Radish, Scallion, and Sugar Snap Pea Salad

May Gray finally gave way to sunny skies the first weekend of June. I'm sure June Gloom is imminent so I took advantage of the balmy weather last Saturday to visit the Little Italy Mercato. I'm so tickled that it's back on Date St. where it originated. On that clear day at the corner of Date and State looking down the street the Bay was sparkling. It was just what the Chamber of Commerce ordered.

The vendors didn't disappoint either. Everywhere I looked--between the packed crowds of shoppers--was a kaleidoscope of brilliant colors of spring/summer produce. I couldn't help myself. I bought cherries and apricots from Smit Farms. I bought my favorite eggs, as well as green garlic and a huge Reed avocado from the Schaners. I indulged in breads and pastry from the Prager Brothers.

And then I stopped dead in my tracks at Maciel Family Farms' stall. I love this Bonsall farm run by Anthony and Adam Maciel and their siblings. Everything is always pristine and fresh and inviting. This week there were fava beans and beets. Stunning summer squash. Silky looking dill and a rainbow of chard.

But the radishes! This was no radish I could remember having seen before. Alongside bunches of flawless conventional and French breakfast radishes were long, vibrant magenta radishes that looked more like carrots.

And, Anthony Maciel told me, they are actually called carrot radishes--as well as Chinese and Dragon radishes. The radishes, which Maciel explained he first saw at a farmers market in Santa Barbara and then decided to grow, are crisp and mild. He suggested adding them to a salad or soup.

I bought a large bunch of these carrot radishes, along with the French breakfast radishes, and a container of gorgeous sugar snap peas--my favorites. Then I set about making a perky vinaigrette with the leaves that also featured the green garlic from Schaner Farms. It's so totally spring! I enjoyed it that night with a steamed artichoke.

The next day I made a simple crunchy salad with the radishes, sugar snap peas, and scallions. And tossed in some more radish leaves. Really--don't throw these away. If they're fresh and not slimy (as grocery store radish leaves tend to be), rinse them off and use them in salads, with sautéed vegetables, and even as the base (instead of basil) of pesto.

Green Garlic Radish Leaf Vinaigrette
(printable recipe)
Yield: 1 cup

1 stalk green garlic, trimmed and sliced
2 to 3 radish leaves, roughly chopped
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
pinch of sea salt
pinch of red pepper flakes
3/4 cup high quality extra virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients except the olive oil in the bowl of a mini prep food processor. Blend until pureed. Add olive oil and blend until emulsified. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Serve on Radish, Scallion, and Sugar Snap Pea Salad--or other salad. Use as a dip for steamed artichokes.



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Coddled Eggs with Chives and Cheese

One way to chronicle my family's eating habits is by my parents' travels to Europe when we were in our late childhood and teens. Earlier than that, there were car trips but nothing very remarkable when it came to food. But once my dad became deputy director of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in the '70s, they started going abroad and we started eating differently.

A trip to London led to afternoon tea in Encino--not so much with the full complement of scones and pastries and clotted cream, but certainly the tea, which wasn't a feature of our lives before that. And English breakfast tea started showing up in the morning instead of coffee.

A trip to Amsterdam led to buttered toast with hagel--chocolate jimmies, specifically the DeRuijter brand (which is available online and at some specialty markets in San Diego; I found them awhile back at 99 Ranch Market.). And then there were the Tom Aches, Dutch pancakes made by our family friend Tom van Leeuwen, and taught to my dad, who taught me.

We started drinking espresso brewed in a machine my dad bought after returning from a trip to Italy. My mom found the Pioneer Boulangerie on Main St. in Venice, near Santa Monica, to buy baguettes and cheeses after they had been in Paris. My sister, brother, and I found ourselves learning about pâté and brioche and gougères. We were using olive oil, Dijon mustard, French jams, and cornichons. We didn't eat salami; we ate salumi or charcuterie.

And we were making coddled eggs.

Yes, my parents went to England one summer and came back with these beautiful little porcelain coddlers. Instead of scrambled eggs, we were now filling these delicate containers with butter and cheese and ham and herbs--and eggs, of course. Then they'd get sealed with their metal screw-on lid and, using the small loop on top of the lid, gently lowered into simmering water. The ideal result was an egg that had an opaque cooked white with a runny yolk, surrounded by melted cheese and other miniature accompaniments. Eating the egg required a tiny spoon, such as you'd use with a cup of  demitasse, and some toast for dunking.

I grew to love coddled eggs and still have the two porcelain coddlers my parents gave me from one of their moves. But I fell out of the habit of making them. Recently though I came across a Food52 ad on Facebook for glass egg coddlers and I was smitten. Because they were clear you could actually see how the egg was cooking. And the large removable handle was more user friendly than the little loop. They came in different sizes--to accommodate one to six eggs. I had to have one.

I ended up buying a 4-ounce coddler--same manufacturer--on Amazon (hey, free shipping!). It can hold two eggs, but works fine with one.

Now those who love making coddled eggs usually make them with cream. But it's not necessary. You can keep it simple with just salt and pepper or include whatever add-ons you like--cheese, ham, bacon, herbs, finely chopped vegetables... Do rub the interior with butter to prevent sticking--and add a little for flavor, too. And be sure to use really great, really fresh eggs. My favorites in San Diego come from Schaner Farms at the Little Italy Mercato.

So, here's how to make coddled eggs:

Place the empty coddler in a saucepan and fill the pan with water up to about three-quarters of the way up the coddler--below the lid.

Remove the coddler and bring the water in the saucepan to the boil.

Take off the lid and smear the interior of the coddler with butter. Place a small piece of butter on the bottom and any cheese or herbs or protein--but save some for the top, too. Crack an egg and add it to the coddler (for larger coddlers, add more eggs to fit). Then top with more butter, salt and pepper, and more flavorings. Place the lid on the container and seal.

Place the filled coddler in the boiling water, then reduce the heat to simmer. Cook for 8 minutes and remove. If you're coddling more than one egg, it may require another minute or so.

Remove the lid and serve with toast.

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Broccoli Flower Salad

Last Saturday I went shopping at the Little Italy Mercato and was tickled to see Idzai Mubaiwa of African Sisters. I wrote a piece on women farmers for Edible San Diego last year and included this amazing woman, who emigrated here from Zimbabwe in 2002. Idzai got started farming in San Diego four years ago, thanks to the International Rescue Committee. They taught her how to run her business and helped get her into the North Park Farmers Market. Idzai has four daughters. One is at Howard University and, she bragged, one of her younger daughters was just accepted to Vassar.

This time of year, of course, the pickings at some of the farm stalls are slim, but I found two items to buy from Idzai. One was a gorgeous bunch of rainbow Swiss chard, which I'm cooking up in a hearty mushroom barley soup--just to also have some greens in there. The other was a bunch of broccoli flowers.

Now broccoli flowers sound unusual but really they are simply the sweet, petite yellow blossoms that sprout from the mature heads of broccoli. Yes, the florets you love to eat more than the stems are actually flower buds in waiting. Let them go and they'll blossom.

The challenge with eating them is that as the broccoli ages enough to bloom, the stems become tough. So, no roasting these. You can certainly boil or steam them to serve with a nice sauce or vinaigrette or strip the flowers, add the stems to soup, and then use the flowers as a garnish. But I like a good crunch, so I make a salad with them. If the ones you find are too tough to eat raw for your taste, then you can blanch them for about a minute.

This week, I basically rummaged through my fridge and pantry to figure out what would pair nicely with the broccoli. I had celery and scallions, mandarin oranges, a bowl of walnuts I'd already toasted, and garbanzo beans. I figured a hard-boiled egg would go nicely in there, too.

For a dressing, I made a simple vinaigrette with a sharp-flavored aged red wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, whole grain mustard, and kosher salt.

What I found worked for me in prepping the broccoli was to slice the stalks, then remove most of the flowers from the florets before chopping them.

I used the small, tasty inner stalks of the celery and pulled as much of the fibrous strings off the peeled mandarin sections as I could. For the hard boiled egg, I used an egg slicer and just ran it twice in different directions to get a dice.

As I write this, it's the first Monday of the new year--heavy with dark clouds that portend a week's worth of rain. So the bright colors and flavors of this salad really lightened my day, even as it gave me a hearty lunch. The potent punch of the vinaigrette complemented the broccoli. I love the crunch of the stems and walnuts and the burst of sweetness from the little slices of orange. This is a happy meal! Plus, it's a great way to start the new year off healthfully.

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Boozy Caramel Sauces from Sea Salt Candy Company

What do you do when you're a candy maker and you also happen to like your drink? If you're Lisa and Gretchen Bender, aka the Salty Sisters, you do a little alchemy and, voila, come up with a line of boozy caramel sauces.

Saucy Sisters joined the Sea Salt Candy Company line up of sweet and salty toffees and caramels  months ago. Where was I? Avoiding sugary treats I'd get addicted to. But there I was at the Fishermen's Farmers Market last week. And there was Lisa Bender, who as the magician behind the confections, is usually in the kitchen but this week was taking care of sales. We got to talking. I got to tasting. And, well, I bought two of the five varieties of sauces they're selling.

Start your tasting journey with their Rum Away with Me. The duo gets their Marley on with a blend of rum, salt, and coconut immersed in a deeply rich caramel, creating a reggae spirit that sings over French vanilla ice cream, sautéed plantains, and apple pie.

Then go south of the border with Tequila!, a spicy concoction that will make you rethink the notion that caramel is meant to go down smooth and easy. The Benders don't just bring it on with the tequila, but get you punch drunk with the addition of habanero oil and chili flakes. This caramel doesn't have to be relegated to dessert. Lisa suggests using it as a glaze on pork ribs, chicken, or salmon.

My favorite, though, is the Frisky Whiskey Boozy Sauce. Caramel and whiskey were destined for one another. It's simplicity on steroids and a dreamy sauce that cries out for nothing more than a spoon and a dark closet to hide in while you take your licks. This is one of the two I bought.

Not all of the sauces are liquored up. There's a PG line of Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel sauce I also took home with me. Dark cocoa and a hint of salt make this sauce decadent without being cloyingly sweet. Dip slices of pears and apples into it. Drizzle it over pound cake. Pour over ice cream. Add some to your coffee.

Also in the PG line up is Virgin Vanilla Bean. So purely rich and buttery, this, too, deserves the spoon treatment. Or twirl it around with the chocolate over ice cream for a black and white sundae. Spread it over toast. Swizzle it over a brownie.

The nine-ounce jars can be found at the Little Italy Mercato, Hillcrest Farmers Market, and Fishermen's Farmers Market as well as online.

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Roasted Honeyed Loquats with Feta on Toast

Loquats are a now-or-never fruit. Originally from southern China, loquat trees found their way here, and by "here" I mean Southern California from the OC to San Diego, where they fruit in April and May. That's it. They grow in bunches and bear a slight resemblance in color and shape to apricots, but are juicy with a mild sweet flavor more reminiscent of ripe pears. I actually prefer the slight tartness of underripe loquats. I'm also drawn to their beautiful seeds. Some loquats have one, others may have four or five--but all look like lovely polished brown stones.

You probably won't find loquats at the supermarket. They are extremely fragile, with thin skins that easily bruise and the fruit itself turns quickly. Right now you can find them at the farmers markets. Both Terra Bella Ranch and Rancho Mexico Lindo carried them last Saturday at the Little Italy Mercato.

Terra Bella Ranch loquats

I'm very lucky that my little community has a few fruit-bearing trees, so you'll see me walking the dogs in the morning and stopping to pick as many as I can reach and gently carry in the little bag that holds my keys and phone.

Loquats are delicious snacks and make for a great jam, salsa, and sauce. A friend of mine with several trees pits the fruit and cooks it down with honey to an applesauce-like consistency. She can freeze this and enjoy it the rest of the year.

I thought I'd try a little something different with my latest score from the neighborhood tree--roasting them with honey, and pairing them with feta cheese on croutons.

Roasting loquats is easy. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Because you can eat the skin, simply slice the fruit in half lengthwise, remove the pits and place the halves in an oiled casserole dish or on foil.

I made up a mixture that would combine sweet, smokey, and just a little astringent: honey, grated fresh ginger, kaffir lime leaf powder that I got from Specialty Produce, and Aleppo pepper.

I brushed this on the loquat halves and roasted them for 20 minutes until they were soft, but before they collapsed.

While they were cooking, I toasted baguette slices brushed with olive oil and sliced a chunk of French feta. I love its gentle tartness and moist texture. The feta went onto the the warm croutons to melt a little.

Once the loquats were out of the oven, I sliced them into three pieces, and placed them on the cheese. Then I sprinkled the layered toasts with chopped fresh chocolate mint from my garden and drizzled the finished toasts with more honey.

Voila! An easy and unusual appetizer that makes use of a delicious fragile fruit with a short season.

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Grey Kabocha Squash Soup with Kaffir Lime and Ginger

Winter squashes are the perfect base for a winter soup--but they can tend to taste alike. I, at least, find it challenging to make them distinctive no matter what additional ingredients I add.

But when I came across kaffir limes at the Schaner Farm's booth at the Little Italy Mercato last week, I knew I had a match in the making. There's no disguising the powerful, astringent aroma and flavor of kaffir limes. In fact, you have to have a restrained hand to ensure that they don't overtake whatever else they're paired with. Kaffir limes are beloved in Southeast Asian and Thai cuisine. You'll find the leaves and zest used in soups, curries and curry pastes. Pair with ginger, lemongrass, coconut milk, and other regional ingredients to get the most out of them.

At home I had an unusual looking grey kabocha squash I'd gotten at OB People's Co-op. So, on a rainy evening I took a look around and pulled out a yellow onion, jalapeño peppers from my garden, garlic, chicken stock, fish sauce, spiced vinegar (easy to find at 99 Ranch Market and other Asian markets), and a chunk of ginger. I wish I'd had lemongrass and coconut milk, but no--and I wasn't about to go out in a big storm--so I made do.

The result was a thick, fragrant soup redolent of ginger and kaffir lime. Not too much. Just enough to give the mellow squash a terrific ping of flavor. A warming, spicy soup for a rain-soaked February night.

Grey Kabocha Squash Soup with Kaffir Lime and Ginger
Makes 10 cups
(printable recipe)

1, 3-pound Grey Kabocha squash (or other hard winter squash), peeled, seeded (keep the seeds), and cut into one-inch pieces
1 medium onion, peeled and diced
3 jalapeño peppers, diced
2-inch chunk of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons canola or other vegetable oil
1 kaffir lime, zested and then juiced (save the juice)
32 ounces of chicken stock or broth
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons spiced vinegar (available at Asian markets)
salt to taste

1. Heat oil in a large pot and add onions. Saute until translucent, then add garlic, ginger, and jalapeños. Saute another couple of minutes.
2. Add squash chunks, half the kaffir lime zest, stock, fish sauce, and vinegar. Bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat, cover the pot, and simmer for an hour.
4. Remove from heat. Puree in the pot with a stick blender or carefully transfer to a blender to puree. Add the rest of the kaffir lime zest and all the lime juice. Add salt to taste.

Serve!

P.S. I always save the seeds from winter squash to toast. Just put them in a colander and rinse/pull the fibers off, dry the seeds, toss with oil and salt, then roast at 300 for about 15 minutes. (Check on them frequently; they can burn in a heartbeat)


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Gremolata-Style Roasted Turnips

There are reasons why some recipes are classic. The ingredient combinations are so natural that you automatically turn to them, even when you aren't consciously creating a dish with a "name."

That happened to me last weekend. Here I was with several lovely turnips I bought at the Vang's Farm stall a couple of weeks ago at the Little Italy Mercato. I'd completely forgotten about them but being root vegetables in the refrigerator, they were very forgiving and ready to be used. I knew I wanted to roast them but I didn't really have a plan for how to flavor them.

So, I went into my little garden for inspiration. There was some tarragon I'd just planted, so I took several stems of that. There was a bush of Italian parsley, absolutely thriving due to the alternating rains and sunshine, and I clipped a bit of that. Ah, my Meyer lemon tree had a lovely lemon newly ripened. Perfect. And all that hard-neck garlic I'm growing have beautiful flowing greens. They wouldn't mind a little nip in a few places. Back in the house I pulled out some butter and olio nuovo from California Olive Ranch. Ah, a few cloves of garlic. And a bag of panko came out of the freezer.

I minced. I grated. I squeezed. I ran it all in my little mini prep blender and had what looked like Green Goddess dressing but was actually a variation on traditional gremolata--lemon, parsley, and garlic. True gremolata wouldn't have the fats I added, but I needed them in the roasting process.

The turnips got a bath in the mixture, and were then topped with the panko before going into a 425-degree oven to roast alongside a whole chicken leg rubbed earlier in the day with equal amounts of salt and baking powder for a crispy skin and then topped with minced fresh thyme and garlic butter from Bonelli Fine Food. After about half an hour the turnips were sweet and tender on the inside but had a wonderfully crispy exterior thanks to the panko crumbs. (The chicken was terrific, too!) Next time, I'll probably add either anchovies or capers to add a bit of a salty edge to complement the sweet root. 

 

Gremolata-Style Roasted Turnips
Serves 3 to 4

3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons garlic greens, minced (optional)
2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, minced
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon leaves, minced
1 teaspoon Meyer lemon zest
2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
1 to 1 1/2 pounds medium-sized turnips
1/2 cup Panko crumbs

1. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a mini food processor, combine all the ingredients except the Panko crumbs and turnips. Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings.
3. Combine the gremolata-style mixture with the turnips until they're thoroughly coated and place in a single layer in a roasting pan or baking dish. Sprinkle the turnips with the Panko.
4. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until brown and a knife inserted into the turnips goes in smoothly.


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Summer Fest 2010: Week 4 -- Stone Fruit

Ah, stone fruit. It's truly the sweetness of summer, especially when you take a bite out of a ripe peach or nectarine and the juices dribble down your chin like when you were a child. It's the perfect peach pie or apricot crumble. A scented nectarine skinned and gently bathed in a syrup of lemon verbena. A tart plum upside down cake. There are endless ways to prepare stone fruit. Poach them. Grill them, cut into pieces and turn into a dessert kabob with pound cake (a la my cooking instructor friend Lorri Allen). Cook them into preserves.

With all these options, how do you pick one or two dishes? I had some ideas, but then I went to the Little Italy Mercato last Saturday and got to talking with my friend Mary Palmer of Taste Cheese. She mentioned a dish created by her friend Don Heiser of Firehouse Gourmet: Grilled peach parfait.

Basically, you grill peaches, chop them up and mix in agave syrup and nuts -- maybe some dried fruit, too. Then layer the mixture in a parfait dish with slices of burrata cheese, all topped with a sprig of mint.

That sounded delicious and different. So, off I went back home with peaches and burrata to play with this idea. And, while I love the burrata, I could also see replacing it with homemade vanilla ice cream, mascarpone, or vanilla- or honey-flavored Greek yogurt.

Grilled Peach Parfait
Serves 4

Ingredients
4 peaches (preferably freestone so the flesh will separate easily from the pit)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
3 tablespoons agave syrup or honey
1 teaspoon Cointreau
1 teaspoon Sherry vinegar
1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced
1 pint blueberries or combination of berries
6 ounces Burrata, cut in thick slices
Mint or edible flowers for garnish

1. Wash and dry the peaches, then slice in half along the ridge and remove the pits.
2. Heat grill to medium, brush the peaches with butter on the cut side and place cut-side down on the grill. Close the grill cover and let cook for 4 to 5 minutes. When the peaches show grill marks, brush the skin side with butter and turn the peaches over to cook. Close the cover and cook for another 4 minutes.
3. Carefully cut the hot peaches into bite-sized pieces and place in a medium-size bowl. Add the pecans, agave syrup, vinegar, and rosemary. Mix well.
4. Layer the peach mixture, berries, and cheese. Top with garnish and serve.

And, once I started thinking about it, I remembered the Coconut Peach Gazpacho I made in July at a market-to-table cooking class I took at Cups in La Jolla. (Read more about this class in my Local Bounty column in the October issue of San Diego Magazine.) This is a wonderful sweet and savory chilled soup that I will certainly make again at home.

Coconut Peach Gazpacho
From Jesus Gonzalez
Serves 6

Ingredients

8 ripe peaches, diced (or seasonal fruit)
1 onion, diced
½ cup light coconut milk
¼ cup fresh squeezed lime juice
½ teaspoon ground California chili
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into small dice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1 teaspoon agave syrup, or more to taste
1 peeled and diced apple

1. Set aside ½ cup of diced peaches. Add the rest of the ingredients up to the salt to a large bowl and  puree thoroughly in a blender.
2. Cut the reserved peaches into ¼-inch dice and add to the bowl along with the diced cucumber, mint, apples, and agave syrup.
3. Taste the gazpacho at this point. You may want to add a little more lime juice or agave. Remember that chilling will dull the flavor slightly.

So, let's see what my Summer Fest 2010 colleagues are cooking up:

Sara at Cooking Channel: Savory Stone Fruit recipes

Todd and Diane of White on Rice Couple: Riesling Poached Pluots

Margaret at A Way to Garden: What is stone fruit, anyhow? Plus: Clafoutis batter revisited

Caroline at The Wright Recipes: Ginger and Vanilla Poached Peaches

The FN Dish: Paula's Perfect Peach Cobbler

Alison at Food2: Peachy Party Foods

Kelly at Just a Taste: Peaches & Cream Cupcakes

Liz on Healthy Eats: Puttin’ Up Peach Pickles, Compote and More

Food Network UK: How to Poach a Peach

Judy of Divina Cucina: Chocolate Amaretti Baked Apricots

The Gilded Fork: Dossier & Recipes Featuring Peaches, Apricots, Nectarines, Plums, Cherries, Almonds, and Coconuts

Cate at Sweetnicks: Blueberry Peach Smoothies

Tara at Tea & Cookies: Making Peach Jam

Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef: Gluten-Free Peach-Blueberry Buckle

Paige at The Sister Project: A Summer Fruit Whatchamacallit (not a pie, not a crisp, but delicious)

Tigress in a Jam: Nectarine Preserve with Summer Savory and White Pepper

Marilyn at Simmer Till Done: Cherry Apricot Pie with Ginger-Almond Crunch

Alana at Eating from the Ground Up: Stone Fruit Slump 

Now It's Your Turn!
This collaborative effort won't be much fun without you! The more info we all give, the more we'll all enjoy summer's harvest. Have a recipe or tip that fits any of our weekly themes? Starting with our posts of Wednesday, July 28, for five Wednesdays through 8/25 and possibly longer, you can contribute in various ways, big or small.

• Contribute a whole post, or a comment—whatever you wish. It’s meant to be fun, viral, fluid. No pressure, just delicious. The possibilities:
• Simply leave your tip or recipe or favorite links in the comments below a Summer Fest post on my blog any upcoming Wednesday, and then go visit my collaborators and do the same.

The cross-blog event idea works best when you leave your recipe or favorite links (whether to your own blog or someone else’s) at all the host blogs. That way, they are likely to be seen by the widest audience. Everyone benefits, and then we're all cooking with some great ideas. Or go big: Publish entire posts of your own if you wish, and grab the big red tomato Summer Fest 2010 badge above (illustrated by Matt of Mattbites). We'll also be tweeting using #summerfood as our hashtag. Here's the schedule:

• 7/28: cukesnzukes
• 8/4: corn
• 8/11: herbs, greens, and beans
• 8/18: stone fruit
• 8/25 tomatoes
• more to come if we all want it — stay tuned!

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Food 4 Kids Backpack Program Fundraiser Update: Give a Little, Maybe Get a Lot!

With only two weeks or so left in our first summer fundraiser for the San Diego Food Bank's Food 4 Kids Backpack Program, we're almost halfway to our monetary goal on our firstgiving.com donor page and halfway through our hugely popular Dollar-a-Dish restaurant event. Remember, the more we raise, the more schools and children can be enrolled in this very critical program that feeds kids over the weekend and during school holidays when they don't have access to school meals. We're talking $6 a week per child. It's not a lot but it adds up and it's up to you and me and our neighbors and friends to keep these kids from going hungry.

We want to nudge you a little more to donate and buy backpacks and kid-friendly nonperishable food for the big collection day at the Little Italy Mercato on August 21 -- so we've rounded up some incentive in the form of a drawing with contributions from our wonderful local food community. Contribute to the firstgiving.com page and you'll automatically be entered to win. Just be sure to enter your name and email address so we can reach you. We'll also enter you in the drawing if you bring food and backpacks -- or money -- to the Little Italy Mercato on the 21st before the drawing.

Every donor is eligible for one entry in the drawing, which will be held at 1:00 PM on August 21, 2010 at our booth at the Little Italy Mercato. Prizes will be awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis, so be there to get first dibs! The remaining prizes will be posted on Alice Q Foodie later that day to be claimed in the comments.

$100.00 Barbeques Galore Gift Certificate - Courtesy of Leanne Abe and Barbeques Galore

$100 Gift Certificate to Waters To Go - courtesy of Andrew Spurgin and Waters Catering

$100 gift certificate to Urban Solace - courtesy of Matt and Young Mi Gordon and Scott Watkins of Urban Solace

$50 gift certificate to Blind Lady Ale House - courtesy of Rachel Going and Blind Lady Alehouse

An afternoon in the kitchen with Ron Oliver of the Marine Room, and an autographed copy of his cookbook Flying Pans - Two Chefs, One World - courtesy of Ron Oliver and the Marine Room.

A "Mercy of the Chef" dinner for two at La Papagayo - courtesy of Chef James Montenjano and Le Papagayo

A class package ($100.) value from Quintesssential Cooking - courtesy of Quinn Farrar Wilson

Three $50 gift certificates, plus a sushi kit, from Catalina Offshore Products - courtesy of Diane Stopford and Catalina Offshore Products/Tommy Gomes.

One studio photo session for a single child under 1 yr + parents or a 50% discount towards an on-location family session ($250. value) plus 2-8x10 prints from Jennifer Dery Photography - courtesy of Jennifer Dery

A one-hour photo session and photos on disk from Adriana Zuniga Photography - Courtesy of Adriana Zuniga

One nine-inch custom decorated cake or one dozen decorated cupcakes, donated by Jenny of Foray Into Food and Jenny Wenny Cakes (samples of her amazing work can be viewed here)

One custom nine-inch cake, donated by Rachel Going, pastry chef at Bankers Hill Restaurant and Bar and Blind Lady Ale House.

An autographed copy of "Food Porn Daily" by Amanda Simpson - when it is released this fall - courtesy of the author

One copy each of:

Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey and

Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey Treats for Kids by San Diego resident Jill O'Connor - courtesy of the author and Susan Russo

Three sushi kits from Catalina Offshore Products

Three one-year subscriptions to Edible San Diego - courtesy of the Publishers!

Please help us feed hungry kids. Donate however you can and, if you have a blog, please post this list to encourage your readers to help!

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Time to Feed the Kids! It's the 2010 Food 4 Kids Backpack Program Fundraiser

Just for one moment, imagine a life very different from your comfortable, well-fed existence. You're a 10-year-old kid. Dad's out of work and can't find a job. Mom is working part-time. You know something's wrong because you're hungry. All the time. Other kids buy lunch or bring it to school, but there's nothing at home and little money so your main meal is what your school gives you. Then comes the weekend or a school holiday. There is no school lunch and your stomach is grumbling. You can't focus on anything. You're sleepy. Your head hurts. In short, you're miserable and so's your kid sister. And, there's not a thing you can do about it.

This scenario is playing out all over San Diego County. You think your kids go to a great school and it's not your issue? Well, you'd be surprised at the number of children who are going hungry and the middle class neighborhoods they live in. Including yours.

So, starting today, starting now, I'm hoping you'll help us -- food writers, chefs, restaurant owners, food vendors, and media -- help The San Diego Food Bank fund their Food 4 Kids Backpack Program.

The San Diego Food Bank launched its Food 4 Kids Backpack program in 2007 to provide food for chronically hungry elementary school students through the weekend. Every Friday, participating children receive a backpack filled with child-friendly foods. They need this weekend bag because while they receive free or reduced-cost meals in school, food may not be available to them on weekends or school holidays. To qualify, students must attend a school where at least 80 percent of the population receives free or reduced cost lunches, and receive a teacher referral. During the 2008-2009 school year, the program served just 200 children in eight schools throughout San Diego County. With our help, they are now serving 550 children in 19 schools and are looking to expand that to 850 children this year.


You may remember that Alice Robertson and I held our first fundraiser last November/December. We collected over $6,000 and 1,200 pounds of food, not to mention a whole lot of backpacks. This year we're holding the fundraiser over the summer so that the money, food, and backpacks we collect can help enroll more students and schools at the beginning of the school year. And, we've put together a dynamic committee of national food writer Susan Russo (Food Blogga), local chefs Diane Stopford and Amiko Gubbins, PR maven Peyton Robertson of Bay Bird PR, and NBC San Diego anchor/reporter Catherine Garcia. With all this expertise, enthusiasm, and energy, our 2010 fundraiser has grown into a major event that you'll want to participate in.

The fundraiser has three parts:

• We've set up a fundraising page at www.firstgiving.com/food4kids. You can make donations here, add comments, and keep track of our progress. This launches today and runs through the end of August. And, we want to thank NBC San Diego, which is contributing the 7 percent cut firstgiving.com takes of the total raised on the site so we don't lose any money you give!
• We are encouraging people to collect neutral backpacks (as in no logos and preferably black or red since those are the kids’ favorite colors) and kid-friendly non-perishable foods (applesauce, cereal, fruit cups, mac ‘n cheese, pretzels, etc. No junk food but be aware that we are not doing nutrition education here, just trying to fill hungry tummies.) The collection for this food and backpack drive will be at the Little Italy Mercato on August 21. Hold your own drive at your office, in your neighborhood, with your church or temple group, or your kid's scouting troop, then bring it all to us on August 21.
• A “dollar-a-dish” event throughout the month of August by participating restaurants. This started out as an offer by Matt Gordon and Scott Watkins of Urban Solace for our first fundraiser and Rimel's also contributed. This year it's skyrocketed. We have 47 restaurants participating -- at every price point. These restaurants will select one of their best selling dishes and for the month of August will contribute $1 for every dish sold. See the list below and please go, order the featured dish, and help us by enjoying yourself! Organize a party with your friends or colleagues at your favorite restaurant and have everyone bring filled backpacks and order the featured dish.

As added incentive, Alice Robertson (aka, Alice Q Foodie) is coordinating with restaurants and food bloggers, who will provide raffle items for those who contribute to the firstgiving.com page and food/backpacks at the Little Italy Mercato collection event. The drawing will be held at the Mercato on August 21.

You can also help us by spreading the word on your own blog, on Facebook (our page is www.facebook.com/food4kids), and on Twitter (use #food4kidsSD).

And, here are the fabulous restaurants, along with their featured dishes, who are participating in Dollar-a-Dish:

Alchemy: Sea Bass Ceviche
Bencotto: Pollo all Pizzaiola
Café Chloe: Steak Frites
Casa de Bandini: Fish tacos
Casa de Pico:: Fish tacos
Casa Guadalajara: Fish tacos
Cosmopolitan Restaurant: Watermelon Salad
Cowboy Star: Meyer Natural "Certified Humane" Filet
Croce’s: 3 desserts -- Fondant Au Chocolat, Vanilla Lavender Honey Creme Brulee, and House-made White Chocolate Macadamia Coconut Ice Cream
Cucina Urbana: Pizza ordered at lunch
Dining Details (Caterer)
Flippin Pizza: (all four locations and their truck) full-size Tomato Basil pizza
Gaglione Brothers: (all 3 locations) Meatball Sandwich "Father Joe"
George’s at the Cove: Date salad with arugula, goat cheese, walnuts, and pomegranite vinaigrette
JRDN: Lamb Lollipop
Jsix: Monthly Sustainable Seafood Dish
Kensington Grill:: Hog Bar
Lotsa Pasta: Timpano
NINE-TEN: Hamachi Sashimi with marinated baby shitake mushrooms and scallion vinaigrette
O’Brothers: Big O Burger
Pizza Fusion: Farmers Market Pizza
Playa Grill: Carnitas Plate
Ritual Tavern: Niman Ranch Skirt Steak served with Roasted Market Vegetables, Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes and Sherry Demi Glace
Roseville: Pan-roasted local halibut, White truffle corn puree, English pea, corn, radish & pea-vine salad
Royal India: Chicken Tikka Masala
Sessions Public: Ribeye Fries
Soleluna Cafe: Pasta of the Day
SoNo Trading Company: Cuban Sandwich
Starlite: Jidori Chicken
Stingaree: Manage a Trois of Fried Point Vincente Calamari, Mexican White Shrimp, Bay Scallops with Sherry Chili Aioli and Lemon
Terra: Sea Bass
The Red Door: Short Ribs
Urban Solace: Duckaroni (Mac n' Chese with Blue Cheese, Duck Confit, Roasted Garlic, Arugula, and Scallion and New York White Cheddar Mac n' Cheese with Caramalized Bacon and Charred Tomatoes
Wine Steals (all 4 locations): Full-size pizza order
Zenbu: (both locations) Hot Rock

Whatever you can do to help will be hugely appreciated. This is a way to literally nourish the kids in our community during tough times.

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Adams Ave. Farmers Market: A Bountiful Moveable Feast for San Diego

Catt White calls herself the Market Maestra and this past week she wore the mantle well. White just opened the Adams Avenue farmers market and has recently taken over management of the North Park farmers market.

At both markets are many of the regulars found at her Little Italy Mercato. But, at least at the Adams Ave. market, these vendors found brand new enthusiastic customers. The place was mobbed and most vendors were sold out before the 7 p.m. closing time.

There's probably no better time to open a new market than spring and the farmers had their spring best out. Sage Mountain Farms was laden with sweet juicy strawberries, their beautiful peachy colored baby potatoes, fat orange and yellow carrots, radishes and gorgeous greens. Owner Phil Nobel's son Justin was representing dad at this market and sales seemed brisk. I picked up a basket of the berries and a pound of those pretty little potatoes.

Smit Orchards with their apples and Red Brooks cherries was nearby, along with Heritage Family Farms, Lisko Imports, and, oh, the scent of peaches that led to Lone Oak Ranch's booth. The trip from Reedley (near Fresno) was worth it. The white and yellow peaches, nectarines, and apricots were sublime and being taken up by everyone drawn in by the fragrant peaches.

Suzie's Farm was also there and with their greens, squash, beets, and tiny bits of tasty nutrition -- garbanzo beans and sprouting wheat berries among them -- along with bright yellow squash blossoms, perfect for stuffing.

George and Mary Palmer of Taste Cheese made their farmers market debut at the Little Italy Mercato just a couple of weeks ago, but they're now celebrating their appearance at both the Adams Ave. and North Park markets. (Sign up for their newsletter so you can learn what cheeses they're bringing to the different markets.)

At the Little Italy Mercato I enjoy Dennie Giles's avocados and woven baskets from his Paradise Valley Ranch. So, it was nice to see him at the Adams Ave. market, but this time he had some unusual fruit I hadn't seen before: Kalamansi lemons.

These lemons, originally from the Philippines, have hues of yellow, green, and orange on its skin and orange flesh -- thanks to the marrying of lemons with tangerines. They're sour sweet and used for everything from juice to squeezing on fish or into soup. I bought a basket of them for one dollar and used several to make a marinade for chicken.

The marinade also included champagne garlic mustard made by a new vendor, SoNo Trading Company. Owned by Zach Nagin (who I had met months ago when he was working at Halcyon Tea) and James Magnatta, SoNo has four "mostly organic" mustard varieties for sale -- Cilantro Lime, Sesame Ginger, Spicy Hatch, and the Champagne Garlic.

The partners also make a thoroughly enjoyable but extremely spicy pickle. These "Sweet Spicy Pickles" are wonderful chopped into a salad or sandwich.

The guys do this with their Cuban sandwich, grilled on the spot and made with ham and pork from Da-Le Ranch. In fact, they talk about this venture as being "about community" so they also use products from their fellow farmers market vendors -- Suzie's Farm, Spring Hill Cheese, Richie's Chiles.

Me? I added the pickles to a chopped salad I made from a mix of my market finds and other produce from Henry's: white corn, tomatoes, a yellow bell pepper, shelled green peas, cucumber, yellow onion, and mint from my garden. A homemade vinaigrette with Sherry vinegar, Temecula Olive Oil, smoked sea salt, more of that champagne garlic mustard, chopped garlic, and maras pepper was the perfect marinade. Top it with burrata cheese from Taste Cheese, scoop it up with pita from Baba Foods or slices of sourdough baguette from Bread and Cie (both at the market) and you've got a refreshing, delicious, healthy dish with a bit of a kick to it.

But, maybe you're in the mood for meat. Dave Heafner of Da-Le Ranch is at the Adam's Ave. farmers market with some new products: Canadian bacon and sausages. He's got Chicken Apple, Nurenburger Bratwurst, Hot and Mild Italian Sausages, Turkey Breakfast, and Smoked Bratwurst. Of course, there's always his tempting tri-tip. That was on the grill while I was there and it's truly delicious.

But perhaps what you really want is seafood. Poppas Fresh Fish is in attendance and this week they had live blue crabs, salmon, clams, and a wide assortment of other fish.

Plus, Mark Lane, the owner, made a couple of ceviches. One with white sea bass and mango was terrific, but my choice was the chopped shrimp with watermelon--reminiscent of Urban Solace's tasty watermelon salad.

It was great to see some other familiar faces there -- Eclipse Chocolat, Viva Pops, Loic Patisserie, Baba Foods, and my buddy David Wasserman of Joe's on the Nose.

The Adams Ave. farmers market is bound to grow, but first it must find a place to land. Originally set to be held on 40th just off Adams Ave., the market ran into permitting issues with CalTrans that must still be resolved. This week, it was in the Rite Aid parking lot near Cherokee, but that was just a temporary fix and White now has to identify a new spot for next Wednesday. So, let's call this new community treasure a moveable feast and stay tuned for the announcement of its next temporary home.

On Thursday, the North Park farmers market looked very different from the past. For one thing, White switched around the physical layout, creating aisles in the opposite direction to help the farmers with the bright sun beating down on them but also to better organize the types of vendors there. She's also said good-bye to some vendors she just didn't feel were still a good fit and added others. So, Suzie's Farm, Valdivia Farm, J.R. Organics, and Smit Orchards were some of the familiar produce vendors with more to come. SoNo was back as were Taste Cheese, Baba Foods, and H and B's Guac Shac. Majestic Garlic is there as is Kettle Corn, She Sells Sea Salts, and Gourmet Tamales. It's a promising re-start for the community market and worth re-visiting if you haven't been for awhile.

The Adams Ave. farmers market is held on Wednesday afternoons from 3 to 7 p.m. -- with the location still changing. The North Park farmers market is held on Thursday afternoons, also from 3 to 7 p.m. in  the CVS parking lot at University and 32nd St.

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