Monday, June 28, 2010

Summer Travels!




Hi Everyone!
Here are some pictures from my weekend in Humboldt County. It was my first time up there in my adult life, and of course the trip's mission was to see the sights, and eat delicious things of course. My favorite was Brio Breadworks, a cute little place on the corner of the plaza in Arcata, CA. The bakery has a European feel with artisan breads, and a plethora of unforgiving pastries, all of which is made in-house! We had a fruit danish, Egg's Benedict on a croissant, and a classic omelette with Emmental cheese and Chives. We also dined at Brick and Fire, a cute little cafe that prepares all of their food in a massive brick oven in the back. It was delicious! I tried two interesting dishes I'd never had, a polenta lasagna (very creative), and a refreshing mint-peach sorbet for dessert. Last but certainly not least, we went to the Lost Coast Brewery in Eureka! I've had plans to go there for a long time, and finally had lunch there this afternoon! My turkey burger was FANTASTIC! The picture you see here is a collection of 10 4 oz samples of all the brews. It was a fun way to end the trip, and I'm glad I got to experience some new foods and flavors, and spend some time in that part of the state.

Hope you're all exploring the culinary world through summer's bounty !

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Banana Muffcakes


Not sure if these are muffins are cupcakes, so they'll be a hybrid.

I had a few bananas about to go bad, and this is what I came up with. I made a really simple icing consisting of butter, confectioner's sugar and some soy milk to drizzle on top, as well as some raw almonds for garnish and crunch. I think they look pretty good and they taste amazing. They're super spongy and light, but not too sweet. The icing melts when you take a bite, which kind of brings all the textures and flavors together.

Interesting side note: Did you know you can make a substitute for buttermilk with milk and vinegar? ( 1 cup milk per 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice) What's even more interesting, is that you can use soy milk if you don't have regular milk and it works just as well! I didn't know, so that's cool.

More to come...
Happy Eating!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Key Lime Pineapple Pie!


I've plunged deep into a sick, twisted obsession in pie land for the past few months. I should probably move on...

With that said, here lies my most recent creation, Key Lime Pineapple Pie.

It didn't set up as well as the last key lime pie I made, but the flavor is akin to pure tropical paradise, and the texture is silky smooth. The crust is a simple graham cracker crust with a hint of cinnamon. Divine, if I do say so myself. It's the perfect balance of tart fruitiness and sweet cookie-ness.

More to come...

Happy Eating!

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Food tour d'Berkeley!

I've just returned from one of my favorite cities in California. Jake, my lovely cuisine companion has spent little time in Berkeley and we'd been discussing a potential food tour for quite a long time. Berkeley Bowl, the mecca of all grocery stores was the inspiration for the trip, but I figured if we were already there, we'd attempt to eat our way through the entire bay area. We made a list of places to go, and began our journey at 9:30 this morning. Said list included; Bette's Ocean View Diner, The Cheeseboard Cooperative Bakery, Ici Ice Cream Shop, Intermezzo, and Berkeley Bowl. We indulged in amazing breakfast at the diner, committed to quality ice cream made from the freshest, most seasonal ingredients, and maxxed out our credit cards at the Bowl. While we didn't make it to all because of stomach size constraints, we did have a lovely time, and the weather was charming. Unfortunately I'm an idiot and I forgot my sd card for my camera, and failed on the photography portion of the trip, however we do have big plans for key lime and pineapple pie, so stay tuned.

Tasty Treats

So, I recently made this triple chocolate mousse cake, and it was just about the most heavenly thing I've ever tasted. The bottom is a bittersweet chocolate mousse crust, the middle is a milk chocolate mousse and the top is a white chocolate mousse. Epic.

Food Fondness

Hello Everyone!

My name is Yael, and I love food... Yes, I sound like an addict, and maybe I am, but frankly I don't care! I'm starting this blog as a way of documenting my culinary adventures around the great state of California, where I live, as well as some of the other places I have an hope to visit. I am an avid hobby baker, however I dabble in all other food preparation and exploration.

I went to school at the University of California at Santa Cruz where I did my bachelor's in Environmental Studies. My studies were focused on food systems, and while I've always been
interested in food, this only further encouraged my interest. I suppose what most intrigued me was the simple relationship people have with food. Everybody's gotta eat, right? Yet, I'm continuously perplexed by the complexity associated with growing, preparing and enjoying food, and I hope that through my constant engagement in food culture, I will one day understand it... Or become the most amply proportioned woman on the face of the earth. We'll see...

My favorite time is spent with friends who share the same love and passion for food, and I'm always curious to see what others are doing. I hope I can share with you some of the wonderful eats I've been lucky to experience, and that I can receive feedback and advice to further pursue the ongoing dialogue about food!

Happy Eating!