Upcoming Food
& Drink Events
in Bay Area
September 17-23
September 22
September 27
Central Coast
October 6
San Francisco
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About Us
We offer:
Catering
Dinner Parties
Cooking Lessons
Team Building Events
Variety of Food & Wine Pairing Events
Please contact us for more information and pricing.
408-826-2004
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| Greetings!
Last month, I worked at The SF Chefs Food & Drink event. It was three glorious days of being surrounded by food, wine, and some amazing talent. I had the pleasure to meet and work with lots of local chefs, including Chris Cosentino of Incanto, Marcus Samuelsson, and Tyler Florence.
 
I was so inspired by all the creativity in not just the food, but table displays. One of my favorites was the fava bean plant in different stages of growth. During set up before the doors opened, I was immediately intrigued when I saw the chef pour buckets of fresh soil on the table! And I watched as this transformed into a small garden right on the table, which was then topped with a framed glass window that became the serving table. And the samples they were handing out - fava bean hummus crostini. So clever.
I can't wait to go next year and get inspired by all the new creative ideas.
Elham S.
Executive Chef, Blue Sage
Michele Snock
Sommelier, Wine Events Connection
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Restaurant To Try
Recently we had dinner at Laili Restaurant in Santa Cruz. The owner is from Afghanistan and the food is Middle Eastern with a twist. There were a variety of unique choices on the menu, including many vegetarian dishes. Everything we tried was very tasty. A couple of their most popular dishes are the Pumpkin Baranee and Pomegranate Eggplant. Once we tasted it, we could see why they are so popular!
They have indoor seating, of course, but they also have seating available in their beautiful patio. The patio was my favorite part - it made the whole experience that much more enjoyable.
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Recipe of The Month Salmon Wellington Serves 4 Level - Intermediate 
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1.5 cups cleaned and sliced leeks - about 1 large
- ½ cup thinly sliced fennel bulb
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh tarragon
- 1 - 1 ¼ pound fillet of salmon, skin removed
- 2 sheets puff pastry (1 box)
- 1 egg mixed with 1-2 teaspoons water for egg wash
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 400°
Heat a sauté pan on medium high heat. Add the olive oil. Once heated, add the sliced leeks and fennel. Sauté until translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Add the white wine and increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce liquid by half. Season with salt and pepper. more...
Wine Pairing:
Elham's salmon wrapped in Puff Pastry screams Sauvignon Blanc...the perfect wine that will accentuate the tarragon and fennel in this yummy dish. Use the same wine in this recipe that you serve along with it to truly achieve the ultimate food and wine pairing.
Try a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc such as Cloudy Bay from Marlborough . This is what I will be drinking this week when I whip up this dish for my dinner guests. Cant wait!
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What's in Season in Northern California
Purchasing local foods in-season, not only tastes better, but will help eliminate the environmental damage caused by shipping foods thousands of miles. Also local food dollar goes directly to the farmer.
Apples, Avocados, Basil, Beets, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Citrus, Eggplants, Fennel, Grapes, Pineapple, Kale, Mushrooms, Pears, Peppers, Potatoes, Okra, Turnips
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Tips - Techniques - Fun Facts
Saving Tomato Paste
Has this happened to you? You open a can of tomato paste and use 1 or 2 tablespoons. You refrigerate the rest, confident that you will use the rest - but a few weeks later you find a science experiment in the back of the refrigerator....
What is irritating to me is not that I have to throw away the moldy mess. It's that I now have to go to the store and buy more - and the cycle continues.
So here's an easy way to keep your leftover tomato paste and avoid waste.
1. Measure the leftovers into 1 tablespoon portions.
2. Wrap each tablespoon in plastic wrap.
3. Put all the bundles in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
The other thing I love about this tip is that the next time you need tomato paste for a recipe, it's already measured and ready to go!
Coming Up: In next month's newsletter, look for tips on stocking your pantry
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Ask a Question - Share Ideas
Alex S. asked:
Q: What's the quickest way to defrost frozen chicken?
A: There are several ways to defrost frozen food, but the quickest way is to put it in cold running water. Alton Brown did a show on this years ago where he compared different methods of defrosting. Watch this Youtube video for a detailed explanation (The experiment on defrosting starts at about 5 minutes into the video.) Defrosting - Alton Brown
Have a question about food, cooking, wine? Ask the experts and you can be featured in one of our newsletters. Send us your question
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