Here in Wine Country, we’re no strangers to the farm market concept. On
Saturday mornings, you can practically trip over dozens of local
purveyors hawking everything from honey to zucchini. Capturing that
passion for fresh, local meats, cheeses, fruits and veggies, the new
Oxbow Market in downtown Napa is 40,000 square feet of the region’s
best food. Under one roof.

Yes, start hyperventilating right now.

The marketplace features about 30 local purveyors (including several
cafes) and ten local farm stands open daily. Similar in concept to San
Francisco’s Ferry Plaza Market Place or Pike Place Market in Seattle,
it’s both a tourist attraction and a gathering spot for residents.
Located next to COPIA, the Center for Food and Wine (and home of
Julia’s Kitchen), the market is the newest addition to a larger plan to
revitalize the Oxbow region. Plans are in the works for nearby hotels
and condos and a walk-able greenbelt around the region.

The current lineup:

1. Roli Roti:
   The much-loved mobile rotisserie and farm-market fixture gets a
   permanent home here. All organic-free range meats. Start the queue.
2. Fatted Calf:
   Bay’s Area’s swoon-worthy charcuterie. House-made sausages (more of the
   classic pork, rabbit and duck-style than the fruit and cheese-filled
   type); pate, bacon, salumi, heirloom pig pork chops and other meaty
   goodness.
3. Taylor’s Automatic Refresher: A vintage St. Helena burger spot with a Napa twist–Ahi tuna burgers and sweet potato fries anyone?
4. Pica-Pica: The
   key offering at this Venezuelan kitchen are flatbread corn arepas (a
   cousin to El Salvador’s pupusas) filled with meat, cheese or veggies.
   Also on the menu, tequeños, cachapas, polvorosa de pollo, yucca fries,
   salads and a variety of South American beverages and desserts.
5. Three Twins Organic Ice Cream: A San Raphael newcomer using all-organic products in their delicately flavored-ice creams.
6. The Model Bakery: A St. Helena gathering spot featuring tasty salads, espresso and fresh baked goods.
7. Whole Spice: Petaluma retailers offer up hundreds of different spices from around the world.
8. Five Dot Ranch: Premium producer of sustainable beef.
9. Plus,
   Oxbow Cheese Merchant, Annette’s chocolates, The Olive Press, Tillerman
   Teas, Kitchen Library, Heritage Culinary Artifacts and Fete
   (entertaining provisions).

10. Kanaloa Seafood, the heralded
    environmentally responsible seafood purveyor from Santa Barbara, California. Kanaloa is the only ISO 14001 Seafood
    Company in North America. ISO 14001 certification is a framework
    following international standards which helps organizations to better manage
    the impact of their activities on the environment and to demonstrate sound
    environmental management standards.

CLARIFICATION: BiteClub attended an opening preview, in which many of the merchants were open. Here is the updated opening schedule:

The following are open:
Anette’s Chocolate Factory, Fête, Heritage Culinary Artifacts, Kitchen Library, Tillerman Tea, Whole Spice, Folio Enoteca & Winery, Three Twins Organic Ice Cream, The Olive Press

By next weekend, January 5th/6th, these are expected to open:
Five Dot Ranch, Pica Pica Maize Kitchen

Mid to late January, these tenants are expected to open:
Oxbow Cheese Merchant, The Fatted Calf, The Model Bakery, Oxbow Wine Merchant & Wine Bar, Taylor’s Automatic Refresher, Rotisario

Farm stands open (not every day)
Bera Ranch with oranges, DeSantis Farm with a variety of citrus, walnuts, persimmons and pomegranates

The holidays are so delish. Especially when they involve gifts for me. I’ve consulted my own wish list, along with recommendations from my very own gourmet elves and come up with some top treats for the food-lover in your life.

1. Bacon Peanut Brittle
Bacon. Peanut Brittle. Together in an unholy matrimony. Rejoice. Bacon Peanut Brittle, $21.95 for one pound at Grateful Palate.

2. ABC Cookie Cutters
In case you’re not up on your third grade humor, ABC stands for Already Been Chewed. Now isn’t that appetizing? Serve up a plate full of gingerbread men missing various body parts. Just like mom used to make. Available at Fishboy.com

3. Helping Hand
Give yourself a little pat on the back with these nifty hand-shaped salad tongs (preferably before you add the dressing, or things could get messy.) So much easier than old-fashioned tongs and much more polite than using your fingers. Nigella Lawson Bliss Serving Hands, $16.95, available on Amazon.com

4. Egg Pants
An egg needs pants about as much as a chicken needs lips. Which is why this soft-boiled egg steady-er is so perfect for your breakfast table. Forget Sponge Bob. You’ve got egg pants. Egg Pants: Set of two for $20 at designglut.com.

5. Spoon me
Kitchen utensils with pizzazz. One might even say a bit of pluckiness. Striped spoon set, $15 for two, available at loftparty.com

6. Apron Envy
Whether you’ve got this hot little number over your holiday best, or well, nothing at all (under the mistletoe?), you’ll be Santa’s favorite helper. Jessie Steele makes housedresses hip with flirty halter aprons that flatter the figure. Holiday Apron, $32.95 at TheDashingDiva.com

Sneaky veggies
Moms all around town have been gushing about Deceptively Delicious, a new cookbook with good-for-kids recipes featuring hidden cruciferous goodies, sublimated sweet potatoes and more. Feel good about pulling a fast one on the tots. Decptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld, $14.97, at Amazon.com.

7. Peppermint Shots
Toss back the holiday spirits in edible peppermint shot glasses that keep your breath fresh and taste delightful. It’s a Christmas miracle. Now, pass the Rumplemintz. Available at wishingfish.com, $6.50 for two.

Salt Lick
Stuff this little piggy with salt, sugar or other pinchables while you cook. Cute as a sow’s ear. And way more practical in the kitchen. Nigella Lawson Mini Salt Pig $16.95, available on Amazon.com

9. Edgy brownies
True brownie-lovers (and really, who isn’t?) dive for the crunchy edges as soon as the pan’s cool. The rest? Pah. You can have it. So elation, joy and happiness at the new Baker’s Edge Brownie pan that makes every bite so very edgy. $34 at Bakersedge.com

10. Pinch Bowls
Just a sniggle, a titch, a nibblet. Tiny silicone bowls for holding mini bits of goodness. Set of four, for $5.99 at cooking.com.

Taj is a second act for the former owners of Santa Rosa’s Sizzling Tandoor. Looking for a new project after selling their popular Indian restaurant three years ago, the family recently opened a Windsor outpost featuring cuisine from their homeland.

At first blush, not much is wildly innovative about the menu or the atmosphere of the restaurant. Tucked between cigarette discount shops, framers and dental offices Taj’s vinyl “All You Can Eat Buffet” sign seems to sum up the vibe pretty well.

But on Windsor’s practical east side, it works. The busy office lunch rush heads for the buffet ($8.99), served from 11:30am to 2pm and again from 5pm to 9pm. With only a few steaming copper pots, it’s a short trip, but a tasty one, featuring an aromatic mulligatawny soup, black lentils, curried chickpeas, lamb meatballs, vegetable pakoras (fried bits of vegetables), tandoori chicken, salad and fresh naan bread served at the table.

Now, BiteClubbers know well my distaste for all things mushy and flavorless, but the mix of spices and herbs in each of the dishes (even the vegetarian ones) had enough complexity to keep things interesting. Having done my time at Indian buffets, what’s even more surprising was finding moist tandoori and pakoras crisp with life.

If you’ve got a little more time, check out the extraordinarily creamy (if slightly salty) Tikka Masala. The restaurant also has a long list of vegetarian dishes, including okra masala, roasted eggplant and saag paneer. Lamb, fish and chicken are featured in tandoors, as well as various curries and spicy sauces–from Vindaloo to Pasanda (a yogurt-based sauce).

What makes or breaks an Indian restaurant, in my book, are the chutneys. There have to be at least three: Mint and cilantro, tamarind and yogurt. Taj takes it a step further with a saffron-colored spicy chickpea and lentil chutney that kicks up the heat just a notch, as well as mango chutney that’s indispensable if you’re eating curry.

Indian desserts typically scare the pants off me, usually being a combination of mushy, flavorless and sickeningly sweet. Getting talked into the Galub Jamun ($3.95) “–cold, fried fritter balls soaked in syrup–wasn’t quite as bad as I feared. The sauce was pleasantly perfumed, tasting more like jasmine than sugar. It’s still a stretch for American palates. Sticking with a nice mango lassi, seems like a better plan if you’re jonesing for the sweet stuff.

Overall, a solid neighborhood spot that’s got the experience and kitchen know-how you’d expect from a veteran restaurateur.

Taj Indian, 9076 Brooks Road South (near Safeway), Windsor, 707.837.9568.

Lunch on the run can be so uncivilized. Napkins flying, mayonnaise dripping, crumbs landing in every possible nook and cranny. Not to mention finding a pickle stuck to your rear several hours later.

Sometimes you gotta eat to live. Plain and simple. But should mobile munching bring you to Sonoma town, speed pass the golden arches. Here, El Dorado Kitchenette elevates the humble “To Go” to tony.

A relaxed coffee and pastry shop attached to the upscale El Dorado Kitchen restaurant, the new kitchenette offers up fresh pastries (from pannacotta and pain au chocolat to fresh-made muffins and scones), pre-made salads and espresso. But in Sonoma, where locals have been fed a steady diet of top-notch baked goods for years (Fiorini, Scandia, Basque Boulangerie and Artisan) that’s hardly newsworthy.

What’s worth the trip are the caramel filled macaroons. Boxed up and ready for transport, they’re great for hostess gifting, sharing or, well, simply rewarding yourself for being so darned wonderful.

As long as you’re there, you’ll probably need a tomato and brie sandwich on crunchy French bread. And missing the house made vanilla ice cream with strawberry rhubarb or extra virgin olive oil and sea salt would be really unfortunate. (You’re burning off calories with all that running around, after all.)

Consider it a car picnic. A moveable feast. Or maybe just stains with a pedigree.

El Dorado Kitchenette, 405 First Street West, Sonoma, 707.996.3030.

Trampling a five-year-old is never good manners. But the lil’ nippers must learn at some point that blocking mommy’s route to food, especially when it involves fleur de sel caramels, can be dangerous. They don’t make the same mistake twice.

Miette’s the kind of candy store and cupcakery that mommies tend to get a little worked up about. Cuter than a June bug in heels, the Hayes Valley outpost (there’s also a Ferry Building location) is filled with a rainbow of apothecary jars, crinkle-wrapped goodies, cakes and exotic confections imported from somewhere beyond the Gumdrop Mountains and Lollipop Forest.

Treats are exactly that: Little bags filled with chewy lemon drops, pink macaroons filled with cream, flower-kissed cupcakes and a menagerie of marzipan animals. Soft, waxed paper-wrapped caramels are made by hand, infused with flavors of burnt sugar, salt, butter and bergamot.

This is what grown-up dreams are made of. So forgive a little shoving, darling. I’m willing to share.*

Miette, 449 Octavia, San Francisco, 415.626.6221. Open Monday-Saturday 11-7
Sunday 11-5.Want to make your own Fleur De Sel Caramels? They’re a great Christmas gift, and cheap to boot. Check out the recipe.

*No actual five-year-olds were seriously injured in my crush to get inside. Though, ‘Pipe down, Mommy’ may have been uttered. I wasn’t really listening.

Suddenly cranberries have lost their luster. The thought of reheating the leftover stuffing and potatoes one more time makes give you the chills. And turkey? The mere mention is shudder-worthy. It’s time for a little post-Thanksgiving, pre-holiday eating that has absolutely nothing to do with the T-word.

Look forward to Wednesdays and Saturdays at the Santa Rosa Farmer’s Market where Lata Pagare is firing things up with her vegetarian, organic Indian samosas and curries. As BiteClubbers know, I’m usually a huge critic of bland, overly earnest vegetarian food, but Pagare has an impossibly light touch with the stuffed and fried pockets of potatoes and veggies. Eggplant curry gets a boost from coconut milk and plenty of spices. Just make sure to get an extra side of chutney. Veteran’s Hall parking lot, 8:30am to noon.

If you can’t get a spot at the always-packed Omelette Express in Railroad Square, a Windsor outpost recently opened across the street from McDonald’s on Windsor River Road. There’s good reason for the lines—if you’re into gut-busting breakfasts. On a recent visit, the home fries and corned beef hash were as good as always. But what’s with the rarebit sauce? Seems like I’ve seen that neon orange color on a nacho chip at the ballpark recently. Steer clear and head for Swiss instead. Omelette Express, 112 Fourth St., Santa Rosa, 525-1690, 150 Windsor River Road, Windsor, 838-6920.

Experimentation in the kitchen is not a welcome Thanksgiving tradition. Trust me, I’ve tried it and I have the electric knife scars to show for it. You don’t mess with turkey or gravy or mom’s sausage stuffing or cranberry sauce in a can. The mere whiff of something different sets folks into a frenzy of nostalgia for stuff they’d never think of eating any other time of year.

Consider the carrot Jell-O. Sometime in the mid-1990s, my mother sat us all down for a family discussion–I mean a serious sit-down and talk–about whether it was time to retire great-grandma’s carrot Jell-O salad from the menu.

Let me say first off that this was not a sad moment. The stuff was awful: Lemon gelatin, pineapples and grated carrots. For years, no one had eaten it. We sort of pushed it around the plate out of a misplaced sense of obligation to Thanksgivings past. Sheepishly, we all agreed it was time to move on, feeling wistful but relieved. But every year, the question still comes up: Are we having carrot Jell-O salad this year?

Sometimes it’s hard to move on. We’re creatures of habit. In fact, many of this year’s hottest recipes are so old school they’re new school, like a dry-brined heritage turkey draped with bacon. Buttermilk mashed potatoes. Bread pudding and root vegetable gratins. Pies still rule, from apple to pumpkin (but flan is a hot number this year, as well.) This does not extend, however to marshmallow yams, creamed corn, or clam dip. Consider a family discussion about moving on. And oh yeah. 1972 called and wants their green bean casserole back.

I follow a rule of one new dish for every three tried and true ones. I try to do a test run for new recipes if possible. And if things go horribly wrong with a dish, I add just add enough butter and cream to choke an elephant.

Whatever you serve, do it with flair and confidence. I plan to light sparklers on top of my bacon pumpkin pie topped with maple whipped cream and demand a moment of silence.

Point is, it’s just a meal. You’re supposed to sit down and give thanks for whatever it is steaming on a plate in front of you, along with the crazy, wonderful folks sitting next to you. Until someone inevitably asks where the carrot Jell-O salad is.

++++
BiteClub’s Overly Eager Old School New School Thanksgiving

(These recipes are my inspiration, but I can’t swear I’ll follow them exactly)

– Brined turkey draped with bacon

– Calvados gravy

– Molasses and ginger carrots
– Buttermilk mashed potatoes with fried shallots

– Mushroom and fennel bread pudding
– Mom’s sausage dressing (I’m not allowed to touch this one)

– Toni’s whipped sweet potatoes with pecan topping
– Bacon pumpkin pie

– Paula Deen’s Savannah High Apple Pie

– Copious amounts of wine

Revised for 2007, but with that same ’06 flavor you’ve come to love…

You could wake up at 4am and stick your hand into the backside of a frozen turkey. You could slave away in the kitchen all day just to have your mother tell you the potatoes are lumpy and the gravy lacks her special touch. And, you mostly likely will find yourself beneath a pile of dishes reaching to the ceiling as the last guest bids a fond farewell.

Or, you could make Thanksgiving reservations. And remain sane.

Now, I’m not knocking aprons and pumpkin pie and spending all day obsessing about whether the turkey is the exact right shade of brown. (Okay, I am.) But like most of you, I’ve been there, done that and got the dressing-stained t-shirt to prove it. This year, let someone else to the cooking.
Here are some of the North Bay’s best bets for Turkey Day, from restaurants to complete meals ready for pickup. Get ready to be thankful.

PICK IT UP

Order now. As in right now. Because most of these require advance notice.

Top pick: Pacific Market

Complete turkey dinner for 10-12, $129. Includes roasted turkey gravy, garlic taters, stuffing, sides, veggies and a pie. 1465 Town and Country Dr, Santa Rosa, 707.546.3663; 550 Gravenstein Hwy, Sebastopol, 823.4916 or 901 Golf Course Drive, Rohnert Park, 585.9643.

Top Pick: Della Fattoria

Breads and desserts so good, you’ll skip the turkey. Pumpkin tart, large Fatt Ho ($32), butterhorns, pumpkin seed bread and baguettes. Order in andvance 763.0161. The bakery is closed Thursday and Friday.

Top pick: Meats from the Fatted Calf
Deadline is Friday, Nov. 16 for Thanksgiving orders with a pick-up for pre-order in Napa on Wednesday. If you can’t commit to that, drop by the Berkeley Farmer’s Market on Tuesday the 22nd from 2 to 7pm. Come on, you know you want out of the house anyway.

Martindale’s Quality Meats & Deli

Haven’t tried a Turducken? Martindales does a solid job of this Southern favorite “a turkey stuffed with a duck, stuffed with a chicken. Guaranteed to make an impression. Order in advance. 5280 Aero Dr, Santa Rosa, 707.545.0531

JUST GET AWAY
Thanksgiving dinner and a goat butter massage? Sounds like a little bit of heaven. The Carneros Inn offers a traditional Thanksgiving feast, along with a two night cottage stay, a bottle of bubbly, the aforementioned goat butter rubdown, and two tasting passes at The Vintner’s Collective. Check out the menu.

EAT IT OUT

El Dorado Kitchen

High-end dining on the Sonoma square, serving an a la carte menu from 3 to 8pm. Chef Ryan Fancher is a French Laundry alum, and his meticulous dishes show it. Finish off dinner with pumpkin pie or Guittard chocolate s’mores. 405 First St. West, Sonoma, 707.996.3030. Check out the menu

The Lodge at Sonoma

Three-course prix fixe dinner from 2 to pm featuring roast Sonoma Willie Bird turkey, sugar pumpkin and Gruyere soup. Reservations required, $55 per person See the menu 1325 Broadway, Sonoma, 707.931.2042

Hurley’s Restaurant and Bar

Thanksgiving feast with all the trimmings, plus regular menu items. A favorite with locals, Hurley’s has a Mediterranean flair and is one of the few spots in town open past nine (they have a 9pm to midnight menu). 6518 Washington St, Yountville, 707.944.2345

John Ash
4350 Barnes Road, Santa Rosa, 707.575.7350
Luxurious setting at a restaurant that has become a SoCo institution.
Siena at the Meritage Hotel
Dungeness crab cakes, lamb osso-buco and of course, turkey. 75 Bordeaux Way, Napa, California, 94558 Phone: (707) 251-1900

Napa Valley Grille
Heritage turkey, wild boar prosciutto and pheasant? Count me in. This upscale chain restaurant feels right at home in Yountville. 6795 Washington St., Washington Square, Yountville, 707.944.8686 See the menu

Willie Bird’s Restaurant

Family-favorite serving up delightful Willie Birds. Full holiday turkey dinner along with other menu items. Reservations required.
1150 Santa Rosa Ave., Santa Rosa, 707.542.0861

Popeye’s Ragin’ Cajun Turkey
Forgot about this one! Thanks for reminding me. Yep, Popeye’s is doin’ it again this year. $37 for the ragin’ turkey. Read more about it here.

Closed on Thanksgiving: Syrah Bistro, Flavor Bistro, Cyrus, Zazu.

Ready for a little exotic eating? Braised antelope, buffalo rib eye, venison carpaccio , wild boar spare ribs and elk loin are on the menu all week at two area restaurants–John Ash & Co and Hurley’s in Napa.

The dinners have become an annual event at Hurley’s, coinciding with the beginning of the hunting season, the end of harvest and well, a ravenous hunger for off-beat critters not usually featured on the restaurant’s menu.

At John Ash and Co., at the Vintners Inn in Santa Rosa, Chef Jeffrey Madura’s evening menu starts with dishes including smoked sturgeon salad, and venison meatloaf shooters. A bit tamer than Hurley’s, the wild game entrees range from pan-seared ostrich to local rabbit and braised wild boar spareribs with wasabi mashed potatoes and mango-chipotle barbeque sauce.

Chef Hurley, who’s known for his wild ways, goes a step further, offering up both lunch and dinner menus that include venison pot pie and goulash, grilled barracuda, grilled octopus, roasted leg of antelope, and pancetta wrapped quail among other delicacies.

Reservations are strongly recommended for both restaurants, serving the rustled-up game through Saturday, Nov. 17.

John Ash and Co., 4350 Barnes Road, Santa Rosa, 707.575.7350
Hurley’s Restaurant and Bar, 6518 Washington Street, Yountville, 707.944.2345.

If you’ve ever had a close friend eat at the French Laundry, you’ve probably ended up on the receiving end of the Conciliatory Cookies and Too Bad Truffles, AKA Pastry Chef Claire Clark’s shortbread and chocolates.

It works something like this. Your pal gets the meal of a lifetime. Busting to tell you about it in exhaustive detail (and feeling both ridiculously full and a little guilty for not taking you), they magnanimously hand you the cellophane wrapped cookies and truffles all guests receive at the end of a French Laundry meal.

It’s a win-win, really. Because how bitter can you be with all that sugar?

Thing is, I’ve always wanted that shortbread recipe. They’re the absolute best cookies–buttery and crisp with a little crunch of sugar on top. Nothing elaborate or fussy. No exotic chocolate or precious decoration. Just a cookie.

And on Friday, I got it. Claire, along with her bud Thomas Keller celebrated the release of Clark’s new dessert book, Indulge, 100 Perfect Desserts with a dessert sampling at Ad Hoc in Yountville. So, okay, I snuck in with a very large purse. But I also picked up a book because, well lemon posset doesn’t travel well at the bottom of a satchel. And it also happens to have one hundred of Claire’s favorite dessert recipes including crème brulee, wigglyjellies, raspberry tarts, champagne truffles and uh huh, the shortbread recipe.

What makes them even more endearing is an anecdote Claire tells about how they made it on the menu. Having recently hired Clark (a Brit), Keller asked her to make some shortbread for the restaurant. You know, something from her homeland (she didn’t have the heart to tell him it was actually Scottish). Clark made several complicated shortbread recipes to wow him, throwing in her mom’s dead-simple recipe just as a lark. Guess which won? Mom’s. Yep, the recipe calling for nothing flour, sugar, vanilla and butter.

Call it French Laundry for the proletariat. Let them eat shortbread.

Indulge, 100 Perfect Desserts by Claire Clark, Head Pastry Chef at the French Laundry, $40, Absolute Press.