rainbow chard

I picked up some rainbow chard at the market yesterday and was happy to find a quick recipe of how to use it in this month's bon apetit. butter, evoo, garlic, saute, and a splash of red wine vinegar at the end- delish.

gee but it's great to be back home

yesterday i was able to go to the farmers market and actually buy produce since I'll be home this week. I was getting all emotional for some reason- life is beautiful really and I'm more than fortunate to live in an incredible place. SB is where I get to come home to- really?- I'm walking along getting heirloom tomatoes, looking at tri-color peppers and beautiful citrus and flowers. I got real excited about my cilantro and arugula- $1 a bunch. can't say no to that. also got some fresh cheese. ah the good life...

berkeley bliss

I'm pretty excited that I'll be up in Berkeley, most likely, quite a bit in the coming months. A couple things on the list of things to do there for me are of course going to Alice Water's Chez Panisse and also taking a tour of the Scharrfen Berger factory. Meanwhile we were headed around campus and little did I know this would be the view from the top.

ferry building

we had some time to work from a coffee shop last week and wandered into the ferry building. little did i know i was about to become very happy as the farmers market was outside and the inside was all specialty stores like cowgirl creamery and a store that only has culinary antiques. we sat with our coffee looking out onto the bay bridge, working away, until euan's car got towed and we had to leave... here's to parking.

A16

Last weekend at Pierre Lafond I came across the A16 cookbook. I had heard about this place and seen it in foodie mags so when I found out it was right near Lauren's, I weaseled my way into getting us to go there. The food, ambiance, and experience was excellent. If I lived there it'd be my hungry cat. If you're going to the city- go there.

if you're going to san francisco

I was in San Fran and it's surrounding area all last week- Oakland, San Jose, Berkeley. Great to be able to link up with my old friends Lauren and Dave again and get to experience the great city. We got some good eats and overall a seamless experience in the city minus one car-towing. Euan is from the UK so simple food is the norm, or French. While in Union Square one night I asked the Apple Store guys where to go and had another man chime in who recommended a French restaurant I didn't catch the name of off of Bush Street. A good night pick and good night.

here in LA

Two weeks ago I was in Vegas just about the whole week and then down in LA (Culver City) for work. Apparently Culver City is up and coming with Sony Pictures right there I can see why. We stopped in for lunch before our meeting and I was overhearing conversations about whether or not so-in-so would be right for the part and hoping some actor would come in, or more appropriately, some jokers from The Hills or Laguna Beach. Oh LA...

to frolicking

ana came in town for another wedding and made a good decision in stopping over in sb for a couple days. here's to frolicking.

a firestone fairy tale

Josiah and Jess got married a couple weeks ago and to put it lightly, it was beautiful. I was in love with just about everything they did- Midwest meets California in a way in a beautiful setting with wonderful food, Firestone wine of course, little mini desserts in place of cake, dancing in a barn with chandeliers, nuptials under a large tree, croquet, corn hole, etc. I think the pictures will do a lot of the talking on this one.


the mav

Maverick Saloon is a wonderful cowboy bar in Santa Ynez we like to go to on occasion- it's entertaining and the other week had a Johnny Cash cover band playing which was more than enjoyable on a Friday night. Although we stick out as city folk no matter how hard we try, getting pics like this one is rather priceless.

let's start at the very beginning

I've got a lot of catching up to do- this is what lazy sundays a good cup of Peet's, and looking at my flowers from the market yesterday are for...

basil chicken in coconut curry sauce

After eating at a Vietnamese restaurant, Le Cheval, in Oakland the other night, I came home wanting to use up some bold spices and other things I had around the house. So- with Bret and Johnny coming over- I decided to make basil chicken in coconut curry sauce and it was rather tasty. It was easy and the flavours were great- not as spicy as I could have had it, but overall a winner.

the grove

loved this spot for breakfast this morning- felt like i was in a cozy cabin working away, drinking my coffee, in a big city- loving life...

a balboa welcome

last night was spent, unexpectedly, mainly at balboa cafe in san francisco having a few (or more) cocktails with a co-worker and some old friends (chagrin again...). good times- fun times- and then some dancing. these cities that never sleep are quite interesting. today i'm feeling like i do in fact need some sleep...

coconut-pineapple loaf cake

sorry i haven't been the best at updating this - i was in vegas and LA all last week and now off to the bay area today. SLO, Monterey, Berkeley, Stanford, San Fran... tired. Regardless to send off summer some friends had a party and I made coconut-pineapple loaf cake. I'd say it went over well, though I'd probably make it with crushed pineapple over the chunks (hate that word) next time around.. my friend chelsea was more than excited to show off the loaf... thanks chels ;)

viva las

sorry for the lack of excitement this week but i'm in vegas for work. exciting for me though is having eaten at payard for breakfast and mesa grill for dinner tonight. very exciting- makes up for less than exciting work responsibilities.

jerk chicken wih zuke cous cous

I've been in search of a good easy jerk chicken recipe and came upon this one in an Everyday Food. It had the right amount of spice and the little bit of sugar was an excellent addition.

Jerk Chicken
2 T dried thyme, 2 t. allspice, 1 t. cayenne pepper, 1 T. sugar, s&p. combine, rub over chicken and grill

Zuke Cous Cous
grill up the zukes with your chicken until done. Make the cous cous then throw in the zukes, 1/4 to 1/2 cup parsley and 2 T red wine vinegar. delish.

oh...i.o

i know i know i can't get enough of it. last night i met some buckeye fans- one who paid $500 monies for his ticket to saturday's game. i will not pay said monies however i am on the search for a great establishment with the least amount of USC fans possible to watch saturday's game. hopefully i'll be decked out in this shirt should homage continue to make me happy and it gets here on time. when i was leaving the dragon last night i went to their table to say goodbye, have fun, etc. and all i had to do was say, "O.H..." and they yelled, loudly, "I.O..." it's a beautiful thing.

blue agave

last night jess, allie and i hit up blue agave. we sat in a little nook and drank some of their finest concoctions. i had the 'purist.' who knows what was in it, but it was pretty darn good. i love the atmosphere of this place and their concept behind organic, local food.

tilapia rediscovered

I usually think tilapia is pretty bland but liked this simple salsa to add on top. I'm pretty sure I'm still not a huge parsley fan, but regardless these items are usually in your fridge and a nice thing to combine.

Apple-Cucumber Relish
1/2 c. granny smith apple, 1/2 c. cucumber, 1/4 c. apple juice, 2 T red onion, 1/2 T parsley.

by popular demand

as you'll see i've added a music section so you can be listening to some tunes i've selected while you read. request line is always open...

watermelon wars

I got a watermelon the other day at TJ's, then what do ya know, got a couple recipes in the mail from my mom to try out because of a watermelon tomato salad we love at Hungry Cat - go figure. Since I had so much melon I made both.

Watermelon Salad
1/2 c. chopped red onion, 3 T lime juice, 4 c. watermelon, 1/4 c kalamata olives, 1/4 c. chopped parsley, 1/4 c. fresh mint, 1/2 c. feta


Heirloom Tomato Watermelon, and Mint Salad
3 c. tomato, 3 c. watermelon, s&p, 2 T mint, 1 T lime juice, 1 t. evoo, 1/4 feta

congrats katie and peter!



yesterday was the beginning of my wedding weekends in a row. katie and peter got hitched in costa mesa with a beautiful service and fun reception at the santa ana country club. congrats to the happy couple!

mocha club

I've contributed to Mocha Club for a few years now and thought of this as a great venue to share about an organization where you can give a few monies each month, $7 to be exact, that makes a big difference. If you're interested in being a part of it let me know and I'll add you to my team...

o.h...i.o

in next 2 days i'll be in la, sf, berkely, santa cruz, monterey and back in santa barbara. all good and exciting until i find out a guy from ohio state is coming in tomorrow. if you know me you know i'd be happy to be here to chats it up with a buckeye fan and find out where i should watch the osu v. usc game on the 13th.

balsamic chicken

I like to make recipes with what I've got, only having to pick up a few items at the store. well, seeing as I just moved in with Hilary and knowing we had multiples of things such as vinegar, I decided to make this recipe. For those of you out there who like balsamic, this is a winner. I forgot to document it, but here's a pic in case you're curious. I used red pepper and threw in some zukes from the dimitruk family farm as well. also the sauce is so good we had it over angel hair, not rice- and for one more change to the recipe, I didn't have "Italian spices" in a bottle (which is really just a scheme for people to buy oregano, basil, thyme in a bottle, so I put those in individually). i added some fresh basil and feta as well. tasty...

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 cup coarsely chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 (4-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 cup sliced green bell pepper
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup hot cooked long-grain rice

Preparation

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 3 minutes. Add chicken; cook 4 minutes on each side or until browned. Add bell pepper and next 4 ingredients (bell pepper through tomatoes). Reduce heat to medium-low; cook 20 minutes or until chicken is done. Serve over rice.