Alice Q. Foodie

San Diego Food Bank Food 4 Kids Fundraiser Participants and Prizes!

2009-11-23T08:47:00.000-08:00

"I like backpack because I can have food on Saturday and Sunday" - 3rd Grader, Bobier Elementary

That's "Can have food." Not "Can have free range, humanely raised, organic food" - just FOOD. Of any kind.

This is the kind of thing that makes me realize just how lucky we are who don't have to worry about the presence of food - and how far we have to go to get to our goal of clean, fair food for everyone. We'll never solve these problems if our kids don't have enough to eat. Without that they can't concentrate, they can't learn and they can't succeed, and the cycle of poverty continues. It really is possible to make a difference with just a little bit of effort. So let's get to it!

We've been thrilled with the response to our event so far - in just one day we've raised 33% of our goal, but we still have quite a ways to go! In order to give everyone a little extra incentive to donate Caron and I put out the call to our fellow bloggers and members of the community to donate prizes for a drawing to be held at the Little Italy Mercato at our backpack and food drive on December 12. The response was tremendous and we have a truly exciting array of prizes to offer!

There are two ways to enter the prize drawing. The first is to donate on the Firstgiving page at www.firstgiving.com/food4kids before December 11 at 8 PM. For every $25. you donate, you will receive one entry in the drawing. Be sure to provide your email address when you donate so we can contact you if you win!

The second way to enter is to bring a backpack and/or at least four packaged, non-perishable kid-appropriate food items to the Mercato for the food and backpack drive on December 12 between 9 and 11 AM. For each backpack or four food items donated, you will receive one entry in the drawing.*

The drawing will be held at 11 AM on December 12, 2009, at our donation booth at the Mercato. You do not have to be present to win. BUT - if you are present, you will get to choose your prize, first come first served! If you AREN'T present, you will get whatever isn't chosen by those who are - so I think you know what you need to do if you have your eye on any one prize in particular! **

Here is the round up of prizes that will be raffled off at the Mercato on the 12th. There may also be some late additions!

Caron Golden, local food writer and blogger behind San Diego Foodstuff - and my illustrious co-host is donating three prizes: A $25. gift card for the Ivy Hotel's Ultra Lounge and Wine Bar; lunch and an afternoon tour of Balboa International Market or 99 Ranch Market; and a set of 3 cookbooks: “Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day” by Zoe Francois, Ralph Brennan’s "New Orleans Seafood Cookbook,” and “The Pioneer Woman Cooks” by Ree Drummond.

Alice Robertson - yours truly is also donating three prizes: 1) a copy of Heston Blumenthal's "Fat Duck Cookbook;" 2) Three pounds (roughly) of home-baked holiday cookies and treats, to be delivered anywhere in Central San Diego by December 20th; and 3) A copy of Chez Panisse Vegetables and a tour of either the Saturday Little Italy Mercato, or Sunday Hillcrest Farmers Market.

Rachel Going, local pastry chef and writer of The Sugar Mama's Blog is providing several items: a gift certificate to U.S. Wellness Meats (a grassfed meat company out of Missouri); a handmade Swarovski Crystal necklace and earring set made by her fabulous mother; a gift certificate to Blind Lady Ale House; giftcards to both Leucadia Pizzeria and The 3rd Corner Wine Shop and Bistro; and hopefully a few more things that she's still in the process of negotiating - we will keep you posted! (Please also read her post - it's truly lovely.)

Mary and George of Taste Cheese in Hillcrest are supplying two tickets to any of their cheese classes, including their cheese and beer tastings - with a value of roughly $45. each.

Diane Stopford of In Your Kitchen is providing two $75. gift certificates that can be redeemed at Gringos, the Tower 23 Hotel or Moondoggies.

Matt and Young Mi Gordon of Urban Solace have donated a $75 gift certificate.

Candice Woo, San Diego Citybeat's Food Critic and local seafood purveyor Catalina Offshore Products are offering a $50.00 gift certificate and a VIP tour with Candice and Tommy Gomes - Catalina's Director of Sales.

Catt White, the Maestra of the Little Italy Mercato is offering a Mercato Market Bag (an insulated reusable shopping bag) containing a Mercato calendar, $20 in Mercato Money and assorted local food items (jam, vinegar, avocado oil, etc). A $75 value.

Kelly at Specialty Produce is donating a $30 gift certificate to Specialty Produce and an assortment of gourmet pantry goods including a jar of peppadew peppers, some Lemon Twist gourmet seasalt, a jar of Miel de Lavande (Pure Lavender Honey), some White Truffle Oil and Mexican Chocolate

Donna McLoughlin of our local Slow Food Urban San Diego Chapter is providing an autographed copy of "Flying Pans, Two Chefs One World," by local chefs Bernard Guillas and Ron Oliver of the Marine Room - a book Mario Batali has called a "Modern Masterpiece."

Adriana Zuniga of Adriana Zuniga Photography is graciously providing a one hour photography session and photos on disk

These participating food bloggers have also not only posted about the event on their blogs but offered up lovely prizes as well - please visit them to read more about the prizes they are offering and their stories about what motivated them to participate!

Leanne, the blogger behind Three Dog Kitchen is donating an autographed copy of David Leite's new cookbook, "The New Portuguese Table."

Jenny, the blogger behind Foray into Food: is donating a beautifully decorated custom 9" cake or dozen cupcakes.

Angie of Crazy Salad is donating a garden consultation with Urban Plantations, a local company that will transform your landscaping into an Edible Eden.

Howie at FoodieView is donating a copy of Thomas Keller's "Ad Hoc at Home."

Becky of Fruit Maven is providing a copy of The Fruit Hunters: A Story of Nature, Adventure, Commerce, and Obsession by Adam Leith Gollner.

Several other food bloggers are participating by helping us get the word out, donating their time and energy to the project!

Susan at Food Blogga

Amanda and Tyler of What We're Eating

Catherine of Koko's Corner

Heidi of Snook and Bubs

Maureen Clancy of Matters of Taste

If you have a chance, please visit all of our participants and thank them for their contributions!

*Suggested donation items for the Food and Backpack Drive at the Mercato include:
New, medium-sized neutral design backpacks, preferably red in color.
Toothbrush and kids toothpaste
Coloring books
School supplies (pencils, paper, pencil sharpeners, markers, crayons)
Nutritious kid-friendly foods, such as fruit roll ups, granola bars, boxed packaged food items like cereal, crackers, nutrition bars, pop top canned goods such as applesauce or other fruit, ready made macaroni and cheese and other easy convenient items.

**We are expecting that most of our donors will be local to San Diego - but everyone is eligible. Because out of town winners will obviously not be present for the drawing, we will ensure you receive something that can be easily shipped!

San Diego Food Bank Food 4 Kids Backpack Program Holiday Fundraiser!

2009-11-23T00:24:00.000-08:00

This holiday season, several San Diego food bloggers and other members of the local community are coming together to raise funds for the San Diego Food Bank’s Food 4 Kids Backpack Program. The Food 4 Kids Program was launched in 2008 to provide food for chronically hungry elementary school students on the weekends. Every Friday, participating students receive a backpack with child friendly items such as peanut butter, pop-top canned goods, cereal, juice boxes, fruit cups, raisins, pudding cups, granola bars, shelf-stable milk and macaroni and cheese tucked inside.

These kids receive free or reduced cost meals while school is in session, but do not have food available on the weekends or school holidays for themselves and their siblings. Food 4 Kids provides food directly to them, without requiring their parents to receive a referral to a local food pantry, pick up food at the pantry or prepare it at home.

Right now, only a fraction of the eligible kids are receiving food, and the need is tremendous. The program costs a mere $6.00 per week per child to fund, and a donation of $250.00 will fund a backpack for a child for the entire 36 week school year. Giving whatever you can afford will help the Food Bank maintain the program and hopefully expand it to additional schools. This is more crucial now than ever, with families with children facing increasing food insecurity, as described in this recent Washington Post article. The economy has been hard on all of us this year, but it has been hardest on those who were already struggling. Charitable donations are down, and hunger in San Diego County is up. Those of us who love food and view it as a pleasure are so fortunate to be in that position. The least we can do is try to ensure the children of our community don’t – quite literally - go hungry.

There are two ways to participate in our fundraising event, by donating through our Firstgiving fundraising page at www.firstgiving.com/food4kids, and by bringing items to our food and backpack drive at the Little Italy Mercato Farmers Market on Saturday, December 12 from 9-12. All donors on the Firstgiving page will be eligible to win prizes sponsored by local businesses, bloggers and individuals. (Funds donated through Firstgiving will go directly to the Food Bank.)

When you donate, please be sure to enter your email address so we can contact you if you win! A roundup will be published here tomorrow to let you know which blogs are participating, and list the prizes sponsored by the blogs and other community members. Signed cookbooks, market tours, gift certificates and other items will be up for grabs.

If you would like to join us at the backpack and food drive at the Mercato, suggested donation items include:

New medium-sized neutral design backpacks, preferably red in color.
Toothbrush and kids toothpaste
Coloring books
School supplies (pencils, paper, pencil sharpeners, markers, crayons)
Nutritious kid-friendly foods, such as fruit roll ups, granola bars, boxed packaged food items like cereal, crackers, nutrition bars, pop top canned goods such as applesauce or other fruit, ready made macaroni and cheese and other easy convenient items.

Thank you so much for your contribution, and don't forget to check back tomorrow for the links to participating blogs and the prize roundup!

Lotus of Siam - Las Vegas

2009-11-19T11:21:00.000-08:00

It's always fun to find a place that feels like a secret, even if it isn't really one anymore. On our last two trips to Vegas we've gone "fancy" one night with L'Atelier at Joel Robuchon, and more casual on the other with Lotus of Siam - an unassuming Thai restaurant off the strip that has become a can't miss destination for foodies. LOS, as it's known for short, owes its fame not only to word of mouth, but to a series of rave reviews from food critics that began appearing shortly after it opened. The restaurant has thoughtfully lined an entire wall of the tiny waiting area with them, giving you something to read while you wait.

I can't claim to be a connoisseur of Thai food - but I do know what I like, and the food at LOS is better than any Thai food I've encountered to date. Some people feel it's a bit overrated, but if you aren't a connoisseur yourself or an implacable Chowhound, I think you will also be pleased.

We loved the Soft Shell Crab Salad, a pile of light and crispy fried soft shell crab, tossed with slivered green apple, peanuts, cilantro and onion in a slightly sweet fish-sauce spiked vinaigrette. It's a seasonal off-menu specialty, so you'll have to ask about it. We also enjoyed the popular Northern dish Nam Khao Tod, pictured below - crisp rice and Thai sausage with chiles, mint, onion, peanut and herbs in a tart and spicy lime dressing - and one of my favorite can't-miss-it-dishes at any Thai restaurant, Som Tam, or Green Papaya Salad. The Nam Khao Tod was crunchy, savory and tart - while the Som Tam was spicy, sweet and mouth-puckering - with the perfect amount of fish sauce funk.

After a successful run at the starters - on our first trip back in May with friends Lisa and Luis, we had a couple of minor missteps. The beef dish below was a little bland, and the calamari was a little rubberier than we'd hoped...

But we also had a lovely Choo Chee Shrimp - a sweet and spicy red curry that is one of my favorite dishes in Thai cuisine.

On our second visit a few months later, the four of us returned with our friend Tracy and placed our fate in the hands of our waiter, Tony, who Lisa and Luis had met before. After repeating our three favorite starters from the previous visit (and after contemplating the lobster special - a huge pile of the beasts for $125.00) we let him choose our entrees. He brought us Sweet and Sour Sea Bass, Grilled Shrimp with Lime Sauce, Green Curry Duck, Drunken Noodles with Pork, and Beef with Eggplant.

While he didn't bring us the most adventurous dishes on the menu, we ate very well. The Sweet and Sour Seabass was irresistible, with its crisp shell and flaky flesh, and the Green Curry Duck (pictured below) was a universal favorite - the best-loved dish of both our visits. The sauce on the shrimp was tart and interesting, but the shrimp themselves were a little tough, and the Pork Drunken Noodles were as good as any I've had elsewhere but not remarkably better. I have to confess I hardly remember the beef with eggplant dish, which must mean it wasn't remarkable either.

Don't get me wrong though. Even the dishes that weren't "exceptional" were delicious here, and we thoroughly enjoyed it all. I'm looking forward to a return trip to try some more of the Northern Menu and some of their specialties - maybe even that lobster. (If you go, be sure to ask about their specials and off-menu items - they seem to have a lot of them.)

We trusted Tony to choose our wine, and he brought us a 2005 Emrich Schonleber Riesling, which was absolutely perfect. They specialize in matching appropriate wines to their dishes, so don't be shy about asking for a recommendation. The service is very friendly and the servers have very obviously worked there for years.

One of the best things about dining at Lotus of Siam is, of course, the price - especially compared to the luxury dining destinations of Vegas. Our meal for 5 - three starters, five entrees and two bottles of wine was only $160.00, and $76.00 of that was the wine.

Now, aren't you going to go there on your next trip to Vegas? I hope so. Just make sure you make a reservation - otherwise you may find yourself hanging out in that little lobby reading Jonathan Gold's fawning review from 2000 for a long, loooong time.

Lotus of Siam
953 E Sahara Avenue
Las Vegas, NV 89104
(702) 735-3033

Zirk Ubu "Adrift" at Sushi this Weekend

2009-11-17T10:54:00.000-08:00

If you're in San Diego and looking for something cool to do this weekend, consider checking out Zirk Ubu's show "Adrift" in Sushi's performance art space downtown. Zirk Ubu combines performance art, circus skills, puppetry, and story-telling to create a wacky, artful, sexy, shocking, delightful and impressive show. We became instant fans after seeing them at the Sushi Red Ball this summer.

Despite the fact that it's a circus, it's not for kids - 18 and over only. Thursday night is a "pay what you can" preview, and they're doing shows on Friday and Saturday night at 8, and Sunday at 7. Tickets are $20. for the general public, $15. for members and students, and can be purchased here.

Hope to see you there!

Nikki McClure

2009-11-13T09:43:00.000-08:00

I've fallen in love with the work of artist and illustrator Nikki McClure. She works in papercuts, which I find impossible to resist, and I love her simple but evocative themes: family, crafts, tasks, the weather...

... they convey such beauty and emotion ...

Recently, I picked up this accordion foldout postcard book at the SF MOMA. When I unfurled it in the store, a woman immediately walked up to ask me where I found it. I don't think I will ever be able to bring myself to tear any of the cards out - they look so beautiful together.

I've since found a great source for her merchandise online at Buy Olympia a website promoting local artists from the Northwest.

If you think her work looks familiar, she has illustrated at least two childrens' books, including "All in a Day" and she did the cover art for Slow Food Nation.

A full collection of papergoods with her illustrations can be found here on Buy Olympia
The postcard book is here
The mini gift cards pictured above are here
Buy Olympia carries goods from a number of local artists - a full list can be found here
Nikki's current portfolio can be viewed here

images from Buy Olympia and Nikki McClure.com

Two Decadent Vegan Dessert Recipes - Twix Bars and a Bonus Surprise

2009-11-11T09:37:00.000-08:00

As promised, I am back with the recipe for the Vegan Twix Bars. As a bonus, I also have another decadent vegan dessert that might actually be better than the Twix. If you can believe that.

It's a pity I don't have a picture, but it was a Chocolate Pudding Pie, based on this post from Deb. It involves copious amounts of coconut milk - the rich, full-fat kind - so neither of these are diet recipes, but they're not meant to be. Dessert is an indulgence and should be enjoyed as such, even by vegans.

Vegan baking and dessert-making are of course hampered by the fact that no butter, cream, milk or eggs are involved. I gave myself a head start by choosing two desserts that don't include eggs and aren't baked (except for the cookie crust) so I didn't have to worry a whole lot about structure or texture - two major challenges vegan bakers face. (In other words, don't think me a hero, I cheated a bit!)

The Twix bars were inspired by Sherry Yard's recipe. The cookie crust seemed simple at first, just sub Earth Balance (or other trans-fat free margarine) for the butter - but it didn't quite work out that way. The margarine and sugar never quite whipped to a fluffy texture, and by the time I was done with it, the dough texture was elastic, which is not a good sign. You want a tender, crumbly dough when making short crust - a stretchy one will be tough. I threw the whole thing out and started over, changing the ratios to create a formula I hoped would work better. Luckily, it did.

The caramel was the most nerve-wracking part. I started with a traditional method - cooking the sugar with water and a bit of corn syrup, thinking I'd add the soy milk and other ingredients after it had caramelized. But then I started to wonder - what would happen if I added soy milk all at once to hot sugar? Would the moisture content cause it to crystallize into a mass? Would it never thicken?? Panic set in. The vegan recipe I had looked at said to cook everything all at once - margarine, soy milk and all - so I went ahead and dumped everything else in there with the sugar.

I thought my pot was big enough, but once the mixture came to a rolling boil, it wanted to roll right out of the pot, so I changed to a bigger Le Creuset. Here it came again. I couldn't get the temperature over 220 with the flame at that level, so I dumped the whole thing into my 8 quart stockpot, and brought the heat back up again. It looked pathetic at first, coming only about 1/8 of the way up the pot, but when it came back to a boil, it climbed about 3/4 of the way up. I share with you here what I wish I'd known. Be patient and use a very big pot.

Here, without further ado - are the recipes. Enjoy them in good health (for our animal friends at least) this holiday season!

Vegan Twix Bars
adaped from Desserts by the Yard by Sherry Yard, and this vegan caramel recipe from Dog Hill Kitchen

Caramel:
3 cups sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup corn syrup
2 1/2 cups plain soy milk
1 stick Earth Balance margarine, cut into four pieces.
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp sea salt

Crust
1 1/2 sticks Earth Balance margarine at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 /2 vanilla bean
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 Tablespoons ground rice
2 cups cake flour

Topping:
5 oz dark chocolate - chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
2 tsp trans fat free vegetable shortening

coarsely chopped salted peanuts

Bake the cookie crust:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x14 inch baking pan with baking spray or vegetable oil and line with parchment paper. Oil the parchment.

To make the ground rice, grind about 1/2 a cup of white rice in a food processor until fine - sift and grind again. The texture should be like whole grain flour. Set two tablespoons aside.

In a stand mixture fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the Earth Balance with the sugar until light and fluffy (or as light and fluffy as they will get.) Scrape the seeds out of the vanilla bean pod with a paring knife, and add to the mixture along with the salt. Beat until incorporated. With the mixer on low, add the rice and blend in the cake flour 1/4 cup at a time. Mix just until incorporated. Press evenly into your pan, flattening the surface. Bake at 350 for about 15-20 minutes, until set and lightly browned.

While the crust cools, make the caramel.
Put the sugar, water, corn syrup, Earth Balance and soy milk in a large stockpot and heat, stirring constantly until the mixture comes to a boil and the sugar is dissolved. Boil rapidly, stirring with a wooden spoon - until the mixture reaches 245 degrees on a digital thermometer. Stir in the vanilla extract and salt. Pour over the cooling crust.

For the topping, melt chocolate with shortening by heating for 30 second intervals on 50% power in your microwave, stirring after each round. When it's good and warm, just stir to melt the remaining chunks. (Use 20 second intervals to speed things up if you still have some large chunks in there.) Pour over the solid but still warm caramel and spread to the edges of the pan with an offset spatula. Sprinkle the top liberally with chopped salted peanuts. Let cool completely, or place in the refrigerator to set. To cut, lift the whole plank out of the pan using the parchment and cut with a chef's knife.

****************

Vegan Chocolate Pudding Pie
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Crust:
1 store bought 9 inch graham cracker crust (those Keebler crusts are vegan!) or a homemade one made with margarine instead of butter.

Pudding filling:
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons good-quality unsweetened cocoa powder such as Valrhona or Scharffenberger
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups almond milk
1 cup of coconut milk - or an additional cup of almond milk if you prefer.
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (not more than 60% cacao), finely chopped

Whipped Coconut Cream:
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
2 cups chilled coconut cream (Chill 2 cans overnight, or for at least a few hours and use the creamy solid part on the top)
Bittersweet chocolate shavings for garnish (optional)

Make pudding filling:
Whisk together cornstarch, 1/3 cup sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, then gradually whisk in almond and coconut milk. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly - then boil, whisking, two minutes (until mixture thickens). Remove from heat and whisk in chocolate and vanilla until smooth. If there are any lumps, press the mixture through a sieve.

Pour filling into shell and cover the surface with wax paper if you want to prevent a skin from forming. Chill until cold - at least two hours.

Just before serving, beat the coconut cream with two tablespoons powdered sugar and vanilla until it holds soft peaks. (It takes a while, but it will get there!) Spoon onto slices of pie as you serve, and top with with bittersweet chocolate shavings or a dusting of cocoa.

Homemade Twix Bars and 100 Other Vegan Delights

2009-11-09T00:00:00.000-08:00

While I can't honestly say I'm giving serious thought to going completely vegan, I am the first to admit that I think we should treat the food we eat from animals with greater reverence. It's all too easy to forget about the messy process that comes before that hunk of flesh (or butter or cheese) hits the table, and that's the way most people like it, frankly.

For those who know the truth and have given it some thought though, it's more complicated. If we can't hand feed our own pigs or milk our own cows, the best we can do is buy the most conscientiously prepared animal products we can find and make more room in our diets for non-animal based foods. I've heard Mark Bittman's personal system is to eat vegan for breakfast and lunch. Michael Pollan's tells us to "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants," and Jonathan Safran Foer has a new book out called "Eating Animals," wherein he says of my generation: "We are the ones who will be asked, what did you do when you learned the truth about eating animals?"

Personally, I struggle with this quite a bit. I was brought up in a family where meat was the centerpiece of every meal, three times a day. It's a hard habit to break. I keep telling myself that there are plenty of delicious things out there that don't involve animal products, but I sometimes have trouble remembering what they are. In an effort to remind myself that vegan food can be "craveable," as those terrible chain restaurants like to say, I set out to make a list of 100 Vegan foods - both dishes and ingredients, that are utterly delicious. I listed things that satisfy me in the same way that butter, cheese and burgers do. Things that I am thrilled to eat. That I, ok, crave.

I thought someone else wondering about or struggling with the same thing might want to see it, so here it is:

Granola with Almond Milk
Fried Zucchini
Watermelon
Crusty French Bread
A pot of Rancho Gordo Beans
Ma Po Tofu (made with mushrooms)
Caramelized Roasted Root Vegetables
Fried Shallots
Avocado Sandwiches
Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice
Dark Chocolate
Garbanzo Bean Curry
Jasmine Rice
French Potato Salad
Peanut butter and Jelly sandwiches
Humphry Slocombe Jesus Juice sorbet
Alesmith Old Numbskull Barleywine
Eggplant Stir Fried with Garlic, Ginger, Soy and Mirin
Falafel
Pico de Gallo
Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce
Lucques olives
Tapenade
Roasted Garlic
Pickled Vegetables
Hummus
Tortillas and Tortilla Chips
Patatas Bravas
Daal
Tomatillo Salsa
Corn on the Cob
Steel Cut Oatmeal with brown sugar, golden raisins and cashew or almond milk
Dried Mango Slices
Oven Dried Tomatoes with olive oil, garlic and basil
Champagne
Mary Jane candies (molasses taffy filled with peanut butter)
Black Truffles
Maitake Mushrooms
Black Trumpet Mushrooms
Curried Pumpkin (or any other squash) Soup
Caramel Corn (most is without butter)
Braised Kale with Garlic, Pine Nuts and Raisins
Pommes Frites with ketchup
Peanut Coleslaw with Asian Vinaigrette
French Lentil Soup
Roasted Chestnuts
Forked Avocado on Toast
Peppadew peppers
Radishes with olive oil and salt
Arugula Salad with Grilled Peaches and Balsamic Vinaigrette
Hot Chocolate made with dark chocolate, coconut milk and almond milk
Churros
Fried green tomatoes
Spiced pecans
Polenta
Risotto (made with vegetable broth)
Lentil Berbere stew
Edamame
Baba Ghanouj
Roasted Chickpeas
Braised Leeks
Carrot Ginger Soup
Preserved Lemons
Crisp, Juicy Apples
Orange Blossom Honey
A Perfect Espresso
Cold Sesame (or Peanut) Noodles
Lotus Root Chips
Smoothies made with soy protein, frozen banana, almond milk and almond butter
Panzanella salad
Fried Sage Leaves
Spicy Pan-Roasted Cauliflower
Asian Grilled Green Beans
Chimichurri Sauce
Poached Pears
A glass of Tokaji
Carrot and Edamame salad
Pan-roasted Brussel Sprouts
An Ice Cold Vodka Tonic with Lime
Pomegranate seeds
Mint Chutney
Dark chocolate covered frozen bananas rolled in chopped peanuts
Chocolate Pudding pie made with almond milk in a graham cracker crust, topped with Whipped Coconut Cream
Roasted Beets with olive oil, thyme, garlic and orange zest.
Thick Cut Potato Chips
Sangria loaded with fruit
Glenmorangie Scotch - aged in port barrels
Green Papaya salad (made with vegetarian fish sauce)
Cippolini Onions
African Peanut Soup
Warm Chickpea Salad on a bed of Arugula
Kettle Corn
Japanese Hot Pot with Mushrooms
Fava Beans
Pea Tendrils
Oreos
Sweet Potato Fries
Biscuits (made with shortening)
Fresh-squeezed lemonade
Heirloom tomataoes off the vine

The Twix bars are not on the list, but they certainly could be. Some good friends of ours recently went vegan, and I was challenged with making an indulgent dessert when we had them over for dinner last week - on Halloween to be exact. (Hence the candy - get it?)

I bastardized the recipe based on Sherry Yard's recipe in her cookbook and a vegan caramel recipe I found online. They wouldn't fool you for the real thing, but they were very, very, good. There is quite a bit to be said about the recipe, so I will post it separately.

Sorry to be such a tease, but you won't have to wait long. I promise!

Koffi Coffee - Palm Springs

2009-11-05T08:17:00.000-08:00

Seeing this fabulous Design Sponge city guide for Palm Springs the other day reminded me that I have been meaning to tell you about Koffi in Palm Springs for a while now.

My job takes me out to the desert a few times a year for early morning court appearances. Whenever I have the time, I turn it into a little mini vacation - spending the night before and cruising through Palm Springs for a quick peek through the some of the best thrift and vintage stores to be found. I'm not one of those people who would NEVER go to a Starbucks, but I do like to frequent the local joints when I can, and Koffi makes this easy.

It's every bit as serious a coffee bar as you will find in San Francisco or Los Angeles - and the happening heart of the town's social scene in the mornings - when everyone, it seems, is parked on their courtyard lawn out back sipping their morning joe.

They make their own pastries and a few decent pre-made panini sandwices - they're nothing to write home about, but they'll keep you going. The real draw though is the coffee. They brew ground coffee by the cup, and their baristas pull shots to rival the best I've had anywhere.

I'm heading out there again in a couple of weeks, with Grace's list in hand. I'm hoping for another breakfast at the Parker, but if I can't quite swing that, or decide to spend all my time at the Angel View Thrift Mart and the 111 Antique Mall - I know I'll be perfectly content with my morning cup of Koffi.

Koffi
(near Trina Turk and downtown PS on Palm Canyon)
515 North Palm Canyon Drive at Alejo
Open 5:30 a.m to 8:00 p.m.
760.416.2244

2nd location (close to the Parker)
1700 South Camino Real at East Palm Canyon Drive
Open 5:30 a.m to 8:00 p.m.
760.322.7776

Other Palm Springs posts:
A Weekend in the Inferno
P.S. I Love You Part I - the Viceroy and Palm Canyon Drive
P.S. I Love You Part II - the Parker Palm Springs

So Much Good Stuff...Upcoming Events in San Diego

2009-10-29T14:27:00.000-07:00

This has kind of turned into San Diego week over here, but I guess that's ok since I haven't been posting much about the local scene just lately. Over the next several weeks, we have a number of culinary events coming up in San Diego that I thought you might like to know about. This Sunday is Celebrate the Craft at the Torrey Pines Lodge (pictured above), where local chefs team up with local food producers to create dishes showcasing the best of San Diego's bounty. Last year's event was phenomenal, despite the drizzling rain. We're also coming up on San Diego Beer Week, offering a stupendous array of events during the second week of November, and the annual San Diego Bay Food and Wine Festival later in November.

There have been so many great things happening lately that I've been having a hard time keeping track of them myself - so I decided to create a little event calendar over on the lefthand side of this blog. I'll update it with all the events I would attend if I could: gardening classes at Seeds at City Urban Farm at City College, free cooking classes, events sponsored by San Diego Roots and Slow Food Urban San Diego, Beer Week events at Farmhouse Cafe, Cafe Chloe, Blind Lady Ale House, Small Bar, Hamilton's.... the list goes on.

Hope all you locals are able to get out there and enjoy some of these events - and hope everyone is enjoying the fall weather as much as we are!

Joey's Smokin BBQ - Downtown San Diego

2009-10-27T06:30:00.000-07:00

I think most people, if you ask them, would say they like barbecue. Within that group though, there seem to be two types - those who are passionate about it, and those who just like it. Those who just like it won't notice whether the meat was sauced after cooking, whether there's a smoke ring on the brisket, or if the ribs are truly falling off the bone - if it tastes good, that's enough for them.

The passionate ones are adamant. The meat must be smoked. If not, it's just grilled. But pit smokers create a lot of air pollution and risk drawing the ire of not only the neighbors but the Air Pollution Control District. (Remember what happened to Phil's a few years ago?) There's also the matter of cost. Smoking meat on a large scale requires a lot of wood - not exactly an economical fuel source. As a result, most barbecue restaurants here in town par-cook their meat, then finish it on a grill with a rub and some sauce. Regardless of how you feel about the authenticity of this method, the results can be delicious when it's done right.

Joey's has several outlets, one of which just opened a few blocks from my office downtown. It's just North of Broadway, between the Local and the Yardhouse on 4th Avenue, a stone's throw from the Gaslamp. (It's not in the Gaslamp as the website specifies, but that's being nitpicky I suppose.) They've been open for a couple of months, but this past week was their "Grand Opening" - completely with a TV crew filming a reality show about the place.

On my first visit for lunch with some co-workers, we ordered a sampler of things to try: a "three meat" platter with sliced brisket, beef ribs and pork ribs, and a pulled pork platter. For the sides we chose cole slaw and beans, and added an extra side of collards. We also decided to try the hush puppies, pictured below - a South Atlantic variety of onion-spiked corn fritters not often found in San Diego. Corn muffins were also served with the platters.

The hush puppies were the highlight of the meal, crisp and well seasoned, served with a lovely remoulade sauce. The rest of it didn't quite measure up, even to the level of an inauthentic bbq joint. The pulled pork was mushy, the ribs were rubbery, and all of the meat was doused with a slightly too sweet tomato-based sauce called, fittingly, "Suh-weet" sauce. The sliced brisket was the exception - tender and flavorful even with the sauce. The beans and coleslaw were passable but a little too sweet, and the collards were al dente when they should have been tender. The corn muffins served with the meal were cold, rubbery, and again, too sweet.

It's hard to form a credible opinion (especially a negative one) about a restaurant based on one meal though, so before writing this, I convinced James to return to Joey's with me to give it another shot over the weekend. It was a lot less crowded this time around, there being no downtown lunch crowd and no film crew. We ordered a similar meal, but received a very different looking plate. Instead of the sliced brisket we enjoyed on the earlier visit, we found this:

At first I thought it was a mistake and we'd received pulled pork instead of the brisket, but no - after tasting it I realized it was, in fact, beef. The explanation we received was that the coupon we had used didn't specify what kind of brisket was included. I couldn't find any reference to chopped brisket anywhere on the menu though, and the platter we had ordered expressly offers sliced brisket as an option, so the whole thing was just a little strange. Our very agreeable server did bring us some sliced brisket, but it wasn't quite as good as what I'd had the first time around. The lump of sodden, chopped meat sat untouched.

Our other two meat choices were the pork ribs and the hot link. The hot links are house-made and the one on the platter was split and grilled. Other than the hush puppies, which were just as good as they had been before, the hot link was the best thing on the table. The ribs were a little cold and certainly no better than they had been the first time around. The pulled pork sandwich was mushy and unappetizing. Accompanied by a side of cold and pasty yellow macaroni and cheese, it had all the appeal of a school cafeteria lunch. The corn muffins were just as cold, rubbery and too sweet as they had been the first time around.

While ordering, I spotted a happy hour menu on the counter offering several appetizer items after 3:00 PM for $1.99 including the onion rings, so I added them to our order. If you're a fan of the large tempura battered style ring, they were pretty good - especially with a beer (props for offering some local brews.) Joey does alright with the deep fryer, it would seem.

Joey's has an usually complex menu for a barbecue joint so we couldn't try it all - but assuming the meat is the thing (and it certainly should be) I think we got the gist of it. It might not be such a bad place for a beer and some hush puppies or onion rings after work, but The Local and the Yardhouse already have that block pretty well covered for bar food and beer. If they can't move beyond the industrial quality food we were served - and in a hurry - I predict a rough go of it for Joey's in their downtown location.

Joey's Smokin' BBQ
1041 4th Ave
(619) 702-2226

Tortilleria Salsa Market - El Cajon

2009-10-26T07:30:00.000-07:00

Throughout the many years I've lived in San Diego, it seems I've moved steadily East. I lived in adorable bachelorette apartments in Bankers Hill and Mission Hills, and little houses in Normal Heights and Kensington, and now I've finally settled in the East County - Mt. Helix to be exact.

Though the area has definitely grown on me, it's a tough place for a foodie to call home. I thought I had done a pretty good job of scouting out the gems, but I was delighted to find a new one in El Cajon recently on a recommendation from my good friend and fellow blogger Jora. A small Mexican grocery store and tortilleria with a takeout counter called Tortilleria Salsa Market.

I'd heard her mention the place before, but my fire was really lit when her husband brought some food home when I happened to be visiting a few weeks ago. The chips, salsas and ceviche were so good that I went looking for the place myself the very next day. I found it on Chase, just a few blocks West of Avocado.

Since then, the ceviche has become a staple in this household, and we've been making regular runs for their chips and salsa too (the verde is especially good.)

They have a full carniceria - Jora sometimes buys their carne asada to grill for parties.

The bags of chips are kind of hard to find - look for them stacked on top of the produce on the back wall. They're fresh, crisp and not too greasy. El Indio's might have the edge, but just barely.

Their tortillas are perfection - made daily so they're ultra fresh. These were still warm. They make their own carnitas and chicharrones, and different guisados each day.

The produce is inexpensive and includes pomegranates, quince, Mexican limes and finger bananas in addition to the usual suspects - potatoes, onions, avocados, sweet potatoes and citrus.

Pinatas for children's birthday parties hang from the ceiling. They also have just about every Mexican grocery item you could want and some you might not necessarily expect. I needed ginger and soy sauce for a recipe and was able to find them here.

I haven't had a chance to make my way through the rest of their menu yet because I'm still stuck on the ceviche and their carne asada burrito. The ceviche is a perfectly balanced sweet-tart blend of tomato, onion, lime and shrimp, and the burrito is are a cut above the usual taco shop fare - stuffed with juicy meat, fresh pico de gallo and guacamole. A burrito, a bag of chips, some ceviche and salsas make a delightful feast for two, with plenty of leftovers for around $20. You can trust me on this - I speak from (lots of) experience!

Tortilleria Salsa Market
480 W. Chase Avenue
El Cajon, CA 92020
(619) 588-5217

The Neon Sign Boneyard and Luv It Frozen Custard - Las Vegas

2009-10-19T18:45:00.000-07:00

On this trip to Vegas, I had something I've never had before...

A ride.

Usually I'm stuck with the places I can walk or cab to along the Strip - but this time I had a chance to get out of town. Not very far out of town, but still. On one of his recent trips, James connected with Tracy, a friend of a friend with a kick ass Mini Cooper convertible. It really doesn't get much better than that for tooling around Vegas.

I'd read about the neon sign graveyard, and Tracy was game for the trip - but I wasn't sure how to go about visiting. After a little research, I discovered that they have a website, and are in the process of setting up a real honest to goodness museum that will be open round the clock in the near future. For the time being though, you have to make an appointment in advance and pay $15. for the tours which are given at least twice a day.

We weren't sure if we could get into one of the tours (I didn't receive a response to my email inquiry and they didn't answer the phone) but we decided to take our chances and just show up. We got lucky, but I would not recommend this approach. The people we replaced showed up after the tour started - so if they'd been on time I think we would have been out of luck.

When I did receive an email from them later that afternoon (on Friday) they were booked until Wednesday, so definitely make your appointments as far in advance as possible. They're staffed with volunteers, so it may take them a day or two to respond to your inquiry. At $15. though, it's well worth the wait and the price of admission.

The sign "boneyard" as they call it consists of two fenced in areas chock full of enormous old signs in various states of disrepair. It's a very popular spot for fashion and wedding photo shoots, and some of the areas are sort of "arranged" with that in mind. It's a lot of fun to photograph, but it wasn't easy to get shots without people in them during the tour. We kept falling behind and missing the commentary for the sake of a good picture, but the tour included lots of interesting Las Vegas history.

I love how the signs look juxtaposed against the dirt and weeds growing right around them. It has this great air of decaying grandeur about it.

This W shows the rungs maintenance workers used to have to climb to replace the bulbs in the signs. Apparently this sign appeared in an episode of CSI Las Vegas - with a dead body hanging on it.

This El Cortez sign was one of my favorites - not as flashy as some, but I love the script and the washed out turquoise color.

Some Stardust stars - I remember these...

This turned out to be one of my favorite photos with all the shadows and colors. Brad Pitt was supposedly photographed in this spot.

The plan, ultimately, is to have visitor's center housed in the La Concha lobby, a distinctive modern curvilinear concrete structure which has been moved to the corner near the sign lots. They're also restoring several of the most iconic signs and objects and installing them on posts in the median above North Las Vegas Boulevard. The Silver Slipper has been installed just in front of the museum, and the waving cowboy is just down the street, near downtown. It's great to see these icons restored as decorative objects and it's exciting to see such passion about a modern decorative art form in the staff. When it's open, I think the museum will really be something to see.

After the almost two hour tour, it was hot and we were parched and hungry - so I persuaded Tracy to help me find the Luv It Frozen Custard stand. It's actually about halfway between the Strip and the boneyard, just off Las Vegas Boulevard near the Stratosphere.

They have a huge list of rotating flavors, but make only a few each day. On the day of our visit, Vanilla, Chocolate, Strawberry, Lemon and Pumpkin were available. After tasting almost all of them, I chose Vanilla and Lemon, and Tracy chose Chocolate and Pumpkin. Their frozen custard is made fresh daily, and it's softer, creamier and a little bit richer tasting than ice cream - but has less fat and sugar. It's not quite as soft as soft serve, but close. It has no air whipped into it and no ice crystals, making it fantastically smooth. It's actually a little bit unusual in this part of the country (it's more common in the Northern Midwest) which makes it worth a trip if you're in the area. They also make sundaes - the most popular of which is the "Western" - fresh custard covered with warm caramel and hot fudge, topped with salted pecans and a maraschino cherry.
The Lemon Custard was a delight, with that bright yellow color and distinctive flavor I remembered from childhood. (I used to get it at Baskin Robbins ages ago, but I haven't seen it in a while.) The Vanilla was also a perfect specimen, creamy and rich with true vanilla flavor.

We already have another trip planned next year - we're driving to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and stopping in Vegas both coming and going. Don't think it hasn't already occurred to me that with our own car, the possibilities for off-strip dining are limitless. I may very well eat nothing but frozen custard and Thai food the whole time!

The Neon Museum - Sign Graveyard
821 Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas, NV
(702) 387-6366

Luv It Frozen Custard
505 E Oakey Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89104
(702) 384-6452

Au Revoir, Gourmet

2009-10-14T09:20:00.000-07:00

Last Monday, October 5, 2009 - just two years shy of its 70th birthday - Conde Nast announced the shuttering of Gourmet Magazine. I was devastated. Gourmet was indulgent, yes, but also thoughtful and intelligent - creative and erudite. Everyone in the food world recognized and revered it like no other food publication for that reason.

Much has been said in the last week about why this happened and what it means for food journalism. I did my own mourning, worked through my grief, read the multitude of eulogies and op-ed pieces out there and have come to my own conclusion.

We've been robbed.

We, the readers, have been robbed of the most thoughtful, creative and educated food writing being produced - but as a society, we've lost something even more important. Sure there are other outlets for food writing out there, but Gourmet was more than that - it was a cornerstone of food literature and journalism. As Tony Bourdain put it shortly after the announcement, "It's the center of gravity, a major planet that's just disappearing." In the space of a week, it went up in a puff of smoke. Employees were given one week to clear their desks. Entire issues, completed for months, will never be produced.

There are cultural institutions that we support as a society, despite the fact that they wouldn't survive in a purely profit-based world. Museums, historical sites and national parks fall into this category. Perhaps it's time for some of our institutions of print journalism to join them.

The days when advertising and subscription revenues could support them are clearly over. Tycoons who once reaped profits from their publications are now keeping their papers alive through infusions of their own cash. SI Newhouse of Conde Nast is reportedly one of these people. Conde Nast is a privately held company, and SI holds the purse strings. Faced with the decision to spend his own personal fortune to keep the magazine alive - he made the only decision he could be expected to make. (If you read the reports carefully, McKinsey wasn't even asked to look at Gourmet - the plug had likely already been pulled based on Gourmet's comparisons to Bon Appetit's numbers.) SI also owns the New Yorker, Vanity Fair and several other prominent magazines. The Tribune Company, which owns the Chicago Tribune and the LA Times is in bankruptcy, and other families such as the Sulzbergers of the New York Times and the Grahams of the Washington Post must also see the writing on the wall.

I have a hard time imagining literature without the New Yorker or Atlantic Monthly, or news without the New York Times, the Washington Post, the LA Times or the Chicago Tribune. Self-produced content, blogs and the like, can't replace these institutions. It's not just an issue of entertainment value. Think about the role muck-raking investigative journalism has played in our recent history. Should we have to rely on these entities to be profitable for their owners in order to perform this critical function?

Some people believe the failure of the publishing houses to understand how the internet works and update accordingly is responsible for their demise, but I'm not so sure. Could Gourmet really drive enough page views and sell enough online advertising to support its staff salaries, test kitchens, travel expenses and overhead? Even if it could, it doesn't matter if the bosses aren't interested. The old guard media companies (including Conde Nast) are shockingly old fashioned and haven't shown much interest in changing their business models. Assuming that pattern continues - at some point all of the print-ad supported publications will lose enough money that their owners will be forced to pull the plug. When that happens, the readers will lose the publications we've relied upon for decades, the employees will lose their jobs, and our culture will lose a body of work that cannot be replaced - just as happened with Gourmet a week ago.

Can we bail out these cultural institutions like we bailed out our financial institutions? Should we? If so, how should we go about it? A state run newspaper would understandably make a lot of people nervous - but foundations could be set up, congressional grants, the kind of funding that keeps our other cultural institutions alive such as public radio, the Smithsonian museums, our public parks and wildlife preserves.

I've just started to see discussions about these issues in the last few weeks, but they didn't hit home for me until I realized how much we have to lose, and how quickly. Seeing Gourmet dismantled in the space of a week at the whim of an 81 year old tycoon was enough to get my attention. What will it take for you?

(photos from the Gourmet Institute at Conde Nast headquarters in NYC, October 2007 and 2008. Top: Ruth Reichl in her office; Middle: Food Editor Ian Knauer in his test kitchen, and Bottom, Grant Achatz doing a demonstration.)

A Sweet Afternoon in San Francisco

2009-10-07T08:47:00.000-07:00

After leaving Bar Jules, the first stop on our sweets tour was just down the street, at Miette Confiserie - on Octavia, just off of Hayes.

It's like a 1950's Parisian fantasy of a candy shop, with the wrapped and unwrapped wares displayed in glass apothecary jars, baskets and bowls on tables - and a case filled with their meticulously decorated cupcakes and cakes in the back.

I picked up some beautifully wrapped Italian candies, a few house made caramels (not so hot, actually) and some Poco Dolce tiles. I love the individually wrapped ones - they're not easy to find.

Next up was Paulette Macarons. I have been a sucker for these little things ever since I tried them for the first time at the Bay Bread La Boulange in the Fillmore a couple of years ago. Those first ones I tasted are still the best in my memory - but Paulette's come very close. They're sweet, chewy and flavorful, with a jam, buttercream or ganache filling - depending on the flavor. The caramel pecan was filled with a buttery, salty caramel.

I ordered a six piece box with raspberry, lemon, violet cassis, pistachio, passionfruit and chocolate, as well as couple to try on the fly. I liked them all, but the lemon with lemon curd, the chocolate with ganache and the caramel pecan were my favorites. It might be heresy, but I like them best cold, straight out of the fridge, when they're a little chewy. It dulls their toothaching sweetness a bit.

Our next stop was just down the street at Christopher Elbow, a chocolatier with two locations, one here, and one in Kansas City, of all places. The chocolates are molded rather than cut, and include a lot of exotic caramel flavors. I also bought a can of the hot chocolate, since I'm such a fan of Recchiuti's - but haven't had a chance to try it yet. (I sense a future post...)

After Christopher Elbow, we walked to Citizen Cake, not far away. I bought a couple of chocolate chip cookies to bring home to Tommy, but I wasn't tempted by anything else in the case, and as I looked at my watch, I realized this was probably my last chance on this trip to squeeze in a visit to Humphry Slocombe. We were close to the Civic Center Bart station, so we bid Amy adieu, and Caron and I boarded the train to go two stops, to the 24th Street in the Mission. A short walk down 24th Street to Harrison, and we were there.

Humphry Slocombe is famous for their exotic flavors with cute names - Jesus Juice sorbet (Coca Cola and red wine), Secret Breakfast (bourbon ice cream with corn flakes), and Boccalone (tasty, salted pig parts like prosciutto, etc.) I thought it might be a little too precious, or even pretentious, but I was totally won over by their cleverness, not to mention the ice cream itself. The Secret Breakfast had me at hello, and Caron felt the same way about the Balsamic Caramel, which was a close second. (Yes, for those of you keeping track, this was our second frozen dessert in one day. What about it?) They also had some fabulous sounding sundaes, featuring the likes of Amarena cherries.

I really wanted to take Caron to Dynamo Donuts nearby, which has apparently opened their indoor seating area - but we just didn't have it in us that day. It is a great double-visit though if you're in the mood for some doughnuts and ice cream - it's just a little further down on 24th.

Just do me a favor, would you please? Don't double up on the maple bacon donut and the Boccalone ice cream in one day. If you do, I take no responsibility for what might result!

Miette Confiserie
449 Octavia Street
San Francisco, CA 94101
(415) 626-6221

Paulette Macarons
437 A Hayes St
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 864-2400

Christopher Elbow Chocolates
401 Hayes St
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 355-1105

Citizen Cake
399 Grove St
San Francisco, CA 94102-4418
(415) 861-2228

Humphry Slocombe
2790 Harrison St.
San Francisco, CA 94080
(415) 550-6971

Lunch at Bar Jules - San Francisco

2009-10-04T21:27:00.000-07:00

After our morning at the museum, Caron and I met our mutual friend Amy for lunch at Bar Jules and a walking tour of the many pastry and dessert shops of Hayes Valley. The plan started with my desire to visit Paulette - the French macaron shop on Hayes Street that is an offshoot of the Beverly Hills store. Amy also guided us to Miette Confiserie, Christopher Elbow Chocolates, Citizen Cake and - after a short Bart ride - Humphry Slocombe.

Bar Jules is the kind of place you'd want to visit because it's in such a fun neighborhood - with an appropriately cute and quirky sensibility and decor - but thankfully it's more than just a pretty face.

The daily-changing menu is written on these enormous blackboards (I couldn't help but wonder, whatever will they do if the person with the cool handwriting ever quits their job?) and is available online in the morning. We were tempted by the duck breast panini with white bean puree and salsa verde, a wood-grilled shrimp salad with radishes, green beans and chervil dressing, and the Marin Sun Farms burger with a little salad. I also have it on good authority that their soups are fabulous, but it was a little too warm for soup that day.

The burger was served on thin toasted levain bread, a slightly odd choice - but the grassfed meat was perfectly cooked and juicy, so we let that slide. They might have served it with a little more interesting side than the tangle of lightly dressed greens though - a little tomato or pickle or similar would have been a welcome addition (not to mention some fries.)

The duck on the duck breast panini was a little tough and it could have used a little more of the salsa verde and white been puree - but the flavors that were there were good. It probably wasn't a very good choice with the burger since the bread and the accompaniment were identical, but we didn't know that at the time.

Truth be told, I wasn't sure if I was sold on Bar Jules' food until I tasted this salad. A good friend of mine evaluates restaurants on the basis of whether they make their own salad dressings and whether they're any good - I poke fun, but just like sauces and soups - dressings really are a telling indicator of a cook's abilities. This little salad of butter lettuce with crisp vegetables, grilled shrimp and a creamy chervil-spiked dressing was perfectly balanced, and really brought me around to thinking this place is something special. A bit of service confusion led to my being served an elderflower presse instead of the sparkling water I ordered, but I wasn't sorry when I tasted it. Caron even ordered one for herself when she tried it.

The daily changing menu, the locally focused ingredients and quirky, intelligent style of the place were enough to sell me on a return visit despite the small problems and slightly slow service we encountered. Based on conversations I've had with others and the reviews I've read online, it sounds like they serve a bit more interesting food at dinner than lunch - which might make that a better choice.

They serve only one dessert (at least at lunch) known as the "Chocolate Nemesis." I am always intrigued by the solo dessert option - the assumption being it must be good - but with a full afternoon of sweets planned, we weren't able to try it on this visit.

Stay tuned for the rest of our afternoon, coming soon!

Bar Jules
609 Hayes St
San Francisco, CA 94199
(415) 621-5482
Open for lunch and dinner Wed-Sat.
Dinner only on Tuesday and lunch/brunch only on Sunday.
Closed Mondays.

The SFMOMA's Rooftop Garden Coffeebar

2009-09-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

So, San Francisco is still there, I'm happy to report. As difficult and delightful as ever. Over the next few days I'll be sharing some highlights from my trip to the City to attend the 1st annual BlogHer Food - a gathering of food bloggers that took place on Saturday.

You may remember that a few weeks ago, I posted a bit about pastry power couple Caitlin Williams and James Freeman in San Francisco - she is a former Miette Patisserie owner, and he is the CEO of Blue Bottle Coffee. As the Design Sponge piece that inspired the post mentioned, she left Miette to create art-inspired pastries for the newly opened rooftop garden Blue Bottle Coffee Bar at the SF MOMA. It just so happened that I was at the museum on Friday to see the Avedon exhibit while in town, so I was lucky enough to see it for myself in person.

It was even cooler than I expected - with a chic display of the whimsical desserts, and a full Blue Bottle Coffee bar. I ordered a cappuccino and asked for it "dry." They told me they don't really make their drinks dry, but I could order a different drink that had very little milk - so I did. It was just right, but I can't remember what they called it.

The rooftop sculpture garden itself is a lovely space with a large open breezeway, and two outdoor areas on either side. It's a perfect spot on a sunny day, which was exactly what we had on Friday.

Inspired by the weather I ordered an "Ellsworth Kelly" fudgsicle, which was cold, wonderfully dark and rich, and molded into the perfect shape.

We also sampled the lovely bee box - made of cardamom and white chocolate and filled with a dense honey and pistachio mousse.

The Thiebaud cake was also tempting....

As was the ice cream sundae - made with Humphry Slocombe "Secret Breakfast" ice cream, chocolate sauce and vanilla saffron cookies. What is "Secret Breakfast" you ask? Why bourbon and cornflakes, as it turns out.

The desserts are not only pretty to look at, but affordable, delightful and thoughtful as well.

The only catch - if you view it as such - is that you have to buy admission to the museum to visit. It's $15. for regular admission, and $20. including the Avedon exhibit (which I highly recommend.) If I lived in the area, I'd probably have to go ahead and become a member. Otherwise, I could definitely see some $20. fudgsicles in my future!

BlogHer Food Weekend Itinerary

2009-09-23T09:10:00.000-07:00

I'm going to San Francisco this weekend for BlogHer Food, and I am VERY excited. My schedule is jam-packed with lots of new places and things to see, and new people to meet. So much so that it's a little overwhelming, but with fortitude and perseverence, I think I can make it through. ;-)

Here's a little peek at what I have planned:

Thursday: fly up in the afternoon, stay with Tommy. Dinner in the lounge at Coi.

Friday: Breakfast at Salt House with Moira, then check out the Avedon exhibit at SF MOMA. Lunch at Bar Jules with Caron and Amy. Then visit Paulette Macarons and whatever other delights we can find in Hayes Valley. Dinner at Contigo with Cindy.

Saturday: Sam's pre-BlogHer Food hike, then the BlogHer Food convention at the St. Regis Hotel with three tracks of sessions to choose from: "Values," "Vocation" and "Visual." I think I'll be spending a lot of time in visual - not only are some of my favorite bloggers teaching the classes (e.g. Heidi from 101 Cookbooks, Matt from MattBites) but I really want to improve my photography skills. The event includes breakfast, lunch, cocktail party and after party - so I haven't made any other plans that day!

Sunday: Brunch at Boulette's with a lovely group of SF girls, many of whom I have not yet met. Then I'll stock up on Acme Bread, Recchiuti chocolates and the like, and fly home in the afternoon.

Whew!

I can't wait.

Into the Back Country Part II - Sequoia National Park and Bearpaw High Sierra Camp (and a recipe!)

2009-09-20T14:21:00.000-07:00

On our second day at Bearpaw, James and I decided to something very exciting and unusual for us.

Absolutely nothing.

Well, almost nothing anyway. It was a very un-strenuous day...

(This is continued from an earlier post here.) After breakfast, we walked over to Bearpaw Meadow and the Bearpaw Campground, just behind our camp. They have some neat little sites there - for every three or four tent pads there is a fire pit with a makeshift table made of stumps and a large stone, and a water spigot. There are composting toilets nearby as well.

When we came back from our walk, we read books on the porch for an hour or two. After lunch, we hung out in the lodge and played a game of Scrabble, filling almost the entire board (and amusing the cowboys who brought the mules in with our arguments over potential words.) Chris was in the kitchen working on dinner and we could hear the sounds and smell the smells of bread being baked and carrots being grated for a cake. I asked him if I could take some photos in the kitchen and he kindly obliged.

The kitchen runs on propane so there are no electrical outlets - thus no electric mixers, food processors, bread machines or other accoutrement - everything in this kitchen is done the old fashioned way, by hand. All the kitchen tools and pots and pans have their place - on the ceiling.

It's hard to believe, but this entire structure is dismantled every year (in fact by now it probably already has been) and all of the appliances and supplies are moved into the storage shed for the winter. It takes them only four or five days to break everything down after they close on September 15, but two to three weeks to set it up again when they reopen in May.

The mules had just come in, so they were stocked up with fresh ingredients like these vegetables - which appeared at dinner in a ragout. There is a large flat top grill and a Wolf range, and a large stainless steel work table in the center. The carrot cake was baking in the oven below. It smelled really good.

Before we knew it, people started returning from their day hikes. We hit the showers so everyone else could get theirs in before dinner, and pretty soon everyone started congregating on the porch.

When the dinner bell rang, there was grilled chicken in a sweet and spicy marinade (cooked on a charcoal grill just a few minutes earlier,) rice pilaf, those vegetables diced and sauteed, and a delicious salad topped with carrot curls, but best of all....

was the fresh-baked herb bread that I had heard Chris slapping around in the kitchen earlier - braided and topped with salt.

Of course, the carrot cake was not far behind...

It was just right - moist but not too dense, studded with nuts, carrots and coconut. Chris said he used the recipe from the New Moosewood Cookbook. I'd share it but I can't seem to find it online - I may just have to buy a copy. It's kind of a classic anyway.

After supper, we decided to build a campfire in the pit down on the rocks. We gathered up some fallen wood and got it going.

A campfire in the foreground, and the full moon rise over the Great Western Divide in the background? Does it get any better than that? Yes it does - with campfire music from a mandolin and guitar duo.

The next day, it was time to hike back. We were feeling stronger, having had a chance to recuperate and acclimate to the altitude (7800 feet at the camp, and about 6800 at the park) and it helped that we knew we could do it since we'd done it before. We'd also already seen the view, so I didn't have to stop to take photos every few minutes, though I couldn't resist snapping a few.

We plowed on through, first to Mehrten Creek, then to 3 Mile Creek, where I soaked my throbbing feet, and on to the trailhead.

All the way back, I'd been grousing that I couldn't believe we'd spent four nights in the backcountry and hadn't seen a SINGLE bear. I was actually disappointed when we reached the camp and they told us we didn't need to worry about keeping food or toiletries in bear boxes, because bears wouldn't come near the camp.

When we got back to the parking lot at Crescent Meadow - what did we see? Actually, what I saw first was a bunch of people holding up cameras and pointing them in the same direction. Then yes indeed, we spotted a small black bear wandering around in the picnic area nearby. He caused quite a traffic jam, but he seemed entirely nonplussed by all the photo-seekers.

We woke up early the next morning and decided to pack up and head down to Three Rivers, just outside the park, for breakfast. On the way down the hill we passed a bear walking up the road. I made James stop so I could take a picture (For a second I think he was worried I might jump out of the car) and got the bear's rear end again. I guess there are worse views of a bear though.

I was surprised by how small they are, not much taller than a large dog - but of course they're much stronger, and they can stand up on their hind legs more easily. We were warned that they can rip off car doors - sometimes they even open them using the handle, like this one did in Colorado. We were told not to leave anything that looked like food or had any scent in our cars, including liquids - apparently bears like sports drinks, of all things, and can recognize the packaging.

We found the We Three Bakery right along the main highway in the heart of Three Rivers. Though the service was on the slow side for breakfast, the coffee was strong, the portions were hearty and these cinnamon rolls were a-maahz-ing.

Speaking of delectable breakfast pastries, on our last morning we were treated to yet another fresh baked delight at Bearpaw - a simple but perfect cinnamon streusel coffee cake. I finagled the recipe from Chris, and he kindly wrote it down for me so that I could share it here. Try it in your own kitchen for a little taste of Bearpaw baking - no 23 mile hike required!

Bearpaw Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake

I'm fairly certain Chris reduced this recipe to fit a square pan, but he didn't say which size. I tried it in an 8 inch pan, but it was a little thick. It took a long time for the center to finish baking. A 9 inch pan would be perfect - or if a 8 inch is all you have, you could try filling the pan about 2/3 full and making a few muffins with the rest - or baking it all in muffin tins. Mine needed a little more streusel - so I've upped the amount by about 50%. His special trick is to pat the streusel into the bottom of the pan so it firms a crisp crust on the bottom. It gives it a little extra toasted buttery flavor and helps it cut more cleanly too.

1/2 cup butter - very soft
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup milk

3 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder

3 cups brown sugar
1 cup flour
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 T plus 2 t cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and butter or grease a 9 inch square metal or glass cake pan.

Make the streusel by stirring the ingredients together until well incorporated and clumps start to form.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder. Cream the softened butter with the sugar until light and fluffy, and beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the milk and incorporate Gradually add the dry ingredients and blend just until incorporated.

Press some of the streusel into the pan, creating a bottom layer just a little thicker than 1/4 inch. Pour the cake batter into the pan, and spread the remaining streusel over. Bake in the center of the oven at 375 degrees for about 35-45 minutes, until the cake springs back to the touch in the center and a skewer or cake tester comes out clean. Set pan on a rack, and allow to cool completely before cutting.

More about Bearpaw:

Bearpaw is open from May to September, and reservations are taken by phone starting on January 2 at 7:00 AM. It does sell out, but cancellations are available throughout the season. We were lucky enough to get one, and several of the other people there were as well. Bearpaw inspires a lot of repeat visitors. The entire time we were there, we only met ONE other couple who had not been there before. You can read more about it here. More photos from the trip can be viewed here.

Into the Back Country - Sequoia National Park and Bearpaw High Sierra Camp

2009-09-16T19:30:00.000-07:00

Cushy hotels and fine dining have their charms to be sure, but there's nothing like leaving all that all behind and spending some time outdoors to recharge the old batteries and gain some perspective.

Not that we were exactly roughing it on this trip...

Earlier this month, we drove up to the Sequoia National Park and hiked out to the Bearpaw High Sierra Camp - 11.5 miles into the back country on the High Sierra Trail. Bearpaw is a six tent-cabin back country camp run by the park service concessionaire that has been there since the 1930s. You'd be hard pressed to find out much about it though if you don't know what you're looking for. It's not included in any of the park literature and there's only one mention of it on the park service's website. I accidentally stumbled on a reference to it while researching a different tent camp in the park. Someone recommended it instead, calling it the "real" one, so off I went to check it out. It was quite a bit less expensive than the other privately owned camp, and I liked the idea of staying at the park service run camp - even though I didn't know a whole lot about it. (The park service also runs similar camps in the Yosemite high country, though they're not quite as nice from what I understand.) What I saw, I liked, and they had a cancellation for three nights in early September. We booked it right away, along with a night on the front and back end at the Wuksachi Lodge in the park, to allow us to prepare for and recuperate from the hike and see the Giant Sequoia.

The hike out to the camp on the High Sierra Trail is utterly spectacular. Built in the late twenties and early thirties, the trail was carved (or rather blasted) out of the granite hillside in many places. It was the first trail constructed in the US specifically for recreational purposes, and they clearly maximized the landscape, with its sweeping vistas, vertigo-inducing drop-offs, waterfall-fed streams and shaded forest groves. Anyone with a wilderness permit can hike the trail and stay at the campsites along the way (the first one is about six miles in at Mehrten Creek.) It goes all the way to the John Muir trail, and many people use it as a route to Mt. Whitney, making the trip to the summit in about one week.

The hike to Bearpaw follows the trail for about 11.5 miles. Over that distance it gains about 1000 vertical feet - mostly in gentle ups and downs until the last mile and a half, which gains half of that alone. It's not technically difficult - it's amazing how far you can go as long as you just keep going - but it is exhausting. They claim the average time is about 7 hours, and the hike in is a bit more difficult than out - probably because of the vertical gain. It took us 9 hours to get there, but only 6 1/2 to come back.

The creeks are good milestones, and good places to rest. 3 Mile Creek was my favorite - a shady glen with a waterfall-fed stream. Mehrten Creek is about halfway along (six miles) and a good spot for lunch. You'll likely encounter other hikers there. There is also a Nine Mile Creek, then soon after that the trail descends via a diabolical granite staircase - sized for mules rather than humans - to Buck Creek, which is the ten mile mark. Thereafter, about six to eight hours in, the trail climbs straight up - switchback after switchback - to carry you over the ridge. At the crest of the ridge is the camp; the trail literally runs right through it.

At the end of the long uphill hike, the camp feels like an oasis. We stumbled in during dinner (around 6 PM) and opted to shower first, so they saved us plates. After showering and changing, the food was cold but it was still delicious (especially the mushroom pot pie) and even in my exhausted state I was able to appreciate the perfect lemon tart. After supper, the guests congregated on the front porch of the lodge to chat and drink coffee or wine. I'm pretty sure we made polite chit chat for a little while, but my exhaustion was so bone deep that I have no recollection of it.

We were feeling much better in the morning, after a good night's sleep in a comfortable bed. Breakfast is served at 7:30, and coffee is available starting at about 6:30. The food is served buffet style, and it's not just plentiful, it's good. This breakfast included pancakes, sausages, cantaloupe, scrambled eggs, hashbrowns and some excellent apple pie. Yes, if you're going hiking all day, you CAN eat pie for breakfast.

After breakfast, they put out snacks, and sandwiches if you've ordered one the night before. Meat sandwiches are $10. and peanut butter and jelly or cheese are $5. (They make a mean pb& j.) Along with the sandwiches they offer their famous enormous brownies, fruit, mixed nuts, raisins and NutriGrain bars - available to everyone. They also have coffee available from breakfast until it runs out and again after dinner, and unlimited water and instant lemonade all day long. The brownies and fruit also stay out all day.

Most people leave on day hikes right after breakfast. From the camp, the High Sierra Trail continues along the ridge down to Lone Pine Creek, before ascending up into the Great Western Divide. Hamilton Lake is above the first pass in the Divide and is a popular destination - but we decided to take it easy and go down to the creek and back. It's a beautiful spot with waterfalls and pools, and the scenery on the way out there was even more spectacular than the day before. We packed our lunch and soaked our feet in the water.

Returning mid-afternoon, we had time for a little nap and a shower before dinner. That night's meal was prepared by Mike, and included pork loin, roasted crookneck squash, fresh baked french bread and an especially delicious salad with chickpeas, tomatoes and carrots tossed with a peanut vinaigrette. For dessert there was poundcake with whipped cream and berries.

That night after dinner we were far more sociable. James pulled out a little bottle of scotch we'd brought with us, and we sipped it with our fellow campers while we watched the nearly full moon come up behind the Great Western Divide.

Pure heaven, plain and simple.

Continued here.

Paulette Macarons and Pierre Herme's Paris Pad

2009-09-10T22:13:00.000-07:00

I'm still working on my post about last week's trip, but in the meantime, I'm already thinking about my next trip to San Francisco, coming up at the end of this month. Specifically, I'm thinking about Friday - when I am planning an afternoon around a visit to Paulette's Macarons. Thinking about macarons in turn reminded me of these photos of Pierre Herme's abode in Paris, which I've been wanting to share for a while.

These are from The Selby, which I like because it gives you a bit more of a voyeur's point of view. The apartments might be cleaned, but they aren't styled - they look the way you'd expect them to look if you came for a visit. I really dig the Nelson ball clock above. It just makes the scene.

Olive oil in colorful cans?

Apparently Pierre cooks on an induction cooktop. Does anyone out there have one? Do you like it?

Does every apartment in Paris have those windows and parquet floors or does it just seem like it?

See what I mean about it looking lived in?

I love Paris, but I guess San Francisco will do...for now.

Back from the Back Country...

2009-09-08T08:48:00.000-07:00

We just returned from a week spent in Sequoia National Park and the High Sierra Back Country. We stayed at a phenomenal place 11.3 miles from the park on the High Sierra Trail, Bearpaw High Sierra Camp.

I'll be back soon to add (much) more to this post, but thought I'd share some photos in the meantime.

These three were taken along the trail...

Below is the camp lodge...

Two of the six tent cabins...

This was the view from the camp. No, Really.

A sample of the food we ate over three days. Fresh baked breads and homestyle desserts are their specialty. Need I say more??

This is (as you can probably imagine) but a small sample - I could not stop taking pictures of this place. If you're interested - more photos can be found here. (We even saw a couple of bears!)

Hope you had a wonderful Labor Day weekend too!

Tender Greens - San Diego

2009-08-31T17:28:00.000-07:00

Its not easy to find a restaurant that allows you to eat indulgently and feel virtuous at the same time, but Tender Greens manages both quite nicely. Part of a mini-chain with outlets in Liberty Station in Point Loma, and Culver City and West Hollywood in Los Angeles, the quick service cafeteria-style concept serves a menu of meal-sized salads, entrees and desserts made with produce grown on their very own farm, located in Lompoc, CA.

The menu includes seven or eight entree-sized salads - including a Nicoise with seared ahi, a Cobb with romaine, grilled chicken, bleu cheese and chunks of bacon, a Chinese Chicken, a Vegan Couscous, a Chipotle Chicken with a Mexican flair, and a few others. Entree plates feature Rocky's organic chicken, flank steak or fish - and their specials might feature local seafood or other additional options like sandwiches, roast pork and braised beef. A recent special of halibut served over a white bean and bacon ragout with a lemon vinaigrette-dressed salad was by far my favorite of the three meals I've eaten there - easily as good as if not better than many I've been served in far fancier restaurants.

You place your order at the counter when you walk in, and they make the salads in their open kitchen as you watch. (This is where I always have second thoughts, as I watch them build other people's salads with their beautiful produce and other tempting ingredients.) By the time you reach the dessert display at the cash register, your salad is handed to you on a stainless steel sheet pan. Select a beverage and either resist or succumb to the desserts, and you're free to find a table in the open airy dining room or on the patio.

The desserts are made by the mother of one of the owners, and are to. die. for. Let me say that again. To. Die. For. They're homestyle, as you might expect - picture what you would expect the best home baker you know to turn out but a lot more of it. The selection is always different, and usually includes at least one tart made with local fruit, two kinds of cupcakes, some cookies and other assorted delights. Their red velvet cupcake (down below) - though not nearly as cute looking as some I've tried in the past, was unquestionably the best I've ever eaten. This lemon tart was also creamy and refreshing with authentic tart flavor - not too sweet, with a crunchy buttery crust and real whipped cream.

My favorite thing about the place, is that everything has a homemade quality - like what you would make yourself if you had a larder full of the freshest ingredients and the time and ability to brew up a different pot of soup or a batch of cookies every day. Even their soups have that made-by-hand character - they're pureed, but not strained, retaining more of the original flavor and texture of the vegetables they're made from. The tomato soup on one occasion was a little too thick, but the corn soup, pictured below, was one of the finest I've enjoyed anywhere - including some pretty high falutin' restaurants and my own kitchen.

They Twitter their daily specials, which sound so good, you could easily follow them just for the menu inspiration. Case in point: "roasted local golden sand bass, summer corn pudding, point loma farms heirloom tom, large leaf basil, olive oil, micro daikon." or "Pork Tenderloin Sandwich with Chipotle Aioli & Roasted red Peppers. Butternut Squash Soup Pork & summer Shell bean soup." Peach and Raspberry crisp has been making a regular appearance as a dessert special, as have raspberry and blackberry clafoutis, and housemade ice creams. The Twitterfeed also includes the specials at their Los Angeles restaurants in West Hollywood and Culver City, which is handy if you live in LA. If not, it's great exercise for your salivary glands. :-)

Tender Greens
(fair warning - the site has sound and lots of flash!)
2400 Historic Decatur Road
Liberty Station, Point Loma 92106
619.226.6254 M-Th 11-9, Fri/Sat 11-10

A beautiful couple, their beautiful home and some beautiful cakes on Design Sponge.

2009-08-24T18:00:00.000-07:00

I just can't get over these photos of newlyweds Caitlin Williams and James Freeman's splendid home and her amazing desserts. He is the CEO of Blue Bottle coffee in San Francisco, and she is a former co-owner of Miette Patisserie. They were just married at City Hall, and she is now producing these gorgeous art-themed confections for the SF MOMA's rooftop coffee bar.

Cakes designed to look like Theibaud paintings? Why didn't I think of that?? Sharp eyes will also note the Mondrian and Avedon themes. For the full story and photo credits, head on over to these two posts on Design Sponge - about their home and about the sweets.

A week's worth of meals

2009-08-23T19:03:00.000-07:00

One of the things I most admire about my friend Jora is her ability to whip up delicious, wholesome and indulgent meals, seemingly effortlessly. I tend to be one of those whirling dervish cooks who destroys everything in my path and dirties every dish in the kitchen - despite my best intentions, but I've improved quite a bit just by picking up a few of her habits. Like making salad dressing in the vessel where you intend to store it (a simple jar), use one cutting board for everything (as long as you're not cutting meat, and then just do it last), and most of all, keeping it simple - serve just one or two things, no need to serve the tri-corner meal (starch, meat and veg) every single night. She and her husband also do not eat bread with (most of) their meals - a habit we've recently broken.

Another thing Jora does, as you know if you read her excellent blog, Domestic Reflections, is plan her meals on a weekly basis. Since advance planning is key for me right now, I thought it would be a good idea to do the same. These are the dinners I have planned this week. We'll see how it goes - even the best laid plans can sometimes go awry - and in that case, I have some Trader Joes frozen Channa Masala and Ezekiel tortillas waiting in the wings!

Monday
"Cherry Pie" pizza - ricotta, feta, mozzarella, cherry tomatoes and basil on a whole wheat crust (based on this method)
romaine and arugula salad with roasted green beans, walnuts and lemon vinaigrette

Tuesday
Lemon Grilled Chicken (with skinless thighs and legs - and a few tweaks to the marinade)
Roasted Broccolini
sliced heirloom tomatoes with sea salt and olive oil

Wednesday
first day of bread class at culinary school! (assuming I get into the class - I have to crash it!)
pack a "picnic" dinner of leftover cold chicken and arugula salad with goat cheese, beets and walnuts.

Thursday
Thai Corn and Crab Soup (with rice noodles added)
cucumber salad

Friday
Mexican Night

Saturday
out for my mom's birthday

Sunday Supper:
braised pork loin
Rancho Gordo Yellow Indian Woman beans
pickled red onions
feta cheese
sliced avocado
Ezekiel tortillas

It was bound to happen sooner or later...

2009-08-20T11:30:00.000-07:00

After three years of indulgent eating (the things I do for you!) and sitting behind a desk most of my days, the time has finally come for me to make some changes to my everyday eating habits. Dieting is hard when you're a foodie, I'm sure I don't have to tell you, and as the years creep by, it only seems to get harder. I've been trying to lose some weight since the beginning of this year, and I've been making an effort to eat lower on the food chain lately, both for my general health and the environment, but it just wasn't enough - I wanted (and needed) to step it up a notch further. But how? I knew that whatever plan I came up with needed to be something that would realistically fit into my lifestyle and give me some new menu ideas.

I'd been knocking this around for a while when I came across a little pamphlet of "Flat Belly Diet" recipes on the checkstand at Henry's this past weekend. It's kind of a silly name, but the plan actually makes a lot of sense. It doesn't specifically prohibit any foods - though this comes naturally as you'll see in a minute. It requires that you eat four four hundred calorie meals per day, each including a small portion of a "MUFA" - a mono-unsaturated fatty acid. MUFAs include nuts, dark chocolate, olive oil or safflower oil, avocado or olives.* No problem, right? Not so fast! As I soon discovered, the MUFAs constitute about 100 calories of each meal, which forces you to really get the most you can out of those remaining 300 calories. That's where the choices of whole grains, lean proteins, fruits and vegetables come in. You need foods that will fill you up, give you the nutrients you need and keep your blood sugar stable for the next four hours. The promise of "you can eat chocolate!" is a little less enticing when you realize one dessert is a meal in itself.

The diet's creators at Prevention Magazine claim the MUFAs specifically target belly fat loss. I'm not sure how much of that specific claim I believe, but all of the evidence does seem to indicate that they are good for your heart and they are certainly easy to work into each meal, so until someone tells me otherwise I will believe it's a good idea to include them.

I've been doing it since Sunday. The first day was easy, but withdrawals kicked in on Monday and Tuesday - I felt sluggish and had a headache, most likely due to the absence of white sugar and flour - though I continued to eat low glycemic carbs. Today I feel great. The recipes are very appealing - portion control is a big issue though when you are limited to 400 per meal. I'm pretty good with estimating - but I'm weighing and measuring foods just to be sure.

What really grabbed me about this plan though is the recipes. They're foodie recipes, with real ingredients, appealing and not spartan at all. Best of all, they're exactly what I've been looking for -- more ideas for meals that are nutrient dense with low glycemic carbs, little to no animal fat, and lots of whole grains for bulk and added protein.

I haven't actually been cooking all that much lately - I should confess. I had Lean Cuisines twice this week for lunch, augmented with my MUFA (quarter of an avocado on a panini sandwich, extra walnuts in the butternut squash ravioli - which is NOT BAD, I must say) and I had Trader Joes Channa Masala one night with an Ezekiel tortilla and some lowfat yogurt. I've discovered the joys of Fage yogurt with honey and walnuts, dried mango and raw almonds, and I'm savoring my afternoon coffee with two chocolate covered almonds (the 73% cacao ones from Trader Joes) now more than ever.

I've riffed on some of the ideas, but I haven't specifically used any of their recipes yet - so I don't have one to tell you about today, but I'm sure I will soon. Until then, you can explore them on your own at their website and there are a lot more here on the Men's Health website. I'll let you know how it goes!

*there are more elements to the diet than this - including a formula for ginger spiked "sassy water" that I haven't tried yet. I haven't paid for any of their subscriptions or books yet - other than the pamphlet. Coincidentally though (and in the interest of full disclosure) they just happened to email me on Monday offering me a copy of their new Flat Belly Diet Cookbook - so I will be receiving that shortly. I haven't seen it yet, and I had decided to do this before it was offered to me, so this post was neither motivated or prompted by it, in case you wondered!

photo credit: Prevention Magazine