Christina Waters

In a room that smelled like paradise I watched a woman adding intricate lettering to the top of a freshly-made birthday cake.

Find out where I was.

In the March 5, Metro Santa Cruz.

To Die For!: Giving new meaning to the word “chocolate,” was a spectacular chocolate budino tart I shared with friends on the night of the recent lunar eclipse. The place was A16 (see the current Condé Nast Traveler), on Chestnut Street in San Francisco. A long, lean series of rooms, the red-hot Italian dining spot is crowned by a pizza oven and house-made salumi. But the budino. Jeez Louise.To-die-for (yes, it IS time to revive that useful phrase).

We began with shared plates of an erotically-textured burrata with crostini and an order of ciccioli – a house specialty terrine of pork that was nothing short of stupendous. No fussy presentation – but the flavors were intense and joyful. We shared a salad of slightly warm yellow beets and marinated fennel, topped with shaved pecorino. God! Our wine was a bottle of round and spicy Cusumano Sagana 04 Nero d’Avola from a menu of Italian wines that is deep as well as wide. A full page just of Sicilian reds! Okay, calm down Christina. (more…)

Recent paintings by Tom Maderos - plein air and still life specialist - will fill the interior of Gabriella Cafe starting on March 10. The show, which continues through May 5, will show off Maderos’ expressionistic skills with oil on canvas. If Diebenkorn had painted the Santa Cruz coast, the effect might be close to the luscious composition of Maderos’ color-saturated work. (”El View Lodge” shown here.) Like those of the Bay Area school of the 1960s, Maderos’s flat picture plane is rich with sensuous color, unexpected spatiality and the figurative pushed almost to abstraction. Unfussy, almost effortless (at least in appearance) these artworks will keep diners company as they enjoy the edible artwork of chef Sean Baker.

Maderos’ paintings are also available, “to go,” if you get my meaning. I have one of his austere floral studies hanging in my office.

Gabriella Cafe - 910 Cedar Street in downtown Santa Cruz.

Did I call it, or what? Well, almost. I was wrong about Julie Christie, but otherwise . . . An all-European quartet of major Oscar-winners surely made a statement, though I’m not quite sure what it was. It’s hard not to be moved at Javier Bardem’s jubilation (AP photo). Other than being thrilled about the Coen brothers big win - a more laconic duo is just not imaginable - there were a few, uh, highs.

The beyond-sexy Bardem kissing co-star Josh Brolin. Daniel Day-Lewis kissing George Clooney. Great moments in metrosexuality. Day-Lewis being knighted by “the Queen,” was a delicious bit of improv, as was the slash-and-burn haircut on screenplay winner Diablo Cody — who deserves an Oscar just for her name. (more…)

At Avanti last week, Jack feasted on his beloved meatballs with ribbons of pappardelle (they are killer) , while I roamed the range looking for some new flavor hit. Big fun arrived in the form of a roast half Poulet Rouge, one of those deeply flavored, heirloom French breeds that are wowing foodies all over the Bay Area these days.

Avanti’s kitchen finished the roast poultry with a red wine sauce, and served it with an unctuous parmesan risotto and a watercress salad ($17). Shaved fennel topped the risotto, which made a fine impression on the poulet. It really does taste like a meal in France, only much closer to my house. . . If you’re lovin’ the pork chops at Avanti, then you are familiar with the pasture-raised, organically-fed pigs raised by Jim Dunlop of TLC Ranch. (more…)

Not glued to the tube during this year’s Oscar telethon — I’ll be at a wine class for two of the three hours — I will nonetheless remain in solidarity with all the Red Carpet bling, AND the award-winners. These will include:

Daniel Day Lewis for Best Actor - his incandescent portrayal of obsessed oil baron Daniel Plainview shows us how the West was really won.

Javier Bardem for Best Supporting Actor (even though his was arguably the central performance in the film “No Country for Old Men”) Bardem is an uncanny chameleon with vast reservoirs of power and charisma. His performance as an idiosyncratic assassin was the centerpiece of this year’s best film.

Julie Christie for Best Actress - The Academy loves to reward a body of work - as well as enduring screen radiance. Julie Christie has both, and her performance in “Away From Her” was indelible. (more…)

China — its art and history, inspired a new museum-wide exhibition opening this weekend at the Museum of Art & History, in downtown Santa Cruz. Based upon relationships brokered by curator Susan Hillhouse, the ambitious network of presentations involves collaborations with dozens of artists from China and California, and with Chen Gallery of Santa Cruz. Thanks to April Chen, a working artist’s studio typical of those in China will be recreated on-site, among other displays of Chinese furniture and crafts. In addition to the photography of Beijing artist Wang Ningde and Shanghai artist Wang Dong Ling, who lived in Santa Cruz from 1989 to 1991, the show explores the work of local art practitioners who have visited and been inspired by China. Thse artists include Sara Friedlander, Victoria May, Gloria Alford, Wallace Boss, Dana Eaton, Mattie Leeds, Joel Magen, and Gary Snider.

Ying: Inspired by the Art and History of China opens February 23 and continues through June 29. Not to be missed!

Gramma Gouin’s WWI Applesauce Cake: This recipe for an exceptional tea cake comes from my Aunt Virlyne Gouin, a terrific cook and baker, who learned this recipe from her mother-in-law, Annie Gouin. It was a favorite war-time dessert as “eggs were hard to get,” says my aunt. And this cake is made entirely without eggs. Also my aunt tells me that other fruit purees, e.g. persimmon, pear, kiwi, can be substituted for the applesauce. And a splash of brandy, or sometimes vanilla, doesn’t hurt either!

To 2 cups sifted flour, add:

1 c. sugar
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
1 T. cornstarch
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
3 T chocolate or cocoa powder

Add: 1 c. chopped walnuts
1/2 c. raisins (or dried cranberries)
1 1/2 c. applesauce
1/2 c. melted butter

Pour into loaf pans or 9 x 12 baking pan - or muffin pan for cupcakes

Bake at 350 degrees for about one hour.

This tea cake freezes beautifully, and like many fruit and nut loaves, just gets better with age. It is wonderful with coffee, tea and grappa.

Our very own downtown enoteca Vinocruz, was showcased in Friday’s Wall Street Journal. And for good reason. This little gem of a tasting depot - tucked behind the Octagon on Cooper Street - offers 185 wines from 64 area wineries, some famous and celebrated, others small and family-run. If you haven’t stopped by to stretch your oeno-palate and chat with Jeffrey and J-P, then get on over there. Say hi to Bodhi for me! Vinocruz is located in Abbott Square, off Cooper Street - 831/426 VINO - and is open for tasting of our finest local wines Mon-Th 11am-7pm (until 8pm on weekends); Sun noon to 6pm.

. . . And over at Manresa, with its gorgeous interior, killer tasting menu and two Michelin stars, chef-entrepreneur David Kinch has been nominated for a James Beard award, Best Chef: Pacific. Manresa’s chef de cuisine, James Syhabout, is nominated for Rising Star Chef of the Year. If you haven’t yet visited the outstanding Los Gatos restaurant that Kinch has grown into a world-renowned destination, you will want to treat yourself to the Citrus Modernista Dinner, (more…)

Stay tuned - you might just find this delightful anniversary image on a tote bag very soon!