Boulder vs. Denver: Who Should Win?

Sazerac, The Bitter Bar

The recent issue of Sunset Magazine highlighted a foodie face-off between Boulder and Denver. Where Boulder is acknowledged for having a plethora of organic foods, chef-farmers, and the farmers market, Denver is recognized for attracting chef transplants and having international flavors available into the wee hours.

We definitely agreed with their assessment of places like The Bitter Bar, Black Cat, Civic Center EATS Outdoor Cafe, Marczyk’s Fine Foods, and Bones and far too many artisanal pizza places in Boulder. We were also excited to see a slew of notables from our Culinary Council including Hosea Rosenberg, Peggy Markel, Bradford Heap, Mark Stoddard and many others mentioned in the article. But, we thought one point lacked accuracy and may have skewed their final ruling, (not all Boulderites wear performance-fiber windbreakers and bike cleats to dinner).

The verdict; Sunset Magazine’s deemed Denver the winner by a mere 3 points. Who do you think should have won the food fight?

Click for the full article in Sunset Magazine

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Our Gift Guide for the Foodie

The leftovers from Thanksgiving have all disappeared so now it's time to shift gears to gift giving. Finding the perfect gift can be tricky so to help you this holiday season we've rounded up some of our favorite foodie gifts. A little something for everyone, from the cocktail enthusiast to those interested in a greater good, happy shopping!

1. For those interested in expanding their culinary knowledge: Culinary Artistry talks about plate composition, juggling flavors, insights from highly regarded chefs, and a plethora of flavor combinations that would make any home cook seem like a well educated food person. 2. Pastry lovers will rejoice when they open their doors and find this Rustic Burlap Sack filled with William Werner's (formerly of Quince and Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay) delicate confections, preserves, pastries, and savory breads on their doorstep. For $35 a month you can send a delicious bag of goodies like Apple-Praline Butter, Pear Pate de Fruit, Smoked Almond Brittle, and Oak Bourbon Caramels. 3. Every cook in training needs a good knife and the Wüsthof Classic Chef’s Knife is a great knife for preparing any meal, no matter how simple. The German made knife is great for chopping, dicing and slicing and will be their go-to in the kitchen for years to come. 4. For the true cocktail junky give them the gift of perfect ice. With the Spherical Ice Tray Set you can make sure they have cool drinks from the first sip to the last. 5. For those looking to give a gift that keeps on giving buzz over to Heifer International and order a beehive that will help struggling families earn income through the sale of honey, beeswax and pollen. 6. Need another sweet gift? Check out Savannah Bee Company Tupelo Honey, one taste of this and they'll never touch one of those honey bears again. 7. Spice up their life with the Magnetic Artisan Salt and Spice Rack. A sleek stainless steel rack that comes with five round magnetic tins to seal in flavor while allowing for easy accessibility. It even includes gourmet salts like smoked serrano, vanilla bean, and thai ginger. 8. Give the gift of knife skills they'll be sure to want to show off. The de Buyer Kobra Adjustable Slicer is a user-friendly adjustable slicer from France for uniform and precise slices without taking years of practice in the kitchen.

--Bryce Clark

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Responsibility

The movement to reduce childhood obesity gained momentum in the last year with Michelle Obama, Jamie Oliver, and Bill Clinton joining forces with the “George Washington of the movement” Alice Waters. And now San Francisco has taken one more step in fighting childhood obesity. Last week they became the first major city in the country to forbid restaurants from offering a free toy with meals that contain more than set levels of calories, sugar and fat (600 calories and less than 35% of the calories coming from fat to be exact). The ordinance will also require restaurants to provide fruits and vegetables with all meals for children that come with toys. Although the ordinance isn’t scheduled to take effect until December 2011, its acceptance has created quite the buzz online and on television, with supporters arguing that it will reduce childhood obesity, and opponents, including the McDonald's spokeswoman, seeing it as “San Francisco wacked out”.

What do YOU think? Do you think government should make laws like this? Do you think this type of effort will help reduce childhood obesity? Comment with your thoughts!

-Bryce Clark

Sources:
Alice Waters Push for Local, Organic Setting National Agenda
San Francisco Bans Happy Meals

photo courtesy www.csmonitor.com

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Ready, Set, Eat... First Bite Boulder is Almost Here

Get your appetites ready for some serious eating. The fifth annual First Bite Boulder starts Friday, November 12th, and runs through November 20th. More than forty of Boulder’s top restaurants (and even some from Longmont, Lafayette, and Louisville) are offering a special three course $26 prix fixe dinner menu for nine days. See our Culinary Shifts in action with First Bite Boulder menu items like Isabelle Farm Pumpkin Cannelloni at Café Aion or Munson Farm Squash Soup at Arugula Bar e Ristorante for a taste of Community Connected. Or try the Housemade Bread Pudding at The West End Tavern to experience Simple Refuge. The questions is, how many restaurants can you fit into nine short days? Search through the prix fixe menus and make reservations at http://www.firstbiteboulder.com/.

--Bryce Clark

photo courtesy www.firstbiteboulder.com

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Pop Pop - Making Caramel Corn for Halloween

Halloween often means too much sugar and enough orange and black to last a lifetime, but it can also mean deliciously simple caramel corn. This Pepita Honey Caramel Corn is sticky and sweet, with a nice hint of smokiness from the mezcal. It’s perfect for your grown-up Halloween parties, or just a treat while curled up watching movies.

Pepita Honey Caramel Corn
adapted from gourmet.com

Makes about 12 cups
Active Time:20 min
Start to Finish:1 hr

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup popcorn kernels
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup pepitas
• ½ tablespoon mezcal

Special equipment: a candy thermometer

• Heat oil with 3 kernels in a 3-quart heavy saucepan, covered, over moderate heat until 1 or 2 kernels pop. Remove lid and quickly add remaining kernels, then cook, covered, shaking pan frequently, until kernels stop popping, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and uncover.
• Line bottom of a large shallow baking pan with foil. Lightly oil foil. Melt butter in a 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat. Add brown sugar and honey and bring to a boil over moderate heat, stirring, then boil, without stirring, until syrup registers 300ºF on thermometer, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
• Using a wooden spoon or a heatproof spatula, stir salt, mezcal and baking soda into syrup, then quickly stir in pepitas and popcorn to coat. Immediately spread mixture in baking pan as thinly and evenly as possible. Cool completely, then break into bite-size pieces.

-Bryce Clark

picture courtesy 101 cookbooks

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Dirt Re-Defined

Who knew that my 7th birthday celebration – a flower party, with dirt cake, would be cutting edge? Edible dirt, one of the most interesting new fads in haute cuisine, is now showing up on menus throughout the world. And thankfully chefs are getting a lot more interesting then my birthday cake that was simply made from crushed Oreos and whip cream. They’re making dirt from dried or charred ingredients, like malt, mushrooms, onions or olives. Although the “dirt” varies in consistency and ingredients it all has one purpose, to redefine sides. And why dirt? What better way to celebrate where our fruits and vegetables come from then by having land right on the plate.

Find out more about edible dirt in this recent article in TIME Magazine.

Yes - the photo is an edible dirt cake, courtesy of Food Wishes

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

4 Forks and 7 Food Carts

Yesterday...

we ventured down to Denver to examine one of our culinary shifts in action, Luxury Re-Valued. The Civic Center Park in Denver fills up with more than 15 street carts every Tuesday from 11am-2pm and it was finally time for us to taste what they had to offer. Colorful trucks, stands, and massive amounts of people filled the park. Steuben’s, Deluxe (and their “little orange rocket”), Gastro Cart, Sugar Lips, Denver Cupcake Truck, Denver Biscuit Co., and Paris on the Platte beckoned for us to try their creations. We munched down on Steuby Snaks, Chicken Tacos with kimchi, an Old Country Sandwich with olive tapenade, artichokes, gouda, and roasted red peppers, Biscuits stuffed with grape jelly and bacon, Cheese Grits, Chicken Bahn Mi, and deep fried Mac and Cheese Balls with truffle oil. And for dessert, Mini Donuts smothered in s‘mores, peanut butter and chocolate, and jalapeño bacon, as well as Lime, and Pistachio cupcakes. The real highlights of the tour - tacos from Gastro Cart, bahn mi from Deluxe, and the ever so moist and delicious cupcakes from Denver Cupcake Truck. Starting in October Civic Center EATS will be changing their format, with daily EATS, but less options. It's definitely worth the stop.

For more information: Civic Center EATS

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Boulder: The Foodiest Town in America

The Boulder food scene has received some major national “ink” in 2009 and 2010. Last year it was named one of the top ten food cities in the world by Travelocity and just months later it was featured in the Wall Street Journal, calling it “the best small city for great meals we know of in this country.” And then Wednesday Boulder received one of the most notable food awards, Bon Appétit named it “The Foodiest Town in America.”

Andrew Knowlton’s (Bon Appétit’s restaurant editor) six day stint in Boulder included visits to Dish Gourmet, Frasca, Pizzeria Basta, Leaf, Cafe Aion, and Happy / The Bitter Bar. From vegetarian to Asian it was a whirlwind of Boulder's amazing local produce, chef creations,and craft beers with hiking, biking, and swimming on the side. Clearly burgers (and all food) tastes better after exercise. Check out the full article at Bon Appétit.

Photo courtesy of Bon Appétit

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant