DavePops: Another reason why I love local farmer's markets!

DavePops is a one man stand. A local inspiration. A food lover. A health nut. The creater of the most delicious summer treat I have ever encountered!

During my stroll through the park this afternoon, I decided to take another trip to the Wednesday afternoon farmer's market (that's 2 trips this week!). It was there that I encountered DavePops and his cute little popsicle stand. When I think of popsicles I think about how they are an iconic symbol of childhood. They leave your taste buds with a true feeling of nostaligia. From otter pops and push pops to twin pops and cream-sicles, for me, the memories of eating them, enjoying them, and letting them melt all over your play clothes are just as nostaligic as the Cabbage Patch Kids, New Kids on the Block, and Goonies.

When first approaching his cute little stand, I was immediately captured by the colorful rainbow umbrella above his freezer stand, Dave's long hair and great big mustache, and the huge smiles of people walking away and licking the sides of their newly acquired frozen treat. Dave himself was friendly, jubilant, and had an undeniable love and passion for his pops. All of his pops are handmade and organic. His DavePops were unbelieveably creamy and smooth in texture yet subltly sweet and succulent in taste. I had the lemon lime DavePop which was creamier than an ice cream sundae! I had to inquire about his secret and he responded with one word: Pectin. This is an all natural ingredient found in fruits like bananas. Hence the reason why the addition of frozen bananas make smooothies so smooth and creamy! All DavePops have simple wholesome ingredients that include whole fruit, soy milk or water based juices/pops, pectin, and sugar. A simple recipe for a simple and delicious treat!

He also developed LukePops, named after his nephew who recently developed Diabetes. All LukePops are sugar free and are instead made with splenda. So as you can see, he has made something for everybody!

So I tribute this blog to Dave of DavePops and thank you for treating me to the most delicious summer treat in Sacramento! I look forward to seeing you at future community events and markets and trying all of your flavors! Buon Appetit to a summer of fun, sun, & DavePops!

For more informaton click on this link to the DavePops website: www.davepops.com

Sacramento Farmer's Market Schedule for all market lovers!

There is nothing I love more than waking up early, grabbing my canvas bags and a cup of coffee, and heading straight for the Farmer's Market! The aroma of fresh baked breads and pastries makes my mouth water. The sound of people haggling vendors for a good price on a pound of white capped mushrooms or bunch of basil gets me so excited I can hardly contain myself. My eyes widen as I am mesmerized by the colorful array of fresh produce spread out on a table ready to be bought, sauteed, and devoured! The entire experience just tickles my fancy. For all of those who share this love affair with the farmer's markets behold: The Sacramento Farmer's Market weekly schedule!

Every Saturday 8am-Noon~Sunrise Station (Folsom and Sunrise Blvds). Open all year.

Every Saturday 8am-Noon~Country Club Plaza (Watt and El Camino). Open all year.

Every Saturday 8am-Noon~Laguna Gateway Center (Laguna and Big Horn Blvds). Open all year.

Every Sunday 8am-Noon~State Parking Lot (8th and W Streets). Open all year.

Every Tuesday 10am-2pm~Roosevelt Park (9th and P Streets). May-Sept.

Every Tuesday 10am-2pm~Fremont Park (16th and P Streets). May-Sept.

Every Wednesday 10am-2pm~Chavez Plaza (10th and J Streets). May-Oct.

Every Wednesday 4pm-7pm~Elk Grove Regional Park (Elk Grove-Florin Rd). May-Aug.

Every Thursday 8am-Noon~Florin Sears Store (Florin and 65th St.). Open all year.

Every Thursday 10am-2pm~Downtown Plaza (4th and K Streets). May-Sept.

**Shhhhh! Sacramento's best hidden secret is the Southeast Asian Farmer's market at Broadway and 17th. It is every Saturday morning just a few blocks from the market at 8th and W. Here you can find the best farmer's market deals but beware, don't expect the vendors to be friendly and patrons are worse; they may grab a bag of onions right out from under you if you're not quick enough you will be SOL...however this market is the cheapest and the best! So good that haggling is a useless skill! Even as you walk away with a 3lb bag of red onions and 2lb bag of Chinese Broccoli, you'll think "How in the world did I just walk away with all this produce for only $2? How do these people make any profit?" I learned that the best way to go about it is to not ask questions. Just accept a cheap deal. And if you are there at the tail end of the morning, the already good deals get even better as the vendors just want to get rid of what they have and call it a day! So, shhhhh! Don't tell anyone about my dirty little secret! Go, get your good deal, enjoy this truly cultural experience, and tell me all about it later. Cash only, of course.**

Jean Rosenfeld's 65th Birthday Brunch~ July 4th, 2010

Custom designed Delish menus.

My pre-event Farmer's Market spread!

Fresh market produce and fresh baked bread from the Sacramento Baking Company!

Fresh bruschetta on artisan sourdough bread. All ingredients in this dish came straight from the Farmer's Market that morning!

A Delish signature dish!

These Thai shrimp spring rolls smile for their close up!

It's summer time and tis the season for fresh raspberries!

Raspberry Almond Cake makes her debut yet again!

Spinach and Beet salad with all the fixin's!

Veggie and Cheese Summer Frittata Cups! Fresh from the Farmer's Market to the banquet table!

Jean's Jewish background inspired me to add these traditional Latkes to the menu!

Who's hungry?

Guests help themselves to a colorful summer feast!

The full spread!

Rona & Deborah requested the same cake I made at Rachel's Bridal Shower: Raspberry and Almond Scented White Cake.

Delish Boutique Catering presents…

Jean Rosenfeld’s Birthday Brunch Menu

Spinach salad with beets, goat cheese, and a lite lemon & shallot vinaigrette dressing

Tomato basil bruschetta baked on a sourdough baguette

Veggie & Cheese Summer Frittata

Potato Pancakes~ Latkes

Shrimp & Tofu Thai Spring rolls with a spicy garlic peanut sauce

Raspberry and Almond Infused White Cake

Lakeisha & Trevor's Wedding Reception~ June 25, 2010

Trevor & LaKeisha’s
Wedding Reception Menu

Thai Spring Rolls w/ Spicy Peanut Garlic Chili Sauce

Chicken Wing Bar w/ variety of dipping sauces

Smoked Mozarella and Sun Dried Tomato Phyllo Cigars

Pomme Frittes Bar w/ variety of dipping sauces

Crunchy Macaroni and Cheese Bites

Garden Party buttercream frosting and vanilla scented cupcakes

Rachel's Bridal Shower Menu

Salad

A lite spinach salad w/ oranges and a beet chip in parmesan crisp cups

Appetizers

Thai spring rolls with a spicy garlic peanut sauce
(tofu & shrimp option)

Spinach and asparagus stuffed mushrooms topped with freshly grated parmesan cheese and garlic

Entree

Baked macaroni and cheese with white cheddar cheese and parmeasan (fresh homemade pasta)

Dessert

A raspberry almond scented white cake topped with fresh raspberries and almonds

Breakfast Pasta AKA Hickory Smoked Bacon Pasta Carbonara

The birthday boy gave this dish the official name of "Breakfast Pasta", also known as my "Hickory Smoked Bacon Pasta Carbonara". What could be tastier than pasta, cream, bacon, eggs, and alotta Parmesan cheese all in one dish? Instead of making this classic dish with pancetta, I decided to cater the main ingredient of this dish to the guests who were in attendance. A large group of bulky ex-college wrestlers AKA bacon lovers! The dish was a hit and even after I made two huge heaping servings the insatiated party guests wanted more. It's filling, savory, smokey, meaty, cheesy, rich, creamy, and extremely simple to make! While living in Florence I found this dish to be a classic Italian staple...eaten any time of the day and served up in almost any Italian trattoria. I even had the pleasure of making this dish for our Parisian couchsurfing hosts David and Vladia while my sister and I were traveling through France last summer. They loved it! The greatest thing about this dish is that no matter what country you are in the ingredients are all very basic and simple...and easy to find! I substituted parsley with basil while in Paris. Either will do!


Hickory Smoked Bacon Pasta Carbonara

8oz Hickory Smoked Bacon (chopped)
2 cups heavy cream
salt & pepper
2 eggs
2 cups freshly grated Parmesano Reggiano
chopped parsley
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 lb. fettuccine

1. Cut the bacon into 1cm strips and fry over a medium heat. Add garlic and stir fry with bacon for a minute.
2. Place the fettuccine into a pot of salted, boiling water and cook until al dente
3. In the mean time, once the bacon is cooked add the cream and salt and pepper to the pan and simmer to reduce until thick and creamy.
4. Whisk together the egg and Parmesan
5. Once the pasta is cooked, drain and add it to the pan and stir it through the cream sauce.
6. Finally, add the egg and Parmesan to the pan and stir again.
7. Serve immediately garnished with parsley.

*Note: when adding the egg and Parmesan mix incorporate slowly while stirring pasta to avoid from scrambling the eggs in the heat of the pasta. this keeps the pasta smooth and creamy!

made with love,

Jas

The story of my twice baked carrot cake!

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Sounds cheesy but it's soo true! After successfully executing Frank's M&M and Kit Kat colorful and delicious birthday cake, I was so confident going into making a delicious carrot cake for my best friend Jeremiah's 33rd surprise birthday! And this is what happens when you get a little too confident and foolishly "clever". Baking, I must say is a new enterprise to me. In so many ways it is such a science and a bitch to figure out, however, it many ways with my sweet tooth I really do love getting elbow deep in flour, using my sweet red kitchen aid to make sweet doughs that are accompanied by sweet aromas which fill my small little apartment, and most of all: adding and subtracting and substituting parts of the recipe to my liking!

This two layered carrot cake was going to be the king of all carrot cakes and I was even going to attempt to make some mini carrots and a frog out of fondant. Boy was this a major endeavor in only having 5 hours to complete it! I used a well trusted food blog "Real Life Foodie Adventures" who posted a recipe that has been passed down through the generations and been perfected over many years. I thought I might as well try it and liked that there were substitutions in this recipe that make the cake unique and healthier. These include the addition of diced pineapple and applesauce! These keep the cake uber moist and delicate.

So I decided to get smart with the recipe and with limited time, decided to pour the entirety of the batter into one large spring form cake pan. I decided that I could bake it, cut it neatly in half, and icing the two layers after they have been cooled. BIG MISTAKE. In an effort to save time, I turned what was supposed to be an alotted 3 hour window of time to turn my cake baking fiasco into 6 hours and alotta frustration. I baked the cake at the recommended time and temperature however, no matter how long I baked it the middle always came out doughy (with my toothpick test). The longer I put it in the oven, the outside became darker and harder while the middle remained doughy. I should have gone with my original instinct to pour the cake batter into two separate cake pans to allow for evenly distributed heat and a fully cooked cake. Argggghhh...

Now that time was no longer on my side I had to think fast. I decided to scoop out the raw dough from the middle of my partially baked cake and make mini carrot cakes. Hence, the way this "twice baked carrot cake" got it's name. I took my melon baller and scooped away into my mini bite sized cupcake pan and continued to bake until my toothpick came out clean. I used the cream cheese frosting from the recipe but added a little vanilla bean to give it some extra flavor pizazz and hoorah. I used my ever-so-loved frosting piping bag to pipe a nice swirl of frosting on each cupcake. I decided to top each mini cake with a candied pecan that I bought in the peanut aisle. You wouldn't believe that candied pecans costs about half as much as buying raw pecans! I got the "pecan flavor" of whole candied pecans and I was worried about how these might take away from the flavors of the cake itself but they were a great and most delicious addition!

So some quick thinking turned a mess of a mistake into 33 little bite sized and delicious twice baked carrot cake! Exactly 33. One for each year of the birthday boy. A candle in each. One hard huff and puff of all the candles. And there you go! By the next morning these little cakes were all everyone could talk/text/facebook about! Ahhhhh....

I guess no one really has to know how the little delicious cakes came to be but it just goes to show how one can turn a major mistake into a mouthwatering miracle!

made with love,

Jas