Olive Oil

Karen Wight If you are entertaining this holiday season or have offered to bring an appetizer to a party, I have five easy hors d'oeuvre recipes that look great, taste even better and will get you in and out of the kitchen in no time flat. Thank you to friends who were willing to share their secrets and to Trader Joe's, which always has great suggestions. Bon appetit! Bridget's Brie 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup dried fruit 1/2 cup nuts 3/8 cup cream sherry 1 brie triangle Mix the first four ingredients and pour the mix over the brie.

Winning recipes from the first-ever Simply Manischewitz Cook-Off at the Hilton's kosher kitchen in Costa Mesa. Pea and fennel soup Ingredients: 2 pounds frozen or fresh peas 21 fluid ounces of Manischewitz chicken broth 1 cup diced celery 1 cup diced white potato 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 diced leek, the white part only 1 diced fennel 1/3 cup light brown sugar salt and pepper Preparation: ...

NEWPORT BEACH — A restaurant whose owners claim they can serve food that's good for you and still tastes great is opening its doors Monday at Fashion Island. Called True Food Kitchen, the basis of the menu is rooted in a concept that came from a Harvard-educated doctor and writer who's twice been on the cover of Time magazine and has appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and "Larry King Live." Dr. Andrew Weil, 68, a Philadelphia native who broke into literary stardom in 1972 with "The Natural Mind," has teamed up with restaurant owner Sam Fox, 41. Fox, of Scottsdale, Ariz.

Alicia Robinson While drinking a glass of olive oil isn't an appetizing idea, the oil has more in common with wine than you might expect. Oils from different regions of the world can range in taste from fruity to peppery, depending on where the olives are grown and how they're processed. A new store at Fashion Island caters to those who select oils with as much care as they would a Beaujolais or a Riesling. Oliviers & Co. specializes in olive oils from small growers in Spain, Greece and Turkey, to name a few. The store also sells vinegars, some pasta and sauces and several kinds of tapenade, an olive-paste spread.

Numerous novels and nonfiction books depict aspects of deception, trickery and illusion. Here are a few samples of books that debunk the idea that "what you see is what you get. " "Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil " by Tom Mueller Olive oil, a symbol of purity due to its medicinal abilities, beauty aid and vitality to religious ritual, has become deeply corrupt according to Mueller. He claims that the olive oil industry has many levels of interest: those who are interested in seeing quality extra virgin olive oil gain its rightful place on the shelf, and those who need to be held responsible for their deliberate label misrepresentations of the product.

Greer Wylder Since the 1970s, when Shigeo Iwata visited from Japan, he dreamed of owning a business in Costa Mesa. He was enamored by Newport's beaches and its friendly neighborhoods. It's his "hometown" in the United States. For the past seven years, he's owned the popular Iwata Sushi & Seafood in the Valley at Ventura Boulevard's competitive "sushi row." Now, after 15 years' experience as a respected sushi chef, he is the chef and owner of Costa Mesa's newest sushi restaurant: Iwata Sushi & Seafood on East 17th Street.

KAREN WIGHT Everything that Chef Mila creates is spectacular. Her salads, main courses and desserts are amazing. Basically, if she cooks it, I'll eat it ... and love it. I do, however, have a soft spot for appetizers. Karen's ultimate dinner would consist entirely of hors d'oeuvres. I like a little bit of everything, or sometimes a lot of everything. Chef Mila has a few new appetizer recipes just in time for holiday entertaining. I have tasted these creations, and they are good -- very good.

KAREN WIGHT Let's see, Christmas is a week from today, Hanukkah starts Friday and the harbor is full of festive boats. I'd say that calls for a toast and a nosh. My gift to you: a few Wight house tested-and- approved recipes. Seasoned Greetings. Toasted Nuts with Lemon Pepper and Fried Capers 6 cups mixed nuts 2 cups capers 1/2-cup olive oil 3 tablespoons Lawry's lemon pepper Fry the capers in olive oil over medium heat until lightly browned, about five minutes.

Sandcastle Mono- gramming & Gifts is a gem of a store on Balboa Island for finding personalized gifts to monogram. The gift selections include baby items, bridal gifts, towels, robes, totes and more! And all prices include personal monogramming. Some of the most popular items include bright and fun insulated lunch bags for adults (make great teacher gifts); sleepover pillowcases with autographed pens for birthday parties or camps; Blanket Buddies, which are plush animals and security blankets all in one; lingerie bags for brides; surfboard shaped beach towels, silk jewelry rolls, and laundry bags for college-bound teens.

Stephen Santacroce I often find myself with a dilemma when choosing a place to have lunch. I don't always want to spend the money or the time at a fancy, sit-down restaurant, but the alternative of fast food joints or commercial sandwich shops don't excite me either. Luckily, Cafe Panini in Corona del Mar fills this niche nicely, offering specialty sandwiches and salads in a lively, European-style setting. Cafe Panini sits on PCH next to Tiramasu, formerly Bella Teresa Ristorante, formerly Matteo's Restaurant.

Nestled in a tiny storefront on Balboa Island is a new and charming, romantic little bistro called Trattoria Mediterranean. It is a treasure box, with its candlelit atmosphere, the sound of trickling water from the fountain on the terrace and the wrought-iron grillwork of the entryway, secluding this little gem from the hustle and bustle of the street. All this plus the tastefully appointed décor combine to make it a delightful place to dine. The owners of this new eatery are husband-and-wife team Sean and Elie Dadmand, recently arrived from Canada, where he worked for many years as a manager in Italian restaurants.

Numerous novels and nonfiction books depict aspects of deception, trickery and illusion. Here are a few samples of books that debunk the idea that "what you see is what you get. " "Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil " by Tom Mueller Olive oil, a symbol of purity due to its medicinal abilities, beauty aid and vitality to religious ritual, has become deeply corrupt according to Mueller. He claims that the olive oil industry has many levels of interest: those who are interested in seeing quality extra virgin olive oil gain its rightful place on the shelf, and those who need to be held responsible for their deliberate label misrepresentations of the product.

When Danish duo Christian Toxboe and Laura Nielsen brought their gelato recipe to the U.S., they wanted to make it different. They wanted to make it nice. Using fresh, organic ingredients, they launched N'ice Cream: Nielsen's Homemade Gelato and Sorbet, a Venice Beach-based dessert and espresso shop. Each morning, 16 flavors are whipped up in-store using a formula that is lower in fat and sugar than traditional ice cream. "We opened on the notion that it is possible to bring a group of kids somewhere that moms don't have to be worried about artificial flavors and sweeteners," Toxboe said.

NEWPORT COAST — The Resort at Pelican Hill celebrated the first harvest of its olive trees Friday by pressing some organic virgin olive oil that it hopes to use in the resort kitchen and as bottled gifts for guests. The Newport Beach resort is dotted with 750 olive trees of Manzanillo and Sevillano varieties, the latter of which were raised in Northern California. The majority are around 40 years old, but the Sevillanos, of which Pelican Hill has 25, date back 100 years. Mike Ahmer, the resort's landscape manager, noticed fallen olives on the resort grounds and wondered what to do with them.

NEWPORT BEACH — A restaurant whose owners claim they can serve food that's good for you and still tastes great is opening its doors Monday at Fashion Island. Called True Food Kitchen, the basis of the menu is rooted in a concept that came from a Harvard-educated doctor and writer who's twice been on the cover of Time magazine and has appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and "Larry King Live." Dr. Andrew Weil, 68, a Philadelphia native who broke into literary stardom in 1972 with "The Natural Mind," has teamed up with restaurant owner Sam Fox, 41. Fox, of Scottsdale, Ariz.

Sandcastle Mono- gramming & Gifts is a gem of a store on Balboa Island for finding personalized gifts to monogram. The gift selections include baby items, bridal gifts, towels, robes, totes and more! And all prices include personal monogramming. Some of the most popular items include bright and fun insulated lunch bags for adults (make great teacher gifts); sleepover pillowcases with autographed pens for birthday parties or camps; Blanket Buddies, which are plush animals and security blankets all in one; lingerie bags for brides; surfboard shaped beach towels, silk jewelry rolls, and laundry bags for college-bound teens.

Zov’s Cafe Bakery and Bar, located at the Newport Coast Shopping Center, will celebrate its first anniversary Sunday with a “Culinary Concert” fundraiser for the Heart and Vascular Institute at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian. Owner and executive chef Zov Karamardian spoke about her journey from a childhood in Israel to operating three popular Orange County restaurants. Let’s start with your name. Is Zov short for anything? It’s short for Zovak, which is Armenian for “whirlpool in the ocean.

There have been a few times when I have been guilty of assuming what a restaurant is going to be like. I get a preconceived notion because of the name, the location or the outside of the establishment, it has to be a certain way. Unfortunately that has kept me from experiencing some real gems. It is a habit I’m trying to break, but I violated it with Nick’s Pizza. I had driven by Nick’s several times, and each time thought I should stop in for pizza.

Winning recipes from the first-ever Simply Manischewitz Cook-Off at the Hilton's kosher kitchen in Costa Mesa. Pea and fennel soup Ingredients: 2 pounds frozen or fresh peas 21 fluid ounces of Manischewitz chicken broth 1 cup diced celery 1 cup diced white potato 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 diced leek, the white part only 1 diced fennel 1/3 cup light brown sugar salt and pepper Preparation: ...

Isaac Mintz had a hankering to fry something. He lined a basket held by Pamela Lovell with doughnuts he had just helped roll. Unfortunately for Isaac, that was as close as he would get to crisping the warm treats children like himself would later douse with icing, cinnamon and powdered sugar, during the first ever Chanukah Wonderland celebration in Newport Beach Sunday afternoon. The event, held in a tent next to the pool of the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach, proved as educational as it was entertaining for children, offering a number of activities teaching youngsters the "whys" behind each of the Hanukkah traditions.