I finally found a local brand of rice, and surprisingly, I stumbled upon it while eating one of my favorite desserts, rice pudding, at a new cafe on Polk Street called the Loving Cup.
Rice pudding is one of those comfort foods that I live for. Even more so than ice cream, eating a delicious rice pudding can transport me back to a simpler, child-like lifestyle. I think my first taste of rice pudding was when I was 5 years old, served to me by Mrs. Faulkner, my after school babysitter back in Maryland. It's the combination of the creamy-gooey goodness combined with the texture and taste of the rice grains that makes my mouth water and my senses giggling.
On occasion, I'll make my own rice pudding, but I've recently found a great alternative at the Loving Cup that features the dish prominently on its menu and in a wide variety of daily changing flavors. The Loving Cup is a coffee / espresso / frozen yogurt / rice pudding shop that I initially visited upon seeing the the claims of "Local, Organic, All Natural" and I reviewed the store on 12/5/08 at yelp.com.
At the time of my first visit, nobody in the store could confirm that the rice pudding was truly local, as I was aware that locally grown rice is quite rare. So I left my business card and asked if the owner would follow up with me with an answer. Finally last week, I received my answer:
We use organic rice from Lundberg Family Farms in the Sacramento Valley (which is sort of the rice bowl of CA). I consider this to be as "local" as we can get for the rice.
Lundberg Family Farms is located in Richvale, CA, just south of Chico and approximately 155 miles from where I live. And so while it's technically outside of my self-imposed 150-mile foodshed radius, it's a pretty good alternative for me.
And so while according to the report "Think Globally, Eat Locally: San Francisco Foodshed Assessment" produced by the American Farmland Trust states:
the only major food group not produced in relative abundance in the region is grain (corn, wheat, rice, etc.)
it appears to me that not only have I found a viable source of local rice, but also a new dessert haven.
And so with an even greater appreciation for this cafe, I ventured back today to eat another cup. In fact, because I've been locked in my house with a bad cold for over a week, I viewed this journey to be a well deserved luxury, an indulgence in a dear comfort food, and a chance to regain some semblance of humanity.
Seven flavors were available today: Madagascar vanilla bean, lemon vanilla, white chocolate, pecan pralines, peanut butter and pistachio. I noticed that the prices have already gone up slightly (about a quarter more per serving) with four sizes available: kids $2.75, small $3.75, medium $4.75 and large $ 7.25. I also noticed they offer toppings or add-ins (more typical of frozen yogurt) for an additional $0.75 that include 'black bottom' (ganache), 'everything nice' (cinnamon & nutmeg), granola, steamed milk, a shot of espresso, or rum raisins.
I tasted a small spoon of the vanilla bean, but settled on a small cup of chai. It was the perfect antidote to a week of being cooped up in the house and I returned home happier for the outing, and wiser for having walked in the door and asking the staff what truly made their rice pudding local.
The funny thing is, when I returned home and checked my pantry, sure enough, I discovered I already owned a bag of Lundberg Family Farms long grain brown rice. I may have to make a point of cooking up some rice pudding very soon.
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