Sketches of Gazpacho: Blending Summer's Best Ingredients

There's only one thing to do when temperatures rise and Early Girl tomatoes appear at the farmers' market: make gazpacho. This revelation came to me like a lightening bolt at the Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market on Saturday when I sampled the Dirty Girl Produce's Early Girl tomatoes. Another influence on the revelation was the prior evening's viewing of Miles Ahead, an Oscar-worthy performance and directorial debut of Don Cheadle about Miles Davis' dormant years following some of his best works.

So this morning I played the Sketches of Spain album and pulled out The Spanish Table cookbook to plan for the perfect hot summer meal. The Sketches of Spain album blends together classic Spanish and world music with Davis' sultry jazz.  Just as that album connected those independent musical styles to create an entirely unique sound, gazpacho blends some of the best summer ingredients to create a delicious and healthy dish. 

Every summer, I eagerly anticipate the debut of Early Girl tomatoes. They are a special little tomato, in part because they are dry farmed -- a process by which the seedlings are watered only during planting. Without watering during the growing season, the tomato plant starves and thus becomes highly efficient: dropping some of its leaves, growing deep roots to seek out ground water, and putting all of its might into producing the fruit. The result is a super sweet, high acidity, tiny tomato with a thick skin. These dry farmed Early Girls are like a tortured artist who overcomes adversity and suffering to create a brilliant work, much like Miles Davis. 

The summer growing season also produces other key ingredients in the classic gazpacho: cucumbers and peppers. I selected both from Lucero Organic Farms, since they claimed theirs to be the very best cucumber in the world and their peppers were beautiful too.

The source and ingredients for today's gazpacho

The Spanish Table Classic Red Gazpacho is the recipe I followed to create this beautiful dish. It's as simple as blending together a purée of garlic, sweet onion, red and green bell peppers, cucumber, tomatoes, sherry vinegar, olive oil, stale bread, and salt.

A similar recipe of Jose Andres (minus the bread) was published in the Washington Post here.  Food & Wine magazine also published a great piece on the many variations of gazpacho - even using watermelon or grapes. See here.

The beauty of any gazpacho recipe is that it requires no cooking - just chopping and blending. That's what makes it the perfect meal for a hot summer day. So celebrate this heat wave by making some gazpacho. Then as it chills before serving, raise a glass of wine to toast the tortured soul and robust flavor of the dry farmed Early Girl tomato.

The finished product - with a drizzle of Spanish olive oil and a few flecks of good salt

Places to Try: My Personal Goals for Making the World a Better Place

It's been a while since my last post. Time slips by so quickly. The daily grind and seemingly unending news of tragic world events can wear down spirits. But perhaps it is in the busiest and worst of times that it is even more important to carve out special moments to do what you love. Or enjoy the simple pleasures in life - like eating a bowl of fresh strawberries (as pictured above). When we feel good, we can do more good and show more compassion. So while it may appear self-indulgent, these goals I've set for myself are really my way of making the world a better place. Well, not really. This is an even better way to do that: The Life You Can Save.

As you know, I have posted my current restaurant recommendations on the Berkeley, Oakland, and San Francisco Restaurants pages of this website. There are so many places I have not yet tried ... but I've been keeping a list. A faithful fan (you know who you are, Steve) has implored me to share my list. It's always good to share your goals with others so they can help hold you accountable. So in sharing my goals with all of you, I hope to barrel through the list more quickly and report back on the highlights. If you beat me to these spots, please comment below and share some of your favorite dishes or feedback. Without further ado, here is my current list of places I want to try and why:

San Francisco

• AL's Place - because Bon Appetit named this spot Restaurant of the Year in 2015.
• Atelier Crenn because Dominique Crenn exudes poetic genius. The Netflix original Chef's Table has a beautiful episode on her that you really must watch. #GirlCrush
• Cala because Mexican food deserves its due. Plus there's this.
• Firenze by Night because I saw it here and it looks delicious.
• Kingdom of Dumpling because I saw it here and I am dumpling obsessed.
• Namu Gaji because it seems to infuse the owners' brotherly-love onto the plate.
• Octavia because it's bound to be great with Melissa Perello (of Frances) at the helm.
• Petit Crenn because it's the comfort food of Chef Dominique Crenn's Brittany home.
• Trou Normand because it's sexy to sip brandy and eat charcuterie in leather booths.

Oakland

• Belotti because who doesn't love handmade pasta in a cozy neighborhood spot?
• Calavera because it's a "Mexican Kitchen and Agave Bar" in Oaktown's hip Hive.
• Commis because it's been awarded Two Michelin Stars and I'm very late to the table.
• Drake's Dealership because it looks like a hipster backyard party with craft beers.
• Duende because I adore Spanish food and dream of owning a Pintxos Bar one day.
• Grand Fare (when it reopens) because it's going to be a great neighborhood staple.
• Kingston 11 because I saw it here and its Jamaican food looks incredible.
• Shakewell because I saw it here and love the fun vibe.

Berkeley

• Ajanta because it's Indian fine dining made with organic ingredients. Perfectly North Berkeley.
• East Bay Spice Company because they make craft cocktails and spiced up snacks to accompany them.
• Ippudo (when it opens) because it's the famed NYC ramen shop of the same name.
• Pathos because there are not enough great Greek restaurants. I'm hoping it will be a Kokkari of the East Bay.
• Sweetgreen because it's healthy, sustainable fast food in an iconic, retro space on Shattuck.
• Tigerlily because it's modern, organic Indian food in the Gourmet Ghetto of Berkeley.
• Tupper and Reed because it's the pedigreed craft cocktail descendant of Bourbon & Branch and Cask retail stores.
• Westbrae Biergarten because a casual afternoon spent drinking craft beer and eating outside on picnic tables is idyllic.

My list is long, but I am motivated. I'll keep you posted on my progress. Please share your thoughts and let me know where I should prioritize and what I must order at each of your own recommendations. Thanks for playing along!

A Jaunt to Portland Feeds the Belly & Soul

There is nothing better than a weekend getaway to visit a good friend, particularly when that friend lives in a city like Portland. Last weekend I visited my pal Emily there. Emily and I met 18 years ago in a photography class we both took as a creative outlet from jobs that robbed us of our free time and inner peace. Then and now, Emily challenges herself to learn new things and channel her abundant creativity (then it was photography, now it's metal smith jewelry making). I took that course to pursue my love of photography and, more urgently, to provide a creative outlet to balance the workaholic life of a first year law firm associate.

Then Emily and I lived in San Francisco. When we needed stress relief, we stole away together on day trips to Bodega Bay, Napa, and Tahoe and vacationed in NYC, Hawaii, and Fiji. Several years ago she moved to Portland and now we try to plan several visits each year -- in her city or mine. Luckily I'm now in a job I love, but any job can be overwhelming and stressful at times. Emily still is the person I turn to when I need a break. Just an evening on the couch with her and a good bottle of Pinot Noir fuels me up to go back to my daily routine with a little more perspective on what's really important in life. So off to Portland I went to get that much needed relief.

Portland has such a chill vibe, but it is bursting at the seams with creativity. When you plan your visit, consult a trusted guide to steer you to some places fitting your appetite and budget. One source for tantalizing tips is Jen Stevenson's fun little guide called 100 Best Places to Stuff Your Faces. I've eaten at many great restaurants in Portland, but my all time favorite is the original Pok Pok for Andy Ricker's authentic and crave-inducing Thai food. Since it was closed temporarily, we had to get our fix elsewhere. Here's where we ate last weekend that I recommend to any Portland visitor:

Coava Coffee Roasters - 1300 SE Grand, Portland, OR

This place is a must for coffee aficionados. I've been a fan of Coava coffee beans for a couple of years after discovering them at my local coffee shop in Oakland (Bica Coffeehouse). So I stopped by Coava's industrial chic brew bar and roastery to grab a cappuccino and drip coffee chaser to go and was delighted to find my breakfast there too: absolutely decadent pastries from Little T Baker.

Tip: watch Jerry Seinfeld and Fred Armisen visit Coava in an episode of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.

Sen Yai Noodles - 3384 SE Division Street, Portland, OR

Sen Yai is a sister restaurant to Pok Pok with a focus on Thai noodle dishes. It was a fun place to grab a quick lunch (and a cocktail). Emily chose Phat Thai, featuring thin rice noodles in a tamarand-fish sauce with peanuts. I opted for something a little more unusual: Lakhana's Kuaytiaw/Mee Krob Lat Na, which lured me by the menu's description: "Home-style recipe from an old friend who makes this classic for her husband and four sons when they are hungry and missing their village in Thailand." It featured fried crispy wide rice noodles with pork, egg, phak khanaa (Chinese broccoli) stewed in yellow bean sauce and soy sauce. It was weird and wonderful. In faux "ladies who lunch" fashion, I polished it off with a cocktail mixing vodka with Thai Basil flavored Pok Pok Som Drinking Vinegar. Deliciously refreshing.

Derby Revival cocktail at Ava Gene's

Ava Gene's - 3377 SE Division Street, Portland, OR

We stopped by Ava Gene's for cocktails and appetizers on Saturday night. Arriving promptly at 5:00, we nabbed seats at the bar. The Derby Revival (pictured left) was my first pick -- a frothy and balanced beverage featuring rye whiskey, grapefruit, pecan, honey and cinnamon. I also loved The Bad Penny, their twist on a classic Manhattan with Bourbon, Bianco Vermouth, Nardini Tagliatella and bitters, while Emily loved her Fratelli Nuovi, a sultry update on a Dark and Stormy with Ramazzotti, lime, 151 Rum, Ginger Beer, Muscovado, and Tiki Bitters.

On the savory side, we devoured the Gnocco Fritto (a delectable, hollowed fried dough) with proscuitto, parmigiano, chiles and honey, a generous wedge of pecorino cheese, and an insanely good salad of Apples, Delicata Squash, Peanuts and Chiles. The salad also featured rice grown by Pennie Lane's organic farm on Sauvie Island. The rice was fried and rounded out the salad with an added richness and complexity. It was a memorable and fun dish.

Ava Gene's menu is classically rustic Roman fare and the atmosphere is sexy. It should be on everyone's list of places to dine in Portland. Plan ahead and make a reservation far in advance to fully enjoy this uber popular spot.

Roman Candle - 3377 SE Division Street, Portland, OR

Roman Candle is a great spot for a casual dinner. You order at the counter after perusing their selection of slab style pizzas and sit at community tables. We ordered and loved the Tuscan Calvary Salad with raw shredded kale, garlic, chiles, lemon and a dusting of sarvecchio cheese and a few slices of pizza: Margherita for some and Mushroom (maitake mushrooms, taleggio, ricotta, mozzarella, and rosemary) for me. Delicious, fast, and easy, it is the perfect place to take kids and people who want great food without any fuss.

Salt and Straw's Almond Brittle with Salted Ganache

Salt & Straw - various locations in Portland

This is, quite simply, unadulterated ice cream ecstasy.

It's a good thing there's a long line at Salt & Straw, since it gives you plenty of time to study the extensive flavor menu. I found it hard to choose, but I landed on the Almond Brittle with Salted Ganache.

I've had some really good ice cream in my life -- Bi-Rite Creamery, Humphrey Slocombe, Smitten, and Ici (Berkeley) among them, but I proclaimed my scoop at Salt and Straw to be, quite possibly, the very best I'd ever had. More research may be required in order to confirm these findings.

On our way out, I noticed a couple sharing a tasting flight of three scoops. That's definitely in the cards for my next visit.

On Emily's couch and cozy club chairs, we did, in fact, consume a few bottles of Pinot Noir -- all beside a roaring fire and in the company of her husband, daughter, and lovable lab. I returned home Sunday with a full belly, a warm heart, and a nourished soul.

Popcorn and a Movie

I love binge-watching movies and original TV series snuggled up on the couch with my husband, our dog, and a big bowl of freshly popped popcorn. Thanks to AppleTV, Netflix, and Amazon Prime, we need never leave home to enjoy a movie theater experience. Although movie theater popcorn has an intoxicating aroma, I don't like the artificial flavors, chemicals, and hydrogenated oils that usually go into its making. So I thought I'd share my favorite method of popping popcorn at home. Confession: I also pop it at home and smuggle it into movie theaters in a Ziplock bag. It doesn't get any easier, affordable, or healthier than this:

• Start with organic or non-GMO popcorn kernels. Buy them in bulk at your local grocery store or choose a trusted brand like Bob's Red Mill or Rancho Gordo Crimson popping corn.

• Then simply add 1/3 cup of kernels in a brown paper bag, fold the top of the bag over twice to create a loose seal, and then microwave on the "popcorn" setting or until there are a couple of seconds between pops.

• Pour the popcorn into a bowl, add your favorite seasonings, and enjoy. Normally I enjoy my popcorn simply with a generous dose of Kosher salt and a side of apple slices. Other options include:

• • Butter, grated Parmesan cheese, and truffle salt
  • Butter and Herbes de Provence
  • Rancho Gordo Star Dust - a delicious blend of dried chilis, crystalized lime, and sea salt. This is also fantastic sprinkled liberally on cucumber and jicama for a healthy snack.

On a Mission for the Best Morning Buns

Three of my favorite Bay Area bakeries make absolutely sublime morning buns, so this weekend I set out on a mission to determine which one was "the best." In other words, I had a craving and needed an excuse to indulge. What I found were three equally delicious versions of the classic pastry -- each characteristically unique to its bakery. Morning buns are a cross between a cinnamon roll and a croissant. Made with croissant dough, they are a spectacular indulgence -- especially on a chilly morning with a cappuccino.

Tartine Bakery & Cafe - 600 Guerrero Street, San Francisco, CA

Tartine's Morning Bun

I began with the top contender from my favorite San Francisco bakery, Tartine Bakery & Cafe. The Tartine morning bun is, quite literally, a heavy weight. It was the largest, most dense, most evenly covered in coarse sugar, and most expensive of the three (at $4.20). But it is worth every penny and every calorie due to the addition of candied orange zest and its beautifully crisp, caramelized inner swirls. I always return to Tartine for this sinfully good morning bun.

Tartine occupies the corner of a quintessential San Francisco neighborhood. Serious Eats wrote "An Insider's Guide to Tartine Bakery in San Francisco," which meticulously posts photos and descriptions of Tartine's menu items so you can prepare for your visit. If you are an ambitious home baker and want to try to replicate Tartine's morning buns, 7x7 Magazine published the recipe here.

 

 

La Farine - 6323 College Avenue, Oakland, CA

La Farine's morning bun is spectacular. It has a perfect ratio of brown sugar and cinnamon and, in contrast to Tartine's, it's morning bun is a little more rustic and made me feel slightly less guilty. It also was a mere $2.25.

La Farine's Morning Bun

My palate also picked up a hint of apple flavor on the inner swirl. The La Farine website doesn't mention apple as an ingredient. Instead they describe it as "Croissant dough rolled thin, spread with brown sugar and cinnamon, rolled into a log, then cut and baked in muffin pans…nothing short of decadent."

La Farine is a charming boulangerie and patisserie with two Oakland locations. The one I prefer is located on College Avenue next to Wood Tavern and right on the Berkeley city limits. It feels like a classic French bakery with its petite but charming interior and traditional French breads. I love stopping by for baguettes or a dessert to serve at a dinner party.

A few of La Farine's breads

La Farine Morning Buns

Fournée Bakery - 2912 Domingo Avenue, Berkeley, CA

Fournée Morning Bun

Fournée Bakery's morning bun is so flaky that as I opened the bun, the wispy layers of croissant fell away and beckoned to be consumed slowly and mindfully. The light dusting of super fine sugar and Ceylon Cinnamon produce an incredibly elegant morning bun. This was the most refined of the three and only $2.75.

The morning bun is only one of the amazing artisan pastries this tiny bakery produces. I love Fournée's Ham and Egg Croissant, Chocolate Almond Croissant, and the seasonal Apple Tarte Tatin -- the very best I have ever had.

Fourné opened in 2013 and has stolen my heart. It is located at the foot of the Claremont Hotel on a lovely block near Rick and Ann's Restaurant and Amphora Nueva -- a store selling bulk olive oil and vinegar from around the world.