cooking

Winter is citrus season. I had a bounty of blood oranges and tangerines harvested from various backyards, so I made a mixed citrus marmalade. It�s a little soft and fairly bitter which is the way I like it. In addtion to being good on toast, scones or biscuits. Marmalade, whether you make it or buy it, is a great ingredients to have on hand. It can be used in many different recipes. Orange marmalade is particularly versatile. It works in both sweet and savory dishes. You can use it flavor plain yogurt, whipped cream, cream cheese, vanilla ice cream or even with a mild goat cheese. It�s featured in quite a number of cake recipes and as a glaze on sticky buns. Mixed with a bit of lemon juice it makes the perfect dressing for a fruit salad. I recently wrote about marmalade cocktails  for OpenTable. It also pairs particularly well with chicken, ham or pork.  A few weeks ago I was contacted by Napa Grass Farmer, a locally based, �beyond organic� meat farm located in both Napa and ...

Are you celebrating Chinese New Year? It�s typical to celebrate the holiday for a full week. I am still learning about this most important holiday which comes with so many traditions relating to food. There are many symbolic foods that ensure good fortune. There are also foods which are served to friends, family and guests and given as a gift. Bak Kwa is one such food. It might resemble beef jerky, but it�s much tastier and is much more than just a snack and considered a must-have for Chinese New Year celebrations in Malaysia.  I recently tried locally made Bak Kwa from  Little Red Dot  for the first time at the Fancy Food Show  where it was a big hit. The Singaporean founders of the company missed eating it so much, that after unsuccessfully trying to get their parents to send them some from Singapore�it never made it out of customs�they set out to make it themselves. Several years later the product is finally showing up in stores. Because it�s something that ...

I enjoy Greek yogurt and have been eating a lot of it lately. But I�ve also been cutting back on sugar. While fruit, granola, jam or honey are classic toppings for yogurt, I�ve been wanting to take yogurt in another direction. Since I tend to favor savory breaktasts rather than sweet ones I decided to try some savory Greek yogurt toppings, something I've seen around the web recently.  I brainstormed some ideas and was inspired by flavors from Korea, the Mediterranean, Scandinavia and Morocco--and everything I tried turned out really well. I imagine that the variations are really endless, I just stopped at four. That said, a little flaky salt really helps to marry the flavors. Use kosher salt or your favorite flaky sea salt for added crunch. While I choose to eat these for breakfast, they are also very good as an afternoon snack or as part of a light lunch. I recommend using 1/2 cup of yogurt as the base, but you could use more if you prefer. Greek yogurt is thicker than regular yog...

I've written about the overall food trends , my favorite sweet and savory finds and now the final post about the show, with the rest of my picks.  SWEET I�ve long been a fan of Oregon Growers ' great fruit jams and butters. Now they�ve collaborated with Dragonfly Chai and the result is luscious apple butter and pumpkin butter  tinged with chai spices. They are both really good, not too sweet with warm spices like cardamom, ginger and black pepper to complement the flavors or apple and pumpkin. Perfect to swirl into yogurt, oatmeal or slather on toast.  I�m a complete honey fanatic and love the way honey reflects the aroma and flavor of flowers. I also enjoy the way honey combines beautifully with lots of other ingredients such as nuts, fruits and spices. While I love truffle honey, this saffron honey from KL Keller Foodways  really made me swoon. Saffron with honey makes perfect sense, since saffron comes from the stigma from the crocus flower. In this case orange...

While it�s interesting to identify trends at the Fancy Food Show, it�s even more gratifying to discover delicious things you've never seen before. As I was trying to decide how to organize my finds, I realized the vast majority of my favorite products had something common. They were both sweet and savory. Without further ado, here they are. CRUNCHY THINGS You have probably tried Dang Foods addictive coconut chips . Now they have introduced onion chips that are equally dangerous. The crisp pieces of onion are available plain or in a variety of flavors. A colleague of mine who doesn't even like onions was won over by these treats In a section of the show dedicated to emerging businesses was Kaleidoscope kale chips . While this business of kale chips flavored with ingredients like bone broth, miso and pesto might seem like something straight out of Portlandia, the truth is, the products are delicious! Lemon, miso, ginger kale chips and sweet potato bone broth kale chips have lot...

This year at the Winter Fancy Food Show I was honored to contribute to the Specialty Food Association trendspotting report . It�s a group effort and each person on the panel saw something slightly different. In addition to that collaborative report, here is what made impressed me:  Pulse pastas The United Nations has declared 2016 to be the International Year of Pulses and the American Pulse Association, USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council and Pulse Canada are promoting the � Pulse Pledge� . While non-wheat pasta has been around for a while, I was amazed at all the pulse pastas and actually how good it tasted. In particular there were three products that stood out. They each had very good texture, much better than the rice and quinoa pastas I�ve tried in the past.  The two dried pastas I liked best were the organic edamame spaghetti from Explore Cuisine , and the chickpea pasta from Modern Table, which is also available in meal kits.  The best fresh pasta I had came from RP'...

Whether you are saying goodbye to the previous year or hello to the new one, Champagne or anything bubbly is traditional for New Year�s Eve. It�s light, refreshing and pairs well with many kinds of festive meals from briny oysters and caviar to rich and creamy cheeses and just about anything fried. Should you happen to have a splash of Champagne leftover or better yet, a bottle, consider a Champagne cocktail for brunch the following day. While the classic mimosa is fine, I am a big fan of the French 75. The French 75 dates back to World War I and is named for the French 75mm field gun, the �Soixante Quinze� thanks to it�s kick from gin. It�s as simple as can be, just gin, lemon juice, sugar or simple syrup and Champagne or another sparkling brut wiine. There are some other versions of the drink and some prefer cognac or brandy, but I think gin is really the way to go. The gin you use is important. I am particulary fond of London dry gin, and Plymouth in particular although you are wel...