cookiesinheaven

Labels: factory farms, Farms

Edible Communities presents Edible Institute — a weekend of talks, presentations, workshops, and local food & wine tastings — by some of the local food movement’s most influential thinkers, writers, and producers. January 29-30, Hotel Mar Monte, Santa Barbara, CA.

Some of the panels?

The Future of Food Writing, Recipes and Cookbooks.- Molly Watson moderator.

Will Urban Ag Change the Way We Eat? - Kerry Trueman moderator.
Journalists Talk Strategies for Writing About Industrial Agriculture. - Jane Black moderator.

Activists and Advocacy: SOLE Food's Message for Change. - Tom Philpott moderator.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS TO EDIBLE INSTITUTE.

Labels: Edible Communities, Edible Santa Barbara, Foodies

Women have been part of the winemaking industry in California since its early days, with Josephine Tychson who started making wine in 1886 near St. Helena. But it's been a bit more recent that women have been recognized as prominent winemakers, many of them owning their own vineyards and wineries. Since Santa Barbara is fortunate to have many talented female winemakers, two charity dinners will be held at Jade Restaurant to honor and highlight the accomplishments of a group of these talented women.  

At each dinner, the winemakers will bring selected wines to taste and speak about their experiences in the industry. Proceeds will benefit WEV, a local organization dedicated to empowering women for success in business through education and financial assistance.  

On Sunday, December 5th the lineup is:

• Chrystal Clifton (Palmina)
• Morgan Clendenen (Cold Heaven Cellars)
• Kathy Joseph (Fiddlehead Cellars)
• Brooke Carhartt (Carhartt Vineyard)
• Teri Love (Gioia Wine)  

On Wednesday, December 8th the lineup is:

• Leslie Mead-Renaud (Foley Estates, Lincourt Vineyards)
• Karen Steinwachs (Buttonwood Winery)
• Deborah Hall (Gypsy Canyon Winery)
• Caren Rideau (Rideau Vineyard)
• Jennifer Tensley (Lea Wines)  

The cost of $90 includes a set menu including starter, appetizer, entree and dessert, as well as wine, tax, and tip. 

Reservations are extremely limited due to the cozy size of Jade, and must be made in advance by credit card. Please call the restaurant at (805) 563-2007.

Labels: Edible Santa Barbara, fundraising, Santa Barbara, winemakers, wines, women, Women's Economic Ventures

Labels: cats, LOL cats, Thanksgiving

In a memo that he sent to all employees last month, obtained by Mother Jones, Mackey concedes that Whole Foods is actually sinking under the weight of its health care expenses. In the past seven years, he writes, the cost of the company's health care plan as a percentage of its sales has gone up 60 percent. This year's tab is "equal to about 10% of the total Team Member compensation of $2 billion," Mackey complains. "On average over the past three years we have spent more on health care costs than we have made in total net profits!" - MotherJones

Labels: healthcare, Whole Foods

Labels: Edible Communities, local, Santa Barbara

Labels: Holidays, JFK, quotes, Thanksgiving

Labels: cookie monster, facebook, SNL, TV

Labels: JFK, quotes

Labels: hamburgers, Oxnard, restaurants, Santa Barbara

Labels: Passings, Williams Sonoma

Labels: bloggers, blogiversary

Date: November 19, 2010
Time: 9am - 3pm
Location: Las Positas Rd; State St.

The city’s fire department got the go-ahead from council members this week to begin production on a reality TV show titled “First Responders—Firefighters of Santa Barbara.” - SBIndependent

Labels: firefighters, fundraising, Santa Barbara, TV

Labels: Eggnogg, Gelson's, Holidays, Huell Howser

Having a slow start is nothing new, but this year’s level is unprecedented, according to development associate Gina Fischer. She said she hopes Santa Barbara residents may not yet be in the Thanksgiving mind-set, and that a reminder will spur people into action.

“If we can’t collect all these turkeys, that’s a lot of nonprofit food pantries and soup kitchens that don’t get them,” Fischer said. - Noozhawk

Santa Barbara, home to Oprah Winfrey, Ty Warner of BeanieBabies, Kenny Loggins, Warren Buffet's Yacht, Bo Derek, Julia Louis-Dryfuss, Howard Schultz, Cat Cora, Jeff Bridges, Dennis Miller, Kathy Ireland, The Reitmans (Ivan and Jason), Marcy Carsey, etc.

You mean to tell me, between them all they can't come up with some spare change to give some of their local neighbors a little something to eat on Thanksgiving?

Labels: celebrities, Hunger, millionaires, Santa Barbara County, Thanksgiving, Turkey

Another local restaurant sells. This time it's Aldo's Restaurant which has been bought by Brad Sherman, formerly of The Sojourner.

I've been so here so long I remember when it was the classic cafeteria, The Copper Coffee Pot and then when Albert Baltieri first opened Aldo's way back when....

Labels: Aldo's, For Sale, Italian, Restaurant, Santa Barbara

.....In November 2009, Sjerven and Santa Barbara winemaker Doug Margerum bought the Wine Cask. They’ve spent the past year revamping the menu and brought in a new chef over the summer.

“The sale of Seagrass provides the opportunity for me to continue my commitment to Wine Cask to bring it back to the level of excellence Santa Barbara expects, and to ensure its continued success,” Sjerven said in his news release. “My wife, Amy Sachs, and I knew it was critical to find a new proprietor who was as committed to the same degree that we have been to Seagrass to provide an excellent dining experience. Throughout the sale process it became clear to us that the Perez family shared our passion for the restaurant business, and have great confidence they will be successful.” - Pacific Coast Business Times

Because of its name and the critics' praise, Robert Perez's Citronee Bistro and Wine Bar on Nevada City's Broad Street has a reputation that is decidedly French and ritzy.

Problem is, neither are true, protested the chef-owner in a recent conversation with Table for Two!

"We are all-American," said Perez, 48, who was reared in Glendale in Southern California. On the other hand, the chef de cuisine, who pronounces his first name "Ro-BAIR," can't disguise the continental influences of 15 years spent in the Netherlands. - The Union

...For entre I had the "Today's Special", Braised Short Ribs with Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes and a Red Wine Reduction. The wonderfully tender, melt-in-your-mouth, short ribs had been braised for 5 1/2 hours and they were almost up there with the ones from David Burke and Donatella in New York. Very intense in flavor and succulent. The mild cream potatoes and the intense reduction was the perfect match.

...The over all service was very attentive and timely without beeing smoothering, and we had the pleasure of having the chef visit us at our table to see how our meal turned out. Our answer was excellent. And that was an honest one...

If you're ever in Nevada City, do not miss this excellent restaurant. I can't wait to bring my husband. He is after all the "Short Rib Connoisseur" in our family... - Tastes of Life

Labels: For Sale, Mitchell Sjerven, Restaurant, Santa Barbara, Seagrass, Wine Cask

Santa Barbara is so "pooched."

...Scientists long believed that the collapse of the gigantic ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica would take thousands of years, with sea level possibly rising as little as seven inches in this century, about the same amount as in the 20th century.

But researchers have recently been startled to see big changes unfold in both Greenland and Antarctica.

As a result of recent calculations that take the changes into account, many scientists now say that sea level is likely to rise perhaps three feet by 2100 — an increase that, should it come to pass, would pose a threat to coastal regions the world over. And the calculations suggest that the rise could conceivably exceed six feet, which would put thousands of square miles of the American coastline under water and would probably displace tens of millions of people in Asia.

The scientists say that a rise of even three feet would inundate low-lying lands in many countries, rendering some areas uninhabitable. It would cause coastal flooding of the sort that now happens once or twice a century to occur every few years. It would cause much faster erosion of beaches, barrier islands and marshes. It would contaminate fresh water supplies with salt. - NYTimes

Labels: Climate Change, Global Warming, Santa Barbara

Labels: Chocolate, horror

Labels: bakery, cupcakes, KTLA, Montecito, Paseo Nuevo, Santa Barbara, stores, YouTube

Since the beginning of Brothers Restaurant in 1996, Matt and Jeff Nichols have cooked for over a half million people and have had thousands of requests for their recipes. Now they share their passion and over 145 recipes with those who enjoy cooking at home with a collection of the Nichols’ guests’ favorite dishes: Jalapeño Cornbread, Tuna Tartar with Avocado & Spicy Yuzu Vinaigrette, Heirloom Tomato and Burrata Salad, Puree of Sweet Corn Soup with Maine Lobster, Morel Mushroom and English Pea Risotto, Horseradish-Crusted Irish Salmon, Grilled Iowa Pork Rib Chop with Apple Sauce & Honey Butter, Grilled Filet of Prime Beef with Stilton Cheese & Port Wine Sauce, Strawberry Shortcake, and Mud Pie with Chocolate & Caramel Sauces, to name just a few.

The Nichols brothers have also incorporated “Bro Notes” to help give home cooks insight and culinary tricks of the trade along with recipe variations. The book includes the history of their journey in building their own restaurant, the “Brothers Philosophy,” an overview of living life in Santa Barbara Wine Country, and Seasonal Menus. - BusinessWire

Labels: Cookbooks, Los Olivos, Mattei's Tavern, Restaurant, Santa Barbara County

Labels: Chipotle, Fast Food, YouTube

of equine splendor....Zenyatta!

Labels: Horse Racing, Zenyatta

Labels: Birthdays, Music, YouTube

Labels: Horse, Horse Racing, YouTube, Zenyatta

Tantalize your Intellect and Tastebuds

While Donating to

Women Economic Ventures!

WEV needs your help! Funding shortfalls threaten their ability to continue to provide program services at their current level. WEV provides opportunities for entrepreneurs in every phase of the business life cycle: start-up, launch, grow, and sustain. Their programs and services offered fall under the areas of training, access to capital and business services. All services are open to men and women entrepreneurs interested in starting or growing their business.

Lime Green Monkey invites you to a wonderful evening of fun and fund raising at Oreana Winery to benefit WEV -

Oreana Winery in Santa Barbara will transform into a salon the evening of Wednesday November 10^th, 2010. Not “salon” as in a hair cut or makeover. Rather, expect a salon in the 16^th century French version of the word: a cultural gathering of citizens coming together to expand their knowledge through conversation and entertainment.

“When I was enlisted to join the alumni fundraising campaign for Women’s Economic Ventures, I wanted to create an event I would like to attend—something cultural, inspiring and interactive, with an organic feel, but at a price that doesn’t break the bank,” said Kristin Anderson, a WEV graduate and owner of Lime Green Monkey, an eco-business that vends organic cotton handkerchiefs and cloth napkins.

The Home Grown Cultural Salon, only $30 in advance and $35 at the door, will feature performances by singer songwriter Earl Arnold, a local Indy favorite known for his band “Earl” and Antara Hunter, who has been part of the SB music scene since 1997, including a 10-year stint in the dynamic duo Antara & Delilah.

In addition, salon attendees will enjoy a reading by Patrick McHugh who teaches writing at UCSB, and a reading by Jenna McCarthy—author of the Parent Trip—who will be reading from her latest book Til Death Do Us Part is a Really Long Time, due out Summer 2011.

Organic appetizers made from local organic produce donated by Fairview Gardens will be prepared by "The Surfin' Chef" Erik Stenberg with Out of the Box Collective www.outoftheboxcollective.com , and cookies will be made by “Cookies in Heaven” expert Jillian Johnson from organic ingredients donated by Whole Foods, Santa Barbara. And, of course, your ticket includes a glass of wine from Oreana Winery, with more available at the no host wine bar. Non-alcoholic beverages donated by Trader Joe’s will also be available.

Don’t forget your checkbooks! A silent auction table will feature a broad range of high quality items donated by local businesses: music speakers from Utopia, www.installutopia.com, a photographic nature print by Dan Holmes of www.danholmesphoto.com, an Ayurvedic Facial from Maria Carbonell of www.samaayurveda.com, Santa Barbara Women's Self Defense will be donating 2 hours of Private Self Defense Instruction with Teri Coffee McDuffie worth a value of $400 www.sbslfdfnz.com, a $25.00 gift certificate from Crush Cakes www.crushcakes.com, a 3-pack of Snottykins organic cotton hankies from www.limegreenmonkey.com and more.

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All profits will be donated to Women’s Economic Ventures, a non-profit which provides opportunities for entrepreneurs in every phase of the business life cycle, from start-up and launch, to sustaining and growing your business through training courses, loans and more. As WEV is experiencing a budget shortfall, many graduates are stepping up to the plate in an alumni fundraising campaign that runs through December 31^st, 2010. For additional fundraisers, see www.wevonline.org

Event Details:

What: Home Grown Cultural Salon / Women’s Economic Ventures Fundraiser

Where: Oreana Winery, 205 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA

When: Wednesday 11/10/10, 7pm -9pm

Cost: $30 in advance, $35 at the door

Tickets: http://wevonline.givezooks.com/events/home-grown-cultural-salon

More Info: Kristin@limegreenmonkey.com or 805.886.9147

Labels: fundraising, local, Organic, Santa Barbara, WEV, women, Women's Economic Ventures

Labels: California, Santa Barbara

Labels: blogs, cakes, comedy

Labels: baseball, Food, sports