cooking in a kitchen you’ve never been to before is always a challenge. if you’ve ever been a caterer, personal chef, or just a really generous stranger, you’ll know what i’m talking about. in amongst the usual stress that comes from planning and executing a menu, are a number of troublesome questions. questions such as: “can i assume they have olive oil?” and “what will i do if there isn’t an oven/microwave/fire pit/tea light candle?” well, i found myself asking these very questions in the third week of my u.s. trip.

you see, we’d been invited to the home of a sister of a friend who lives in san francisco. despite having never met her before, she generously allowed me the use of her kitchen, as i was by that point having saucepan withdrawals. so, all that was left to do was to plan a menu, go to wholefoods and debate whether or not she would have pepper. 

after arriving at her absolutely beautiful home and checking out the ridiculous view, i quickly realised i needn’t have been so worried. our lovely host had a near professional kitchen with every oil/condiment/spice under the san fran sun. it was every cook’s dream. well, apart from finding a companion whose favourite hobby is washing up.

after some hurried prep, i dished up the first course: beef carpaccio. there was no denying it was a risky move. during a lengthy discussion with the butcher three hours earlier, i had frightened visions of being arrested at my hotel the next day after murdering these kind strangers with inappropriately prepared raw meat. despite this, i found a beautiful flank steak and went for it. paired with capers, parmesan, micro greens, lemon and a classic mustard vinaigrette, the result was rather delicious. as an added bonus, everyone survived.

next up was another potentially risky dish: fennel and white chocolate risotto. yes, in case you were wondering, i am a masochist. sure, it sounds crazy, but i had seen this flavour combination done before and thought it was high time to have a crack at it myself. and you’d be surprised how fantastic it works. simply add a few pieces of good quality white chocolate to the risotto just before serving, instead of cream or butter. make sure you season well, and i promise it will still taste savoury and not like rice pudding. top with scampi, prawns, crab, fennel fronds or scallops, as i did here. 

the risotto was paired with my favourite “o” salad. no, not oprah- orange, olive & onion. with a bit of “b” for good measure (basil). i’m sure you can figure out why i don’t list that initial in the title…

also, a very basic frisee & bacon salad. just fry up the bacon in a bit of olive oil. (not extra virgin) once crispy, chuck in a chopped garlic clove then remove from the heat. after it has cooled slightly, remove the bacon with a slotted spoon, then pour some balsamic vinegar directly into the pan. swirl around, and pour over frisee (also known as curly endive). add the bacon and you’re done. please note: this image was taken pre-salad tossing. i realise that looks like an enormous amount of bacon. actually, let’s be honest, it is an enormous amount of bacon. 

dessert was a spiced dark chocolate pot de creme with coffee, cayenne pepper and cinnamon. our fabulous host had some gorgeous oval brulee ramekins which worked well. baked for half an hour in a bain marie then topped with whipped cream. though incredibly rich, it was a satisfying end to an enjoyable night of cooking for some lovely company. particularly as they have all lived to tell the tale.

stay tuned for (yes) yet another edition of the grain of salt u.s. food tour..

now, i am not what you would call vegan or vegetarian. but my dear friend bec is, so you could say i’m a vegan sympathiser. you may remember bec from my vegan bolognese post- not only is she a vegan but she is also celiac. “no animal products or gluten?” you say. i know, those are my favourite food groups too.

despite not being nutritionally impaired (i believe this is the pc term for it), i do often enjoy a bec-friendly meal, but what i enjoy more is dining at a restaurant where she has more options than a) the garden salad, hold the dressing or b) the fries, though the latter is often a desirable meal.

with this in mind, and considering we were on her home turf (a city scattered with uber healthy options, and scientology “churches” incidentally) we went to a vegan restaurant called cru, which is not only also gluten-free but raw as well. all forms of dietary concerns quashed in an instant! cru is located in silver lake, along with several other cool food spots and a fedora-load of hipsters, as it turns out.

we started our meal with the tomato & basil bruschetta. considering it was not technically “cooked” and had no gluten, it was an excellent bruschetta. how refreshing!

of course, the joy of our delectable appetiser was to be hampered upon the arrival of our main meals. you see, when at least 75% of your diet consists of very starchy carbohydrates (as mine does) your appetite is distorted so greatly that no meal will satisfy you unless it has real bread/pasta/potatoes. get where i’m going? it’s really sad/worrisome for your health. so unfortunately, while joe king’s (see previous post) taco salad was delicious….

and my vegetable “curry” was positively flavourful, t’was sadly not enough for us. which is why, after dinner we went to a pub and i (shamefully) devoured this:

no, i’m not proud that i needed to eat a giant plate of pasta after a lovely, fresh vegan meal, but that’s what happened, okay? please note, this anecdote offers no indication of the quality of cru’s food, which is delicious, rather a troubling insight into my dietary behaviours. 

scary. oh well, on to the next restaurant!