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Cookbook author Q&A: Recipes inspired by wine country’s edible gardens

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

Diving into the world of wine country’s edible gardens, Napa-based author Janet Fletcher invites readers to explore the intersection of food, wine and gardening in her latest cookbook, “Gather: Casual Cooking from Wine Country Gardens” (Harry N. Abrams, $40).Fletcher – whose other titles highlight her expertise in cheese, wine and farmers market cooking –  transports readers to idyllic wine country, where farm-to-table fare is woven into the fabric of daily life. Its pages offer more than 60 recipes, structured around stories of the region’s wineries and their gardens in Napa, Sonoma and Livermore.At Beringer Vineyards in St. Helena, for example, golden beets become a sunny gazpacho. Wente Vineyards in Livermore serves a risotto with pancetta and arugula and blood orange creme brulee. And at Cakebread Cellars in Rutherford, cedar-plank grilled salmon gets a dollop of a roasted tomato butter that goes with everything.Below is an interview with Fletcher, edited for length and cl...

The perfect day trip to the Marin Headlands, from hikes and art exhibits to sea lions and toddies

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

The Marin Headlands are a special place. They’re right across the Golden Gate Bridge but feel like a wild frontier. Cell service drops to zero, wildlife moseys in the road, and if you gaze out over the shining Pacific you can almost glimpse Japan (if you squint really hard and pretend).Summer is an ideal time to visit the Headlands. It’s windy but free of the bone-chilling wetness that blows in – sometimes at surprising horizontal angles – during other seasons. But where should one begin?A visitor hikes along a trail from Rodeo Beach in the Marin Headlands on Tuesday, June 27, 2023. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group) We start our day at the Headlands Center for the Arts at historic Fort Barry. Back in the 1980s, artists restored these old military barracks using plenty of creative liberty. The center is an active arts destination, attracting rotating waves of artists-in-residence from all over the world. But it feels ancient and in some corners abandoned, with rust an...

10 beloved Bay Area ice cream shops, from the classic to the eclectic

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

It’s getting hot out there! Whether churned in vintage equipment or made with a little tech savvy, ice cream is a summertime treat with enduring appeal. So here are 10 of our favorite Bay Area scoop shops, from classics to trendsetters.OLD SCHOOL: Loard’s Ice Cream & Candies, OrindaStep into this 71-year-old ice cream parlor in Orinda Theatre Square and you’ll feel like you’ve gone back in time. Loard’s Ice Cream & Candies is retro in all the right ways, from the black-and-white tile floors and pink vinyl booths to the petite heart-backed chairs. There always seems to be a kid licking a cone with a grandparent in tow — and the countertops are lined with fudge, candies and boxed chocolates.Loard’s offers 45 flavors, including a generous selection of sherbet. You’ll find a good balance between old-school flavors, such as Butter Brickle and Mocha Almond Fudge, and modern global options, like Horchata and Matcha Green Tea. They do scoops...

Avalanche kills hiker, injures 2 others in Northern California mountains

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

By Rebekah Riess | CNNOne hiker was killed and two others injured in a “wet, loose avalanche” on Split Mountain in California, authorities said this past Friday.The incident occurred on June 2nd near Big Pine, according to the Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center and the Inyo County Sheriff’s Office.The mountain is about 80 miles east of Fresno in the Sierra Nevadas.Around 4:30 p.m. the sheriff’s office was told about an avalanche at about 12,500 feet on Split Mountain, above Red Lake. Three hikers were caught in the avalanche while coming down the mountain they had climbed.One of them sustained major injuries and later died, the avalanche center said. The other two had minor to moderate injuries.The two survivors were evacuated Sunday evening.Monday morning, a California Highway Patrol helicopter was called in to try to recover the body of the third hiker, but weather was too bad. Instead, rescuers climbed to the site.The avalanche center said it was “a very small wet, loose avalanche,”...

Recipe: Make a deconstructed Meyer lemon curd tart with this parfait recipe

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

Tired of traditional summer tarts? Try out this deconstructed lemon tart recipe – a Meyer lemon curd parfait with layers of crumbled crust and blueberries soaked in wine and sugar.This recipe comes from the Clif Family Winery, where an organic edible farm provides produce for the winery’s food truck, Clif Family Bruschetteria. The recipe is one of more than 60 featured in “Gather: Casual Cooking from Wine Country Gardens” (Harry N. Abrams, $40) by Janet Fletcher.The Napa-based food writer is the voice of the “Planet Cheese” newsletter and author of several cookbooks that highlight wine, cheese and farm-to-table fare. Her latest book showcases recipes and wine pairings inspired by 13 edible gardens in wine country.Meyer Lemon Curd ParfaitServes 6 to 8INGREDIENTSPoppy seed crust1¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for the work surface2 tablespoons granulated sugar1 tablespoon poppy seeds1⁄8 teaspoon kosher or sea salt1⁄2 cup cold unsalted butter, in small pieces1 large egg ...

Recipe: Cedar Plank Salmon with Roasted-Tomato Butter

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

This recipe, which hails from Cakebread Cellars, is featured in “Gather: Casual Cooking from Wine Country Gardens” (Harry N. Abrams, $40) by Janet Fletcher.The Napa-based food writer is known for her “Planet Cheese” newsletter, as well as her cookbooks highlighting wine, cheese and farm-to-table fare. Her latest book highlights more than 60 recipes from 13 edible gardens in wine country, including this Cakebread-inspired salmon dish.For this recipe, you’ll need an untreated 1-inch by 6-inch cedar plank, which is used to infuse the salmon with smoke without having to use a smoker. It should be available at most lumber stores. The recipe may also generate a bit of extra roasted-tomato butter. Freeze it for later and serve it with other seafood dishes like steamed clams, grilled lobster or swordfish. The salmon goes well with sides like fresh potatoes, green beans or corn on the cob, according to Fletcher.Cedar Plank Salmon with Roasted-Tomato ButterServes 6INGREDIENTSRoasted-Tomato Bu...

Recipe: Make a golden beet gazpacho to pair with chardonnay

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

Looking for an aromatic and refreshing summer gazpacho that pairs well with wine? This is your recipe.Found in the pages of “Gather: Casual Cooking from Wine Country Gardens” (Harry N. Abrams, $40) by Janet Fletcher, this recipe was developed at Beringer Vineyards in St. Helena, one of Napa Valley’s most popular wineries. The winery has a sensory garden, which wine educators use as a “scratch-and-sniff playground” to help guests connect more fully with the aromas and sensations of the wines they offer.Fletcher is a Napa-based author and recipe developer, and is the writer behind the “Planet Cheese” newsletter. She has written a number of cookbooks highlighting wine, cheese and farm-to-table fare. Her latest book highlights more than 60 recipes from 13 edible gardens in wine country, and includes suggested wine pairings.Beringer Vineyards’ Golden Beet GazpachoServes 6INGREDIENTS3 extra-large golden beets, greens and any roots removed1 cup extra virgin olive oi...

These 10 airports are the most chaotic in Europe this summer

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

By Sarah Rappaport | BloombergAirlines in Europe are trying to avoid a repeat of last summer’s travel chaos, when strikes and staff shortages were so bad that London’s Heathrow Airport capped passenger numbers and asked airlines to limit ticket sales. Travelers are going to jam European airports once again in July and August, with passenger numbers returning to or exceeding pre-pandemic levels.To get a sense of how airports are handling the crush so far, passenger rights-company AirHelp analyzed delays of more than 15 minutes and cancelations in June at European airports with 5,000 or more flights that month. The worst offender was London’s Gatwick, with 54% of its flights meeting the company’s criteria for disruption, while Finland’s Helsinki Airport ran the smoothest, with 18% of flights disrupted.Some of Europe’s busiest airports landed in the middle. At Amsterdam’s Schiphol, which handled 72 million passengers in 2019, 36% of flights were affected, while Heathrow, which handled ...

Stagecoach Country Music Festival announces 2024 dates and advance ticket sales

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

Goldenvoice’s Stagecoach Country Music Festival will return to the Empire Polo Club in Indio on April 26-28, 2024.The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival‘s sister country fest will follow the back-to-back weekends of Coachella on April 12-14 and 19-21, 2024.ALSO SEE: Stagecoach 2023: Our 50 best photos from the country music festival Though we don’t know the lineup just yet, advance tickets will go on sale at 11 a.m. Friday, July 14 at stagecoachfestival.com, but will only be available for 48-hours at the discounted rates. General admission passes start at $399; Rhinestone Saloon passes are $799; Corral Reserved seating is $949-$1,999; Corral Standing Pit passes are $1,599; VIP packages are $1,499-$2,999.Stagecoach celebrated its 15th year in Indio earlier this year with headlining sets by Luke Bryan, Kane Brown and Chris Stapleton. Festival curators rearranged the layout of the festival this year to expand restauranteur and TV personality Guy Fieri’s Stagecoach Smokehouse and ...

Nevada man’s license plate revoked for defaming Californians

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:22:20 GMT

RENO, Nev. — A Nevada man is challenging the revocation of his license plate, which the state says defames Californians.Adam Steelmon, of Fallon, said he has had the plate GOBK2CA for more than 20 years. In May, it was recalled by the Department of Motor Vehicles because of a complaint, Reno TV station KOLO reported.A section of the Nevada Administrative Code bars license plates from bearing defamatory references to a person or group.“In this case, the defamed group is Californians,” DMV spokesperson Eli Rohl told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He said that the department “regularly” turns down requests for license plates with anti-California messages, and that it would not be fair to allow Steelmon to keep his.Steelmon is appealing the recall and will have a hearing on July 12, KOLO said.A Hawaii man’s fight to keep a plate interpreted as a vulgar attack on the Black Lives Matter movement made it to a federal appeals court, which last month denied his challenge.Nevada regulati...