthe, Suppenkuche, Stacks, and Christopher Elbow for chocolates and hot cocoa so thick and creamy (it is pretty much liquefied chocolate).

I love a good, hearty brunch, the kind where mimosas and bloody Mary's flow freely, and eggs are always fluffy and smothered with cheese. Is there any other kind? Stacks is one such hotspot serving up hefty portions of fresh, traditional brunch dishes, famous for their, what else... pancakes.

One of my brunch go-to's is huevos rancheros, and Stack's version does not disappoint. I think the thick layer of melted cheese really helps.... and I'm a big sucker for canned black olives... mmmm.

Mr. S had a short stack (2) of the pancakes with wheat germ. There's even a version with banana macadamia nut and coconut! Just to show how generous the size was, I had him put his hand next to them to compare.... They were good, light and fluffy, with specks of wheat germ for a nice texture.

Our friends had another order of the huevos and the crab crepe, with melted Jack, avocado and hollandaise. All that food, and a whole bagel, plus hash!

No pictures of this, but Mr.S also had a fresh fruit smoothie: the Jitter Bug, made super thick with espresso, vanilla yogurt, bananas, cream, and hazelnut syrup.

The prices are appropriate here, and the portions are more than overwhelming. Stacks is the real deal. No messing around here.

tartine bakery

2008-12-11T20:18:00.006-05:00

Ooof. That was the sound of my heart sinking. Perhaps I had such lofty expectations of this beloved bakery, famous for its trays of doughy, chocolaty treats. I fell in love with Tartine even before I had ever set food inside. I remember flipping through the pages of the cookbook, from my tiny kitchen in Baltimore, mesmerized at the pictures of gooey brownies, which I made right away and were honestly, daaaaamn good. Mr. S will TESTIFY to that.

So a few weekends ago, we made our way over to the Mission, stomachs growling for some croissants and Tartine's famous quiche. We saw the line first. A line of fellow hungry morningers, literally around the block. I get grumpy in the AM on an empty stomach, and now a crowd of people, stood between me and a flaky croissant. Not even sure we were going to get a table, I started to "hover" over other people's. Oh I'm sure I was annoying as hell.

The cakes and morning pastries looked fantastic, so naturally I wanted one of everything, but we finally settled on a sticky bun, a plain croissant, ham quiche, vegetarian quiche, a pain au chocolat for the road, and a cappuccino and fresh squeezed grapefruit juice. Sounds like a lot, but we were running on empty.

First thing I noticed is Tartine has a tendency to overbake everything to a dark golden brown. Which is alright if a crunchy buttery flake is what you prefer, rather than a softer golden, more pliable dough. All technicalities aside, both the croissant and the morning bun were quite finger-licking good. There also happens to be a generous drop of almond extract in everything. The morning bun was fine, nothing to write home to mama about, but Mr.S sure was not a fan of the orange flavoring.

One of the only shining moments of the morning was my cup of cappuccino. The perfect ratio of foam to espresso to steamed milk, and a beautiful finish of foam art to boot. The espresso machine is set separate from all the food, a way smart idea, so the barista can actually focus on making drinks instead of being barked at by the hungry sugar-crazed morning crowd. Which definitely was apparent in her mood, as she was certainly the cheeriest of the staff that day.

Quiche is everything I love all in one bite. Buttery crust, eggy custard, cheese, and BACON. I don't want to sound like a Debbie Downer here by seemingly berating everything on the menu, but I'll just say that I've had better. Tartine's version is made with creme fraiche rather than a savory, salty Gruyere, so it turns out bland and slightly runny. The crust is made using a puff pastry dough, instead of a crispy short pastry dough, which gave it a chewiness that was rather unpleasant, despite the amount of butter used.

There are 2 daily selections, one veggie, and one with slivers of Niman Ranch smoked ham. My veggie that day was sparsely dotted with mushrooms and artichoke, lost in a sea of wet custard. There was no depth of flavor that a strong and ripe cheese would have imparted, had one been used. Sigh. Because it was so rich and heavy, I only managed to make it halfway through my slice while Mr.S picked at his.

Lastly, on to the scene. A word to the wise, if you want to fit in, throw on a pair of super-skinny jeans, a flannel shirt, and wait 3 days without washing your hair before you go. Having worked for many years in a similar-type bakery and cafe, I am usually appalled when I see the staff handling my soon-to-be-ingested goodies, sans wax paper, gloves, aprons, hats, or even a bandana. Alright, so it's ok to have a 'tude and all, but would it be such an unreasonable burden to run a comb through your hair and hide half of it under a hat? Seriously, it's common courtesy, and really, personal hygiene is pretty hip these days.

Our experience could have been more pleasant, had there not been other customers breathing down our necks, eyeing our table and food, asking us if they could steal a chair or have us scooch our table over an inch. We certainly could have done without the loud indie rock as well, and the waitress who harassed us for our receipt over a pain au chocolat. All in all, I felt a little battered and bruised upon leaving, with a heavy stomach.

I tore into the pain au chocolat later that afternoon. The dark Valrohna chocolate was fantastic, but the rest was too doughy and soft. Yes, the flavor was rich and buttery, but the mouth feel was worlds away from the light, airy croissants I remember from Parisian boulangeries.

I always try to give a business the benefit of the doubt because I truly believe a one-time visit is never enough for a basis of final judgment. For this reason, and for the fact that I have a sweet tooth that leads me through much of my decision-making, I will most likely revisit Tartine, on an off-day, maybe for a loaf of their daily fresh-baked bread, and a brownie or two. The optimist in me would like to believe that it's gotten so many rave reviews for a reason....

2008-12-01T17:07:00.000-05:00

I absolutely adore pumpkin pie, or as Mr.S calls it good ole punkin pie. I probably don't have to describe its silky and lush creaminess to anybody, as most probably everyone and their uncle has eaten a slice (or three) around this time of year. But buyer beware. Do not, and I repeat, do not fall into the trap of buying a glossy, prebaked, boxed pie from the bakery section at the grocery store. When really, all it takes is a couple of cans of shelf stable ingredients, lots of cinnamon, and a pre-baked pie crust. Trust me, because I just spent almost 4 hours baking "the perfect pumpkin pie" from scratch, and in a double-blind taste test, it sure didn't beat a Libby's pumpkin pie that took only 15 minutes prep time.

Why Libby's recipe is heads above the rest...

1. no messy pumpkin cleaning...all those seeds, skin and stringy slime
2. the total cost of ingredients is less than $4.50!!
3. I can prep one of these babies while cooking 2 other dishes, writing a paper, and with 1 eye closed... ok so i exaggerate...
4. ...but yes, it is that easy!
5. the finished product is a bright golden orange that sure beats a dusty looking brown thing, made from scratch
6. it tastes like heeeaaven

So instead of posting a less-than-perfect recipe for pumpkin pie, here is Libby's, a tried and true favorite, with a few touch-ups made by yours truly.

"Touched Up" Libby's Pumpkin Pie
yields 8 servings

1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
2 large eggs
1 15-oz. can Libby's pumpkin puree
1 12-oz. can evaporated milk
1 9-inch frozen deep-dish pie shell

1. Heat oven to 425F. Pre-bake pie shell for 10 minutes. Remove and set aside, on a baking sheet (for easy transfer into the oven later).

2. In a large mixing bowl, stir together all the ingredients until well blended. Pour into the pie shell.

3. Bake at 425F for 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350F. Bake for 25-35 minutes more, or until given a light shake, the center does not jiggle but is set. Remove and let cool for 2 hours.

4. Serve chilled or at room temperature, with fresh whipped cream.

halloweenie cakes

2008-10-31T16:22:00.000-04:00

I stayed in this Halloween. For the first time in years. Didn't have a costume planned... didn't really want to. (And maybe had a law school text open for a few minutes here and there throughout the night....shhh! don't want to let it leak I'm actually a gigantic nerd.... GASP) All I wanted was to stay in, watch a movie and get my shoulders rubbed by Mr. S. But most important... stuff my face with FUN-size candy bars. Which btw, are not really fun for anybody. They are too small for anyone to actually enjoy them, unless you fit no less than 5 in your mouth at one time. And, such a waste of wrappers! There's too many, which make me feel like a complete gluttonous pig. By the time my sweet tooth is somewhat satiated, I already feel a zit the size of Montana growing. So seriously, no fun for anyone. Hand me one of those king-size bars anyday.

To add to this weeklong sugar fest, my friend and I volunteered for a Halloween bakesale. Normally, I probably would have gone all out, hell yea, 8-layer cake with pumpkin buttercream and all the works. But folks, I am now a first year law student, and thus submitted to becoming a slave of The Duncan Hines cake mix and frosting duo. Which is not to say I don't, on occasion, love to dip a finger in a jar of whipped sugar fluff, or cut into a no-fail, over-vanilla-ated, piece of "yellow cake." I'm definitely not too good for these convenience go-to's. And they were super fun to make (honestly FUN in this case) and decorate and then sell at 3x the price of the ingredients to starving law students. Mwahaha. How eeevil.

They were hella good. We made some mini cupcake size versions, so I've decided to name them HalloWEEENIE cakes. That was supposed to be funny, but considering as how I am probably on a sugar high, maybe it wasn't. Anyway, enjoy the pictures...

bounty of the midwest: slow food nation

2008-09-14T22:53:00.000-04:00

Slow Food Nation held this year's exhibitions in SF. What was it exactly? In the simplest of terms, an orgy of food and festivities that drew in thousands of eaters passionate about the foods with a story and people behind them. Basically a weekend of non-stop eating and gratuitous tastings of the nation's finest new developments in food. Lucky me. And thanks to FoodBuzz, I got to attend a Taste Workshop I'd had my eye (and stomach) on since the schedule of events was first announced, as a Foodie Correspondent.

The tasting featured heritage foods that hail from the Mid West, namely from Michigan. The big draw for me was Zingerman's, just about the most kickass purveyor of regional, wholesome, and novel foods and products there is. They've expanded over the years from just a small deli to a now a large family company that covers baked goods, charcuterie, cheeses and dairy products, artisanal breads, and fresh meats and produce.

Feast your eyes on this tasting menu...

Zingerman's Bakehouse Red Fife Bread (Ann Arbor). This breed of wheat was once cultivated all over the plains of Michigan, but was over-harvested and was at one point, almost extinct. With the help of regional farmers, the hearty Red Fife wheat has been brought back. The bread was dense and sweet, and as heavy as rocks. Mmmm filling.

Pickled Asparagus from Maulbetsch Farm (Ann Arbor). This little delight was the single most refreshing dish of the tasting, at least for me, and begs the question, what else can you pickle? Well, gosh, just about everything! And if you put your heart into it, it might taste just as good as these crisp stalks.

Cold Smoked Salmon from Durham's Tracklements (Ann Arbor). Durham's does a dry cure on all its salmon, as opposed to a brine-cure, which is a much more commercial and mechanized process. With dry curing, it's all done by hand and every filet is treated differently depending on the flesh, size and thickness. Learning about the cold smoking process was seriously fascinating (more interesting than anything I'm learning in law school presently... ahem) This piece was cured in a slurry of maple syrup, juniper, cinnamon and salt.

"Twigs and Berries" Salad from Zingerman's Delicatessen. The wheat berries were harvested from Washington Island, WI, just across lake Michigan. Chewy and hearty, the salad was a simple recipe of wheatberries, dried cherries, red onion, purslane, and parsley tossed in a light vinaigrette.

Cured Berkshire Pork from The Henry Ford (Dearborn, MI). The pork is from pigs raised on Almar Orchards in Flushing, MI. Orchard, you ask? Well yes, this makes sense if you think about it. The apples that fall to the ground attract ground larvae, which little piggies absolutely adore. They eat their weight in a natural source of protein and carbs, all the while producing meat that is lean and sweet. The tenderloin here was smoky and salty, nicely paired with an apple and cherry chutney, also from Almar Orchard.

Cheeses from Zingerman's Creamery, paired with Preserves from American Spoon (Petoskey, MI). The speckled one in the back is the "Bridgewater," a double-cream, cow's milk cheese, flavored with ground black pepper. It was brilliantly tangy and spicy (my favorite of the three cheeses served) and paired well with a sweet peach preserve. The creamy white cheese toward the front is "Lincoln Log," a Bucheron-style, goat's milk cheese that was salty and smooth, and paired with elderberry preserves.

Fresh cream cheese! If you think cream cheese comes spreadable, from a plastic tub like I did, then you are seriously missing out. This was fresh, double-cream, cow's milk that had been acid-coagulated with a minimum amount of rennet. Light and extremely milky, it was paired with a thimbleberry preserve.

All 3 cheeses are available at Cowgirl Creamery (yes, I made sure to ask!).

The last treat of the hour was Paw Paw Gelato from Zingerman's Creamery. Paw paw is an actual fruit (which I never knew) that is a relative of the mango. It retains a custard-like flesh, and has a grassy, sweet taste. The gelato was dense, even though it is made with less cream than regular ice-cream, due to the fact it's slow-churned, and thus has less air content. (This is why a pint of gelato may weigh more than a pint of ice-cream.) The paw paw fruit was grown locally in Palmyra, MI.

I walked away a much happier, fuller, and more knowledgeable foodie. Michigan is the second largest agricultural producer in the country, and most of its milk is shipped directly to Vermont for cheese. Next time you eat a piece of Vermont cheddar, you might ask yourself where that really came from....

Much more to come from my adventures at the Taste Pavilion.... stay tuned!

bong su

2008-08-25T23:09:00.001-04:00

The mouth-watering smells that float up to our apartment from Bong Su every night had us thinking...why hadn't we eaten there yet?? So Mr.S and I scrambled downstairs last week for a little Vietnamese pick-me-up of "shaking beef", and all kinds of delicious fare.

Bong Su feels like a lounge; there was no shortage of servers and hostesses walking around in backless tops. (I felt overdressed in a sweater and jeans!) It was a predominantly older crowd that night...a possible sign of wisdom and experience when it comes to knowing good food? Who knows, but I was ready to dig into one of the restaurant's famous appetizers, the Duck Mustard Wraps.

For an app, these rolls were a hefty size, filled with lean and flavorful shredded duck meat, alongside strips of mango and cucumber. And all wrapped up neatly in a leaf of mustard green.

It was served chilled, but now I'm wondering if it would have been better warm... The dipping sauce was certainly a crowd pleaser.

Mr.S's Hoi An Chicken arrived much to my confusion. It looked like a chicken melt (with cheese) which upon tasting, we found it to be a delicious coconut sauce. The mashed plantains were greasy, but had great flavor.

I came for the Shaking Beef, to compare it with the version at the Slanted Door.

Verdict? Definitely less sweet and the portion was more generous here. The flavor was spot on. What it lacked was the char on the meat, that crispy caramelization that occurs when meat hit an insanely hot wok. The version at the SD had this which imparted a great smoky flavor to the dish. Here, I really enjoyed the heavy seasoning on the beef, especially the black pepper, fish sauce and lime juice.

Bong Su's a bit on the pricey side, but you get what you pay for. All the dishes are served family style, so there's no room to skimp. And the flavors are a homerun. Before I forget... my Mekong Martini sealed the deal for me. It was playful, delicious, and not overly sweet like many Jolly Rancher-style cocktails are now. It was a combination of lychee vodka, mango puree, pandan syrup, and what do you think is there a the bottom of the glass?

That's right, boba! Black tea tapioca pearls.

I'd come back for this alone....

the elusive sticky bun

2008-08-24T21:23:00.000-04:00

Yes, this sticky bun was 1)sticky and 2)came in the form of a bun, but any reasonable breakfast pastry eating person knows that a good sticky bun is, but not limited to, all these things. They should also be large (in my opinion), somewhat soft yet chewy, and slathered in gooey caramel. My favorite are the ones that use a flaky croissant dough instead of a yeasted bread dough, but that's sometimes hard to find.

I dropped by Citizen Cake patisserie this morning for some sweet treats after brunching at Absinthe in Hayes. I suppose my first deterrent should have been the sheer size of the sticky bun. It was puny, but my craving was anything less, so I gave in and bought one. (It was about the size of a tennis ball.) I have to say, it was an overall disappointing experience. The dough was overly dense and meaty, like it hadn't risen properly, and maybe had just been sitting there all night and morning. The caramel was nice and sticky and rich. However, it left me wanting more. (My fingers were no where near sticky and messy enough after eating it!) At $3 a pop, I felt a bit pastry-cheated. Even my cherry ginger scone, at $3, was on the underdeveloped side.

Lately, I've been finding that the sticky buns and cinnamon rolls at Whole Foods are quite tasty. At only $2.19 apiece, they're right up my alley.

chocolate fungus

2008-08-23T13:40:00.000-04:00

Mr.S and I breezed through Westfield shopping center, but not without a stop at the Sanrio store, and the specialty chocolaterie, CocoaBella. This lovable little chocolate mushroom is made of Michel Cluizel chocolate and hazelnut praline. Almost too adorable to eat, but it didn't take much to convince me....

CocoaBella Chocolates
2102 Union Street
San Francisco, Ca 94123

dessert update!

2008-08-23T00:57:00.000-04:00

Mr.S and I don't usually order dessert when out. We are more appetizers folk. By the end of dinner, we hardly have room for the now-all-too-common chocolate pot-de-creme that sits as the first option on dessert menus all across the U.S. On a whim, after our entrees this past weekend while dining at Bong Su, we decided to rediscover our sweet tooths. And we were not disappointed.

Suffice it to say, we were more than impressed with the novelty, pairing, and flavors of this truly excellent dessert. A quenelle of toasted rice rice cream sat atop a sesame shortbread, with candied pralines, and served with a side of stone-fruit salad and toasted pinenuts. All this finished off with a drizzle of dulce de leche. Damn. Just writing that felt good.

The toasted rice ice cream was ingenious. It was mildly reminiscent of Korean toasted barley tea and rice pudding. The seasonality of the ripe plums and pluots was a wonderful addition. The perfect ending.

mad for avocado

2008-08-19T20:37:00.000-04:00

I oftentimes wish avocado didn't have that large pit in the center... what a waste of space, that cavernous hole can easily be replaced by more fleshy, sweet meat. I love avocado; it's nature's butter- mild, grassy and sweet, and when ripe, perfectly creamy and silky. I've capitalized on these prized qualities in recipes for avocado pound cake and avocado ice cream, which were no doubt very interesting, yet delicious, concoctions.

At the Farmer's Market over the weekend, at the Ferry Building, I picked up these 2- the one on the left is a Bacon avocado (small for 75 cents), not yet at its full maturity, and a standard sweet Haas avocado ($2) on the right. I let the Bacon ripe up for 3 days on my counter, squeezing it everyday to test for doneness. The meat was a surprising pale green color, unlike the bright yellow of the Haas. More surprising though, was the taste. It was incredibly delicate and very sweet and light on the palate, with no sacrifice in oil content.

This may just be my new favorite fruit.

takoyaki

2008-08-18T21:20:00.000-04:00

Mmm, octopus balls. No, not literally, but yes, literally. These little puffs are made of eggy batter and pieces of octopus. These takoyaki are a Japanese streetfood mainstay, grilled in special cast iron molds. Side one is cooked to a golden crispy brown, then flipped with a wooden skewer, letting side two cook to the same doneness. They're served in paper trays, doused with mayonnaise (or Kewpie), a sweet and savory sauce (like teriyaki), and sprinkled with tempura crumbs, dried fish shavings, and dried seaweed.

I picked up a tray of 8, to go, from Nijiya Market in Japantown for $2.99. Unsurprisingly, they definitely skimped on the octopus. But the batter was delicious and savory. Not a bad deal though, for just three bucks, I got a delicious streetfood lunch.

bigilla

2008-08-17T19:07:00.000-04:00

In Malta, I tasted a delicious bean dip that is called bigilla. We had it every morning, slathered on fresh baked bread, with sausages and assorted sheep's milk cheeses. Bigilla is traditionally made with dried broad beans, but there are variations of the dip that use fresh fava beans. It's a staple in Maltese country cooking, but in recent years has made a comeback in mainstream and contemporary Maltese cuisine.

In trying to keep with authenticity, be sure to use plenty of fresh garlic, good olive oil, and the dried mint.

Try this as a dip with raw veggies, or a spread for sandwiches and wraps.

Bigilla (Maltese Bean Dip)
yields 1 cup

1 cup dried broad beans
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp chili powder
dried marjoram, mint, and parsley (mixture)
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper, to taste

1. Soak the broad beans in cold water overnight. The following morning, cover the beans with salted water in a large pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until beans are tender, about 1 to 1.5 hours. Drain, and remove as much of the skins as possible.

2. Coarsely mash the beans, and stir in the remaining ingredients. Serve with bread or crackers.

blue bottle coffee

2008-08-16T19:53:00.000-04:00

We walked over to the Ferry Building Farmer's Market this morning, unbenownstly unprepared, with only one cloth bag in hand, ready to face the seductive lures of summer ripe peaches, flour-dusted golden loaves, and deeply violet-hued fingerlings. On top of all these temptations, Mr.S and I, for the almighty love of the bean (the coffee bean, that is), stood in line for over 30 minutes at the Blue Bottle Coffee Company cart. Throughout our wait, I looked at the people around me, standing around patiently for $3 cups of lattes and $2 cups of made-to-order drip coffee. I couldn't help but wonder, is this all really worth it? Is the length of a line directly proportional to the quality of the product being waited on to be consumed? Why were we punishing ourselves by standing on a queue that had hardly budged in 20 minutes? Ahh, too many questions from a caffeine-starved brain...

When Mr.S handed over my cappuccino, I yelped (yes, like a terrier) a small "Oh!" of pleasant surprise at the brilliant coffee art.

And then I sipped. Very nutty, pleasant and smooth were some of the first thoughts that came to mind. All of Blue Bottle's espresso drinks use a ristretto, double shot and steamed Clover milk. The had nuances of hazelnuts and a subtle sweetness that was enhanced by the milk. I reveled in my delightful morning cup while snacking on their complimentary almond macarons (flavors vary weekly).

We watched the barista for awhile as he prepared custom made drip coffee for customers. He reminded me of a DJ, spinning, with all his tech-y equipment and layout.
He uses a filter drip system, a rather rudimentary one in this case of paper filters and cups, to essentially make coffee extractions. (The original technique uses bunsen burners, glass tubes and flasks for an extremely scientific and exacting process.) The grind and weight of the beans, volume of water, temperature of water, timing of extraction are all key components to a single cup of brew. No wonder people are consistently lining up week after week. This is definitely not your cup of Sanka.

Currently Blue Bottle operates a small cafe on Mint Street over Mission and 5th, as well as a kiosk in Hayes Valley. And of course you can find them Saturday mornings at the Farmer's Market, just be prepared for long lines. (Bring a book!)

cream top

2008-08-15T21:36:00.000-04:00

Some people don't care for the cream top at the surface of bottled milk. I will never understand these people. It is the natural milkfat that floats to the top of more natural milk products that have only been partially homogenized. And um, it's really fricking good. It's like eating cream. Essentially, that's exactly what it is. Eating cream. I wish someone would just skim off the cream top, package it, and sell containers of this. I would undoubtedly be a repeat customer.

I bought a quart of Strauss Creamery 2% milk today, gently popped the top open, as to not disturb the cream on top, and dug in with a spoon. Yes, I know this was a bit decadent, but you really only get one chance to do this per bottle... You know you do it too.

egg custard tarts

2008-08-14T22:51:00.001-04:00

I ran some errands in Chinatown today, and as a reward, treated myself to a box of dan ta, or egg custard tarts. These were my favorite Chinese dessert as a kid. The custard is a brilliant shade of yellow... creamy and subtly sweet. I prefer the bright yellow ones, a sign of a healthy dose of yolks used.

Equally good is the crust. Somewhat salty, it's similar to a good pie crust. It must be flaky (as a result of lard as one of the key ingredients and very delicate.

These were delicious, from Golden Gate Bakery. They were wrapped up for me still warm, with a buttery flaky crust.

dim sum!

2008-08-12T21:41:00.000-04:00

The conveniences of living in a diverse, multicultural city- within half a block from my apartment, there's a cheap Indian chaat eatery, a Thai, Vietnamese, and Cantonese restaurants, a pizza place, a Japanese sushi joint, a Mexican chain restaurant, and of course, a Starbucks. I think I shall never go hungry again.

Lucky for me, the Cantonese dim sum place is one of the higher rated ones in SF. It's appropriately called Canton Dim Sum & Seafood, and though it sits far out of Chinatown, it still manages to draw a significantly authentic Chinese crowd consistently. Little old grandmothers throwing elbows and canes around trying to get a better look at carts full of chicken's feet and shumai- that's what I call a good time, and a safe bet that you're getting the real stuff.

The roast pork was well seasoned, thinly sliced, porky deliciousness. Maybe a bit on the fatty side, but if you're into that, then it's really quite good.

The fried tofu squares with soy sauce and scallions was nicely fried- not at all greasy, but crispy and light. This is a hard dish to mess up.

This was the only dish of the morning that none of us liked- the steamed pork spareribs with black bean sauce. The cuts of meat were way too large (they are usually only bite-size and very tender). And there was hardly any black bean flavor to the sauce (there were carrots though, somewhat odd...). Oh yes, and a grease trap of a dish. Bleh.

One of my favorites: Xia chang feng, or steamed rice roll with shrimp and soy sauce. It was perfect- soft and chewy rice texture, plump shrimp and a savory sauce poured on top.

A vegetarian delight, and another of my favorites of the morning: Su ji dou fu, dried tofu sheets wrapped to form a roll, stuffed with shitake mushrooms. It's brilliantly chewy, and the name translates to "vegetarian chicken tofu" or mock chicken tofu because the texture resembles eating chicken meat. Be aware though, as it may not completely be vegetarian since it's oftentimes braised in chicken or beef stock.
The stir fried pea shoots were a lovely shade of verdant green, and tender but still crisp at the same time. There were also huge chunks of garlic in there too. Mmmm... lethal!

My mum and dad got bowls of congee and silken tofu, both very traditional, though a tad on the bland side for me. The congee had chunks of hundred year old egg and preserved pickles, but was missing the fried red-skin peanuts that is the usual accompaniment. I enjoyed the tofu better, as it was incredibly soft and light, with a delicately sweet broth poured on top.

Though I had to loosen my belt at this point in the meal, I still made room for the steamed shrimp dumplings. Dim sum is not dim sum without shrimp dumplings. They had a good amount of ginger, and the wrappers were nicely chewy (I hate when they are over-steamed and mushy).

Canton's dishes definitely delivered and did not disappoint, with the exception of the spareribs. I found the menu to be slightly pricier than most dim sum places, but they also serve a high quality of dishes, with very fresh ingredients. I will more than likely frequent this restaurant, as I love dim sum carting, and I dim alot! (That'll be my only comedic contribution to this post.)

$1 book project

2008-08-06T09:44:00.000-04:00

So... I'm STILL ALIVE and kicking! Just been super busy hopping from place to place... Officially moved into my new apartment in San Francisco last week, and a blustery cold week it was! (I've become quite used to the disgustingly humid summers of the mid-Atlantic now...)

And I'm currently sitting at our diningroom table in Malta, during one last week-long family hurrah before law school starts for me, and before my parents must return to the grind of well, working. We landed in Rome 5 days ago, relaxed for a couple days, drove to Florence and Venice for another 2 days, then flew here to the beautiful (and incredibly sun-drenched) island of Malta.

All this traveling, and moreover, literally gawking at how little an American dollar gets you in Euros these days, has reminded me of the value of a dollar and what it can buy from country to country (apparently not much now all across Europe!). Speaking of dollars and whatnot, I want to bring to everyone's attention the $1 Book Project. It's a compilation of reader-submitted photos of objects, across the world, that are worth exactly 1 US dollar, no more no less. Really amusing entries.

The object of the project, according to the creator:

"The $1 Book Project attempts to prove that the value of an object depends on culture and geographic location. Currently a work in progress, the following images explore the power (or lack thereof) of one American dollar. I asked people to submit a photograph documenting what they bought. They could not spend more than $1. Not a cent over."

So far, I've found a small pack of gum in a nearby Maltese supermarket and some postcards in Venice that cost roughly $1. So it's actually a much more difficult task than it may first seem. There's a link to a currency converter at the site; helpful for international folks. I'm certainly going to keep on searching in the next few days...

drool worthy

2008-07-23T09:41:00.010-04:00

I have a dark and shameful past. A period of my former life in which I could barely make rice in the electric rice cooker, consistently turned out rubbery tough scrambled eggs for Sunday's breakfast, and served guests frozen meals from a box and called it my own homecooking. This latter practice, however shameful and unspeakable it may be now, actually helped me to throw some of my most successful dinner parties. The first of Mr.S's birthdays that we celebrated together, I pulled one over on him with one of my slaved-over-a-hot-stove "home cooked" meal.

The menu consisted of braised lamb shanks in a rosemary-mint sauce, oat blinis with creme fraiche, and roasted root vegetables. I don't know if Mr.S fell for me that night or for the lamb, but he decided to stick around.
Luckily for him, I learned how to cook. Eventually I revealed my secret to him years later, that my fork-tender lamb shanks were actually store bought, precooked and frozen, from Costco.

These lamb shanks are some of the most delicious and succulent pieces I've ever had because they truly taste like they've been cooking away for hours. The meat is rich and tender, without the least bit of game, falling off the bone as you gently pry your fork into it.
The sauce is like a thickened au jus, sweet and intense, flavored with rosemary. I can never really fully taste the mint, but it's there, a soft nuance to balance out the richness of the sauce. After you pull away the meat, the invitingly attractive bone implores you to gnaw away at it; it's difficult not to give in.

These lamb shanks are made by a company called Cuisine Solutions, which specializes in a method of cooking called sous-vide.
In recent years, it's become a term more popularized thanks to shows like Top Chef and actual top chefs like Thomas Keller, Wylie Dufresne, and Ferran Adrià. Essentially, it's a purely scientific approach to cooking. Based on the molecular makeup of the food to be cooked, a combination of heat, timing, and cooling is used. All this, and a hermetically-sealed plastic pouch. The food is sealed in such a package, and cooks for hours, sometimes even a day, over the lowest heat possible, basically in its own juices. This is achieved by heating the pouch in a temperature-controlled water bath, then cooling it gradually. Accordingly, the flavors remain concentrated. They completely saturate the food, usually a protein, which maintains its structural integrity and keeps nice and tender because it retains all of its original juices.

Reheating is a breeze. For smaller servings, I heat up a large pot of water over medium-low heat and simply place the pouch, frozen, into the water. It will gradually heat up over 10-15 minutes or so. This is like a mock sous-vide setup in your home kitchen. Because of the low heat, the meat will heat up evenly and not seize up. For larger batches, say 3 or more large pouches (for a group of guests), I unwrap the frozen meat from the pouches, place them in a shallow pan, and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or so. The lamb will form a nice crust from the dry heat, and the sauce will reduce down a bit.

You'd never expect a frozen meal to be much palatable, let alone mouth watering. But I've certainly discovered one that is all this and quite versatile. I usually always have a box of these sitting in my freezer on hand, ready for surprise guest visits, a quick weeknight dinner for Mr.S and me, or an upscale meal for myself and a group of discerning dinner companions.

Cuisine Solutions lamb shanks are available at Costco, Wegman's, and online through Peapod.

to market! to market!

2008-07-21T13:14:00.000-04:00

I worked the farmer's market in Dupont Circle this past Sunday. Within seconds of stepping off the metro escalator, I was sticky and sweaty, but nonetheless excited to meet up with my friends from Atwater's (my old employer) to work our stand at the market. Lord knows how I made it through the almost 6 hours of working in the heat! (One of the girls working in the stand next to us actually fainted from heat stroke.)

Well, bread is one of those foods that holds up pretty well in hot, sticky weather (it did just come out of a 500 degree oven hours earlier); but chocolate chip pastries were a whole different story... Atwater's is the only vendor at Dupont that sells handmade artisanal breads, cookies, cakes, and our famous scones and granola. And so, no surprise that the lines to buy one of our breakfast pastries or a loaf of rustic sourdough were tortuously long.

our storefront

Atwater's breads have really made a name for itself, dense and chewy with a crisp crumb and well-developed gluten. We sold hundreds of loaves, maybe even a thousand or more. People, in general, just LOVE BREAD. Especially when they are beckoning golden loaves like these, whispering promises of wheaty, starchy innards, the perfect remedy to that Sunday morning hangover.

One of our bestsellers- sunflower flax seed bread

raisin walnut sourdough, another goodie

One of my all-time go-to's: the San Francisco sourdough, literally the best I've tasted anywhere in the country, as of yet.

We also sold a few types of our pastries and sweets. I set up this table; kind of looks like the display just threw up a ton of sweets, doesn't it... (I was going for the whole cornucopia look)

cookies, granola, scones, pound cake, tea cakes, brownies and streusel bars

These little loaves are Atwater's famous scones- filled with golden raisins, dried cherries, and sometimes currants. They flew out of the case; we were sold out by 10:30am. Proof that people love buttery things.

Of course then, there's the produce at a farmer's market. Summer's colors were just screaming to be taken home, in all sorts of incarnations- succulent peaches, brightly hued berries, firm summer squashes, deep leafy greens still with a hint of frost...

golden currants- super sweet little jewels that pop in your mouth

these fat little fingers of carrots were hard to walk by without admiring

There were vendors who also sold prepared foods, like made to order crabcakes and chilled gazpacho. Also quite a few dairies whose poor cheeses and yogurts were sweating and melting under the heat. But that didn't stop me from sampling... I discovered a delicious handmade sheep's milk cheese called Stony Man from Everona Dairy (Rapidan, VA). It was similar to a Manchego, very dense, buttery and salty, with a surprisingly sweet aftertaste.

the Piedmont cheese with add-ins: cracked black pepper, sun-dried tomato, and a beautifully-layered vegetable ash

plain Piedmont- very nutty and tangy

Also found these gorgeous, sweet, red onions. The woman who these belonged to (who was quite protective of her purchase, naturally) told me how wonderfully sweet and mild these are. She went on to extol their many virtues; and I seem to have forgotten their name... If anyone knows, please help me out!

Working a farmer's market is completely different from shopping at one. You really get a sense of the commaraderie that connects the vendors and producers, the sense of a shared purpose, and a sweet justification that all your labors and love of the land have really paid off. I went home with an eco-friendly (anything less would have gotten me deathly stares here) sack of goods, some purchased, some traded for loaves of bread: homemade cherry pie, peaches and pluots, a bunch of lemon basil, a jar of local honey, maple yogurt, a loaf of cranberry-pecan sourdough, a quart of chunky gazpacho, fruit and nut granola, and some baby watercress and arugula.

Next stop: the farmer's market at the Ferry Building in SF!

ninja express sushi

2008-07-20T10:41:00.000-04:00

Brillat-Savarin once said "Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are." Well if this is true, then I should be a 5'2" walking slab of raw fish. I've been eating a lot of carry-out sashimi and sushi lately. If anything, this new diet has only increased my craving for the raw stuff, not quell it.

My sushi supplier is currently at the top of my all-time-favorite people list. Soft-spoken and kind, he believes in high quality ingredients. No, this is not an upscale Japanese restaurant, but a small "sushi corner" located in the prepared foods area of Lotte supermarket. The small venue is called Ninja Sushi. Operated at most by 2 chefs at a time, the small 3-seater restaurant is easy to miss. There's an easy to follow order-by-picture menu posted above the wall, but since the chef is so accomodating, he can usually make whatever you want, depending on the availability of his ingredients, of course.

We ordered carryout last week for dinner- the 18 piece sashimi entree ($14.99) with salmon, tuna, and white tuna (escolar).

We were happily surprised to find not 18, but 25 glistening pieces of sashimi in our box! The chef had thrown in a few extra slices of salmon and hamachi, and seaweed salad. The rolls are standard fare, but very good, and again, he doesn't skimp on the ingredients. (My mom always orders a special warm and crispy salmon skin roll.)

My favorite is the white tuna sashimi, though that is a misnomer, since the fish is actually escolar. It is extremely buttery, yet clean tasting, supple and soft on the palate.

Interestingly, escolar has been banned in Japan since 1977 because in some individuals, it has been known to cause bad digestive issues and diarrhea. There's a high level of wax esters in escolar flesh, very much like Olean (in fat free Pringles) that just passes right through you. In some people though, it can cause some transient, but nonetheless, nasty GI issues. Luckily, not me!

There's no website for Ninja Sushi, but I have posted their menu here. (click on the image below)

toro!

2008-07-17T13:46:00.006-04:00

An interesting little side article in the Wall Street Journal today- the average price of two pieces of toro sushi around the world. In case you've been living in seclusion somewhere and have no idea what toro is, first let me preface the description by mentioning that toro means "to melt" in Japanese. And that is precisely what this cut of meat aims to do, in your mouth. Toro refers to the fatty belly portion from the bluefin tuna. Depending on the degree of fat marbling through the flesh, sushi chefs will grade toro into 2 categories: chu-toro and o-toro.

Chu-toro is only moderately fatty, and is the more affordable of the fatty cuts of tuna. It is light pink, and the marbling resembles webbing throughout the flesh. O-toro is the fattiest part of the belly, and on a cross-sectional cut, looks almost like a light pink bacon, with it's heavy striped marbling runny along strips of flesh. (Looks like a candy cane.) Because of the highly prized degree of fat, o-toro can really tear a hole in your wallet at good sushi restaurants.

pure fatty delight: o-toro

I've not been fortunate enough to have tasted o-toro, but by the looks of it, I'd have to pay about $20 for 2 pieces in New York. If I jet-setted over to Singapore, I'd have to fork over $35, but the ultimate deal would be dining in Manila, where 2 pieces cost a mere $8! What a steal!

An interesting fact about tuna fat and why, from a physiological standpoint, it's so special. Tuna fat is not at all like the fat on nearly all other fish, which tends to be concentrated only in one area of the body. Instead, tuna fat marbles the whole section of the tuna where it's found. Chu-toro, for instance, is a whole layer of fat-marbled flesh that wraps around the inner musculature of the body, twice. Because of this, tuna have the unique ability to raise their body temperature up to 18 degrees above the temperature of the water around them. And because of this structural quality, toro tastes oh-so-wonderful...

toro image from visualhistory.blogspot.com

longest starbucks order?

2008-07-14T19:06:00.000-04:00

On the occasion, I make a Starbuck's run. Today I ran out of milk at home, and didn't feel like drinking any of the usual weak stuff at the office. The one on the way to work was packed this morning with caffeine and sugar-starved souls (me being no exception), I even had trouble finding a parking spot! The lines were long but moved relatively quickly.

The reason I'm rambling on about this is because I'm always self-conscious that my usual drink order runs on the long side. I'm typically not such an eccentric espresso drinker, but honestly, Starbuck's has kind of spoiled me by accomodating all my particular drink needs. I usually always get the same thing: "double, tall, nonfat, extra-hot, wet capuccino." Having worked once as a barista in a coffeeshop, an order like this on a busy morning would have had me steaming at my ears.

Today however, I didn't feel so bad. The woman in front of me literally ordered something to the following effect: "quad, venti, half-caff, one pump sugar-free vanilla, two pumps sugar-free hazelnut, extra-hot, ristretto latte, with half soy, half lowfat organic milk, with two paper cups." Who does that?? Needless to say, I was more than a bit peeved at her custom drink order, but the guys behind the counter surprisingly, remained nonplussed. I'll never know if they got her drink exactly the way she wanted it, but she walked out of the store, drink in hand, with no complaints.

This leads me to the question- what's the longest coffee drink order you've ever heard, given, or received?

image from starbucks.com

soon doo boo jigae

2008-07-14T10:03:00.001-04:00

I often get asked the question, what's your favorite type of Asian food? (Or in rare instances, "Oriental food," asked by completely oblivious non-asians...) Anywho, I have to say, I have no answer for this rather complex, yet general, question. I like it all. Put it in front of me, and I will eat it.

I go through my phases of course. Recently, I've been waking up at night with the sushi sweats- longing for a bowl of rice topped with grilled unagi and fresh hamachi. This past winter, I went through a mild obsession with Cantonese-style congees, especially congee with dried scallop and 100-year old egg. My love for Thai and Vietnamese cuisine is everlasting. They all satisfy my cravings in different ways.

On a recent night, we went out for Korean spicy tofu soup. Soon doo-boo jigae. Kind of rolls right off the tongue, doesn't it? Served in a hot earthenware casserole, it's a bubbling brew of spicy stock (pork or seafood), shrimp and oysters, pork, or kimchee, and the soon doo-boo: the deliciously creamy silken tofu. I like mine with an egg cracked on top, left to firm up in the hot soup.

I always forget just how satisfying Korean food is. It's like eating a box of chocolate liquors in one go: intensely intoxicating, heady and bold. Korean food is proof that a good sweat can work wonders to cool down the body. Everytime I leave a Korean barbeque or finish a hot bowl of jigae, I feel as if I've just come out of a bathhouse- calm and sedated, mopping away at my brow.

2941 restaurant

2008-07-13T22:14:00.001-04:00

This is the story of an oasis. An oasis within an office building in suburban northern VA. Wherein, a classically trained French chef, who's previously worked with Daniel Boulud, now serves up innovative dishes using seasonal ingredients. I suppose I've lived in the city for too long. I've been under the false impression that any restaurant with valet parking and a thoughtful tasting menu couldn't possible be found in suburbia. I stand corrected.

Despite its odd location, 2941 Restaurant provides a serene and gorgeous backdrop to an upscale dinner experience. Easily a favorite with wedding parties, there are waterfalls, gardens, and koi ponds that help to create nice photo-ops.

We started with a salad of local baby beets, goat cheese, endive and chives. I enjoyed the addition of the chives, both for color and flavor. Beets are one of those foods that really sells itself- deeply rich in colors and earthy sweet.

The next course was a lMaine lobster claw, served two ways- poached, and chopped in a loster cake/nugget. It was served with a long bean and bibb lettuce salad with tamarind-anise vinaigrette. Amazing is really all I can say about this dish. I love long beans; they tend to be used more in home-style cooking and rather underused in restaurants. The lobster meat was sweet and supple.

The main course was a pan-seared halibut filet with braised baby carrots and sugar snap peas (from California), in a light sabayon sauce with morels. The sabayon was wonderful- light as air, and simply melted on your tongue. I've never seen morels paired with fish, but it works beautifully, like a double dose of umami for the tastebuds.

For dessert, a pear-almond cake, with a frangipane base, served with almond cream. The buttery crumb of the cake was delectable. My mom ordered the molten chocolate cake with vanilla bean ice-cream and a dark chocolate tuile. In general, the desserts were less impressive than everything else; they lacked a certain edge and creativity.

We ended our meal with coffee and the house's complimentary serving of citrus beignets, which were glazed (!), light, and just the right size. What I really miss is the ethereally light, cotton candy that 2941 used to serve to all its guests after dinner. Tall, freshly-spun, light blue mounds of fluffy cotton candy used to be a fun and whimsical part of the dining experience here, but not anymore.

2941 is a great special-occasion restaurant (my parents take me here for my birthdays), as well as an escape for a seriously nice lunch or a weekend brunch. The service gets slow on weekends when the place is usually quite busy. Reservations, as well as a jacket for the gents, are highly recommended.

Update: A new pastry chef was brought on in June 2008, and upon inspection of the new dessert menu, it looks to be a much more impressive selection of sweets. However, the cotton candy is still nowhere to be found. Please bring it back!

Note: The menu items from this review are from April 2008, and thus reflect the seasonal selections at that time.

our garden grows

2008-07-11T11:20:00.009-04:00

wildflowers budding

I never doubted they would grow. They were just going through a slow phase, I suppose. I was a bit of a worried parent as I tended to my cucumber garden last weekend. The flowers and vines were particularly sparse, and there was just the faintest splattering of mini-gerkin sized cucumbers.

When I went out last night, it was as if life had just exploded overnight. Dense leafy greens, thick and robust stems covered in its protective layer of fuzz, bright yellow flowers, and more cucumbers than I could count. Granted they were only the size of cocktail weiners, but I know what's coming next week- the first big harvest.

I cut down 4 medium to large cukes for dinner. We made a Chinese cucumber salad with fermented black bean sauce. The other dish was a stir-fry of diced cucumber and scrambled eggs. Beyond these uses of cucumbers (in additional to pickling), I'm plain out of ideas. And I anticipate bushels of cukes this summer, most of at which I'll be scratching my head, trying to figure out how to eat them. Any ideas?

jamón' it up

2008-07-09T15:00:00.009-04:00

probably the world's costliest pigs, sniffing out a lunch of acorns

Approximately 3.7 million pigs perished or disappeared in the earthquake of Szechuan, China in May. This statistic greatly saddened me, as I realized the agricultural and economic toll it took on villages and farmers (the Chinese are the world's largest consumer of pork). And, honestly, I really adore pigs. They may be loud and may prefer mud over human companionship, but they're noble creatures, and gentle most of the time.

Now let's imagine if this magnitude of loss had happened in Southern Spain, the home of the famed black-footed pigs, that are turned into prized hams- jamón ibérico de bellota. Unlike their American counterparts, who are strictly fed grains and other feed, these Spanish piggies are let free to roam outside, feeding primarily on wild acorns that are indigenous to the region. As a result, their flesh retains a high degree of marbling of fat, attributing to its nutty and meaty flavor. Can you imagine the financial losses?

I had the occasion, not to mention the luck, to taste the rich and fatty cold cut last summer in southwestern Spain. My dad unveiled a small package wrapped in butcher paper, purchased at a local specialty deli. He and I oooed and ahhhed at the thin, streaky slices of meat while my mom took a peek and turned her nose at us, asking "what's the big deal about ham?" More for us. And thus our lunch that day consisted of 8 slices of jamón ibérico de bellota, duck pate, crusty white bread, and some local beers.

The flavor was like nothing I've ever had before, barely even reminiscent of prosciutto di parma. It was deeply nutty, with obvious hints of woody acorns and hazelnuts, very little salt, and a subtle gamey finish. The streaks of fat seemed to melt on my tongue, while the leaner portion was surprisingly toothsome. It was like the first time I tasted Kobe beef or my first bite of fatty toro- divine. And thus is the innate human response to fat. We like it. Dad and I tried to devise plans of sneaking a pound of two back through Customs, but never had the wit or balls to do so.

Never fear, this much sought-after jamón, as of this week, has been approved by the USDA, and is available in the U.S. through a small number of purveyors. At specialty online stores like La Tienda and HotPaella, enthusiasts were allowed in previous weeks to put down a deposit of $150-$199 to reserve their 15-lb full-size hind leg, with the final cost totaling to $1400. That works out to be about $94 per pound. You can also purchase in store, at specialty butcher shops and delis (like Dean and Deluca, but not through their online store) and certain restaurants as well.

Personally, my purse pockets are no where deep enough to support such a diet, but I do recommend everyone to at least have a taste. At the bare minimum, you can say, with confidence, that you've eaten the world's most expensive slice of ham.

Images from jamoniberico.com

rocking horse cafe

2008-07-08T22:53:00.000-04:00

A bit of a college reunion this past weekend in New York... we gathered for our good friends' wedding on Long Island. It's not often that you attend a wedding and you know both the bride and groom so well, but we were lucky enough to know both of them and were witness to their relationship through the years. We ate Indian buffet at each meal, danced barefoot, and posed for the obligatory photos. You know, wedding stuff.

A few of us went out to brunch on Sunday at the Rocking Horse Cafe, which came recommended for good nouveau Mexican dishes. Chelsea, on a Sunday morning, was quiet, probably on a break from the night before. The RHC was a welcome haven from the dreariness outside, a colorful haven no less, conjuring up scenes from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. The walls were coated in hot pinks, fuscias, and azure blues- a sure way to jolt awake any sleepy diner before their AM caffeine.

Most of us ordered the prix fixe brunch ($14.95) which consisted of a cocktail/juice, coffee/tea, and your choice of a brunch entree. We were starved after a long morning train ride back from Long Island, and basically tore into the chips and salsa.

The dunkability factor of the salsa was low in comparison to the massive size of the chips; it arrived in a small shallow bowl. I'm a staunch advocate for huge pails of salsa at Mexican restaurants, don't you agree? It was finely pureed, and reminded me of pasta sauce. Anyway, it was good, and I was famished.

I took these pictures really quickly before we ate, since my fellow brunch companions all looked glassy-eyed from hunger.

Migas- scrambled eggs with tortilla chips, chorizo, sauteed zucchini and onion, with roasted tomato salsa. Mmmm, egginess. The egg/tomato combo is one of my favorite flavor duos. I would have preferred for the chips to have been broken up more, and then scrambled INTO the eggs. This was more like an egg and tortilla chip salad, though I still found it delicious.

Huevos Rancheros- a tortilla topped with refried beans, fried egg, chihuahua cheese, with red and green salsas. Look much like the Mexican flag? This thing came smothered; that's what I appreciate about Mexican food- it's really quite indistinguishable what is underneath all that melted cheese and salsa, but after cutting into the amorphous shape, it's (mostly) always flavorful.

Huevos Beneditos- poached eggs on sweet corn cakes with chipotle hollandaise and a side of hash browns. The hollandaise, upon first inspection, reminded me of Velveeta, but it tasted much better. We were a bit dismayed at the portion size here, after just a few bites, Mr.S's plate was clean. The combination of the sweet corn with the rich egginess was great, just not enough to satisfy a hungry bruncher.

"Croque Senor"- chipotle pulled pork sandwich with poblano peppers, avocado, melted cheeses, and a side salad. Most impressive dish of the morning. It definitely required the aid of a fork and knife since it was just plain grande. I suppose the side salad was only there to offset some of caloric value of the sandwich, which was dripping in cheese, pork, and avocado. Not such a bad thing for the tastebuds, but healthnuts may easily call this a heart attack on a plate. I don't particularly participate in this school of thought; bring on the meat!

Brunch in general tends to be quite filling, and after all the cheese, beans and sour cream, we were a happy, satisfied bunch, especially after a weekend of eating nothing but spicy curries, chickpeas, rice and naan. Though it's billed as contemporary Mexican fare, the dishes at RHC are still incredibly hearty, and a good deal for the wallet.

yeye's sweet and sour spareribs

2008-07-08T21:46:00.001-04:00

I attribute my strong carniverous tendencies to my grandfather. He raised his 4 children on pork, and his grandkids were no exception to the rule. Most parents urge their kids to drink plenty of milk, to eat all their veggies and fruit, even resorting to tricks of the parental trade in order to get these things down their child's unobliging throat. My grandfather, my yeye, in stark but delicious contrast, force fed me braised chicken dishes, glazed spareribs, steamed fish...much to my heart's delight. Greens, to him, were an afterthought, something to add a bit of color and texture to, you guessed it, meat. And we never ate fruit since both he and my grandmother were both diabetic. Thus I grew up knowing my repertoire of meat, meat-products, and on the occasion, by-products.

There are some dishes that to this day, I still crave from my yeye's kitchen. His edamame (we called it mao dou) always came steaming hot and salted, studded with peppercorn and star anise, in a huge gigantic metal bowl for me to pick through. For my birthdays, he would make me jiao zhi yu, a whole fish fried and smothered in a sweet and tangy garlic sauce. He would set the dish so that the head faced me, a portent of good fortune. Mostly I remember the very simplest dishes he made, for a weekday dinner, or a quick lunch on his break between work. Noodles with gravy, scrambled eggs with fresh tomato, a bowl of noodle soup. But mostly, he was famous for his meat dishes (and I mean famous, since he owned two successful restaurants).

One dish that was always a hit with my aunts, uncles and cousins was his Tang Cu Pai Gu, otherwise known as sweet and sour spareribs. Don't let the seemingly mundane name, nor the overly sweet flavors those words conjure, scare you. "Sweet and sour" has become bastardized, a once tangy and savory dish in its native state, has been doused with pounds and pounds of granulated sugar, not to mention bright orange dyes, here in the U.S. throughout take-out joints and large Chinese restaurants.

The real deal uses fresh, small and tender pork spareribs, about 2-3 inches in length. Most of the fat is rendered out in the cooking process, leaving a truly lean and savory portion of meat. The sauce is what ties this dish together, a tour de force of glazes, if you will. It is reminiscent of those rich, caramelized sauces found in Vietnamese clay pot dishes, but with more vinegar, reduced down to a thick and syrupy tang.

More memorable than the taste was the way that Yeye served his spareribs to the family- piled up high in a large metal mixing bowl, set on the diningroom table, which was laid over with old newspapers. No need to say it was all a bit of a messy affair. But nonetheless, finger-licking delicious. When I visited him this year, he was once again busy in the kitchen, peeling garlic, rattling woks...this is how he keeps busy now at age 83. A little before dinnertime, the scent of vinegar and garlic lured me into his kitchen, and to my surprise, a wokful of ribs was braising on the stove. I remember asking him for the recipe, but he just threw out a listing of spices and herbs, and promised to let me watch in a few days as he recreated the dish again.

Just like when I was little, I laid out the newspaper on the table, in preparation for dinner with my grandparents. This dish will always be known as "Yeye's Spareribs" because no one else can make them like he does. I always eat them with such intensity and gusto, letting my little pile of bones build up, never fully realizing just how much satisfaction and pleasure is written over Yeye's face, as he looks on.

Tang Cu Pai Gu - "Yeye's Sweet and Sour Spareribs"

Look for smaller ribs, as these will be more tender. Cut them up, between the rib bones, then across the bone again, to get small "riblet" pieces.
Chinkiang vinegar is a black Chinese rice vinegar that's readily available at all Asian food stores.

1 1/2 - 2 lb pork ribs, cut into 2-3" in length

Braising Liquid:
1 1/2 cups beef stock or broth
1" piece ginger, sliced into rounds
1/2 water, optional
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
2 whole star anise
1 tsp chicken stock granules or MSG, optional
2 Tbsp dark Chinkiang vinegar
3 Tbsp soy sauce
1/4 cup Shaoxing cooking wine
1/4 cup sugar
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 scallion, cut into thirds

1. Place the ribs in a large pot, fill with water, and set over high heat. Let the water come to a boil, then turn down the heat to simmer for 1 hour (lid on of off). Drain ribs and lay them out on a large dish to dry up some more.

2. Heat the oil in a wok to about 350F. In small batches, fry the ribs, about 1 minute. Drain any excess oil on paper towels.

3. Pour the hot oil out from your wok, and give it a quick wipedown. To the wok, add all the ingredients for the Braising Liquid, except for the sugar. (You can add the optional 1/2 cup water, if you prefer more sauce.) Bring to a gentle boil, add the ribs, stir to coat, and turn the heat down to a simmer. Cover, and cook for about 10 minutes.

4. Stir in the sugar, cover again, and cook over low heat for another 10-15 minutes until the liquid has turned thick and glossy, like a glaze. Turn the heat off and transfer the ribs to a serving dish.

a letter...

2008-07-05T11:19:00.000-04:00

A letter from a reader...

Hi!
I just wanted to say thanks for mentioning us in your blog, we truly appreciate that you had such a pleasant experience at Bouchon with our Seastack cheese last week. We are new to the California market and are pleased with the reception so far!
We're sending you a gift pack just to say thanks!

Thanks again,

Wendy
Mt Townsend Creamery

338 Sherman Street

Port Townsend, WA 98368

A few days after this email, I received this package on my doorstep!

After a long, gruesome day at the office, such a treat can really cheer a girl up! Inside were the three kinds of cheeses crafted by Mt. Townsend Creamery.

My dad wanted to crack into them as soon as he saw them, but I stubbornly objected, "We need to find the right wines first!" So, the cheeses have been sitting in my fridge for a few days now, under lock and key, just waiting for the right time to be devoured by my over-eager family. I've been looking for the right wines and pairings to go with each cheese, and as soon as I have those, I'm planning a grand tasting for everyone.

The creaminess that is Sea Stack

beard papa

2008-07-02T21:05:00.001-04:00

I can't say I'm not a little bitter. It was my idea first. As a kid, having eaten my way through too many a Chinese restaurant buffet, where Jello, almond cookies, soft serve fro-yo, and cream puffs were always reliable mainstays at the dessert island, I thought wouldn't it be nice if those soggy cream puffs were filled for you, to order? Gee, that sounded like a great idea for a business- fresh cream puffs filled upon request. Alas, being only 11 at the time, with $20 in my piggy bank, I was a bit unprepared for such a business venture.

A decade later, as I was perusing my choices at a mall food court in Beijing, I immediately noticed the bright yellow and white storefront and the jolly, white-bearded brand mascot, aptly named Beard Papa. (I cursed myself for not having taken out some sort of loan 10 years earlier.) Hungry and intrigued, I purchased 2 still-warm puffs, filled with strawberry and vanilla creams. They were delightful- a crisp and light shell that surrounded a subtly sweet filling of whipped custard. I was so taken with the puff that I went back and bought a dozen.

Little did I know it at the time, but thousands of miles away in New York, customers were lining up for a taste of the puff too. Beard Papa opened its first U.S. franchises in NYC in 2004, and since has spread through California, Hawaii, and parts of NJ. It's not surprising that Beard Papa is a Japanese enterprise, as the Japanese are notorious for re-engineering decidedly un-Japanese things and making them better, prettier, but oftentimes nonsensical and quite the paradox (take for instance, Japanese pizza). I'm puzzled, even by Beard Papa himself. What does this blue-eyed, white-bearded, pipe-smoking old dude have to do with cream puffs? Instead of trying to make sense out of it all, I say, just eat a puff and you'll forget everything.

Last time we were in San Francisco, Mr.S and I stopped by the Beard Papa across from Yerba Buena gardens and picked out a coffee cream-filled eclair.

Essentially, just a cream puff swathed in melty chocolate. Good, but I still prefer the pure vanilla taste of the original Beard Papa cream puff.

There's a tempting selection of fillings to choose from: vanilla bean, chocolate, strawberry, pumpkin, coffee, green tea and caramel (some seasonal flavors will vary regionally). Papa also offers cheesecake that comes in the shape of a stick, for potable eating of course, like a Snickers bar. Cream puffs are all $2.25 a piece (that's up $0.50 since opening in 2006) and $22 per dozen. That's a pretty reasonable exchange in my opinion as these puffs are bursting at the seams with cream; they're freshly baked several times during the day, and filled to order, on the spot. Plus, they use all natural ingredients, whatever that means these days, but sounds good to me. Hey, old bearded papas have to make a living somehow!

Though I do like to take credit for initially coming up with the idea of made to order cream puffs, I will now most respectfully defer to Beard Papa in the arena of all things cream puff related. He seems to have a knack for these sweets.

and the answer is...

2008-06-30T19:09:00.001-04:00

So....what is this paradoxical creature?

The answer is,

the spine from a tamarind pod!

After you remove the hard shell from the tamarind, and then lift out the sticky meat surrounding the pods, you are left with the "spine" that provided the structural integrity of the pod. Looks scary on its own, doesn't it?

what am i?

2008-06-26T10:17:00.000-04:00

What is this spindly thing?

Take a guess, and I'll post the answer in a few days!

the silver palate molasses cookies

2008-06-24T10:18:00.001-04:00

Molasses cookies, why so glum? Too often, they are dismayed at having to share the same display case or cookie box with their more conspicuous and highly-celebrated counterparts. Enter the usual suspects- the chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, snickerdoodle, white chip macadamia, peanut butter, even that short-lived seasonal cookie; the molasses lives in the shadows of such touted favorites. Perhaps the heady, bold flavors and spice of the molasses are a bit overwhelming for some. Or maybe what ruined it was there was just one too many commercial "ginger molasses crisps" out there that tasted and looked more like hardtack than a cookie. I was guilty of such intimidations; as a child, faced with the decision between a buttery shortbread cookie and a dark, lackluster molasses, the choice was obvious.

My first eye-opening experience, or rather, tastebud-opening, with the molasses cookie actually involved a Starbuck's. After ordering a PB cookie, I was mistakenly given the molasses, and reluctantly I nibbled. I remember the immediate sweetness, not cloying, but deep and rich, like a good caramel. The cloves and cinnamon hit my palate next, spicy, but balanced out by the tons of butter that'd probably been used for the dough. This entire time, I had been missing out. Perhaps it was a sign that I was entering adult cookie-dom, no more frosted sugar cookies or animal crackers (but don't count on it).

Since then, I've always enjoyed making different versions of the molasses cookie- some recipes use ginger, others less but with more cinnamon and allspice; playing with the dough to get the right texture also took a few trials to get right. I've eaten my way through thin and crispy, soft and chewy, soft and cakelike, and stick-to-your-teeth chewy. One of my favorite versions, that produces consistent results time and again, is a recipe from The Silver Palate Cookbook. According to the book, these cookies are one of their most popular treats. I strongly concur, as everytime I've made these large, saucer-like cookies, they turn out deliciously rich, spicy, and nuanced with flavor. Crispy around the edges, with a chewy center, just the way I like.

Nowadays, more often than not, I'll choose the molasses over any old chocolate chip, and especially if they're homemade. What it lacks in flamboyance, it makes up for with personality. That alone, should sell itself.

Molasses Cookies
from The Silver Palate Cookbook

12 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1/4 molasses
1 egg
1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Melt the butter, and add in sugar and molasses.
3. Lightly beat the egg and add to the butter mixture, blending well.
4. Sift the dry ingredients together, and add to the butter mixture. (It will look wet.)
5. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
6. Drop the batter by heaping tablespoons onto the cookie sheet, 3 inches apart (they will spread out).
7. Bake 8-10 minutes, until the cookies darken.
8. Remove parchment from cookie sheet, and let the cookies cool on the paper, or a rack.

jian bing: beijing street food

2008-06-24T09:03:00.008-04:00

Ever since I was little, my parents treated street food in Beijing like the bad boy in high school; they barred me from even getting within a 10 feet range, they covered my eyes, telling me how it was dirty, cheap, and would give me unwanted health problems. Like the ever-obedient child that I was, I listened, though a longing built up in my gut everytime I walked down a small sidestreet and spied one of those pushcarts. Sure, at one point, these mobile vendors would have been a health inspector's worst nightmare (or dream) with the number of health codes they were violating. But nowadays, the situation is much better, as more sanitation laws and requirements have been put in place.

My first tryst with the popular Beijing street food known as jiān bǐng happened one hot summer morning when I was deemed by my family just old enough to start going out on my own. The cart that I remembered from summers past had upgraded to a small dimly-lit store front window, where customers lined up, shouted out their orders, paid and watched the young boy in the window as he whipped up a steaming hot crêpe in under one minute. As the morning rush of nannies, housewives, bicyclists going to work pushed past me to pick up a quick breakfast, I inserted myself at the back of the quickly moving line. Nervous and wide-eyed, I wasn't sure how to order. There wasn't a menu posted overhead, no pictures, nothing. This was Beijing street food at its best- for everyday people, not hyped up for tourists. Mustering up my confidence, I pointed to the dark crêpe batter, raised my finger to indicate one, and said "I'll have everything." I handed over my ¥2 (about $0.25 at the time) and excitedly watched through the fogged-up glass as my jiān bǐng was expertly made.

He wiped off the circular griddle with a towel, and ladled out some of the dark batter, spreading it out with a wooden tool. Paper thin at the edges, the crêpe instantly cooked up as it hit the smoking hot griddle. With a flick of the wrist, he cracked open an egg right on top of the crêpe, breaking up the yolk with the same tool, and sprinkling on a mixture of scallion and cilantro. With the egg still somewhat runny, he flipped the crêpe in one fell swoop, and brushed on two sauces on the other side, one hoisin, the other a spicy chili paste. The final element in this process is what jian bing is best known for- the crispy-fried rectangular cruller that gets placed inside. The edges of the crêpe are then folded in to form a steamy package of egginess, slid into a filmy plastic bag, and was handed over to me. All this in less than a minute. As I stepped away, the boy was moving onto making another crêpe, one of the many hundreds more he'd made that morning.

With that first bite with my nose and face buried into that warm baggie, I was hooked. The crêpe part was nutty, which I later discovered I'd ordered the buckwheat batter. The egg was wonderfully hashed in with the crêpe, spicy and sweet from the mixture of sauces. The addition of the scallion and cilantro gave it a cooling and fragrant freshness, with an added bit of crunch. I particularly enjoyed the thin fried dough hiding inside, which had wilted down from the heat, but gave the jian bing a degree of richness. (This is the same dough as used in Chinese fried crullers.) It was chewy and warmly satisfying, proof that a well rounded breakfast doesn't have to be eaten sitting down. Little did I know it, this was the beginning of an addiction, but at least an affordable one.

In subsequent years, everytime I visited Beijing, my internal jiān bǐng clock would rouse me at sunrise, driving me downstairs to the stand I knew and loved so well. The owners must have been doing well, since they expanded their morning selections to all sorts of savory and sweet pastries, steamed and stuffed buns, and warm soymilk and silken tofu (dou fu nao), another one of my morning favorites. In later years, they raised their prices to a shocking ¥2.5 ($0.35), which is actually a big increase for locals, who remember the days of ¥1 ($0.15) crepes.

I've never tried to make these in my own kitchen; I know it could never be the same. Not just in terms of the ingredients and equipment, but I'd be missing so much than that- my expectant grandparents upstairs nervously awaiting my return, the buzz of the morning working class, hungry and slightly edgy, the excitement of biting into a once-forbidden food, and the experience of eating from a plastic bag, while walking down a Beijing alley that was just coming alive with the day's first light.

There are hundreds of jian bing operators and vendors scattered all throughout Beijing, but you must hit the streets early, as it is a breakfast item. (Though now, you can probably find them sold to tourists at larger night markets.) There are the usual batters- white, mung bean, and buckwheat, and the toppings are the same from vendor to vendor. Prices will range from ¥2 to ¥3.

Illustration from Luxuryeats.com

cinnamon sugar bites

2008-06-22T21:44:00.000-04:00

Oftentimes, when I bake large layer cakes, I'll set aside a little bit of the cake batter to make myself a few treats, as a reward. I fill up a couple of slots in my mini-cupcake pan, sprinkle on a topping of choice for the day, and stick them in the oven. They're usually done a lot sooner than the cake layers, so I nibble on these as I wait. It's a good way to taste for anything inconsistent in your cake batter as well.

Toppings in the past have included mini chocolate chips, fresh sliced apples and peaches, leftover streusal topping, and cut-up candy bars. Today, I made a quick cinnamon-sugar, using equal parts of both, and generously sprinkled the tops of my mini cakes with the mixture. As soon as they were ready, I rolled them warm, in the remaining mixture for some added sweetness.

Lesson of the day: from one baker to another- don't ever forget to treat yourself first!

thai seafood tamarind salad

2008-06-21T22:19:00.001-04:00

If you take away anything today from this post, I urge you to try the tamarind dressing, as it's simple, and can dress up any lifeless pile of greens and veggies. It is especially good with seafood. The tamarind is tangy and earthy all at the same time.

tamarind pods

I call this my "cold pad thai salad", as for the dressing/marinade, the ratio of fish sauce to tamarind pulp to sugar is the same as in the famous fried noodle dish. Without the heat, this salad makes for a light, refreshing summer dinner, on those nights when you just don't want to turn on the stove. If you happen to have leftovers from a seafood bake or the grill, this is a good way to use it up. I roughly chopped up about 1 cup of leftover steamed shrimp, lobster claw and scallops for this salad.

Thai Seafood Salad with Tamarind Dressing

Salad:
1 cup steamed/grilled seafood (shrimp, scallops, lobster, crab, fish filets), chilled
2 medium cucumbers, slivered
1 carrot, slivered
1 red onion, slivered
heaping handful of bean sprouts
2 rolls Asian vermicelli noodles (also called bean thread noodles)
crushed peanuts
roughly chopped cilantro and scallion, for garnish

Dressing:
3 Tbsp tamarind pulp
3 Tbsp fish sauce
3 Tbsp palm sugar/granulated sugar/or natural cane sugar
juice of 1 lime
1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger

1. Soak the dried vermicelli noodles in hot water until they are soft and pliable. Drain and put into the salad mixing bowl. Add the rest of the salad ingredients, except for the peanuts. Chill in the refrigerator while making the dressing.

2. For the dressing: Combine tamarind pulp, fish sauce and sugar in a microwave-safe container. Heat on high for 1 minute. Stir and let cool to room temperature. The mixture will be slightly thickened at this point. Stir in the lime juice and ginger.

3. When the dressing is completely cooled, add it to the salad and toss together. Garnish with the crushed peanuts, extra bean sprouts and/or cilantro.

nature's palette

2008-06-20T11:45:00.000-04:00

Behold the beauty of an avocado. There are still times when I catch my breath at the sight of some ripe, intensely hued piece of nature's fruits. An avocado is one such creature, dark and scaly on the outside, ripe with color when you twist to expose the creaminess within.

My little gems from my garden also made me do a little dance today.

Like red rubies poking out from underneath the thicket of vines and leaves.

For breakfast today, I made myself soft-scrambled eggs with slices of avocado, along with a bowl of strawberries from the garden, and a pot of homemade yogurt with cherries.

I'm addicted to this stuff.

culture club: make your own yogurt

2008-06-19T23:43:00.007-04:00

What's happened to the dairy aisle of our supermarkets? It's as if a lipo machine came through and sucked the fat out of all that yogurt, replacing it with stabilizers, thickeners and artificial sweeteners. It seems nowadays we're more concerned with the bacteria (and how it can reduce our bloated waistlines) in our yogurt than how it actually tastes.

Yogurt is one of the oldest, and most ubiquitous, foods in the history of civilization. It dates back to over 4000 years ago, somewhere in the desert, in a nomad's leather satchel that carried his day's supply of milk. There, a wild culture started to grow, and curdled the milk, transforming it into a tangy and nutritious drink. What a happy accident.

One of the foods I miss most from China is the yogurt. Unlike yogurt in the U.S., the Chinese kind is only subtly sweet and most brands that you'll find in the supermarket are full fat, instead of skim or lowfat. I'm not certain if the better taste is due to a difference in the milk quality (different feed, treatment, processing, etc) or perhaps a difference in the bacterial cultures used. There is just a completely different mouth feel to Chinese yogurt. It's also tangy in a different way, more subtle and rounded, less acidic. There is a deeper, richer milk flavor that lingers much longer on the palate, than the American counterpart that's heavily masked with sugars/sweeteners and artificial flavorings.

If you're not a fan of runny yogurt, like kefir, then you probably wouldn't like the yogurt in China. Due to its more drinkable nature, yogurt is normally drunken through a straw. It is sold in small plastic tubs, half-liter size containers, or plastic pouches (like Capri-Sun) and always comes with a plastic straw for your poking pleasure. I actually got strange looks from people once as I was eating my tub of yogurt with a spoon! During the summer, they're sold from umbrella-ed carts and snackshops by department store entrances in ceramic pots. You're asked to drink it in the vicinity and return the empty pot to the vendor when finished.

To answer the lactose-intolerance question, dairy products in China are becoming more and more popular due to their nutritional benefits. Most lactose intolerant folks can still eat yogurt since a majority of the lactose sugar from the milk is eaten by the bacteria culture present and therefore removed . Regular milk is more popular with the younger generation, but is no where near consumed with the same rapaciousness as in the U.S. In fact, the Chinese often never drink cold milk straight; they usually heat it to get rid of some of the gamey flavors. Drinking warm milk with a piece of white sandwich bread has become quite common at the Chinese breakfast table nowadays. Unfortunately, there is still only one kind of cheese available- the cubed, spreadable kind that comes wrapped in foil. Bleh.

When I was in Beijing last month, I ate no fewer than 2 packages of yogurt a day. There were the familiar flavors- plain (sweetened), strawberry, blueberry, pineapple, peach, and then some not so common ones- sweet cucumber, aloe (very popular), kiwi, mulberry, and coconut, or any thereof in combination. At a mall food court, I once had a yogurt parfait with diced watermelon, mango and strawberry jam! With my yogurt-binging days quickly coming to an end, I knew there was only one thing I could do: bring back a culture to the U.S. and mass-produce my own simulation of Chinese yogurt. And that's exactly what I did. Without going into detail about the packaging, chilling and tranport of my live culture overseas, I'll just go right into the yogurt making process.

Making your own yogurt is simple, and frankly, more economical than buying from the supermarket. The other big advantage is that you know exactly what's going into it, pure and natural ingredients with no additives. For the recipe below, use a starter yogurt that is the most natural you can find. Look for the shortest ingredient list on the back, with no pectin, artificial additives nor thickeners. I've had the greatest success with Liberté (from Canada) and my own personal overseas culture. I've heard that Stonybrook and Brown Cow work well too.

You will need:
1 quart whole milk
3-4 Tbsp sugar or honey (optional)
1 small tub of high quality, plain yogurt

Equipment:
heavy-bottom pot, big enough to contain all the milk
thermometer
1 large glass jar or several smaller glass jars
cooler
plastic or metal spoon (not wooden)

Make sure all the equipment is sanitized before you start. Run the jars through the dishwasher and clean all other equipment with dishsoap and water.

Heat the milk in the pot until it hits a temperature of 180F, no more. Take the pot off the burner and let cool to about 115F. Stir in the sugar/honey and tub of yogurt. Pour into your jar(s) and cap off.

Place the jar(s) into a cooler. Fill a quart size bowl or tupperware container with hot (almost boiling) water and place in the cooler too, some distance away from the jar containing the milk. Close the cooler and let incubate for 8 hours.

The yogurt will be thick and should smell tangy. There will be visible curds at the top of your yogurt; this is the residual whey. You can mix it into the yogurt or skim it off. If there's anything funky growing, or if it smells off, throw out the batch and start anew.

After the yogurt is fully chilled, it's time to dig in. As you stir it, you'll notice that the yogurt has a thinner consistency than commercial types. This is because you've added none of those starchy thickeners. At this point, you can strain it over night for a Greek-style yogurt or just eat it with some fruit and honey as is!

I ate mine with cherries and sliced white peaches mixed in.
The whole milk really makes a world of difference in the taste. Though it wasn't exactly like the yogurt from China that I remembered and was so fond of, in many ways it was better. They say that the experience of travel is constantly measured against and colored by memories of home, but for me the exact opposite is true. My home cooking is oftentimes heavily influenced by what I have seen and tasted from across the world. My little kitchen at home probably has traveled to as many places as I have, at least from a culinary standpoint; acting as witness to my many whims and creations from ideas picked up abroad. Despite my best efforts at recreating dishes from afar, the experience can never fully be recaptured; it's never the same. And so, though my yogurt tasted similar, but not quite exactly the same as to the original, I am still content in knowing it's distinctively my own.

last day in sf

2008-06-17T20:13:00.000-04:00

For the past year or so, I've been on a sourdough kick. I've committed myself to a mission of tasting as many sourdough breads as possible, in the ultimate search to find my top three. This also goes for baguettes too. As expected, I've had better luck with baguettes than with sourdoughs. There are just many more baguettes out there in circulation; more to taste and choose from. So far the sourdough that I like the most comes from Atwater's (in Baltimore), called San Francisco Sourdough. The crust is perfectly scored, crispy/crunchy each time, with a chewy and tangy interior, and just the right size of air pockets.

Since I've heard so many wonderful things about Acme Breads in the Bay area, for breakfast, I picked up a loaf of their sour batard, some butter, and local strawberries. The crust was impressive and quite memorable, golden and crunchy, and resounding when you rapped on it. The inside had small air pockets (I would have preferred a less dense and meaty white part), but the gluten was well-developed and had a good chew. It turned out to be only mildly sour which was disappointing, but I still had no trouble in eating half a loaf by myself. The butter helped too.

I grew up eating a lot of Russian sourdough bread, the kind made with rye and wheat flours, sometimes weighing up to 10 pounds, so my personal preferences point me to a tangier version.

Acme's batard was definitely better than many loaves I've tasted. I also don't mind Boudin's small sourdough boule-type loaves, as opposed to their larger ones which lack flavor. The bread bowl in which they serve their signature clam chowder and their egg dishes for breakfast is the kind I like, with a nice crust and chewy center. If anyone knows of some amazing sourdoughs in the city, please let me know, and you'll be my friend for life.

Since I had a flight to catch that evening, Mr.S and I had a quick dinner at Chaat Cafe across the street from his place. CC is known for their affordable and filling array of Indian street food, snacks and wraps. Instead of getting a samosa, we shared the papri chaat- thick, homemade fried-dough chips smothered with chickpeas, cubes of potato, tamarind chutney and yogurt. There was way too much gloopy yogurt involved, and not enough chutney, nor chickpeas. I also missed the usual sev that's sprinkled on top.

Overall it was alright, but I missed the version served at Mehek.

The tikka masala rolls were two huge bhaturas stuffed with stewed chicken tikka masala. The bhaturas were good, lightly fried, which made them warm and poofy. Though the chicken tasted good, it was very greasy, and hardly used any white meat. And since they were so big, I had to knife and fork it.

You also get a choice of cucumber salad or spicy potato salad with your wrap. My watery cucumbers had lost their crispiness and were surprisingly, really heavy on the black pepper. Mr.S's potatoes were more like a scoop of cold mashed potatoes than a salad. The predominant herb was actually dill. Is this an Indian herb?

His desi chicken wrap was spicy tandoori chicken and veggies wrapped in baked naan. It tasted very much like my own, just with slightly more tomatoes, onion, and peppers. Again, it looked greasy, but the flavors were spicy and pretty good.

There's not much to complain about. For $7 a piece, the portions were monstrous. I hardly finished even one of my wraps. The quality of the ingredients is so-so, but when you're starving, that aspect doesn't seem to matter much as does taste and portion. Like a reliable gas station, Chaat Cafe is a good place to get filled up. (And your daily requirement of spice.) Next time, I'll probably stay away from the wraps, and just order an array of their chaat and pakoras.

new favorite thai

2008-06-16T22:08:00.000-04:00

Fillmore at Broadway

We found one of our favorite views of the city tonight. At Fillmore and Broadway, if you look out across the Marina, you can see the sprawl of the northwestern part of SF, and the Golden Gate bridge. We stopped there for a few minutes as the sun was setting, which gave the sky a beautiful gradient of hues.

Heading north, we started looking for a dinner spot. Mr.S has had nothing but raves about Osha, a modern Thai restaurant, so we stepped into their Union St. location, one of 5 branches across the city. It had that uber-trendy lounge feel to it as you walked in, mixed with the exoticism from the decor and the spices that permeated the dining area. The interior had a clean, uncluttered aesthetic to it, and incorporated a lot of white lucite furniture everywhere. It felt like we were in some sort of modern, Asian space capsule.

There's a strong pan-Asian influence to the menu, blending traditional Thai dishes with ones distinctly Japanese, Indian and Vietnamese. I always go into such restaurants now with reservations, somewhat lowering my expectations, simply because I've had one too many overly-sweet, fish sauce-saturated meals.

To start, there were a few choices that sounded pretty tasty- crispy tofu with sweet sour plum dipping sauce, Angel Wings (fried chicken wings in a homemade sauce with crispy basil), Thai samosas, and beef wasabi rolls. I let Mr.S choose since he'd been here plenty of times before. The beef wasabi rolls arrived at our table a few minutes later, 5 rolls, each sitting in a small pool of wasabi sauce and chopped watercress.

It was a sensory explosion. The beef, tender and well-grilled, tasted much like Korean bulgoki with strong notes of sesame oil and soy. It was stuffed with slivers of crunchy carrot, celery and mint. The best part was the wasabi sauce which infiltrated every corner and crevice of my sinuses, making me tear up and choke back a cough. It was awesome. I couldn't stop going back for more. The thing about good food is that you're willing to endure just about any amount of physical pain to get it.

Usually always ordering some type of curry dish or fried noodles at Thai restaurants, this time I opted for the grilled sea bass lettuce cups. (Though the Kabocha squash curry looked excellent as well... next time.) My plate came with only one medium filet of sea bass, but it's ok since it was an appetizer salad. The kitchen was generous with the sides of diced mango, red and green peppers, red onion, ginger and lemongrass, and roasted peanuts. Each piece of bibb lettuce was layered with a small square of rice sheet. The spicy cilantro dipping sauce was wonderfully aromatic, sweet, sour and spicy all at once, reminisent of a similar Indian green chutney made with cilantro and lime juice.

The flavors married together perfectly, like a concert in my mouth, there was just so much going on with taste and texture. I love sea bass for its high oil content. Its butteriness was nicely complimented by all the spice and acid from the all the sides. Not once did I lift my head to talk to Mr.S; that's the sign of a very happy me enjoying my meal.

I was offered a bite of Mr.S's spicy sweet chicken with basil. It was deeply flavored, and I liked how Osha uses a roughly ground chicken, instead of chicken slices, in this dish. The smaller pieces soak up the marinade much better and you can eat it with a spoon! (I love eating everything with a spoon; it's a comfort thing.)

I looked up after cleaning my plate, sighed and leaned back, completely satisfied. The food, not only was it heavily seasoned and delicious, it was fun, and stepped outside the box of traditional Thai. It incorporated elements of numerous types of Asian cuisine, not afraid to fuse different flavors and spices all in one dish. I like adventurous; I like flavor.

Osha also has a girl-friendly drink menu, perfect for a group of girlfriends out on a Friday night. There's a lychee martini that I'm waiting to try. Perhaps it will bump down Dragonfly's version down to number 2 on my awesome-lychee-martini list. There's also a green tea mojito that sounded interesting as well. I'm certainly counting the days until I go back again.

Osha Thai

2033 Union Street SF, CA 94110

back to SF, adventures continue

2008-06-15T18:32:00.001-04:00

After spending the first half of the day in Yountville, Mr.S and I were welcomed back to a chillier, windier SF by that towering golden gate.

We hit up American Rag over by Van Ness and Sutter to do a bit of vintage browsing. I tried on a pair of faded red Tsubi jeans, but couldn't get my behind into them (damn those stick-thin Japanese girls); could've also been the massive French meal I'd just eaten at Bouchon too!

We then walked through Japantown to feed Mr.S's expensive addiction to Japanese stationery. At the Kintetsu/Miyako shopping center, a large complex of specialty shops and eateries, is the Kinokuniya bookstore with a vast collection of Japanese manga, magazines, books, stationery and toys. Inside the mall, there are small cafes and restaurants, including this creperie, Sophie's Crepes.
The fillings, all Japanese-inspired, range from red bean and green tea, to a standard Nutella and banana, to a savory ham, cheese and Kewpie mayo, to a seafood salad made with crabstick.

We also stopped by Nijiya Market, a small supermarket of all your Japanese culinary needs.

Whenever I find myself in an Asian market, I always buy a ton of snacks. They are just so damn cute! I can just picture those ad people sitting around a roundtable, discussing if a cartoon puppy on the cookie box should be winking or not. The pre-packaged sushi and cold salads in the cold case looked fresh and appetizing. We were also really impressed with their selection of green teas, loose and powdered. There was also a whole aisle filled with all flavors of mochi and daifuku. We checked out with a basket full of pan (filled sweet breads), boxes of cute cookies and Pocky, a strawberry crepe, sichimi (Japanese chili pepper mix), some toys, and green tea.

furano melon sweet roll- it tasted like honeydew

these little button cookies were a favorite of mine growing up; they're made of potato starch!

I got a case of the chills as we walked up Fillmore, so Mr.S suggested we stop in to get some hot chocolate at Bittersweet Cafe. This was by far one of the most extensive selections of artisanal chocolate bars I've seen. There was Bonnat, Michel Cluizel, Vosques, Amana, Valrhona, El Ray, Guittard, Scharffen Berger, and much more. The ambiance is dark and mellow, warm like a cup of chocolate. As to their drink menu, they had a good selection of hot chocolates, chocolate-espresso combos, chais, a chocolate Thai iced tea, and steamed milk. Trying to decide between the "Bittersweet," a deep chocolatey, non-dairy drink, and the "Spicy," a hot chocolate flavored with pepper, cinnamon and rose, I decided on the latter for its interesting blend of flavors.

Thick and luxurious, with a deep flavorful palate of spices, it was just the right sweetness. If we hadn't been searching for a restaurant, I'd probably have gotten one of their marshmallows or adorable mini pastries to snack on. We also noticed that they make their own granola, served up with some awesome toppings.

napa, day 3, bouchon overload

2008-06-15T14:29:00.001-04:00

Needless to say, the morning after the wedding was a late start, involving a Starbucks run, and a happy decision to drive up to Yountville for some culinary TLC at Bouchon.

Yountville turned out to be a very small town, but full of big names, thus the touristy feel. We drove down Washington Street and within 2 blocks passed by Ad Hoc, Bistro Jeanty, The French Laundry and Bouchon. It was my first visit to Bouchon, and the original one too, and Mr.S's second time (his first was at the Vegas locale, which I also reviewed). Now, it was midday, the sun streaming in through the open veranda to light the mosaic floor tiling, and our lovely meal to come.

this baguette has handles for me to grab onto

The folded, brown parchment paper menus were set on our plates, like a map waiting to be pressed open, to depict French bistro classics. The trouble was, I wanted to taste everything! Our neat and prim waiter announced the lunch specials to be a salmon tartare with red onion, capers, and hard-boiled egg, a puree of sweet carrot soup, and a lamb tartine sandwich with pickled red onion and watercress. I didn't want to be left eating a half dozen oysters by myself (Mr.S doesn't eat them) especially for my first meal of the day. I was truly tempted by the terrine of foie gras, but at $47, seemed like too much of a lunchtime splurge. The steamed mussels in white wine ($27.50) that came in a lovely covered, earthenware tureen was also an option, as was the salmon tartare ($16.50) with a side of the macaroni au gratin ($6.50).

I chose from the list of fromages to start, a ripe and nutty cow's milk cheese called Sea Stack. Made by Mt. Townsend Creamery in Washington state, Sea Stack is wonderfully mild and creamy that it reminded me of a cross between a ripened brie and good, salted butter. Today it was served with slices of walnut bread, and a spiced peach and pecan chutney. If you don't already know it by now, anything creamy is my weakness, and by the way the slice of cheese was oozing out of its ashen shell, I was in fromage heaven. The peach was nice, but a tarter fruit like apple or pear would have helped to balance out the butteriness too.

Our server expertly de-crumbed our table and brought us our plats principaux- my lamb tartine and Mr.S's Croque Madame. Since his came with a heaping mountain of frites, I substituted mine for a side of ratatouille. (I was curious as to how Keller's version tasted since he was the consultant chef on the set of the namesake movie, Ratatouille.) Though I found it to be somewhat greasy, I still managed to finish it off without difficulty. A good flavoring of fresh herbs here. My lamb was the star of my meal, served chilled over toasted levain and a light shmear of aioli. The meat was tender and had no trace of gaminess, and paired well with the sour pickles and bitter watercress.

At some point during my lamb euphoria, I tasted a bite of Mr.S's cheesy, eggy sandwich. It was sweet and mild, being that the brioche was wonderfully decadent and buttery. The whole thing was moistened with a light, but creamy, Mornay sauce, and topped off with a fried egg. I liked the fries the most, because I remember the first thought I had when tasting them was that it reminded me of McDonald's fries. Is that uncouth of me?? (I don't much care, as they were frickin' awesome.)

mmm eggy

Satiated and content, we wobbled next door to Bouchon Bakery. How clever (and evil) to tempt customers as they walk out of Bouchon with a sweeter, chocolatier version of Bouchon!

The pastries were all a lovely, cohesive shade of crackling, golden brown, some stuffed with chocolate, others fruit, and others still with nuts and pastes. Lining the back wall was a selection of artisan breads; like if you hadn't had enough of their chewy, delicate baguette from lunch, take one home! Or eat it in the car... There was a case full of cookie-like things, another of cakes, and a few pre-made sandwiches. Boxes of truffles and biscotti were also for sale.

At $3 per cookie, I knew I'd be limited in my decision making. I knew I wanted to try certain ones, so that's what I bought- the famous TKO (Thomas Keller Oreo), his version of the Nutter Butter, and the French mararons. Since I've made the TKO at home before, I knew what it'd taste like, and honestly speaking, mine tasted better. This one was too large, and didn't have enough filling for the huge amount of cookie it was sandwiched between.

My favorite was the Nutter Butter. At about 4 inches in diameter, this was a hefty old thing, probably with a whole half stick of butter in each one! No complaints there! There were chunks of peanut in the cookie, which was a nice touch. The best part was the filling- it tasted like a peanut ganache, rich but not overly sweet.

I picked out 3 flavors of macarons- pistachio, caramel and raspberry. There was also chocolate and vanilla to choose from. The texture was perfect, crunchy exterior with a chewy center. However, the I found the taste to be lacking. They were very sugary and I had trouble tasting the pistachio and the caramel flavors. The raspberry, on the other hand, tasted artificial. I think I prefer a smaller, more poppable, size macaron as opposed to these larger ones (about 1.5"). The best macaron I've tasted yet was not in France nor in a French pastry shop, but from an upscale delicatessan in Madrid called Mallorca. (The raspberry tasted like raspberries, and it was buttery and light.)

pistachio macaron

Thank goodness Mr.S offered to drive back to San Francisco, seeing as I was comatose, from good food. All that Bouchon was good, but it seemed like a far way to go when you live in the city to come all the way out to Yountville. Especially when there are numerous French bistros and bakeries equally on par in SF, in terms of taste, service, and menu offerings. It was a tasty experience, and next time I'm out here in Y-ville, it'll be for dinner at the French Laundry!

Bouchon

6534 Washington Street

Yountville, CA 94599

Bouchon Bakery
6528 Washington Street

Yountville, CA 94599

napa, day 2, the wedding!

2008-06-14T15:39:00.000-04:00

Mr.S and I basically ate on the run the whole day, at least up until the wedding. Why does it always seem like everything piles up on you the day that you have the most going on? So in an attempt to just focus on the wedding, I'll skip all the nonsense and not-so-memorable meals that occurred the first half of the day.

The Napa sun pounded down hard on our shoulders, the winds whipped around our 'dos, but the champagne was flowing freely and we had a wedding reception on our hands! Hell yeah. Our friend was married off, dowry and all (joking!) and we were ready to start the evening off.

I was so starved at this point that even the vegetarian options on the menu appealed to me. I anticipated a pretty awesome dinner, at least in the way of wedding food, since it was the Carneros Inn and I was told the menu would be incorporating mostly locally-procured ingredients. It was a seated dinner, with 3 courses, starters, salad and entree. What was impressive, yet strangely eerie, was the way the servers performed a simultaneous "drop" service, where they surround your table, stand behind your chair, and set your plate down all at the same time. Too fancy for me!

I had the scallop appetizer while Mr.S had the vegetarian tomato soup. I wouldn't say that the flavors of each dish were lacking, but there was nothing that "popped," or like, "exploded" on my tastebuds. I tried a bite of scallop with his soup, which actually turned out to be a good marriage of flavors. Haha, no puns intended.

The next course was the salad, which I have no documentation of, since we were all busy watching a short movie the groom had made. A doctor making a movie? Wow! It was an endive salad with Pt. Reyes blue cheese and pistachio oil. Frankly, I find Pt. Reyes blue to be overly done. It's become ubiquitous on menus. And it's really mild, whereas I prefer a more pungent blue. Domestically, perhaps that's harder to find, but many dairies are producing wonderful blues, especially in California.

The last seated course was the meat. A steak of locally raised beef, with rosemary jus, a slice of potato gratin and broccolini. Flavors were right on here, but the steak needed a more charred crust. The potatos were cold, and the cheese and butter had congealed it into a gummy block, so few people at our table actually ate it. I remember still being hungry at this point, and trying to fill up on the nice crusty rolls with butter.

Later, the staff brought out the cake, but only for a few minutes, and ushered it back into the kitchen quickly and silently, like some sickly child from the Victorian ages. It was too bad, because it really was quite a lovely cake that should have been put on display. It was a triple-tiered square cake, with real buttercream frosting, instead of fondant (which makes me want to throw up). Yes, I feel strongly about good frosting. The first layer was vanilla cake with rasperry filling and vanilla buttercream. Layer 2 was Snickers cake- chocolate with caramel and peanuts. The third layer was the "world's best carrot cake," as previously described to me by the bride. However, this layer was never served to us guests, and when asked about it, the servers denied knowing about such said layer. I was greatly disappointed. (Carrot cake is my favorite!) Could I have actually dreamed up this pretend third layer? To answer my suspicions, I spied the wedding planner crossing the lawn later that evening with the elusive third layer, wrapped up, presumably for the bride and groom to take home. Quel horreur! And that, my friends, is my sad sad cake story.

I took away a lot from this wedding experience... one thing for sure is that I do not want a multi-course seated dinner for my own wedding. I am resolute that I want to serve huge platters of spicy Thai food, family style- big boats of satay and sweet/sour cucumber salad, platters of fried noodles and rice, and tureens of pumpkin curries and meat curries swimming in all sorts of colorful broths. I want people sweating, mopping their brows, loosening their ties (and belt buckles) and dancing up a storm while toasting with iced Tiger lager. This, I'm sure of. The dress, the ceremony, all that I've yet to contemplate...

Cheers to the happy couple, my dear friends, the Doctors!

napa, day 1

2008-06-13T12:28:00.000-04:00

After over 2 hours of grueling bumper to bumper traffic on the freeway, we finally found ourselves in open country... wine country, the valley of the Napa, that is. Our good friends, I'll refer to them as "the Doctors," (both are residents at UCSF) had decided to tie the knot on this auspicious weekend at the Carneros Inn. The very first one of my best girl friends to get hitched! And I was a bridesmaid! (And I honestly say that without the least bit of sarcasm.)

This was my second trip to Napa/Sonoma counties, the first time, seeing as I was about 12 at the time, cannot fully recollect, save for my tipsy mother during several wine tastings. (Tipsy Mom is needless to say, greatly amusing.) This time though, was different. I had my boy by my side, and one of my best friends was throwing a blowout California-chic soiree. The landscape grew old after about an hour of driving through it- blazingly blue skies, miles and miles of golden grasses and hay, obsessive-compulsively orderly rows of young grapes, but lots of pretty cows, if you consider cows to be pretty animals. After a while, I started to ask myself, how do people live out here? I guess maybe all that good wine helps.

The rehearsal dinner had better-than-standard-rehearsal-dinner food, though I've really only been to one other such dinner in my whole life. This one reminded me of some sort of Calvin Klein ad, the men in their light linen suits and loafers, the women in their flower sundresses and floppy hats, pressed white tablecloths, and platters of colorful, grilled foodstuffs. Me, I was in my semi-loose-fitting dress, so I was all about the tray of ribs I spied on the buffet table.

It was very fresh, more pretty to look at than to actually devour. There was a caprese salad, Israeli cous-cous salad, grilled chicken, ribs, shrimp skewers, and mini cornbread. My ribs needed more sauce action, as along with pretty much everything else on my plate. More sauce! More salt! More seasoning! Still, it made a pretty photo op.

Dessert made my whole evening awesome. The trio of ice creams/sorbets included vanilla bean, coffee and strawberry sorbet. I forgot how good vanilla ice cream is when paired with a fresh fruit sorbet. It also helped that I was sharing a bowlful with my sweetie, making pink swirls and hearts in the melted stuff. Yea, we're sickly cute like that.

I almost forgot about the mini fruit tarts. Yea, those were good too. Very typical Napa wedding dessert though; the fresh peaches were a nice addition.

Then there was a delicious Cabernet that rounded off our evenings, along with more after dinner cocktails. Come to think of it, there was never a shortage of libations all weekend!

The Carneros Inn
4048 Sonoma Highway
Napa, CA 94559

SF, day 2

2008-06-12T23:39:00.000-04:00

I strolled over to Mr.S's office today to meet him for lunch, al fresco. It was one of those rare, hot days in SF, almost 80 under the sun. I've been craving Mexican food often lately, probably because of all the time I've spent in China this past month, eating, well, Chinese food. Mexican food is like the complete opposite- full of melty cheese, beans, avocado, and a whole different kind of spice. (Traditional Beijingese style food actually lacks heat, using very little chili peppers.) Mr.S suggested Tlaloc, a quick spot to grab some fresh Mexican fare in the Financial District.

If you're dining in, you order at the counter, take a number, and sit either inside or outside in their dining area, and wait for your food to be delivered. The lines were long, but moved pretty quickly. The staff has this lunch crowd thing down. They had some interesting specials including a chicken burrito with pumpkin seed mole sauce, and a few options with nopales (cactus). I finally decided on the Tostada Costeña- grilled shrimp, tilapia, calamari and baby octopus, covered in adobo salsa over lettuce and a crispy tortilla ($9.95).

With a few trips to their self-serve salsa bar, we horded a small collection of mild to spicy salsas, all fresh and flavorful.

My tostada was more like a large seafood salad piled onto a small tortilla, but it was delicious; that adobo sauce gave it all a nice kick. I was surprised to see baby octopus, not that I minded, but it seemed out of place for the business lunch crowd that usually frequents this place.

Mr.S got something with the house-made chorizo, which he thought was just ok. It wasn't spicy enough for him, and hadn't been crisped up enough either.

The best part of my lunch was my watermelon agua fresca, with bits of watermelon all throughout, served over crushed ice. With the sun and spice that day, I gladly chugged it all down.

The food at Tlaloc is more Americanized Mexican food than what you'd find in the Mission, but it's fresh and spicy, and still pretty tasty. Avoid weekday lunch hours when the lines are long, and almost impossible to find a table, unless you creepily lurk behind a seated group who're almost finished. (We've all done that.) According to their menu, they're now growing their own organic vegetables in Sonoma County, so you've got to feel good about that. The eggs that they use for their breakfast menu (available only at their Berkeley location) are all organic, from free-range chickens. Not a bad deal.

I ditched the boy for dinner to be with the girls all night long for a crazy bachelorette party. Thank goodness she is a fellow lover of Mexican food, as my lunchtime meal had not really satiated my cravings. Donned in our heels, beads, tiaras, and overcoats (the temp had dropped to unbearably chilly) we marched our champagne-filled selves over to the Marina, to Mamacita, a trendy Mexican tapas bar of sorts.

Like any reliable hotspot, the music was loud and the crowds were alive. Sit at the bar, that's where the pretty people are. Well, at least that's the usual case. But it's worth cozying up to the bar to start off your evening with a couple of the margaritas...really damn good. I would stay with the classic; there was a pomegranate version that was too sweet, where we could hardly taste the Patrón. And snack on an order of the chips with salsa and guacamole.

Strangely, there was like 5 times more guac than salsa on the plate, which totally threw my snacking/dipping ratio off. The chips were nicely crunchy and salted.

Before ordering, just remember that the plates are not entrée sized; they're meant for sharing. Hence, tapas. The tacos and enchiladas arrived, 3 small homemade tortillas to a plate. The carnitas were the real crowd pleaser of the evening- slow cooked pork with corn, avocado, salsa verde, crema latina and crumbly Mexican cotija cheese. The carne asada was similar, but not as tender as the pulled pork. The mahi mahi tacos looked more like a platter of Mexican fish-and-chips, as they were made with a cornmeal-beer batter.

My Ceviche Entomatado left much to be desired. Small bits of yellowtail were marinated with mango and pico de gallo, served up in a martini glass, surrounded by chips. Seemed kind of played out to me. I remember when something like this was the "it" dish, circa 2001. The flavors were alright, but there wasn't enough fish for me to actually call this dish ceviche. The chips (for dipping in ceviche??) were a bit awkward too.

The chiles rellenos were an interesting take on the original- stuffed with black bean hummus and white pecan salsa. What are white pecans, anyway? Well, they ended up being pretty good; you can't really go wrong with a fried, stuffed jalapeño pepper (or two), covered with cheese. Mmmm.

According to the bachelorette, the dessert looked like "pudding with peanuts and strawberries." She was actually right on. It was a baked chocolate pudding with candied peanuts, caramel, dulce de leche gelato, and diced strawberries. Though not visually stunning, it was pretty tasty.

The real challenge of the evening for me was trying to remember everything I ate and take notes while taking shots of tequila, sipping one margarita after the next, and catching up with friends whom I'd not seen since college. Perhaps my judgment was slightly off, and definitely the quality of these pictures is somewhat lacking. However, I do remember raving about the food and margaritas to Mr.S the following morning, and promising to take him back for some delicious carnitas.

Most Mexican restaurants serve you up huge platters the size of sombreros filled with rice and beans, most of which is never really finished anyway. What I appreciate about Mamacita is the portion restraint, which allows all the dishes to be shared amongst friends. Definitely a trendy, modern take on Mexican fare. Most of the dishes tend to be a bit heavy, generous on the meat and sauce, so they're quite filling. Next time, I'll be sure to try the albondigas- Niman Ranch meatballs in a red mole, the jicama salad, and the churros con chocolate, those crispy fritters dipped in thick hot chocolate. Try to get there early, stake out a table or a niche at the bar, and plan on talking really really loudly over the music and fabulous crowds.

SF, day 1

2008-06-11T20:02:00.000-04:00

Let me tell you, house hunting is a marathon event. It can really wear you down, especially when you have to walk everywhere (think hills in San Francisco). So, a girl's gotta keep up her energy by eating well!

After a late flight into SFO and a good night's sleep, I started the day off with a breakfast run to Whole Foods. Mr.S grabbed a flaky croissant and a danish. Me, I like to start my days with a strong, extra-hot, cappuccino. I also picked out a pot of St. Benoît honey yogurt, which turned out to be somewhat of a let-down, some locally made cranberry-almond granola, and a tub of fresh fruit. And it's off we went to go a-huntin'.

considered a food court at all, but more of a frickin' awesome group of really high-qualityFamished by lunchtime, we stopped in at the Westfield Mall Food Court, which can't really be foodstuffs stalls. After a lengthy stroll through displays of crepes, noodle bowls, fresh sushi, and the always enticing Bristol Farms, we settled on Mr. Hana for rice bowls. Mr.S had the beef bowl and I ordered the spicy tuna bowl. We both opted for the brown rice.

The portions were huge, and everything looked fresh and really good at this point since I was famished. My spicy tuna was wonderfully spicy, but perhaps a bit too processed. The texture was mushier than I would have liked. It came with many sides- seaweed salad, pickled ginger, avocado, marinated cucumbers, nori, and daikon sprouts. (It very much reminded me of bibim bap.)

I wolfed everything down quickly, but in between bites, I do remember it tasting pretty awesome. Everything was fresh, crunchy (if it had to be), and flavorful. Mr.S's beef bowl came with a generous side of stir fried shredded cabbage and carrots, which was overly greasy, but he really enjoyed the wokked beef. The prices were slightly on the high end, with his being $10 and mine $12. There were probably better food court deals out there, but we were happy with what we got (portions and taste).

Mr. Hana's menu also includes teriyaki chicken, unagi, and tempura bowls, a large serving of udon soup with thick noodles, nori, fish cake and fried tofu ($7.25), a poke tuna bowl with all the fixings ($12.95), and small plates of edamame ($3.49), chicken gyoza ($3.99), and miso soup ($1.50).

After lunch, we went right into dinner-planning mode. Always the OpenTable enthusiast, Mr.S made a quick reservation for us at Absinthe, a popular French brasserie in Hayes Valley, who serves up a knock-out brunch menu on weekends.

The interior was beautifully dark and mysterious, and reminded me of a sexier version of Petit Louis (and possibly slightly more promiscuous). It was like dining in old Paris, with all that gaiety and mirth, with whispers of the Moulin Rouge, and accented by upscale decor, and a very impressive looking oyster bar. I don't know if that paints the picture for you, but it surely made me want to break into some pain de campagne and salted butter. Which we got, along with an order of the pommes frites, served in a cone with a trio of Dijon mustard, malt vinegar, and rouille (a saffron-garlic mayonnaise dip). Very tasty, but it made me long terribly for the duck fat fries at Salt, with my favorite black truffle aioli. SIGH. (I must stop comparing everything to Baltimore!)

True to its name, there were 3 kinds of Absinthe on the drink menu, but I opted out for some champagne, as I was in no mood for the licorice-y "green-eyed monster" that evening. There was also an impressive selection of traditional cocktails- Sazerac, Sidecar, French '75, etc.

Mr.S raves about their French onion soup, but we were so satiated by the fries, we went right into the entrées. True, a table 3 down from us ordered the soup, and we could smell the pungent, melted Gruyère from where we were sitting. I ordered the grilled scallops that arrived on a bed of sauteed summer squash, cherry tomatoes, pea shoots, and sugar snap peas, flavored with nepitella, a fragrant oregano-like herb ($27). Amazingly fresh and bursting with summer flavors, I was in veggie-heaven. The scallops were also cooked just right, but there was a grittiness to their surface, like the sand hadn't been properly rinsed off. The only glitch of the evening.

Mr.S always seems to order something that I prefer over my own plate... why is that? His pork confit (which was huge, by the way) was wonderfully smoky and tender, sitting atop a mound of creamed corn, bacon, watercress salad, and buttery fingerling potatoes ($24). The pork shoulder had been slow-cooked in, what else but duck fat, had a nice char to it, and was fork tender and just lovely. We both really enjoyed the creamy corn and bacon action; it was serious comfort food. Really, all I needed was a big bowl of that, I would have been a happy (and greasy) girl all night.

Dessert? Why not? Though there was an interesting looking coconut très leches cake, I was dead set on tasting the warm chocolate tart served with salted caramel sauce and peanut butter ice cream ($8). (That ice cream was definitely the hook.) The combination of all the flavors was rich, but not heavy. The bittersweet chocolate was nicely paired with the sweet and salty caramel and ice cream, finished with crunchy candied peanuts. I wanted a tall glass of milk to round that off.

I am already flagging Absinthe as a late-night snack bar for Mr.S and me. I can already picture us at the bar (probably the best seat in the house), sipping on a couple of Ginger Rogers, snacking on spicy fried chickpeas, the Croque-Monsieur, and some brebis. And maybe throw in there the Absinthe burger with some frites. The crowd is diverse; the service was good, but slowed down toward the end of the night, and my server was more than generous with my glass of champagne. Next time we go, I'll definitely be having one of the many dishes with fried duck eggs (one of my favorite things to eat) and most likely that herbal tonic for which this intoxicating restaurant is named.

st. benoît yogurt

2008-06-09T19:37:00.010-04:00

Really, I'm not sure what the hype is all about. I've read so much praise and fanfare about St. Benoît yogurt that I just simply had to try a pot of this liquid gold. It tasted fresh and definitely better, than say a tub of Dannon, but I didn't fall out of my seat either with waves of satisfaction. Perhaps I had built it up a bit too much.

St. Benoît is a completely natural, farm-fresh yogurt that's available in the SF Bay area. The yogurt is made using only 100% Jersey cow's milk, with no added thickeners, stabilizers, preservatives or sweeteners. I would have to say what makes this yogurt such a novelty is the ultra cool glazed, ceramic pots they come packaged in. Makes you kind of feel like you're eating a batch of your granny's homemade yogurt at her farmhouse table. The purpose behind these pots is manifold. First, they are reusable. Like glass milk jars with milk, the taste of the yogurt is better preserved, and thus tastes better. They also encourage customers to bring them back and maybe take home some more. Repeat customers are a good thing. And no one can deny that these jars are like, totally cute. Omigod.

Next order of business, cost. I purchased a pot of St. Benoît from Whole Foods for $2.79, plus an additional $1.50 for the jar deposit. I'm not certain what the cost would be at the farmer's market, but I suspect it to be less, since you'd be buying straight from St. Benoît. For about 7 ounces of yogurt, comparably speaking, you are paying more here than for any of the other cow's milk yogurt brands off the shelf, such as Stonyfield, Liberté, or Brown Cow. But for the kind of customer who is purchasing St. Benoit over these other brands, priorities are probably of a different kind; someone who is enthusiastic of supporting local, sustainable farms and families and who is environmentally friendly.

With all this in mind, I was really hoping for a home run in the taste department. I had visions of lustrously smooth consistency, with a thick cream top, and notes of tangy sweet honey. After poking through a minuscule layer of cream, I found my spoon to be swimming in a pool of very watery yogurt. The top half of the yogurt was smooth, but I noticed and tasted small clumps near the bottom, the whey. (Which I suppose gives it a nice rustic charm, if you're into that.) The Marshall's Farm honey used to sweeten the yogurt was barely perceptible, even at the bottom, which was a great disappointment. However, I did finish the whole pot, so there must have been some redeeming taste qualities. It had a great tanginess that grew on me. It also tasted really fresh. And, I felt like I was doing my body a service by eating something this natural and healthy. Even the healthiest yogurts at Whole Foods that say "All Natural" still have ingredients like pectin and "natural flavors" listed. In my pot of St. Benoît, I had 3 ingredients and 3 only: Jersey milk, bacterial cultures, and local honey.

Though I wasn't wowed, I will certainly keeping purchasing St. Benoît on a consistent basis. I believe in supporting local producers, and keeping the environment clean of plastic yogurt container build-up. Next time, I'll have to try one of the fruit flavored ones- strawberry, plum, or Meyer lemon.

BreadTalk

2008-06-02T18:23:00.011-04:00

There's the aroma of fresh-baked bread, and then, there's the aroma of freshly-baked sweet, eggy bread, stuffed and topped with a myriad of Asian snacks. Think pork floss, curry chicken, sweet corn and cream, taro paste, durian paste, black sesame, and Chinese sausage. The smells are enough to make you at least drop in to peruse through at least 50 different flavors of pastries, baked buns, cakes and cookies. This is BreadTalk, a favorite snack spot of mine in Beijing (there are currently 12 locations throughout the city). Originally started in Singapore, the shop reminds me of all the delicious (and crowded) bakeries all throughout the streets of Hong Kong and Taipei, where fresh bread and buns keep rolling out of the ovens the whole day through.

BreadTalk is for the on-the-go crowd, the carb lovers, the ones who want a "trendy, lifestyle bakery" (according to their website). It's for me and my mom, who go in and ogle the bread everytime we are in Beijing. I guess those plastic domes were made for us. We must look like two starved maniacs who've never tasted bread before!

So, you grab a plastic tray with a pair of tongs, and you just start piling on the bread. At the register, the cashier will individually wrap each bun in a plastic baggie for you. There's even a low-fat yogurt drink machine that tempts you as you wait. Not to mention the array of fancy cakes that include flavors like chocolate-chestnut, strawberry-chantilly, matcha cream, "Tea Rose," and a new line of Hello Kitty cakes! (I wonder what a Sanrio character would taste like...)

If you ever find yourself in Beijing or Singapore, try some of these snacks. The bread itself is delicately sweet, like a brioche dough, and the flavors are both fun and exotic. Prices are really affordable, as each piece will set you back between ¥5 - ¥8, which is roughly $0.80 to $1.15 dollars. The whole cakes range from ¥120 - ¥150 ($17 - $21).

These are just a few of the flavors I could document, before the angry baker caught me with my camera, and shut me down!

Hi, Date Bun- date paste

Chinese sausage with tomatoes, peppers, and cheese (like a Chinese pizza)

Curry naan

Moshi Mushroom- sweet bun topped with puff pastry, stuffed with sauteed mushrooms

Not sure what flavor these are, but their cute factor is definitely not standing in the way of me wanting to eat it!

Firey Floss- spicy pork floss bun

BreadTalk
various locations in Singapore and Beijing

updates

2008-06-01T22:31:00.003-04:00

I wasn't quite sure what exactly to call this post. "Life changes, " or "New beginnings" seemed a bit too fluffy and somewhat trite, like a Lifetime movie of the month title. And a dish name certainly would have been inappropriate, since well, I haven't cooked a single in the past two weeks now, so no recipes shall grace the text of this post today. (And god forbid I recycle any old recipes or stock photos from storage!) So you can see where I am going with this... I just want to let everyone know what I've been up to, that's all, along with a bit of exciting news!

First, the most noticeable piece of change is that I am finally going white! Background color, that is. No more gloomy grays or browns, though they did make my photos instantly pop. Summer is upon us, so naturally there will be more colors in my photography, and more lighting to go around, so no need for the dark colors anymore. It was about time for a change.

If you've been wondering if maybe I had dropped off the face of this earth for the past two weeks, I am here to assure you that I have not, but maybe only off the face of this country. I was in Beijing with my parents, tending to some family issues. Three weeks after my grandmother's passing last month, my grandfather suffered a massive stroke in China and passed away on May 21. A tragedy, nothing less. It was some of the darkest times of my life thus far, of my family's also by far, and we are still reeling in the aftershock and grief of it all. My aunt believes his passing was somewhat linked to the deadly earthquake of Sichuan just one week prior, since many Chinese believe that natural disasters are portents of bad news to come. Personally, I have a feeling that after 60 years of marriage, like they had this year, losing your best friend and partner can really break a heart, and a person. Whatever it was, I will miss him dearly, his grace and presence, his strength of character, love of noodles and ice cream (not together), and will carry on his legacy of writing and of learning about anything and everything. One of these days, I will dedicate a recipe to him, but as yet, I don't feel ready to write about him in length nor share my fondest memories.

As of this weekend, I am no longer a Baltimorean. I moved out of my small and well-lived in apartment on Saturday. Standing there, it hardly seemed the warm and cozy space that I had called home for three and a half years.
I said goodbye to the beautiful views, and mostly to my little kitchen where once, a very different me had set foot, and after numerous experimentation, failures and even more successes, a new me, the me now, was moving out and forward. I turned in my keys and didn't look back. It was the only way I knew how not to get all weepy about this big change.

I will be quite the busybody this summer with many travels planned, so stay tuned for some jet-set culinary adventures. Here's a preview- I can promise you tales and photos from a wedding in Napa Valley (and hopefully a trip to the French Laundry), another wedding on Long Island with forays into NYC, a few visits to San Francisco, a first-time exploration of the great city of Rome, and then a week-long gallop through the island of Malta. And of course there will be no shortage of weekend hiking trips to the Blue Ridge and Shenandoah mountains, and maybe a nostalgic visit or two back to Baltimore to stay with friends.

Ok ok, so what is the really exciting news? Well, the reason I moved from Baltimore, a city which has grown on me and which I've come to call home, is that soon I will have a new home, and blogging life, in San Francisco! I will be starting law school in August there, living and no doubt, eating my way through the city! Of course, as you may know, Mr.S is already there for his new job, so my partner in crime, my meal companion, will once again, be by my side. We were really quite lucky to both end up in SF, as neither of us really had planned on ending up in the same space! Sure, we crossed our fingers and toes as he went on his interviews and I did my applications, but we were never really sure we'd both make it to the Bay area, a place that we've grown obsessed over, for the food, the people, the climate and culture. I'm telling ya, it's fate.

With the many ups and downs that life has taken me on these past few months, I feel somewhat akin to a rag doll (but with better hair). I'm lucky to have my family and those people who really love me by my side, or just a phone call away. If not, I always have my journal and a pen, if only to scribble something down. I feel like a different person than I was one and a half months ago, maybe more morose at times, but definitely more mature and self-aware, with a different understanding on life and my family.

Life is really too fragile not to cherish what you've been given, the great gifts of loved ones and your talents and strengths.

pâté and salad

2008-05-19T22:38:00.004-04:00

Dinner tonight was just right- a good balance of something heavy with a light, healthy salad. I brought home a small slab of pâté de campagne from work today, and assembled a quick and easy tartine (open-faced sandwich). A slice of toasted country white bread, then a smear of mayo and whole grain mustard, layered with slices of pâté and pickled pearl onions. All I needed was a glass of red wine, but sadly, my cabinets and wine rack are pretty bare bones at the moment since the moving began.

I like pork and pork products such as pâté, cured meats, scrapple, sausages... They certainly don't help me lower my borderline-high cholesterol, that's for sure. So in an effort to bring in some sort of vegetal component into my dinner, I threw together a quick salad of glazed carrots and wheatberries. Glazed with maple syrup and vanilla, the sweetness of the salad gave just the right balance to the acidity of the mustard and pickled onions. Wheatberries are not my favorite thing to eat, since they have a hard chewy texture that makes my jaw ache. But they are healthy, high in both protein and fiber. Be sure to cook them through thoroughly, and serve warm so that they still have some tenderness and bite to them.

Maple-Vanilla Glazed Carrot and Wheatberry Salad

2 medium carrots, peeled and julienned
3/4 cup - 1 cup cooked wheatberries
1/2 cup chicken broth, or water
seeds from 1/2 of a vanilla bean
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
parsley, for garnish

1. To a small saucepan, add carrots, broth or water, vanilla, maple syrup and butter. You may need more or less broth, depending on the amount of carrots and the size of your pan. Basically you want to cover the carrots with liquid, just barely. Bring to a boil, and turn down to a simmer. Cook for 6-8 minutes until carrots are tender.

2. Remove carrots with a slotted spoon and add to the cooked wheatberries in a bowl. Reduce the cooking liquid down further over low heat to thicken it up. When it's the desired consistency, pour over the carrots, along with the vinegar and parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste. Toss well and serve warm.

fractured prune

2008-05-14T21:29:00.000-04:00

How is it possible that a small piece of fried dough can make my day immensely better and that much more worth living? If it were socially acceptable, "donut" would be my middle name. I am that attached to these dunkers. I have countless boxes of Krispy Kremes to thank for getting me through many an all-nighter study session the day before midterms. It was always so tormentful buying a dozen warm, gooey-glazed donuts and having them sit next to me in the car, just waiting to be devoured back in the dorms.

I was bored and listless at work this morning, that is, until my thoughtul and generous boss walked in, carrying two dozen warm, only-minutes-ago fried to order donuts. Like bees to a honeypot, we jumped her and fought her to the ground. They were from Fractured Prune, a mid-Atlantic chain of small shops that fries and glazes donuts for the sugar-starved masses, on the spot! You pick your glazes and toppings, and within minutes, you're out the door with a warm, sugary dozen (or more). They're smaller than your average donut, about 3" across, rather than 4"-5", but what they lack in size, they make up for in bling. Toppings range from mini chocolate chips (these are sooo good because they melt from the warmth of the donut) to peanut butter to a blueberry glaze that is literally a throwback to my 1980's metallic spandex leotards.

"Blueberry Hill"

I liked all the flavors I tried, but after numerous taste tests, my top 3 still remain the French Toast (maple glaze with cinnamon sugar),

the Reese Cup (PB glaze with mini chips),

and the Banana Nut Bread (banana glaze with chopped peanuts and cinnamon sugar.

Fractured Prune
(various locations)
6308 York Road
Towson, MD 21212

wokked pods

2008-05-13T19:48:00.004-04:00

Warning: These wokked little pods are highly addictive.

During a recent chat about fun eateries (what else?) with a London-er, I was informed about a fast-food type eatery serving up delicious Japanese homestyle dishes called Wagamama. Its menu is based around speedy noodle and rice offerings, and uses fresh ingredients like shrimp, cod, and tofu. Since the first few branches opened in London, a slew of outposts have sprang up all over the world, from Sydney to Amsterdam. There are even two in Boston.

This prompted me to buy the Wagamama cookbook, with a says-it-all front cover photo of a hungry diner with his head buried in a giant bowl of soup noodles. The recipes are easy for the home cook, very straightforward with common ingredients that can be found in any supermarket. A wok is required, as is high heat, but not a lot of time, since Wagamama food is based on efficiency with a whole lot of flavor.

My wok got some hot, spicy action tonight for dinner, as did my mouth. I've never had flavored edamame before, and from now on, I don't think I'll have it any other way! My twist on the dish is the addition of a dash of Chinese five spice powder for an extra bit of flavor. Enjoy, you'll never look at the edamame the same way again.

Edamame with Chile
adapted from The Wagamama Cookbook

8 oz edamame in their pods
1 red chile, trimmed, seeded and finely chopped
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp Chinese five spice powder
1 tsp sesame oil

1. If using frozen edamame, defrost, and steam the pods either in a steamer or in the microwave for about 1 minute, until firm but still with a bite. Drain thoroughly.

2. Heat up the vegetable oil in a wok over high. Add the edamame, chile and salt, and stir-fry for 1 minute. Stir in the five spice powder and sesame oil. Turn the heat off, and serve warm. Sprinkle with additional salt, if needed.

monkey-ing around

2008-05-09T22:29:00.001-04:00

My mom used to make a version of monkey bread for me when I was little in her trusty bundt pan that we bought together at a yard sale. We didn't even bother removing the bread from the pan after it was done; we'd pick away at it while it was still piping hot. What'd normally ensue was a sticky, messy situation involving stacks of napkins and usually a run to the washing machine afterward.

I'm perplexed as to why it's called "monkey" bread. My most astute guess is that monkeys eat by picking at their food, which is how a monkey bread is usually eaten, by being pulled apart. Oh, of course, opposable thumbs! Surely, this bread would make a monkey's mouth water, all that doughyness, each surrounded by a crunchy cinnamon-sugar crust. I suppose the addition of mashed ripe bananas to the dough makes this even more appealing to our primate friend, and to us! It makes the bread moist, and doesn't interfere with the rise at all.

This time when I made the bread, I used the same pan that my mom had used years ago. It turned out beautifully, without a hitch. And once again, I found myself barefoot in the kitchen, caught red-handed with sticky fingers.

Monkey Bread
adapted from Better Homes and Gardens, February 1999

3 1/4 to 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 pkg active dry yeast
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp light corn syrup
1/2 tsp salt
2 ripe mashed bananas (3/4 cup)
1 egg
2/3 cup chopped pecans
1 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup caramel ice-cream topping
2 Tbsp maple syrup

1. In a large bowl, stir together 1 cup of the flour and yeast. In a saucepan, heat and stir milk, 1/4 cup butter, 2 Tbsp sugar, corn syrup and salt until just warm (120F). Add this to the dry mixture. Stir in banana and egg. Beat the batter for about 3 minutes on high. With a wooden spoon, stir in the remaining flour, working into a lump. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 6-8 minutes into an elastic dough. Place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled (1 1/2 hours).

2. Grease a 10" bundt (tube) pan with butter. Sprinkle half the pecans on the bottom. Stir together the 1 cup sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon, set aside.

3. Preheat oven to 350F. Punch dough down. Turn dough out onto your work surface and roll out into a large flat rectangle. Cut dough into 1-inch pieces. You will end up with about 40-50 small lumps. Gently knead each piece into a ball, tucking edges beneath. Roll each ball in the melted butter, then roll in the cinnamon sugar, and place in the prepared pan. Repeat this with the rest of the dough, gently stacking the balls up in the pan. Cover, and let rise until nearly double, about 45 minutes.

4. Sprinkle remaining pecans on top. Stir together caramel topping and maple syrup; drizzle on top. Bake for 35-38 minutes until the bread is golden brown on top. Let stand for 5-10 minutes, and invert onto a serving dish. Spoon any remaining topping or nuts over the bread. Serve warm.

bento, minus the box

2008-05-07T19:03:00.006-04:00

For dinner tonight, I assembled a bento box meal of shiozake (salted salmon), asparagus in dashi broth with egg, and steamed rice topped with furikake (rice seasoning). Of course it would have been more authentic if everything had been nicely compartmentalized within a cute bento box, but alas, none to be found in my kitchen amidst all the packing.

I salted the salmon yesterday, a fresh wild-caught piece from Whole Foods, with a generous rub of sea salt. I prefer it not overly salted, so instead of letting it sit any longer than 24 hours, I cooked it up tonight. The skin was delightfully crispy and the flesh was subtly salted and somewhat sweet. I rinsed off the rest of the pieces, patted them dry, and wrapped them in wax paper and a freezer bag to be frozen and eaten later on.

The asparagus is my take on a vegetarian donburi, steamed rice covered in a pork/rice/shrimp and simmered egg mixture. The ultimate comfort food. I flavored the broth with a mix of dashi, mirin, soy, sake and sugar. The combination of all these ingredients make a umami experience that's mind-blowing. Like a savory flavor explosion in your mouth. Good dish to down rice with.

The furikake, that I bought from the asian store. If you aren't familiar with this flavoring, it's a dry mix of seaweed, bonito flakes, sesame, soy and sugar. It adds another level to the taste and texture of just plain rice. Furikake comes in all sorts of fun flavors, like salmon, nori, wasabi, or nuts, and is sometimes even colored a pale pastel of green (wasabi) or pink (salmon).

It was really the perfect dinner for one. Just me tonight, as Mr.S is off far far away in new-job-training-land. So I kind of stunk up my small apartment with the smell of pan-fried fish, but it was worth it for a meal that really hit the spot, and was even well-balanced and quite healthy!

Asparagus-Don (Asparagus simmered in dashi with egg)
serves 2

1 small bunch asparagus, trimmed and cleaned
1 small onion, slivered
3 stalks scallion, chopped on the bias, green and white parts both
1 Tbsp slivered ginger
1/3 cup dashi broth
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp mirin
1 Tbsp sake
1 Tbsp sugar
1 egg, beaten

1. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in a wok, and add scallion, ginger and onion. Cook for 1 minute, until fragrant. Add the asparagus, cooking for another 2 minutes or so until they become slightly tender and bright green.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the dashi, soy, mirin, sake, and sugar. Add this mixture to the asparagus. Simmer over low heat for about 5 minutes to thicken the broth.

3. Stir in the beaten egg to incorporate into the broth. It will start to curdle, and look like egg drop soup. Cook for another minute, until the strings of egg have set up and somewhat solidified. Serve over steamed rice.

remembrance

2008-05-03T18:09:00.001-04:00

January 17, 1926 - April 21, 2008

I never realized how lucky I was to have all four of my grandparents alive and healthy for so long. Illness and death were such intangible notions that never crossed my mind. Four years ago, when my grandmother had her first stroke, I remember being confused, fervently denying to myself that this was it. Well, I suppose it was the beginning- of personal growth, physical decline, and the loss of a long battle for life. She, along with the rest of our family, lost the good fight two weeks ago.

When I think of my grandma, I think of this photo that we snapped of her during her first visit to the U.S. It's my favorite picture of her. It captures the woman that she was- beautiful, innocent, happy. During her year-long stay, we took her on several mini-vacations, Ocean City, the Poconos to ski, historic Williamsburg, and took her to most of the museums in DC. My favorite outing, however, was an apple picking trip to a pick-your-own orchard during the fall.

It was one of those bright, crisp fall days that makes you want to roll around in a pile of leaves. We asked her to pose for a picture, and instead of standing and smiling, she began to hop around, blowing on the fuzzies from dandelions. We caught her mid-laugh, mid-hop. She was always so happy like that, so positive. There was a beautiful, beaming, rosy-cheeked child in her that was rare and precious. Though she had this side to her, she liked to be mother hen to her family. She loved her brood above all else. She cared so much for my grandfather after years of marriage. She must have had a million things going on inside her head at all times, just fretting and worrying about everyone in the family.

I miss her. I've missed her for four years. She was bedridden during this time, from her paralysis, and for the latter half, her condition gradually worsened, with her loss of vision from glaucoma, and the final loss of any lung function and the ability of speak. Her once robust appetite withered away and her stomach shrank, accepting only pureed foods, then medicine only. I remember baking her shortbread cookies, blending them down with water, and feeding it to her through her food tube. She couldn't speak, but she'd squeeze my hand.

She had one hell of a sweet tooth. She loved ice cream; any flavor, but her favorites were strawberry, coffee, and red bean popsicles. When I was really little, she'd always buy me a cone when we were out, and one for herself too. (I have a sinking suspicion she sometimes used me as an excuse to get herself ice cream!) At the end of her US stay, she'd put on quite a bit of weight, her face was so full and round, her skin became shiny and taut. We let herself indulge in all sorts of junky foods- pizza, ice cream, chips, cake. She lived it up; when would she ever get the chance again?

During this time, I regret most my not letting her love me to the fullest, by pushing her away. I was a teen, and going through that awkward "I'm too cool for parental units" phase. I walked home everyday from school, and she'd come meet me halfway, but I'd often ignore her and walk many paces ahead. She'd come home and laugh it off. She never got angry with me, which made me more mad. I regret not letting her more into my life, because she could have taught me alot. It wasn't until years later that I realized my mistakes.

I remember her laugh, a deep almost silent, drawn-out laugh emanating from the depths of her diaphragm. She'd try to talk but no words would come out. Her eyes would tear up, and more silent chuckling would erupt into fits of coughing and laughing mixed together. She was funny like that.

I'm remembering all these things about her, nothing of which bears any resemblance to the invalid who she was for the past four years. Though that time proved to be a huge challenge in all our lives, and forced me to grow up in more ways than I can imagine, I want to remember her as my laughing, playful, hopping and skipping grandmother. The woman who knit me sweaters, fix the buttons on my blouses, who ate her ice cream and left traces all over her lips and face.

I wanted to make her a special dessert that I could also enjoy, while thinking of her. She'd probably love it too. I think she would be really proud of my cooking, since none of the women on my mom's side of the family can. She was proud of all her grandkids, no matter how big or small the achievement. I think of her now, and I'm glad she's finally at peace. Us kids are all grown up now, and she's finally free of any suffering. I hope she's really happy somewhere, maybe watching over us, maybe not, with a lot of good ice cream, and plenty of space to play in. What a strong spirit she had for her to have held on as long as she had. My iron grandma, with steely will and stubborn strength. I'm like her in this way, and so is my mom.

Before I left Beijing this time, my aunt gave me the biggest compliment of my life. She told me how mature I am- that I always put others before myself. I was extremely proud because this is how my grandma always was too. For her, her children and family came first. The sacrifices she made throughout her life for us weren't sacrifices for her, they were a joy for her because of the happiness she could impart on others.

Being able to write and cook these few days after the funeral has given me some sort of peace. It has allowed me to organize all of the jumbled thoughts like thick weeds that have crowded my mind for the past couple weeks. Grieving is difficult. My way thus far of coping has been through writing and cooking. Somehow, it all starts and ends in the kitchen for me.

Sweet Cream Ice Cream with Red Bean Sauce
yields 1 quart

Sweet Cream Ice Cream:
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
4 egg yolks

1. In a heavy saucepan, heat milk, cream and 1/2 cup sugar over medium heat to 175F, stirring often. Remove from heat. Meanwhile, whisk together yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar until pale and thick. While whisking, pour in half of the hot milk mixture. Pour this back into the saucepan, and back onto the burner.

2. Over low heat, stir with a wooden spoon, and heat mixture to 180F. At this point, the milk should be thick and coat the back of the spoon. Remove from heat, and let come to room temperature.

3. Strain the mixture and pour into your ice cream maker, and let it churn and chill. Pour the contents into a quart size freezer container, and let harden in the freezer.

Red Bean Sauce

1 cup dried red beans (adzuki beans)
8-9 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
2 strips orange peel

1. Soak beans in water overnight. Drain in the morning.

2. Combine beans and water in a large pot, and let come to a boil. Turn heat down to a simmer, and cook for 2-3 hours (depending on how soft you like them), adding in the orange peel halfway through. The beans are done when they are soft, and give no resistance.

3. Stir in the sugar and cook for 10 more minutes. Let come to room temperature and refrigerate. Serve chilled over ice cream, or by itself.

blancophilia

2008-04-20T18:47:00.008-04:00

Probably the largest cake I've ever made, this one was created to celebrate a new chapter in Mr.S's life, his quickly approaching move to San Francisco, and a sad departure from a lifetime in Baltimore. (Pardon me, it's really not as depressing as I make it out to be.) There was much excitement as friends and family all gathered on a rainy Sunday at Red Star to wish him bon voyage and happy adventures in Cali. For the fete, a white cake with a bed of white roses was the centerpiece, to represent new beginnings and a clean start.

Rich, white cake with raspberry filling and a white chocolate-sake buttercream.

I had great fun making the cake, in retrospect, but at the time, with an apartment that soared to almost 90 degrees, chocolate work was no easy feat. And to add to that, buttercream has difficulty coming together at that temperature. The final creation was not exactly what I had in mind, but was still beautiful. Originally, instead of the white chocolate curls on the sides, I had envisioned sheets of white chocolate, alternating in height, surrounding the perimeter. It was an image that I'd seen a while back in an issue of Donna Hay, and was recreated by Nordljus here.

I'm not going to post the recipe, simply because it's a cake that serves 35-40 people, and the measurements are for the most part, somewhat impractical. However, if you should ever find yourself in a position to make a 20-lb+ cake, and would like the recipe, please email me, and I'd be more than thrilled to part with it, and also to impart some words of wisdom in taking on an endeavor of such tremendous caliber.

The effort was well worth it as Mr.S was smiling the whole time, surrounded by his loved ones. He will be missed!

FYI: Red Star does wonderful private parties. The upstairs room is the perfect setting for any personal event you may like to host.

curry tuna salad with grapes

2008-04-18T20:22:00.000-04:00

Tuna salad is just good stuff, anyway you make it. Except for the mushy kind at the grocery store salad bar, sitting there with that ominous looking dried, crusty layer on top. My mom used to make tuna salad for me all the time since it was cheap, fast, and really good. Weekends only though, because she put a lethal dose of chopped onion in hers, which would have made me the least popular kid in school, if I'd brought that in my lunchbox.

This is tuna salad for grown-ups since it's flavored with many spices- curry, cumin, and turmeric. Originally I had wanted to add golden raisins, but opted instead for plump and juicy red grapes. The pineapple chutney gives the salad a final oomph of flavor. I used store-bought chutney, but since creating this recipe, I've made it again with my own homemade chutney. The recipe is below.

Curry Tuna Salad with Grapes
yields about 2 cups

As a shortcut, I used store-bought pineapple chutney in this recipe to add another layer of sweet and tartness. Mango and pear chutneys would also work well as a substitute.

2 6-oz. cans tuna (packed in water), drained
1/3-1/2 cup mayonnaise (depending on how creamy you prefer it)
half red onion, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 Tbsp pineapple chutney
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp sugar
20 red seedless grapes, sliced in half
salt, to taste

1. In a bowl, flake the tuna fish with a fork. Add the remaining ingredients, except for the grapes, and mix well. Be sure not to overmix. Stir in the grapes at the very end, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Basic Pineapple Chutney
yields 3/4 cup

1/2 cup pineapple chunks, diced up
1 Tbsp leftover pineapple juice
2 Tbsp diced onion
1/2 tsp fresh minced ginger
pinch red chili flakes
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/8 cup + 2 Tbsp brown sugar

In a small saucepan, add all ingredients and mix well. Simmer over medium-low heat for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pineapple and onion have cooked down. The chutney should be a deep golden brown, with a sticky consistency. Let cool.

green tea shortbread with cocoa nibs

2008-04-16T19:35:00.000-04:00

I made a batch of these over the weekend for our company potluck. Many of my coworkers asked if it was food coloring! Gasp! How uncouth. Surprisingly, a little bit of green tea powder goes a long way, both in terms of flavor and color.

As most of you know, I am a big fan of cocoa nibs; if I could, I would probably add a dash of it to everything I ate. It imparts a crunchy textural quality as well as a deep, earthy, chocolaty finish to any food it flavors.

These little treats are delicate and subtly sweet. The sugary crust around the edge gives a bit more of a crunch, along with the nibs too. Next time, I will use a couple more tablespoons of butter and may even try to incorporate the nibs into the dough itself before rolling out.

Green Tea Shortbread with Cocoa Nibs
makes 36-40 1-inch cookies

2.5 oz (~1 cup) confectioner's sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp matcha powder
6 oz. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 large egg yolks

cocoa nibs, for topping
sugar, for rolling

1. Cream butter with confectioner's sugar and matcha powder until smooth and evenly mixed, about 2 minutes. Slowly mix in the flour until well incorporated. Add the yolks one by one, mixing after each addition. The dough will start to come together when large clumps form. Turn out the dough onto your board and form into a disc. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 45 min.

2. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

3. Roll out the dough into 1/4" thick disc. Cut the dough with cookie cutters. Gently lift out each cookie, roll the edges in sugar and place on the prepared pans. Add a pinch of cocoa nibs to each cookie and press down into the dough.

4. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until slightly golden around the edges, but not brown. (You want a tender, buttery cookie.)

the butter wars

2008-04-15T18:33:00.000-04:00

Some of us prefer good wine, others olive oils and aged vinegars. I, on the other hand, will splurge on good dairy products at the drop of a hat. My love of dairy probably stems from the fact that I had none growing up. A great many Chinese are lactose-intolerant, and the rest do not have a taste for milk or cheese.

The first time I tasted butter was an epiphanic moment. I was seven years old, and ready for a snack. I laid out a mini smörgåsbord of 2 sticks of butter, a loaf of Wonder bread, and a carton of Tropicana orange juice, a veritable cornucopia of everything I considered to be American food. With a trusty butter knife in hand, I set out to work. What ensued was a wild mess of a culinary orgy. I won't go into details, save for the fact that my dad came home to find me sprawled out on the floor with crumbs and a butter wrapper stuck to my face. So begins the love affair.

Since I do so much baking and cooking, I go through at least a couple of pounds a week, in addition to the amount I use on my toast and rolls. I use commercial grade butter every now and then (the generic brand from Giant is the best), but in comparison, there is a handful of small-dairy crafted butters from local sources that are readily available at specialty markets across Baltimore. I really believe in supporting small, sustainable farms and dairies, especially local ones, and truly these butters, because of their higher butterfat content, taste worlds better than any 1-pound block you'd find at the store.

The richness of the butter from these small dairies is largely due to the cows' diets of fresh grasses, and exposure to clean air and water. Because of this, butters from different farms will taste slightly different, showing off the flavors of each terroir, just like the grapes and climate that attribute to wine-making. The butter from one farm will also change from season to season. For instance, the butter will be more yellow and slightly more unctuous from a late-summer batch than from say, an early spring batch. Many dairies also prefer to culture their cream before turning it into butter, which produces a rich and tangy flavor, in comparison to the sweet cream butter you'd normally get.

I've taste-tested several butters from small creameries (one from Maryland) across the mid-Atlantic and New England regions. (All are from antibiotic and hormone-free milk.) There are certainly many more than this, but these are readily available here in the Baltimore area for purchase. The results are listed below, along with taste descriptions, cost, and local purveyor information.

Vermont Butter & Cheese Company Cultured Butter (Websterville, Vermont)

A co-op of several farms supply the milk for this delicious cultured butter, with one of the highest fat contents I've seen, of 86% fat. Easily my favorite butter of all time, it is extremely creamy, with a full and rich flavor. Absolutely delicious with sourdough breads. Extremely velvety and pliable. Terrific table butter, and excellent for baking/cooking as well.

Flavors: Unsalted, Lightly Salted, Sea Salt Crystals
Packaging: 8-oz. rolls
Unit Price (per ounce): $0.49
Source: Atwater's at Belvedere Square (also available at Wegman's for more $$)
Website: Vermont Butter & Cheese Company

Trickling Springs Creamery Butter (Chambersburg, Pennsylvania)

A very strong cream taste with very little tang, with a mild depth of flavor. I have used this butter in baking cakes and making buttercreams with terrific results. The texture is more flaky than creamy, and pale in coloration.

Flavors: Unsalted, Salted
Packaging: 1-lb. tubs and 20-lb. containers (for commercial use)
Unit Price (per ounce): $0.36
Source: Atwater's at Belvedere Square
Website: Trickling Springs Creamery

South Mountain Creamery Butter (Middletown, Maryland)

A very smooth butter, with a strong, lingering aftertaste. I bought a container in August last year, and it was a bright yellow color with a deep, lasting aroma, that wasn't altogether pleasant. Very heavy on the tongue and overpowering. However, it may taste slightly different during other seasons. Still good, and with a high fat content. I would use this more in cooking than as a table butter.

Flavors: Unsalted, Salted, Brown Sugar & Cinnamon, Dill & Garlic
Packaging: 1-lb. containers (unsalted and salted); 8-oz. containers (brown sugar and dill/garlic)
Unit Price (per ounce): $0.30 (salted and unsalted), $0.37 (brown sugar and dill/garlic)
Source: Waverly Farmers Market, Mill Valley Garden Center (2800 Sisson St.)
Website: South Mountain Creamery

Mendon Creamery Butter (Mendon, Massachusetts)

With at least 80% milkfat content, this butter is smooth and surprisingly light on the palate, but not extremely rich. Mild. The unsalted version has little depth of flavor, but tastes like good sweet cream. The Maple Cream flavor is my favorite, with a subtly sweet maple base, accented with sea salt crystals. Very pliable in texture, with a pale yellow color. Excellent table butter, with creative array of flavors.

Flavors: Unsalted, Salted, Maple Cream, Roasted Garlic, Cinnamon Sugar, Lemon Herb, Chocolate
Packaging: 8-oz. paper tubs
Unit Price (per ounce): $0.62
Source: Atwater's at Belvedere Square (also available at Wegman's for more $$)

nián gāo

2008-04-12T10:23:00.000-04:00

Nian Gao means "sticky cake" in Chinese, but is more commonly known as rice cakes. I remember this dish being a staple at every Chinese potluck party I went to as a kid. Glistening with a coat of sesame oil, a big ceramic bowl would emerge from the microwave, reheated, its contents steaming and amorphous. Simple to make ahead and reheat, it's also quite a filling dish, sticking to everything it adheres to, your teeth, roof of your mouth, your ribs, and then your gut. Not fatty nor even heavy, nian gao are made from ground-up glutinous rice. They are then shaped into "ovalettes," or at least that's what you'll find on the packaging at most Asian markets.

nian gao "ovalettes"

This dish is the savory version of making nian gao, but around Chinese New Year, there's a sweet cake-like variety that's given from family to family, with many probably being re-gifted. It would be the Chinese equivalent of fruitcake. You may have seen it at the store, it comes in a large, dense round, oftentimes, colored maroon or red, always in a vacuum-sealed bag. The store-bought versions are disgustingly sweet; I much prefer the homemade ones made by our family friend (she adds red beans and sometimes mung beans), steamed or friend, then sliced and dipped in sugar.

This has always been a comfort food for me, sticky and warm, with the perfect balance of sticky rice, vegetables and meat. My family doesn't eat too much of it, since it's more of a Southern Chinese dish, from the Shanghai region. When heated in the wok, the nian gao slowly melt and give way to the rest of the components of the dish, beautifully melding everything together with its release of starches. If you've ever had Korean dduk (the thick rope-shaped rice cakes), you'll know what I'm talking about. Nian gao are basically the same thing, just flatter from being sliced on the bias from a similar rope shape.

Typically nian gao is stir-fried with some type of cabbage (most prefer Napa), pork, bamboo shoots, and shitake mushrooms, but you can also use other greens like bok choy, mustard greens, or Chinese broccoli.

Stir-fried Nian Gao
serves 4

2-3 cups nian gao slices, fresh (frozen) or dried
4 cups Napa cabbage, chopped into 1" wide pieces
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4" slices
5 shitake mushrooms, sliced
1/4 lb pork tenderloin, cut into 1/8" slices, then slivered
2 Tbsp Shaoxing cooking wine
1 Tbsp minced ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
3 Tbsp oyster sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp ground white pepper
1 1/2 Tbsp sesame oil
vegetable oil, for stir-frying

1. The night before, soak nian gao in cold water. Drain well the next day just prior to using.

2. Heat 2 Tbsp of oil over high heat in the wok, and cook the pork with 1 Tbsp Shaoxing wine, half the ginger and garlic until no longer pink. Remove and set aside.

3. With wok still heated, add 1 Tbsp oil. Over high heat, cook the cabbage, carrots and shitake until the cabbage starts to wilt, about 2 minutes. Stir in the nian gao and cook to desired consistency, about 3-5 minutes. Along with the nian gao, add in the reserved pork, remaining Shaoxing wine, ginger and garlic, oyster and soy sauce, sugar and white pepper. Just before serving, stir in the sesame oil over medium heat. Serve immediately.