Kids-Love-It Beefy Chili Mac (And So Do Adults)

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Macaroni and ground beef combine with cheese and smoky spices for a one-pot comfort meal.
Macaroni and ground beef combine with cheese and smoky spices for a one-pot comfort meal.

When I was in middle school, my best friend and I would cook dinner together whenever our parents were out spending time with relatives.

Our meal of choice?

Hamburger Helper Chili Macaroni.

We’d tie on aprons and flourish wooden spoons like microphones, pretending we were on our own TV cooking show as we sizzled the hamburger meat, stirred in water, pasta, and the seasoning packet, all the while providing our own commentary along the way.

At the end, like any self-respecting Martha Stewart or Rachael Ray, we dug our spoons in, savored a bite, and flashed the imaginary camera a big contented grin, before bursting into laughter at our hamminess.

Truth be told, that’s probably the last time a box of Hamburger Helper found its way into my kitchen.

But “Kids-Love-It Beefy Chili Mac” had me not only reminiscing about those fond childhood memories, but craving this comforting dish all over again.

The recipe is from the best-selling “Once Upon a Chef: Weeknight/Weekend” (Clarkson Potter), of which I received a review copy. It’s by Maryland-based Jennifer Segal, a classically trained chef and founder of the blog, Once Upon A Chef.

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Dining Outside At John Ash & Co.

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Grapes on the vine at Vintners Inn.
Grapes on the vine at Vintners Resort.

This year, I’m all about the staycation. It may be only a couple hours’ drive away for me, but Sonoma Wine Country sure feels like a real getaway that relaxes and recharges.

When I was invited as a guest for an overnight stay at the Vintners Resort in Santa Rosa, the weather may have been drizzly. But it didn’t put a damper on the time spent at this expansive 92-acre, bucolic, European-style resort with bubbling fountains. Because it’s a little more secluded than other Wine Country properties, there’s a lovely sense of calm that permeates.

One of the best ways to start the morning is to go for a walk around the property, especially on the vineyard trail. There are working vineyards on the property, with the grapes now sold to Kendall-Jackson and La Crema wineries. The gravel trail winds around the rows, which on a fall morning are often veiled by morning mist.

Walking the vineyard trail on the property is a great way to get the blood flowing on a lazy morning.
Walking the vineyard trail on the property is a great way to get the blood flowing on a lazy morning.

Follow the path around to the events center and beyond to find one of the property’s onsite culinary gardens. At this time of year, there is kale, cauliflower and citrus growing abundantly.

Part of the expansive grounds that make up the Vintners Inn resort.
Part of the expansive grounds that make up the Vintners Inn resort.

I snagged a perfectly ripe black Mission fig off a tree to snack on. Shh, don’t tell.

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Nigella’s Chicken In A Pot with Lemon and Orzo

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Cook a whole chicken in a big pot with veggies and orzo for an easy, one-pot meal.
Cook a whole chicken in a big pot with veggies and orzo for an easy, one-pot meal.

This is a dish that serves up a warm, enveloping hug — which is just what you want at this time of year when the winds kick up, the clouds turn more ominous, and the skies dim to black much too soon.

But then again, Nigella Lawson always seems to know what we crave, no matter what time of year or occasion.

Her “Chicken In A Pot With Lemons and Orzo” is no exception.

It’s from her newest cookbook, “Cook, Eat, Repeat: Ingredients, Recipes, and Stories” (Ecco), of which I received a review copy.

If you are especially drawn to Lawson’s personable and downright sensual voice, then you will especially love this book. That’s because each of the recipes is preceded by a page-long introduction in which Lawson explains the dish, often including what inspired it, whether it can be scaled down, and what draws her to certain ingredients used in it. In other words, she makes the dish come to life so vividly that you’ll be hard pressed not to run to the kitchen to make it right then and there.

The book isn’t arranged in the conventional format of “Appetizers,” “Salads,” and “Entrees,” etc. Instead there are headings such as “A Is For Anchovy,” where you’ll find delights such as “Spaghetti with Chard, Chiles and Anchovies” and “Celery Root and Anchovy Gratin”; and chapters such as “A Loving Defense of Brown Food,” which includes recipes for “Marrowbone Meat Sauce” and “Beef Cheeks with Port and Chestnuts.”

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A Visit To The Matheson

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The eating and drinking -- and luscious desserts -- are indeed fine at the new Matheson in Healdsburg.
The eating and drinking — and luscious desserts — are indeed fine at the new Matheson in Healdsburg.

Walking through the doors of the soaring, three-story The Matheson in downtown Healdsburg, which opened this summer, there is no doubt that this place is as personal as it gets for Chef-Owner Dustin Valette.

All you need do is turn your head left and right, as you look high up on the walls. There, you’ll spy the evocative, colorful murals by San Francisco painter Jay Mercado that vividly depict “Sonoma heroes.” Prominent among them are Valette’s father Bob, a recently retired CalFire pilot who helped battle wildfires far and near; and Valette’s French immigrant great-grandfather Honore, who owned the Snowflake Bakery, which nearly a century ago sat on the same site as The Matheson. Lushly hued, they are symbols of a proud family legacy. But one that was almost lost to so-called progress.

More than four years ago, a developer bought this $7.5 million property with its prime location on the square with the intention of leveling everything to build a luxury hotel and condos (priced at $4 million each). Dustin, who opened the popular Valette’s restaurant six years ago on the square, was approached to see if he was interested in building a restaurant on the first floor. Moments after he heard the details, though, he walked out of the meeting.

“I said that I couldn’t be a part of this,” he recounted as we chatted last week. “I couldn’t watch as they tore down something that got my family here.”

View from the mezzanine.
View from the mezzanine.
The mural that pays tribute to Dustin Valette's father, a long-time pilot for CalFire.
The mural that pays tribute to Dustin Valette’s father, a long-time pilot for CalFire.
The mural of Dustin Valette's great-grandfather, who operated a bakery on the site of what is now The Matheson.
The mural of Dustin Valette’s great-grandfather, who operated a bakery on the site of what is now The Matheson.

One of the partners, tech entrepreneur Craig Ramsay, followed Dustin out of the room to ask what the chef would build there instead.

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A Visit to Gold Ridge Organic Farms

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Asian pear apples grown at Gold Ridge Farms. (Photo by Carolyn Jung)
Asian pear apples grown at Gold Ridge Farms. (Photo by Carolyn Jung)

Farmer Brooke Hazen knows every tree planted on his 88 acres in the rolling hills of Sebastopol. Not in the “Hi! How are you?” kind of way, he jokes. But in the truest sense of nurtured familiarity, having planted each and every one of them with the help of only one assistant.

He started his Gold Ridge Organic Farms in 2001 to create an edible wonderland. He’s more than succeeded, growing 13,000 olive trees of Spanish, Italian and French cultivars; 12,000 apple trees of 75 different varieties, including rare heirlooms; and a smattering of citrus, including Blood Oranges and Mandarin-Kumquats. All are grown organically, too.

You may very well know his apples already from his branded bags of Heirloom Apple Blend that are sold at Northern California Whole Foods. These treasure bags can contain such unusual antique varieties as Pitmaster Pineapple that actually tastes like pineapple, and Strawberry Parfait that — yes — tastes like strawberry. Indeed, Gold Ridge is one of the largest heirloom apple growers in California.

Farmer Brooke Hazen. (Photo by Dawn Heumann)
Farmer Brooke Hazen. (Photo by Dawn Heumann)

This month, you can get the opportunity to visit this wonderful farm for the first time.

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