radish -

by Emily

San Francisco: Land of a Thousand Brunches

I recently went to eat some food – uh, I mean, visit some friends – in the Bay Area. Kidding, of course my friends are first priority, but obviously any time you”re visiting San Francisco you would be doing yourself a disservice if you didn”t take advantage of its awesome culinary scene.

One thing SF does really well is brunch. Not only brunch, but boozy brunch (and honestly why are you going out to brunch if you”re not planning on drinking?), particularly mimosas. Search SF Yelp for “bottomless mimoas” and you”ll get over 100 results. Preach! No self-respecting bruncher is gonna stop at just one mimosa, let”s be real.

Just as mimosas are an integral part of brunch, eggs benedict is the brunch dish to beat. It”s indulgent without being completely devoid of nutritious ingredients (eggs! They”re good for you!), and it”s just a liiittle too complicated to want to cook at home on a regular basis, so you feel justified paying $13 for someone else to whip up that hollandaise. When getting brunch in the city that overflows with brunch, where to find the best benedict? Here you go:

Friday Fuck Up: Dry Pasta Salad

I thought it was a genius move. Actually, I thought it was the second genius move in just one dish.

At first I panicked when I saw only a 1/4 of a box left of the whole wheat squiggle pasta. How could I complete a proper salad for a birthday party with only a 1/4 box of pasta?! But then I spied some orzo. Who said pasta salad must only carry one type of pasta?

I thought, like I just said, that it was a pretty smart move. I compared cooking times and knew exactly when to drop each pasta into the salty cooking water. Bravo, Gansie, I said to myself. Actually, it might have been out loud.

Anyway, that worked out.

I run a mostly no-mayo zone in the kitchen. It’s not a strict rule, just something we don’t buy. (For fear that Bennett will suddenly make 14 peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwiches in a row. That’s right. I said peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwich.)

With the no mayo in my fridge, I reached for yogurt as the base. Oh, you darn nasty yorgurt. I think you fucked me.

An Alternative to the Butter Treatment

This past Saturday was my first day working at the Mt. Pleasant Far Mar. Yes. Far Mar. I think that’s what the folks in Oakland, CA call the farmers market and the Mt. P owner is from there so that’s how it goes. I love a good abbreviation so I’m all for it.

I have a feeling this season I’m going to be trying out a bunch new vegetables. Or at least vegetable that I don’t normally buy.

My friend Violette, a French girl, is a natural fan of radishes. She slices them and serves them with salty butter. While I cannot deny the simple goodness of this treat, I’d love to find more ways to enjoy this spicy vegetable. And not just in salads. Help me find creative alternatives.

Can you spin radishes into a sauce?
Use as a vehicle for a dip?
Serve under eggs?

Suggestions welcome.

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