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a chronicle of food: a sampling of the best captured memories of 2011.

What is it that drives us to remember those meals? You know, the ones that we salivate over profusely, cause our stomachs to growl, and when we close our eyes, we dream of eating? And, I have done my share of eating this year. Regardless, there are days where I breathe food, or rather, where I associate those special times with certain experiences. We all have them. These are mine from 2011.

Who doesn’t love breakfast? When I was pregnant with the little girl, I would hallucinate about warm, newly baked bread, fresh squeezed grapefruit juice, and poached eggs. Chef Andrew Weissman of Il Sogno serves his eggs truffled alongside rosemary potato and hickory bacon. Il Sogno, besides being known for having some of the best coffee in town, also makes their own jams and honey lemon marmalade.

If you have not tried The Monterey in Southtown San Antonio, then you are truly missing out. Out of all the restaurants in San Antonio, you can count on El Monty to change up the menu on a consistent basis. One of my favorite food memories from the fabulous garden patio is from the Offal Tasting Menu. Chef Quealy served up chicken hearts, Korean BBQ style with a tangy kimchee sauce. I will admit, I am a sucker for offal. This dish was executed perfectly, not overdone, and not oversauced.

Food trucks have become quite the distraction these days. One of the original food trucks in town belongs to Chef Jason Dady, aptly named the Duk Truck, which I associate with his expertise in duck confit. The bird is prepared in traditional confit style, pulled, and then arranged on a mantou bun with cucumbers. Doughy, plain, and light, the bun itself does not take away the flavor of the duck, and allows the cucumber to penetrate the comprehension of the dish.

The Sandbar Fish House & Market, located at the Pearl Brewery, absolutely has the best seafood in town. Flown in daily, you can choose from oysters, sashimi, ceviche, and countless others. Chef Chris Carlson served up this halibut sashimi, complete with lemon foam, radish, and micro greens.

Now I am not one for tiramisu, but this dessert by Chef Bruce Auden’s Biga on the Banks gets a thumbs up from me. Rich and creamy, without the slightest sogginess, this particular dessert was one of my favorites this year.

Now sometimes you must toot your own horn. This year, the sommelier and I participated in the San Antonio half marathon. The night before, I prepared this delicious pasta with clams, mussels, and scallops in a white wine butter sauce. It was a great way to get our carbs in.

On our sommvacay to Napa this year, we had the pleasure of dining at quite a few places. Market in St Helena provided a very pleasurable lunch, where I dined on farm fresh avocado, roasted red pepper, and free range chicken on homemade focaccia bread. The spring salad had farm arugula and pine nuts in olive oil and vinegar. Delicious.

Bin 555 is a neat little restaurant tucked away in Artisans Alley in North Central San Antonio, and is also run by Chef Jason Dady. Probably my favorite charcuterie eaten this year was served here. The rabbit charcuterie, complete with pickles, radishes, and micro greens laid in stone ground mustard. Presented beautifully, I felt as if we should be sitting in New York, LA, or Chicago. The marbling was flawless, the rabbit and micro greens blended perfectly with the mustard. Even the pickles and radishes were clean and fresh, local, and contributed to the essence of the dish.

Every few years my mother’s family has a reunion in St. Marys, just outside of Shiner. This year we were served Janak’s sausage from Hallettsville. Old fashioned and hickory-smoked, this Czech sausage, made in Texas for generations, is the best you can find.

This seafood tostada from Mustards Grill in St. Helena was worth every bite. Salmon topped with cabbage, black beans, and a red sauce eased my hunger and provided enough protein to make it through the rest of the day tasting wines. A surprisingly light dish, it also surprisingly paired nicely with the Chardonnay that the sommelier chose for lunch.

The sommelier and I escaped to the garden patio of The Monterey on his 35th birthday, complete with hungry industry folks. Not only were we able to enjoy a reasonable priced Chianti (or two), but the highlight was a dessert that QuealyQ brought out himself. A chocolate dipped HoHo served with crystallized ginger and topped with sea salt. The mixture of sweet and salty fashioned quite a memorable experience.

Now I wish I had pictures of our most memorable meal of the year, eaten at Cyrus in Healdsburg. I could explain the dishes in detail, even display our menu, but it just isn’t the same as seeing it in person. The tasting menu, the wine, the atmosphere: it rivals French Laundry in everything but price. There Cyrus has the floor. I can only say this: go there. You won’t be disappointed.

I am hoping now that the little girl is getting a little older, we will be able to take more trips and create more food memories. Up for 2012: Italy. I won’t even hesitate. Bring on the new year! Cheers and much food happiness to us all.

cremini mushroom stuffing, fried Cajun turkey, and Vin Juane

Well, the Howe Thanksgiving was certainly a success, our families enjoyed the time together, as well as the dishes, which were a first for some. This post contains detailed recipes for a few dishes, and loose recipes for others. By and large, we try to season everything to taste.

I started preparing a few evenings before, peeling 4 celery root and 1 potato, simmering for 40 minutes with 4 cups chicken stock, 1 tsp salt, and 2 tbsp thyme, and pureeing for our bisque. It didn’t take as long as I thought it might, and it tasted pure and delicious. I refrigerated until Thursday, when I reheated on the stove with 1/2 cup of whipping cream, then added chopped thyme to garnish.

The gougeres were delicious, and simply a must try for any Holiday party. Little Rhea and I made these ahead of time, froze them, and reheated them to serve. We started with 1 stick of butter which we melted on medium heat in a saucepan, added 1 cup of flour, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 cup of water. Once blended, we added one egg at a time, whisking to smooth consistency each time, until 4 eggs were added. Meanwhile, we cut the corn from 2 fresh ears and roasted them at 400F. To the dough mixture, we added 4 chopped crispy slices of hickory bacon, 5 ounces of cheddar, 2 tbsp of Parmesan, 2 tbsp of fresh chives, and the roasted corn. We spooned the mixture onto parchment covered cookie sheets, about 1/2 inch in diameter, at baked at 375F for about 30 minutes. These were an instant hit with everyone, especially the kids.

As always, the sommelier brought in some great wines for us to sip on all day. We enjoyed some Proseco Italian Sparklers with our appetizers, which were mixed with Central Market blood orange or pomegranate Italian Sodas. Because we mixed the wine, we used non-vintage Zonin Proseco.

We forewent Haricot Verts for local green beans from Hondo that we found at Central Market. The herbed butter consisted of tarragon, parsley, shallots, and lemon zest.

The cider glazed carrots were simmered in fresh cider from Fowler Farms (New York), butter, cider vinegar, and water. Salt and pepper to taste.

The stuffing was one of my favorites. We browned about 8 cups of cubed Pullman Loaf in the oven (400F for 15 min), which were able to find fresh at Central Market (saving us loads of time). In the meantime, we browned about 8 medium shallots, diced, in 1 stick of butter, and added 2 pounds of sliced cremini mushrooms and 2 cups of chopped celery. We also added 2 tbsp fresh sage and 2 tbsp of thyme. Once all the liquid was evaporated from the saute pan, I added about 3/4 cup of white wine to deglaze. I choose to use Barefoot Sauvignon Blanc for my cooking wine, as I support their business model, and it is priced reasonably (about $5.97 at HEB).

We emptied the toasted bread into a large bowl, then poured the mushroom mixture on top. In a separate bowl, we whisked 4 cups of chicken broth with three large eggs, salt, and pepper, which we then added to the mixture. We transferred the stuffing to a baking dish, and baked at 400 for 30 minutes. To ensure the stuffing was crisper, we added pats of butter to the top of the mix before baking. Once cooking was complete, we added fresh parsley to garnish.

The potatoes were mashed through a strainer with roasted parsnips and garlic, then blended with whole milk, butter, salt and pepper.

At dinner, we enjoyed a 2005 Vecchia Cantina Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, a Sangiovese with notes of dark plum and cherry and a hint of tobacco. We decanted the nectar for about an hour before drinking.

We had two turkeys this year, one roasted and one fried. The sommelier used a Cajun Butter Injection for the fried turkey, whereas we brined the roasted turkey. Either way, they both turned out fabulous. The sommelier also prepared the gravy, in which we used turkey neck stock and pan drippings for the base.

The sommelier always does a fine job with the cranberry sauce. This year, he mixed the fresh cranberries with 1 cup of sugar, 2 tbsp of rum, and the juice from 2 tangerines. He set on medium heat on the stove until desired consistency. Salt to taste.

My sister Karen makes this pumpkin cream cheese pie. I am unsure of what she does, but it is always delicious!

My mom helped me make this apple and raisin crumble pie; I note that baking is not my forte. I did make the crust, however, adding just a few tsp of apple cider vinegar and using ice water to keep the dough flaky. The filling was made with 6 peeled and cored granny smith apples, sliced, with 1 cup of raisins, 1 cup brown sugar, 2 tsp vanilla, 1.5 tsp cinnamon, 3 tbsp flour, and grated lemon peel. We also made the crumble using cinnamon, butter, brown sugar, salt, and flour. Not bad for my first apple pie, if I say so myself!

Our dessert wine was truly special. The sommelier bought out the good stuff: a 2001 Arbois Vin Jaune. Made from Savagnin, this 8 1/2 year aged wine has the nose of almonds and the palate of dry sherry.

Since we only host Thanksgiving once every four years, the sommelier and I both know that next time around, things will be different. Perhaps simpler, perhaps more likened to Rhea’s tastes. This year, though, I truly enjoyed the challenge of our complicated menu, even if I needed an extra glass bottle of wine to get through it all. Cheers!