Category Archives: General

A Visit to Della Fattoria in Petaluma

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A flaky snail and a banana-bran muffin from Della Fattoria.

I owe my latest carb binge to Chef Adam Mali.

When I was dining recently at his restaurant, Brasserie S&P in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in San Francisco, I’d occasionally come up for air from devouring his dishes only to find myself drawn completely and helplessly to the bread.

Smoky, with a hefty dark crust and a chewy interior full of delightful air holes and developed fermented flavor, I couldn’t stop eating slice after slice.

Of course, I had to ask him where it came from.

When he told me it was baked in wood-fired ovens at Della Fattoria in Petaluma, I knew I had to stop in the next time I was in the vicinity.

So, I did earlier this week.

A hearty loaf fragrant with Meyer lemon and rosemary.

Bon Appetit magazine has called it one of the Top 10 bread bakeries in America. One taste and you’ll agree.

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Michael Pollan In My Backyard

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Michael Pollan -- the tomato.

Yes, Michael Pollan made a splashy appearance in my backyard recently.

Um, that would be my tomato plant named for the respected food activist, author and journalist, not Mr. Pollan in the flesh, himself.

Of my four tomato seedlings planted this year, it was this one that grew most vigorously and produced not only the first tomatoes of the season, but the most fruit so far, too.

Guess it pays to be named after a man who takes food seriously.

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Ice Cream Sandwich Time & Dan Gordon Performs at the San Jose Jazz Fest

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Can't resist this ice cream sammy at Sift Cupcakes. (Photo courtesy of the bakery)

Ice Cream Sandwiches on the Menu

When the weather heats up, there’s nothing as joyful to enjoy as an ice cream sandwich. It can’t help but bring out the kid in each of us.

Try an “Ice Cream Sammy” at Sift Cupcake & Dessert Bar, the only Bay Area bakery to win the Food Network’s “Cupcake Wars.”

With locations in Napa, Santa Rosa and Cotati, the bakery takes organic gelato and sandwiches in between big cookies. Try the “All for the Cookie” ($4), which features cookies ‘n’ cream ice cream stuffed between two chocolate cookies.

Look for a San Francisco location to open later this summer, too.

Mozzeria's loaded ice cream sandwich plate. (Photo courtesy of Mozzeria)

San Francisco’s Mozzeria is getting in on the act, too, with peanut butter ice cream sandwiched between two chocolate cookies ($6). It gets even better, too. The sammy is served on a homemade fruit roll-up — with a side of spicy beer nuts. It’s a meal.

Mozzeria is one of the first deaf-owned restaurants in the country. Its global menu features everything from roast duck pizza with hoisin to Japanese pumpkin ravioli.

Dan Gordon — Beer-Maker and Musician

Sure, we all know that the founder of Gordon Biersch Brewing Company knows how to make great beer.

But how many knew that Dan Gordon also is an accomplished musician?

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Sunset’s Pattypan Squash with Eggs

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A pretty sunny-side up egg in an edible container.

How cute and clever is this?

Very.

A sunny-side up egg cooked in its own fully edible, tender pattypan squash.

It’s enough to make you want to invite some friends over for brunch pronto.

“Pattypan Squash with Eggs” is the perfect way to showcase those adorable palm-size, bright yellow squash now all over farmers markets.

The recipe is from the new “Sunset Edible Garden Cookbook” (Oxmoor House) by the editors of Sunset magazine. The cookbook, of which I received a review copy, includes more than 180 recipes for casual dishes that make use of your own backyard bounty. Think “Lamb Stew with Roasted Red Peppers,” “Oysters with Melons and Cucumber Water” and “Grilled Poached Halibut with Fresh Apricot Salsa.”

The method for this particular dish couldn’t be easier. Just slice off the top of the squash and carefully hollow out its center. You can even bake the empty shells hours ahead of time.

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San Francisco Company Debuts New Line of Spice Rubs

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Just Cook's Any Day Chicken Blend.

When Scott Lucas, former software seller, and his wife, Cathy Storfer, an event planner, decided to change careers a couple years ago, they let their palates guide them to their next step.

Inspired by the flavors they encountered on their world travels, the two decided to start a new line of spice rubs with their long-time friend, Daniel Capra, executive chef of Emeryville’s Paula LeDuc Fine Catering.

There are now six Just Cook spice blends: Herbed Coffee Rub, Any Day Chicken Blend, No. 19 Salmon Blend, Ancho Chicken Rub, Close to Curry Blend, and Gimme Steak Blend.

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