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Archive for 2010
Thursday, December 16th, 2010
It’s gotten cold and rainy. When that happens, I start making more pasta and soup. More comfort foods. More warming, cozy foods. One of the easiest is usually pasta with red sauce.
2 onions, chopped
3 oz pancetta, diced (optional for vegetarians…not optional otherwise!)
Cook down until onions are soft and starting to brown.
Add 1c. white wine and 2 cloves minced garlic. Cook off almost all the wine.
Add 3 cans of tomatoes (not sauce).
Rehydrate some porcinis. I put as many into my 2 cup measuring cup as I could comfortably do. It’s not 2 cups of dried porcini per se because they aren’t packed in but they add great flavor so if you have them, use them! We have a few.
Chop up the porcinis once they’re soft and add them to the sauce. Let that reduce for, oh, awhile. You want to cook off most of the water bit of the tomatoes so you have a good thick sauce. When almost all of the liquid is cooked off add a huge handful of minced herbs. I use thyme and marjoram.
When the sauce is saucy and not watery, dump it into a food processor and zap it until its perfect.
Once again, I ate before I snapped a final picture. I wish I had smell-o-vision. This is one of my favorite smells in my house: garlicky goodness.
Posted in amateur, pasta, porcinis, recipe, recipes, self pleasuring, tomatoes | No Comments »
Thursday, December 16th, 2010
It’s easy!
Step one, prepare ingredients and surface for rolling
Step two, roll the sushi.
Step three, profit!
Posted in asian, self pleasuring, sushi | No Comments »
Sunday, November 7th, 2010
Some friends came over for dinner last night and I decided I would go all out and make a multi-course extravaganza. We’ve been touting the excellence of Mark Bitterman’s new book, Salted: A Manifesto on the World’s Most Essential Mineral, with Recipes , to anyone who will listen so I made sure to highlight salts in the meal.
 To get people started, just a little plate of nibblies: prosciutto, olives, Mt. Tam triple cream brie from Cowgirl Creamery and some walnut levain.
Then we got serious. My ever popular and damn good Ahi Tartare that I have made countless times at this point. It never fails to impress those who have never had it though. I think I finally figured out the right balance of shallots, herbs, lemon, salt. I’m happy with this nearly every time now. I used Shinkai Deep Sea Salt in the tartare and topped this with Turkish Black Pyramid salt.
Thanks to the huge number of pomegranates I got from my dad, I came up with this salad: Butter lettuce with shaved fennel and apples (from our tree) and pomegranate seeds. I made a dressing with just minced shallot, salt, champagne vinaigrette and olive oil. I let the shallots soak in the vinegar and salt for at least an hour or maybe two so they were soft and the flavor permeated through. I topped the salad with a sprinkle of Murray River Salt. Simple and delicious.
I got a huge squash from my CSA this week so into the oven it went for squash soup based on this recipe. The only difference was the squash type and I used leeks in addition to onion. The squash, according to my CSA newsletter was a Orange “sunshine” Kabocha. It was a “thicker” squash when pureed into the soup. I think it has a bit less water in it that a butternut which produced a thick, creamy soup. I fried up some king trumpet mushrooms in butter and topped the soup with those for a roasty, nutty addition. This one I topped with some Big Sur Fleur de Sel that we picked up somewhere locally. Any semi-coarse sea salt would work well, I just wanted something that wouldn’t just dissolve in the soup but give a little crunch every few bites.
Nevermind the main protein course. I had an epic fail with my meat thermometer and over cooked the beef. It was still edible, but very much well done and not how I like my cow. So disappointing. But we had already had so much food it really wasn’t a complete disaster.
Instead we moved on to the dessert which is the spawn of too many apples on our tree and me not liking to really bake. Simple apple crisp with, guess what, POMEGRANATE! I made the syrup last week and have it in a squeeze bottle in the fridge for just such occasions. To make the crisp, just slice apples up, put them in a baking pan and top them with a mixture of:
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup chopped pecans
Bake at 350° for 1 hour. Serve warm (I baked it ahead and put it back in the oven for 15 minutes before serving it). Top with some pomegranate seeds, a generous drizzle of pomegranate syrup and your favorite vanilla ice cream.
It was a stellar evening, much good wine was also consumed of course. Champagne with the tartare and salad. Burgundy with the soup. Solera with the apple crisp. A happy night was had by all.
Posted in ahi, ahi tartare, amateur, apples, butternut squash, dinner, food, leeks, mushrooms, photos, proscuitto, recipe, seasonal menu, self pleasuring, tuna tartare | 3 Comments »
Tuesday, October 26th, 2010
What do you do when your dad has 7 acres of pomegranate trees? Make pomegranate juice of course. Then reduce it into a simple syrup for use on a million things!
I seeded 6 pomegranates and put the seeds into the blender. Then pressed the blended mush through a fine mesh strainer.
3 cups pomegranate juice
1 1/2 cups sugar
Reduce until it’s the consistency you want. I think it reduced it down to about 2 cups. We put it on apple crisp (our apple tree went NUTS this year).
Tags: pomegranates
Posted in recipe, recipes, self pleasuring | No Comments »
Friday, October 15th, 2010
It’s no secret that I love food…obviously. But what surprises a lot of people is the list of things I don’t like. Everytime I’d go to a restaurant, I’d have to list off the things I didn’t like because so many of them are omnipresent in every dish. Cheese for instance! So, to alleviate the stress of forgetting something on my “list” I made myself business cards at VistaPrint. Now all I need to do is hand the card over to the waitstaff, they have a chuckle, usually love it, and I don’t accidentally get cheese on my pasta!
Posted in flavor | No Comments »
Friday, October 15th, 2010
JoLe
1457 Lincoln Avenue
Calistoga, CA 94515
707-942-5938
We used to go to Calistoga just about every year. We’d go in February, off-season, rainy, cheaper, but just as tasty and relaxing. Since our son was born six years ago, we’ve only been twice. This trip makes three times. Every time we go, I say, “We need to make this happen more often!” The main reason I said that this time is JoLe. 
I honestly can’t remember exactly how I found JoLe. I was looking for somewhere new to eat in Calistoga. We’ve done All Seasons Bistro and Calistoga Inn multiple times. Somehow I stumbled upon this wonderful farm-to-table restaurant and knew I had to try it.
We spent the day at the spa: mud+jacuzzi+massage=body-jello. I’m sure that contributed to my overwhelming drunkenness by the end of dinner! Still, I enjoyed every bite and every sip. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
JoLe does a tasting menu but it is unlike most tasting menus out there. You get to choose whatever 4, 5, or 6 courses you’d like from the menu and it’s not for the table but per person. That works well for picky me! We started with Forni Brown & Welsh Mixed Greens: Cherry tomatoes, avocado, bacon . Translation? BLT-Avo without the bread. An Atkins BLT if you will. So, so good. The bacon wasn’t too smoky, which I don’t like, it was more just salty and porky and there was the perfect amount of it for the salad.
The next course held a bit of a shocking win for the sommelier. He brought me pink wine. I don’t drink pink wine. Maybe it’s the goth in me, I just can’t do it. I don’t even like Domain Tempier Bandol Rosé. This one was called Lorenza. It was from Lodi. None of these things were going to make me like it more. It was paired with Bobby P Tomato Salad: Heirlooms, ricotta, pesto. Well, firstly, I left of the ricotta and they put the pesto on the side which I didn’t eat either because it had cheese in it. So, I had my gorgeous plate of tomatoes drizzled with some balsamic. No complaints here, I only eat tomatoes in season and I know that in the very near future they will go away and I’ll be tomato-less for at least 9 months. A bite of tomato, a sip of PINK wine….wow! Most wine doesn’t clash with tomatoes but not many actually pair with them. This one did. The tomatoes gave the wine a tomato-water flavor. It was incredible. I’ve never had anything like it. Kudos to Dan the sommelier!! (After far too much wine, my husband actually high-fived him…My husband doesn’t high-five…embarrassing now but it felt justified then!).
The next dish, Pink Snapper: Melted leeks, salsify, red wine reduction was beautiful. I make a lot of fish and we have, to quote my husband, a stupid amount of Pinot. So we pair fish and pinot all the time. We go against the grain you know, fish and red wine–shocking! I like them together and it was no exception here. The thing I fail at is getting the fish skin to crisp up. The waiter informed me that I should start with a cold pan (like with bacon). It makes perfect sense. I always start with the pan hot and it doesn’t render the fat under the skin and it gets soggy.
The Black Cod Croquettes: Chick pea, spinach and chorizo stew was a huge win. I’m not big on deep fried stuff. Fries, done right, are way up my list of favorite things, otherwise I’d rather have it pan-seared than deep fried. The exception being these amazing croquettes. The weren’t at all greasy, they were perfectly cooked through, they were complimented well with the spinach and chorizo. A surprising favorite of mine.
You may notice that the wine descriptions are disappearing and the food descriptions may get a liitle vague. To be honest, the whole evening gets a little vague. I remember clearly my pure bliss in eating the Quail: Broccoli rabe, figs, balsamic brown butter…however I don’t really remember why. I raved about both the quail and the wine pairing. What that wine was and why I loved it so is forever lost in a wino haze. Occupational hazard really.
 Now we’re to the point in the evening that I know happened. I have photographic evidence. I know I thought the sorbets were great. I even remember favoring one over another. What flavors were they? Wouldn’t you like to know!! I guess you’ll have to just go to Calistoga and have them for yourself. Of course, they’ll be different flavors depending on the season but I’m sure they’ll be just as good.
I think this is still considered an ”up and coming” new restaurant. I think it will go far. We were completely bowled over by the food and the talent of the sommelier. I hope we can get back up to Calistoga again before reservations for JoLe become too hard to come by! And next time maybe I’ll get the 5 courses instead of 6, I was more full and drunk that I really ought to have been…yum.
Posted in avocado, bacon, beef, dinner, restaurant, review, seasonal menu, table dance, tasting menu, tomatoes | 1 Comment »
Thursday, October 14th, 2010
Bouchon
6534 Washington Street
Yountville, California 94599
707-944-8037
The Cowboy Junkies had a scheduled tour date on Friday night in Napa. We’re too far from there for it to be a day trip but I decided to use this show as a handy excuse for a wine country weekend. We drove up Friday morning and picked up Alan (who I interviewed last year) and made our way up to Yountville for lunch.
A couple of other friends met up with us so we had a table for 5 and appetites for about 10.
We all shared a wonderful bowl of mussels. We ate a Bouchon about 3 years ago and had the mussels then and never forgot them. They are just as good as the first day we tried them. The broth left in the bowl is heavenly to soak up with the crunchy bread from the bakery next door. And they are *not* shy with the frites. First with the mussels and then later in the meal with the steak frites. Even between the 5 of us, we didn’t finish them!
I got a salad to start. Salade de Legumes Marinées: salad of marinated garden cucumber, radish and pickled mushrooms wwith crab beignets and mint mousse. Every bit of this salad was interesting. The mushrooms were baby chantrelles; a little vinegary, not chewy…I love mushrooms but not usually pickled ones and these may have been my favorite part of the salad. Well, maybe the crab beignets. They looked like croutons, they puffed into flavor when bitten. A bowl of those would be ok with me!
 I can’t speak to the Salade de Cresson et d’Endives au Roquefort, Pommes et Noix: watercress & endive salad with Roquefort, orchard apples, toasted walnuts & walnut vinaiagrette but everyone at the table completely freaked out over the roquefort. Quotes like, “That’s the whole barnyard in there” and “The cheese is tasting you back.” Sounds horrid to me but they all seemed pleased!
 For a main course, I got the Carré de Porc: pork loin with brown butter pain perdu, toasted pistachios, young fennel and roasted beets with sauce laurier. I just recently jumped into the world of pork products. I cooked pork chops for the first time just about a month ago. Now it was time for me to see how pork should really taste. Wow. Somehow it was light and rich at the same time. I didn’t feel like I was eating a heavy meat but the flavor was staggering. Just to make sure the richness was fully appreciated, it was accompanied by a savory piece of french toast…I mean pain perdu. Really, it’s french toast. Fluffy, intoxicating butter disguised as bread.
 Last time we were at Bouchon I got the steak frites and, happily, two of my companions did this time. They were not disappointed except for in the fact that they couldn’t finish it. Bouchon does not follow Thomas Keller’s law of diminishing return philosophy. It’s all about abundance!
 When we sat down, my friend Nicole and I both noticed the dessert special on the chalkboard behind us: Pot de creme – Peanut butter and jelly. Oh yeah. I went there. Do you remember how good PB&J sandwiches were when you were a kid? PB&J on fluffy white Wonderbread with the crusts cut off. Have you tried that as an adult? It’s pretty foul. Not the childhood flavor. This dessert was that childhood memory. The custard was mild, the peanut butter creamy, the jelly grape. It was unbelievable—especially since I typically hate peanuts in desserts (cheap filler) and grape jelly (Denny’s jelly packets).
What was I saying about abundance? Oh yes…this slice of lemon tart was the size of the plate. It wasn’t a small plate. I think they probably just wanted to finish off the tart since we were the last ones in there from lunch. It was HUGE! When I saw Thomas Keller on his Bouchon cookbook tour, he said the first two things you should cook and master from the cookbook are the roast chicken and the lemon tart. I think I’ll just drive back up to Yountville and have another piece of this one!
I almost forgot the trainwreck comic relief next to us. There was a man eating alone with his huge expensive camera, taking pictures of every dish. Yes, I do too but I have a point and shoot pocket camera and would rather enjoy my meal than get the perfect picture (yep, the photos show that too). He got half way through what I think may have been the leg of lamb and sent it back saying it was too tough. Seriously—HALF WAY THROUGH. He got another main course, the cod I believe, and when he finished, left only a $5 tip. We were appalled! After we finished our food, the waiter came to clear the plates (now practically licked clean) and my husband said, “I’d like to send this back” and we all chuckled. The waiter said, “Oh, was it too tough?” What a good sport he was! He said people have expectations and if they don’t meet them, they’ll do what it takes to make up for it. I’m amazed the man was disappointed. I’m even more amazed the waitstaff handles it so well. True class.
I can’t wait to go back!
Tags: Bouchon, pb&j, pork, Yountville
Posted in alan anton, beef, celebrities, celebrity, cowboy junkies, restaurant, review, seasonal menu, table dance | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010
Oh so easy, oh so amazing. On the advice of the wonderful Rebecca from TLC Ranch (where I get my pork and eggs) I thawed the pork loin chops I bought in brine. I put about, I’d say, 1 c. of salt to about 1 gallon of water.
 In the brine I added a bay leaf and about a dozen peppercorns.
I had 2 pork chops, 1/2 lb each. I let them sit in the brine at room temperature for about 3 hours. This could sit in the fridge overnight instead but I forgot to do the prep the day before so there ya go.
I took them out of the brine, rinsed and patted them dry. I brushed them with olive oil, ground a little pepper on them and grilled them for about 8 minutes on each side.
Perfection I’m telling you!
Before I grilled the chops, I roasted some tomatillos. I left them on the grill until they started to burst. So juicy! I put those in the food processor with a clove of garlic, a jalapeno, juice of 1 lemon, some salt and pepper and that’s it! Zap that until it’s salsa-y, then spoon over anything and everything.
Tags: pork chops, tomatillo
Posted in recipe, recipes, self pleasuring | No Comments »
Wednesday, August 18th, 2010
Oh, summer. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways:
#1 Tomatoes
#2 Peaches
#3 Nectarines
#4 Pluots
…
I could go on but a picture is worth a thousand words:
Posted in food, seasonal menu | No Comments »
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