Nobody can seem to remember who first opened Angel's Market on a San Francisco street corner nearly 100 years ago. But everyone in the neighborhood knows George and Alice, who have owned Angel's for the last decade.
Born in Bethlehem and raised in Jordan, George came to California for college. After working with Bank of America for many years as a financial advisor, George needed a change. The corner store in his neighborhood went up for sale, the place where everyone came to buy milk, diapers, the newspaper and to get take out from the deli counter. George left B of A for Angel's Market.
Now everyone comes to Angel's for milk, diapers and advice on the stock market — where to put their IRA, how to open a Keogh. They also come for the artistry of the displays on the shelves, the way the Pampers are stacked, the towering pyramids of citrus, the wall of soup cans that inspires and delights the neighborhood.
Our collaborator Kate Volkman lives just a block from Angel's Market in the Noe Valley neighborhood. We asked her to investigate. In addition to interviewing George for Hidden Kitchens, she wrote a profile of Angel's for the neighborhood newspaper.
Alice Sacca's Lebkuchen German Spice Cookies
Alice Sacca of Angel's Market would like to share this recipe for spice cookies. These are the cookies she usually makes around the holidays.
Ingredients:
1 egg
1 cup honey
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon double-acting baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2-1/2 cups flour
1 cup walnuts, chopped
Grated zest from 1 small orange
1-1/4 cups confectioner's sugar
5 teaspoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions: In a large bowl, mix first 10 ingredients and 1-1/2 cups of flour. Mix well with wooden spoon, stir in walnuts, orange zest and rest of flour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two cookie sheets. Drop heaping
tablespoon, 1/2 inch apart. Bake 20 minutes, or until toothpick in center
comes out clean. Remove and cool. In a small bowl, mix confectioner's sugar,
water and vanilla. Brush cookies when dry. Store in container.
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