The Salinas Valley Tribune’s Online Event Calendar lists a Wine and Cheese Tasting Event at the Cheese Shop in Carmel, California on July 24, 2026.
Event details and ticket purchase information from the Salinas Valley Event Calendar follow:
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games + 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games
The Chicago Booth Review analyzes the performance of AI against wine writers and finds AI to produce more profits in the wine industry.
The entire article follows:
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games + 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games
The Great Courses are offering several travel courses to help prepare for trips or do armchair traveling.
Three of the courses I Thought looked very good include:
-Rome in the Time of Caesars
-Exploring Southern Italy’s History, Art, and Archaeology
-Ancient Treasures of Turkey
Information about these courses follows:
https://mail.google.com/mail/mu/mp/465/#cv/priority/%5Esmartlabel_promo/19f845cec88a1a31
I have used Great Courses to study photography, macroeconomics, nutrition, and tai chi and qigong and have been happy with the course offerings.
It is fun to browse through their entire course catalog.
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games and 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games
Pretty Great Garlic Chicken at Golden Star Chinese Restaurant in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget
One of my favorite Chinese food-as-medicine dishes is garlic chicken. At Golden Star Restaurant in Salinas (California), garlic chicken is especially delicious with the addition of seasonal, organic vegetables.
Golden Star’s garlic chicken is similar to the one by Teresa Shields makes on Allrecipes.com, which calls for:
1-Heating peanut oil in a wok and stir-frying garlic, ginger, and green onions. These vegetables are called the aromatics for flavoring the peanut oil.
2-Chicken pieces are added and stir-fried till opaque. More garlic is added and stir-fried.
3-Sweet onions, bell peppers, and cabbage are next added in and stir-fried. The onions and bell peppers are called seasonings and flavor the chicken and other vegetables.
4-At Golden Star, the restaurant adds thinly sliced carrots and mushrooms to the mixture above and stir-fries them.
5-A small amount of chicken broth is added next, and the wok is covered.
6-While the wok contents are steaming, the cook makes a sauce of chicken broth, soy sauce, a little sugar, and cornstarch. The cornstarch thickens the sauce. The sauce is added and stirred till steaming. The garlic chicken is served immediately with rice.
The combination of garlic and vegetables in this dish is delicious, especially the mushrooms which bring out the umami flavor in the garlic chicken.
Golden Star is an unpretentious neighborhood Chinese restaurant that makes use of the choice of 200+ vegetables grown in the Salinas Valley outside Salinas, California.
I initially went to Golden Star Chinese Restaurant to support a local business and loved how good the food was. Their large menu can accommodate just about all diners.
The food at Golden Star Chinese Restaurant is reasonably priced and merits a look on the online menu for interested potential customers.
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games and 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games
Reliably Delicious Food at Woody’s at the Monterey Airport (15 minutes away from Salinas, California) by Ruth Paget
Thanks to visitors from around the US and overseas, the menu at Woody’s Bar and Grill at the Monterey Airport offers a variety of dishes including traditional American bar fare and items like potstickers, seared ahi salad, and sirloin bites for golfers, professors, comfortable retirees, and TV and movie stars.
On a recent (July 2026) visit to Woody’s after several hot days, my family went to dinner at Woody’s. We arrived early to secure an upstairs booth in an air-conditioned room. (Reservations recommended)
My daughter Florence Paget and my husband Laurent began their meal with cups of clam chowder. I ordered chicken potstickers, which were plump, meaty, juicy, and umami delicious. Nine came in what I thought was a generous portion for appetizers.
I ordered what has become an American bar classic: fish and chips. At Woody’s, they serve three large pieces of Pacific Rock Cod that has a beer batter, deep-fried crust. I loved the creamy, tartar sauce with piquant pickles, and the spicy cocktail sauce with freshly grated horseradish.
Laurent ordered a tomato – fennel cream pasta with a side of burrata cheese to go on grilled crostini. Florence ate a large sirloin steak with a baked potato with butter and cream cheese. People in town know that Woody’s has great steak, especially the prime rib special on Friday nights.
For dessert, Laurent ate house made raspberry sorbet, and Florence drank an espresso martini. I love bar – restaurants that serve reliably delicious food like Woody’s at the Monterey Airport in California.
Travelers and locals alike might be surprised by the variety of choices worthy of a steak and seafood restaurant on the shoreline.
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games + 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games
Good Deal Tex-Mex Fajitas Kit at Costco in Sand City, California by Ruth Paget
The Tex-Mex fajitas kits at Costco in Sand City, California that sell for $22.86 (as of 6-20-2026) are a great deal for 3 to 4 people.
I make these fajitas for 3 people for $7.62 per person. My family eats everything in the kit at one meal.
The Costco fajitas kit includes:
-pre-cooked, seasoned asada beef strips to be heated up in the microwave
-pre-cooked, seasoned al pastor chicken strips to be heated up in the microwave
-sliced red, yellow, and green bell peppers
-sliced yellow onions
-spicy red salsa
-cilantro lime crema sauce
-spicy cheese sauce to be warmed up
-12 flour tortillas to be warmed up
-4 lime quarters to squeeze in beer
I heated the meat and chicken up for 4 minutes each in the microwave. I grilled the peppers and onions till they had char marks on a Cuisinart grill for 15 minutes. The vegetables reduced to 1/3 of their original size. I also warmed the tortillas for a minute till hot in the microwave.
The meat and vegetables were sizzling hot when we all sat down to eat. (Handle the hot dishes and food with care.) We drank Peroni lager beers with lime juice squeezed in with our meal.
My family has been eating fajitas at home to watch World Cup Soccer matches. (We ate Costco club sandwiches for some matches, too.)
People who like Tex-Mex food might enjoy cooking fajitas at home to add to sports night dining options.
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games and 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games_
The Salinas Regional Soccer Complex will host a World Cup Soccer viewing party on July 18 & July 19, 2026 on the big screen.
The admission is free with some fundraising options. Information follows:
https://salinassoccer.org/world-cup-watch-party-salinas-regional-soccer-complex/
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games
Salinas Rodeo Brings Population Surge!
I read that 90,000 people are in town for the Salinas, California Rodeo this week with a concert by Grammy winner Miranda Lambert in the Monterey County Weekly’s online newsletter.
There is a weekly farmers’ market at the Rodeo from 4 pm to 9 pm with food, merchandise, and entertainment. There is a farmers’ market with food trucks on Saturdays in Old Town Salinas as well.
We have Western clothing and boots stores galore in town with custom cowboy hat makers as well.
There is also a Salinas Rodeo Museum and Carnival at the Rodeo grounds.
Have fun!
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games + 8 Clasical Western Civilization War Games
Easy Italian Starter Dishes by Ruth Paget
Food Network star Giada de Laurentis writes in her book Giada in the Kitchen (Available on Amazon Kindle) that she studied cooking in Rome and worked as a personal chef before appearing on television.
I think being a personal chef is a good gig job to earn extra money to pay bills and/or invest that can turn into full-time work, if desired in the food industry.
De Laurentis makes use of seasonal produce, which Salinas (California) has in abundance in its six farmers’ markets and supermarkets selling organic produce.
Three of the recipes in Giada in the Kitchen that I think are great for ease of preparation and maximum flavor follow:
*Tomato, Watermelon, and Basil Skewers with a sweet Balsamic vinaigrette sprinkled on them
*Roman Summer Salad made with Balsamic vinegar, green and black olives, parsley, crushed anchovy filets, capers, garlic chives, pepper, olive oil, and tomatoes
*Hearty tomato soup made with puréed onions, carrots, garlic, white cannellini beans, crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, and rosemary. To this puréed mixture, you fold in heavy cream beaten into peaks.
De Laurentis calls this hearty tomato soup an après-ski dish.
Giada in the Kitchen by Giada de Laurentis has many recipes that can be used by personal chefs, caterers, and home cooks. That is what I find to be the real beauty of her books.
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games + 8 Classical Western Civilization War Games
-developer of food and beverage knowledge games
-creator of online exhibits about San Miguel Arcangel Mission, French baguette making, and the Carmel Valley History Museum
-creator of French Travel and Culture Games
-writer of 1,800+ Central Coast Californian lifestyle blogs
-family genealogist whose work includes editing 250 of my grandmother and father’s recipes and 150 recipes I created at the onset of COVID-19 and posting them Online at Ruthpaget.blogspot.com
The University of Chicago Press book The Library of Ancient Wisdom: Mesopotamia and the Making of the Modern World by Selena Winsom discusses the fire that destroyed the last Assyrian library and yet conserved its contents made of clay tablets written in cuneiform script.
Details and purchase information about The Library of Ancient Wisdom follow:
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games
The Online Community Calendar of the Monterey County Weekly lists the PhotoWalk in Carmel, California on July 18, 2026.
This event organized by the Center for Photographic Art invites participants to visit Carmel’s galleries with featured photographers’ work on display.
Details about this event showcasing Carmel’s contribution to photographic art follow:
https://www.montereycountynow.com/events/#/details/photowalk-carmel-2026/19382014/2026-07-18T13
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games
Easy Italian Appetizers by Ruth Paget
Giada de Laurentis writes in her cookbook Giada at Home (Available on Amazon Kindle) that she studied Italian cooking in Rome and worked as a personal chef before becoming a Food Network personality.
Working as a personal chef seems to be a good gig job that can become a full-time career for people interested in working in the food and beverage industry. Getting a first job is probably tough as it is most industries, but de Laurentis provides a clue as to where to start: appetizers.
Just based on my personal experience, I know that I buy and like tortilla chips and pico de gallo salsa as an everyday appetizer. De Laurentis writes that many people buy chips and dip like me, but with a little planning homemade appetizers can elevate meals, especially when entertaining.
Three of the appetizers de Laurentis describes make use of grilled baguette bread rounds as a base for spreadable toppings in appetizers called crostini. (Very hard crostini are called bruschetta.)
Three crostini appetizers that make great use of produce, which you can find at all six of the farmers’ markets in Salinas, California include:
*Roasted Eggplant Crostini
-these are made with roasted eggplant puréed with white cannellini beans, parsley, lemon juice, garlic, and salt and pepper as a topping
*Artichoke Crostini
-these are made with puréed artichoke hearts, white cannellini beans, Pecorino Romano cheese, basil, lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt and pepper This purée is spread on top of the bruschetta with crumbled pieces of roasted prosciutto sprinkled over the bruschetta.
Rome is famous in Italy for its artichokes according to de Laurentis. Just outside Salinas, Castroville (California) has become the US capital of artichoke production. Castroville holds an annual artichoke festival. Marilyn Monroe was one of the artichoke festival’s queens for some local gossip.
*Pea Pesto Crostini
De Laurentis uses frozen peas in this recipe and purées them with Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and olive oil to spread on top of the crostini. Halved cherry tomatoes are placed on top of the pea pesto for added color and flavor.
These three crostini are good to make at home and can be part of a personal chef’s portfolio of items to offer potential clients.
Giada at Home by Giada de Laurentis contains many clearly written recipes that make use of seasonal produce, which both help home cooks and aspiring personal chefs keep costs down.
The link below has information about working as a personal chef. Check if you need a safe food handling course, insurance, and any permits with local governments.
https://ruthpaget.blogspot.com/2026/03/personal-chef-information-to-consider.html?m=1
Happy Cooking!
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games and Classical Western Civilization War Games (8)
Six California Kitchens Lessons by Ruth Paget
Sally Schmitt, the author of Six California Kitchens, co-founder of Napa Valley’s French Laundry Restaurant, and champion of farm-to-table cooking, has left a legacy in California for high standards in home cooking, farmers’ markets organization, and dining at fine restaurants as part of elite tourism.
As a home cook and someone who likes California’s cuisine offerings, I chose three of her soup recipes to remind me of trips my family has family has made to Napa Valley.
All three of these soups can be puréed and chilled to eat on hot, summer days like those in Napa Valley:
-cold cucumber soup made with garlic chives, yogurt, cucumbers, water, mint, buttermilk, salt and pepper, and sweet onions
-eggplant soup made yogurt, garlic chives, sauteed eggplant, chicken stock, salt and pepper, and half and half. This soup is garnished with chopped shiitake mushrooms
-zucchini soup made with sautéed zucchini, salt, water, chicken stock, half and half, olive oil, shallots, and parsley
These vegetable-centric soups will always make me think of Sally Schmitt, the farm-to-table champion, who has made just about everyone in California value home cooking, farmers’ markets, organic produce, and fine restaurants.
Cooks who value farm-to-table dining will find much to like in Six California Kitchens by Sally Schmitt, which captures the lifestyle and values of Napa Valley.
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games and Classical Western Civilization War Games (8)
-developer of food and beverage knowledge games
-creator of online exhibits about San Miguel Arcangel Mission, French baguette making, and the Carmel Valley History Museum
-creator of French Travel and Culture Games
-writer of 1800+ Central Coast Californian lifestyle blogs
-family genealogist - work includes editing 250 of my grandmother’s and father’s recipes (available on Ruthpaget.blogspot.com) and 150 recipes I wrote at the onset of COVID
University of Chicago anthropologist Sarah Newman writes about waste from the Mayas to Modern America in her book Unmasking Waste. New Histories of Old Things.
She discusses several large systemic changes that have to take place to deal with waste in the following interview transcript:.
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games
Zine Making Workshop on July 16, 2026 at the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois.
This free workshop by library school student Liz Mason looks very interesting. Liz Mason’s biography provides a good background on her work in this field.
Workshop details follow:
https://events.uchicago.edu/event/269522-zine-making-workshop
Note: This sounds like a fun activity for tourists in other workshops. They could do souvenir zines with photos, ticket stubs, receipts, menus, postcards and so on. This could be a gig business.
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games
The University of Chicago is selling Done in a Day::Telex from the Fall of Saigon by Elisa Tamarkin of the Chicago Daily News about the exit from Saigon on the last day of the Vietnam War for 30%off its regular price.
Information about the book and purchase details with 30% off promotional code follow:
https://mail.google.com/mail/mu/mp/465/#cv/priority/%5Esmartlabel_promo/19f5b778e33035cc
I am always interested in the Chicago viewpoint on national and international affairs.
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France + 6 Kindle books
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games
Lamb Markets in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget
I did a Google Search for lamb markets in Salinas, California, which gave me results which include the following:
-Salinas Meat
-La Vina Market
-La Esperanza Market
-Cardenas Market
-Magana’s Meat Market
-Ron’s Market
-Star Market
-El Rey Market
-Lucky
Happy Marketing!
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games and Classical Western Civilization War Games (8)
-developer of food and beverage knowledge games
-creator of online exhibits about San Miguel Arcangel Mission, French baguette making, and the Carmel Valley History Museum
-creator of French Travel and Culture Games
-writer of 1800+ Central Coast Californian lifestyle blogs
-family genealogist - researched Pennington ancestors back to 1393, found Mayflower ancestors in my mother’s (Beatrice Pennington) family tree, and edited 250 of my grandmother’s (Rose Pennington) and father’s (Clarence Pennington) recipes and posted them on my website - Ruthpaget.blogspot.com
Quarter 4 (Q4) Sales Drivers by Ruth Paget
October:
Halloween
November:
Day of the Dead
Thanksgiving
Winter Holiday Sales
December:
Christmas
Hanukkah
Kwanza
By Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games
The 2027 U.S. Open Golf Championship at Pebble Beach, California will be held from June 14 - June 20, 2027.
Ticket purchase information follows:
https://www.pebblebeach.com/events/us-open-championship/
Come for the golf and great food and wine!
Reposted by Ruth Paget
-author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
-developer of the Novgorod and Bento War Games