Thoughtful Gourmet Blog

Quick and wholesome recipes for feeding a family are the premise of Melissa Bahen’s new cookbook, Farmhouse Weeknights.

Taku Kondo’s cookbook offers an outdoorsman’s-slash-sushi chef’s approach to food and cooking. It’s high-spirited, perfect for anyone considering preparing fish and seafood caught with their own hands. Exploring and enjoying the bounty of the American West Coast is a gift we all can benefit from.

“Family Style,” Peter Som’s cookbook, radiates with innate spirit while casting an eye to his upbringing in Northern California. Som grew up in the town I call home. (I discovered this in his headnote for Fresh Strawberry Pie with Chamomile Miso Graham Cracker Crust.) He understands the cultural power of crisp chicken skin and peak-season green beans. His recipes line up perfectly with how my family likes to eat.

Here are just a few restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area I visited in May. Perfect gribenes, a savory espresso tonic, fresh pupusas and more….

The first time I visited San Francisco’s Californios in 2015, I left awed by chef Val Cantú’s flavors. After a recent visit, I left disappointed. What went wrong at the Michelin 2-star?

Time for certified compostable knives, forks, spoons and straws made from sugarcane, coffee grounds and corn. And no toxic chemicals.

In this weird moment, comfort food is making a comeback in plenty of places. I’ve got my eye on burgers. Beef burgers.

A family meal has to be delicious, it has to be cheap, and it has to be easy enough to cram into the time you have for cooking that night. So sayeth Che Fico Chef David Nayfeld, whose recipes make up a cookbook shared from his perspective as a dad.