We arrived in Ashland after a very long drive and were hungry. This brewery was walking distance from our hotel and has a huge variety of beers and ales. Samples are delivered in a paddle with cut-out holes. We tried:
Rauch Ur Bock (my favorite)
Pilot Rock Porter
Mogli Porter
Imperial Stout
Oatmeal Stout
Caldera Brewery beer sample, Ashland
The menu lists the hoppiness factor of each beer. I should have paid closer attention to that before ordering. I love stouts and porters, so thought I would love them all, but some of these were too hoppy for me. I don’t like any bitterness at all in my beer.
However, any bitter taste was quickly compensated for by this fruit pizza! This was delicious!
Or, I should say, I’m back to Michael Chiarello. I am what I call “phasic,” meaning I go through enthusiasms in phases. My cooking enthusiasm phases are few and far between, and my husband has been waiting for another one to strike. (He does most of the cooking.) His absolute favorite phase of mine was my Michael Chiarello phase. The food is great, and best of all the recipes are simple. (I tend to choose recipes that are really involved and then I’m burned out (no pun intended) on cooking for another three months.) And I tend to make dessert which is really only useful when we’re going to someone’s house or having people over. No, I don’t eat dessert every day, and maybe that’s my problem.
I love this cookbook, though!
I was thumbing through it because I needed the recipe for Ceci a la Siciliana, about which I love everything, especially the name. I say the name a lot. I think it is pronounced Seechee a la Siciliana. I say it as often as possible. The dish also tastes great and is vegetarian.
Changing topic, I’m starting a newsletter this year. I plan to do one once a month and will be providing original recipes, updates on my writing, book give-aways, photos, and writing tips. To sign up for the newsletter, please let me know in the comments!
Vegetarian sausage seems to be dominating our menu lately. It’s so versatile! Last night we made polenta with spaghetti squash and sausages sauteed with peppers and onions.
The sausages come in a package from Costco. We used the apple ones for this recipe.
The recipe was from the New York Times, but Hubs altered it a bit. For one thing, he used vegetarian sausages from Costco.
Here are the main flavors, the peppers, onions and seasonings, including fennel seeds (to die for).
The polenta was flavored with bay leaf and fresh rosemary, plus sea salt. I see a few fennel seeds in there too, now that I look at it.
During the day, my hubs used the giant persimmons someone gave us and made a persimmon pudding cake. There shouldn’t be a slice taken out of it before a photo shoot, but we couldn’t stop ourselves. It is incredible.
Now that I look at it, I see that there is more than one slice taken out of the cake! Oh well, I’ll start my diet (again) today.
We have BJ’s Brew Pub red ale on tap at the moment.
Love is what it’s all about–
but food is a close second.
Nia Simone, November 28, 2013
I was asking an Australian friend if they have any holidays that are basically about food. Not really. Okay, so I have several Australian friends, many of whom I’ve met through blogging, so pipe up if you disagree! Of course, as you know, the food in Australia is amazing, so perhaps we don’t need a specific holiday centered on feasting there.
Australia is my other home, and this is becoming clear as one fellow blogger thought I was Australian. I love Australia and my Australian friends. Today is an American holiday, though, and I’m going to celebrate it by starting this celebration of food off with home-grown and home cooked foods before moving on to some of my international culinary samples.
Home grown and home-cooked:
Vegan Thai
Lentil saladYummy ingredientsDinner time! (Very yummy)Vegan Thai with other veggies
Greenwich Village Manhattan:
Turophilia (excessive love of cheese) Greenwich Village, sign outside the cheese shopA bit of cheeseOctopus, beer and a dolmata at Boukies, Greenwich Village
Australia:
Barramundi at LorneStuffed squid at a tapas bar in Melbourne, DeGraves StreetJoe’s? I think, Sydney, by the riverSmoked salmon at Joe’s in Sydney
San Francisco:
Dessert at PiperadeAppetizer at PiperadePiperade Restaurant
Paris:
Christian Constant Restaurant startersI guess you could say wine was a big feature in Paris! This was dinner on the deck of our apartment.Veal — Opera HouseDeep fried Celeriac — Opera HouseCrepe de Frites Maison Robert on Champs ElyseesOpera HouseRolls, fresh, Opera HouseButter, Opera HouseTomato jam mozzarella bonito and basil sorbet, Opera HouseGreen pea soup cold with cream and goat cheese on toast, Opera HouseOpera House, Grey Goose is the house vodka
Rue Cler Produce outsideRue Cler Capuccino and Cafe Americain
Amsterdam:
Thai food
RijsstaaflAppetizers ready to go out to the deck of the houseboat
Texas:
The Brush FireTorchy’s Tacos, The Independent
More Manhattan:
Grilled camembert at The EateryMeat loaf ravioli mac and jack at The EateryLisa’s bagelSweet italian sausage risotto croquettesAt The Boathouse in Central ParkThe Boathouse, Central ParkFlor de Mayo, Peruvian restaurant upper west sideFlor de Mayo, Peruvian restaurant, upper west sideHot pretzel in Central ParkFlor de Mayo, Peruvian restuarant, upper west sideDeli, lower East sideSesame seed crackers at The EateryShmears at a deli in the upper west sideShmears, continued, at a deli in the upper west sideYet more shmears at a deli in the upper west sidePain au Chocolate at the Brasserie Pushkin across from the Museum of Modern ArtDining Room at Brasserie Puskin NYC
Blackbottom cheesecake from The Bake ShopGrasshopper (mint chocolate chip) from The Bake Shop
Dinner last night was vegetarian Thai curry. Half the vegetables came from our garden, which still clings to life despite cold nights.
We make this all the time at home so I submitted it for the recipe gift book my publisher does during the holidays. You can get the recipe on page 55 of the FREE Holiday Garden Gourmet cookbook at The Wild Rose Press. You’ll also find lots of other recipes from Wild Rose Press authors, all organized by type of recipe in a free, downloadable PDF.
While you’re there, if you would like my novella, The Last Straw, in another format besides Kindle (mobi), you can now get a PDF or epub version. Here is the link: The Last Straw.
Note: Last night we added tofu to the mix, which isn’t in the recipe, for extra protein. You can see the little white cubes in the second photo. Just toss them in at the end and let the meal simmer for about 10 minutes to heat the tofu.
Welcome to new followers of this blog! Here is a re-post of a popular topic. Loyal readers, thanks for your indulgence as I work up an interesting new series called: “Inside the author’s mind.” And don’t worry, it’s not my mind we will be exploring. My interviewees for this creative-process exploration are a lot more interesting.
Trip dates: 9/15 – 10/13/12
Pushkin Brasserie (near Museum of Modern Art),
Add to Pushkin Brasserie ambiance this and a spiked cappuccino and you’ll recover from exhausting museum going:
Share these from Crumbs Bake Shop:
Blackbottom cheesecake cupcake
(upper west side, 97th/Columbus.)
Grasshopper (mint chocolate chip) to die for
“Wine-dark in a shallow lemon sea, pelted with capers, the curl of octopus ($16) looked messy and primeval, as if just plucked from the deep. It is the dish that a Greek restaurant lives or dies by, simple yet exacting. Tenderness should be victory enough. But the octopus at Boukiés had gone a step beyond, the flesh undoing itself, achieving a texture, at its core, close to nectar.” Ligaya Mishan, New York Times 9/21/12
Looked scary, tasted heavenly:
Boukies (pronounced Boo KAY is) in Greenwich Village
For less money and a different though not lesser pleasure, a hot pretzel in Central Park:
Do you love cheese? There’s a name for that.
Cheese shop in Greenwich Village
A choice of Schmears (upper west side, Broadway):
Oyster bar in Grand Central Station:
Spinach and kasha knishes from Yonah Shimmel’s Knishery on East Houston Street (lower east side):
Pastrami and corned beef sandwiches at Katz’s Deli (near Yonah’s, lower east side):
Tiny cupcake:
Sugary Sweet Sunshine Bakery
Cappuccino in Tribeca:
Comfort food at The Eatery after a show (The Phantom of the Opera).
Sesame seed crackers and champagneSweet italian sausage risotto croquettesGrilled camembertMeat loaf, ravioli and “Mac and Jack” (macaroni and cheese with grilled onions on top)
Elevation of a bagel:
Peruvian cuisine on the upper west side at Flor De Mayo (Broadway around 98th):
Beef stew in a cilantro sauce with potatoesRoasted chicken and plaintainsAji Gallina Chicken with eggs on a bed of lettuce
Add to Pushkin Brasserie ambiance this and a spiked cappuccino and you’ll recover from exhausting museum going:
Share these from Crumbs Bake Shop:
Blackbottom cheesecake cupcake
(upper west side, 97th/Columbus.)
Grasshopper (mint chocolate chip) to die for
“Wine-dark in a shallow lemon sea, pelted with capers, the curl of octopus ($16) looked messy and primeval, as if just plucked from the deep. It is the dish that a Greek restaurant lives or dies by, simple yet exacting. Tenderness should be victory enough. But the octopus at Boukiés had gone a step beyond, the flesh undoing itself, achieving a texture, at its core, close to nectar.” Ligaya Mishan, New York Times 9/21/12
Looked scary, tasted heavenly:
Boukies (pronounced Boo KAY is) in Greenwich Village
For less money and a different though not lesser pleasure, a hot pretzel in Central Park:
Do you love cheese? There’s a name for that.
Cheese shop in Greenwich Village
A choice of Schmears (upper west side, Broadway):
Oyster bar in Grand Central Station:
Spinach and kasha knishes from Yonah Shimmel’s Knishery on East Houston Street (lower east side):
Pastrami and corned beef sandwiches at Katz’s Deli (near Yonah’s, lower east side):
Tiny cupcake:
Sugary Sweet Sunshine Bakery
Cappuccino in Tribeca:
Comfort food at The Eatery after a show (The Phantom of the Opera).
Sesame seed crackers and champagneSweet italian sausage risotto croquettesGrilled camembertMeat loaf, ravioli and “Mac and Jack” (macaroni and cheese with grilled onions on top)
Elevation of a bagel:
Peruvian cuisine on the upper west side at Flor De Mayo (Broadway around 98th):
Beef stew in a cilantro sauce with potatoesRoasted chicken and plaintainsAji Gallina Chicken with eggs on a bed of lettuce
Complain about your old bones (and other body parts).
Complain about frickin anything. (You’re retired. Shut up.)
This morning, bright and early (9:45), we fought our way through morning rush hour
to get on the Funitel at Squaw Valley
and finally to work.
Of course, we have to have a lunch break. All employees are entitled to that. Excellent fish and chips, stew, and beer at The Auld Dubliner in Squaw Valley:
Nicci Carrera 