MattBites

Man O Man.

I get emails. Stuff like "Can you recommend a good camera for me?" or "Do you know of any restaurants around here?" or "I didn't raise you to be such a dork -- please call your father today." Oops, sorry Mom. Anyway, since a few have asked for personal recommendations of food products and places to go I decided to start blogging about a few of my favorite things over the next few months (thanks for the idea, Oprah... call me!) And why not? The holidays are coming up and it's always good to be prepared.

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The year was 1996. I had just moved to San Francisco from Chicago, finally ridding myself of those long midwest winters and trading them in for even colder summers in the Bay Area. All joking aside, it was an eye-opening experience for me and one that I embraced fully. I absorbed the California experience on every level and tasted my way through the City, spending Saturday mornings at the old farmers' market before it moved to the Ferry Building and familiarizing myself with local foods and personalities. I grew to love Peet's coffee (trust me, it took some doing), developed a huge crush on Albert Strauss, became obsessed with Tu Lan and all its horrors and discovered what eating fresh and local was all about.  Somewhere in there I discovered meyer lemons and instantly became obsessed with them. I started buying them whenever I could find them, matching them up with just about anything I could and realizing that while I may suffer from high cholesterol I will never ever develop a case of scurvy. Hallelujah!

With my meyer love affair still in full swing, I remember the first time I sampled a particular variety from O Olive Oil. Hmmm, the label said it was crushed with my lil yellow pals, but could it be good? I knew I didn't care for "flavored" olive oils, but I took a sip anyway (a strange concept to me at the time but now I realize it's a great way to get a complete mouthful of flavor) and felt my knees tremble and my toes tingle. I almost felt like fainting (ok I'm being overly dramatic but just go with it, k?) Holy crap, I thought, this is phenomenal stuff. And then I bought some. And them some more. And it went on tomatoes, on bread, on lox,  roasted chickens and even sardines with slices of celery and pecorino. And for 10 years it's been a staple in my kitchen. And I refuse to be without it - especially when we're not in peak winter citrus season.

Imagine my delight when I got the sweetest email from a company who was just sending out sweet lil emails to bloggers. But it wasn't just any company, mind you, but O Olive Oil. Now O Olive Oil needed no introduction from me -- they've made everyone's Top Ten, Favorite, or Awards list for several years already. And if you've ever tasted their oils you'll certainly know why. They begin by hand-harvesting ripe olives from Northern California and crushing them with organic meyer lemons, Tahitian limes, blood oranges or organic jalapeños to produce a variety of amazing olive oils. Crushed, not flavored. They've saved my butt from dreary dressings a million times, and they always impart that wow flavor to anything I cook. And lest you think I sound like a commercial for them (nobody paid me for this!), remember that I've been in food marketing for many years and can tell you the O story backwards and forwards!

So there. Today I'm spreading some California love to one of my favorite products ever. You can find them online or at specialty food stores. And don't forget their line of vinegars, too. Amazing.

You Were Always On My Mind

Lately I've been feeling nothing but love from my home state. Many of you have taken the time to come out of the shadows and say hello through emails, and when you do that it not only tickles me pink but connects me to my home state in ways you may not know. And then Texas Monthly shows up in the mailbox, news of best friends relocating from San Francisco to Austin trickles down, certain people remind me what I love most about home and before you know it I'm homesick and pining for an evening of two-steppin', sitting on porches laughing about life and downing another margarita.

I even still wear boots on occasion, you know.

The delightful Lauren from Austin just wrote me to talk typefaces (seems we're both art directors as well as food lovers) and mentioned to me that Austin now has this wonderful publication and I wanted to say how much it excites me. I've been gone from Austin so long but still remember all the quirky merchants, shops, farms and growers and it's nice to see that they're all still going strong. I'm definitely be sending in my subscription to Edible Austin so I can keep in touch with the food scene, and of course I'll always rely on my friend Melissa who always has the funniest and poignant tales to tell about the Lone Star State. I miss you, girl!

My bookshelf is filled with cookbooks I’ll never use. Although they’re beautiful and visually engaging, I simply have too many that will never be utilized in the manner in which they were intended. And I’m usually ok with that, as I may not necessarily purchase a cookbook to cook from, especially if it’s been designed or photographed by someone I love.

I recently received a copy of 50 Great Pasta Sauces by Pamela Sheldon Johns (Andrews McMeel Publishing) and can proudly say it won’t become one of the books that will sit on my shelf unused. In fact, I’ve already made two recipes from it this weekend alone and will probably end up working my way through the book. Let me tell you why.

Pamela Sheldon Johns is a well-known cooking instructor and holds culinary workshops in Italy. Her writing is accessible, friendly, with just the right amount of romance and recipe and ingredient history that I appreciate in a book. The book was designed by Jennifer Barry who has done numerous cookbooks and packages, and the styling was done by one of my food styling idols Pouké. Ok, so it looks good, but what about the recipes?

The book’s premise is that sauces are counterparts to pastas and can range from quick vegetable sautés to long-simmered meat sauces like Bolognese or Wild Boar sauce. It’s broken down into 4 categories for quick reading –vegetable, meat, seafood and dairy– with recipes that won’t take too much time to prepare. It’s simple, hearty, flavorful cooking that’s perfect for the weekday meal.

Scamorza and Greens Sauce  from 50 Great Pasta Sauces
Matt says: Pancetta with bitter greens in anything is one of my favorite combinations on earth, and this pasta dish is so utterly simple and satisfying and makes a great supper. If you can’t find smoked Scamorza cheese then substitute smoked Mozzarella as they are so very similar.

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 ounces pancetta, diced
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 peperoncino (small dried red pepper), optional
1 pound turnip greens, kale, and/or Swiss chard, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 pound dried pasta
3 ounces smoked Scamorza cheese, cubed

In a large sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the pancetta and onion and sauté until lightly browned, about 4 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic and peperoncino and cook until the garlic is just soft but not brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the greens and cook, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes, or until wilted. Add the chicken stock and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, to slightly reduce the liquid.

In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and transfer to a warmed serving bowl. Add the sauce and toss to coat. Sprinkle with the cheese and serve at once. Serves 6.

FYI: This book was submitted to me for a review.

Review: Seasoned Skewers

I just read a pretty fascinating article on Homaro Cantu of Moto in Chicago. Cantu is one of the gastronomical scientific renegades who is attempting to change the way we eat and think about food by fusing the science lab with the kitchen. You know what I'm talking about: menus on edible paper, synthetic champagne, food disguised as shapes that reveal their true identities once bitten, lasers, nitrogen, helium, class IV lasers, I could go on. I can't knock it because I've never tried his cuisine, but something tells me that I'm content with my kitchen and just a few pots and pans. I'm a simple guy.

Maybe it's timing or irony, but the second I finished the article a package arrived on my desk. I opened it to find an assortment of skewers that promise "15-minute flavor". Seasoned Skewers are flavored skewers that are infused with essential oils and herbal extracts in a variety of combinations. You put your unseasoned food on the skewer, wait 15 minutes, and cook.

Oh no, more food magic! I just don't know if I can take it. I mean, what's wrong with marinating the old fashioned way?

Reluctantly I gave the skewers a try.  I skewered shrimp, scallops and vegetables on the sticks, waited a bit and grilled.

Can you say amazed?

Can you say ingenious?



I really had one of those "why didn't someone think of this sooner?" kind of moments. It's clever, tasty, all natural, and fat and sodium free, too. The skewers come in Honey Bourbon, Citrus Rosemary, Thai Coconut Lime, Mexican Fiesta, Garlic Herb and Indian Mango Curry. I tried the Thai Coconut Lime and sure enough my food was flavored perfectly. Pretty aromatic, I'd say.

Ok, so it might not be polymer box filled with foam, but Seasoned Skewers sure do the trick when you don't want to do it yourself.