Zach says their Apricotology (aka Apricot Fritter) is the best doughnut he has had in his life.  This is a bold statement coming from Zach.  So it must be at least pretty good because he is picky!

So which came first, Voodoo Doughnut in Portland, Oregon with their punk rock concoctions OR Psycho Donut in Campbell, CA?  We have tried Voodoo Doughnuts maple bacon doughnut and it was good but Portland is a pretty far drive from SF.  So when we came across Psycho Donut in San Jose/Campbell we were pleasantly surprised with their creative and funky doughnut creations.  They also have some pretty interesting illustrations and street art decorating their walls.

What we love: Apricotology and the Butter Finger Doughnut (chocolate cake doughnut)

http://www.psycho-donuts.com/

I have craved this meal ever since living with Israelis.  I searched the internet for the potato dumpling recipe but couldn’t seem to find it because I couldn’t remember the exact name of the dish.  Then I finally found a Polish Potato Dumplings recipe and a Czech version, pretty soon this one popped up and it was right on!

To Recipes >

Chicken Schnitzel

• 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, pounded
• 1/2 cup all-purpose white flour
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup bread crumbs (we used German Breadcrumbs from Esther’s German Bakery in Los Altos, CA & Mt. View, CA)
• Paprika, garlic powder, salt, pepper and parsley to taste
• lemon
• oil for frying

Place the chicken breasts between wax paper and pound the chicken to ¼” thick on a cutting board with a meat tenderizer.  Coat the chicken breasts in the flour. Then dip them in the egg mixture and coat with breadcrumbs.  Heat oil over medium high heat until hot.  Then add the breaded chicken breasts and coat one side with garlic powder, paprika, salt, pepper and parsley.  Fry each side of the chicken breast until golden brown about 2-3 minutes per side.  Cut it open to make sure it is cooked through.  Squeeze some lemon on top and serve!

Potato Dumplings

• 2 cups potatoes, cooked, cooled, mashed or riced
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup flour
• butter
• bread crumbs

Combine cooked, mashed, cooled potatoes with eggs.  Add the flour and continue to mix. Keep adding additional flour to get dough stiff and thick enough to roll into 1” balls (you must flour your hands for this part).  Boil water.  Add the balls to the boiling water and boil until the dumplings float about 8-12 minutes.  Taste the dumplings to make sure they are cooked all of the way through and then heat butter in a skillet. Add the dumplings and sprinkle bread crumbs on top.  Once fried to a golden brown transfer the balls to a paper towel lined plate and let cool a bit.

Serve the potato dumplings with ketchup and the chicken schnitzel.  Israeli salad is also a nice addition to the meal!

Easy & Enjoyable Saturday Afternoon at the Burrell School Winery

• Great Deck & View: You can buy a bottle of wine and sip it on the deck at Burrell School Winery with friends.  The view is beautiful and looks out over the vineyard towards the Monterey Bay.  Open Thursday through Sunday, 11am to 5pm.

• Short Weekend Drive: 25 minute south of San Jose, 15 minutes south of Los Gatos

• $5 Tastings or Buy a Bottle to share on the deck

• Free Tastings for You & Three Friends when you are a Wine Club Member: If you are a member you pay $70 for three bottles four times a year.  With this you receive free tastings including three guests and often can enjoy pick-up parties in the garden when you stop by for your wines.  We do this often when friends are visiting from out of town or even on Friday afternoons.

Summit Road Wine Tour Idea after the jump…

Quick Saturday Afternoon Santa Cruz Mountain Wine Tasting Day Trip

• Easy Three-Winery Tasting Tour: 15 Minutes from Los Gatos

Santa Cruz Mountain Wineries: http://www.scmwa.com/

Summit to See Wine Trail: http://www.summittoseawinetrail.com/

Stop #1:

Regale Winery: http://www.regalewine.com/

Daily Selection: $10 tastings for 5 wines, exquisite view and interesting mural painting in new structure

Winemaker’s Selection:  flight of six wines, with an emphasis on Pinot Noirs and Cabernets, for $15.

NOTE: You are welcome to purchase wine by the glass or a bottle to share and spend some time enjoying our beautiful Italian inspired decor. Picnics are welcome with wine purchase.  The Bocce Ball court is available on a first come, first served basis.  We ask that you limit play to one hour if some one is waiting to play.

Our tasting room is open Saturdays and Sundays from Noon to 5:30 p.m.  Please call (408) 353-2500 or CLICK HERE for reservations.

Stop #2:

Burrell School Winery: http://www.burrellschool.com/

Cute tasting room next to the old school house and a great deck to sip your wines

Thursday through Sunday, 11am to 5pm.

Stop #3:

Loma Prieta Winery: http://www.lomaprietawinery.com/

26985 Loma Prieta Way – Los Gatos, CA 95033

OPEN for Passport Days the third Saturday of January, April, July, and November, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (open other Saturdays sometimes as well)

On our way to Sur Le Table in LG this weekend we decided to walk into the Icing on the Cake Bakery to see what pumpkin items they baked this fall.  Lucky for us, we found the Harvest Moon moist pumpkin cookie with an orange glaze.  Other fall themed treats were a Buttery Pumpkin Muffin with Cream Cheese Icing, Pumpkin Loaf, and Pumpkin Pie Bars with a Shortbread Crust.  They also had their popular cookie, the Brownie Pecan Chunker.  The Harvest Moon and Brownie Pecan Chunker cookies were sinfully tasty and well worth the $5.25 we paid for the two.  I was delighted by the variety and selection of amazing looking baked goods.

I had remembered the recipe for their Chocolate Cherry Chunk cookie from the July 2008 Bon Appetit magazine R.S.V.P./Readers’ Favorite Restaurant Recipes and decided to google it: http://pinkstripes.wordpress.com/2009/04/20/cherry-and-chocolate-chip-cookies/ This cookie has alcohol-soaked dried cherries with semi-sweet chocolate chunks.

http://www.icingonthecakebakery.com/

Bakery Hours:
Tuesday-Saturday 9am-6:00pm
Sunday 9am-3pm
Monday CLOSED

What does this have to do with tomatoes?  Well, nothing really.  You’ve probably been looking for a cheesesteak sandwich in the Silicon Valley that makes you feel like you’re back in Philly cheering on the Eagles, Phillies, Flyers, or 76ers.  Though it was somewhat difficult to find while driving on Saratoga Ave., it is not difficult to find a person who knows or a website that talks about Amato’s.

Amato’s is the not-so-secret secret place to find un-PC piles of meat, served in belly-busting sizes sure to satisfy even a Mr. Creosote in your posse.  There are three sizes, the shorty, the half and the whole.  Do not fool yourself into thinking a shorty is small, it is described on the menu as 7″ long, yet it is nearly the size of a Subway foot-long (with way more meat).  The “half” is 12″ and the whole is 18″.  The bread is fresh and tasted like it was baked the day we ate it.  There are a few different condiments you can order or grab for yourself; we indulged with some cherry peppers, but decided against the “whiz” on this trip.

www.amatoscheesesteaks.com [this link did not work when we tried it]

John: I got the shorty original cheesesteak and was pleased with the freshness of the bread and the amount of cheesy meat filling it.  My only regret about my cheesesteak was that i didn’t partake in any sort of dipping enjoyment.  The flavor was delicious, but the bread could have used a little (to steal Zach’s comment) more grease.  Next time I may ask for my bread to be put on the grill to soak up a little magic.  I also took a bite out of the buffalo chicken sandwich, which was a satisfying flavor for a buffalo chicken sandwich, much better than Subway’s current $5 footlong offering.

Zach: I’ve had a few cheesesteaks in my day and a few in Philly even.  The ingredients were good and I liked their hot peppers a lot but the cheesesteak was way too dry and more grease was in order.  The ingredients were good so it’s a real shame but a real Philly should render a brown bag translucent but there was hardly enough moisture to chew the thing. I’m not sure what John means about dipping but I think he might be confusing a Philly with a French dip.  I actually would have enjoyed a combination of the two as sacreligious as that is to say but in this case it would have been welcomed. Just fyi, Some locals in Philly put coleslaw on their cheesesteaks and I personally love coleslaw on just about any sandwich.