Recipes

Recipe and photo by Judy Doherty    

Here are two healthy dishes by Leslie Dabney, the Vineyard Mom @thevineyardmomliving, whose farm-to-table recipes promoting local farmers’ markets are a hit with her many followers. Her Red Lentil Pasta with Lemon, Garlic, and Kale offers a tasty serving of legumes along with the nutrient-packed kale and aromatics. The Crunchy Cabbage Salad with Salmon lets…

Anyone who shops at Monterey Fish Market at 1582 Hopkins in Berkeley has likely met Bris and Linda, “two amazing ladies who keep the place running every day,” as the market management posted on Instagram. Just before Christmas when shoppers were crowding in for their Feast of the Seven Fishes supplies or grabbing crab cakes…

  In the dairy business since 1919, the Rumiano Cheese Company is the oldest family-owned cheese company in California and is a pioneer in organic artisanal cheesemaking. They recently helped launch a program that promotes procurement of organic food for California’s K-12 school cafeteria programs, and also helps children understand the journey of their meals…

If you’re among the anything-but turkey-for-Thanksgiving contingent, here’s a chance to practice two fall recipes that are could easily compete for Best of the Feast. They’re from Livermore resident Leslie Dabney, aka the Vineyard Mom, whose farm-to-table recipes promoting local farmers’ markets are a hit with followers of her frequent podcasts and TV appearances and…

    Livermore resident Leslie Dabney, aka The Vineyard Mom, is on a quest to elevate people’s cooking, dining, and wine pairing experiences. Her specialty is farm-to-table recipes and love stories that promote local farmer’s markets. She has a loyal list of followers on IG @thevineyardmomliving who enjoy her recipes and tune in as well…

  When Chef Dirk Tolsma of ACRE Kitchen and Bar offered up this recipe for our Valentine’s Day newsletter, he said he couldn’t stop thinking of the two dogs slurping the same strand of spaghetti in Lady and the Tramp. Now you, too, will be thinking of those adorable dogs as you try out Chef Dirk’s…

  Here’s a recipe that truly shows off spring’s fresh asparagus, peas, and fava beans along with garden herbs like mint and chives and the winter season’s new extra virgin olive oil. I much prefer a fruity, grassy extra virgin olive oil with mild to medium intensity for this dish, and suggest seeking out one…

Dip your toes into Hoppers: The Cookbook with one of chef Karan Gokani’s lamb or chicken curry recipes. It you want to dive into a street-side Sri Lankan experience and assemble your own kothu, you might pair that curry with chopped roti (skillet bread) plus whatever vegetables, eggs, cheese, etc. you like. Hoppers: The Cookbook…

Reprinted with permission from The Woks of Life by Bill Leung, Kaitlin Leung, Judy Leung, and Sarah Leung, copyright © 2022. Photographs by Sarah Leung and Kaitlin Leung. Published by Clarkson Potter, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC. To purchase the book, follow this link on indiebound.com, where you can buy your copy through…

From Tanya Hollands’ California Soul: Recipes from a Culinary Journey West by Tanya Holland

(Fusilli with Goat Ragù from Cilento) Recipe, text, and photos excerpted with permission from Pasta Grannies: Comfort Cooking by Vicky Bennison, photos by Emma Lee, published by Hardie Grant Books September 2022, RRP $32.50 Hardcover. Click here for a book purchase link.     Franchina lost her mother when she was nine years old; she died at…

Story, recipe, and photos by Alexander Christiano     This sandwich is a great way to celebrate the abundance of fall fruit. I elected pears for this version, but apples and other pomes would serve as a seasonally appropriate substitute. Some neighborhoods in the East Bay have pear trees that produce an incredible yield—sometimes too…

Winter weather has arrived! Perfect timing for this mac & cheese makeover recipe from writer Nora Becker, who was inspired to create it after interviewing farmers at the Saturday Berkeley Farmers’ Market. Read the story of that fun and informative visit here (and find three more recipes)!      

Chef Peter Callis of the Table Catering in Berkeley took some pointers from celebrity chef/entertainer Alton Brown as he layered up numerous alluring umami flavors in his red sauce and meatball recipes. His deeper inspiration, however, came from his favorite local organic and regenerative farmers and ranchers, who he visits weekly for his ingredients. Check out…

By chef/photographer Judy Doherty