Judging by the crowd of more 75 people attending last night’s food truck information session at Modified Arts, you can bet Phoenix will see new mobile food vendors up and running soon. The session was sponsored as a part of Roosevelt Row’s Small Business Incubator series along with Local First AZ…
There’s a new truck — a wagon, actually — rolling around town, ready to deliver fresh wood fired pie. What began as a hobby after Bill Forrest built a wood-fired oven in his backyard has turned into Il Bosco pizza catering, with plans for a North Scottsdale brick and mortar location…
Since the beginning of the year, going meatless one day a week has been, for us, a way to celebrate the bounty of the farmers’ market, winter root vegetables, and a commitment to increasing the variety of grains in our diet. So far we have shied away from using processed…
The Food Network folks are in town and busy. We hear they stopped by Mrs. White’s Golden Rule Cafe yesterday for fried chicken with Beau MacMillian, before hitting up Sweet Republic today for Alton Brown’s favorite take on Banofi Pie — a double scoop of vanilla bean ice cream with fresh bananas,…
This week’s question for the Chef: Is there a difference between curry powder and garam masala and how are they used? That ubiquitous bottle or tin of yellow powder from the spice shelf at the grocery store only hints at the flavor delivered by the curry powder found in the…
Say shortbread and I immediately think not of Girl Scouts but of McVities. I was introduced to the Scottish digestive biscuits and shortbread when faced with the dorm food at a college in northern England for a semester. The meals for my day started with a decent English breakfast, but…
The new fast casual “burgeria,” Coal Burger, opened its doors yesterday at Scottsdale Quarter. Rolled out by the group behind Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, Coal Burger features natural grass fed beef burgers cooked in a coal fired brick oven (designed like the ovens used in the groups popular pizzerias) and served on…
Winter and early spring visits to the farmers markets around town have us obsessing about vegetable tarts. We started out thinking of the quintessential tomato pie, the kind we used to crave in the mid-west in August, brimming with juicy Big Boys and fresh-picked sweet summer corn. But this weekend…
Last night’s line up on Food Network’s All Stars Tournament Round 3 pitted Beau MacMillan against Nate Appleman, Anita Lo, and Jacques Torres. You all know Beau from elements at The Sanctuary, as Iron Chef winner besting Bobby Flay at his own American cuisine game, and Season 1 of Worst…
On the lookout for ways to recreate a classic dish or kick up the flavor of an old time favorite, veggie style? Try bean paste or miso, a mainstay ingredient in Japanese kitchens. Miso is a thick paste made from a base of barley, rice, or most commonly soybean. The…
Caramelpalooza is almost here and Chow Bella (if you haven’t noticed) staff, contestants and judges are getting excited. Caramel brings to mind another simple to prepare, sugar-based sweet: butterscotch, associated more with nostalgic American desserts than fine French sweets. The question that came up this week: what is the difference…
Last week we featured quinoa in a cabbage roll. You found out about the ancient seed treasured by the Incas and called “the mother grain”. Quinoa has a higher percentage of protein per serving than wheat, oats, buckwheat or barley and is gluten free. We had a request for a…
here can I find a King cake for Mardi Gras, and why is there a plastic baby inside? Far from Bourbon Street, we desert dwellers limit our thinking of Carnival to one night a year, the night of Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday. If you haven’t been to the Big…
Posh pastry chef Melissa Barth followed her older brother into a culinary program in high school, hit the pastry station, and found her niche. After completing the pastry and baking program at the Culinary Institute of America, Melissa did an externship at The Atlantic Inn on Block Island and worked…
Like most younger siblings, Melissa Barth liked to follow her big brother around. In high school she entered a culinary program to be just like him. Her brother went on to a career in computers, but once Melissa hit the pastry station, she never wanted to leave. Growing up in…
Quinoa (pronounced: keen-wah) is an ancient seed native to the Andes mountain regions of Peru and Bolivia. Historically, Quinoa was cultivated in terraced fields by the Inca’s who treasured their “mother grain” for sustenance as well as its healing and mystical properties. Quinoa was used by warriors to enhance endurance while…
The best seat in this house is at the copper, wood and granite tapas bar facing Prado’s wood-fired oven. The view is of chef de cuisine Peter DeRuvo and his “pickle master,” Jay, working the oven, firing up the food, and finishing the plates. The chef says he is “having…
Recently, we were asked: what’s the best method for boiling an egg? Some of you are smirking now, right? How can someone not know how to boil- an-egg? Well, wipe the smirk off your face. You may know how to boil an egg, but how about an egg boiled to…
Oscar season and all those fancy LA parties are in full swing. Hollywood outsiders (us!) are planning to gather in front of the big screen (in ball gowns, jeans or p.j.s) to argue over best and worst dressed, critique the speeches, guffaw (yawn — maybe?) along with the hosts, dry…
Yesterday, Suzanne Garcia president of Chocolate Star Bakery shared the lessons she brought from a successful fashion and business background to her cookie bakery. The San Francisco native likes to keep her recipes simple but isn’t afraid to glam up a cookie with premium ingredient combinations. Today, Suzanne shares her…
Spaghetti squash as an alternative to pasta is great when the mood hits for a light dish. A usual preparation is to serve it pasta style with a rich meaty tomato sauce. In this recipe it serves as the base for our meatless Monday dinner topped with sautéed zucchini ribbons,…
Today we present Suzanne Garcia, president and chief cookie controller at Chocolate Star Bakery. Many people find Chocolate Star after receiving a tin of their cookies or while surfing the internet for a great cookie gift. Don’t let the small store front location fool you,walk in and you will find…
