Spice Dish

New Years Party Puffs

Cheese Puffyness

Ok it's New Years Day and like the entire city I'm still in bed (seriously it's a ghost town out there)! Last night was full of friends and food and drinks and food and food and drinks. Serious feasting time. We had a New Orleans theme thing happening and there was such amazing food. Shrimp etouffee on top of cheese grits and a bourbon pecan pie rounded it off. Oh and there were hurricanes. So many hurricanes. My contribution was a savory baked beignet, cheese puff thing, otherwise known as a gougere. They are light, fluffy, tasty, look amazing and happen to be seriously easy to make. I'm pretty sure they'd go great with a morning after-bloody mary. Just sayin.

Cheese Gougeres

• 1 cup water 
• 3 tbs unsalted butter, diced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

Preheat to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Bring water, butter, and salt to simmer in heavy saucepan over medium, until butter is completely melted. Add flour; stirring with wooden spoon until a large ball of dough is formed. Continue to stir for another two minutes or so. Place dough in large mixing bowl and allow to cool for five minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in cheese, mustard and pepper.

Drop rounded teaspoons of dough onto baking sheets, spacing about two inches apart. Bake about 25 minutes, switching position of baking sheets halfway through baking. Tops should be golden brown, while the inside is slighty moist and eggy. Serve warm. Can be made ahead and rewarmed at 300° for 5 to 10 minutes. Makes

24-32 depending on spoonful size.

 

Happy New Year from San Francisco!

EB

 

 

Seven Down and Counting

Yeah Brazil!

Ok, so many months ago I posted a list of things I was going to try in order to get my creative juices flowin’ and to add some spark to my days. Let’s do a little check-in shall we?

• Ride in a hot air balloon- I went hang gliding in Brazil (Close enough for me!)
• Have a conversation in a language other than English (Tried my hand at Portuguese in Brazil – fail)
• Find a food I've never eaten and eat it (Cashew fruit juice in Brazil again)
• Try a new restaurant in San Francisco (Done x15)
• Learn how to perform a magic trick (I met a Vegas magician, does that count?)
• Become financially literate (I’m getting there)
• Write an article and have it published (Coming soon!!)

Ok so it turns out that my Brazil trip knocked a few of these out but I really, really need to get on this! Anything I should add?

EB

Trend Spotting

bonappetit.com

So it seems I may need a new job title. Food Trend Spotter anyone? Bacon. Cupcakes? Called it. Speakeasies. Food Trucks? Nailed it. Pickling? On it. My latest 'discovery'? Nonino Amaro. I happen to drink it with soda and a grapefruit garnish. I came upon it in my local bar, Rock Bar, by way of a super friendly bartender who spent one night diligently letting a friend and I taste every random Amaro-type item they had on the shelf. It became my go-to when I was out and about, wanted a drink, but not to get um... sloppy. I got several friends hooked on it and was the crowned 'knower of secret yummyness' then BOOM! Flipping through a copy of Bon Appetit and there it was. A full page dedicated to my favorite libation. Naked. Out there for all the world to see!

I lamented to one I'd bestowed my secret to and she decided that I needed to become a Food Trend Spotter, which is indeed a thing.

So what should my business cards look like?

 

EB

Step Up and Eat

So you know those nights when you are really, really, excited to put on yoga pants, pour some wine and eat a fresh tomato salad for dinner? Or actually get some decent sleep? You know, when you plan on being healthy in some way, shape or form? Yeah, then don’t agree to go to Straw with your friends last minute. You’ll end up eating mini-corn dogs and fried chicken & waffle sandwiches. There will also be Sriracha/cinnamon chicken wings and god help me “cotton candy cocktails.” Oh yes. This is a thing.

This is not a place for a light snack or conservative glass of wine. It’s fried, it’s fun and it’s carnival themed. You will destroy your diet, get a bit of a sugar high and you just might make friends with an adorable pair of bears in a Tilt-A-Whirl booth. (We did and they were lovely!)

Straw | 203 Octavia Boulevard  San Francisco, CA 94102

Enjoy!

EB

Sweet Tart Lemon Sherbet

Summery Goodness

Here's a recipe I submitted for SpiceDish Saturdays over at Scoopalicious. I wasn't going to post it here but I'm a San Francisco livin', redhead... with a tan! The weather has been amazing and it looks like it will continue so I figured you could all use a little refreshing frozen treat that takes all of 5 minutes to throw together (no need to put down the corona either!). So whip up a batch and hit the stoop kids.

Sweet Tart Lemon Sherbet

1/3 cup water

2/3 cup sugar

Zest of 1 large lemon

1 ½ cups buttermilk

½ cup plain yogurt

¼ lemon juice

In a large bowl, mix water, sugar and zest. Let sit until sugar is completely dissolved, stirring occasionally. Chill for 15 mins. Whisk in buttermilk, yogurt and lemon juice. Freeze in ice cream maker.  

Seriously. That's it.

Enjoy!

EB

Creativity Sparks

Dali Themed Street Art. Creative.

I went to a book club a little while ago. It was full of strangers. I’ve never, in my life, done that before. We had an amazing conversation and I left completely creatively energized. It wasn’t just that I was using my critical thinking skills for the first time in months, but that I was trying something new. I realized that I needed to do lots more of this sort of thing--  not in the interest of 'self improvement' but simply for the sake of experience. For fostering creativity. For enjoying life. So I came up with a list of “Creativity Sparks” (i.e. stuff I’ve never done before but am going to try in  order to keep  my brain excited and to experience new things) Hey if Stephen Fry can get pierced, I can find things I've never done!

I’m not calling it a ‘bucket list’ because I don’t care if I do or don’t do these before I die. Dying is not the point. Some are little things, some are big life altering things. Some are free and some make me thankful I have no kids in need of a college education. 

I think I know which one I’ll start with, but I’m not sure. I don’t even know how closely I’ll be keeping track, hell I don’t even know how many items are on this list! (Just counted... 64) Here I go. Here’s to creativity!

Ride in a hot air balloon
See the northern lights
Take a sailing lesson
Write a book
Have a conversation in a language other than english
Send a message in a bottle.
Ride a camel (or elephant) etc
Take a ballroom dance class
Learn to play a musical instrument
Take a singing lesson
Make a complete fool of myself
Eat at the French Laundry
Learn to juggle
Learn to drive a stick shift
Spend three months getting my body into athletic shape
Go fishing and eat my catch
Ride a motorcycle
Work on a farm for a day
Learn a new skill (no idea what yet)
Make soup dumplings
Run a 5k (not walk)
Find a food I've never eaten and eat it
Go to a jazz show
Play a game of ice hockey
Go horseback riding along the beach
Learn to ski
Take a fencing lesson
Go on a helicopter ride
Sleep overnight on a train
Collect fresh chicken eggs from a nest
Go to the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
Try a new restaurant in San Francisco
See the Parthenon in Greece
Go to Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain
Read Moby dick
Visit the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy
Spend an afternoon in El Prado in Madrid, Spain
See "Guernica" by Pablo Picasso at the Museo Reina Sofia
Spend a week in Bora Bora
Attend a Japanese tea ceremony
Learn to sculpt
Learn how to perform a magic trick
Learn to knit one thing
Make cheese
Watch lawrence of Arabia
Face a fear (not sure which one)
Become financially literate
Go to an auction at Christie's or Sotheby's
Sleep in a castle
Create a well-stocked pantry
Go to a yoga class by myself
Become an 'expert' at something
Write an article and have it published
Register for NaNoWriMo and write a novel in one month
Do NaBloPoMo for one month
Write a cookbook
Audition for something
Travel to another city to go to a concert/show (performer TBD)
Try fugu
Get a tarot card reading
Get hypnotized (for what I have no idea)
Eat something I've grown
Travel solo (even a day trip)
Get rid of 100 of my possessions

 

So what about you? You have a list? 

EB

Munch, Munch, Munchery

You’re staring off into the void of your grey cubicle walls and you suddenly realize that your fridge at home is empty and it’s raining out. There is no way you’re hoofing it outside to pick up dinner after you finally make it home. Take out? Greasy Pad See Ew again? No. Not again. How about Orange-Dijon Pork Tenderloin, Roasted Asparagus & Herbed Quinoa or a Caramelized Onion, Goat Cheese, Zucchini Galette? Followed by a Pistachio Cake?

That’s more like it. Enter Munchery.com. Food delivery by personal chefs.

I ordered Grilled Hanger Steak with Risotto, "Hen-of-the-wood" Mushrooms, Fennel, Parsley oil and Beef Jus plus an Award Winning Old School Chocolate Chip Cookie. It really was just like takeout but much fancy-pantsier.  It was clear that instead of a spork and a packet of sauce, this dinner called out for a glass of wine and a cloth napkin.

All nice and neat

I followed the reheating instructions and arranged my plate. Gorgeous. The beef was perfectly cooked and seasoned. The texture of the risotto was a little underdone, but the flavor was fantastic. I was pleasantly surprised by the parsley oil.

Mmmm... dinner

The cookie was seriously delicious. It was chocolate chunks with a little dough holding it together—definitely a melty-chocolate, finger licking experience.

All in all I really enjoyed my Munchery meal and I’m sure I’ll order from them again. The food was fresh, tasty and a great departure from ordinary take-out. I also love that you know who is cooking your food since you can read up on each chef.

For people that don’t cook, this would be the perfect ‘come to my place for dinner’ date meal option or just a way to add some luxury to your life by ‘hiring’ your own personal chef.

For a limited time I can give you a referral code for 20% off if you’d like to try the service. Just shoot me an email! Only available in San Francisco.

 Enjoy!

EB

*** Full disclosure: Munchery gave me a credit to try the service and asked only that I give them my thoughts on the experience. No write-up required. 

 

Southern Goodness

There is a southern restaurant in my neighborhood called The Front Porch. Their specialties? Fried chicken, grits, pickled okra and banana pudding. Delicious, rightly rich banana pudding served in a small Ball jar. I'm sort of addicted to it. Ok not sort of. Completely. The other night, while gorging myself of a serving of the pudding I decided that it just had to be made into a frozen treat. I make my own vanilla wafers but go ahead and use the boxed ones. They are just as delicious.

Banana Pudding Ice Cream

1 cup whole milk

2 cups half & half

3 large egg yolks

3/4 cups of sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 bananas cut into slices and smashed

1 vanilla bean with seeds scraped out

Pinch of nutmeg

2 cups crushed vanilla wafers

Place the vanilla bean and seeds into a medium sauce pan. Warm the milk and half and half on medium heat don't let it boil. Beat the yolks with the sugar. Add the yolk mixture to 1/2 a cup of the cream mixture, then whisk the egg mixture and banana mush into the remaining cream. Simmer the mixture until it thickens (to the point where it will coat the back of a spoon). Stir in the nutmeg and vanilla. Chill completely then freeze according to your ice-cream maker’s instructions. About five minutes before the ice cream is finished add the crushed wafers.

That's it. Enjoy!

EB

Sad State of Affairs

Sad isn’t it? For all my spouting off about CSA boxes and big Sunday meals and the goodness of fresh ingredients…. that is my fridge. AND I don’t live alone. That is a two person fridge. No I’m not on some juice cleanse, or fast or diet of any sort. That’s just what our fridge generally looks like. Champagne? Check. Sriracha sauce? Always. There’s some Cowgirl Creamery Wagon Wheel and real parmigiano reggiano from Lucca in there, but not much else.

 

Yes, there are remnants of food projects in there… some roasted cauliflower, a half a jar of carrots I pickled, a drizzle of homemade tomato soup. But honestly that is a sad sad showing. Why does my fridge look like this? Does yours?

EB

What's the Sign for Pizza?

mozzeria.com

There’s been a lot of chatter about Mozzeria. A new little joint in the mission that specializes in Neapolitan style pizzas and happens to be owned and operated by a deaf couple. The fact that the bulk of the staff/patrons are non-hearing makes for a quieter dining experience than you might be used to in the Mission, but whether hearing or not, a draw for any restaurant is the food.

 mozzeria.com

The reviews have been mixed but my dining companions and I enjoyed pretty much everything about our meal. Knowing that pizza was the star, and wanting to try whatever came out of the Stefano Ferrara wood-burning oven, we ordered the margherita w/buffalo milk mozzarella, the eggplant/cherry tomato special and the roast duck with hoisin sauce special. Unfortunately the duck pizza was sold out. Ho hum, more room for cheese. We also ordered the crab ravioli, pecorino cheese which came with a lovely, buttery crouton and the Mozzeria Bar. Which is, for all intents and purposes, a giant, fried mozzarella stick-- a very delicious, giant, fried mozzarella stick. The pizza crusts were perfect. Thin, chewy and with a slight saltiness. The ravioli was creamy and lovely too. Our only real disappointment was the ricotta cheesecake. The flavor was great, but it was frozen solid.

There were a few tiny kinks in service, but there always are with new restaurants and nothing serious enough to complain about here.

 mozzeria.com

The next day, I did get the chef’s take on what it’s like to work there, produce usage and what he wants the menu to be (versus what it is), but cocktails were involved and we all blow off work steam at the bar right?

I really enjoyed my dinner and will most definitely go back. It seems like I’m not the only one either, lines and crowds can continually be found at their door already. 

 

Enjoy!

EB

 

You can find Mozzeria at:

 

3228 16th Street (at Guerrero Street)
San Francisco, CA 94103

(415) 489-0963