Pebble Beach Food & Wine { Part 1: The Food }

Over the weekend I had a perfect foodie day. I attended the Fourth Annual Pebble Beach Food and Wine extravaganza. The weather was perfect. The line up of chefs, wineries and venue was perfect. The friends I enjoyed the day with were perfect.

When I received the invitation from Liren at Kitchen Confidante to attend the Pebble Beach Food and Wine event, I was delighted. Soon after, I received an email  from Jean at Lemon and Anchovies letting me know that she was attending too. I was overwhelmed with the out pour of friendship and thoughtfulness. It was soon official – we would all be attending the event. Hopefully we would catch up with other Bay Area Bloggers.

Liren was kind enough to drive to the event. It was a great opportunity to chat about everything from family, careers to of course everything food. We arrived early to the Grand Tasting and were among the first guests in line. Jean joined us shortly and even brought some tasty snacks for us to enjoy while waiting for that magical noon hour.

With our cameras in toe around our necks, we finally entered the colossal tent. They actually sectioned it into “tent A” and “tent B”. We had three hours to eat, chat, taste and have fun. Within the food blogger sphere, you make many friends but don’t often actually get to meet them in person. I was lucky enough to meet Liren and Jean last year at a food blogger dinner. During the event we had the pleasure of meeting Sara from CaffeIna and Gina from SPCookieQueen. I was looking forward to meeting Azmina, who Jean invited from Laywer Love Lunch , so hopefully we will meet soon at another foodie event.

A true highlight for the day was meeting Tyler Florence. A relatively new Bay Area resident, he has made his mark with Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco. He was truly one of the kindest and most hospitable celebrity chefs at the event. If you have not dined there, I would highly recommend it. The fried chicken is the signature dish and is finger licking good.

With cameras and wine glasses ready, we forged forward to taste the divine dish from Josh Drage from The Ranch at Rock Creek in Montana. He served a Grilled Bison with Mache salad, radish, red potatoes, egg and divine vinaigrette. His center of attention is with utilizing local producers of organic and sustainable meats and produce. His food is defining Montana cuisine.

The culinary teams from US Food Service were full of personality and vibrancy. They made a wickedly delicious dish of Bronzed Eastern Sea Scallop with Mango Dungeness Crab Cerviche and Blue Corn Crisp. Believe it or not, I had steered away from Scallops for all of my adult life until now. They converted me to a Scallop lover!

Emily Luchetti from Farallon made an absolutely incredible dessert – Brownie Brown Sugar Parfait. There was a chewy brownie, creamy custard, crunchy bits and layers of brown sugar goodness. Perfection created with just one spoonful. We all wished there were more dessert booths – hopefully for the fifth annual event.

Joseph Humphrey from Murray’s Circle at Cavallo Point Lodge in San Francisco’s Fort Baker scenic setting which stares at the iconic Golden Gate Bridge was full of personality. He served a Duck Hush Puppy with Prosciutto and it was simply a bite of fried heaven.

Not being familiar with The Plumed Horse located in Saratoga, I was elated when I tried the Foie Gras Ravioli with Truffled Pea Puree. Chef Peter Armellino is very deserving of receiving the Michelin Star in 2009, 2010 and 2011. As Michael Bauer from SF Chronicle says – “Plumed Horse is the standard for destination restaurants”.

Chef Jerry Regester from The C Restaurant + Bar has spectacular views of the Monterey Bay. "We are committed to a seasonally-inspired cuisine - focusing on fresh, local and sustainable ingredients - that supports our local purveyors". said Chef Regester. He created a supreme dish – Pork Shank Terrine with Umbria Lentils and Dungness Crab.

One of biggest thrills of the day was tasting the Popcorn Bisque from Chef Clint Wilson from The Lodge at Pebble Beach. First of all, Clint and his team were full of energy and had a zest for life. We could sense the moment we approached the booth, that they were proud of the bisque and enjoyed the positive surprise from each guest who tasted this heavenly soup. It was a creamy corn soup with butter and popcorn. Incredibily rich but we all gladly accepted a second shot glass from Chef Clint.

Not only did Chef Clint make an out of this world bisque, he delighted us with a Braised Buffalo Shortrib on top of a potato gratin. The combination was another stunner from Chef Clint.

Masaharu Morimoto and his team created a one bite wonder – Angry Octopus, Meyer Lemon Cream with Pickled Kumquats. He recently opened Morimoto Napa and seamlessly integrates western and japanese ingredients to create culinary masterpeices. His team assembled the appetizers with such precision by using tweezers to garnish each one.

Who doesn’t love bacon? I personally do not know anyone. Ray Garcia from Fig Restaurant in Santa Monica certainly knew how to draw a crowd by serving “Bacon wrapped Bacon”. Thinly sliced smoked bacon is wrapped around slab smoked bacon and cooked slowly for about eight hours on low heat. The result is a crispy outside and a melt in your mouth inside.

Moody’s Bistro and Lounge is located in Truckee on your way to Lake Tahoe and Executive Chef Mark Estee puts his spin on bistro classics with a culinary flair. He served an Artisan Head Cheese with Salad and Croutons. The pig adornments on the table caught your attention and gravitated us to his table. Chef Mark became emersed in the creation of his dish and shared his passion with us.

La Folie in San Francisco featured Chef Roland Passot and served a Foie Gras Soup with Bacon.

Restaurant 1833 in Monterey hired Levi Mezick as their executive chef.  He created a very light fish starter that appeared to be poached in olive oil and finished with fennel, pea puree and lemon verbena olive oil.  Pure decadence!

Michael Simon created a lamb mini meatball with yogurt and fennel and a bit of mint on top.  It was a delightful bite.

This must have been the quickest three hours of my life. I enjoyed great food, great wine and spent time with great foodie friends. You are probably wondering about all of the terrific wines – I have decided to dedicate a part two to just the wines at Pebble Beach Food & Wine. Stay tuned for part two in the next few days!

Royal Radish Crostini with Peppercress

Didn’t get an invitation to the royal wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton? No worries, throw your own royal wedding party instead. Don’t feel bad, I did not get an invitation either.  No need to fret – have your own appetizer feast tomorrow night while you are watching the festivities in the comfort of your own "royal palace" {smile}.

The 650 invited guests who will celebrate Kate and William’s big day will enjoy a "modest spread of Champagne, wedding cake and two-bite appetizers, or canapés," reports the New York Times for the lunchtime reception hosted by Queen Elizabeth. Buckingham Palace has physical limitations, so the “cocktail style” venue is ideal. I am sure the guests will be quite pleased with such appetizers as mini Yorkshire puddings with roast beef and horseradish cream to bubble-and-squeak confit with lamb shoulder.

With a lazer focus on the upcoming royal nuptuals over the last several weeks, it is hard to not hear the words – “Royal Wedding” ripple throught the air. Americans have long had a fascination with royalty. The royal wedding represents the ultimate fairy tale. I remember like it was yesterday, staying late to watch the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. What a remarkable event. As Americans, we do not share the tradition of a royal family, instead we have first families that come and go in either four or eight year increments. A royal family represents a sense calm, continuity and traditionalism.

My brush with Royalty: The closest that I have ever come to the “Royal Family” was about thirteen years ago. I was attending a human resources association lunch at the top of the lakeside building in Oakland. Since the luncheon was on the top floor, I had several floors to travel in the elevator. Once I hit the designated floor, the doors opened and there was an abundance of special security all around.

This was completely out of the norm. My curiousity was high. I wondered what was all the fuss about and what was going on. As I turned to head down the hall to my lunch meeting, approximately ten feet away stood royalty. It was Prince Andrew. He was a very tall and handsome man. I noticed a quick smile from the prince and I became a bit weak in the knees, while heading into my meeting.  My brush with royalty was brief yet wonderfully memorable.

Our Tivo is programmed to record the royal wedding. We will enjoy several appetizers during the royal wedding even if it is the next day when we actually view it - with hopes of staying awake. In honor of Kate and William's special day, I created this Radish Crostini with Peppercress. A toast to William and Kate - may you have a long and happy life filled with many wonderful and brilliant memories.

Royal Radish Crostini with Peppercress

One Baguette or Ciabatta
Garlic and Herb Goat Cheese
Radishes, sliced thin
Peppercress
Fleur de Sel
Olive oil

Slice bread into 1/3 inch thick slices, brush each side with olive oil and lay on a cookie sheet. Toast under the broiler until light golden brown on each side. Let cool.

Spread with garlic and herb goat cheese. Lay radish slices on top and garnish with peppercress. Sprinkle a bit of fleur de sel on top of each Crostini.

Note: I found the peppercress at Whole Foods.

Churros with Lime Sugar and Chocolate Sauce

Every other week, I travel with my account executives. Often we have set appointments and one of them is typically with a client or prospect that we invite for lunch. It is a great way to build rapport and strengthen the client relationship, while enjoying a wonderful lunch. Being in the Bay Area, we have a plethora of exceptional dining choices.

With one of my account executives, she had scheduled the lunch the day prior to our pre-arranged travel day, so we attended our scheduled appointments and lunch was on our own. One of our favorite lunch spots is Bocanova in Oakland which is housed at the renovated Jack London Square. The cuisine is a blend of celebrating central, south and North America cultures. The recipes and ingredients span from Mexico to Argentina.

Rick Hackett is the chef and he is a classically trained French chef who admired his Peruvian sous-chef and his mostly Hispanic staff. The dishes they prepared for the staff were delicious and began his inspiration for the food at Bocanova.

The design and atmosphere is warm, inviting and completely hip. The menu is laid out to highlight items that are from the pantry, the raw bar, the garden, the sea, the stove, the oven and the grill. You can select small plates or decide to share a wide variety of tastes.

I especially recommend the Dungeness Crab Deviled Eggs with Chipotle Aioli. In addition, the Quinoa Salad is seasonal and always full of flavor. The fried chicken sandwich is a piece of foodie art – the flavors explode in your mouth. Last but certainly not least were the Churros with Mexican chocolate sauce. They were deep fried bites of goodness and exemplified by dipping in the rich chocolate sauce.

Over the weekend, a craving for churros just came over me. They have been on my list of “must makes” for quite sometime. I wanted to put my own twist on them, so instead of dipping them in the traditional cinnamon sugar mixture, I did it with lime zest. The addition of citrus along with the deep fried dough and rich chocolate sauce was worthy of winning an award.

Churros with Lime Sugar and Chocolate Sauce

Vegetable or olive oil, for frying

1 C. water
4 ounces butter
1/4 t. salt
1 C. flour
3 eggs
1/4 C.sugar

Prepare to fry the churros by heating 1 to 1 1/2 inches oil in a deep pan to 360 degrees F.

To make churro dough, heat water, butter and salt to rolling boil in medium saucepan; stir in flour. Stir vigorously over low heat until mixture forms a ball, about 1 minute; remove from the heat. Beat eggs all at once; continue beating until smooth and then add to saucepan while stirring mixture.

Spoon mixture into a piping tube with large star tip. Squeeze 4-inch strips of dough into hot oil. Fry 3 or 4 strips at a time until golden brown, turning once, about 2 minutes on each side. Make sure the oil is at the proper temperature, so you do not burn the churros. Drain on paper towels. Mix the sugar and lime zest. Roll churros in the lime sugar. Serve with Chocolate Sauce.

Lime Sugar

1 T. Lime zest
½ C. Sugar

Mix together well and place in a flat bowl to roll churros.

Chocolate Sauce

½ C. Heavy Cream
One Ibarra Mexican Chocolate disk
¼ C. Dark Chocolate chips

In a medium saucepan, add all of the ingredients and slowly heat over medium. Stir until combined and smooth. You may need to add a bit more chocolate to thicken.

{ Roasted Garlic Mushrooms }

Every once in a while, you come across a recipe that just gives off the “wow factor”. A combination of ingredients that ignites happiness and soothes the soul. The roasted garlic mushroom recipe from Gourmet magazine is one such recipe. Simple in its ingredients, yet the flavors explode. I made this recipe about six or seven months ago after seeing it on Smitten Kitchen and then most recently from Brian at A Thought for Food. By the way, check out Brian's blog - it is simply amazing. The inspiration was front and center in my mind.

I have discovered that after I make a recipe a few times, I tend to add a bit more or less of an ingredient or introduce an additional ingredient to mix up the recipe and add my own personality. I think that is all part of the art of cooking, is the individualization portion. Just like a terrific wine, each person has unique taste buds and senses different flavors and profiles of the wine. I guess you can relate this thought process to cooking.

When I discovered Chicken Piccata years ago and began to perfect my own version, that was when my love of capers grew. These salty and savory nuggets just add that special punch to a dish. I decided to increase the quantity and leave them whole. In addition, I added a bit of dry white wine to the mix and the benefit was another layer of flavor complexity to the dish.

I am in love with Semifreddi’s Bread based out of Alameda in the Bay Area. Alameda is just on the other side of the Bay Bridge that links the East Bay and San Francisco. The crust is incredible along with the rich flavors and chewy texture of the bread. Their Ciabatta bread is too die for and perfect to soak up the extraordinary garlic and butter juices that are infused with the crimini mushrooms. I would recommend a lively sauvignon blanc such as Kim Crawford from New Zealand or Rudd Mt. Veeder Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley.

Roasted Garlic Mushrooms

1 lb Mushrooms cremini or white, halved lengthwise if large
3 T. Capers, whole
3 Large garlic cloves, minced
2 T. Olive oil
3 T. butter, cut into pieces
2 t. fresh lemon juice
¼ C. Dry White wine
¼ C. Flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 450°F. Toss mushrooms with capers, garlic, oil, wine and ½ teaspoon salt and several grinds of pepper in a 1 ½ to 2-qt shallow baking dish. Top with butter and roast, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender and golden and bubbly garlic sauce forms below, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Serve immediately, with crusty bread on the side.