Coaching Cooking

In the storm...wind powerful SW photo by Mary MacIntyre

Sometimes I can get great buys at my Health Food Store. Recently tthe cherries were beginning to be too ripe and ditto with some Apricots. They became dollar specials. So I got some of both. Situations like these require fast thinking and prep: as although most of the fruit was excellent, they were not going to last long.

There’s just me in my house. Obviously a family could consume the fruit as is fast. Here’s what I did.

2 cups of cherries cleaned, pitted, and halved
6 large apricots cleaned, pitted, and quartered
1/8 cup shredded coconut
1/8 cup of water

Enough for three servings
Thus I put the extra in a small glass jar.

Blend the apricots, water, and coconut.
Pour into one or more serving bowls

Blend the cherries (separately)
Stir slowly into previous mix to create a pattern of your choice.
(Truthfully I just blended everything together. The swirl adds to the presentation.)

This recipe also is good by adding some collagen.
One can always add to the fun by adding yougurt, cream, or add ice cream to the top.

When refrigerated overnight the mixture thickens. It tastes even bettr cold and would be good as a small bowl with sliced fruit around the edge, or on crackers or toast to compliment breakfast.

This tree was blossoming recently....spring is here!

The last week haas included stress overload. So today, I gave thanks to God that I had a day off, and although certain emotional trauma still lingered within, I went outside and spent several hours in my yard working. Tonight I listen to Chopin ala piano. This is a wondrous way to write. These notes erase so much strain and invite creativity.

I am announcing that as I am starting a raw food diet this week, I will devote some of my blogs over the next few months to this topic for both educational information, and because the spring and summer provides a great opportunity the simplicity and healthy fast food RAW FOOD provides. SO here’s a few ideas.

Enjoy!

I can’t say enough how much I love going to a new restaurant. It’s a child-like excitement that I develop as we’re driving over like I’m quietly jumping up and down in my seat. We drove over, myself, AB and our great friend Lanny, and

Palace BBQ Buffet sits amid a myriad of Asian restaurants and a grocery store in a crowded strip mall. We arrived just before the rush of families and young adults.

Carnivores will be well served at a Korean bbq buffet. I have never seen so much raw, marinated meat in my life (yeah, yeah, insert all jokes here). To me, Palace BBQ was the perfect place to have a grilled surf and turf. Choices at Palace include marinated, beef short ribs, thinly-sliced marbled beef, whole prawns, marinated pork, pork stomach, beef tripe, chicken teriyaki and much more.

Note: this is not a good place to visit if you don’t like to see the meat before it is cooked. However, this is a great place to visit if you like to cook your own meat and if you feel like channeling that inner-cliche caveperson.

Here are a few links for the KBC (Korean-bbq curious):

Korean BBQ Dos and Don’ts by Food Section: This link gives you everything you need to know about visiting a Korean bbq restaurant along with some helpful pictures.

More information on the Korean bbq scene plus some restaurant links.

Enjoy! �기십시요!

Figs signify winter, abundance, ancient lore and sensuality. They also taste great raw or cooked in many different dishes. I love the color of figs: lush pink and white interiors and dark purple skin. They look beautiful on a fruit platter or as a topping on an appetizer. Dried figs also lend a rich, sweet texture to stuffing or cookies or fillings for roast meat. The history of the fig dates back to biblical times and they were introduced to the United States in the 16th century.

My favorite fig recipe incorporates a savory fig jam with toasted baguette slices and goat cheese. It looks so wonderful with some fresh fig slices on top and it makes the perfect appetizer for a winter party or for a fancy gathering. This fig and goat cheese crostini pairs well with any food-friendly wine that matches the flavors of fig, shallots, goat cheese, and thyme. I also think this appetizer pairs well with prosecco or a dry, sparkling wine like a sparkling shiraz or a dry, California champagne-style wine.

On to the kiwi berry…

I had the fortune to try this amazing fruit during a brunch with friends last weekend. I never even knew that this fruit existed! It has all the great elements of a kiwi fruit without the annoying fuzzy skin that is IMPOSSIBLE to peel. You just pop the kiwi berries in the mouth like other berries. These fruits also look great sliced (so they would be the perfect addition to cocktails or fruit salads or as a garnish for a tropical fish entree). More about the kiwi berry here. The kiwi berry also has five times the Vitamin C of an orange. Wow! Great taste and good for you goodness. I’m mostly excited to incorporate these unusual fruits in easy salads and cocktails (or even sangria). These fruits are available at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and some local stores. In Mountain View, the Milk Pail has kiwi berries plus a host of other exotic fruits (and amazing cheeses, trust me).

Anne brought so many unusual fruits to our brunch this past Saturday. She brought kiwi berries, kumquats, mango and pineapple. I’ve never cooked with kumquats before, but I thought I’d try preserving many of them so I could use them in a future recipe.

I just love the way these kumquats look against my blue bowl:

First, I sliced the kumquats thinly:

Then, I mixed them with 1 cup and 3 tablespoons of fine sugar and 2 cups of water in a small saucepan and simmered for about 10 minutes:

Now they live in the fridge until I can find a good recipe that incorporates kumquats. Stay tuned…

There are many things to love about Hawaii. It is beautiful in a way that is almost indescribable. The people are so friendly and I feel almost at home. As an Chinese-American, Hawaii feels like a second home (and a place where I don’t automatically feel like a minority). But I digress…the air in Hawaii often smells like fragrant flowers and then there’s the food: there are culinary delights around nearly every corner from ahi poke to the best shaved ice (here’s an aerial pic) ever to fresh seafood and juicy fresh fruit.

On the Big Island, one of my favorite treats is the local Korean barbeque joint called Kal-Bi’s. The island lunch plate at this restaurant (and many others) includes a scoop of steamed, white rice along with barbeque steak, sesame oil-slicked greens, and saimin noodles with shredded carrot and green onion.

One island treat that I have not yet sampled on the Big Island is the spam musubi. Spam is a big seller in Hawaii. It’s history is long and, like many other treats, disputed in terms of whether it is sushi or a Japanese snack unrelated to sushi. My first spam musubi actually occurred in California, but I’m hoping Hawaiians will forgive me the transgression. It was so delicious that I wished I had ordered another. We were dining at Lukoki in Mountain View and the spam musubi was made to order. It arrived with the rice still warm and the salty slices of spam complemented the nori (seaweed strips) and rice to make a lasting impression on me.

I found this great history of the spam musubi in addition to recipes and a history of spam right here.
I know it might be hard to get used to the idea (or the reality) of eating Spam. Trust me, spam musubi is the perfect combination of salty meat (it’s better if you don’t think about exactly WHAT type of meat…) plus soft, white rice and nori. Once you get past that, spam musubi is the really the ideal combination of sweet, salty and soft (plus the alliteration make s it so much catchier, non?).

Since I am an undisputed Bay Area girl, here are a few places where a local foodie who hungers for a taste of the spam musubi can feed their curiosity:

Lukoki: a great lunch or dinner place located in Mountain View
Hukilau: This restaurant, located in downtown Palo Alto, has a great selection of tropical drinks in addition to excellent spam musubi and generous platters of Hawaiian fare.

I’ve had a long love affair with the movie Amelie. The story itself is delightful, but the cinematography is what I love the most. The colors in this film are gorgeous—so lush and ripe (the word delectable also comes to mind). Some of the best scenes include food. In one scene, Amelie explains what she enjoys most in life and she is shown at an outdoor market plunging her hand into a sac of grain. She cooks for and it is often a simple meal such as pasta with freshly grated cheese or a cake or a cozy libation that she shares with her hermit-like neighbor.

So, with the inspiration of this film in mind, I went to my local farmers’ market in search of the freshest, most colorful ingredients.

I found some unusual cauliflower, known as Romanesco cauliflower. This type of cauliflower is greenish, chartreuse if you will, and the florets spiral. Coincidentally, Bon Appetit’s March 2007 issue has an article that focuses on different types of cauliflower. I plan to make the cauliflower tart today as a special treat for AB.

The farm stand that I bought from yesterday also had celery root. The one that I bought looks not unlike a craggy old man or a character from some fairy-like movie (Lord of the Rings? A hobbit perhaps?…). I’ve never prepared celery root, but as a nod to Amelie, I will make a remoulade which is a classic French salad that incorporates celery root with mayonnaise.

For now, I’m enjoying another delight: chocolate cupcakes. I tested the new Barefoot Contessa’s chocolate cupcake mix (which includes frosting mix) and here are the results:

Enjoy a farmers’ market wherever you are. Here’s a link to California farmers’ markets. It is such a delight to walk around a farmers’ market with the smell of fresh vegetables and fruits and the joy of buying local goods at their peak of ripeness.

I just received a package from my sis who lives in Boston. Enclosed inside was a very cute “Love Duckie” and a chocolate bar from Bloomsberry & Co. I’ve never tried their chocolate before so I’m doing a mini-tasting and I’ll post some notes later. I absolutely love chocolate and AB is probably the only man I’ve ever met who likes chocolate even more than I do (and he’s still able to cling to his manliness so I give him extra points…not that it matters because who doesn’t love chocolate except for a few of you out there who I don’t get).

Happy Valentine’s Day! May your evening include lots of hedonism…chocolate or otherwise!

Cinnamon syrup is an interesting ingredient that I had never seen or used before Monique alerted me to its fabulousness. Monin seems to have the only cinnamon syrup available for flavoring beverages. I’ll keep you posted if I find more.

Here are a few links for those of you interested in riding the cinnamon syrup wave:

Monin Cinnamon Syrup (if you live in Europe or like to buy from the U.K.)

Monin Cinnamon Syrup for the Americans

Recipe for cinnamon syrup (this one seems to be for use on pancakes although I’m sure it could be thickened for use in drinks)

While watching one of the remaining episodes of “Sex and the City,” I found myself enthralled by the tea that Carrie drinks during her first date with the Russian. I love tea anyway, but the idea of putting cherry jam in tea is both exciting and exotic to me. So, I looked up this recipe from arabica.com.

Enjoy! I’ll post a picture soon with the gorgeous visual of cherries, lemon slices and some heavenly tea.

I read about this phenomenon online and I just had to check it out. I may have to try to make this interesting food concept on my own. For now, look at this great chocolate pizza from the Chocolate Pizza Company. Just when I thought pizza couldn’t become even more nutritionally-suspect yet amazingly delicious. I’m waiting on an ice cream pizza so let me know if it’s already been created.

Ahhh! I love trying new foods. I just came across a fruit that I’ve never tasted before…

Cherimoya is a tropical fruit native to South America and it is also known as the custard apple (according to the California Rare Fruit Growers Inc., CRFG). I just bought one at Whole Foods during a rush shopping trip. I’ve never tasted one, but the fruit itself looks so intriguing with its green skin and dice-like appearance. CFRG describes the fruit as best eaten with a spoon. Apparently these fruits can also be frozen and served chilled like ice cream. I plan to try this fruit at room temperature and chilled to see how it is. It also makes “delicious sorbets or milkshakes� according to CFRG. We’ll see how it turns out!

Another website, The Fruit Pages, describes the cherimoya as a fruit that tastes like a “blend of pineapple, mango and strawberry flavors.� Intriguing! And it reminds me of another fruit I’ve tried called the strawberry-pineapple guava.

I love fruit so I am really curious to see how it tastes. The fact that it is known as a custard apple makes me wonder if cherimoyas really taste like apples. My foodie friend, Kareasa, describes cherimoyas as tasty with a “tropical flavor.� I’m eager to taste it. I’ll just have to try to wait patiently until the fruit is ripe!

It’s Christmas tiiiime in my kitchen…and I’m using these cool silver balls that I purchased [somewhere that shall remain nameless] that I can’t shut up about it…oh, except see my more recent post on the topic.

So, coming soon are: cookies with silver balls (insert maudlin joke here) and cinnamon cookies from a recipe that I got from Monique (who kicks a lot of ass! Thanks for the recipe, Monique!).

Look for both in the next few hours…

As I stated before, in my post entitled “Mecca Part Deux,” the Le Village warehouse openings are as follows. I encourage all foodies in the Bay Area to visit the warehouse for great food gifts, free tastings of different French foods and beverages, and a great time. You may even find me staring longingly at the pate table. Or eating the rest of the baguettes…

Warehouse address:
211 South Hill Drive
Brisbane, CA 94005-1255

The Le Village Warehouse open to the public on these days:

Friday, November 17, 2006
2:00pm - 6:00pm
Saturday, November 18, 2006
8:30am - 1:30pm

Friday, December 15, 2006
2:00pm - 6:00pm
Saturday, December 16, 2006
8:30am - 1:30pm

I love chocolate more than most things. And I also love the concept of chocolate with spices. For those of you who love a little savory with your sweet, I recommend Vosges chocolate bars. I just tried the Vosges Red Fire Bar which has Mexican ancho and chipotle chilies, Ceylon cinnamon and dark chocolate. The dark chocolate alone is reason enough to sample this delectable bar. If you patiently let the chocolate dissolve on your tongue (okay, I gave in after about five seconds and chomped on it, but it was still good!), then the spicy flavors of chilies and cinnamon become sassily apparent. It’s enough to make you want to say “Caliente!” In the privacy of your own home, of course.