Going Big on Bao

With summer entertaining upon us, maybe you’ve grown a little weary of your regular rotation of grilled chicken, burgers, hot dogs and steak. It can be fun — and impressive — to shake things up. And serving bao can make for a fun array of appetizers or a meal in itself, especially if it’s accompanied by a refreshing crushed cucumber salad.

I asked Brian Redzikowski if he would share a couple of his bao recipes. Redzikowski is executive chef at Kettner Exchange in San Diego’s Little Italy and corporate executive chef and managing partner of the restaurant group SDCM. In my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Food section I have his recipes for two fillings: duck and pork belly, as well as a cooling, acidic—and a bit spicy—crushed cucumber salad. You’re going to love them—and just FYI, you can pick up the bao buns at places like 99 Ranch and other Asian markets. Enjoy! (And huge thanks to the talented Alejandro Tamayo for his beautiful photos!)

Reflect Your Style

Mirrors can be a boon to decorating a room. They can reflect and expand light, and the size, shape and frame can make it a statement piece.

They can define spaces in a large room. And they can be a way to give the eye a little breathing room in a space filled with art and other decorative pieces. So why do so many people make so many design mistakes around mirrors—and how can you enhance your space with mirrors? I asked the advice of several interior designers and my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Home and Garden section reveals their insights and tips.

Make Your Own Ice Cream with "America's Most Iconic Ice Creams" Cookbook

The Fourth of July is coming up soon. If you’re in charge of making dessert for the festivities, I have a great suggestion: Make ice cream. Or gelato. Or sorbet. It’s easy, especially if you make it using the recipes from the new cookbook by Salt & Straw’s Tyler Malek and JJ Goode, authors of “America’s Most Iconic Ice Creams: A Salt & Straw Cookbook” (Clarkson Potter, $28). I’ve already made two and friends and family ate it up. You can start with three recipes in my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune Food section: Chocolate Cinnamon Ancho Ice Cream, Strawberry Gelato, and Coffee Chamomile Sorbet. Sooo good!

Yeah, I Did it Again...

Yep, I wrote a second story about the new Botanical Building, but this time for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Home & Garden section. For this piece I wanted locals to get a sense of the future and how designer Nan Sterman went about selecting plants and placing them. New gardens can feel, well, new. So you have to use your imagination when you view one to understand what it will look like as it’s maturing. But, even now it’s really cool and works so well with the rebuilt building. Be sure to be one of the people who take advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see a 100-year garden in year one!

Unusual Meats for Summer Grilling

Feel like you’re in a grilling rut as summer approaches? Chef Dante Romero of The Lion’s Share has an antidote for your beef/pork/chicken/fish ennui: game meats like elk and venison. The restaurant is known for its focus on out of the ordinary meats an in my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Food section. I have his recipes for bone-in elk chops in a gorgeous barbados marinade and delectable venison sliders with garlic aioli and butter onions on a brioche buns. You have to make these for 4th of July!

What it Takes to Revitalize a Legend

Sometimes, if you’re lucky and prepared, serendipity comes calling in a career. For San Diego horticulturist and landscape designer Nan Sterman, serendipity arrived in 2022 when she was asked to create a plant list for the first phase of the soon-to-be transformed Botanical Building in Balboa Park. Unlike projects for her residential clients, where a plant list is a part of a full design and installation, this plant list was the sum of the assignment. Until it wasn’t.

You can read about how Sterman became the project’s designer—truly the project of a career—and how she approached the project in my story in the new edition of Pacific Horticulture. It’s an amazing tale. And you can see photos of the transition into a magnificent Botanical Garden for our times.