A couple of weekends ago, J and I decided to go apple-picking. After some research on the internet and a long drive, we arrived at a farm in the east bay, only to be told that the orchards were closed due to storms that had hit just a few days before. Our disappointment upon hearing this was only fleeting — this farm also had a pumpkin patch!

So, instead of picking apples, we went in search of the perfect pumpkins.

It took a lot of walking back and forth to find just the right one.

Our final picks:

Last night, we finally carved our pumpkins.

I carved a monster  from Where The Wild Things Are (It was named “Carol” in the movie). I think it ended up looking a lot like the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. It must be the toothy grin and the stripes.

J carved a sinister-looking Garfield. He half-carved some details which you can see more easily with better lighting.

Happy Halloween!

The next day in Oaxaca we took a class in Zapotec cooking, offered by Casa de los Sabores. Our instructor, chef Reyna Mendoza, is a native of Teotitlan del Valle, a Zapotec village where she grew up learning traditional cooking techniques from her mother.

Our class began with a trip to a market nearby, La Merced, where we could find the freshest ingredients for the meal that we were about to prepare.

At the market, Reyna showed us the differences between several kinds of chile. I believe the two shown are guajilla (left) and ancho (right).

Oaxaca is known to be the “land of seven moles.” Chocolate, which is a component in some of these moles, is an ingredient commonly sold at the markets. These chocolate chunks are usually made of chocolate mixed with cinnamon and sugar.

We picked up some fresh chicken,

tomatoes,

tomatillos,

cheese,

squash blossoms,

and homemade flour tortillas from a woman who comes to the market to sell her steaming hot, towel-wrapped tortillas.

We also got to sample empanadas de huitlacoche con quesillo (empanadas with corn fungus and Oaxacan string cheese), cooked on a large comal.

Huitlacoche is harvested and available fresh only during the rainy season.

We returned to the kitchen, where the five of us, along with our instructor and assistants, created the following menu. We were not allowed to take photos during the class (too distracting), so here are photos of the completed dishes.

Enchiladas de Mole con Pollo (mole enchiladas with chicken)

Ensalada de Nopales con Aderezco (cactus salad with dressing)

Indias Vestidas (figurative name for fried, cheese-stuffed squash blossoms)

Salsa de Miltomate y Chile Pasilla de Oaxaca (tomatillo and Oaxacan pasilla chile salsa)

Helado de Frambuesa (raspberry ice cream)

We are excited about recreating these recipes someday, and sharing the recipes and results here.

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From our hotel, we walked towards el zòcalo, or the town square, in search of a bite to eat. On our way, we stopped at a bakery for a snack. That bakery soon became a favorite of ours.

(I liked the bun in the middle best.)

It so happened to be Mexican independence day, and it seemed like the city of Oaxaca had converged upon el zòcalo to celebrate. The festivities had only begun, and would continue late into the night.

Near el zòcalo are two big markets, where they sell meats, fruits, vegetables, prepared foods, shoes, clothes, sombreros, and anything you can think of. Outside the markets, the streets are lined with vendors selling produce, tlayudas, breads, desserts, and chapulines (roasted and seasoned grasshoppers, a Oaxacan specialty).

At La Abuelita, a restaurant in one of the markets, we enjoyed a dinner of cecina and mole negro con pollo (black mole with chicken).

To end the night, we returned to el zòcalo to listen to a mariachi band play.

the cathedral in el zòcalo

street lights

Shortly after our arrival in Oaxaca, we boarded a bus that would take us to the Zapotec villages that lie east of the city, in the Sierra Norte mountain range. For centuries, these villages (Pueblos Mancomunados) have thrived by pooling their natural resources and cooperating as a community. In the past 15 years, they have also been part of an ecotourism program that not only works to preserve one of the world’s oldest ecosystems (the Sierra Madre), but also to provide jobs and tourism revenue to the villages.

the bus terminal

An old, clunky bus with the letters xXx emblazoned in front, a crazy driver, and winding roads that barely fit the girth of the bus (plus oncoming traffic every now and then) made for a harrowing bus ride. We climbed and lurched to-and-fro. After a two hour ride, we arrived at one of the villages, Cuajimoloyas. Cuajimoloyas resides at an elevation of 3,000 meters.

our cabin

view from the cabins

After we were shown our cabin, our rumbling stomachs reminded us that it was far past lunchtime. We headed down to a trucheria, or trout restaurant, and made our selections off a simple menu. We ordered one trout to be fried, and the other to be baked with onions, tomatoes, and herbs. Our hostess then began to prepare our meal. She piled more wood into her stove, cleaned the fresh fish, and proceeded to fry and cook the fish as her baby slept nearby in a stroller.

Our appetites sated, we donned our rain gear and went for a short hike up the tallest rock near the village, passing through villagers’ backyards on the way. Most of the people raise their own livestock — there were chickens, turkeys, sheep, goats, cows, and the burros that they use for transporting materials.

We climbed and admired the spectacular view of the surrounding mountains as the clouds rolled in. As we neared the top, it began to rain as predicted, so we turned around and descended the little mountain. The light drizzle turned into big, heavy sheets of rain, and the streets became streams. Back in our room and shivering with cold, we dried ourselves and changed out of our damp clothes in record time and dove for the bed, burrowing deep into the blankets and sleeping bags.  Later in the night, someone from the village came to light a fire for us. When the smoky fire was roaring, J parked himself in front of the fireplace; I refused to come out from under the warm covers to join him. Only my nose peeked out so that I could breathe, and even it was cold. In the mountains, the temperature drops dramatically with nightfall.

The next morning, we were greeted by sunshine. We stopped at a comedor for a breakfast of hot chocolate, coffee with chocolate, wheat bread, and an amazing chicken stew that was recommended to us by another customer.

We then met with our Spanish-speaking guide, Paola, who would take us to Llano Grande, one of the neighboring villages.

Along the trail, Paola pointed out many wildflowers, herbs, and plants with medicinal uses.

a cactus plant

“laurel” – bay leaf

“carlos santo” – used to treat gastritis

“hoja de sapo” – lowers cholesterol

aspirin plant – our guide told us that if you chew on two of these leaves, any aches that you may have will be gone in ten minutes. As someone who often gets headaches, I decided to chew on half of a leaf as a preventive measure. Not surprisingly, it was extremely bitter. I was also headache-free that day.

“flor de rana”

“flor de papel”

The hike was very pleasant, and the air crisp and clean. Using my very elementary and broken Spanish, we conversed with our guide the entire way.

We reached Llano Grande by afternoon. We had hoped to do some more hiking and exploring in Llano Grande, but the villagers we met pointed to the ominous clouds overhead and told us that it wasn’t such a great idea. So instead we sat down to a lunch of cecina (chile-marinated sheets of pork) and chile relleño (fried poblano pepper stuffed with cheese).

After lunch, we returned to Oaxaca on a colectivo. We rode in the back, where there was a bench on either side of the truck and ropes to hold onto. It was a fun ride, with great views and plenty of fresh air.

I’ve been meaning to get around to posting about our trip to Mexico. It will happen soon, over the next few days (I hope).

Oh, please go and buy yourself some persimmons, the Hachiya variety. Get them ripe, as if they were ready to rupture — skin paper-thin and flesh soft and squishy. Wash the persimmons gently before eating. To eat, sink your teeth into the skin of the fruit’s pointed end and suck the pulpy flesh out. As you watch the persimmon deflate, pretend that you are a vampire feasting on Halloween. Tasty.

This summer, we did many things.

We ate a lot of ice cream. There are quite a few ice cream shoppes in our neighborhood. I am not complaining. This is a photo taken at the Bombay Ice Creamery.

We had picnics at Dolores Park, and got to watch an outdoor movie there one night. They were showing Amelie.

We saw the Warhol exhibit at the de Young museum. After our visit, I couldn’t get The Velvet Underground’s music out of my head.

We walked along the Marina, and watched people sunbathe and kitesurf.

We rode the wooden roller coaster at the Santa Cruz beach boardwalk, and went searching for the sea lions at the pier. They like to sunbathe, too.

We hiked along coastal trails,

and in the Sierras, where we camped underneath the stars.

We met up with friends in Seattle and kayaked through the San Juan islands. It was an amazing adventure. We saw so much wildlife — porpoises, seals, jellyfish, starfish, crab, heron, bats, bald eagles, deer, and a little mouse who stole goodies from our frying pan after dinner.

Lastly, we enjoyed the bounty that summer had to offer with weekly trips to the local farmers’ market.

And with that, I will leave you with photos and recipes from a summer supper we made. Original recipes from here and here.

Heirloom tomatoes

Sticky Balsamic Ribs

Corn and Tomato Scramble

It may be fall already, but I believe that any season is a season for ribs. I will surely miss the tomatoes, though — they will be around for only a little while longer.

Heirloom Tomatoes (We had this at a restaurant some time ago as an appetizer. It is so easy to prepare and so delicious.)
Serves 4

4 medium-sized tomatoes, sliced at a quarter-inch thick or less. Arrange on platter and drizzle over with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Add a sprinkling of salt and grated, thin pieces of parmesan.

Sticky Balsamic Ribs
Serves 8

For ribs
8 large garlic cloves
2 tablespoons finely chopped rosemary
2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon cayenne
8 lb baby back pork ribs (We used 3 racks, about 2 lb each)
1 cup water

For glaze
2 cups hot water
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar

Marinate and roast ribs:

* Mince and mash garlic to a paste with 1 tsp salt. Stir together with rosemary, brown sugar, vinegar, cayenne, 1 Tbsp salt, and 1 tsp pepper. Rub evenly all over ribs and transfer to roasting pans. Marinate, chilled, 8 to 24 hours.
* Preheat oven to 425°F with racks in upper and lower thirds.
* Pour 1/2 cup water into each roasting pan and tightly cover pans with foil. Roast ribs, switching position of pans halfway through, until meat is very tender, about 1 3/4 hours. Remove pans from oven and transfer ribs to a platter.

Make glaze and grill ribs:

* Add 1 cup hot water to each roasting pan and scrape up brown bits. Skim off and discard fat, then transfer liquid to a 10-inch skillet. Add vinegar and brown sugar and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Boil until reduced to about 1 cup, about 15 minutes.
* Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over medium-hot charcoal (medium heat for gas). We used the oven, since we do not have a grill. We put the ribs under the broiler for a few minutes at the very end.
* Brush some of glaze onto both sides of racks of ribs. Grill, turning occasionally, until ribs are hot and grill marks appear, about 6 minutes.
* Brush ribs with more glaze and serve remaining glaze on the side.

Corn and Tomato Scramble
Serves 4

1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar (I used what I had — red wine vinegar)
3/4 lb tomatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
1 bunch scallions, finely chopped, keeping white parts and greens separate
1 tablespoons unsalted butter
corn kernels from 4 ears of corn

Whisk together oil, vinegar, 1/2 tsp salt, and some pepper. Toss tomatoes with dressing.
While tomatoes marinate, cook white parts of scallions in butter with some salt and pepper in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 4 minutes. Add corn and sauté until just tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and cool. Stir together corn, tomatoes, and scallion greens.

It rained on our last day in London, but given the fantastic weather we had experienced during most of our stay, it didn’t dampen our spirits one bit. It was kind of nice, actually.

Since it was Monday, LW and S had to go to work, and they left even before we were up. We tried to arrange a meeting with LW at the MRC, where he does research, but sort of lost our way and sought refuge at the nearby newly constructed Westfield Center instead. Normally, we would not think of going to a mall while on vacation, but S gave us a sparkling review about the mall’s food court and we had to go see for ourselves.

Compared to food courts at American malls (think Sbarro and Orange Julius), food courts at British malls serve what we would call gourmet food. Mall food is taken very seriously here.

Per S’s recommendation, we stopped at the French bistro for cassoulet – duck confit in a stew of white beans and sausage. It was delightful.

After our little snack and some shopping, we went in search of our first high tea experience at The Wolseley.

The Wolseley was beautiful.

The sight of tea and cakes made me giddy.

Tea for two. Three delicious tiers of finger sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and jam, and assorted desserts.

And, of course, tea with cream and sugar.

On our way to meet LW later that afternoon, we spotted a Laduree! The store itself looks like a cave of gold…gold and macarons.

There were so many varieties of macarons…we bought a box to take home with us.

J and I then went to the Asian markets to buy groceries for dinner that night. We had some free drinks with LW (a club’s promotional deal) before heading home.

For dinner, we made Chinese food. I taught S how to make some simple Kung Pao chicken, Ma Po tofu, and greens seasoned with salt and slivers of ginger.

For dessert, we had macarons. We “sampled” all of the flavors until the box was empty.

And so ended our time in London and our adventures in Europe this year. The next morning we woke at 4 a.m. to catch the tube to the train station. LW and S were so sweet to wake up with us, bleary-eyed, to hug us goodbye.

For breakfast, we had some pan-fried apricot and pork sausages.

We dodged street closures and crowds of people cheering on the racers in the Flora marathon…

to meet with some friends of LW and S at Shakespeare’s Globe, where LW had bought us tickets to see a performance of Romeo and Juliet.

We cut out early with the sun beating down on us, and bravely (that would be for S and J) crossed the Millenium Bridge.

After pausing to admire a church, we stopped at a local pub for lunch. J and I had beef pie and potatoes with cheese and baked beans, quintessential British foods.

After lunch, we walked along the Thames and saw the London Eye and various war memorials.

We made our way past Big Ben, Parliament (with protests outside), and Westminster Abbey, and stopped at the main gate of Buckingham Palace.

To end the night, we had dinner at a Persian restaurant in Notting Hill. The restaurant featured a tanur near the front door, where we can watch the thin bread being prepared and then slapped onto the side of the clay oven.

We had large plates of lamb kebabs and chicken kebabs and a giant jug of yogurt to drink. A happy food coma ensued.

A good friend of mine recently had a birthday, so I baked her a cake this week to celebrate. I chose to make her a chocolate birthday cake using a recipe that I found here. The cake itself is very fluffy and moist. Delicate, but sturdy enough to withstand the flipping and palming when stacking the cakes. I suppose the cake’s delicate nature makes using the parchment paper necessary. The frosting is simple and delicious. The cake is so good and light that it has you asking for a second slice. I was also lucky enough to have some leftover cake for my own birthday, too, so I guess I had a third and a fourth as well. Cake for breakfast, anyone?

Adapted from David Lebovitz’s Devil’s Food Cake (makes one 9-inch cake)

For the cake:
9 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1½ cups cake flour (not self-rising)
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
½ cup strong coffee (or water)
½ cup low-fat milk

For the ganache frosting:
10 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used about 8 oz)
½ cup milk
¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter

1. Adjust the oven rack to the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Butter two 9″ x 2″ cake pans and line the bottoms with circles of parchment paper.

3. To make the cake layers, sift together the cocoa powder, cake flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder in a bowl (I used a whisk to stir this together, instead of sifting — sift if you see large chunks of cocoa).

4. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer, or by hand, beat together the butter and sugar about 5 minutes until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated. (If using a standing electric mixer, stop the mixer as necessary to scrape down the sides to be sure everything is getting mixed in.)

5. Mix together the coffee and milk. Stir half of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture, the add the coffee and milk. Finally stir in the other half of the dry ingredients.

6. Divide the batter into the two prepared cake pans and bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.

7. To make the frosting, melt the chopped chocolate with the water (or cream — I used milk instead) in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until melted. Remove the bowl from the pan of water.

8. Cut the butter into small pieces and whisk them into the chocolate until completely melted and the ganache is smooth. Cool until spreadable, which may take about 1 hour at room temperature. (To hurry the cooling of the ganache, I popped it into the fridge and let it sit until it was thick enough to spread. If it gets too thick, just stir it up to soften it.)

To frost the cake:

Run a knife around the inside of each of the cakes which will help release them from the pans. Tilt one cake out of the pan, remove the parchment paper from the bottom and invert it back onto a cake plate. Spread a good-sized layer of icing over the top. Top with the second cake layer and spread the top and sides with the remaining icing as decoratively as you want. (And then I topped the cake off with sprinkles!)

Storage: Cake is best the day it is made, although it’s fine the next day. Store at room temperature under a cake dome. Just be sure to keep cake out of the sun in the meantime.

I also wanted to share this sweet card that J made for me. He designed and drew the card himself, and printed it on photo paper. On the card, he included all the things that I love: our beagle, cupcakes, my camera, and flowers.

p.s. I thought it appropriate to finally change the name of this blog, since this blog has been slowly venturing away from content solely based on food. Cupcakes and food are a passion of mine, but I was thinking that I could also use this blog as a journal of sorts to chronicle my adventures with J and the little things that make us happy (which happens to include making and eating good food).

We woke up to a simple and yummy breakfast prepared by our friends, fueling us for the gastronomic day ahead of us.

A trip on the tube and a leisurely walk across the London Bridge planted us in the middle of a food lover’s dream — Borough Market.

Everywhere I looked, there was food.

Anticipation of paella.

Very British, and very posh bangers.

Olives, by the bucket.

Creme caramels, all lined up.

Vats of curries.

Cart of vegetables.

We raised our noses in the air and sniffed to our hearts’ content. Well, not really. We also ate. And ate. We had:

Baklava, dense and honey-packed.

Raw milk stilton cheese, pungent and creamy.

Grilled lamb burgers, thick and juicy. (This is a photo of a stall different from the one we went to — the boys got these for us to share while S and I went on a hunt for jute Borough Market bags.)

Truffles, so chocolatey.

Turkish delights, sweet and teeth-sticking.

But my personal favorite was what I call the cheesy mess.

At this stand, cheddar cheese is flame-broiled.

The melted cheese is scraped off,

onto a plate of boiled potatoes, with gherkins and pickled pearl onions on the side. Mmm.

Coming out of the market, we stopped for some drinks. We felt very smartly dressed at the pub.

Pork rinds, pub food.

We took ourselves outside the pub, where the street intersection was filled with people enjoying their drinks in the afternoon sunshine. I saw a cow that wanted to be loved.

We then walked toward the Tower Bridge, taking a million photos of it along the way. Half of the bridge had a new coat of peacock-blue.

After crossing the bridge, we stopped at another pub to watch some football, Man U vs. Tottenham. We made a couple of friends who recommended a great Indian restaurant in Whitechapel (if I remember correctly).

We went looking for this Indian restaurant and found it. The name escapes us, but we remember it being a very generic name. The food was GOOD.

To get home, we hopped on a bus that would give us a great tour of the city at night.

I witnessed the collision of a bus and Big Ben,

and took some self-portraits of us.

Back at home, we enjoyed a dessert of Cadbury chocolates and some biscotti that LW and S had brought back from their recent trip to Italy.

What a delicious day it was.