It is the beginning of persimmon season here in Central California. The orchards and the markets are full of this delicious and unusual fruit. There are 2 varieties of persimmons, the Hachiya and the Fuyu. The fruit of the Hachiya is ripe when it is very very soft and almost feels rotten. Otherwise it is very puckery. The fruit of the Fuyu variety stays crunchy. The softer variety is delicious in puddings, cakes, ice cream, and can be eaten raw, scooped out of the skin.. The crunchy variety can be eaten sliced like an apple, peeled or not peeled. It is good in salads, both vegetable and fruit, or made into a crisp.
Try  this recipe and just substitute Fuyu persimmons for the pears.

I found this site when researching persimmons. I tried the peanut butter snack. I liked the two flavors together but the PB did kind of overpower the persimmon, but a fun little snack, especially for kids or the kid in you who likes little sandwiches.

I have yet to get any Hachiyas to ripen enough for the ice cream but soon…Be adventuresome and let me know what you try.

I have been on vacation in Pennsylvania and New England. It was a great trip and I am oh so glad to be home. It was good for this Californian to get a dose of beautiful changing leaves, chilly weather, a bit of snow.

Today I went grocery shopping and got things to make my tummy healthy and happy again… beets, avocados, organic chicken, really good tortillas, kale, arugula, kombucha, persimmons. Let the cooking begin! I will report back soon with the results.

I have been thinking alot lately about comfort food. What does that mean ? For much of my life, food has not given me comfort. I have had ( and still have moments of) a very UNcomfortable relationship with food. It has seemed more like my enemy. Comfort is an emotion and food at its worst, has been a vehicle for numbing anything I might have been feeling. I found some interesting research here.  It has taken me many years of therapy, many wonderful meals with loving friends, and my work as a personal chef to get to the point where I can actually enjoy eating, that I can love something I am eating, that I can feel some comfort from it. Soup is one of those things. Since I am basically non dairy, I enjoy “creamy” soups made from coconut milk. The subtitle of this post could be the evolution of a recipe. In my wanderings around the internet, I found this blog and recipe, which was inspired by someone else’s recipe and blog. Of course, I made adaptations and now it is something completely different but related. Sort of like me and some of my family!
Coconut Milk Winter Squash soup

Here in Central California, the changing of the seasons can seem subtle. Here are some photos of my garden today. For a variety of reasons, my garden has not received the tender loving care this year that it deserves. Interesting lessons for life, that. Some things have struggled mightily and succumbed. Others have thrived. Others cry out for me to do better! Soon, the rains will come and that will ease the burdens of these plants that do just want to bring beauty and happiness to the world. Little garden, I apologize and thank you for your blessings.

I love this cotoneaster in my back yard nestled against the redwood tree. Fall and Winter, it provides orange berries and Spring and Summer, lovely little white flower clusters. And look, the first fall leaf!
This is my Mexican Marigold. When I bought the little 4 in pot, I had no idea it would grow to about 4′x4′ and smells so good. It cheers up my front yard right in front of my living room window most of the year.
See? We do have fall! The butterfly plant is going to seed, ready to spread its beauty throughout the yard and much to the neighbor’s dismay, into theirs!
I inherited this lovely white dahlia from the previous owner. I have been unable to grow any other dahlias!! There must be a mole somewhere who has eaten the others. Shhhh. Why s/he hasn’t found this one, I have no idea.

Gardens really are a microcosm of life. There is always work to be done. There is always beauty to be found. Taking time every day to look at both of those things is good.

Happy Autumnal Equinox! It is fall time. Here in California, we share the same shortening of the days as everyone, but we are still eating tomatoes and watermelon, though they won’t last much longer. I have personal chef friends and colleagues all across the country with whom I share recipes along with many other business related ideas. Gone are the postings of tomato and salad recipes. Our in boxes are full of soups, stews, and winter squash ideas.
Eating seasonally has become as trendy as being a locavore these days. This is a good thing! Eating locally and seasonally is not a new idea. It goes all the way back to caveman/woman days. You ate what you could harvest and hunt. You relished the fresh greens out of the ground in the spring,filled your bellies with berries in the summer, dug roots in the fall,and saved what you could keep over the winter.

Use what ever vegetables you like or want to try. These work well… carrots, potatoes, beets, parsnips, celery root, turnips, rutabaga, onions. The celery root you will want to peel, but I don’t bother with the rest. Just make sure they are clean and cut out the bad spots. I like bite size chunks. Just make sure you cut everything approximately the same size. Preheat your oven to 400º. Fill a large sheet pan/baking sheet with your veggies. Coat with olive oil ( several Tablespoons), salt and pepper. Depending on your tastes you could add garlic ( whole cloves or granulated), Herbes de Provence, red pepper flakes, rosemary. Roast in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes. Check after the first 15, stir and turn over the veggies for even cooking. You want some crispy caramelization.  Enjoy. I like the leftovers with eggs for breakfast.

I have been focussing much energy this week on cleaning up my diet, banning added sugar for the moment. I am also seriously reducing my starchy carbohydrate intake as well as overall amount of food. For me to be successful with this, I need to maximize nutrition and taste. I want my meals to give me the power and energy I need while satisfying my taste buds.
We need carbohydrates for energy. Quinoa is a good grain to keep IN the diet.It has no gluten, is high in protein, low on the glycemic index, and is quite versatile. I had some yesterday in a savory main dish with shrimp and vegetables. Today it is dessert, and I still have some already cooked for another creation, perhaps a cold salad. As well as being gluten free, I don’t use much dairy. Coconut milk is an extremely satisfying alternative.
Quinoa Pudding

So, we have got protein from the quinoa, good fats from the coconut milk and walnuts, sweetness from the pears, and unusual flavor from the 5 spice powder. This is tonight’s dessert as well as breakfast one morning this week.

I love figs! I used to eat canned figs and cream at my grandparents’ house growing up. I don’t remember liking them then. As an adult, I discovered dried figs ( Fig Newtons don’t really count as eating figs) and then, one wonderful day, I ate my first fresh fig. Oh joy!  While not cheap, they are available now and worth every penny. I cooked a dinner party a few weeks ago and made a wonderful appetizer called Figs in a Blanket, a fresh fig, stuffed with goat cheese, wrapped in prosciutto , baked to a heavenly crunchy gooeyness, and drizzled with a honey and balsamic vinegar reduction. mmm. In an earlier post, I mentioned fig gelato, and that same friend has made fig pickles. Recently on one of the many internet sites I peruse for recipes, I found this one shared by a personal chef colleague for Chicken and Fig salad.
It is originally from the California Fig Advisory Board. Now, that would be a fun gig!

While this didn’t really remind me of the Greek food I have eaten, smelling the thyme and the oregano did. I have spent many happy days on the beautiful island of Crete, sitting amidst the herbs . I wonder what dishes this will inspire me to cook now. Opa!!

Today is a bright sunny day and a friend and I went for a walk in the beautiful Forest of Nisene Marks in Santa Cruz Co. California. A busy place today, we saw families on bicycles, people of all ages running and hiking, enjoying the sunshine and the shade the redwood trees provide.
I am sure most of you have heard that California’s budget is in a state of dire emergency. Next week, the legislature will decide what parks it needs to close to save money. Nisene Marks is one of the parks under consideration, because it has no campgrounds. Closing the park doesn’t mean that people won’t have access to it. There will be no rangers to collect fees, no one to maintain the roads and trails ( and the bathrooms!), no one to patrol and provide some safety. Some parks will be entirely closed and others will have trail closures.
I think this is one of the ridiculous decisions being made. Our parks provide so much for us as seen today by how many people were there using this one. It is a beautiful sanctuary, a reminder of our past, a place of quiet, a place for family fun. Dare I say it ? These trees are sacred and holy. Some of them are ancient, all of them have something wise to say and something precious to give us.
There is some expression about something being as easy as a walk in the park. Something to think about and not take for granted.
Today, I listened to the trees, I listened to my friend, I listened to the children laughing and I was happy.

I am always looking for easy, light, gluten free recipes utilizing the best of the season. This vegetable tart or pie fits the bill perfectly. Adapted from a recipe from Cooking Light magazine, it is the best of summer with fresh ripe tomatoes, basil, and swiss chard, all from my visit to the farmers’ market over the weekend. The chard was getting a bit limp, so it needed to be cooked today.
Summer Vegetable Tart

I realized as I was taking pictures that my vegetables match my placemats today. My friends will tell you that I am all about matching, but this truly was unintended. Funny!
This would be great for any meal of the day, or an afterschool snack. I have been (more or less) gluten free for about 15 years. I do not have Celiac’s disease but do have hypothyroid and arthritis issues and find that I feel much better when I do not eat wheat or other gluten containing grains. One of my fellow personal chefs ( thanks, Laura!) mentioned The Gluten Free Registry yesterday. I have listed For Life! Personal Chef Service there and definitely plan to use this information when I make a trip to New England this fall. It is getting easier and easier to follow a gluten free diet. 15 years ago, it was all about lack, NOT being able to eat interesting food out and about. This is not so true anymore. More about gluten intolerance coming up in other posts.

Almost every Saturday morning that I am in town, I head to the farmers’ market at Cabrillo College in Aptos, Ca. It is open year round and host to dozens of local vendors of organic produce and locally produced items, from ceramics to baked goods, as well as fish and sustainably raised meat and eggs. There is usually someone somewhere with a petition to sign. The local cat rescue people are there most weekends with crates of adorable kitties needing homes. There is a band, with great little vegetable shakers for the kids to play along.
I am not sure whether it is because of the economy or the prevalence of media touting the importance of local food but the market has been very busy and crowded this summer. Whatever the reason, I think this is wonderful.

This weekend , the market had so much to offer! I usually have to restrain myself. I want it all. So, what did I end up with ?? Everywhere was the wonderful aroma of basil, so I bought a beautiful bunch of that, with some parsley and rosemary. This went into Saturday night’s dinner, shared with friends, of a brown rice/ Caprese inspired salad, along with several heirloom tomatoes. I found some rainbow carrots ( red and yellow besides the usual orange) which will be roasted with a new spice, Za’atar, introduced to me by some of my personal chef colleagues. I bought some peaches, pluots, and grapes which have been made into a fruit salad. I also scored some figs which went into amazing fig gelato, beautifully blogged here by my personal chef friend, Tami. I also got some eggs to be eaten for breakfasts and perhaps a vegetable tart or quiche this week.
I usually buy myself a bunch of flowers but there were so many and so many different kinds, I was overwhelmed and unable to choose. Perhaps next week. And perhaps next week, there will be corn! That was the one purchase I was hoping for.