FrogPrincesse

Me too! They are my favorites! Early May seemed early for perfectly ripe peaches, but I am not complaining...

Here is a slice of rustic peach tart I made a couple of weeks ago with local peaches that were absolutely delicious. I made a saffron-peach jam with the rest. Edited to add: a picture of the entire tart

San Diego has a small number of artisanal bread bakeries. Bread & Cie has been my favorite for years, and their breads are now available in many supermarkets, which is very convenient. But it's nice to have some variety. So I was excited to spot a new bakery this weekend in Linda Vista. It's called Pacific Time and it is also a sandwich place with a small market with things like small-batch preserves, local beers, a cheese counter, charcuterie platters, and wine. It's located within a recently renovated strip mall that also hosts Brew Mart & Ballast Point. The bread I bought was a French-type rustic boule, dark, a bit reminiscent of Poilane but less dense. The crust could have been a little more crispy (it felt like the bread had sat around a little bit and softened in the paper bag), but the flavor was wonderful. Here is the bread:

This thread used to be lively and fun... Time to revive it! From this weekend, at Sab-E-Lee's new larger and much more comfortable location on Linda Vista road, a minute away from the previous one (which still exists with a more limited menu), a delicious duck larb. The only complaint was the cabbage on the side. I don't know if that is typical or not, but I prefer some nice lettuce... Next time I want to try their version of beef & tendon soup!

Martinique Reviver at Fairweather this weekend with rhum agricole, lime juice, coconut liqueur. Like a longer version of a Ti Punch. Delightful.

The prices of Japanese whisky have skyrocketed now that demand is high and stock are getting depleted. I am apparently sitting on a little fortune at home, I had not idea... Wow. I could no longer afford anything at these prices! These pictures was taken at Hi-Time Wine Cellars.

Aprium vanilla jam a la Christine Ferber (except I quartered the apriums instead of halving them, and didn't bother removing their skin...).

This one seemed a bit odd on paper but I was in the mood for a Fernet-forward cocktail, and I decided to trust the drink's creator... Magic Julep (Giuseppe González) with mint and equal parts Fernet-Branca, Angostura bitters, simple syrup. It's a little sweet, but complex too thanks to the copious dose of Angostura bitters. I liked it very much actually. I wonder what it would taste like with a different brand of Fernet...

No, not chewy. There is a very slight (but pleasant) resistance and yes, a crunch with the first bite, and then it's mostly rich gelatin. I agree with you that a proper pho needs tendon AND tripe (plus brisket and flank, etc).

Kevin's podcast is great! I also like Erick Castro's Bartender At Large series. http://www.bartenderatlarge.com

I also often get beef tendon in Vietnamese pho soup, where it's typically both crunchy and gelatinous. Delicious and full of umami!

Not-Quite-Georgia Julep (Phil Ward) with Daron XO Calvados, Landy cognac, Briottet wild peach liqueur. Not the most harmonious calvados/cognac combo, but I can see the potential.

They keep forever. I've had a jar in the fridge for more than 6 months, maybe a year? The flavor changes a bit over time but they are still fine after all this time.

A couple of recent jams. On the left a peach and saffron jam made using Christine Ferber's recipe - great consistency, easily spreadable but not too thin, and a wonderful flavor. On the right, a strawberry jam made using Russ Parsons' small batch method. It is delicious but runnier than I would like. Each small batch yielded two jars. The last two are runny but manageable; the first two are too liquid so I will have to recook the syrup (I plan on straining out the fruit beforehand so it doesn't cook more). (Edited to add in-progress pictures of the peach jam)

All these beautiful cookie pictures made me think of these little savory black olive shortbread cookies (Sablé aux Olives Noires) by Pierre Herme that I made a while back. They are extremely delicate so transporting them is a little tricky (I ended up eating all the crumbs and broken pieces so it was all good). They are really tasty.

Last night Suzanne Goin won the James Beard award for Outstanding Chef, after years of being nominated. The 8th time was a charm. Congratulations!!!

Miss Behavin' (Brian Miller) with Daron XO calvados, Morand Williamine pear eau-de-vie, lemon juice, simple syrup, Ferrer Sonoma brut sparkling wine. I reduced the simple syrup by half which was a good call. This is very pleasant, light and peachy actually. I can't really say that it fully highlights the subtleties of the apple brandy or pear eau-de-vie, but it's a nice drink.

Gol nemu limes? Edited to add: these are the same as the Assam limes/lemons that @JohnT already suggested, just a different name. I bet that's what they are.

I tried The Lion and The Rose with its original specs. I liked it! Peaty and floral. I liked the contrast.

It's interesting to read about this, years later. The Bramble is Dick Bradsell's classic of course, with gin, lemon juice, and creme de mure (blackberry liqueur) plus simple syrup as the sweetener. I didn't know that the version with fresh muddled blackberries instead of liqueur was called a Ramble, but I did know that the rum version was a Rumble, which makes sense. Recently I made this Bramble/Ramble variation with fresh mulberries, Sipsmith London dry gin, lemon juice, simple syrup. The mulberries were a bit shy at first but this is a great way to enjoy gin, for sure.

A couple of recent classics with Sipsmith London dry gin (now that it's available at TJ's, I am not tempted to hoard it anymore). 2:1 Martini with Sipsmith London dry gin, Dolin dry vermouth, Regan's and Berg and Hauck's orange bitters Negroni with Sipsmith London dry gin, Campari, Cocchi vermouth di Torino.

It's been a while... This one was an occasion to use a few bottles that were gathering dust, for a Manhattan-like result. Do-Right (Jared Fischer via Gaz Regan) with Crown Royal, Pimm's No. 1 Cup, Luxardo cherry liqueur, Regan's orange bitters.

Oh, Sauternes. That's what they meant! "Saturn casks" had me scratch my head a bit, but that description was full of interesting imagery, including ox-drawn carts, so I didn't really give it a second thought. Thanks for the laugh!

Is it this one? I haven't, but it sounds wonderful...

That's the most common, at least in my area. It's called Laird's straight apple brandy and it's 100 proof (same as bonded). It's aged in oak.