Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Searching for Michael Mina? You might not have to go far.

As a fan of food, it's a special treat to see an accomplished chef in person. So much so that at a recent event in Monterey featuring chefs such as Thomas Keller, food enthusiasts and professionals laid down four-digit entry fees just to get in.

Personally, I have seen Morimoto, Daniel Bolud, Adam Perry Lang, and Michael Mina in person. Not only have I seen Michael in person at his amazing San Francisco restaurant, I've actually walked by him on the streets in San Francisco. His food has always been cutting edge, and meals at his restaurants are among the wildest flavor adventures I've had the privilege of joining.

But what was once a San Francisco institution is becoming a worldwide machine. Michael's cuisine has found new places including Orange County, Scottsdale, Las Vegas, and Atlantic City. He's not on Food Network like the Bobby Flay's and Mario Batali's of the world, but his cuisine is among the very best around.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/30/FDUM10AIFE.DTL

This article appeared in today's San Francisco Chronicle. Yet as the Mina empire spreads worldwide, one must be somewhat concerned if the originality that started the legend can continue. I'm hoping it can.

Saturday, April 26, 2008

Desserts and Pastries: A Foodie's Secret Pleasure


The entree plates are cleared, the bottle is empty, the table has been wiped down, and, hopefully, the seated people are grinning from the meal. And now, to close the evening, there is but one part of the show still to come.

"Would you like to see the dessert menu?"

Desserts and pastries are a cook's greatest pleasure. The challenge to pack in so much flavor into little bites and tastes is among one of the most difficult in all the arts. At the same time, it is the most pleasing. Diners, friends, and family groan with delight at the taste of a superior dessert, and it's just the thing you want people to have in their minds after a meal of your creation.

I discovered this at a young age. In high school, each of us brought food to various student group meetings, and one time, my mother pulled out a recipe for brownies from a book called "Stars Desserts" by Emily Luchetti. Entitled "Black and White" brownies, they were a favorite at the bakery outside of Stars, a once legendary San Francisco restaurant.

They were an immediate hit, and seeing the pleasure on the faces of my fellow students, especially the female ones, I knew this was something I should get into.

I pored through more of the book. Black and White brownies gave way to Macaroons and Lemon Squares, all favorites of the bakery. When my family moved to a new house, our next door neighbor had two huge lemon trees in her yard, and the same day we took the lemons off the tree, they made it into decadent lemon squares. Just like that, I became one of Emily's fans. At the new house, we had a dream kitchen, and I spent hours in there practicing technique and baking for my mom's co-workers, my brother's co-workers and fellow law students, and my own colleagues and friends.

When I dined with my parents, it always came down to me to order the chocolate dessert. So when I stumbled upon Emily's recipe for Chocolate Silk, I had to try it. It is the ultimate chocolate-lover's dessert. After visiting San Francisco's Scharffenberger Chocolate Factory, I had to use their bittersweet chocolate in the recipe. Trust me, it's like nothing you've ever tasted before, even if you think you're the biggest chocolate-lover you know.

(As an aside, a memo to all you fellas out there with women who love chocolate to impress. There is nothing that shows you are clueless about chocolate quite like giving her Russell Stover's. You'd be better off giver her radishes)

So I enthusiastically recommend Emily's books, which you can purchase in the webstore. Start baking, share with me what you find out, and enjoy one of the richest pleasures food has to offer.

The art of the Macaroon:

Friday, April 25, 2008

The Joy of Pesto


A couple of weeks ago, I was driving home from a nightclub in Costa Mesa with a 30-something year old classmate of mine. She was mildly buzzed and ready to go to sleep, but as we were chatting about how spring break was going, she interjected:

"Oh by the way, you have to make me pesto."

I had pesto sauce for the first time when I was six years old. I was at a family friend’s house while my parents were moving our stuff into a new place about 30 minutes away. It was green and it tasted funny, like nothing I’d ever seen before. Not exactly the most inspiring beginning to what has become my favorite pasta sauce.

Today, pesto is used in everything from pasta to pizza, from dips to sandwiches. And the summertime is great because that’s when basil, the ingredient in the sauce, grows large and fragrant. Go to most farmer’s markets in the summertime, and you can get huge bunches of it for 99 cents. At the famous Gilroy Garlic Festival, its served everywhere you go.

The clash of flavors is simple yet satisfying. The aroma of the basil, the pungent garlic, the texture of the pine nuts, the richness of the cheese, and all complimented by the distinct taste of extra virgin olive oil. Yes, this sauce has something for everybody.

Here’s the way I like to make it:

36 Basil leaves, rinsed and dried
3-4 cloves garlic
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup pine nuts
¾-1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine and mix all ingredients in a food processor or blender. If too thick, add small amounts of olive oil. This makes enough sauce for a pound of spaghetti.

I recently rediscovered the sauce’s versatility in sandwiches. Here’s a simple favorite of mine, with a little twist on the old grilled cheese and tomato.

ITALIAN SALAD SANDWICH
Two slices of sliced long sourdough bread
Two slices of a large tomato
(Optional: Two cucumber slices)
Pesto sauce
One slice of mozzarella or provolone cheese

Coat one side of each slice of bread with pesto sauce. On one slice, place tomato (and cucumber, if desired). On the other slice, place cheese. Place in a warm toaster oven for about five minutes, until bread is toasted and cheese melted. Remove bread slices, place together, slice, and enjoy.

(A word to the wise: Your breath will smell of garlic for quite some time after eating, hence not advisable on a first date).

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Why do I love to cook?

Everything about me says I shouldn’t. I’m a 28-year old man. I’m a bachelor. I’m a student. My parents come from a country where women cook while men work during the day and sit on their asses at night. I love sports. I play video games. How could I possibly be a “Foodie”?

It started when I was a child. My father was a San Francisco businessman while high aspirations for his children. So much so that he thought it would be a good idea to start bringing us to fancy restaurants at a young age not so much to show off wealth, but rather for me and my brother to learn what it’s like to eat in a place like that. At first, it was painstaking. The food took too long, it tasted funny, and we had to wear these stupid clothes JUST to get in. But as time went on, we caught on to the culture of food and its power to entertain, excite, inspire, and bring people together.

On the other end was my mother, a physician with the hidden fantasy of being a cook. So much so that she spends a lot of her spare time cooking and baking. Every now and then, I’d help her out and continued to learn until the day I could handle myself in the kitchen by the time I was a teenager.

As an impressionable young man with no game, several told me that the ability to cook and bake would make me desirable to women. Because of that, I got reasonably good at cooking and baking. I practiced, I tested, and kept at it until I mastered several dishes (I also learned to dance the same way, and for the same reasons). It has yet to yield results. Nevertheless, Randy Pausch once said that “experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want.” So I haven’t been on a date in forever, but at least I’m not living on McDonalds like many of my counterparts are.

Food is an art unlike others because it nourishes. Not everybody needs to look at paintings, listen to music, or dance the waltz. But sooner or later, everybody needs to eat. Because eating is such a central activity to our lives, we often gather around it. Think of every major celebration there is in life, and food plays a large role. From family dinners to weddings, charity fundraisers, sporting events, and political gatherings, food often plays a central role.

Good food, however, gets people talking. I love the way flavors dance on palates to the point where they become words out of a person’s mouth, or better yet, incomprehensible groans of pleasure and satisfaction (Mmmmm, Yummy, Ahhh). While it is one thing to experience great tastes, it is another to know that the great tastes your company experiences comes from the work of your own hands.

So that what cabinet is all about. To share food recipes, ideas, and experiences, while showing people how to make new ones. You are most certainly welcome to join me on the relentless search for flavor.