Category Archives: General

Buckwheat Chocolate Chunk Cookies That Can Be Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free or Vegan

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Buckwheat, which is gluten-free, gives these cookies a dark gray-brown hue.
Buckwheat, which is gluten-free, gives these cookies a dark gray-brown hue.

Now that I’m trying to consolidate and minimize my trips to the grocery store, I have been on a quest to clean out my freezer of miscellaneous flours to create more space for other things.

You know, like tubs of ice cream. Kidding. Sort of.

So when I spied this recipe for “Buckwheat Chocolate Chunk Cookies,” I knew it would help me use up a bag of buckwheat flour languishing in the deep-freeze.

The recipe is from “Perfectly Golden: Adaptable Recipes for Sweet and Simple Treats” (The Countryman Press), of which I received a review copy. It’s by Angela Garbacz, the owner of Goldenrod Pastries in Lincoln, NE.

What makes this cookbook especially intriguing is that every recipe has suggested ingredient swaps so you can make it easily gluten-free, dairy-free or vegan, if you prefer.

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Where I’ve Been Getting Takeout of Late, Part 8

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A heap of yaki soba with pork belly chashu, cabbage, shiitakes, and pickled ginger -- from Ozumo.
A heap of yaki soba with pork belly chashu, cabbage, shiitakes, and pickled ginger — from Ozumo.

Ozumo, San Jose and San Francisco

What foods have you missed most during shelter-in-place? French fries, or most any fried foods for that matter, and sushi? That’s the consensus among my friends and family. Understandable, given that those are things most of us rarely prepare for ourselves at home.

Ozumo comes to the rescue on so many of those fronts. Former professional baseball player Jeremy Upland founded the restaurants after falling hard for Japanese cuisine during his time playing in the Japanese Pacific League. Its location in San Jose’s Santana Row is especially convenient because there are plenty of free parking lots just yards away.

To satisfy those fried foods cravings, look no further than karaage ($14) and Ozumo shrimp ($18).

Classic karaaage (front), and Ozumo shrimp (back).
Classic karaaage (front), and Ozumo shrimp (back).

I’m not going to lie — when you get these to-go, their crunchy coatings will suffer a bit by the time you get them home. But the fried white shrimp coated with shichimi can be re-crisped fairly well by just searing them in a hot frying pan on the stovetop. The accompanying yuzu-honey aioli is sweet and creamy like Japanese Kewpie mayo, with a citrusy and spicy edge. Our little plastic container of it got slightly melted when it was tucked inside the to-go container with the straight-from-the-fryer shrimp. But you can always transfer the sauce to your own dipping bowl at home.

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Vegan Parmesan — Yes, It’s A Thing

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A blend of nutritional yeast, seeds and nuts, Parma! is a vegan alternative to Parmesan cheese.
A blend of nutritional yeast, seeds and nuts, Parma! is a vegan alternative to Parmesan cheese.

I’m not vegan or even vegetarian, but I admit that I’ve been curious about nutritional yeast after coming across it in recipes or even sprinkled over salads at Manresa Bread in Campbell.

And yes, most often, it’s used as a vegan substitute for Parmesan because it has a similar umami depth as aged cheese.

When I received samples recently of Parma! vegan Parmesan, I was game to try them first on — what else — popcorn, of course.

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You Won’t Believe What’s In This Cornbread

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Cornbread made with cornmeal, corn kernels, and...
Cornbread made with cornmeal, corn kernels, and…

Yes, this particular cornbread is thoroughly corny. In fact, it has three kinds of corn in it:

Cornmeal.

Fresh corn kernels.

And popcorn.

Yup, you read that right.

“Popcorn Cornbread” is featured in the cookbook, “All About Dinner: Simple Meals, Expert Advice” (W.W. Norton & Company, 2019) by award-winning cookbook writer Molly Stevens.

Yes, popcorn!
Yes, popcorn!

This inventive recipe immediately caught my eye because it includes popcorn that’s pulverized in a food processor until it becomes popcorn flour. Whatever you do, just don’t sneeze or be near a fan when you make this flour because the particles are so light, that it doesn’t take much for them to go flying everywhere.

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Grated Fresh Tomato Spaghetti with Anchovies

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Tomatoes two ways -- grated and whole cherry ones -- are featured in this easy pasta dish.
Tomatoes two ways — grated and whole cherry ones — are featured in this easy pasta dish.

Summer is not the time you want to replicate grandma’s hours-simmered ragu sauce.

No, summer is when you want a tomato sauce that comes together in a snap that still boasts that glorious fresh tomato zing.

“Grated Fresh Tomato Spaghetti with Anchovies” is just that dish.

It’s from the new cookbook, “Simple Beautiful Food: Recipes and Riffs for Everyday Cooking” (Ten Speed Press), of which I received a review copy. It’s by Amanda Frederickson, a former cook at San Francisco’s Michelin-starred SPQR, who went on to become a recipe developer, test kitchen cook, and cookbook writer for Williams-Sonoma.

The cookbook includes more than 100 recipes very much attuned to Northern California sensibilities, with dishes such as “Smoked Trout Hash,” “Peanut Soba with Chicken and Mint,” “Broiled Halibut with Citrus Salsa,” and “Fruit Salad with Limoncello and Whipped Mascarpone Cheese.”

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