24 Hours at Fisherman's Wharf - San Francisco

After a group tour through Sonoma, I gifted myself one day of solo time in the Fisherman's Wharf neighborhood. With only 24 hours on the clock before I returned to the airport, I arrived at the Best Western Tuscan Inn, where the valets looked like gondola pilots in their black and white horizontal-striped shirts and black straw hats. The hotel lobby resembled a casual and cozy Italian manor, with a rear window that looked out on a multi-level terrace full of potted flowers and greenery, and small trees. A sign reminded guests about the free happy hour offered every evening, and I vowed to return from my adventures in time to socialize.

I put on my warmest jacket against the February chill, and set out on foot. The smell of salt water, and uncharacteristically blue winter sky, lifted my spirits. I explored Pier 39 and then headed to the other end of the Wharf where I met a writing acquaintance and S.F. resident, for a private wine tasting at a new wine store. Fueled by great food and drink, I returned to the streets with stops at Ghirardelli, Boudin Sourdough and several other food purveyors.

As the sun set I walked briskly towards the hotel again, where I joined a large crowd of ruddy faced guests before a roaring fire, still wearing fleece and scarves as they sipped wine and munched on freshly made bruschetta. Conversation flowed as it often does in a room full of strangers without agendas or previous connections and I found myself talking with a couple visiting from Ireland.

Before we knew it Jackie and I had talked for nearly an hour beyond the last guest's departure. Only then did I realize how good my comfy bed and soft pillow sounded.

Beachside Buffet

I bet when you read the name of this post you thought that I would figuratively whisk you off to some Caribbean island. On the contrary, this beach was in our living room last weekend - and still is because I find it tough to give up. But the plastic leis and honeycomb paper parrot and fish mobile have been stashed away until next year, and most of the leftover food is gone.

The occasion? Our 12th Annual Winter Doldrums Party, which is our attempt to snub our noses at Midwestern winter weather for one night, every February. But this was the first time I thought to overturn the unattached top of our coffee table, fill it with five pounds of sand and arrange my shell collection and candles across it. Definitely a cheap 'keeper' for decor at future parties.

One nice thing about having an annual party is that you learn what recipes work well from year to year, while making adjustments for a little variety. Sometimes, though, you've used a recipe so many times that you think you know it by rote and so don't recheck how it's written.

Such was the case this year, with the Rum and Lime Sauce for Melon Balls (Three Rivers Cookbook, 1973). A crowd pleaser since our second or third party, the original recipe involves a little cooking and some sugar. This year, I inadvertantly put lime juice and rind and rum in a measuring cup and then simply poured it over the melon. The taste ended up fresher and lighter!
Some party fare was as simple as blue corn chips with black bean dip and guacamole, or shrimp with dipping sauces. One of our fave shrimp dips is Creamy Cilantro Sauce - an ancient recipe from our local newspaper. To a mayonnaise base, you add lemon juice, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, green onion and lots of cilantro leaves, with salt and cayenne to taste.
Polynesian Meatballs joined our list of favorites about five years ago (Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book, 1996). To lean ground beef you add egg, bread crumbs, cilantro or parsley, garlic, red pepper, chopped peanuts, and a little salt. They're baked and brushed with sweet and sour sauce.

We've got other favorites too, tho' the camera doesn't always cooperate when I'm rushing a bit while also trying to play hostess. They include Teriyaki Chicken served with Thai Peanut Sauce (sauce from This Place Called Home, A Kansas City Cookbook, 1998), and Summer Vegie Skewers from another ancient newspaper page (see recipe below).

But the best part of this party is how much fun we have hosting our friends from all walks of life, including work acquaintances, neighbors, parents of our daughter's public school friends and - this year - one of my high school buddies (and his lovely wife) who I reacquainted with last spring through Facebook, 35 years after we last saw each other.

And, of course, we get to escape winter's grip for one night, every February.

Summer Vegie Skewers

Serves 6-8

For the marinade:

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup cry white wine

1/4 cup finely chopped basil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary (VOE - may substitute dried rosemary, but not the powder)

1 tablespoon finely minced garlic

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

4 ears corn, husks removed (VOE - since there's rarely fresh corn available at this time of year, we use frozen/thawed corn on the cob)

4 medium-sized zucchini (about 1/2 pound each), ends trimmed

8 ripe plum tomatoes (VOE - we long ago substituted cherry tomatoes for these, and pierce them with a toothpick so the marinade can penetrate them)

Combine marinade ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. Cut the corn and zucchini into 2-inch lengths. Halve the plum tomatoes crosswise. Add all of the vegetables to the marinade and toss well. Set aside to marinate for 4 hours, at room temperature, stirring occasionally.

Thread each of eight 12-inch skewers with a piece of corn, zucchini, tomato half, zucchini, tomato half, corn. Grill the skewers over hot coals, 3 inches from heat source, for 5 minuts on each of 4 sides or until the vegetables are cooked through, basting with any remaining marinade. Serve immediately, garnished with rosemary sprigs.

(VOE - we began to cook each vegie on separate skewers many years ago, because of their differing cooking times. This year my grill-master husband cooked the corn directly on the grill rack and tossed the others in a special grill top pan with air holes throughout. The results were terrific.)

For more of these recipes, contact me at thestoryteller@everestkc.net

Above It All - San Francisco's Coit Tower

During 5th and 6th grade my family lived in Walnut Creek, CA, a suburb of Oakland. On rare occasions, we crossed the bay to San Francisco, such as seeing the premiere of the Sound of Music on Mother's Day, or enjoying lunch in Chinatown with our Girl Scout troop. Coit Tower always intrigued me as it stood high above the pulsing city, but I never had a chance to visit.

When I visited Fisherman's Wharf last February, I was still on a tight schedule with no time to stop by the tower. However, at 9 a.m. on a chilly winter day, the 210-foot-tall structure still towered above the urban landscape to the east. Poised atop the 285-foot-tall Telegraph Hill, Coit Tower was clearly visible in the early morning light, surrounded by hills full of steep walkways and pastel-painted cottages.

But the next time I visit San Francisco, I'll finally make my way up Telegraph Hill, where visitors can see a 360-degree view of the City by the Bay including the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, and the famed curves of Lombard Street. The tower was commissioned by local philanthropist, Lillie Hitchcock Coit, in honor of fire fighters who battled blazes that resulted from the 1906 earthquake. The tower, built of unpainted reinforced concrete, also offers a history museum, and murals that depict Depression-era working class life in California.

Seventy-five years after it was erected, Coit Tower remains a picture postcard favorite and a San Francisco icon.

Lunch With a Side of Railroad Atmosphere

It's been years since my husband and I took our young daughters for cooked-to-order burgers and shakes with a side of railroad atmosphere, at the original Fritz's Railroad Restaurant in Kansas City, Kan. Trains have continously run near the ceiling here since 1954 and, in 1990, a second location opened at Kansas City, Mo.'s Crown Center Shops (pictured above).

We placed our order by a phone at our table as the girls put on cardboard engineer hats. Our waitress brought beverages and then the 'Skat Kat' delivered our food. From the train track overhead, a mechanical arm gently placed our order on the table and then moved on to the next booth. My chocolate shake was divine and fries got kudos too. We also heard the chili was outstanding.

Apparently, the shakes and chili still deserve outstanding marks and this place can get packed, particularly around lunchtime, and especially at Crown Center. But trains running overhead and food delivered by a mechanical arm remain two great reasons to check out Fritz's Railroad Restaurant - at either location.

If you love trains and diner food, this is a place you shouldn't miss.

Gingerbread Bites - Thanks, James Beard

In 1980, when I constantly baked bread of all kinds, I received a copy of Beard on Bread that promptly became dog-eared.

Today, with an upcoming party that requires finger food and a jar of molasses that was crying to be used, I revisited James Beard's gingerbread recipe - and then made a few changes. I know, I know, that's almost sacrilegious, but as much as I love to play in the kitchen making changes was a foregone conclusion. Here are my:

Gingerbread Bites

Makes 24 mini cupcakes

+ a few large ones

1 cup dark molasses

5 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup boiling water

2 teaspoons powdered ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup oatmeal, ground fine

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup walnuts, ground

miniature muffin pans for 24

24 miniature muffin papers

(also, large muffin pan and papers for extra batter)

Icing recipe, below

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grind oatmeal to a fine 'flour' in food processor, and set aside. Grind walnuts; set aside.

Stir together molasses, butter, and boiling water until butter melts and ingredients combine. Add ginger, salt, and baking powder. Stir in oatmeal flour and combine thoroughly, then stir in flour and walnuts.

Place small muffin papers in pans and fill each paper 3/4s full; fill larger muffin papers/tin as needed. Bake 20 minutes until springy when touched (VOE - two potholders work better than one to remove them; something about how little 'border metal' there is around each muffin hole). Cool completely and top the center of each cupcake with 1 teaspoon dollop of icing. Keep refrigerated.

VOE - it takes longer to fill mini-cupcake papers than regular

VOE - large cupcakes require 30 minutes baking time

Icing

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 tablespoons Neufchatel cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons confectioner's sugar

1 teaspoon molasses

Cream together butter, cream cheese and confectioner's sugar. Stir in molasses.

Food & Wine at Seghesio Family Vineyards

No tour of Seghesio Family Vineyards, in the Sonoma Valley, would be complete without a visit to the tasting room where a weathered piece of wood under glass forms a sort of 'centerpiece' for the table. "When we created this tasting room, we incorporated Angela's pasta board into this table, to preserve it," says Rachael Ann Passalacqua Seghesio, the company's matriarch, as she affectionately pats the board used by her mother-in-law, Angela. Rachel Ann then leads us to our wine and food pairing while regaling us with more family history and recipes.

The 400-acre family-run winery began in 1895, and the Seghesio name adorned five wine bottle labels by 1983. Today, half of all Seghesio vines grow zinfandel grapes, and the winery's 80-percent Sonoma zinfandel has been ranked among the nation's top 100 wines.

The family built their first wine tasting room - including Angela's pasta board - in 1997, and added a private tasting room 10 years later. Private food and wine pairings have become so popular that they are available every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with walk-ins welcome. For $25 ($15 for wine club members) visitors enjoy a meal that uses many organic and local ingredients, and changes every month. And, with enthusiastic family members available to answer questions, this food and wine pairing is a delightful wine country experience.

Renaissance Dining at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

It's been 75 years since the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art opened in Kansas City, Mo. Internationally recognized for its inventory of more than 33,500 art pieces, including renowned collections of Chinese and photographic art, the museum also offers another treasure - the truly lovely Rozzelle Court Restaurant.

When I moved to this area during the '70s, the court was more of a courtyard garden set amidst 15th century Italian architecture and sun-drenched openness. But all that changed, in 1981, with the addition of a ceiling full of skylights, and a restaurant that has become a museum centerpiece.

Self-service dining keeps prices affordable but there's no shortage of seasonal gourmet fare, from Greek Chicken Wheat Wrap with Grilled Chicken Breast, Provolone, Lettuce, Tomato, Cucumbers, Kalamata Olives and Honey Dijon; to Nelson Chicken Salad with Fresh Fruit and Candied Pecans; and Roasted Turkey with Turkey Gravy, Buttered Pasta, Squash and Roasted Red Peppers and Fresh Baked Roll. And you'll have a tough time choosing dessert, from biscotti to Mississippi Mud Bars and Nelson Key Lime Pie.

But perhaps the best part about eating here is the atmosphere. It's not often you'll find yourself dining in the U.S., in a 15th century Italian courtyard.