Classes, Events, Appearances
Whole Foods Cooking Class
A Way with Chicken – How to Cut Up a Chicken and Get the Most from Each Part
18 May 2012
Whole Foods Sacramento, Arden Way, Sacramento, CA
Chickens, turkeys and pheasants are all related, and each presents the same challenge in the kitchen: The breast meat cooks far faster than the legs, thighs and wings. Most of us get around this by buying chicken parts, but you can save an enormous amount of money if you buy a whole chicken and start from there. I will walk you through the process of cutting up a chicken, and then give you tips on how best to cook each part of the bird. I’ll be cooking:
- Sauteed chicken tenders with homemade mustard
- Poached chicken breast
- Crispy chicken chicharones
- Braised Chicken Dordogne, a recipe from Southern France
The class starts at 6 pm. You must be at least 18 years old to attend, and this class is limited to 16 people. Cost: $30, plus the cost of a chicken. We will have some knives available, but if you have a fillet knife or a boning knife, please bring your own. Register online here.
__________
Clamming Expedition
5 June 2012
Bodega Bay, CA
This is it. The LAST decent clamming tide until autumn.
So if you want to find some clams, you’ll need to take a day off. Yeah, I know it’s tough, but the good tides are all mid-week. So I am organizing a mid-week clamming trip on TUESDAY, June 5.
Dead low tide is at 6:53 a.m., which means we’d need to be at the clamming ground at 6 a.m. sharp.
Here’s the plan: We gather at the clamming grounds bright and early. We should have about 2 hours to dig. After that, we swing over to a nearby coffee shop for The Nectar of Life and some breakfast. Then I show you how to clean your clams and offer some of the best ways to cook them.
This trip is limited to 10 people, and you will need to buy a California fishing license to clam. Cost: $45, includes clamming, food and a copy of Hunt, Gather, Cook: Finding the Forgotten Feast. I’ll also have some snacks for us all, too (charcuterie, cheese, bread and homemade pickles).
Email me at scrbblr AT hotmail DOT com to register.
__________
Wild Food Sacramento Dinner
15 June 2012
Enotria restaurant, 1431 Del Paso Blvd., Sacramento, CA
I am teaming up with the folks at Enotria in Sacramento to cook up a celebration of summer in Sacramento on Friday, June 15 — right before Father’s Day. The event is still in the planning process, but Chef Lance Carlini and I will be cooking up a multi-course menu of the best foods the region has to offer: Look for sturgeon, elderflowers, sea beans and maybe a little local duck. We will be pairing with a local winery to make this a special evening.
I hope you can attend. Call 916 922 6792 or email enotria@enotria.com to make a reservation.
_________________
Alaskan Writer’s Retreat
12-15 July 2012
Homer, Alaska
I will be taking part in a writer’s retreat lead by former New York Times food columnist Molly O’Neill at the Tutka Bay Lodge near Homer. Entitled, “Food, Nature and the Writer’s Wild Mind,” the event is intended to, as O’Neill says, “keen the senses and to expand the writer’s awareness of the rhythms and realities of the natural world and its effect on voice and point-of-view in food narrative, personal essay, blog posts and memoir.”
When you are not writing, there is fishing, foraging, nature walks and other outdoor activities to immerse yourself in the best of coastal Alaska. Cost: $1980. Cost includes all housing, meals prepared by award-winning chef Kirsten Dixon and house wines with meals. Two guided half-day wilderness adventures, all instruction and workshops as well as transportation transfers on the day of arrival and on the day of departure from Homer, Alaska, to Tutka Bay Lodge are included. Click HERE to register now.
