Getting Crafty at The Makery

If you live in the Bay Area and have not yet visited The Makery Los Altos, you are seriously missing out! 

This is a maker/crafter/pretty-thing-lover/collector's paradise. From yarn to hand-printed sweatshirts and tees, they have something to help you satisfy mostly every inspired idea. And no, this is not a sponsored post – I'm that in love with this place!

Recently, I've been attending their weekly Craft Club complete with champagne, cheese, fruit and girlfriends. We have made a dream catcher, painted natural objects, and poured cement into a handmade mold. It's cool stuff. The best part is twofold:

1. You can buy pre-assembled craft kits online. 
2. They ship within the US. 

What's your favorite DIY project?

Maple Fig Butter

It starts innocently enough. I wake up and want pancakes.

But then it gets complicated because I want plain pancakes but I have a strong distaste for plain flavors. 

Enter mid-stir pantry raid. Enter dried figs, maple syrup, coconut oil. 

Output: hot, syrupy, sweet-with-a-bite, textural, perfect pancake topping. Enter Maple Fig Butter. 

The best part? Leftovers. Put this in the fridge, let it firm up, then spread on crackers with goat cheese; toasted bread with almond butter; stir into oatmeal and yogurt; add to thumbprint cookies instead of jam; serve with pork or roasted turkey. 

You will not regret making this.

. . .

Maple Fig Butter

7-10 dried mission figs, roughly chopped
1 cup real maple syrup
1 Tbsp coconut oil or butter

• In a saucepan, bring figs and maple syrup to a simmer. Reduce heat and let simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until figs are soft. 
• Take a potato masher and smash the figs into the syrup until desired texture is achieved. Add coconut oil/butter. Stir until completely melted and evently distributed.
• Reduce heat to lowest setting until ready to serve. Spoon over pancakes. 
• Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge. It will firm up to a jam-like consistency.  

Brie, figs and honey

Fig season has officially arrived.

If you know anything about myself or this blog, you know I wait all year for the figs to come around. Sometime around August 20, I'll usually find a half-nibbled fruit on the path––as if some critter took a taste, decided it wasn't yet ripe enough and left it there to let me know, it's almost time!

Figs seem to show up at the store before they ripen on my tree. I become a giddy kid in a candy store when I see them, but I never buy them. It's too soon... And there's really nothing like a fig fresh from the tree. Sweet, succulent, textural. 

A few weeks later, when it's finally time, I go straight to the store for a French baguette, some brie cheese, arugula and raw honey. On the first day of fig season, you know what's for lunch.

With carmelized onions and maybe a drizzle of balsamic reduction, this petite sandwich defines perfection. Feel free to toast it, if you like; I couldn't wait. 

Brie, Fig and Honey Baguette :: Serves 2

• 1 French baguette, halved lenthwise
• 1 cup of sliced figs
• 2 ounces brie cheese, or however much you like
• a drizzle of raw honey
• arugula greens
• carmelized onions 
• balsamic reduction (optional)

Layer ingredients on one side of the baguette. Cover with the other side and slice in half. Press like a panini if you want. Otherwise, enjoy as-is.  

This month, I'm exploring un-roasted coffee

Has it really been a month since my last post?

For that, foodie friends, I apologize. Truth be told, I have not been doing very much of my own cooking lately. Since most of the work I do happens in cafes and coffee shops, I either dine out or grab quick snacks on the go. I'm also an only child again (insert high-pitched cackle) while Sis and Bro get educated, which means my loving parents (all five of them) happily feed me dinner daily. 

I've enjoyed the change of pace while I grow accustomed to post-college life.

However! Let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's a new column this month about green coffee. What the heck is that? Simply, green coffee is the un-roasted, light green-tinted seeds that grow inside coffee berries. In recent months, a few respected newspapers and health blogs have reported on the newfound benefits of consuming green coffee extract. Since it can now be found at your friendly neighborhood Starbucks establishment, I thought I'd compile some research for those of you who wonder - as I did - what it's all about. 

Click over to the LATC to decide for yourself whether green coffee is worth drinking. And let me know what you think!

This month, I’m making dried fruit

In this month’s column, I talk about preserving the season’s best fruit in your oven, rather than on the stove. Dried fruit has always been one of my favorite snacks, but it can be pricey––especially for the organic kind without sulfates and preservatives. I love a few pieces chopped up with pistachios, almonds, and some dark chocolate chips for a quick trail mix. Or stewed in oatmeal, Mediterranean crock pot dishes, soups, and quinoa for added texture and a pop of sweetness.  

Try my ultimate nourishing kale + quinoa salad with your homemade dried fruit.

The best part about making your own dried fruit is how hands-off it is. Sure, it can take up to 8 hours to see the results you want, but for the entire cooking process you can be doing laundry, surfing the web, working out, cleaning house, reading, drinking tea… Basically, just hang out at home so you don’t accidentally burn the house down, but don’t worry about babysitting the stove. 

Until I become a pro canner, I’ll be drying my fruit to preserve the season from here on out. 

To read more and get the recipe, visit this month’s column in the Los Altos Town Crier.