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Spigarello

This is one of my favorite vegetables this winter---sprouting broccoli also
known as "spigarello". It cooks up like kale and I serve it at the restaurant
with a bit of fresh garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. You can also give it
a drizzle with an aged balsamic vinegar at the end to add a little sweetness.

Christmas Day at Vin Antico

We are open on Christmas Day! Join us for some wonderful holiday dishes like roasted Liberty duck breast stuffed with sausage and chestnuts, grilled venison and grilled Sea of Cortez diver scallops with a Dungeness crab cake. We are open from 4:30 until 10pm. We have a few tables left so make your reservation now online at opentable.com or call the restaurant 415.454.4492.

V Bar on Monday Nights

Monday night is a great night to drop in at the restaurant. Wine Director, Tyler McNich creates a great evening with unique wines paired with a paired down menu of cheese, salumi, salads and pizzas. Tyler digs into the list and pours some of our most desirable wines by the glass. See you at V Bar!

Vin Antico featured in new music video

www.meganslankard.com

Up and coming Indy rocker Megan Slankard recently spent a long day at the restaurant shooting her new music video Token of the Wreckage. Check it out on her website and watch for a great cameo of server Sara.

"This seemingly innocent 20-year-old singer-songwriter has surprised audiences and critics across the country with her smooth, bluesy compositions. A breath of fresh air in the world of female pop singers, Slankard's sound is vibrant, emotional, and very addicting." 

Santa Cruz Sentinel

Great Review in the Marin Independent Journal

My new favorite newspaper

Truffle Vinaigrette

Truffle Vinaigrette

2 shallots diced
1tsp combined cumin seed, coriander seed, caraway seed
Pinch of red pepper
Pinch of grains of paradise
3 cups of organic orange juice

Combine all the above in a non-reactive stainless steel pan and reduce until it is a syrup
Allow to cool for two hours in the refrigerator
Put mixture in blender and blend until smooth then slowly add

1/4 cup white truffle oil
1/4 cup champagne vinegar
1 cup 3/4 of a blend of olive oil and canola oil

season to taste.

Vinaigrette will keep in refrigerator for 2 weeks.

Works best with frisee, red onion, fennel and citrus wedges

Dog Treats

Scout's Biscuits 3 1/2 cup whole wheat flour 2 cup Quaker oats 1 cup milk 1/2 cup hot water 2 beef or chicken bouillon cubes 1/2 cup meat drippings Dissolve bouillon cubes in hot water. Add milk and drippings and beat. In a separate bowl, mix flour and oatmeal. Pour liquid ingredients into dry ingredients and mix well. Press onto an ungreased cookie sheet and cut into shapes desired. Bake at 300 for 1 hour. Turn off heat and leave in the oven to harden. Refrigerate after baking.

It's crab season

Dungeness crab season officially started November 15th and
early reports are that crab is plentiful and will be throughout
the season which ends June 30th. Crab Risotto has already appeared on my menu and on Thanksgiving I'll pair crab with truffles, frisee and citrus in a dungeness crab salad.

Sea of Cortez Diver Scallops

This is a picture of someone's yummy dinner Saturday night---Grilled Sea of Cortez Diver Scallops with a sautee of laughing bird shrimp, roasted root vegetables, preserved peppers, capers and currants. The bright yellow sauce under the scallops in a puree of Cinderella pumpkin flavored with cumin and coriander.

Tis the season for Quince

Fall is the time for quince to start appearing at the farmer's market. I got my first batch from Woodside Farms from farmer Ed. I really enjoy cooking with quince---they are too hard and bitter to eat raw but when baked, poached or stewed they turn a blush of red and take on this delightful floral pear quality. You will find them in my mustard green salad roasted together with persimmons tossed in a heirloom tomato vinaigrette. Quince is thought to be one of the oldest cultivated fruit crops.

Dine Out For Hunger

Join us November 18th for the 6th Annual Dine Out to End Hunger. Vin Antico will donate 20 percent of your food bill to Homeward Bound, the main provider for homeless shelter and services in Marin county. We are priveleged to support this amazing organization. Reserve a table today to show your support.

Spigarello

"Spigarello" or sprouting broccoli is native to Southern Italy and is very popular throughout Europe. Here in Marin, Jesse Kuhn is growing this really tasty green at his farm Marin Roots near Pt. Reyes Station in west marin. The flavor is tangy, similar to kale but with an intense broccoli flavor. You'll find it on my menu under small plates sauteed with garlic and foraged chanterelle and hen of the woods mushrooms. You can find Jesse at the farmer's market in marin on both Thursdays and Sundays.

Dog food is good food too

These are my two dogs, Scout(blond) and Fiver Boo Radley and being proper
marin dogs they live a pretty great life. Friends often ask if they eat anything
special and the answer is yes--I make their food. They get some kibble but they also get a version of my grandmother's chicken soup. Two whole chickens a week stewed with carrots, celery, squash, a bit of garlic and ginger, whole wheat pasta or rice. Honestly it's cheaper than canned dog food and there's something a bit satisfying about knowing what's going into the food they eat everyday. I've also been known to have a bowl or too myself on occasion. Say hi if you see us on a walk in downtown San Rafael.

Cheese Is Alive: Caveman Blue is Good Food. Seriously.

Caveman Blue

At Vin Antico we love cheese---really love it!

Our cheese and salumi plate features three cheeses and a selection of house cured salumi.  We cut the cheese by hand from the display featured on the bar right when you walk in door and a portion of the salumi we make in house--curing our own speck, pancetta and copa. One of our current cheeses in Caveman Blue from Rogue dairy in Oregon. This is a wonderful cheese---creamy and salty with a touch of vanilla. The cheese has been in production since the 40's hence the name "from the caveman era".

 Cheese Is Alive: Caveman Blue is Good Food. Seriously.

Truffles and extra special treat

White truffles are a member of the mushroom family. They grow underground near trees,are extremely fragrant and prized for there transformative role in cooking. Most years truffles are extraordinarily expensive---last year $4,000 a pound, however this year they have come down in price--$1200 a pound making them a menu option--albeit a pricey one. Truffles are thought to have gotten their name from the Latin term for tuber which means lump. The white truffle or "alba modonna" comes from the Langhe region in Piedmont in Northern Italy. The hunt for the prized truffle is usually carried out by a mushroom forager and a truffle dog or truffle pig. Pigs are more eager to find the prizes, but it can be difficult to keep the pig from devouring the truffle. Only sows are used - the smell of Italian white truffles contains pheromones that are attractive to female pigs, but not to boars. There has been much debate throughout history if that particular pheromone can create a sexual response in humans and although not scientifically proven Truffles are thought to be the ingredient for lovers. What cannot be denied is that the rich meaty flavor of truffles does amazing things to most vegetable dishes especially ones with cream. Look for Creamy Risotto with proscuitto, butternut squash, poached egg and, of course, shaved white truffle on my current Vin Antico menu.

Welcome to my Blog

My hope is to share interesting food trivia, recipes and
information about what's happening
in the local, organic food scene marin.
Please feel free to suggest food topics for discussion.
See you at the farmer's market!

Chef Ed Vigil