First Annual Ladies Gluten Free Cookie Exchange Catered by Whole Foods Market Roseville
On December 20th, 2014, I invited a group of ladies over to our home for a holiday gathering and gluten free cookie exchange. I didn’t want to serve only cookies, but rather have a small dinner spread for my guests. Since I wanted to focus on my guests and arranging a few games during the party, I definitely did not want to worry about making/preparing the food. I spoke to some of my Northern California contacts at Whole Foods Market and Whole Foods Market in Roseville gladly agreed to provide the food for the event. (You can see the full spread above).
The planning was simple. All I had to do was go online (I had a budget of $150 to feed 8-10 people) and choose the items I wanted and figure out how much for the number of guests I would have. I was also able to keep the menu gluten free, which was super important to me since it was a gluten free cookie exchange and considering the theme of this website. 🙂 To view some catering options available at the Roseville, California store, you can click here. After I decided on the items I wanted to order, I wrote them down and brought in my order to the catering department. (I recommend doing this at least a week before your party if the number of guests is similar to mine—8 to 10.)
For the Ladies Gluten Free Cookie Exchange of 2014, here’s what Whole Foods Market Roseville put together for me:
Main course, a sous vide pork loin. All I had to do was unwrap it and throw in in the oven for 15-20 minutes while I was waiting for my guests to arrive.
I also ordered a tray of chicken satay. Because people love food on a stick. Fun! 😉
Because the nickname of my holiday gathering was “the wine party disguised as a cookie exchange” I ordered a fruit tray AND a cheese tray, because nothing goes with wine more than fruit and cheese! Especially cheese 🙂
The cheese platter had cheddar, provolone, smoked mozzarella, swiss, and brie cheeses (I asked that they leave off the baguette slices it typically comes with) and was garnished with fresh fruit.
The last item on the spread was this impressive antipasto platter featuring nitrate/nitrite-free prosciutto, salami, fresh mozzarella, marinated olives, marinated artichokes, roasted red pepper, marinated mushrooms and roasted tomatoes.
Scribner Bend Vineyards and Domaine Chandon kicked in some super food friendly wine. Scribner Bend sent me a bottle of their 2011 Cabernet Franc and a bottle of their 2010 Black Hat Tempranillo. The Black Hat Tempranillo has been a long time favorite of mine, and it was also a big hit at the party. The Cabernet Franc also didn’t last very long. A guest of mine brought an amazing dairy free lamb moussaka that serendipitously paired up with the Cabernet Franc. Thanks so much, Scribner Bend and thank you Wendy for the moussaka. 🙂
Domaine Chandon also sent a bottle of their Limited Edition Blanc de Noirs to kick off the party in style. You can visit their online store here. Many cheers and happy 2015 to Domaine Chandon. 🙂
Challenge Butter and Bob’s Red Mill were also major sponsors and I will be writing about their contributions in separate blog posts (with recipes!!) to follow this one.
You can find Whole Foods Roseville on Facebook here and follow Whole Foods Market Northern California on twitter here. Thanks again to them for their sponsorship of the 2014 Gluten Free Cookie Exchange.
If you would like to sponsor the 2015 Ladies Holiday Party and Gluten Free Cookie Exchange, you can contact me here. I am looking for wine sponsors, gluten free cookie ingredients, catered items for guests, and goodie bag items for attendees.
Sprouts Farmers Market Vitamin and Body Care Gift Basket Giveaway!!
My friends at Sprouts Farmers Market are having a 25% off Vitamin and Body Care Extravaganza that starts Wednesday, January 7 and runs until the following Wednesday, January 14.
Help ring in the new year by taking better care of yourself! During the sale EVERY vitamin, supplement and body care product at Sprouts is 25% off. It’s the perfect opportunity to stock up on everything your body needs to stay healthy as well as natural soaps, lotions and other skin care products.
In celebration of the sale, Sprouts Farmers Market and I are giving away a gift basket packed with some of the items available at the sale at your local store. It’s pictured below! Ladies, you know you want those prenatal vitamins. 😉 😉 😉
I would love to send one lucky reader a basket to kick off 2015! 🙂
To enter, please share this post on Facebook and leave a comment below with your New Year’s Resolution for 2015. Contest is open to all readers who have a Sprouts Farmers Market nearby their residence.
You can find Sprouts Farmers Market on Facebook here and follow them on Twitter here.
12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover: Josh Cellars Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon Duo
It’s day ten of my 12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover and today’s pick comes from Josh Cellars. It’s their duo of Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
These are inexpensive to mid-priced wines, and a great gift for your boss, co-worker or neighbor. They are also wise choices to bring to Christmas dinner to share with the family.
The Sauvignon Blanc is a drink now and pairs well with a starter salad, cheeses and seafood, and the Cabernet Sauvignon you can enjoy now with a main course like this Salt and Pepper Crusted Prime Rib with Sage Jus! There are also definite aging capabilities on the Cabernet if you have the patience to wait. 😉
The Sauvignon Blanc costs around $17 and the Cabernet Sauvignon around $16. Both can be found at Total Wine and More.
For every bottle you purchase until Dec 31st, they will donate $1 to Operation Homefront and their special Holiday Meals for Military program.
Operation Homefront’s Holiday Meals for Military ensures troops and their families have what they need for a healthy and plentiful holiday meal. In 2014, they will be distributing 8,000 meals in 21 locations across the country.
About Operation Homefront:
A national nonprofit, Operation Homefront leads more than 2,500 volunteers with nationwide presence who provide emergency and other financial assistance to the families of service members and wounded warriors. Operation Homefront has provided assistance to thousands of military families since its inception in 2002. Recognized for superior performance by leading independent charity watchdog groups, nationally, 93 percent of total donations to Operation Homefront go directly to programs that provide support to our military families. For more information, go to www.OperationHomefront.net.
About Josh Cellars:
California vintner Joseph Carr’s line of Josh Cellars wine is named in honor of his father – a passionate stock car racer and war veteran who was as unassuming and approachable as the wines that bear his name. Josh Cellars offers bold, complex and approachable wines handcrafted for drinking with family and friends. Sourced from vineyards across the Napa Valley, Sonoma Valley, Mendocino County, and even the Central Coast of California, Josh Cellars offers six California varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot and a new red blend, “Legacy.”
You can find Josh Cellars on Facebook here and follow them on Twitter here.
Tune in tomorrow for day eleven of my 12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover! Cheers 🙂
12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover: DIY Chocolate and Pistachio Fudge
It’s Day Nine of my 12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover, and today’s idea comes from my love of chocolate and pistachios. It’s my recipe for Chocolate and Pistachio Fudge!
It’s a pretty easy recipe to make, and once you’re done you can pick out a nice cookie tin and present it to your recipient (but instruct them against shaking it). Remember to tell your candy lover to store the fudge in the refrigerator (when they are not too busy eating it) 😉
For the Pistachio Layer:
2 cups roasted pistachios
1-2 Tbs coconut oil, softened
1½ Tablespoons agave nectar or honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tsp sea salt
For the Chocolate Layers:
2 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate (whatever your favorite brand happens to be)
1/4 coconut oil, softened
Line a 9 x 13 in. baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
Begin with roasted pistachios (either roast them in the oven or buy them pre-roasted, but try to get them unsalted, as this will add an unnecessary amount of sodium to the recipe). Pulse the pistachios in a food processor until the nuts begin to stick to the sides (you’ll end up making a pistachio butter by the time you are done blending). Add the coconut oil to help the pistachios turn into a butter. When the mixture is completely smooth, add your sweetener of choice, the vanilla and the salt. Set this mixture aside.
Melt your chocolate with the coconut oil (either in the microwave in 10-15 second bursts and stirs) or over a double boiler on the stovetop. When the chocolate is completely melted, spread half of it onto the parchment lined baking pan. You’ll want the layer to be a little less than 1/4″ thick on the bottom. Let the chocolate harden before you move onto the next step. You can speed things up by placing your pan in the freezer for 10 minutes.
When the chocolate has completely solidified, spread the pistachio mixture over it 1/4″ from the edge of the chocolate. Spread the mixture evenly. Then top the pistachio layer with the remaining melted chocolate and also spread evenly. The idea is to get all layers pretty even so that when you cut it, the pieces of fudge will look elegant and uniform. 🙂 Return the pan to the refrigerator/freezer and allow to harden completely.
The next step is to cut the pieces of fudge in little diamonds. You can do this by making diagonal slices all the way across from left top to right bottom, and then diagonal slices from the top right to the bottom left. You can place the slices directly into your parchment-lined cookie tin with a spatula.
Now you’re all set to give a delicious, addictive homemade gift. You might not want to give it away once you try it. 😉
Join me tomorrow for another 12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover (DAY 10!!) Getting sooo close to Christmas now! Cheers! 🙂
12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover: Amoretti Master Sampler Pack
Are you feeling lucky? Because it’s day number seven and time for another one of my 12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine lover!
Today’s pick is the Master Sampler Pack from Amoretti®.
The Amoretti Master Sampler Pack contains twelve 50ml bottles of Amoretti’s most popular products, broken down into four sampler packs containing three 50ml bottles each.
One sampler 3-pack contains a 50ml bottle of Amoretti Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil infused with the natural flavor and aroma of kalamata olives, a 50ml bottle of Amoretti Aged Pomegranate Balsamic Vinegar and a bottle both, blended into a vinaigrette. These bottles are perfect to take with you to work and jazz up your lunch, or to pack along for travel.
The next sampler 3-pack contains 50ml sample bottles of Amoretti’s most popular creamy syrups—Crema di Vanilla, Crema di Hazelnut and Crema di Caramel. If you are Paleo/Primal, you can keep these in the house for guests to use in their coffee! 🙂
Another sampler 3-pack contains 50ml sample bottles of each of 3 of Amoretti’s most popular sugar free flavors, French Vanilla, Hazelnut, and Caramel with half the calories and carbohydrates of our regular syrups. YAY sugar free! Amoretti actually has a proprietary flavor extraction process that produces a sugar free formulation without the addition of artificial flavors, colors or sweeteners, so I will be using these in my own coffee and sugar free desserts!
The last sampler pack contains a 50ml sample bottle of each of Amoretti’s Organolicious Agave Nectar, Organolicious Blood Orange Flavored Agave Nectar, and Organolicious French Vanilla Flavored Agave Nectar. Agave nectar is a natural sweetener, extracted from the blue agave plant, a succulent plant from Southern Mexico resembling aloe vera. It has all the sweetness and natural flavor of sugar, but with a low glycemic index number.
I added a little of the Amoretti French Vanilla Flavored Agave Nectar to my caramel date paste for some cookies I am making tonight for my 1st Annual Gluten Free Cookie Exchange. It was such a flavorful addition. I really loved it!
You can buy the sampler pack here. Bonus: FREE shipping if you happen to have Amazon Prime.
You can find Amoretti on Facebook here and on Twitter here.
Hope you’ll come back tomorrow for day eight of my 12 Days of Christmas Picks for the Food and Wine Lover! Cheers!
Celebrate Thanksgiving with Sweet Potato Latkes and Beaujolais Nouveau!
Thanksgiving 2014. Last week, Andy and I celebrated a little early because we will be in Mexico for the actual holiday, and I couldn’t resist making something special to pair with Georges Duboeuf’s new release of Beaujolais Nouveau—the inveterate red wine made from Gamay grapes produced in the Beaujolais region of France, that is only fermented a few weeks before being released for sale annually on the third Thursday of November.
Retailing at $10.99 nationwide, the 2014 Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau complements an abundance of holiday dishes, from savory roasts to cranberry sauce. Suggested serving temperature for the Nouveau is between 62°F – 66°F, which is just slightly cooler than room temperature, to enhance the aromas and fruit flavors.
Our spread included:
turkey roulade stuffed with shitake mushrooms, shallots, chorizo and bacon, on a bed of carrots, celery, mushrooms and onions
cauliflower and leek soup with a gluten free shortbread (did not take a closer image, snap!) 😉
sweet potato latkes
bacon wrapped persimmons and bacon wrapped dates
2014 Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau
Thanks to Georges Duboeuf for providing the bottle of Beaujolais!
Now the recipe for the latkes—skip the sweet potato casserole and give these a shot!
Sweet Potato Latkes
Ingredients:
3 sweet potatoes
1 yellow onion
2 eggs
2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 cup coconut oil (melted)
Procedure:
Preheat oven (425°F)
Peel sweet potatoes and grate them, using the large holes on the grater, into a large bowl—I cheat and use a food processor on the shredder setting.
Grate the onion, too. Then, squeeze out as much liquid from the potatoes as you can and then add the grated onion to the bowl with the potatoes.
Add all other ingredients and combine. Using your hands works best, so keep a towel nearby or work close to the sink.
Prepare two baking sheets by pouring melted coconut oil on them and coating the entire tray.
Then form the potato mixture into 4-inch (or so) discs and place on the baking sheets until you have filled them up.
Brush the tops with a little melted oil and bake to desired crispness. I recommend checking on them and flipping them midway through baking to get both sides crispy.
Remove from oven and drain on paper towels prior to plating/serving.
ENJOY!! Happy Thanksgiving 🙂
National Pizza Month Concludes with Chicago Fire’s Gluten Free Pizza
Our last yummy stop for National Pizza Month was Chicago Fire in Midtown Sacramento.
Andy and I were excited to work with Chicago Fire because it’s so close to home and we had actually been there before a few times (thanks to a $100 gift card that I won at a Christmas party my boss threw last year). Don’t ever try to win Christmas Carol Word Jumble against me. You will lose! 😉
We were able to actually use the gift card twice, so we had already tasted their fabulous version of gluten free pizza and already had a favorite wine we like to drink with our dinner (the Windy City Red blend that Boeger Winery creates just for Chicago Fire). 🙂 We already knew the service was great and were lucky enough once to have a server who had adopted a gluten free diet as well. I am seeing that more often in restaurants and it is very comforting.
It’s been a head-spinning 3 weeks since our visit (my apologies to the team at Chicago Fire for not being a little more timely on this piece–life has been absolutely crazy lately with multiple visits to San Francisco, training for a 20 mile race, working 45 hours a week, and being in the process of moving happening all at once). Still, I remember what a great time Andy and I had that night, and we always enjoy the food at the restaurant. So, here’s a recap of what we ordered:
Starter drinkys!! It was Friday night and I was ready for one of the cocktails I had seen earlier in the day on Chicago Fire’s inventive drink menu! I was interested because I saw a few descriptions that were not going to be sweet (like a lot of other drink menus unfortunately are). I picked the Basil Lemonade with Tito’s vodka muddled with fresh basil & lemon juice over ice. It hit the spot, just as I had imagined it would. Basil and lemon together in my drink, yes please! 🙂 Andy had a glass of Bolla Chianti. OK, now we’re all set…
In an effort to make the entire meal gluten-free, we chose the Baked Artichoke for an appetizer. It’s a whole artichoke, doused with lemony caesar sauce and topped with fresh parmesan cheese. Chicago Fire has quite a Greek influence in their menu and many things are flavored with lemon and garlic. That’s a plus in my book and in Andy’s, too because he is half Greek. 🙂 My favorite part of the artichoke was the cheese on top that had slightly browned and gotten crispy, and the way it tasted with fresh lemon juice on it. It was a great lead in to the salad we ordered.
Next up we tried the Chicken Pesto Salad, which is a favorite of mine. It is made of Romaine lettuce, grilled chicken, pesto-marinated artichoke hearts and red onion. We ordered the house made pesto ranch dressing on the side. Pesto is one of my favorite sauces and the dressing that comes with the salad is addictive. 😉 The chicken on the salad was grilled perfectly. I recommend ordering a large size salad because it is perfect for sharing if you are a party of two and plan on ordering a pizza as well.
I wanted to mention the wine pairing we had. This time, we did not order the Windy City Red that we usually drink, but instead went with a Greg Norman 2012 (Santa Barbara) Pinot Noir (because of the lighter nature of ingredients in our salad and our pizza). We chose the Greg Norman Pinot Noir (Santa Barbara) because it was a better value than the other Pinot Noir on the wine list (La Crema).
By now it was pizza time! We decided on the gluten free Greek pizza. The Greek is topped with Gyro meat, white Sauce, Artichoke Hearts, Kalamata Olives, Red Onion, Fresh Tomato, Feta Cheese & Pepperoncini and served with what else? Tzatziki on the side. Love it. My favorite part of the pizza (other than the super crispy edges on the crust were the little slices of Gyro meat that had also gotten super crispy/crunchy in the pizza oven. We squeezed the lemon juice over the slices for an extra burst of flavor and the tzatziki lemon combo was just paradise. It’s a real treat for Andy and I to eat pizza/things with crust/bread at all even if it is gluten free, so it was fun to try the Greek flavor combination on a crust. Bonus points for the presentation, one slice of pizza was slightly propped up with the ramekin that held the tzatziki sauce. Beautiful!
Thanks Chicago Fire, we’ll definitely be back for more very soon! We’ll continue to work our way around the menu of gluten free pizzas. We’ve already tried and given thumbs up to the Stockyard and Chicken Pesto on previous visits. 🙂
Chicago Fire has a loyalty program called Square Points. You can points as soon as you get a Square Points card from your server. By registering online, you’ll be able to redeem your points. Then you can earn more points when you buy food, drinks & merchandise. Some of the rewards from the Square Points membership include a free Deep Dish Delight on your birthday, a free specialty pizza for every 500 points, and free corkage. Of course the term FREE CORKAGE was music to our ears, so we decided to enroll in Square Points, too!
Are you hungry for a visit yet?!?! Good news for you if you aren’t near downtown but live closer to Folsom or Roseville, because in addition to the Midtown location on 2416 J Street, there are 3 other locations: Historic Folsom (Chicago Fire made its debut on Sutter Street in Folsom in March 2003), Folsom at Palladio, and in Roseville at Sunrise/Eureka.
Thanks for the wonderful hospitality and service all the way from the marketing team to the staff at Chicago Fire Midtown. We’ll see you again soon. 🙂
You can find Chicago Fire Pizza on Facebook here and follow them on twitter here.
Farm to Fork Wine Dinner Series: Piatti Presents Matchbook Wines, Spectacular from Beginning to End!
If you missed Piatti’s last wine dinner for the year featuring Matchbook Wines, I feel really bad for you! It was even more than I thought it would be––even though I knew it would be amazing. Piatti is one of my long time advertisers, and I have always been a fan of their food, but I never knew it could be pulled off like this. This dinner was probably one of the best meals I have eaten there. I think it’s mostly due to Chef Lance Carlini who combines his take on Italian cuisine with Farm to Fork/seasonal and brings it to a whole new level.
And then there were my wonderful table mates. So, at the Piatti wine dinners, patrons are sat 6 to a table, so you prepare to make new fellow loving wine friends–at least for the night! I was lucky enough to sit with Sharon, Tamara, Eduardo, and James and be a fifth wheel. 🙂
We were sat fountain side with illuminated trees surrounding us. We had been welcomed with an opening glass of Matchbook’s Rosé of Tempranillo as John and Lane Giguiere (owners of the winery) were making the rounds and introducing themselves to each table.
Then it was onto the opening dish: A wood fired spot prawn with Grass Valley polenta and a hatch chili chimichurri. It was paired with the wine we were already enjoying: Matchbook’s 2013 Rose of Tempranillo, Dunnigan Hills.
As you can see. the plating was flawless on this dish. My favorite element was the chimichurri (a green sauce made of chopped parsley, minced garlic, olive oil, oregano, and white or red wine vinegar) which I love on anything from seafood to chicken to beef or pork.
The second course presented to us was a Riverdog Farm Potato Gnocchi served with fall squash, Apple Hill apples, lacinato kale and cream. It was served with the 2012 ‘Arsonist’ Chardonnay, Dunnigan Hills. The upfront nose on the wine revealed aromas of toasty oak, caramel apple and crème brûlée. It was an automatic match with the plump buttery gnocchi and apples in the cream sauce. Gnocchi is the only pasta I even missed post-Paleo, so this was like eating dessert for me! Also, lots of wonderful comments from my table mates––they also loved the squash and apples in the dish. It was the essence of fall! Great pairing, Chef Carlini! 🙂
Then it was time to get serious. The third course presented to us was a Tinto Rey Red Braised Short Rib with Thyme Toasted Mushrooms and fresh Horseradish paired with the 2009 Tinto Rey Red Blend, California. The Tinto Rey is a red wine blend of Tempranillo, Syrah, Graciano, Tannat and Cabernet.
So, if you didn’t gather from the course description, the short rib was actually braised in the wine with which it was paired. We didn’t even really need a knife on this one, just a fork to pull apart the meat. Again, the plating was gorgeous and the pairing was genius.
Dessert came soon after that: A Milk Chocolate Mousse with Chocolate Cake, Sea Salt Caramel and Hazelnut––topped with Pomegranate arils. It was paired with the 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon, Lake County. I boxed up the dessert to take home to Andy, but took full advantage of the Cabernet. 🙂 The Matchbook Cabernet Sauvignon has vibrant ripe red fruit characteristics followed by layers of spice and earth and chocolate and that’s enough dessert for me!
I was completely wowed by this wine dinner and I was seated with the best company! Thanks to the marketing and management at Piatti for the great partnership we have had over the years. And thank you, Chef Lance Carlini! Amazing job. 🙂
As of October 25 this year, Matchbook now has a tasting room located in Zamora here. GO VISIT THEM! 🙂
You can learn more about Matchbook Wines here. You can find them on Facebook here and their parent company on twitter here. You can find Piatti on Facebook here and follow them on twitter here.
National Pizza Month: ZPizza’s Gluten Free Takeout–Hasty and Tasty!
So picture this: I work in Roseville (as a graphic designer/life saver) from 8:30am-5pm, and last Wednesday Andy and I have to be at a Kings Pre-season game by 7:00pm. Factor in a 30 minute commute time, and 10-15 minutes to get to the game from my house, and there’s pretty much NO TIME to cook and have a meal before we go.
Enter National Pizza Month and zpizza! They have a gluten free menu and salads suitable for a busy person like me.
All I had to do was call them ahead of time and let them know I wanted to pick up my order just a little after 5:00pm. I browsed their website, and chose what looked interesting to me. I thought their website was fantastic at showing what and was not available in gluten free. All you have to do is check a little box in the upper right hand corner, and the gluten free items remain listed, while the gluten items are grayed out. See?
So two items on the menu immediately caught my eye, beginning with the Arugula Salad! The salad has cucumbers, caramelized onions, parmesan cheese, candied walnuts and guess what? Arugula! Sold! I added on some avocado and chicken breast for an extra charge.
The other menu item that grabbed my attention was the gluten free Italian pizza with artichoke hearts, tomatoes, ham, basil, pesto (yes!!) mozzarella cheese, and black olives. At first I was worried I didn’t order enough food, but as we ate, we both got really full. I guess we’re not used to having a treat as nice as pizza––even the gluten free variety––and any kind of dough is really filling. I had 3 pieces and it was so gooood. The crust was great and really crispy on the edges. The pesto was terrific and I only wish I had ordered extra on the side to dip the crust in! The crust had a nice buttery flavor and even a sort of flakey texture. I am glad I have Andy to eat the other 5 pieces, because I would have demolished them for sure! 😉
Now, onto the wine we had with dinner! 🙂
Andy brought over 2 different wines to have with dinner. The white wine he brought was a 2012 Chardonnay from Mercy Vineyards. The second wine he brought (yep, I am pretty lucky to have such premium wines with a take out dinner!!) was a Cinsaut from Miner’s Leap which is produced from 127 year-old vines in Clarksburg!
Andy said he chose the wine pairing to resist the traditional “pizza wines” like sangiovese or chianti, because this pizza had pesto on it and really lent itself to a lighter style of wine. Enter the Chardonnay from Mercy––a less oakey more fruit forward wine, but still a Chardonnay lover’s wine, and the Pinot Noir mimicky Cinsaut from Miner’s Leap. Try either of these two and you’ll just think wow.
Kind of too fancy for pizza, but hey, gluten free zpizza is pretty fancy–especially before a Sacramento Kings game, so OK I’ll take it. 🙂
You can find Miner’s Leap on Facebook here and Mercy Vineyards on Facebook here.
If you find yourself short on time, order your pizza from zpizza online by CLICKING HERE!!
You can find zpizza on Pinterest here, on twitter here and on Facebook here.
PS: The Kings won the game against the Toronto Raptors, 113-106! 🙂
Salmon with Hazelnut Shallot Butter and a Cauliflower Sweet Potato Mash
I love September and October in Sacramento. There are so many fun events to celebrate Farm-to-Fork and harvest time. There’s an intoxicating energy all around. The wineries are busy harvesting their grapes and there gets to be a little chill in the air in the mornings and when the sun goes down.
Though the Farm-to-Fork celebration has officially come to a close, it’s certainly not over. So many local restaurants and grocery stores have adopted this theme, and it’s exciting to see the concept take off locally just in the past two years. (Even though Alice Waters was practicing Farm-to-Table 40 years ago!! and Sacramento is not doing anything new.) 😉
I know that ever since I went Paleo (3 ½ years ago), I have made it a point to eat non-processed, local and organic foods when at all possible. I was extremely blessed to meet a partner who had adopted the same healthy eating habits as me and we have continued to be Paleo/Primal in the three years since.
We have made some incredible Paleo meals together with the best ingredients from two of my sponsors: Nugget Market and Whole Foods. We have also used other purveyors: Taylor’s Market and Sunh Fish for our meats and fish.
This Salmon dish is only an example of the kinds of things we prepare on a weekly basis. There is almost always something this special, so many times, it is more tempting to stay in than to eat in a restaurant. Don’t even get me started on all the eclectic wine that we have to pair up with whatever we make. 😉
The recipe was adapted from the Salmon Hazelnut Recipe from the book It Starts with Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig. The cauliflower and sweet potato mash was done on a whim and is all my own.
I hope you continue to practice Farm-to-Fork/Farm-to-Table at your house and when dining out beyond this month and celebrate this incredible agricultural paradise we are lucky enough to call home. 🙂
The star of this recipe is the compound butter that tops the salmon after it has been baked. You can use all or some of it, but we had a lot left over (even after using 1/2 of it on 20 ounces of salmon).
Make the compound butter ahead of time (recipe below) and use the freezer to re-solidify it if you happen to be short on time.
For the salmon
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp melted butter
salt and pepper to season
20 ounces wild-salmon (it was easier for us to portion after cooking)
Procedure:
Preheat oven to 400. Cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper and brush with melted butter, then sprinkle with salt. Place salmon in the middle, skin side down. Brush salmon with melted butter and season again.
Place salmon in oven and roast it about 10 min. Be careful not to overcook. To serve, portion your filets and top each with slices of hazelnut butter and additional toasted hazelnuts.
Hazelnut compound butter
Ingredients:
1/2 stick of butter
4 Tbsp hazelnuts, finely chopped
1/2 cup butter
1 small shallot and 1 garlic clove, finely minced
2 sprigs fresh thyme, finely minced
Procedure:
Toast hazelnuts over medium heat until golden, then set aside to cool.
Sauté shallot and garlic in 1 Tbs of melted butter until shallot is translucent. Remove from heat.
Then add shallot mixture to the toasted hazelnuts, along with the remaining butter, thyme, and some salt and pepper.
Place mixture into the freezer for about 10-20 minutes.
Then place a large piece of plastic wrap on flat surface and transfer the butter mixture (after it has set up a little in the freezer) to the center of plastic. Form a log shape like above. Wrap tightly in the plastic and chill until solid. This will take 2 hours in the refrigerator, or about 45 minutes in the freezer.
Spinach salad with red and yellow bell peppers, avocado, mushrooms, and salami from Taylor’s Market.
For the Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Mash
Ingredients:
1 head cauliflower (cut into small pieces)
1 large white sweet potato (cubed)
1 shallot
1 Tbs butter
1 Tbs chopped garlic
1/2 cup chicken stock or water
Salt to taste
Procedure:
Cook cauliflower and sweet potato in boiling water until fork tender. Drain water and set aside.
Chop shallot into thin slices and sauté in melted butter in a small pan. Add the garlic. Cook until shallot is translucent.
Place cooked cauliflower and potato into a food processor with the shallot mixture.
Add the garlic powder and chicken stock and pulse until completely smooth. Season to taste.
Last but certainly not least was the wine pairing. A 2010 reserve Pinot Noir from one of our favorite (and super local) wineries, BellaGrace Vineyards. The grapes are sourced from Sangiacomo Vineyards in Carneros. It is a fairly ripe Pinot Noir, but with the distinctive strawberry flavors unique to the region. The wine is fairly acidic, which perfectly compliments the fatty characteristics of Pacific salmon.
You can find BellaGrace Vineyards on Facebook here or visit them in person at the winery (complete with a cave cellar) at 22715 Upton Rd in Plymouth from 11:00am to 4:00pm, Fri-Sun. They also have a tasting room in Sutter Creek (73 Main St, Sutter Creek) open from 11am-5pm daily.
Cheers! 🙂
Seasons 52 Wows Us with Service and their Gluten Free Menu
I try to avoid the Arden Fair Mall at all costs. I have been shopping there maybe about 10 times in the 10 years since I have lived here and it’s always been a pain. Probably because of frustrating trips to the Apple Store and the always promising long wait therein. Even with an appointment. For those of you that have been there you know what I mean. Then there’s the abundant parking at Arden Fair. 😉 And the youngsters these days…hmmm. Nothing good can ever come from a trip to the mall. But wait!
But last Friday we did NOT go to the mall! We went to Seasons 52, a restaurant that happens to be tucked into the aforementioned mall. They have been there since January 2013, and I have been eager to come back since the media opening I attended at that time.
Eager to come back because of the concept of the restaurant and it’s direct fit with this website! 🙂
Every entree at Seasons 52 is designed to be less than 475 calories. Here’s a link to their menu. There are no freezers in the kitchen/pantry, so no meats or fish or vegetables are ever frozen. No butter or margarine is used in food preparation. Instead, extra flavor comes from natural caramelization on their wood-fired grill and brick oven. Seasons 52 also has a chef’s table for chef-hosted events and wine pairings, and features a piano bar with live music currently on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.
A few months ago I was pitched to come back to Seasons 52 to try some of their new desserts for the upcoming fall season. I emailed back to say thank you and that the dessert angle was not really an editorial fit, but I would be happy to feature the gluten free menu. I knew the restaurant was popular for their flatbreads, but I was sure they could show me more. And they really did…
First, a gander at their gluten free menu. It’s got a lot of choices. So many that Andy and I ordered a starter glass of wine while we decided on appetizers and entrees. 🙂 A Borsao Rosé for me and a Selbach Oster Pinot Blanc for my man. By the way, once we were seated, it was like there was no mall. Just a romantically lit environment with several other couples and small parties dining around us. 🙂
Our server for the evening was Tanya, and she was more than delightful. Once we told her about my website and we asked to see the menu, she mentioned that she is also Paleo. I was pleasantly surprised and automatically won over. We were in the right hands!
For appetizers we ordered the Oak-Grilled Maine Lobster Tail served with melted lemon butter (above).
And the Tuna & Avocado Sushi Roll wrapped in soy mame nori, wasabi, natural pickled ginger (above). Our wines both complimented the appetizers, both seafood items. The lobster had a very pleasing texture and taste, but was tricky to navigate with just a butter knife. 😉 We survived however, and also enjoyed the sushi roll. The rice was a welcome treat. I don’t have it that often, but really enjoy it when I do.
We ordered settled on a bottle of 2012 Markham Chardonnay to drink with our main courses. And the wine selection is the only thing even slightly negative that I have to say about Seasons 52. Sadly, there was not a single bottle of local wine on the menu. That’s a shame because there are so many stellar local wines coming out of Amador, Lodi, and even Placer County. I realize that a Master Sommelier put together the list for the entire chain, but to appeal to more customers (especially real wine drinkers) in a city like Sacramento, there really needs to be an addendum to the wine list featuring local juice. I will now step down from my soapbox and tell you about what we had for dinner! 😛
I ordered the Lemon and Herb Roasted Whole Branzino (a European seabass) with Meyer lemon, thyme broccolini, and crushed roasted potatoes. The presentation on this particular dish is pretty neat. A waitstaff member presents the plate with the Branzino closed and the lemon and thyme resting inside. Then, they open the top filet and remove the lemon and thyme, resting it on the side of your plate. The entree also comes with a little olive oil on the side.
We also ordered a side of Brussels sprouts with bacon to supplement our meal–I had a race and long run planned for the next day. The cast iron container is a nice touch––it kept the sprouts very warm so we could spoon a few onto our plate at a time.
Andy ordered the Caramelized Grilled Sea Scallops accompanied by butternut squash risotto, broccolini, lemon butter. I didn’t ask him to try the scallops, but he always cuts a little piece for me to try. We love ordering different entrées and eating family style. I was never a big fan of risotto and not eating a lot of rice on the Paleo diet, but really liked the risotto served with this dish. Once again, a buttery flavor is imparted without using butter.
We did clean our plates, but honestly it was the right amount of food. I wasn’t interested in dessert, but if you are there are some great options for you at Seasons 52. There are even two gluten free, but not sugar free desserts you can try from the gluten free menu. The desserts are served in little shot glasses to keep the portion/calorie count down. Each one is a smaller take on a classic dessert (carrot cake, s’mores, for example) Below is a picture of how you might end a meal at Seasons 52, just don’t eat all of what you see on the platter. 🙂
After dinner, we went into the Piano Bar for a little music, and here’s what we heard:
Thanks to the staff at Seasons 52 for their immaculate service. We’ll definitely be back. You can find Seasons 52 on Facebook here and on Twitter here. Make a reservation on Open Table by clicking here.
Frank Fat’s Celebrates 75 Years with a Special Pre-Fixe Menu until October 31st!
Last night, Andy and I were treated to a sampling of Frank Fat’s very best dishes in promotion of their 75th Anniversary Dinner Special.
We met Head Chef Mike Lim and he spoke with us before our meal, not only about the food on the 75th Anniversary menu (below), but some other dishes available at Fat’s (a seasonal King Salmon dish and Farm to Fork People’s Choice Award recipient called Forbidden Salmon) and a Peach and Chicken Salad. Chef Lim will also be contributing a dish at this Sunday’s Farm-to-Fork’s Tower Bridge fundraising dinner.
First I will highlight the 75th Anniversary Menu items. Instead of trying the most Paleo friendly items on the menu and skipping the Banana Cream Pie, I took one for the team and tried them all! 😉
Before I dive into the food we had, I will discuss the wine. I was distracted by making sure we had reported in with social media via Swarm, Twitter, Facebook, etc., Andy chose a 2012 Chateau Ste. Michelle Gewürztraminer. He did this because a slightly sweeter (but not too sweet) wine was going to pair very well with almost all of the food we were going to try (a lot of sweet and sour ingredients). He figured this wine would strike the most balance and it did.
First course on the 75th Anniversary menu is a Chinese Chicken Salad: Shredded chicken breast with pickled cucumber, almonds, and a sweet and sour vinaigrette. The chicken is moist and cut in thin strips and there are crunchy fried wontons on top to give the salad multiple textures. The dressing on the salad was an amazing pairing with our wine (as Andy predicted). 🙂
So instead of having to choose one main course each (as one would do if ordering from the pre-fixe menu, Chef Mike food bombed us with ALL of the dishes on the menu. Um, OK, twist my arm. (Everything you will see in this editorial except for the Yu Kwoks, Peach Chicken Salad, and Forbidden Salmon were inclusive on the pre-fixe.) Next up was the Honey Walnut Prawns: Lightly fried prawns glazed with honey sauce, walnuts, sesame seeds. This dish is probably one of the most iconic at Fat’s, so no wonder it’s on the 75th Anniversary menu. It’s sweet, crunchy, and tangy. Again, a great pairing with the Gewürztraminer.
Then came the Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry: Chicken breast and mixed vegetables in a Garlic Sauce–the one thing I didn’t feel guilty about eating! 🙂 I love stir fry dishes because of their high protein and vegetables as carb ratio. But of course, tonight would be different and I would have real carbs, as we also sampled the fried rice on the pre-fixe menu.
Next the Fried Rice dish: Young Shew Fried Rice: With barbecued pork, Chinese sausage, lettuce, and shrimp. It was nutty in flavor and had hints of sesame oil. The pork in the rice had been rendered so it was slightly crispy. The shrimp were small but plump and the little peas were bright green and fresh––they burst like little caviar when chewed.
At that point in the meal, I knew it would be extremely easy to write about. I sat there and realized how much I was enjoying the food because I hardly ever eat foods like fried rice or shrimp with carmelized walnuts. And hardly ever eating them makes them taste so much better when you do treat yourself!
Then, the eagerly awaited (and another signature menu item at Fat’s): Frank’s Style New York Steak: A 5-ounce NY steak smothered in sauteed onions and oyster sauce. We ordered it rare, as you really should. You can’t see in the picture, but it really did come out rare. It was tender and juicy and piled high with onions and the sweet oyster sauce. This also arguably went with the Gewürztraminer.
The 75th Anniversary menu ends in Banana Creme Pie, the ever popular classic dessert at Frank Fat’s. At $27.95 per person, it’s a real bargain and a nice sampling of the food that made Frank Fat’s the empire it is today.
Other food we sampled during the evening that was not on the pre-fixe menu:
Yu Kwok Dumpling: Frank’s special beef and pork dumpling, a Frank Fat specialty. I stopped at two of them, but I would have been happy to have them all. I had been craving dim sum for quite a while, and these really hit the spot. They are crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle, and filled with spiced ground beef and pork. They came with an array of dipping sauces–most interesting a chili sauce with some nice heat and a very interesting flavor that Chef Mike told me came from salted back bean. Yum! 🙂
We were also able to try the Peach and Chicken Salad with honey walnuts and what? Feta cheese. Super seasonal and very Farm-to-Fork–and off the wall, as I have never seen Feta cheese in a Chinese restaurant. Loved it!
My favorite dish of the evening was the “Forbidden King Salmon”: Salmon a la Plancha (grilled on a metal plate) and served with with Black Forbidden Rice, Heirloom Tomato and Lemongrass Veloute, Cilantro. It was with this plate I could truly see what Chef Mike is trying to do (and succeeding in doing) at Fat’s. He is using traditional Chinese techniques to make farm-to-fork cuisine. It’s not really a fusion thing, it’s more of using the methods already in place to elevate our bounty of seasonal ingredients.
The salmon dish was also a great example of incorporating different textures. The fish was perfectly cooked and flakey on top, the forbidden rice was almost a little sticky, but not as sticky as sushi rice, and there was a tomato and lemongrass veloute sauce on the bottom that brought the whole plate together.
It was all makings for a course I will not soon forget. Sadly, it won’t be available much longer, as salmon season is fleeting. So do yourself a favor and stop in for lunch to try the Forbidden Salmon. Take a half day off if you have to. It’s really that special.
Thanks to Frank Fat’s restaurant for hosting us, Chef Mike for stopping in the middle of a slightly busy dinner service to talk to us about the food, and thanks to Rosie, our server, who took very good care of us.
The fortune inside my fortune cookie really summed up the whole night:
Though the 75th Anniversary Menu promotion ends October 31st and from Oct. 1 to Oct. 15, Fat’s will be hiding a $75 gift card in different locations around Sacramento that are noteworthy to the Fat family’s history. Clues for the “15 days of Fat’s” promotion will be posted on the Frank Fat’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts as well as on the frankfats75.com website.
The special anniversary pre-fixe menu only lasts until October 31st, so make those reservations ASAP! You can find Frank Fat’s on Facebook here and follow Fat’s Restaurants on twitter here.
Lake County People’s Choice Wine Tasting to be Held Saturday, June 14th, 2014
Lake County is a wine region that might not have the cachet of Napa Valley, but I can definitely tell you they are making wines of Napa Valley caliber. Currently, Lake County has over 8,400 acres producing winegrapes. There are now 167 growers and 32 wineries in Lake County. I was first exposed to a large cross-section of wineries who call Lake County home at the Wine, Tunes & Classics event held at the California Automobile Museum last year.
The event combined a showcase of classic cars, music, and featured wineries from the Lake County Winery Association. There, I was able to taste and find several wines I really enjoyed. I was also told about the People’s Choice Wine Tasting that was held in 2013, and unfortunately already had plans for the weekend.
This year, however I am excited to attend the People’s Choice Wine Tasting this coming Saturday at Guenoc & Langtry Vineyards (21000 Butts Canyon Rd, Middletown, CA 95461). The event will begin at 1:00 PM and ends at 4:00 PM.
It will be an afternoon of wine, music, and fun. Music will be provided by the popular band “The Special Guests”. The Yuba College Culinary program will be featuring some of their sweet treats, and food trucks will be onsite to satisfy your culinary cravings and stop by the photo booth to create a lasting memory of the event.
Tickets are $35 per person ($25 if you buy before June 10th with a special promo code–see below). Designated drivers encouraged and will be admitted for free. You must be 21 or older to participate in this event.
The Lake County Wine Competition is open to wines that contain at least 75% Lake County winegrapes and bear a Lake County appellation on the label. Lake County’s reputation for both high-quality wines and high-quality winegrapes continues to grow. The 2013 competition drew more than 120 wines to be judged. This number is expected to increase this year.
People’s Choice Wine Tasting – Special Offer
Treat your favorite Dad to an afternoon of wine, food, music, and fun and celebrate Father’s Day at the People’s Choice Wine Tasting on Saturday, June 14th. Eighteen of Lake County’s premium wineries will be pouring their award winning wines at Langtry Estate and Vineyards. Use promo code “4dad” to get $10 off the ticket price. This offer expires on June 10th. Tickets will be available at the door for $35. For complete details or tickets, go to www.lakecountywineries.org/choice
To purchase tickets, follow this link. For more information on the Wine Awards you can visit the website here. Don’t miss your chance this year to be a wine judge!
You can find the Lake County Winery Association on Facebook here and follow them on twitter here.
Wines, Tunes & Classics Event, Sat, May 25th at California Automobile Museum
Lake County Winegrape Commission presents a a fun afternoon of tasting Lake County wines paired with great food from Chic Le Chef.
Saturday, May 25, 2013 from 3:00 pm-7:00 pm at the California Automobile Museum: 2200 Front St., Sacramento, CA 95818
Participating Wineries: Aliénor Wines, Bell Hill Vineyards, Brassfield Estate Winery, Bullion Creek Vineyards, Cache Creek Vineyards, Chacewater Winery & Olive Mill, Diamond Ridge Vineyards, Gregory Graham Wines, Langtry Estate & Vineyard/Guenoc, Mt. Konocti Winery, Noggle Vineyards & Winery, Rosa d’Oro Vineyards, Shannon Ridge Winery, Six Sigma, Steele Wines, Thorn Hill Vineyards, Vigilance Winery & Vineyards, Wildhurst Vineyards.
During the wine tasting, guests are invited to view the opening of the Elegance in Motion: Cars of the Golden Age exhibit. It will feature luxurious marques from the Roaring 20s and Art Deco Era highlighting over twenty of the most stunning vehicles ever manufactured. The display will include deluxe models such as Stutz, Hispano-Suiza, Duesenburg, and Auburn.
You can purchase tickets here. For more information about the event, click here. You can find the Lake County Winegrape Commission on Facebook here and on twitter here.
Steiner Road Spring Fling, FREE Food and Wine Event, April 27th
PLYMOUTH, CA – March 22, 2013 – Everyone is invited to Enjoy All That is Spring with the Wineries of Steiner Road on Sat., April 27, 2013 11am-4 pm.
This FREE Food and Wine event will delight the senses. Guests can stroll through the beautiful grounds of nine wineries, taste a variety of wines, listen to live music, experience all the blooming flowers and enjoy special treats.
Taste some small bites of spring lamb sausage, turkey and vegetable wraps, asparagus bruschetta, apricot pastry wrapped baked brie, wood fired pizza, Italian fare appetizers, tapenade cheese spread and crostini, tri-tip sliders, and artisan cheese and wine parings!!
Visitors also can enter to win two tickets to the sold out Barbera Festival June 8th, 2013 by visiting at least 5 of the 9 participating Steiner Road wineries: Shenandoah Vineyards, Amador Foothill, Bella Grace, Deaver Vineyards, Driven, Dillian, Renwood, Charles Spinetta and Dobra Zemlja.
Steiner Road Wineries, off Shenandoah Road (Hwy. E-16), east of Plymouth, CA, in Amador County. Questions: Contact Camille Sobon, (209) 245-4455.
The wineries of Steiner Road also have a new Facebook page. Connect with them by clicking “like” here.
Blood Orange & Avocado Salad featuring Nudo Mandarin Olive Oil
A few nights ago, I threw together this quick salad so that I could open my package of Nudo Olive Oils and sample them. I had just returned home from shopping at Nugget Market, and had picked up a few blood oranges. I was particularly interested in trying the Mandarin variety of Nudo (produced with mandarins from Southern Italy which are harvested right off the tree and into their olive press).
Ingredients:
1/2 avocado, chopped
1/4 red onion, rough chopped
1 blood orange
1 1/2 Tbs Nudo Mandarin Olive Oil
pinch sea salt
Procedure:
Peel the mandarin orange and slice it widthwise. Rough chop 1/4 of an onion (so that the pieces with collect on a bite-full of salad). Place the slices of blood orange on a plate, and arrange pieces of onion over the slices. Then place some chopped avocado over the orange/onion duo. Then salt the plate and drizzle with the Nudo Mandarin Olive Oil.
About Nudo Italia:
Nudo means ‘naked’ in Italian. The company was named Nudo because they only wanted to sell simple, pure products with no pesticides, additives or modifications.
Other varieties of Nudo include Olive Oil Stone Ground with Garlic, Olive Oil Stone Ground with Basil, Olive Oil with Lemon, Olive Oil Stone Ground with Fresh Mint, Olive Oil with Thyme, Olive Oil First Cold Pressed, and Olive Oil with Chillies. The oils are sold separately or as a part of different gift sets.
The most unique gift on their site, however, is the option to “adopt” an olive tree for yourself or someone else. You can also choose the grove from which the tree will grow and your oil will derive, and the delivery method in which your oils will arrive. The cost? $49 for 3- 500 mL (16.9 fl.oz) tins. For more information about tree adoption, you can click here.
You can find Nudo Italia on Facebook here and follow them on Twitter here. They also have a Pinterest page here.
Dine Downtown Sacramento 2013: January 9th-18th!!
Sacramento has really come a long way in the restaurant world in the nine years I have lived here. It’s been an exciting progression to see, especially because one of the reasons I moved here is because of all the different cuisines available within a 10 minute or less drive, or even a walk or bike ride. What’s even more exciting is that I am now working downtown near Old Sacramento and I can afford (financially) to try a few places this year (and also calorically–as long as I run a few more miles on the day I choose to dine out) 😉
Every year in January, the Downtown Sacramento Partnership teams up with downtown area restaurants to showcase their menus for a 10-day dining extravaganza. For $30 per person, you can visit restaurants like Biba, Mayahuel, Blackbird Kitchen & Bar, Blue Prynt, The Broiler Steakhouse, etc. for a 3-course pre-fixe meal that highlights their very best offerings. Some restaurants have included a wine pairing option for an additional fee. (For example, the wine option at Ella is an added $15, but the fee varies from place to place).
This year, I’ll be returning to Mayahuel to sample and report on their menu. It looks like their MIND BLOWING chorizo-topped steak will be a pre-fix option again. ¡Dios Mio! 🙂 For a little trip down memory lane, you can read my review from last year here. Oh, and here’s a little picture of it for old time’s sake:
I’m also considering visits to The Broiler as well as Blackbird Kitchen & Bar. Why? Because one of the restaurants is a Sacramento institution, and one of them is fairly new, but I have heard great things about it. What restaurants would you most like to try and why?
Below is a full list of participating restaurants with links to their menus:
4th Street Grille | 400 L Street | 916.448.2847 | Menu | Reservations
Biba | 2801 Capitol Avenue | 916.455.2422 | Menu | Reservations
Blackbird Kitchen & Bar | 1015 9th Street | 916.498.9224 | Menu | Reservations
Blue Prynt | 815 11th Street | 916.492.2969 | Menu | Reservations
The Broiler Steakhouse | 1201 K Street | 916.444.3444 | Menu | Reservations
Cafeteria 15 L | 1112 15th Street | 916.492.1960 | Menu | Reservations
Capitol Garage | 1500 K Street | 916.444.3633 | Menu (V) (GL) | Reservations
Chops Steak & Seafood Bar |1117 11th Street |916.447.8900 | Menu | Reservations
Dawson’s at The Hyatt |1209 L Street | 916.443.1234 | Menu | Reservations
Ella Dining Room & Bar | 1131 K Street | 916.443.3772 | Menu (V)| Reservations
Esquire Grill |1213 K Street | 916.448.8900 | Menu | Reservations
Fat City | 1001 Front Street | 916.446.6768 | Menu
The Firehouse Restaurant |1112 Second Street | 916.442.4772 | Reservations | Menu (V)
Frank Fat’s | 806 L Street | 916.442.7092 | Menu | Reservations
Grange | 926 J Street | 916.492.4450 | Menu | Reservations
Il Fornaio | 400 Capitol Mall | 916.446.4100 | Menu Coming Soon | Reservations
Mayahuel | 1200 K Street | 916.441.7200 | Menu (V) | Reservations
The Melting Pot | 814 15th Street | 916.443.2347 | Menu (V) (GL) available upon request
Mulvaney’s B&L | 1215 19th Street | 916.441.6022 | Menu | Reservations
Paragary’s Midtown | 1403 28th Street | 916.452.3335 | Menu
Pilothouse at The Delta King | 1000 Front Street | 916.444.5464 | Menu | Reservations
The Porch | 1815 K Street | 916.444.2423 | Menu | Reservations
The Red Rabbit Kitchen and Bar | 2718 J Street | 916.706.2275 | Menu
Restaurant Thir13en | 1300 H Street | 916.594.7669 | Menu| Reservations
Rio City Café | 1110 Front Street | 916.442.8226 | Menu
River City Brewing Company | 545 Downtown Plaza Suite 1115 | 916.448.7153 | Menu (V)
Spataro | 1415 L Street | 916.440.8888 | Menu | Reservations
Ten22 | 1022 Second Street | 916.441.2211 | Menu | Reservations
Tuli Bistro | 2031 S Street | 916.451.8854 | Menu
Dine Downtown Sacramento runs January 9th (Wednesday) through January 19th (Friday). You can find the Downtown Sacramento Partnership on Facebook here and follow them on twitter here.
Paleo Recipe: Gingersnap Crusted Ham
I’d like to start this post with a big thank you to Tropical Traditions. They sent me a huge jar of coconut oil to try out in my Paleo recipes. I ended up using it in the Paleo Gingersnaps that I used to crumble up and coat the ham below. Here’s a picture of their product. It’s not only good in cooking (use it in the place of –and in the same ratio as–any butter or oil), but excellent as a moisturizer!
So look at the crusty beast below! Can you believe it is gluten free? 🙂 This Gingersnap Crusted Ham was a “side” for our Paleo Easter Meal. I snagged the idea for it from the Alton Brown recipe I first made years ago.
What You Will Need:
One 2 pound”City” Ham (I used an Uncured, Nitrate Free, Hormone Free, Vegetarian Fed Ham)
You will find that 2 pounds of ham is actually only about 1/4 of a normal sized ham. 🙂
3/4 Cup Dijon Mustard
1/2 Cup Maker’s Mark Bourbon (in a spray bottle)
2 Cups Paleo Gingersnap Crumbs (To get the crumbs, you have to make the gingersnaps themselves.)
Paleo Gingersnaps
1.5 cups Blanched Almond Flour
1 tablespoons ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp clove
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/8 tsp cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 Tbs fresh ginger or ginger paste
1 omega 3 Egg
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/8 cup molasses
1/4 cup Coconut Oil (Tropical Traditions for best results!!)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients (including lemon zest).
In a small mixing bowl beat eggs, honey, molasses, and vanilla extract with a hand mixer.
Pour wet ingredients into dry and beat with hand mixer until combined.
Add coconut oil into batter, and continue to blend until combined.
Press the dough out flat on a parchment lined baking sheet, about a tablespoon in size. Bake cookies for 15 minutes at 375.
Let cool completely then break the cookie into crumbs and set aside.
Procedure:
1. Place the ham in a glass baking dish and paint the dijon mustard on it with a pastry brush.
2. Then take the gingersnap crumbs and coat the ham until it is completely covered in crumbs.
3. Spray the ham with the bourbon to seal the crumb coating.
4. Bake the ham in the oven at 350° for about 10 mins, then take out the ham and lightly spritz the it with more bourbon. Return the ham to the oven and bake it until the crust is golden brown, or if you are like me, you can get the crust a little more brown than that. Let rest about 5-10 mins and then carve to serve.
Mmmm….HAMMALICIOUS!
“Breakfast at Tiffany’s: Bubbles and Bling”, Friday April 20th at The Crest Theatre
Fundraiser Benefits the Volunteer Center of Sacramento’s 50th Anniversary
Sacramento, CA –The Volunteer Center of Sacramento (VCS) will hold “Breakfast at Tiffany’s: Bubbles and Bling” on Friday, April 20 from 5:30-9pm at the Crest Theatre in downtown Sacramento as part of its 50th Anniversary campaign!
The celebratory event will include desserts, appetizers, champagne and wine, a huge silent auction, a fun photo booth with a Breakfast at Tiffany’s backdrop, live music by The Honey Trees and of course a viewing of the classic movie “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” on the big screen. Doors open at 5:30pm and the screening begins at 7pm.
To celebrate our role in the community of supporting other non-profit organizations, we have partnered with the Sacramento Area Emergency Housing Center and the California Youth Crisis Line. All three non-profits will benefit from this fun night out.
Tickets are $25 and can be purchased through the Volunteer Center of Sacramento by calling (916) 567-3100 or online by visiting www.volunteersac.org. Call us to avoid the online convenience fee!
“We are excited about celebrating our 50th Anniversary, however, community support is essential for the success of this fundraiser,” said Frank Kennedy, VCS Executive Director. “We have strengthened the Sacramento community through volunteerism for the past 50 years and we look forward to strengthening it for 50 more.”
To find out more about the fundraiser, how to purchase tickets, or how you can help, please contact us at (916) 567-3100 or info@volunteersac.org.
About The Volunteer Center of Sacramento
Founded in 1962, the Volunteer Center of Sacramento works to strengthen the Sacramento community by connecting volunteers with opportunities to serve. We also run several programs such as BirthdayMAGIC which coordinates birthday parties for children in homeless shelters, Adopt-A-Family which provides food and gifts to struggling families during Christmas and our VolunTEEN series which offers fun and easy 3-hour projects for youth in need of community service hours. Visit www.volunteersac.org to learn more about the Volunteer Center of Sacramento.
Make this Now, Thank Me Later! German “stir fry”
This one’s from the archives.
Thanks to all for supporting the new site!!
————————————————-
Seriously, make this now. If you don’t like sauerkraut, you might like this dish. If you don’t eat bacon, all I can do is apologize.
German “stir fry”
What you need:
Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Red or White Wine
Red Onion
Garlic
Acorn or Butternut Squash (cubed)
Eggplant, Zucchini Squash
Apple, Granny Smith, Fuji, or Gala… any non-mushy apple will do.
Bacon (as many slices as you like—you can also use pork sausage in place of or in addition.
Sauerkraut
It’s funny how our tastes change as adults. I used to HATE sauerkraut as a kid and refuse to eat it. I would go to the Waynesville Sauerkraut Festival with my mom every year, but refuse to sample any of the food there. Now I love sauerkraut, and it’s one of my favorite foods. It is fibrous, low calorie, and filling. I might be getting married to it soon.
I came up with this recipe to honor my new found love, and I have been eating it several times a week. I call it German stir fry because the recipe contains a few of German ingredients, and they are all cooked together basically like I do with a stir fry.
You can use eggplant or not, or squash or not, it all depends on what you like. I really prefer cooking to baking a lot of times, because most recipes are so flexible. This one is as well.
To prepare:
Slice the onion and sauté in oil. Salt the onions to help them caramelize. Cook the onions down and add a little wine or vegetable stock if the pan gets too dry. Add the squash and cook for 5-10 minutes. Add the sqaush, then add the apple next. Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a separate pan until fully browned and crisp.
When the squash and potato are nearly cooked, add the eggplant, and cook until eggplant is tender. Chop the bacon and the sauerkraut and toss in. Heat thoroughly and remove from heat.
Paleo Recipe: Hard Boiled Eggs with Avocado, Cumin, and Curry
Hey, I know these eggs don’t look all that exciting. I made them as a last minute surprise appetizer for the Wintun Ranch Grass Fed Steaks we had as our main course last night. According to the BF, “they almost upstaged the entire dinner!” I really loved them too, and am actually going to make some more tonight. As you can imagine, after dining with someone who has Adam Richman’s appetite (but far better metabolism), these eggs were “gone in 60 seconds”. 😉
So, wanna give them a try? Depending on how much you want to make, you can multiply the ingredients. I will give the ratio for the amount of eggs I made last night: 3, yielding the six portions you see in the picture. 🙂
Hard Boiled Eggs with Avocado, Cumin and Curry
Ingredients:
3 organic cage free eggs
1/2 of one avocado
1tsp cumin
1/2 tsp curry
1/2 tsp garlic pureé
pinch of salt to taste
optional: fresh black pepper on top
Hard boil the eggs and peel them out of their shells. Cut them in half and scoop out the yolks into a small bowl. Cut half an avocado and mash it together with the yolks in the bowl. Add the spices and garlic puree and the salt to taste. Spoon the mixture back into the egg white halves. Top with cracked pepper.
I am going to dice some beets to top the eggs with tonight when I make them again, as this will make them a little more visually appealing without affecting the taste very much. I will update with a new picture and instructions on the beets tomorrow.
Happy Sunday!
UPDATE!
I added beets to garnish the eggs, and they look and taste great.
To prepare the beets, cut them into cubes and boil them until they are tender. They will slip out of their outer skins much easier after they cook. Cut into little “diamond” shapes and place on top of the avocado and egg filling. Here is what it looks like:
Chicken Larb in Cabbage Cups
1 head of cabbage
2/3 cup fresh squeezed lime juice (about 3 limes)
1/3 cup fish sauce
2 teaspoons Thai roasted chili paste
1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
1 cup thinly sliced green onions
3/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
3 tablespoons minced fresh lemongrass
1 tablespoon thinly sliced jalapeño pepper
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/3 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
Separate the cabbage into individual leaves.
Mix the first 3 ingredients together with the garlic, set aside.
Melt some coconut oil in a skillet and sauté the green onions, pepper shallots, and the lemongrass until tender. Transfer to a different pan, then cook the ground chicken in the same skillet used for the shallots/onions. When chicken has cooked most of the way through (make sure you have broken it up with a spoon into small pieces while cooking). Pour in the sauce mixture and add the cooked vegetables. Add the cilantro and mint.
Spoon into cabbage pieces. This recipe feeds 4 as an appetizer and 2 as a main course.
Serve with a white wine such as Le Casque’s 2008 Roussanne. You can find it at their winery located in Loomis, CA. For more information, you can visit their website here.
Sacramento Food Film Festival is March 10th! Tickets going fast!!
Some of the best movies I have seen in the past few years have been all about food!!
More specifically, documentaries about our food and its production and distribution.
Needless to say, the inaugural Sacramento Food Film Festival is right up my alley! It will be held on Saturday, March 10, 2012 at Guild Theater from 10am to 10pm. So basically, come out like you are camping out for a deal on an HDTV at Best Buy on Black Friday, ok? 😉
I know a lot of you seem to be aware and conscious of the serious food issues/problems that this world faces, but these movies will educate you (as well as entertain and provoke thought) to what is really going on and really going wrong with our global food supply.
Here is the film lineup for the day:
10:15 Lunch Line 63 min.
The Last Crop follows Jeff and Annie Main, and examines how one family’s mission to preserve their small working farm’s existence for future farmers is challenging the status quo of farmland conservation and farm succession policies within California’s 36 billion dollar agricultural industry. I saw this movie early this month and absolutely loved it. Since the filmmaker keeps adding on to the length of the film as the story progresses (as it is a work in progress), it will be a little longer than 50 minutes.
3:00 Food Matters 80 min.
With nutritionally-depleted foods, chemical additives and our tendency to rely upon pharmaceutical drugs to treat what’s wrong with our malnourished bodies, it’s no wonder that modern society is getting sicker. Food Matters sets about uncovering the trillion dollar worldwide ‘sickness industry’ and gives people some scientifically verifiable solutions for overcoming illness naturally.
4:30 Ingredients 67 min.
Through interviews with world-class chefs such as Alice Waters and Greg Higgins and sustainability-minded farmers in Oregon, New York and Ohio, INGREDIENTS weaves an uplifting tale that is equal parts earthy rebellion and mouth-watering homage.
Narrated by Bebe Neuwirth? Guys, need I say more? 🙂
6:00 Farmaggedon 90 min.Farmageddon highlights the urgency of food freedom, encouraging farmers and consumers alike to take action to preserve individuals’ rights to access food of their choice and farmers’ rights to produce these foods safely and free from unreasona-bly burdensome regulations. The film serves to put policymakers and regulators on notice that there is a growing movement of people aware that their freedom to choose the foods they want is in danger, a movement that is taking action with its dollars and its voting power to protect and preserve the dwindling number of family farms that are struggling to survive.
7:45 Farmers Panel Discussion 60 min.
9:00 What’s Organic about Organic? 59 min.
For more information on the event go to: http://sacfoodfilmfest.com
Special thanks to sponsors Simply Recipes, Whole Foods, Slow Food Sacramento, Munchie Musings, Mikuni Sushi, Guild Theatre, and the Sacramento Co-op.
You can find the Sacramento Food Film Festival on Facebook here!!
PS: If you buy a ticket by March 1st, you will be automatically entered to win a restaurant gift card from deVere’s or Ella.
Buy tickets here now! Hurry because the Guild only holds 200 people and tickets are going fast!!
Last Night We Had a Paleo Dinner at: Il Fornaio, Downtown Sacramento
cavegrrl.com 
