One of the BEST summer dips

This is such a healthy and refreshing dip to serve when the weather gets warm. It's also so easy:

2 cans black beans-drained and rinsed

2 can corn-drained

1 red onion chopped

2 avocadoes chopped

1 red pepper chopped

1 yellow or orange pepper chopped

2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes halved

1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 TB lime juice

1-2 tsp chili powder

1-2 tsp salt (kosher salt if you have it)

1-2 TB olive oil

Combine all of the veggies, including cilantro. In a small bowl combine lime juice, chili powder and salt. Then, wisk in olive oil to desired consistency. Add dressing to salad and toss well. Serve with tortilla chips.

Tips:
When making any sort of dish like this, it is best when all ingredients are chopped, as close to the same size as possible.

Citrus is so important when making anything with fruit or vegetables in it. It prevents browning and maintains freshness longer.

Some other easy party ideas

Make small toothpick kabobs using different kinds of olives, cheeses and meats. Adding pickles, crackers and other veggies tops this appetizer well, and people will love how easy they can grab one with no need for utensils.

Spinach-Feta Puff Pastries

I entertain a lot, so I'm always looking for good appetiziers/party food. I came across these and ended up making them a few more times after receiving such positive responses. They aren't difficult at all and require few ingredients.

Keep in mind, I don't really measure when I cook, it bores me, so I'm not exact on my measurements, but don't let that stop you. Decide yourself if you like it better one way or another and go with it. The food will taste better and the experience will be much more enjoyable.

Spinach Puff Pastries

1 pkge frozen puff pastries-thawed

1 small box frozen spinach-thawed and squeezed dry

4 oz feta cheese crumbled

2 garlic cloves

salt and pepper to taste

Combine spinach, feta, garlic and s&p.

Using flour roll out puff pastries individually until they are about twice the size you began with. Cut pastry into three inch squares. Fill each square with about a tsp of spinach mixture. Use your fingers to trace water along the sides of the pastry and fold one corner to the corner across diagonally, forming a triangle. Seal the pastries by pressing a fork along the edges. Bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes, or until brown and puffed. Best if served warm.

Canteen: Restaurant Review

You've got to admire a chef like Dennis Leary who goes from working in a prestigious and elegant restaurant to taking over a diner with only four booths for four and a counter. Eating at Canteen is always a treat because even though it looks like a gussied up lunch counter the food is nothing short of outstanding.

After eating at Canteen a couple times for lunch and more than a few times for breakfast and brunch, I decided it was high time to try it for dinner. It's not often you get to order everything on the menu, especially when you're a party of four, but when there are only four appetizers, entrees and desserts it's not so hard to manage. What made it all the more possible was the most genteel dining companions who went along with the plan.


At Canteen the dinner menu changes every week. You can check it out online, though I notice sometimes it's behind by a week. The meal began with an amuse bouche, a shot glass was filled with a refreshing buttermilk cucumber soup. There was also a buttery and hot-from-the-oven dinner roll. The Chilled Pea Soup with parmesan cream ($7.25) was light and creamy, perfectly in tune with the season.

The pork belly served in crispy strips with a salad of endive and celery and a drizzle of a honey-like vinegar syrup was a nice balance of textures and flavors. But it was the squid dish that blew me away. The most tender, small, fresh squid was served over a bed of the most perfectly cooked black lentils with a a dab of red chili paste and a slightly crunchy topping of bread crumbs. It was out of this world and would have made an excellent entree.


For entrees we had something called Sweet Corn Clafoutis ($20.25). It was super rich and crisp around the edges. More of a fallen souffle or pancake than a clafoutis, it was nonetheless delicious. The asparagus and slightly melted goat cheese added juiciness and tang. The swordfish was very tender as if it had been poached in oil and was served with a swiss chard, beet and barley salad with walnut vinaigrette. The crunchy salad on it's own was terrific. I may have to try making a version of it at home. The veal filet and guinea hen with divine sauces were just like something you would find at a more upscale restaurant.


We agreed the desserts covered all bases--there was a vanilla souffle, bittersweet chocolate custard, strawberry shortcake and braised apricots with bitter almond ice cream served with some strips of cake, maybe pound cake. Each dessert was a knockout. The souffle converted a non enthusiast with one bite. The custard was ridiculously rich and creamy and the shortcake had the most ethereal topping that was like a puff of cake.

One word about the wines, not only is the selection good, but the markup one of the lowest I've seen. Just a couple of examples--Robert Sinskey Pinot Noir which retails for $44 was $67 and Longboard Sauvignon Blanc which retails for $24 was $36. While not a fancy place, four years after opening, the food couldn't be better at Canteen.

Canteen
817 Sutter St @ Jones
San Francisco, CA
415.928.8870

Tue-Wed, Fri-Sat 6:00 pm-10:00 pm
(sadly no longer open for breakfast during the week)
Sat 8:00 am -2:00 pm
Sun 8:00 am-2:00 pm

Better than Bottled

Not that long ago I wrote that we should ban bottled water, I received a lot of comments on that post! Here are some of the reasons why people said they buy bottled water:

My water isn't safe or doesn't taste good.
Fortunately there is a very good solution, even better than buying bottled water. Drink filtered water. There are many types and styles of water filters.

I recently got a chance to try the Aquasana Water Filter. After the initial set-up cost, which is $99.99 for a counter-top unit or $143.98 for an undersink installation, filtered water costs about 9.6 cents per gallon. Replacement cartridges last for 500 gallons and cost $48.00. The taste of the filtered water is markedly better than non-filtered water, not to mention more pure. How small is it? My countertop model is perched on a ledge which is only 3 inches wide.

The advantage of a countertop filter as opposed to a pitcher filter is the contaminant removal capability.  Pitcher filters are generally very small and are only capable of removing limited contaminants at lower percentages.  Faucet-mounted filters are larger, offering more surface area in the filter media, and are able to remove more contaminants to a higher degree. The start-up costs for pitcher filters are generally less, but the filters need to be replaced more often and the per gallon price is higher as a result.

Sink mounted water filter systems are too expensive.
Pitchers are cheap! If you prefer a pitcher style filter system, one of the more popular brands is Brita. The pitchers and faucet mount systems are very inexpensive to purchase. Once you’ve purchased a Brita system ($20-$30 for a reusable pitcher or faucet mounted system), the cost of filtered water is less than 23 cents per gallon if you’re using a pitcher, or 20 cents per gallon for a faucet-mounted system.

One Brita pitcher filter can effectively replace as many as 300 standard 16.9-ounce bottles. The average Brita pitcher filters 240 gallons of water a year for about 19 cents a day.To get the same amount of water from disposable water bottles would cost around $4.98 a day.

Head to the Filter for Good site and by signing a pledge to reduce bottled water and switch to filtered, you can get a coupon for $5 off a Brita system and $1 off a filter.

But in my household we want sparkling water!
No problem. You can get a seltzer machine to use at home.

My father uses one from Soda Club USA (which is not actually a club). The machine takes little space and costs under $100 (there is a fancier model that uses a glass bottle for $250) . After your initial purchase of a machine, seltzer and sparkling water in Soda-Club's reusable 1-liter PET bottle costs just 18 cents per liter. The water bottle does not use does not use polycarbonate materials or any materials that can produce phthalates or PCBs. You can also control the amount of carbonization to make your water as fizzy as you like.

I'm not polluting. I reuse my plastic water bottle.Not a good idea. Those disposable water bottles are not meant to be reused. They are hard to clean and keep sterile and they breakdown over time. What's the best reusable water bottle option? That's a tough call. Some people are concerned about the safety of Lexan or Nalgene plastic bottles. You may want to consider Sigg bottles from Switzerland which are safe, durable, economical, and come in an amazing number of colors and styles. Some are very fashionable!

Sigg bottles are aluminum, with a liner made with proprietary technology. They have been thoroughly tested both in Europe and in the USA to ensure 0.0% leaching, so there is no migration of either the liner or the container into the beverage. You can even review the test results online. These bottles are so popular that they had to stop selling the bottles online because they couldn't keep up with demand. Find a retailer here.

I hope these suggestions help encourage you to decrease your bottled water consumption.

Koshi Rice: Favorite Things

I am hoarding rice. It's not what you think. I have fallen in love with the precious samples of Koshihikari rice I was sent by an Arkansas farmer. Mark Isbell grows a Japanese premium variety of short grain rice and Isbell Farms has been exporting it to Japan since 1995. He has only recently begun selling it in the United States under the name "Koshi Rice."

Last Spring I got bored with white rice and virtually stopped cooking it. It just tasted flat and mushy to me. Then in the Fall I went to Japan and knew I would be eating a lot of it. What I didn't know is that the quality of rice I would eat was far superior to what I was used to eating. It was the harvest season and the rice was "new" and didn't just have a tender texture but an almost floral, fruity scent. I was hooked. Often the rice had just a bit of a garnish on it and that was all. Once I spent $18 for plain freshly harvested rice cooked in a stone bowl. I know it sounds insane, but it was worth every penny and I'd order it again if I could.

So I was curious to try Mark's rice. I've not been very impressed with California rice, could Arkansas rice be that different? All I can tell you is: yes. It is that different. As Mark describes it, koshihikari rice is shiny, smooth and mildly sweet. It holds it's shape very well and is a typical choice for sushi because it is a bit sticky, but in my experience it is fabulous with almost anything. After cooking it for the first time Lee begged me to cook it again and again. But because it's expensive, I have saved it for special meals. But life is short. Regardless of the price, I am going to stop hoarding and just start stocking up (especially since it is available online).

Pastry School Secrets Revealed

Every profession has some form of continuing education. But even for the non-professional, what could be better than sitting in on a master class for pastry chefs put on by Valrhona, one of the most highly regarded chocolate companies in the world?


Started in 1922 by a chocolatier in the Rhone Valley who desired better quality chocolate, the company buys directly from farmers and forms long-term partnerships to ensure both high quality and the best compensation for the farmers. You may have heard of "fair trade chocolate" Valrhona goes beyond fair trade and pays 100% higher than market value. Their chocolate is not always certified organic, but they ensure no pesticides are used on crops. The focus of Valrhona is primarily with chefs, so you will rarely see their products at retail but they are often the chocolate used in elegant plated desserts.


I've always known that baking and pastry was akin to chemistry and this class really brought that home for me. With scientific precision award-winning Corporate Pastry Chef for Valrhona USA Derek Poirer began the session by asking the chefs how they make ganache. Most chefs explained that they combine chocolate with heated and then cooled cream.

He explained that ganache is an emulsion because cream is mostly made of water and chocolate is mostly comprised of fat. The taste test of ganache made with melted versus non-melted chocolate made everyone a believer. In addition to impressing the heck out of me by using a laser thermometer, here is what I, as a non-professional learned from Chef Poirer:

1. In order to make the best tasting and most stable ganache, use the rules for any emulsion, make sure both the chocolate and the cream are warm (35 degrees celsius is the fusion point). This means you need to melt the chocolate before combining it with the cream and to beat it vigorously with a hand blender to emulsify it.

2. In order to fix a broken ganache, heat the base if the temperature was too low, and add more cream if the temperature is fine.

3. When beating cream or egg whites, do so at 3/4 speed, not full speed. Why? Smaller bubble structure will lead to less collapse and better texture.

4. When making caramel, before deglazing, the sugar should just start to smoke to ensure the proper flavor, and use a hot liquid to deglaze the pan.

5. For marshmallows, using powdered gelatin may be preferable because leaf gelatin can over-absorb liquid.

6. Streusel is sweeter than "crisp" or "crunch" topping. This means it will stay crisper longer.

While many of the finer points of crystallization were beyond me, I found the class fascinating, not to mention, delicious! I have all the more respect for pastry chefs who create fantastic desserts, now that I have seen what it takes to make them. Check out my colleague Michael Procopio's take on this sugarific day here.

5 Facts about Me

It's been an awfully long time since I've been personally tagged for a meme. I am busy unpacking, sorting the accumulated mail and plowing through email, but since I don't have time for much of a real post this meme is a nice stop gap measure.

Thanks to Sarah of Suite Apple Pie for tagging me.

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules
2. Share 5 facts about yourself
3. Tag 5 people at the end of your post and list their names, linking to them.

4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog. I'm sending them direct messages via Twitter instead.

5 Facts (you probably don't know about me)


1. Last week in the Italian city of Benevento I was one of the judges of a student cocktail competition with the theme "Cucina & Magia" which means cooking and magic. The winning cocktail used white rum, Strega, lemon and blueberry juice, muddled basil leaves and was garnished with a spiral of zucchini. Refreshing and light, I wish I had the recipe. The winner was the only woman contestant. Brava!


2. Last night after seeing a movie I dined at a very inexpensive North African restaurant called Cafe Zitouna on Polk street. The fantastic homemade merguez was served over couscous with a big bowl of vegetables, and the fragrant chicken b'stilla was moist and flavorful. I look forward to going back.


3. A few weeks back at the Maker Faire I was totally smitten by these knitted cupcakes and donuts. Utterly useless but so darn cute!


4. At the Frankfurt airport I ate a surprisingly delicious sandwich of thinly sliced ham, green apple and horseradish cream on a wheat roll studded with pumpkin seeds. It helped steady my nerves after being frisked by German airport security.

5. My first breakfast after coming home from Italy was a smoked fish platter at Miller's East Coast Delicatessen. It had whitefish salad, belly lox and sable. There was so much fish I bought extra bagels and it was enough for another breakfast--for 2 people! The coleslaw, potato salad and pickles are still in the fridge.

5 people/bloggers I'm tagging are--Gluten Free Goddess, Hedonia, Lucullian Delights, Vanilla Garlic & Ms. Adventures in Italy. Each are bloggers who inspire me in one way or another, they are also all on Twitter. Are you?

Bello Sorrento, Amalfi, Positano

There is good food everywhere. That's my theory and I'm sticking with it. In some places it is easier than others, to find something delicious. Sorrento is a pretty tourist town just a stone's throw from Naples. Orange trees pop up through the sidewalk and the views of the bay are breathtaking, especially at sunset when everything turns shades of pink and blue and grey. The town inspired many artists and poets and their ghosts are felt everywhere in the gardens, the public spaces and the names of the streets. I'm staying at the romantic Hotel Tramontano perched on the edge of the bay. The history of the hotel makes me feel as if I am stepping into a more refined era.

So far in addition to a limoncello producer who has a lovely grove of citrus you can enjoy like a park, I also visited a tiny pastry shop singled out by the prestigious "Gambero Rosso" in Italy. The owner is passionate about quality and creativity and teaches other pastry shops to develop high standards as well. I bought one of just about everything he was selling. The total bill was under $15. No idea how I will eat it all!

There is not much to do in Positano or Amalfi, and you know what? That's ok. Positano is pretty and colorful with bright orange and green umbrellas set in the sand against a background of blue and the food, while somewhat expensive is absolutely delicious. Today I had a large macaroni pasta called paccheri with some tomato sauce and monkfish. I also had meltingly tender pizza and a tasty carpaccio of some kind of fish I didn't recognize. In Amalfi I found a shop selling brilliant lemon granita with plenty of pucker. Next it's back to Naples to eat the most traditional baba, sfogliatelle and pizza.

Grazie, Napoli!

It's been twenty years since I've been in Italy and in some ways it feels like I never left. That's why I chose this photo instead of any of the other 200 photos I have shot in the last two days. It somehow captures the timeless spirit of the place. Yes, it's been two days of exploring Naples and Caserta and Sorrento again. This time I am older and my Italian a bit rusty but still it is a joy to be visiting this lovely region with it's sunshine and views of the bay of Naples and the gorgeous and bountiful landscapes with roaming animals and abundant produce. Most of all it is a joy to be experiencing the passion of the residents of Campania again. Twenty years ago after feeling like a second class citizen in Florence I was overwhelmed by the kindness of strangers I experienced in both Naples and Sorrento and the same is true this time around.

I have eaten paccheri pasta and fresh mozzarella and sfogliatelle pastries more times than I can count and enjoyed it all. A lot. I have seen a bit of opera, climbed Mount Vesuvius and talked to a professor about the significance of pizza in Naples. Dottore Mattozzi also told me about his family's pizzeria about the two systems of credentials bestowed in regards to pizza and his experiences as a child during the war. He shared the thrill of eating canned corned beef and candy American soldiers brought to him and his starving family as if it were yesterday. All the while we dined on the most exquisite fried and ricotta stuffed zucchini blossoms I have ever eaten. I have so many stories to tell. I promise to get to more of them in time.

Ciao, Italia!

Today I'm heading off to Italy for a visit to Campania. I will try to post while I'm gone, but since I'll be on assignment I expect to be pretty busy! In the meantime, feel free to check out my posts, there are many of them in the queue over at Glam Dish, and posts from me every Wedneday on KQED's food blog, Bay Area Bites.

Ci vediamo!

Amy

p.s. If you have any favorite spots in Naples or the Amalfi coast, feel free to leave a comment. In the past I've checked out reader recommendations in Hawaii and Japan and have yet to be disappointed with any of your suggestions.

Rubs vs. Marinades

I've tried to get a lot more creative when cooking meat, especially so I don't get bored with it. Before it was just a little salt and pepper, and throw it on the Foreman grill! Now I'm trying different cooking styles, as well as different ways to season it. It seems when really trying to infuse good flavor into your meats, the most effective two ways are dry/wet rubs, and marinades. I tried a dry rub tonight which consisted mostly of paprika mixed with salt, brown sugar, cumin and other flavors. To be honest, I wasn't too impressed. I even let the chicken sit in it for a while before grilling. It just didn't add much to the chicken and we ended up slathering on the BBQ sauce anyway!

So far, in my opinion, if you want a juicy, high flavored piece of meat, marinading is the way to go. And it's really fun and easy to make your own using common cupboard items. Here's one of my favorites:

3/4 c. olive oil
1/2 c. soy sauce
2 TB Worchestershire sauce
1 TB dry mustard
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 TB apple cider vinegar
1 tsp parsley
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 c. lemon juice
Mix it all up and pour over whatever meat you have. Keep in the fridge at most 24 hours. Best when grilled. ENJOY!

Orange Mango Smoothie:Recipe

Have you ever had an Orange Julius? I seem to recall it being pretty popular in the 70's. Founded in Los Angeles, the juice bar chain (now part of Dairy Queen) makes a frothy kind of orange blender drink that is very refreshing, especially if you are running around town.

The first Orange Julius opened over 80 years ago and it was the official drink of the 1964 World's Fair in New York. The name comes from how people ordered the drink from the owner, Julius. "Gimme an orange, Julius!" The recipe was and still is secret but there are plenty of copycat recipes online. Some use milk, others include egg white. All of them generally have some combination of orange juice, ice and sugar.

Orange Julius makes a "Mango Julius" and while I've never tried it, I did come up with my own version. Mangoes have vitamin A, B and C and are an amazing feel-good fruit. Is it the color? The flavor? The nutritional benefits? I don't know. But I can't get enough of them! If you like orange juice first thing in the morning, try a mango orange smoothie it's delicious and invigorating. Personally I like a smoothie in the afternoon when I start slowing down a bit.

Note: The vanilla extract gives it that distinctive Orange Julius flavor. My version is not as frothy as the original, but it is nice and creamy. You could make it dairy-free, but I think the vanilla yogurt really makes it extra delicious.

"Julius" style Mango Orange Smoothie
makes 2 servings

Ingredients

1/2 ripe mango, peeled and cut into chunks
1 cup orange juice
1 cup ice cubes, about 5 regular sized cubes
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons vanilla yogurt

Instructions

Place all the ingredients into the blender, cover and blend until thick and creamy with no chunks of ice. Serve in two tall glasses.

Enjoy!

Dessert Giveaway!

There's another contest over at Glam Dish today! Win one of three prize packages that each include a signed copy of a Gale Gand cookbook, bakeware and 12 coupons for a product that was named to Time Magazine's list of the 100 greatest consumer products in 1998. It was invented 60 years ago. Do you know what it is? Click here to find out...

Crazy for Conservas

When I think of processed foods the first things that come to mind are newfangled convenience and artificial ingredients. But that's not the case with all processed foods. In Spain, preserving vegetables and seafood is a very traditional craft. Olives, piquillo peppers, anchovies and tuna are just a few of the most common "conservas" you'll find.

In Barcelona there is a famous tapas bar called Quimet y Quimet that specializes in using conservas and many shops are filled with precious treasures in cans and jars. I recently got a chance to try some of the products being sold online by AJ Gourmet and was really impressed. The father and son partners are passionate about Spanish foods and import a terrific array of olives, especially stuffed ones.

I talked to Andy Weiss to find out how his stuffed olives were different from the more typically available ones. He told me that the stuffed olives you find in most markets are for the most part standard queens, a large variety that is a bit woody and a tad bitter but easy to stuff (also known as gordales in Spanish) and standard manzanillas. They are generally stuffed with a composite paste that is chosen more for the ease of stuffing than for quality. Worst of all the pimiento in most stuffed olives is not pimiento at all, but a red gel.

AJ Gourmet uses manzanillas finas, the highest quality available, and stuffs them with real products to achieve a flavor balance between the natural nut like flavor of the olive and the unique stuffings. The blue cheese olives are stuffed with a Spanish Cabrales cheese. Other exotic flavors include olives stuffed with real piquillo peppers and olives stuffed with Valencia orange peel. Even the liquid bring is of artisanal quality rather than just plain salty water.

I was pleased to learn that Andy is working with his producer friends in Spain to introduce some new combinations including salmon, shrimp and tuna stuffed manzanilla olives. He willl also be bringing in grilled artichokes and other Spanish specialties including some more seafood items. I can't wait to try them!