European Butter Cookies.. /  by George Geary

Ah..Meyer Lemon Butter Cookies.

This past weekend was a "nature" weekend. It was sunny about 80F here in SoCal. We took a little "road trip" to the wild flowers.. The hills were packed with so many varieties of flowers! With all of the rain we have had the hills exposed their beauty for us!

After the flowers then off to California Historical Citrus State Park.  It is a MUST visit stop. They have tours of the farms and all of the citrus. This time of year the aroma is intoxicating..  You also come home with a sample bag of the varieties! Afterwards I purchased 30 pounds of oranges.. A cross between Navel and Blood. Jams will be made this week!

Here is the recipe for the butter cookies..Recipe for Butter Cookies

A few years back I came across a rolling pin company that made embossed pins.. They are out of Poland.. But they ship to the states! Take a look at Rolling Woods Store.

Rolling Woods Etsy Store:

Until next time..

SDLiving Tomorrow! St. Paddy's Day /  by George Geary

The Countdown begins... I have not posted too much about the end of the SDLiving Show on the CW6 in San Diego.. This is my last St. Paddy's Day Show. I started morning shows in 1993. The year I left Disney. It was also the year the launched The Food Network. I was a regular on ABCs Mike and Maty in the 90s.. That was a 3 year run.. I have been doing this show for about 7 years.. I will have to look at the first thing I made..  I created a segment called WTF Day.. (What The Food) Day.. every day has some sorts of food attached to it.. If we didn't have an idea as to a segment we would look into what food day it was... I was so happy to always do National Cheesecake Day.. So I could highlight my book and cheesecakes! 

Here are the recipes for tomorrow.. Until next week! (The SDLiving Show signs off on the last day of the month). If any of you are a friend on Facebook.. I will be doing LIVE tomorrow while I set up my show around 8:15 am PDT.

Recipes:

Shamrock Shake for Adults

Drunken Pistachio Cake

Pistachio Cheesecake

Guinness Cupcakes with Cream Icing

Thank You For Being A Friend /  by George Geary

The 1980’s. I was working in Hollywood at a place on Melrose and Vine. About 3 blocks from Paramount Studios. Cable shows were new and many being taped on the lot. A few times a stage hand (Bill) kept coming into the bakery asking for food for the prop department. The sitcom show “It’s A Living” was going into production and the story took place in a restaurant. Bill came in asking me how to create ice cream that would not melt under the hot lights and tasted great. Plus, it had to be chocolate with texture in it. I came up with using raw cookie dough. And started producing about 3 different flavors for the show. Then I was hired to transform their glass cake case. All the cakes had to look real and stand up for a season. I made Styrofoam dummies and added chocolate sprinkles and maraschino cherries that I replaced for the next season.. The show lasted 2 years, then was picked up for syndication so they had to produce enough episodes to reach the magic number of 100. Then a spin-off of Dynasty. The Colby’s. It also too lasted two seasons. They ate more than the Dynasty show. Every show seemed to need food. I created all edible foods that had to last and taste great. My first Duck Al l‘Orange was such a hit that the producers flipped a coin as to got to take it home after. Another show.. Brothers it was a new comedy on this new cable thing. Lots of foods for that show.. Now brings me to ABC.

I was asked to create a simple yet elegant wedding cake 4-tier and a smaller carrot cake. The wedding cake. bottom layer edible. Had to look white on camera. So we did test colors of the icing being yellow as it deflects the lights and make it look white. This was for a new TV show they hoped would be picked up called Golden Girls. It was shot at Sunset Gower stages, a group of 3 older ladies with their live in male cook. Then.. about 12 months later, I was asked to create a cheesecake for the same show. It was getting picked up by the network. For the run of the show I would create 7 cheesecakes for the Friday night taping. They moved production to the stages very close to Paramount (Ren-Mar). I would box up 7 cheesecakes by 4pm.. all identical. Every season the cakes changed, Season one: plain, season two.. whipped cream trim, season three berry topping and so on..

This past week.. I have heard from so many people regarding my cheesecakes from the show.. All the way from Norway in fact. I have written three cheesecake cookbooks, with one in Italian. But I forgot to include the Golden Girls Cheesecake. A new café is opening in New York, highlighting Golden Girls. I contacted them regarding the original cheesecake recipe and they wanted nothing to do with it really. (I had not even talked compensation yet). Two weeks ago, I was the guest speaker at the current owner of the apartment that Mae West lived in for years. Only a few blocks from where Golden Girls was shot. I took a cheesecake.

Here is the recipe for you to take or share with a group of your friends at night! PS: My next book on cheesecakes will include this recipe and it will be out in 2018.

Golden Girls Cheesecake

Cookie Dough that I used for Ice Cream                 

 

Book signings in Los Angeles and San Diego, Classes in Ohio /  by George Geary

Since my latest book came out I have been doing talks and signing all over the World. Last week was real special. I spoke at a "salon" of Hollywood insiders and lovers of "Old" Hollywood in the former home of  actress, playwright Mae West. She lived in one of the few "New York" type apartments with doorman and all. We feasted on my Golden Girl Cheesecake and talked for hours about Hollywood and the restaurants of the day.

Upcoming Events:

Feb 23rd, 7:30pm ~ Booksigning and Talk ~ Free

Warwicks in LaJolla, CA

Link: Event 

March 11th 10:30am ~ Booksigning and Talk ~ Free

Los Angeles Public Library

Link: Event

 

March 1st and 2nd: Classes in Ohio at Cooks Wares

Link: Event

 

Hope to see you in a class! 

George

In Mae's Kitchen! 

 

Pie for Leeza.. Green Room Talk /  by George Geary

From Daytime to KTLA:

The green room is where all of the action is... Not the on air area at all. Last week while on NBC Daytime in Tampa in walked Jane Lynch a few steps behind were a few more people..  They stood there for a moment and I said.. Oh are you Jane's Publicist? (Insert foot in mouth here).. Ah. no I am Kate Flannery.. (OK I never saw the show The Office but I guess she was big there). But then I thought.. she does not know me either.. 

Today while waiting around for my segment I was with Leeza Gibbons and a few others.. Leeza and I talked about how she was having 40 over for Thanksgiving and I dont think she knew I cooked.. So we talked about my Pumpkin Kahlua Pie.. She was wanting me to whip up a pie right then and there! Here is the recipe.. 

I am leaving tomorrow morning (Thanksgiving) back to Tampa. I am going to be joining the ms. Oosterdam on a 14 day cruise of the Caribbean. This will be my last cruise. 8 years of the ships has come to an end.. 

Recipe for my Pumpkin Kahlua Pie 

Dont forget to get your copy of my newest book at Book Soup on December 8th,  7pm. On the Sunset Strip! .. I will be doing a signing and talk.. 

KTLA: Iconic Los Angeles TV Station. /  by George Geary

KTLA: Iconic LA Station.. 

Today I talked about 5 of the locations in my newest book.. Had a great time having everyone taste the foods from the bygone era.. Here is the clip.. For the recipes.. Get the book!

KTLA Show 

One of my first TV shows was on the old Burns and Allen Stages.. You could feel the history.. Today I drove onto the old Columbia Pictures Lot and worked on stage 6.. Again.. you can feel and smell the history! Im very fortunate! 

L.A.’s Legendary Restaurants: Restaurant Highlight /  by George Geary

Dan Tana’s “Tana’s”

9071 Santa Monica Blvd

Los Angeles, CA 90069

310-275-9444

In 1964, only a few blocks outside of Beverly Hills in the unincorporated area of Los Angeles (now the City of West Hollywood), sat only a few things on the area of land. A menu filled with Italian favorites. It is till in operation today.

Chicken Piccata Recipe

Dan Tana’s is one of 60 locations highlighted in my recent book. L.A.’s Legendary Restaurants

SDLiving Pre-Election Show.. Appetizers! /  by George Geary

It has been quite a very long election season! Tomorrow I will be doing my segment on SDLiving Live at 9am on Appetizers.. Plus a very quick drink. Please everyone VOTE. Prior to being old enough to vote I worked on state campaigns, when I was 13 years old. I loved the process. I knocked on doors.. In my 20s I got back on the trails and stood and registered people to vote. Many propositions were infringing on human rights... Everyone knows how much I travel. Since October 1st, I have been in 14 states, teaching, morning shows and book signing.. If I can vote you can too. I have not missed one election since my 18th birth!  

Try these.

Raspberry Prosecco Cooler

Bullock's Wilshire Tea Room Chicken Cantonese Salad

Honey Sriracha Wings with Dill Sauce

The History of…. The Brownie.. (Maybe) /  by George Geary

The History of…. The Brownie.. (Maybe)

History intrigues me. I always have felt you cannot look to the future until you look at your past. My 5th grade teacher Mr. Fickart said “History Repeats Itself”…

This is a new idea I have regarding history of food. When I was researching my latest book L.A.’s Legendary Restaurants three of the recipes in the book were “firsts”. I thought it would be an interesting blog as to the “firsts” as we know them in food. Or the claims we have heard. With a recipe or two thrown in. 

The Brownie.

Many have claimed they invented what today we know as “the Brownie”  I enjoy the Potter and Bertha Horne Palmer story. It all starts at the Palmer (Today known as The Palmer Hotel ~ A Hilton Hotel). Today the Palmer sits 17 E. Monroe (at State) in Chicago. The current hotel is the third Palmer at this location. The first was built in 1871 (as a wedding gift to his wife) and 13 days later it burnt down in the Great Chicago Fire. Four years later, it reopened as “The World’s Only Fire Proof Hotel”. In the 1920’s the current hotel was built bigger on the same site to accommodate the business in downtown. Today the Palmer has 1,641 rooms that make it the second largest hotel in Chicago.

Bertha Palmer was the President of the Board of Ladies Managers of the World’s Columbian Commission in 1890. Duties of the President were important besides conducting and leading dozens of the lady managers of the board. Because of her influence and stature in the community and having the largest most opulent hotel didn’t hurt. Bertha called on her pastry chef at the hotel to design a dessert for the upcoming woman’s picnic for the board (It was held at Grant Park in the Ladies Pavilion). She knew the ladies could not have a piece of cake or pie in their picnic basket without it ruining their gloves.  Cookies were too mundane. So he created a “bar cookie” of sorts. Today when you stay at the Palmer, you get a brownie during turn down service.

Technically, there is no written evidence on menus or such that the Palmer called them Brownies. The first recipe for “brownies” in a cookbook was Fanny Famer, in the 1896 edition of the Boston Cooking School Cookbook. But it didn’t have chocolate, so it was what we today all a “Blondie”. The first time in print with reference to Chocolate and Brownie was on April 1st, 1898 in the Kansas City Journal on sale for .15 cents a pound. The updated 1909 Boston Cooking School Cookbook had two recipes one for Brownies with and one without chocolate.

Palmer House Brownie Recipe

1909 Boston Cooking School Recipe

Pumpkin Brownies

Here is a list of my October Classes and Signings

Get my book here on Amazon

Enjoy! 

Tomorrow LIVE at 9am on SDLiving CW6 "The Islands" /  by George Geary

I have traveled to the South Pacific a dozen times. It is a wonderful part of the world. Every island is different.. Thursday's show on SDLiving will focus on a few recipes and travel talk! Here are the recipes. If you can not tune in or San Diego is not in your viewing area you can watch online or after the show I will put my segment up.   

Drink: Coconut Pineapple Breeze

Kon-Tiki Chicken Salad

New Caledonia Shrimp with Honey Dipping Sauce

Lemon Macadamia Bars 

 

Hot Hot Hot.. No-Bake Pies on CW6 SDLiving! /  by George Geary

Today on CW6.. No-Bake Pies! 

Its is hot out there! I decided to make 5 different pies for this mornings show. All no-bake and fast to make! Try them out! I started all with the pre-made crust. When you can make yourself if you like. 

White Chocolate Cheese Pie

Nutella S'More Pie

Raspberry Smoothie Pie

Key Lime Pie

Peanut Butter Cheese Pie

Have a great weekend and stay cool! 

 

Peaches! Peachy Peaches! /  by George Geary

Ripe Sweet Peaches...

When you think of Los Angeles you would not think of peaches. But you would be wrong.. Our farmers markets are packed with tree-ripened peaches. When you smell the aroma of the peach and you soak up that flavor into your nose you know! When you head to the local farmers markets the peaches are normally picked the day prior.. Problem is that they last only a few days. Next week I am going to make my annual Fresh Yellow and White Peach Preserves. Today I headed to Glendora, CA for the annual four week sale of Fresh Peach Donuts by The Donut Man of the original Route 66.  Back when I wrote my top 10 donut stores in America for USAToday, I heard from so many donut stores that wanted me to try their fried rounds. The Donut Man contacted me and I had to be honest, they have great donuts, but Peach was the best and only a few weeks out of the year. If I had put them in my top 10 and you had gone... A big disappointment in March when they didn't have the flavorful peachy peach.

Next time you are on Route 66 check it out.. But call first for the Peach or Fresh Strawberry

The Donut Man

915 East Route 66

Glendora, CA 91740

626-335-9111

www.thedonutmanca.com

 

I am in final edits on the Hollywood Book.. It goes to print next week. Also, I will be on SDLiving for National Cheesecake Day.. I will send you information soon! 

 

 

 

4th of July! /  by George Geary

Blue Cheese Pistachio Cheesecake

In 2002 my first book came out. 125 Best Cheesecake Recipes, then a number of years later The Cheesecake Bible. This recipe was in both books and is a fast easy cheesecake to make. If you have not had it in one of my classes or parties here is the recipe.

Blue Cheese Pistachio Cheesecake

When I worked for Disney it was pretty much a given you would be working on the 4th. The motto was "We Work While Others Play". Since 1994 (My last year at the park) I have played while others worked! Except the year I did a food segment on the Santa Monica Pier which was shown on the 4th but we taped it the month before!

I am headed to Rapid City, SD. The birth of my father, grandparents and other family members. I have not visited since 1999, so it will be a fun weekend.

Here is a little preview of my next book.. This windmill Denny's used to be a Van de Kamps Bakery and Coffeeshop. These buildings dotted the southland. This is the only one left and it is in the city of Arcadia close to Pasadena. One chapter is all about the Van de Kamps bakeries.. With recipes too! 

I am doing the edits on the manuscript and we will have it out in the stores soon! Be looking! 

Have a great 4th! 

George

Cherry Season is so short! /  by George Geary

Cherry Season.. Where does it go?

Here in Southern California we have great farmers markets. Many of the vendors grown their fare in neighboring counties. Some drive 4 hours one way to get to the markets. Not many of the larger orchards and farms are in the Los Angeles area. So if you want to pick your own produce off of trees and bushes you have to go a few hours out.

Last weekend I drove out to the very outskirts to Villa del Sol, sweet cherry farms. They are only open for a few weeks. Bing and Rainier Cherries are packed the first week of operation. I picked the second and last weekend. If you are in the area, you should get to the farm as soon as they open. Here is the site: Cherries. Sign up for the alerts for next year! 

I picked about 11 pounds of fresh cherries. I pitted them and put them into four categories; Bing with and without stems and Rainier with and without stems. I then places them on baking sheets lined with parchment paper and let them freeze over night. The next morning I placed them in my Seal-a Meal and now have cherries packed in the freezer.

Tonight I made a Cherry Almond Tart with a flakey sweet tart dough crust. Here are the recipes:

Cherry Almond Tart

Sweet Tart Dough 

France 2018.. Ms Westerdam in Alaska! /  by George Geary

France 2018.. What happen to 2017? 

We just returned from a great tour of France with a group of fantastic "foodies". I have been taking groups since the mid-90s and I never get tired of the countryside. 

From waking up to the morning church bells of the quant village to the hot freshly baked croissant to all of the classes, tours and events we have planned.

Here are a few recipes from the week and also information on 2018. We are sold out for 2017. And the registration opens on June 1st. So if you are planning on joining us in the South of France. Take a look at the brochure and ask questions. The first 4 couples to have their registration in after June 1st are on the trip!

 

Recipe: Brochettes de Tomates et Mozzarella

2018 Brochure

2018 Order Form

 

This upcoming Saturday (May 14th) I will be on board the ms Westerdam from Seattle to Seattle into Alaska. Next week I will bring you recipes from the trip. It is going to be a great week as its their Chefs at Sea Program. 

See you on the sea, my segments on SDLiving or a class soon! 

George