Today, after the last of the snow in our backyard melted, it snowed again. It has been a long winter -- as it usually is in Minnesota (although I’ve only experienced two). This extended period of long-underwear, wool socks, and root vegetable stews is the reason why more people don’t live here. But as the snow melts and the temperature rises above 32 degrees, there is real joy. It’s not just a nice day for us… it’s excitement, anticipation and even a relaxation (of whatever muscles are used in shivering). And for me, most of all, it’s the search for wild foods that gets me out walking in the woods.

Over the course of the last year making episodes about food in Minnesota, of all the topics, foraging has been the most prominent. I suppose it is so with any subject, but the more you learn, the more wonderful and intriguing it becomes. A walk in the woods is not just beautiful, it is a shopping trip and a treasure hunt. So this time of year is the most exciting of all.

At this point in April when we (Minnesotans) have a few wild edibles popping out of the ground, you (Californians) have been eating them for months. But that doesn't make them any less special. So, this last Saturday we had a pizza party in celebration of Spring. It was quite ironic as the temperature dropped into the 30's that evening. Regardless, that morning we went foraging for the first of spring's offerings. A ritual that I wish was part of every cooking job: first go harvest, then go cook.

We found garlic mustard, nettles, ramps, daylilies and dandelion greens. The nettles were small and purple in color. They aren't woodsy or bitter at this point, more like spinach. We used these as a base for our pesto. The ramps were still a little young, so we didn't over pick them. If you haven't had a ramp yet, they are garlicky and delicious. I usually use the leaves for pesto while pickling the stems. The daylilies are shooting up all along the edge of my house, if you get them when they are young, they add a nice crunch with a very slight onion flavor. And dandelion greens -- they are bitter of course, but add a taste that connects you to the earth.

Recipe: Ramp Pesto

Ingredients:
• 1 part ramp leaves
• 3 parts nettles
• 1 part garlic mustard
• 1 part dandelion greens
• 1/2 part Extra Virgin Olive oil (more if needed)
• Salt

Instructions:
Blanch the nettles in hot water followed by an ice bath. Wring out the water. Puree all the ingredients together. You can add nuts or Parmesan if you want, but we we're going for more of a sauce type consistency. This could be used in pasta or as a sauce for more full flavored fish or a lighter meat. We used it on pizza, with a few dollops of chevre and cooked it in a wood-fired oven then garnished with some micro greens. A delicious spring.

---

Recipe: Pizza Dough

The pizza oven and the levain used in the dough were both created by Lisa Ringer of Two Pony Gardens. She spent the last year collecting large stones from her property to decorate the oven all the while managing her wild yeast "mother." I used her levain to create my pizza dough, no commercial yeast added.

Ingredients:
• 1 Cup levain
• 3 Cups flour
• 1/2 Cup warm water
• 2 Tablespoons EVO
• 2 teaspoons sea salt

Instructions:
Because I was making dough for 150, I mixed the dough in a mixer. But for a small batch, do it in a bowl. Add a little extra water if necessary, you want the dough to be nice and wet. Once the dough is formed (as little mixing as possible, just knead until combined), I let it rise for a couple hours in the kitchen and then overnight in the fridge. The next morning, I divided it into small balls, covered with a damp towel and let it slowly rise again until i was ready to cook the pizzas. In the heat of a wood-fired oven they don't take more than a minute.

Nascent Bay Area food producers say one of the biggest hurdles they face in growing their budding businesses is finding a commercial kitchen to work out of that meets their needs.

San Francisco has La Cocina's incubator kitchen, and street eats, underground food folk, and pop-up restaurant types work out of places like La Victoria Bakery, while thriving food enterprises such as Blue Chair Fruit have found a home in the kitchen that houses Grace Street Catering in Oakland.

The Artisan Kitchen. Photo by Sarah Henry

Less well-known is a commercial kitchen work space in Richmond, which gets rave reviews from the emerging and established food companies who work their day and night. The Artisan Kitchen is currently home to two food truck businesses, a few baked goods companies that sell at local farmers' markets and stores, including Guy Birenbaum the French pastry chef behind La Fleur De Lyon, and a gourmet popcorn producer.

Tenants, there are around 12-15 at any one time, say the cooperative kitchen space gets high marks for organization, cleanliness, design, layout, light, and equipment -- as well as a communal vibe conducive to getting the job done.

The Artisan Kitchen is the brainchild of seasoned chef Liane Ingham, who says she'd worked in her share of substandard kitchens and wanted better for her brethren in the culinary community. "I love the energy and enthusiasm of start-up artisans who want to produce their own recipes and try something new they're passionate about," says Ingham, who opened the kitchen in 2009.

Six month after getting the kitchen up and running she opened a cafe out front because she couldn't find anywhere in the surrounding community to buy healthy, fresh food. The cafe sells seasonal salads, sandwiches, and savory and sweet baked goods made from locally-sourced, organic ingredients, along with Peet's Coffee. Early birds can swing by for free range eggs or oatmeal with blueberries for breakfast.

The Artisan Cafe is popular among local business and home-based workers, with its industrial-modern feel, communal tables, and outdoor seating. It's a sunny spot in an otherwise nondescript Marina Bay office park.

Ingham runs her own catering company out of the kitchen and says it's been a pleasure to do business in Richmond, with none of the bureaucratic hassles small food companies grumble about in, say, neighboring Berkeley. She notes that since she set up shop new food businesses, such as Galaxy Desserts, have moved in. Her business model (about 60 percent of her income comes from the kitchen, 40 percent from the cafe) has worked so well she's looking to replicated it in Oakland later this year.

"Liane chooses the tenants carefully," says Gail Lillian of Liba, who roams around the Bay Area in a lime green truck peddling her popular falafel. "We're all small, boutique-y businesses who work well together and share a sense of integrity in our product."

Gail Lillian in front of her Liba Falafel truck. Photo by Wendy Goodfriend

Some tenants find the location central, if business takes them between the East Bay and Marin, though that's not the case for Lillian, who counts the extra 15 minutes of freeway driving as one of the few downsides of the location. Fellow food trucker Kate McEachern, of CupKates, adds that additional permits (since the kitchen is housed in Contra Costa County) is an extra inconvenience and expense, but both agree these are minor quibbles in the grand scheme of running a food business here.

Ancient Organics, which makes Ghee, called The Artisan Kitchen home for about three years, before moving to their own kitchen in West Berkeley recently. "Our company had grown to a size where we simply needed our own space designed for our needs," explains Matteo Girard Maxon, who echoes other tenants when he says The Artisan Kitchen stood out when he and his partner were looking for a space. "But the level of professionalism at The Artisan Kitchen is special. Everyone is focused on building their business. We just outgrew it or we'd still be there."

For the pair behind CC Made, who sell gourmet caramel popcorn, affordability was also a factor. "The Artisan Kitchen had a good price structure that was clear and concise," says co-owner Cassandra Chen.  "I had been to some kitchens and the pricing at most of these places was confusing and high." Ingham charges either an hourly rate for a shared space or a set fee for your own station for producers who book a block of time each week.

Megan Gordon, owner of Marge Bakery and BAB blogger. Photo by Sarah Henry

Adds newcomer and BAB contributor Megan Gordon of Marge Bakery. "the other folks are driven, inspiring entrepreneurs who I've already learned a lot from. It's a nice community -- not just a place to come and throw together some dough."

Cupcake queen McEachern concurs. "Having other professionals in the kitchen was a huge help when I first started," she says. "More experienced chefs can troubleshoot when things inevitably go wrong. Plus, even professionals need to borrow a cup of sugar from their neighbor occasionally."

For owner Ingham the benefits go beyond business:

"Even though the economy has been bad it's a great feeling to have a place for artisans so they can create and fulfill their dreams -- and make a good living doing so."

Details:

The Artisan Kitchen and Cafe
Address: Map
865 Marina Bay Parkway
Richmond CA 94804
Phone: 510-235-2323
Hours: Mon-Fri, 7:30am - 5pm

As far as I'm concerned, ice cream is the perfect dessert. There's nothing more relaxing and comforting after a hectic day with kids and work than a little hillock of lush and frosty ice cream sitting in a bowl. But lately my cholesterol has been creeping a little higher, making my nightly indulgence unsustainable. So after some months eating mostly store-bought sherbet and frozen yogurt, I decided to try something new -- almond milk ice cream -- and I'm so glad I did.

Now no one would ever proclaim me a vegan -- after all, I have far too many recipes on Bay Area Bites that use pork shoulder as a main ingredient -- but I do love the idea of cutting cholesterol and fat from my diet. So, noticing refrigerated almond milk at Trader Joe's, I started to wonder how it would fare as an ice-cream base. The container claimed it was "rich and creamy" and I also saw it was free of cholesterol and saturated fat. So far so good, but would it taste like ice cream? As someone who's never really liked soy ice cream -- it has too much of an aftertaste for me -- I was skeptical but ready to give almond milk a try.

I made three types of ice cream and, no surprise to many vegans out there but sort of a surprise to me, they were all amazingly good, exceeding my expectations on every level. My ten-year old daughter Maddie even exclaimed about the chocolate version "This is better than store-bought ice cream! It's my favorite!" I have to agree. My three flavors were almond, strawberry and chocolate (recipes below). All are vegan. The first two were delightful but the chocolate was really special, and all are cholesterol and fat free. But don't make these because they're healthy for you; make them because they are creamy and luscious. Basically they are everything that ice cream should be, minus the artery clogging component.

Recipe: Rich Chocolate and Banana Almond Milk Ice Cream

Summary: Not to toot my own horn, but this ice cream rocks. I know I'm not supposed to say that. It's unbecoming to boast that something you made is fantastic. But this ice cream inspired two pitilessly honest ten-year old girls to run around the kitchen yelling "It's so good!" over and over. So I am breaking protocol and telling you that regardless of your thoughts about vegan recipes or almond milk, anyone who likes chocolate ice cream should make this. Really.

By Denise Santoro Lincoln

Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups almond milk
• 2 ripe bananas
• 2 heaping tablespoons chocolate cocoa
• 2 Tbsp sugar

Instructions

1. In a microwaveable bowl or cup whisk 1/2 cup almond milk with the chocolate cocoa and sugar until fully incorporated. Microwave for 40 seconds and then stir.
2. Place bananas plus the remainder of the almond milk into a blender along with the cocoa mixture and puree for about 10 seconds.
3. Place mixture in the ice cream maker and process for 20 minutes or until thick.
4. Serve right away or store in the freezer for later use or to firm up a bit more if desired.

Recipe: Triple Almond Vegan Ice Cream

Summary: This one is a true winner. With almond milk, almond butter and chopped almonds, it has a burst of -- yes, you guessed it -- almond flavor. But unlike other almond ice creams, it tastes like real nuts and not some extract or artificial flavor that was added. This is the real almond deal. I'm actually hesitant to tell you that it is also sugar free, because hearing that ice cream is vegan, gluten-free and sugar free makes it sound like it will taste like paste, but with a banana and almond milk mixed in it had a natural sweetness that was perfect. Plus with all this talk lately that sugar is toxic it might make the recipe actually sound more alluring to some.

Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 ripe banana
• 3 Tbsp almond butter
• 1/4 tsp almond liqueur (optional)
• 1/4 cup chopped blanched almonds

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients except chopped almonds in the blender and puree for 10-15 seconds or until the mixture looks like a smoothie.
2. Place mixture plus almonds in the ice cream maker and process for 20 minutes or until thick.
3. Store ice cream in a container and freeze for another 20 seconds to firm up a bit before serving

Recipe: Strawberry Almond Milk Ice Cream

Summary: My next foray into almond milk ice cream included lots of strawberries. With a velvety and smooth texture more reminiscent of sorbet than ice cream, this creation was full of a bright fruitiness as well as a hint of almond flavor. Once again using my kids as guinea pigs, I gave them each a big a helping and it was declared "really good" and both had seconds.

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 2 cups frozen strawberries
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp orange juice or water
• 1 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp corn starch

Instructions

1. Heat 1 1/2 cups strawberries in a small pot with the sugar and water or juice. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool and then puree in a blender. You can cool the strawberries in a bowl set on top of another bowl of ice water to speed things up.
2. Mix 1/2 cup almond milk with the corn starch and set aside.
3. Heat the remainder of the almond milk plus the vanilla in a medium pot until simmering and then add in the corn starch infused almond milk. Stir on low heat while whisking for five minutes to thicken.
4. Strain almond milk to remove lumps and then let mixture cool to room temperature. Mix into pureed strawberries and then set in the refrigerator until cold (about a half hour).
5. Chop up the last 1/2 cup of strawberries and then add to the almond milk mixture. Place in your prepared ice-cream maker and let it run for 20 minutes. Place ice cream in a container until ready for use.

Have you seen this contraption? It's a 7 inch tall interactive, touchscreen restaurant menu tablet from E La Carte.

And it might very well be part of your dining future.

My feelings toward it are mixed, at best.

I am historically resistant to technological change. I quietly mourned the compact disc's triumph over the long playing record; I didn't see the necessity of a laptop computer when my desktop one worked perfectly fine; I was forcibly enrolled in Twitter by a friend; and the only reason I purchased a cell phone was because I would not be able to find my boyfriend in a crowd of 20,000 people 500 miles from home without one.

And yet I have come to embrace all of these technologies. In fact, I am physically embracing my computer as I type this on top of my lap. With my phone in my pocket. Playing downloaded music. The Twitter feed, however, is turned off. I have my limits.

I have the feeling that ordering from a touchscreen menu is one of those limits.

It isn't as though I haven't done it before. Anyone who has taken a Virgin Airlines flight has seen these screens. We pull up the food menu, place our index fingers to the screen to make our choices, then swipe our credit cards along the bottom of the tablet. Shortly thereafter, a flight attendant appears with what we have ordered. It isn't exactly magic, but it is certainly efficient.

However, I do to miss being asked the question "Chicken or fish?" I may get my cold falafel sandwich quickly, but I never feel very good about it. There's a subtle but important difference between being handed a tray of food and being served it.

The people at E La Carte state that their menu tablet isn't meant to replace those who serve. Rather, it is "meant to make the hospitality experience more convenient, social, and fun for the guests and more profitable for the restaurant operator."

With the tablet, guests can "order, pay, play games, and give feedback straight from their seats."

According to the product's makers, there are three main benefits for the restaurant:

1. Boost average check size by up to 10% through up-selling, pictures, and impulse orders.

2. Improving customer retention with easy-to-use loyalty and survey interactions.

3. Improve service by quick payment, retaining customer order history, and games at the table.

How on earth can a computer up-sell better than a human being? I think I need this explained to me.

When my friend Roy alerted me to this new piece of technology, my first reaction as both a career server at a fine dining establishment and someone resistant to new technology was to view the E La Carte tablet as vilely impersonal and a threat to my profession. Over the last 24 hours, however, I have calmed myself as I weigh what I imagine the cons-- and the pros-- are of this particular piece of equipment.

There are three important components a good restaurant must supply in order to provide its guests with a great dining experience (just pick up a Zagat guide and look at their rating criteria if you don't believe me):

1. Great food

2. Congenial décor

3. Excellent service

Though the menu tablet aims to provide photos of all the menu items, I am wondering if its creators have taken into account the fact that someone is going to have to style, photograph, photo edit, and upload a photo every time a new dish is created.

Substitutions? E La Carte states that guests can make alterations to their chosen menu item through this product. Simple enough when a guest might prefer mashed potatoes to french fries with their Porterhouse, but what about more complex-- or outrageous-- requests? Is it time then for a server to appear at the table with the bad news?

Computer says no.

As for décor, I get irritated when the people I eat with leave their smart phones on the table. I don't want a 7 inch piece of electronics shining at me as I dine. A candle on the table and the smiles of my companions are all the glow I need, thank you very much.

And what about the human component of the dining experience that this gadget swears it is not intended to replace? As a server, one of the most important parts of my job is to form a personal connection with my guest. Argue all you like, but there is a certain amount of server/guest bonding that happens within the first few moments of interaction. When I say hello and ask someone if they'd like a drink or if they just want to settle in a moment and catch their breath, I'm not just offering to go fetch them something-- I'm giving them the sense that they are going to be well taken care of.

The nuances of human vs. computer interaction are too many to get into in this post.

I understand that both restaurant owners and restaurant guests can benefit from such a menu in cases where one is looking merely to satisfy one's hunger quickly and efficiently, like at a corporate chain restaurant such as Applebee's (which is rumored to be adopting the tablets). Such venues already have standardized menu items that are photographically illustrated.

Touchscreen menus might also be a terrific boon for people who, for varying reasons, are unable to communicate well with spoken words. I've seen what an iPad can do for kids with autism. Could such interactive menus also help them gain confidence in ordering dinner? It's an idea that intrigues me.

They may also be helpful to those unfamiliar with a particular cuisine and/or language (ever been to a Vietnamese restaurant and felt entirely helpless?). The idea of a computer with a built-in glossary of terms and ingredients (or a translator) is an intriguing one.

And just think about how it could transform a wine list. 86'ed items could be immediately removed from the menu. Can't remember what grapes are in that Grüner Veltliner? (hint: it's Grüner Veltliner, but you would be spared the humiliation of asking such a question if you could simply click over to a glossary or related link.) Of course, the drawback is that one could get so lost in so much information, that one might never be able to choose. Or put the damned menu down.

I think a tool such as the E La Carta has some excellent possibilities, but not in the way it's being marketed. In addition to the ideas previously mentioned, I think that such a product used as a menu would cut down on the need for paper menus that must be thrown away or otherwise recycled every time they are either dirtied or in need of updating.

But then you should give your order to a human being and remove the electronic device from the dinner table. Talk to him. Ask for her opinion. Just interact. Technology can be a wonderful thing, but not at the expense of interpersonal exchange. It has its time and its place.

The other day I was riding to work on the bus. When I had taken my seat, I reflexively pulled out my iPhone to play a game of cribbage or stare at Facebook updates or do something-- anything-- to shut out my surroundings. Then something wonderful happened:

My battery died.

I was alarmed by how helpless I felt and my immediate thought was "Now what am I supposed to do?" And then I felt like a fool. I looked at my fellow passengers on the bus. Every person on it my age or younger was using their smart phone. None of them were smiling. It was just the old Chinese ladies at the front who were chatting and laughing away. I had no idea what they were saying, but they seemed to be doing perfectly fine without a touchscreen at arm's length.

It struck me then that this is precisely what we're all doing when we can't manage to pull our eyes away from our gadgets-- we are keeping people at arm's length. And that personal computers aren't, well, personable.

We spend so much of our time in front of computers-- I know I do. Working as a waiter is a marvelous antidote to technology because every night I am forced to talk to people I've never met before. I ask them questions like "How are you?" and "Where are you from?" Granted, I get paid to do so, but it's something I actually look forward to. It pulls me out of myself and, for a few hours every evening, my focus is on the welfare of other people.

And I look for the same thing when I am the one who is dining. I want to feel welcomed as a guest, not merely a customer. However much of a fantasy that might be at times, I want to believe it. I want to thank the person who placed that martini in front of me. I want to talk to a human being, not press buttons (unless they happen to the the emotional buttons of my dining partner). I want to feel as though I am being taken care of.

I just don't happen to think that's possible with a computer.

What are your thoughts? Like the idea? Hate it?

There's a new-ish Cuban restaurant in town, and although folks are raving about their dinner menu and late-night take-out, they do a pretty delightful breakfast. When I was a college student in Boulder, CO we had a lovely little Cuban breakfast spot open up next to one of my favorite bookstores. I'd go and get a Cafe Cubano and a flaky guava pastry and catch up on the paper or some last minute reading for my afternoon class. So walking into two-month old Cana early on a random Wednesday morning brought back some nice memories.

Cana is the kind of neighborhood spot that I think people from all over the East Bay will drive to. They have a small but sweet outdoor patio that, while right on Lakeside, has an enclosed comfortable feel and there are a few tables inside the small restaurant which are generally free earlier in the morning hours (not so at night). I've always loved Cuban coffees, so to have a spot that does them with Blue Bottle beans within walking distance of my apartment is a happy find, indeed. On Cana's menu, you'll notice the usual suspects: Cafe Con Leche, Cafe Cubano and the Cortadito. The Cafe Con Leche is a slightly sweetened Cuban coffee -- people often use sweetened condensed milk but at Cana they prefer to use sugar instead as it makes for a smoother consistency. The Cubano is more for the purist: deep, dark Blue Bottle espresso slightly sweetened with sugar. Then the Cortadito adds on to that a little milk and foam. They also do a "pour-over" slow drip as well as typical espresso drinks (americanos and lattes).

Once you've decided on coffee, it's time to think about breakfast. Luckily, they open early at 7 a.m. and because of that, have developed quite a commuter following. In fact, so much so that they've created a "Commuter Special: For $3, you get a slice of housemade bread (banana, lemon or pumpkin) and a Cafe Con Leche. But I think the real reason to stroll in during the morning hours is for the Cuban Toast (best $2 I've spent in a long, long time) and the Soft Scrambled Egg and Ham Empanada.

Cuban toast at Cana

The Cuban Toast consists of housemade bread dipped in egg, cinnamon, and a vanilla batter served with a mango coulis. Think about the most magical french toast you've had and multiply that experience by two. The Cuban Toast is both light and satisfying at the same time, lightly spiced and subtly sweet. The empanadas are all housemade and they do two flavors, a Vegetarian version with mixed mushrooms and a Ham, Egg, and Cheese.

Empanadas at Cana

I often find breakfast empanadas to be overwhelming: they're usually too big and, because of that, the filling isn't always uniformly warm. I've actually stopped ordering them altogether, but for the sake of research I tried Cana's and I'll be back for more. Their secret, I think, is not using too much filling. They're crispy on the outside and perfectly flavorful on the inside. I could see how living just a few blocks closer could become dangerous. At the end of the day, I'm thrilled that Cana's in my 'hood and will be back for a Cafe Cubano and to try that infamous Pastel de Guataba (guava pastry) that they happened to be out of on the day of my visit. So many new Cuban treats, so little time.

Cana
Address: Map
530 Lake Park Ave.
Oakland, CA 94610
Phone: (510) 832-1515

Hours:
Breakfast: Mon.-Fri: 7 a.m.- 10 a.m.; Sat. 8 a.m.-10 a.m.
Lunch: Mon.-Sat.: 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Dinner: Mon.-Sat.: 4 p.m.-8:30 p.m.
Late Night: Fri.-Sat.: 8:30 p.m.-11 p.m.

Aida Mollenkamp. Photo by Julie Michelle

Recently named one of the eight sexiest women on TV cooking shows, Aida Mollenkamp also happens to have a wealth of culinary expertise and knowledge in addition to being a hot TV food personality.

The host and co-creator of the television show “FoodCrafters” and “Ask Aida” she attended Cornell University and then the esteemed Le Cordon Bleu in Paris where she studied culinary AND pastry arts. She ended up in San Francisco when she became one of the editors of the online food magazine, CHOW. Currently, she’s working on her first cookbook, tentatively titled, “Keys to the Kitchen,” due out in 2012.

She recently took some time out of her hectic schedule to tell me about her love of food and the top spots in the Bay Area she'd recommend for food fiends like herself (that aren't restaurants).

Elaine: You call yourself a “long-time food fiend.” Where does your love of food come from?

Aida: Oh, that’s a hard one. It’s like asking me why I like to dance (she’s a former classical dancer) -- it’s just the way it is and always has been. My family showed me to respect food and through gardening and shopping with my mom, I also learned where my food came from. But, I guess there was this kismet moment in my teen years where I realized that food was like a cipher to understanding various cultures. From that moment on, I’ve looked at cooking as a means of traveling through my tastebuds.

Elaine: Where did the idea for your show “FoodCrafters” come from?

Aida: My friends would say the show is just an extension of how I naturally live as I’m constantly hunting down new tastes and food stories. The real story is that it is a creative collaboration with a producer I worked with on “Ask Aida.” We shared a passion for good quality food and would constantly trade stories about the latest tastes she hunted down in Brooklyn and those I had found in San Francisco. “FoodCrafters” became this natural fit of a show where my passions could be explored while giving the small guy the spotlight as we uncover foods, flavors, and stories from around the nation.

Elaine: You’ve lived in some of the best food areas in the world: Los Angeles, New York, Florence, Paris, and now San Francisco. How is the Bay Area different from all of them, food-wise?

Aida: Each city I’ve lived in has its own culture, and with it, its own food personality. San Francisco’s food scene is integrated into our daily lives in a way that I’ve only seen in Europe, but it’s also decidedly Californian as we’re simultaneously playful, respectful, and creative.

Aida Mollenkamp. Photo by Julie Michelle

Elaine: What are the Top Eleven places in the Bay Area that you'd recommend for food lovers?

Aida: Here’s my list:

1. The Pasta Shop -- 1784 Fourth St., Berkeley
   I don’t remember the first time I went to The Pasta Shop, but I do recall that I liked the selection so much I considered convincing them to let me live there. Everything from 4505 Meats' chicarrones to sodas I’ve never seen this side of the Atlantic, they do a marked job curating their food and everyone on the staff is highly knowledgeable.
2. Cheese Plus -- 2001 Polk St., S.F.
   When I first moved to SF, I lived in Pacific Heights and would walk to work and quickly got in the habit of making a detour to Cheese Plus. As the name suggests, there’s not just cheese and I’ve also discovered instant favorites like crackers from The Fine Cheese Co. I’d spend the majority of my meager start-up salary on all the treats in there and have my friends laughing that instead of buying designer shoes, I was splurging on rare cheeses.
3. Bi-Rite Market -- 3639-18th St., S.F.
   It’s a 5-minute walk from my place to Bi-Rite Market, so I have become a regular there. In fact, I credit my many trips to Bi-Rite -- where I discovered new foods and their backstories -- as the source of my idea for FoodCrafters.
4. Miette Confiserie -- 449 Octavia St., S.F.
   With décor right out of the pages of a Roald Dahl book, Miette is as aesthetically pleasing as it is tasty. I lived in Hayes Valley when the confiserie opened and was immediately drawn to the carefully selected sweets, including chocolates from all over the world.
5. City Beer Store -- 1168 Folsom St., S.F.
   I arrived in San Francisco a wine drinker, but have been versed in the world of cocktails and beer thanks to knowledgeable places like City Beer Store, where there are always new beers to discover.
6. Nest -- 2300 Fillmore St., S.F.
   When I first moved to the Bay Area, I was over in Pacific Heights and would longingly walk by the eclectic boutique, Nest, everyday. When CHOW went from print to online, I treated myself by buying a set of hobnail glasses that I’ve kept to this day.
7. Heritage Culinary Artifacts -- Oxbow Market, 610 First St., Napa
   The Ferry Plaza is unparalleled -- except perhaps by downtown Napa’s Oxbow Market. There’s an antique store there, Heritage Artifacts, that I became addicted to when we filmed in the market for last fall’s FoodCrafters.
8. Heath Factory Store -- 400 Gate 5 Rd., Sausalito
   Heath has a cult following among the food and prop styling crowd, but it’s not all that affordable unless you go to the factory store. When I first found out about it, I headed over in an absurdly large van thinking there was no way I needed all that space. But a few dollars and a couple of hours later, I filled the van to the brim with boxes and boxes of discounted, yet still gorgeous plateware.
9. McEvoy Olive Oil Ranch -- 5935 Red Hill Rd., Petaluma
   There’s moments when you travel somewhere and the environment has just as much impact as the food. The McEvoy Olive Oil farm in Sonoma is one of those places. But be warned: by the end of their tour, you may be considering olive oil farming as a new career.
10. The Marshall Store -- 19225 California 1, Marshall
    Definitely the farthest I’ve ever driven for oysters, The Marshall Store is as out of the way as it comes but is worth the trek. Fresh oysters, tangy BBQ sauce, and cold beer -- need I say more?
11. The Tourist Club -- 30 Ridge Ave., Mill Valley
    It’s the hidden gems of the Bay Area that make it ever more interesting and Tourist Club is one of those very places. A few miles deep into the Muir Woods, the Tourist Club is a century-old German brauhaus that is closed to the public, except for a few hours each weekend. After an exhausting hike of Mt. Tam, there’s nothing better than pitchers of draft beer with friends on the Tourist Club’s sunny deck.

Eggs from Tara Firma Farms

Happy Easter! And where better to spend this egg-centric holiday than Petaluma, land of butter & eggs? This pretty Sonoma town is worth a drive anytime, especially now while the surrounding hills are green and the cows contented.

Start your Sunday with brunch at Della Fattoria Bakery and Cafe. If you shop at the Ferry Plaza or Marin County farmers' markets, you've probably ogled Della Fattoria's big brown loaves many a time as you try to choose that week's purchase: pumpkin-seed or polenta? Meyer lemon-rosemary (my favorite) or olive? A square Pullman loaf for slicing and toasting, or a crunchy-crusted epi to rip and dunk?

At the heart of Della Fattoria's operation is a farm and bakery, where their breads are baked in wood-fired ovens. The farm doubles as a site for outdoor, communal "ranch dinners"; there's also a small cottage available for rent by the week or by the night.

Easter brunch menu at Della Fattoria

In downtown Petaluma, Della Fattoria runs a bakery-cafe that serves breakfast and lunch 7 days a week, plus dinner on Fridays. The menu shifts a little with inspiration and the seasons, but farm eggs, local meats, and bakery products are always front and center.

Polenta, asparagus, and egg at Della Fattoria Bakery & Cafe

This Sunday, you'll find eggs bennie (eggs Benedict), of course, made with poached ranch eggs, ham, and spring asparagus under a cloak of hollandaise sauce over husky whole-grain toast. Creamy polenta comes topped 3 ways: with braised artichokes, with Italian-style meatballs, or with asparagus, a poached ranch egg, and some rosettes of proscuitto, a lovely, luxurious way to start the day. Bigger appetites might start with fruit salad bathed in brown sugar and champagne, followed by scalloped potatoes with eggs and black-pig bacon, biscuits in gravy with maple-pecan sausage and poached eggs, or a hot pressed ham-and-Gruyere sandwich.

The room is high-ceilinged with walls the color of terra cotta and two long communal tables in the center, plus five smaller tables against the walls. Bouquets of sweet peas and ranunculus add a bright splash of color to each table, where diners share newspapers while kids gnaw on house-baked bagels. At the back is a pastry counter filled with croissants, bear claws, cookies, and tarts, plus a wall of tempting breads.

Enjoy yourself, sip that perfect cappuccino, but don't linger too long; it's time to take a scenic five-mile drive out of town, along meandering, bumpy but beautiful I Street, past horses, cows, and California poppy-studded green hills to Tara Firma Farms. If you're a farmers'-market shopper, you've probably been handed a flyer advertising their pasture-raised meat CSA program and weekend farm tours. Every weekend, from 10am-3pm, owners Craig and Tara Smith do on-the-hour walks around their property, where they're raising pigs, beef cattle, and chickens for both meat and eggs. (There's also a small market garden, three very friendly pet goats, and Roland, the farm dog.)

Craig and Tara started the farm in 2009, raising about 40 head of pasture-raised cattle who move around the farm daily, grazing on three to five acres a day. (Craig still has his day job as the owner of a large long-term-care insurance company; Tara left her job at the same company and now does much of the day-to-day farm management.) They gather about 500 eggs a day from some 700 hens, all of whom spend their days out in the fields, scratching, grazing, pecking, and laying fertile eggs of all sizes and colors. Staunch proponents of the Joel Salatin method, they practice rotational grazing for all their animals. "Everything is always on the move," said Craig, noting that adopting this system made "a huge difference" in revitalizing what had been worn-out, heavily overgrazed land.

Chicken at Tara Firma Farms

After meeting Olivia the sow and her 12 adorable, two-week-old pink-and-black piglets, we walked up to one of the chicken tractors, a shed on wheels kitted out with nesting boxes and secure predator-proof roosts for nighttime. The chickens are busy earning their keep: every straw-lined nesting box we peered into held a clutch of three or four still-warm eggs. It's prime egg-laying time right now, said Craig, as the days get longer and warmer after winter's molting season.

Olivia the sow and her piglets

Pointing out the pond stocked with fish (catfish and large-mouthed bass, for catch-and-release fishing) and encouraging everyone to come back for a hike, Craig said, "We want all our members to feel like this is their farm. We really want to help people understand where their food comes from."

About 80% of the farm's production is sold through its CSA program, which offers both meat and veggie shares; members can pick up boxes at the farm or through one of its 12 drop points between Santa Rosa and San Francisco. After the tour, visitors can browse through the small farm store, where fresh eggs and a small area of produce is on display, featuring a mixture of farm vegetables and produce from County Line, a nearby organic farm. But those in the know head straight for the freezer, where the farm's beef, chicken, and pork are packaged for sale.

As for me, I'm happy to go home with a box of souffle-ready eggs, perfect alongside some Della Fattoria toast.

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Della Fattoria (The Cafe)
Address: Map
141 Petaluma Boulevard North
Petaluma, CA
Phone: (707) 763-0161
Hours: Mon-Thu & Sat: 6am-3pm, Fri: 6am-9pm, Sun: 9am-3pm
Twitter: @DellaFattoria
Facebook: Della Fattoria

Tara Firma Farms
Address: Map
3796 I Street, Ext
Petaluma, CA 94952
Phone: (707) 765-1202
Twitter: @TaraFirmaFarms
Facebook: Tara Firma Farms

UCSF professor Robert Lustig became an Internet video sensation when he spoke out about the evils of sugar in a post that went viral on YouTube. He was also recently featured in a New York Times Magazine cover story, "Is Sugar Toxic?" Lustig joins Forum in the studio to discuss sugar's role in diabetes, obesity and related diseases.

Original Broadcast: Thu, Apr 21, 2011 -- 10:00 AM

Host: Michael Krasny

Guest:
Robert Lustig, professor of pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology and director of the Weight Assessment for Teen and Child Health (WATCH) Program at the UCSF Medical Center

Robert H. Lustig, MD, UCSF Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology, explores the damage caused by sugary foods. He argues that fructose (too much) and fiber (not enough) appear to be cornerstones of the obesity epidemic through their effects on insulin.

Related Article:
Is Sugar Toxic? (NYTimes)

On one lovely sunny afternoon in early January, my friend Pamela Palma and I decided to take a coffee break in the backyard of General Store, a quaint little shop in the Outer Richmond located next door to Trouble Coffee. We were taking a leisurely bike ride around the city and around 3 o'clock -- that magic hour that's perfect for a little caffeine boost -- we were both craving some coffee.

As we sat within the quiet walls of that peaceful sanctuary and sipped our drinks, we came upon the idea of creating an extended version of that day's journey: a bicycle tour that visited several of our favorite coffee shops throughout the city. As we're both cycling enthusiasts and devotees of good food and drink, this was the perfect blend of our passions.

We quickly came up with a list that would loop around the city, thus allowing our friends to burn off some caffeine if they chose to indulge themselves at each location: Sightglass Coffee in SOMA; just right around the corner at Mission and 7th Street is De La Paz Coffee at their new location; Blue Bottle Coffee at the Ferry Building Marketplace; Trouble Coffee on Judah and 46th Street near Ocean Beach; Ritual Roasters at Flora Grubb Gardens; and Four Barrel Coffee in the Mission.

We set the date for early April and spread the word to our friends. Folks were encouraged to bring their own mugs and a steel stomach.

On the bright spring morning of the ride, close to 50 folks showed up for our 25-mile excursion. We hadn't warned any of the shops that we'd be arriving en masse, so our arrival felt a bit like a flash mob descending on the baristas. Their lazy Sunday turned into a Monday morning-like rush, but they were happy to accomodate us one drip coffee at a time.

After lingering at Sightglass for an hour, we ended up bypassing De La Paz as they were still renovating their new space. Onwards to the Ferry Building, where people also fueled up with Blue Bottle's delicious caramelized Belgian-style waffles. The energy came in handy as we wove through Fisherman's Wharf, Ft. Mason, zoomed past Crissy Field and climbed up through the hilly Presidio. We spread out along the vast lanes of The Great Highway, which was conveniently closed off for Sunday Streets.

Giulietta Carrelli, the proprietor of Trouble Coffee, greeted us warmly at our third stop and rang up our orders. Folks filled up on their renowned fresh coconut water and thick-sliced toast slathered with cinnamon and butter, peanut butter or Nutella. And of course, we guzzled more coffee as there was still lots of riding on the agenda.

After a much-needed pit stop at a public bathroom on La Playa, we meandered up the long, slow incline of Sloat Avenue, then cut through to Monterey Boulevard. Alemany Boulevard took us down to Hunter's Point, and we soon descended upon Flora Grubb Gardens, a lovely urban oasis located in Bayview. The line for Ritual Roasters was bit shorter, as people were well-buzzed, hungry for dinner and ready to retire for the day. We made an executive decision to end the tour there and Four Barrel would have to wait another time.

Pamela and I were thrilled to discover that we were able to introduce many of our friends to new shops and bike routes within the city. You can try out our route by following the Google Map below. Approximately half of it follows bike paths and streets with bike lanes. It's an intermediate ride with several climbs throughout the city loop, so feel free to reference the San Francisco Bike Map to get approximations of elevation or to plot out an easier course. Be sure to stay well-hydrated, wear a helmet and have fun!

View San Francisco Coffee Ride! in a larger map

Check out more photos from our coffee ride from Pamela Palma's Flickr set.

Do you see the universe on your plate? Vinita Chopra Jacinto wants you to.
The culinary instructor from CCA -- one of four panelists in a moderated discussion hosted by the Asian Culinary Forum on Food as Medicine: Cuisine, Curatives, & Culture -- doesn't see the food on her plate as a collection of commodities or functional prescriptions. When she looks at her plate, she sees her past (family memories), her culture (folklore), her impact on the world (whose culture is she borrowing from, what is she modeling for the future) and the whole balance of a healthy lifestyle. In other words, she sees the universe and her connection to it.

A small crowd of people gathered Tuesday night in a large meeting room on the second floor of the San Francisco Ferry Building. With the Bay Bridge illuminated in the background, we were there to talk about the relationship between food and medicine and the use of food as medicine. The result: less in depth discussion and prescription of particular ingredients and more passionate anecdotes about culture, healing and responsibility.

The evening started with an informal reception. Panelists and volunteers from the Asian Culinary Forum provided quite a spread of healing foods and spices, both for display as well as tasting. On display was a rainbow array of spices, stunning mushroom formations, goji berries, dragon eye, red dates, wood ear (black fungus), and snow fungus. Tastings included: bitter melon; two capsaicin spiced "elixirs" (I tried to figure out how to steal the case of the lychee wasabi flavor undetected, but failed to concoct a foolproof plan); a buffet of dried fruit, nuts, and an oyster mushroom and walnut pate; and three soups: Qing Ji Tang (herbal chicken soup with soft stewed hunks of ginger easily twice the size of my thumb), Miyeuk Guk (a Korean seaweed soup, thick and rich with sea vegetables and snow fungus), and Shu Jiao Jiang (pork ginger vinegar soup, a dark, fragrant caldron). They rolled out black sesame "truffles" sweetened with honey and covered in shredded coconut at the end of the evening, which were a perfectly balanced treat, not too rich or cloying, and completely satisfying, almost palate cleansing.

Moderated by Nancy Chen, a professor of anthropology at UC Santa Cruz, the panel included Jane Lin, who, inspired by the soups her parents prepared to help her recovery after the birth of her first child, launched Mama Tong as a way to bring healthy, healing, traditional Chinese foods to new mothers; Vinita Chopra Jacinto, a culinary instructor at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, where she teaches a new generation of culinary students old food wisdom; John Garrone, proprietor of Far West Fungi, an exotic mushroom company located in the Ferry Building; and Michelle Warner, a Clinical Ayurvedic Specialist.

There was just a little bit of talk on the power of specific ingredients, without going too deeply into the science of how the foods work with our bodies: John Garrone provided a nice primer on the medicinal uses of some fungi he favors -- maitake tea for strength, tree oysters for immune boosting, and lion's head for digestion; Michelle Warner promoted mung beans and tulsi tea (holy basil), an adaptogenic herb that balances out just about everything; and Jane Lin gave several options for increasing milk production for nursing mothers, including fenugreek and high protein foods (she also strongly recommended sleep and proper hydration).

But more, over the course of the evening, the panelists shared their personal perspectives on what food means to them and how it integrates into the fabric of their lives. Jane Lin shared her reluctant acceptance of a traditional Chinese post-partum confinement after her first child's birth, and the strange looking but ultimately healing soups that came with it. John Garrone told the story of feeding his son strength-building maitake before difficult wrestling matches and Vinita Chopra Jacinto joyfully described her mother's masala dabba -- a jewelry box filled with traditional spices that she added to meals, a cross between a magician and a doctor, to keep her family healthy. All agreed that what is happening now with our culture's sharp focus on food, especially in the Bay Area, is that we are seeing an incredible opportunity to move beyond fad diets and build bridges between old traditions and contemporary applications.

When asked by an audience member how it all connects -- the nutrition science, the energetic sciences of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda, and the cultural wisdom or folklore -- the panelists agreed that nutrition isn't an exact science yet, that the connections between theses perspectives are still developing, but that ultimately you get out of food what you want. It's your choice, when you look at your plate, to see random bits or your whole world.

At the end, the panelists agreed on some simple prescriptions:
• Eat in season. Eating in season is one easy, natural way to keep your body in balance from a healing perspective, plus food in season tastes better.
• Eat the full range of flavors (sweet, salty, bitter, sour, pungent, astringent) and colors in food.
• Taste matters. Taste your food, really chew your food and experience the range of flavors represented on your plate. Food, especially functional foods, should nourish your senses as well as your body.
• Prescriptive eating isn't enough; functional (medicinal) foods can only enhance the bigger picture lifestyle choices we make to support balanced health overall.