Cook Here and Now

Let's cook and eat together: Sunday August 19th ALL SLOTS FULL

Buongiorno,
Thank you. All our slots are full. If your name is not listed in the comments section of the previous post, please stay tuned -- we'd love to have you next time. If you wish to be on the waiting list, please leave your email address and name as a comment to this post. I'll contact you if anyone cancels. Last dinner we did have three or four, and other people stepped in.

Ciao e grazie mille,
Marco Flavio

Let's cook and eat together: Sunday August 19th

Buongiorno.
We've just had our terrific vegetarian dinner, and plans are in the works for our August Seafood Watch dinner.
Since I'm off for Italy on Sunday and back 3 days before the event, I'm trying to get everything in place before my departure.
For the August event, we'll be having sustainable fresh fish.
The California wild salmon season is open, so wild-caught salmon is one possible choice. Please do not buy Atlantic or farmed salmon.
For a complete list of sustainable seafood choices in California, go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch. Take your pick from the Best Choices or Good Alternatives columns.

Vegetables will be summer squash (that includes zucchini), tomatoes and corn: summer's holy trinity.
Fruit choices are up to you: Surprise us with what looks great at the market.

A presto,
Marco Flavio

The plan
35-40 of us will cook and eat together on August the 19th, starting at around 2:30.

The dinner will be in San Francisco. Jeremy has kindly offered his company's very large, multiple-range kitchen for our gathering at the last event. Since he's traveling, I've not had the chance to confirm. We did agree on the date but if there's a problem, I will let everyone know. There will be enough space for us to use the stoves and ovens in a couple of shifts.

We're expanding registration to 40 people, and I'm keeping at least 8 spots for newcomers to ensure everyone gets a chance to join us (we usually fill the spots in less than a day).
Every person coming (including any guest you bring) will have to sign up for a slot and either cook something or provide wine and beer (if beverages slots are available, see below).

Since participation is limited, please let us know at least four days before the dinner if you're not going to be able to make it, so we can invite someone else to join us. Emailing me on shorter notice (or not at all) is unfair to everyone, especially the people who wanted to participate and couldn't because all the slots were taken.

We'll divide the meal plan this way:
 
14 participants will make main courses for 3-4 people each (including some vegetarian options)
7 participants will make salads for 8 people each  
7 participants will make dessert for 8-10 people each  
8 participants will bring at least 2 bottles of good wine and some locally-brewed beer. Consider that most cooks spend $25-50 (and up!) just on their ingredients. If you're not cooking, you should be prepared to spend at least this much on beverages, out of respect for your chefs. We've had some complaints about this, so please do your part.
2 participants will bring non-alcoholic beverages for 20 (sparkling water and juices)

Please let me know who is coming by name. Once we reach 40 people confirmed, I will close the event and start another post for the waiting list. If the slots are full for what you'd like to bring, please choose something else instead. (Don't worry: There will always be another event to showcase your skills.)

So post a comment here letting me know the following:
First and last name
Email address
What you'll be bringing (appetizer, main course, etc.) 
If you brought wine last time, you should now cook an appetizer or an entree (unless you cooked as part of a couple and made a large entree).

If too many people pick the same course, I'll have to assign a different course to the last entrant.
If the votes are tied for ingredients, I'll flip a coin.

This is going to be great! So sign up before the spaces are gone.

A presto,
Marco Flavio

Marco's Farmers Market Watch: July 21st

Buongiorno,
here's my Market Watch from the Alemany farmers' market for July 21st.
Thanks to the forty people who made our vegetarian dinner so terrific (and this from a meat eater...)
Ciao,
Marco Flavio

What I found this week:
Organic Tomatoes are back (see above), and they're finally ripe (see my earlier post on my favorite fruit). The whole range of flavors and colors are here: Early girls, heirlooms, cherry and grape. Enjoy!

Early girls are particularly good now: very peppery and juicy. Usually they're the first (real) tomatoes to appear at the market, since they ripen early. They're my favorite option for July.

Red fruit looks beautiful on a plate offsetting light green vegetables. Spice up your tomatillo salsa with these fiery hot burgundy Jalapeños.
Recipes from Allrecipes or Epicurious.

Fresh Okra is readily available. Alison says ew, but I say it's wonderful with the other summer staples: corn and tomatoes. That way, you get the full summer color range: red, green and yellow.
Recipes from Allrecipes and Epicurious.

Can you believe I found crowder peas? They're a southern staple not always available out here on the West Coast. Recipes from Allrecipes and Cooks.com.

A great example eggplants living up to their name: some were almost white and the size of a chicken egg. The Italian ones are perfect now, hard and plump. Recipes from Allrecipes or Epicurious.

Organic Lemon cucumbers. Great to bite straight into (but first remove the butt end of the fruit, because it can be bitter). They have tiny spines the size of poppy seeds, but they're not at all prickly going down. Their crisp tasty white flesh can have a faint lemony flavor ... ideal to put in water sliced, or eat like a fruit. Also great for pickling.

Several kinds of grapes are here. Always buy grapes organic: they regularly make Foodnews.org list of  ingredients that score highest on pesticide residue. Go and check the list out, it's a great starting point (They even have a foldable one for your wallet).
Check out my favorite: Red Flame, ideal for roasting and using in my Roasted grape focaccia.

Yes, cantaloupes are great, but do you know what all the other melons taste like?
Not even a little curious?
Recipes from Allrecipes and Epicurious.

For all you Scots (or Scotland lovers): thistles. I've always loved Scotland's motto that appears under the thorny flower: "Nemo me impune lacessit" (No one harms me without punishment). Feisty, eh?

Marco's Farmers Market Watch: July 7th

Buongiorno,
here's my Market Watch from the Alemany farmers' market for July 7th. I was at the market very early (brrr, where's global warming when you need it? The temperature was mid-50s) and then off to the Asian Art Museum to give my talk: "Making an Impression: Japanese Pop Images from Meiji to Manga". That was fantastic -- thanks for the standing-room-only turnout, people!
Ciao,
Marco Flavio

What I found this week:
Roman cauliflower (see above). Can't stop looking at these alien vegetables. 
Here are some recipes from Allrecipes or Epicurious.

Snake-like Armenian Cucumbers. Hard to come by, but one of the best-tasting cucumbers (actually more closely related to melons). It's crisp, thin-skinned, and mild-flavored, with soft seeds.  Like the English cucumber, it doesn't need to be peeled or seeded.

Visual proof that everywhere (except, apparently, San Francisco) summer has arrived: Sweet corn and watermelon. Corn is about ready and watermelon is getting there. Corn recipes from Allrecipes or Epicurious.

"Crazy sweet" Summer squash -- so versatile and flavorful, longing to be reunited with their beloved onions in a sauté. They're great in one of my favorite risottos. Recipes from Allrecipes or Epicurious.

Warm up your SF summer with fiery Thai chillis. Recipes from Allrecipes of Epicurious.

Top-of-the-line medjool dates are here! A wide variety of them, some being offered as a "World Exclusive" ... who verifies that, exactly? Recipes from Allrecipes and Epicurious.

I hope you're enjoying peaches, nectarines and apricots because cherries are done for this year.

If you need a little pick-me-up because you're crushed by the disappearance of cherries, you can learn to make Italian nocino (an herbal tasting, walnut-infused spirit). This is the only place I've seen fresh unpeeled walnuts AND the recipe. Go for it! Could be a good one for our upcoming vegetarian group dinner...