Warming Soups & Stews
It looks like winter is here to stay…at least for a tad longer. So, the pot is on the back burner…simmering a warming soup or stew. (Or many you turned on the Instant Pot this morning.)
This issue is teaming with recipes for our favorite soups and stews. And, here is a list of some of the best ingredients to get you started cooking.
For the Broth
Better Than Bouillon
We keep this trusty little jar within reach. A flavorful paste that is richer than canned broth or bouillon cubes, and is easy to work with.Better Than Bouillon is also great in rice and pots of beans.
Classic, fresh products made entirely from scratch in small batches. You can find them in our freezer section. Use whenever you want very little effort to pay wonderful dividends at the table.
Savory Choice Liquid Broth Concentrates
Makes premium liquid broth concentrates paced in single-serving foil packets. They are amazingly convenient! We carry their Beef Broth, Turkey Broth, Vegetable Broth, and Chicken Broth.
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Grains and Beans
The addition of grains helps to thicken your broth and add texture. For this we love using faro, rice, and pasta. Beans make the dish heartier.
We fell in love with Zürsun Beans for their tremendous variety and color. They’re just amazing to even look at, let alone taste! And, they make a tasty addition to your winter soups and stews.
DeCecco Semolina Pasta
Delicious dry pasta made with semolina wheat flour and cut into a variety of shapes. It holds up beautifully in broth.
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The Flavoring
Salt is important, and the quality of the salt you use will be displayed in your broth.
Sel Gris from M. Gilles Hervy (grey sea sale) comes from the seas off the Northwest of France. It is simply harvested and packaged leaving the minerals intact and concentrating the flavor.
And dried mushrooms from
Wine Forest Wild Foods
add a touch of earthiness. They have an amazingly delicious variety of mushrooms.
Miso
We carry a variety of miso in our refrigerator section including white, red, and gluten-free. Remember to add the miso at the very end, after the heat is turned off. Like yogurt, it contains a beneficial living organism. And, you don't want to boil it and kill it.
And, as always choose the freshest meats, vegetables and herbs. Mirepoix is the flavour base for a wide variety of stocks, soups, stews, and sauces. It is a mixture of chopped onion, celery, and carrot. (Two parts of onion to one celery and one carrot). Lightly sautéing mirepoix in olive oil is a great way to start you dish.
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And, it is always wonderful to have a nice, crusty bread on the side, slathered with butter, for soaking up the broth.
Acme Bread Company's Sweet Batard might just be the perfect loaf. It is always fresh, made from delicious, top-quality ingredients, and affordably priced.
We also love
Firehook Mediterranean Baked Crackers. Try the ones with rosemary and sea salt.
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The Fancy Food Show was held the other week at the newly renovated Moscone Center. And, I can honestly say it was the most fun I’ve had at the show in a number of years. It was considerably larger with more vendors than had been there previously (which is not surprising). You can always tell how well the economy is doing by the number of vendors packing the pavilions. I can’t really say that there was one obvious overall theme to what I saw at the show, what I can say is that this was a year of innovation and exploration.
In shows past, certain categories have dominated the landscape. Last year you couldn’t take a step without running into vendors with jerky or meat sticks. It was jerky here, jerky there, jerky everywhere. Before the jerky, we navigated the very crowded category of coconut water and vitamin water craze. And don’t get me started on the chocolate years…Yes, there really is such a thing as too much chocolate. This year there was no dominant item. Variety was everywhere. If I had to sum it up in three words they would be: Innovative, multi-cultural, and female.
I chose Innovative because there were plenty of vendors who took a good product and made it better. For example, there was one company that proved that peanut butter is not just for the lunch box crowd. Their Spicy Thai Peanut butter was fantastic and would be great thinned out and used with chicken or directly into a salad dressing. Another company was not happy to simply produce great honey. Instead, they decided to combine the health benefits of honey with other ingredients like turmeric, black garlic, and calendula for great tasting honey that not only improves your health but ups your cheese plate game. Finally, there’s the beverage from Japan that looks like beer and tastes like beer but has no calories, sugars, carbs etc. It’s basically water and it’s all natural—blew my mind.
Last year the influence of Korean cooking was everywhere. This year the flavor doors to the rest of Asia have been thrown open. We tasted a fresh lemongrass paste made by a local vendor that was heaven. (Look for that on our shelves soon.)
One of the items in the “New and Exciting” section was a puffed water lily seed snack that you would swear was popcorn—but with more protein, less fat and fewer calories. Copper Cow Coffee offers coffee addicts the intense coffee flavor and sweet indulgence of organic sustainable grown Vietnamese coffee but in a portable single-serve pour-over set. And, they are women-owned.
This brings me to my last word: female.…
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A Staff Favorite
Gina Marie Cream Cheese nearly has a cult following because of its lighter, fluffier texture and genuinely fresh, creamy flavor. No other cream cheese tastes like it, and you just may never go back to your old brand.
Gina Marie Cream Cheese is made with three simple ingredients.Cultured milk, freshly-sourced from local dairies, cream, and salt are combined in an old-fashioned, three-day process that requires draining the cream cheese in muslin bags. It has been around for more than 50 years. In 2002, Sierra Nevada Cheese Company purchased the brand and has continued to use the original recipe using no gums, stabilizers or fillers.
Sierra Nevada Cheese Company handcrafts artisan dairy goods in micro-batches here in Willows, California proudly using northern CA natural and Organic milk with no artificial ingredients.
And, Gina Marie Cream Cheese is fantastic in baked goods. Try it in some of our favorite recipes that highlight cream cheese.
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A Cookbook Recommendation
By Kate McMillan for Williams Sonoma
This revised edition of the 2012 best-selling title features 100 new seasonally-driven recipes and a selection of new full-color photography. This well curated collection of recipes offers a delicious soup for every day of the year.
Soup is often thought of as comfort dish for cold weather, Soup of the Day showcases how diverse soups can be. From light gazpachos to hearty chowders, cream of tomato to chicken noodle, vegetable-lentils to steak and potatoes, there’s something to please every palate throughout the year—and plenty of full-meal soups for easy dinner solutions.
The recipes are categorized by month of the year and laid out in an easy-to-follow, calendar format. The monthly calendars highlight the season’s best ingredients to bring you fresh and delicious flavor combinations all year round.
Kate McMillan is chef and owner of an eponymous catering company and was an instructor at Tante Marie’s Cooking School in San Francisco. Kate has worked as an event planner for Vogue and Glamour magazines. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and three young daughters. She has written 10 cookbooks for Williams-Sonoma, including five titles in the
What’s for Dinner series and several in the
Of the Day series.
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From our blog, The Kitchen Table
My whole life I have been a rule follower. I was that kid in the class who never put a toe out of line for fear of the punishments. I have never really been the kind of person to significantly test the boundaries of anything, though I have always wanted to be that person. A rebel. A maverick. I am pretty sure this is why I cook from recipes instead of off the cuff.
To be fair, I willchange a recipe to suit my tastes but only after I have made it at least a couple of times. Rarely do I mess with things from the get-go. Last weekend though, my inner culinary rebel surfaced and I took a left turn...
What started out as an adaptation of a chicken stew with peppers from the Basque region turned into more of a southwest stew/chili/gumbo type thing. There was something about the combination of ingredients that had me reaching for the black beans and cumin. Served over rice, the flavors were reminiscent of the southwest with the hearty whole meal feel of the bayou.
Maybe it was innovation or maybe it was just muscle memory that made me assume that tomatoes and peppers should also have beans and a squeeze of lime but it turned out tasty. I made enough to store some in the freezer for a future mid-week dinner on the run.
Tonight the future is here…as is a tasty dinner!
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We are planning for the Super Bowl. And, while beer is great, sometimes we want to go beyond the usual and mix it up a bit with cocktails. Here are some of our suggestions for classic Super Bowl drinks.
Let's start with Margaritas
When it comes to making the perfect Margarita it cannotget easier to make than using Tommy's Margarita Mix. You simply add tequila and ice for one of the freshest-tasting, authentic Margaritas you can make. It is the perfect balance of sweet and tart. And, you can go traditional or frozen in a snap.
Tommy’s Margarita is made from 100% all-natural ingredients sourced directly from Mexico. This unique blend helps to create a truly authentic taste. Fresh pressed lime juice, organic blue agave nectar, and purified water create this delicious mix.
And here are five recipes for more great cocktails you can whip up on game day…
Looking for a tasty drink that serves a crowd? This Super Bowl Punch is packed with refreshing lime flavor that goes great with game day eats. And you can dip the rims of the glasses in coarse sugar for a touch of extra sweetness.
The Mexican Michelada kicks up the flavor of a cold beer—it’s like a Bloody Mary, savory, spicy, and tart (and considered a hangover remedy).
If you are looking for something light, citrusy, and oh-so-refreshing, mix up a Gin Fizz. It's great for highlighting all of the qualities gin has to offer.
Whether you’re garnishing your Bloody Mary with celery, pickled veggies or bacon, it is a great game day cocktail.
This Green Chile Gimlet is a great cocktail to help celebrate Super Bowl Sunday with flair. It is straightforward to prepare, because of the simple list of ingredients. St. George Spirits Green Chile Vodka adds depth of flavor and sophistication.
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From our recipe blog,
The Kitchen Table
My whole life I have been a rule follower. I was that kid in the class who never put a toe out of line for fear of the punishments. I have never really been the kind of person to significantly test the boundaries of anything, though I have always wanted to be that person. A rebel. A maverick. I am pretty sure this is why I cook from recipes instead of off the cuff.
To be fair, I willchange a recipe to suit my tastes but only after I have made it at least a couple of times. Rarely do I mess with things from the get-go. Last weekend though, my inner culinary rebel surfaced and I took a left turn...
What started out as an adaptation of a chicken stew with peppers from the Basque region turned into more of a southwest stew/chili/gumbo type thing. There was something about the combination of ingredients that had me reaching for the black beans and cumin. Served over rice, the flavors were reminiscent of the southwest with the hearty whole meal feel of the bayou.
Maybe it was innovation or maybe it was just muscle memory that made me assume that tomatoes and peppers should also have beans and a squeeze of lime but it turned out tasty. I made enough to store some in the freezer for a future mid-week dinner on the run.
Tonight the future is here…as is a tasty dinner!
Southwestern Chicken Stew
Yields 6 serving
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From our blog,
The Butcher's Block
Often overlooked in the meat case, ox tails have become a more popular choice when cooks are looking for the satisfying flavors of a good, long braise.
Ox tails are not just the tails of oxen. They are, in fact, the tails of beef cattle of all types and they make some of the most delicious braised beef dishes at a more than affordable price. Typically weighing 7 to 8 pounds each, oxtails are cut into shorter chunks of approximately 2 to 3 inches in length for sale.
Ox Tails are a gelatin-rich meat that requires long cooking times at low temperatures to produce tender melt-in-your-mouth meat. The high amount of collagen that is released during these long cooking times produces a rich sauce with deep beef flavors and a silky texture. Perfect when paired with a pillowy mound of mashed potatoes. Oxtails are also the perfect candidate for making beef stock or a nutrient-packed bone broth and if you are an Instant Pot aficionado, cooking oxtails is a snap.
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A Staff Favorite
This Swiss gourmet cheese is one of our favorites. It has a dark rustic, somewhat oily rind that covers a firm, dense textured cheese with salt crystals here and there. Cave-Aged Gruyere is slightly aromatic with a robust, assertive flavor. It is soft yet firm—intense and dignified.
This Swiss Cave-Aged Gruyere is made from rich, unpasteurized Alpine cow's milk and produced using the traditional cheese-making techniques that have made the region famous.
Swiss Cave-Aged Gruyere is wonderful served with your favorite red wine, some rustic bread and figs or dates. This is also a great melting cheese and one that lends itself well to gratins, fondues, and soups–as it adds more flavor than the traditional shorter-aged gruyere. This cheese will rise to the occasion!
One of our favorite ways to enjoy it is in this Panini recipe with spinach, artichoke hearts, and red pepper.
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From our Blog,
The Kitchen Table
Over the years, my sister and I have taken a lot of cooking classes. So many, in fact, that there isn’t a whole lot out there that we haven’t taken. By no means have we mastered the art of cooking. Far from it! But, you do reach a point that, unless it is something very specific, you can pick up any recipe and produce a better than average result. There was one thing that both of us were fairly intent on learning—and that is how to make croissants. Or, to be more specific, the laminated dough used to make croissants and other flaky goodness.
I’ve always been a fan of a really good croissant. I mean what’s not to love? You just can’t go wrong with flakey buttery pastry, with or without filling, fresh from the oven. Am I right?
This particular drive to learn the art of croissant was born out of an obsession with the orange morning buns that are produced by our favorite bakery in Tahoe City, CA. I can’t even with these morning buns. No trip to the lake is complete without these for breakfast at least once but they’re up there and we’re down here. We had to figure out a way to recreate them but to do that we needed to learn the basics.
This was how we found ourselves spending a lovely Sunday afternoon a few weeks ago learning to make croissants. It was great. It was challenging. And I have found that having an industrial grade sheeter would make the folding process so much easier but, alas, that is not an option.
To be frank, croissants are not a thing you make on a whim. They are a project that requires hours. It is something you do as much for the process as for the end result. It is a great way to spend a Saturday or Sunday when you have absolutely nothing going on.
This weekend for me is one of those rare weekends where we will not be running around shuttling kids here and there and my plan is to make a batch of croissants just to make sure I can do it without the instructor there. Should be interesting…
For those adventurous spirits out there below is a great recipe for those who are willing to give it a shot. For the rest, there is definitely something to be said for letting someone else do the work and grabbing a dozen or so from your favorite bakery.
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Soup & Stews from our Recipe Archives
Amy has been writing our blog since April of 2012, and it is impressive how many recipes have accumulated at the publication rate of one per week. Quite a few of them are recipes for soups and stews…because that is what we turn to again and again in the winter months.
Sure, there are a couple
gazpacho recipes and a delicious
spring pea soup. But, the majority of them are about generating internal warmth and goodness. Here is a selection from our ever-expanding collection.
Stews
Soups
Curries
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Two Independent Film Festivals in San Francisco
There are two independent film festivals going on right now in San Francisco—which provides us a fantastic selection of alternative cinema.
begins on January 30th. This annual festival showcases the best in independent and alternative cinema from around the globe.
A glorious celebration of gutsy independent cinema.
–Fandor
Schedule
January 30th through February 14th.
Venues
Roxie Theater 3117 16th at Valencia
Victoria Theater 2961 16th at Mission
518 Gallery 518 Valencia at 16th
The Noir City Film Festival reveals the dark side of mid-century America. Think the 1950s were buttoned-down and conservative? Think again.
Dive into Noir City 17 and experience the rush—through a lens, darkly—of a turbulent and transitional time in American history, culture, and cinema. Nothing would ever be the same.
Noir City returns once again to the majestic Castro Theatre for a 10-night feast of danger, desire, and despair.
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Vendor of the Month
We fell in love with Zürsun Beans for their tremendous variety and color. They’re just amazing to even look at, let alone taste! And, they make a tasty addition to your winter soups and stews.
This delicious, ultimate eco-friendly food is grown onsmall-scale farms in a region of Idaho known as the Magic Valley Growing Area. It boasts of ideal environmental conditions for growing pure, distinctly flavorful beans.
Zürsun delivers beans fresh from the field and impeccably clean. Their passionate focus provides the most amazing, high-quality bean-eating experience.
Heirloom beans are untouched by genetic science or modern technology. Today there are over 10,000 known varieties that have been handed down from generation to generation. Discovering and enjoying heirloom beans helps preserve traditional varieties.
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OUR BLOGS
Visit our recipe blog to learn what Amy, our VP and resident foodie, is cooking up in her home kitchen.
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