tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52585872011-04-21T16:45:33.515-07:00Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comBlogger131100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-1090640328174927592004-07-23T20:09:00.000-07:002004-07-23T20:52:41.786-07:00

Camera in hand and looking for something to do after work one evening this week, it surprised me how much bounty the yard had at her dispposal to offer in the way of tasty treasures. On hands and knees, I peeked under the leaves of the potted strawberry I'd been moving around from house to house for over 8 years. Tendrils had escaped, taking root in the dirt around the terra cotta pot. Red dots

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-1090638177649157892004-07-23T19:55:00.000-07:002004-07-23T20:07:53.920-07:00

This lovely bit of chefly beauty arrived in my mailbox. Hattori 10.5" blade. I don't think I'll ever be able to actually use it. It's just too pretty.

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-10901852377390152004-07-18T13:37:00.000-07:002006-01-16T22:18:37.906-08:00

I went to Piatti on the Square in Sonoma last night. My friend Andrea and her sister dropped by the house yesterday afternoon and invited me, along with a group of folks, to dinner. I haven't gone out for some good vittles in a while, and I really enjoy Piatti's fairly simple menu. Nothing is too snazzy; the combinations are "rusticated" Italian, but with the snobbified flair that so appeals to

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-1089253274669641122004-07-07T18:09:00.000-07:002006-01-16T22:40:56.703-08:00

I bought these blueberries this morning on my way to work. I couldn't believe how stupendous they were, so I had to get them. And they tasted delish as well, what a treat! Sixteen years old and life, 'til then, revolved around my ability to drive my parents as crazy as possible. Misunderstood and petulent, the life of a foreign exchange student seemed like the answer to my prayers for adventure

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-1089075213689893632004-07-05T16:54:00.000-07:002004-07-05T17:53:33.690-07:00

I haven't yet been able to go to the Sonoma Saveurs restaurant that opened right before Christmas 2003 amidst outrage & outcry, after battling activists and vandalism. The reviews, thus far, have been decent. My writing teacher claims it's stunning. So, hopefully in a couple of weeks I'll be able to go with my foodie pal, Nicola, to try the goods. Whatever your personal feelings about foie

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-1089078618102558182004-06-19T15:49:00.000-07:002004-07-05T18:51:08.990-07:00

I want one of these: It's a Hattori 9.5" chef's knife. The bolster is nickel and the handle is black linen micarta, with a blade of Cowry X stainless steel surrounded by Damascus steel forged from stainless steels and pure nickel. I adore this finish and think it would be a lovely addition to my knife set. For a mere $1250. Chump change. I could make do with one of these: It's a Tokifusa

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-2002470252003-05-05T17:26:00.000-07:002004-07-05T15:22:15.480-07:00

I got these miniature puddings in Japantown in San Francisco. Japantown is my favorite part of the City. If I can finnagle it, I always make a point of hitting Japantown. The food alone is worth the trek. The crazy rice crackers with peanuts and seaweed, lemon flavored soy sauce, inari skins, wasabi, petit puddings. The puddings came in these thumb-sized containers with a spoon smaller than the

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-2002389362003-05-03T18:46:00.000-07:002003-05-03T18:46:38.383-07:00

I got home from work last night at about 7:00. I wasn't really hungry, but I wished that Dave had made dinner. Wishful thinking. So even as ungrumbly as my stomach was, I still decided to cook. There was leftover salmon, giant slabs with rosemary that had been broiled by mom. I decided to make pasta, unoriginal and easy. Sauteed onion, biased-cut sugar snap peas and flaked salmon in a cream-based

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-2002192142003-04-29T18:38:00.000-07:002003-04-29T18:38:56.283-07:00

I figured out how to make a cookie base out of cookies that are already made. OK, not high on the list of tres chic cuisine, but it worked in a major pinch. I was Jonesing for dessert. Wanted something sweet after this major dinner I made while we were on vacation. We stayed in this executive suite that had a full-on set-up for cooking. Only I didn't have quite all of the ingredients required to

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-2001534182003-04-15T18:36:00.000-07:002004-07-05T16:13:12.630-07:00

Jeff and I are addicted to these marzipan chocolate rolls. They are the most amazing sweet treats a body could ever desire. It took a year-long stint in Norway to become proficient in an appreciation for marzipan. Now that I have that ability firmly within my reach, marzipan chocolate rolls are insanely, provocatively sumptious. And their brethren, the mocha chocolate macroons are nearly as

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-2001529102003-04-15T16:03:00.000-07:002003-04-15T16:03:13.850-07:00

I always prefer homemade, but if yer gonna use boxed mix, Duncan Hines chocolate mocha cake mix rocks. Egads. 1 1/4 cups water, 1/2 cup oil, 3 eggs, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp cardammom, beat til light and airy. Pour into a metal 9x13 cake pan, bake at 350 for 38 minutes. Here's where the real fun begins. While the cake bakes, beat 2 cubes of unsalted butter, 1 package cream cheese,

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-2001239742003-04-09T17:43:00.000-07:002003-04-09T17:46:56.000-07:00

Albacore tuna, minced green onion, wasabi mayonaise that I made with mayo & wasabi (duh), bleu, pepper-grinder medley. Mix. Shaved purple cabbage. Throw all together. Eat it UP. Lowfat alternative to double bacon cheeseburger from Babe's (which I actually haven't had in about 10 years but which I still fantasize about when I think about the word DELUXE). I'm not a fiend when it comes to lowfat

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5258587.post-2001131212003-04-07T21:57:00.000-07:002004-07-05T16:00:27.980-07:00

I made this curry. Man, does it rock or what? It was excellent. I'm not one for attempting to make curry dishes from scratch. They never taste very good. Too much turmeric or somesuch. Anyway, I found this stuff at Safeway and it is so great, I can hardly stand it. I cubed an eggplant, diced some chicken breast (raw), chopped some yellow onion, and sautèed the whole thing up with olive oil. Cook

Mrs. Bottonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10658384185329429117noreply@blogger.com