Monthly Archives: March 2009

Ricotta Revisited: Part 2, The Pasta Sauce

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As-easy-as-it-gets penne with ricotta sauce.

You know how you always seem to have leftover hot dog buns after cooking hot dogs, and leftover hamburger buns after grilling burgers?

Somehow, I always seem to have leftover ricotta after baking, too.

My new favorite repository for excess ricotta is Mark Bittman’s mind-blowingly easy “Penne with Ricotta, Parmesan, and Peas.” It’s from his classic book, “How to Cook Everything” (Wiley).

It’s so easy that you can make it blind-folded, while chewing gum, reciting the alphabet backwards, and patting your stomach in counter-clockwise strokes as you balance on one leg.

OK, maybe not that easy. But almost.

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Ricotta Revisited: Part 1, The Pound Cake

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The best pound cake you'll ever make.

Whenever I bake, my husband’s co-workers are usually the lucky recipients of the goodies.

I load him up with the fresh, sweet treats to take to the office. And when he comes home in the evening, I await to hear what verdict has been rendered upon them.

Usually, they get the thumb’s up. But for one co-worker, there has always been a qualifier associated with them.

Ramin will happily nosh on one of my muffins or cupcakes. Then, he’ll tell my husband, “This is good. But when is your wife going to make that pound cake again?”

Apparently, this happens with regularity.

It doesn’t matter if it’s chocolate-chunk cookies or cinnamon-sugar dusted banana bread that I’ve made that week. Ramin will enjoy it, but deep down, he’s longing for the ricotta pound cake.

Since I can’t stand to see a grown-man in pound cake-pain (definitely not a pretty sight), I made him his beloved pound cake two weeks ago.

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Cheese, Chocolates, Wines, Tributes and San Jose Eats On TV

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Delights from the California Artisan Cheese Festival. (Photo courtesy of Karen Preuss)

Deliriously delicious events you won’t want to miss:

*3rd Annual California Artisan Cheese Festival: The Sheraton Sonoma County in Petaluma will host this cheese extravaganza, March 20-23. Meet artisan cheesemakers at the March 20 reception and tasting. March 21, listen to a panel of experts including Laura Werlin and Clark Wolf.

Kelsie Kerr, director of the cooking school at Cavallo Point, will teach a cooking class about incorporating artisan cheese into everyday cooking. The March 21 gala dinner will feature five courses by a bevy of Bay Area chefs. At the Artisan Cheese Marketplace gets underway March 22, look for cooking demos by chefs such as Joey Altman.

Ticket prices range from $40 to $170. Ten percent of ticket sales will benefit five non-profits that support the artisan cheese-making community and its sustainability.

(Photo courtesy of the International Chocolate Salon)

* 3rd Annual International Chocolate Salon: Yes, chocolates, chocolates everywhere. That’s what you’ll find at this decadent event, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. March 21 at the Fort Mason Center’s Herbst Pavillion in San Francisco. Stroll through 30,000-square-feet of chocolate, wine, and confections to discover and taste. Chocolate demos, chef talks, and author signings also will be spotlighted.

More than 50 confectioners and wineries will be there, showing off their ware.

Yours truly, the Food Gal, will be there, too, as one of the tasting panel judges. Oh my. I better start fasting now in preparation.

Tickets are $25 for adults; $10 for children ages 6-12; and free for children under age 6 (limit two children per adult).

Chef Laurent Manrique of the Aqua Restaurant Group. (Photo courtesy of Justin Lewis)

* James Beard Foundation Benefit Dinner: Chef Laurent Manrique and his culinary friends will honor esteemed cookbook author Paula Wolfert at a special dinner, March 16, at the Fifth Floor in San Francisco.

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San Francisco’s Bong Su Restaurant Closes

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 Empress rice. (Photo courtesy of Bong Su restaurant)

After three years in business, Bong Su, the chic, modern-Vietnamese restaurant in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood, closed its doors after Saturday night’s dinner service.

Proprietors Anne Le Ziblatt and Tammy Huynh said they made the fateful decision because of concerns that the economic crisis would continue to worsen over the next year, and because of an on-going dispute with their landlord.

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Pastry Chef Goes Savory

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Spring garlic risotto with monkfish, as cooked by a pastry chef.

Diners at Parcel 104 restaurant in Santa Clara know all about Pastry Chef Carlos Sanchez’s dainty, exquisite desserts that end any dinner there on a sweet, memorable note.

But what you might not know is that the Colombian-born Sanchez also can handle the savory side of a meal.

Foie gras with candied kumquat.

This past Saturday, he hosted his fourth “Pastry Chef Goes Savory” special dinner there. In the past, he’s limited the guest list to about 35. This time around, though, he opened it up to the entire restaurant. More than 90 eager diners, including yours truly, enjoyed a six-course meal ($65; additional $34 for wine pairings), that was orchestrated from start to finish by the humble, soft-spoken Sanchez.

Crispy prawns with pineapple chutney.

Why does he choose to step into this atypical role one night a year?

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