Yummy Questionnaire: Heather in SF

Heather is not only one of the sweetest food bloggers out there I have had a chance to encounter but she is also a avid cook, cocktail technician, wine taster, aficionado of food porn, and the creative technician behind Heather in SF.  Not only is Heather a lover of food but she is also a novice knitter.  Heather has been called “The COO of food sluts everywhere” and one of THE “A Dog and Two Chicks on Route 66.″

* Sweet or Savory?

Savory. My best dishes are all savories and most of the time I don’t eat sweets.  Although I adore high percentage cacao, caramel and lemony desserts, I would rather have something savory than sweet.  After dinner I am perfectly happy with a square of 100% cacao and a small  liqueur or a cheese plate over a slab of cheesecake.  I do have a dab hand at making pastries and desserts though and like to bring a fabulous dessert to potlucks. .

* Which ingredient(s) do you use the most?

Onions, Chicken, Bacon, Goat Cheese, Olive Oil, Butter, Sea Salt, Cumin, and Green Chile.

* What’s your favorite cooking smell?

I love the smell of roast chicken.  When you come into the house and smell that rich chickeny smell, with herbs and lemon, my knees quiver and my mouth starts to water and I feel very, very happy. It’s the smell of home to me.

* What is your most favorite cooking sound?

It’s the sound of sauteing onions, the sizzle of the butter and the dancing sound the onions make as they soften and turn golden and unctuous that is my favorite; such a happy sound!

Molly Katzen said in one of her early cooking shows that “If you don’t know what to cook for dinner just start sauteing an onion, and it will all flow from there.” This is a tenent I hold dear to my heart and employ it frequently.

* In the kitchen, what’s your most treasured possession?

I am about to post an article about feeling so sentimental over kitchen appliances/gadgets, for there are quite a few in my family. My most treasured possessions are between my Mom’s first Kitchen Aid mixer, a Mark 4 she purchased to make my first birthday cake. It’s mine now and I still get verklempt every time I use it. The other is my Granny’s recipe book, handwritten in an old ledger book. It belongs to my sister, mom and me, and I am currently transcribing it so that we can all cook from it. Such treasures. There are so many more. It will be a fun post to share.

* What do you look for inside a dish?

Any food can be delicious if prepared simply using quality, fresh ingredients and seasoned well. It would be fun to dine at a molecular gastronomy themed restaurant but on the whole I prefer simply prepared dishes. Look at sushi or a roast chicken; it doesn’t get any better than that. If I can find organic, local and sustainably grown foods I am even happier because it’s good for the community, the land and ecosystems and, most of all, it tastes better.

* What is a “faux pas” in your kitchen?

Poor kitchen hygiene. My parents are scientists, and in particular my mom is a bacteriologist.  Her guidance in food safety techniques over the years has built into me a strong ethic of cleanliness and safety.  I’m not all clinical and draconian in there but I have a few rules and have not made myself or anyone ill from my cooking (knock on wood). Of course there are factors you cannot control, such as contaminated ingredients, as the headlines over Cargill and ammoniated beef scraps in the news of late have taught us. There is a lot you can do in your own kitchen though to be safe and clean. Some hygiene practices of other cooks and restaurants appall me and sometimes I just try not to think about that too much.

* Is there a food you will not eat?

I was not raised to eat offal and I think that it is no coincidence that it rhymes with awful! Foie is a major exception, I can’t get enough of it. However I never say never on most fronts, except perhaps insects and most definitely arachnids. If I was lost in the wilderness I would not hesitate to forage or hunt for whatever protein I could find to survive.  However, safely ensconced in San Francisco, the City affords me the luxury of not having to indulge in “exotics”.  I do not, however, eat fast food and refuse most ground beef unless I know the chef or rancher.  I prefer to grind my own.

* What food is your guilty pleasure?

Parmesan Goldfish crackers.  I tuck myself onto the couch with a book or the tv, peel open the bag and pop a Goldfish in my mouth, lick off the salty side and crack it longitudinally with my teeth.  Goldfish were one of the few junk food treats we were allowed as a child, but only for road trips.  Mom would parcel out four or five to our grasping little paws and refill us occasionally. When I lived on my own it was like being hit with a lightening bolt when I realized I could buy a whole bag, all to myself. The Parmesan flavor is the best to me, I think they use too much paprika in the original cheddar flavor.  The other flavors are just an abomination, in my opinion.   I am ashamed at how often I indulge myself with Goldfish.  Sorry, Mom.

* Have you ever changed how you feel towards a food?

For some strange reason as a kid I despised chiles. It must have been that hormonal insanity from puberty or something because I love chiles now. A family friend had me help her in the kitchen once to make a spread of cheese and chile. I loudly proclaimed how much I despised chile and then proceeded to eat most of the spread, much to everyone’s; amusement and to my embarrasement. I am especially obsessed with green chile from New Mexico.  My dear friend who lives in Santa Fe has me hooked on them and I always bring back a boatload when I visit or buy it online and shipped frozen to me.

* If you could prepare a dinner for anyone, who would it be?

My Granny, Grandpa L and Grandpa B. They died when I was young and never got to eat my cooking.  Grandpa B did come to my first Thanksgiving dinner in my first apartment but truthfully my sister did most of the cooking that time.  I like to think that we would have the best time at dinner together, talking about food and life and getting to know each other as adults.

* If you could choose a living or historical cook to prepare a meal for you, who would it be?

Given the times I realize it sounds trite to say Julia Child but she would be my first choice.  Then Auguste Escoffier and Ron Zimmerman….

* Which food website/ or blog would you die without?

The Recipe Swap Forum of which I have been a member for more than 15 years. I started lurking there when I was living on my own and needed recipes and inspiration. The group was so informative, adventurous and so danged funny that I had to stifle myself to avoid getting busted at work. This was back in the early days of the web and most people didn’t have access at home, and if they did it was *dial up* with an *actual modem*.  (Gasp!) anyway, the swap has changed names, moved hosts and flopped around a little bit but it has remained unchanged in spirit and most members. We are like family in a way and it’s more than just food. The folks there are my extended family. I visit there frequently and rely on its search function especially.

* What is your favorite food related word?

Bechamel. It’s fun to say. Say it now: Bechamel….. It’s magic in a saucepan and so versatile.  Whenever I make it I have to sing my song, “Bechamel Mucho”.

* What is your favorite food shopping experience?

Going to a farmers market, or any market.  I love poking around, looking at all the veggies and fruits and the rows and tanks of gleaming fish, they remind me of jewels in a giant display case. Every where I go, especially when out of town or on vacation, I love to visit the markets to see what is grown there, what packaged products and pantry items they have, what is different and what is the same.  I always bring an extra duffle for food goodies to enjoy when I get home, plus they make great gifts for my friends in lieu of souvenirs.

* If you could move, which country would you move to for the food?

I used to think Greece because I love olive oil, cheese, fish, eggplant, lemons, oregano, figs, greens – all those sunny Mediterranean foods. But living in California really has me spoiled because we are the nation’s produce basket, plus access to seafood and wines and all the melting pot influences from Asia, Mexico and parts south. I can’t imagine life without all the variety I have right here.  Except we need more green chile. We don’t have hot enough sun like they do in New Mexico.

* What’s the dress code in the kitchen when you cook?

A clean shirt and apron, covered-toe shoes, and hair up in a twist. I came within a hair of impaling my bare foot one year with a 12″ butchers knife, and then there was the tragic 2nd degree burn incident.  Never cook hashbrowns in a bikini.  That is all I’ll say about that!

* What would you request on the menu if it was your last supper?

Foie gras terrine with thin, crisp toast points, a savory tomato aspic salad, a sand dab in a lemon buerre blanc, roast chicken with potatoes cooked in duck fat, my green beans with tarragon dressing, cranberry sauce, a glass of apple cider with scoops of Humphrey Slocombe’s pink lady apple sorbet, a bite of rare filet mignon with a dab of Bernnaise.  Dessert? Too hard to choose, for my last meal I would want a dessert but I have no idea. Chocolate cake?

* What food would you prepare to seduce someone?

I suppose it depends upon the stage of the seduction. The homily of “hook ’em and cook ’em” is particularly apt when it comes to love.  In the beginning of the seduction I like to cook “man” food. Steaks, chops, and hearty dishes that most men appreciate and are surprised that a gal can cook. It depends on the guy.  In one case my osso bucco was the magic dish, for another it was my sticky grilled ribs.
Cooking a seductive meal farther along in the relationship gets more tricky.  The meal has to be hearty enough and yet light enough not to interfere with the evenings activities. Certain foods have to be avoided and others encouraged! Textures are important too. At this, ahem, delicate juncture I prefer oysters, orange and avocado salad, good sourdough bread, a zero residual sugar rosé, and something smooth and creamy for dessert, chocolate, caramel or butterscotch are good choices. A Port or dessert wine to sip.  And a chilled Pinot Blanc for *later* (giggle). Too much information?

* What food are you craving right now?

Root beer.  A cold, creamy, artisan-crafted root beer with a straw.  I rarely drink soda because I hate high fructose corn syrup. But I have found great artisanal producers of ginger ale and root beer that don’t use HFCS and they have the best flavor.

* What is your comfort food?

Comfort food in my mind involves a starch. Some people have an affinity to bread or rice or potatoes, I am a potato gal all the way.  When I feel bad or life gets too hard or the day of the week ends with ‘y’ I yearn for a nice little bowl of mashed potatoes. Maybe not a little bowl…