Cassoulet; bean soup

Eastside Road, Healdsburg, December 18, 2009—

A RECENT COMMENT to this blog stated that I am a bean counter. Well, not really; I haven't counted the items on my plate since I was a ten-year-old, when I did precisely that to be sure my little brother didn't have one or two peas more than I did. I don't count beans; but I am no Pythagorean; I do actively enjoy beans, and why not? Flavor, protein, fiber, texture, aroma. And they soak up whatever liquid they deal with (as do I, I suppose), adding to the rich plurality of bean nature.
So I was not reluctant to order cassoulet at lunch — I was joining three others in a restaurant meeting — even though Lindsey had said she'd be making bean soup for dinner. After all, it's winter, and December; time for hearty eating. And I had a special reason to order cassoulet, one of The Hundred, and a dish I have trouble resisting on any occasion: this would be my first Mark Malicki meal in his new digs, the French Garden Restaurant.
I've tried to avoid restaurant reviews on this blog, for the most part. This particular restaurant has been plagued, in my opinion, by a succession of chefs who didn't seem to work out. And Malicki, who is truly a genius, one of the best chefs within a hundred miles (and that says a lot), has run through a number of restaurants of his own. I remember fondly Truffles, which he ran in Sebastopol twenty-odd years ago; and Café Saint Rose, which closed maybe three years ago in Santa Rosa, went on to a roadhouse west of Sebastopol, then closed there a few months back.
Today's cassoulet might have worn quotes: it's not a search for authenticity. The beans looked like Coronas, not the small flageolets you expect; and the presentation wore green: I don't associate cassoulet with vegetables. (The bean is not a vegetable, in my opinion.)
But it was a delicious thing, with goose confit, and pork shoulder, and garlic, and just a hint of tomato. It nourished a fascinating conversation about opera and theater, art and community. It kept me happy for a couple of hours.

Lindsey's bean soup was quite different, using Giovanna's* recipe: Borlotti beans with chopped onion and garlic, covered with a few inches of water and cooked slowly; then seasoned with chopped fresh sage, salt, and pepper; served with toasted Como bread, grated Parmesan, and drizzled with good olive oil. Very nice indeed. Maybe I'll have some for breakfast tomorrow.

Cheap Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

French Garden Restaurant, 8050 Bodega Avenue
Sebastopol, California; tel. 707-824-2030

*Giovanna's busy making cookies