That’s exactly what Chef William Mueller of Babblin’ Babs Bistro in Tacoma, WA wants to help you do.
Owner of a five-year-old restaurant named for his late-Mom, Mueller just launched a line of all-natural, salt-free, sugar-free, MSG-free, gluten-free spice blends to give your everyday cooking an easy punch of flavor.
His six blends include: “Everyday,” “Greek,” “Lonestar,” “New Orleans,” “Thai” and “West Indies.”
Chef Alan Wong and historian Arnold Hiura are bringing the “Taste Hawaii Tour” to the Bay Area, Oct. 27-Nov. 2, which includes a slew of public events that celebrate the culture and food of the islands.
The James Beard Award-winning chef of Alan Wong’s Honolulu and the Pineapple Room, Wong just published his newest cookbook, “The Blue Tomato: The Inspirations Behind the Cuisine of Alan Wong” (Watermark), which is filled with more than 200 recipes. Hiura, who co-wrote Wong’s latest cookbook, also is the author of “Kau Kau: Cuisine & Culture in the Hawaiian Islands” (Watermark), which includes more than 70 recipes.
* Oct. 27 from 6 p.m. to 7 pm., the two will host a free talk and book-signing at Omnivore Books in San Francisco.
* Oct. 29, 11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Wong will host a free cooking demo at the north arcade of the Ferry Building Marketplace in San Francisco. Following that, from 12:30 p.m. to 1 p.m., Wong and Hiura will sign copies of their books.
For Chef-Proprietor Sachin Chopra of All Spice in San Mateo, the celebration of Diwali always has had a special place in his heart.
After all, the joyous Festival of Lights, which starts on Oct. 26, is not only one of the most important Hindu holidays, but also marks the New Year.
It’s a time for gathering with family and friends. It’s a time to illuminate the house with candles. It’s also a major time for sweets.
As champagne is poured to signify important celebrations, sweets play a similar role in Sachin’s native India. They are readily offered to visitors in a warm gesture of welcome.
The chef, who specializes in California cuisine with Indian and global influences, likes to create modern takes on Indian desserts at his year-old restaurant.
From the moment you arrive at the bucolic Farmhouse Inn in tiny Forestville in the Russian River Valley, you know you will be in good hands.
After all, Charlotte most likely will be the first to greet you.
This is one friendly, adorable black cat you will want crossing your path. The inn’s resident pet, Charlotte, keeps pests in check on the property. But she’s also not above sneaking into your room to take a snooze.
And what rooms these are.
Eighteen rooms, cottages and suites ($345 to $745 a night) dot the property, whose centerpiece is a pale yellow 1873 restored farm house. The farmstead has been owned for the past decade by siblings, Catherine and Joe Bartolomei, whose family has farmed in Sonoma County for five generations. Recently, my husband and I were invited to be guests of the inn for an overnight stay that included dinner at the famed restaurant on the premises.
We stayed in an upstairs suite in the newly built barn at the back of the property. The suite definitely has a rustic vibe — but one attuned to Ralph Lauren. Bright, airy and chic, the suite featured a four-poster bed adorned with a pillow decorated with a black cat in homage to Charlotte, of course. A double-sided stone gas fireplace sat across from the bed and could be enjoyed from the other side outside on the deck, too. The bathroom featured a jetted tub, separate steam shower and radiant heat floors to toast your tootsies on chilly mornings.
All you “Top Chef Masters” fans won’t want to miss a special evening on Nov. 3, when Chef Traci Des Jardins will be joined by four of her former competitors on that show at a gala dinner at her restaurant, Jardiniere in San Francisco.
Joining her will be: Mary Sue Milliken of Border Grill in Los Angeles and Las Vegas; Naomi Pomeroy of Beast in Portland; Floyd Cardoz of North End Grill in New York (and winner of the most recent season of the show); and Suvir Saran of Devi in New York.
The event will benefit the anti-hunger, non-profit Share Our Strength.
A cocktail reception starts at 6 p.m., followed by a multi-course, sit-down dinner.
Tickets to the cocktail party are $150 each. Tickets to the cocktail party plus the dinner are $1,000 each.
Catch beloved Italian chef and cookbook author, Lidia Bastianich, at two events in the Bay Area.
First up, she will host a cooking demo and book signing at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium in San Rafael at 8 p.m. Oct. 28.
Executive Chef Alan Fairhurst of Scoma’s in San Francisco will kick off the event by demonstrating how to make cioppino. That signature dish will be featured on Bastianich’s new PBS show, “Lidia’s Italy in America!,” which airs at 12:30 p.m. Saturdays on KQED, channel 9.
Following that, Bastianich will take the stage to show how to make a four-course Italian meal, including chicken Sorrentino and zuppa inglese. Best yet, four lucky audience members will be invited up on stage to taste the dishes with Bastianich. Additionally, a raffle will be held to win two different prize baskets — one filled with all of Bastianich’s pastas and sauces, and the other containing signed copies of all seven of her cookbooks, as well as her children’s book.