… and the first strawberries of the season!!! I am so excited for the next few months of amazing spring and summer produce!
Aren’t they absolutely adorable! Don’t you just want to eat tons and tons of them!
And one other note: Our apologies for the lack of posts lately. We’re working on a few new projects and they’ve been consuming our culinary energy. Once the results are in, we will have some awesome insight for you guys!
Spring love to all of you!
-Emily
Tuesday we celebrated our first passover seder. Our neighbor Robin moved far away from her family on the East Coast and so she didn’t have any real Jews to celebrate with. We decided to do our best to fake it and turn out an awesome Passover Seder anyway. Under Robin’s tutelage, we did. Our Passover Seder was awesome – great food, great friends, a great time!
Here are some photos I took during the dinner.
The chickens before I roasted them. The light was so pretty, I couldn’t resist.
The seder table.
Our view during dinner. Seriously, what a beautiful city!
The seder plate.
Robin’s matzoh ball soup – carefully crafted from her mother’s recipe.
Robin’s pup Honey also had an awesome time at the seder.
A tower of matzo – the perfect vehicle for salted butter! And you all know how much I love butter!
The spread – roasted chicken, roasted vegetables, matzoh kugle, risotto with leeks and wild mushrooms (not kosher for Passover, but absolutely delicious!), salad with beets and oranges, and matzo!
And for dessert – Nonnie’s cheesecake with a coconut macroon crust. (I had a bit of trouble cutting the slices so it looked a little worse for wear, but it was delicious none the less!)
-Emily
The Fatted Calf is an amazing artisanal charcuterie based in Napa, CA. They also have a store in the Hayes Valley neighborhood of San Francisco where you can purchase their delicious sausages, salamis, pates, confits and freshly-butchered, humanely-raised meats.
The Hayes Valley store (320 Fell St) hosts a Pork Happy Hour every Wednesday from 5:30 pm – 7 pm. The best part: they expertly butcher a whole hog right in front of your amazed eyes!!! Other great parts: free beer and snacks, custom cuts of meat, samples of their delicious wares and general pork-lover merriment.
If you are in the area on a Wednesday, check out the Pork Happy Hour. It doesn’t disappoint. And if you can’t make it out on a Wednesday, visit some other time and enjoy access to some mind-blowing charcuterie!
(Seriously, how awesome is that!)
-Emily
Jordan and I attended the afternoon portion of last month’s Underground Market and it was great! Delicious samples, lots of great vendors, tons of people really excited about fresh, local, handmade food! If you’re in the area, check it out this Saturday! We’re planning on attending the evening portion this time.
SF Underground Market, hosted by ForageSF
Saturday March 26th
11am-4pm : Take-homeables and gifts
6pm-2 am: Hot food, Music
Location: Public Works, 161 Erie St
Admission: $5, $10 after 11 pm
“The SF Underground Market is a venue where you can taste and purchase the food that is being produced in backyards and home kitchens in the Bay Area.
To sell at a farmers market, you need to produce your wares in a commercial kitchen. This is an impossible expense for many of us, so the underground farmers market is about helping to get some exposure for all of our fellow producers without the cash for a commercial kitchen. These are veterans, people who’ve been making their products for years, but only able to share them with friends. We thought we’d give them a venue to share with the whole SF food community.
A market, and a live show, all rolled into one. Think a farmers market, but at night, with music and drinks.”
If you are interested in attending, be sure to sign up here. If you are interested in becoming a vendor, click here.
I love mexican food. Like my mother, I could probably eat it everyday. Limited access to great mexican food is just one of the reasons living outside of California borders on torture for me. The Mission District in San Francisco offers a myriad of taquería options, but not all super burritos are created equal. Jordan and I have done the legwork and our favorite taquería is Taquería Cancun (2288 Mission Street, between 18th and 19th).
Last Saturday we enjoyed awesome burritos in the company of awesome friends. Our recommendation: go for the super burrito or super taco “al pastor” ($6, $3). What does al pastor entail you may wonder? How can this meat be so delicious? Well, al pastor means that slices of pork are marinated in chilis and vinegar and then are cooked shawarma-style with a pineapple on top. I have to say that love the image of a pile of meat roasting on a spit with a pineapple on top almost as much as I love a super burrito al pastor!
Our friend Jeff took our recommendation and got the super burrito al pastor, another friend went with the chicken burrito and another went vegetarian. None were disappointed.
After we finished our burritos we took a stroll through the neighborhood.
Afterwards we grabbed soft-serve ice cream at Bi-Rite Creamery. I happen to think soft serve pairs magnificently with burritos. The perfect end to a perfect day in the Mission.
-Emily
As we described a few weeks ago, Jordan and I joined a CSA (community supported agriculture) group. We’ve been enjoying our boxes of super seasonal and fresh produce and trying new recipes like mussels with clams and fennel, un wok and leek and tomato chowder with dover fillets. Our farm is Eatwell Farms and I want to share the beautiful produce we just picked up!
This week we received: navel oranges, pomelo, dandelion greens, winter green mix, green garlic, savoy cabbage, leeks, celeriac, carrots, pink lady apples and eggs.
How cute are these eggs!
Stay tuned for a delicious celeriac and leek gratin recipe.
-Emily
Jordan and I enjoyed a sunny afternoon in the Mission. We went to Bi-Rite Market – an awesome market full of artisanal and local yummies – to grab a little picnic to enjoy at Dolores Park. We chose two sandwiches and a few of their famous cookies.
I enjoyed the Neiman Ranch ham sandwich with swiss cheese, mustard and mayo on a sour baguette. Jordan had the salami sandwich with romanesco.
And boy, was that ham good. I took my first bite and was transported to a very porky, very perfect place. I actually had to take a moment. I loved this sandwich – a simple combination of high-quality ingredients – and could eat another one right now.
Jordan loves Bi-Rite’s romesco and so he was also stoked on his sandwich. The salami was awesome and paired nicely with the slightly-spicy romesco. Their chocolate chip cookies are also quite good. They are on the crunchy side and we think they’d make perfect ice cream sandwiches.
-Emily
As we described a few weeks ago, Jordan and I joined a CSA (community supported agriculture) group. We’ve been enjoying our boxes of super seasonal and fresh produce and trying new recipes like pasta with kale and portobello, leek bread pudding and blood orange olive oil cake. Our farm is Eatwell Farms and I want to share the beautiful produce we just picked up!
This week we received: lemons, navel oranges, lettuce, parsley, broccoli, spring onions, collards, green garlic, carrots, pink lady apples and butternut squash.
Another awesome thing about receiving a CSA box that I didn’t expect is that it really motivates Jordan and I to plan ahead. We plan our week of meals and shop for additional ingredients on Sunday night, trying tofit each of these delicious edible pieces into our meal puzzle. This culinary problem solving has been really fun – it removes a lot of the I just got home from a long day at work and I have no idea what I’m eating tonight stress and we eat healthier because we’re planning dishes around vegetables. Win-win-win!
-Emily
We …
… enjoyed the company of Noah and Ayla. And feasted.
And lost power for about 12 hours.
And so we slept in.
And ate lunch at Dolores Park. And fell in love again with our beautiful city. I mean, look at her!
And tried out three new recipes! Coming soon!
And lounged in the spot of sunlight trickling into our apartment. (How beautiful is this photo that Jordan took? I absolutely love it)
I hope you all had a beautiful long weekend.
-Emily
This post will deviate slightly from the butter and pork theme that dominates our blog, but don’t worry folks, it’s only temporary. Plus, the departure is justified because Heath Ceramics is such an amazing place and because they primarily produce dishware. (Food blog + artisanal dishware = peas in a pod, right?). Okay, here is the story.
Heath Ceramics was founded in 1948 in Sausalito, CA by Edith Heath. She was a feisty lady who knew her mind. She built her ceramic factory on the values of quality and sustainability, using local materials as much as possible and paying the real cost of labor always. Basically, she wanted to make simple, good things for good people. And so she did for the next 50 years. In 2003, husband and wife team, Robin Petravic and Catherine Bailey purchased Heath Ceramics with a mission to revitalize the company. By placing a strong emphasis on design, handcrafted techniques, and the reinvigoration of the company’s designer-maker legacy, Robin and Catherine have preserved and perpetuated the Edith’s values. Today, Heath Ceramics is one of the few remaining American potteries still in existence. Every piece they sell is made in their Sausalito factory by a team of 60 craftsmen and every piece is truly a work of art.
Last Friday, I took off work and Jordan and I went on the factory tour. We got to see first hand every step of the process and learn about the company’s history. It was incredible! I was so impressed by the time and attention put into each piece. The techniques were fascinating (I had zero idea how to make a stoneware platter from scratch) and the staff eager to share how they produce what they produce. It was evident how proud everyone was of their product, but even evident how proud they are of their process. It was truly unique experience and I loved every moment.
* this image courtesy Heath Ceramics
At the Sausalito store, they sell factory seconds – pieces that didn’t quite make the quality standards primarily due to aesthetic reasons (bubbled glaze, little nicks) – for 30% off. We purchased a few beautiful pieces, including the serving bowl pictured up top, a little milk pitcher, and two tiles to use as trivets or spoon rests. I’ll just show them off here …
*I think the little split makes this little guy even cuter!
I am kicking myself for not taking more photos while in the factory. It is a beautiful place and the processes are amazing and artisanal and unlike anything I’ve ever seen.
If you want to go on a tour (do it!), give them a call or click here for more information. And, remember to bring your camera!
-Emily
