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Monday, July 31, 2006

Rhubarb Blueberry Pie: Recipe

I have confession to make. Just the thought of making pastry scares me. With savory food you can usually fix whatever you're making along the way. You can taste for seasonings and for "doneness". But when you bake something you just don't have that option. It's all some science experiment with bamboo skewers and formulas. With enough practice, I imagine you get to the point where you know how juicy your fruit will become in the oven, how long to whip the egg whites, when your dough is properly chilled, how much sugar is just enough, when to add lemon and when to add vanilla. But me, I fret. I try to find a good recipe and pray it works. When it does I treasure it. I've never believed I was capable of making a pie. But I was lured into it this Summer by a number of food blogs with their tantalizing pie posts . So I gave it a go. I made a variation on the classic Cuisinart crust, the filling was a mixture of blueberries and rhubarb with just a sprinkling of......
Saturday, July 29, 2006

This week a bunch of sweet posts. Sweet Napa reports from Pierre Herme in delicious detail. It's her favorite pastry shop in Paris, mai oui! There's been a flurry of activity over at Albion Cooks lately. But the post on baking with lavender really caught my eye. From Nami-Nami a lovely post about cloudberries . Makes me want to go hunting for them. Finally Sam over at Becks & Posh is participating in the Blogathon today which means 24 hours of blogging, if you are reading today do head over to her blog and check it out and make a pledge on behalf of Food Runners. FOOD...
Thursday, July 27, 2006

Gourmet Indian Food

Indian food is hot. Not just spicy hot but trendy hot. Or on the verge anyway. I've always been a fan of Indian food, but ever since I ate at the Bread Bar at Tabla I've seen new potential for the gourmet side of this cuisine. What I experienced there was traditional Indian spices combined with fresh local seasonal produce and modified cooking styles that kept some of the brighter notes. Some non-Indian ingredients like rhubarb and rosemary were seamlessly integrated into traditional dishes like chutney and bread. So often Indian food I've eaten in restaurants is cooked ahead of time, the typical "lunch buffet" and not made to order so the food at Tabla was a revelation for me. Early this year I also tried some wonderful packaged Indian food at the Fancy Food Show, it was fresh tasting, organic and truly delicious. I don't usually expect packaged food to taste that good. I'm also a fan of Zante's Indian Pizza while it's not necessarily "g......
Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Amy Meets Jacques Pepin!

READ MORE Over at Bay Area Bites is the first part of my interview with Jacques Pepin . Read about the "celebrity chef" phenomenon, cookbooks, food trends and more... FOOD...