Campari America Spirited Connections Interview Series: Sam Anderson

While the cocktail and spirits industry has a façade that is sexy and exotic, those within the industry (like myself) know all too well that countless cocktails night after night can take its toll.  Many years ago, I realized that if I wanted to thrive in the cocktail industry, I would need to work out religiously and be militant about maintaining balance in my life. 

That said, I have gravitated towards people in the industry who do the same; those who seek out spinning classes in whatever city they are in, those who do pushups on the side of the road (even on top of a volcano), those who run charity bike rides, and train for triathlons.  I have such deep respect for these people, mostly because I know how hard it is to wake up for boot camp after staying out a little bit too late.  But, we all must do what it takes to maintain balance in a naturally hedonistic industry.

Perhaps most inspiring of all is Sam Anderson.  He is the Beverage Director of the perpetually hip Mission Chinese in New York City and a marathon runner.  He has been featured on the cover of running magazines, has starred in running campaigns for companies such as Adidas, and all the while, has been killing it in the cocktail world. 

Photo Courtesy of Sam Anderson

This month for my Campari America #Spirited Connections Interview I sat down with Sam to talk about how he discovered running, the importance of alone time, and how it fuels his creativity. 

Get ready to be inspired, dear reader, because Sam is the real deal.  Handsome, thoughtful, wildly creative, and most certainly off the market.  He collaborates frequently with his girlfriend who is a florist (Fox Fodder Farm) - most recently with Red Bull Music Academy and Le Dauphin in Paris.

Without further ado, Sam Anderson:

Photo Courtesy of Sam Anderson

Gastronomista:  Sam, it seems like these days you are known just as well for your work as the Beverage Director of Mission Chinese in New York City as you are for marathon running and your inspirational Instagram posts.  How did you get your start as a bartender and how did you get involved with running?

Sam Anderson:  Years ago, I stumbled from the craft coffee world into Freeman’s Alley where I was mentored by some of the best in the industry all at once; a real kick in the ass.  Lynette Marrero, Toby Maloney, Jim Kearns, Greg Ramirez, Yana Wolfson… a murderers row of bartenders who, unbeknownst to me, were pioneering the craft cocktail business in Real Time in front of my eyes.  I got to witness this, juice their citrus, make their syrups and set up their bars. From there, I worked as Head Bartender at Hotel Delmano during its first four years; still so proud of that place, those nights, the energy and pure sex appeal of that space and it’s trailblazing service to the neighborhood. I earned my “Nightclub Cred” working at Gold Bar for three years alongside Tim Cooper and Remi Shobitan.  I worked as well for April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman as a roving Beverage Director/Cocktail Guy at several of their restaurants.  I’ve done consulting work as well at Vinegar Hill House, Sel Rrose, Fig 19, Cafe Colette, and the Breslin.  I have been at Mission Chinese since the second location’s opening.  I run the cocktail, wine, tea and beer program.

I got into running mainly out of desperation … turning 31 and realizing that I was far down the road to being victimized by the occupational hazards of the service industry not to mention my own rather dark family history with respect to alcohol, cigarettes and drugs. After years of procrastination and failure to quit, I simply woke up one day with a vicious, existential hangover after a long night of cigarettes and mescal and ran over the Williamsburg Bridge.  I couldn’t have gone further than three miles and felt as though my heart would explode.  That feeling afterward, of release, of making a tiny step forward was the first time I’d felt empowerin over a decade.

Photo Courtesy of Sam Anderson

Gastronomista: How do you balance your life in the hospitality industry with staying fit? 

Discipline.  I run 6 days a week every morning and average 60 miles per week with an uptick when I run long routes in preparation for approaching a marathon.  I’m almost always training for a race, either fast, shorter spring races or marathons in the fall. I drink only on the weekends when I am not working and I stick to natural wine.  I am very conscious with how I eat as well and I prioritize eating for training performance first—focusing on a nutrient rich vegetarian diet.  I try to get to bed early and rise as early as possible, so that means I’m not the guy out on the bar circuit any more.  Honestly, I find the biggest challenge to be maintaining touch with a community that I don’t participate much in anymore—but interestingly, as I’ve spoken out about my decisions and just been committed to them, like-minded folks in the business have gravitated to me over time.

I also have a regular yoga practice, as well—which tends to undo some of the knots that a difficult training schedule can tie up in your body. It’s all big time and effort commitment but it keeps me bouncing along.

Photo Courtesy of Sam Anderson

Sam Anderson:  How do you think fitness influences your life on a day to day basis?  Does it inspire your work in any way?

On the physical ground level, because I work really hard to maintain my training, I feel strong and empowered—I know what it is to not feel great about your body… I was for over a decade, a chain-smoker, someone who drank daily, with terrible eating habits who barely got to work on time. I’m no longer self-destructive or nihilistic about how I will feel the next day; when I am making decisions about what I’m going to eat/not eat or drink/not drink, it’s all with a mind toward the physical state. 

Running functions not just on the physical level but on the mental—I run without my phone, without music and use the time to meditate and focus on my breath.  This is enormously therapeutic, stress-relieving and hard to describe.  I know that it clears psychic blockages, allows me to exist in peace and keeps me from reacting to the stress of the city.  Running inspires my entire life—I love better, I listen better, I work better as a result.  Yes, I often get some of my favorite ideas while running but that is just a natural overflow… the channels get cleared, the mind is free to ramble and bounce along. Running is a portal to the subconscious, a physical activity that opens up [that] very creative space. 

Gastronomista:  New York is an amazing city for running.  What are some of your favorite routes around town?

Sam Anderson:  So true!  New York has an embarrassment of riches for the adventurous runner and cyclist—bridges, greenways, waterfronts, parks, access to trails.  If there’s one thing I miss about NYC when I’m traveling, it’s this.  Bridges—Queensboro in particular.  I love the dim, gothic solitude of that bridge but also the way it crosses over right into the heart of the city, seeming to be lying right across the ribcage of the city. I love the approaches to the bridge via the waterfronts and then connecting it with the Manhattan bridge and its views of the lower part of the city.  That loop; I lose myself completely, lost in the dream of it all on those 16-17 miles. I love running late at night and in the early morning on the waterfronts and love the long stretches between bridges out to Red Hook.  I love, more than anything, escaping to the trails outside New York…

A post shared by Sam Anderson (@sam4nderson) on May 18, 2017 at 7:02pm PDT

Gastronomista:  You’ve been involved in some amazing running campaigns, including Adidas Running, tell us more about how these amazing opportunities came to be, and what you’ve got lined up for the future.

Sam Anderson:  Over the past few years, I have been fortunate to have collaborated with some photographers on creating photos and content that capture my experience of training—the elation that it can produce, the flow.  I was also on the cover of Runaway Magazine, a brand new running publication that people really dug.   This content was never staged… always captured in a race or on long runs, so you really feel that energy.  Recently, I filmed and shot with Adidas, working Mark Seliger and then later with Hypebeast on a piece that I got to style and do the location scouting for.

Hypebeast x adidas - PureBOOST DPR - New York from VIDSETT on Vimeo.

Lined up in the future—I have a full season of races coming up.  The big one is that I’m running my 4th New York Marathon this fall to benefit City Harvest.  Also will be running Boston and Lehigh Marathons.  I also have a number top-secret projects that are all in utero at the moment… wish I could reveal all but I can’t!

Gastronomista:  What tips do you have for balancing fitness, nutrition, and hydration with a busy work schedule in the hospitality industry?

Sam Anderson:  I’m still trying to get that one down myself.  But, putting myself on a training schedule has been really helpful—the hospitality world is very unpredictable and stressful. So having a set routine that I follow every day that keeps me in shape, gives me mental space for meditation and reflection and keeps me grounded.  This has been life-changing.  Otherwise, you’re at the whims of the wind.

Photo Courtesy of Sam Anderson

Gastronomista: So, while we've established that you've become super disciplined about your daily routines, you are also passionate about the today's hospitality industry.  What are your favorite bars right now?

Sam Anderson:  I love Metta (killer sourdough bread, local fire-roasted veg dishes, super clean and fresh food that tastes so good it’s hard to believe it’s so good for you, emphasis on classic cocktails and natty wine), Four Horsemen (my favorite wine list in the city, food and service are also like butter), Karasu, The Bar at the Grill, Cervo’s.  Cocktail and Wine Bars: Dante, Mace, June Wine Bar, Air’s Champagne Parlor, Maison Premeire, Attaboy, Hotel Delmano.  I love a good dive bar as well—Sunny’s, The Alibi and Sophie’s are all favorites of mine.

Gastronomista: If you could visit any bar anywhere in the world, at any point in history, what bar would you visit?  Who would you have a drink with?

Sam Anderson:  I would have loved to have shared a pint with Joe Strummer after he ran the Paris Marathon.

Gastronomista: What drives the creative process for you when you're creating cocktails?  Any tricks of the trade you can share?

Sam Anderson:  My creative process is driven by simply being open.  And what I mean by that is being open to inspiration wherever it may come from—music, art, film, food, something someone says to you, something you read… I rarely am inspired by another cocktail or from a drink of some sort, honestly.  I think it’s really important to know your venue, know your guests and what will resonate with them rather than forcing a concept or a perspective on them.  Also, keep it simple!!!

Gastronomista: This series is sponsored by Campari America; would you mind sharing a recipe  or two made with Campari America products with us?

Tingling Negroni
Created by Sam Anderson

1-1/2 oz Gin
3/4 oz Campari
3/4 oz Zirbenz Pinecone Liqueur

Stir with orange peel.
Strain over a large, single rock.

Add 4-5 drops of Szechuan peppercorn oil and a roll of seaweed.

Flora
Created by Sam Anderson of Mission Chinese

1 oz Blanco Tequila
1/2 oz Mezcal
1/2 oz Giffard Passionfruit
1/2 oz Campari
3/4 oz Lemon Juice

Shake all ingredients, and strain over ice.  Garnish with fresh flowers.

For more follow Sam Anderson on Instagram.

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DIY Bitter Aperitivo & Soda

To say that I have an obsession with bitters is an understatement.  The Negroni is my favorite cocktail, I have made jewelry as an ode to the ruby-hued libation, and have considered painting my entire house red in tribute. 

While the recipe for the Negroni (and its sister cocktails) is incredibly well known, the recipe for its critical ingredient, Bitter Aperitivo, is not.  In fact, all of the producers who make aperitivi keep their recipes incredibly secret, usually known to only one or two highly trusted employees within the company.  Sometimes 3-4 ingredients are made public, but the remaining 20+ herbs, roots, and citrus ingredients remain a mystery. 

I'm sure you can imagine my surprise when I saw the YouTube video of Japanese Bartender Hiroyasu Kayama making a fresh Bitter Aperitivo Cocktail.  It is the closest I have come to understanding the full recipe for a Bitter Aperitivo - all the while perfectly capturing the discipline of Japanese Bartending.  Behold:


And yes, I am just crazy enough to try to do this at home.

Some of you may be wondering, why in the world would you spend so much time and effort sourcing a wide array of herbs and spices when you can just buy a bottle of Bitter Aperitivo, especially when there are so many different brands to choose from.  Good question.  Maybe because I'm a little bit crazy, and maybe because I have a closet stocked with Everclear and I'm bubbling with all kinds of creative ideas of how to use it!  After all, many of the big name Bitter Aperitivi are made with grain alcohol as a base, so naturally Everclear is a perfect choice for a base spirit.  Everclear is a high proof spirit, so it naturally draws more flavor out of the herbs than vodka. With the intent to follow Kayama's recipe and make this cocktail "fresh" there is less time for the herbs to seep - therefore the higher the proof the better!

When I first started this experiment I dutifully transcribed the recipe from this video, including the ingredients and measurements.  On a second pass I noticed a completely different list of ingredients in the description of the video, some of which seem to be lost in translation and some are nearly impossible to find in the States (I'm looking at you, Tonka Bean). 

I went to a local health food store that had a wide selection of herbs and started pulling the ingredients.  Even with the combined ingredients from the video and from the description under the video, I had a difficult time finding everything.  So, I improvised. 

One ingredient that I added was Rhubarb Root because I knew that Rhubarb and Orange are primary flavor compounds of Aperol, and I figured that the Bitter Aperitivo was a more bitter and herbal forward recipe. 

The cochineal, the red insect that gives many aperitivi their signature hue, was also difficult to find so I substituted for a beet dye that was a bit more magenta in hue, and worked rather nicely. 

I brought all my ingredients home and spread everything out.  "Now what", I thought. The video does not give the specs to the recipe, instead shows Kayama adding what can only be interpreted as a pinch here and a pinch there.  So, I did the same. 

I added a pinch of each ingredient to my mortar bowl, smelling the mixture every so often.  There were a few ingredients that I added more of, such as the Rhubarb Root and the Orange Peel, because the more I added, the more it began to resemble the apertivi I know and love. 

I ground all the mixture to extract the flavors, and transferred the dry ingredients to my mixing glass.  I added 1.5 oz of Everclear, and 1/2 oz of water to help the beet coloring dissolve properly.  I added a bit of 1:1 simple syrup to sweeten the concoction just a bit, and strained it into a cocktail coupe.  Top with soda water, and garnish with a citrus express.  I used Meyer Lemon because they smell wonderfully exotic and it pairs nicely with this bitter mixture.  I also added a whole licorice root stick and a few whole cardamom pods as a garnish, adding another aromatic layer to the nose of the cocktail.

Although I don't think that this was a perfect replication of some of the Bitter Aperitivi that are incredibly well known, I do think that it was an amazing start.  What is even more exciting is the possibility of adding different ingredients to gradually tweak this recipe to make my own house Aperitivo with my own specs based on my own preferences. 

I'm also excited about the idea of using local ingredients to give an Apertivo a connection back to the land.  After all Aperitivi and Amari were originally made from local ingredients as a method to preserve plants to be used to aid digestion and to alleviate an array of ailments. 

This recipe is by no means perfect - but it is an exciting start.  Enjoy.

DIY Bitter Aperitivo & Soda
Interpreted by Gastronomista

Makes One Cocktail

15g (One Pinch) Ground Caraway Seed
15g Angelica Root
15g Calamus Root
10g Ground Cinnamon
15g Licorice Root
15g Coriander Seed
30g Orange Peel
30g Rhubarb Root
3-4 Cardamom Pods

1-1/2 oz Everclear
1/2 oz 1:1 Simple Syrup
4 oz Soda Water
Meyer Lemon Peel to Garnish

Grind all dry ingredients with a Mortar & Pestle until smooth.

Add dry ingredients to a mixing glass and add Everclear and Simple Syrup.  Stir and double strain into a chilled cocktail coupe and top with soda water.  Garnish with a Meyer Lemon express, a few Cardamom Pods, and a Whole Licorice Stick. 

Note: I decided to serve this cocktail in coupes, because I wanted less soda water and no ice.  A Bitter & Soda is typically served in a highball glass over ice, and this cocktail could be served the same way.

Styling Notes:
Mixing Glass - Robin Mix
Cocktail Coupes - Parched Penguin
Stone Spice Grinder - Tom Dixon

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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Everclear. All opinions are 100% mine.

Thank you for supporting the brands that make this blog possible.

Gastronomista Boozer's Survival Guide

The onslaught holiday parties are upon us, which means so are holiday hangovers and catatonic fatigue.  And when you're tired you could be at the best party in the whole world and all you'll want is to be horizontal on your sofa with a pizza.  Wah-wuh.

Fearless imbibers, today I bring you the Gastronomista Boozer's Survival Guide, full of my Booze-Blogger-Tested drinking strategies, products, and hangover tips to help you feel fresh(ish) and ready to take on another party!

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Clean Food by Terry Walters - Giveaway - CLOSED

So.  It's almost the end of January.  How's your New Years resolution doing?  Given up already?

Let us share with you our New Years resolutions:

1.  Eat more fruits and vegetables.
2.  Eat more fruits and vegetables.

We've recently discovered an awesome cookbook that is filled with tasty recipes that are produce and grain heavy to help us stay focused on those healthy eating goals in 2013.  Terry Walters' Clean Food; A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source offers delicious recipes for eating well in any season.  Easy recipes from soups to salads, savory seasonal veggies, grains, pastas, desserts, to tasty snacks, this book will keep you excited about each season's offerings, and new delicious recipes to share with your friends and family.

The basic premise of eating clean, is eating as close to the source (nature) as possible.  Which means, less processing, and more seasonal foods loaded up with their natural nutrients!  We love this book because it is full of gorgeous recipes that are very veggie centric, and it's a delicious resource to help us add more produce to our day to day diet.  (It is, after all, too easy for a woman to live on BBQ ribs alone).

Pear Tart, Don't Mind if I Do.

The book is organized into the seasons - making it easy to select recipes with ingredients that are fresh.  Ms Walters also gives direction as to how to cook your foods in order to preserve as much of the natural goodness as possible.  The book is very vegan centric (which we are clearly not), and yet the recipes are not intimidating or full of artificial substitutes.  With gorgeous photography and recipes such as Seared Fennel with Meyer Lemons, Green Tea Poached Pears with Pomegranate Glaze and Pistachios, and Winter Squash with Chestnut Casserole, you're bound to be drooling at the mouth, and (gasp) craving more vegetables!  (Victory!)

And today, we are giving away a signed copy of Clean Food for one lucky winner!

: : : THE GIVEAWAY : : :

Clean Food

A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source

Signed by the Author, Terry Walters

: : : HOW TO ENTER : : :

1. Leave a comment on the post answering: your new favorite vegetable.  (Kobocha Squash!)

2. Tweet #CleanFoodGiveaway @xxGastronomista and @TerryWalters

3. *Extra entry* “follow” Gastronomista and/or “like” us on Facebook.

The contest closes in one week (12 pm EST). Winner will be selected on Wednesday, January 30th, and will be emailed that day.


Good luck, and many thanks to Clean Food; A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source author, Terry Walters!



Want more?

Ms. Walters is hosting a live Q&A session about eating clean tomorrow January 24th live at 7pm on Ustream! 

Log on here:


xxG  

Feed Your Inner Caveman - Well Fed Cookbook Giveaway! - CLOSED

We're always interested in hearing about how people eat - favorite foods, fetishes, and guilty pleasures.  We heard about the Paleo diet a few years ago (Ms Duquesne pontificated on the Monkey Hot and the meaty trend), and now we've come to learn that more and more people are on the Paleo scene.

 

We were recently introduced to the cookbook Well Fed: Paleo Recipes for People Who Love to Eat by Melissa Joulwan, which follows the rules of the caveman, or cavewoman.  Shes an original Texas Roller Girl, Cross Fit aficionado, part time yogi, all meat lover.

Miss Joulwan

If you're wanting to go Paleo full boar or not, Well Fed is a charming cookbook with lots of delicious recipes for the caveman in all of us.  We sat down with her for a little Q&A about her new cookbook:



Gastronomista: Why Paleo?

Melissa Joulwan:  It should be obvious: big hunks of meat and leopard-print loincloths!

Leopard Print Lion-Cloths, Duh.

I joke because I love. There are a handful of reasons I believe paleo is the best way for just about everyone to eat. Paleo eliminates grains, dairy, legumes, junky seed oils, and added sugar, all of which means our bodies enjoy much more stable insulin responses and reduced inflammation. We’re used to seeing, say, a scratch get puffy and red, but we don’t usually think about the inside of our bodies experiencing that kind of inflammation. That’s exactly what happens when we eat foods that contain anti-nutrients or spike our blood sugar.

The paleo diet focuses on lots of fresh vegetables and fruits, animal protein, and naturally-occurring fats — all in reasonable proportions. Once you get used to it, it feels like a natural, sane way to eat. And that sanity is a gift for anyone who’s had weight issues or been an emotional eater. By breaking the cycle of sugar spikes — and in their evil little hearts, grains are really just sugar — I learned how to “just eat” for the first time in life. It’s enormously liberating.

G: Why and When did you decide to go Paleo? In your opinion, what is the difference?

MJ:  Honestly, I started eating paleo for the girliest, most cliché reason: I wanted to lose 15 pounds and my traditionally “healthy” diet wasn’t doing it. I’d already given up grains on my own, but then I started working with Melissa Hartwig (founder of Whole9) on my nutrition, and she suggested I fully commit to paleo by giving up dairy and legumes, too. There was never such a hissy fit as the one I threw when I was asked to stop eating blueberries and milk for breakfast. But she challenged me to try it for a week to see how I felt. In just two days, I had no bloating and my sleep quality improved. I was sold.

Paleo Motivation

That was three years ago, and I’ve eaten 90% paleo ever since — minus two 3-week trips to Prague during which I consumed a metric ton of schnitzel and dumplings. But the kickass thing about paleo is that when I returned home from the debauchery, I immediately started eating clean again and within four days, I felt like myself again.

Thanks to a thyroidectomy, I don’t have a thyroid gland which presents all kinds of challenges because the thyroid controls metabolism and is really affected by inflammation. Eating paleo helps me manage my thyroid issues, including my energy, mood, and sleep.

G: What's the difference between the Atkins diet and Paleo?

MJ: As I understand it, Atkins is mostly about restricting carbohydrates, so it includes junk like artificial sweeteners, seed and vegetable oils, and low-carb grains and flours, as well as the processed foods made from them. Eating paleo means eating real food in as natural a state as possible: meat, vegetables, fruits, fats. There are very few paleo “products” because processing is not kind to nutrients. The “no processed foods” thing is also one of the biggest differentiators between paleo and gluten-free eating plans, too. Paleo eschews (yay, eschews!) grains not just because of the gluten, but also because of the anti-nutrients found in grains. Gluten-free cakes, breads, cookies, and other treats, especially the kind found in a supermarket, are not really healthy choices. If it’s made in a factory, you probably don’t want to eat it.

G: One thing that I like about the book is that you emphasize eating real food - what are some of your go-to cooking ingredients?

MJ:  I always say that I like peasant food... there are a few kinda fancy restaurants I like to go to once in a while, but mostly like to eat international food that’s like what you would get if you went to a normal person’s house for dinner in, say, Morocco or Turkey or Prague or Korea. So my favorite ingredients are simple, high-quality things — grass-fed ground beef, pastured eggs, organic collard greens, cabbage, spaghetti squash — jazzed up with sexy spices and slinky fats. One of my favorite things to eat is spaghetti squash,  cabbage, and ground beef sautéed with coconut oil and a spice blend called Tsardust Memories. It’s sweet, spicy, earthy... totally comforting. Having said that, I’m also madly in love with truffle salt. (Eat it on a fried egg and feel your eyes roll back in your head.) And homemade mayo. I plop it on everything in a way that’s pretty indulgent.

Cocoa Cauliflower

G: You mention Middle Eastern Cooking in your book - what recipes in Well Fed are based on this cookbook? What is your favorite recipe from this classic?

MJ:  The Middle Eastern recipes in Well Fed are either recipes I learned from my dad or ones I concocted myself, but I was able to do that because I’ve read Middle Eastern Cooking from cover to cover so many times. There are two recipes on my blog that are adapted from that book: fancy spiced olives (which I make every Christmas, without fail) and a grain-free Chicken Bastila, which is a savory-sweet Moroccan pie made with chicken and almonds. I’d made the original — with phyllo dough and powdered sugar — a few times and just got a bee in my bonnet one day to make a grain-free version. It came out great, and I actually got a Tweet from a restaurant manager in San Francisco who said he liked my paleo version more than the original.

G: What are your favorite recipes from Well Fed?

MJ: I have a soft spot in my heart for the Bora Bora Fireballs because I dreamt them one night. How dorky is that?! I woke up thinking about meatballs made with pineapple and rolled in coconut, and I was convinced I must have read about them somewhere online or in one of my old- school Tiki cookbooks. I spent all kinds of time doing Google searches and looking through my cookbooks, but didn’t find a recipe. I really did make it up in a dream. Nerd!

My other favorites are the ones that were big challenges to adapt, like Char Siu and the Paleo Pad Thai. Asian food tastes so good because it combines sweetness with spice and heat. It was fun to experiment and figure out how to recreate the experience of those dishes — that “takeout” feeling — without the eleventy million kinds of sugar found in both.

And Chocolate Chili. Because it’s chili. And it’s chocolate.

Chocolate Chili

G:  We've always considered Spaghetti Squash to be a magic vegetable - a squash that's spaghetti, what?!? What is the most surprising transformation recipe?

MJ:  Cauliflower might be my favorite sneaky-deaky vegetable. You can turn it into rice, use it as a substitute for cracked wheat (in tabbouleh or kibbeh), mash it like creamy mashed potatoes, and roast it — and all of those versions taste amazing.

The other surprise was jicama. White potatoes are nutritionally worthless, so they get the thumbs-down from most paleo practitioners. But jicama is a pretty good substitute. Well Fed includes recipes for home fries and “potato” salad made with jicama, and they’re some of my most popular recipes. The texture of jicama isn’t quite as starchy, but especially in the salad, the other ingredients — bacon, hard-boiled eggs, homemade mayo — dress it up so much, you can’t even tell it’s not potato. Go, yam bean! (And for astute readers who know jicama is in the legume family, it’s paleo approved because the jicama itself is the root of the plant and doesn’t include the anti-nutrients of the seed, like beans do.)

Jicama Salad

 
G: Going Paleo must take a lot of discipline, how often do you cheat? What's your favorite cheat food?

MJ:  When I’m living regular life, I cheat about once a week, but I call it “having a treat” because I don’t like to feel like I’m doing something wrong. My most frequent indulgences are popcorn (at the movies with butter), corn tortilla chips and salsa, or ice cream from this new shop in Austin called Lick that uses all local, organic ingredients to make flavors like Caramel Salt Lick and Strawberry Basil. I should also confess that a few times a year, I go totally off the rails.  At Christmas, I eat Russian Teacake cookies until I look like a snake that ate a goat, and we really like Barley Swine in Austin. When we eat there, I eat everything they serve me and drink Prosecco with abandon.

G: Most Memorable Meal you've ever had

MJ:  When I was about 8 years old, Pennsylvania was hit my a blizzard, so my dad picked us up early from school and took us to his restaurant/motel so we could all stay the night. The next morning, we got up and made doughnuts in the restaurant kitchen, then made snowmen in the parking lot.

As a grownup: a picnic on the grass at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. We ate this meringue (along with cheese and wine) and I swear, I have never tasted anything like it. It’s a chocolate cloud on the tongue.

G: Guilty Pleasure

MJ:  Kid Rock, an undying devotion to Nacho Cheese Doritos, sticking Q-tips in my ears

G: Breakfast in Bed

MJ: Chicken Nanking (from the House of Nanking in San Francisco), ordered to go the night before, after eating dinner there and realizing that more Chicken Nanking for breakfast would totally rule. (My husband Dave and I did this once when we were dating, and it was the best thing ever.)

G:  Pick your Poison

MJ: A shot of Becherovka, preferably in a gypsy bar in the Czech Republic. Jim Beam, neat, at a loud punk rock show. Ice cold Prosecco, but only if I’m dressed up and wearing winged eyeliner.

G:  Last Meal

Sharing an extra-large pizza with pepperoni and extra cheese with my husband, in our pajamas, while watching Pretty in Pink, sighing over magic that can happen at a high school dance, followed by awesome making out.





: : : THE GIVEAWAY : : :

Eat Like A Caveman

Well Fed: Paleo Recipes for People Who Love to Eat

Signed by the Author

: : HOW TO ENTER : : :

1. Leave a comment on the post answering: your inspiration for going Paleo (loincloths, spears, etc).

2. Tweet #WellFedGiveaway @xxGastronomista

3. *Extra entry* “follow” Gastronomista and/or “like” us on Facebook.

The contest closes in one week (12 pm EST). Winner will be selected on Monday, August 20th, and will be emailed that day.



Good luck, and many thanks to Well Fed: Paleo Recipes for People Who Love to Eat author, Melissa Joulwan!


xxG

Food for Thought: Lollipops for Peace

Well, file this one under "Things We've Long Suspected."

According to The Globe and Mail, inebriated Canada Day celebrants in Vancouver, BC, were given free lollipops following a fireworks display to subdue the madding crowd. City officials believe that traditional, annual rioting was quelled by handing out scores of the sweet treats.

"Ommmm."

Theoretically, the sugar rush of a lollipop calms a would-be brawler, while the physical block of candy in the mouth deters verbal altercations.

We always knew our lolly sculptures had Zen qualities. Just imagine the state of sweet bliss those revelers would have been in had they handed out our Noble Maple, Chamomile, and Bourbon pops, instead...

xxGG

via The Hairpin

Getting Real...At The Whole Foods Parking Lot

Maybe you've figured out by now, we here at Gastronomista have some deep Colorado roots.  Yep, that's right.  We've got some hippie in us.  So it's no lie when we tell you that we grew up in health food grocery stores; teenage years spent pursuing cheese counters, aisles of dry goods stocked with organic grains, and flirting with all of those bearded cashiers and cheese mongers.  Ah, those were the days.

We are tickled by this video by Fog and Smog - which explains all the ails of trying to find a parking space at Whole Foods.  We feel your pain, Fog and Smog.  Things can get rather aggresive at the Red Hook Fairway.  But now we've got your track all lined up and ready to go when we pull in next time.

... Im ridin' slow in my Prius...
all leather, tinted windows... you cant see us!!
Everybody's trying to park, you can feel the tension
I'm in electric mode... can't even hear the engine (Shhhhhhh)

Without further ado, Whole Foods Parking Lot:

Amazing.

But us veteran health food shoppers know, before Whole Foods there was Wild Oats.  And before Wild Oats there was Alfalfa's.  Ah yes, nostalgia.  

Leftover Salmon performed a song for KBCO Studio C Volume 2 in 1992 called Alfalfa's.  A witty diddy about wanting to work at Alfalfa's and enjoy wheat-grass lemonade, spinach yogurt, and the like.  We date ourselves; those were the days before all the cool kids started brewing their own Kombucha.

  "Alfalfa's" by Leftover Salmon by fullpedal

Thank goodness for corporate embetterment - Alfalfa's is back!  So Fog and Smog, we recommend you drive your Prius on over to Boulder.  Maybe the parking is better there?

Want more?  download it here.