It may sound strange, but my love for fruity wine punches actually started when I was a kid. For generations, my mother's Neopolitan family combined ripe peaches and red wine during the summer months. Chilled on ice, this was the standard evening refreshment for the adults as I played Marco Polo with my sister in the pool on hot summer evenings. After swimming, the kids would be allowed to put a piece or two of the steeped peaches on top of their ice cream. As I slurped up my ice cream and peaches soaked with wine, I felt incredibly grown-up and lucky to be Italian.

I started enjoying Spanish sangria a year or two out of college and ordered it every chance I got. I learned that although I loved the taste of the wine with its integrated fruity flavors, I equally enjoyed biting into crisp fruit slices and sucking on orange pieces soaked with wine. I tried making my mother's peaches and red wine, but found it too straightforward a drink. I found, however, that by adding peaches to traditional sangria (which has some nice citrus undertones), I got the full fruity essence of summer while also attaining a more nuanced blend of flavors.

Most red wine sangrias use oranges, lemons and brandy. My version uses all three of these ingredients, along with fresh peaches in honor of my mother's family tradition. I also add cinnamon sticks to mingle in a little spice. I strong-armed my friend Teresa, who is from Spain, to try a glass and, to my great relief, she said it made her feel like she was back in Salamanca. I'm not sure if I'd go that far, but every time I pluck out a peach slice from my glass, I'm transported back to my parents' backyard on a hot summer evening.

Next week, I'll talk about Sangria Blanca.

Red Wine Sangria

Serves: 6 – 8

Ingredients:
1 bottle dry red wine (such as Rioja, Zinfindel, or Merlot)
1 shot of brandy
¼ cup fresh-squeezed orange juice
2 Tbsp sugar
½ orange, sliced
½ lemon, sliced
1 peach, sliced
2 cinnamon sticks
Sparkling water
Ice

Preparation:
1. Juice one to two oranges until you have ¼ cup of juice.
2. Add juice to a carafe or pitcher along with brandy and sugar and stir.
3. Add the sliced fruit and cinnamon sticks.
4. Pour in the entire bottle of wine.
5. Cover pitcher or carafe with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to drink (this can be made up to one day ahead). If you want to serve immediately, just move on to step 6.
6. Place ice into a glass and then pour in some sangria. Be sure to add as much fruit as you'd like.
7. Add a splash of sparkling water and serve.

This weekend marks the 5th Golden Glass event, Slow Food San Francisco's annual fundraiser. Over 100 sustainable and regional wine producers will be presenting their wines to taste. In addition there will be an exclusive sampling from Bay Area top restaurants and artisanal producers. Sample signature dishes from local restaurants, charcuterie, cheese, olive oil, seasonal fruit, breads, pastries, and gelato. The wines will mostly be Italian but there will also be wines from Australia, Spain, Germany, New Zealand, and Argentina.

I went to this event last year for the first time and was very impressed. Forget the endless variations of tuna tartare or ceviche you find at most events, at the Golden Glass there were unique artisanal ice creams, charcuterie and cheeses. The wines were from a variety of wineries, including some smaller ones that I had never heard of before. I also found it to be less crowded than other similar events. It's easy to understand why this is a favorite wine tasting event in San Francisco.

What: The Golden Glass
When: June 8, 2008 3pm-7pm
Where: Ft. Mason, Festival Pavilion, San Francisco, map
How: Purchase tickets in advance. Tickets are $50.00 if purchased before the event and $60.00 at the door
Why: This is a great chance to try terrific wines from around the world and taste samples of food from favorite local restaurants and purveyors such as Acquerello, Bi-Rite Creamery, Chez Panisse, Delfina, Evvia, Farina, Fatted Calf Salami, Harley Farms Goat Dairy, Kokkari, La Ciccia and Perbacco. Proceeds benefit the new Slow Food SF School Garden Project and Slow Food USA "Ark of Taste."

Why try wines from far away when we have perfectly good wines in our own backyard?
Because short of traveling the world, it's the best way to experience the wines from winemakers who are preserving traditional varietals and methods. Perhaps this quote from the San Francisco Slow Food Manifesto says it best "Let us rediscover the flavors and savors of regional cooking and banish the degrading effects of Fast Food....That is what real culture is all about: developing taste rather than demeaning it. And what better way to set about this than an international exchange of experiences, knowledge, projects?"

Surrounded by the gentle hum and blue glow of the television from 11pm to 3am, I'm at my most productive. It's a routine I started in college. I was never able to concentrate in daylight, which might unveil a slightly vampiric side to my personality, and I needed noise to drown out the screaming silence of my room. Unfortunately, these work habits, while productive, mean I often stumble unwittingly into the terrifying world of infomercials.

The other night I was busily tapping away at something or other when I glanced up for an eye break and watched a thoroughly disgusting but completely enthralling infomercial for the PedEgg.

This handy little vehicle of blood poisoning waiting to happen grates all the off your feet with just a few (reportedly) smooth strokes. The PedEgg has metal "micro-files" that will rasp off your rough patches but won't pop a balloon! (I long for the days of dual tin can and tomato cutting.) The PedEgg also has a handy little collection chamber where all your foot detritus gathers instead of falling to the floor. (Because that, well, that would be gross.)

The next time I took an eye break, I found myself watching the same commercial. Except this one wasn't grating dead skin, it was grating cheese. It had the SAME grater panel and the SAME handy little collection chamber. It's ingenious. It's a multi-use that even Alton Brown has to love! It's also bizarre and gross and the two commercials shouldn't be shown on the same channel within hours of each other! And FYI putting a cute little mouse on it doesn't negate the foot factor.

Do you think the PedEgg guy saw the cheese grater and thought, "Cheese? Feet!" Or did the CheeseEgg (not its real name) guy watch the happy old lady dumping her foot shavings in the trash can and think, "Wow, I'll bet that would work really well with cheese." I've seen the cheese grater at Bed, Bath and Beyond. I've thought about buying it, testing it out, seeing if she really handles better than my beloved Microplane. But I can't quite bring myself to do it. I think I'm afraid the CheeseEgg will creep into my bathroom in the dead of night and perch on the edge on the tub. There it will sit, staring me down as I shower, taunting me, knowing how vainly I'm wrestling with my curiosity and my disgust. Knowing I will want to see if it grates my feet as well as it grates my cheese. Knowing that once I find out that answer, I will have to throw the thing out, disgusted by my weakness. Taunted by my smooth feet.

These are the things that pass through the transom of my mind when I'm up being productive at 3am. (Don't even get me started on the Corn Stripper.)

You know you’re in a food town when the postcard racks stock recipe cards to mail back to your friends. It’s been a long, hot, humid and delicious weekend in New Orleans.

Pacing has been key, of course, from judging just how many blocks a human can walk under intense sun to learning how many meals one can pack into an average day. Thank goodness for brunch to add a nice bite between early breakfast (café au lait and beignets at Café du Monde) and late lunch (roast beef po'boys with extra gravy at Parasol's).

Elizabeth's was at the top of my list, for a single menu item: praline bacon. Suffice to say that shimmering, smoky bacon topped with a crust of brown sugar is a beautiful thing.

Their crispy, hot calas, however, shined as the true star of the meal. This humble fritter -- some leftover rice, a bit of natural yeast, a generous hand with the nutmeg, and a long night of flavorful fermenting –- was once a morning staple in the French Quarter. Women in the late 1800s once walked the streets with large, covered baskets on their heads calling "Madame, mo gaingin calas! Beeelles calas…beeeeelles calas, tou cho, tou cho!" Madame, I have calas! Fine calas, fine calas, very hot, very hot!

All you need to finish a still-hot batch of calas is a snowy sprinkling of powdered sugar. Creative chefs, though, have figured out that a crispy round of rice can be the foundation of many other good things, such as poached eggs or fresh strawberries, as well as a carrier of savory bits of wild rice, sausage, mushrooms or duck confit. For Sunday brunch, a Commander's Palace serves a single, large calas smothered with a Creole courtbouillon of Gulf seafood, perfectly poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce.

Calas depend on a simple batter created out out of need and ingenuity. Creole women had figured out how to make extra money with cooked rice. There are versions now that use dry yeast instead of natural fermentation, and some call for baking powder, a nod to time-pressed cooks. But for the traditional, distinctive flavor (something San Franciscans with their sourdough know well) letting the calas batter rise overnight is not optional. Danno has an excellent recipe on his blog, NOLA Cuisine.

For a taste of classic, ungilded calas, make your way to the Bywater for breakfast or brunch at Elizabeth's. This neighborhood joint, housed in a 100-year-old building next to the train tracks, has comfortable, relaxed dining rooms, and Heidi Trull's home-style, southern specials are a favorite of locals. Meat lovers should not miss the praline bacon nor the beef grillades, tender enough to eat with a spoon and served over creamy grits. A nice rendition of eggs Sardou, a New Orleans original with artichoke hearts, creamed spinach, and Hollandaise, and anything served with their flaky biscuits are also worth sharing. Try, if you can, to save room for dessert. Red velvet, chess pie, and "ooey gooey cake" all beckon enticingly from the glass display case.

ELIZABETH'S
601 Gallier Street (at Charles)
New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 944-9272