The event, our first SCV Wine Fest, has come and gone, almost a month ago. But the photos are now trickling in and I thought it might be fun to take a gander at our first attempt. Miss it? Go the the LA Wine Fest in June, and we’ll see you next February back in…
Bone-in chicken on a bed of fennel, onions and wine, with roasted garlic gravy poured on top. Ready in 30 minutes. Ingredients:1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)2 pieces skinless, boneless chicken breasts, halved crosswise 4 pieces skinless, boneless chicken thighs Salt and pepper 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning 1 teaspoon fennel seeds 2 tablespoons flour, plus…
Garber & Company Sandy Garber is co-owner of Topanga Vineyards, with her husband Ralph Meyer. In addition, she is the owner of wine distributorship Garber & Company. Recently, I had the pleasure of accompanying DiMaggio Washington, owner of The Cellar, to a trade tasting in Culver City of wines distributed and brokered by Garber &…
What a treat to tour caves at least at one winery in Paso Robles last week. Got us out of the rain, AND SNOW, and allowed us to imagine that we were dining at an exclusive candlelit wine dinner or an intimate wedding. Rows seemed endless, barrels calling out to us with their vintage years…
Three short videos for your watching pleasure this week, each around a minute long. My favorite has to be the one that, during a nice Dining With the Chefs event, I thought that we’d waited a nanosecond too long for a wine bottle to be opened and decided that driving my corkscrew in really fast,…
“Nothing better for breakfast than a chocolate walnutbrownie.” remarked my sister-in-law Ann the last day for our three-daywhirlwind tour of Paso Robles last week. And said brownie? Packed upfor our group by none other than Mike Kobayashi, and prepared, no doubt, underthe watchful eye of his brother, Chris, two of the four owners of Artisan Paso…
Suzanne Goin’s Lamb Roast Dinner Inspired by Hamilton’s New Memoir WHAT: LUCQUES owners Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne welcome Gabrielle Hamilton, Chef/Owner of Prune in New York, for a special dinner celebrating the publication of Hamilton’s new memoir, Blood, Bones & Butter, The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef. Goin’s three course dinner, inspired by…
As you may recall, Don and I are perennial students in Santa Clarita’s own Dining with the Chefs class. Our February meeting took place at Zapp Simply Asian restaurant in Valencia. This storefront establishment is in a mini-mall at the corner of Valencia Blvd. and Cinema Dr. It is rather unassuming on the outside, but…
This recipe is from King Arthur Flour but the photo is Nancy’s: Ingredients1 3/4 cups (12 1/4 ounces) sugar1/2 cup (4 ounces, 1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature3/4 teaspoon salt1/3 cup (2 ounces) vegetable oil2 teaspoons vanilla extract4 large eggs3 cups (12 3/4 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour3 tablespoons (1 1/8 ounces) cornstarch4…
Eve’s recent article about wine-grape origins reminded me of a few interesting [to me] stories. For a long time, Chile was known for its Merlot, and Merlot from Chile became known as a great value, producing nice wines at very fair prices. Then, in 1994, many of the grapevines thought to be Merlot were properly…