Category Archives: Going Green and Sustainable

First Look at Howie’s Artisan Pizza in Palo Alto

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Dining room and bar under construction. (Photo courtesy of EcoModern Design)

Mark your calendars now. The much anticipated Howie’s Artisan Pizza place is expected to open Nov. 19 in the Town & Country Village in Palo Alto.

Yes, New Haven-style pizza by well-regarded Chef Howard Bulka, former head chef of Marche in Menlo Park and Silks in San Francisco.

Construction is still going on and dishes still being perfected, but here’s a sneak peek at all the work that’s been going on in the once-vacant spot near Sur La Table.

Retro light fixtures in the main dining room. (Photo courtesy of EcoModern Design)

Berkeley’s EcoModern Design is transforming the space with earth tones, exposed timber-frame ceilings, cork walls, bamboo counters with brass inlays, hand-forged iron fixtures, and retro lighting fixtures.

One of the coolest features is the divider between the bar and dining room. It’s made of glass panels filled with olive oil. Yes, really.

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Abalone Amore

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My trophy.

I’ve never hunted anything in my life — unless you count a pair of Prada boots hidden at the bottom of a consignment store bin that was one-third its original price.

The one time I went fishing, I caught zilch.

And me and a wild boar hopefully never will set eyes upon each other in this lifetime or any other.

Still, I do have what I consider a trophy of sorts.

It’s my two abalone shells.

When I wrote a story about abalone a few years ago for the San Jose Mercury News, the proprietors of the California Abalone Co., who sell live ones off a boat in Half Moon Bay, gave me two to try. I carefully put them in my cooler in the back of  the car, and drove home with my precious, expensive cargo.

Mind you, I’ve shucked clams and oysters before, but never an abalone. In researching the article, though, I was able to watch the very talented Chef David Kinch of Manresa demonstrate how to excavate the abalone, with its big, strong, suction-like foot from its single shell.

At home, armed with that knowledge, I did what any smart woman would do: I made my husband shuck them.

Hey, it’s what men are for, right? Well, that and killing big spiders.

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Feel the Love — When It Comes to Sardines

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Are you a sardine lover or hater?

Sardines suffer from a bad rep for the most part.

So many of us have stinky memories of those tiny, pungent fish lurking inside pull-tab tins that our parents or grand-parents forced upon us.

But I’m here to plead with you to give sardines a chance.

At a time when so many other seafood species are on the verge of extinction, sardines are one of the most sustainable fish around. They’re super cheap, and loaded with good-for-you omega-3s, too.

That’s why a local group, whimsically named the “Sardinistas,” is waging a campaign to get you and me to better appreciate this much-maligned fish. Find out more about this group by reading my story in the November issue of San Francisco magazine.

Bay Area chefs already have courted a love affair with sardines. Find fresh ones grilled on many a menu here, their flesh silky and smoky tasting.

Fresh sardines aren’t always easy to come by at local fish markets, though, because the majority caught in Monterey Bay are exported elsewhere.

But canned ones are easily found at any supermarket.

Not only are there sardines in this dish, but anchovies, too.

And even die-hard sardine haters are sure to love them in “Fish Cakes with Caper-Parsley Sauce.”

The recipe, adapted from one published in Gourmet magazine seven years ago, actually has three types of fish in it. And two of them are despised by a good number of folks. Yes, one is the sardine. The other? Anchovy.

But hear me out before you pass judgment.

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Artisan Energy Bars — Say What? Plus Winners of the Food Gal Contest

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A breakfast bar you'll actually enjoy eating.

Remember those energy bars of yesteryear?

You know, the ones you ate because they were compact and handy on those sweaty, strenuous hikes — not because they tasted any good.

Newark, Calif.-based FullBloom Baking Company will erase those unappetizing memories once and for all.

Company founder Karen Trilevsky has created an individually wrapped Toasted Oatmeal Bar that’s made with 12 organic whole grains, plus tart cherries and raisins. It’s a palate-awakening alternative to other breakfast or energy bars on the market.

It’s almost cookie-like in texture, but more crumbly. The oat flavor and texture really come through in this crunchy, buttery bar. It tastes very much home-made rather than mass-produced.

Each 2.5-ounce bar has 350 calories, 18 grams of fat (8 grams of which are saturated fat), 44 grams of carbohydrates, 6 grams of protein, 210 milligrams of sodium, 35 milligrams of cholesterol, and 44 grams of total carbohydrates.

The Toasted Oatmeal Bar joins the 12-Grain Bar released earlier this year. FullBloom will add two more flavors before the end of the year: Cranberry Almond Bar, and Bacon Cornflake (Oh my!).

The bars retail for about $1.49 each. They are available at Whole Foods, Berkeley Bowl, Cosentino’s, and Peet’s Coffee & Tea.

In addition to her baking endeavors, Trilevsky also started a “Smart Cookes Scholarship” to pay for the college education of promising Hispanic youth in the Bay Area. So far, she’s help pay for 57 kids to attend college.

Her baking facility also is in the process of securing LEED platinum certification for adhering to best environmental practices.

Sahale Snacks nut mix.

And now, without further adieu, I’m happy to announce the winners of the latest Food Gal contest, in which I invited all of you to tell me what your nuttiest cooking experience was.

I say, “winners,” because there were so many good ones once again that I decided to award second- and third-place prizes, too. Those winners will receive a cookbook from my vast collection. The grand prize winner will get four bags (2-ounce each) of Sahale Snacks nut blends, three (4-ounce) glazed nuts packages, and a Sahale Snacks apron.

Here are the winners:

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An Autumn Apple Treat

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A crust to bring tears to your eyes. And a filling with a secret ingredient.

We all know it’s what’s on the inside that really counts.

But boy, what’s on the outside sure can titillate, thrill and work us into a frenzy, too.

Oh, come on. You know I’m right.

Take this “Open-Faced Apple Galette with Quince Paste.”

What attracted me in the first place to this recipe from Flo Braker’s “Baking for All Occasions” (Chronicle Books) was what was inside. After the rectangular galette emerges from the oven with its filling of sliced apples, walnuts, sugar, cinnamon and allspice, it cools just until you won’t burn your fingertips. Then, you carefully slip tiny pieces of sweet, deep, rose-colored quince paste between the apple slices.

The quince paste, which you can pick up in the cheese section of any well-stocked grocery store, not only adds color, but a brighter, more complex autumn flavor to this wonderful rustic dessert. I loved the interplay between the sweet-tangy, tender apples (I used Pink Lady ones) and the sticky, gooey sugary quince with its subtle acidic note.

The recipe calls for Golden Delicious, but I used Pink Lady apples.

Yes, I loved the inside. But boy, let me tell you about the outside, too.

It’s a beaut.

Braker, who lives in Palo Alto and has been teaching baking for 35 years, sure knows how to put together a crust.

If there ever was such a thing as a perfect crust, this could be it. It’s very buttery, so crisp it shatters when a fork cuts through it, and so multi-layered flaky that my husband thought it nearly bordered being puff pastry’s more svelte cousin.

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