Pleasant House

1. “Hot dog bun” from La Farine Bakery. It doesn’t have to be used as a hot dog bun, but it could be the perfect pod for the upscale hot dog pea. It’s soft and chock full of crunchy poppy seeds. A great accompaniment to the grass-fed hot dogs from Tallgrass Beef.

2. Admiring the balcony garden in its midsummer splendor.

3. Eating sour cherries with salt. Salty/sour, salty/sour, salty/sour, salty/sour….

4. Anytime Michael Gebert and his Sky Full of Bacon releases a new video podcast, I watch it. And it’s not just because I “starred” in one. His latest, “A Better Fish,” is all about fish. I learned from this video that Supreme Lobster Company sells crappie and sunfish. I may now be able to execute a dream dish of mine that I would call Illinois crappie with corn niblets. I’ve always wanted to serve this fish with the bait that I used to catch it when I was a kid.

Oh, and a great thing happened while searching for a picture of a crappie to post. I also found a picture of a tiny turtle, just like the ones I also used to catch while fishing for crappie by my house. Both of these photos come from Pvt. Pondscum on flickr.

5. A taste of Chelsea’s apricot chiffon pie.

6. First-of-the-season celery soda.

7. A trip to Avec. Haven’t been there in awhile. We sat at the bar and for the first time at a “communal” restaurant, had a real communal experience. A rep from Heath Ceramics was sitting next to Chelsea and me, and was eating his way through the menu while offering to share his dishes with those sitting next to him. We struck up a conversation and reminisced about San Francisco and the Bay Area.

Then, one of my service guys, James, showed up with his wife and a friend, and sat next to us at the bar. We met each others’ spouses, shot the shit, had some drinks, and James bought us a round of tequila shots, a symbolic end to a night that began with a $16 dollar margarita at a different place down the street–live and learn, I guess.

8. My first Earthbox. I felt as though I had heard enough about them that I was ready to purchase one to try it for myself. Granted, it’s pretty late in the season, but I’ve got some piquillo and padron peppers that are outgrowing their pots so I thought this would be a great way to transplant them and see how effective it is.

9. Mark Bittman’s vegan and dairy-free chocolate pudding. Chelsea wanted me to make some spring rolls for dinner, and she prepared this recipe for dessert. This is the first time I have tasted a recipe from The Minimalist, and I was impressed. Simple, tasty, and healthy.

Chelsea used Phoenix brand extra-smooth tofu, which is made in Chicago and uses non-GMO soybeans. Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

3/4 c. sugar

3/4 c. water

pinch salt

1# extra-smooth tofu

8 oz. chocolate

Method:

a. Boil sugar and water together with a pinch of salt to create a simple syrup. Cool.

b. Melt chocolate.

c. Combine the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Chill. Eat.

Pretty simple! And if you want, you can turn them into frozen pudding pops. We picked up some popsicle molds at Ikea a while ago and tried them out with this recipe.

10. My somewhat weekly routine of getting an egg bretzel and coffee at Hannah’s Bretzel and hitting the Daly Plaza Farmer’s market.

BONUS SECTION

*11. The very first taste of my current batch of homebrew. Words can’t describe the satisfication of grabbing that chilled, naked, brown bottle of beer, cracking open the cap, and watching the whisp of trapped vapor slowly making its way out the top. And the first sip…the effervescence, the aroma, the flavor…You’ve got to experience it for yourself.

**12. Fried chicken livers with candied onions, over-easy eggs, biscuits, and grits at Sweet Maple Cafe.

*I know that a Top 10 is only supposed to have 10 items, but since this is our website, we reserve the right to break our own rules from time to time. Especially when good beer is involved.

**Or fried chicken livers.