San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Smoked Cheese & Greens Pot Pie
Serves 4-6
This satisfyingly wholesome pot pie uses all the greens you have laying around in your fridge and marries them with a creamy, smoky cheese mixture. No need to make puff pastry, because store-bought is just fine. The hot sauce is highly recommended.
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 bunches scallion, sliced into ½-inch pieces
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1½ pounds greens such as a mix of chard and kale, stems removed and leaves torn or chopped into large 3-inch pieces
2 bunches parsley, leaves and tender stems chopped
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon fennel seed
Kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream
5 ounces smoked Gouda or mozzarella
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg
1½ teaspoons hot sauce plus more for serving (optional)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a sheet pan with foil or parchment paper.
Heat a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add olive oil, once warm add scallions and garlic. Cook, stirring constantly until the scallions and garlic are soft, about 3 minutes. Add the greens, parsley, black pepper, fennel seed and season with salt. Keep cooking and stirring until the greens have collapsed, shrunken dramatically and are tender, about 10-12 minutes.
Add the heavy cream, bring to a simmer and stir in the cheese until it’s melted and incorporated. Turn off the heat, taste and add more salt if needed. Transfer the pot pie filling into a large, 10-inch skillet.
On a lightly floured work surface, use a lightly floured rolling pin to roll the puff pastry. Cut out a 12-inch circle and drape the puff pastry over the skillet so that there is about 1-inch overhang. Fold and press that overhanging pastry neatly so you have a lip around the edge then cut four large slits into the center area of the pastry.
If you’re using the optional hot sauce, whisk into the egg and then brush the beaten egg-hot sauce mixture onto the puff pastry. Place the skillet on the lined sheet pan and bake until the puff pastry is cooked through, puffed and golden brown and the filling is bubbling, about 20-25 minutes. (If the pastry is getting too dark, cover with foil.) Take out of the oven and let sit for a few minutes before spooning onto serving plates. If you want, serve with more hot sauce.
Xinia’s Bakery, with local aunties. A pair of cooks churn out Indo-Chinese dishes, like Manchurianstyle fried cauliflower, Maharashtrian vada pav, biryani dishes and dosas out of a kitchen you could barely spin around in. Fool that I was, I ordered an extra-spicy palak paneer dosa ($8.50), filled with savory cooked spinach, onions and seared paneer, and realized that they are not screwing around here. The bites? Spicy.
Then there's 30-year-old Cafe Soleil, which, in addition to having a very cool name, is a true restaurant of the people. There's the generous Worker's Special breakfast of biscuits and gravy, eggs and breakfast meats ($11.95), as well as a lengthy vegan selection, including a surprisingly great vegan tuna salad sandwich ($12.95) made with minced chickpeas and seaweed. My favorite parts of the menu are the adorable shout-outs to regulars and friends. You learn a lot about people through their named plates. Todd's scramble ($10.95) is made with pure egg whites, vegetables and just a little bit of Monterey Jack cheese. Jennifer's home fries ($6.95) get salsa and sour cream. And I can tell Mike is a cool man-about-town from his burger ($12.95), topped with jalapeños, pepperjack and bacon. This is a place that's obviously beloved by its crowd, much like Bottles Beerzaar is.
After visiting four restaurants in one afternoon, I was, sadly, unable to continue my investigation further. But let Plaza Sobrante be a testament to the fact that some of the Bay Area's most interesting cuisine can still be found in its strip malls. Make some time to just wander around, and you might find something that'll stick with you. 3550 San Pablo Dam Rd., El Sobrante.
Chicken chili at Bottles Beerzaar/Punjabi Kitchen in Plaza Sobrante, a shopping center dense with great food options.