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Thanksgiving Foodie Supplies

Wednesday, November 17th, 2010

Need a gift for a Thanksgiving host or do you need to make sure your kitchen is stocked for your “Guest Thanksgiving Chef” aka your Mom is in town for Turkey Day.  Here are few beloved finds.

Decorative Pie Crust Cutters:

These make your pies look professional & cute.

Heavy Duty Brining Bags

Seriously handy if you want a moist bird. I’ve looked into alternatives to buying the Brining Bags such as using garbage bags (don’t suggest it when they say, not food safe on the box) or a cooler. One of the best alternatives I have found is the culinary bucket bought at a food supplies store.  Or, you know what, just get one of these bags and call it a day.

Oven-Proof Probe Thermometers

Convenient, especially when many folks are relying on YOUR big bird and you’ve never made one before.

Oh, Last thing - Pie Crust Beads

Are you a Store-Bought or Homemade Pie Crust Chef?

Wild Kenai Red Salmon from Alaska

Friday, February 19th, 2010

A cousin of ours has a family salmon business up in Alaska called Wild Kenai Red Salmon.  They actually shipped us these beautiful frozen and  smoked salmon fillets to try after hearing about our food blog in an annual family Christmas letter.   The fillets were delivered overnight via fed-ex in a Styrofoam cooler, arriving cold and fresh as ever.

We grilled the salmon fillet on a cedar plank with a mild soy-based glaze.

It looks like they have some nice recipes for salmon on their blog too: http://www.wildkenaisalmon.com/blog/

Zach: I have never been a fan of cooked salmon (I prefer it raw).  Nor have I ever had sockeye salmon before.  This fillet knocked my socks off.  It was dense and tasted like a clean ocean spray, not fishy at all.

John: It was amazing how fast the salmon was delivered to us.  The freshness was palpable.  The fresh salmon was better than most cooked salmon I’ve had at restaurants.  The skin was actually edible and did not have that fish-sitting-on-display-all-day taste.

Les: What struck me most about the fillet (delivered frozen) was the amazing color.  I think these fillets would be an amazing foodie gift for friends and family who have it all and love fine foods.

Chinese New Year: The Good Luck Orange!

Saturday, January 30th, 2010

Oranges and tangerines are symbols for plentiful happiness. Tangerines with leaves intact assure that one’s relationship with the other remains secure. The Chinese New Year Flower Market in SF will be selling supplies for the new year starting next Sat. Feb. 6th.

This is a beautiful orange that a friend from Singapore gave me.  I wrote her and thanked her for the beautiful, good luck orange.  She said we were so Chinese!

The San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade & Festivities begin next weekend in Chinatown, Feb. 6th- Feb.27th.

Give an Herb Bouquet!

Friday, January 29th, 2010

An acquaintance brought me this herb bouquet.  I loved it because it is actually functional. Our herbs are prospering at the moment cluing me into the fact that the reason they weren’t doing well last summer was because they needed more H2o!

Cut it Out CA with your Discriminatory Propositions! California Cookie Cutters

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

$1.49 & $1.50 & Wow, $12.95 (+$6 shipping for the copper version)
Now that’s a Super Cheap California Foodie Gift right there!

Tomorrow I will give you my Grandma’s famous sugar cookie recipe.

Cheapskate Foodie Gifts for 2009

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

Wine Thermometer – $7.95 @ Sur La Table

• Requires no batteries and it lists the name of the wines and what temperature range they should be in when served.

San Francisco Bay Area Food Wheel - $12.95 @ Online

• Be an informed farmer’s market shopper and support local farmers rather than always hitting the supermarket. This local food wheel tells you which foods are grown regionally and the time of year that they are in season.

Meyer Lemon Marmalade – $12 @ NapaStyle

• Made from California Meyer Lemons.

Mo’s Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancake Mix
- $12 @ Vosges Haut Chocolat

• Buttermilk pancake mix sprinkled with smoked bacon, sea salt, and milk chocolate candy bar chunks.

Rice Hull Pot Herbs – $13 @ Sonoma Living Green

• Heirloom lavender, mint, lemon basil, garlic chives, or oregano in 100% biodegradable containers that will last indoors or outdoors up to five years.

Sprinkles Cupcake Mix - $14 @ William Sonoma

Chocolate, Red Velvet, Spice, Vanilla, Lemon, Banana, & Pumpkin Flavor

• Sprinkles cupcake bakery originated in Beverly Hills and they now have a bakery in Palo Alto. Their cupcakes are really good!

Revival: Tassajara Bread Cookbook – Used $10-15 @ Amazon Online

• Classic baking cookbook perfect for a young foodie’s collection.

Revival: Chez Panisse Desserts – Used $10.99 @ Amazon.com

• This is another classic cookbook for a new or young California cook’s shelf. What I like about this cookbook is its use of local fruits in the creation of a defined approach to simple but elegant deserts that can be altered seasonally emphasizing fresh and local ingredients. It includes such recipes for meyer lemon soufflé, wild plum sherbet, as well as quince and apple recipes.

Cuisipro Herb Keeper – $20 @ Amazon

• Do your fresh herbs always dry up or go bad before you get to use them?

Truffle & Salt - $22.12 @ SaltWorks.com

• This salt is great on buttered popcorn, mac & cheese, and scrambled eggs.

Big Sur Bakery Cookbook: A Year in the Life of a Restaurant - $26.40 @ Amazon

• This is my favorite new cookbook of this year because of its recipes that utilize local produce and seafood. Now I need to get down to Big Sur and check out the restaurant.