Wild Wednesday coming up! That means a visit from my nephew, Cooper Cuteness, yay! Cooper brightens our week, bigtime, especially since he says "n" for "l" at the beginning of words - that means he nuvs (loves) his new dog Nevi (Levi). Beyond cute. (Of course I haven't talked to him for a week, which means he could by now be saying "l" perfectly well. That's how it goes with a two-year old; one day you're Aunt Settie, the next you're a perfectly pronounced Ste-pha-nie, just nike that.)

Simple is the name of the food game on Wednesdays. Tonight the plan is steaks on the grill with a stir-fry of bokchoy, broccoli, and scallions (that's what remains of my veggie share; reload tomorrow) with a good amount of garlic, Thai curry paste, and chopped fresh basil for some interest and heat. (I'm all about the heat lately, outside and in my food. My aunt Mary got me addicted to the most unlikely-named spicy pickle this past weekend - Norwegian Dills, one of the Gedney State Fair versions. If you, like I, crave salty heat at about, oh, 4 pm, these are your pickle, crazy good.)

Hopefully I'll score some leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Monday's fried walleye became yesterday's fish taco - a little chopped cabbage and red onion, slice of avocado, in a small French Meadow sprouted grain tortilla. Delicious. Leftover steak makes a damn good taco as well, and is always good stir-fried with a few peppers, onions, and mushrooms, eaten warm over salad.

On an unrelated note, check out (and chuckle about) this article describing the calorie-shock New Yorkers are experiencing as chain restaurants implement a new law requiring they post menu item calorie counts right next to the prices. Ouch. Maybe it's because I'm a woman who gains weight by merely glancing at unhealthy foods (therefore this blog!), and probably more likely because I cook and therefore know what really goes into making items like muffins, scones, and platter-sized pieces of nut-encrusted fried meats (although I also maintain it doesn't take thinking very hard about it to realize they're loaded with calories), but none of the counts in the article particularly shocked me. I know how I feel after eating food like that (ill). See what you think - do Minnesotans need calorie counts on their menus? I have a sneaking suspicion that it's not the calorie counts alone that freak people out - it's being seen eating the burger that everyone can plainly see is more than 1,200 calories. If shame encourages people to make healthier choices - or skip the chain restaurants altogether and cook their own food - then it works for me? Hmmm...

Moderate it: a small piece of protein (beef, chicken, fish, pork, tofu, lamb, etc.) + lots of fresh veggies (salad, stir-fry, roasted, grilled, etc.) + small amount of grain (whole-grain bread, couscous, rice, corn, pasta, etc.) = healthy dinner in 30 minutes. Of course my kids eat small amounts of fresh veggies + lots of grain, despite my best efforts to encourage otherwise; I try to think about it as a palate-training process, not completed until adulthood... A vegolescence, as it were... Right.)

Happy Bunny to You! Ahh, home. Nathan and I got off the plane from San Francisco this afternoon and went straight to my Dad & Susanna's for Easter dinner with my aunt Mary & uncle Bruce, as well as Stacey & Cooper. Couldn't ask for a sweeter way to ease back in to winter, you know? Garlicky, crusty leg of lamb with cucumber-yogurt sauce; creamy, deadly pommes dauphinoise (a Meyer-family favorite, I believe originating with my aunt Jean, recipe posted in comments below); fresh, warm bread; salad with pears and pecans; and lemon pie with whipped cream. Yeah, the food in San Fran was incredible, but home does not suck when Susanna and Mary are cooking! Even after four consecutive 70-degree sunny days, in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, it is (mostly) good to be home - no small task, thank you Susanna & Dad!

So, back to San Francisco for a moment...Nathan and I opened our Food Adventure with a Chinese dim sum feast at Tian Sing, near our hotel and very tasty. Shatteringly crisp spring rolls, delicate steamed shrimp dumplings, pillowy-soft steamed barbecue pork baos, and garlicky, crunchy Chinese broccoli... Happy start indeed, woo hoo!

Thursday we hopped on a cable car to always-hoppin' Fisherman's Wharf. It just happened to be lunchtime, so we ducked into In-N-Out Burger before the madness hit (and oh did it hit, about three minutes after we ordered), a major highlight for Nathan. Easy enough to order at this California fast-food superstar - the menu consists of burgers and fries, baby, burgers and fries. Fresh beef + fresh-cut potatoes = deliciousness. We walked off the burger-y excess (ack) along the waterfront, cruising various piers, parks, and shops for the entire, sunny afternoon.

Friday we boarded a ferry for a tour of Angel Island and Alcatraz. The appropriately named Angel Island - as in, heavenly - is the largest island in the bay and pretty much one of the most stunning places I've ever seen. (Nathan and I ate a picnic lunch alongside this charming little cove, with a hill of fragrant eucalyptus trees behind us.) Alcatraz is stunning too, while at the same time entirely creepy and depressing. The audio walking tour is a must-do, lively and fascinating, narrated by gravelly-voiced former guards and inmates and punctuated with (very, sometimes overly!) realistic sound effects.

We made it back to the hotel just in time to be picked up for dinner by my cousin Blake, who lives in San Franciso proper with his wife Tegan, daughter Gracyn (5), and son Knox (3). Blake and Knox (only the boys were able to join us for dinner) whisked us off to Sausalito (over the Golden Gate Bridge, woo hoo!) for bay-side deliciousness at Fish. Nathan had his first fish-n-chips dinner ever (thumbs up), while Knox enjoyed "chicken"-n-chips (wink), and I downed yummy grilled-fish tacos.

Saturday, sweet Saturday, we toyed with the idea of renting a convertible to drive up the coast, through wine country hills, and back to the city to catch all the breath-taking sights and scents of rural NoCal. (We decided we needed two more days - one to drive north of the city, one to drive south, to visit my aunt Jean and uncle Del - Blake's parents - in Carmel. Next time...) But we settled on an even better idea, thanks to Blake's suggestion to head first thing for the famous Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market. Oh Lord, if only we all had access to such glory! A beautiful bounty of fresh, locally grown produce and meat, available year-round (!), along the waterfront to make it, you know, ridiculously (painfully) gorgeous. Man, it was just insane. OK, I was just insane, walking around completely jealous of the locals casually buying fresh flowers, crusty bread, fresh pastries, organic meats, fresh fish and shellfish, artisanal cheeses, Napa Valley wines, local beers, fresh vegetables (including a whole stand of wild mushrooms!) and fruits. Picture our Minneapolis Farmers' Market (which I love) about twenty times more sophisticated and lovely. Foodie. Heaven.

And then...Mexican tasties (yes, here I go again), giddily ordered at Mijita Cocina Mexicana, a permanent cafe in the Ferry Building. Fresh, authentic, a little Mexican cafe like this would clean up in Minneapolis, don't you think? I mean, I know there are lots of yummy little taquerias around, which I've admittedly totally under-explored, but this place was so accessible, and so real, I couldn't help but sigh a bit knowing there wasn't quite an equal 'round these parts. Which is probably a good thing, in the name of moderation and such... (After chowing down on carnitas with tomatillo salsa; a fresh masa quesadilla filled with cheese, epazote, and roasted chiles; guac (of course); and chilaquiles drizzled with crema and served alongside creamy beans, we were a bit, uh, full. Good thing there's such a huge, cool Chinatown in which to walk off a Mexican feast!)

Soooo...as I said, we're back in the black-n-white photo we call home, and it's...good? Lovely Easter dinner definitely smoothed the transition. A good night's sleep never hurts. It's a little sad that Spring Break '08 will soon be but a happy memory, but hopefully a spring of our own is coming to distract us - soon?!