Get Ready for Burgers, Chocolate, Celeb Chefs, and More

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Fleming's Prime Burger is a mouth-full and then some. (Photo courtesy of Fleming's)

Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar is rolling out a bevy of burgers on its bar menu.

Sit down in the bar area at either of the two Bay Area locations, Palo Alto and Walnut Creek, to take your pick of Fleming’s Prime Burger (with cheddar cheese and peppered bacon, $12), Sliced Filet Mignon Burger (with sauteed mushrooms and Bernaise sauce, $18), Jumbo Lump Crab Cake Burger (with creamy mustard sauce, $16), Ahi Tuna Burger (with soy ginger sauce, $12), or Portobello Mushroom Burger (with sauteed spinach and creamy goat cheese, $10).

All are accompanied by a mini wedge salad and onion rings.

Every Wednesday through September from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., the restaurant will offer complimentary samplings of its burger menu to entice you even more.

Chocolate and more chocolate star at the Ghirardelli Square Chocolate Festival. (Photo courtesy of Ghirardelli)

If chocolate is more your thing, you’ll be in heaven at the 14th annual Ghirardelli Square Chocolate Festival, noon to 5 p.m. Sept. 12-13.

More than 40 vendors will be showcasing their chocolate creations, including Kika’s Treats, Mary Louise Butters Brownies, and Ciao Bella Gelato.

There will be live music, as well as a “Hands Free” Earthquake Ice Cream Sundae Eating Contest. Yes, it’s just what you think it is, and just as messy. The winner takes home a ginormous basket of Ghirardelli chocolate.

Top Chef's Casey Thompson. (Photo courtesy of the Ghirardelli Square Chocolate Festival)

If that weren’t enough, “Top Chef” finalist, Casey Thompson, will lead the cooking demonstrations at 2 p.m. both days.  Bravo TV fans may remember that Thompson was not only voted “America’s Favorite” on the show, but nicknamed “the Jennifer Aniston of cooking” by the one and only Anthony Bourdain.

The festival is free. Chocolate tasting tickets are $20 for 15 tastings. The event benefits Project Open Hand, a San Francisco non-profit that provides meals to seniors and seriously ill individuals.

Summer heirloom tomatoes go swank at Masa’s in San Francisco.

The restaurant is featuring a “Celebration of Tomatoes’‘ eight-course menu for $105 per person, Tuesday through Saturday nights through September. Wine pairing is an additional $79.

Dishes are expected to include ones such as Green Zebra tomato gazpacho with ricotta cheese flan and Gravenstein apple salad; and pan-seared medallion of prime New York beef with roasted tomato tartlette. The tomatoes are from Verdure Farm in Healdsburg.

Seafood goes Italian-style at Poggio Trattoria in Sausalito.

Sept. 15-19, the restaurant will host “Festa di Pesce” to showcase local seafood such as sardines, calamari, anchovies, mackerel, and swordfish.

Chef Peter McNee will debut a special menu of crudo (raw, marinated, cured), and cotto (cooked) seafood antipasti. They will be priced from $7 to $9, or three for $21. A pairing of three tastes of Italian wine is an additional $12 per person.

Duck leg confit with plum glaze, which I got to sample last week at LarkCreekSteak.

The Lark Creek Restaurant Group spotlights South Australia through September.

The “South Australia Comes to America” promotion will feature menus, wines, and special events showcasing the fourth largest of Australia’s six states. South Australia is one and a half times larger than Texas, and accounts for about 60 percent of all wine made in Australia.

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Thirsty?

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A new way to enjoy sparkling water.

Then R.W. Knudsen has a new product that will definitely leave you feeling quenched.

Its new Sparkling Essence is fizzy, carbonated water that comes flavored with either organic lemon, organic mint, organic cucumber, or organic blueberry.

Moreover, the flavored waters have no calories, no fat, no carbs, no sugar, and no sugar substitutes. They’re also made with all natural ingredients.

I’ll drink to that!

They beverages are made by brewing the organic ingredients in fresh spring water. The fruit or herb is then extracted, leaving only the flavor behind, without the sugar or calories.

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Bountiful Brunch at Cetrella

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Brunch is made for steak and egg.

Who among us doesn’t need to get away for a spell?

‘Course, with the economy being what it is, most of us can’t afford to get away very far these days. For those of us in the Bay Area, a quick jaunt to the coastal town of Half Moon Bay can provide the perfect dose of R&R. Especially if it includes bubbly mimosas.

Cetrella restaurant may not have an ocean view, but it’s close enough to enjoy the salty, whooshing breezes.

After closing for the winter, the restaurant reopened in May with a new executive chef, Sylvain Montassier, who cooked at Michelin-starred restaurants in Europe and at Boulevard in San Francisco.

Wood beams and roaring fireplaces give the restaurant a cozy warmth. At brunch, you can order either a la carte or enjoy a $35 “full brunch.” The latter comes with endless refills of mimosas, juice, and coffee. You also get pastries, and your choice of one of five entrees.

From the looks of other tables when my hubby and I were invited to the restaurant, the full brunch is definitely the more popular way to go. And that’s just what we opted for.

Hooray for buttery pastries.

Strong cups of coffee and those festive mimosas arrived immediately, along with a flaky croissant and a pain au chocolat. There’s also a big basket of wonderfully chewy sourdough that you won’t be able to keep your hands off of.

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All that Jazz (Apples)

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Have a slice. Go on. You can.

Delicate, vibrant berries and juicy, plump stone fruit steal the thunder in summer.

So much so that we almost forget how delightful biting into a crisp, wine-y apple can be.

I was reminded of that when a 40-pound box of Jazz apples arrived with a big clunk on my doorstep as a sample.

Who needs to go to the gym, when wrestling this heavy crate into the house was exercise enough for the ol’ biceps? My neighbors loved me for sharing the wealth. After all, who can resist a sweet-tart apple that squirts juice from the first snappy bite?

Jazz apples are available year-round. A cross between the tart Braeburn and sweet Royal Gala varieties, Jazz apples are grown in New Zealand during our spring and summer, and in Washington state during fall and winter. You can find them in both organic and non-organic versions at Safeway, Whole Foods, Mollie Stone’s, and many other grocery stores.

Jazz apples that make your appetite sing.

I enjoyed many a Jazz apple just out of hand. But I also set some aside to make a most wonderful apple cake. The recipe, “Babette Friedman’s Apple Cake,” was published last year in the New York Times.

It was my friend, Marvin, who first brought this recipe to my attention. As a food writer at the San Jose Mercury News, I used to fondly refer to Marvin as my “Number One Fan in Southern California,” because each and every week, he would go online to read the food section diligently. Invariably, he’d send me an email afterward to let me know how much he enjoyed a particular story. He’d also send me links to other recipes he had tried and loved. A movie buff, who is retired from that Tinsel Town industry, he would send me recommendations for obscure, interesting foreign flicks, as well. And when my parents passed away, it was Marvin who sent me some of the most thoughtful and touching words of comfort.

So when Marvin sent me this apple cake recipe, I knew it as worth trying. Marvin doesn’t like baked goods that are too sweet, especially ones with fruit. Instead, he likes the true flavor of the fruit to shine through.

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Do You Dream Of Becoming a Chef, Vintner, Fisherman, Or…?

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Bendistillery's vodka infusion. (Photo courtesy of Greg Robeson)

Then, you might just get a boost to help that dream come true.

The Oregon Travel Commission is hosting a contest to give away seven “cuisinternships” (that’s culinary internships to those in the know). Yes, seven winners will be selected to spend one all-expense-paid week shadowing an expert in his or her preferred culinary craft. The internships up for grabs are:

  • Artisan Food Producer: Become a culinary artisan in Southern Oregon with chocolatier Jeff Shepherd of Lillie Belle Farms and cheese maker David Gremmels of Rogue Creamery.
  • Brew Master: Turn hops and grains into craft beer with brew master Jamie Emmerson of Hood River ‘s Full Sail Brewery.
  • Chef: Immerse yourself in Portland ‘s dynamic food scene working alongside Chef Gabe Rucker — one of Portland ‘s culinary provocateurs — learning how to turn out inventive, gourmet meals that delight diners at the award-winning Le Pigeon restaurant.
  • Rancher: Saddle up and herd cattle while learning sustainable ranching on two of Eastern Oregon ‘s Country Natural Beef ranches with the Pickard and Boyer families, who have been in the business for generations.
  • Fisherman: Head out to sea with charter boat skipper Lars Robison of Dockside Charters and learn the fine art of catching the Oregon Coast ‘s prized wild salmon and rockfish.
  • Winemaker: Walk the Willamette Valley vineyards of Penner-Ash Wine Cellars with renowned vintner Lynn Penner-Ash, learning the hands-on techniques involved in vineyard designate wine-making.
  • Distiller: Get an advanced degree in mixology and learn about Oregon ‘s booming craft spirits industry with distiller Jim Bendis of Central Oregon ‘s Bendistillery.

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