How do you cook quinoa? I was recently asked. The answer is simple. Easy. Fast. Rockin'. I cook it in a rice cooker. In fact, quinoa is the easiest no-fuss grain you'll ever cook. It's healthy fast food. Cook up a batch ahead of time and you can stir up a fabulous light lunch (like the Lime Quinoa Salad with Mint ) in a New York minute. Well, maybe a Los Angeles minute. No wait. A Venice Beach minute. Quinoa salads are as easy as one - two - three. How to cook quinoa the easy way: 1. Using a fine mesh sieve rinse 1 cup of organic quinoa in cold water (unless it states on the box that you don't need to rinse). 2. Dump rinsed quinoa into your rice cooker. 3. Add 2 cups fresh water* see notes. 4. Turn on your rice cooker . That's it. In about fifteen minutes* you'll have hot fluffy quinoa to play with. Quinoa is rather bland on its own and loves flavor spikes. So add herbs etc. My favorite thing to do is stir-fry cooked quinoa with various seasonings- herbs, garlic, spices, onion, etc. I add in fresh veggies and whatever else I might have on hand. Quinoa makes delicious and hearty pilaf, sprightly salads, or a warm and grainy side dish in place of rice. I've even used it to stuff cabbage, acorn squash, peppers and portobello mushroom caps. For those of you without a rice cooker: Add the cup of rinsed organic quinoa to a saucepan ; add 2 cups fresh water; bring to a boil, lower the heat to low; cover and simmer until cooked. Fluff with a fork. Season while warm and use in salads or stuffing recipes, Store covered, in the fridge, for almost instant meals. Use within three days for best taste. Notes* Start with 2 cups water in a rice cooker. At higher altitudes , use more water-- 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups water. High altitude also requires a longer cooking time, generally. If the quinoa turns out too crunchy or nubby you need to up the ratio of water to grain; start by adding another 1/4 cup liquid. I prefer my quinoa soft and tender, fluffed with a fork. Note- r ed and black quinoa may require extra water- especially if it turns out more crunchy than fluffy. Sometimes I add broth to the liquid to boost the flavor of the quinoa- this works especially well when making a savory pilaf or winter quinoa with hearty flavors- onion, mushrooms, eggplant, etc. I don't use broth in my lighter salad style quinoa dishes- but that's my personal taste. Quinoa is very laid back and not full of itself at all. It's not upper crust or snobby, or ultra-cool and exclusive. I imagine Tony Bourdain hates it (he likes to mock vegetarians, you know, which spurs him to demonstrate just how much by eating blow fish, animal tongues and roasted insects on camera , not to mention drinking fresh from the writhing snake blood tonic and chewing on various goat parts buried in a pit for two days). If it were a movie, quinoa would star a flip-flop wearing Jeff Bridges and insist you call it Dude. Or Duderino if you're not into the whole brevity thing. Besides its worth-its-weight-in-gold gluten-free status, quinoa (sounds like: keen-wa) is a superb source of balanced vegetable protein (so important for vegans and vegetarians ) that packs a nutty nutritional punch. It contains nine amino acids- making it a complete vegetable protein. Some call it a super grain (I always envision a blazing red Q and a windswept cape when the word super is touted- a testimony to my visual thinking process) but quinoa, I have to tell you is not a cereal grain, Bubela. It's actually a seed from a plant family that includes beets and spinach. That might- technically- make it a Super Faux Grain. Or Faux Super Grain. I know. It doesn't have the same ring. Do we care? Here are some of my favorite quinoa recipes: Kale Salad with Quinoa, Tangerines and Roasted Almonds Lime Quinoa Salad with Mint Peanut Butter Quinoa Cookies Quinoa Breakfast Bars with Blueberries Quinoa Breakfast Brownies Quinoa Breakfast Cake Quinoa Chocolate Brownies Quinoa with Fresh Summer Vegetables Quinoa with Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Leeks, and Slivered Almonds Quinoa Salad with Blueberries, Strawberries, and Watermelon Quinoa Salad with Pears, Baby Spinach, Chick Peas in Maple Vinaigrette Quinoa Salad with Roasted Beets, Chick Peas + Orange Quinoa Salad with Yellow Grape Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives, Basil and Mint Quinoa Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms Quinoa Muffins with Pecans + Dark Chocolate Quinoa Mushroom Pilaf Quinoa Pumpkin Cookies Quinoa Taco Salad Red Quinoa with Roasted Butternut Squash + Pecans Stuffed Cabbage with Roasted Sweet Potato and Quinoa Vegan Garden Loaf with Maple Apricot Glaze Warm Spinach and Quinoa Salad with Grape Tomatoes Quinoa recipes from food blogs: At Lydia's Perfect Pantry Quinoa Salad with Tomatoes, Feta and Parsley Heidi's Warm and Nutty Cinnamon Quinoa - for breakfast- at 101 Cookbooks Susan's Quinoa Vegetable Paella at FatFree Vegan Kitchen Ilva's Quinoa Apple Cake with Cinnamon and Coconut at Lucullian Delights Susan at Food Blogga's Inca Quinoa Salad Perfect Pantry's Black Bean Quinoa Red Pepper Salad with Honey-Lime Vinaigrette Source: glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com All images & content are copyright protected, all rights reserved. Please do not use our images or content without prior permission. Thank you.

I’m planning to cook Tunku’s (Father of Malaysia) favourite dishes in conjunction to this Merderka (Independence) month. The 1st Merderka meal “ Ayam Golek ” was dedicated to Rebecca a.k.a Chow and Chatter. The 2nd Merderka meal was Daging Bakar (roast turmeric beef) and Air Asam (red chili and lime dipping sauce). This is the 3rd Merderka meal, Tunku would eat his roast beef with Yorkshire pudding. I'm new to Yorkshire pudding, and there is no detail of this Yorkshire puddings recipe written in Flavours food magazine, but luckily i found this recipe in almostbourdain blogspot . Recipe was adapted from AlmostBourdain as she followed to Mary Berry's Complete Cookbook. I changed a bit on the method as I just too lazy and simply mix all ingredients together and added little lemon juice, but the result was good, I like the buttery and milky taste. Yorkshire Puddings *makes 11-12 pcs Ingredients 125 g plain flour 2 eggs 250 ml milk A pinch of salt 1tbsp lemon juice (not in original recipe) Shortening (i changed to butter) 1. Put all ingredients in a mixing bowl, stir and whisk till a smooth batter. 2. Sift the batter into a clean water jar, cover and stand for at least 30mins. 3. Put some butter into each cup of a 12-hole muffin tin and heat in a preheated oven at 200C for 2mins or until very hot. 4. Remove the tin from the oven. Whisk the batter and pour into the cups in the tin(about 80-90% full) 5. Bake the Yorkshire puddings in the oven for 20 minutes at 200C or until well risen, golden, and crisp. 6. Serve immediately with Daging Bakar / roasted turmeric beef. Put some butter/shortening into each cup of a 12-hole muffin tin Sift the batter into a clean water jar Remove the tin from the oven. Whisk the batter and pour into the cups in the tin(about 80-90% full) Hot from the overn, well risen, golden, and crisp.But it shrunk once cooled. I'm going to send this post to Almost Bourdain's Shout Outs. Happy Baking!!

I've never visited the East Coast, so I'm not sure what makes this lasagna "East Coast Lasagna." But that's what Rory Freedman and Kim Bourdain call it in Skinny Bitch in the Kitch . East coast, west coast, whatever. This stuff was incredible! And super simple. That melty goodness all over the top is Teese, of course. Under that is the Skinny Bitch Basic Red Sauce, made with crushed tomatoes, fresh herbs, garlic, red wine, hot sauce, and agave nectar. In true Skinny Bitch fashion, I used brown rice pasta lasagna noodles (because white pasta is nasty). The noodles were covered in alternating layers of red sauce, Teese, homemade tofu ricotta, and Morningstar Farms veggie burger crumbles. As you can see, I have a problem "plating" lasagna, but I swear it tasted way better than it looks. I believe this was the first time I've made lasagna with burger crumbles. I usually use eggplant or spinach or something veggie-ish. But this was a nice stand-in for the old meat lasagna I used to love as a kid. Only way healthier. And minus the cruelty.

How do you cook quinoa? I was recently asked. The answer is simple. Easy. Fast. Rockin'. I cook it in a rice cooker. In fact, quinoa is the easiest no-fuss grain you'll ever cook. It's healthy fast food. Cook up a batch ahead of time and you can stir up a fabulous light lunch (like the Lime Quinoa Salad with Mint ) in a New York minute. Well, maybe a Los Angeles minute. No wait. A Venice Beach minute. Quinoa salads are as easy as one - two - three. How to cook quinoa the easy way: 1. Using a fine mesh sieve rinse 1 cup of organic quinoa in cold water (unless it states on the box that you don't need to rinse). 2. Dump rinsed quinoa into your rice cooker. 3. Add 2 cups fresh water* see notes. 4. Turn on your rice cooker . That's it. In about fifteen minutes* you'll have hot fluffy quinoa to play with. Quinoa is rather bland on its own and loves flavor spikes. So add herbs etc. My favorite thing to do is stir-fry cooked quinoa with various seasonings- herbs, garlic, spices, onion, etc. I add in fresh veggies and whatever else I might have on hand. Quinoa makes delicious and hearty pilaf, sprightly salads, or a warm and grainy side dish in place of rice. I've even used it to stuff cabbage, acorn squash, peppers and portobello mushroom caps. For those of you without a rice cooker: Add the cup of rinsed organic quinoa to a saucepan ; add 2 cups fresh water; bring to a boil, lower the heat to low; cover and simmer until cooked. Fluff with a fork. Season while warm and use in salads or stuffing recipes, Store covered, in the fridge, for almost instant meals. Use within three days for best taste. Notes* Start with 2 cups water in a rice cooker. At higher altitudes , use more water-- 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups water. High altitude also requires a longer cooking time, generally. If the quinoa turns out too crunchy or nubby you need to up the ratio of water to grain; start by adding another 1/4 cup liquid. I prefer my quinoa soft and tender, fluffed with a fork. Note- r ed and black quinoa may require extra water- especially if it turns out more crunchy than fluffy. Sometimes I add broth to the liquid to boost the flavor of the quinoa- this works especially well when making a savory pilaf or winter quinoa with hearty flavors- onion, mushrooms, eggplant, etc. I don't use broth in my lighter salad style quinoa dishes- but that's my personal taste. Quinoa is very laid back and not full of itself at all. It's not upper crust or snobby, or ultra-cool and exclusive. I imagine Tony Bourdain hates it (he likes to mock vegetarians, you know, which spurs him to demonstrate just how much by eating blow fish, animal tongues and roasted insects on camera , not to mention drinking fresh from the writhing snake blood tonic and chewing on various goat parts buried in a pit for two days). If it were a movie, quinoa would star a flip-flop wearing Jeff Bridges and insist you call it Dude. Or Duderino if you're not into the whole brevity thing. Besides its worth-its-weight-in-gold gluten-free status, quinoa (sounds like: keen-wa) is a superb source of balanced vegetable protein (so important for vegans and vegetarians ) that packs a nutty nutritional punch. It contains nine amino acids- making it a complete vegetable protein. Some call it a super grain (I always envision a blazing red Q and a windswept cape when the word super is touted- a testimony to my visual thinking process) but quinoa, I have to tell you is not a cereal grain, Bubela. It's actually a seed from a plant family that includes beets and spinach. That might- technically- make it a Super Faux Grain. Or Faux Super Grain. I know. It doesn't have the same ring. Do we care? Here are some of my favorite quinoa recipes: Kale Salad with Quinoa, Tangerines and Roasted Almonds Lime Quinoa Salad with Mint Peanut Butter Quinoa Cookies Quinoa Breakfast Bars with Blueberries Quinoa Breakfast Brownies Quinoa Breakfast Cake Quinoa Chocolate Brownies Quinoa with Fresh Summer Vegetables Quinoa with Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Leeks, and Slivered Almonds Quinoa Salad with Blueberries, Strawberries, and Watermelon Quinoa Salad with Pears, Baby Spinach, Chick Peas in Maple Vinaigrette Quinoa Salad with Roasted Beets, Chick Peas + Orange Quinoa Salad with Yellow Grape Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives, Basil and Mint Quinoa Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms Quinoa Muffins with Pecans + Dark Chocolate Quinoa Mushroom Pilaf Quinoa Pumpkin Cookies Quinoa Taco Salad Red Quinoa with Roasted Butternut Squash + Pecans Stuffed Cabbage with Roasted Sweet Potato and Quinoa Vegan Garden Loaf with Maple Apricot Glaze Warm Spinach and Quinoa Salad with Grape Tomatoes Quinoa recipes from food blogs: At Lydia's Perfect Pantry Quinoa Salad with Tomatoes, Feta and Parsley Heidi's Warm and Nutty Cinnamon Quinoa - for breakfast- at 101 Cookbooks Susan's Quinoa Vegetable Paella at FatFree Vegan Kitchen Ilva's Quinoa Apple Cake with Cinnamon and Coconut at Lucullian Delights Susan at Food Blogga's Inca Quinoa Salad Perfect Pantry's Black Bean Quinoa Red Pepper Salad with Honey-Lime Vinaigrette Source: glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com All images & content are copyright protected, all rights reserved. Please do not use our images or content without prior permission. Thank you.

2 lbs pork belly, cut into 2 in cubes (5 cm) 1 lb pork shoulder, cut into 2 in cubes (5cm) 4 cups water 1 bouquet garni (1 sprig flat parsley, 2 sprigs of fresh thyme, 1 bay leaf -all tied with a string so its easy to ret) 1 teaspoon salt 1 pinch black pepper 1 lb pork fat, cut into thin slices 1 Place the pork belly and shoulder in a heavy bottomed pot. Add water and the bouquet garni and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally. 2 After 6 hours, stir in the salt and pepper and remove from the heat. Discard the bouquet garni. 3 Once the meat is cooled enough to handle, transfer it to a mixing bowl, using forks, shred the meat (not mush, SHREDS is the key) 4 Shovel some still warm pork into your mouth -- you know you want to. 5 Divide the mixture among several small containers. Top each portion with a slice or two of pork fat to completely cover it, fold the mixture together a bit then wrap each container in plastic wrap. 6 Place in the refrigerator and let them sit for 3 days before serving. Don't cheat on the 3 days because it just gets better as the flavors marry up!

6 tablespoons butter 1 onion , thinly sliced 12 ounces button mushrooms , halved 4 cups chicken stock 1 sprig parsley 2 ounces sherry wine salt and pepper 1 Over medium heat, melt two tablespoons of the butter in a saucepan. Toss in the onion and cook until soft but not browned. 2 Toss in the remaining butter and then add the mushrooms. Cook for 8 minutes. 3 Pour in the chicken stock, add the parsley, and bring to a boil. When bubbling, reduce to a simmer and cook for an hour. 4 Pour soup into a blender (you might need to do this in stages), and process until smooth. Return to the saucepan and bring to a simmer. Pour in the sherry, and season with salt and pepper.

War Remnants museum, is a place to understand how Vietnamese peoples went through during Vietnam war. Photo of " napalm girl ", you can read more here .. Reunification Palace During our visit, there was a Canon's photography exhibition, many awesome photos were display here.. Frankly, nothing much to see inside here actually.. The green surrounding outside has better view  I just wonder how they manage these electric wires.. Ben Thanh market  The main purpose to visit Ben Thanh market was to get some "Fu' and "Hi" chops , you can get these type of chop at the stall where they selling all kind of bakery items.. I feel this shop given more reasonable price if compare to others ... Revisit to Ashima - mushroom hot pot, you may check my old post here Ashima 35A Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Dist 1, HCMC. Tel: 848 3824 1966 Every time I told my daughter and mother how good was this mushroom hotpot, and told them one day I will bring them to try out..This time I keep my promise, bring them to try out.. We went to the old place, but realized that they have actually shifted to somewhere else. Luckily we found their new place..  Many types of mushroom to choose from.. We still prefer to order beef slices to go with mushroom hotpot. My kids and mother were really enjoyed this hotpot. But my husband and I feel the taste somehow not that good anymore.. Anyway, if you have never tasted mushroom hotpot before (I haven't see this type of restaurant here), this is still a place to try out.. Captured this photo when we were on the way to try out Banh Xeo..normal to see this type of scene in Ho Chi Minhwith many peoples on motorcycle.. Banh Xeo 46A 46A D Dinh Cong Trang | District 3 , Ho Chi Minh City , Vietnam  A Banh Xeo place that made famous by Anthony Bourdain (No reservation) , you can watch the video here .. Learnt a tip from here, pour out the excess batter so you can have thin and crispy Banh Xeo.. Dipping sauce and veggie to go with Banh Xeo Ya, their Banh Xeo was really crispy but a bit oily. If I look at my Banh Xeo , i think I have added too much of turmeric powder as its look too yellow.  We also ordered this deep fried soft shell crabs and authentic Vietnamese coffee.. I went to this wet market, but sorry i couldn't recall the name.. French bread is so common here, even you can find it at wet market.. I bought pumpkin flowers from here, to make stuffed pumpkin flowers  My mother bought this Thien Ly Xao Bo (Thousand miles flowers) At the end of the street at this market, turned left and you can find two shops selling bakery ingredients (located at the 1st floor), where you can get the chops here too..at fixed and reasonable price.. Phuong Ha at 58 Ham Nghi St., District 1  Cuc Gach Quan 10 Dang Tat, Ward Tan Dinh, District 1, Saigon Tel: (84.8) 38 48 01 44 // (84) 01 657 10 10 10 - A new discovery of eating place after saw Esther's review.. This restaurant also made famous by Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt when they brought their adopted children back to Vietnam as to let them get to know their country where they were born.  kitchen area.. their old collections.. A very thick menu , like a book.. Use kangkong stem (water morning-glory) as a straw, something very new to me. very interesting ^_^ Anyway, the price for a fruit juices like this is almost equal to a plate of dish..rather expensive!! Everything we ordered were very delicious. I will be back to this restaurant if i will re-visit HCM again.. When my mother saw all these broken bowls and plates that they used., she said "Choy Choy, for Chinese only beggar use broken bowls", LOL..I told her that this is new fashion ,hehehe.. End of my update..Thanks for dropping by..

2 lbs pork belly, cut into 2 in cubes (5 cm) 1 lb pork shoulder, cut into 2 in cubes (5cm) 4 cups water 1 bouquet garni (1 sprig flat parsley, 2 sprigs of fresh thyme, 1 bay leaf -all tied with a string so its easy to ret) 1 teaspoon salt 1 pinch black pepper 1 lb pork fat, cut into thin slices 1 Place the pork belly and shoulder in a heavy bottomed pot. Add water and the bouquet garni and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally. 2 After 6 hours, stir in the salt and pepper and remove from the heat. Discard the bouquet garni. 3 Once the meat is cooled enough to handle, transfer it to a mixing bowl, using forks, shred the meat (not mush, SHREDS is the key) 4 Shovel some still warm pork into your mouth -- you know you want to. 5 Divide the mixture among several small containers. Top each portion with a slice or two of pork fat to completely cover it, fold the mixture together a bit then wrap each container in plastic wrap. 6 Place in the refrigerator and let them sit for 3 days before serving. Don't cheat on the 3 days because it just gets better as the flavors marry up!

Recently I became friends with an Amateur Gourmet reader named Peggy who works in T.V. out here in L.A. and who comes from a Taiwanese family. Over the course of our first lunch at Pizzeria Mozza, she casually mentioned that her family frequents the San Gabriel Valley (home of some of America’s best and most authentic Chinese restaurants) and that she’d be happy to show me around there the next time we met up. “We can even go to a Chinese supermarket!” she added and that was like the moment when you pull the handle of a slot machine and all the bells and alarms go off and coins start pouring out. As you all know, I love visiting unfamiliar supermarkets. So last week, my friend Diana joined Peggy and I for lunch at Mama Lu’s Dumpling House in the San Gabriel Valley where we ate Hot & Sour Soup: My first beef roll, which I absolutely loved (it’s like thinly sliced beef wrapped up in a scallion pancake): And, oh, just a few other things: But that’s not why we’re here. We’re here because afterwards, Peggy loaded us into her car and drove us to 99 Ranch Market—a Chinese supermarket that may not look like a Chinese supermarket from the outside, but wait ’til you see what’s inside. We started by cutting a hard right towards the produce aisle. Before we got there, a table was set up with this Miso salmon lunch and fresh mochi; nothing too out of the ordinary, but not anything I’ve seen at Gelson’s: First up at the produce aisle was Yucca and other things that look like Yucca that I can’t really remember because the text is too blurry in this picture: These were beautiful bags of pea sprouts; if I were feeling more cheffy, I would’ve bought them (they’d be pretty on top of a spring risotto, etc.): What’s Gailan? Sounds like a character from Star Trek! And what’s Opo? Sounds like a character from Beetlejuice (oh wait, that is a character from Beetlejuice) (oh wait, never mind, that’s Otho): Dried red chiles galore! And a bargain at $3.99 a pound. The dreaded Durian, which apparently smells like sewage when you cut into them. Peggy told a story of someone throwing a durian on to her college dorm’s roof; a cruel prank that I’m going to use some day if I ever pledge a fraternity. Fish balls, for putting in soup: Plenty to choose from! Chinese sausage, which I first encountered when Grace Young taught me how to stir-fry for my cookbook; it’s thinner and more dense than regular sausage: Dried anchovies; not sure how I’d use these—I love oil-packed anchovies, so if I were feeling more cheffy I’d blitz these in a food processor and sprinkle them on a Caesar salad. Where’s my James Beard Award? Boiled Bamboo Shoots; you’d shoot too if someone boiled you. A whole wall of Kimchi, which isn’t Chinese but let’s not quibble: “These noodles are great for dropping into soup,” Peggy explained about these noodles. Apparently they’re bundled into clumps that are for each individual portion. Peggy also talked about salting mustard greens at home and then we came upon these salted mustard greens, which seem like a nice way to add some green to your diet: These are rice cakes, which Diana bought up to cook at home. DIANA IF YOU’RE READING THIS TELL US HOW IT WENT IN THE COMMENTS. Turnip cakes, rice cakes, birthday cakes…juts kidding about the birthday cakes: Peggy bought these buns and said they’re delicious filled, as they are, with chopped scallions; all you have to do is steam them: More buns to make at home; this is what Sir-Mix-A-Lot was talking about when he said, “My anaconda don’t want none unless you got buns, hun.” Now comes the meat! When I was younger, and I’d walk through Chinatown, I’d squirm at the site of unfamiliar cuts in the windows of butcher shops. Now that I’ve been schooled by the likes of Anthony Bourdain and Andrew Zimmern, I realize that this was a product of my own xenophobia and that using all of the parts of the animal is something to be celebrated, not ridiculed. That said…. EWWWWW ROOSTER BALLS!!! Just kidding about that “ewwww.” I’m mature, I swear! See, look, pork stomach… no big deal: And this isn’t a chamber of horrors, these are delectable cuts that I’d like to cook someday. Who wants to come over for some pork uterus? PORK UTERUS???!?!?! Ok, moving on…. Look at all the rice options: And something I’d never seen before: sugar cane in light syrup. Do you just eat the sugar cane? Wouldn’t that hurt your teeth? Quail eggs in a can! Mock duck meat in a can! Is this fried gluten gluten-free? Seasoning sauce is the only way to treat your chili turnip: Preserved Taiwan Seeds… what are they?!?! Anyone??? I believe these are toppings for shaved ice: “We were doing soy milk before your trendy coffee shop.” Peggy told us about “Pork Fu” and how her mom would sometimes make her sandwiches of just bread with pork fu sprinkled on: She also told us about these drinks which she’d enjoy as a kid; apparently the fun part is that when you open the top, a marble floats to the surface and then it’s, like, kind of there while you drink? There was a whole section of papers to burn at a Chinese grave; if you burn paper money, for example, you’ll give your loved one cash in the next world (can someone burn some for me now so I can have cash in this world??): It was really hard for me and my brother when our Mung Beans split: I don’t think you’re ready, for this… Couldn’t decide, so bought all three options: This is Peggy’s dad’s favorite dessert: Crab chips: Rice cooking wine, which I should have bought because I’m always making Chinese recipes that call for “rice cooking wine” and I don’t have it…. “I’ll fight you if you don’t eat these Haw Pieces!” Jujube candy: Now for the fish section: They’ll actually fry a portion for you that they’ll put in a container and you can eat it for lunch: And look at these specialty items; no not the lobster tails, the abalone and sea cucumber: There were some very crowded fish tanks in this area: And some pretty harsh signs about not washing your hands in the shell tank: Check out the mollusks: And these giant crabs and spot prawns: And the Dungeness crabs (not a bad price): And these rock crabs: After washing my hands in there, I studied some of the packaged seafood options: (How do they get the balls off the fish? Must be painful.) I’ve never seen cooked clam meat before: Phew…. are you exhausted yet? Anything else we missed? Let’s see: tea with real flowers in it. Say Yes To Noh! Peggy was super psyched to see Bubble Tea turned into a popsicle: And that, my friends, is the end of the ride. Call me lame but I only bought one thing: oyster sauce. What?! I need it for this beef and tomato recipe in my book. And I promise to go back and buy all of the things. Peggy, as it happens, bought for us these fruit flakes that we tried in the parking lot: They kind of tasted like dry, flaky apricot…in the best possible way. Thank you, Peggy, for being such a great tour guide! Can’t wait to have you over for pork uterus some day. Other Supermarket Posts: Let’s Go To An Australian Supermarket! Let’s Go To A British Supermarket! Then Let’s Go To A German Supermarket!

Shares 38We’ve always loved the Northern California Bay Area and over the past 20 years, we’ve made many trips back to eat and explore. But this last trip back withΒ Fairmont Hotels and ResortsΒ was a dream because we had the opportunity to discover so many new jewels of the Bay Area in one swoop with guidance and recommendations from area experts.Β  It really helps to have the folks who live in the area to show us their favorite local spots! And in our case, it was three different regions, each with their own unique flavors. It was pretty much like a road trip through the San Francisco Bay area, exploring it with new, open eyes. The amazing team at the 3 Fairmont Hotels and Resorts in the Bay area guided us through our food journey and provided us with world class accommodations at three of their bay area hotels:Β Fairmont Sonoma Mission InnΒ & Spa,Β Claremont Club &Β SpaΒ andΒ Fairmont San Francisco. We ate, photographed, filmed, ate way more than we should have but because we’re truly food obsessed, we considered it food research. We’re good at that. Fall is a gorgeous time of year to visit Sonoma wine country Our trip started with a gorgeous stay at Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa. This beautiful and serene resort is nestled in the heart of California Wine Country. We visited in late October and it was a beautiful time, with harvest just finishing off and the vines were in their Fall color glory. And they’re already on our favorites list because they’re dog friendly! Lexi and Sierra didn’t get to indulge on this trip and not sure if we’d want to bring them because they’re too many cute squirrels around. They’d be wanting to chase every critter they see. They’re famous for their natural mineral hot springs in Sonoma Valley, whichΒ sets the perfect setting to their Willow Stream Spa which is one of the only luxury spa resorts in the country with its own source of thermal mineral water. They even have their own championship Sonoma Golf Course, which is super cool to be golfing across the street from beautiful and tranquil vineyards. Dreamy wine, cheese and Michelin Star dinner.Β  Dinner was at their signature restaurant, the Michelin award winningΒ SantΓ© Restaurant. Our tasting menu dinner was outstanding and paired with perfect wines from local wineries. The roasted ribeye of free range lamb was one of the best lamb dishes we ever had. Topped with tabbouleh, eggplant, minted yogurt and bordelaise aioli it was hard to not lick the plate clean. And to top off this amazing dinner experience, during out stay we were able to visit Kendall Mini Farm and Linda, who provide the micro greens for SantΓ©. It was amazing to taste, experience and film this whole farm to table experience. You can watch it on Facebook here. Chef Andrew Cain and Linda of Kenwood Mini Farm talk fresh produce Here’s a video of that great day: Benziger Family WineryΒ was another eye-opener visit because it was our first time visiting a biodynamic winery. Jill Benziger led us through an education and tour about their family winery and their passion on making wines that are certified Biodynamic, organic and by using sustainable farming methods. Their quality wines taste even better knowing that they’re being made by folks who care about the land and the sustainable future of wine making. Their super cool wine cave was spectacular for our lunch stop. After a dreamy two days in Sonoma, we hopped in the car and drove to the latest addition to the Fairmont family of hotels and resorts: the historic Claremont Club &Β Spa. Literally nestled between Berkley and Oakland (one portion of the property lies in Oakland, the other in Berkley). The Claremont is full of character and lore. From one of its owners winning the property in a game of checkers to being nearly caught up in the 1991 Oakland fire. Frank Lloyd Wright called the Claremont β€œOne of the few hotels in the world with warmth, character, and charm.” the best view of San Francisco from our room at The Claremont and at their restaurant LimewoodΒ  Following the Fairmont’s acquisition of the Claremont and a beautiful remodel, you can add β€œswank” to that description. The visual lines leading from the front door to the lobby pulls you into the hotel, which suddenly opens up like a breath of fresh ocean air. Steer towards the lobby bar with the massive windows with views overlooking both the Bay and Golden Gate bridges and we found ourselves drawn into the Hillary-Tenzing Room. Named and remodeled after explorer Edmund Hillary, his sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, and their adventures, the stunning rich blue room is seeped with mountaineering and Nepalese artifacts. With cocktail in hand, we could spend days on end in that room and never tire of its charm. It’s a great thing that the Claremont’s guests have exclusive access to The Club at the Claremont. With its beautiful lap pools, tennis courts, daily fitness classes, and TechnoGym equipment, we needed some calorie burning activities to help balance all the food we ate while we were there. Meals at bothΒ MeritageΒ andΒ LimewoodΒ restaurantΒ were insanely deliciousΒ  Whether it was the great food, cocktails, and wine at the Limewood Bar and Restaurant, great bites in the Lobby Lounge and Hillary-Tenzing Room, to the meals at Meritage, we found ourselves clearing plate after plate. How can you not? They do a great job sourcing from the exceptional regional cuisine, and prepare the dishes to highlight how good it is. After spendingΒ  a couple days with stunning views of San Francisco from the Claremont, we headed across the bridge into the city itself. Perched atop Nob Hill, the Fairmont San Francisco welcomed us with open arms. For over a century it’s been known for its elegance and impeccable service, and is the perfect launching point for excursions into the city. Step out the door and head down the hill to one of the great food cities in the world. You can even hop on an iconic San Francisco trolley just outside the hotel. The Penthouse Suite and inspired cocktails from theΒ Tonga Room &Β Hurricane Bar Here’s a snippet of our own little Penthouse Suite party: Not that we needed to leave the Fairmont to have a good time. The Fairmont San Francisco may be elegant and grand, but don’t mistake it for stuffy. They love to have a good time. We arrived in perfect time to see their departments’ Jack β€˜o Lantern carving contest entries displayed in the lobby for all to vote, while at the same time in the lobby their annual 2-story gingerbread house was being build brick-by-gingerbread-brick by their culinary team. Head on over to the Tonga Room in the hotel and you’ll find a place Anthony Bourdain declared, β€œIf you have no love in your heart for this place, you are a sick, twisted lonely…” (we’’ll leave it at that but you get the point, it has Bourdain’s love). The Tonga room is the oldest continuously operating tiki bar in North America and shows no signs of slowing down and we could agree more with Bourdain’s sentiment. Within these same hotel walls, if you head up to the The Penthouse Suite, you’ll find 6,000 square feet of luxury. It’s housed royalty to rock stars and has more than a fair share of unforgettable parties and history changing events. There’s even a secret passageway in the suite’s library. This a place with so many stories to tell. It’s certain both JFK and Mick Jagger added to its legendary history. One of the best food tours we had withΒ Foodie ChapΒ and Fairmont San FranciscoΒ  Our experiences across the Fairmont Hotel family in the Bay area was extraordinary. Each location is reflective of the variety of character the region epitomizes. From the relaxed wine country, amazing artisan food producers, elegant and historic settings, spectacular views, an iconic bustling city, it was wonderful to experience the diversity in their character. They were all remarkable in each of their own individual ways. Epic thanks toΒ Fairmont Hotels & ResortsΒ for sponsoring us on this project supporting our love on culture, travel and food discoveries!Β  Shares 38 Get new recipes and updates by email:

To better explain the experience, I must first introduce you to Elyse. I know her by way of mutual friends; our paths have crossed a handful of times, but ever since I started listening to her new podcast project, I knew she would be someone I would really enjoy. She has the kind of personality that draws people in - warm, confident, intentional, wise, assertive. She has a crazy story herself, one that could lead you towards darkness, but she exudes light. And consequently has the easiest and best laugh I've ever heard. She's a trained therapist, so you expect some of that, but to experience her is different. An extensive education doesn't compare to someones natural strengths. Like I said, I knew I liked her before I attended her retreat last weekend, but what she is building - creating a space for people to feel vulnerable and seen and to be moved out of their own way - is remarkable.

It was essentially two days, with a group of five other women, while Elyse led us through her curriculum of, as she puts it, "looking at a practical evaluation of your history, and the current repercussions of your experiences and core beliefs." We wrote a letter to our younger selves, broke down a timeline of our own lives, shared stories with each other that near broke us - stories of loss and abuse and silence and shame - each woman had something to share from such different perspectives and circumstance. I left feeling like I had untangled a few things that were leaving callouses on my heart. I left feeling motivated about how to practically move towards what I need - both professionally and personally. One of the exercises had a line that stuck with me: "you are already the woman you want to be." I needed a push out of my head, out of some old stories and self doubt to believe that. Go for it! Do it! Have the conversation. Engage in the conflict instead of always keeping peace. Start the business.

On the heels of the terrible loss of Anthony Bourdain, I feel responsible to point you towards soul food just as much as I do literal food. This past weekend was that for me. In my experience, pulling things out of your head, into the light and looking at them with another perspective, goes a long way towards putting them back under your control rather than the other way around. The internet sells us things all day long; promising things to fix our insecurities. There is quieter messaging about seeking connection, so I'll say this for whomever may need to hear it - invest in the friendships, invite people over, say what you need, spend the money on a therapist, ditch the life sucking boyfriend, take the risk, get down and play.

It's actually pretty difficult to put it all to words honestly, but I'm still riding my high of bringing some power back to me, and I want to give some of that to you. You are enough. You are capable. You are smart and beautiful and worthy.“Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not now look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them. It is a question of experiencing everything. At present you need to live the question. Perhaps you will gradually, without even noticing it, find yourself experiencing the answer, some distant day.”

― Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet BABY KALE SALAD WITH CHERRIES, MARINATED LENTILS + GOAT CHEESE

Serves 2-4

I'm into having a salad special and eating a few days in a row. I prep the components, then it is just ready to throw together with little fuss. In this case, I double up the dressing, cherries pitted and halved, lentils marinated, clean lettuce stocked. Then when it comes to making a salad, it takes 2 minutes instead of starting from scratch.

Swap in peaches for cherries as needed, their seasonal window is short. Grilled salmon or chicken works on here too, otherwise it's great and easy as is.

 INGREDIENTSmaple mustard vinaigrette1 Tbsp. dijon mustard1 Tbsp. maple syrup1 small shallot, minced1/4 cup apple cider vinegar1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil1/2 tsp. sea salt and peppertip of dried herbs - basil, oregano, Italian blend, whatever 1 cup cooked lentils1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar1/3 cup chopped parsley1 garlic clove, mincedsalt and pepper 4 cups/5 oz. baby kale1 cup pitted and halved cherries4 ounces soft goats cheese1/2 cup toasted almonds INSTRUCTIONS

Put all the dressing ingredients in a jar with a lid and shake it all together (I clean out old nut butter and jam jars to store condiments). Set aside.

Mix the lentils, oil, vinegar, parsley, garlic and a generous pinch of salt and pepper together and stir to mix. This can be done a day or two in advance and kept covered in the fridge.

Toss the greens and cherries in desired amount of dressing. Top with a scoop of the lentils, goat cheese and almonds.

Anthony Bourdain was my dad. Not in a biological sense, not in an adoptive sense, not in any familial sense at all. I never met the man; he didn’t know I existed. Such a nonsensical allegation might disqualify any latter statements, and yet I stand by these words. It’s not so much that the man raised me, but that I saw so much of my actual father in him that for many years when I was growing up, hooked on the TV, I subconsciously transposed the two when one or the other wasn’t around.

1995, building a bike

My dad is an incredible man. Deeply intelligent, sarcastic, strong, compassionate, and loving to a fault. He would move the earth for his family, do anything it took to make his children happy. He wouldn’t dote on us because we were too rebellious to allow such an indulgence, but he’s always been the one putting in the hours, working in places with people he’d rather never met, to give us the best life possible. That’s why he was always traveling when I was younger, always on the job, seeing far off lands that I couldn’t begin to imagine.

When I found Mr. Bourdain and his incredible adventures, I felt as if it was some sort of glimpse at my dad’s secret life, of the places he would go when he packed up his bags and climbed into the bulky airport shuttle van once again. Granted, my dad isn’t nearly such a foodie, nor had time to cavort on the streets to seek out such wild exploits. His time was occupied by meetings with professionals in anonymous grey buildings that could have truly been located anywhere in the world. I had no idea, so I made up my own narrative. I wanted to believe that he was having just as much fun, too.



1992, my sister and I pile on

I realize all this in hindsight, as I try desperately to pull apart my intense reaction to the news of Mr. Boudain’s passing. He may not have as many fans within the vegan community, but that’s truly besides the point; it’s downright offensive that anyone could consider this anything less than a tragedy, a horrendous loss of a person with a lot of heart, and sadly, a lot of demons. It’s still hard to accept the fact that he’s gone, that he will never again shed light on a place where no other journalist would dare explore, speak to locals otherwise overlooked, try foods no average American would dream of consuming.

I cling even more tightly to my real father now, despite the physical distance that separates us. We send silly emails back and forth, commenting on ridiculous news stories or funny anecdotes from our days. Nothing big or serious; we rarely even say “I love you” outright, but it’s always implied. I feel so incredibly lucky to have this incredible human being in my life, and the loss of another is a powerful reminder of that.

1989, still new at this



If there’s one thing I ask of you, on this Father’s Day, is to really appreciate all of the fathers in your life. Past, present, honorary, or designated by birth. We need them- I need them- To teach us how to fully live, and to be better citizens of the world.