Channeling my inner Martha Stewart.
Since I’m freelancing, between jobs and spending plenty of time at home, I’m challenging myself in the kitchen.
Thanks to Serious Eats, I tried out this French technique with fish: Cod en Papillote. The foil helped cook the cod fillets perfectly. Unfortunately, I used salted butter. That, plus a generous pinch of salt made this dish too salty for my palate.
This weekend, Susan introduced me to Guanciale.
Love at first whiff.
In San Francisco, we fried up 2 pounds of porky goodness last night. The fatty smoke warmed up the kitchen and left our clothes smelling yummy.
After saving all the juicy guanciale and bacon fat, Susan showed me how she did Pasta all Carbonara: raw eggs, Parmesan cheese, fried bacon bits and of course – all that rendered fat. We also baked garlic bread and sauteed some mushrooms and onions with garlic salt, thyme and butter.
It all added up to a delicious, hearty, gourmet dinner in the Mission.
Good times.
Finally. December.
I’m trying to keep track of all the amazing food we sampled over the past few months. So far, I have tweeted several gourmet experiences. Now – I’ll try to sum up some of those dining adventures, beyond 140 characters.
We did a Thanksgiving Lunch at the Bistro in downtown Sonoma. I needed a relaxing afternoon after spending 10-plus hours in the newsroom. This Charcuterie plate had a lovely mix of foie gras, pork tartine and sausage. I loved spreading the rich foie on white bread.
We continue to head east for comfort food in Davis. I enjoy the handmade noodles from the Noodle House. I always order these dim sum plates as appetizers: pork BBQ buns and onion pancakes. These hearty flavors fill me up on a chilly autumn day or soothe my stomach after a night of drinking.
In Berkeley, we celebrated Scott’s birthday at T-Rex BBQ. I had to try the chicken-fried bacon. Crazy! A bit chewy and I managed to sample some hints of bacon goodness in this hor d’oeuvre.
I had to work on Thanksgiving. I knew I had no energy or patience to cook after producing a 3-hour show. So, we decided to save our Thanksgiving cooking/feast for Saturday.
I always feel guilty about spending the holiday away from our family in So. Cal and in Buffalo. If you sign on to work in TV news, that’s just one of the realities for our schedules. I’m still happy to mess around in the kitchen with my immediate family: Mark and Daisy. This reminded me of our Thanksgiving Meal in Topeka.
Inside my newsroom, I surprised people with my plans to visit Cleveland on my 2-week vacation.
They thought I was crazy. I rattled off some places worth visiting, like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They nodded, but I don’t think I changed any minds. Screw it. I had fun. This city by Lake Erie has amazing food, great drinking spots and compelling cultural institutions.
Plus – it was sunny in Cleveland. That was a welcome change from our soggy days in Western New York.
Cleveland also introduced me to the joy of pierogies. I fell in love with these Beef Cheek Pierogies at Lola. One bite was filled my mouth with savory, rich goodness. I almost ordered seconds.
Imagine – ordering le petit déjeuner at the McDonald’s inside Lourve.
Honestly, I thought it was only a matter of time.
[Sept. 2004: Next to the Chatelet metro station, on the way to Norte Dame]
I thought this BBC article summed up the international foodie reaction to the news of a new McD’s inside an iconic French institution.
I have a lovely three-day weekend ahead of me. I’m helping my best friend tie the knot in San Francisco.
So…I have some time to show some lovin’ for Photo Friday.
The topic: “Fast Food.”
I have a healthy/gourmet twist to that theme with this BBQ Buffalo Burger. It’s from Burger Me in Truckee. It has this amazing hearty flavor and it’s all lean meat. The tangy BBQ sauce also hit all the right spots for me.
My first week back in the newsroom felt like culture shock. At 2 AM, I discovered our station was at the heart of two major news stories – Jaycee Dugard and the Auburn Wildfires. I did my best to get up to speed. And as one producer likes to tell me: “Write your ass off.”
So, I think I’m caught up with work and all the death and destruction in the world. I’m also adjusting to my new role as the keeper of the calendar. In addition to producing our morning show, I’m now booking guest segments. Chefs, authors, movie stars, snakes and more. Bring them on, I’ll put them on TV. Just check with me on when and where.
I finally had some time to reflect on our two-week trip to Buffalo, NY. I also carved out some time to go over our vacation pictures.
I never had a two-week vacation. I thought it was time well spent. We caught up with our family – swapping stories about life on the West Coast and life in Western NY.
Oh yes, and the rain sucked. So we took advantage of the sunny days with day trips to Niagara Falls and along the Niagara Wine Trail.
TONAWANDA, NY — Listening to Baby Grand, a Sacramento-based indie/twee pop band and chilling at Panera.
Today, I ran 4.17 miles in Lockport. It feels good to keep up with my 10K training on this vacation…especially with all the eating we’re doing.
Last night, we toasted marshmallows at a bonfire and made s’mores.
LOCKPORT, NY — Today, I listened to NPR’s Morning Edition while driving by farms and Lake Michigan. No deadlines, no beat checks, no IFB checks and no scanner traffic. Life outside of the newsroom feels good. I’m a recovering workaholic settling into her vacation. According to the University of Pittsburgh’s Mind-Body Center - my mind and body needed this vacation.
It’s good for you.
We’re visiting my in-laws in upstate New York. We’re in Lockport, near Lake Ontario.
The other day, we went to an outdoor mass with Lake Ontario as the backdrop.
Beautiful.
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