Monthly Archives: June 2010

The Long and Short of It

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These long beans, measuring about a half yard in length, are a staple for me in Chinese cooking.

Snipped into manageable lengths, they cook up quickly for all-manner of stir-fry dishes.

But after snagging a couple of bunches recently at my local farmers market, I decided to give them a more Mediterranean treatment.

Cut into about 2-inch lengths and briefly blanched in the microwave, I used them as the basis for a quick salad that also made good use of preserved lemons from my fridge, as well as lemon thyme and lemon verbena, both growing miraculously in my backyard, despite my oft-black thumb. Some chopped parsley, crumbled feta, a squirt of lemon juice, a glug of olive oil, and a grind of black pepper completed it.

The slender,  sturdy long beans have more crunch than regular ol’ slippery green beans on the palate. They also stand up well to the assertive flavors of the salty cheese and preserved lemon.

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Corn Salad to End All Corn Salads

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Forgive me if I sound like a used cob salesman, but “Have I got a corn salad for YOU!”

Let me tell you: I have been making this “Corn, Tomato and Scallion Salad” since it was first published in Gourmet magazine in 2000.

Yes, folks, that’s 10 years of enjoying this corn salad. How’s that for a ringing endorsement?

I make it every summer, at least a couple of times of year. If you’ve been to my house in the summer, you’ve had this salad. I’ve made it so often, I could make it in my sleep.

That’s how easy it is.

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Cookies, Beers, Wines & Winner of the $100 CSN Certificate

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The Cookies:

If you flew on an airplane during the 1980s, chances are you might remember these crisp, little Biscoff cookies that many airlines served back then.

Now, you can enjoy them with both feet planted on the ground, when Biscoff Coffee Corner and Biscoff Coffee Carts open for business at Pier 39 in San Francisco on June 30.

Europeans have long enjoyed these cookies that taste like a cross between a gingersnap and a graham cracker. Last year, Lotus Bakeries North America in San Francisco started baking them for airlines, retail stores and online orders. Now, it has partnered with the Simco Restaurant Group to open the first North American store to sell the cookies, whose name a derivative of “bis”cuit and “coff”ee.

Indeed, that’s how the cookies are intended to be enjoyed — with a cup of joe. So when you purchase any coffee at the cafe or cart, you’ll get a free cookie.

Take a taste on July 8, when Biscoff Coffee Corner will host a grand opening, featuring a cookie juggler and an official cookie-breaking ceremony. Proceeds from all cookie sales that day will benefit the Marine Mammal Center, which helps maintain the healthy sea lion population at Pier 39. Starting July 9, 1 percent of each day’s cookie sales will be donated to the center.

The First Anniversary:

San Francisco’s Thursday Ferry Plaza Farmers Market celebrates just that on July 1 with pinatas, party hats and prizes, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Drop your card into a 5-gallon salad spinner to win a chance at one of 50 prizes, which include tote bags, T-shirts, roasted almonds from Lagier Ranches, and coffee beans from Blue Bottle.

The first 111 people to visit the farmers market information booth that day get a $1 gift coin that can be used towards your next market purchase.

The Brewski:

As the Fourth of July approaches, there’s nowhere better to get into the festive, patriotic spirit than at the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company in Princeton-by-the-Sea.

Throughout July, the brew pub and restaurant celebrates its 10th anniversary with a series of special events.  In particular, July 2-4, the brewing company will feature live music in the evening and a giveaway.

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The Real McCoy

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Yes, this bumpy little root that’s no bigger than my thumb is the real-deal wasabi.

If all that you’re used to is the common toothpaste-like blob of horseradish, mustard and green food coloring found on sushi plates almost everywhere, then you deserve to treat yourself to the real thing.

I picked up this little guy at Nijiya market in Mountain View, where the fresh, very perishable, and very pricey and very difficult-to-grow root can be found regularly in the refrigerator case next to the packages of neatly sliced raw fish.

It’s imported from Japan and sells for $55.99 a pound. Fortunately, this tiny specimen, weighing in at all of .055 of a pound, set me back only $3.08.

With real wasabi, you still get nasal-tingling burn, but not nearly as explosive as that from the imitation paste. In fact, I have no problems eating a little of the grated wasabi root straight. But I’d be hard pressed to do that with the out-of-the-tube stuff without tearing up. With real wasabi, there is more nuance — an almost floral quality and subtle sweetness. It explodes on your palate, but the heat dissipates quickly, unlike the fake stuff.

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Time for Cake, Cheese & Sorbet

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The cakes:

As in cupcakes, whoopie cakes and other classic cakes you’ll find at the new SusieCakes bakery, which has opened its first San Francisco location in the Marina district, a short hop from the Hilton at Fisherman’s Wharf.

This marks the second branch of the Los Angeles bakery, which has opened up North. The first one debuted in January in Greenbrae in Marin County.

The new Marina bakery will celebrate its grand opening on June 26, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., with an old-fashioned sock hop, featuring ’50s tunes, kids activities, a costume contest, tasty treats, and prizes, including a raffle for a one-year membership in the SusieCakes “Cake of the Month” club.

The cheese:

Have you spotted these adorable truncated 1966 VW buses done up to resemble baby loaves of Tillamook cheddar?

My hubby actually saw one recently and had to do a double-take. See for yourself as Tillamook’s “Love Tour” continues through June 25 in the Bay Area.

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