Monthly Archives: October 2011

Chef Sachin Chopra of All Spice Talks About Celebrating Diwali

Posted on by 12 comments

Chef Sachin Chopra, all dressed up for the holiday, puts the finishing touches on a dessert for Diwali.

For Chef-Proprietor Sachin Chopra of All Spice in San Mateo, the celebration of Diwali always has had a special place in his heart.

After all, the joyous Festival of Lights, which starts on Oct. 26, is not only one of the most important Hindu holidays, but also marks the New Year.

It’s a time for gathering with family and friends. It’s a time to illuminate the house with candles. It’s also a major time for sweets.

As champagne is poured to signify important celebrations, sweets play a similar role in Sachin’s native India. They are readily offered to visitors in a warm gesture of welcome.

Candles are lit to commemorate the Festival of Lights.

The chef, who specializes in California cuisine with Indian and global influences, likes to create modern takes on Indian desserts at his year-old restaurant.

Read more

A Pampering Experience at the Farmhouse Inn in Sonoma County

Posted on by 11 comments

Wake up to fluffy oatmeal pancakes with apples at the Farmhouse Inn.

From the moment you arrive at the bucolic Farmhouse Inn in tiny Forestville in the Russian River Valley, you know you will be in good hands.

After all, Charlotte most likely will be the first to greet you.

This is one friendly, adorable black cat you will want crossing your path. The inn’s resident pet, Charlotte, keeps pests in check on the property. But she’s also not above sneaking into your room to take a snooze.

And what rooms these are.

Eighteen rooms, cottages and suites ($345 to $745 a night) dot the property, whose centerpiece is a pale yellow 1873 restored farm house. The farmstead has been owned for the past decade by siblings, Catherine and Joe Bartolomei, whose family has farmed in Sonoma County for five generations. Recently, my husband and I were invited to be guests of the inn for an overnight stay that included dinner at the famed restaurant on the premises.

Although it blends in perfectly with the 1800s property, this barn is a new structure housing gorgeous suites.

The rustic and thoroughly chic look of the suite.

Notice the pillow on the bed that looks like a certain cat?

The room's double-sided fireplace can be enjoyed from the deck, too.

We stayed in an upstairs suite in the newly built barn at the back of the property. The suite definitely has a rustic vibe — but one attuned to Ralph Lauren.  Bright, airy and chic, the suite featured a four-poster bed adorned with a pillow decorated with a black cat in homage to Charlotte, of course. A double-sided stone gas fireplace sat across from the bed and could be enjoyed from the other side outside on the deck, too. The bathroom featured a jetted tub, separate steam shower and radiant heat floors to toast your tootsies on chilly mornings.

Read more

Cookies To Nibble With Wines

Posted on by 13 comments

Enjoy some cookies with that Chardonnay.

Sure, you’ve enjoyed wine with cheese, and wine with chocolate.

Now, get ready for wine with cookies.

Cookies & Corks are bite-size cookies made especially to pair with your favorite varietals. They’re made by CookieZen of Virginia, which was founded by Leah Kuo, who studied pastry at the Cooking & Hospitality Institute of Chicago; Laura Englander, who had a long career in sales and marketing for other companies; and Amy Reilly, a wine expert and cookbook writer.

Each box contains three different types of cookies, each made to pair with specific varietals.

For instance, the Red Wine Pairing Box includes: Espresso Chocolate Peanut Butter, Shortbread, and White Cheddar Rosemary cookies. The White Wine Pairing Box has Peanut Butter Chocolate, Ginger Molasses, and Apricot Sage cookies. And the Sparkling Wine Pairing Box contains Zesty Lemon, Sea Salt Chocolate Oatmeal, and Parmesan Thyme cookies.

Read more

New See’s Chocolate Chips

Posted on by 16 comments

See's makes chocolate chips now. Woo hoo!

Imagine this: See’s Candies and chocolate chip cookies — all in one.

If that doesn’t get your lips smacking, I don’t know what will.

Now, you can enjoy the truly blissful taste of the two together with See’s Candies new semi-sweet chocolate chips. There’s even a cookie recipe included on the back of the package to make baking a batch super easy.

The chips are larger than your usual ones — about 1/2-inch in diameter. What that means is when the cookies come out of the oven, you get so much more ooey-gooey chocolate in every bite.

Bigger than your average chip.

The recipe makes perfect chocolate chip cookies, too — crispy on the edges, chewy in the center and with a load of chocolate chips throughout.

Read more

Lidia Bastianich, Christopher Kimball, Jacques Pepin & Other Top Culinarians Coming to the Bay Area

Posted on by 4 comments

Chef Traci Des Jardins. (Photo courtesy of the chef)

Traci Des Jardins Hosts “Top Chef Masters” Alums Event

All you “Top Chef Masters” fans won’t want to miss a special evening on Nov. 3, when Chef Traci Des Jardins will be joined by four of her former competitors on that show at a gala dinner at her restaurant, Jardiniere in San Francisco.

Joining her will be: Mary Sue Milliken of Border Grill in Los Angeles and Las Vegas; Naomi Pomeroy of Beast in Portland; Floyd Cardoz of North End Grill in New York (and winner of the most recent season of the show); and Suvir Saran of Devi in New York.

The event will benefit the anti-hunger, non-profit Share Our Strength.

A cocktail reception starts at 6 p.m., followed by a multi-course, sit-down dinner.

Tickets to the cocktail party are $150 each. Tickets to the cocktail party plus the dinner are $1,000 each.

Lidia Bastianich Comes to San Rafael and San Francisco

Catch beloved Italian chef and cookbook author, Lidia Bastianich, at two events in the Bay Area.

First up, she will host a cooking demo and book signing at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium in San Rafael at 8 p.m. Oct. 28.

Executive Chef Alan Fairhurst of Scoma’s in San Francisco will kick off the event by demonstrating how to make cioppino. That signature dish will be featured on Bastianich’s new PBS show, “Lidia’s Italy in America!,” which airs at 12:30 p.m. Saturdays on KQED, channel 9.

Following that, Bastianich will take the stage to show how to make a four-course Italian meal, including chicken Sorrentino and zuppa inglese. Best yet, four lucky audience members will be invited up on stage to taste the dishes with Bastianich. Additionally, a raffle will be held to win two different prize baskets — one filled with all of Bastianich’s pastas and sauces, and the other containing signed copies of all seven of her cookbooks, as well as her children’s book.

Read more

« Older Entries Recent Entries »