My Doggie Paige is Loyal Biscuit’s 2009 Halloween mascot. Here she is devouring a (oh so trendy and obviously delicious) Dracula cookie. I heart my dog and she big time hearts those cookies from Loyal Biscuit!! Thanks Lauren. xoxo and woof!!
While reading The Second Lunch, one of the food blogs I learned about while in California, I came across this Mashable post of their top 15 social media resources for foodies. They include online marketplaces to buy fresh and gourmet foods, community recipe sites, and social networks for foodies with restaurant reviews. Good stuff!!
Gourmet Editor in Chief Ruth Reichl’s 10-episode culinary journey to five continents recently premiered on public television. Check local listings for air dates of ‘Adventures with Ruth’ in your area.
Reichl travels with Frances McDormand to Blackberry Farm in Tennessee for fly-fishing, beekeeping, and Southern recipes. Later episodes include a lesson on couscous with Lorraine Bracco in Morocco, secrets of homemade bread with Dianne Wiest in Bath, England, fish in Seattle with Tom Skerritt, and New York City’s Indian community with Jeffrey Wright.
Loving Kirsten Andresen Lainsbury’s AGENDA column in Maine Magazine. She writes about our friend Lani Temple’s Chex Mix, and Midcoast Maine favorite Sweetgrass Farm Winery and Distillery’s Apple Brandy.
Check out Kristen’s blog Maine Maven for all things happening in the scenic state.
In anticipation of my upcoming trip to Oregon and Washington, where my friend Jules tells me we cannot maneuver Seattle without rain boots, I’m investing in a good pair. After going back and forth between red and black I’ve opted for the latter. No shock to anyone who knows me and my affinity for black clothes. To go along with these boots, I’m picking up several pairs of (you guessed it) black tights from American Apparel. Armed and ready for the rain! Also good to keep in the car for a series of farm excursions I’ll be making in Maine this winter. Suppose boot liners would also be a choice purchase. These simple investments will mean my toes will be warm and dry while I maintain some sense of style strolling along in a downpour.
Whatever you are wearing and doing for Halloween I hope it is fun!!!
This year I’m foregoing the fishnets and fairy wings for a mask. Love how sexy and sweet a mask can be!
Spending an afternoon watching season 1 of True Blood, my guilty pleasure. A true winner with a villain played by hottie Alexander Skarsgard, the most convincing vampire since Willem Dafoe in SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE.
Baking chocolate chip pumpkin cookies or I love, love this idea for “Poisoned Apples” from Martha Stewart Living.
I love beer and cake so I thought what could taste better than a chocolate cake with beer as an ingredient?? So in honor of a visiting friend’s birthday I made Chocolate Stout Layer Cake with Chocolate Frosting. The easy to follow recipe by Bruce Aidells and delicious, chocolate-y results were shared with my friend and neighbors. It makes me really happy to share something homemade and yummy with people I care about. The good stuff in life is so often about an unexpected and edible gesture.
**Recipe notes… I found the cake dense and rich enough to warrant 16 servings rather than the stated 12. The frosting recipe I can see adding to my “go to” cake/dessert recipe binder. I used Rogue Chocolate Stout in the cake and had a glass, as the recipe recommended on the side. Deliciously sweet! Finally, this cake is not just for PM enjoyment. Bleary eyes begone get your buzz going with a few bites of this cake in the morning. It might not meet your java fix for the day, but it will get help you get started. At least I’ll admit it has me the past couple days.
Prior to my trip west, my dear friends Kate and Steve of Black Dinah Chocolates introduced me to Patricia Bossler a personable chocoholic available to personally guide cocoa fans visiting San Francisco to delicious and unexpected chocolate discoveries. **Contact information is pebossler@gmail.com. We had lunch and she pointed me in the direction of several great finds including Michael Recchuiti Confections in the Ferry Building and the Noe Valley shop Chocolate Covered (no website, located 4069 24th street) where I picked up chocolate bars from Australia, Idaho and Missouri.
Following are a few gems from her emails.
That morning, you could start your chocolate tour at Michael Recchiuti in the Ferry Bldg. and Scharffenberger, which was founded in Berkeley and is now owned by Hershey. Enroute to Salt House on Market Street you will find Fog City News, a small newspaper & magazine shop which is noted for its selection of wonderful individual chocolates and chocolate bars. The next block offers Confetti, which carries a number of local chocolatiers products.
After lunch, you can walk a few blocks to Schoggi, a bit farther to the mall for CocoaBella, which carries individually selected chocolates from independent chocolatiers from around the world. Then across Market Street to Richart (French) and Teuscher (Swiss), turn around a bit to the Crocker Galleria to the Leonidas Chocolate Shop and end at See’s Candies.
The day you go to Incanto is the day to shop at Omnivore. Enroute you can stop at Saratoga Chocolates (or same day as Tartine) and Chocolate Covered on 24th St. and Belgado, a chocolate & gelato shop also on 24th St.
If you have time to cross the Bay, Charles Chocolates is in Emeryville and the Scharffenberger Factory is close by. The factory is small & offers tours but the restaurant is excellent and offers wonderful chocolate treats even though it has nothing to do with the factory.
Miette is a local organic patisserie and confiserie which now has 3 locations, one in the Ferry bldg., one on Octavia in Hayes Valley, and one on Chestnut St. close to A16.
In North Beach, you don’t want to miss XOX Truffles on Columbus between Greenwich? Filbert? The French chocolatier hand makes his truffles daily and they are perfection. He had an apprentice who has since opened his own shop, Five Star, on Divisadero between Fell & Oak, next door to a good cheese shop, 2 blocks from NOPA.
My favorite restaurant of the entire trip to California was Bouchon. I will go back. Everything was perfect. The nice staff, French bistro ambiance, wine (local, sorry I did not write down what I ordered), my main course of Moules au Pistou (okay not very sustainable of me -Maine bouchot mussels steamed with white wine, garlic, and basil with some of the best french fries I’ve ever had), and my dessert a scrumptious cheese plate with local goat’s milk cheese from Andante Dairy, two French sheep and goat cheeses, and natural honeycomb from a local farm. It was expensive, but worth every penny and completely unpretentious. One of the best meals I’ve ever had. The next day the bakery let me into their back room to take photos and I purchased amazing cookies (photo in this blog is just of the macaroons, huge peanut butter creme filled cookie was consumed immediately).
