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Attend a cooking class at Studio of Good Living in San Francisco and you’ll soon discover a new world full of culinary adventures. More than just a cooking school, the Studio of Good Living shares the art of living well with all its students!
Studio of Good Living offers exceptional cooking classes and events in the Bay Area and Beyond. Want to learn how to cook or brush up on your cooking skills? Take a class with us! Escape to San Francisco for a Taste of San Francisco or indulge yourself with Cook, Shop, Spa. Burned out? Drop into Live Well, Eat Well for yoga lovers. Continue the journey with the Art of Dinner Blog and view our video classes for new ideas to spice up your dinner table. . Need a change of scenery? Join us for a total culinary and lifestyle retreat in beautiful Maine. Discover the possibilities with Chef Phoebe Schilla and the Studio of Good Living. Life is Beautiful by Design.
Every now and again I have a food and beverage pairing that unexpectedly blows my mind. It happened this very week when I made the Hiyashi Chuka (Chilled Chinese Noodle Salad) as part of the monthly Washoku Warrior Challenge that I participate in each month. We are cooking through Elizabeth Andoh’s ‘Washoku, Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen.’ Participating in a round table cooking club allows me to experiment and get my creative juices flowing. I really enjoy reading everyone’s notes and seeing the resultant pictures. (Check out lafujimama.com for more info.)
Anyhoo, this month’s recipe was pretty straightforward. It consisted of chilled noodles garnished with various toppings—ham, cucumber, soy simmered shitake mushrooms, pickled ginger and topped off with a chilled, creamy, sesame miso sauce. I loved the pungency of the individual ingredients and the sesame miso sauce was subtle enough to be a bridge between flavors. It was the Sesame miso sauce that made this dish for me. It’s subtle; a little nutty, a little salty from the miso and a little sweet too. It would be a fantastic dip for steamed vegetables—especially steamed asparagus or bok choy—or even fresh spring rolls. This sauce would be a great addition to a non-traditional 4th of July Barbecue buffet.
But with this kind of dish you just hope to find a beverage that can hang in there with the various flavors and textures. You wouldn’t expect to find something that really enhances the experience in “the sum is greater than the sum of its parts” kind of way. We opened a bottle of beer named La Fin Du Monde (yes, that’s ‘the end of the world’) made by the Canadian brewery Unibroue. It’s a full-bodied Tripel with notes of lemon and coriander and it played off the sesame miso sauce like they were long lost lovers. It gave richness, weight and texture to the sauce. I thought the dish was pretty good on its own, but after one sip of beer it immediately became exceptional. Even the stronger flavors of soy braised mushrooms, ham and pickled ginger were enhanced. It was two thumbs up all the way around.
Here’s the recipe for the Sesame Miso Sauce
Adapted from: Elizabeth Andoh’s ‘Washoku, Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen.’
3 Tbsp. Tahini
3 Tbsp White Miso
1 tsp soy sauce
1/3 cup of water or Dashi
* The sauce should have the consistency of heavy cream. Use more water if you need to—add the extra water in 1 Tbsp or less at a time.
1st and 3rd Friday of the month, 6-8pm
Next Seminar: Friday June 18th Sign up now!!
“When you base your food choices on your own intuitive wisdom, that food will nourish and strengthen your body, mind and spirit to help you fulfill the purpose of your life.”
Leonard Perlmutter, American Meditation Institute
I’m happy to announce that I am partnering with Josh Camire, of warriorschoiceyoga.com to create a very unique seminar that unites food and yoga. This is the perfect way to jumpstart your weekend! We start with a 30 minute cooking demonstration and discussion about conscious cooking and intuitive eating. Then, move on to an hour long gentle yoga class and conclude with a gourmet three course dinner. What’s the connection between food and yoga, you may ask? Well, one of the benefits of yoga is learning to really listen to you body’s cues.
I discovered yoga in 2002 as part of a campaign to help me quit smoking for good. (Smoking is the scourge of the restaurant industry and a bad habit that I picked up and kept for far too long.) I found that yoga has many benefits—better sleep, more body awareness, a higher quality of breath among others. I’ve been an active practitioner since then. I believe that yoga has the power to change your life and your relationship with food. This is a fun, light hearted seminar that will leave you feeling nourished in both body and spirit. All levels of fitness are welcome and dietary restrictions are happily accommodated.
This is an amazing Curried Chicken Salad that totally nourished me when I arrived home from yoga class, hot, sweaty and ravenous. It is good whenever you have a craving for a dish with multiple layers of flavor—spiciness and a gentle heat from the curry paste, sweetness from the currants, richness from toasted coconut, creamy-ness from the mayonnaise and salty crunchy goodness from chopped roasted peanuts. It can be put together in just a few minutes if you have all of the ingredients on hand. It’s the perfect dish for your next BBQ or get together.
Bon Appetit! (I wanted to take a picture but Pete and I practically licked the bowl clean!!)
Curried Chicken Salad, Thai Style (inspired by a dish of the same name at the now defunct Cannery Restaurant in Yarmouth Maine)
1# leftover grilled or roasted chicken breast, diced
½ to ¾ cup of mayo depending on how mayonnaise-y you like your salad. (you could also substitute equal parts mayo and yogurt)
1 rounded teaspoon of Green Curry Paste (I highly recommend Mae Ploy brand, available at importfood.com and some supermarkets.)
1 Tbsp. Curry Powder
2 Tbsp. Unsweetened Coconut, toasted to a light golden brown.
2 Tbsp. Chopped, salted, roasted peanuts (Planter’s is perfect.)
2 Tbsp Zante Currants or Raisins
1 scallion, white and green parts finely chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Whisk together the mayo, curry paste and curry powder. Fold in the remaining ingredients and enjoy! This is so flavorful it is great on it’s own, over greens or crackers. I’ve also served it on cucumber rounds, garnished with chopped chives or peanuts as a hors d’oeuvres.
It’s the simple things that matter most.
 I discovered the absolute joy of homemade croutons while I was in cooking school in France. Oh to take a slice of white bread, cut it into cubes or other shapes (hearts on Valentines Day) and fry it in butter with a generous sprinkling of salt and a twist of freshly ground black pepper. So tasty, I still dream about it over 15 years later. Croutons are easy to make at home—it just takes a few minutes and the results are so much more pleasing than the jawbreakers that pass for croutons at salad bars nationwide. So what are the advantages to making croutons at home? Well, this way you won’t be left with half a box of croutons that you will only throw away next spring. Freshly made they are crunchy on the outside and give just a little in the middle with an enticing softness. You can pierce them with your fork. They are highly addictive so unless your will power is greater than mine you should only make as much as you need. You can control the seasonings and limit the sodium. With homemade there will be no hydrolyzed this and high fructose that unless your kitchen is wildly different than mine. At the Cordon Bleu, we used pan de mie, or Pullman loaf in English. Any fine grained sandwich bread will do. I like to experiment and use whole wheat, pumpernickel or rye bread depending on the recipe and salad dressing. Don’t limit your use crouton use to just salads though. They add a really pleasing crunch to pureed and blended soups and are a classic accompaniment to gazpacho.
Croutons
1 slice of sandwich bread, crusts removed and cut into cubes or other shapes with a cookie cutter.
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
Salt
Pepper
Melt the butter in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the bread cubes to the pan and toss gently to coat. Saute until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and season with salt and pepper while still warm.
Enjoy with or without your favorite salad!
 It’s been a great week so far! I’ve discovered ‘Somersaults’ a delicious and healthy new snack, made with sunflower seeds. Somersaults come in a few different flavors. I like the sea salt and the black pepper varieties. I didn’t care for the cocoa and haven’t tried the salsa. Whole Foods has started carrying drinks sweetened with agave nectar—important for my family since my mom has blood sugar issues. I really liked the Gingerade from Big Island Organics. It was pleasantly piquant and definitely gingery with 1 oz of ginger juice in each 16 oz bottle. I found and purchased an almost new racy, red kitchen aid (with all of the attachments!) at a yard sale for $75 and Mollie Stones, the supermarket in my neighborhood has started carrying Labne. Labne is a yogurt cheese—it’s simple to make—it’s just strained yogurt, but until recently it has been difficult to find in the grocery store. I think it is a yummy alternative to cream cheese. Spice, by Ana Sortun with Nicole Chaison has a great recipe for a winter salad using Labne. It starts with a base of Labne, mixed with herbs and pecans, formed into a disc and topped with a marinated apple slaw and endive. It was delicious, refreshing and different.
Have you found any new and exciting treats at the grocery store lately? If so, please share!! I’m always interested in trying new foods and products.
 Endive and Apple Salad with Grapes, Sumac and Pecan Labne
Adapted from Spice by Ana Sortun with Nicole Chaison
Serves 4
½ cup pecan pieces, toasted and chopped finely. Reserve 1 Tbsp for garnish.
1 Granny Smith apple, julienned
2 tsp each chopped mint, dill and parsley
2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 Tbsp. Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
A handful of grapes, stemmed and washed
1 garlic clove, grated
¾ cup of labne
2 Tbsp. ground melba toast or very crisp, dry breadcrumbs
1 head of endive
Sumac for garnish (If you can’t find sumac sprinkle a few drops of lemon juice over the finished dish.)
- Toss the julienned apple with the 1 Tbsp of olive oil, the herbs and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Cut the grapes in half and add them to the apple mixture.
- Combine the labne, the remaining 2 Tbsp. of olive oil the melba crumbs, grated garlic and pecans. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Trim the bottom ends of the endive and remove the leaves, one by one. When you reach the heart of the endive, set it aside.
- Slice the endive hearts into thin rings and toss with the apple mixture.
- Assemble the salad by placing a couple of tablespoons of labne on the bottom of each salad plate.
- Using the back of a spoon, smooth the labne into a 2 inch circle. Arrange the endive spears on each plate at a slight angle, sticking the bottom of the spears into the labne.
- Spoon ½ tablespoon of the apple mixture over each endive spear. Sprinkle sumac and reserved pecan pieces over the salads and serve.
 Perfect for summer and tomato season, this versatile recipe was published in Saveur magazine a couple of months ago. It’s really good, redolent with mint and spices. I’ve served it with falafel as recommended, over bulgur for a different kind of tabbouleh, with pita chips as a kind of Mediterranean salsa and over grilled halibut.
Tomato Salad with Herbs and Pomegranate (Saveur Magazine, Issue 120)
Serves 6
3⁄4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1⁄2 cup chopped mint leaves
1⁄4 cup finely chopped red onion
3 tbsp. Pomegranate Molasses
3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp. chopped fresh thyme
1⁄2 tsp. dried ground aleppo pepper or paprika)
8 scallions, finely chopped
6 medium tomatoes, cored and finely chopped
2 large banana peppers or Italian frying peppers,
stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tsp. ground sumac, for garnish (Optional since I didn’t have any in my pantry.)
If you have difficulty locating Aleppo pepper and sumac at your local grocery store, I recommend ordering them from Penzeys.com.
Instead of hand chopping everything, I chunk up the tomatoes, peppers and scallions and toss them in the cuisinart. Pulse a few times, and voila! I hand chopped the herbs, red onion, and garlic. Combine all of the ingredients. Taste, season with salt and pepper and serve.
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