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I have a good feeling about 2012. Most people I know would ask me to quantify my feeling. I will do so by saying I’m more than 75% sure the world is not going to end on the Mayan calendar, leaving 25% probability that it could occur. Being  realist I’m certain there’s so much more we need to learn before things come to an end. According to the quantum physics the end may never come.

Now that you understand the logic of my thinking and that I enjoy using my brain. I’ve been thinking that I would like preserve my ability to think logically for a long time considering I may have another 50 years to live in this world. My New Year’s Eating Resolution is to eat more:

• Spinach
• Carrots
• Fish
• Walnuts
• Berries
• Drink more coffee

Supporting sources:

• 6 Foods to Boost Your Brain
• Top 10 Brain Foods
• 6 Foods That Are Good for Your Brain

5 Behaviors to Help You in 2012

1. Make a roadmap ~ have a strategy
2. Take [the right] action – implement the strategy
3. Keep going – endurance is a good measurement
4. Failure is feedback ~ keep learning
5. Be resilient and flexible

Modified from Effortless Abundance

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I have good feeling about 2012! Despite reports of doom/gloom. I think 2012 is going to set the steps for our future. Let’s kick this off by celebrating what we learned from the past by something new and exciting to clang our glasses too.

These deliciously looking cocktails are created and inspired by Julien Pieras [The Twinkle] at Le Caprice and master mixologist Isaac Elbhar [Silver Fireworks] at Bryant Park Hotel Cellar Bar.

Try them out:
The Twinkle

1 Part Kanon Organic Vodka
1/2 Part Elderflower Liquor
Champagne

Add vodka and liquor to a champagne flute, top with champagne.
Created by Julien Pieras at Le Caprice.

Silver Fireworks

2 oz of Absolut Vanilla
1 oz of Midori
1 oz of Pineapple
1 fresh squeeze of Lemon
Sambucca Dash

Shake all ingredients except Sambucca, then strain into martini glass. Flame the Sambucca into a dfferent glass and pour it over the concoction and garnish with silver flake.

I am a fan of delicious cupcakes. I could not resist these, Holiday specialty cupcakes by Richard Ruskell, executive pastry chef at
Montage Beverly Hills. These cupcakes are beautifully gift wrapped in deliciousness. Richard Ruskell is celebrity chef and most recent winner of Food Network’s Last Cake Standing, started offering specialty cupcakes which use seasonal flavors and ingredients.

These special holiday cupcakes make a perfect gift that can be delivered to homes and residences located in the greater Los Angeles area. Be the life of the office party with these cupcakes! Fourteen cupcakes come packaged in a beautiful holiday-themed box, about $60 per box. What an impressively beautiful, dessert option for Californians to “wow” their guests this holiday.

If you’re a minimalist and love an unpretentious environment “The Kitchen: [Next Door]” is for you —and apparently for me. As you enter the sparely furnished dining area you can’t help to take note of the modern French influence on the decor. As I approached the interior I could smell something delicious is cooking – indeed it is.

It’s not just the environment that is minimalistic its the food – only using 70 ingredients are used through out the entire menu. I brought my good friend, Kit Seeborg, to try out some of the menu. Kit and I are not shy at all about trying new eats. We dug in!

• My first time ever I had a glass of wine on tap – yes that’s right wine on tap! I am a wine snub but this wine on tap was delicious. I tried the Jack Rabbit Hill “Dill Farm” Riesling from Colorado. It’s a lovely summer wine that went very well with every thing I ordered.
• The Kale Chips are very different – lightly salted with olive oil – crisp and enjoyable – I like kale chips so much better than grilled Brussels sprouts which could be bitter with a funny after taste..
• Spiced Chickpeas and Humus with sweet onion is served with bread – for those that are glutton free – so sorry about that – the bread is delicious with humus. I love a good chickpea salad – this on is refreshing.
• Quinoa salad with beets, arugula, beans, carrots – this truly a surprise to my senses – a mixture of “sweet and lemony flavors which take your tongue to the edge of brilliance” – to quote Kit.
• We couldn’t stop ourselves we also tried The Kitchen’s Slow Roast Pork with salsa verde – truly simple the pork cooked to perfection BUT it’s the salsa verde a mixture of pesto and mint that enrich the flavors.
• The big finish came as an Ice Cream Sandwich – a real chocolate chip cookie with creamy vanilla ice cream. AND a Chocolate Mousse that is simplely perfect to the taste. I can never have enough chocolate mousse.

The Kitchen [Next Door] draws a local crowd – those who are all to familiar with Owner/Chef Hugo Matheson; who is all about sustainability and utilization of local farms. I admit I am a big fan of Hugo! He has a way of coaxing the flavors out of his dishes – though the American palate may need to show patience – our tongues are so over salted, sweetened, and spiced we truly need a new road-map to divine consumption – this is place will allow for new sophistication.

As pointed out the sparsely decorated interior was created by Jen Lewin, also owner of The Kitchen [Next Door]. Though sparse; there are incredible details that provide an eating experience that takes me back to Europe and UK – I love a common sharing table because it provides an opportunity to be social. The private sitting area in the front is exposed seats 8 people or you can use this are for a small private cocktail event. Perhaps I’ll be using it soon as I embark on my next adventure…

Kimbal Musk you truly out did yourself and gave the people of Boulder and those who share similar aesthetic for less is more; something special to enjoy.

The Kitchen [Next Door] opened on Tuesday, June 14, 2011. Pre-opening launch that raised $15,000 for charity – this is what I love about Boulder entrepreneurs always finding a way to give back to the community!

It’s organic peach season in Boulder! I had no idea the organic peaches in Boulder would totally blow my taste buds. Since discovering and uncovering these specimen’ juicy sweet nectar I’ve been on a peach cooking frenzy.

Last night I made organic mango and peach chutney to pour over grilled chicken, sweet onions, and yellow peppers. I’ve never made chutney before I didn’t follow a recipe but this is what I did:

• Removed the skin from 2 peaches and a half of mango.  Diced into edible squares.
• Added one clove of garlic
• 2 tablespoons of fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon of safflower oil

I put the safflower oil into a small sauce pan and heated. Added all the ingredients from above brought to a slow boil and cooking it partly down.

Added as shown to grilled chicken, onions, peppers. It was delicious!

Next up Peach Pancakes. I got up early this morning to get the best of the best from the Boulder Farmers Market. The sun beat me this morning so I’ll have to try for 8 rather than 9 so that I can stay longer. I got my peaches!!

I hurried home so that I could make buckwheat peach pancakes.

I use Organic Arrowhead Mills Buckwheat Pancake mix and follow the instructions with some changes:

Instead of milk I use Rice Dream

Instead of honey I use Madhava Pure Organic Agave Nectar

All the other ingredients remain the same except I’m only making pancakes for one.

Sweet organic sliced peaches for the pancakes! So delicious!

I learned a lesson peaches don’t add well to grilling pancakes. The remaining peach slices I used to garnish the top of the pancake.

Next time I make peach pancakes I’ll be sure to try dicing the peaches and adding to the batter.

Despite lessons learned, my peach pancakes were delicious. Get to the Boulder Farmer’s Market for your peaches! Eat them as is,or cook, bake,  ice, or can them but try the peaches!

Shelly Martin is an extraordinary person who not only studies artifacts from the past and built her own Pompeii Oven. Shelly is a CRM Archaeologist who finds life in the past fascinating. Spending time in Pompeii she discovered the beauty of the outdoor oven. Shelly decided to build an oven like the ones in Pompeii for her own home, here in Boulder.

Look at the beauty and elegance Shelly crafted into this stone stove designed after Pompeii ancients.  The fire is a testimonial of how well this oven works.

Shelly’s been making pizza with the oven. The fire rotates around the pizza cooking it all even and giving it a smoky flavor.

Shelly cutting the pizza.

This is the most delicious pizza I've ever had!

It’s truly delicious!

Please Shelly’s site Visiting the Ancients to learn ancient culture and trips Shelly and her team are planning.

I love both coffee and tea. For me it all about the taste. Boulder is really big on both coffee and tea.  Boulder enjoys both coffee and tea houses equally. I find the tea is better than the coffee. My European heritage has lend me down a path of dark rich coffee that is highly acidic. Enough jolt to keep you up for days. And those were the days for me, all through undergrad I consumed lots of coffee. Back than I was so selective, but after my exposure to Europe’s French coffee it’s been hard.

What do you know history repeats itself but not in terms of coffee. I replaced dozen of cups of coffee with tea. Too much tea with tannins causes an issue with my stomach. My favorite place for tea.

Of course there is Celestial Seasonings, which is a 20 year favorite of mine. I went to visit this famous tea brand. Celestial Seasonings has a great tour that’s not to be missed.

My favorite tea bar is Atlas Purveyors – a very popular place to hang out especially with the Boulder tech community.

The Dushanbe Tea House which I mentioned once before, offers a variety of teas, serves lunch and dinner. They actually bring a tea menu. I love the lady earl grey.

At all there places you can get your tea with milk, soy, rice and in some cases almond milk.

What do you do with a can of tuna, mango, avocado, onion, lemon and dill? Well you mix all together adding a dash of salt and pepper, and a table spoon of olive oil. This is a deviation from Amy Lieberman’s recipe she uses fennel instead of dill.

This very easy to make summer salad is very refreshing.

Daily Eats moves to Boulder, CO and experiences the Boulder Farmer’s Market, Dushandbee Teahouse, SethEllis Chocoates, and some kind of nut I can’t pronounce.

I’ve been all over the world and finally settled in Boulder. The food in Boulder is known for being earth friendly. Meaning it’s organic and it’s natural.