Monthly Archives: December 2008

Who Put Chocolate in My Gingerbread?

A taste of Christmas with chewy chocolate gingerbread cookies.

Why, Martha Stewart, of course.

Take rich, dark, semi-sweet chocolate chunks. Pair them in a cookie of sticky molasses, ground cloves, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, plus fresh ginger, and you get a cookie that is chewy-licious. It’s like your favorite spicy gingerbread, but with the lushness of good dark chocolate to boot.

Even my husband, who is not always a fan of ginger (what’s up with that?), ate one cookie after another after these babies came out of the oven. See those hands above? Those are his, reaching yet again for another cookie.

“Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies” are from “Martha Stewart’s Cookies” (Clarkson Potter). If you haven’t already heard it by now, it’s become one of my favorite cookie books. I’ve made only about four of its 175 cookie recipes. But don’t be surprised if I bake my way through this book.

I could eat all of these. How about you?

The cookbook is the perfect holiday gift for any cookie-loving friend. Wrap it up with a few home-baked cookies. Well, if you can spare any, that is. In my household, that’s always a tough challenge.

Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

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Restaurant Doings Around the Bay Area

Oakland's new Ozumo (Photo courtesy of Ozumo).

An East Bay outpost of San Francisco’s Ozumo has opened in Oakland at 2251 Broadway. Jeremy Umland,  Japanese professional baseball player turned entrepreneur and Ozumo founder, has created a similar set-up to the San Francisco contemporary Japanese restaurant, with a sushi bar, sake lounge, and robata grill under one roof. Enjoy small plates to be enjoyed individually or family-style.

Executive Chef Jennifer Nguyen, who has worked with famed “Iron Chef” Masaharu Morimoto, oversees it all.

Sip more than 90 different brands of sake, while enjoying yamabuki (uni, shimiji and shiitake mushrooms in a Genmai rice risotto, $12); and slices of hamachi and avocado drizzled with warm ginger-jalapeno ponzu sauce ($18).

Culinary star and Napa Style store-proprietor Michael Chiarello has opened a new restaurant in one of Yountville’s most historic buildings.

Bottega Ristorante, 6526 Washingon St. in the V Marketplace, is all about Chiarallo’s bold, rustic flavors. The 116-seat restaurant, named for the Italian word that means “artist’s workshop,” features Venetian plaster and Murano glass chandeliers.

Take a load off your feet in the glam lounge of the new Bottega Ristorante.

Look for dishes such as veal tortelli in brodo di carne with browned butter and butternut squash ($18), and goat’s milk braised lamb shank with roasted wild mushrooms ($24).

The Stanford Court Hotel in San Francisco debuted its new restaurant earlier this fall, Aurea. Dine in splendor under a Tiffany-style dome atop Nob Hill while enjoying dishes the likes of cioppino with aioli ($25), and stout-braised short rib with mashed potatoes ($26).

Meat lovers will want to check out the new Espetus Churrascaria in downtown San Mateo, a sister restaurant to the original one in San Francisco.

Skewers of meat, 12 to 14 different types, will be brought to your table and sliced onto your plate — until you say stop. Offerings include filet mignon, pork loin with Parmesan, chicken hearts, lamb, housemade sausage, and grilled prawns. Dinner is $49.95; lunch is $23.95 Monday through Friday and $32.95 on weekends.

The price includes a salad- and hot-plate bar that includes rice, beans, sushi, lasagna, and vegetarian dishes.

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And the Winner Is….

New York Chef Eric Ripert and cookbook author Cindy Mushet complete their task of eating 26 different cookies.

There are far worse ways to spend a Saturday morning than judging dozens of cookies with the likes of Eric Ripert, executive chef of New York’s four-star Le Bernardin; Dominique Crenn, executive chef of Luce in the Intercontinental San Francisco; Cindy Mushet, author of the Sur La Table cookbook, “The Art & Soul of Baking”; and Emily Luchetti, executive pastry chef of Farallon, Waterbar and Epic Roadhouse restaurants, all in San Francisco.

In fact, I can’t think of when I’ve had quite so much fun so early in the day.

The five of us braved sugar shock to help judge the 13th annual “Holiday Cookie Exchange” contest that aired live this past Saturday on “Dining Around with Gene Burns” (KGO Radio AM810).

First place to Swedish Pepparkakor.

The contest received a record number of entries. Burns, himself, spent a grueling 13 hours whittling down the 500 entries to a mere 26 finalists.

Even so, you just try tasting 26 cookies in one sitting. It was a tough job, but we five were up to the challenge.

Pastry Chef Emily Luchetti, and Chef Dominique Crenn can't believe they ate so many cookies.

In the end, we chose these four winners:

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Meet Chocolate Experts at Fog City News in San Francisco

Sacarmento's Ginger Elizabeth Hahn

San Francisco’s Fog City News is indeed one of a kind — a Financial District newsstand that sells thousands of magazines, and hundreds of premium chocolate bars from around the world. I call that nourishment for the mind and the sweet tooth.

Bonbons by Ginger Elizabeth Chocolates (Photo courtesy of Ginger Elizabeth Chocolates)

Best yet, the store often hosts chocolatiers to talk about their confections and answer questions. Noon to 2 p.m., Dec. 15, meet 27-year-old Ginger Elizabeth Hahn of Ginger Elizabeth Chocolates in Sacramento. Her handcrafted chocolate bars and bonbons are available exclusively in San Francisco at Fog City News. Some of her signature bonbon flavors include Orange Jasmine Tea, and Caramel Apple Tatin. The event is free.

In 2009, look for more chocolatiers at the store at more free events:

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Deck the Halls With Balls of Chocolate

Which ornaments are edible? Can you tell?

Look closely. Go on.

See those red ornaments above? Yes, they are chocolate. And yes, they are entirely edible, except for the red ribbons they hang from.

These Chocolate Holiday Ornaments are by Portland, Ore.-based Moonstruck Chocolatier. They are hand-painted with naturally colored cocoa butter. And yes, you can actually hang them on your Christmas tree.

I’ll use my patented scale of 1 to 10 lip-smackers, with 1 being the “Bleh, save your money” far end of the spectrum; 5 being the “I’m not sure I’d buy it, but if it was just there, I might nibble some” middle-of-the-road response; and 10 being the “My gawd, I could die now and never be happier, because this is the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth” supreme ranking.

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