{LA Weekly} World travel at Bäco Mercat

It may be land-of-the-bäcos, but Bäco Mercat serves up much, much more than flatbread sandwiches.  ​The lunch and dinner menus change daily and include a couple of dozen specials. On a recent evening, diners could choose from small plates of salads, vegetables, cheeses, meats, fish, and pasta.  And there are waffles for breakfast, as I reported in the LA Weekly. Jonathan Gold has observed that the menu mixes “flavors from Italy, France, and Western China, Georgia (U.S.) and Georgia (eastern Europe), Tuscany and Peru.”   I decided to research some of the more unusual ingredients to see what he means…

Cubeb pepper: This pepper is native to Indonesia.  According to Spices Inc, “Cubebs have a pleasant aroma that is pungent, lightly peppery with hints of allspice.” Read more here. Dish: Crispy head-on shrimp with sea salt, cubeb-long pepper.

Fava bean: This bean with the buttery texture and nutty taste is often described as “ancient.”  It has been grown and eaten in many regions, including Asia, the Middle East, South America, North Africa and Europe. Dish: fava bean fritter bäco with poblano feta, chickpea, salmorejo.

Harissa: Hot chili sauce from North Africa. Dish: el cordero [lamb] with merguez, harissa, chevre.

Lebni: Strained yogurt with the consistency of sour cream, said to have a sour or tart flavor.  It is Eastern Mediterranean, and sometimes described as a cheese. Dish: Zataar and olive oil with lebni.

Long pepper: This pepper was used centuries ago in early African, Indian, Indonesian and Mediterranean style cooking. Today it’s not widely used. Read more here. Dish: Crispy head-on shrimp with sea salt, cubeb-long pepper.

Manchego: This cheese was originally made from the milk of sheep in La Mancha, Spain.  Dish: “Deli meat plate” with pork belly ham, prime rib, and manchego.

Merguez: Merguez sausage, usually made with lamb, has its origins in North Africa. Dish: El cordero “coca” [baked crispy flatbread] with merguez, harissa, chevre.

Morcilla: This is a type of blood sausage typically made with pig’s blood, rice, onions and spices that derives from Spain.  Dish: Morcilla with potato, butter, and socca.

Pecorino: Italian cheese (encompassing a variety of types) made of sheep’s milk. Dish: Marinated pecorino with chile flake.

Rapini: Also called broccoli raab and and Chinese flowering cabbage, rapini is a leafy green often used in Italian and Chinese cooking. Dish: Rapini with chile and preserved lemon.

Romanesco: Romanesco is a type of cauliflower that resembles broccoli.  It is not to be confused with romesco, the Catalonian sauce.  Dish: Roasted romanesco with anchovy, garlic, cilantro.

Salbitxada: A sauce from Spain’s Catalonia region featuring tomatoes and almonds.  Dish: the original bäco – pork belly and beef carnitas, smoked aoili, salbitxada.

Salmorejo: A creamy, cold tomato soup from Cordoba, Spain.  It’s richer than a gazpacho.  Dish: fava bean fritter bäco with poblano feta, chickpea, salmorejo.

Socca: A thin, crepe-like dough made out of chickpea flour.  Dish: Morcilla with potato, butter, and socca.

Zataar: Middle Eastern mixture of thyme, sumac and sesame seeds. Dish: Zataar and olive oil with lebni.

Bäco Mercat Gets Expanded Hours + Why The Chef Looks So Tired

By Daina Beth Solomon Fri., Dec. 2 2011 at 1:37 PM

Lemon Pound Cake / D. Solomon

​Josef Centeno has had his plate full since his new restaurant, Bäco Mercat, opened its doors in early November. Good thing it’s only half a mile from the Lazy Ox Canteen where he continues as chef.We recently found Centeno perched high on a ladder outside Bäco Mercat wielding a squeegee. It was his first day off in weeks, he said. “But I guess I’m still working,” the chef-owner added with a shrug as he wiped another window clean.There’s a reason for Centeno’s high spirits. “After a great soft opening, Bäco Mercat is happy to announce our grand opening,” he tells us in an e-mail. The downtown L.A. restaurant is now open Monday through Saturday with expanded hours and is taking reservations.

Read the full article here.

{Lotus Kitchen} Turkey sandwich with kabocha spread

Sandwich with leftover turkey and kabocha spread. / Daina Beth Solomon

Who else is still eating turkey sandwiches?  I am, and I’m not even tired of them yet.  That’s because I have kabocha spread.  See the orange goop oozing out of the sandwich in the photo above?  Just kabocha (winter squash with a Japanese name) that’s been baked with sugar, salt and oil, pureed, and mixed with sour cream.

When you give a food blogger a camera…

The food bloggers who lunch. / Daina Beth Solomon

How do you teach a dozen LA Weekly bloggers about food photography? With plenty of naan, chicken tikka, dal soup and sautéed okra from Tara’s Himalayan Cuisine in Culver City.  

My editor arranged this lunch for us food writers to learn how to take delectable shots of the meals, drinks, and restaurants we write about.  At the LA Weekly, unlike the LA Times, writers are largely responsible for their own photos.  And original shots are ALWAYS best.  But they have to be good, almost professional-quality.  At lunch, art editor Darrick Rainey was on hand to offer a tutorial.  We crowded around two tables, splitting our attention among Darrick, cameras, and the food.  Here were some of his tips:

• Lighting is the biggest concern.  When you need to use flash, try to diffuse it by covering the flash with a thin, white napkin.  The darker the photo, the more pixelated it looks.
• Next, consider composition.  Horizontal photos are the best for the web. Follow the rule of thirds – the subject should be slightly off-center.  (Like still life paintings, one writer commented.)  Get close enough to see detail, but far enough to understand the context.  (My editor: We must be able to see what the food is!)
• Your focus should primarily be food – not the building or people inside. Shoot so that the background looks slightly blurred.
• Take a lot of photos!  You can never be sure which will come out best.  Also, you never know what a photo might be good for – perhaps an entirely different article.
• Be ready to shoot fast – no one likes to hang around a table with food getting cold.

‘Tis the Chinese food season

The sign. / Josh Levy, via LA Weekly

‘Tis the season – for Chinese food.  As every good Jew in L.A. knows, Christmas is the ideal time to devour dumplings, noodles and soup in Alhambra, Monterrey Park, or the San Gabriel Valley – today’s true Chinatowns.  While Gentile families carve their holiday hams, Jews go out for what has become their traditional holiday meal: Szechwan duck, egg foo yung, fried rice and fortune cookies.

Now, the “Chinese Rest. Assoc. of the United States” wants to thank “the Jewish people” for eating its food on Christmas.  (At least, according to a hand-written sign in Northhampton, Mass.  Check out the LA Weekly post here.)  No problem, I say right back.

Of course, I have always been a Chinese food fan.  Once, I told my preschool teachers I was Chinese.  What else did they expect?  It was “cultural diversity week.”  The lessons at my multicultural preschool were about race, nationality, ethnicity and background. My teachers explained that people express culture with their favorite family recipes.  Well, in my family, there was plenty of Shanghai Garden take out. 

{LA Weekly} Catching up with restaurateur Jason Michaud

More news from Jason Michaud at the Grand Central Market courtyard: Flander’s Frites is in, serving its Belgian fries alongside sandwiches from Local Express, and both eateries will begin breakfast service.   Meanwhile, construction continues at Red Hill, Michaud’s Echo Park restaurant.

Red Hill Opening Soon + Local Express and Flander’s Frites Serve Breakfast

By Daina Beth Solomon Tue., Nov. 29 2011 at 7:27 AM

Local Express and Flander's Frites at the Grand Central Market courtyard. / Daina Beth Solomon

​When we spoke to Local’s Jason Michaud in October, he was reluctantly shuttering the windows at Chimú, Grand Central Market’s Peruvian eatery. (Michaud was a co-owner along with chef Mario Alberto.)

Now, Michaud’s new plans are falling into place: Local Express (an offshoot of the Silver Lake Local) has established itself in the old Chimú spot. Flander’s Frites, selling Belgian fries, arrived in mid-November to share space and collaborate. Beginning this week, the two will serve breakfast at 8 a.m., and stay open until the market’s close at 6 p.m. Soon, they’ll offer curbside pick-up, Michaud says. Meanwhile, construction continues at Red Hill, Michaud’s Echo Park restaurant. The opening date of Dec. 1 has been tentatively pushed back to Dec. 13 — his 40th birthday.

Read the full article here.

{Lotus Food Photo} Heirloom tomato with glass pumpkin

PLANT ART: An heirloom tomato accompanied by a precious glass pumpkin / Daina Beth Solomon

I’m hoping the heirloom tomatoes craze will inspire new varieties of plants hearkening back to earlier times.  How about vintage potatoes?  As long as they’re cute and colorful.  After all, isn’t that really why we love heirloom tomatoes?  As a recent LA Magazine article points out, “They come green, purple, pear shaped, even striped!”   The tomatoes in my kitchen right now are pretty typical, though – red and bulbous.  I couldn’t help but notice that one tomato bears a striking resemblance to a glass pumpkin.  

(Why do I have a glass pumpkin?  Actually, it’s a collection of little glass pumpkins.  My mom and I used to live in a house owned by a Finnish glass maker, Seija Gerdt.  Her pieces were gorgeous, and we acquired many.)  

So I asked myself:  Who says an heirloom tomato can’t hold its own next to a precious glass pumpkin?

Turkey talk

A heritage turkey...so magnificent! / Rodale Institute

This year, it seems Thanksgiving cooks aren’t as concerned with how to prepare their turkey than with ensuring its top-notch pedigree.   They shop at Whole Foods, seek “organic” and “free-range” labels, shun Butterball, and might even order a “Heritage Turkey” – so named because they are the same wild breeds the Pilgrims ate.

The LA Times commented on these upscale birds in an article today, quoting various turkey sellers:

“Customers are much more into food now than they were a few years ago because of food magazines and TV shows,” said Theo Weening, global meat coordinator for Whole Foods. “People want to know where the bird comes from, what breed it is, how it’s been raised.”

In my opinion, the current “food trend” has been influenced by much more than magazines and TV, although those venues may be two of the most visible.  So many elements of our culture and daily lives seem to scream “Food is important and you gotta care!”  (Some of this is misplaced, I believe, but that’s a topic for another day.)  

I, too, am interested in my turkey’s provenance, breed, and upbringing.  Here’s what I know:

My turkey…

• is from Mary’s Turkeys, owned and operated by the Pitman family since 1954
• bears the slogan: “Free range – taste the difference!”
• comes from the Central Valley, where the farm has “areas four times the size of the average commercial turkey ranch.”  (To relieve stress. For the turkeys, not the farmers.)
• was fed on a vegetarian, high-protein diet of healthful grains
• contains no antibiotics, animal by-products, hormones, preservatives or additives.
• is organic
• boasts “Complete Traceability to Farm,” according to the package
• cost about $40 from Whole Foods (Let’s not forget that some Thanksgiving cooks don’t have the means to splurge.  Shopping organic and free range – not to mention “heritage” – simply isn’t an option for many. And is Butterball really all that bad?)

Does all this mean my turkey will taste better?  We’ll see tomorrow…  but I’m guessing it will.  (And the apple sage brine should be a lovely addition.)  Certainly, the part of my conscience that cares about humanely-treated poultry will be satisfied. 

*Update: 11/24/11, 6:15 pm

And here it is!

My organic, free-range, 10 lbs Mary's Turkey / Daina Beth Solomon

{Lotus Food Photo} Banana Cream Pie at the Pie Hole

In the world of today’s Digital Revolution, also called the Information Era and the Attention Age, you are not just a food writer.  You are most certainly a blogger, too.  And most likely a budding – if not accomplished – food photographer.  I began my exploration into this field last summer.  My first food photos might have been at Hwa Sun Ji, an adorable coffee shop in Koreatown that I visited with fellow food-loving friends Sophia and Mimi.

See?  Here’s the proof, in a photo by Sophia from her blog:

I snap a photo at Hwa Sun Ji in Koreatown, summer 2011. / Sophia Lee, www.burpandslurp.com

But my interest in photography had begun before, during an internship at the LA Times writing for Calendar.  I worked closely with many photographers and photo editors, and their talent and dedication amazed me.  Collaborating with Anne Cusack on a James Franco story and Kirk McKoy about a historic L.A. framing shop, for example, fueled the desire to understand those little buttons on my Nikon Coolpix.   Thanks to tips and encouragement from Hal Wells, Ken Kwok and Kirk McKoy – photo editor friends with desks conveniently down the aisle from mine – I began to learn.

Still, most of my best shots, I’m convinced, are just flukes!  But I want to celebrate photo successes both accidental and intended.  After all, we eat with our eyes before our mouths.  And I’d like the chance to share my encounters with beautiful food with Lotus Bites readers.  So, about once a week I’ll post a particularly mouth-watering photo.

For the first in this series, called “Lotus Food Photo,” I present an image from the Pie Hole.  I visited this new bakeshop across the street from Wurstkuche in downtown’s Arts District last Saturday and sampled the Banana Cream Pie.  To be honest, it looks better than it tasted.   Ah, the magic of photography.

Doesn't it look imposing, despite the humble brown paper? / Daina Beth Solomon

{Lotus Kitchen} Cooking with Campbell’s

Turkey Tetrazzini

I admit it – I cook with Campbell’s soup!   Are you a foodie-friend shooting me a withering look of disdain?  Pity?  Whatever.   Some of us can’t cook Julia Child every night.  And yes, some of the dishes from “Treasury of Campbell’s Recipes,” a cookbook of my mom’s from the early ’90s, have names like “Easy Chicken Paprikash” as if “easy” were a flavor.  Not to mention “Shortcut Tuna Lasagna” and “Foolproof Beef and Broccoli” and “Everyday Broccoli Cheese Chicken.”  But last night, I made “Turkey Tetrazzini.”  A nice, moderately sophisticated name that doesn’t even have “casserole” in it – although that’s just what it is.

A word on casseroles wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the essential reading – MFK Fisher’s “Neither Censure Nor Disdain.”  The essay appeared in the fabulous anthology “Secret Recipes: The New Yorker Book of Food and Drink.”  Fisher begins her contemplation of this most common American dish as such: 

Yet, the “Turkey Tetrazzini” was created in America.  San Francisco, in fact, in the early 1900s.  Apparently, it was named after Luisa Tetrazzini, an Italian opera star.  (When I say “apparently,” I mean according to Wikipedia.)  I guess the name stuck.  Suits me – a quarter of my family is Italian and I like to believe us Italians have made big and lasting contributions to this country.

The key ingredients are Campbell’s condensed Cream of Mushroom soup and turkey leftovers – perfect for the season, right?   You mix that with milk, Parmesan cheese, onion, sour cream and zucchini (but I substituted eggplant from a local Japanese market).  Then add cooked spaghetti, spoon it all into a Pyrex dish and stick it in the oven for half and hour.  It was delicious – a total comfort food made elegant with cilantro garnish.

I am reminded that casseroles need not stand for mediocrity.  How can they, when “casseroles are here to stay for a long time,” as Fisher suggests?  She writes:

* * * 

Consider this the first in a series about the food I cook called “Lotus Kitchen.”  Be warned: there just may be more Campbell’s.

Ode to the fork

After nearly 2 years of planning and debate, a group of Pasadena residents finally got their big wish when the city let them permanently stick their fork in the road. / Gary Friedman, Los Angeles Times

A giant fork has been erected in Pasadena, according to the LA Times.  At 18 feet tall, it is more than 25 times the height of your average utensil.  It was placed, initially, as a jokester’s birthday present – to mark a “fork in the road.”  But I think Pablo Neruda would appreciate the majesty it exudes.  The Chilean poet’s Odes to Common Things similarly make the most mundane objects seem big and significant.

Here’s an excerpt from “Oda a las cosas” (Ode to Things”) that opens the series:

I have a crazy,
crazy love of things.
I like pliers,
and scissors.
I love
cups,
rings,
and bowls -
not to speak, or course,
of hats.
I love
all things,
not just
the grandest,
also
the
infinite-
ly
small -
thimbles,
spurs,
plates,
and flower vases.

Neruda doesn’t write about the humble fork, but he does contemplate the spoon.  The author traces its history from design by “man’s / most ancient hand” to the point when “spoons / started turning up / all over the world /in ever / more / perfect / form.”  Finally, he envisions the future: “… a world / without hunger / and a total mobilization of spoons.”