Farmer's Market Sunday. I got up extra early to get to the San Rafael Farmer's Market before I had to park VERY far away, and also to be sure I could get some yuba from Hodo Soy Beanery before it sold out. I took some photos at the Thursday Market too, and thought they were so colorful that I'd include some of them in this post as well. I also had Apollo, my Golden Retriever friend over for the day. And a human visitor, Daniel. And given his no wheat no sugar etc diet, fresh produce seemed to be the order of the day for dinner.

Yellow limes? Some day I'm going to pick up some of these 'Sweet Limes' to try.

These variegated calamondin were to intriguing to resist. These are miniature sour oranges that I was advised to eat skin and all. It has a bit of a sweet/sour taste eaten that way, otherwise they are very tart. These are native to the Philippines and China. I'm already dreaming up ways to use these in the future.

These pink ladies have a sweet-tart taste that makes these great to eat out of hand.

And there are great deals on navel oranges that are ohh-so-sweet in the winter months.

Chinese Yu Choy, another one on my list to try sometime.

Baby Bok Choy has long been discovered, so many of the stands carry it.

And this post is getting so herbaceous that I'm just going to have to enter it into Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted by Rinku at Cooking in Westchester.

So what did I put on the table for dinner with Daniel?

Well, a big bowl of Yali Asian Pears, a very delicate and sweet tasting variety, mixed in with organic Fuji apples. The pears were grown near Yuba City, and the apples a stone's throw from Yosemite.

Here's the arrangement I chose from. There were several varieties of Asian pears at this stand.

The apple place also had come delicious apple-cherry cider. And in the manner of not wasting things, they were still using old labels which did not tout the organic status of the drink, although I was assured it is completely organic.

And I only paid $3 for a good sized plastic bag of these picked-just-yesterday kiwi fruit that Daniel noted its sweetness. I also picked up some hot roasted American chestnuts we snacked on during a movie afterwards that I forgot to take a snap of.

The same place also picked these Mandarin oranges the day before as well. Daniel said they tasted like candy, and I have to agree! These are highly perishable, so having purchased a big bag for $5, I'll be including these for nearly every meal until they are gone!

About now you must be thinking we're fruitatarians!

Not so. I stopped at the grand opening at the market of Cafe Gratitude's new space there and picked up some raw crackers and

sprouted almond hummus. The crackers were a hit as they were made with things such as carrot and flaxseed - no wheat. Daniel noted how good this humus is.

And these local greens were very fresh and delicious. And they made a nice bed for some

colossal shrimp that I baked in the oven (the only item not from the market).

It was a nice leisurely Sunday dinner in tune with the meandering way I picked up the food that morning at the Farmer's Market! I also want to note that the round up after this one for Weekend Herb Blogging with be at this site!

Sunny breakfast. Don't know how I missed this one. Dad & I had a leisurely breakfast at the West End Cafe Deli & Market after one of his appointments. Aside the deli area there is a large, narrow and very sunny dine-in room.

Dad wanted some ham in his omelet so the Denver omelet suited him perfectly. He enjoyed the potatoes and wheat toast with jam as well. The omelet looked fluffy with fresh ingredients peeking through.

I tried Steve's Favorite, a potato frittata. The friendly waitress described it as a kind of 'egg pizza', and indeed it had that appearance. The pizza base was made of egg whites, onion, potatoes, spinach and mushrooms, and the topping was of fresh tomatoes and avocados. It came with a side of sour cream. Very impressive and I couldn't finish it; it was quite filling! The wheat toast was crunchy and fresh and this was a great breakfast find. Breakfast is also served all day here.

Addicting Lunch. No wonder they call it Sushiholic. With a beautiful and modern interior, and an extensive menu, Sushiholic certainly has made a splash on the Marin Japanese restaurant scene. Jo-Ann and I met for lunch there one rainy day recently.

I had to try the reputedly good multi-grain sushi, so I ordered the special vegetable multi-grain sushi roll. So unique, delicious and healthy! There was a cornucopia of vegetables stuffed inside this roll with the perfect blending of flavors and crunch to offset the soft yet flavor intense multi-grain sushi rice wrapping. Don't miss out on one of these when you are there.

Jo-Ann heard that the gyoza were of a not-to-be-missed excellence so ordered these as part of her lunch special, which also included ginger teriyaki tofu, salad, miso and rice. The gingery tofu was the perfect foil for the indulgently fried gyoza. The pork and vegetable filled tender wrappings were as excellent as expected, the only disappointment was the salad, being just average.

I had some hot kitsune soba as my main dish, which was topped with deep fried tofu pockets. Those were a little hot, so needed to be eaten carefully! The broth was a bit thin, but I perked it up by requesting some seven-spice powder. This is a place with promise, and I'll definitely come back to and try some more of their special menu items.

What's that on my pancake? Wood shavings? I promise, it tasted better than that. I was just very intrigued when I saw this jam in my local Persian market.

This orange blossom jam runs like honey and the blossoms are tender-waxy. It was a lovely topping for some freshly made buttermilk pancakes.

And it comes in a jar that looks like this.

Shock! Headline: Good food at mall. Yes, Jhan Thong delivered great food at a very reasonable price! It is located in San Rafael's Northgate Mall. I had brought my father the the cinemas down the hall for a movie, and wanted to catch a quick bite. Noisy, bright and unattractive surroundings, yes, but it's great to have great taste as an option when you are there anyway.

My Dad opted for MickeyDs, wanting a hamburger. I guess after going veggie with me he craved some red meat. Mark up one advantage for a food court, all can have what they please. I took the advice of the man behind the counter at Jhan Thong for the best vegetarian dish. Vegetarian spring rolls, and a curry rice noodle soup (#10). Wow. I might even come back to Jhan Thong for this with no other reason to come to the mall. Smooth with complex tastes, it is a real winner. The spring rolls were good too.

Beauty with a bite. However, as I understand it "Bitter Melons" have an incredible health profile. According to "Adventures in Thai Cooking & Travel", it is "Rich in iron, bitter melon has twice the beta carotene of broccoli, twice the calcium of spinach, twice the potassium of bananas, and contains vitamins C and B 1 to 3, phosphorus and good dietary fiber. It is believed to be good for the liver and has been proven by western scientists to contain insulin, act as an anti-tumor agent, and inhibit HIV-1 infection." It's bitter taste comes from quinine, an antimalarial agent to boot! The National Bitter Melon Council also has a wealth of information and some additional details on how bitter melon is used in various cultures and some lengthy notes on scientific research. In fact it summarizes a very interesting connection as follows: "Biter Melon has also been linked to effects of increasing the number of beta cells in the pancreas as well, and as a result improving the body’s capability to produce insulin."

But you can't underestimate that bite. And you may have guessed already that this post is made for Weekend Herb Blogging , hosted by Vani from Batasari.

Actually Midori, my host mother from Hiroshima brought me into her kitchen to teach me how to make this dish a couple years ago, when I last visited. Although I may have gotten a little fuzzy, I'm confident this is pretty close to her instructions. What I'm a little fuzzy about is if she had coached me on pre-prepping the bitter melon to take away some of the bitterness or not. However, a web search revealed two popular methods, salting for a few minutes then rinsing, or parboiling. I decided to salt. Another thing I learned from Midori is that this vegetable came to the mainland from Okinawa, where it is a popular vegetable. Wouldn't you know those healthy, long-lived Okinawans would have discovered this!

Another ingredient in the recipe I'm going to share is the tofu. And since I didn't plan to purchase the bitter melon at the Farmer's Market, I hadn't soaked beans the night before in order to make the tofu from scratch. Lucky for me, the Sunday San Rafael Farmer's Market had a table of tofu products. Hodo Soy Beanery had some very fresh and delicious tofu in fact. The company representative also gave me some advice on making yuba -- use very thick soy milk. However, he had sold out of yuba, so I couldn't make up for my lack in the same way.

Oh, and I did alter the recipe with another ingredient I picked up at the Farmer's Market, by adding some fresh tomato for color and added flavor.

So here is the recipe for Tofu and Bitter Melon Stir Fry:

1 cake medium to firm tofu, cubed
2 eggs
1/2 bitter melon, seeded and sliced into half-rounds
1/2 large tomato
1 teaspoon tamari sauce
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sesame oil

1. Salt (using the 1 teaspoon salt) or parboil the bitter melons slices to remove some of the bitterness.
2. Heat the sesame oil in a fry-pan and stir fry the bitter melon until nearly tender.
3. Add the cubes of tofu and stir fry gently to heat through.
4. Add tamari sauce to the contents and toss gently.
5. Add 2 beaten eggs and stir fry, mixing the ingredients.
6. Just before finishing, add cubes of fresh tomatoes and fry until slightly warmed.

Put your stir fry onto a serving plate, and serve. Serves 2-4 depending on whether you have it as a main or side dish.

Indian Treats. Dad & I visited the Farmer's Market at the San Rafael Civic Center on Sunday, and met some cheerful men who were inviting all to try samples of a variety of Indian dishes and snacks. I happen to be a big fan of Sukhi's vegetarian samosas, and there were some interesting snacks on display too.

The younger man gave me a sample of a 'lentil' snack. It was a "Moong Dal" spicy treat. It was nice, a little like rice crispies and would be a nice salad topping. I bought a "Bombay" spicy treat as well as I couldn't imagine what a snack that included cucumber seeds could possibly taste like. The answer is good. Bombay was light and had just the right amount of spiciness for a "kick" without needing to find the nearest fire hose to cool down.

Last night I enjoyed celebrating Daniel's birthday with his closest friends at Marin Brewing Company, since it was a very social celebration I only took photos of people, such as Daniel blowing out his candles. Nonetheless, the food was great and the service good.

Eggs in Stuffing Nests. How do start your day? Hopping up at the first ray of light and greeting it with wonder about what the day will bring? Or perhaps by hitting the snooze button... err... several times? And smells? Do you have your coffee pot set to automatic so that the rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee awakens your senses? Or is it a pot of tea or spicy chai that you brew as a morning meditation?

And how do you start your food day? Does it set the pattern for how you'd like the rest of the day to unfold? Start your day with tastes to enliven and deepen your experience of the gift of the day ahead... Here is one way to treat your senses. Take some stuffing left from the sumptuous meal the night before, or make it freshly. I made roasted garlic and rosemary stuffing to start. Make nests in a frying pan, lightly oiled, and break an egg into each over medium heat. When it starts to fry, add about a tablespoon of water to the pan, cover and cook until the eggs reach your preferred degree of doneness (assuming the stuffing was already warm to start). Slide the nests gently onto a plate when ready. Live luxuriously - it's not so much a matter of cost as it is of fanning your imagination.

Bon voyage breakfast. My frequent dining partner, and friend for more than ten years, Paul, is moving to Portland (this morning) so yesterday we had a little bon voyage breakfast in the city at the Curbside Cafe near on California near Fillmore in San Francisco. It was definitely a case of braving the elements as you can see from the photo, the storm had come back with some heavy rain.

I took a photo to memorialize the moment, and since he won't be here to be covertly trying the food with me in Marin, I'm sharing it here. Bon voyage Paul!

He chose to have bacon and eggs with Dutch crunch toast. The thickly sliced bacon looked mouthwatering, and he reported everything was simply delicious.

I chose the eggs florentine, without the ham. The eggs were perfectly poached and tasted farm fresh. The home fries were also quite deftly cooked and were brown without having any burnt bits. This place has a French flair and looks like a good place to find a bowl of French onion soup at another time of day. Definitely a place to remember when breakfasting in the city.

Hidden around a corner. Where Ming's used to be, Mikado Sushi has set up shop in the Northgate area of San Rafael. I stopped in a few days ago to try their offerings out.

The meal started with a very rich tasting miso soup. The soy sauce containers were so cute I had to get one in the photo too.

Then the California roll came. It was nicely done, using tsurimi as most restaurants do these days. I appreciated that the ginger came decoratively placed to appear like a rose bud.

The boxed items were vegetable tempura, vegetable potstickers and agedashi tofu (coated and deep fried) with a fresh salad. It was more than I could eat, but all items were a standard lunch quality and I enjoyed them. Mikado Sushi had an interesting menu so it is on my list to come back at dinner time and try out some of their specialties.

Storm Update

Well, you've been probably reading the news to hear that the Richmond Bridge has been closed, as well as the tunnel to the Golden Gate Bridge and there is flooding on Hwy 101 especially near San Rafael. Also Golden Gate Transit has been stopped as well as ferry service. Certainly a good day to stay in!

At my house its continued to storm and have heavy wind gusts. The lead photo shows a patch of shingles missing on my neighbors home, where earlier this morning the patch had merely come loose and was flapping around like a bird's wing. I have tiles all over my back deck, one piece landing on my table.

Another is on the back deck itself, which has started flooding, the drain is clear, so perhaps something is stuck below. I guess I'll have to go down and check when I brace myself after this short stint outside on the deck. My colleague who lives near Tam Valley is now landlocked, all roads around his home impassable. He also said the wind has broken a window, not by having something blown into it, but by sheer wind gust power!

STORM!!!

These are photos from earlier this morning! It is usually light out at the time I took these. I have roof tiles landing on my deck, and I can see across from my front door missing tiles and tiles sections flopping in the wind from my neighbor's across the street.

I heard from my colleague that there is no power or server at our office in Sausalito and some nearly entrances/exits to Hwy 101 are closed - under water.

My deck furniture was blown across the deck and into a corner by my sliding glass doors by early this morning.

I took in the most vunerable things a couple nights ago, but I forgot to pull in my BBQ tools, and these were blown off, or flapping in the wind as I took this photo! The power has gone off and on earlier this morning, it seems to have stabilized for the moment in my spot in Mill Valley. I'm glad that I braved the stormy weather Wednesday evening and yesterday morning to pick up some things at the Corte Madera Farmer's Market and San Rafael Farmer's Market, so I don't have to go out.

Here is where you can get sandbags if you need them in Marin (excerpted from the Marin IJ):

WHERE TO GET SAND AND BAGS

Here’s a summary of sand and bag information compiled by Marin County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services, which ad­vises residents to bring their own shovels:

► Belvedere: Pre-filled sandbags are available to residents in three large storage boxes at Mallard and Community roads; Lagoon and Maybridge roads; and West Shore Road near No. 80. Call 435-7386.

► Corte Madera: Sand and bags available at Fire Station No. 14 on Tamalpais Drive and parking lot at San Clemente Park, Paradise Drive. Residents can turn to local radio station 1330 AM for more information. Call 927-5077.

► Fairfax: Sand and bags avail­able in the baseball field parking lot on Elsie Street near Fairfax Pavilion. Call 453-2587.

► Larkspur: Sand and bags at Piper Park, 250 Doherty Drive.
Call 927-5017.

► Mill Valley: Sand and bags at fire station at 1 Hamilton Drive; bags only at fire station at 26 Corte Madera Ave.; sand available at Old Mill Street and Throckmor­ton Avenue. Call 389-4130.

► Novato: All fire stations have bags. The city corporation yard at 500 Davidson has sand and bags.
Call 899-8280.

► Ross: Sand and bags at Ross corporation yard; sand and bags at entrance to Natalie Coffin Green Park. For Ross residents only. Call 453-1453.

► San Anselmo: Sand and bags available just beyond Red Hill Shopping Center on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard next to the Isabelle Cook tennis courts. Call 258-4600.

► San Rafael: Bags only at Fire Station No. 1, 1039 C St.; sand and bags at Fire Station No. 2, 210 Third St.; bags only at Fire Station No. 4, 46 Castro Ave.; sand and bags at Fire Station No. 5, 955 Pt.
San Pedro Road; bags only at Fire Station No. 6, 650 Del Ganado Road; bags only at Fire Station No. 7, 3530 Civic Center Drive.

► Sausalito: Sand and bags available to residents and busi­ness owners only at the Sausalito corporation yard at 530 Nevada St. Call 289-4113.

► Tiburon: No sand or bags avail­able. Contact local hardware and building supply stores to purchase sandbags. Tiburon has set up a hotline for storm information at 435-7386. Residents can also turn to local radio station 840 AM.

People may also purchase sandbags at their local hardware and building supply stores, which may or may not have sand avail­able. For sand and bags, call Martin Brothers Supply at 388­2025 or Shamrock Materials at 455-1575.

For more information about Marin County Emergency Ser­vices, visit www.readymarin.org.

Japanese at the Mall. There's a bright clean place at Northgate Mall in San Rafael which proclaims "Freshly Cooked Right Before Your Eyes", and it's true! At Oedo Grill the grill is right up front, and you can watch your meal be deftly grilled as you wait.

I ordered the chicken and shrimp yakisoba, and I stuck around and watched it sizzling and being tossed to cook on the grill.

The result was fresh and tasted good, however as it is supposed to be Japanese yakisoba I have to say it was not like any Japanese yakisoba I've ever eaten. The noodles were softer, and had more a Chinese lo mein flavor, rather than the slightly thinner and more resistant to the bite Japanese type. The sauce was also quite light and sweet, rather than the darker more soy and plumish flavored Japanese yakisoba sauce. A nice choice for a light, quick and inexpensive bite as long as you are not looking for authenticity.

A noodle kind of day. Paul and I enjoyed a quick lunch at Tha Siam in Larkspur the other day, a place I reviewed first last February.

The lunches came with the soup of the day, which was a lovely coconut based soup with hints of lemongrass.

I enjoyed a vegetarian Pad Thai, which was really good!

Paul enjoyed beef Pad Kee Mow, which contained thicker rice noodles, basil, onions and peppers. He reported it was one of the best Thai dished he'd had in a while. This place remains highly recommendable and has lots of light, and cheerful hosts!

Fresh leftovers. The day after I made the fresh tofu and tatsoi treat, I woke up and made small iron skillets of less than 24 hr old tofu with mushrooms and tatsoi saute with egg. I enjoy making these individual egg treats and putting the hot fry pan on a wooden trivet for a nice breakfast presentation. I just started the leftovers frying then poured two beaten eggs on top. I finished these in the oven.

It was a great high-protein breakfast with eggs that fluffed up in these heat-retaining iron pans. I loved that everything was used at its most healthful and delicious peak!

Happy New Year!!

How are you celebrating? Did you enjoy a New Year's Eve party? Drink some champagne and kiss? I rang the New Year in with friends Jonathon & Toran (Jo-Ann stayed home with a sickish Aurelia) at a Gary's, a new friend in San Rafael, whose friendship with Jonathon dates back to high school, who has an entire room (and more) devoted to live, quality musical instruments, particularly percussion instruments. We made Glögg, sipped and jammed, and jammed some more. Toran, who is eight had such a good time; he just wound himself up more and more... he wasn't a bit sleepy when I left a little before 12:30 a.m. How many musician friends do you have that are so patient as to be an island of peace while neighborhood kids and friends loudly bang drums, cymbals and off-key piano notes and electric guitar notes randomly for hours? The genre of music was definitely of a certain era, lots of Grateful Dead, Eagles, and Beatles songs and songbooks tucked everywhere.


Aside from the reveling, New Year's Day has a lot of traditions, but there are a few I enjoy keeping. One philosophy is to do things that set a pattern for the New Year. So although I didn't want to set a pattern of sleeping in, I did. And for breakfast I made fresh local eggs from the farmer's market, homemade biscuits, and used up the last of my 'best' tea, the English Carmel tea that my host sister in Hokkaido sends me. That was to set a pattern for good food, and abundance, having no second thoughts about finishing up special things right now, as more is sure to come! I'll have to get to the store to buy some fresh black eyed peas to eat for good luck, keeping my mother's southern tradition alive, and I'm also going to use a talent that I've been trained to use effectively (intuitive healing) to assist someone in need, setting another positive pattern for the upcoming year. One thing I'm not doing though, is making New Year's resolutions, since these have never been effective for me... have they been for you?