marlena spieler

any meetings of the taco truck appreciation society during the time period of latish october through november? might i partake of guest membership? marlena

laban is pretty much the same thing as labneh, and yes, its strained nicely through a cheesecloth until you reach the consistency and thickness you wish, but the core of this whole thing is the yogurt you begin with. Total, and laban etc are made with a rich whole milk, often enriched or made entirely with sheeps milk, and also the bacteria are not particularly tangy, rather more subtle.....so the strained yogurt you end up with is accordinly sweet and smooth. a nice tangy yogurt, strained, will give you a nice tangy strained yogurt. delicious, totally delicious, esp if you use strauss' yogurt, but it will be different from Total. But you you have local yogurt-eries? if so, check out the different qualities in the yogurt and for a Total-ly experience, use a sweet mild one. on the other hand, just wait for total to return to tj and use this time period to explore the world of straining yogurt using different types of the fermented milk....... marlena

marlena's creamy endive soup with croutons and chives serves about 6 this recipe is from my class, and in fact i'm not allowed to share them but well i want you to enjoy......but please attribute it to me and sfchron cooking classes if passing it along. thanks! For the croutons: about 3 big slices stale pain levain or any rustic bread with a fairly tight crumb 1-2 tablespoons butter 1 tablespoon oil For the soup: 1-2 shallots, chopped (about 1/4 cup) about 6 endives, thinly sliced 2-3 tablespoons butter 2-3 tablespoons flour 1/2 cup dry white wine 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth 1 cup cream salt and pepper to taste 1 bunch of chives, finely chopped Make the croutons: dice the bread into small cubes. Heat a heavy nonstick frying pan and melt the butter with the oil, then lightly toast the bread cubes, over a medium low heat, tossing every so often, until the bread turns crisply golden and toasty. Remove from the heat and set aside. Make the soup: Sweat the shallots and endives in a heavy bottomed soup pan in the butter, stirring every so often, until vegetables are slightly softened, perhaps 6 or so minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and continue to cook and stir a minute or two longer. Pour in the wine and stir, and cook down, then add the broth, and cook and stir, bringing the mixture to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the soup is tehickened and the endives are tender. Puree, straining the mixture through a sieve or a chinois if a smooth consistency is desired, then return to the pot and add the cream. |Heat through until it just begtins to bubble around the edges. Taste for salt and pepper. Ladle the hot soup into warmed bowls and top with buttery croutons and big handfuls of chives!

I echo the sentiment that the delicious Straus is wonderful......... but it is a different kettle of fermented milk from the Greek yogurt. Total IS good, even my friends in Greece who deal with artisanal local yogurts agree that if an artisanal yogurt--scooped from its ceramic bowl, thickly creamy, tangily lactic, fresh and rich--is NOT available, then Total is v good. what i would do to get you through the time wait for Total to return to TJs, is go to a shop that specializes in middle eastern products and buy laban. in san francisco go to 22nd and irving, there are about 3 at least different laban companies. and the cheapest one is actually the best. marlena

hi lucy! i sort of love putting together dishes to match the taste of my guests. love-because its such a joy pleasing people. sort of-because it makes me a little crazy worrying about it ahead of time. and i don't really know bux's taste, though he so kindly helped me out yesterday with something and said he'd be seeing you in lyon. you're right that its too darned hot for tartiflette. tell him to come back in a few months! and i'll come too if invited! but i'm thinking: early autumn. early autumn. if it were later autumn i'd make a rich earthy pumpkin soup. but since its earlyish and still warm, what about a puree of endive soup flecked with a constelation of chopped chives and served with teeny croutons and if you are feeling expansive, tiny bites of foie gras? the soup is easy: sweat endives, add white wine, stock, whirl it with cream, add lots of chives, if you want the whole recipe let me know. i'm also thinking cod grilled with romsecu on a bed of bitter salad greens as a main course, or cod grilled with chorizo which makes its own flavourful oil, and maybe a few olives. very mediterranean, but leave me to my own devices for long enough and i head med. it will be fun to hear about what you finally decide. yum. marlena

dear tana and roz: not so sure of schedule myself but i think it goes something like this: 23rd october is back to bistro. i wanted to do this class as i spend so much time in parisian bistros and there is always something new being cooked, always a little twist on tradition, things like spices and world ingredients slipped into traditional french bistro techniques, so i just love bringing this authentic taste to my classes. the next one i think a week later, on cooking from the farmers market. we'll shlep around, talk to the farmers talk about what we see and cook what we buy. and the third one which is sometime around nov 13 is......oh a week in greece. i'm so into greek food this summer after spending time on an island with villagers (i used to live in greece anyhow so it was rediscovering so many things) that i'm really into greek flavours. i think we'll do things like.....i'm not sure, but i want to cover lots of ideas and inspiration. we'll be awash in olive oil of course. and dear comilona, I'm so pleased you enjoy my column! good point about the classes being dish oriented, but what we must remember is that every dish has a technique, and a good teacher will present this technique in such a way that you'll leave feeling that you can take the technique you learned into a wide variety of dishes. when they asked if i wanted to do demonstration or hands on classes i always answer demonstration, mainly because more people can come and i figure that what i do is less about specific techniques and more about inspiration of ideas that i gather from all over the place (and every time i find something exciting, i'm in as much of a hurry to put it in my column, and/or bring it to my class!). the new director of the school, thy tran is really good and will be responsive i am sure to suggestions from readers/students, so please do email her or myself and i'll pass it along. its interesting to have a venue for food writers to also teach what they write about. its different from other cooking schools i think. for one thing we're not plugging any books, in fact i don't think we're allowed to. i wouldn't anyhow as its not a book plugging venue. places such as shops get cheap or free demonstrations and classes as teachers are plugging books and doing "the tour" to promote books. which is good too. and by the way did i mention my new grilled cheese book? anyhow, olivia wu is one of the best cooks and food writers i know. she is very knowledgable, and her food sings with flavour, so i'd really recommend her. thy is full of great techniques, even wrote an award winning book on technique and though i haven't seen her teach, i'm hung out in france with her, so i'd recommend seeing what she's up to. i'd expect it to be good. she has lots of good ideas. Tara has a small child and a busy career and is a devoted and excellent cook, so for practicality she is your gal! lets see, jackie higuera mcmahan is lovely and full of enthusiasim for her great mexican flavours, flo braker is the best baking teacher i know (with the exception of rose levy barenbaum who's not teaching there.....) so for baking sign up with her. and i'm not sure who else is teaching........but everyone has something different to offer and everyone is primarily a food writer so really full of information to impart! the website for chronicle is sfgate.com and the classes should be listed there somewhere. i keep meaning to get the dates and sched for mine put on to my website and haven't yet. sorry........ anyhow, back to sleep. anyone ever wake up at five in the morning ready to tap tap tap on the computer and the rest of the world is sleeping and you don't have to be up until eight? thats me this morning. oh for a few more sweet hours......... marlena

chag sameach everybody! since we moved to hampshire and my daughter moved to nyc, i have not celebrated a single jewish holiday except for lighting the candles. its not easy to be a jew alone, especially a sociable jew who is not necessarily observant, but energetically culturally jewish. my daughter works long and hard and all the time, hopefully she will get some time off for the holidays (its a jewish hospital). next year, next year, we may have time to celebrate together. so much for feeling sorry for myself. honey cake. a big fish with the head on--the head being a symbol of wisdom for the coming year, apples and honey of course. and i'm in the chicken feet camp: nothing like a couple of feet to make your chicken soup taste super chickeny. enjoy, and here's to a sweet new year to you all! marlena

I know, I know, I really WANTED to like the place......for all the reasons you mentioned. but the food........sloppy and tasteless and just awful in every way from the bread right to whatever we ate for dessert, though as i mentioned there was a nice something with prunes, perhaps it was duck. and welcome to egullet! marlena I was a bit sad about Le Trumilou. It's a place I like a lot. I like the enormously kitschy décor, but most of all the old-fashioned simplicity of the place. There are dishes that other bistrots have stopped serving decades ago. I think the food is good, simple-good, not zen simple but on the verge of sloppy-simple (as in the now extinct "bougnat" tradition). Sometimes, maybe, on bad days, it can be further than on the verge (Au Tord-Boyaux, le patron s'appelle Bruno, know that song?) and that's when you may have experiences like the one Marlena describes. ←

the shop closed for the same reasons that such shops close........ but one of the women who was often working the shop can be found at Promenades Gourmands, her own website and business in which she does walking tours of paris, marketplace shopping, and cooking classes, usually all bound up together in one delicious day or one delicous experience. her name is paule caillat and i've written about her this summer in the san francisco chronicle (visit my website to read.....). paule is a great source of parisian food knowledge....... marlena

hmmmmm....... i don't seem to have the quote thingie right on this new and improved egullet, sorry. marlena

My classes always sold out and had a waiting list. so, tana and roz, come and do one of my next ones, I 'll try to make it worth your while. to be honest they are less class and more out of control food extravaganzas with lots of ideas and hopefully inspiration, lottsa food, and as many laughs as we could crank out. OH, and did i forget to mention technique? haven't see the progress of the new space yet, but it is a great venue.........and the woman who is directing the programme, thy tran, is terrific. x marlena And how important is venue? Will the Chronicle classes be more successful in the Ferry Building? I know the SLT classes that involved shopping tours were always among the most popular -- maybe that will prove to be a key. What do you all think? [

Aw, I was in a tizzy for: Shake and Melt! and then someone beat me to it! but i go for either grilled and chilled, or..... Shake and Melt! marlena

but nonetheless the producer saw someone very photogenic and personable and thought: ahah, my next million (she of the two fat ladies fame producer). and he did catch on worldwide. personally i think the whole jamie thing is very cyncial and as crafted tightly as a boy-band or girl-band is for maximum "hits" and audience appeal. also, who did we say writes his books? do we think the other chefs/authors in this fair land write their own books either? some do more than others is all i'll say. (nigella's writing, h i don't fancy her recipes too much, is on the other hand, a very engaging writer! man, when she wrote about make-up for the times she even had me thinking about make up, i mean, thinking about it....amusedly, consideringly, etc. she's the same with food. she has lots of good words and phrases stashed up her sleve to snatch and plop in here and there........i'm always thinking: yeah, why didn't i come up with that, etc.

lets not forget that he was plucked from the "chorus line" at River Cafe, because he is cute and photogenic and bouncy. without sounding "catty" it wasn't for his cooking skills.........or ideas.......etc. he is very cute and viewers want to be just like him. thats all i can say. before i burst into tears at the state of our perception of whats important in our kitchens and on our tables.......

The San Francisco Chronicle is relocating its cooking school to Ferry Plaza. One of the weeks--I think november 6th but not completely sure--i'll be doing a class involving shlepping around the market and cooking what we shop for. should be fun! check out todays chron for details........ marlena

an dull and below okay salad with the worst dressing ever, and the best view ever, at ma bourgogne..... and then the time i got dragged to trumilo, well the guidebooks always rave, and its so cheap, and we were right there, and i can't believe a meal could be that bad, though my something with prunes was actually okay. i kept looking around and there were all these french people eating and i kept thinking: okay i might expect tourists to be here, but parisians? the table next to us actually started talking with us and we had a nice time as they were so nice, but the food......ick. marlena

my two favourite restaurant loos: public restaurant in nyc, nice and be sure to take a few of their wrapped soaps for later, they also function as business cards. the tiny loo in a parisian bistro, le baracane. the toilet comes alive, wrapping itself in a flash of fasticidiousness after you flush. similar to the toilets in the chicago airport, i think american airlines terminal but not sure. as for ones to avoid, well the holes in the floor are always a turn off though thankfully there are so many fewer these days. also, creaky, steep, stairs that lead down to a smelly dungeon. don't like that. and toilet paper. running water. i second the affirmations on this being very important. oh, and toilet seats, man, i hate when a place doesn't have a toilet seat. oh yeah another pleasant toilet is at san franciscos jaunty's at jacks, because of the lively french music piped into the bathrooms. you come out feeling so perky with the music running through your ears......nice. marlena .

wonderful, glen! i won't be in nyc to see your great strides in the world of grilled cheese study, but i wish you luck! and yeah, i guess that cast iron way to go is the way to go. but i'm gonna check and see what the presses are like in paris within the next few weeks and will let you know...... and jgarner: thanks so much for the tip on trader joes fig jam! good fig jam, man one of lifes really important things. i'll mention it at the chronicle, too........i suppose that fig jam has always been seen as a bit far out there, not a mainstream think like strawberry etc, but having a good source of fig jam is important, hey! i suppose also it might depend on how many other fig jams are available out there. as for me, as soon as i set feet on bay area, soil, i'm in tj for the fig jam! un grand merci! marlena

i vowed I wouldn't contribute to this post, cause i knew that all i would tap in was the way i used to love liverwurst, and really how interesting is that for other people to read. but i can't help myself, reading how you all love it this way and that...... a million years ago i went into a big liverwurst passion, and had to have this sandwich, or half of this sandwich depending on how i was watching my diet, anyhow i had to have it.....a lot. whole sprouted grain bread or rye, mayo and mustard (brown preferably, and lots of it), shredded lettuce, onions, and liverwurst. Close it up and press it shut. Cut it in half and bite in......deep breath, happy smile.......nothing exotic but oh so cozy and satisfying. haven't eaten it since my phase and now i think: better eat it my next trip to usa.

Foregin Cinema is Wonderful! And Gayle Pirie wrote a book all about eggs a number of years back: something like city egg, country egg.......so even though i havne't eaten their bunchy eggy things, i'd better go there and do just that! Foreign cinema is a real gem.

i'm so spoiled by fig jams since i spend so much time in europe. i think the secret to a good fig jam, though, is not cooking it too much so that it stays fresh. i actually never make a real fig jam because i can buy such wonderful ones, and didn't get into the whole fig jam making thing in the book because it would have taken up too much space and been a little bit veering off subject......what i do is simmer the figs with a bit of sugar to get a sort of caramelized compote. funnily enough: i hate fig newtons, but looooooove fresh figs. go and know. and if you like fig jam, try the greek/bulgarian/turkish figs preserved in syrup. yum. goats cheese or manoori on the side, but it seems i may have mentioned this before. the truth is i mention it alot and if you're ever shopping in a greek/bulgarian/turkish/french shop with me, i'll probably be obnoxiously trying to get you to buy a jar. and then if you don't, i'll buy one for you! wish i could taste your fig jam, i'm just making a nice pot of french press, and the idea seems perfect for this end of the summer morning. x marlena oh yeah, if anyone has a big source of fresh black figs and is running out of ideas, i like to serve fresh figs with roasted duck legs, or sauteed duck breasts, and make a port pan sauce. scatter a little basil on top when you serve.

As a customer of panini, you understand, not having gone into the kitchen to check out the professional ones as i was writing a book on sandwiches for the home kitchen, i figured, anyhow, it seems as if the ones i see are steel........... anyhow glen, let me know what you find out from john at grilled cheese nyc, and i'll see what i see in paree.....so to speak. you're doing the right thing by checking out a lotta different grilled cheese making facilities. the other thing is simply a grill, the diner kind, with some kind of weight per sandwich.......line up up on the grill each with their own little weight/press, you can keep a better look out on them and not be locked in to the whole panini-shape-press thing. talk to you after paris....... marlena

Dear Glenn, I think cast iron is NOT a good idea for a commercial venture like this for a variety of reasons, though cast iron is fabuloso in a home skillet, both the bottom one for frying the the top one to weight the sandwich down. i think that the traditional Italian panini press is the best way to go. i'm going to be in paris next week or the week after and I'll poke around--there are italian panini makers on nearly every street corner--and make a full report to you! oh, and you might think to stop by some of the new york sandwich places, like Cosi, on......Park ave around 22nd or so........they do panini, and keep your eyes peeled for others who do as well. but you and i know that a panini might be a grilled cheese sandwich but all grilled cheese sandwiches are not panini! and yes, i've tossed a few grilled cheese into the waffle maker too, yum, the crispiness of sizzled cheese and crunchy bread is beyond divine......... and my big confession is that in the midst of writing the grilled cheese book i went out and bought a Hello Kitty grilled cheese sandwich maker. only two of the halves are kitty, the other two halves are the bunny i think (but don't remember as have given the sandwich maker away to someone who truly covetted it). i loved that sandwich maker, it sealed in the hot cheese, toasted the bread, and gave me little kitty triangle sandwiches too. what more could i ask for. by the way, does anyone know the origin of the waffle maker? i was told it was that a woman in "the old days" the generic old days, had made cakes and they were cooling off on the bench next to the table, when her husband came home from the wars and was wearing chain armor. when he sat down on the cakes, he left a big chain armor impression. anyhow thats what i was told. x marlena

Curtido, I think. It's "slaw" to me. Yeah, curtido! thanks, senor soup! god do i love that stuff! in fact, i think i'm going out to buy a cabbage right this moment. marlena

no, i actually haven't, though they are the sort of thing that i could get a big lust going for--love cast iron, and the thought of cooking over open fire (though i don't do that often alas, and when i do it always seems to be an accident, how will i remember to have my cast iron pie oven at hand? cast iron pans, cooked over an open fire: how good is that. no doubt the best grilled cheese sandwiches in entire world would be made that way. i like the way the pan encloses and then sort of roasts over the fire....though it doesn't look like it presses............have you used one? marlena