Road Trip -- Northern California (I)

Part 1: San Francisco
My just-completed vacation is our first visit to the Golden State since 2008, and I can't believe it's been that long. California is one of my places, where I try to return every five years or even more frequently. I lived in SoCal for a few years as a kid, and still find it such a beautiful, varied and fun state to visit. (Living out there is another matter -- too different from what I've become used to, I suppose -- not to mention, too expensive, and how are they going to sustain all those people with dwindling water supplies?)
Sorry for the long lead-in to one of the most interesting things about California: THE FOOD!
We started with a couple of days in San Francisco, well known around the country if not the world for its varied cuisine.
First night in, we ate at the only restaurant of the entire vacation where I'd made an advance reservation -- the deservedly famous, creative and gourmet-ish vegetarian Greens. (From their menu: Greens was established by the San Francisco Zen Center in 1979.)
We had dined there once before, at least 12-15 years ago, and I really wanted to return. It was just as wonderful this time as back then.
The menu consisted of eight first course dishes (such as grilled asparagus with beets and goat cheese, wilted spinach salad, fresh spring rolls) and five entrees. Even though that's not a lot of options, it wasn't easy to decide because everything sounded so delicious.
But what I did choose turned out to be fantastic!
My first course is this Cauliflower and Quinoa Griddle Cake (with lemon, feta and scallions and served with romesco and herb salad). In the background of the photo is my husband's grilled asparagus with beets.

Appetizers at Greens

 For my main, I chose this marvelously good Wild Mushroom and Leek Gratin, and George had a Spring Pea Ravioli.

Greens Entrees

Then we split a refreshing dessert: Strawberry balsamic ice cream pavlova.......

Strawberry Pavlova

Our other notable meal in San Fran -- we were only there for two nights -- was at Kuleto's in the Union Square area near our hotel. (And by the way, we loved the drinks at the Urban Tavern adjacent to our Hilton Hotel -- here also is a photo of my Boulevardier cocktail -- not sure that's spelled correctly.) We had excellent wine at Kuleto's and my appetizer of goat cheese-stuffed squash blossoms was worthy of inclusion here.

Kuleto's Squash Blossoms

Otherwise, we enjoyed the Irish Coffee at Buena Vista Tavern near Fisherman's Wharf, lunch in North Beach at Osteria del Forno, and a couple of hours walking in the lovely Golden Gate Park.

Bottoms up!

Road Trip: San Francisco and Nearby

My husband and I are on vacation in California, starting in San Francisco for the Memorial Day weekend.
Our healthiest dining was at the renowned, creative and wonderful higher-end vegetarian restaurant, Green's. The menu is short but enticing, so that it was hard to choose from among so many interesting dishes.
Last night we overdid it at Kuleto's, a medium range Italian spot near our Union Square hotel.
I often have difficulty posting photos from my iPad, which is what I have to use on the road. If I can't add photos now, I will do a complete wrap up upon our return in a week.
Today we move on to Sacramento to visit family, then on to Monterey for the rest of the time.

From a prior trip!

Here Come the Berries!

I'm always so happy to see the first domestic blueberries of the season, which are coming in now. Hooray for the sweet little blue guys now coming in from Florida and Georgia -- not Chile and Argentina. (Thanks, South America, for getting us through the winter, but those sour berries that have traveled thousands of miles to get to our cereal bowls just don't measure up to the delicious fruit from such states as North Carolina, New Jersey and Michigan.)
In honor of the new crop, here's a pudding recipe from my friend, Mary Ann Barnes. Although she made it with blackberries, not blueberries, I'm making mine with the blue fellas!

Banana-Berry Pudding

RECIPE: Banana-Berry Pudding

(Serves 6 – 8)

Ingredients:

2/3 cup natural sugar

¼ cup ground tapioca flour

3 eggs

2 cups (preferably whole) milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons butter (or butter substitute with plant sterols)

2 bananas, chopped

6 ounces blueberries (or blackberries, chopped)

1 pound strawberries, chopped (reserving 6 – 8 for decoration)

Instructions:

Rinse berries and set aside to dry.

Combine first 4 ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth.  Pour into medium saucepan and cook on medium-low heat, whisking constantly, until mixture begins to thicken (about 15 – 20 minutes).  Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla, stirring until smooth.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes. 

Gently stir fruit in pudding mixture.  Spoon into serving dishes.  Decorate with reserved strawberries.  Chill until ready to serve, or for at least an hour.

At Farmers' Markets NOW

Photos from a visit to historic Findlay Market, in downtown Cincinnati, on Saturday morning May 17. If you live anywhere in the middle of the country -- East, Midwest, or upper South -- these crops should be available in your own markets. And handcrafted, handmade foods and crafts shouldn't be hard to find, either.
Let the growing season begin!

Asparagus and other spring crops

Hothouse tomatoes

Pretty planters for the front porch

Local honey: super healthy!

Go crazy for your yard

Wash up when you're done

Hot weather? Time for fruit smoothies

If you have a hard time getting in the recommended number of fruit and veggie servings -- which ranges from a low of six to a high of 12 -- smoothies can be an easy, tasty solution. A blender full of berries, banana, pineapple, fruit juices, and other fruits is filling, refreshing, and nutrient-packed. If desired, add dairy such as yogurt or milk; soy or other non-dairy milk; sweeteners such as honey, Stevia or Splenda. And pureed vegetables, tomato juice, carrot juice, etc. can also be tucked into your recipe.
You'll want to have a sturdy blender, preferably with at least an 800-watt motor so it can handle frozen fruit, ice cubes, and so on -- and puree your ingredients properly.
It's best to add your liquid ingredients first, blend for a few seconds, stop the motor and add the solids.
Be sure to start with cold ingredients -- frozen berries or banana slices are ideal. Add a cup of crushed ice to make the recipe go further, and for a lighter taste, if desired.

Here are a couple of winning combos.

Strawberry Mango Spring Smoothie

• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 banana, peeled, sliced, and frozen
• 1 mango, skinned and chunked
• 5 large strawberries, hulled
• Combine ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.
   

Makes 3½ cups
  
Stone Fruit Smoothie

• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 plum, pit removed, flesh roughly chopped
• 1 peach, pit removed, flesh roughly chopped
• 1 nectarine, pit removed, flesh roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

Combine ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.
Makes 2 cups

Encore: Murphin Ridge Inn

Riding with the Amish

Another wondrous, restful, delicious weekend in Adams County, OH -- 70 miles east of our home in Cincinnati. We've come to think of the inn, known far and wide for its restaurant, as our country home. MURPHIN RIDGE INN, that is.
 Here are a few photos. In addition to walking in the woods, lying on a hammock, hanging out on the porch of our cabin in a rocking chair and of course eating breakfast and dinner there, this time we had a brief ride in a horse-drawn buggy with an Amish woman who works at the inn, and a quick look at a small helicopter that buzzed in one night.

Pancakes with a view

Me at dinner

Killer Pork Chop!

With the little heli

FoodieCincy -- A super discount for a great cause

Foodie Cincy is a full deck of cards, and each card is a $10-off coupon for a metro Cincinnati restaurant. They're all locally owned and operated places -- no restaurant chains-- and range from the more upscale, trendy OTR spots such as A Tavola and Lavomatic to more casual but still interesting choices such as Brown Dog Cafe and Main Bite (in Covington).
All the info you'll need came to me in this email from Gina Barrera of Foodie Cincy:

Calling all food lovers (AKA “Foodies”), a reason to get out of the house this spring! Foodie Cincy is in the Greater Cincinnati area just in time to shake off the cabin fever. Foodie is a handy and astonishingly hip deck of cards featuring 52 of Cincinnati’s favorite local/independent restaurants of all cuisine types, price points, and from various neighborhoods. Each card in the deck is dedicated to an individual restaurant offering $10 off with a $30 minimum purchase. Giving ravenous food fans 1 year to use all 52 - $10 gift certificates in the deck, the Foodie deck is valid until December 2014. That’s up to $520 in savings over the year! The best part is patrons who dine at participating “Foodie” establishments support local/independent restaurants from the Greater Cincinnati/Northern, KY areas. The list of participating restaurants can be found on www.FoodieUS.com and The Foodie Cincy Facebook page.

The decks are available for purchase at www.FoodieUS.com and at select participating restaurants, retailing for $20. Local nonprofits and other charitable groups may also be selling Foodie decks to support their cause. The list of where to find decks for sale around town is on the website and the Facebook page.

It’s important for Foodie Cincy to give back to a local, food-based charity. A portion of the proceeds from every Foodie Cincy deck sold will be donated to The Freestore Foodbank, a Cincinnati Tri-State area organization whose mission is to provide food and services, create stability and further self-reliance for people in crisis. Visit www.freestorefoodbank.org for more information.

Foodie US began in 2009 in St. Louis, MO where the Foodie STL deck launched. The company has since spread into eleven US markets including nearby Cleveland, Columbus, and Indianapolis. Every Foodie city has a chosen local charity to donate a portion of deck proceeds to. Visit www.FoodieUS.com for more info.

Eat Well. Eat Local