Summer 2021
About Our Cover Artist, Judy Doherty
Not all surprises dished up in 2020 were terrible. For Edible East Bay, the year brought the start of a fruitful collaboration with expert photographer and credentialed culinary professional Judy Doherty. This issue’s Pizzapalooza is the third recipe feature Doherty has contributed to Edible East Bay. The first was our Summer Harvest 2020 Farmers’ Market Grilled…
Read MoreBerry or Cherry Ricotta Toasts
From What’s in Season: a Visit to Brentwood
Read MoreWhat’s in Season: a Visit to Brentwood
At Berry Best Family Farm By Barbara Kobsar | Photos by Rachel Stanich I’m up for a trip. Are you? A mere 35-minute drive from my home in Walnut Creek brings me to trees now laden with fruit and fields full of berries. I’m heading out to pick fruit in the longtime East Bay…
Read MoreRicotta Baked in a Fig Leaf with Lentil Salad and Summer Squash Salsa
From Got Espelette Pepper? Fleur de Sel, Sel Gris? Banyuls Vinegar? Recipe by Chef Kelsie Kerr, Standard Fare, Berkeley | Photo by Judy Doherty It truly is the little touches that make the difference at the table. While good vinegar (like top-quality extra-virgin olive oil) may not be at the top of your…
Read MoreGot Espelette Pepper? Fleur de Sel, Sel Gris? Banyuls Vinegar?
Kitty Keller watches the peppers dry at La Maison du Piment. (Photo courtesy of KL Keller Foodways) Kitty Keller may have changed the way you eat By Cheryl Angelina Koehler “Snob foods,” Kitty Keller says facetiously as she pulls jars of specialty food product out of her purse. Well known among friends and associates for…
Read MoreMixed Berry Dessert Pizza
From Pizzapaloosa Recipe, photo, and video by Judy Doherty Makes 1 pizza Handmade pie dough for a single-crust pie (see recipe below) ½ cup lemon curd 1 cup halved strawberries ½ cup raspberries ½ cup blackberries 2–4 tablespoons raspberry jam Sprig of mint Dusting of confectioner’s sugar Whipped cream for garnish Preheat oven to…
Read MoreGreens & Burrata Pizza
From Pizzapaloosa Recipe and photo by Judy Doherty Makes 1 pizza ½ cup fresh basil 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 pizza crust (prebaked as at right) 1 cup baby spinach leaves 1 cup quartered artichoke hearts* 8 ounces burrata, sliced 1 cup fresh arugula leaves Freshly cracked black peppercorns Fresh basil for garnish…
Read MoreSteak & Mushroom Pizza
From Pizzapaloosa Recipe and photo by Judy Doherty Makes 1 pizza 4 ounces sirloin steak 1 pizza crust (prebaked as above) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon tomato paste 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning mix 1 clove garlic, minced 2 cups sliced mushrooms ½ cup thinly sliced red onion ¼ cup fresh microgreens (we used…
Read MoreSpiced Chickpea Pizza
From Pizzapaloosa Recipe and photo by Judy Doherty A 100% plant-based recipe! Makes 1 pizza 6 tablespoons tomato paste (divided) 1 pizza crust (prebaked as below) 1 tablespoon olive oil 4 cloves garlic, sliced 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed 1 cup diced tomatoes ¼ cup sliced olives 1 cup spiced baked…
Read MorePizza Crust
From Pizzapaloosa Recipe, photo, and video by Judy Doherty Makes 3 (9-inch) pizza crusts 2 cups water, warmed to 90°F 2 teaspoons active dry yeast 4½ cups bread flour plus extra as needed for mixing and rolling 1 tablespoon olive oil ½ teaspoon sugar (use agave syrup if making vegan) 1 teaspoon sea salt Mix…
Read MorePizzapalooza
Recipes and photos by Judy Doherty Pizza Crust Makes 3 (9-inch) pizza crusts 2 cups water, warmed to 90°F 2 teaspoons active dry yeast 4½ cups bread flour plus extra as needed for mixing and rolling 1 tablespoon olive oil ½ teaspoon sugar (use agave syrup if making vegan) 1 teaspoon sea salt Mix the…
Read MoreOkroshka
From The Kolobok Food Truck Brings a Russian Summer to California This popular Russian buttermilk soup should be served cold. If you boil the eggs and potatoes and prep all the vegetables in advance, everything can be well chilled and ready for quick assembly. Serves 3–4 3 hard boiled eggs, sliced 1 large…
Read MoreOvoshnoi Rulet
From The Kolobok Food Truck Brings a Russian Summer to California Grated zucchini mixed with egg yolks and whipped egg whites forms the soufflé-like base for this Russian vegetable roll that’s filled with sautéed onions, carrots, red peppers, tomatoes, and zucchini. Serves 4 3 medium-large zucchini 2 carrots, grated and divided 2 onions,…
Read MoreThe Kolobok Food Truck Brings a Russian Summer to California
By Anna Mindess | Photos by Rachel Stanich Ellen Doren and Bulat Nasybulin call their cooking “Russian soul food,” after a Russian saying. If you cook someone a generous plate of delicious food, their response would often be, “Wow, this is full of soul.” Ellen Doren remembers long summer weekends in Russia, when…
Read MoreThe Great Outdoors
Where to Eat and Drink Alfresco Story and photos by Meredith Pakier It’s hard to imagine a time when parklets and bistro table–dotted sidewalks were not an integral part of East Bay street life. Here are some outdoor spots I hope will stay as restaurants return to full capacity. In September 2020, a devastating fire…
Read MoreEditor’s Mixing Bowl
OUR LIVES ALFRESCO In late March 2020, when there seemed to be little if anything that was both fun and safe to do outside the four walls of our homes, I thought about the cherries that would soon be ripening in the orchards of Brentwood. An email to the growers association, Harvest Time in…
Read MoreMeet The DEEP at the Akoma Outdoor Market
Erin Higginbotham, Daniel Harris-Lucas, and Yolanda Romo (left to right above) are members of The DEEP (Deep East Oakland Empowering the People), a worker-owned grocery cooperative dedicated to restoring East Oakland’s community with fresh organic produce, community education, and cooperative economics. As they move toward the goal of opening a brick-and-mortar store, they…
Read MorePasta Primavera
From Changing the Math on Organics From the Conscious Kitchen Cookbook, recipe and photos by Chef Ashley Ugarte Serves 4 8 ounces dry pasta Oil for cooking and finishing 1 bulb spring onion, chopped ½ leek, sliced 1 large clove garlic, diced 7 spears fresh asparagus (substitute if not in season), chopped on…
Read MoreSea Palm Fettuccine with Pumpkin Seed Pesto
From Send Me to Seaweed Camp! From Tanya Stiller’s newsletter: “Seaweeds: A Forager’s Guide to the West Coast’s Wild Sea Vegetables.” When soaked in water, sea palm fronds expand from thin, crunchy sticks to long, flat bands—like fettuccine—that you can dress up with your favorite sauce, like this tangy pumpkin seed pesto. If you…
Read MoreSend Me to Seaweed Camp!
Story and photos by Jillian Laurel Steinberger-Foster Do you like your foods super fresh and your outdoor experience rugged with plenty of nature connection, exercise, cool science, and brisk ocean air? Then you might enjoy a weekend of seaweed foraging on the Mendocino Coast with clinical herbalist, nutrition consultant, gardener, permaculturalist, ethnobotanist, licensed commercial…
Read MoreChanging the Math on Organics
As partners, West Contra Costa schools and Conscious Kitchen make organic foods affordable By Rachel Trachten Conscious Kitchen founder Judi Shils is committed to finding affordable ways for schools to serve fresh organic foods. (Photos by Jessica Paul for Conscious Kitchen) In October of 2020, Judi Shils called Earl Herrick with a unique…
Read MoreNocino
From Green Walnuts Anyone can magically transform incredibly tannic walnuts and clear, sugary alcohol into this “black gold” Italian liqueur. I like to keep my nocino pure so I can taste the walnut-y goodness but have successfully experimented with adding vanilla bean and cinnamon. Try pouring nocino over vanilla ice cream, using it in a…
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