Kitchen Gadget Girl Cooks

If I didn’t know Stephanie, I would miss out on so many local good food options. She only moved down here last year, but has already managed to locate my favorite lunch spot, Tootsie’s, and now has turned me onto Philz Coffee. Originally only in San Francisco, Philz recently opened a spot on Middlefield in Palo Alto, and Philz is my last and final suggestion for 12 Days of Local Christmas.

Started in San Francisco in 2003, Philz is a labor of love for Phil Jaber and his son Jacob. They focus on coffee blends, and they offer these coffees through drip stations, a method of coffee service catching on more and more in the Bay Area. I drink decaf, and usually when I want a cup of drip coffee, I am stuck with the one variety of decaf available that day. Not so at Philz, where each cup of drip coffee is prepared to order!

When ordering coffee beans, you need to know how you like your coffee – light, medium or dark roast. Within those categories, there are more choices to make. We are trying Jacob’s Wonderbar Brew, which has lovely undertones of chocolate and nuts.

Through the end of this month (December 2009), 1 pound of Tesora (House Blend) is on sale for $10. That would make a mighty nice stocking stuffer. Or a New Year’s gift to start the new year off with a buzz!

I hope you have enjoyed these 12 local food suggestions – I know I have enjoyed sampling and putting them together. Merry Christmas!

At first, I thought it would be silly to include beans and rice in my 12 Days of Local Christmas series, but then two things happened. My sister gifted me a gorgeous clay pot cooker from Bram, and I decided that come the New Year, I am going to eat a little healthier. Beans and rice seemed to be a good solution for both!

I wrote about finding these two companies at the San Francisco Ferry Building last month. The selection available at the Rancho Gordo stall at the Ferry Building changes periodically, but their website always has a complete selection. You can also buy their beans in San Francisco at the Rainbow Grocery and Bi-Rite Market. A great addition to a bag or two of beans would be the Heirloom Beans Cookbook from Rancho Gordo, with recipes and tips for cooking beans at home. And, even if you don’t stuff a stocking with Rancho Gordo beans, remember to pick some up for your New Year’s Eve celebrations. Cassoulet, anyone?

And Massa Organics Brown Rice is a great accompaniment to the beans for a high-protein dish. It would be great if I could figure out a way to cook the beans and rice together in my new Bram clay pot! Massa Organics is offering nice gift baskets this time of year, with rice, almond butter and roasted almonds. Quite a treat! In addition to their website and the Ferry Building, Massa Organics products can be found at Whole Foods in Los Altos.

Photo courtesy of Bram Cookware.

While stocking up on hot chocolate for the holidays, I came across a container of Rubicon Bakery Peppermint Marshmallows. Both kids have given them a thumbs up, citing their fluffiness and good peppermint flavor. Perfect accompaniment to their morning hot chocolate.

As I researched Rubicon Bakery to write this review, I discovered this 10 year old business is actually doing more than creating tasty all-natural products from scratch. They are part of a nonprofit organization, Rubicon Programs, that helps individuals in the San Francisco Bay Area overcome economic and social hurdles.  Rubicon provides training, housing, employment and support services to people in need. Purchasing their products actually gives money back to the community.

In addition to peppermint and plain marshmallows, Rubicon Bakery also produces lovely cakes and tarts. Located in Richmond, California, Rubicon Bakery products can be found at Andronico’s, Mollie Stones, Bianchini’s, and Whole Foods. You can also order online through Williams-Sonoma.

With friends coming to visit on Tuesday night, a bunch more baking I want to accomplish, and Christmas dinner to plan, I thought a menu plan for the week would be a good idea. I do need to get a shopping list put together, and I will try to fit in a trip between basketball camp. And hopefully I can make this week a little less hectic!

Using my new Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day, I plan to make Stollen and caramel rolls for Christmas morning (maybe a few gifts too!). Shopping for the holidays is finished, as is wrapping, so I feel as though I can enjoy the rest of the week. Which is good, because the kid’s excitement level is just about through the roof.

Here is my menu plan for Monday, December 21:

Monday: Pan-fried Petrale sole, sautéed orache, couscous

Tuesday: Hearty Winter-Vegetable Soup, grilled sausages from Prather Ranch, Whole Wheat & Flaxseed bread, salad

Wednesday: leftovers

Thursday (Christmas Eve): Local crab, sourdough bread, green salad, cheese plate

Friday (Christmas Day):

• breakfast: scrambled eggs, bacon, sticky caramel rolls, Stollen, grapefruit
• dinner: roast beef (not sure the cut yet, will decide on Thursday!), roasted brussel sprouts, baked garnet yams, persimmon pudding

What is your food plan this week? Any special family foods you share at the holidays?

Ooh, lucky us! We were walking down the waterfront, between Pier 39 and the Ferry Building, and practically stumbled into TCHO Chocolates at Pier 17 in San Francisco. What a lucky find!

I had first seen their chocolates at Calafia in Town & Country, Palo Alto. They have a cute gift box supplying the recipient with a TCHO-a-day for 14, 30, 60, or 90 days. Very cute, I thought.

But, at the Pier 17 location, I was finally able to taste their chocolates, and boy, what a revelation. Instead of obsessing over cacao percentages, TCHO has set out to create flavor-driven chocolates. My family had a great time trying the four different blends – Citrusy, Fruity, Chocolatey, and Nutty. Fortunately, each of us had a favorite, which means we can share a sample box very easily.

For the holidays, TCHO has so many gift options, I don’t really know where to start. My sister and dad are receiving the 8-bar tester, so they can figure out their favorite flavors. My dad is also receiving chocolate drenched macadamia nuts, in honor of our vacation this summer. Personally, I hope Santa will tuck a tin of hot and cold drinking chocolate in my stocking!

In addition to their Pier 17 flagship store, you can also find the chocolates at Calafia Restaurant in Palo Alto, Draeger’s in Menlo Park and Los Altos, Bianchini’s in Portola Valley, and a host of places in San Francisco and cities north. Check here for a complete list. And if you prefer, you can order online, which actually looks better to me, since they offer loads more options!

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to comment on the Progressive Tools Giveaway! The winners are:

Comment #9 – Kristi C.

Comment #28 – DeeAnn S.

The slicers are winging their way to the winners as we speak.

Happy Holidays to all of you, and be sure to check back in the New Year for more giveaways!

Yesterday, I posted locally distilled spirits from St George Spirits in Alameda. A perfect accompaniment, especially if you plan on making cocktails, are the syrups from Small Hand Foods. In fact, when Genie from The Inadvertant Gardener was recommending St George, she suggested Small Hand Foods syrups in the same tweet.

Created by Jennifer Colliau, a San Francisco bartender, the syrups are her way of supporting cocktail-making bartenders with high quality, locally produced ingredients. Jennifer’s Small Hand Bartender blog outlines her process (fascinating for anyone thinking of starting a small artisan-food business) and gives a peek into the genesis of the business. Her Pineapple Gum Syrup starts with organic Pineapples from Berkeley Bowl!

Since I am not that familiar with using syrups in my cocktails, I bought a couple for us to try – the basic Gum Syrup as well as Pineapple Gum Syrup. I found both at Cask in San Francisco, and the salesperson suggested that Gum Syrup can be used in any cocktail that calls for simple syrup. The addition of gum arabic gives a higher viscosity and fuller mouth-feel to the cocktail. The other one that looked interesting is the Grenadine Syrup, made from organic pomegranate juice. Boy, would that elevate the ubiquitous Shirley Temple.

I bought the Pineapple Gum Syrup so I could recreate this San Francisco classic at home:

Pisco Punch
Duncan Nichol, San Francisco, 1893

2 oz Pisco
¾ oz fresh lemon juice
¾ oz pineapple gum syrup

Shake all ingredients vigorously in mixing tins, then strain into a chilled coupe glass.

While thinking about my 12 Days of Local Christmas, I wondered if there were any local beverages that could be added to the mix. I was especially interested in spirits, as my husband and I enjoy a cocktail (or two) every so often.

A simple request on Twitter, followed by a quick answer by Genie at The Inadvertant Gardener, led me to St George Spirits, a company in Alameda, California, distilling Single-Malt Whiskey, American Vodka, Absinthe, Eaux du Vie (with locally sourced fruit) and now Tequila!

The story of how they make the Agua Azul (Spirit of Agave) is hysterical – first, they pound the agave pina, which does nothing (agave pina being extremely difficult to crack), then use machetes, chainsaws, hammermill and finally, a tree chipper. This last one they describe as “going all Fargo on the stuff”, which I think will appeal mightily to my mid-western husband!

St George Spirits has a tasting room in Alameda, but if you need to find some of these spirits closer to the Peninsula, I recommend Cask in San Francisco, on the corner of 3rd and Market, or Beltramo’s in Menlo Park (thanks Vanessa at Italy in SF for that tip!).

St George Spirits/Hangar One
2601 Monarch St, Alameda, CA 94501
Tasting Room open Wednesday through Saturday, noon-7pm, Sunday noon-6pm.
Distillery tours every Saturday and Sunday at 1pm
Reservations required for groups larger than 4.
Tasting Room: 510.864.0635
Main: 510.769.1601

As I was brainstorming ideas for my 12 Days of Local Christmas series, Maren reminded me about Frog Hollow Farms. We have been a CSA subscriber for a couple months, but she reminded me that they also make a great gift for someone who wants to try out their local, organic fruit. In addition, the Frog Hollow Farm kitchen produces lovely organic conserves, chutneys and olive oil, other great gift ideas.

My husband loves their Meyer Lemon Marmalade (and he is not usually a fruit preserves kinda guy!) I like anything with apricot, which includes Apricot Conserve and Apricot-Cherry Conserves. And the rest of the summer fruits are well represented with conserves, jellies and marmalades. Many of these items are available individually, or packaged together in gift packs.

The Olive Oil is 100% organic, made in a Tuscan style, with pressed black and green olives. Available in 250ml ($12) and 500ml ($20) bottles, great stocking stuffers

IMHO, the best items to order from the Frog Hollow Farm kitchens are their homemade Galletes, Tartlettes, holiday Crostadas, basically any of their baked goods. And now, you can have them shipped to you directly, no more waiting in line at the Ferry Building to pick up your favorites.

Anything you chose from Frog Hollow Farms will delight, owners Al, Becky and Sarah make sure of that!

Photos courtesy of Frog Hollow Farms.

Yesterday, 11 of my mom-friends from our school gathered to decorate over 200 cookies that were donated today to Ronald McDonald House at Stanford, and Haven House in Menlo Park, California. With the help of these friends, we are spreading a little joy through this holiday season!

Drop In and Decorate is the brain child of Lydia, from The Perfect Pantry. The idea is to make a bunch of plain sugar cookies and invite your friends over to help decorate, then donate to an organization in your community. A party with a purpose! I hosted one of these events last December, when we decorated 95 cookies to donate to the Ronald McDonald House at Stanford. In May, I hosted another event for Mother’s Day, and we decorated and donated 160 cookies. This time, we surpassed both those achievements!

Special thanks to Donna, Christy, Rachel and Cherie for helping me with cookie baking, and Lisa for being my frosting buddy! Could not have done it without you!