Jalapeno

Sausage and Pickled Jalapeño Pizza: An Ode to San Francisco

July 18, 2014

I was recently in San Francisco for a few days, with my better half and I have to admit that I’m still on vacation mode. It’s so hard for me to return from any sort of trip, whether it’s a week long or just a day, and get back into the right mindset to work. Does that happen to you guys as well? Please tell me it does, that way I don’t feel totally guilty for feeling this way. This laziness to be an adult is hard to shake off, especially after a great getaway.

San Francisco is one of those places where I can actually see myself living in (if it wasn’t so darn expensive). The best thing it has going for itself—aside from the calmness and laid back people—is the amazing weather. Can we talk about how it always seems to be just the right amount of sun and warmth mixed in with the perfect amount of fog and coolness? Los Angeles has too much sun for my taste. I can say that, I was born and raised here. Too much sun and too much heat, at times. Do we even have any cool bridges here? Incidentally, one day we overheard a tourist confuse the Bay Bridge for the Golden Gate Bridge, telling anyone who would listen, to snap a picture in front of the famous Golden Gate Bridge, but that’s okay because SF does have a lot of bridges. I don’t blame you, tourist. I do blame our hotel room view for making me want to do nothing but stay in bed all day long and just peer out into the beautiful city, adding to my laziness.

I wasn’t really allowed to lay around on the trip though, because we had a lot scheduled in such a little amount of time. We took a twenty plus mile bike ride—through the Golden Gate Bridge (the real one) and up north to some Old Mill town—that was insanely beautiful but at the same time, it was insanely tiring. We got way too much sun (one of us more than the other) and saw some killer red woods which sort of made it all worth it. The beers at the end of the bike ride though, that’s what got me through the end. I did almost get blown away by some gusty winds on the bridge, but that’s a story for another time.

The most important part of the trip was the food, of course. We pretty much ate our way through the city and I don’t regret a thing. There are an unbelievable amount of restaurants throughout SF, it’s kind of insane. Everywhere you turn there’s something delicious calling out your name. We devoured an entire tray of fresh oysters at Hog Island Oyster Co. and some mussels and fries and one too many baskets of bread. But who’s counting? Certainly not me. Julian took me to a tiki bar one night, called the Tonga Room which I swear I can live in for the rest of my life. Did I mention there’s indoor rain and tiki huts with little lights involved? Well there is, and it’s awesome.

I gulped down so many watermelon beers at 21st Amendment Brewery, that I lost count. (Sorry mom!) It’s my new favorite beer, that’s all you need to know. My favorite fruit mixed into beer? Yes please. A million times yes.

The most memorable meal we had, however, was actually on our first night, at a restaurant in Russian Hill called Gioia Pizzeria. We gorged on a simple arugula salad, a spring pesto pasta dish, and the best pizza I’ve ever had. Said pizza was just the right amount of thin crusty dough, sprinkled with house made sausage and pickled jalapeños. We both sort of looked at each other after that first bite and telepathically communicated to one another just how amazing it was. We came back home rather depressed that we had to leave, but I knew that I needed to recreate that meal anyway I could. So here I am now, going on and on, talking your ears off about my trip. Reminiscing about the delicious food and fun times. This super long intro was basically to say I fell in love with this pizza and that’s why I made it for you guys.

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Bacon Cheddar Jalapeño Corn Dogs

June 13, 2014

I’ve been wanting to make corn dogs for the blog since for as long as I can remember. In fact, I’m like 99% sure that I wanted corn dogs to be my very first recipe/post. I said, “Jonathan, you should totally make corn dogs as the first ever recipe/post on this new blog you want to start!” Unfortunately, as life would have it, it didn’t work out that way, and I ended up making a cinnamon swirl loaf instead. I wasn’t upset or anything, I happen to love cinnamon and bread is sort of my weakness, so there were no complaints here. I kept telling myself that corn dogs would be the next post, and then the next post and the next. Each post came and went, and as you know, corn dogs always got cut. So flash forward to me now, about two and a half years later (or is it three already? I really can’t remember at the moment) and corn dogs are still no where to be found. Until now of course.

Whenever I wrote it into the schedule of upcoming posts, something would always come up, be it a holiday or special day, where corn dogs just didn’t seem to fit. Now I know what you must be thinking, “Corn dogs always fit, Jonathan. Always and forever.” You’re right they do. That’s where I dropped the ball. I wasn’t thinking straight. I didn’t realize that by continuing to push corn dogs down the long list of upcoming posts I would be depriving not only me, but you as well. Corn dogs are delicious and I’m happy I finally got around to fulfilling my deep fried, corn battered hot dog dreams (with a few jazzed up ingredients of course). It’s hard for me to do simple on here. Don’t get me wrong, I love simple recipes. It’s just that I think you all deserve better than that. Plus, how can you possibly tell me that bacon and cheese and jalapeños don’t make everything better. They really do.

Sure it’s summer and I should be making lighter dishes and sharing healthy recipes that don’t require too much time in a hot kitchen. Sure, I should be doing that, but somehow my brain isn’t getting the memo. Somehow, I keep craving rich comforting foods, loaded with cheese and bacon and butter. I’ll get around to that “healthy” cooking and eating at some point. Right now, just let’s enjoy the moment. This moment being hot dogs on a stick, coated in a corn, bacon, cheddar cheese and jalapeño batter, and deep fried until crunchy and golden brown. Did I mention there’s a sweet and spicy honey mustard dipping sauce involved?

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Jalapeño Cheddar Corn Muffins

June 18, 2012

Smoke is everywhere. No matter what you do you cannot escape it. You try desperately to breathe. To let some sort of fresh air into your lungs, so as to relieve the burning – at the back of your throat – from the smoke and coughing fit you just endured. Your eyes begin to water and tears start to stream down your face. It’s something you cannot avoid because the two go hand in hand. You wipe them away from your eyes as if this will allow you to suddenly see what’s going on around you. The chaos that has ensued for the last twenty minutes seems like it is never going to come to an end. You pick up a scrap piece of cardboard, you find lying on the concrete ground, and you begin to fan the smoke away. You move your arms rapidly, in an up and down maneuver similar to a bird about to take flight. Desperately seeking to clear a path, not sure if what you are doing is helping or making matters worse. Yet through bursts of light you see the gray smoke fading into the clear sky. As the haziness all around you begins to dissipate, you catch sight of the now taming fire. Your mind back on track at the task at hand. The once frightening flames emitting from the tiny grill are now docile and manageable. You chuckle and think to yourself how silly it all was, and say a little prayer thanking the universe for not sending the fire department your way.

Now that the smoke scare is over, you dump the flaming coals out of the chimney and into the grill. Replace the grate and begin to cook dinner. Lazy weekend evenings go from uneventful to fun and exciting in a matter of minutes. It isn’t so much the food that you cook – for it could be a simple feast of hamburgers and hot dogs – but rather the experience of having people over and cooking outside. Everyone gathered around in the backyard, throwing back some cold ones. Music playing softly in the background, the distinct chatter of the guests rising through it all, as the sun begins to set and the smell of grilling meat is all around. The splash of water from the pool is a welcoming sound with the refreshing feeling of happiness. Happiness because you look around and realize that all you’ve ever needed is right there around you. Surrounding you. Hugging you. Good food, good company and the prospect of good memories on the horizon. With the content feeling that many more days like these, await you all summer.

As this warm season approaches – three days to be exact – we begin to welcome afternoons at the park or evenings spent outside barbecuing. Where people do not shine in the kitchen, it seems impressive that they shine in front of the grill. Perhaps it’s the whole experience. The lighting of the wood or coals, and the idea of being in command of something semi-dangerous. Whether it is an extravagant feast on the fire or a simple meal for the modest, outdoor eating is something to treasure especially during the warm months of June and July and August. It allows us all to step out of our comfort zones and experience something fun and thrilling. Perhaps potlucks to friends and neighbors’ homes are what you’re used to. Whatever the case might be, there are certain recipes that are meant to be made for particular occasions. When talk of grilling, barbecues, potlucks, or outdoor eating arises, corn bread automatically enters my mind. It invades my train of thought, one of which I cannot shake off. The idea of the sweat and savory along with such classic dishes of potato salad, grilled chicken drenched in barbecue sauce with the crisp, coolness of coleslaw. You need something to mop up all those delicious accouterments. A bread treat of some sort. So when the corn is in season and the stalks are up and high above your head, and you have more ears than you know what to do with – roast the hell out of it – and make yourself a big batch of corn muffins. Throw in a few treasures like jalapeños, scallions and cheddar cheese and watch the face of those around go from happy to ecstatic. Who knew that corn muffins had that affect on people? Or rather, who knew that summer could be so much fun?

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