Michael Mina's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Possibly my favorite cookies, at least among homemade versions:

I know, they look more like oatmeal raisin cookies than your run of the mill chocolate chip cookie. But that's the beauty of these. Because the chocolate chips and walnuts are chopped a more finely than usual, the cookies are more meltingly chocolatey without big pockets of plain dough. To me, that makes it an improvement on tradition.


Sadly, this will be the last post this week. I'm taking a last minute trip to LA, so until I get back I'll leave you with the recipe for these cookies. Happy baking!

Baby Kimono

There's cute, and then there's too too too cute.

I'm making this for a friend's newborn, and I had to post of my progress even though I'm not quite done yet. I found a free pattern on line, and now I'm completely in love with it.

The pattern was straightforward enough that I felt comfortable tweaking it to make the kimono reversible. I figure babies need the extra warmth, so I used a lightweight fleece patterned in blue and white stripes.

Korean Market Goodies

For lunch today, I cheated. All I did was make some good sushi rice; the Korean market did the rest. We got some marinated spinach and daikon kimchi, along with an enormous container of prepared jap chae ($4! It was enough for two meals).

When the rice was done, I mixed it with a drizzle of sesame oil and let it cool off just a little. Then I topped it with cubed sashimi grade tuna, seaweed salad, masago, sesame seeds, and a spoonful of Korean chili paste. It's a take on rice bowls available at some Korean restaurants, and a very easy and colorful lunch.

Lobster!

Roar!

Beautiful, isn't it? J's been having a gawdawful few weeks at work, so today we decided to make working from home a little less painful.

He took a break from the computer and we hightailed it down to 99 Ranch to collect oysters, mussels, clams, and an enormous lobster.

Here's the sucker helpless on his back. We both prefer Pacific lobster to Maine, but the market didn't have any. This guy had to do--I know, cry cry.

As usual, J wanted the most simple preparation possible. We cleaned everything and tossed it into our biggest pot with a sliced lemon, two ears of corn, and just enough water to steam everything.

And a softer, gentler side of this weekend. I bought a yard of this gorgeous fabric yesterday and am starting my project while J works. Tune in for results next week!

Kim Thanh

Kim Thanh could be a very dangerous addition to my neighborhood roster of takeout. After months of wondering why there isn't more decent delivery in San Francisco, we remembered this Chinese-Vietnamese restaurant just two blocks away.

Crispy noodles, beef version. Crispy noodles are a weakness of mine. I don't know why, but the half crispy, half soft noodles floating in gooey meaty gravy really floats my boat. I like Kim Thanh's version a lot: nice ratio of noodles to vegetables, a generous amount of meat and gravy, and not overly salty or greasy.

The Peking style ribs (jing du pai gu) were delightfully vinegary--I could smell the tanginess through two layers of plastic bags.

The seafood wonton soup was okay as wonton soups go, but I really liked the various fish balls in it, and I think a few of them actually tasted like Taiwanese pork balls (gong wan). So maybe next time I should be trying the fish ball soup and just forego the wontons.


$26 for three+ dishes (I added extra noodles to my order for $2), free delivery. We finished the noodles and half the soup, but will be eating the ribs tomorrow with stir fried vegetables and rice. Not a bad deal for two dinner.

Fresca (on Fillmore)

We made the most of C's surprise visit by escaping the bustle of downtown and cabbing over to Fresca after a long morning at Slow Food Nation and the Ferry Building.

A half pitcher of sangria and a Peruvian beer started things off nicely.

We started off with the Ceviche 5 Alimentos, the most traditional version on Fresca's menu. As always, it was extremely tart with large chunks of fresh halibut and accompanying hominy, yam, onions, and what I called homemade Corn Nuts.

The tuna ceviche just might be a new favorite of mine. Not as zesty as the 5 alimentos, with a really beautiful herb dressing.

The steak salad is something I almost always order at Fresca. The combination of tender skirt steak, cilantro dressing, and fresh avocado and greens really can't be beat. The salad seemed smaller than it did a few years ago, but I guess everyone's feeling the squeeze these days.

The Aji de Gallina was a brand new dish for me. I don't know what the sauce base was for the shredded chicken, but it was delicious over rice. Anyone who likes comforting, saucy rice dishes like curry should really enjoy this homey dish.

Slow Food Morning

After really enjoying my morning at Slow Food Nation on Friday, I decided to take C to see it while J got some work done Sunday morning.

Of course, we walked through the lovely vegetable garden, which also boasted several floral areas designed to attract bees and birds. I believe they were called "Pollination Habitats."


In a huge basket of Early Girl tomatoes, C managed to spot this rather odd one. Right side up, it looked like Pinocchio with a tuft of green tomato stem hair. Upside down, as pictured here, it looks like the rear end of a small creature from Hell.

After amusing ourselves with the tomato photo shoot we stopped for strawberry ice cream from Three Twin Girls. It made me want to make homemade ice cream. Maybe I'll do that this week with some fresh strawberries or melons.

After ice cream we made our way down towards Union Square, stopping at Schoggi for more sweets. These are mini ice squares, which are very dense cubes of chocolate ganache. The description said that because of the chocolate's density, it tastes cold on the tongue. And it did! Very delicious.

Schoggi is across from the new, and rather imposing, Contemporary Jewish Museum. We walked around the museum store and lobby, and I was rather impressed by the layering of modern architecture over some very old original structure.

All walked out, we met J at the Ferry Building for a flight of bubbly at the Wine Merchant. The prosecco, champagne, and lambrusco were all delicious and made us hungry for lunch.