Back in June, I attended the Palo Alto Concours D' Elegance, an annual classic car show in the Bay Area. My dad was showing his 1935 Supercharged Auburn, and I might add, he placed 3rd in his class! Go, Dad! Whenever we attend car shows (which is not uncommon when you grow up with a father who restored a vintage car from a box of nuts and bolts and scraps of metal and expended a lot of blood, sweat, and tears for 20 years to complete the project flawlessly), we take an hour or so during the show to walk around and see the other car entries. It's always fun to take a stroll through time, spanning about a century, and see beautiful, old cars. Plus, my dad, who is a car expert, helps me appreciate everything I'm seeing more by explaining the history or significance of each car.
Mom, Dad, me standing in front of my dad's red 1935 convertible Auburn sedan, and the reason we're at the car show
Standing with my dad's baby
Well, at the Palo Alto Concours D' Elegance, we happened upon a Ford Model T circa 1913. But not just any Model T...a Model T-turned-bakery truck with a pie display in the back!
My mom posing by the pie display at the back of the old bakery truck
My mom and I were instantly in love. We wanted this old bakery truck! My dad explained to me that back in the day when this truck was not vintage, but modern, a bakery would place an order with Ford for the Model T and then Ford would send the Model T to a body company to modify the body and turn it into this specialty truck.
This truck has so much character. Look at the wood sides, the shelves, the paint job. I wish more vehicles today had a personality like this. Instead, I'll just continue to attend car shows with my dad and continue to dream as I walk down aisle upon car aisle representing an era that's now mostly a happy memory.
The pies are on wooden shelves at the back of the bakery truck
Though maybe if I save up enough money, I'll invest in my own Model T bakery truck so a piece of that car personality I yearn for can be mine. And I'll have the paint job say Happy Go Marni Bakery. Wouldn't that be nice...
Well, we've gone and done it. We've signed up AGAIN for the KCRW Good Food Pie Contest. We, as in my mom and me! The contest is this Sunday, September 5, at the Taste of Beverly Hills event from 4-6pm. You might recall that this mother-daughter team entered and won the Cream Pies category last year. Woohoo! Well, we're back, and we're changing things up a bit. I don't want to jinx anything so I won't discuss our pie. But I will say, we are not competing in the Cream Pies category this time! We are so excited! My mom is flying down from the Bay Area for the weekend!
Several weeks ago, when my mom and I were flirting with the idea of entering again, we discussed flavor combinations we love. It's funny how the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. We both immediately knew the general direction of the pie, and which two ingredients had to be present. Then we set to building the pie, layer by layer.
We tested fillings, crusts, toppings, and more, adjusting the quantity of sugar or butter or xxx (wouldn't want to give away the recipe!), until we found what we believe to be an exceptional pie! It's taken a lot of time, thought, and expensive ingredients, but it's one of those fun things worth putting resources toward - and come on, doing it as a mother-daughter project makes it a no-brainer. Plus, it's delicious! So regardless of how we do this Sunday at the contest (um, there are more than 200 pies entered!!!), we are quite pleased with how our pie turned out and have already had a lot of fun preparing.
Oh, and there's going to be an apron fashion show at the pie contest. So I am planning on wearing the adorable bright, ruffly apron my very talented and crafty friend Crystal sewed for me in between the long hours she spends researching biomedical engineering orthopedic something-or-other for her Ph.D. Yes, she's a renaissance woman!
With Crystal on the night she gave me the apron!
Anyways, wish us luck this Sunday! And if you're in LA, think about coming out to cheer us on, say hello, and meet lots of fellow foodies. It's very fun and you get to taste the pie entries after the judging is over! Free pie? Yes siree!
Yup, that's me, in true period photographer George Hurrell-style. All of the Blogger Prom committee members had their portraits done to get into character!
Blogger Prom is the annual invite-only party for Los Angeles bloggers, a fun and exclusive way to meet fellow local bloggers. After an uberly successful Blogger Prom 2009, the Blogger Prom Committee (including myself!) is back to do it again! We are officially announcing today that Blogger Prom 2010 is a go!
Theme: Hollywood Confidential Think 1930s, 1940s Hollywood glamour! Marlene Dietrich, Betty Davis, Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, Maureen O'Sullivan, Barbara Stanwyck, Carole Lombard, Jean Harlow, Ava Gardner, Rita Hayworth, Lana Turner, Veronica Lake, Betty Grable, and the list goes on! And that's only the women! We're going to enforce a strict dress code that embodies this classic era. And we can't wait to see what Los Angeles bloggers do with the theme...just how far they can take it!
Venue: Yamashiro Yamashiro is an incredible venue in Hollywood, full of history, full of personality, and the perfect place to host our glamorous event! We are so excited Yamashiro has opened its doors to Blogger Prom! Address: 1999 N. Sycamore Avenue, Hollywood, CA 90068
Date: Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010, 7-10pm Mark your calendar now!!
More Info We'll be regularly updating you with details of the event right up until September 22nd.
Ah, Saturday night. I attended a friend's birthday held at The Gorbals, a restaurant-bar in downtown LA run by Bravo's Top Chef Season 2 winner Ilan Hall. You might have heard about Hall's somewhat controversial menu item: bacon-wrapped matzah balls. His father is from Scotland, his mother is from Jerusalem. Go figure! As I don't eat bacon, I didn't order these daring matzah balls and can't testify to their brilliance or ridiculousness. But! I did try the latkes with applesauce and honey and wow they are amazing! I think I might have to drizzle some honey on applesauce every time I eat it from now on!
A menorah is parked at the restaurant's cash register reminding you of some of the menu items
Plus, the cocktails are unusual and feature bourbon and gin in interesting flavor combinations, and the beers on tap are great. I ordered a pale ale that went down light and easy, and then a beer called the Abbey, which was significantly stronger and served in a rounded lowball tumbler glass probably more appropriate for scotch. So fun and unexpected!
The open kitchen allows you to watch Chef Ilan Hall in action
Besides the menu, the atmosphere makes The Gorbals an awesome venue. The Gorbals is located inside the historic Alexandria Hotel of 1906 so be sure to get intentionally lost on your way in or out so you can see some of the neat architecture and design touches (though with plenty of a feeling of abandonment from this no-longer-functioning hotel). The interior of the restaurant includes an open kitchen so you can watch the chef do his thing, and there's a long communal table in the middle of the place for you to sit at unless you opt for a more private dining experience at a table for just your group. The waitress we had was spectacular, super attentive and kind, always offering us water, and making sure we were happy. Hall looked like he was having a great time balancing cooking with stepping out of the kitchen and mingling with the party folk. He's a very friendly guy.
And speaking of friendly, Hall is friends with my friend, the birthday boy. So naturally, what is a chef to do when his friend hosts his birthday party at his pal's restaurant? Hall made a giant castle-shaped bundt cake, deep fried it, drenched it in some sort of vanilla glaze, sprinkled powdered sugar on top, and then finished it off with sparkler candles. Deep frying the entire cake basically resulted in a giant donut. And it was delicious!
The castle cake Ilan Hall made for my friend's birthday
To top off an already fun evening, I said a little hello to somecomedians who came out for my friend's party, sending my celeb interaction quota for the day off the charts. You see, my friend is in the comedy business. In fact, I was told there were plenty more comedians in the room, but unless they're from Zoolander or they're about to host the 2010 MTV Movie Awards, they just look like the next guy to me.
I highly recommend you grab a drink and order some small plates at The Gorbals. And say hello to Ilan Hall. If you two hit things off and become fast friends, maybe he'll make you a giant castle birthday cake donut thingy, too!
The Making of the Giant Castle Birthday Cake Donut Thingy in Pictures:
Deep frying the castle cake
Pouring the glaze over the hot, just fried cake
Sprinkled with powdered sugar, the cake gets some sparkler candles
The candles are lit and the Happy Birthday Song is about to commence!
The Details: The Gorbals 501 S. Spring Street Los Angeles, California 90013 (213) 488-3408
Seriously, what are the chances of what I'm about to tell you happening?
I was very sad when I realized I had booked a weekend getaway to the Bay Area during the National Food Bloggers Bake Sale - a national event where cities across the country organize their own blogger bake sales, all scheduled for the same day, and 100% of the money raised goes to charity. I would have baked and participated in the Los Angeles one had I been in town. Plus, I was sad to miss out on tasting the wares of dedicated LA foodies who I follow online.
So, as I said above, what are the chances I'd be in San Francisco with my mom on the day of the national event and stumble upon the San Francisco version of the national bake sale! Holy bujeezus! Take me to Vegas to win big! I couldn't believe I wasn't going to miss out on the event after all and was standing in front of several tables of delicious-looking baked goods, all grouped by price, and sold by their bakers. Breads, muffins, cookies, French macarons, spicy caramel corn, even cake pops!
And when I asked one of the bloggers for her blog business card so I could check out her blog when I got home, I read the name on the card and fell speechless for a moment. It was Anita of Dessert First, a blogger I've been following for years already. I was buying baked goods made by a blogger I already loved. How lucky am I? My mom and I ended up purchasing quite a few tasty treats, including a banana bread cake ball, rhubarb ginger crumb cake, a three-pack of lavender sugar cookies, spicy caramel corn, a chocolate chocolate chip cookie, and an almond tea cake with apricot pieces. Everything was outstanding.
More information about the bake sale can be found at What's Gaby Cooking, home of the blogger who ran the nationwide event.
I hope this blogger bake sale happens again. I just LOVE the idea of it!
I just spent the last 5 days eating Texas BBQ at SXSWInteractive in Austin. Soooooo yummy. But now it's time to rededicate myself to my sweet tooth and say buh-bye to my carnivorous side. And I think I'm going to eat only vegetables for the next MONTH!
More specifically, we all met up at the Pacific Design Center in Los Angeles, where a couple of Chevy Equinoxes and one Chevy Camaro were lined up in the horseshoe, waiting for us. Giant magnet decals stuck to the outsides of the cars that read Best of Tours. That's because we were about to embark on a best-of-Los-Angeles-cupcake-bakeries tour. There were four stops planned: Crumbs Bake Shop, Sprinkles, SusieCakes, and Vanilla Bake Shop. The drivers had their printed-out cupcakeries maps ready to go. We got in the vehicles, taking turns riding in the Camaro because there was only one, and because it was so freaking awesome (bumblebee yellow and black and special Transformers edition with the Transformers logo on the outside of the car and stitched on the leather center armrest).
Our first stop was to Crumbs Bake Shop in Beverly Hills, and Harley Bauer, the owner and West Coast partner of the company, was there to greet us and personally hand us our cupcakes to sample. He was very hospitable, offering everyone coffee, additional cupcakes, and staying to chat. He was also wearing a fantastic t-shirt ("Jews do it for eight nights"), so I was an instant fan. I've always enjoyed Crumbs because they have a great ratio of frosting to cake (in other words, a TON of frosting), they even have fillings, there are tons of flavors to choose from (Reese's Peanut Butter Cup is my absolute favorite), and they stay open later than any other cupcake shop I can think of so you can get your fix late at night. Crumbs is also certified Kosher, and that is one HUGE leg up over the competition in this very Jewish city, and much appreciated, might I add. :-) Getting to meet the owner behind this great brand was really exciting, and for him to turn out to be such a doll and so inviting and friendly only made my experience at Crumbs Bake Shop better. In fact, I can tell you right now, this first stop was the highlight of the tour for me.
But I will blab on a bit about the other three stops because, well, there was a lot more sugar to be had, and I did have other positive experiences.
Sprinkles, just down the street from Crumbs Bake Shop, was our second stop. I really enjoy Sprinkles cupcakes. The ones I love the most are the ones that do, indeed, have sprinkles on them. For the tour, we pre-ordered a couple of boxes so we wouldn't have to wait, and we stood outside the shop to taste these. There is almost no room inside and we wouldn't all have been allowed in at once. Without getting to meet the owners or even the staff at Sprinkles, I simply didn't have the same positive feeling about this cupcakery that I had at Crumbs; it was missing the personal experience. But the cupcake itself was delicious. I had a vanilla cupcake with chocolate frosting and sprinkles covering every last spot of the frosted top.
Then we were off to SusieCakes in Brentwood. The staff were warm and helpful. The holiday decor in the shop was everywhere, from the full-sized Christmas tree to the shelf displays to the baked goods, and they had a lot of seasonal options, not just in the form of cupcakes. In fact, while I got the gingerbread cupcake with cream cheese frosting, and it was spectacular, I also had my eye on a gingerbread whoopie pie with buttercream frosting sandwiched in between. Wow. SusieCakes makes a great cupcake. I am very impressed with how moist the cake part of the cupcake is.
Seasonal cupcakes at SusieCakes; I ordered the gingerbread ones
on the left with cream cheese cheese frosting
Amazing-looking gingerbread whoopie pies with
buttercream frosting from SusieCakes
My make-shift Tupperware is filling up!
Finally, we stopped off at Vanilla Bake Shop in Santa Monica. There were some cutely decorated cupcakes for Christmas with dyed green frosting, and mini versions of some of the flavors. I opted for a chocolate cupcake with toasted coconut frosting. Yum.
I hope I get to partake in another Best of Tour because I had a lot of fun. It was neat to meet bloggers whom I only knew online via their blogs or on Twitter, plus going to eateries and sampling food is always a good time. And then of course, there's the aspect of being driven around in brand new vehicles with that new car smell...
The Chevy Equinox was a fun ride. Kind of reminded me of a Honda CRV. Outdoorsy and rugged, yet sophisticated enough to work as an everyday car. We even tested out the On Star feature, calling the hotline for directions back to the Pacific Design Center. There was plenty of leg room and the leather was comfortable.
The new Camaro was a great ride and in a totally different way than the Equinox. It was sporty and sexy and bulging with biceps, if you know what I mean, and I could tell people on the streets were paying attention. And we weren't in just any Camaro. It was the bumblebee, meaning bright yellow with black striping detail all the way down the car. And it was the Transformers special edition with logo detailing on the outside and on the leather interior. The only thing missing from the scene was Shia Labeouf.
The sexy bumblebee Transformers special edition Chevy Camaro
Transformers logo embroidered on the interior leather of the Chevy Camaro!
Special thanks to Tara of When Tara Met Blog for organizing the event. Thanks also to Chevy and GM for providing the transportation and to the cupcakeries for putting up with a crowd of chatty, photo-snapping, inquisitive bloggers.
Speaking of these bloggers, if you want to follow some really interesting, opinionated, fun ones on Twitter, why not start with the attendees from this event!
Friday night, I took my friend Maya, the awesome blogger personality behind Shop Eat Sleep, and her boyfriend Rory, to "All Cake, No File," a show in Culver City with an unlikely match-up. It was part live cooking show and part Johnny Cash tribute band. Jewell Rae Jeffers, in a blond, 1950s wig, and thick Southern accent, led the cooking portion by demonstrating her Coke Cake on stage. It was a cake mix, some Coca-Cola, eggs, pecans, and a few more things, plus frosting with marshmallows. She offered up social commentary on the prison system while she baked and made funny mentions about all the products she was using in her cake that the show was not endorsing. The show was silly, but what do you expect from something that's part of the WTF?! Festival?
L-->R: Me, Jewell Rae, Maya
I have to tell you, walking into the theater before the show started and seeing a KitchenAid on the stage was a huge thrill. It almost didn't matter what the show was like because I just loved that it involved a KitchenAid. But the show did turn out to be fun and funny. Jewell Rae interacted with the audience throughout the show, and in between baking, an amazing Johnny Cash tribute band called With a Bible and a Gun performed some classic Johnny Cash songs. They were such a talented band! And they are actually doing a prison tour, performing for inmates all over the U.S.! They don't pretend to be Johnny Cash or his bandmates, other than wearing black and playing his music, so it's not a tribute band in the full sense of the word. Wayne Kramer of the MC5 also made an appearance and performed a few songs.
Standing with Corby Gallegos, the leader singer of With a Bible and a Gun, who sounds just like Johnny Cash!
When the show ended, everyone was invited to the patio to have a slice of the cake and schmooze with the performers. Yes, the night ended with cake! Isn't that how all shows should end? Next Friday, November 27, is your last chance to see this show and Jewell Rae will be baking a different cake!
This was my first time at the Ivy Substation and at any Actors' Gang event. There really is not a bad seat in the house and the back courtyard area is a neat touch with heatlamps and a bar. I would absolutely go back to this venue, with or without a KitchenAid on stage.
A few nights ago I attended a Coca-Cola blogger tasting event at a bar called High on the rooftop of Hotel Erwin in Venice, CA. There were amazing views of the city from up there, and fortunately also heat lamps! I brought along two of my closest friends David and Tzviah and we met up with friend/blogger AJ of Confessions of a Fat Girl and friend Jess. In the elevator on our way up to the roof, I ran into Christina of Hot Pink Manolos and what's funny about that is, we were already friends on Twitter, but I had never met Christina in person until that elevator ride. Ah, the virtual-come-real world! It was also neat to see David and Tzviah wearing name tags with HappyGoMarni.com written beneath their names. As if they were working for me or representing me. Well I suppose that's possible...they are lawyer-folk, after all.
The entrance to the bar when you step off the elevator onto the rooftop
Tzviah and David. Notice their nametags! They must work for me. :-)
But besides hanging out with friends at a cool venue in Venice, the primary reason I was there was to check out the new limited availability 8.5-ounce Coca-Cola Aluminum Contour Bottles. They are really neat! They keep the drink cold much longer than the normal cans, and they are sleek and classic like the old glass bottles of decades ago. Plus, unlike glass, they don't break if you drop them. Of course that doesn't make them spill-proof so don't drop them on your white carpet. I should really heed my own advice on that. They're also much heavier containers than the thin aluminum cans we are currently so used to and they're resealable.
At this event, the bartender was mixing cocktails that featured Coke, Diet Coke, and Coke Zero, and then funneling them into the new bottles to serve. I ordered the Coca-Libre, a drink that combined Coke, rum, grenadine, and red sugar. Another drink option was the Lemon Chilled made from Diet Coke, vodka, and lemonade. And a third drink option was the Zero Gravity with Coke Zero, Tequila Herradura, and fresh lime juice. Even some of the passed hors d'oeuvres contained Coke in the recipe. For sure the meatballs with their spicy, tangy Coke sauce. Yum!
Beef meatballs with a sauce made from Coke
At least for now, the new bottles are hard to find. Not sold in supermarkets and only in a few bars. I happen to live not-so-far from one of those bars: the SLS Hotel bar in Beverly Hills. Hopefully you'll have a chance to try a bottle soon. You could toss it in the recycle bin when you're done, or it makes a great bud vase!
The much anticipated KCRW Good Food Pie Contest happened yesterday and I can't believe I'm saying this - in fact, it's still shocking to say out loud, but typing is a little easier: My mom and I won 1st place in the Cream/Custard/Chiffon/Mousse category! Ahhhhhhhh! Ok, had to get that scream out of my system. Ahhhhh! Nope, it's not all out.
The lovely cross-section
Our winning pie was a Chocolate Caramelized Bananas and Peanut Butter Mousse Pie with a garnish of Caramelized Peanuts. We are suckers for chocolate, peanut butter, and bananas. Both my mom and I tested the pie recipe separately, varying it slightly to see what worked best. Friday night when we made the official pie we'd be entering into the contest (together under one roof because my mom flew down from the Bay Area!!!), we changed the chocolate cookie crust one more time. Third time's the charm! And practice makes perfect!
My sister, me, and my mom with our pie!
With close to 150 pies entered and all of them looking interesting or gorgeous, the competition was fierce! We were honored to be among such a talented mix of professionals and amateurs. It was fun to chat with the entrants while we waited for judging to begin. Plus being surrounded by such an esteemed judging panel, I was swooning and dying from celebrity chef and food figure sightings. It's one thing to be a fan of a famous chef or food writer, it's another to have them be a fan of your pie! The tables have turned, if just for one day, and I'm bursting on the inside!
The ribbons table
Watching chef Eric Greenspan of The Foundry on Melrose taste my pie and give the "oooooh-yummy-I-like-this" look of the century was incredibly exciting. Mark Peel, chef and founder of Campanile and La Brea Bakery, Stefan Richter, Top Chef Season 5 contestant and chef of Stefan's at LA Farm, and Russ Parsons, the LA Times food editor, offered me similar looks. I wish I could bottle up the thrill of seeing that. Greenspan and others even returned to my pie for additional tastes later in the judging process. So glad my sister got a short video of Greenspan mid-taste...
We are plating the pie for the judges
To go back a few steps and explain the day from the beginning, first I registered my pie entry when I arrived and was then taken to the tables where the pies would be displayed. This event took place in the giant Westfield shopping mall in Topanga, CA. The general public looked on from the other side of the ropes as I cut my pie into 8 pieces. 2 of those 8 would be plated for judges to sample. I took special care to make clean slices. I didn't know the judging rubric but I could have guessed presentation would be part of it. The slices came out great and showed off a fun multilayer cross-section. I was so relieved! Now, assuming the pie doesn't melt or deflate as it sits there unrefrigerated (cream pies aren't especially forgiving at room temperature for too long), my work is done and it's up to the Pie Gods to make miracles happen.
The Foundry chef-owner Eric Greenspan tastes our pie!
Russ Parsons, the LA Times food editor, tastes our pie!
Mark Peel, chef-owner of Campanile and La Brea Bakery founder, tastes our pie!
It took quite awhile for everyone who brought a pie to register and slice up their pie. Eventually, all the pies were out on display and the judges entered the area to perform their noble duty. I moved to the other side of the ropes blocking off the pie area, joining the general public, and watched judge after judge approach my pie to taste it. After a very long judging period and much deliberation and back-and-forth among the judges, the winners were determined.
Holding up my ribbon, biggest grin ever, and with event host/food genius Evan Kleiman
Evan Kleiman, the incredible chef-owner at Angeli Caffe, star of Good Food on KCRW, and host of this pie contest, took to the mic and announced 3rd, then 2nd, then 1st place in each of the four categories: Fruit and Nut; Cream, Custard, Chiffon, Mousse; Savory; Interpretive (Defies Categorization); and then Best in Show. When she called Pie #22, our pie, I just about died. I put my hands over my face, Home Alone style, then pulled my mom's arm behind me, and we rushed up to receive our award ribbon and prizes. The LA Daily News snapped a pretty awesome photo of us as we heard our pie announced. As for prizes, we got a tote bag of cookbooks, wine, and a gift certificate to Westfield mall. Plus bragging rights! When all winners had been announced, the public was invited to taste the remaining pie slices. It was a mad dash to the tables, and so much fun!
2nd place in Creams Dan Hong (for his delicious banana cream pie) stops for a photo with my mom and me
I can now check off Mother-Daughter Bake-off Experience from the list - though I wouldn't be opposed to more of those in the future. And how special to have my sister there cheering from the sidelines. We won an NPR bake-off? We love NPR!!!!! It was a really great day.
Oh, and at least for now, I'm keeping the winning recipe a secret. Sometimes I like a good mystery. :-)
Judge Eric Greenspan and me
Judge Mark Peel and me
With my friend Lindsay William-Ross, the editor of LAist
With Chrystal Baker, a fellow first place winner but for the Savory category, and fellow food blogger!
I’ve always loved baking. I come from a family of amazing bakers going back many generations. And I have two large bookcases in my living room, both of them filled only with my 1000 cookbooks. I even considered it as a career and almost attended pastry school in San Francisco after college. But I went the route of digital marketing and got a Masters in Communication Management from the Annenberg School for Communication at USC. So baking is just a hobby. But I take hobbies seriously! And getting to moonlight as a baker is a great thing. I’m very happy.
The coolest bakery truck EVERRRRRR!
Mom, Dad, me standing in front of my dad's red 1935 convertible Auburn sedan,
Standing with my dad's baby
My mom posing by the pie display at the back of the old bakery truck
The pies are on wooden shelves at the back of the bakery truck
