Kathleen Hill, July 24: Moosetta’s piroshki reborn; Sonoma Grille update; Egg prices rise like a soufflé; Locals make PBS best ice cream list; Nibs & Sips

If you have lived in Sonoma long enough to remember Moosetta’s, whose main product was lovely, light and slightly greasy piroshki, you have lived.

A big conversation on the Facebook page “You know you’re from Sonoma when…” developed out of Sonomans longing for the departed favorite. Moosetta’s was once located where another family restaurant, Rancho Viejo, is now, and then in Boyes Hot Springs where Rocket Sushi bubbles with delicacies.

A couple of people generously posted “Moosetta’s original piroshky recipe,” and I suggested we have a piroshki cook-off, after which a discussion ensued about whether the “pies” were baked or fried.

First off the blocks to announce they started serving piroshki this week were the Heyerly sisters at Rocket’s Back Door Café open Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Their sushi restaurant facing Highway 12 occupies the last Moosetta’s location, so it makes sense that they would pick up the nostalgia baton.

After the Heyerlys announced their piroshki, Sheana Davis jumped in on Facebook Tuesday suggesting her friend and helpmate at the Epicurean Connection, James Fanucchi, start making piroshki as well.

Watch out wine, we could become the piroshki capital of the west.

Here is Warde Miller’s “Moosetta’s Piroshki recipe” as posted on Facebook:

1/4 cup minced onion - 2 Tbs butter - 1 cup minced, cooked, veal, chicken, or beef - 2 hard cooked eggs, minced - 2 Tbs minced parsley - 2 Tbs fresh dill - salt & pepper - sour cream.

Brown onion in butter combine with meat, eggs, parsley, dill & enough sour cream to moisten slightly. Piroshki may be made with Brioche dough, packaged roll mix, or your home-made dough. Roll dough thin, cut in rounds, place filling in center, moisten edges, place a second round on top, seal edges, brush with beaten egg. Bake at 400 deg, till golden brown.”

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The Tricycle/Poseidon/Obsidian wines tasting room at Cornerstone will host author Carol Collier on Saturday, July 25, to sign her anthology of short stories called “Sonoma, Tales of a Twisted Vine.”

According to manager Carole Martinson, Collier lives in Sonoma and has degrees in education and psychology, and spends her time writing and editing her prize-winning stories. Event free. Book $9.95. 1 to 4 p.m. 706-2020.

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Have you noticed the price of eggs going up, rising like a good soufflé?

Apparently there are two reasons, which are tied together: Avian flu has rampaged through some chicken and egg operations in more than 20 states, and the United States is now importing eggs from the Netherlands. Buy local where you know your chicken’s grower. Let’s hope they come back down, as many soufflés do.

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Andy and Rachel Berliner, founders of Amy’s Kitchen, opened their first organic fast food restaurant, Amy’s Drive Thru, on Golf Course Drive in Rohnert Park this Monday. Hundreds of customers lined up, having heard about the long-rumored opening via social media.

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PBS’ food fans rated the Best Ice Cream in California last week, and Anette’s Chocolates by Brent in Napa, the Chocolate Cow on First Street East in Sonoma, Michoacana Natural Ice Cream in Boyes Hot Springs, Screamin’ Mimi’s in Sebastapol and Three Twins of San Rafael all made the list. Sweet Scoops had not yet opened.

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Great news about Sonoma Grille: After a few months’ break while it raised funds to send to rebuild their native Nepal following the devastating earthquakes there, our Sherpa community has gone back to building out their dream restaurant, Sonoma Grille, at the site of the late Meritage Martini Oyster Bar & Grille.

They had to rip out all the decayed wood and other materials left there, and a dumpster has finally arrived to take it away. Now to the rebuilding of the interior. While they hope to have it ready in about two months as a seafood and steak house, we all know that getting a restaurant interior built and approved by local and county health and building officials can take “forever.” If you are nice to inspectors, they, like anyone, can be nice back. And our Sherpas are all nice.

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Kay Adams reports that her Sonoma Valley High School class celebrated its 65th reunion, appropriately, at the locals’ longtime hangout, the Swiss Hotel. She said, “Buck Sangiacomo always attends our reunions,” but his family was being honored that night in Santa Rosa (by the Sonoma County Farm Bureau as family of the year).

Locals who attended included Bill and Donny Morrow, Barbara Nobles, Eugenia Malchow, Carson Mitchell and Mark Andrews, along with some who now live out of town like Vesta Sauer, Leslie Walsh, Bill Coops, Tom Gregory, Jim Kirk, Evelyn Sweeden, Stan Prosser and Jerry Giorgi. Congratulations to all.

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On Sunday we ventured down the road to Schellville Grill with some friends. We all left the place two hours later puzzled, as did the couple sitting at the table next to us, who were asking out loud where there food was.

Owner/chef Matthew Nagan wasn’t there and our server said Matt had “decided not to come in.”

Leaning toward a newish metallic industrial Texas country look, instead of Nagan’s longstanding crossed fork and knife on a napkin, silverware is now presented in buckets, except the one on our table had four knives, one fork and no spoons in it. Napkins have been replaced with rolls of paper towels.

Fifty minutes elapsed between when we ordered and our eggs and bacon arrived, and the place was only about half full, inside and out.

Some of our “over medium” eggs came upside down on the plate with the slightly burnt-crispy bottom of the solid white disk facing the ceiling and the yolks smashed facing down on the plate.

We asked for extra butter and got no butter at all on our tasty raisin toast. We asked for catsup and hot sauce. Someone eventually tossed five packets of Hunt’s catsup on the table instead of a bottle and the hot sauce never did come.

And we were asked four times while we were chewing if we were “still workin’ on that?”

But the food was good, once we picked up our eggs and flipped them right side up.

Where art thou, Matthew? Love to come back and primp your roses.

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Nibs & Sips

This week Clover Stornetta Farms of Petaluma voluntarily recalled gallon, half-gallon, and quart containers of 2-percent reduced-fat milk due to possible fragments of plastic in the milk…

Steve Ledson’s Zina Lounge continues its six-course dinner menu ($150), while adding a five-course option ($125) and a three-course lunch menu (also at $125), all with exotic ingredients by Executive Chef Yoshiharu Sogi…

Victor Hill Wines celebrated its “Re-Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting” on Bastille Day, July 14 at 109 E. Napa St., Sonoma.?

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Cheers!