I’m really excited about a new project that I am putting in place.  I’ll be doing cooking demonstrations at one of the Farmer’s Markets in San Francisco twice a month this summer.  You know all those lovely veggies at the farmer’s market that you have never seen before and haven’t a clue how to prepare?  I’ll be on hand to answer any food related and cooking questions you may have.  I’ll be doing cooking demonstrations using vegetables and products exclusively from the market.  I will also be selling my first product at the market too!

Selling a product and doing cooking demos at the market is far more complicated than it sounds.  I’ve been thinking about it for a long time and I finally think that I am ready.  I have to find a commercial kitchen (got one, natch.), navigate the San Francisco Department of Public Health, change my liability insurance to cover the farmer’s market space and the commercial kitchen rental….it’s a lot.  It’s why I have put off creating a product for so long.  It’s time though.  I’m looking at this as a test run.  If it doesn’t work out, that’s okay.  Vendor licenses have to be renewed every 90 days in San Francisco so it is a short term (although pricey) investment. My assistant and right hand, Justine, will be partnering with me on this adventure.

I’m particularly pleased that I will be doing cooking demonstrations in the community.  I passionately believe that we need to support our local farmers and in doing so, our local economy.  In this modern world of facebook, email and skype we need to have more family connections around a dinner table filled with authentic foods and smells.  Food nourishes us and has the power to enrich our lives.  I want to share with you how to best utilize your time in the kitchen so that you have more time for yourself, your family and your friends.   Cooking for yourself and your family can be like homework.  You may moan and groan about it, but you feel good once it is done and you can enjoy the fruits of your labor (in this case a good meal and not a good grade on a test!)

I will be sure to keep you updated as things move along.  Wish me luck!!

Phoebe

What a great name, huh? I have always been a firm believer that chocolate could change the future and now I know that other people feel the same way!!  I spent this evening at a great event hosted by San Francisco hotshot chocolate maker Tcho.  Their chocolates are exquisite.  I highly recommend that you seek them out whether or not you are a chocoholic.  FRED is not all about fun and games, no matter what you might hear. This was an event with a purpose. All proceeds from the event went to three different Haiti relief efforts. I was asked to donate some hors d’oeurves to the event. I couldn’t say no to such a worthy cause.  I firmly believe that we all need to help each other out in this world, in whatever way we can, whenever we can.

One of the questions that I am asked most frequently about what I do is:  Where do you shop? The answer is a long list of places all over the San Francisco Bay area.  It depends on where I am cooking, convenience, and who has the highest quality ingredients available.  I typically go to the Farmer’s market on the weekend for most of my produce shopping. For fish, I highly recommend Cook’s Seafood in Menlo Park—I rarely purchase seafood anywhere else.  On the other side of the bay I recommend Monterey Fish Market.  I shop Whole Foods for items such as flour, sugar etc.

Most Tuesday mornings you will find me at Bianchini’s Market in Portola Valley.  Portola Valley has a remote quality that makes it feel very unique.  It is undeveloped and whenever I am there I find it hard to believe that I am just 40 minutes away from an urban city center.   You will probably see a doe and her babies meandering by the side of the road.  If you are driving only a few miles over the speed limit, or come to a ‘rolling stop’, the local law enforcement will surely stop you.  It’s that kind of town.  The easiest way to get to Portola Valley (from SF) is to take 280 south to the Alpine Road exit.  Bianchini’s is located just off of the freeway, on the main road through town.  It is family owned and operated.  Bianchini’s opened as a full service grocery store in 1998.  It now has a second store in San Carlos that opened last spring.   What I like the most about the store is the commitment to quality and their support of local farms.  Of course, they do carry long distance items such as bananas and pineapples but they really make an effort to bring in local produce.  I believe that they have some of the best local produce in the area.  Chanterelle mushrooms when they are in season, a bounty of tomatoes and stone fruit in the summer, squash and apples in the fall.  The meat department is also excellent.  They do a fantastic job trimming and tying roasts, and the butchers are extremely knowledgeable.  They carry high quality grass fed beef from Marin Sun Farms, items such as waygu brisket, as well as Mary’s air chilled chicken.  They have high points for customer service too.  The only department that I am not impressed by is the seafood department.  However, it is worth a stop if you are driving thru Portola Valley.

I love a good chardonnay.  It’s such a likeable wine!  Especially when it’s not too oaky, has good acidity and moderate alcohol levels.  The 2007 Craggy Range ‘Kidnapper’s Vineyard’ really fits the bill.  And it’s under $20/bottle.

Campervan cookin'

Craggy Range is a very special winery located in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand.  Hawkes Bay wines are typically fly under the radar in the United States.  However, the best wines are really wonderful.  It is by far my favorite wine region in New Zealand.. Craggy Range makes some of the best wines in Hawkes Bay.   They are incredibly passionate about the wines that they produce.

I was first exposed to Craggy Range about 7 years ago when I tasted (and was impressed by) their Bordeaux Style blend ‘Sophia’.  A year later my boyfriend (now husband) and I found ourselves on a plane to New Zealand with the purpose to check out the land from whence hobbits came (or at least where the movies were filmed) and to taste some wine.  We rented a campervan outside of the Auckland airport, and away we went.  The campervan was a little shaky, to say the least, the maximum speed was 40 miles per hour, and that was going downhill in a stiff breeze.  Pete proposed halfway through our trip so New Zealand remains a special place for the two of us.

The growing wine stash

Aside from being madly in love we were really impressed by the wines of New Zealand.  We hand carried a total of 3 cases home. (We were very lucky that we could bring liquids on board the plane and our luggage was heavy.  Very heavy.)  We did have an appointment to visit Craggy Range Winery and we were incredibly impressed by the technology, architecture and setting of the vineyard.  Steve Smith, Master of Wine showed us around the winery personally and when he heard that we were traveling and sleeping in a campervan offered to put us up in one of Craggy Ranges’ guesthouses for the night.  It was an unexpected and generous offer, one that I haven’t forgotten.  So I am very happy to declare the 2007 chardonnay delicious and delightful. It received 91 points from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, so I’m not the only one that thinks so.

Serve this Chardonnay lightly chilled with chicken or white firm fleshed fish.  It was particularly lovely with Braised Chicken Thighs with Calvados, sautéed apples and cream.

My Cookbook of the Year

First of all, I think that I have found not the best cookbook ever, but the best recipe collection ever.  I got a copy of ‘Best of the Best Cookbook Recipes’ from the editors of Food and Wine magazine about 6 weeks ago.  It’s the ‘best recipes’ from the 25 best cookbooks of the year.   I have to say, I can not stop making the recipes that are in this book—they are all so good!  At last count, I have made 20 recipes from this book.  I’ll be making another two or three later this week.  I have never been so enamored with a cookbook before. And you know what?  Barring the turnip gratin they were all ‘make again’ recipes.  (I divide recipes into two parts.  1. Make, enjoy and forget. 2. Make again and again and again. )  My favorite recipe?  It’s a tough call but the Vietnamese braised pork spareribs were awesome….saturated with flavor.  Next up is the Buttermilk Bacon Pralines to serve with Champagne on New Year’s Eve.  I’ll let you know how they turn out!

Kika’s Treats

Caramelized Graham Crackers wrapped in Dark Chocolate

These were voted ‘Best Cookies in San Francisco’ by SF Weekly earlier this year. I think that these are amazing.  I am completely addicted to them.  You have to try them.  ‘nuff said.

Mariposa Baking

It’s really difficult remove wheat from the standard American diet.  (Try it some time.)  From time to time I work with people with wheat allergies.  It’s tough to make everything from scratch.  In doing some research and testing various gluten free products and mixes I came upon Mariposa Baking, a small gluten free bakery located in Oakland, Ca.  I think that they have some of the best gluten free baked goods in the market place.  Try the pizza crust and bagels!  The truffle brownies are pretty good too.