July's Gems

Last Friday it was my turn to play host for poker night, so instead of making a dessert I decided to use my Groupon for That Takes the Cake on Union Street. Lovely little bakery with a wide selection of flavorful cupcakes..,who can resist Alfred Hitchcake, mint chocolate chip, vanilla with coconut or choco-espresso?! Also served that evening was lobster ravioli with home grown basil from the kitchen and thinly sliced parma from an aged block, yum!


An amazing afternoon sandwich from Sage located at Cornerstone in Sonoma wine country! Rarely does a sandwich knock my socks off, but I was pleasantly surprised by this tasty version. Fresh ciabiatta bread with perfectly grilled flank steak topped with my newest favorite...Point Reyes bleu cheese...you must experience it! This is a delicious mouthwatering sammy. And those 3 little green olives were heavenly, I don't know why they tasted so good. They were savory, not at all briney or pickled or vinegar like; they were chewy not soggy; fragrant not sour. The accompanying cous-cous side salad was a major disappointment, I thought it smelled like rubbing alcohol. No thanks. Can't forget dessert...red velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting! Moist, airy and light, not oily or doughy, perfection!


A fine Italian red enjoyed over the fourth of July weekend, hot summer sun in the main Sonoma plaza...local parade, good eating and naptime! Also that same day, sangria and heirloom tomatoes with a dash of salt. A fine day indeed.

Never one to shy away from an office cooking contest, here's the first place winner...Fruit Flag Giant Cookie Pizza! Standard cookie dough topped with cream cheese spread and fresh strawberries and blueberries, tasty. I freed up some freezer space by making my shortbread cookie "puffs" that look like ice cream scoops...second place winner! Always a bridesmaid, ya know? There was an amazing dessert called the Hello Dolly Bars...dense coconut and chocolate chips with pecans and graham crackers and condensed milk. Going to test drive this little number soon!


On another quest to clean out the ole fridge, I found this jar of homemade blackberry preserves from our neighbor and some nearly expired meyer lemons sitting counterside...which just screamed to be dealt with. Well, they were dealt with alright! The twin tarts met their demise with fresh Peet's coffee and an office full of over-stressed Project Managers. Bon apetit, dude.


In the glass case, starting at the top, feast your eyes on Grand Prize Winner Best in Show at the San Mateo County Fair Baking Contest--the "Russian Ant Hill" cake and below that is First Place shortbread winner--my Celebrity Cookies YAY! See the blue ribbon? See it?! In my opinion, a dessert called the Russian Ant Hill deserves to win with a name like that, come on people. I looked closely at it and the texture appeared light and airy like bread with poppy seeds throughout. Couldn't locate the receipe online...probably best that way.

One final note to self. Yes, it IS possible to bring a 2.5 year old boy to a fancy white table cloth, historic San Francisco restaurant on a crowded Friday night for a 2 hour dinner reservation after his bedtime. Thank you Crayons. Thank you Hot Wheels. Thank you House of Prime Rib.

Let Them Eat Cake!

Red velvet cake with vanilla icing from a most unexpected source....the Rib Shack in San Bruno, lunch time special. Moist and tasty, generous proportion, priced right. All positives in my book.


The Original Neon Yellow Peeps...I savored one and it was the freshest you can get! These delightful childhood goodies arrived at my nephew's party in LA purchased directly from the Peeps factory! No joke. Light and fluffy, not hard and stale. Honestly, I don't think these can get any better than factory fresh.


My sister in law's custom cake made from her mother's recipe....rich and delicious! It was awesome...the bottom layer was an airy chocolate cake, top layer a moist, dense ganache. Held back the urge to indulge a second slice. Kinda regret that.


The fun squad at work conjured up a Friday afternoon BBQ on the roof...I took a pass on the potato salad from a carton and the wine from a box and loaded up on locally brewed Anchor Steam on tap and a plate of red food: jerk chicken, out of season tomatoes, juicy watermelon and giant strawberries.

Summer time TV watching

A co-worker made chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and pink sprinkles! Delicious treat for a sunny afternoon in June. This summer, the agenda is as follows: Top Chef Season 7. I'm calling the top 3 this season: Angelo, Kevin and Tiffany...go girl! Bummed that no one from the SF bay area is represented, what's up with that? Can I just say how thrilled I am that Eric Ripert is a judge?! How awesome is that? Nice job Bravo. Now if you can just replace Kelly from Top Chef Masters...blah. Man v. Food, otherwise known as Dude with the Bottomless Stomach Eats at America's Self Indulgent Obese Factories. I love hate this show. It's addictive to watch Adam eat a 42 oz steak with crowds of fans cheering him on for 20 minutes, but it's also repulsive to see his body suffer and sweat over that 5 pound ice cream sundae, know what I mean? Cupcake Wars on the Food Network debuted this week, and the concept is exactly like Chopped, which is hosted by Tim Allen....who I love! We have used his roast chicken recipe from his cookbook many times and it never fails to impress. I'm going to hang in there with Cupcake Wars, I have big hopes this will be interesting. Next Food Network Stars is also in the lineup for me; I really like this years contestants. Going to be great competition. Last year's winner Melissa gave us an amazing mango salsa recipe and we watch Aaron McCargo Jr's show Big Daddy's House religiously!! Tony Bourdain is badass as ever, never get sick of that guy eating intestines, sweet breads and snails. Ok, maybe I get a little disgusted sometimes. Cake Boss...fuggetaboutit, Jersey folks all crazy for cake, what's not to love?

San Mateo County Fair

This is my first entry into the San Mateo County Fair Baking Contest. These little gems were dropped off this morning, fresh baked...hand stencils still wet! Few years ago, my almond shortbread cookies won Runner Up Best in Show at the Marin County Fair so I'm going for another round. I've whipped up a mean carrot cake with cream cheese frosting recipe for this year's submission...due in two weeks!

Cookies, Dessert and the Desert

Last weekend I entered the Great Cookie Bake Off held at the Sports Basement in the SF Presidio. While my display was less than spectacular, the event was great fun! Despite running out of sugar and flour, my almond shortbread cookies didn't live up to their potential...there's always next year!


One of the winners was the Margarita cookie which actually tasted like a margarita complete with dipping sauce and pinata! Ay carumba!


Grand Prize winner...smores cookie with campfire display, clever!


Adorable display with clothesline but coconut cookies were super dry and tasteless, disappointed.


Pumpkin sandwiches with cream cheese filling, in theory it *should* taste delicious...


Last month, I scored some major points with extended family for sharing my homemade Matzo Brittle for my neice's naming ceremony during shabat. Mazal tov!


Organic dark chocolate from South America, sold at Whole Foods...little chalky and dry, but overall quite satisfying as an afternoon snack!


Egg white and porchino mushroom frittata with an arugala salad and peppery blood mary...Sunday brunch in Palm Springs, served pool side by the cabana boy!

Giant Sea Creatures On Ice

And the Eating Adventure Continues...

Scharrfenberger Chocolatier announced their winners for the 2010 Chocolate contest. Obviously my dessert entry did not make an impression out of the thousands of amazing recipes submitted, but the winning dishes are inspiring! Enjoy the photos.


Atkins lunch. Too obvious?


Bachelorette party at Asia SF. An amazing spread of asian-fusion finger food served by cross-dressing booty shaking lip syncing dancing ladies. Good times.


A variety of mini ice cream cones and banana eclairs with caramel dipping sauce...dessert at Asia SF.


Sunnyside eggs served over bubbling gooey cheese and spinach with a peach mimosa. And that's how you brunch at Zuni Cafe.


The cutest novelty fortune cookie glycerin soap.


My lemon bars lasted 15 minutes in the office. Bunch of vultures.


Lunchtime power salad. Fully loaded with faking bacon.


Homemade donuts, a breakfast gift from friends, comes with a free muffin top!


My good friend N was married on the 32nd Floor of the historic Saint Francis Hotel in Union Square at sunset. It was truly an amazing event including the whimsical cake!


I enjoyed the roast chicken with seasonal veggies which always tastes better with an open bar!


The prime beef dinner was equally impressive, juicy and full of flavor...enjoyed after way too many crab cake appetizers!


Two types of dark chocolate, smuggled in luggage from South America...we ate the one with almonds while watching an episode of Tony Bourdain's No Reservations. Early the same day, I ate two pieces of the chocolate with chile. Whoa, it really kicks in the heat!


My coworker who recently traveled to Brazil was generous enough to bring back this adorable bottle of pure Vanilla for me.

Brunch Club

I was lucky enough to be invited to join the Sunday Brunch Club that a bunch of wonderful ladies put together every month-ish or so. This is Somerset in Rockridge, east bay. Rich, creamy, delicious meals, best served with a white peach mimosa and a bowl of coffee.

After taking a trip to the museum on a drizzly wet Saturday, I treated myself to one of my favorite meals....meat on a stick! Askew Grill in Laurel Village has a fireplace which serves as a human plate warmer. Hmm...beef sticks!!



On a particularly warm sunny day this week, my friend S and I sat curbside for a weekday lunch at Harvest and Rowe in SOMA...spinach salad with balsamic vinegarette, enjoyed best via sunshine and tap water.



Here is what my co-worker J calls on his FB page...the latest crack to hit the streets of San Francisco...Belgium Waffle Truck goodies! Yes, similar to the taco truck experience, but instead it's gooey, heart pounding sweet waffle goodness. That's Nutella and whipped cream smothered on top, served on a post-it note napkin. Believe.

The Long Winter Road

Such a shame really...I've been meaning to update the blog many times in the past couple months, but life seems to get so busy! No excuses. Here it goes. We made it through the holidays with family feasts, birthday parties and yes, even a successful diet. No way! You say? Yes, way. I say! The hubby and I have managed to cut down the calories and carbs, both resulting in 10lbs of winter fat...gone. We're on maintenance mode now, enjoying home cooked meals and lots of fresh local food. Napa's finest commodity, hand picked grapes. A lunch plate of Filipino red meat and rice. A Mission burrito. Farmer's Market peppers.







...ok maybe the neon orange goldfish goodies aren't "fresh" but what food actually smiles back at you? Oh well, if you count the Spongebob cookie, I guess technically two foods smiled for the camera.

And The Decepticon...what appeared to be juicy apples are actually Japanese plums, sweet surprise.

Kinder Schokolade

Willkommen...all the way from Deutschland (that's Germany folks!) "Kinder Schokolade" loosely translated is a kids chocolate candy bar made with "milch"...of the milk variety. This was actually purchased in Germany and given specifically to me along with a bag of everyone's favorite jelly bear. The milk chocolate was incredibly sweet, as I'm usually a dark choco fan. It left a lingering milky after taste, probably because of the high milk content...and just look at that kids face! Happier than he's ever been. Eaten within the hour, the gummy bears were almost beyond perfection! Granted it's been at least 10 years since I've indulged in a handful of these goodies; I'm talking about the REAL ones in the gold bag from Germany, not the sticky American ones at the grocery store. They were not too chewy, not at all stale like all the gummy bears available in the 1970s packages, remember those? Gotta go...currently nursing a tummy ache, sugar overload...auf wiedersehen!