Focaccia!

One day, I’ll get brave enough to try baking this outdoors, using charcoal for heat. I imagine the flavor will be wonderful, but I also imagine that uniform cooking might be problematic. For now, I’m making the stuff in the oven, varying the ingredients: fennel fronds or rosemary from the garden (or fennel seeds onceContinue reading “Focaccia!”

Art in the Garden!

Sac Open Studios has been a fun event. On the first day, people walked through the gardens, friends stopped by and other friends chipped in to keep things organized and greet visitors. Yesterday started ominous with thunder and a bit of rain – even though every weather app we viewed said, “it’s sunny and beautiful!”.Continue reading “Art in the Garden!”

When art meets invention: a modular grill with mosaic art

No pizza oven? Everyone really expected us to build a pizza oven. Although we’d love one, we didn’t want to spend the time waiting for it to heat up (hours) nor did we want something that only did oven things. We wanted it all: grilling, indirect heat, pit roasting, baking, side heat rotisserie… and forContinue reading “When art meets invention: a modular grill with mosaic art”

Mechoui – the big grill event

Summer in France is mechoui time. The word comes from North Africa, and used to mean an entire barbecued lamb cooked over coals on a spit, constantly basted with flavored butter until it develops a crispy exterior and is moist and tender. The technique works well for chicken, or anything else that’s grilled and bastedContinue reading “Mechoui – the big grill event”

Where should the outdoor kitchen go, anyway?

There seem to be two schools of thought for outdoor kitchens: they should either supplement the indoor kitchen, or they should duplicate it. In the supplement option, the kitchen moves smoky or messy functions outside. This obviously applies to grills and barbecues, but can also work with wok rings, wood fired ovens, and other equipmentContinue reading “Where should the outdoor kitchen go, anyway?”