tanabutler

I just caramelized one perfect onion, a offering from my sweet neighbor. Turns out she gives massage to Joe Rubin, the farmer at Live Earth Farm (I interviewed him last week). It's the sweetest onion I've ever had.

Hey, you kids! Get offa my lawn! Darn hooligans. (Drcocktail, I can't believe you've been doing this longer than I've been alive. I am solidly on the shady side of 40.)

iSi, si, si! Well, sort of and mostly. The Caesar salad was the creation of an Italian immigrant to Tijuana, Caesar Cardini, back in 1924. Julia Child is said to have eaten one of his salads at the source. Cardini and his brother later founded the Cardini line of salad dressings. God love Google.

Chef Sean, may I just interject here and say that I dearly want to visit Nashville again and shake your hand? Provided it's not covered in grits. Wait, even that's okay! Seriously. I miss Nashville. Your attention to things like those you mention (rice, biscuit flour, cornmeal, hominy and polenta) are just fascinating to me. (Is there any chance you are kin to the Brocks from Marietta, Georgia?) And many thanks for the link to the NYT article, Mr. Kilgore.

Thanks, Beans and Drcocktail. The umbrage really isn't mine. Consider me a proofreader who spots an error that might prove embarrassing were it to be published. I didn't write the rules, I didn't write the copy. I'm just looking around, nervously, at the posse that might be showin' up any time, ready to lynch the idea of an (ahem) Key Lime Martini. Or any other of the libelous libations, the cockeyed cocktails, the bastardized brews churned out in marketing lingo (and that's all it is ) today. Over at my other hangout, Readerville, there is a thread called "Word Abuse! Word Abuse!" and another one all about food. (Readerville is specifically book-centric.) I can't count the number of times that I've seen people go off about martinis. It just has come to be sacrilegious to me that a martini could include things like apple or vanilla or blackberry. They should call them "pot pourri cocktails." A martini with fruit would go, in my opinion as a non-martini drinker, right straight into the "Word Abuse" thread. I think specificity in language is a very nice thing, especially when it counterbalances corporate speak. Corporations employ marketing people. Marketing people employ hype. Hype employs falsehoods. I think it's very good when language gets real. Or maybe I need a deprogrammer. I hope not.

How about the Friends Thanksgiving episode where Rachel makes a trifle with sautéed beef and onions? "It tastes like FEET!" One of David Schwimmer's only truly funny whiny moments. Of course, the mere word "sandwiches" makes my daughter laugh, if you say it like Joey does. What about Monica auditioning food for a potential employer (Jon Lovitz) who got stoned on the way to the apartment? Lovitz was adorable. Perfect. She sets out some amuse-bouche (Chandler said, "Well, they are amouzing") for him. Lovitz's response to the food: And this line: (That would make a great signature line, wouldn't it?) And then trying to save the drowing gummy bears. "Bears overboard!" I loved lots of Elizabeth Montgomery's moments with food in "Bewitched," but probably because we were often hungry in my house, and the idea of twitching your nose or waving your arms (to harp music), and producing a spread of food like she did, really had its own appeal. I bet most of the people here my age will remember her little cooking disasters (in black and white) as a newlywed, when Darren refused to let use magic. (Oddly, none of the food Alice prepared on "The Brady Bunch" looked appetizing. It all looked so suburban and boring, if not downright dead.) I have never watched an entire episode of "Seinfeld." And I hope I never have to.

Do you prefer to stay in a busy town, or where it's completely quiet and gorgeous, where cell phones don't even work? I prefer days in the towns, and to stay where it's remote. Your preference?

[Editor's note: Since the Key Lime Martini thread was splitting into two topics, I took the liberty of splitting it officially. The question of what exactly constitutes a "martini" and what to call all those other drinks begins with this comment by tana. -- JAZ] Just because it's served in a martini glass doesn't mean it's a martini. It's a marketing ploy to sell a Key Lime cocktail that people otherwise might not order. A martini is gin (and purists, of course, exclaim "Never vodka!"), unsullied with anything except the barest vermouth. Diaphanous vermouth. All references to vermouth, of course, are spoken in droll terms, such as "wave the vermouth bottle over the glass" or "stand across the room with the vermouth bottle and whisper its name to the martini." Martinis seem to have their own eclectic language, conceived by the cult following they, above all cocktails, seem to enjoy. The only conceivable additions are one of the following: a lemon twist, olives, or cocktail onions. Anything else is considered an abomination. I'm not even a martini lover, but even I know not to mess with the formula for the classic cocktail of all time. Please read this brief treatise on The Secrets of a Very Dry Martini. Mr. Lucky is also kind enough to offer up this Advanced Martini Making lesson. (Rather than out him, let me implore the author, an eGulleteer friend of ours, to step from behind the curtain.) I've known about Mr. Lucky since about 1995, and am proud to be one of the early subscribers to his paper magazine. Don't forget to check out his other cocktails. Yes, martini glasses are groovy, and make things look cool, but Kool-Aid in a flute will never be champagne. Pardon my bluntness: I've clearly been brainwashed by people who know their martinis.

Latest acquisitions: baby beets (with umbilical cords still attached), pumpkin tartlets for little boys, strawberries, rainbow chard, and a Sungold cherry tomato plant.

I just found out that Judy Rodgers is slated to be guest chef at one of the OutstandingOutstanding in the Field farm dinners this summer. I'll keep you posted when details are more concrete. I know so many people who own that cookbook and say it's one of their favorites.

Tel-e-vision. TELEVISION. Low brow (television), not high brow (films...there's a separate thread for food porn films). Domestic, not foreign. Wait, we can't ignore food on British television. Monty Python. Upstairs, Downstairs. Fawlty Towers. Start your engines.

Interesting article. Thanks for linking, Jinmyo.

Calendar of events for Santa Cruz County (searchable) Also, make sure to pick up a Good Times when you get to town. It's the local arts/entertainment weekly, jam-packed with everything you need to get around. My last suggestion would be to consider buying an Entertainment booklet for Monterey/Santa Cruz area. It's only $15, but there are literally thousands of dollars worth of coupons for really good deals on everything from fine dining to coupons for discounts on multiple admissions to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, etc. Examples: Monterey Bay Aquarium: $3/off regular admission for 4 adults 2-for-1 Kayak or bicycle rentals from Adventures by the Sea Two-for-one meals at every fast food joint you can think of: KFC Taco Bell Domino's/Straw Hat/Round Table/Mountain Mike's/Papa Murphy Pizza Subway Burger King Baskin Robbins Farrell's Donuts Also nicer places like Zuniga's Mexican, Billy Quon's, Manicomio Cafe (Italian place in Capitola village: real Italians), Ideal Bar & Grill, The Tinnery (Pacific Grove), and a bunch more. Plus the area's got more coffee places than Rome has churches, I bet. I buy one every year. It pays for itself in one outing.

Thank you for the valuable information, Emily. I'm trying to absorb and learn as much as I can, and will pass your words onto my client. EDIT: Your website is great!

Marie-Louise, my most-trusted foodie friend, whom I sent to this thread to see my Carmel photos, said: "I can't believe that post about Mendocino that failed to mention Cafe Beaujolais, where I've had two of the best meals of my life. It's worth going to Mendocino for that reason alone." Café Beaujolais

Malawry, thanks; yes, one productive Google produced a Mother Jones article about David Cole. When I Googled him, your eGullet entry mentioning your visit to Sunnyside (and the Inn at Little Washington). The other farm that came up in repeated Googles was Goat Hill Farm. I like their website: when you want to e-mail the farmer, it goes to "oldgoat@goathillfarm.com" -- heh heh. Someone asked me to research the organic vibe in Rappahannock, so I'm trying to acquaint myself with it. It's hard being all the way out here. But thanks for the tips, again.

Is The Waterboy a good option?

Thanks, Emily. By "respected," I mean visionary and venerated, for having been involved with organic farming for a long time, for being a spokesperson, for being an authority, for being involved. There is apparently some kind of organic movement afoot back there, which I am very interested in.

Howdy, eGulleteers in the know. I am seeking information about the organic farm/foods movement in the Rappahannock Valley in Virginia. Who are the respected farmers there? If you're familiar with them, which farms are the most beautiful? Got any good stories about them? Any information would be welcome. I've Googled, and there is a ton of information out there, but it's overwhelming. Thanks!

The snack aspect is perhaps the wrong choice of words, but it doesn't lessen the effect of the humor. I didn't get hung up on that word at all. And maybe "snack" is so ultra-American that he uses it tongue-in-cheek. Maybe not. Aussies?

Funny you should mention it, EMSG. This week's SF Chronicle food section has a feature article on the glorious globes. The artful artichoke (There are actually two seasons, sorta kinda, but they're available all the time.) Can you tell me your dates, or is that private?

Oh, I wish you'd white-out the actual descriptions and let us give our uneducated guesses and first impressions.

Here, in its completely revamped version, is the recipe for the awe-inspiring avocado dip. Evergreen Avocado Dip* Group One 2 Hass avocados, mashed 2 shallots, minced 1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened 1/4 c. minced parsley 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper 2 T. fresh lemon juice salt and pepper to taste Group Two 1/2 c. chopped pistachio nuts minced parsley (1 T or less) Combine all Group One ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Cover tightly and refrigerate at least eight hours. Top with Group Two (the chopped pistachio nuts and minced parsley). Serve immediately (with tortilla chips, pita triangles, and/or veggie sticks).

Thank you, dear. I've got something else I'm all excited about, and I need to work up a new thread for it, too.

As linked elsethread, an article in the March 3, 2004 Santa Cruz Sentinel ("New alliance pins Santa Cruz to the culinary map") featured a new group here in Santa Cruz County, a non-profit group of culinary professionals who intend to get Santa Cruz county recognized as a culinary destination. I joined earlier this month, as a "food multimedia artist." This thread is intended to highlight CASCC's activities and success. So many good things are happening in the region. From the CASCC website: My first assignment as a CASCC member was to photograph Live Earth Farm and interview the farmer, Joe Rubin. (I have photographed about two dozen organic farms in the last five years. It's one of my favorite things to do.) Green garlic at Live Earth: And here is Joe, in front of the bread oven they built at Live Earth, who oftens hosts community events. Can you see the sleeping dragon on top? So yesterday, I headed to downtown Santa Cruz with my little buddy, Rowan, who is a six-year-old foodie. Swear to God: he comes to my house, pulls a chair up to the stove, and we cook together. He knows his herbs and spices, and I've seen him stirring pots at his own house, standing on a stepstool. We had lunch (a fabulous grilled chicken chimichanga at El Palomar, though they are not yet a CASCC member), then I took him for gelato at CASCC member GelatoMania Café. It's a really nice spot: airy and light. There is wireless internet access, as well, and (of all things) an oxygen bar. Rowan was very happy with his two flavors of gelato (mint-chocolate and a kind of Dutch chocolate). When we chatted about what he wanted to be when he grew up, he said, "I don't want to be a singer, Tana. I want to be a gelato maker." We headed to the Farmer's Market so Rowan could meet farmer Joe. En route, we bumped into chef Brian Curry from Ristorante Avanti, also a CASCC member. Brian is a stellar chef who produced absolutely perfect courses at an Outstanding in the Field farm dinner last summer at Happy Boy Farm. When I met him last year, he told me he had bought the entire crop of English peas from a farmer—for the whole season. This is the kind of thing that makes such good sense. Joe had told me that Brian and Ristorante Avanti had thrown a "farmer's appreciation dinner," and it was wonderful. I introduced Rowie to Brian, and said Rowie was a foodie. Brian whipped out a gigantic stainless steel spoon from his back pocket and helped himself to some of the gelato, telling Rowan, "See, if you ever want to be a chef, you always need to carry a spoon." Pretty cute. So we headed over to see Joe, and his booth was all abuzz because, as Brian had told me, "Green garlic is here!" He was swarmed with customers. By then, Rowie was full of gelato, and I said, "Maybe Joe will want the rest." Boy, did Joe want the rest. He gave me a bunch of baby beets so young you could practically see their umbilical cords. The greens were glistening with life. If there is anything I love more than baby beets, I don't know what that would be. These are just about life-sized: Rowan and I continued our rounds, and headed over to yet another CASCC member's booth, because Rowan knew they were they. He pulled me by the hand over to Donnelly Chocolates, and they were also mobbed. We waited patiently. Well, I waited patiently. Rowan, as I have mentioned, is six, and was very eager, nay, bursting, to know what awaited him. I asked why he wanted chocolate when he had just told me he was done with his chocolate gelato. "That's different, Tana." We settled on one piece for Rowan, and one piece for my daughter, whom I was getting from school later. Rowan chose the Tahitian vanilla in milk chocolate, and I picked out a raspberry dark chocolate truffle for my girl. Rowie said it was the best vanilla thing he'd ever had, and noticed that it contained actual vanilla bean, "with the speckles in it, like you make, Tana." (He's had my crème brulée.) All in all, we had a splendid afternoon, and of course the perfect weather that characterizes Santa Cruz made it all the better. That weather is the reason it's Eden here. EDITED because I misspoke about not growing decent peaches. That's just not true, and I don't know what I was thinking. Doh!