Last weekend, was one of the most joy-filled, sweet, beautiful, energetic, weekends I’ve had in a good long while. Thanks in no small part to Miss Maggy Keet of Three Many Cooks who organized a trip to Redwood Hill Farm with friends old and new. I’m feeling full of life (and goat cheese). I won’t talk too much, just yet, about my trip to the farm or the ADORABLE baby goats because, well, it’s day three of Cinco De Mayo Week and we have recipes to get to, right?
So far, we’ve had Strawberry Rhubarb Salsa which was (of course) gluten free, vegan, and lactose free. Yesterday, we did DIY homemade lox with a Latin kick. I’m not exaggerating when I say they are the best lox ever and I’m never buying lox again unless it’s a lox emergency. I’ve been known to have those.
Today’s recipe is inspired by my weekend; it’s a smoked goat cheddar quesadilla with shitake mushrooms and wilted spinach with green garlic and cilantro crema. Here’s where the inspiration comes in: I fell in love with Redwood Hill Farm’s smoked goat cheddar. I have rarely loved a smoked cheese this much- I often find them unpleasantly chewy. Also I was inspired by my people, this is a dish that is vegetarian, gluten free, and lactose free, I also didn’t add any salt after a conversation with my new friend Jess of Sodium Girl (the cutest ever) about how spinach can be salty. Shauna of … get the recipe
It’s day two of Cinco De Mayo Week at The Tomato Tart and I’m really excited to share this recipe with you. In the words of my husband it is “SOOOO GOOD” and then when he took some to work, it was “extremely popular” and then just “gone”. I’m talking about Latin-spiced smoked salmon. It’s kind of like spicy fish candy- unless that sounds gross to you. Then it’s not like that at all.
Being a nice Jewish girl (eh, half), lox has been ubiquitous in my life, but I have never made my own. I’ve read, bookmarked, ogled, and pinned, countless recipes, but it wasn’t until a week ago that I finally decided to make it. When I got home, I realized I’d forgotten the dill. Unwilling to go back out, I looked at the giant bunch of cilantro sitting in the glass on my butcher block, and the wheels began to turn.
What if I made a Latin-Spiced Lox? Could it be delicious? Would my grandmother turn in her grave? Is that the silliest expression of all time? In true rebel fashion, I bucked tradition & reached for the cumin seeds, hot smoked paprika, paper lantern chilies (aye papi those are hot), sea salt, brown sugar, white sugar, and cilantro. Two days later Latin Spiced Homemade Lox were born. Thank goodness.
I cut some of the lox into chunks, put them on homemade chips with avocado and ate them like cured salmon tartar. This is a new … get the recipe
It’s Cinco De Mayo Week at The Tomato Tart, and I’m so excited to celebrate with friends and family and fantastic food like this strawberry rhubarb salsa. Cinco De Mayo or May 5th , is one of my favorite culinary holidays. Celebrated as Mexican Independence Day in the US, Cinco De Mayo is actually the date that the Mexicans beat the French in the battle of Puebla in 1882. If you’re questioning why a French girl loves this holiday so much, no need. Never question a French person’s passion for excellent food and a good party.
I’m also from California, so I’ve always been surrounded by friends and extended family of Mexican ethnicity. Which also means, I’ve been lucky enough to eat the food in authentic eateries and in the kitchens of talented home cooks for most of my life. Tacos, ceviche, sopa de tortilla, salsas, quesadillas, mariscos of every shape and size, soft and fluffy arroz, flan, cajeta, sopapillas, and pozole. I love Mexican and Latin food of every origin.
Another aspect of being from California means that I’m sensitive to my friends’ dietary restrictions and preferences. This week, I’ll be offering a menu of foods that you can prepare for Cinco de Mayo for everyone- whether gluten free, vegan, lactose-intolerant, pescatarian, or omni. We’ll start off with this vegan, gluten-free, strawberry-rhubarb salsa.
I love this fresh and perfectly seasonal spring salsa for a few reasons- not the least of which is … get the recipe
Autumn comes in fits and starts in northern California, but at the first sign of winter squash and crisp mornings, something in me begins to take stock of the seeds I’ve sown over the year. Suddenly steamy cups of tea in the morning and warm blankets on the sofa lead to contemplation.
This fall, my thoughts have often turned to this blog- asking myself what is The Tomato Tart really about? I have spoken with friends, about this, and it was Andrew Wilder (eatingrules.com) who looked at the Mason jars in my open pantry. Row upon row of flours, grains, beans, and nuts from the bulk bins of my local co-op prompted him to say, “This visual gives a pretty good idea of what you’re about”.
Get me talking in a room, and I will passionately speak about farmers markets, food politics, living small, and trying to shop as ethically as possible. When talking with Andrew, I realized I’ve been sensitive to coming off as preachy when wanting to share more about how we eat, shop, and live—not just how we cook. It’s something I’m continuing to mull over as I grow with my blog which is now one year and one month old.
October 24th is Food Day, it’s a day to celebrate and promote eating real, to promote eating from sustainable sources, and to limit subsidies to big agribusiness. It’s a day to talk about protecting the environment and animals by standing up … get the recipe
October: while many people’s thoughts are turning to orange leaves, crisp mornings, and what to wear for Halloween, this October holds new meaning for me. My friend, Andrew, from Eating Rules put the call out to take a pledge to go #unprocessed for the month of October. Everything about Andrew’s invitation spoke to me, so when he needed help designing a logo, I was glad to jump in. I was even more pleased when Andrew invited me to contribute the first guest post for October #unprocessed 2011.
October #unprocessed couldn’t have come at a better time for me. The last two months have been unbelievably hectic. Between our move, the chocolate party, SF Chefs, house guests, a death in my family, and crazy work weeks, I was starting to feel run down, exhausted, disconnected, and really tired of take out. Joshua and I decided to start October #unprocessed during the last week of September. (read more about it, and take the pledge here)
This recipe came about for two reasons. Firstly, I had just made a HUGE jar of homemade salsa de molcajete (recipe here) and secondly, the butcher at Avedano’s had recommended this gorgeous cut of meat. One nice thing about buying something like a shank is that it’s not a fancy cut, so it’s not terribly expensive. This means, I get to buy really nice quality meat—pastured, organic, humanely raised meat, and it’s affordable. The other nice thing about a shank, is… well, it’s about the … get the recipe
Joshua and I were cuddled up on the sofa- me working on my laptop, he probably watching cute kitten videos. Ruby dog was in her usual spot, nestled in between us when I noticed her sweet white muzzle was red and a little bumpy. At first, we thought she and her pal Mabel played tug of war a little too rough- bumping heads, but a couple of minutes later, her face was redder, and puffier, and her adorable little forehead wrinkles were not so little. By the time we decided to rush her off to the vet, little miss Ruby had gotten sick all over the bedroom carpet.
Upon our arrival at Mission Pet Hospital, Ruby was (reluctantly) taken to the back without us. Our vet came out and confirmed what we suspected; Ruby was having an allergic reaction. They gave her benedryl and a shot of steroids, and apparently, she was doing a bit better already. They wanted to keep her for the rest of the day, so of course, I was mopey about not going home with my pup. I hate to think of her in a little kennel at the vet all day.
When we got home, there was a box on my front porch; I hadn’t ordered anything so I smiled thinking, avocados! I had signed up to receive a box of California Avocados from Foodbuzz and the California Avocado Commission, but didn’t know for sure if I was on the list to get them. I’ll … get the recipe
Spring is here. It’s been sprinkling in the mornings, sunny and a little breezy in the afternoons. On my long walks with Ruby, cherry blossoms float by in their gentle, dreamy way. Though our street is tree-lined, we often walk along Shotwell Street where we are greeted by the smell of jasmine and magnolia and surrounded by tall Edwardians.
Sometimes we stay in our immediate neighborhood, east of the mad hustle that is Mission Street, but sometimes, it’s fun to jump into the mêlée for a while. Ruby’s little nose twitches as we pass the bacon wrapped hot dog vendor and she stops for pets and belly rubs at every outdoor café.
By the time we get home, it’s time to start cooking. This Saturday, I was looking forward to making some chickpea tacos with a little twist. I have been obsessed with harissa for about a year now. I often have a jar of it in the refrigerator, but I had decided to make a green harissa for a bit of a change. I was also excited to pair these spicy vegan tacos with beer from New Belgium Brewing Co.
Most people are very familiar with Fat Tire by New Belgium. The brewery was very generous in providing a stipend for beer and ingredients to develop a recipe for them. What a fun project! While, I often lean towards Belgian-style ales and trippels, I wanted to step out of my comfort zone and drink something lighter. Enter spring and … get the recipe
So, I guess, I am officially a star, now! It’s what I aspired to as a child and I’ve finally made it. Thanks to Foodbuzz and Newman’s Own, I finally bit the bullet and made a cooking video- I did miss the Oscars to film this, little sucker, so what do you think, am I on my way to winning one?
A few weeks back, I received an email from Foodbuzz offering me the opportunity to get a free Flip HD video camera from Newman’s Own if I could come up with an enticing recipe using one or more of their products. No problem. Turns out, I grew up loving Paul Newman. A New Kind of Love is one of my favorite movies and one of my dad’s favorite movie’s was The Hustler. I’ll never forget the first time we saw Newman’s Own Virgin Lemonade; we had to have it. The fact that it tastes like real lemonade kept us coming back for more. As an adult, I’ve always loved Newman’s Own because of their philanthropic side. They’ve donated over $300 million to charity- that’s every penny of their profits!
The recipe I originally pitched to Newman’s Own and Foodbuzz was a chicken cutlet breaded, Milanese style, with their Honey Flax Flakes Cereal and topped with a Newman’s Own Virgin Lemonade Beurre Blanc Sauce (made with their own Pinot Gris). Well, I was thrilled when the box arrived filled with an awesome camera from Flip HD as well as … get the recipe
Hi, I’m Sabrina Modelle, The Tomato Tart. I’m a web designer by day and a cook, writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food copy writer by night.
When I get home from work, I love nothing more than to put on a vintage apron and throw a mess of flour and butter onto my ancient French butcher block and work it into a beautiful flaky pie crust.
Dinner at our house is a hand-made affair, and I believe that homemade food from whole, seasonal ingredients, can be simple and inexpensive- of course you’ll find some involved and extravagant dishes on this site too. The common thread is that they’re all made with seasonality, taste, and lots of love in mind.
Want to know more?
Last weekend, was one of the most joy-filled, sweet, beautiful, energetic, weekends I’ve had in a good long while. Thanks in no small part to Miss Maggy Keet of Three Many Cooks who organized a trip to Redwood Hill Farm with friends old and new. I’m feeling full of life (and goat cheese). I won’t talk too much, just yet, about my trip to the farm or the ADORABLE baby goats because, well, it’s day three of Cinco De Mayo Week and we have recipes to get to, right?
