granola

i came across this granola recipe on another blog, lettuce eat kale. the recipe is from lois de domenico, who is actually one of the co-creators of rice-a-roni (it was her recipe for armenian pilaf that her brother-in-law, who was part of the Golden Grain Macaroni Company, revised, packaged and marketed as "rice-a-roni.") anyways, now lois is in her eighties, and often has this granola for breakfast.

it's delicious and just packed with nutrition. and it's not super sweet, which is my biggest qualm when it comes to granola. there's also a great little story she tells about how she acquired this particular recipe, which i'll post below, because i just liked it so much! stories have the ability to add another dimension to a dish- many of our attachments to particular dishes are not because of the dish itself, necessarily, but because of our memories associated with preparing and eating it. many dishes are tied to traditions. and many dishes we acquire through relationships with other people. i must say, a major factor in my deciding to make this granola (other than the enticing ingredient list) was the story that goes along with it.

About 40 years ago I was going on a hiking trip and I needed some hiking boots. I went to a store in Berkeley and I sat next to a young girl. Today you’d call her a hippie. Somehow we started talking about food and she gave me her recipe for granola. Well, I’ve been making it ever since and I think it’s about the best granola in the world. It has five kinds of grains and three kinds of nuts, as well as sesame and sunflower seeds, wheat germ, sesame oil, and honey. It’s just delicious...


here's the recipe~

ingredients: 1 pound rolled oats • 1 pound rye flakes • 1 pound wheat flakes • 1 pound barley flakes • 1/2 pound bran flakes • 1/2 pound wheat germ • 1 pound chopped almonds • 1 pound chopped cashews • 1 pound chopped walnuts • 1 pound sesame seeds • 1 pound sunflower seeds • 1 cup sesame oil • 2 cups honey

preheat...300°
pans...baking sheet
bake time...around 1 hour (varies)

to make the granola: mix grains, seeds, and nuts together. bake in two pans, slowly adding sesame oil and heated honey, and mixing regularly. bake until golden brown, at least one hour.

a note on ingredients

• this makes a lot of granola- A LOT. but you can really play around with amounts, and even with what you choose to include. That's what i love about granola- it is flexible and allows for experimentation and adjustment. I actually only baked about half of mine (and i made less than the recipe called for), and left the rest mixed but uncooked in a container in the fridge

• i used brown sesame seeds (in general they are more nutrient-packed than the hulled, white, seeds)

• i also added flax seeds, which i just love in granola and highly recommend

• i made one portion of granola with some shaved coconut, which turned out really good! i just toasted the coconut separately, then mixed it in the cooked granola to avoid burning the flaky and delicate coconut! this version of coconut granola was delicious

• some dried fruit (craisins, in particular) would be a delicious addition, which i will definitely include next time

the uncooked, mixed grains, seeds, and nuts

the cooked, finished granola

xox

encuentro

the restaurant: one of my new favorite places to dine. this small- very small- single room restaurant just opened in december. actually, it is considered a wine bar/cafe. i only know about it (it's very new and very small...) because it is next door to the apartment complex where my parents live, in the outskirts of jack london square. the short menu features small plates and appetizers that reflect local, seasonal ingredients, and everything is vegetarian. and everything, and i mean everything, sounds delicious. rarely do i come across a menu in which everything appeals to me, but at encuentro, literally everything does, in fact, appeal to me. my favorite part about the food, besides the no-meat, is that the ingredients are so fresh. the menu changes according to season and market. i had been once before, in december, and then for then a second time this past weekend, and the menu was different. basically, it's just pure, delicious, fresh, simple food. in addition to the wonderful cuisine, the restaurant is incredibly inviting and friendly, and has a very pleasant atmosphere. it has a very intimate feel. the room is, like i said, very small with limited seating, and it seems like most of the staff is acquainted with most of the diners. it's the kind of place where you can comfortably linger over good food, good wine, and good company.

the people: eric tucker, lacey sher, and linda braz are the collaborators behind this fabulous little restaurant. eric tucker is the head chef at millenium restaurant in san francisco. i've never been to this vegetarian restaurant, but i have been meaning to try it! lacey sher is also a chef, has had a restaurant, and lives in the building with my parents.

the food: we ordered two things, the cauliflower bruschetta and a bowl of the "soup of the moment." My parents had raved about the roasted golden cauliflower bruschetta with sesame/cumin after trying it last week (my dad has already recreated his own version- yes, it's that good). the cauliflower is roasted and pureed, and served, warm, on top of baguette-toasts. it actually looks very much like, and is the consistency-equivalent of, hummus. it is truly amazing. i'm excited to have tried this dish- it's definitely something i would order again, and is something that is simple enough to make at home (my dad's version actually turned out very good!). The soup was black lentil and mushroom. thick and rich. the waiter said they used a homemade vegetable stock and ample olive oil, which, along with the lentils and sliced mushrooms, pretty much makes the soup. simple. and delicious. oh and their soups and salads (they have some fabulous salads; my mom and i shared two last time i tried the restaurant) are all served with a feel good bakery cheese stick, for an extra $1.50. we always get the cheese sticks at the temescal market on sundays. they are absolutely wonderful. some other things i want to try on the menu (well, really, i want to try it all!) include the peppered portobello mushroom sandwich with caramelized fennel and onions, smoked goat cheddar cheese, and caper aioli • orange-rosemary caesar salad with crispy tempeh and shaved dry jack • bruschetta with avocado, olive oil, cilantro, chile jam and black salt

i can't wait to visit this little gem again soon!

xox

red velvet

i have never made red velvet cake before. it's not a cake i would generally desire to bake, but for lindsey and my valentine's day soiree it was the perfect choice. rich, moist, a beautiful shade of red, with just a touch of chocolate and the creamiest cream-cheese frosting. It took a while to decide on a recipe, but we eventually settled on the joy of baking recipe (the frosting combines cream cheese and mascarpone- yum! i just couldn't resist).

the frosting is sooooooo good. if i ever play around with red velvet recipes it will be with the cake only. in my opinion, red velvet cake has to have cream cheese frosting, and this is the best cream cheese frosting ever. the combination of the cream cheese with the mascarpone is so creamy and delightful; then mixing in whipped cream lightens up the consistency, making it and extra fluffy...

we topped our cake with coconut and mini chocolate chips and shaved white chocolate.

here's the recipe

for the cake: 2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour • 1/2 teaspoon salt • 2 tablespoons dutch-processed cocoa powder • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature • 1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar • 2 large eggs • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract • 1 cup buttermilk • 2 tablespoons liquid red food coloring • 1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar • 1 teaspoon baking soda

preheat...350°

pans...two 9-inch round cake pans, buttered

bake time...25-30 minutes

to make the cake: sift together the flour, salt, cocoa powder. set aside. in another bowl (large), beat the butter until soft. add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. add the vanilla extract and beat until combined. in another bowl (small) whisk the buttermilk with the red food coloring. now, add half of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat lightly. add the buttermilk and beat lightly. add the rest of the flour mixture and beat lightly. in a small cup combine the vinegar and baking soda. the mixture will fizz, then immediately fold it into the cake batter. working quickly, divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans. bake for 25 to 30 minutes (test with toothpick). cool the cakes for about ten minutes in the pans, then remove them from pans and cool completely. it is recommended to refrigerate the layers for at least an hour before frosting- it will make frosting the cake easier.

for the cream cheese frosting: 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream • 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature • 8 ounces mascarpone cheese, room temperature • 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract • 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted

to make the frosting: beat the cream cheese with the mascarpone cheese until smooth. add the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat until smooth. in a separate bowl, whip the cream until stiff peaks form. with a large spatula, gently but quickly fold a little of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture to lighten it. then fold in the remaining whipped cream, in two stages.

to assemble the cake: this recipe suggests to cut each layer in half, horizontally, to make a four layer cake. we skipped this step, preferring to make a two layer cake. while the cake looks beautiful just frosted creamy white, there are many possible garnishes. some recipes garnish with pecans, which i think would be delicious. you can even mix chopped pecans into the cream cheese frosting. like i mentioned before, we sprinkled shredded coconut, mini chocolate chips, and a small amount of finely chopped white chocolate over the top and sides of our cake, which i loved. if that's a bit much, sticking to just coconut would be gorgeous. i also like the idea of covering it in white or dark chocolate ribbons, or white or dark chocolate shavings. there are a lot of options!

a couple modifications

• instead of 2 tablespoons cocoa powder we used about 1/4 cup sweetened cocoa powder + about 1/4 cup melted chocolate chips...we only had sweetened cocoa powder (our college-student budget preferred to use the cocoa powder my parents had at home instead of buying an $8 container of unsweetened. the recipe only calls for 2 tablespoons anyways). we then decided it wasn't chocolatey enough (haha) so we added some melted chocolate chips (this was after we had mixed everything together). i was a little worried about ruining the consistency, but it turned out sooooo good. perhaps it was the extra chocolate?

• instead of 1 1/2 cups sugar, we reduced it to 1 cup sugar...because of the sweetened cocoa powder, we needed to reduce the sugar. when we tried the batter, it was a little under-sweet, but i liked it and once we added the melted chocolate chips it was perfect

• instead of 8 ounces cream cheese, we used 8 ounces whipped cream cheese...not that it's a huge difference, but i've got to admit, the frosting was unbeatable. i can't stop raving about it!

• • • • •

if i am ever tempted to make red velvet again i would love to try using beets to color the cake- i don't really like the idea of red food coloring in the first place. my sister was also considering baking red velvet for valentine's day and she sent me this recipe for red velvet cupcakes reddened with beets, from the blog coconut & lime. i would love to try it!


and, in the spirit of the holiday for which this cake was made, happy valentine's day!~

xox