Chocolate Chip Cookies...in not so much moderation

Everything in moderation.  Including moderation…

Maybe it's something to do with training tirelessly for a ½ ironman last weekend or maybe it's to do with the fact that I am headed to Africa for a month where there I am sure to go through a major food withdrawal…but in the past few weeks, I have basically eaten my weight in food. I’m eating like it's going out of fashion.

And the number one tasty food on my list currently…chocolate chip cookies.

Who ate all the cookies in the cookie jar? Jenny ate all the cookies in the cookie jar.

I've been making these cookies for ages and it was love at first sight when I saw these wee little morsels of delight come out of the oven the first time years ago. They've become my go-to cookie recipe when I need to whip up a baked good in a hurry or I have a pint of vanilla ice cream that needs a warm gooey friend.  Or just when I'm craving cookies.  These puppies are dangerously delicious and so addictive I’ve made 3 batches in the past week. Yep…3.

But, don’t be alarmed…they are not all for me. My bestest friend Sarah is selling them are her new shop, Mission Cheese (you may remember from my previous blog and I sure hope you have been by to try it by now…best cheese shop on this side of the Mississippi). $2 for happiness! And happiness is what you will get!

Chocolate chip cookies are the cure to any bad day or any long day. They can warm the heart and bring a smile to even the darkest or sternest of faces…guaranteed. No matter what has gone on in my day…I come home and bake cookies and I am removed, for the time, from the worries and the stress of it all. There is only one goal…chocolate chip cookies…and I know I can not fail…and it feels good…real good.

So…what’s the trick to delicious chocolate chip cookies you ask? Do I have some sort of very special secret ingredient? No is the answer…not really.

The trick is…creaming your butter and sugar…and I mean really really creaming it. I have said it before and I will say it again…in any baking recipe, the first thing you do is cream your butter and sugar for about 10 minutes…until it becomes light in color and very fluffy.

Oh…and of course…the other trick is to add a whole lot of LOVE. But, I am sure you have that covered.

So, roll up your sleeves, break out your flour, leave the negativity at the door, and turn on the oven…bake some cookies people…bake some darn cookies…the world needs more cookie loving people filled with warm gooey love.

Jenny Lou’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks, 1/2 pound) butter, softened (not melted in microwave, but softened to room temp)

3/4 cup granulated [white] sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

2 cups (12-ounce package) of semi-sweet chocolate chips (and don’t use Nestle folks…that chocolate sucks…it really does…sorry to say. I use Guittard.)

Preheat oven to 350

CREAM the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar in a large bowl for about 10 minutes.

Gently WHISK the eggs and vanilla in a small bowl until combined…then slowly add (about a Tablespoon at a time) to the butter mixture and mix fully after each addition.

COMBINE flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in small bowl and then gradually beat into wet ingredients.

STIR in chocolate chips. (as a small note…I do not like to use the whole bag of chips, because I personally think that makes for too many chips in my cookie…but add as much as you like).

Drop by rounded tablespoon onto cookie sheet…and pop in the oven for about 10 minutes.

Easy as pie…but even easier than pie.

A man walked into Sarah’s shop the other day…bought a cookie…and then returned to say, “That was the best cookie I have ever had.” And…that made me feel good…just to bring that one happy moment to one man is well worth it. 

So…to all you cookie bakers and lovers out there…savor the moments of happiness. 

Racing For a Reason

The food isn’t everything…at least not always.

Sometimes, it is more about the people and the moments you share over a meal than the actual food itself.

So...while I will get back to the food in subsequent blogs, I want to share some personal moments of light and inspiration…

This past weekend, I shared one of the more memorable meals I have had in a long time. Not memorable food wise…but memorable because of the moments shared within that meal that truly nourished my soul.

On Friday, I made my way down south for Wildflower Weekend…one of my favorite weekends of the year. The AVIA Wildflower Triathlon, held at the Lake San Antonio Recreation Area, consists of three separate, fiendishly difficult triathlon events, wrapped around a fun exposition and some great camping. Not only is it one of the toughest long-course triathlons on the circuit, it is unique in the fact that everyone, athletes and spectators alike, have to camp out for the weekend around the lake…creating this amazingly spirited and supportive environment.

This particular Wildflower race was an especially fun and inspirational one.

In 1998, Page Bertelsen, a friend and fellow triathlete, was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells. In 2000, she received a bone marrow transplant that saved her life.

While I had come for the competition, my pre-race dinner with Page and crew on Friday evening quickly turned into the most memorable part of my weekend. I was honored to attend a dinner hosted by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society  (LLS) where hundreds of triathletes gathered to celebrate raising over $800,000 to fund cancer research and support services for patients battling leukemia and lymphoma…patients just like Page.

The highlight of this dinner was when Page and a handful of fellow cancer survivors were asked to come to the front and address the crowd…sharing their personal stories of perseverance and survival. As the crowd rose to their feet to celebrate these survivors, I couldn’t help the tears from rolling down my face. That moment and those emotions are hard to put into words. Seeing 100’s of people cheering for Page…most of whom had probably never raced in anything ever before, but had tirelessly trained their bodies and raised money to continue to the work of LLS…was nothing short of remarkable. They were there…about to race in one of the toughest triathlons around…and they were doing it for Page and for all of the Page’s out there.

In that moment and for the remainder of the weekend, it became more than a sport to me….it became more than just my own individual pursuit for glory…for placing in my age group or getting a personal record…it become something bigger…we were all in this together.

I looked over at David (Page’s amazingly supportive boyfriend and dear friend of mine)…the tears rolling quietly down his face and all I could say was, “We are going to nail this race tomorrow, David. We are going to nail it for Page.”

And we did.

And Page did.

Triathlons are an immensely grueling individual sport. Grueling physically…but even more grueling mentally. There were moments out on the course Saturday when I wanted to quit…when the head wind picked back up on mile 50 of the bike…when the sun had sucked up every last drop of energy I had…when the non-stop hills on the run took the wind right out of me…but I did not quit. I kept pushing forward. I thought of that dinner the night before. I thought of Page out there on the course kicking a**. I thought of all those people out there racing for their “cause”, whatever it may be, and those that were racing for Page. And I could not quit.

People often ask me why I race. I race because I enjoy pushing my mind and body to the limits. I enjoy the moments where there is pain and darkness and weakness and I must find the strength to carry on. These are the moments, for me, that build heart and character…the moments where I dig deep to find inspiration. Everybody races for different reasons…but that is why I race. And in the darkest and most painful of moments this past Saturday…I was inspired by Page and her success in fighting cancer…and not just surviving, but racing in long course triathlons.

And so…8 GU packets, 3 Gatorades, 2 bottles of Endurox, 3 Clif Bars, 3 water bottles, and one packet of Shot Blocks later…I crossed the finish line of the 2011 Wildflower ½ ironman with a personal record and in top pack of my age group.

And, even more importantly, I got to meet my friends David and Page at the end of the race for a hug and I was reminded of a quote from Nelson Mandela:

“As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.”

So here’s to you David and Page…for inspiring me and for being the best darn racing buddies a girl could ask for. And to the rest of the crew (James, Ryan, Amanda, Derek, Dawn, Heather, Russ, Stephanie)…you are the most amazing racers, cheerleaders, costume wearers, post-race meal cookers, swimmers, runners, dancers, high-fivers, picture takers, whiskey drinkers in all the world. It was an honor…and a pleasure. (Just don’t judge me for getting the uncontrollable hick-ups after drinking one beer post race ;)

To many more races to come…I will savor the moments!

3 po-boys, 2 beignets, a muffaletta and a wedding

True love.

It is the means by which the world is enjoyed: our love to others, and others' love to us.

In the past 3 whirlwind days…my cup overfloweth with love…true love...for the wedding of two beautiful souls and for a city.

Kris Harrison and Judy Kim. Theirs is the kind of love that spanned the globe and back again. The kind of love that knows no boundaries or borders. And the kind of love that has no limit to it’s endurance.

I remember, very well, Kris telling me some years ago about a girl he met in Hong Kong while traveling. I remember him telling that she was living in New York and how he had traveled from San Francisco to meet her there for their first official date and that they were going to meet in Las Vegas for a weekend. And I remember thinking, “wow, he is all in on this one.” And that’s Kris…an all in kind of guy…and that’s why I love him. 

He knew that Judy was it…she was his “queen of queens”, as he so eloquently stated during their beautiful vows this past Saturday.

And Judy…what a lucky guy that Kris is. What a lady…a caring, thoughtful beauty (inside and out) who takes as good care of Kris as he takes care of her. His true equal…a partner in life in every way. From the minute I met her, I knew this lady was special and that we would be fast friends...and that’s exactly what happened (lucky me too!).

Their journey went from Hong Kong…to traveling back and forth across the great 50 states to be together…to Kris picking up and moving to New York to be with Judy…to them picking up and moving, together, back to San Francisco this past winter (which I was pretty darn excited about).

And finally, to New Orleans, Louisiana.

Ah New Orleans. My dear city full of soul. It’s the kind of place where, no matter the time, the faint sound of jazz floats gently through the air, ruffling the willow trees and tickling your senses. It’s the kind of place that will renew your spirit. It will put a tear in your eye and a smile on your face at the same time. It will make you dance and sing with reckless abandon. And, of course…EAT you’re your face off.

As some may know, I grew up in the south. And you may also know that you can take the girl out of the south, but you most certainly cannot take the south out of the girl. New Orleans is just the perfect amount of southern hospitality and comfort to make me feel right at home.

Kris is a fellow foodie…so it’s really no wonder that we are a) friends and b) that Kris and Judy chose New Orleans for the location of their wedding.

The wedding gift waiting for me in my hotel room upon arrival says it all: my very own “KRUDAT”. A Judakris (their official nickname) made booklet, modeled after the Zagat guide, covering Kris and Judy’s “favorite and most memorable restaurants (and more) from around the world.” Complete with detailed ratings and symbols describing the atmosphere, cost, cuisine, food, and experience of over 100 places Kris and Judy love around the globe. The intro to the booklet concludes by saying, “ Hopefully, you are reminded of the good times you were present for and are inspired to either return or visit the spots you haven’t yet made it to.” I mean…all I can say is…AWESOME. NAILED IT!

Being that my time was short this trip (I only had Saturday- Sunday morning), I had to pack in my New Orleans food consumption, which, being a city so full of delicious tasty morsels, I had to choose wisely.

First up…The great New Orleans po-boy adventure:

I started out Saturday morning with one mission…to find New Orlean’s best po-boy. I asked around, read some articles, did my research and found out, rather quickly, that the opinions are quite varied on which po-boy shop is the “best”. So…being my determined foodie self…I narrowed down my options to 3 places and set out on my adventure. And yes…I ate 3 po-boys (well at least some of each of them). But, don’t worry…I got myself good and ready with a pre-po-boy 12 mile run!

Po-Boy #1: Mahoney’s Po-Boy shop.  Ok, so here’s the deal…the po-boys here are expensive (we are talking $16 for my 6 inch po-boy) and the kitchen is slow (took 30 minutes to get my po-boy…which is quite long for a sandwich joint). But…my grilled gulf shrimp po-boy with fried green tomatoes and house-made remoulade was DELICIOUS. The shrimp were large, juicy, and perfectly grilled, my tomatoes were HUGE (albeit a little too hard and lacking juiciness) and the housemade remoualde had whole grain mustard seeds in it and a spicy kick at the end…which made it (probably) the best darn remoulade I have had. Going to give it a 7 out of 10.

Po-Boy #2: Parasol’s. If you want to try something truly native…head to Parasol’s. It’s a beat-up, divey Irish bar known for it’s roast beef po-boy. If you are going for atmosphere, this is probably not the place for you. But…if you are going for a damn good po-boy…well then Parasol’s is a sure bet. I had the roast beef po-boy, fully dressed (you know…all the pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, etc.) The roast beef itself is cooked until it is completely falling apart and drenched in it’s own jus. It is excellent and I can understand why many regard this sandwich as the city’s archetype and reference standard. I give it a 6 out of 10 (I think I wasn’t in the mood for a dingy dive bar on such a sunny day).

Po-boy #3: Parkway Bakery and Tavern. Fresh. Local. Delicious. Being out near Bayou Street, it is a little off the beaten path but certainly worth the trek. Portions are generous, the atmosphere is mellow and you really can’t go wrong with any order. There is really nothing I can say on the negative side…décor rocked, po-boy rocked, people rocked. I got the shrimp po-boy and, while it was very comparable to the Mahoney’s po-boy, there was just something indescribable that made it slightly better. I give it an 8 out of 10.

So there you have it folks…3 po-boys later and one full tummy…I made my way back to my hotel to get ready for the Judakris wedding. The conclusion: I think you are bound to find a delicious po-boy at any recommended place you stumble upon. So…The Great New Orleans Po-boy Adventure will have to continue on my next visit. Up next to try: Johnny’s and also Domilise’s.

Next up...Wedding time:

Knowing Kris, the food at the wedding was bound to rock…and he did not disappoint.

The wedding and reception took place at Café Amelie. Nestled in the historic 150-year-old Princess of Monaco Courtyard and Carriage House on Royal St. in the French Quarter, Café Amelie is a rare combination of superb Louisiana fare served in a lush, enchanting New Orleans courtyard setting.

The menu for the night was as follows:

                                                                     Passed Appetizers

Roasted Tomato Canape

Amelie Muffaletta

Classic Deviled Eggs

Korean Fried Chicken

Family Style Dinner

Crunchy Mac and Cheese w/ bacon and jalapeno

Pan Fried Red Fish w/ creole sauce

Oven roasted Pork Tenderloin w/ corn macque choux

Local Seasonal vegetables

My Favorite? The Muffaletta! Why? New Orleans is home to the muffaletta sandwich- a sandwich packed with Genoa salami and Cappicola ham, lots of provolone cheese, and topped with olive salad. The sandwich originated in 1906 at The Central Grocery in the French quarter of New Orleans. On any given day, the line to get a muffaletta sandwich at The Central Grocery is down the street…but it is well worth the wait and I definitely recommend it as a MUST DO for any New Orleans trip. The mini muffaletta sandwiches served up by Café Amelie during the wedding were up to par and were my favorite tasty morsels of the evening. I literally woke up the next day with thoughts of that muffaletta.

To close out the night…I made a late night/post wedding stop at Café Du Monde for beignets!!!  I mean what can I say… It’s deep-fried dough sprinkled with confectioner’s sugar…how can it not be good? And Café Du Monde is certainly the spot to be to for a classic plate of French style beignets. Open 24 hours, 7 days a week, it is on everyone’s list while in New Orleans.

My final meal of the weekend:

Before heading out on my flight Sunday, I awoke with just enough time to make it over to my New Orleans favorite: Cochon Butcher. Cochon and it’s charcuterie/sandwich shop, Cochon Butcher, are co-owned and operated by chefs Donald Link, Stephen Stryjewski and Warren Stephens.

As a retail-oriented producer of specialty meats — drawing from Cajun, French and Italian traditions — the Warehouse District shop has no local peer. The fresh and cured sausages, salamis, terrines and rillettes that pack Butcher's mesmerizing deli cases are not imported from Italy or elsewhere. Butcher's salumiere (Italian for pork butcher), Kris Doll, handcrafts many of the products himself. Apart from the bread for sandwiches, the booze stocked in the small bar and a few other small items, everything served at Butcher is made in house, from the tasso to the Creole mustard.

This is truly a specialty place for meat, where sandwiches and charcuterie plates offer opportunities to try them on the spot.

I shared (along with my lovely date for this part of the adventure, Jamie Froehling) a Cubano Sandwich (slow roasted pork, fresh ham, swiss cheese, housemade pickles and mustard and pesto) and a Roasted Lamb Leg Sandwich (complimented with grilled zucchini, eggplant, marinated feta, and housemade chimichurri). They both danced and twirled across my palate, delighting all of my sense and almost knocking me off of my chair.

I can’t wait to return! 

Here’s to you Judy and Kris. Thank you for asking me to join you for this very special occasion. As I took in the beautiful ceremony, I was moved to tears by the pureness of the love between you both. I hope you savor the moments of life together and I look forward to sharing many more meals and all the memories to come.

And to New Orleans…you never disappoint me…until we meet again, I will savor the memory of every last bite. 

A Lady with a Mission...Mission Cheese

There are dreamers and then there are doers. Dreamers see things without boundaries…fully connected to reality’s potential. Doers get down to business, form a plan, and make it happen.

I prefer dreamers that do.

Sarah Dvorak, owner and cheesemonger at Mission Cheese, is just such a person…a dreamer and a doer. Not only is Sarah Lou just the best friend I have ever had…a true soul mate…she is the most passionate doer I know. As her close friend, I have had the great pleasure of observing and supporting her magnificent journey from corporate maverick (working at the GAP) to first time entrepreneur (opening her very own cheese-a-licious café in the heart of the Mission District in San Francisco.)

Quitting your job to follow a dream is no small task…it is a leap of faith…a giant step into the dark armed with passion, hope, and belief in oneself. Taking this kind of leap is a roller coaster ride. Some days you could literally do cartwheels down the street from the joy and thrill of following a dream and fulfilling a passion. And then there are the other days…you know…the days where you wake up thinking, “I don’t have a paycheck right now and my bills are due” and “what the f*** am I doing?” It is on these days…the toughest of days…where we somehow manage to carry on and, in return, learn just how strong we can be and just who to lean on…and that, my friends, is a beautiful thing.

How do I know all of this…let’s just say I have been there and there is no person on this earth that has inspired me to push on more than Sarah Dvorak. She lives every single moment with passion and she continues to move me to do the same. She’s a fighter, a dreamer, an adventurer, a green gilded warrior, a fellow foodie and, perhaps most of all (well at least in this particular case)…a LOVER OF CHEESE!

Sarah grew up in Wisconsin eating cheese curds and string cheese. When she moved to the Bay Area, she fully realized her love for cheese and embarked on a serious mission…MISSION CHEESE. She immersed herself in the cheese community through conferences, classes and, ultimately, “The Great American Cheese Tour,” a journey that took her on a road trip across the country to visit cheesemakers in 13 different states...giving birth to the soul of her dream.

In the beginning, it was a tireless search for the right space and the right investors to make it all happen, followed by lease negotiations, and then on to endless trips to city offices for all the permitting (and don’t even get her started on that). Not to mention the seemingly never-ending amount of manual labor and do-it-yourself projects (turns out staining concrete floors and tiling a bar are not easy tasks). Yet even on the days where she would hit road block after road block or things would come in way over budget…Sarah pushed on like a champ…with her head held high and her belly full of cheese and determination.

Why? Because she believes in an American artisanal cheese movement. Because she doesn’t want people eating mass-produced government cheese made from hormone filled dairy. Because she believes that people should care about where their food comes from and what went into making it.

Through cheese, she set out to bring the farm to the table…And she did.

This past week…Sarah brought her dream to life at long last. Mission Cheese opened at 736 Valencia Street in the Mission on Monday and I had the honor of being there to witness the first receipt being printed and dig into the first order…a big bowl of warm raclette!

While you pretty much can’t go wrong with anything you order at Mission Cheese…here are a few of my favorites:

Cheeses

• Sophia (goat)- From Capriole from Greenville, IN. Sofia is remarkable in that it's both mild and full of flavor. Milky, fresh testing, and smooth
• Raw Milk Bandaged Cheddar (cow)- From Bleu Mont Dairy in Blue Mounds, WI. Bleu Mont Dairy produces excellent cheeses from the organic milk of pasture-grazed cows. Almost candy-like in sweetness, this cheese has a smooth texture and a nuttiness that comes off very clean.
• Bonne Bouche (goat)- From Vermont Butter and Cheese in Websterville, VT. This is a hand ladled, ash-ripened cheese that is the flagship cheese of Vermont Butter and Cheese. Bonne Bouche literally means “good mouthful” and is a French term used to describe a tasty morsel….and it sure is! Smooth, creamy, and luxurious, this ashed cheese is mild but acidic enough to remind you of fresh chevre.
• Bohemian Blue (sheep)- From Hidden Spring Creamery in Westby, WI. The label says it all, "For people with artistic or literary interests who disregard conventional standards of behavior." Yes please!

Other than Cheese

• My current favorite on the menu is the California Gold Panini. Perhaps it is because I love salty pig parts. Perhaps it is because I love Della Fatorria bread. Perhaps it is because I love figs and cheese. Whatever it is…I absolutely love this Panini. A perfect combo of Estero Gold (made by Valley Ford Cheese Co.), Capricious (made by Achadinha in Sonoma), formage blanc, LaQuercia prosciutto and fig preserves. I have had 3 of these in one week…yep…love it.

• And then, of course, there is the Raclette and the Mac and Cheese. The Raclette is something you are going to have to go experience for yourself…words will not do it justice. And if you want to know more about the mac and cheese, read my first blog. All I have to say is….bowl full of warm hugs.

Here’s to you Sarah…for kicking ass and doing it with style. For having a dream and bringing it to life…and sharing it with the rest of us. For living with passion and purpose. And, most of all, for bringing the farm to the table and supporting GOOD food. You are the best of friends and the best of people. I will savor the moments at Mission Cheese (which seems to be every other day!)

Little Drops of Love

Baking is a special joy to me. 

Not every chef or cook enjoys baking...it is much more ordered and precise than some other cooking tasks and relies much more on specific formulas. You can't just throw in a dash of this or that in an impromptu manner and expect great results.

But there are specific joys to baking and life lessons to be learned from it as a practice. Baking is a miracle of the physical world. Throw together some flour, sugar, butter, eggs, various flavorings and maybe some leavening, and there’s a wonderful treat at the end of the process.

Baking teaches patience and provides a beautiful space in which to lose yourself and let go of anything and everything outside of the here and now. And while there is an instant gratification component to it, no matter how much I perfect my skills, there are still things which I can’t always control. So I learn to roll with the punches and, sometimes, to let go of the results. 

The only thing that gives me greater pleasure than baking some sort of delicious and "made from scratch" sweet treat...is doing it with a loved one and sharing with them the joy of baking. This past Sunday, my dearest friend Dawn Darby joined me in a baking adventure: Dark chocolate cupcakes with vanilla bean icing...yummmmm. 

Now...this wasn't just any old baking occasion...these particular cupcakes were for our beautiful friend's birthday...the one and only Catherine Conway. When I think of Catherine, my whole being smiles and is filled with the warmth of this beautiful woman's friendship. Catherine is the kind of girl that leaves little notes of encouragement hidden in your work bag, makes you feel like a million dollars even if you haven't showered in 3 days, helps you appreciate the finer things in life, and will be the first to bust out into random song and dance just when you need a laugh. A gem of woman and a diamond of a friend. 

When you are baking for someone as a gift, like for our darling Miss Cathy Lou, you really want to try to pour all of the warm, fuzzy, loving feelings into your creation so that others can feel the love baked into every little morsel. And, I have to say, I think Dawn and I nailed it! 

After a long day of road biking, I could not think of a better way to spend my Sunday evening but sharing in the joys of baking with Dawn Darby...laughing, sharing stories from the week, teaching tricks of the baking trade, eating way too much cupcake batter until our stomachs could take no more and, most of all, pouring our hearts into these "lil drops of love" for Cathy. 

Thank you, Dawn Darby, for your joy of baking, your loving heart, and eagerness to learn. And to Miss Cathy Lou...may there be many more days filled with little drops of love and may you savor every moment of this new and exciting year of life!

Recipe (a tribute to one of my idols, Alice Waters)

8 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

2 cups cake flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

6 Tbsp. cocoa powder

8 Tbsp (1 stick) butter, softened (*very important to note here that butter should be room temp and NOT MELTED)

2 1/2 cups brown sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs, room temp

1/2 cup buttermilk, room temp

1 cup boiling water

First things first...Set the oven to 350. 

Now, I am going to give you a few "tricks of the trade" that I shared with Dawn Darby that you can apply to most baked goods...this way you can simply look at the ingredients and have a general idea of how things should go.

1) Combine the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, combine your flour, baking soda, salt, cocoa powder. This is usually your first step in any baking adventure. 

2) Cream butter and sugar: The usual next step in baking is to adequately cream your butter and your sugar together in a LARGE bowl. The part that is tricky here is that most people don't really know what it means to "cream" the butter/sugar and often spend too little time on this step. Creaming is important because it creates air pockets in the batter...causing the baked sweet to rise and giving it an airy, delicate texture and should take about 10 minutes...yes, that's right, 10 minutes of mixing (sometimes longer with a hand mixer). So, get out your kitchen aid or hand mixer and get to creaming until the butter is light and fluffy and very light in coloring.

3). Add eggs and vanilla to butter mixture: After creaming the butter and sugar, you are going to want to gently combine the eggs and vanilla in a small bowl (whisk with a fork usually) until just incorporated. Then...slowly add to the butter/sugar mixture...mixing in about 1 tablespoon of egg at at time.

These 3 steps are the main steps of most baking recipes...once you have completed these steps...it's time to:

4) melt the chocolate in a double boiler (If you don't have a double boiler, you can improvise by putting a small saucepan on top of a bigger sauce pan with water in it) 

5) Gently fold, with a spatula, the melted chocolate into the butter mixture

6) Add the dry ingredients into wet ingredients: Add 1/2 of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture and fully incorporate. Then mix in all of the buttermilk and fully incorporate. Finish with mixing in the remaining dry ingredients. 

7) And last, but not least, pour the boiling water into the batter and gently incorporate. 

Pour the batter into greased/buttered/lined cupcake pan...place in oven for about 13 minutes...and voila...lil drops of love! 

For the icing...feel free to be creative and combine some of your favorite flavors. For our treats, we mixed 12 ounces of cream cheese, 1 stick of softened butter, 1 tbls. of vanilla extract, the beans from 1 whole vanilla bean, and lemon zest from 1 small lemon. This particular icing is delicious and slightly tangy...which compliments the rich chocolate cake perfectly. 

Make sure to enjoy a few cupcakes straight out of the oven...they are always best the first day! 

To Oliver...with cheese and love

Some friends walk in and out of your life, like the gentle passing of the seasons. And then there are other friends that stay with you, become part of your being…becoming almost as integral to life as the air you breathe.

Oliver Dameron is just such a friend. A man who is just the right amount of serious in serious times…gives just the right amount of love at all times…is always convincing you of some fun filled adventure or accepting the challenge when you convince him of one…a man with a heart the size of an elephant and who can fill a room with laughter just when you need it.

Some people you meet and, through the natural passing of time, you become friends. It is often casual and un-intentional.

Not with Oliver. He makes a choice to be your friend and, as such, his friendship is wonderfully intentional and meaningful. Once you have created the bond of friendship with Oliver, he gives of himself fully and loves you through thick and thin….and you can feel it...without question. It is a blessing and a delight to walk along the same path as Oliver, sharing in one of life’s most beautiful gifts: true friendship.

Last night, as with many of my nights, I got to share in the celebration of life, love, food, and friendship with my dear companion, Oliver, for his 33^rd birthday at the soon to be open, Mission Cheese (which just so happens to be opening next week!)

As with so many amazing people that walk this earth, I find that they are often surrounded by other amazing people...which was truly the case last night…a room filled with wonderful people, wonderful memories, years of friendship and, most of all, CHEESE. Oliver’s friends, from all his walks of life…from his family, to old pals from Australia, to fellow graduate school students, to San Francisco buddies, to biking companions, to work friends, to old roommates, to friends of Sarah (his kick-ass fiancé, one my best friends and the little lady behind Mission Cheese)…all coming together to eat cheese and be merry. And boy, were we merry…

So let’s get down to business…the food at hand:

The best damn Mac and Cheese ever. Period. Done deal:

Mac and cheese is only as good as the cheese you use. And Sarah’s mac and cheese (soon to be discovered by the masses at Mission Cheese), does not disappoint. It is the perfect mix of buttery, sweet and tangy cheeses…and all from some of the best cheese-makers this side of the Mississippi.

Sarah starts with Fiscalini clothbound cheddar, true American farmstead cheddar that sings with a luxurious balance of buttery, grassy, and savory flavors. She then adds Cowgirl Creamery wagon wheel, an everyday cheese made with milk from neighboring Straus Family Creamery in Point Reyes…adding a nice mild, and sweet milk flavor. Finishing it off with a touch of capricious, a semi-hard aged cheese. Add in some nutmeg and cayenne for a hint of spice…and bam…DELICIOUS CHEESY GOODNESS.

Baked in their own individual cast iron skillets…they come out crispy around the edges and full of melty, oozing goodness in the middle. This is one of the best mac and cheeses this girl has ever tasted…hands down. It is not to be missed. I have spent many years in the kitchen with Sarah Lou, enjoying many bowls of mac and cheese, and I can safely say that she has really perfected her recipe…just in time for the opening of her beautiful shop, Mission Cheese!

It is like eating a bowl full of warm hugs…it fills your tummy with love and keeps on giving long after the last morsel has been devoured. It brings a smile to my face to see a room full of adults go completely speechless after biting into something truly magical…exactly what happened as we laid skillets of mac and cheese around the bar. People were grabbing forks left and right and their hearts were melting with every savory bite.

Panini’s…hot off the presses.

To compliment the cheese, we thought it would be a good idea to add…you guessed it…more cheese (it is a cheese shop after all!)

Combine artisan bread (you know the kind with a soft center and carmel-ly crispy crust a la Tartine’s country white bread), the perfect mix of white cheddar and formage blanc, and some whole grain mustard…and what do you get? One heck of a buttery, cheesy, and simply scrumptious panini.

No matter what you add to spice up your panini…whether you throw in some spicy arugula, some delicious fig chutney, or salty pig parts (pancetta please!)…once you have the right combo of bread and cheese…then voila’...a tasty toasted sandwich.

And, after last night’s panini extravaganza, I can’t wait to see all the mouth-watering combinations Sarah has in store for us at the shop!

Top off the party with some more bread from Della Frattoria, a few Dark n’ Stormy’s (Oliver’s favorite libation), some IPA from Lagunitas…and the night quickly turned into a hat-filled dance party (courtesy of James Rogers, who brought every hat he has ever owned…and, trust me, he owns a lot).

There was some priceless “dancing on the bar to Stevie Wonder” moments (thanks to our dearest Jordan Blackman for rocking the tunes) and a girls dance-off to “Good Vibrations”…yep, that happened.

Between singing happy birthday to Oliver…twice or three times (I can’t remember?)…raising our glasses to give three cheers for his life and friendship…and finishing the night off with at least an hour of “shake face” photo contests (I won’t even try to explain)…I think it is safe to say that we came, we celebrated and we left far past our bedtimes with belly’s full of cheese and cheeks sore from laughter.

Here’s to you Oliver…thanks for your friendship and filling my cup full of love…to the many meals and hat parties to come…I will savor every moment. 

picture to come....

The beginning...

I guess you could say it all started the day I moved to San Francisco...a city rich with food food food...around every corner, there's a new mouth watering treat waiting to be discovered.

But, I can really trace my love of food back to my Italian roots...the beginnings of an aspiring foodie. I can remember standing over a large boiling pot of home made spaghetti sauce as an 8 year old kid in the kitchen with my mom, getting splattered with every little burst of boiling sauce. I can remember the smell. I can remember the taste. I can remember the apron she would make me wear and the way I would sing and dance around the kitchen, knocking over pots and pans and making a general mess of myself. And, perhaps most importantly, the way the food my mother prepared brought people together and how the sound of laughter and love would fill the air.

Some 20 years later, those moments cooking in the kitchen with my mother have never left me.

I find myself fortunate enough to live in a city full of bustling local markets, farm to table food around every corner, fresh produce and local, sustainable meats galore. San Francisco has nourished that budding 8 year old and turned me into an honest to goodness food lover and lover of the community you can create around food.

After much talk with my friends and loved ones about starting a blog to share some of the more memorable meals and moments created within those meals...I have finally given in. So here she is...this little old blog about food in this great big wonderful city (and beyond)...and all the things that come along with it...love, life, friendship, laughter, stories, memories, and community.

I have always deeply believed that food matters...it binds us together...it is part of a system that we should appreciate and nourish...and we should cherish and honor each and every thing that makes all of our meals happen...from the soil, to the water, to the animals, to the farmer, to the local grocer, to the cooks, to the friends that share in savoring every last bite.

I often find myself listening to people say that they would rather go grab something at that "cheap place" and spend a few less dollars on their lunch than pay a little more for something made with good ingredients and made by people who care about their food and where it comes from. I am not saying that I don't enjoy a "cheap" meal here and there...but I wonder if these "cheap food loving" folks ever consider the "why" behind their cheap food. Why is my food cheap? What ingredients have been used? Where did the ingredients come from? How was it made and packaged? Did the farmers get a fair deal? You get the point.

In the end, we are what we eat...and we get what we pay for.

For me, I would rather spend a few extra dollars and support a healthy food system, than pay a few dollars less to support all the things that have made the food we sell to the masses so "cheap".

With this blog, I hope to share some of the more memorable meals that I create or creations of others that I have the privilege of enjoying. I will share the laughter, the flavors, the stories, the brilliant people, the memories, a few recipes here and there and, most of all, the community that I come across in my daily food filled journey. And, if I'm either really lucky or really good at sharing my food escapades, I just might convince you that "cheap" isn't always the way to go.

So here's to the food that gives us life and love...the food that builds my community...I hope you savor the moments.