liv bites

Ever since we made that delicious pork tenderloin in our Napa Valley cooking class, I’ve been dying to try some more pork dishes of my own. The catch, of course, is that I couldn’t just rip off the same recipes we cooked in the lesson, so this time I went in a completely different direction.

What I did learn in my first pork experience was the value of the pre-cooking prep work: Be very liberal with seasonings! The way Chef Gary explained it, even if you drown the meat in salt, it’s still only covering a relatively small percentage of what you’re eating. So my assistant mixed up a rub with olive oil, fresh garlic, salt and pepper and covered the pork completely before we put it on the heat.

I subscribe to the daily recipe emails over at CHOW.com, and their Pork Chops with Cherry Sauce caught my eye the other morning. Though I’d never tried it myself, I’ve heard repeatedly that almost any fruit complements the flavors in pork, so this was just the inspiration I needed to dream up my own recipe.

I used peaches in this dish, but cherries, raspberries or even plums would likely work just as well. Just keep in mind that the ripeness of the fruit will have a big impact on the taste of the finished sauce. The peaches I used were ready to eat but not juicy and sweet, so they created a slightly more tart sauce; I loved the flavor, but my assistant was hoping for something sweeter.

You’ll also notice an ingredient that I don’t often cook with made the list this time — beer. I was running low on balsamic vinegar and wanted to add more volume to the peach reduction sauce, so I poured a bit of dark, hoppy ale into the skillet.

Beer is almost more fun to cook with than wine — maybe it’s just the novelty? — and it added a deep, almost mocha-like flavor to the end result. Definitely something I’d recommend! And the good news is you only need about half a beer, so the rest is yours to drink.

On that note, I’ve been intimidated in the past by the fancy-sounding word “reduction,” but making one is as easy as boiling water. Literally. You pour it into the skillet and let it simmer until the water evaporates and you’re left with a sweet syrup — simple and impressive.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Balsamic Peach Reduction

Ingredients (Serves 4):

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 tbsp. each salt and pepper, plus more

1.5 lbs. pork tenderloin

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup dark, hoppy ale (I used Lagunitas Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale, but any IPA will work)

2 peaches, chopped

1 small yellow onion, chopped

2 tbsp. brown sugar

Combine garlic and olive oil in a small bowl, then coat the pork with the mixture using your hands. Cover generously with salt and pepper. Grill on medium-high heat for about 7 minutes on each side (or to desired doneness).

In a large sauce pan, combine vinegar, ale, peaches, onion and brown sugar. Let simmer for about 15 minutes; sauce should be a syrup-y texture. If it’s too watery, keep simmering. Season with salt and pepper and serve over pork.

Although most people imagine Mississippi as a hub for consuming grits, my mom only makes them once a year, at Christmas brunch. Along with about a hundred other side and main dishes, she whips up her version of gruyère grits that I adore, topped with mouth-watering grillades that take her all day to make (it’s worth it, trust me).

So my grits experience may be more limited than you’d guess, but they’re still close to my heart. I’ve been wanting to personalize them and make them my own, so I decided to try a simple shrimp and grits meal for dinner this week. Grits for dinner was a welcome change of pace from the usual grains (pasta, risotto, etc.), but keep in mind it’s a perfect brunch and lunch meal, too.

There’s no wrong way to make shrimp and grits. In fact, I read several recipes for it while looking for inspiration, and no two were quite the same — so you have plenty of freedom to experiment with different vegetables in the mix, and even different proteins (andouille sausage sounds awesome in here).

Oh, and I did cheat a little. I used polenta from the bulk foods aisle, because it’s just a little tricky to find grits in Northern California. I know they’re not quite the same, but it was the best I could do. Don’t hate.

Shrimp & Grits

Ingredients (Serves 4):

2.5 cups low-sodium chicken broth

2.5 cups water

1 cup stone-ground grits or polenta

1 cup white cheddar cheese, grated

1 tbsp. honey

1 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 lb. bacon, chopped into bite-size pieces

2 tbsp. sugar

4 small cloves garlic, minced

2 bunches collard greens (about 20 stems), torn or chopped

2 yellow peppers, chopped

2 small yellow onions, chopped

About 2 cups chopped okra

1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth

Juice of 4 lemons

1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined

For the grits:

Bring chicken broth and water to boil in large pot. Slowly whisk in grits or polenta, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes, whisking occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in cheese, mixing well. Then stir in honey and cayenne pepper. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

For the shrimp:

Cook bacon and sugar in large pan on high heat for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until the bacon is cooked through and caramelized. Remove bacon from pan and set aside, keeping the drippings. Pour out about half of drippings, and reserve the rest in the pan.

Reheat drippings in pan and add garlic and collard greens. Sauté for 3 to 4 minutes or until greens begin to soften and wilt. Add peppers, onions and okra, and sauté for another 7 to 10 minutes, until vegetables start to brown slightly. Add broth and lemon juice and let simmer, stirring, for 5 more minutes.

Once most of the liquid has evaporated from the pan, add in shrimp and sauté, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes, until shrimp is pink and cooked through.

Serve shrimp and vegetable mixture over grits.

Served with a Golden Beet and Goat Cheese Salad

I tend to blog about my farmer’s market creations more than my grocery store ones, probably because I’m just more excited about the former. Aisles of flour and dishwashing detergent don’t do too much for me. But on Saturday my assistant and I built a lunch entirely based on our findings at the market, a challenge that I’m sure we’ll replicate next weekend if we have the time. What’s more fun than scoping out all the produce, buying the best stuff and going home to make a huge mid-day meal? I feel like a kid in a candy store.

Since it was sunny and relatively warm (for San Francisco, at least) I knew we had to fire up the grill. It’s only appropriate in the summertime to take advantage of these days, I feel. There’s a little market near my house that I visit literally every day, and they make a mean grilled eggplant sandwich that I’ve been dying to try myself. I have to say, I think we did it justice.

They layer grilled eggplant, fontina cheese and tomato chutney on a soft roll, which is every bit as scrumptious, hearty and tangy as it sounds. But since I had no intention of making tomato chutney from scratch (today, anyway), we grilled some zucchini to go along with it and topped the veggies with goat cheese, which added an extra punch of flavor.

For a side — since every good sandwich needs a side — I made a very simple crab and avocado salad. My assistant impulsively bought some lump crabmeat at the farmer’s market, and I shamelessly egged him on, knowing it would be worth every penny. Especially with avocado in the mix, since I’m convinced those two ingredients were made for each other.

Just like Saturday lunch and a glass of dry rosé. I feel spoiled.

Grilled Eggplant and Zucchini Sandwich

Ingredients (Makes 2 sandwiches):

1 medium eggplant

2 zucchini

3 tbsp. olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

2 loaves Ciabatta bread

About 4 tbsp. goat cheese

Slice eggplant into disks about 1/2-inch thick, and zucchini into 1/3-inch strips. Coat evenly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, tossing to make sure the seasoning is evenly distributed. Grill on high heat for 5 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned with nice grill marks.

Slice bread loaves in half and place each on the top rack of your grill, if you have one (these cook quickly!) Grill for about 2 minutes, until the bun is just lightly toasted.

Layer grilled vegetables on the bottom half of the Ciabatta loaves, top with goat cheese, and cover with the other half of the loaves.

Simple Crab and Avocado Salad

Ingredients (Makes about 1.5 cups):

8 oz. lump crab meat

1/2 avocado, cubed

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tbsp. mayonnaise

3 green onions, chopped finely

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl and serve.

My complaints about not having an outdoor area to grill in have been well-documented on this site, and I guess my generous dad took note! He sent me a very cool product, the Sanyo Electric Indoor Barbeque Grill, so I can fire up some meat and veggies in my little one-bedroom.

The grill doesn’t get super hot, so it does take a little while for everything to cook — namely tough vegetables like onion and bell pepper. But the upside of that, as my assistant pointed out, is that you have a little more control over how “done” the food gets.

For my first grilling experiment, I knew I wanted plenty of vegetables. Nothing says summer to me like squash and zucchini with deep grill marks, probably because my parents ate them almost every night when I was growing up (I passed on the veggies and ate crescent rolls instead, naturally).

I was inspired by a recipe I saw in Bon Appétit for a grilled vegetable salad, so I put my own twist on their idea, adding fresh basil and a little cumin to my dressing. I also blackened a couple of tilapia filets to go on top of the bed of veggies, and the result is definitely something I’ll be coming back to this summer: a healthy and wholly seasonal plate of yummy flavors.

I’d recommend making the dressing early on and letting it sit while you grill the vegetables and fish, because it’s best when the garlic and basil infuse in the olive oil.

Oh, and the blackening powder was completely the brainchild of my assistant. He intends to market it someday, so attribution is necessary.

Blackened Tilapia with Grilled Vegetable Salad

For Grilled Vegetable Salad (Serves 4):

5 tbsp. olive oil, divided

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup packed, chopped fresh basil

Juice of 1.5 lemons

2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. honey

2 yellow squash

2 gold zucchini

2 zucchini

2 baby eggplant

2 bell pepper (whatever color you choose)

1 white onion

Salt and pepper

Combine 3 tbsp. olive oil with next five ingredients (garlic through honey) in a small bowl. Mix well, and set aside.

Slice squash, zucchini, eggplant, bell pepper and onion into thin strips or squares for grilling — the shape doesn’t matter, as long as the vegetable is relatively flat and large enough to rest on the grill. In a large bowl, toss veggies with 2 tbsp. olive oil and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Grill until you get some nice, dark marks on each piece (about 7 minutes each side on this grill, but others will cook faster). Once they’re cooked, slice the vegetables into smaller, bite-size pieces.

Drizzle dressing over vegetables and toss well.

Blackened Tilapia (Serves 4):

4 filets fresh tilapia

Olive oil for brushing

4 tbsp. blackening powder, plus more for sprinkling (see recipe below)

Brush fish with olive oil, then cover generously with blackening powder. Grill for 5 minutes, flip, and cook for another 4 minutes on the other side — again, that’s with the special indoor grill, so be prepared for the tilapia to cook much faster on a hotter one. Two minutes each side would be a safe bet.

Blackening Powder (Makes about 1/2 cup):

2 tsp. onion powder

2 tsp. garlic powder

2 tsp. paprika

2 tsp. black pepper

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients together.

I love pizza. Especially the fancy Neapolitan kind with the rich, moist cheese and crispy crust that bubbles up. In fact, I love it so much that I gave it extra attention on my About page, but I’ve never made it for the blog before.

Truthfully, I’ve been waiting for a very special ingredient that only rears its head in the late summertime: squash blossoms. I dreamed up this pizza month ago, long before they were available at the farmer’s market, and I’ve been biding my time ever since.

This weekend my dreams came true when a man at the Ferry Building told me to fill up a brown paper bag full of squash blossoms in exchange for one measly dollar. Bargain-hunting isn’t exactly my specialty, so I knew fate was finally on my side.

And let me tell you, it was worth the wait. My assistant and I devoured this pizza in relative silence, speaking only to declare that this one was among the Best Pizzas We Have Ever Had. How’s that for a hard sell?

Squash Blossom and Shaved Asparagus Pizza

*The crust for this pizza is adapted from the A16 cookbook; theirs is much more involved, but I followed the basic instructions.

Ingredients (Makes 2 pizzas):

1/8 tsp. active dry yeast

3/4 cup warm water

3 tsp. olive oil, divided into 1 tsp. and 2 tsp. (plus extra for drizzling)

1 tsp. salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 small cloves garlic, minced

16 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese (packaged in water), grated

10 stalks asparagus

24 squash blossoms

2 tsp. chili flakes

6 tbsp. goat cheese

Salt and pepper

Pour water into a small bowl and sprinkle yeast. Let rest for about 10 minutes, or until the yeast dissolves. Stir in 1 tsp. olive oil and salt, then combine the water mixture with flour in a larger bowl.

Mix well until a dough forms (I used my hands for this part). Knead for 10 minutes, then divide into two equally-sized balls. Cover each with a damp towel and let rest for about 2 hours, or until the dough has risen and nearly doubled in size.

Lightly grease two 9- to 10-inch pizza pans and stretch each ball of dough until it covers the whole thing. Be patient with this part — I was stretching and pressing for about 15 minutes, but I was careful and didn’t tear the dough.

In a small bowl, combine the remaining 2 tsp. olive oil with the minced garlic. Distribute the mixture evenly over the two pizzas. Top with the freshly-grated mozzarella, 8 oz. on each pizza.

Use a vegetable peeler to create thin asparagus shavings, starting at the thick bottom of the stalk and ending at the top. Once they are all shaved, drizzle with olive oil (about a tbsp.) and toss with a generous amount of salt and pepper. Coat all of the shavings evenly.

Arrange asparagus shavings on top of pizza, then arrange squash blossoms in a circle. Sprinkle chili flakes and crumble goat cheese on top. Here’s what it looked like before going into the oven:

After was even better!

I realized recently that I’ve written about a million posts on my dinner experiments, but almost none on my lunches. That’s, of course, because I’m always eating lunch at work — and meals just aren’t as much of a to-do when you’re enjoying them in front of a computer.

Still, I actually put a decent amount of thought and effort into the lunches I pack during the week. Nothing is more depressing than eating a PB&J when co-workers bring Indian food back into the office, and the smell of delicious curry wafts through the whole building. Also, I have a secret weapon when it comes to lunch-packing that’s been working for me for months.

It’s not rocket science. You start with a grain, add in a ton of veggies, and toss it in some cheese and dressing. But the trick is to make a big batch at the beginning of the week, and you can eat it everyday without much effort. I cook mine on Monday nights since my work provides lunch on Mondays, so I’m set for the rest of the week.

You’re probably wondering whether I get tired of these meals by the end of the week, and my honest answer is no. Sure, I’ve made a few sub-par batches that I had to suffer through on Friday, but for the most part, I look forward to every lunch. As long as you mix up the ingredients you’re using every week, this method is basically no-fail.

The example posted below is for a Mediterranean Quinoa Salad, but there are plenty of ways to mix it up. For grains, I like to alternate between quinoa, couscous and millet, and the veggies are a complete matter of preference. I usually have olives, capers and sundried tomatoes on hand, so those are easy to throw in. Then I’ll buy zucchini, asparagus, spinach or squash to add as well. The vinaigrette is almost always a mixture of oil, lemon juice/vinegar, honey and spices, and goat and feta cheese are my picks for extra flavor.

Pine nuts and almond slivers also make great additions, and they’ll help keep you full ’til dinner.

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Ingredients (Makes 3 to 4 servings):

1.5 cups quinoa

1 medium cucumber, sliced

1 yellow pepper, sliced

1/2 cup sliced kalamata olives

1/2 cup canned artichoke hearts

1 can chickpeas

1/4 cup sundried tomatoes

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1 tbsp. olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. honey

Pepper to taste

Rinse and drain quinoa, then combine quinoa and 3 cups water in a pot. Bring to boil for 15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed. Turn off the stove and cover the pot for 5 minutes, then fluff quinoa with a fork.

In a large bowl or tupperware, mix cooked quinoa, veggies (cucumber, pepper, olives, artichokes, chickpeas and sundried tomatoes) and feta.

In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, salt, cumin, honey and pepper. Drizzle dressing on the quinoa mixture and combine well. Tip: I like to put the lid on the tupperware and shake it all up!

Heirloom tomatoes might just be my favorite thing about living in California. 

My Assistant and Me

One of the biggest perks of living in San Francisco is being so close to all of the cool events that go down in wine country, which are typically as much about the food as they are the wine. And although my dad’s the one who’s actually a member of wine clubs, I’m often the family representative who actually gets to attend them. Props to sheer proximity!

Example: The winery Jessup Cellars in Napa hosted a cooking class for their club members this month, and my father generously offered to send my assistant and me. Naturally I jumped at the opportunity, not only because I got to cook in a kitchen five times the size of my own, but because the menu sounded sensational. And way over my head.

Halibut Ceviche with Compressed Pineapple Salsa; Tuna Poke on Tempura Nori with Chili Aioli

MENU:

Halibut Ceviche with Compressed Pineapple Salsa

Tuna Poke on Tempura Nori with Chili Aioli

Pork Tenderloin with Spatzle, Mustard Emulsion and Pumpkinseed Oil

New York Striploin with Ginger Rice Cake, Woodear Scallion Salad, Ponzu and Crispy Egg Yolk

Cornbread Olive Oil Cake with Balsamic Caramel, Strawberries and Coffee Foam

So my culinary education continues, little by little. This class was vastly different from the last one I took at Chef Joe’s Culinary Salon; it was held in a gorgeous B&B instead of a San Francisco storefront, the dishes were fancier and guests felt much more pampered up in Napa. Jessup wines were poured generously all night, and half of our class was part of a bachelorette party. Enough said.

The Cedar Gables Inn

The event took place in the kitchen of the Cedar Gables Inn, which was built in 1892. It’s currently run by a couple named Ken and Susie, who are living the good life better than anyone I’ve ever seen. Susie used to run her own culinary school before they bought the inn, but she loves cooking so much that she decided to host occasional classes at the Cedar Gables for guests. They invite renowned chefs from the area to demonstrate in classes, everyone takes home a copy of the recipes and it’s a fun night for all.

Our celebrity chef was Gary Penir, who, I learned, worked at Cyrus in Healdsburg when I ate there a few years ago. It’s one of those wildly expensive and decadent restaurants with 10-course meals, wine pairings and waiters who move in synchronicity. And it’s heavenly.

Penir is in his early 30s, and I couldn’t help admiring how relaxed he was the whole time, while a bunch of slightly tipsy amateurs tried to recreate his dishes — which we actually all ate at the dining room table together, after class. So understandably, major damage control had to be done, but he handled it with ease.

He’s very knowledgeable but unpretentious, and he patiently answered every question hurled at him (there were many; a few were relevant). He doesn’t work in restaurants anymore, but instead runs his own company, Cuisine GP. Penir included in our menu something he considers to be a “signature dish” of sorts since he discovered it with his buddies: a crispy egg yolk. Hint: You have to freeze the yolks to make this work.

New York Striploin with Ginger Rice Cake, Woodear Scallion Salad, Ponzu and Crispy Egg Yolk

My assistant and I were the youngest people in the class by at least a decade, but we were surprised by how much we enjoyed the company of our classmates. The atmosphere is definitely more “wine and dine” than Top Chef-style cutthroat, so naturally everyone was having a good time.

Typically in these sorts of settings, I shy away from being in charge of the main dishes. In our class with Chef Joe, I meekly agreed to oversee the soup, even though I really wanted to know the ins and outs of Boeuf Bourgignon. This time, I decided not to take the backseat, and my assistant and I pounced on the pork tenderloin dish. I’m not including any recipes here since they’re not my own, but trust that it was delicious in my totally unbiased opinion, and that it wasn’t difficult to make. Since pork tenderloin is pretty affordable in these parts, my assistant and I are looking forward to impressing our friends with this one.

Pork Tenderloin with Spatzle, Mustard Emulsion and Pumpkinseed Oil

And in the meantime, I’ll just be saving up money to buy an inn in Napa. No big deal.

Cornbread Olive Oil Cake with Balsamic Caramel, Strawberries and Coffee Foam

I recently went home to Jackson, Mississippi for a long weekend to celebrate a friend’s recent engagement, and I ate the whole time I was there.

Friday night we went to my favorite restaurant, Walkers, where no less than two desserts were shared. Saturday I picked fresh basil from my dad’s garden and made a caprese salad, enjoyed by the pool with a glass of rosé (mm). Sunday my assistant got his first taste of fresh boiled crawfish, my mom’s seafood gumbo and her famous chocolate praline bars. And then we sat on a plane for 6 hours.

Oddly, all of the Southern-style eating just had me wanting more when I landed back in not-so-sunny San Francisco (yes, it’s 55 degrees here). Enter Paula Deen for inspiration. I found this Pecan Coated Fish recipe, and I was sold — especially since I already had some pecans in my pantry.

Paula, bless her, isn’t known for her heart-friendly recipes, so I tweaked mine a bit to make it healthier. Served with a side of roasted sweet potatoes and sautéed spinach, it was the perfect meal to transition me back to the West Coast.

Pecan Crusted Cod with Remoulade Sauce

Ingredients (Serves 4):

2 cloves garlic

2 slices whole wheat bread, toasted

2 tbsp. flour

2/3 cup pecans

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. black pepper

2 eggs

4 filets of cod (about 2 lbs.), or any white, flaky fish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Chop garlic in a food processor until minced. Add toasted bread, flour, pecans, nutmeg and pepper, and puree until the mixture is soft and fine, but still a bit chunky. Transfer to a large plate.

Beat eggs in a medium-sized bowl. Dredge cod filets in the eggs, then place filets in pecan mixture, coating both sides thoroughly.

Place cod filets on a lightly greased baking sheet, and bake for about 12 minutes. Turn heat up to broil and bake for another 5 to 7 minutes, or until done (I check by sticking a fork in the thickest part of the filet and seeing if it flakes. If it does, it’s probably done).

Note: I turned the heat up at the end because I wanted the outside to get a nice brown, toasted texture. Toasting really brings out the flavors of the pecans, too.

Serve cod with remoulade sauce, recipe below.

Lightened-Up Remoulade Sauce

Ingredients (Makes about 1 cup):

2/3 cup plain yogurt

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

2 tbsp. dijon mustard

2 tbsp. olive oil

1.5 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp. capers

2 tbsp. chopped green onions

Juice of 1 lemon

1/2 tsp. brown sugar

Pinch of salt

Stir all ingredients together and serve. Many remoulade sauces call for puréeing all the ingredients in a food processor, but I wanted to preserve the chunks of capers and green onions — just a matter of preference.

My assistant and I just shelled out some cash to join Costco. It seems a little ridiculous since I live within a one-block walking distance of no less than three grocery stores (truly), but when I heard that I could buy a whole quart of Fage yogurt for $5, I was sold. I eat a lot of yogurt, and that stuff isn’t cheap.

However, I am cheap, which is why I decided to grab an enormous jar of kalamata olives while we were inching our way down the canned food aisle. I love stocking up on veggies like olives and sundried tomatoes because I know they won’t go bad before I have time to eat them.

With all of these olives in my possession, my mission became clear: tapenade.

As a dip, sandwich spread, sauce or topping, tapenade is impressively versatile. When I moved into my first post-college apartment in San Francisco and lived on pizza bagels, my sister taught me that I could use tapenade like pesto — toss it in some pasta and call it an easy weeknight meal. That’s what I did this week, topped with some leftover roasted cherry tomatoes and a little goat cheese for extra flavor.

And I still have about a hundred olives left to go.

Kalamata Olive Tapenade

Ingredients (Makes 1 cup):

2 cloves garlic

1 cup pitted kalamata olives

2 tbsp. capers

1 anchovy filet

1 tsp. balsamic vinegar

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. olive oil

Chop garlic in a food processor until chunks are very small. Add remaining ingredients except olive oil, and pulse until combined. Slowly add olive oil while food processor is on, and keep puréeing until you get your desired consistency.

I like some chunks, so I went easy on the olive oil and didn’t process for too long. If you want more of a paste texture, keep going.