Halloween party at Lana's, Richmond, SF.

I loved these little shots! I'm not sure what exactly went in them, but I know there was some jalapeno and sliced green grapes! I loved the grapes in this drink! Very refreshing.

Yummy chips and cheeses and dips!

A guy dressed as a "Burger-lar" brought these In-N-Out double burgers! Too great!

I was a Mad Men-esque 50's housewife! Lana has this great updated vintage stove that went so perfectly with my outfit! :) Note: the cigarette is only a prop, of course!

Thanks for hosting one amazing party, Lana!

Yummy drinks & apps and the Cary.Lane 2 Year Anniversary Party, Hayes Valley, SF.

My man Cary knows how to do it with style! For the 2 Year Anniversary Party of his new location in Hayes Valley, Cary.Lane went all out! We started with some free drinks in this amazing basement side space.

Then moved along to some yummy treats from a few Hayes Valley neighbors: La Boulange, Paxti's Pizza and Dolic Bar.

Rad party, Cary! Happy Birthday! :)

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Chef's Crab Fest at Bistro Boudin, Fisherman's Wharf, SF.

Bistro Boudin and Glodow Nead were kind enough to invite me to a special media dinner previewing crab season at Boudin.

We started off the evening with a little tour of the vast Bistro Boudin space (upstairs) at Fisherman's Wharf. Among other attractions, they have a neat Boudin museum and private banquet room. You can schedule to tour the museum and bakery here.

The Boudin bakers must have so much fun with these creations.

The main dining room. I love all of the dark beams and openness.

We were seated in a cozy private table in the Buena Vista Carneros Tasting Room, which was perfect for our event.

Chef Misael Reyes with Casey Shaughnessy-Gray of Glodow Nead. Chef Reyes, who is originally from El Salvador, was once Francis Ford Coppola's personal chef. He is also the only non-family keeper of Francis Ford Coppola's mother's recipe book--very cool.

Chef Reyes and prepared a lovely, crab-centric menu for us that was nicely paired by Sam, the Buena Vista Carneros Tasting Room manager.

Dungeness Crab Louis - Fresh Picked DUngeness Crab with Deviled Eggs, Avocado, Bibb Lettuce, Asparagus, RIpe Tomatoes & Louis Dressing.

Paired with 2008 Condes de Albarei Albarino

The crab was fresh, light and delicious. It went perfectly with the slightly tangy Louis (Thousand Island) dressing and mix of vegetables.

Dungeness Crab Mac & Cheese - Aged Vermont Cheddar Cheese, Fresh Cream & Freshly Picked Dungeness Crab with Buttered Soughdough Breadcrumbs

Paired with 2007 Buena Vista Carneros Chardonnay

Light, creamy and delicious. The crab wasn't overwhelming, but was present and, most importantly, the mac & cheese wasn't too salty or greasy. I happen to particularly love mac & cheese with shell pasta, too.

Soughdough Tortilla Taco - Fresh Dungeness Crab with Avocado, Red & Green Cabbage, Cilantro, Crema Fresca, Pico de Gallo & Roasted Tomato Salsa

Paired with 2008 Sagelands Riesling

Boudin's twist on fish tacos? A soughdough tortilla, of course! What a fantastic and fantastically Boudin idea! The tortillas were great, especially since I'm not typically a huge fan of corn tortillas. The crab was, of course, wonderful although they also offer fish tacos on their menu. The Roasted Tomato Salsa could have used a little more kick though--it was a little bland for my taste. The wine was my favorite wine of the evening though, and, more than the others, really enhanced the flavors in this dish.

Here is a photo of the full-sized portion of the Sourdough Tortilla Tacos. Thank goodness they cut down the portions for our dinner--even with our portions I walked out absolutely stuffed!

Cioppino - Dungeness Crab, Shrimp, Calamari, Mussels & Fish Simmered in a Spicy Saffron-Tomato Broth

Paired with 2007 XYZIN Zinfandel

What a beautiful dish. The calamari and mussels were just divine. They were cooked perfectly. My shrimp was a bit overcooked, but other than that, I really loved this dish. The crab was fresh and succulent and the broth--oh goodness, the broth! I loved the broth, especially with the toasty sourdough garlic bread.

The full-sized portion. Again, such beautiful presentation.

Left to right: Casey of Glodow Nead; Jason and Lizzie of ABC 7Live; Scott of Bistro Boudin; Susannah of YumSugar; Alison of Glodow Nead; Steven of the Nob Hill Gazette and myself.

I had to get a shot of all of us with our crab bibs on! What a fabulous group of people to enjoy a wonderful evening of food and wine with. It was lovely meeting you all.

Trio of Creme Brulee - Double Vanilla with Wafer Cookies; Peanut Butter with Ginger Snaps; Bittersweet Chocolate with Manjari Wafer.

Paired with 2007 King Estates Pinot Gris Vin Glace

What can I say.. I love dessert and I love modern creme brulees! I was already completely stuffed, but couldn't help myself! The peanut butter and dark chocolate were my favorite--so lovely.

A nice little cappuccino to finish off the evening. I only wish I wasn't too full to finish it!

Scott Shuttleworth, a managing partner at Bistro Boudin, and fabulous co-host this evening. Scott was a generous to provide each of us with a Boudin tote filled with all sorts of goodies--very classy.

I really love this tote. I'm going to cary it everywhere.

This limited Boudin baseball cap isn't even available in the gift shop!

Buena Vista Carneros 2007 Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

A crab, of course! This is surprisingly soft, too. And as much as I love dungeness crab, I think I'm really going to enjoy this soughdough crab, too!

Bistro Boudin, Glodow Nead, Buena Vista, Casey, Alison, Scott, Chef Reyes and Sam, thank you all so much for such a lovely evening. Cheers to crab season!

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Great cooking tips on NPR.

Flat Zucchini Break? Stuck Chicken? Get Advice.

I just heard this on All Things Considered. The lady gives a few simple, but must-know cooking tips.

Fantastic catering from Balance Catering at the Audyssey loft party, SoMa, SF.

I wasn't able to get photos of the food, but the servers were wonderful and the food was even better! Good mix of tartare on chips, sushi, sliders and other yummy treats! I hate to say it, but these hors d'oeuvres were better than the ones we had earlier in the evening at 25 Lusk.

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Dishcrawl & Jersey Tomatoes' Chef Battle: Jewtalian tonight at the Cova Hotel, Tenderloin, SF.

I get to go to this tonight and I'm SO excited! A HUGE thank you to Christian and Jersey Tomatoes/Split Pea Seduction and to Dishcrawl! It's going to be an epic culinary evening!

Here's a sneak peek look at the menu:

-Round 1-
Gagutz
House Cured Baccalà Salad with Hand-Shucked Ceci Beans, Roast Gypsy Peppers, Shaved Celery, Lemon and Arugula

BBC Elite pouring: The Harvest Negroni-
Gin, Campari, Sweet Vermouth, and Crushed Grapes...

vs.

Big Blue
Cured Sockeye Salmon and House-Smoked Whitefish Salad w/ Heirloom Tomato, Half Sours, Caper Relish and Pumpernickel


-Round 2-
Gagutz
Escarole and Baby Meatball Soup with Shaved Parmesan and a Poached Farm Egg

vs.

Big Blue
Free-Range Chicken and Fall Vegetable Soup with Kreplach

BBC Elite pouring: Dvash Frizzante, (a true blending of Italian and Jewish) - Fresh pear, honey, sage and lemon with sparkling wine


-Round 3-
Gagutz
Cherrystone Clams with Herbs, Crusty Bread and Mlinzi

BBC Elite pouring: 2009 Ruffino Orvieto Classico

vs.

Big Blue
Matzah Brei w/ Carmelized Onion, Leek, Chantrelle Mushroom, Micro Greens, House Ketchup and a Six Minute Egg

BBC Elite pouring: 2008 Francis Ford Coppola, Sonoma Chardonnay, "Directors Cut"


-Round 4-
Gagutz
Manicotti with Hand-Rolled Braciole and Pork Ragu

BBC Elite pouring: 2008 Bolla Chianti, Tuscany

vs.

Big Blue
Vidalia Onion Braised Brisket with Fingerling Potatoes and Chantenay Carrot Tzimis

BBC Elite pouring: 2004 Semler, Saddlerock Malibu Estate Grown, Cabernet Sauvignon


-Dessert-
Fennel, Gravenstien Apples and Toasted Nuts

Aveda Tea obsession.

I have a little cup of this tea every time I go into Aveda. It's one of my go-to gift products, too, but I have never purchased it for myself. I don't drink a lot of tea, but should get into it and I think this is the tea that will help me get into it. It's so yummy with the licorice root and mint!

Tea! Yay. This was my first time using this teapot. I had this whole pot! :)

My other favorite Aveda products are Brilliant Universal Styling Cream, Hand Relief, and Rosemary Mint Shampoo.

Momo's before Opera at the Ballpark, South Beach, SF.

Onion rings. Very nicely battered and fried.

Momo's is Richard's favorite so we went to have some drinks and food before heading to Opera at the Ballpark! I had press entry so it was nice not having to wait in the massive lines! Thank you SO much, SF Opera!

Cheese fries. These are just okay.

Wings. No complaints.

AT&T Field, home of the SF Giants. I love seeing crowds like this and it's always so fun to be out on the field, hanging out, eating and drinking with friends. :)

The SF Opera's Aida, telecasted from the Veterans War Memorial on Van Ness. The opera was fantastic, but we only stayed through the first half because it was freezing!

Hello Kitty birthday cake and Karaoke Party at 111 Minna, SOMA, SF.

111 Minna was perfect for Tamiko's private karaoke party. I love singing with that girl! You'd better believe we busted out some Shania and Dixie Chicks! ;)

Would you just look at that cake!? Hah! I love it. So cute. And this was massive, too (you can't really tell from the photo)! I don't know where the cake was from, but it had chocolate filling with a raspberry jam layer. The cake was very light, which isn't my preference for chocolate cake, but it was nice.

On a side note, the September art exhibit at 111 Minna, Everyday, is beautiful. Here is a piece by artist Mike Davis.

Fun finds from Murphy's and Jamestown, CA.

After visiting the Mercer Cavern's we decided to walk around the town and see what Murphy's, CA, had to offer! It's the most adorable little town and they had this great estate sale where I found this frosting spatula for $1! What a find! :)

Then I found this fabulous apron for $6 (and then 20% off!) at a antiques store in Jamestown, CA. Now, I won't be wearing this apron while cooking, but it's still super cute! :)

Hosting the SFS Team Outing: Three Papaya's Brunch & Screen-printing at Levi's Workshop, Mission, SF.

I hosted my first SF Station team event! It was very exciting and I want to give a special thanks to everyone who came out and made it a success!

Papaya Salad at Three Papayas. Ta-wei, Vivienne and Matty at the Three Papaya's treated us to two of these! So sweet!

One of the specials, a lotus root salad with chicken. Mmmmm.

Another one of the specials! The pig's head with Spanish rice and a fried egg. This is apparently a Filipino dish and was very interesting!

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After brunch we all headed over to the Levi's Workshop for some excellent screen-printing! I surprised the crew with a special illustration made by our current SF Station Local Artist, Charmaine Olivia! Thank you, Charmaine, for the amazing illustration! And a special thanks to Levi's Workshop and Turner PR for making this all happen!!!

My bossman, Chris, workin' the screen!

Our amazing screen-printing pro, Henrik! Thank you for everything! He is holding up the first part/color of our print.

Here is a photo of my finished t-shirt! You can see the other layer here (in gray). I LOVE what Charmaine designed for us and love how it looks screen-printed! I'm so happy with how today went and can't wait to plan more events!

My Indie Mart Bake Sale benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society at Thee Parkside, Potrero Hill, SF.

The little sign I made for my first self-run bake sale! :)

Our setup at Indie Mart! We got a nice shady spot in Thee Parkside's patio area right by the bar!

Left to right: Butterscotch coconut chocolate chip cookies, small lemon bars, chocolate chip cookies, large lemon bars. The cookies were 3 for $2, small lemon bars $1 and large lemon bars $2.

Strawberry cake balls with chocolate and coconut.

Lemon cake balls with white chocolate and nuts / lemon peel.

Chocolate mint cake balls with chocolate mint coating and mint flakes.

Birthday cake with white chocolate and sprinkles.

Chocolate cake with chocolate and sea salt.

My girl Emily was our 2nd customer! Yay! BIG THANKS to all of my friends who came out to support my bake sale and to support Indie Mart! You guys are amazing! Much love! :)

And this girl was super adorable and loved my cookies! :)

The rest of my photos from Indie Mart are here! Such an amazing event and a HUGE thanks to Kelly Malone for letting us set up and do the sale!

We were out there from 11:30am - 6pm and made a total of $350 for my friend Chris' Team in Training benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society! :) SO MUCH FUN!