Top Ten 2011 Bay Area Bites Posts

The ten most popular posts published on Bay Area Bites in 2011 revealed a year of Occupy protests, parking lot raps, food truck gatherings, vegan and carnivorous comfort food, online cooking school, the opening of the first local deaf-owned restaurant, and food blogger success tips as well as professional hardships.

1. Vegan Almond Milk Ice Cream: 3 Recipes by Denise Santoro Lincoln
"I made three types of ice cream and, no surprise to many vegans out there but sort of a surprise to me, they were all amazingly good, exceeding my expectations on every level. My ten-year old daughter Maddie even exclaimed about the chocolate version 'This is better than store-bought ice cream! It's my favorite!' I have to agree. My three flavors were almond, strawberry and chocolate. All are vegan. The first two were delightful but the chocolate was really special, and all are cholesterol and fat free."

2. Aida Mollenkamp’s Top 11 Spots for Bay Area Foodies by Elaine Wu
"The host and co-creator of the television show 'FoodCrafters' and 'Ask Aida,' attended Cornell University and then the esteemed Le Cordon Bleu in Paris where she studied culinary AND pastry arts. Aida ended up in San Francisco when she became one of the editors of the online food magazine, CHOW. Currently, she’s working on her first cookbook, tentatively titled, 'Keys to the Kitchen,' due out in 2012. Here are Aida's top Bay Area spots for food fiends like herself (that aren’t restaurants)."

3. Cooking Lessons in Real Time: Google+ Cooking School by Jenny Oh
"People are using the 'Hangouts' feature of Google+, Google's new sharing project, in creative ways. Learn about a real-time video cooking school that uses this collaborative tool."

4. Bay Area Fried Chicken Guide by Stephanie Hua
"A guide to the best fried chicken in the Bay Area, and a recipe for an Asian-style fried chicken that's clean and simple, with a dynamite crispy thin crust."

5. It’s Gettin’ Real in the Whole Foods Parking Lot by Sarah Henry
"Whole Foods Parking Lot, the mock rage-rap that went viral this week, is the work of homeboy DJDave, also known as David Wittman. Find out why he wrote about quinoa, kale, and cayenne pepper in this catchy homage to hip hop that is cracking people up across the country."

6. Deaf-Owned Mozzeria Shows Signs of Great Pizza Coming to the Mission by Anna Mindess
"Mozzeria, a new deaf-owned Italian restaurant, will bring wood fired pizza to the Mission. Owners Melody and Russell Stein have imported a 5000-pound Stefano Ferrara oven from Napoli and will serve pizza, pasta and small plates in their cozy new eatery -- where both deaf and hearing patrons can dine comfortably in a mix of vintage and modern styles."

7. So You Want to be a Successful Food Blogger? Here’s How. by Sarah Henry
"Food blogs are a dime a dozen in cyberspace. Find out how to stand out from the pack."

8. Occupy Oakland General Strike and the Whole Foods Incident by Wendy Goodfriend
"I was taking photos to cover the Occupy movement's General Strike in Oakland for KQED News on 11/2/11. I followed a few smaller contingents to document their marches including the education protest at the University of California and the Anti-Capitalist March. Here is my perspective on the situation that occurred at the Oakland Whole Foods during the Anti-Capitalist March. I have also included a couple of graphic videos by others to reveal some of the activities that took place."

9. Will Write For Food, Payment Preferable by Sarah Henry
"Food for thought: Many online outlets offer writers no or token compensation for their time and talents, including many websites that run food coverage. Find out why you should care."

10. Off the Grid and Bites on Broadway: Food Trucks To Debut in East Bay by Sarah Henry
"Two food truck events, Off the Grid and Bites on Broadway, debut soon in the East Bay. Find out how these street eat meet ups intend to reflect the flavor of the communities they serve -- and who's cooking."