Veggie and Herb Cream Cheese on Everything Bagel, Topped with Smoked Salmon, Radish, and Chives

It is said that Albert Einstein defined insanity as, "doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results."

I am, perhaps, insane.  Every spring, once I spot a container of potted herbs being sold at the farmers' market, I snatch one up.  How can I resist? So vibrant and lush, brimming with parsley and basil and thyme and rosemary and sage and cilantro and chives, one cannot help but be reeled in by their scent, their color, and the promise of delicious food to come.

Then I prance back home with my container.  Visions of herbs flavoring breakfasts, lunches, and dinners dance in my head.

And then each herb withers away.  I think I somehow manage to over-water and under-water all at once.  Usually cilantro goes first.  Or parsley.  Then the chives.  And then the rest follow suit, each meeting their own demise.  All except the thyme.  That, apparently, likes me.  Its affections are not unappreciated.

So there they are - my dreams of plucking fresh herbs right from the container on the deck lying shattered on the ground, replaced by the reality of having to purchase them from a store instead.

This plays out every year. It won't be too long until that container is spotted once again at the farmers' market.  And I of course will try, try again.  The chives and basil came from a store this time.  However, I remain optimistic that the future will be sprinkled with my own fresh herbs.  Perhaps this optimism is indeed insanity.  It is all so subjective.

Ingredients
1 block cold cream cheese
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup chopped chives
1/2 cup chopped basil leaves
2 scallions, chopped
1-2 tablespoons minced jalapeno
3 stalks celery, minced
1 cup baby spinach
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
2 teaspoons lemon juice

everything bagel, toasted
smoked salmon
radishes, sliced
handful chopped chives

Instructions
Beat the cream cheese and butter in a stand mixer.  Then toss in the herbs, scallions, jalapeno, celery, spinach, lemon juice and zest.  Beat again until everything is incorporated.  Spread on toasted everything bagel.  Top with pieces of smoked salmon, radish slices, and more chives.

A Place at the Table: Hunger in America & Beyond

Certain issues are very near and dear to my heart and none more so than hunger. Having worked in a homeless shelter, I got to know people who struggled to get enough to eat on a daily basis and it was an honor to be able to feed them. Ironically the homeless shelter I worked at was in a very wealthy county. But hunger is something that the richest and the poorest countries have in common and it doesn't just affect the homeless. And it will take public effort to make the changes necessary to see that hunger is wiped out. 

A Place at the Table, a film addressing hunger in the US is being released today, March 1. I got a chance to preview it and found it very moving with portraits of people struggling in our midst. It looks at just some of the reasons that hunger exists in the US. Perhaps not surprisingly, politics and subsidies are an important part of the picture. The film aims to increase our understanding of the problem it also points to some solutions. Though the current debate on raising the minimum wage is not part of the film, it's worth taking a look at too. Should anyone working full time making minimum wage still have a tough time putting food on the table? As taxpayers we are effectively subsidizing the big corporations that pay minimum wage in the form of programs like Medicare and food stamps. And we are subsidizing big agribusiness rather than family farms with farm subsidizes that do little to address hunger. 

Another effort to draw attention to hunger is Oxfam's latest research study looking a the policies of the ten largest food and beverage companies. They draw the connection between these companies who collectively make $1 billion dollars a day, and the millions of people in developing countries who supply the labor, land, water and other commodities needed to enable them to make their products and their profits.  

Solutions start with knowledge and taking responsibility---we all have a part to play and that includes our politicians and the brands we buy. I hope you will find a way to help reduce hunger in America and beyond. Here are some ways to get involved:

Voice your support for America's anti-hunger programs

Contribute to the No Kid Hungry campaign through Share our Strength 

Change the way food companies that make top brands do business

I donate to my local food bank and ask family to donate to it instead of buying me holiday gifts, what do you do to help end hunger? 

Whale-Shaped Crackers with Cheddar and Nori, an Ode to the Whale

In terms of cetacean appreciation, dolphins get the glory.  They are so cute and friendly and sleek.  Jumping out of the water to show off their spins and spyhops.  Equipped with a fancy echolocation system to navigate.  And can even come in the color pink, a fact that Max is super in love with.  Okay okay, dolphins are really awesome.  And yes, I'm pretty taken with the pink dolphins as well.

But whales are awesome too.  This weekend is the start of the Festival of Whales here in Dana Point, marking the migration of the gray whale (though blue whales have strangely been spotted recently as well).  We are totally obsessed with both whales and the festival.  Like, lets cut whale shapes out of construction paper and string them together to make banners to hang up kind of obsessed.  Like, lets turn our food into whale-shapes obsessed.  Like, watching Blue Planet over and over and over again obsessed.  I've even done some research into the gray whale's diet, pondering ways to incorporate  it into whale-party food.  I'm such a dork.

All lumpy and big and grungy, they might not be as chic and beautiful as their dolphin relatives, but they are just as lovable. From the narwhal, an animal about which I'm half-convinced doesn't actually exist but is just a figment of someone's imagination...to the humpbacks with their renowned singing and their own version of pop music...and to the blue whales, being the biggest living thing EVER - the whale, in all its diversity, is due for some love.  So this is our ode.  Our ode to the whale (see previously, ode to ground beef).

Last year, we made these.  In celebration of our devotion to this cetacean and our town's festival.  This year we made crackers - a sonnet expressing our love, but in an edible form.  Whole wheat, buttery, sesame seed filled crackers topped with cheese and a sprinkling of nori goma furikake.  Seth introduced this combination of cracker, cheddar, and the nori, and we have been hooked ever since.  The cheese can also be seen as an homage to our pure and utter cheesiness. I wasn't kidding about being a dork.

Ingredients
3 cups white whole wheat flour
1/4 cup roasted sesame seeds
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 - 2 cups ice water
whale shaped cookie cutter
good quality cheddar, sliced
nori goma furikake

Instructions
In a mixing bowl, whisk flour, sesame, baking powder, salt, and peppers.  Rub the butter into the flour using your hands or pastry cutter, until the mixture looks like coarse sand.  In the bowl of a stand mixer, very gradually, and on low speed, add the cold water, stopping once a dough forms.  You want the mixture to hold together and to no longer be dry. Take half the mixture and put in fridge.  Roll out the other half on a silpat or parchment until about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick.  Use the cookie cutter to make whale shapes.  Sprinkle with just a bit of fleur de sel and place in 375 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, until golden and crisp.  Repeat with the rest of the dough.  To serve, top with a slice of cheddar and a sprinkle of nori.

Delicious Things to Eat

In addition to blogging, copywriting, editing and developing recipes for corporate clients, I am now writing a monthly roundup of top new restaurant and bar openings in San Francisco and the Bay Area for CitySearch. I'm also adding my "tips" for what to eat and where. It's giving me a great excuse to visit and revisit local restaurants. Here are some of the most delicious things I've eaten recently:

Pizza at The Forge

I'm crazy about pizza and I really liked the one I tried at a press preview of The Forge which is on the watefront at Jack London Square in Oakland, it was puffy and had those love crisp bits plus just the right amount of sauce.

The kitchen is also roasting entrees in their pizza ovens and serving some of the best salads around.

Pancake at Ssisso

I went to Ssisso to try the fried chicken, but it was under seasoned and I didn't like the sauce. Thank goodness I ordered the seafood scallion pancake (Haemul pajeon). It was crispy, greasy and oniony and I loved every bite!

It was so good I forgot to order the "frozen khusterd" so I need to go back, also the dinner menu is somewhat different from the lunch menu.

Clam "tortilla soup" with barley at Exploratorium

Ok, I didn't actually eat at the Exploratorium, but it is opening in a new location at Pier 15 soon and in the meantime I got a preview of some of the menu items that will be featured at the Seaglass waterfront restaurant.

My favorite dish was this fantastic clam tortilla soup with briny clams and and creamy bits of avocado.


Butterscotch pudding at One Market

Did you know that One Market is celebrating it's 20th anniversary? I was at their anniversary party and enjoyed many favorites from the menu. A stalwart for business lunches, it's good to know the food is as good as ever and that their creamy butterscotch pudding is not coming off the menu anytime soon.


Bruschetta at Scala's Bistro

Scala's has launched a $9 after 9 (as in 9 pm) menu, offering cocktails, a carafe of wine, and a variety lot little bites like oysters and pizzettas for $9 each. My favorite bite? Hand's down the very seasonal bruschetta with winter squash caponata, black garlic aioli, La Quercia prosciutto, pignoli and mizuna. I loved biting into the soft squash with a zing of black garlic. This is as good a reason as ever to stay for a nightcap!

Grilled albacore tuna from St. Francis winery

St. Francis in Sonoma has a deluxe  5 course food and wine menu you can enjoy at the winery for $42. While I loved all the pairings, one of my favorites was this grilled albacore tuna with sweet potatoes, baby turnips, smoky bacon, garlic chips and ramen broth paired with their 2010 Sangiovese Caro Santo from Sonoma Valley. The bright acidity and red fruit in the wine really cut through the smoky, garlicky broth.

Now head over to CitySearch where you can check out more of my picks, and don't forget to vote for your favorite restaurants in categories like Burgers, Brunch and Burritos, you could win a "Dream Dinner" worth $250!

Nutella and Cara Cara Orange on Whole Wheat Toast, Sprinkled with Sea Salt

At times, I am completely floored by the differences between me and the offspring.  Like at the park, watching him try to scale baby-sized boulders, so carefree and surefooted.  Each rock is just a mountain waiting for a Max to come and climb.

Me?  I'm a klutz.  I'm awkward and run into things and do not watch where I'm going or what is in front of me.  So there is no carefree surefootedness here.  Just thoughts of please don't fall, please don't fall please don't fall.  And then I fall. Or run into the corner of something, resulting in yet another giant bruise. Or bang an elbow in a doorway.  My body finds a myriad of ways to hurt itself.

Then there is our differing outlook on bugs.  One day, Max and I were in his room, and he pointed at the wall, filled with glee and joy.  And there it was.  A giant spider.  I panicked on the inside.  But I put on a steely face and went after the spider with a shoe from Seth's closet.  My attempt to vanquish the 8-legged arachnid was futile and it gracefully sidestepped my attacks.  And each attempt to get "Gigantic Spider" resulted in fearful crying by Max.  He apparently wanted the spider to stay alive.  Like a pet.  A pet spider.

In fact, he was so smitten by the spider, he asked for more bugs.  When it was explained to him that no, I would not actually be bringing him more bugs to play with, he marched right to the computer to do his version of "research" - looking at bugs and spiders online.  I took his distraction as an opportunity to sneakily creep up to his room and spray "Gigantic Spider" with bug spray.

But other times, our familial connection is much more visible.  Much more visceral.

Sometimes that connection comes in a small tube. Chapstick, actually.  My obsession has been passed on to him.  We will never know if this is nature or nurture at play.  He carries around a container in his coat pocket.  And he has his own container of my cast-offs, smelling and playing with each tube lovingly.  They have found themselves a good home with him.

And we also share a love of citrus and chocolate.  When I saw this in Cooking Light, I was so instantly smitten - so easy, so creative, and so delicious.  I found myself getting Max and myself ready to head out the door, literally running  (okay, more like galloping with a stroller) to get the stuff (chapsticks, naturally in both of our coat pockets).  And once these were made, both of us happily munched, together united in a love of chapstick and a love for citrus and chocolate.  Our differences in bug control and risk taking being pushed aside for the moment.

Ingredients
slice of a crusty whole wheat french bread, toasted
1 tablespoon Nutella
Cara Cara orange, segmented
pinch of fleur de sel

Instructions
This is so ridiculously easy.  Just take your toasted bread and spread Nutella on it.  Sprinkle with citrus segments and a pinch of fleur de sel.  Then chow down.

Superfood Cereal Recipe

I love breakfast, but I also find it the easiest meal to skip. I get bored with traditional breakfast foods like eggs and cereal and pancakes day after day. Sometimes I eat leftovers from the previous night's dinner for breakfast but more frequently I just skip it entirely. I know skipping breakfast is not a good idea and so I'm always looking for tasty breakfast solutions, especially ones that take little time to prepare. 

My latest weekday breakfast is what I am calling superfood cereal. It's based on a Canadian cereal I tried at the Winter Fancy Food Show called "Holy Crap." It's made from chia, hemp, buckwheat and some dried fruit and it soaks in milk for 15 minutes before you eat it. It tastes a lot like tapioca pudding with a bit of crunch from the buckwheat, though not quite as sweet as pudding. What's most amazing about it is how little it takes to satisfy. Just a few tablespoons of cereal and a quarter cup of milk and I swear for hours I am not even the slightest bit hungry.

While I don't think this cereal is a cure all, it is very healthy. Chia is a good source of fiber, protein and omega-3 fatty acids, buckwheat is high in the essential amino acids lysine and arginine and hemp seeds are rich in magnesium, potassium, iron, protein and essential omega-3, -6 and -9 fatty acids. I encourage you to change up the proportions to suit your taste. The possibilities are endless, you could switch up the dried fruit, maybe add a little coconut. Holy Crap also includes a bit of cinnamon and dried apples. Some other ideas would be to add shredded apple, flaxseed, vanilla, mashed banana or even juice instead of milk. Have fun and make it yours!

Superfood Cereal

serves 1

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon raw buckwheat groats

1 Tablespoon chia seeds

1 Tablespoon hemp seeds or "hearts"

2 teaspoons dried berries, chopped finely

1/4 cup milk, any kind
Fresh fruit, optional

Instructions

Crush the buckwheat groats either in a mortar with a pestle, in a food processor or place them in a heavy plastic bag and smack them with a rolling pin. You want them somewhat crushed, but not into powder. It's easiest to do this with more groats, then just measure out a tablespoon at a time after they are crushed. 

Combine the crushed buckwheat, chia, hemp and dried berries in a very small bowl. Add the milk, stir to combine then let sit for 15 minutes to soak before serving. Top with fresh fruit if desired.

Enjoy! 

All About Chia

One of the biggest trends I saw this year at the Winter Fancy Food Show was the explosion in the number of products with chia seeds. I first heard of chia in a "ch-ch-ch-chia, the pottery that grows!" chia pet commercial and maybe you did too.  But now chia is back and being touted as a "superfood."

Chia is showing up in everything from cereal to drinks, snacks, baked goods and even pasta. When soaked in any liquid it creates a gel that can be used in place of eggs, it also has a pleasant pudding like texture that might remind you of tapioca. Unsoaked the seeds are crunchy and find their way into granola, chips and more.

Chia seeds are either white or brown and virtually flavorless, but create interesting texture and offer a lot of nutritional benefits. A staple food of the Mayans and Aztecs, just one tablespoon provides 5 grams of fiber, 3 grams of protein, 6% of the recommended daily allowance of calcium and 4% iron. But it's a real powerhouse when it comes to omega fatty acids, providing 2282 mg of omega-3 and 752 mg of omega-6. Look for chia in health food stores. 

I tried chia in a variety of products and really enjoyed them. I've also had fun cooking and baking with them. Here are a few of my favorite products using chia:

Bonachia pasta from Al Dente Pasta Company uses chia in place of eggs. You would not know that there is chia in the product and like all of Al Dente's dried pasta, the chia spinach fettuccini has the wonderful texture of fresh homemade pasta when cooked. Whether you are avoiding eggs or not, this is a great product and much less expensive than buying fresh pasta.  I used it in a recipe I was working on recently and it turned out just great (I'll be sharing that recipe soon).

Mamma Chia makes fruit juice drinks with chia seeds that are plumped up and suspended in the liquid. They are refreshing, quenching your thirst while also taking the edge off when you're feeling hungry. They come in a wide variety of delicious flavors like raspberry passion, guava and blackberry hibiscus. If they were less expensive (about $3.99 a bottle) I would be inclined to buy them more frequently. 

Another chia product I really enjoyed trying at the Fancy Food Show was the Canadian cereal provocatively named "Holy Crap." I can say it definitely lives up to the name, it's a bit like eating creamy pudding for breakfast. Made with chia, hemp hearts and buckwheat groats plus some dried fruit, a little bit really fills you up. Because it doesn't have very good distribution yet, I created my own version which I will share tomorrow...

Here are some ways you can use chia:

* Sprinkle chia seeds on top yogurt or hot cereal

* Make cherry almond chia granola

* Whip up some chocolate chia pudding

* Use chia like poppy seeds in lemon chia seed cake

* Add chia to chili

* Toss chia seeds in a stir fry instead of sesame seeds

* Blend chia seeds into blueberry jam

* Use chia to make vegan chocolate chip cookies

* Make a chia cucumber salad

* Make pomegranate lime chia fresca