What's Cooking? Food. Wine. Life. All mixed up.

Introducing Cooper

2012-02-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

A true story. My friend Cooper by Elli Mulkey, age 10 On February 5th, 2012 I got Cooper. He's fun, fast, and awesome. He is the color of chocolate. He has two black stripes running down his back. He is a Mini Cooper. I got Cooper because me and my mom got in a car crash on the way to school. Someone hit our car and jacked the control of the steering wheel. So we called a tow truck. The

Work Life Balance

2012-02-25T09:29:00.000-08:00

Life has been just a tad hectic since I started the new job. There are days when I feel like I'm drowning in "to do's." I know it will get better as I get acclimated, and get programs in place that I'm responsible for. But right now, wow, it's crazy and a tad overwhelming. Oh, in case you haven't heard - I got a job. FINALLY!! I'm the new Director of PR, Influencer Marketing and Events for

Easy Chicken Curry with Vegetables

2012-02-19T10:30:00.000-08:00

Life has been a little crazy here the past few weeks. I'm used to being busy. But now I'm uber busy. Amazingly, we've been eating better than usual because I've had to shop and plan ahead. If I didn't do this we'd probably be eating cereal for dinner. Not really, I'm not a huge cereal fan. We'd probably be eating cheese and crackers. That's more my style. I haven't quite figured out timing

Valentine's Day Dinner

2012-02-12T10:51:00.000-08:00

Valentine's day is Tuesday. **sigh** It should always be on a Saturday if you ask me. I think I'll petition to have the date changed so it's always the second Saturday in February. That way everyone can celebrate in a really fun way, even make a weekend out of it. I have no idea how to do something like that. Or if it's even possible...... Do you call your congressman? "Hello, I would like

2012 Marin Designers Showcase

2012-02-11T08:32:00.000-08:00

Volunteering isn't something any of us have to do. But it's something all of us should do, to support all the amazing non-profit organizations where we live. I'm doing my part every weekend by volunteering in the 41st Marin Designers Showcase house every Saturday in February. It's a rough job I've signed up for. KIDDING. The guy on Dirty Jobs wouldn't know what to do. I get to hang out in

BevMo Spring 5c Wine Sale is ON!

2012-02-08T05:00:00.000-08:00

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Wipe Out!

2012-02-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

This is not me, but she could play me in this story. No, I'm not going on that ridiculous show. I'm not that crazy. But this WAS me on Saturday morning. Minus the large boxing glove. Don and I were walking down the hill to the dog park when all of a sudden my feet slipped out from under me and I went down. HARD. The fall literally stunned me. My glasses and hat flew off. The poop bag I

5 Delicious Super Bowl Cocktail Recipes

2012-02-04T17:36:00.000-08:00

Margarita on the rocks. The only way to drink a margarita. Just because our team didn't make it to the Super Bowl, doesn't mean we won't be watching the commercials and Madonna like everyone else. And the game too, of course. Who's playing again? kidding.........don't go all crazy on me. Here are some great cocktail recipes from BevMo! that I thought you might like. I kinda wish I had a

My Tiny Dancer

2012-02-02T05:00:00.000-08:00

Elli in the Main Studio at Roco Dance, Mill Valley This is one of my favorite pictures. It just screams - JOY. Pure, innocent, happiness. Elli's dance studio posted it on Facebook yesterday and it immediately brought a smile to my face. I hope it does the same for you today. Photo credit: Roco Dance, Mill Valley, CA

Fudgy Brownies with Homemade Caramel Sauce

2012-01-30T06:00:00.000-08:00

These brownies are rich, super chocolately, moist and delicious. They're pretty much the best brownie you'll ever taste. Rich, chocolate brownies Want to know what's even more delicious? Filling layers of brownie with vanilla ice cream and homemade caramel sauce. Maybe even add a little dollop of whipped cream on top. Or not. I found the idea to make Brownie and Salted Caramel with Ice Cream

Zinfest 2012

2012-01-27T07:06:00.000-08:00

Wow. What a fun event. Last night was Epicuria night. Which basically means each wine was paired with food. There were amazing chefs preparing fancy little bites everywhere you looked. I went with my friend Rachel Vorhees, another food and wine blogger. We were so excited to be there we could barely get our wristbands on as they handed them to us. Then of course we had trouble juggling the

Review of Super Duper Burger

2012-01-25T06:40:00.000-08:00

There's a new joint in town called Super Duper Burger, and it's fantastic. I mean really, unless you're a vegetarian, there's nothing like a big, fat, juicy burger and fries. And they make a really, really good burger. We've been there for lunch two weekends in a row. Lucky for me they have salads, too. Because Don is in love with this place and I will never lose weight if I eat

Perfect Sticky Rice

2012-01-22T09:33:00.000-08:00

There's nothing like a quick dinner of pot stickers, rice and a steamed veggie. This is exactly what we ate on Saturday night (minus the veggie) before Elli's dance recital. Don and my sister Kathy volunteered to make dinner while I got Elli's hair ready and her dance costumes organized. Kathy was in charge of the rice. Don was going to make the pot stickers. I watched her pour the rice in

White Cheddar Mac and Cheese

2012-01-18T07:00:00.000-08:00

Cheesy, creamy goodness with a light crunchy topping. It doesn't get better than this. We ate this last Saturday after watching the 49ers game. What a game, right?! So exciting. We were screaming and yelling which totally freaked out Elli and the dogs. It was the best game I've watched in a very long time. Okay, so really, it's the only game I've watched in a really long time. I

My six beauty resolutions for 2012

2012-01-16T09:22:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://www.discoverbeautywithin.com/. When I look in the mirror I see two things I don't like, no three, maybe four. Sheesh. It's probably not good to count. There are wrinkles, gray hairs, dark circles under my eyes, too many chins and little sun spots on

Party food - wine and spin dip

2012-01-14T09:17:00.000-08:00

I realized yesterday that I have not featured any wines in a very long time. It's not because we're not drinking wine, either. So here are two bottles for you to try. Plus a really yummy spinach dip recipe. I featured the dip last year. But it's time to share it again because it's perfect for football parties. And the niners are playing today. GO NINERS! Main & Geary Cabernet and the Prospect

What...... a...... week!

2012-01-12T21:15:00.000-08:00

sigh It's Thursday night. When you read this it will be FRIDAY the 13th. I'm not superstitious or anything. But I have had THE WORST WEEK EVER. So it kind of makes you wonder, and worry. ok, technically, it's not THE WORST WEEK EVER. I realize that. It just wasn't a great week in my little world. It all started Sunday. Elli and her buddy were making me crazy. They weren't doing anything

Praline Popcorn Crunch

2012-01-08T20:30:00.000-08:00

This is a classic. We made it tonight. You should too. December 22, 2010 - - It wouldn't be Christmas without my buttery, toffee-carmel coated, crunchy popcorn with little pecan surprises. It will make you crazy. 'Cuz you can't stop eating it. Trust me. It's gooooood. Praline Popcorn Crunch My mom found the recipe back in the early 80's when they lived in Danville. It was in the Contra Costa

Cherry Crisp

2012-01-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

My sister-in-law wanted a cherry crisp with Christmas dinner. She didn't have a recipe and was looking for some help. I had my Barefoot Contessa cookbook with me so we used the recipe for Peach and Raspberry Crisp. We switched out the fruit and made it with fresh cherries instead. Unfortunately, I wasn't that happy with how it came out. The fruit part was way too sweet and sugary. I could tell

Apparently, I'm an idiot

2012-01-05T09:41:00.000-08:00

I just read this in the NorthBay Biz and had to share it with you. I know I'm not the only idiot. Six Truths of Life You cannot touch all of your teeth with your tongue. All idiots, after reading the first "Truth," will try it. The first truth is a lie. You are smiling now because you're an idiot. You will soon share this with another idiot. There is still a stupid smile on your face. I did

Caesar Salad with Crunchy Parmesan Croutons

2012-01-03T02:00:00.000-08:00

Marzetti "Simply Dressed" Salad Dressing Caesar Salad is Elli's favorite salad. She is quite fond of the version at Pizza Antica. She loves the garlicky dressing and super crunchy croutons. So, when I was chosen to review a new Marzetti salad dressing I knew I had to try the Caesar to see if my girl Elli liked it. So I set out to make a salad. I grabbed the dressing and tried to open it.

Raspberry Buckle

2012-01-02T07:00:00.000-08:00

I had a serious craving for Blueberry Boy Bait the other day but we didn't have any blueberries. We had Raspberries. So I made this Raspberry Buckle instead. It was good. I guess I could have made the Boy Bait with Raspberries. But I liked the idea of trying something new. The recipe called for 2 containers of raspberries. I only had one. So it was a little light on the fruit. The good news

Bloody Mary Pitcher

2012-01-01T09:34:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!!!! Did everyone have fun ringing in the new year? We did. We hung out with some old friends, and made some new friends. It was a great time. We laughed, and laughed and laughed. Not sure the Bocce Ball place completely appreciated us bringing in hats and noisemakers for our extra large group. Oh well, it was their first New Years Eve. They'll ask more questions next time

My favorite special occasion Cabernets

2011-12-28T17:24:00.000-08:00

Rombauer, Cakebread, Caymus and Silver Oak I brought these four bottles home to take a picture for a piece I was writing. I was so sad to return them. I've tasted them all and they are mighty fine. We call these "special occasion wines" in my house because of the price tag. They're not exactly in our everyday wine budget. Actually, they're not in most people's

Do you believe in guardian angels?

2011-12-23T11:21:00.000-08:00

I do. It's been one of the most bizarre, stressful, and amazing years all wrapped into one. I lost my job in January. I interviewed like a mad woman all over San Francisco. Nothing was right for me, or for them. For the first time in my life I felt old. I was qualified for all of these positions, but felt oddly out place. Was all my experience for not? Our store in Napa was on the verge of