< Blame it on the Food » 2011 » January
 

January, 2011

...now browsing by month

 

The Penny Ice Creamery in Santa Cruz … in the News!

Monday, January 31st, 2011

After frequenting great, creative ice cream shops across the country such as Jeni’s in Columbus, OH, Sweet Action in Denver, and Humphrey Slocombe in SF we are so glad to have The Penny Ice Creamery in Santa Cruz and we look forward to evolving with them.

The Penny Ice Creamery is a great addition to the very limited Santa Cruz-specific ice cream scene.  Yes, we have Dairy Queen, Cold Stone Creamery, and numerous frozen yogurt shops (I feel embarrassed for even mentioning those at all in the same article) in SC but there is really only one other ice cream shop that is worth writing home about (there is another in downtown SC that I haven’t tried yet).  This of course is the fifty-year old landmark ice cream shop near the boardwalk known as Marianne’s (Macapuno: Creamy baby coconut ice cream is a great flavor).  The Penny is a nice contrast to the famous standard Marianne’s and is completely an artisan shop, home-made and seasonal from scratch.  They currently use about 2,000 organic eggs a week and organic milk in contrast to most ice cream base which is actually almost always purchased from an outside source (there may only be one other ice creamery in CA that makes their own base as well – Sweet rose in Brentwood – don’t quote me on that).  Their flavors are more and more intriguing to me each time I stop in the shop (5 Spice with Fried Peanuts, Banana Toffee, Kiwi Sorbet).  Flavors often incorporate other great local goods such as coffee from Verve and Santa Cruz Mountain Stout.  Online and on facebook you can check out their daily menu of flavors (a flavor is around no longer than six days but usually lasts 4 days) which means they can offer creative and new concoctions all the time and then once you find one you love … let’s hope they bring it back.  They even make their own cones!  I am looking forward to some creative sundaes in the future (such as the seasonal classic Spice Tower from Graeter’s Ice Cream).

The chef and co-owner, Kendra, has been a pastry chef for ten years and worked as a Pastry Chef at Manresa in Los Gatos and Bar Tartine in SF before opening Penny Ice Creamery last year.

In addition, The Penny owners were recently in the news for being personally invited to the White House for making a video entitled “How Recovery Act boosted small biz, an ice cream case study”:

Posted in Eating Out, Santa Cruz | No Comments »
Tags: , , , , ,

Cabbage Salad with Avocado, Toasted Pumpkin Seeds, and Lime Vinaigrette Recipe

Tuesday, January 25th, 2011

A few weeks ago I was inspired to recreate this Mexican salad after I had a version of it at Tacubaya, a tasty upscale Taqueria in Berkeley and the casual sister restaurant to Dona Tomas.  This salad is great because it’s crunchy, tangy, and versatile.  You can eat it on a weeknight as a main dish when you’re on a diet, use it as a base for a taco salad, as a relish for fish tacos or pulled pork sandwiches, or just as a side dish for any Mexican entree such as Chili Rellenos or Enchiladas.

Oh, I got a new photo-toy for photographing food for the blog!  It is called a Photo Softbox Light Tent!  It should be fun to see what we come up with. What do you think so far?

Mixed Cabbage Salad with Pumpkin Seeds, Avocado, and Lime Vinaigrette Recipe

  • 1/2 head red cabbage, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 head green cabbage, thinly sliced
  • 2 cups salad herb mix (any mixed organic salad greens are good)
  • 4 green onions, chopped
  • 3 carrots, shredded
  • 1  red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2  cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • Optional: 1 Jalapeño or serrano chile pepper, minced
  • 1/2 cup Pepitas (pumpkin seeds), toasted
  • 2 Avocados, cut into bite-size pieces

Mix all Cabbage ingredients in a large salad bowl.  Toss salad well with Lime Vinaigrette.  Put the dressed cabbage mixture on each plate and top with toasted Pepitas and sliced avocados.  Serve!

Lime Vinaigrette Recipe:

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar OR red wine vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Salad Description @ Tacubaya:

Ensalada de Primavera- mixed greens, shredded cabbage, carrots, red onion and avocado tossed in a lemon vinaigrette, sprinkled with toasted pumpkin seeds.

Posted in Home Cookin', Salad | 1 Response »
Tags: , ,

Santa Cruz in the News: Our Favorite Santa Cruz Restaurants (to date)

Sunday, January 23rd, 2011

36 Hours in Santa Cruz – from the NYTimes

Lots of Santa Cruz folks wrote-in comments on this article with their picks for their favorite restaurants in Santa Cruz.  One person said the NY Times list of restaurants was a bit outdated.  This got us thinking about our favorite restaurants in Santa Cruz and has also inspired us to try a couple of reader recommended spots that we haven’t been to yet.

Our Favorite Breakfast Spots in Santa Cruz:

  • Cafe Brasil - Banana Pancakes, Acai Bowl, & Feijoada (long waits on weekends).
  • Zachary’s - Best Burger in SC (Gourmet Burger w/ Avocado & Bacon), Mike’s Mess, Sourdough Pancakes, & Fresh Baked Goods.
  • Silver Spur – South of the Border Scramble (get their homemade salsa on the side) & Daily Special Baked Muffins (not Open Sundays).

Best Splurge in Santa Cruz:

  • Cellar Door Cafe – Awesome small plates (Smoked Fingerling Potatoes & Brussel Sprouts with smoked Chevre and Cider) & nightly Prix-Fixe Dinner – all local and daily changing seasonal menu.
  • Ristorante Avanti - Great California-Mediterranean inspired local and seasonal menu (such as Dungeness Crab Cakes OR Manchego Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms & Homemade Pappardelle and Baked Marin Sun Farms Meatballs).
  • Soif - Nice Wine Bar downtown with tasty small plates (Piquillo peppers stuffed w/ Manchego cheese).

Casual Spots:

  • Dynasty – Mandarin/Szechuan Cuisine in Capitola (not the village).  We order the Mushu Pork and Beef with Zilan and the complimentary peanut celery appetizer is good too.
  • El Palomar Taco Bar - Freshly cooked meat for tacos in Downtown. Check out Taco Tuesday.
  • Tortilla Flats Located in Soquel, is inspired by French and Mexican Cuisines, and has been a local favorite for over 25 years.
  • Smoqe – A BBQ and Wood Fired Pizza restaurant just off the freeway, south of Santa Cruz in Aptos.
  • I will add more spots onto this as I think of them!

Best Coffee:

  • Verve – Superb light roast coffee made by an award-winning Barista. Also try the Bowl of Soul Tea (Tea steeped in steamed soy milk and honey). Great vibe too.
  • Casalegno’s Coffee Bar w/ Ugly Mug Coffee – If Chris is working ask him to make you his coffee specialty!

Favorite Desserts & Bakeries:

  • Chocolate - Downtown Santa Cruz – LOVE their dark chocolate gelato hot fudge sundae – for Chocolate Lovers, you will LOVE it!
  • Penny Ice Creamery – Organic Ice Cream Shop with very unique flavors that change almost daily.  Many of the flavors are often reflective of Santa Cruz (Verve Coffee Flavor, SC Brewery, Organic/Local Fruits).
  • Marianne’s Ice Cream – This is a nostalgic, classic ice cream shop with lots of flavors on your way to or from the beach in Santa Cruz. I like the Macapuno, Creamy baby coconut ice cream which is not an ice cream I would have ever thought I would like (it’s not chocolate).
  • Gayle’s Bakery - Located in Capitola – Love their Princess Cake for Birthdays (Three layers of vanilla genoise cake ~ layers of pastry cream, raspberry jam & whipped cream inside ~ pastel marzipan shell outside ~ sprinkled with powdered sugar ~ topped with a fresh rose)!
  • Kelly’s French Bakery - Love their Macaroons.  Great area to hang out in over in Swift Street Courtyard.  There are wine tasting rooms, the Santa Cruz Brew Pub, Bonny Doon/Cellar Door Cafe, a Clothing Shop, Knitting Shop etc…)
  • The Buttery – Can’t forget the Buttery. They are packed with orders around every single holiday!

Favorite Spot for Cocktails:

  • 515 Kitchen & Cocktails – Love their Signature 515 Pomegranate Margarita (cazadores tequila, la pinta tequila, lime, pama liqueur, patron citronge liqueur, sugar rim)! 515 is kind of loungy and a great spot to enjoy cocktails with friends or lovers.

—

These are favorite restaurants mentioned in the Comments about the NY Times Article: Click to continue »

Posted in Around California, Eating Out, Santa Cruz, Where the Locals Eat | No Comments »
Tags: , ,

Herb Salad Mix & North African Lemon Dressing Recipe

Saturday, January 15th, 2011

Are you still on your New Year health kick?  We have been able to keep our food baby bellies pretty quiet so far even though we have cut back on carbs and booze.   The reason we have been able to keep the grumbling to a minimum is because we haven’t sacrificed flavor for healthy food, this time around anyways!  This recipe is a perfect example of flavor trickery on your health-o-meter.

This is one of those recipes that we just added to our, “Impress your Friends at a Dinner Party, Recipe Card Box” because it is that good!

Over the holidays we made this North African Lemon Dressing from the Tassajara Cookbook and paired it with a Mixed Herb Salad and served it with a Foret Saison Farmhouse ale.   I had read that you should pair Saison Farmhouse ale with spicy sausages and meats.  For a vegetarian pairing I picked this salad recipe because of the spice kick to the dressing, from the cayenne, and it did hold its own with a great Belgian beverage.

North African Lemon Dressing Recipe

Click to continue »

Posted in CSA Food Box Recipes, Home Cookin', Salad | 3 Comments »
Tags: , , ,

Santa Clara Native: A Local Eat & Special Treat

Thursday, January 13th, 2011

Santa Clara Native: Where the Locals Eat

  • Name: DP “DareBear” – 3rd or 4th Generation Californian + First Gen. Chinese
  • Occupation: Bartender & Graphic Design Student
  • How long he’s lived in San Jose: More than 20 years!
  • Favorite Local Eat and Treat: Family Birthdays Celebrated @ Okayama Restaurant
  • Location: Japantown, San Jose

“DareBear” always takes girls for first dates to Okayama!  Then they fall in love, and with the way the story was told to me, with the restaurant anyways.  Okayama Restaurant, family owned and operated in Japantown since 1967 (one of last three historical Japantowns remaining in the US),  is also DP’s family’s favorite place to go for special occasions, particularly birthdays (they give special treatment for birthdays).  They always call ahead for reservations because it can be crowded.  DP and his sister both order the Beef Teppanyaki.  His mom gets the Soup with Tofu, his brother orders the Chicken katsu (Hawaiian Dish), and his father likes the Beef Teriyaki.  DP remembers as a kid being served otter pops on his birthday and says adults got green tea ice cream.  On their website I noticed that they offer a free birthday lunch or dinner with your ID for a party of 4 or more.

565 N 6th St Ste A
San Jose, CA 95112

(408) 289-9508

*free parking

Posted in Eating Out, South Bay - Silicon Valley, Where the Locals Eat | No Comments »
Tags: , , , , , , ,

Our Best of 2010 … from Zach, John, & Les!

Sunday, January 9th, 2011

Zach’s Best of 2010 List:

  1. Favorite Cocktail: Vieux Carre @ Alembic in the Haight, SF
  2. Favorite Wine: Storrs 2009 Chardonnay & David Bruce 2007 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir (Santa Cruz Mountains)
  3. Favorite Beer: Drake’s Hopocalypse Draft (American Double / Imperial IPA- 9.25% ABV) in San Leandro, CA & Russian River Brewing’s Compunction Draft (Blonde Ale with Pluots (Apricot/Plum hybrid) aged in Chardonnay barrels . 5.80% ABV) in Santa Rosa
  4. Best Meal: Tantanmen @ Halu Ramen in San Jose
  5. Best Burger: The Ring of Fire Burger @ Seabright Brewery in Santa Cruz (Grilled jalapenos, pepper jack cheese, with chipotle aioli on the side. Served on a Jalapeno cheddar bun.)
  6. Favorite Recipe: Jamie Oliver’s American Chopped Salad – “I could eat it all day, everyday.” – Zach

John Best of 2010 List:

  1. Favorite Cocktail Recipe: Angostora Sour, Created by Kirk Estopinal of the New Orleans bar Cure, it is a refinement of an old Charles Baker creation. We got the recipe from the NY Times “Every Holiday Party, the Right Drink.”
  2. Favorite Beer: Oud Beersel Oude Gueuze Vieille (a more affordable and possibly easier to find Gueuze) – Gueuze is a type of Lambic, Belgian Beer. We bought this one from 41st Avenue Liquor Store in Santa Cruz.
  3. Favorite Beer Bars: This year we were fortunate enough to visit four great Beer Bars or Breweries and this meant we were able to knock off a couple of our BITF Bucket List notches for sure: Drakes (San Leandro, CA), Russian River Brewery (Santa Rosa, CA), Beer Revolution (Oakland, CA), & Ebenezer’s Pub (Lovell, Maine).
  4. Favorite Recipe: Thomas Keller’s Fried Chicken from the Ad Hoc at Home Cookbook


Les Best of 2010 List:

  1. Favorite Cocktail: Big Nose Goes to Mexico Cocktail @ Maya Restaurant in SF, (Blanco & Repisado Tequila w/ Guava Puree, Hibiscus Salt on the rim and a Lime half floating on top w/ 151 rum in it, then they light it on fire!)
  2. Favorite Beer: Saison du Buff, on-tap @ Bodega in Columbus, OH (A Saison/Farmhouse Ale that was brewed in collaboration between Dogfish Head, Stone Brewing Co. (Escondido, CA), and Victory Brewing Company (Downington, PA – 6.80% ABV).
  3. Favorite Wine: Burrell School, 2007 Estate Merlot – “Honor Roll” – Santa Cruz Mountains
  4. Favorite New, My First Sip: Ice Cider in Quebec City on Isle de Orleans
  5. Favorite Non-Alcoholic Drink: Verve Coffee in Santa Cruz, Bowl of Soul Tea (Tea steeped in steamed soy milk and honey).
  6. Favorite Food Blogs: 101cookbooks (for consistently good & healthy vegetarian recipes) & SeriousEats (great, inspiring articles with lots of variety and constant updates) & KelliesBelly (Kellie lives in Maine and is awesome with seafood at home and family recipes.)
  7. Best Out-of-Town, Exotic Meal: Kihachi, Columbus, OH (A very special Japanese restaurant that Anthony Bourdain re-introduced us to via Columbus, OH’s awesome RestaurantWidow.com food blog.  Read: “How it Came to be that Bourdain ate at Kihachi.”
  8. Favorite Recipe: Lemon Lentil Soup with Spinach from Fresh Food Fast Cookbook – Tastes great, easy to make, and it’s healthy – what more can you ask for!
  9. Favorite Crowd Party-Pleaser Recipe: Al Pastor Recipe – We got a lot of compliments on this recipe that we made from the LA Times.  You can cook it ahead, keep it in a crockpot and serve it as a taco bar.
  10. Best Way to Learn How to Cook: Sign up for a CSA Food Box (Community Supported Agricultural Food Box – Locally grown seasonal fruits & veggies picked up and devoured, after you figure out how to cook it, each week.)  Live Earth Farms in Santa Clara County, San Mateo County, Santa Cruz County, & Monterey County.

Posted in Food Roundup | 3 Comments »
Tags: ,

A Fresh Start for the New Year: Lemon Lentil Soup with Spinach Recipe

Tuesday, January 4th, 2011

I was introduced to this Lemon Lentil Soup with Spinach recipe (from Fresh Food Fast Cookbook) last year by our Aunt who consistently makes great vegetables and vegetarian soups and sides.  She cooks at home a lot and finds recipes that make healthy vegetables the star.  Her soups and sides are often packed with unique flavor and each dish is so different from the next, a Northern California Slow Food Movement kind of approach.  You know on Sundays, when you go out for a big brunch, afterward you feel so full (and full of guilt) that you think there is no way you will ever overcome it.  Well, the meals Anne creates on Sundays are the kind that get you ready for a new and healthy start to your overwhelming week ahead, a “Blameless on the Food” meal if you will!

Last year she made this Lemon Lentil Soup with Spinach a lot and added a nice touch to the end by serving it with a dab of sour cream and some fresh chopped herbs on top.   I’ve gotten better at looking at recipes and guessing whether it would be worth making, or at least I thought I had.  I have to say, this recipe surprised me because I thought it looked skimpy on flavor-punch.  So if I hadn’t had it prepared for me first, I would have never guessed it would be one of my favorite recipes of 2010!

Some favorite Vegetarian Cookbooks that Anne introduced me to are:

Lemon Lentil Soup with Spinach Recipe

Click to continue »

Posted in CSA Food Box Recipes, Home Cookin', Soup | 2 Comments »
Tags: , , ,