marie-louise

Today's CSA delivery from Full Belly Farms (near the Bay Area): Beets Buttercup Squash Eggplant Red Russian Kale Onions Braising Mix Tomatoes Red Radishes Last week we got some terrific Yukon Gold potatoes; we've also been getting great turnips every other week or so. I am SO behind on my squash! We eat and eat it-it's always terrific-but they are sending us a few large squash a week. It looks great in my kitchen counter.

FYI, here's the list of the episodes that were on the J&J TV series- for those of you who don't own it, this gives you an idea of what's in the book. Cookbook trivia: unlike most cookbooks that accompany a cooking show, this one was written AFTER the tapings, not before. Looks like there's a reasonably-priced DVD for sale through Amazon as well. I took another look through this cookbook this weekend-it is a real gem.

Holy shit, that's a lot of recipes. And this comes out every month-what's a person supposed to do with all those recipes? Yeah, I know, stack 'em up on a shelf for "someday." Yeah, right.

I looked this step up in J & J: Cooking at Home. Not only is there a nice color picture along with some detailed text, they explain why you do it (to make it easier to carve.) I'm a big fan of this book, although I haven't picked it up in a while. Just a caution about Cookwise-while her science makes a lot of sense, I don't care much for her recipes. If you want a book that has both great scientific explanations and great recipes, Kamman's New Making of a Cook would be my recommendation. J & J: Cooking at Home is more practiical, less cerebral. PS My life is a little too crazy right now to join in consistently (I've yet to work my way through the eGCI, either) but I think the idea of virtually cooking together is terrific. I'd like to join in now and again, if that's okay?

All my life, I've always heard how California feeds the nation. But is that still going to be true going forward, or is the bloom off the rose. Are people like me, who have faithfully belonged to a CSA for years, the end of the line for small farmers? Is California's insatiable desire for affordable (by California standards) housing and hideous business parks going to use up every flat piece of farmland between San Francisco and LA? My grandparents were small farmers in the Central Valley. It never was an easy life; they barely made a living fifty years ago. But at least it seemed like large farms were keeping California's agricultural tradition alive. Now I'm not so sure. For instance, in the Capay Valley, near Sacramento, apparently most the tomato farmers have gone out of business because the tomato processing plants all moved to Mexico and there was no longer any need for thousands of acres of Roma tomatoes. Many people say California's wines are overpriced and over-hyped. Is Napa doomed to the same fate? The selection at my local fish market isn't nearly so local these days-and there's not as much of a selection as there used to be. Please tell me I'm worrying about nothing.

I am determined to visit every county in California in the next decade. I've lived here all my life, yet there are still whole areas I haven't ever visited. It is such a huge state, but still I find myself surprised at how different the geography is from place to place. Care to share some of your favorite hidden places and restaurants? Thanks for being a part of eGullet. I enjoy your posts a lot.

Mashed potatoes, a subject near and dear to my heart. I never met a mashed potato I didn't like, but my favorites are a variation of your method: I microwave whole Russet potatoes in their skin. Whenever possible, I use organic Russets-the ones we get in the Bay Area taste completely different than "storage potatoes." I'm sure baking them in the oven would make them even better; I would never consider a microwave potato an acceptable "baked potato." However, IMO, mashed potatoes made w/ microwaved potatoes still taste much better than potatoes that have been cooked by boiling. I cut them in half, put them through a cheapo ricer that looks like a giant garlic press (the skin stays behind.) Then I mix in butter, then heated half and half. Sometimes I use creme fraiche or sour cream. Because the riced potatoes are drier than if you boiled them, they are able to absorb much more butter and milk before they get runny. Which is the whole point of my method-maximize absorption possibilites.

Another native [northern] Californian here. I'm trying to make an effort to see all of the missions, they're a unique part of our history. One last trip up to Yosemite, perhaps? Hearts Castle? A fall drive up to Big Sur/ the Santa Barbara coast? PS Believe it or not, I've never, ever been to Disneyland!

I store mine in hte fridge, in a ziplock. It lasts for a few months (which is usually longer than I need it to.) When it's getting older, the edge might get a little moldy-just cut it off, the rest will be fine.

Not a side dish, but as long as we're on the subject of favorite winter squash dishes, a Winter Squash Galette is one of my favorites. It was last night's dinner and today's leftovers. It's very rich, if you want to serve it as an appetizer, serve very little slices. For 1-2 cups roasted squash, add 1/2 chopped onion that's been sauteed w/ a few chopped fresh sage leaves, the cloves from a head of roasted garlic, and 4 oz. grated cheese (I like Gruyere.) Sometimes I also saute a few chopped fresh shiitakes along w/ the onion. Mash it all together, season w/ salt & pepper, spread it onto a 12-inch disc of pie crust dough, fold over the edges as you would any galette, and bake at 400 until done. I also like stuffed squash. I make mine w/ sausage, sauteed apple, sauteed pear, onions, and raisins or Craisins. But that's rich enough for a whole meal, so that wouldn't work either. I usually just make pureed squash when asked to bring it as a Thanksgiving side. You can make it right before you go, put it in a gratin pan, then reheat it for a few minutes right before dinner.

To PekoePansy, Hest88, and Jaymes- Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! My husband and I finally made it to Koi Palace today. It was so much better than any other dim sum we've ever had, it was unbelievable. We are on our last few days of vacation and were headed to the Wine Club for a little retail therapy. We decided to go there for lunch on the spur of the moment, so I didn't look up anyone's suggestions before going. I didn't even remember the name, just that it was somewhere in Serramonte! Luckily, we found it after a short but scenic auto tour of the Serramonte shopping center. We had to wait about 20 minutes, which wasn't too bad considering we showed up right at noon. I ate and ate until I could eat no more, despite a strong desire to continue to stuff this incredible food into my mouth. Almost everything was vastly superior to other versions of the same dish. The BBQ pork buns (yeah, I know, what's the Chinese word for goyim) were incredible-a slight crispness to the outside of the dough, plus the filling was better. Other things that were great were the baked Egg Custard Bun, potstickers (nice gingery sauce), and some rice noodles w/ a spicy pork mixture on top. The only thing I didn't like was the pork su mai. The green onion cakes were different than usual, but good. We had more, but it is making me a little ill to recount how much we ate. I think we should go here as an eGullet lunch sometime. Anyone else interested? The two of us ate enough food for three, and the bill was only $32. Thanks again for the great tip. PS We were not the only non-Asians; there were at least 2 or 3 others

As I was nearing the Jack London farmer's market yesterday, I passed by a building "Cost Plus International Headquarters." So it makes sense that they'd be corporate sponsors. Dreyer's is also headquartered in Oakland, though they were bought by some big conglomerate a few years back. Not sure about where Safeway is based, but maybe that's their reason for being there. I agree, a food court with a Safeway, a Cost Plus, and some Dreyer's ice cream does not appeal much! Throw in some cookies and pretzels and you could be in any mall USA. Hopefully they'll quietly invest as a community service [AKA tax break] to Oakland.

That sounds like a recipe that is in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. When I make plain creamed spinach, I too, simply boil cream with the spinach until it is reduced to the desired consistency. But if I recall correctly-and it's been about 20 years since I last made it-that crepe recipe is made w/ a Mornay Sauce. Sorry, I don't own a copy or I'd look it up for you. It was a fun recipe-the crepes were coated w/ filling, then stacked into a souffle dish to bake. You cut it into wedges like a cake to serve.

There is a garage under Barnes and Nobles and one over Yoshi's. If this is going where I think it is (where that old Jack London Village shopping center was), they should be just a couple blocks away. These are both less than a block from the current Sunday Farmer's Market. Sometimes the parking is free, sometimes they charge you a buck if you don't get a validation. I've never quite figured it thir policy, I think it depends on parking lot attendant mood. I just love the idea of a waterfront market on each side of the bay. And the ferry dock is right there for each of them. Maybe in the not too distant future we could shop at one, then hop on a ferry to the other side to pick up something else? Hest 88-I like driving by those wharehouses, too. Maybe they will be able to incorporate the feel of a working produce market into the retail area. I really hope this happens.

There are a few big parking garages around that never seem to be filled.

Oh boy oh boy-how cool would this be?

One thing that would make this kitchen more cheerful without costing a fortune is to hang a nice big colorful poster on one of the walls. Yeah, it will get spattered w/ grease if you hang it behind the stove, so buy something relatively cheap; yeah, the space could be put to better use by hanging a pot rack or building shelves, but it would be really nice to cook looking at something pretty-a reproduction of one of those old French advertising posters, perhaps?

Why, reading eGullet, of course!

I'd suggest a little 6-inch deep or so shelf off the counter so that you can keep your coffee pot, grinder and assorted other things there, up off the counter itself. Then I'd get a piece of end-grain wood maple (order from John Boos, perhaps) that fit across the area from the stove to the wall (stash the dishrack somewhere else while you're chopping, stash the piece of wood somewhere else when you're doing the dishes.) Where do you eat? Do you have a table nearby that could be used as a prep area w/ the addition of a cutting board? Elfa makes some great carts that can be fitted w/ a butcher block top.

Soapbox alert-you have touched on one of my pet peeves! I personally think that mise en place is way over-rated for the typical weekday meal. I understand that it essential to prep before service in a restaurant, but to me, it makes no sense at home unless you are preparing a large and elaborate dinner party. You can get dinner on the table much, much faster if you multi-task and prep as you go. When you stop and think about it, very few things require your complete and undivided attention (the exception being stir-frying, even I do mise en place for that.) For instance, here's how I would make risotto for a weeknight meal: Chop onions/ garlic & start sauting them (that takes 5 minutes or so.) In that 5 minutes, open wine and get Arborio out of pantry. Partially thaw stock in microwave, then put in saucepan to come to simmer. Saute rice, add wine. Start adding stock. IMO, risotto needs to be stirred often, not constantly, so while I was occasionally stirring it, I'd prep any other ingredients that were going into the risotto. Most things get added during the last 10 minutes, so they can be prepped while you are stirring. The table can be set during this time as well. Start to finish, risotto done my way takes under 25 minutes. Preparing it using the mise en place would take most people an additional 15 minutes or so. Now, I have a small kitchen, so I'm never more than a couple of steps away from the stove, and I WAS an ER nurse for 15 years so I'm probably a little better at multi-tasking than some, but I think anyone can speed up their start-to-finish time.

That is sad, badthings. Silicon Valley used to be filled w/ orchards, too, and it wasn't all that long ago. PS I just bought some incredible peaches at the Market Hall this week, so they're not ALL gone.

I have the utmost respect for architects, and have had nothing but positive experiences working with both them and the contractors I've hired to make their designs a reality. That being said, sometimes you just have to ignore them and insist on what you want. Once you're an experienced enough cook, no one could possibly know better than you what you want out of a kitchen. Where the refrigerator goes, whether you have one oven or two, and whether the dishwasher is to the left or the right of the sink-there's no one "right" answer. It depends on what makes sense for how you cook. Where architects/ designers are useful is in designing a beautiful space. They understand light, scale, and spatial relationships in a way that I never will. No matter how much they interview you, it is an unfair expectation to think that they will come up with a better kitchen than you can. The synergy comes when you can say, "I need x number of cabinets for my dishes, along with this big and this brand of refrigerator, which I want to go to the left of the stove, and the height of my island should be x inches. They can then design a well-proportioned space, with the right lines and shapes of cabinets that are in scale with the appliances you've chosen, pick mouldings and windows that will give you a balanced light, and so on. At the end of the day, you'll have a better kitchen than if you let them make all the decisions, or than if you designed it without professional assistance. The next step is to respect your contractor's suggestions (assuming of course you did your homework and hired one on the basis of their reputation, not because they were the lowest bid.) Architects design for beauty ("form over function"); contractors can head you off some bad design ideas that may look great but won't work well (because the contractor is always the one that has to come back and fix them. )

I'm back from my road trip. It is incredibly beautiful up there, and I'm pleased to report that you can dine very well way up north. I'll summarize my recommendations here, then post the details when I get time. Highly Recommended: Trinity Cafe, on Mt. Shasta Blvd. north of downtown in the town of Mt. Shasta. The new chef was formerly the sous chef at Piatti and another place I didn't catch. Impeccably fresh seasonal ingredients, perfectly prepared. The restaurant is in a cute little converted house, and the staff is both professional and friendly. This place would be successful in the Bay Area. Sengthong, on the main street of Dunsmuir (same side of the street, down the hill from the movie theatre.) This place used to be way off the beaten track in the Trinity Alps, but moved over by I-5 a while back. Worth a stop for anyone heading up to Ashland (they are open for lunch, too.) Her food was once written up in Bon Appetit-she is Vietnamese, but also lived in Laos and Thailand. Her food is an interesting mix of the three cuisines. Breakfasts at The Carville Inn. I've stayed in a lot of B&Bs over the years, but this is up there w/ the best of them. The setting is beautiful, as you can see by the link. I often find the breakfasts at B&Bs a barely tolerable experience- the fellow guests are usually far too perky before coffee (which IMHO, is a worse sin than a too-chatty airline seatmate), the muffins mediocre at best, and who can eat that much food first thing in the morning anyway? Well, it is a completely different experience here. The owner has baskets of Martha Stewart Livings around and has the resources at her disposal to cook Martha's recipes as they were intended, and yes, that's a good thing: she keeps chickens, makes applesauce and jams from her own fruit, and is an incredibly good cook. Anything with beef. Melkor was right. We had incredible beef everywhere we went-beef that is far better than what we get locally in the Bay Area. I'm guessing that Lassen beef at the SF Farmer's Market is one tasty cow. Recommended with Caveats: Michael's: Right downtown on Mt. Shasta Blvd., Mt. Shasta. One of the best hamburgers ever, but I've never tried anything else on the menu, and I have a sneaking suspicion that the rest of the menu might not be as good. But I don't know. Piemont: (yes, that's the correct spelling) Someone named Jim on Chowhound raved about this place. It's south of town on Mt. Shasta Blvd. While the food is similar to those family-style Italian places in Occidental, it wasn't nearly as good. The restaurant is on Historic 99, has been there since 1940, and was a fun, small-town experience where the people next to you chat with you during the meal. Avoid at all Costs: Cafe Maddalena This restaurant used to get rave reviews for it's Sardinian food, but it has changed hands. The new owner is the former owner of the Trinity Cafe. The best way to summarize how terrible this meal was is to tell you that they offered to comp our entire meal (we declined, since we did manage to eat it and the waitress did bring it...75 minutes after we ordered it.) The food was terrible, the wait inexcusable, and the restaurant so hot sweat was rolling off my face. Best of all- the locals get preferential treatment-only the tourists appeared to have to wait to get fed. Black Bear Diner: Despite the cute website, the food is inedible. (edited to add more details) First, the breakfasts at Carville Inn. Day One was light-as-air pancakes, served w/ maple syrup and her homemade applesauce; assorted fresh fruit; fruit juice; a scone that was better than any I've ever tasted; some really good bacon and baked eggs with cheese. Day Two was Biscuits, served with Sausage Gravy that was to die for and several of her homemade jams; perfectly cooked eggs over easy; juice and a fruit plate, and last but not least, warm blackberry cobbler, made from blackberries on the property. She also provides a complimentary snack in the afternoon, including wine. We spent the time between breakfast and dinner hiking in the Trinity Alps, so we were glad to have all these calories on board. The downside of staying here is that it is in the middle of nowhere-the nearest real restaurants are 45 minutes away in Weaverville-but she has a refrigerator for the guests (stocked with complimentary beer, water, and soda). After checking with her, we brought up an assortment of food from the Pasta Shop, and a bottle of our own wine to stash in the fridge for our dinners. There are several places to picnic on the property, but we just set up a picnic on their wonderful verandah and ate and drank while we watched the mountains change color as the sun went down. Next time urban life gets to be a little much, head for this place to unwind for a few days. Bring your own food, plan to head down to Weaverville one night to check out Noelle's Garden Cafe that lmschwartz recommended but we didn't get a chance to try, bring a selection of books to read on the verhandah or in the hammock, and I promise you will be as mellow beyond belief after three or four days.

Count me in that minority, too. My answer: because I have eaten the chicken at Zuni. Judy Roger's cookbook has brought my home-cooked chicken closer to perfection (although I'll leave the multi-step bread salad for the restaurant.)

The dry gardened tomatoes have arrived at the Market Hall produce store. They are from Molina [?] Creek Farm in Davenport. Tana-or anyone else in that area-know this farm? The sign at the store says, "These are the best tomatoes you will ever taste," and while that may be stretching it, they are very, very good.