Hey there, folks. Guest blogger here. It's the editor. You know, the guy who chirps pithy, yet spectacularly irrelevant input [in brackets]. 

Wanted to detail a wonderful birthday meal that came a day early for Chef Jacquie, who of course will be working on her birthday (today) for a client, incidentally one of the first attorneys for Facebook. Goes without saying: please click the ad links, visit a sponsor, like the blogs, share them, spread them far and wide, and thank you so much. It comes out to literally dollars of revenue. Lamborghinis on layaway. But I digress.

Won't lie. Jacquie spoils me with food that makes it difficult for restaurants to impress. Often we visit a place that has high marks from the San Francisco Chronicle, yet find ourselves looking at each other like a deer staring at an oncoming truck, eyes screaming, "Meh."

China Live (644 Broadway), the brainchild of George Chen, is a 30,000-square-foot "education in Chinese cuisine" in the heart of San Francisco's Chinatown. Sporting everything from a retail store to a bakery, high-end bourbon bar, demonstration kitchen, flower mart, and multiple restaurants, it's the polar opposite of meh.

For our midday meal we sampled a wide array of their sophisticated–this isn't your grandma's Chinese takeout–dishes. Mostly smaller starters, but we did partake in the highly recommended Crackling Skin Cantonese Fragrant Garlic Chicken, which did not disappoint. Gorgeous.

​However, the starters-appetizers stole the show. Am not just saying that because we enjoyed a Szechaun Starlet* during.

Below, Kurobuta Pork Char Siu with Hot Mustard. Food porn that tasted as good as it looked.

Shan Dong Shui Jiao "Water Dumplings" (Chive and Pork) with Dipping Sauce.

​The favorite, Dungeness Crab and Shrimp Spring Handrolls with Dual Dipping Sauce. Am considering driving back to San Francisco to order about 400 of these for Sunday's Super Bowl. Again, please like, share, and click those ads. [deadpan-face emoji]

Not pictured, we also had some lovely Peking Duck in Sesame Pockets with Kumquat Glaze and Traditional Condiments. We couldn't get a picture because the kumquats refused to sign the appropriate model release form.

Silliness aside, it's always special to share amazing food with someone who truly knows something about amazing food.

Chef, I love you, and your short arms (#selfieproblems). Happy birthday.

By the way, she is 27.

*Szechaun Starlet: Black Tea-infused Angel's Envy Bourbon, Cardamaro Amaro, Campari, Szechuan Peppercorn Bitters and a splash of bubbles

PS: Hey, the dog writes, too. Marlowe, you're hired. You also look especially cute as a UPS driver. (www.moveablefeast.me/blog/mini-butterscotch-apples)
​
PPS: A year ago, she made her own chocolate birthday cake. Because she was tired of cakes that looked better than they tasted. (www.moveablefeast.me/blog/happy-birthday-to-me-chocolate-cake-and-chocolate-sour-cream-frosting)

PPPS: Plans are in place to relaunch this blog in a newer format, where we may or may not start including subjects outside of the regular recipes. This originated out of a sole proprietership business that Chef Jacquie built, which is a big part of the story. So we're considering the occasional foray into the business-side, or an occasional restaurant-meal review. We're an open book, so please comment below on what you would like to see in the future. And again, thank you.

"Autumn has caught us in our summer wear."
–Philip Larkin, British poet (1922–86)

Sans takeout, there is not an easier meal than this. Took some inspiration from a recipe in the now defunct Donna Hay Magazine (sniff). Please note, you can sub ground beef or turkey if you don't eat pork. If you don't want the carbs, throw this over shredded cabbage. 

In other news, the BF alerted me The Old Farmer's Almanac states Saturday, September 22 was the first day of fall, or the autumnal equinox, also called September equinox. Mornings and evenings have definitely been crisper, but the days are still pretty darn warm, unlike our dear friend in Washington State who is already harvesting apples and pears from her orchard. Alas, I'm counting down the days until sweater weather.

​Until then, our Marlowe wishes everyone a Happy Fall, y'all​.

PS: One year ago, the BF delved into his past life as a music journalist, and somehow we worked Alien Ant Farm into a recipe for Peanut Butter Scotcheroos...
www.moveablefeast.me/blog/peanut-butter-scotcheroos-20

Adapted from : Donna Hay, Issue 97, Feb/Mar 2018
Number of servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pound ground pork
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon finely grated ginger
• ¼  teaspoon sweet curry powder (optional)
• 2-4 tablespoons Mango Chutney (I used 2 tablespoons, adjust to your taste)
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• Crushed red pepper, to taste (optional, although I recommend as a contrast to sweet chutney)
• ½ cup Greek-style yogurt
• 4 store-bought naan, grilled
• 1 jalapeno or serrano pepper, thinly sliced
• Mint and/or microgreens, to serve
• Pickled onions (completely optional, but I love it here)

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large non-stick sauté pan over high heat.
2. Add pork, garlic, ginger and curry (if using) and cook for 4-5 minutes, breaking up any large lumps with the back of a spatula or wooden spoon. 
3. Add mango chutney, lime juice and crushed red pepper (if using), cook for 1 minute. Set aside.
4. Grill naan. Spread yogurt over naan.
5. Top with ground pork, jalapeno/serrano, mint and microgreens.

It's been raining here for a week. Not complaining, as even though I have now officially lived in California longer than Oregon, I'm still an Oregonian girl at heart. Plus, after so many years of California droughts, we need the rain. 

When we get the precipitation, the BF loves to get Chinese take out, and sometimes, specifically, pork and shrimp wontons. Here we have the pork and shrimp wontons, but without the wonton wrapper (which makes this practically zero carbs). Let's not fool ourselves, it's what's inside the wrapper that counts, and no wrapper means gluten free, paleo and low carb.

I added a zingy sriracha mayonnaise dipping sauce and made it into sliders instead of meatballs, but other than that, the original recipe from Michelle Tam's Nom Nom Paleo is perfect.

​Adapted from: Michelle Tam, Nom Nom Paleo
Number of Servings: 4

Ingredients
Shrimp & Pork Wonton Sliders

• ¼ ounce dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
• ½ pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 pound ground pork 
• 2 scallions, finely chopped
• ¼ cup cilantro, minced
• 1 tablespoon coconut aminos or soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon fish sauce
• ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
• ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
• Ghee or cooking fat of choice 
• 1 scallion, sliced on the bias (optional garnish)

Sriracha Mayonnaise Sauce (optional)

• 1-2 tablespoons Sriracha (to taste)
• ½ cup Mayonnaise

​
Directions

1. Rehydrate the dried shitake mushrooms in a bowl of hot water for approx 30 minutes. 
2. Squeeze the water out of the shiitake mushrooms. Cut off the hard stems, and finely mince.
3. Finely chop the shrimp until you’ve got a chunky paste.
4. Place the shrimp in a large bowl and add the pork, mushrooms, scallions, cilantro, coconut aminos (or soy sauce), salt, fish sauce, white pepper, and sesame oil.
5. Use your hands to squeeze and mix the meatball mixture until a sticky and tacky mass is formed.
6. Heat up a frying pan over medium heat and add a little cooking fat. When the pan is hot, form a little patty and cook it in the pan. Taste it and see if seasoning is right. Adjust with additional salt if needed. (Not cooking yet? You can store the meatball mixture in the fridge for up to 12 hours.)
7. Form the mixture into 1½-inch balls (about 3 tablespoons) and arrange on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. You should end up with about a dozen balls.
8. Form the balls into ½-inch patties and fry in a greased pan over medium heat, about 2 minutes on each side. Serve immediately with a squeeze of sriracha or sriracha mayonnaise sauce.

Sriracha Mayonnaise Sauce

1. In a small bowl, whisk mayonnaise and sriracha together until thoroughly combined.

NOTE: Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days and frozen for up to 3 months.

Marlowe practicing her concept of Hygge.

My BFF (since 4th grade) lives in a charmingly small Washington-state town in the shadow of Mt. Rainier. Her circa-1920s farm house is populated with every imaginable nut and fruit tree – chestnuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, apples, cherry plums, pears, and bay. Wild blackberries, raspberries, huckleberries, a summer garden, as well as a menagerie of animals (rabbits, chickens, birds, goats, cats) complete the picture.
 
The pièce de résistance is the blueberry orchard (see last photo below), with blueberries as large as grapes that, dare I say, truly taste “blue.” We recently reconnected, and I of course took the opportunity to bring home a good supply of the prize blueberries and put them to good use.
 
This sauce is the perfect compliment to pork chops, wild salmon, chicken and steak. Personally, I don’t like cloyingly sweet fruit combined with meat, but this is different as the balsamic and red wine vinegar give it just the right amount of acid to counter the richness of the protein.

By the way, this is peak salmon season in Washington and the recipe is as Pacific Northwest as they come.
 
Number of servings: 4-6
 
Ingredients

• 2 cups blueberries 
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds or juniper berries (not both, just pick one or none, this ingredient is purely optional)
• ½ cup sugar 
• ½ cup red wine vinegar
• ½ cup (good) balsamic vinegar
• 1 stem thyme
• 1 large shallot, finely minced
• Salt

 
 Directions

1. Place blueberries in a shallow bowl.
2. Heat the mustard seeds or juniper berries (if using), ½ cup sugar, red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar and 1 stem thyme in small saucepan for 3 minutes and stir until sugar dissolves. NOTE: turn your stove fan on and do not stick your face over the pan to take a whiff…the vinegar will knock you over.
3. Add minced shallots and a sprinkle of salt (to taste) and simmer 2 minutes. 
4. Strain the sauce directly over the blueberries and let sit for 15 minutes.