I love this truffle salt. My version of deviled eggs uses a little Best Foods Mayonnaise, Spice Hound’s Black Truffle Sea Salt, and a touch of Worcestershire sauce for the filling. Then, I garnish them with freshly grated Parmesan. I call them Italian-Stuffed Deviled Eggs and my guests go crazy over them! – Chef Lea

In addition, Spice Hound stocks a vast selection of notable sea salts and exceptionally fresh spices.  Head over to www.SpiceHound.com and take a look.
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How have you used truffle sea salt in a dish? We would love to hear!

I have been craving a blueberry muffin these past couple of weeks. Can’t explain it…but it happens! Imagine my bliss when I discovered Farmhouse Fresh Powder Milk Bath Soak in Blueberry when I was having a “Solitude Soak” at Destino Spa…yum! This blueberry batter (in the form of a milk bath) is worth the down time indulgence and made my skin feel super soft. I am still on the look out for a super-scrumptious blueberry muffin…but this has tided me over in the meantime.

Their other products are as yummy as they smell, too. Are you craving…

Yellow cake?

or Whoopie Pies?

Find more at Farmhouse Fresh…

Chef Lea McIntosh presented “Chic Bites” at the San Francisco Design Center’s first Culinarium event! The audience reacted with oohs, aahs, laughter and clapping throughout her 60 minute demonstration. She talked Jeanine Hays of AphroChic through the steps of making three easy, cheesey, hors d’oeuvres: Stuffed Medjool Dates, Muscat Pear Marmalade over creamy gorgonzola cheese, and Truffle Honey Holiday Baked Brie.

Here are a few scenes from the live event…

Lea organizes and sets everything in place prior to the live demonstration.

SFDC’s Rhonda Hirata gives Chef Lea a warm and welcoming introduction.

Lea brings in her “newbie” cook…Jeanine Hays from AphroChic.

Jeanine’s soulful, chic pillows from her Dreamland Collection are eye candy for the audience (oh, and one lucky guest got to take one home!).

Newbie cooking moment…

More cooking action…

Jeanine and Lea pose with fan, Emily Mai Enriquez.

A few questions afterward and then Lea invites the audience over to the Duralee showroom for some serious “Chic Bites” tasting!

Pear Muscat Marmalade
Yields: 1 quart

Ingredients:
2 ½ pounds Bartlett or d’Anjou pears, peeled, cored, and chopped
½ pound Granny Smith tart apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
2 cups sweet Muscat dessert wine
3 cups granulated sugar
¼ cup fresh tangerine juice
2 teaspoons tangerine zest

(1) Add pear, apple, muscat dessert wine, sugar, tangerine juice, and tangerine zest to a 5-quart shallow sauce pan. Cook on medium heat for approximately 2 1/2 hours, stirring about every 20 minutes for first 2 hours of cooking. During last half hour, stir every 5 to 10 minutes to prevent sticking or burning. Timing may vary slightly depending on pan or temperature used. When ready, marmalade mixture should be a dark amber-brown color with a sweet caramelized flavor.
(2) Using a whisk or masher, slightly break up softened fruit pieces. Cool to room temperature. Store in air tight containers in the refrigerator up to two weeks.

Note: Lea’s favorite way to present and serve this marmalade is alongside a creamy blue cheese such as Gorgonzola Dolce and Raincoast Crisps or baguette slices.

Click here for the crockpot version of Muscat Pear Marmalade.

Recipes for the Stuffed Medjool Dates and Truffle Honey Holiday Baked Brie coming soon!

Destino Spa is one of the premiere day spas located Palo Alto California, the hub of the fast-paced tech world. Destino owner Christine Rivera offers the highly stressed a haven for quiet reflection and the ultimate pampering. In late September, she hosted the spa’s first Beauty Event in celebration of her clients and community. Guests were treated to mini-massages, facials, expert tips, and gifts galore! People flocked to the event and guests were bursting out of the doors and into the street. Chef Lea McIntosh treated everyone to her Gone Greek Yogurt Dips, and Rose Rejuvenation and Lilac Spirit Spagrias.

The Spicy Chipolte Greek Yogurt Dip is featured in Issue No. 3.

Our latest issue of Nesting Newbies’ digital magazine was on view too!

Christine Rivera, Chelsea Brown, Charina Rivera, and Paige Hay…celebrating an evening of beauty : )

Lots of Spagria sipping!

It’s okay to splurge…and the mini-cupcakes by Jen’s Cakes are worth the indulgence.

Corina Crysler, co-founder and product formulator, was on hand to share the amazing benefits of her GliSODin Skin Nutrients.

Join us at the San Francisco Design Center on October 19, 20, and 21 for the Kitchen Design & Epicurean Event of the season! Featuring Christopher Peacock, Chef Lea McIntosh, Tyler Florence, Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Chef Tanya Holland, House Beautiful’s Newell Turner and more!

Scroll down for information on Chef Lea’s appearance, a special Nesting Newbies reception, and the complete Culinarium Program. Purchase your tickets through the San Francisco Design Center. Proceeds will provide scholarships to Bay Area interior design students.

Photography by Jack Hutcheson

Photography by James Burkart

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20

CHIC BITES: EASY, UPSCALE HORS D’OEUVRES FOR ENTERTAINING

2:00 PM…Nesting Newbies Chef Lea McIntosh will be cooking live on the Galleria Atrium stage in the Christopher Peacock kitchen! Enjoy her Chic Bites: easy, upscale hors d’oeuvres for entertaining. Learn her no-fail techniques while she teaches Jeanine Hays, décor blogger, creative director and founder of AphroChic her most popular recipes.

3:30 PM…Follow Lea and Jeanine to the Duralee Showroom (Galleria, Rm. 100) for a special Nesting Newbies reception. Enjoy a glass (or two) of wine, noshes by Chef Lea, and view Aphrochic pillow collection and the latest from Duralee. RSVP for this reception to Jodi at Nesting Newbies.

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Read Full Feature in Nesting Newbies Magazine, 2010 Issue No.4

A Fusion-feast Inspired by an Old World Region

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With midsummer in mind, Chef Lea McIntosh imagined a grilled dinner inspired by Mediterranean cuisines—a fusion-feast with flavors common to many countries in this Old World region. “You’ll see influences from Spain, Greece, Morocco, Africa, and Turkey in these recipes,” Lea explains. “To me, it is so interesting—and tasty—to mix dishes and blend culinary flavors from many cultures.”

Find the recipes and video of Lea’s Midsummer Mediterranean dinner party in Issue No. 4

Rio Costantini Photography

Lea McIntosh wears many hats at Nesting Newbies: co-founder, creative director, director of culinary content, food stylist…and now we can add fashion designer to the list! A traditional white chef coat just doesn’t fit Lea’s colorful personality, so she set out to find an alternative. Of course, chef coats are now available in a wide range of colors, and that’s a start in the right direction…but Lea’s right brain inspiration puts the chef coat into a haute couture category : )

Lea’s brainchild? A custom chef coat with removable and interchangeable cuffs! An idea we’ve never seen done before. Her first design is a burgundy coat with cuffs made from an Ashberry Transitional Print Cotton Sateen fabric by Duralee (#20836-561 Green Tea). She designed it for her appearance on ABC’s View from the Bay. New cuffs are in the works as is another coat in turquoise with its own set of interchangeable cuffs. Through her own innovation, Lea is building an epicurean wardrobe befitting her vibrant personality.

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Chef Lea McIntosh creates the recipes in our magazine, but what you probably don’t know is that she also does the food styling.  For us, it’s important to show the real food without using any fancy tricks or slight of hand.  Of course, we want them to look enticing, so Lea prepares beautiful presentations for the camera…and we look to great photographers to capture every last bit of delicious!

Here Lea is in the San Francisco Christopher Peacock Showroom kitchen styling a small bowl of her Creamy Chevre Crab Dip (page 28 in the Winter 2010 issue).

She adds a piece of fresh crab on top so you can visually tell that the recipe includes crab meat.  Notice the small cups of Brandied Tomato Cream Soup that were styled for the same issue (Page 16 Winter 2010).

The final touch?  Two snips of fresh chives placed on top in a graceful-X, for a pop of green!  The layering of wooden plates underneath complement the organic bowl’s shape.

For more on today’s kind of  food styling for magazines…read this great post on mattbites.com

Images by Michael Soo, Soo Photography

Read Full Feature or Print Feature Recipes from Nesting Newbies Magazine, Winter ’10

Chef Lea McIntosh gave herself a culinary challenge when she discovered the Crock-Pot® Trio Cook & Serve while shopping with her husband. “We were in a hurry, but at first glance, I knew I was going to throw an over-the-top party,” says Lea. “And I would use only slow cookers to do it!”

Challenge met. Each recipe is a meal on its own. But serve them together for a crowd, and your guests will experience an explosion of culinary tastes. “Lea is rockin’ the crockpot,” says friend Diane Phillips, DK Designs.

Christopher Peacock—whose signature cabinetry company, Christopher Peacock Home, is synonymous with quality, creativity, and craftsmanship—flew from his corporate offices in Connecticut to his San Francisco showroom just to taste Lea’s new recipes. “I am intrigued with the entire Nesting Newbies concept and knew Chef Lea would create quality recipes in an innovative way,” says Christopher. “I was impressed by how she was able to elevate slow cooking to fine, culinary status.”

Christopher’s friends agree. “Everything was amazing,” says Lane Brooks, principal and CEO of The Brooks Group. “I am still dreaming about the food.”

Photography By: Michael Soo

Now that you are living on your own, chances are you’ve either been put into the family rotation for hosting Thanksgiving or you’ve been asked to bring a dish to this year’s celebration. “Not to worry,” says Chef Lea McIntosh. “When you are in charge, you can put your own twist on tradition and pull together a fabulous potluck party. Figure out what you’d like to make (or try making) and divvy out the rest of the menu to family and friends.” If you’re heading off to grandmother’s house instead and only have to think about one dish—make something decadent (it is, after all, a holiday) and an epicurean delight.

Through the years, Chef Lea has developed recipes—many of them from a very traditional base—using unconventional combinations of fresh ingredients. In this feature she shares a few that are easy to make ahead of time, portable, and guaranteed to make your friends and family sit up and take notice.

Read Full Feature, Download or Print Feature Recipes
from Nesting Newbies Magazine, Fall ’09 >>
Casserole Choice: Savory Wild Mushroom Bread Pudding
A Vegetable They’ll Eat: Scotch-Marshmallow-Caramel-Kissed Yams
Hors d’oeuvre Selection: Truffle Honey Holiday Baked Brie
Bring a Gift: The Nut Series

Photography By: Natali Wi