So far, today's favorite reads are all green.
The official announcement of Slow Food Nation '08 in none other than the glorious S.F. [SFGate.com]
Barbara Kingsolver's non-fiction debut, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.
[Bon Appétit Editor's Blog]
I'm inspired to plant a midsummer garden and harvest my own veggies...I bet my new roommates won't care. Mom, Dad, objections?
My dad called the Saturday we had reservations, around 4 pm, to confirm. The voice on the other end of the phone asked him very pointedly if we would mind wearing all black. Everyone was being asked to wear all black. Say what? "Just what is this place," I wondered. Well, it's The Supper Club. From the minute you begin to think about what you will wear for the evening, the supper club in San Francisco is an experience. With food. My three sisters and I (all visiting the folks at home for the first time in ages) dolled it up. My parents even pulled out the stops with their own very chic noir ensembles. From the minute we stepped inside the unimpressive, non-descript building on Harrison between 2nd and 3rd, the experience continued to reveal layers of ridiculousness, equally mixed with delight and it was..le exciting. Diva Dan took our coats. Diva Dan is a transvestite with a great smile, a coy attitude and one hell of a rack. He also means business, especially when doling out birthday/bachelorette/anneversiary “spanks” with a knarly paddle straight out of woodshop class in Dazed and Confused. No freshman allowed at the supper club, though. 18 and up only. And appropriately. 
Between the flowing booze and the cross-dressing cabaret style performance art that takes place in between courses, this private dining experience (one seating a night, no in-and-out) is outta control fun. You lounge on cushions for three hours, all while being served hand and foot. Massages cost extra, but, hey, they're available. Our server was a cross between cupid and Angel from X-Men III and was particularly skilled at passing plates of food up through the balcony to more efficiently serve the upper level diners. The food was excellent— impressive, even considering it was a five course plated extravaganza for 200. Can't wait for the excuse to go again...though I wouldn't recommend a birthday unless you don't mind Diva Dan's paddle...
Oooooh! PINKBERRY, you've been warned! The NYT put our L.A.-based tasty treat/trend of the year winner in check with a new competitor today. Full article here Too bad the enemy has got nothing on Pazzo Gelato in Silver Lake...
From the SF Chronicle, I highly recommend printing out Georgeanne Brennan's piece on Irish Cuisine, full article here Brilliant. Not only do I have a completely new perspective on Irish food, but the recipes make me want to throw a St. Patty's Day party. Lucky Irish.
Baby artichokes, are, as Russ Parsons points out in today's LAT's Farmers Market column irresistible. They taste just like the big ones, but they are so much cuter. I'm thinking fried baby artichoke hearts served with a side of Romesco sauce, yum.
My mom's fail proof method for fried baby artichoke hearts:
"No recipe, I just clean and quarter the hearts. Keep them in lemon water to reduce browning. Dry and dust them in a little flour/cormeal mixture, and then deep fry. A little salt and romesco sauce."
Thanks Bethina425. You rule.
We all know Trappist monks have been brewing ale for centuries, but did you know what Trappist nuns in Rome are known for? Sour black cherry preserves... Click here. Delicious!
The sugar gods are really aligning today to sweet-tooth torture me with scrumptious little confections. Check out Miette Pâtisserie. It's a bakery and a candy store (two locations in the San Francisco Bay Area) run by two women who started out selling their yummy little treats at the Berkeley Farmer's Market. Their cake gallery is an exercise in cyberspace dessert binging. And the vintage cake platters? le sigh. I want one of everything. Now. Sign me up for the internship...
By contributing writer the raven is dead
After a pretty disgusting chocolate and alcohol gorgefest in December, I'm for reals committing to eating more fresh vegetables this year. A lovely organic foods delivery service is making it all that much easier.
For $29 a week, Organic Express will deliver a box of super fresh seasonal organic vegetables and fruit to your home or office in the SF Bay or LA areas.
My roommate and I subscribed just last week, and in our first box, we got some gorgeous red chard, cauliflower, pears, apples, sweet potatoes, an acorn squash, oranges, grapefruits, and pretty little fingerling potatoes. It's all really fresh and pretty affordable, especially if you factor in the amount of time it normally takes to battle your way into the nightmare that is Trader Joe's on any given weeknight or some other horrendously overcrowded market filled with "organic" Mexican imports.
So, anyone know how to cook chard?
