Calling All Cauliflower Fanatics

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Crispy, tender, garlicky, cheesy, lemony, and peppery.
Crispy, tender, garlicky, cheesy, lemony, and peppery.

There are few savory things that can’t be improved with the trifecta of garlic, lemon, and Parmesan.

Take cauliflower, for instance.

I’ve roasted the florets many a time with Parmesan and olive oil. But oh, that little dash of garlic powder, sprinkle of lemon zest, and squeeze of lemon juice really makes all the difference.

Try it for yourself with “Spicy Lemon Parm Cauliflower Bites.”

The recipe is from “Dig In!” (Simon Element), of which I received a review copy.

The cookbook is by Erin O’Brien, a popular digital content creator based in Los Angeles, who grew up cooking with her mom and grandmother.

It includes more than 100 recipes that take simple approaches to put food on the table that’s straightforward, comforting, and so delicious that you’ll want to cook them on the repeat.

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Shiso Fine

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Grill up some skirt steak with delectable Korean flavors.
Grill up some skirt steak with delectable Korean flavors.

Admittedly, I am not the world’s greatest gardener. So, when something manages not only to survive, but thrive — and year after year — I am practically giddy.

Yup, that’s how I feel about my home-grown shiso.

When spring comes, I’m always thrilled when its green leaves start popping up anew despite me doing nothing to it all winter long.

Also known as perilla, it never ceases to charm me with its refreshing whoosh of minty-citrusy flavor that I love so much that I sometimes just plop an entire leaf into my mouth from the garden.

My backyard shiso.
My backyard shiso.

Still, I managed to restrain myself to gather enough leaves to make this delicious “Skirt Steak with Shiso-Shallot Butter.” It’s a recipe by Chef Tyler Florence that appeared in the July 2025 issue of Food & Wine magazine.

It’s a perfect dish to grill during these last days of summer or early ones of fall.

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Maria Isabel Hits It Right Out of the Gate

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Duck carnitas enmolada with four different moles at Maria Isabel.
Duck carnitas enmolada with four different moles at Maria Isabel.

Husband-and-wife chefs, Sayat and Laura Ozyilmaz, may have opened their first restaurant, Dalida in San Francisco’s Presidio, three years ago, but you’d never know it from how tough it remains to land a table there.

So, it’s no surprise that this spring when the couple opened their follow-up, Maria Isabel, it immediately became one of the most sought-after reservations around.

Naturally, it also garnered widespread praise, including landing last month on Bon Appetit’s list of “Best New Restaurants” of 2026.

To say that San Francisco has been hungering for a restaurant like this is an understatement.

The city has no shortage of burrito joints, taco trucks, and homey mom-and-pop Mexican restaurants. It even boasts the only Michelin three-starred Mexican restaurant in the world: Californios.

The entrance.
The entrance.
The mural across from the host stand.
The mural across from the host stand.

But what was in short supply was a Mexican restaurant that was more upscale than those family-owned neighborhood stalwarts, yet more dressed-down than the ultra glam, highly finessed, special-occasion Californios.

Enter Maria Isabel, named for Laura’s sister, Maria, and her mother, Isabel.

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Anissa Helou’s “Green Beans, Bulgur Wheat, and Chickpeas”

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The nuttiness of chickpeas, crisp-tender texture of green beans, and the sweetness of tomatoes combine for a sensational Lebanese dish.
The nuttiness of chickpeas, crisp-tender texture of green beans, and the sweetness of tomatoes combine for a sensational Lebanese dish.

These days, all you need do is drive to the nearest supermarket if you’re in need of a bag of bulgur.

But Anissa Helou, the Beirut-born prolific cookbook author, journalist and broadcaster, remembers her mother recounting how her own mother’s family would make their own in a time-consuming, laborious process.

The family would hand-sort sacks of wheat to pick out any impurities, then parboil it, drain it, and spread it out on sheets underneath the sun to dry for days to create bulgur.

The nutritious whole grain — high in fiber, manganese, magnesium, and iron — would last them an entire year before the whole process would be repeated again.

Bulgur is not only versatile, but has the advantage of being quick to cook, usually in about 10 minutes.

No wonder it is a mainstay in Lebanese cooking.

If all you’ve ever had it was chilled in the parsley- and mint-laden tabbuleh salad, then do yourself a favor and try it warm in Helou’s “Green Beans, Bulgur Wheat, and Chickepeas” dish.

It’s from her newest cookbook, “Lebanon: Cooking the Foods of My Homeland” (Ecco), of which I received a review copy.

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The Best Kind of Picnic

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This bright and sunny cake is unusual in that it's actually made with saltine crackers.
This bright and sunny cake is unusual in that it’s actually made with saltine crackers.

Charcuterie and wine may be the usual mainstays of picnics.

But a picnic all about cake and nothing but cake?

Now, that’s the stuff of dreams — and surely worth the sugar high and food coma to follow.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock or eschewing all carbs (say what?), then you know all about the phenomenon known as Cake Picnic.

It is the fantastical creation of the Bay Area’s Elisa Sunga, who dove head-first into baking during the pandemic and chronicled her exploits along the way online.

As a devoted gathering of followers ensued, she got the idea in April 2004 to invite those willing to a cake picnic in San Francisco. All they had to do is show up at the park with a whole cake to share.

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