Sean Sullivan, author of Spectacularly Delicious.

New York-based food blogger, Sean Sullivan writes the food blog Spectacularly Delicious.  Sean can really cook.  No, I mean REALLY cook.  He cans; he makes jams, jellies, preserves, and chutneys; he bakes; he makes sausages from scratch; he goes out in the morning on Long Island and forages for sea beans, or whitebait and then serves them that night.  Together if he can.  At a dinner party for ten.  Sean is a self-taught cook.  And his enthusiasm for cooking, eating and food is infectious.  One of the many pleasures I’ve had since starting this blog has been meeting new and interesting people.  Sean is among that group.  We met this past August in Seattle at the International Food Bloggers Conference.  Once he introduced himself that was it.  Friends for life.

I love his blog.  He searches for, and finds the most retro, cool and interesting recipes that he can.  Most of the time he’ll take a classic, or even one that never made it to classic status, and put his own spin on it.  One never quite knows what each new blog post will bring.  As Sean states so well: “The mission of Spectacularly Delicious is to share my life long collection of show-stopping recipes and culinary presentations that will amaze and astound.”  Sean sees dinner as theater and entertain he does.

He Had Me at Pomegranates

I think it was last fall when Sean wrote a blog post titled “A Spectacular Celebration of Pomegranates!“  The POM people asked Sean to throw a dinner party using pomegranates.  So not only does he create a pomegranate centric menu, he creates this amazing pomegranate centerpiece, and records a step-by-step instructional video that he posts on You Tube.  I am stopping you right here, dear reader.  You have to watch Sean make this centerpiece before reading on: How To Make A Pomegranate Centerpiece.   I mean I can cook just fine; I throw a pretty mean dinner party but whip up a center piece that easily?  I don’t think so.

Photo credit: Sean Sullivan.

The Spectacular Origins

Sean grew up with four brothers in an Irish Catholic household in St. Louis, Missouri.  He tells a story of how his mother made a deal with the milkman who helped her get a cafeteria-style stainless steel dispenser that held five gallons of milk supplying the five growing boys with cold milk on tap.  Sean’s parents loved to entertain and did so on a grand scale, (clam bakes, pig roasts, a nine foot pizza once), and it rubbed off on all the boys.  When Sean was in college he started cooking for himself, poorly at first.  While working in restaurants as a student, and for New York City caterers after college, his food interests escalated and his cooking skills improved.  As a young man Sean worked in entertainment traveling to Japan, Mexico and Europe where he picked up more recipes, and cooking tips.  His home-canning passion began when he started frequenting the Union Square Farmers’ Market in Manhattan.  He currently holds a marketing position with House Beautiful which also provides material for his cooking interests.

St. Patrick's Day sausages by Sean Sullivan. Photo credit: Sean Sullivan.

Liberace, Elvis, Phyllis Diller, and The Famous Airline Cookbook

Sean is a prolific blogger posting on average twice a week.  Each post has a nice often very funny story and always includes a recipe.  He spends his weekends at his Long Island house cooking, photographing and videotaping the upcoming week’s recipes.  Often a dinner party is thrown.  His partner Steve assists as sous-chef, videographer and official taster.  There are many posts I’ve enjoyed reading but the Qantas Barramundi Macadamia: Gourmet Recipe post really made me giggle because it’s inspired by “The Famous Airline Cookbook.”  Sean found this cookbook full of recipes from the world’s airlines.  I actually do remember when airline food wasn’t horrible with Air France being more than edible.  To me the book and the recipe sums up what Sean does so well.  Finding the old, retro, très chic foods of bygone days brushing them off then adding a new patina to them.  What could be more fun that that?

Liberace's Nusstorte by Sean Sullivan. Photo credit: Sean Sullivan.

Liberace cooked!  Who knew?  He also wrote cookbooks: “Liberace Cooks! Recipes from His Seven Dining Rooms.”  In a recent blog post Sean re-purposes Liberace’s Scampi Prosciutto.  How ’50s Las Vegas does that sound? In Sean’s version he uses German speck instead of prosciutto, and serves it with couscous instead of egg noodles.  The giggle to this post is the You Tube video Sean tacks on to the end: Liberace and Phyllis Diller on The Liberace Show from 1969.  For the Elvis connection Sean writes about a young Alabama entrepreneur who came up with Fat Elvis Ice Cream which contains bananas, bacon, brown sugar and peanut butter.

I always learn something new with each Spectacularly Delicious post whether it be a tidbit of gossip, a cookbook I’ve never heard of, or how to cook, can, or preserve an unfamiliar ingredient.  Spectacularly Delicious is a swell read, Sean is an accomplished cook and raconteur, and a delightful friend.

100 Miles Shout Outs! Local events, mini-reviews, and mentions of things happening in the world of food:

#1 – A Menu of Parisian Bistro Classics at Le Saint Amour, Culver City, CA.  Consulting chef Walter Manzke offers a different Parisian bistro dish every night of the week (Sunday is Poulet Frit for example) at Le Saint Amour.  If you like classic French food like I do then get thee to Le Saint Amour for a plat du jour, or for something delicious off their full menu.  Bon appétit!

#2 – Saturday, April 16 & Sunday, April 17, 2011, 11 am – 8 pm (Sat.), 11 am – 7 pm (Sun.) ~ Artisanal L.A. where nearly 100 local, artisanal and handmade vendors showcase their wares.  Support your local crafts persons, vendors and businesses.

My Status:  Enjoying the gradual arrival of spring in So Cal and the last of the lovely winter produce: amazing citrus, kale, broccoli, collard greens, fennel.  Continuing to blog, cook, and eat.

Upcoming Posts: More on my great-grandmother’s garden, and my California childhood.  A visit and tour of Ojai Valley citrus grower Friend’s Ranch. More The Local Reports. Cookbook Reviews: Small-Batch Baking for Chocolate Lovers by Debby Maugans.

Image from iStockphoto.com

Once upon a time I was a line cook.  I worked my ass off.  And I really learned how to cook.  The place was called “Sourdough Jack’s.”  It was in Santa Rosa, California.  The year was 1978.  I was 19 years old and I had no prior restaurant experience aside from a summer job at a Jack in the Box.  The year before I had worked for a French couple in rural France cooking, cleaning and babysitting.  At the point I started at “Sourdough Jack’s” I was a self-taught cook.  Six months later when I left the restaurant to go to cooking school in San Francisco I was head line cook.  I knew my way around a professional kitchen.  I was good at my job.  I could measure the temperature of meat (rare, medium rare, well-done) by touch.  I knew when a piece of fish was cooked by sight.  I managed the tickets and the other cooks on a busy night without losing it.

“Sourdough Jack’s” was a seafood restaurant and extremely busy.  Each Friday and Saturday night we were “in the weeds” to use restaurant parlance from opening to last ticket.  Sue, the kitchen manager, took me under her wing.  She taught me what she knew.  There was no real chef; just Sue and us line cooks, and we did it all.   The prep, the cooking, the breaking down: everything.  Sue taught me how to cook large volumes of food.  The restaurant was known for two things: clam chowder, and homemade sourdough bread.  I became a master at making huge quantities of both.  Each table was given a hot just-out-of-the oven loaf of sourdough bread as soon as they were seated.  Before service I made vast amounts of clam chowder in huge, commercial soup cauldrons.  I also half-baked enough sourdough bread to get us through service.  I oversaw vegetable and salad prep.  It was exciting, and I loved every minute of it.

We were not cooking food that would have won any prizes.  I’m quite sure that now after years of cooking with, and eating  food made by the best chefs around I’d be appalled by it.  At the time it fit a need.  It was before the food revolution hit areas outside of large cities.  Our patrons were happy to get a well-prepared piece of fish, or a steak, a salad or clam chowder and our signature sourdough bread.  Jack, the owner, understood his business model well, and his restaurant was a success for a number of years.

Sue and her boyfriend at their bakery in Washington state, circa 1979.

Sue left shortly after I did to open a bakery in Washington state.  Her first love was bread and baking.  If I recall correctly the sourdough bread recipe we used was hers.  I lost touch with Sue and the other guys I worked the line with.  Like every restaurant I’ve ever worked in, we were a little family as short-lived as it was.  We cooked our asses off at work, we went out for food together after service ended, and we socialized together on our days off.  Sourdough Jack’s was the beginning of my career in food; granted one where I hopscotched around, left and returned to it, but a glorious start none the less.

My Status:  Still enjoying winter in So Cal and the lovely winter produce: amazing citrus, kale, broccoli, collard greens, beets and fennel.  Continuing to blog, cook, and eat.

I’m published!! My recipe “Chef Wally’s Baked Papaya” was selected to be in the cookbook: “Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook: 100 Great Recipes, Photographs, and Voices.”  You may order it here.

Upcoming Posts: More on my great-grandmother’s garden, and my California childhood.  My memories of Graham Kerr, The Galloping Gourmet.  A visit and tour of Ojai Valley citrus grower Friend’s Ranch. More The Local Reports coming soon. Cookbook Reviews: “The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook” by Rachel Saunders, “Grilled Cheese, Please! by Laura Werlin, and “Italy Dish by Dish: A Comprehensive Guide to Eating in Italy” by Monica Sartoni Cesari.

2.3 miles, about 7 minutes from my home in Atwater Village.

Hungry!  Need.  Food.  Now.  There are times when eating becomes the thing I have to do before anything else.  Knowing of close-to-home restaurants is of paramount importance to me.  Luckily, there’s a plethora of places in my Atwater Village-Silver Lake neighborhood to choose from.  Gingergrass is one.  I know that I can drive over and if it’s early enough, get a table and have food in front of me within forty minutes.  If it’s later and the place is full, I can call an order in and pick it up.  There’s value in both of these.

The sign in front of Gingergrass, and the menu itself, has these words: “Fresh Vietnamese Cuisine,” and in my experience this is absolutely true.  I’ve been eating at Gingergrass for years now and have never had a bad meal.  The food always tastes fresh and clean.  The dishes are full of interesting, bright flavors.  The menu is varied enough to never get boring.  Executive Chef Mikel Mark Kim knows his way around a Vietnamese menu while also using local, sustainable, organic, and free-range ingredients: very good things that up the quality and flavor of his food.

Some favorite dishes include: Bò Saté, Pork Chops, “Gingergrass” Fresh Rolls, Shaking Beef, Coconut Curry Cod, and the Basil-Lime Elixir.  I also check the huge chalkboard that lists daily specials, as well as wine and beer, and desserts.  I’m not a big phó eater but I see a lot of people eating it whenever I go.  The crowds that are always there are a testament to the very affordable prices.  Gingergrass keeps amazing hours too: they’re open seven days a week for lunch and dinner, and Thursdays through Saturdays they stay open until 11 p.m. (that’s late for most any Los Angeles neighborhood).

Gingergrass is a true neighborhood gem, a place I can happily rely on to feed me quick — or slow — depending on my needs.

Gingergrass we love you!

Love, 100 Miles

P.S. ~ I just noticed that Jonathan Gold of the L.A. Weekly named Gingergrass as one of “99 Essential Restaurants” which I was unaware of.  Very nice!  I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled for him next time I go in.

Gingergrass, 2369 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles, CA, 90039, 323-644-1600, http://www.gingergrass.com

*The Local Report(s): are occasional blog posts on restaurants, and/or businesses that either support the idea of one-hundred miles, and ‘living life locally’; or are small, localized businesses in my neighborhood, and/or within one-hundred miles of my residence, that I prefer to support over the larger, national, corporate chains. For other The Local Report(s) please go the Archives section of this blog. Also, I’d love to hear from my readers about businesses that they support in their neighborhoods: write to me at charlesgthompson@100miles.com, or leave a comment here.

Follow The Local Report on Twitter: @TheLocalReport

100 Miles Shout Outs! Local events, mini-reviews, and mentions of things happening in the world of food:

#1  – The Good Neighbor Cookbook – consider submitting your, or somebody else’s, good-neighbor story to the Meet This Grateful Recipient or Meet This Good Neighbor Cook features on The Good Neighbor Cookbook blog by e-mailing authors Sara Quessenbery and Suzanne Schlosberg at: cooks@thegoodneighborcookbook.com. Let us know if you do by leaving a comment below!

My Status:  Still enjoying winter in So Cal and the lovely winter produce: amazing citrus, kale, broccoli, collard greens.  Continuing to blog, cook, and eat.

I’m published!! My recipe “Chef Wally’s Baked Papaya” was selected to be in the cookbook: “Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook: 100 Great Recipes, Photographs, and Voices.”  You may order it here.

Upcoming Posts: More on my great-grandmother’s garden, and my California childhood.  A visit and tour of Ojai Valley citrus grower Friend’s Ranch. Cookbook Reviews: “The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook” by Rachel Saunders, and “Italy Dish by Dish: A Comprehensive Guide to Eating in Italy” by Monica Sartoni Cesari.

“Eat The Love”.   The very apt slogan for the new food delivery company Out of the Box Collective.  The OBC promotional flier also includes:  “Local”.  “Sustainable”. “Home Delivered”.   All good words in my world.  Out of the Box Collective is exactly those things.  They gather food staples that are local and sustainable, put them into boxes and deliver them to your door.  Unlike a C.S.A. they provide everything you need, or want to feed your family for a week.  Fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat, fish, poultry, bread, pasta and dry goods.  A meal plan and suggested recipes are also included.  The only thing you have to do is cook, and then ‘eat the love.’

Founded by Jennifer Piette along with farm-to-table Chef Erik Stenberg, the goal of the company is to source “local, seasonal, sustainably produced groceries from [a] collective of farmers and artisans: [that include] ‘beyond organic’ produce; pastured meats, poultry and eggs; locally caught fish; dairy, including raw milk from Organic Pastures; regional specialties, such as local olive oil, honey, cheeses, Fair Trade products, and the list goes on.”  Jennifer and Erik have spent a good deal of time tracking down the best quality, organic, and sustainable products available in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties.

Jennifer Piette and Erik Stenberg as they begin shopping the Santa Barbara Farmers' Market.

A Morning at the Farmers’ Market

Given that the collective will only use what is fresh and seasonal, the box contents change from week to week.  Additionally, new artisans, growers and vendors are being added all the time.  Piette and Stenberg meet each Saturday at the Santa Barbara Farmers’ Market to assemble the following week’s boxes.  Last Saturday I was lucky enough to spend the day with them as they gathered a week’s worth of food at the market.  Later in the day I watched as they assembled the boxes.  It was an educational and joyful experience — so much amazing food.  Santa Barbarans take food, eating, and their farmers’ market seriously.

The Los Olivos Roots Organic Farm stand from Los Olivos, California.

I trailed along with Jennifer as she made her rounds at the market before it opened.  Many of her orders had already been placed so she was picking up, and adding to where needed.  We stopped at the Windrose Farm booth for beautiful radicchio di Castelfranco, said ‘hello’ to the folks at the famous Los Olivos Roots Organic Farm stand, grabbed poultry from Healthy Family Farms, apple juice at Fair Hills Farms, fresh-squeezed orange juice from Ojai’s Friend’s Ranch, ground beef from Rancho San Julian, pork from Jiminez Family Farm, and blistered almonds from Fat Uncle Farms.   Jennifer also augments her farmers’ market purchases with produce from the Farmer Direct Produce Network, a wholesale produce distributor that features local and sustainably grown produce only.  Wesley Sleight from Farmer Direct met us at the market with a large produce delivery.

Jennifer buying eggs and poultry from Healthy Family Farms.

Buying pork chops from Jimenez Family Farm.

Buying 100% certified organic apple juice from Fair Hills Farms.

Buying blistered almonds from Fat Uncle Farms.

Two More Stops: A Fishmongress, and the Pie Shop

After we finished rounds at the market, I joined Erik as he made two more stops: for fresh fish, and homemade pies.  Cadena Yules of Cadena’s Fresh Fish is a Santa Barbara-based female fishmonger.  On a side street of downtown Santa Barbara she rents space along with several other male Latino fishmongers in a large industrial building that also sells meat (on one door is a sign for fish; a second door says “meat.”)  It was fascinating to watch Cadena at work.   She specializes in locally caught seafood.  Erik picked up line-caught halibut.  Our next stop was Simply Pies, a wonderful small pie shop that does a booming business.  We grabbed uncooked gluten-free pie shells, and freshly made apple pies.

Fishmonger, Cadena Yules of Cadena's Fresh Fish, Santa Barbara, CA.

Assembling the Boxes

The next step in the process was assembling the boxes.  Out of the Box Collective currently works out of a kitchen in Goleta.  I enjoyed watching this unfold as it was a bit like being a kid in a candy shop.  What amazing fruits or vegetables would go into each box?  What locally-sourced proteins?  What other local delicacies?  It was a flurry of activity as Jennifer worked on one side of the kitchen assembling the grocery boxes; while on the other side Erik worked on the produce boxes.  Both were assisted by Chris Schertzer, recently hired as packager, driver and deliveryman.

Jennifer, Erik and Chris as box assembly begins.

Erik assembling the produce boxes.

Finished produce boxes.

A finished grocery box.

The refrigerated delivery van ready to go.

Change Equals Growth

As with most new businesses there are moments of transition; Erik (aka The Surfin’ Chef) has decided to take a hiatus from OBC to catch a few waves.  In his place Jennifer has brought in Shaheda Gosla, a private chef and farmers’ market maven, to work on the meal plans and the weekly suggested recipes.  Until the business grows more deliveries are currently only made in northwest Los Angeles county.  Piette hopes to expand beyond that area soon.  When she does get to my area of Los Angeles, I’ll be her first customer.  I wholeheartedly applaud what she is doing.  OBC is of much value to anyone who enjoys fresh, local, sustainable food.

For more information ~ Out of the Box Collective.

To see more photos from my OBC outing, click here ~ http://tinyurl.com/6jknp92

100 Miles Shout Outs! Local events, mini-reviews, and mentions of things happening in the Food World:

#1  – Mini-Review: A shout out to a recent cookbook I received ~ “Everday Grilling: 50 Recipes from Appetizers to Desserst” by Sur La Table.  Grilling tips and recipes for first courses to desserts all (or part of the recipe) cooked on the grill.  Grilled Quesadillas.  Endless ways to grill vegetables.  Grilled Pizza (!)  Grilled Pound Cake (!?)

My Status: Enjoying winter in So Cal and the lovely winter produce: amazing citrus, kale, broccoli, collard greens.  Continuing to blog, cook, and eat.

I’m published!! My recipe “Chef Wally’s Baked Papaya” was selected to be in the cookbook: “Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook: 100 Great Recipes, Photographs, and Voices.”  You may order it here.

Upcoming Posts: More on my great-grandmother’s garden, and my California childhood. Cookbook Reviews: “The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook” by Rachel Saunders, and “Italy Dish by Dish: A Comprehensive Guide to Eating in Italy” by Monica Sartoni Cesari.

Eataly New York, 23rd St. & 5th Ave. Photo via midtownlunch.com

I have fervently been following the opening of the food emporium, Eataly, in New York City.  The reason for my interest is that I was involved in the opening of another Italian food emporium in the early ’80s: DDL Foodshow.  I was hired by film producer, Dino de Laurentiis, to work with the general manager to open the store.  The flagship store was located at 82nd Street and Columbus Avenue, across the street from the Natural History Museum.  It took up the ornate, marble lobby of the Endicott Hotel building which by this time was no longer a hotel but had gone co-op.  The store was quite large for its time.  Much like what Eataly is doing now there were stations spread out around the store: gastronomica, (prepared hot and cold foods), rosticceria (roasted meats and chickens), baked goods, produce, cheese, salumeria, chocolate, coffee and so on.  It was meant to be 1-stop shopping for the upscale neighborhood.  Dino and his team of Italians spared no expense; he brought chefs and managers over from Italy.  Adam Tihany was the designer.  The store had a full on kitchen with an Italian head chef.  Dino wanted it to be like the stores of its kind that he knew in Italy.  Peck in Milan is one such store.  After opening I became manager of the cheese department.  As manager I did all the cheese buying, was responsible for the counter displays, and oversaw a staff.

The Endicott Hotel Building, 82nd & Columbus, NYC where DDL Foodshow was located.

It was an exciting project to be involved in as a twenty two-year old.  The job brought me from San Francisco to New York.  It was my first time living there.  My interview with Dino (who is Giada De Laurentiis’ grandfather) at his film offices in the Gulf & Western Building on Columbus Circle was my first visit to New York.  I was very excited to be working with Dino, and living in Manhattan.  New York was a food mecca then and still is now.  Unfortunately, the store and its satellites (one in Trump Tower on 5th Avenue, and one in Beverly Hills) didn’t last more than a few years.  It never really caught on with New Yorkers.  Zabar’s, Balduccis, and Fairway pretty much had the corner on the gourmet food market.  A lot of people came into the store to look when it first opened but rarely returned more than a few times.  Sadly, Dino was ahead of his time.

The bread counter in Eataly New York.

Eataly is an Italian company with five stores in Italy, three in Japan and now one in New York.  Eataly New York is owned by chef Mario Battali and restaurateur Joe Bastianich, and Joe’s mother chef Lidia Bastianich.  The New York store while similar in concept is much larger than DDL Foodshow, and includes several sit down restaurants.  It is broken up in to a series of ‘eateries’: pizza, pasta, fish, produce, salumi and cheese, deli, rosticceria (with a butcher), bread, pasticceria and gelateria, as well as areas for cookbooks and housewares, and finally a wine shop. All of these are pay as you go.  DDL was more like an old-fashioned grocer.  You took a grocery cart from counter to counter and went through a check out line when you were done shopping.  DDL had no sit down restaurants; it did have the rosticceria where you could pick up a roasted chicken, or piece of meat, while the gastronomica had hot and cold prepared foods.  It was possible to buy a completely cooked meal.

Inside Eataly New York.

I have not yet been to Eatlay but I am anxious to go.  Definitely on my next trip to New York.  A good friend who actually worked with me at DDL has been and her report is that the food is very good, the store nice but that it is massively confusing as to what one is supposed to do where and when.  She and a friend bought things to eat then sat down at an empty table in one of the many eating points and were promptly told they needed to see the hostess to be seated.  A hostess and a host stand that were not readily visible.  As she described it to me: “Right now it’s an uneasy compromise between a food hall and an eatery.  What you have are various specialty shopping departments spotted with seating areas that have table or counter service.”  That does sound confusing.  Another friend ate dinner at one of the sit down restaurants where the prices were not inexpensive.  He said it was the oddest experience eating a nice meal while people were shopping all around him.  This begs the question: is it a sit-down restaurant, a take-out joint, or a high-end grocery store?  It’s trying to be all three.  Will hard-to-please New Yorkers be okay with this?  Only time will tell.  It does however sound like they have a few kinks to work out.

I have very fond memories of DDL Foodshow despite the many difficulties of getting a store of its size and kind open.  Dino’s heart was in the right place.  He wanted to share his joy of food and food culture with New Yorkers and Americans.  New Yorkers are a very tough audience; very set in their ways.  Sadly, they weren’t willing or interested enough to make it viable.  I still think Dino was ahead of his time.  This was before the Food Network, and the new Internet-based food movement.  Giada, his granddaughter, has managed to carve out a place for herself.  Time will tell if Eataly is a success.  I’d venture to guess that now is a better time in American food culture to give it a try than twenty-eight years ago when Dino and a group of us attempted it first.

Shout Outs! Fun, Cool, Interesting, Worthy Things Going on Around Town…

Pink Ribbon Cupcake from Magnolia Bakery

Magnolia Bakery (Los Angeles) ~ Purchase a Pink Ribbon Cupcake, (or several!) from Magnolia Bakery during the month of October.  Proceeds go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Research.  www.magnoliabakery.com

Los Angeles Magazine ~ The Food Event: From the Vine 2010 ~ Sunday, October 24, 2010, 1 pm to 4 pm, Saddlerock Ranch, Malibu, California.  The 5th annual culinary extravaganza hosted by Los Angeles Magazine featuring celebrity chefs, top restaurants and wine tasting.  I’ll be there.  Hope to see you.  www.losangelesmagazine/thefoodevent

Artisanal L.A. ~ A weekend of shopping, tasting, workshops, and hanging out with local artisans.  A celebration of L.A.’s finest local handmade artisanal edibles.  October 23 & 24, 11 am to 4 pm.   I’ll be there (Saturday, 10/23), will you?  http://artisanalla.com/

Out of the Box Collective (Los Angeles) ~ A brand new business that home-delivers boxes of local, sustainably produced groceries.  The food items used in the boxes are sourced from artisans and farmers in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties.  Boxes contain meat, dairy, produce, bread, conserves, and regional specialties.  They have a Thanksgiving Feast Box available for the upcoming holiday that will supply you with all the ingredients and a few suggested recipes if you don’t have the time to shop but still want to cook.  Come check them out the Artisan L.A. event on 10/23 & 24 (see above for info).  www.outoftheboxcollective.com

My Status:  Fall weather has arrived to SoCal.  Cool, wet even rainy.  More cooking, eating and blogging on the horizon as always.

News! I am now published!! My recipe ‘Chef Wally’s Baked Papaya’ was selected to be in the upcoming cookbook: ‘Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook: 100 Great Recipes, Photographs, and Voices,’ publish date is October 19, 2010.  You may pre-order it here.  I am thrilled.

Upcoming Posts: Cookbook Reviews ~ Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller; Mary Mac’s Tea Room: 65 Years of Recipes from Atlanta’s Favorite Dining Room by John Ferrell; The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook by Rachel Saunders.

Summer – in all its ferocious intensity – has arrived to Los Angeles.  After a very cool July, August is suddenly hitting triple digits.  With the heat arrives a malaise and inability, or is it an unwillingness, to do much of anything.  ‘Dog days’ are described by the Google dictionary as: 1.  The hottest period of the year (reckoned in antiquity from the helical rising of Sirius, the Dog Star), and 2.  A period of inactivity or sluggishness.’  Number 2 sums up my current mood perfectly.  Summer is drawing to a close, it’s bloody hot, and I don’t want to do anything.  So this will be short and to the point.

A few of my recent foodie adventures…

Waterbar, San Francisco, right under the Bay Bridge. Owned by Chef Mark Franz.

San Francisco

Last week I spent a few days in San Francisco — my old food stomping grounds — with my friend, Chef Jeremiah Tower and a mutual friend, Chef Mark Franz.  Mark owns three successful restaurants in the bay Area:  Farallon, Waterbar and Nick’s Cove, and he hosted a few of us for two amazing meals: one at Farallon that included a huge tin of caviar, a whole turbot with hollandaise sauce and a plateau of oysters.  At Waterbar he served more amazing oysters (never enough oysters), ravioli stuffed with shrimp, grilled crab, and a roast beef.  Amazing!  Now here’s the problem:  I bought a brand new camera just before the trip, and I didn’t have enough time to learn how to use it.  Most of the pictures I took turned out horrible.  So, sadly, I don’t have photos of the amazing food Mark made for us.  In addition to Mark’s meals I ate at Zuni Café (always good!) and a newer, very popular place called Flour + Water — incredible pastas!  If you are in the City go there for their pasta dishes.

Handmade pasta stuffed with shrimp at Waterbar (not Flour + Water).

Open kitchen at Waterbar.

Cookbook Sale

As many of my readers and friends know I am a fiend for cookbooks and have been amassing a nice collection (see the tab at top of the blog for the current list).  So when I read in Squid Ink (L.A. Weekly) that the Southern California Culinary Historians were having a cookbook sale at the Hollywood Farmers’ Market this past Sunday I forced myself out of bed at 7:00 a.m. so I could be there by 8:00 a.m.  There was already a crowd when I arrived, and I didn’t want to spend a whole lot of time.  I quickly worked my way through peering in boxes of books piled haphazardly, and if I saw something that piqued my interest I grabbed it — all books were $3.00.  I often shop for the writer as much as the book.  If I see a book by a writer I know and admire I’ll buy it.  I snatched up ‘Feasts for All Seasons’ (1966) by Roy Andries de Groot — one of the very early food writers, and a name I’ve known for years.  ‘Food with the Famous’ (1979) by Jane Grigson — a very well-known British food writer, and mother to Sophie Grigson, a well-known chef and food writer in her own right.  Lastly, ‘Art of Good Eating’ (1961) by Paula Peck — not because I know her, because I liked the title and the look of the book.  Three books, $9.00, a little farmers’ market shopping and back on the road by 8:45 a.m.

Street Food Mondays

Bill Esparza (Street Gourmet LA) has teamed up with Evan Kleiman of Angeli Caffe and Good Food on KCRW fame, and on the occasional Monday they co-host a ’street food Monday’ at Evan’s restaurant Angeli Caffe.  The first one was Ricky’s Fish Tacos (I was unable to attend) but this past Monday it was Sri Lankan food by the cooks/owners of the now closed Priyani Café.  I’d never had Sri Lankan food and didn’t really know what to expect — I’d heard that they like it extremely hot.  This wasn’t terribly spicy (thankfully) but it was really good, and very interesting.  Some of my favorite dishes were the hoppers — thin fermented pancakes with a soft bowl shape that held other ingredients like chicken, eggs, and a really wonderful spicy coconut condiment that we all kept spooning over everything.  I would eat this food again.  We were a table of about ten and we had a very lively if raucous time.

String Hoppers ~ rice noodle patties with sime, a spicy condiment.

Egg Hopper ~ thin fermented pancake with choice of sime sambal or a curry.

Plain Hopper ~ thin fermented pancake with a choice of sime sambal or a curry.

That’s it for now.  A quick-ish update during triple digit temperatures.  Off to Seattle for the International Food Bloggers’ Conference on Friday, back on Monday.  Temperatures in Seattle ~ highs of 75F, lows of 65F — perfect.  See you next week for more food fun.

My Status: As you read above that cool summer L.A. was experiencing is OVER.  Waiting out the heat, eating, cooking, restaurant-ing, blogging and writing.  Going to the IFBC in Seattle this weekend with friends Jo Stougaard of My Last Bite and Phil Nigash of My Life as a Foodie (it’s Phil’s first time!) (see below), and a trip to Sonoma County in September: returning to Zazu & Bovolo…

Coming Up: International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC), August 27 – 29, 2010, Seattle Washington.  So much fun last year that I’ll be attending again this year.  Are you?

Upcoming Posts: Cookbook Reviews ~ Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller; Mary Mac’s Tea Room: 65 Years of Recipes from Atlanta’s Favorite Dining Room by John Ferrell.

Felicia Friesema

There’s a reason Felicia Friesema writes the farmers’ markets report for the L.A. Weekly.  There’s also a reason she leads tours of area farmers’ markets.  She really knows her vegetables and fruits — intimately, passionately.  She is a fount of produce information, and loves sharing her knowledge.  I recently had the pleasure of joining a tour she gave of the Hollywood Farmers’ Market; one of the largest farmers’ markets in the Los Angeles-area.  I learned so much.

Felicia leading our group at the Hollywood Farmers' Market

I’m not big on crowds.  I used to go to the Hollywood Farmers’ Market every Sunday until it got too popular, and too crowded.  It was certainly hard to stop as it is on par with the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market when it comes to quality and variety of produce, and the vendors who sell there.  Felicia’s tour helped me see the market in a brand new light.  We started early, around 8:30 a.m. after we had coffee, breakfast pastries, and an informal coffee chat with Robert Mozejewki, Operations Manager, at groundwork coffee company (retail shop on the corner of Sunset and Cahuenga).  Groundwork is a Los Angeles-based coffee roaster with retail stores; a certified organic roaster, it sources sustainable coffee beans from around the world.  Starting a bit earlier at the market really helped, it was a lot less crowded.  Felicia who goes to the market often knows many of the vendors personally.  She introduced us to several.  We ate oysters at the Carlsbad Aqua Farm, learned about herbs from Lily Baltazar at ABC Rhubarb Farms, and marveled at the mushrooms at LA Funghi.

Oysters at Carlsbad Aqua Farm Stand

Patrick, our oyster expert, and shucker at Carlsbad Aqua Farm

Shucking our fresh oysters

Herbs from ABC Rhubarb Farms

ABC Rhubard Farms herb stand

Lily Baltazar, ABC Rhubarb Farms

Mushrooms from LA Funghi

More mushrooms from LA Funghi

Along the way we sampled and ate, looked and drooled, and bought to take home for later.  Felicia showed us many of her favorite in season fruits and vegetables, and some of her favorite vendors.  One of Felicia’s recommendations is a new favorite of mine: Kyoho grapes.  Luscious, juicy, inky and full of grape flavor.  The grapes came from a vendor that is in a section of the market for those farmers non-certified California grown.  I was unaware that there was a section for produce not grown in California.  The market must keep them separate from the certified California vendors to maintain its ‘certified’ status.  I also learned that not every vendor is necessarily certified organic, and that one must ask before buying.  When someone asked the grape vendor if the grapes were organic the answer was no, they were spray free but not certified organic.  We learned to ask the vendors questions, to develop a relationship with them, and not to assume that any farmers’ market is fully certified organic.  I watched as Felicia interacted with various vendors — all were more than willing to answer questions, and talk about their products.

Nectaplums? So many new hybrid fruits all the time. This one was new to the group. We all quite liked it.

Red Flame Grapes

As we moved through the market and as Felicia stopped, picked up produce to show us, or to ask a vendor a question I was reminded of shopping this way when I lived in France.  At the green grocer I asked questions, they offered samples, there was a give and take.  Unfortunately, I fell back into the very American grocery store habit of one stop shopping, of filling up an over-sized cart.  Felicia’s tour showed me how to manage the crowds, what to look for, how to talk to vendors, and what questions to ask.  I may have to weave the Hollywood Farmers’ Market back into my shopping routine.  At least get over to it occasionally when I need a change of pace from my neighborhood farmers’ market in Atwater Village.

"Take one large artichoke..."

To find out when Felicia’s leading her next farmers’ market tour, follow her on Twitter: @feliciafriesema, or on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/feliciafood

My Status: Still enjoying the coolest summer we’ve seen in Los Angeles in years (apologies to all readers living east of the Rockies).  Eating, cooking, restaurant-ing, blogging and writing.  A food-filled trip to San Francisco to join my friend, Chef Jeremiah Tower, coming up this weekend.  The IFBC at the end of August (see below), and a trip to Sonoma County in September: returning to Zazu & Bovolo…

Coming Up: International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC), August 27 – 29, 2010, Seattle Washington.  So much fun last year that I’ll be attending again this year.  Are you?

Upcoming Posts: Cookbook Reviews ~ Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller; Mary Mac’s Tea Room: 65 Years of Recipes from Atlanta’s Favorite Dining Room by John Ferrell.

Steak with Friends: At Home, with Rick Tramonto.  Rick Tramonto with Mary Goodbody.  Andrews McMeel Publishing.  $35.00.  (304p)  ISBN: 978-0-7407-9257-1

First off:  this is a really BIG book, and I mean that in the nicest possible way.  Secondly, I learned a new trick from it that I wish I’d known years ago (to bake bacon rather than fry it).  Thirdly, in recipe testing for it I happily got to use my friend, Phil’s incredible bacon: All Natural Berkshire Pork Belly, Cured 10 Days, Applewood Smoked.  Phil is My Life as a Foodie, a great cook, a great curer of meats, and a very cool guy.  My experience with this book was a good one from start to finish.

Chef Rick Tramonto has been in the restaurant business for 30 years, and owns three Chicago area restaurants: Tru, Tramonto’s Steak and Seafood, RT Sushi Bar & Lounge.  A James Beard Award winner, a competitor on Top Chef Masters, Top Chef and Iron Chef; he was also named a Top Ten Best New Chefs by Food & Wine magazine in 1994.  He has published six cookbooks before ‘Steak with Friends.’  He’s already tested and proven his cooking mettle.  This book is meant to bring all he knows, and his experiences as a professional chef, to the home cook.  He succeeds quite well at doing so.

“The title of this book says it all:  This is about eating steak dinners with good friends and enjoying all that implies,” states Tramonto.  Except it doesn’t stop at steaks.  It also includes hot and cold appetizers, salads, soups and sandwiches, fish and seafood, sauces, stocks, dressings, marinades, and syrups, other meat and poultry, side dishes, and desserts.  Shew!  The book does devote a number of pages to steak, in fact, there are three chapters alone on the subject.  There are enough recipes in this book (150) to cook complete meals from starters to desserts for at least a year.  (I didn’t do the math so maybe it’s only six months.)

In addition to the recipes Chef Tramonto throws in many ‘how-tos,’ and ‘abouts’ such as ‘About Oysters,’ followed by ‘How To Shuck an Oyster,’ or ‘Notes on the Steak Recipes,’ with ‘How to Choose a Great Steak.’  Helpful color photographs and diagrams are also sprinkled throughout.  Cocktail recipes usually thematically tied to the recipe on the same page also pop up.  Music and cooking play an important part of Tramonto’s cooking process; something I understand as most professional kitchens I’ve worked in usually played very loud, heart-thumping music during the many hours of prep.  He is a proponent of cooking to music and periodically makes recommendations of specific artists.  His taste seems to be fairly run of the mill pop and rock.  For example his recommendations for cooking cold appetizers are:  Billy Joel, Elton John, The Doors, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, The Goo Goo Dolls, and The Allman Brothers.  Hmmm, not exactly cutting-edge choices!  Still an interesting, and unique, addition to the recipes.

I was only able to try a handful of recipes, and since steak is the star of the book I tried those first: Filet Mignon with Béarnaise Sauce, Bone-In Rib Eye with Bordelaise Sauce, and Steak au Poivre.  The first two were cooked on an outdoor grill, and turned out beautifully; the old-fashioned French sauces included (separate recipes).  The Steak au Poivre was prepared on the stove top.   All three preparations are familiar steak standards.  Tramonto’s cooking instructions including how long to cook for medium rare, medium and well done were spot on.  It had been awhile since I’d make a Béarnaise, or Bordelaise, or even an au poivre sauce and it was fun.  There’s a reason eating beef this way is so popular — it’s really, really good.

Other recipes I tested were Twice-Baked Potatoes with Irish Cheddar, Grilled Broccoli Rabe, Cucumber Salad, Lemon Aïoli, Rick’s BLTs — the reason I chose this one was because it required bacon, and I had my friend Phil’s bacon to use.  Knowing I was using bacon that Phil had lovingly cured added to the pleasure of testing, and eating, the recipe.  On the same page as the BLT recipe was a break out box ‘Cook Bacon Like a Chef’ — a genius thing.  Turn the oven to 350°, put the bacon on a parchment lined baking sheet, and let it bake until done, no turning, no smoke, no popping of hot oil.  I love to learn new kitchen tricks (or re-learn forgotten ones) and this is a great one!  Tramonto and Goodbody know how to create dishes and write recipes.  All the dishes I tried worked very well, and tasted even better.

The food and recipes in this book are fairly traditional, straight forward meat and potato preparations.  There’s no breaking of new ground here — nothing molecular, no foams or CO2 canisters.  It’s simple and honest food which I think was Chef Tramonto’s goal.  If so, he succeeded and this is definitely a go-to book for a family dinner on the weekend, or a casual yet nice dinner with friends.

My Status: Enjoying the coolest summer we’ve seen in Los Angeles in years (apologies to all readers living east of the Rockies).  Eating, cooking, restaurant-ing, blogging and writing.  A food-filled trip to San Francisco to join my friend, Chef Jeremiah Tower, coming up next week.  The IFBC at the end of August (see below), and a trip to Sonoma County in September: returning to Zazu & Bovolo…

Coming Up: International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC), August 27 – 29, 2010, Seattle Washington.  So much fun last year that I’ll be attending again this year.  Are you?

Upcoming Posts: Cookbook Reviews ~ Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller; Mary Mac’s Tea Room: 65 Years of Recipes from Atlanta’s Favorite Dining Room by John Ferrell.

Alaskan Halibut, Arctic Char, Oysters (Washington State)

“Sustainability is nothing more than basic supply and demand.  If we (and our demand) remove too many fish from the ocean (the supply) before they reproduce (have more little fish), they will go extinct (over fished).

From Seafood for the Future, Aquarium of the Pacific, Long Beach, California

Seafood is one of the healthiest proteins humans can eat.  More of us should be eating it.  Many of us don’t eat enough.  There is a lot of confusion about what fish is safe.  Safe from overfishing and possible extinction; safe for our bodies.  The Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach recently started a program called Seafood for the Future.  Its goal is to answer these questions, to educate consumers, and to keep many species of fish from possible extinction.  The program also addresses issues of farmed versus wild, and is part of the ongoing conversation about using seafood to feed more people.

Eat Fish, Sustainably

Andrew Gruel, Manager of Seafood for the Future, has a background as a chef having worked in a number of restaurants on the East Coast.  His approach to the program is hands-on, interactive.  He works with local Southern California restaurants and chefs to get sustainable seafood on their menus.  In the restaurants currently involved with the program a Seafood for the Future logo is printed next to each sustainable fish dish.  Each diner ordering that dish is given one free admission ticket to the Aquarium of the Pacific.

Andrew Gruel, Manager, Seafood for the Future

“Seafood for the Future functions to provide chefs and consumers the opportunity to make easy decisions about their seafood.  Our goal is to take the guesswork away from the consumer.  Look for our logo, and look on our website for sustainable species to eat.  We genuinely want people to email us with their questions about seafood,” states Gruel.  (Look for this logo on restaurant menus.)

The end result (a free visit to the aquarium) gets the consumer from the restaurant, and the fish they ate, into the aquarium to learn more about fish and sustainability issues making it a real life outcome.  It’s not just something they’ve heard about, or read about, or given little thought to.  It becomes highly educational.  It puts the consumer in the middle of the issue.  They’re able to see for themselves exactly how their choices have an effect on their environment.

The program is gaining more new restaurants all the time.  Chef Michael Poompan of Sip, the restaurant at the Renaissance Hotel in Long Beach, is an avid participant.  On a recent visit for lunch he offered two sustainable seafood dishes: Local White Sea Bass (hook and line caught, day boat, Ventura), and Wild King Salmon (troll caught, Alaska).  Both dishes were listed on the menu with the Seafood for the Future logo.  Other chefs and restaurants involved in the program are Michael Cimarusti, Providence; Suzanne Goin, Lucques; Parker’s Lighthouse; Malibu Fish Grill; Primal Alchemy Catering, among others.

Diver in a tank at the Aquarium of the Pacific, Long Beach, CA

Wild vs. Farmed

Most every piece of produce we eat is farmed.  Why not seafood?

Farmed seafood is not a bad thing.  Much misinformation about this topic has reached the public.  Seafood for the Future believes that it is all about balance.  In 2009 over 50% of the seafood consumed in the world was farmed.  Wild stocks of seafood are being over fished so it is inevitable that farming fish will be a part of the future for fish and seafood.  Seafood for the Future also believes that sustainability is about management of fish stocks both farmed and wild, and it maintains that management is really about control.  If a fishing method is collecting everything in its wake, thereby killing anything aside from the target species, how much control is there?  Not much.  Responsible fish farming operations control and monitor feed, they monitor the health of the fish, and they control the harvest.  Pole caught fish, or harpooned fish have no by catch, this is ‘control’.

Sting ray pool at the Aquarium of the Pacific, Long Beach, CA

Seafood is a seemingly abundant source of delicious high quality protein.  Economies are built on the trade of fish and seafood.  In order to continue eating healthy seafood we need to balance supply with demand through management of both wild stocks and farmed fish.  There are already many safe-to-eat farmed fish and seafood species available including: oysters, clams, mussels, trout, tilapia, arctic char, and barramundi.  See the chart below for help in choosing sustainable fish:

Choose Healthy Fish Chart

Read this for great fish and seafood tips plus a wonderful recipe:

Simple and Sustainable Tips including a Recipe for ‘Pan Roasted Trout with Almonds, Dill and Orange’ by Andrew Gruel

“There are so many things to celebrate when it comes to seafood, and so many species to eat with a clear conscience. Species of fish both farmed and wild that are healthy and well-managed are available.   We shouldn’t  be afraid to eat seafood, and quite frankly people should eat more of it.  But like any food, it is important to be aware of where it comes from.  Sustainability is balance.  The end goal is to eat more healthy seafood,” states Gruel.

Seafood for the Future and the Aquarium of the Pacific are doing good work when it comes to getting the message out about sustainable fish.  If you live in Southern California, or are visiting, consider a trip to the aquarium.  It’s an amazing facility.  When you buy fish, or eat in a restaurant, try to think sustainably, and watch for the Seafood for the Future logo on menus.  Also, contact Andrew at Seafood for the Future with questions.  He’d be happy to help: on Twitter~ @chefgruel; @seafoodfuture; @AquariumPacific, or through the website ~ http://seafoodforthefuture.org/

Choose Healthy Fish ~ Good for You and the Ocean ~ Know Your Sources ~ Give Dwindling Populations a Chance to Recover ~ Choose Fish in Abundant Supply

My News:  KCET Top 10 List: I wrote this piece for LA-based PBS station, KCET ~ ‘Walking and Eating in Atwater Village: A Top 10′

Coming Up: International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC), August 27 – 29, 2010, Seattle Washington.  So much fun last year that I’ll be attending again this year.  Are you?

Upcoming Posts: Cookbook Reviews: Steak and Friends: At Home with Rick Tramonto by Rick Tramonto; Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller.

Me, age 1, at Avila Beach, California

I have always loved the ocean.  It has always been a part of my life.  Growing up along the Central Coast of California it was a big part of my childhood.  I spent most of my childhood in San Luis Obispo, a medium-sized California city half way between Los Angeles and San Francisco.  From a very young age I swam in the ocean.  My parents tell me they couldn’t keep me out of the water.  San Luis Obispo lies inland from the coast by a half hour driving.  The closest beach is Avila Beach — a place where I spent many a summer day swimming in the waves, body surfing, and playing in the sand.  For my single mother it was an inexpensive way to spend a weekend day; she got to relax in the sun while my sister and I wore ourselves out.  We usually went home sunburned and covered in sand.

Pan Roasted Arctic Char, Cannellini Beans, Baby Artichokes & Preserved Lemons

I have also enjoyed eating the food that comes from the sea.  Being that we lived so close to the coast seafood was a big part of our diet growing up.  Both my great-grandfather and great-uncle fished the Central Coast waters.  My mother often took us to Morro Bay, a coastal town north of San Luis, for fish and chips dinner.  The lingcod used in the meal was caught a few miles out to sea.  In those days no one gave a second thought to overfishing, pollution, and questions of sustainability.  Now we must.  We have no choice.  We are quickly depleting our seafood sources.  I find it horribly sad.

I recently met Martin Reed who started a sustainable fish company called i love blue sea.  It’s a genius idea.  I know for myself that when I’m in a store at the fish counter my eyes cross, I hyperventilate, I can’t remember which fish is the ‘right’ fish, wild, or farmed; all that confusion overwhelms me and I often don’t buy anything.  Martin’s company takes the guess work out of the process.  He sells nothing but sustainable fish, and he ships it anywhere in the U.S, overnight.  Here’s a quick rundown from i love blue sea’s website:  “Wondering where to buy seafood online?  No more guesswork!  Only the highest quality sustainable seafood.  Every dollar spent supports fisheries driving our ocean’s recovery.  It’s a simple, nutritious and delicious way for you to make a positive change!”  Martin recently sent me some Arctic char and asked me to come up with a recipe which I did.  Here’s to the health of our oceans and all the creatures that live in them.

Print Recipe

Recommendation: Savor Los Angeles, Friday, July 30th, 7pm to 10pm ~ a sweets tasting event of one-of-a-kind bites from an exclusive set of L.A.’s best purveyors of sweet treats.

Coming Up: International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC), August 27 – 29, 2010, Seattle Washington.  So much fun last year that I’ll be attending again this year.  Are you?

Upcoming Posts: Cochon 555 Napa, a write up of the amazing pork festival that I attended this spring. Cookbook Reviews: Steak and Friends: At Home with Rick Tramonto by Rick Tramonto, Spice Dreams by Sara Engram and Katie Luber, Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller.