A St. Mary's College chemistry professor turned her science students into baking buddies last month for a four-week exploration into the chemical properties of yeast, leavening -- and really tasty cinnamon rolls.
The kid is back in town. That means long lines outside Russian River Brewing Co.'s downtown Santa Rosa brew pub and lots of voice mail messages on brewer Al Gorton's phone.
Some people watch the Super Bowl for the gridiron action, some for the halftime hubbub. But a really great Super Bowl party begins with the food -- and when it comes to party fare, these Bay Area football fans have put the extra in extravaganza.
Home cooks may be a diverse bunch, with all their different tastes, philosophies and preferences. But on one thing they all agree: There's no such thing as too much macaroni and cheese.
Lovely Livermore: Set aside any thoughts of taco joints. Livermore's new El Sacromonte offers gourmet, regional Mexican cuisine that evokes romance in its very dish descriptions -- a corn quesadilla is infused with rose petals and drizzled with strawberry sauce, crepes are stuffed with vegetables
New at Valley Fair: Finally, there's culinary action on the other side of Stevens Creek Boulevard. Westfield Valley Fair has a new sit-down restaurant -- remember the old California Cafe space?
If pie, macarons and/or cake pops are the new cupcake, then surely meatballs should be the new bacon, says Rick Rodgers, the prolific New York City-based food writer.
These gray winter days can be brightened with a little citrus sunshine, and this is peak season for a citrus variety that boasts not only brilliant color and flavor, but also one of the worst names in the produce world.
It's only polite when you're invited to dinner to ask whether you can bring something. When I'm giving a dinner party, I'm often stumped to answer the question, though. Wine geeks can bring wine. But for anyone else, my knee-jerk response is to say no. I've slowly come to realize, though, that it's not at all the right response because it leaves the guest frantically trying to figure out something suitable to bring and, in the end, makes the whole thing more painful than it needs to be.
