Cookbook challenge update

Remember, I don't know, a year and a half ago when I decided to cook my way through Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris? I naively thought that this would be a fairly easy, straightforward endeavor that would take a couple months, tops.

Well, here we are, 18 months later, and I'm still not done. My interest/enthusiasm/dedication to the project has gone through waves -- there'll be times when I'll whip out three recipes in a week, and then I won't make another one for a month. BUT. There is a light at the end of the tunnel! I've recently tallied my remaining recipes, and I am getting closer...so close...which has really motivated me to get 'er done, as they say. As of today, I have four appetizers, seven lunches, six soups/salads, eleven dinners, eight vegetables/sides, and six desserts to go. With coconut madeleines on the menu for tonight, that number will be down to five desserts tomorrow. I have a few recipes reserved for Easter dinner in a few weeks, too. My game plan is to finish up the chapters I'm furthest on -- appetizers and then desserts, and then tackle the rest in as efficient way as possible.

I'm really excited about finishing this project (I already have my next challenge in mind, but we'll get to that later). I've learned a lot so far, and the biggest take-away has been a rush of confidence in my kitchen skills. This is going to sound immensely immodest, but so many things I make just turn out right, the first time, which is always incredibly validating -- a good thing, too, since I saved some of the hardest recipes for last. I'll need that confidence to carry me through the rest of the project!

My hope is to post an update relating to this every time I finish a chapter, so be on the lookout for that.

An Evening at Baker and Banker

I’m not sure why it took me so long to churn this post out (its already two weeks overdue). I’m sure there’s an excuse of how busy I am, I’m still not over this cold, blah blah blah. Regardless, here (finally) is the recount of dinner at Baker and Banker (http://www.bakerandbanker.com).

And what a dinner it was! I forget where I first heard about Baker and Banker – Tasting Table? Food and Wine? The SF Inside Scoop? All plausible possibilities. Anyway, the restaurant had been hanging out on my “places to go” list for months when the opportunity to eat there finally presented itself a couple weekends ago. Some friends and I – the roommate among them – were going shopping to the city, and naturally, dinner plans fell to me. I actually tried to get a table at a couple other places first, and then when one at Baker and Banker was available, I snatched it up – and I’m so glad I did!

So much to say, yet I'm speechless

Yes, the rumors are true – I had dinner at Chez Panisse last Wednesday! Yes, the Chez Panisse. And wow, was it something special. My darling brother and I went to celebrate my birthday a bit early. Consider this a life goal checked off the list. And I just have to say, it was everything I wanted it to be and so much more. I had high expectations for this dinner, and they were far and away exceeded.

Alex made our reservations a few weeks ago, knowing how much I wanted to go here to celebrate the big 2-6. We’d originally been hoping to go closer to my actual birthday tomorrow, but Wednesday was the closest we could get, and I have to say, it couldn’t have worked out better – but I’ll get to that shortly.

We got there just a few minutes before our 8:45 reservation and just hung out upstairs in the bar for a bit. Before too long, though, we were taken to our table – and it was a primo spot. We were seated in a cozy corner booth that looked diagonally into the open kitchen. From my seat I could see lamb roasting on the open grill, baskets of bread and fresh vegetables, and chefs hard at work. Also, I have to say a word about the atmosphere. Even though it was busy and a relatively small space, it still seemed quite and intimate. The whole room has a soft glow thanks to copper panels that reflect the light. In a word, magical. But enough about all of that. Let's get to the real matter here -- the food.

The perfect meal.

Gobble gobble recap

So, the Big Day is behind us and all can return to normal (ish) until Christmas. Now seems like a good time to recap my dad's visit to California, Turkey Day itself, and maybe name off a few things I'm thankful for this year.
Dad was in town for about ten days total -- the first few due to a talk that he was giving at the Science and Society conference at UC Berkeley, and then he stuck around for Thanksgiving, too. We had a swell time -- a lot of eating and shopping (two of my very favorite things, as you all well know). We ate at Liasion on my recommendation, and it was just as good the second time around. I had to-die-for French onion soup followed by roast chicken, plus we had some oysters to share. I capped it out with tart tatin. Yum. Throughout the week we also hit up Scoma's, ordered some good California Chinese food (very hard to come by in Texas), visited a brew pub and an old school diner in Berkeley, and dad cooked three nights -- beef stroganoff, chicken almond, and mac and cheese -- all favorite dishes of mine from childhood. Oh boy, did we eat well.