Saikyo Yaki & Konnyaku to Ninjin no Shira ae

I’ve had a fabulous traditional Japanese cookbook for some years now, never really venturing into it. I was interested in it because an old friend used to cook, by nature, a lot of fusion food, and I loved the yuzu citrus so much that I”d go to [...]

A friend is moving back to her native Sicily and I hosted a brunch for her yesterday. There were 7 of us and our menu was:
- Butternut Squash & Kale gratin
- Southern Biscuits
- Trio of amazing fruit preserves
- Crispy Bacon
- Winter Fruit Salad
- Soft Scrambled Eggs
And a dear friend showed up with not only bubbly, [...]

A few weeks ago I celebrated a birthday. I invited only a small group of people, two of whom happen to be married. One ended up being legitimately exhausted, and she sent in her stead an amazing little backup cake. K works at a bakery, and does work on cakes, so this was quite an [...]

I’ve been procrastinating on this one, which was probably not the best idea since it is painfully difficult to remember the details of 10 courses the same night, let alone weeks later, delightful as they were.
We had the opportunity to dine at Quince (Yelp) with a friend who once worked there making pasta and other [...]

I had the lovely chance to discover and attend an event at 18 reasons, an art gallery and gathering place for those interested in the production and consumption of (good) food, which is owned by BiRite (Creamery & Market) in the Mission District of San Francisco. I even ran into a co-worker…
There was an exhibit [...]

This morning started out really well. A friend came to be my running partner, another showed up for the breakfast we were to make afterwards. We enjoyed the back yard for a sunny, late morning breakfast, and followed it with bellini’s for most of the rest of the day.
Serves 3:
6 large eggs
2 oz chevre (fresh, [...]

Because it’s soup season, I’ve taken to roasting whole chickens (generally the organic, air-chilled, fresh variety). One challenge is that I actually don’t own a proper roasting pan (as an aside, I like to serve in the dishes I cook in whenever possible, and an au gratin pan will work just fine thankyouverymuch), and have [...]

A few weeks ago I joined a good friend of mine at the montessori school she works at to help with her “Friday Feast”–a cooking activity she plans every week to help teach the kids about food, cooking, and nutrition. She asked me to come in as a guest and plan the “feast,” so [...]

On a budget of $120 for four people, a good friend and “astro-twin” who claims herself as a vegetarian but eats seafood and strangely, bacon, asked me to make a belated birthday dinner for her friend (my acquaintance). Because of the graces the bay area allows us in grocery shopping, and with many thanks to [...]

For two, Spanish Spicy Shrimp:
10 shrimp–shell & de-vein them yourself
8 slices baguette, toasted with raw garlic rubbed on them
5 cloves garlic, minced coarsely
1/2 cap san marzano tomatoes or package fresh cherry tomatoes (cut in 1/2)
olive oil
vegetable stock
1/2 tsp thyme
salt
pepper
chili flakes
Two skillets: start one cold with olive oil & chili flakes (about 1/2 tsp), heat [...]