The Seasonal Table

Asian Chicken Soup

2011-02-10T18:21:00.001-08:00

The spring semester has begun and is in full swing, with schedule filled to the brim with 4 online and/or face to face lecture classes and 2 cooking classes. The “bee” , my nickname , is very busy once again. Unfortunately interfacing with 180+ new humans and their germs has meant I’m fighting something, a cold or flu bug. Even with all the tangerines, grapefruit, pomelos, and oranges, I have a seriously sore throat that has been lingering this week. So…the culinary remedy: namely chicken soup. This time the carcass for the broth was from clay pot orange chicken and had allspice, ginger and soy in the succulent leftover juices. This was my inspiration and as such the ‘recipe’ is a bit vague, i.e. no measuring cups were used. So I’ll list the ingredients and approximate quantities but feel free to increase or decrease as you see fit. Sometimes/often soup is made like a salad, with what’s on hand and inspiration.

Serves one sore throated person

INDREDIENTS:

3 cups of homemade chicken broth with some chicken bits included

¼ tsp of finely minced fresh ginger

1 small clove of garlic, minced

1 cup of home grown baby broccoli stalks, cut into uniformish sized pieces

Small hand full of whole wheat soba noodles (Trader Joes)

Dash of sesame oil

Soy sauce to taste and fresh ground pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the broth to boiling with the ginger and garlic.

Add the broccoli stalks and soba noodles. Turn heat down to low and cover for about 4-5 minutes.

To finish, sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds (or even better wasabi fume furikake rice seasoning, a mixture of sesame seed, horseradish, bonito, nori , mustard and more J)

A prefect snowy weekend dessert, Baked Apples

2010-12-18T16:42:00.000-08:00

This pre-holiday weekend is a very snowy one here in the Eastern Sierras. We’ve had about a foot and half of snow in 2 days. This means using what you have in the frig and cupboard for meals. I had some apples, walnuts, raisins and immediately thought of the easy and delicious American classic baked apple. The results were yummy and eaten beside the fire, after we earned the calories shoveling the driveway and hanging the Christmas lights. Happy seasonal holiday eating!

Baked Apples

Use an ovenproof skillet. If you don’t have one them transfer the apples to a Pyrex baking dish when you put them in oven. Serve the apples with vanilla ice cream, if desired. Feel free to substitute pecans for the walnuts, and cranberry juice for the cider.

Ingredients

3	large (about 6 ounces each) Granny Smith apples
3	tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
2	Tbsp packed brown sugar
2	Tbsp dried cranberries or raisins , coarsely chopped
2	Tbsp coarsely chopped walnuts

1/2	teaspoon finely grated zest from 1 orange
1/4	teaspoon ground cinnamon
	Pinch table salt
2	Tbsp Triple Sec
1/3+	cup apple cider

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Peel the apples. Cut off the tops about ½ “ down from the top, save the tops. Core the apples. Dice the apple from the tops, removing the stem area. Combine 2 tablespoons of butter, brown sugar, cranberries/raisins, nuts, orange zest, cinnamon, diced apple, Triple Sec and salt in large bowl; set aside.

3. Shave thin slice off bottom (blossom end) of apples to allow them to sit flat. Be careful not to cut through bottom of apple.

4. Melt remaining tablespoon butter in 10 to 12-inch nonstick oven safe skillet over medium heat. Once foaming subsides, add apples, stem-side down, and cook until cut surface is golden brown, about 3 minutes.

5. Flip apples, reduce heat to low, and spoon filling inside, mounding excess filling over cavities. Add the cider to skillet. Transfer skillet to oven, and bake until skewer inserted into apples meets little resistance, 35 to 40 minutes, basting every 10 minutes with maple syrup mixture in skillet.

6. Serve apples individually, pouring any sauce over the top. Top with vanilla ice cream if desired.

Fuyu Persimmon Bundt Cake

2010-12-14T13:05:00.001-08:00

This is a wonderful old fashion winter cake, dark, filled with fruit and yummy. It was originally a Sunset magazine recipe, and deserves to be made if you have 6 Fuyu persimmons in your possession. As it turns out I have many more than just 6, so I peel, slice and dry several pounds, and also make several sizes of this wonderful cake to give to my farmer friends. The Seasonal Table class made this at our December session and it was a big hit. Fuyu persimmons are the ones that are shaped like a tomato and can be eaten raw. I have a regular full size bundt pan, 2 half size pans and 2 mini pans. This recipe will make 1 large, or 2 med, or 2 med and 2 mini cakes. It is a wonderful way to share the bounty of persimmons, as well as this years walnuts and raisins.

Fuyu Bundt Cake serves 10+

2 tsp. baking soda

3 cups of chopped firm Fuyu persimmons

8 Tbsp soft butter

1 2/3 cups sugar (can be reduced to 1 ¼ cup)

2 eggs

2 tsp. lemon juice, and 1 tsp of fresh grated lemon peel

2 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

¾ tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 cup chopped walnuts

3/4 cup raisins

Grease and flour a bundt cake pan.
Preheat oven to 350°.
Blend 2 tsp. baking soda into 3 cups of chopped firm Fuyu persimmons. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the soft butter with 1 2/3 cups sugar.
Add the eggs, 2 tsp. lemon juice, and 2 tsp. vanilla and beat until fluffy.
Stir in Fuyu mix.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, ground cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
Stir flour into Fuyu mixture just until blended.
Add chopped walnuts and raisins.

10.Pour into prepared bundt pan.

11.Bake at 350° for 55 - 60 minutes or until toothpick tests clean.

12. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Turn onto rack.

Swiss Chard and Pumpkin Lasagna

2010-12-14T12:57:00.001-08:00

This weekend I tackled a very large kabocha pumpkin that had grace my festive fall table décor. I decide to make this very elegant but easy vegetarian main dish. I served it at a friend’s 60^th birthday party last Sunday and it was a hit. It’s definitely not low calorie but so delicious that I think the cream is warranted. I was going to make a batch of batch of fresh lasagna noodles but found an 8 oz package of fresh Italian noodles at the Grocery Outlet. No boil lasagna noodles could be used but the texture will be more chewy, and not as creamy. If you don’t have a pumpkin to steam and puree, you could used butternut squash or acorn squash, or in a pinch a 28oz can of pumpkin. After removing the ribs from the Swiss Chard, chopped these ribs finely and sautéed them with onions and before adding the chopped chard leaves. Two pounds of chard is quite a lot but it does cook down, so sauté it all even if you need to do it in batches. If you do not have Swiss chard, you can substitute Russian Red Kale or spinach. Make sure you have large enough pan, I suggest 9 x 13 x 2.

Swiss Chard and Pumpkin Lasagna

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 onions, chopped

2 pounds Swiss chard, tough ribs/stems removed and chopped fine, leaves washed well and roughed chopped

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried sage

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

3 cups pureed pumpkin OR one 28-ounce can of pureed pumpkin)

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan

1/2 cup milk

Fresh lasagna noodles , about 8 oz, OR 9 no-boil lasagna noodles

Directions

In a large nonstick frying pan, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onions, chards stems and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Increase the heat to moderately high and add the chard leaves , 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon sage, and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg. Cook, stirring, until the chard is wilted and no liquid remains in the pan, 5 to 10 minutes.
Heat the oven to 350°.
In a medium bowl, mix together 2 cups of the pumpkin, 3/4 cup cream, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and the remaining 3/4 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon sage, and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg.
Pour the milk into an 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Top the milk with one third of the noodles, then spread half the pumpkin mixture over the noodles. Layer half the Swiss chard over the pumpkin and top with a second layer of noodles. Repeat with another layer of pumpkin, Swiss chard, and noodles.
Combine the remaining 1 cup of pumpkin and 3/4 cup of cream. Spread the mixture evenly over the top of the lasagna, sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of Parmesan.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden, about 10-15 minutes more.

Seasonal Thanksgiving Appetizers

2010-11-23T23:05:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving came early this year when Max came home from Japan in early October. And I celebrated early again, when last week I hosted wine and appetizers with another family. They usually join us a few hours before our Thanksgiving feast, but this year, they came a week early. Along with the delicious wines from Tablas Creek of California Central Coast, I served 2 seasonal appetizers. My favorite and beautiful persimmon goat cheese wedges with balsamic vinegar. For a very fancy look, boil down the balsamic vinegar until it is syrup and drizzle it over the top. This appetizer is quickly becoming a chef Debb fall season tradition. The lower appetizer is Prosciutto wrapped Fuji apples slices which was a new twist on the summer appetizer: Prosciutto e melone. These can also be made with still firm but ripe fall Bartlett pears. Both trays have been garnished with fresh pomegranate seeds.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Persimmon-Goat Cheese Wedges

SERVES: 12

ingredients

1/2 cup salted roasted almonds, very finely chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

4 ounces fresh goat cheese, softened

4 Fuyu persimmons, sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick

Aged balsamic vinegar, for serving

directions

1. Using a mandolin, slice the persimmons crosswise into ¼ “ slices

2. Optional: Using a 2-inch round biscuit cutter, stamp out 12 rounds from the persimmon slices.

3. In a small bowl, mix 3 tablespoons of the almonds and the parsley with the goat cheese.

4. Divide the mixture into 6 equal pieces and roll each into a ball.

5. Sandwich each goat cheese ball between 2 persimmon slices, pressing to flatten slightly.

6. Roll the edges in the remaining almonds and refrigerate until firm, at least 10 minutes or overnight.

7. Cut each round into quarters and transfer to a plate. Drizzle lightly with balsamic vinegar and serve.

Sweet Potato and Apple Praline

2010-10-02T16:05:00.000-07:00

This week, I did a demonstration/cooking lesson at the Tulare County Employee health and wellness fair. I was asked to show a healthy/nutritious, low cost and easy dish, which I call the perfect recipe! Well this might not be perfect but it fits the bill, and it’s even a dessert. The first sweet potatoes of the season have arrived at farmers market and the Granny Smith apples are in full swing too, so this was a match made in heaven. It was well received by those in the audience and I hope you enjoy it as well. A savory variation of this beautiful and tasty combination that would go well with turkey or pork, is to toss the apple and potato chunks with olive oil and fresh thyme then roast in a hot oven 450 ° for about 15-20 mins or until knife tender, Add salt and pepper to taste and toss in a handful ot toasted nuts if desired.

Sweet Potato and Apple Praline

Serves 6-8

2 to 2 ½ lbs of orange fleshed sweet potatoes/yams, peeled and cut into chunks or slices, all of similar size

2-3 Tbsp butter

2 to 2 ½ lbs tart apples, i.e. Granny Smiths, peeled and cut into 1 “ chunks

1/3 cup brown sugar

Zest of 1 lemon

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp cinnamon

1/3+ cup of toasted coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans

Toss the sweet potatoes and apples with the lemon juice, lemon zest and cinnamon in a large bowl. Sauté this mixture in a large skillet with the melted butter.

When the sweet potatoes are tender, to check pierced with a knife, sprinkle the apples and potatoes with the brown sugar. Cook until the brown sugar melts and begins to bubble.

Add the toasted walnuts and serve.

Can be topped with a dollop of plain yogurt or vanilla ice cream.

Roasting Whole Fruit

2010-08-27T14:55:00.001-07:00

I recently received a 'today present' cookbook, The Simple Art of Roasting by the very competent author Barbara Kafka. Although most of the recipes are focused on meat and main dishes, I found a dessert gem: whole roasted peaches. I added figs and pluots and I was able to make dessert while roasting a rolled leg of lamb. The late summer peaches pair very well with short seasoned black mission figs, and I love ginger so it was a match made in culinary heaven. If you have some premium vanilla ice cream lying about, top the warm fruit with a small scoop, and voila you have a warm yet cool simple dessert.

Roasted summer fruit in Ginger Syrup

Adapted from The Simple Art of Roasting, by Barbara Kafka

serve 8+

Total roasting time: 22-30 minutes

The syrup can be made ahead and will need to be reheated just before roasting. The peaches do not need to be fully ripe. Some parts of the fruit will turn mahogany brown but don't worry they will be delicious. This is even better with good quality vanilla ice cream served along side.

INGREDIENTS:

8 large peaches (about 6 oz each), skins on and stems removed

8 pluots or plums

8+ Mission figs, stemmed and halved lengthwise

1/2 cup water

½ cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup (4 Tbsp) butter

1/4 cup Triple Sec

1/2 " piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced very fine

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 500° and place rack in center of over.
With a paring knife, prick each peach in 3 places on the top and base of each peach and Plum. This keeps the fruit from bursting while they roast. In a pie pan or roasting pan, arrange the fruit, stem side down making sure the fruit doesn't touch each other.
In a small sauce pan , combine the water, triple sec, sugar, butter and ginger. Bring to a boil then reduce to medium heat, Stir occasionally, and cook only until the sugar has dissolved completely. Remove from heat. Add lemon juice. Stir.
Drizzle some of the warm syrup over each piece of fruit, letting it run down the sides. Use all the glaze. Place the pan on a baking sheet and place in oven.
Roast for 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and baste the fruit with the juices that have collected in the bottom of the pan. Return to oven, turning the pan so the peaches brown evenly.
Roast for 12-15 minutes more. Test for doneness by pricking the peaches which should be soft but not mushy. IF still too hard, roast for another 5 minutes.

Tri-colored Chopped Salad

2010-06-27T09:27:00.001-07:00

Its summer salad time and I'll be living on the unlimited variations of the chopped salad. I build a chopped salad on individual plates; instead of a big bowl because it is more visually appealing and all goodies don't fall to the bottom when you toss it.

This was one of the most beautiful and delicious ones so far this summer 2010. The color scheme was triadic- namely purple blueberries, orange kumquats and golden beets, and fresh greens. I chopped up the last chicken thigh that had been marinated in a blend of curry powder chili garlic paste and ¼ slice of preserved lemon, and then grilled. I dressed the salad with my standard, olive oil and homemade red wine vinegar. And voila, a beautiful, nutritious and tasty lunch. I do think about the color wheel and color schemes when putting a chopped salad together, as well a balance of ingredients. So keep color in mind when you select the ingredients and here's an easy guide to how to make a prefect salad, adapted from Sunset magazine:

Reduce the quantity of the ingredients as you work down this list to build your salad.

Leaves/Greens: This can include herbs like parsley, spicy greens like arugula, endive, and the many varieties of lettuce, like crunchy romaine, delicate butter, colorful red oak leaf, etc.
Vegetable: Raw veggies like mushrooms, radishes, carrots, green onions, fennel, tomatoes, cucumbers, fresh peas. Roasted vegetables, like cauliflower, green beans, beets, potatoes peppers, artichokes. Cooked white or garbanzo beans, etc.
Fruits: They can add sweetness and acidity. Strawberries, kumquats, figs, blueberries, tangerines, oranges, fuyu persimmons, pears, apples, plum, nectarines. Dried fruit like raisins, dried blueberries, cranberries or cherries, chopped dried apricots, and lemon or orange zest.
Rich tastes: Use sparingly, Meats, i.e. Bacon, prosciutto, smoke salmon, Cheeses, parmesan, pecorino shave with a vegetable peeler, crumbled goat, blue or feta. Nuts, toasted for best flavor, and avocado, which is more like butter than a vegetable so use it sparingly.
Sour & Salty flavors: Just as accents, sprinkled over the top, olives, capers, anchovies and preserved lemon.

First Corn of Summer 2010

2010-06-27T09:00:00.001-07:00

Yes, it's finally here! I bought a dozen ears of yellow corn from First Fruits Sweet Corn, at the Visalia Thursday Farmers Market. No worms and only $5 for the dozen. So with a great ingredient I tested a Food and Wine recipe by my favorite staff chef, Grace Parisi, Chipotle Corn Salad. Easy, delicious and unique. It would pair well with grilled steak, BBQ chicken or fish.

Chipotle Corn Salad
serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS

5 ears of corn, shucked and silk removed

1 sweet onion, such as Vidalia, thickly sliced

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/3 cup sour cream

2 Tbsp fresh lime juice

1-2 Chipotle in adobo sauce (canned), seeded and chopped finely

1 Tbsp minced cilantro

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Light the grill. Brush the corn and onion slices with the olive oil
Grill over moderately high heat until charred in spots but still crisp, about 7 mins. The yellow corn will turn from pale yellow to a bright yellow.
Let the corn cool slightly then slice the kernels off the cob. Coarsely chop the grille onions.
In a medium bowl, mix the sour cream with the lime juice and chipotle and cilantro.
Stir in the onions, corn kernels. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temp before serving.

Preserved Lemons

2010-06-14T19:42:00.001-07:00

These can be used in roasted chicken, in stuff grape leaves and other savory dishes when lemon goodness is desired.

Ingredients

8-10 lemons, scrubbed very clean
1/2 cup kosher salt, more if needed
Extra fresh squeezed lemon juice

Sterilized quart canning jar

Directions

1. Place 2 Tbsp of salt in the bottom of a sterilized jar.

2, Cut off any protruding stems from the lemons, and cut 1/4 inch off the tip of each lemon. Cut the lemons in quarters if small to medium and in eights if larger, Remove as many seeds as you can.

3. Pack the lemon slices in the bottom of the wide mouth jar, then generously sprinkle salt all over the lemons. Squishing the lemons down so that juice is extracted and the lemon juice rises to the top of the jar. Fill up the jar with lemon slices. Then fill to the top with lemon juice. Top with a couple tablespoons of salt.

4. Seal the jar and let sit at room temperature for a couple days. Turn the jar upside down occasionally. Put in refrigerator and let sit, again turning upside down occasionally, for at least 3 weeks, until lemon rinds soften.

5. To use, remove a lemon from the jar and if desired, rinse thoroughly in water to remove salt. Discard seeds before using. Chop finely and add to your recipe.

6. Store in refrigerator for up to 6 months.

Private summer cooking classes, part 1

2010-06-14T18:48:00.001-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I taught my first private cooking class. The hostess Monica had a fabulous kitchen and the 4 hours flew by, culminating in a delicious lunch. The menu included stuffed fresh grape leaves, made from Syrah grape leaves growing in my back yard. My special ingredient was a couple of salt preserved lemons added to the golden raisins, fresh mint and pine nuts. I demonstrated roasting a whole chicken in a terra cotta clay pot, and used the preserved lemons, chopped home grown fresh parsley and garlic, slipped under the skin. The 'students' made a fresh slaw with the last of the purple cabbage, fresh pineapple, orange bell pepper and celery. The simplest of dressing was balsamic syrup, and fresh ground pepper and salt. They grated several varieties of squash, we squeezed the water out and then stir fried in local olive oil, garlic and chopped fresh basil and thyme. We used the Donvier hand crank ice cream maker to freeze a delicious lemon buttermilk ice cream, served over Alice Waters' amazing almond cake and fresh berry coulis. I hope you enjoy these recipes and maybe we can cook and learn together in a private cooking class in your home.

Roasted Chicken in Clay w/ salt preserved lemons

3-4 slices of salt preserved lemons
2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
1+ teaspoons cracked black pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 (4 to 5-pound) roasting chicken

1. Chop the lemons slices. Combine lemon with all other ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

2. Immerse the top and bottom of a 2-quart clay cooking pot in water for 15-20 minutes. Empty pot, and drain well.

3. Remove and discard the giblets and neck from chicken. Rinse chicken with cold water; pat dry. Trim excess fat. Starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers, gently pushing between skin and meat.

4. Rub lemon garlic herb mixture under and over the loosened skin. Tie ends of legs together with cord.

5. Place chicken, breast side up, in bottom of clay pot, and cover with top of clay pot.

6. Place clay pot in cold oven, and set to 450°.

7. Bake chicken for 20 minutes breast side up. Turn and cook breast side down for 20 minutes. Turn once more to breast side up and remove top. Leave the cover off and cook uncovered, for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. The chicken is done when a meat thermometer registers 180°.

9. Carefully remove clay pot from oven. Remove chicken from clay pot. Cover chicken loosely with foil; let stand for 10 minutes. Discard skin.

Roasted apricots, yummy!

2010-06-03T19:13:00.001-07:00

Apricots are here and you are likely to only find fresh apricots at your farmers market because they are fragile and do not ship well. Apricots are also one fruit that is better cooked than fresh. I figured out how to 'cook' apricots and freeze them when I was given about 15 lbs at one time! I wanted to cook them easily and quickly, so roasting them made perfect sense. Roasting will reduce the water content, intensify the flavor and reduce the volume thereby taking up less freezer space. A half sheet pan, pictured here will shrink down to fit into a 1 qt freezer bag.

I have used roasted apricots as a filling in between layers of an almond cake, a lemon cake, over vanilla ice cream, and best of all in apricot sorbet. Fresh apricots made into a sorbet tasted like baby food, but roasted, they were sophisticated and packed with tons of apricot flavor. So rinse, cut the apricots, remove the pits, place halves cut side up, drizzle with honey and sprinkle with cinnamon. Then roast in a hot oven, about 450° (or gas BBQ with the middle burner off). Check after 20 mins and then add time as needed. Cool and place in freezer bags, flattened to stack easily in the freezer.

Bon appétit!

Spring Art Boutique Delights

2010-04-10T12:37:00.001-07:00

For the past few years I have hosted a spring art boutique with my jewelry artist friend Tina St John. This year we invited a 3rd artist, Sam McKinney, who grows and makes lovely gourd pieces. During the school year when I'm teaching full time, I bounce between cooking in my small but efficient kitchen and working in my spacious new art studio. So alongside the dining room table laden with some of the recipes that follow, I'll have a few handmade journals, some prints for framing and hand printed cards. Tina hand makes beautiful jewelry and both she and Sam are part of the Art Co-op in Three Rivers, near the entrance to the Sequoia National Park.

Of course, I featured local spring fruits and vegetables. This included the previously posted Chilled Spring Pea soup with garlic cream and bacon crumbles. Everything tastes better with a little bacon, non? Our local Southeast Asian strawberry farmers have just opened up their roadside stands featuring the old fashion Chandler variety of sweet and red fleshed strawberries. These strawberries have a short shelf life and can't be shipped, so enjoy them now. When it gets hot, they 'll be gone until next spring. I served a Mediterranean Orange 'Salad" with Pomegranate Molasses topped with local pistachios, a platter of baby carrots and radishes to be savored with a yogurt green garlic dip, a cardamom Indian style carrot cake, a lemon butter cake layered with roasted apricots and an Asian Slaw.

Gajar Ki Cake- Carrot cake with pistachios

From Madhur Jaffrey's Spice Kitchen

Notes: Take the cardamom seeds out of the pods and grind the finely in a mortar. Cardamom is used like vanilla in Indian cooking.

Serves 6-8

INGREDIENTS:

4 Tbsp butter softened, plus about 2 tsp to coat the pan

1 cup unbleached all Purpose flour, plus 1 Tbsp for dusting the cake pan

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp table salt

2 large eggs

½ tsp ground cardamom seeds, see note above

1 cup sugar

1 ½ cup peeled and grated carrots

2 Tbsp chopped pistachios

2 Tbsp chopped walnuts

2 Tbsp golden raisins

DIRECTONS:

Rub a 9 " round cake pan that is 1 ½" in height with about 2 tsp butter, then dust very lightly with flour.
Preheat the oven to 350°
Sift the flour, with the baking soda and salt, set aside.
Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the cardamom, sugar and 4 Tbsp of softened butter. Keep beating until all ingredients are thoroughly mixed.
Add the sifted flour mixture to the large bowl and fold gently with a spatula. Add the carrots, nuts and raisins. Fold in gently.
Pour into the cake pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is golden red.

Oranges with Pomegranate Molasses and Honey

From Bon Appétit | December 2008

This light, bright dessert of oranges, dates, and cinnamon. is a great way to end a heavy meal,

Yield: Makes 8 to 10 servings

INGREDIENTS

8 large navel oranges (preferably Cara Cara), all peel and white pith cut away, oranges sliced into thin rounds
1/4 cup floral honey (such as tupelo or orange blossom)
3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses*
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
8 large Medjool dates, pitted, chopped

DIRECTIONS

Arrange orange slices, overlapping slightly, on large rimmed platter.
Whisk honey, pomegranate molasses, ground cinnamon, and sea salt in small bowl to blend; drizzle evenly over oranges.
Sprinkle oranges evenly with chopped dates.
Variation: add chopped mint and pistachios as a garnish

DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

* A thick pomegranate syrup; available at in Visalia at Mediterranean Market and Deli.

Asian Slaw

from the 'Chef' at Joseph Phelps Vineyards

serves 6-8 side servings

For Dressing:

5 oz.	Canola oil
1 oz.	Dark sesame oil
1 Tbsp	Lemon juice
1 Tbsp	Orange juice
2 oz.	Rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp	Minced garlic
1 Tbsp	Minced ginger
1 Tbsp	Soy sauce

For Slaw:

1/2 head	Green cabbage sliced very thin
1/2 head	Red cabbage sliced very thinly
2 lrg	Carrots shredded (grated)
3 Tbs.	Black sesame seeds

DIRECTIONS:

Blend all ingredients for dressing (also great marinade)

Mix vegetables

Dress vegetables the season with salt and pepper to taste. Best dressed the day you are serving it.

Spring Chilled Pea Soup

2010-04-01T13:32:00.001-07:00

Although our local farmers don't all grow sugar snap peas or Chinese edible peas in their pods, maybe like me, you have some growing in your yard. I swear they grow over night, because there are so many new pods each day! I adapted this recipe from Food & Wine magazine, and substituted Chinese peas for the sugar snap peas. My friends the Sommers share this with me last night and they agreed that the little bit of rosemary and garlic infused cream and bacon bits on top made it extra special. Prefect for a warm spring afternoon or evening. Happy Easter and spring! It will serve 6-8 as a first course.

Ingredients

8 slices of bacon

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 celery ribs, thinly sliced

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 leek, white and tender green parts only, thinly sliced

5 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth

Two 4-inch fresh rosemary sprigs

Salt and freshly ground white pepper

1/2 pound sugar snap peas, thinly sliced

16-20 ounce boxes frozen baby peas

1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves

½ cup heavy cream

1 garlic clove, minced

Directions

In a medium soup pot, cook the bacon over moderate heat until browned and crisp, about 6 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a plate. Pour off the fat in the pot.
In the same pot, heat the olive oil.
Add the celery, onion and leek and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 7 minutes.
Add the chicken stock, 4 slices of the cooked bacon, 1 rosemary sprig and a pinch each of salt and white pepper.
Simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 15 minutes. Discard the bacon and rosemary.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a blender or food processor.
Blanch the fresh peas for about 2-3 min. Remove and cool under running water. Add the frozen peas and parsley leaves to the pot of boil water. Heat for about 1 min, drain.
Add all the peas and parsley to the processor and puree. Adding a few Tablespoons of broth to loosen the soup.
Transfer the soup and reaming broth to a large bowl set in another bowl of ice water to cool.
In a small sauce pan bring the cream, garlic and rosemary sprig to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for about 5 mins.
Serve the chilled soup drizzled with the garlic cream and topped with the remaining 4 slices of bacon that have been chopped or crumbled.

Braised baby carrots and leeks

2010-03-28T11:51:00.001-07:00

I was inspired by the baby leeks and amazing baby carrots in our market this spring. No need to peel the tiny carrots, I use new clean scrubby pad to remove the hairy exterior. This past week farmer Becky Terry brought in colorful varieties of French baby carrots, (mais oui, elles sonts rouge et jaune), in shades of orange, yellow and even red! They were all sweet and petite! If possible use small and tender leeks, all about the same size in this dish because they will cook more evenly along with the baby carrots. If you aren't able to find small leeks, cut the large ones into quarters. This was delicious served with clay pot baked lemon roasted chicken, which I will post soon.

INGREDIENTS:
12 small leeks

6-8 small (or more baby carrots), with green tops, about ½ lb

3 cups chicken broth

3 Tbsp unsalted butter

Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Trim the leeks of all of the dark green stem; trim the root end, and remove and discard the outer leaves with a sharp knife, Split the light green part lengthwise and rinse well under running cold water.
Trim the carrots and peel if using larger ones; or scrub the smallest baby carrots. Trim the tops leaving about 1"
In a large skillet add the broth and leeks and carrots. Bring to a simmer and cook partial covered for 10-20 minutes or until tender. Remove the vegetable to a side dish, cove and keep warm.
With the remaining braising liquid in the pan, bring heat up high and reduce to about 1 cup. Whisk in the butter and taste adding salt and pepper as need.
Cut the larger carrots and the leeks in half lengthwise. Serve, spooning some of the butter braising sauce on each serving.

Lemon Upside-Down Cake

2010-03-28T11:39:00.001-07:00

My spring seasonal table class made the upside down lemon cake pictured here. We used a cast iron pan and the last of this season's Meyer Lemons which are sweeter than other varieties of lemons. You can use any oven proof 10-12" pan with a metal handle. This cake is going to be a favorite because its not too sweet, doesn't require frosting and its lemon, one of my favorite flavors! Make one 10" cake, to serves 8+

Ingredients:

2 lemons

¾ cups (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter

¼ cup packed brown sugar

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1 cup granulated sugar

3 Tbsp finely grated lemon peel

2 large eggs, separated

¼ tsp pure vanilla extract

½ cup milk

¼ tsp cream of tartar

Directions:

Place the oven rack in the middle and preheat oven to 350°F

Trim the ends off the lemons and cut the fruit into 1/8" to ¼" slices with a very sharp knife or mandoline. Discard the seeds.

Melt ¼ cup of the butter with the brown sugar in an ovenproof non-stick 10in skillet (or well seasoned cast iron pan) over medium heat.

Add the lemon slices, increase the heat to high and boil stirring for 1 minute. Remove the skillet from the heat and arrange the slice in an orderly pattern in the bottom of the skillet.

Sift the flour baking powder and salt together in a medium bowl.

Beat the remaining ½ cup butter with an electric mixer on medium speed in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the granulated sugar and zest, beat scrapping down the sides of the bowl until the batter is light and fluffy.

Add the egg yolks and vanilla; beat just until blended. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture alternately with the milk. Scrape down the sides of the bowl after each addition and beat just until blended.

Beat the egg whites with clean beaters on medium speed in a large clean bowl until just foamy. Increase the speed to medium high, add the cream of tartar and beat just until the egg whites form stiff peaks.

Add one quarter 1/4^th, of the whites to the batter and fold in using a rubber spatula. Continue to gently fold in the whites, 1/4^th at a time. Be careful not to over mix.

Pour the batter over the lemon slices and gently smooth the top with a rubber spatula.

Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let it cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Loosen the edges of the cake with a rubber spatula all around, invert onto a heat proof serving platter and leave the pan over the cake for 5 minutes. Remove the pan, cut into wedges and serve the cake warm.

Easter cookies with a twist

2010-03-28T11:15:00.001-07:00

Use a basic sugar cookie recipe, see Alton Brown's recipe below. (Or in a pinch use a refrigerator package of sugar cookie dough, like the one by Tollhouse.)
Using your un-Christmas cookie cutters like a bunny, chicken, etc cut out the shaped dough. You can make an egg shape out of cardboard and using a paring knife cut out egg shapes to decorate. Use powdered sugar instead of flour as you roll out the dough to keep them from sticking and to keep the flavor crisp.

Healthy trick: Instead of using frosting after the cookies are baked and cooked, try an egg white wash on the unbaked cookies and decorating with colored sugar and sprinkles, then baking. This makes the cookies less of a sugar bomb but you will still have fun decorating and they look pretty too.
The busy bee cookies were decorated with this frosting less technique and they were yummy and cute too!

Happy Easter gardening, cooking and baking!

Sugar Cookies
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown Makes about 3 dozen-2 1/2 inch
Ingredients
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tablespoon milk
• ¼ tsp vanilla
• Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough
Directions
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine.
Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl.
Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar.
Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill.
Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time.
Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or decorated as described above.
Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.

Candied Orange, Lemon and Grapefruit Peel

2010-02-09T22:41:00.001-08:00

I think it must be my English heritage, because I love candied citrus peel. When I eat this sweet old fashioned winter treat, I feel like the spring sunshine is already here. Or maybe it's the Scot in me that just likes the concept of making a sweet treat out of something most people throw out. It citrus time here in central California, so my naval orange tree, and my parent's lemon and grapefruit trees are bearing lovely fruit. I save the peels during the week and then do a batch of mixed citrus peel on the weekend.

There are 3 keys to making a good batch of candied peel. First it's important to remove as much of the bitter white pith from the peel as possible. Secondly, blanch the peel using fresh cool water each time, three times before cooking the peel in simple syrup. And lastly, add about ¼ cup of triple sec to the simple syrup and let the peel soak overnight, before draining and drying. I prefer the peel to be semi dry not brittle, so I slowly dry in the oven rather than in a dehydrator. If you want to give the peel a glamorous touch, you can dip one end in dark chocolate.

Candied Citrus Peel

3-5 orange peels, from peeling them into 8 sections.

2 lemons

3 cups of water

2 cups sugar

¼ cup Triple Sec liqueur

½ + cup sugar for coating

Cut the pith, the white part between the fruit and the peel, away from each peel section, using a paring knife or grapefruit knife. Cut these thin peels into strips.
Place the peel strips in a large sauce pan with a lemon half. Add water to cover blanch; bring to a boil and boil for 15 seconds, then drain and rinse under cold water, drain again and discard the lemon.
Repeat the blanching process 2 more times, covering the peels with fresh water and adding another lemon half.
Combine the 3 cups of water and the sugar in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add the peels and remaining half lemon. Bring to a gentle boil and cook for 15 mins.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the Triple Sec liqueur. Leave the peel in the liquid loosely covered for at least 12 hours.
Remove the peel from the liquid and set on a rack to drain. Place in a warm oven, with the heat off. When semi –dry toss with granulated sugar to coat. Return to warm oven to continue drying. Store in an aire tight container.
Optional: dip one end in dark chocolate

Seasonal sweet treats: February means chocolate!

2010-02-07T23:23:00.001-08:00

In the first Seasonal Table class of the year and spring semester, we made several citrus curds. Curds are old fashion pudding type spreads, made with juice and zest of lemon, tangerine or orange, and several egg yolks as well butter. (I will post that recipe soon) This meant a big jar with a dozen leftover egg whites. Although the heavy rain was great for the crops, it wasn't ideal weather for making meringue. I was asked to bring a chocolate treat to an art reception so I forged ahead despite the humidity, and made Chocolate Pistachio Meringue Kisses. They came out perfectly and I only increased the bake time by about ½ hour to compensate for the rain. They are also non-fat which makes them a sweet guilt free treat. The local pistachios are from Ornadi Farms and added a touch of color and crunch. Make a batch to share with your Valentine !

Chocolate Meringue Cookies

6 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 1 /2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsweetened chocolate cocoa
1 ¼ cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp finely chopped pistachios

Preheat oven to 225 degrees F.

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper

In a small bowl, combine the 1/4 cup cocoa and sugar together; set aside.

In a large bowl using your electric mixer, beat egg whites until foamy/frothy

While beating to the frothy stage, add salt, cream of tartar, and vanilla extract. After reaching the frothy stage, add the cocoa/sugar mixture (1 tablespoons at a time) while continuing beating until the egg whites are stiff and glossy.

Drop batter by teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets (1-inch apart).

Sprinkle the chopped nuts over the non-baked cookies.

Bake 90 minutes; turn off the oven, open the door slightly (secure with a wooden spoon), and allow cookies to cool in the oven.

Remove from oven and store in a tightly covered (airtight) container.

Yields 50 cookies.

Turnip and Potato Soup

2010-01-18T18:53:00.001-08:00

This warm creamy soup is prefect for the cold wet weather. It’s nice to have the rain for the farmers and their future spring crops. In the meantime, I wanted to make good use of the lovely turnips and leeks I found on the KMK Farms table in Visalia last Saturday. This soup tastes like the classic French leek soup but with a bit more structure and earthiness with the addition of turnips. If you don’t have a parsnip, you can replace it with a couple more stakes of chopped celery. I served it with some of the no-knead bread, served open face with melted cheddar chive cheese and a kumquat topped green salad. I served a French wine Les Arpents Chenin Blanc, 2007, from the Loire Valley. It’s light, crisp and very food friendly, with low 11.5% alcohol, and a great bargain at $3.00 from my local Grocery Outlet.

Turnip & Potato Winter Soup

serves 6

INGREDIENTS

2-3 large leeks, cleaned and trimmed to 2 inches off greens above the white, to make about ½ cup

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick)

4 large celery stalks, trimmed and finely diced

1 large parsnip, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 med potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

3 med turnips, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes

7 cups chicken broth

salt & pepper to taste

¾ cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS

Finely slice the leeks and rinse under water, drain and set aside.
In a heavy Dutch oven or soup pot, melt the butter over medium low heat. Add the leeks and celery and cook until soft but NOT brown, about 5 minutes.
Add the potato, parsnip, turnips and broth and season with salt and pepper. Simmer partially covered for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are very soft.
With a slotted spoon remove 1 ½ cups of the vegetables to a side dish and reserve. Transfer the remaining vegetables and broth to a food processor and process until smooth.
Return the soup to the casserole together with the reserved vegetables, add the heavy cream, and just hear through.
DO NOT Bring to a boil, or the cream will separate. Taste and correct the seasoning and serve hot with crusty French bread and a salad J

Liquid sunshine-Limoncello

2010-01-09T09:00:00.000-08:00

It’s citrus season in the San Joaquin Valley and at Visalia Farmer’s market. That means its time to make my favorite liquor, Limoncello. This is a lovely sweet lemon-flavored Italian liquor and reminds me of delicious multiple course midday meals in the summer of 2002 in Umbria and Tuscany. And it’s very easy to make.

If available you can use citron instead of lemons. Visalia has a great source of unique of citrus with farmer Greg Kirkpatrick. He has Bhudda's hand, citron, kiffer lime leaves and other exotic citrus. He also sells his citron to Hanger One for their citron vodka. Everclear, 151 proof, 75.5% alcohol, is usually found in 'real liquor ' stores, not grocery or big box stores. Don’t worry about the high proof, because you will be cutting the alcohol with a simple syrup. In a pinch you can use vodka instead of Everclear. If you store it in the freezer and you’ll have cool refreshing homemade limoncello for toasting at the end of your summer meals. I try to make it before the winter holidays, to give as gifts in small decorative bottles.

Saluti per tutti!

Limoncello, or Liquore di Limoni

INGREDIENTS

10 washed lemons, preferably hand picked, home grown organic

1 liter of Everclear Grain alcohol

2 ½ cups sugar

6 cups of water

DIRECTIONS

Zest the lemons, removing only the peel and avoiding the white pith which is bitter.
Put the zest and the alcohol in a large glass jar with a tight fitting lid. It should cover the lemon zest.
Set aside for 4 days. Once a day, gently shake the jar to agitate the mixture.
When the zest is pale and the liquid is a deep yellow color, strain it through a sieve and store in another container. Discard the zest.
Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat, but do not boil. Stir until the sugar dissolves and the syrup is clear, about 5 minutes. Cool.
When cool, pour the syrup in the lemon infused alcohol. It will turn cloudy and opaque. Sample it and add more sugar of water as desired.
Using a funnel pour into clean dry 750 ml bottles. Set aside to mellow for a week or more.
This is excellent over fresh fruit, over ice cream or as sparking aperitif added to Prosecco.

No Knead Bread is heavenly and easy!

2010-01-08T17:44:00.000-08:00

Nothing smells more welcoming and comforting than a loaf of fresh bread baking in the oven. It’s been cold, foggy and dreary here so I’ve been making bread to keep my spirits up and to accompany all the soups, you’ve seen in previous posts. I’ve been working on art and print making during my winter break so most dinners have a hearty warm soup and slice of this fresh bread. This recipe is from Cook’s Illustrated and is a refinement of the original Mark Bittiman New York Times version. It’s so easy, that it’s foolproof, just make sure you use rapid rise or instant yeast not regular.

Because I keep my thermostat at 64 (and I wear polar fleece and Uggs to keep warm), I usually set the bowl of dough on top of the refrigerator where it’s likely to be warmest. The bread is best eaten the day you bake it but will keep longer. While you’re making the next batch, you can use the last few slices for breakfast pain perdu, French toast. It makes great garlic croutons for salads and soup. It’s also a great money saver, when compared to a $4-5 artisan loaf of bread.

Almost no knead bread

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (15 ounces), plus additional for dusting work surface

¼ teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast

1 ½ tsp teaspoons table salt

¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons water (7 ounces), at room temperature

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons mild-flavored lager (3 ounces)

1 Tablespoon white vinegar

DIRECTIONS

Whisk flour, yeast, and salt in large bowl. Add water, beer, and vinegar. Using rubber spatula, fold mixture, scraping up dry flour from bottom of bowl until shaggy ball forms.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 8 to 18 hours.
Lay 12- by 18-inch sheet of parchment paper inside 10-inch skillet and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and knead 10 to 15 times.
Shape dough into ball by pulling edges into middle. Transfer dough, seam-side down, to parchment-lined skillet and spray surface of dough with nonstick cooking spray.
Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until dough has doubled in size and does not readily spring back when poked with finger, about 2 hours.
About 30 minutes before baking, adjust oven rack to lowest position, place 6- to 8-quart heavy-bottomed Dutch oven (with lid) on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees.
Lightly flour top of dough and, using razor blade or sharp knife, make one 6-inch-long, 1/2-inch-deep slit along top of dough.
Carefully remove pot from oven and remove lid. Pick up dough by lifting parchment overhang and lower into pot (let any excess parchment hang over pot edge). Cover pot and place in oven.
Reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees and bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove lid and continue to bake until loaf is deep brown and instant-read thermometer inserted into center registers 210 degrees, 20 to 30 minutes longer.
Carefully remove bread from pot; transfer to wire rack and cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. If you need to go to bed, or leave it out longer, put it in a brown paper bag to cools and the crust will be prefect.

White Beans with Grass fed Beef Italian Sausage and Spinach

2010-01-08T13:01:00.000-08:00

This dish was inspired by a wonderful lunch while I was on vacation over New Years in Sonoma County. We wandered on rainy country roads, and found ourselves in Bodega Bay. A gallery owner in Valley Ford, suggested a place that specializes in local seasonal produce, Terrapin Creek. They were still serving and although my first choice, crab cakes were sold out, I was very pleased with my warm comforting and healthy white beans and sausage. While I waited for my meal I recalled reading about this lovely little restaurant in a recent Sunset magazine, which the Andrew Truong the co-owner, confirmed. In my verision below, I used local grass fed beef Italian sausage, from Springville Ranch, and fresh spinach from my own garden.

White Beans with Grass fed Beef Italian Sausage and Spinach

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

1 cup dried cannellini or great northern beans, washed and soaked overnight

1 bay leaf

1 med onion cut in half 2 quarts of water

1 medium onion chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary ½ tsp fennel seeds crushed

¼ tsp pepper flakes

kosher salt

1 lb pound Italian sweet sausage, cut into 3 inch pieces

10-12 oz cleaned and stemmed fresh spinach

DIRECTIONS

Drain the beans. Combine the drained beans with water in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Skim off the foam, reduce the heat to low and add the halved onion, and the bay leaf and cover. Allow to simmer for 1 1/2 hours, until the beans are very tender. Drain over a bowl and measure out 1 cup of the broth. Discard the halved onion and bay leaf. OR this can be done in about 12-15 minutes in a pressure cooker.
While the beans are cooking, heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the sausage. Browned lightly, about 7 to 11 minutes.
Add the chopped onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the herbs, reserved beans and reserved broth, and continue cooking for 30 minutes. Adjust seasoning as desired with salt and pepper.
Just before serving, add the spinach. Cook until wilted but still bright green. Serve with toasted and buttered country bread.

Japanese Turnip- Hakurei Salad

2010-01-05T09:00:00.000-08:00

Recently my farmer friend, Kyle Reynolds of KMK Farms,introduced me to a new winter salad ingredient, the Japanese turnip Hakurei. It was similar to a radish in texture but without the spiciness, making it a good choice to serve picky eaters like children and the elderly. I added another local product, walnuts and candied them quickly in local honey and maple syrup in a small saucepan. I also used our local Fuji apples, but other apple varieties will work fine. My dressing of choice is the usual homemade wine vinegar and local oil olive, with a grind of fresh pepper and a pinch of Hawaiian sea salt. It looked a little bland so I tossed on a few pomegranate seeds and kumquat slices to add color.

Hatari, Apple and Candied Walnuts Salad

3 Hakurei Turnips, washed, unpeeled and thinly sliced

1 med apple, cored and thinly sliced

¼ c candied walnuts, chopped coarsely

fresh lettuce washed and torn

optional: pomegranate seeds and kumquat slices

olive oil, wine vinegar

Right before serving, toss the turnip and apples slices with the dressing in a small bowl. Add a grind of fresh pepper and pinch of salt. Arrange a handful of lettuce on individual plates, top with the turnip and apple slices. Sprinkle on the chopped walnuts, and optional ingredients. Drizzle on more dressing if desired.

East Indian Cauliflower Soup, Gobi Ka Shorva

2009-12-23T12:18:00.000-08:00

Cauliflower is just beginning to arrive in our farmer’s market. For this recipe, you can use either white or yellow cauliflower, but the purple will be a strange color when mixed with the colorful turmeric spice. This is a deeply satisfying vegetable soup, which I found in a little Indian book about spices by the Indian food expert, Madhur Jaffrey. I used my food processor, with the plunger off, to pureed the soup before adding the cream. (I asked Santa for a hand held immersion blender so that my creamed soup making will be less messy going forward.) This soup is especially beautiful and delicious with the cilantro mint chutney swirled in as a garnish but equally delicious without it. If you want to increase the heat/spice, you can add Rooster Sauce, Sriracha hot chili sauce.

Cauliflower Soup with Coriander

Gobi Ka Shorva

From Madhur Jaffrey’s Spice Kitchen

This soup maybe made ahead and reheated but do so over low heat. If you boil the soup after adding the cream it will curdle.

INGREDIENTS

to serve 4-6

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil

2 med onions peeled and chopped

1” piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into fine slivers

4 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped

1 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander

¼ tsp turmeric

1/8-1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

½ lb potatoes (2 med) peeled, and cut into ½ inch dice

½ lb ( 2 heaping cups) cauliflower flowerets

7 cups (1 qt+3 cups) chicken broth

salt to taste

1 cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS

Heat the oil over fairly high heat in a large stock pot. When hot, put in the onions, ginger and garlic. Stir fry for about 4 minutes or until the onions are soft and starting to brown.
Add the cumin, coriander, turmeric and cayenne. Stir once and add the potatoes, cauliflower and chicken stock.
Stir and bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer gently for 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
Put batches of the soup in the blender. Do not over fill the blender, (only fill to 1/3) because the top will pop off due to the heat of the soup.

Return the soup to the stock pot and add the cream. Reheat gently.

Serve with Cilantro Mint Chutney see recipe below, stir a spoonful of chutney into soup right before serving, or with chopped fresh cilantro on top. Makes ½ cup.

1 cup packed fresh cilantro leaves

½ cup packed fresh mint leaves

2 Tbsp minced onion

a pinch of salt

¾ tsp sugar

1 ½ tsp fresh lime juice

3 Tbsp plain yogurt

Process all the ingredients in a blender or food processor, until smooth. Scrap down the sides halfway. Can be refrigerated for a day.

Polish Wild Mushrooms and Barley Soup

2009-12-23T11:59:00.000-08:00

It’s definitely soup making and eating weather. It dipped down to the 20’s last night, so I’m sure the local citrus farmers are nervous. We had lots of frost this morning which lead me to finding a heart warming and satisfying soup. I’m trying to eat down the cupboards and freezer this winter break, so when I found a bag of Polish dried wild mushrooms I knew what to make. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can follow the usual soup making steps: sweat the aromatic vegetables in oil (celery. Carrots, onions, garlic), add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and cook until the broth is a rich dark brown and the mushrooms and other vegetables are soft, about 1 1/2 hours.

Pressure Cooker Barley and Mushroom Soup

From Great Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure

18 minutes at high pressure

This is a hearty soup with both fresh and dried mushrooms. My version was very deep and rich, almost beefy, because I used imported Polish borowik dried mushrooms, that were a gift from my adopted Polish family in Chicago. You can also used dried shiitaki or Porcini.

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

2 tsp olive oil

1 tsp minced fresh garlic

2 cups coarsely chopped onions

OR thinly sliced cleaned leeks, white and light green parts

6 cups boiling water, home made vegetable or chicken stock

½ cup pearl barley

½ lb fresh mushrooms, sliced or quartered (Cremini brown are a good choice)

generous ½ cup (1/2 oz) sliced or chopped dried mushrooms

soak the mushrooms for 15-20, save the soaking liquid

2 lrg carrots, peeled and diced

2 lrg celery ribs, diced

2 large bay leaves

1 ½ Tbsp dried dill, or 3 Tbsp fresh dill

salt and pepper to taste

optional: 2 Tbsp of dry sherry

garnish with fresh dill

DIRECTIONS

Heat the oil in the pressure cooker. Saute the onions or leeks, and garlic for about 1 min. Stir constantly.

Add the stock and all the other ingredients.

Lock the lid in place. Over high heat, bring to high pressure and cook for 18 minutes. Allow the pressure to drop on its own.

Remove the lid and discard the bay leaves. Taste and adjust the seasonings. I added about 2 Tbsp of dry sherry to bring out the mushroom’s earthy flavors. This soup will thicken up as it sits due to the barley. Thin as desired. Garnish with fresh dill. Great with open faced cheese toast.

Holiday baking is all about sugar cookies, frosting, sprinkles and 4 year olds!

2009-12-18T14:32:00.000-08:00

Last night my friend Ainsley and I made Alton Brown’s sugar cookies, complete with Royal Icing frosting and lots of colored sugar and sprinkles. It was Ainsley’s first cookie cutter experience and she proved to be a natural pastry chef.

I also made some miniature bee sugar cookies. Instead of icing, on these I used an egg white wash and sprinkled on jimmies and colored sugar before baking. Alton’s advice of using powdered sugar instead of flour for rolling out the dough was fantastic and these buttery little bees were delicious. My nickname is ‘the busy bee’ so I couldn’t resist this new cute cookie cutter (although I have about 30 or more other shapes). I’m still buzzing around in the kitchen making the winter soups and even candied orange and grapefruit peel, so watch for more postings while I’m on winter break from my regular classroom and culinary duties.
Stay well, eat well and bee well!

Sugar Cookies
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown Makes about 3 dozen-2 1/2 inch
Ingredients
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tablespoon milk
• ¼ tsp vanilla
• Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough
Directions
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine.
Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl.
Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar.
Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill.
Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time.
Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or ice as desired.
Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.

Christmas cookies made from local pistachios, yummy!

2009-12-18T13:43:00.000-08:00

I am very luck to have friends, the Orandi family, farming pistachios locally. My freezer had a large container of shelled unsalted pistachios that I saved for Christmas baking. The vibrant green natural color of the nuts, especially when chopped or ground, makes them prefect for the season. The Pistachio Icebox Cookies are a recipe my Mom has been making for several years. I really like ‘icebox’ dough because I can make the dough one evening and bake them the next day. The Brownie Thins with Pistachios, are from Bon Appetit’s Andrew Schloss of Homemade in a Hurry. These are very chocolaty and makes 24 cookies. They would be great alongside premium vanilla ice cream for a quick beautiful holiday dinner party dessert.
Happy holidays from the Seasonal Table ‘chef Debb’!

PISTACHIO ICEBOX COOKIES

INGREDIENTS
2/3 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp almond extract
2 cups AP flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ cup ground shelled pistachio nuts
optional: 2-3 drop green food coloring
1 egg white beaten
1/4 cup + chocolate jimmies

DIRECTIONS
Cream together butter, sugar, egg and extracts.
Sift together flour, baking powder and salt, then add to butter, sugar mixture.
Take out 1 cup of dough and add nuts and green coloring; mix well. Form into 11-12” long roll. The roll should be the same length as the rectangle or butter dough that will cover it. Wrap this in waxed paper.
Roll out the remaining dough to form a 11-12”x4-1/2” rectangle; Wrap in wax paper and chill in the frig, with roll about 1 hour.
Encase the pistachio green roll with the uncolored rectangle. Carefully mold the dough, covering green completely. Wrap roll and refrigerate overnight or freeze.
To bake: Brush outside of roll with beaten egg white and roll in “jimmies”. The easiest way to do this is placing the Jimmies on a wax paper sheet, rolling and gently pressing them into the sides of the egg washed roll.
Cut into 1/8-1/4” thick slices and place 2” apart on ungreased cookie sheets on parchment paper cookies sheets. Bake in 375F oven 8-10 minutes.

Asian Style Grass Fed Short Ribs

2009-11-22T11:34:00.001-08:00

As we approach the big poultry day, Thanksgiving, I find myself making more beef and other non poultry protein based stews and braises. So I was happy to see the newlywed Springville Ranch vendors back at our farmers market on Saturday. I bought 3 pound of their very meaty short ribs, then found some lovely baby bok choy from Mee Vang. These two ingredients and conversations with my son who recently visited South Korea, inspired me to make this dish. I used my Fagor pressure cooker to cut time but not flavor, but you can also braise the ribs in a Dutch oven, but start early in the afternoon, because they’ll need to braise for 3 hours!

Korean-Asian Style Short Ribs

INGREDIENTS:
3 pounds beef short ribs
2/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 (5-inch) stalk lemongrass, halved and smashed
1 tablespoon peeled and minced ginger
1-2 keffer lime leaves (if you have one handy)
¼ tsp sesame oil
1/3 cup light brown sugar
3 cups water
2 shallots, peeled and sliced thin
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Serve over Jasmine Rice
Garnish with finely grated orange peel, toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onion tops

DIRECTIONS:
Marinade the short ribs for 2+ hrs with the soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, lemongrass, keefer lime, sesame oil, ginger, brown sugar, water, green onion bottoms, crushed red pepper, and 2 tablespoons of the orange juice.
If using the pressure cooker, remove the ribs and brown on all sides in 1-2 Tbsp of peanut oil in batches. Place the ribs and the marinade back in the pressure cooker; cover and lock according to directions. When pressure is up, reduce flame to maintain steady pressure, and cook for 25 minutes. Remove from heat and let pressure drop on its own. Remove the ribs/bones and strain the liquid. Proceed to making the sauce and oven roasting the ribs.

If NOT using a pressure cooker: Preheat oven to 350 ˚F. Using a Dutch oven, submerged the ribs in the marinade liquid. Bake the short ribs, covered, for about 3 hours, or until the meat is tender and falling off the bones. Remove the short ribs from the braising liquid and cover to keep warm.

Finishing the sauce and ribs:
Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
Strain liquids through a fine-meshed strainer, discarding the solids.
Drain the fat off of the cooking liquid and discard.
Place the remaining braising juices in a medium saucepan with 1/4 cup of the hoisin sauce and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the liquid until only about 3/4 cups remain.
Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of orange juice and the lemon juice.

Return the short ribs and the reduced sauce to Dutch oven, or roasting pan, coating the short ribs well with the sauce. Bake for 10 minutes, until the short ribs are heated through and slightly glazed.

Serve hot over jasmine rice, garnished with orange zest, toasted sesame seeds, and green onion tops. Stir fried baby bok choy with garlic is a great side, the bitterness off sets the sweet caramel spicy ribs.

Cranberry Upside Down Cake

2009-11-21T13:23:00.000-08:00

Yes, a cake with cranberries! If you’re in your 50’s, you probably remember pineapple upside down cake, well this is similar but better. In my Seasonal Table class, we're using Alice Water’s The Art of Simple Food, as our textbook and this is were I found this fun recipe for evryone's upcoming favorite foodie holiday. It can be served as a dessert with whipped cream or as a brunch coffee cake. Happy Thanksgiving and thanks to Mary Jo and Rick for the lovely fresh Oregon cranberries. Yes, they were grown in Oregon!

Alice Water’s Cranberry Cake
This can be made in a cast iron pan, so that you assemble it in the pan and put it right into the oven to bake. Or if you don’t have a cast iron pan, follow the directions using a heavy 9” cake pan.
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 2 ¾ cups fresh cranberries
• ¼ cups fresh orange juice
• 1 1/2 cups AP flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs at room temperature, separated
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup milk at room temperature
whipped cream (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 350°F
2. Melt the butter and brown sugar in an 8-10 inch cast iron pan or heavy-duty cake pan. Cook until the butter melts and starts to bubble. Remove the heat and allow to cool.
3. Heat together in a small pan, the cranberries and orange juice until the berries start to pop. Spread the cranberries in pan on top of the melted butter and sugar.
4. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
5. In a mixing bowl, cream the remaining 1/2 cup butter with the sugar.
6. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
7. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and mix well.
8. Add the milk alternately with the dry ingredients, folding well after each addition.
9. In a small mixing bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites to soft peaks.
10. Fold the whites into the cake batter.
11. Spread the batter over the fruit in the cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 55 to 60 minutes.
12. Remove the cake from the oven and run a small knife around the edges.
13. Let sit for 15 minutes.
14. Invert the cake onto a serving platter and let it sit another 5 minutes, then remove the pan.
15. Serve slices of cake topped with a dollop of whipped cream if desired.

Sweet Potatoes Are Amazing!

2009-11-13T18:32:00.000-08:00

This recipe is so fantastic, that everyone, even VEGANS, will love it. Don’t try it with store bought sweet potatoes from the grocery store in the spring because the sugars will have turned to starch. Get them now when they have just been harvested and are at their peak of flavor. I’ll be serving this at a dinner I'm cooking as part of a board donation to Arts Visalia, and my focus is “the local harvest and bounty of the fall season". This will be the first course after a trio of Mediterranean dips with pita bread. (These recipes and photos :-) will be posted after the event, Nov 20, 2009.)

Caribbean Sweet Potato Coconut Soup
From Moosewood Daily Specials

Serve 4-6, yields 8 cups

INGREDIENTS

2 cups chopped onions
2/3 cup chopped celery
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp grated or finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 tsp curry powder
¼ tsp fresh grated nutmeg
2 bay leaves
½ tsp salt
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth, or water
4 cups peeled and cubed sweet potatoes
½ tsp freshly grated lemon or orange peel
2 Tbsp dark rum
1 cup pineapple or orange juice
1 ¾ cups coconut milk (14 oz can)
2 Tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice, or to taste

chopped cilantro for garnish

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large soup pot, sauté the onions and celery with the oil until the onions are translucent. Then cover the pot and sweat the aromatics, for about 8-10 minutes, stirring often.
2. Add the ginger, curry, nutmeg, bay leaves and salt. Sauté for about a minute, stirring constantly. Add the broth or water, sweet potatoes, grated citrus peel and rum.
3. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 15-20 minutes.
4. Remove and discard the bay leaves, Pour the pineapple or orange juice and the coconut milk into the pot.
5. Puree the soup in batches in a blender or food processor until smooth.
6. Reheat gently if necessary.
7. Serve garnished with cilantro leaves.

Fabulous Local Grass Fed Beef Flank Steak

2009-11-12T10:57:00.000-08:00

Last month the Visalia our Farmers market began selling grass fed beef from Springville Ranch. Because grass fed beef is more dense than grain fed beef, it needs to be grilled quickly or braised long and slowly. With this is mind, I chose 4 lb stew meat and a flank steak to try it out. I made Jacque Pepin’s beef bourguignon stew, with extra cooking time added to get the beef fork tender. It was delicious. Then the flank steak which I think is the best flank steak I’ve ever eaten. I used our close family friend Iris McLean’s recipe, and because its so good, my copy has lots of spatters. Here's a fresh copy for you to add to your favorites. I always serve potatoes, roasted, mashed or boiled, to savor the delicious marinade that becomes a sauce, after you cook it on the stove top. Be sure to serve this steak medium rare, and sliced on the diagonal, so that it remains tender.

Iris McLean’s Flank Steak

Cook together in a sauce pan:

½ cup chopped medium yellow onion
1 lrg garlic clove, mashed or finely chopped
1 T salad oil
1 can, 10 ½ oz beef broth
½ c catsup
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp dry mustard powder
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp oregano

Cool the sauce, then marinade the scored flank steak overnight or for at least 4 hours.
Remove steak from sauce.
Cook steak over a hot BBQ or broil quickly, i.e. 4 mins on the first side, 3 mins second side.
Let meat set/ rest for 5 mins.
Slice diagonally and thinly at right angle to the grain.
Marinade can be cooked and served as a sauce for the meat or potatoes.

Toasted Almond Torte with Roasted Apricots

2009-10-27T09:22:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I hosted an artist boutique and put out a big spread of seasonal sweet and savory treats. The eggplant and feta rolls were featured as well as a butternut squash soup with cinnamon croutons. The bread pudding with whiskey butter sauce was good, but this was the favorite of the day.
This torte recipe popped out of the files and although not a new one, Sunset April 1984, it was fantastic. I altered fruit to reflect the fall season and my frozen summer bounty. In the early summer I roasted apricots with a bit of cinnamon and honey for about 30 minutes in a hot 450+ oven, then stacked the quart bags in the freezer. After defrosting them, I spread them between the layers as a filling and again on top, prior to ‘frosting’ with slightly sweeten whipped cream.
I sliced the torte in small wedges and some even asked for seconds. YUM!

Toasted Almond Torte with Roasted Apricots

1/4 cup whole unblanched almonds
1 cup (1/2 lb.) butter or margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
1 ½ cups roasted apricots
¼ slivered almonds

Toast nuts in a 9 inch pan in a 350 degree oven until golden under skin, 10 to 12 minutes; cool. Whirl nuts in a food processor or blender to grind finely.
Beat butter and granulated sugar with a mixer until creamy.
Beat in eggs, vanilla, and almond.
Blend flour, baking powder, nuts; add alternately to batter with milk, blending well.
Pour into a greased 9-inch round cake pan.
Bake in a 350 degree oven until top springs back when touched, about 40 minutes.
Cool 5 minutes on rack. Invert on serving plate; cool completely.
Cut into 2 layers. Spread ½ the fruit on bottom layer; set top layer in place. Spread the rest of the fruit on cake; top with whipped cream and sprinkle with the slivered almonds. Serves 10.

Grilled Eggplant with Feta, Mint and Chili

2009-10-16T23:26:00.000-07:00

Last week in the Seasonal Table class, we tested this recipe that I had heard about in an interview with Nigella on NPR. It was a winner and I demonstrated at farmers market. I think we sold out of most of the farmer’s eggplant! Good feta cheese is important. Since I’m not a skilled cheese maker (yet) I bought a lovely Hungarian one at the new Visalia Mediterranean market (behind Carl’s Jr in the shopping center off Mooney).
It’s getting too cold to play with knives and cook al fresco, so the recipes until spring arrives, will be those I make in class with students or at home.

Grilled Eggplant with Feta, Mint and Chili
From Nigella Lawson
Makes 20 rolls

Ingredients
2 large eggplant, each cut thinly, lengthwise, into about 10 slices
4 tablespoons olive oil
8–9 ounces feta cheese
1 large red chili, finely chopped, seeded or not, depending on how much heat you want
bunch fresh mint, finely chopped, with some saved for garnish
juice of 1 lemon
black pepper
Directions
1. Preheat a grill, stovetop griddle or broiler to a high heat.
2. Brush both sides of the eggplant slices with the oil,
cook them for about 2 minutes each side until golden and tender.
3. Crumble the feta into a bowl, stir in the chili, mint, lemon juice and ground fresh black pepper.
4. Pile the end third of each warm eggplant slice with a heaping teaspoon of the feta mixture and roll each slice up as you go to form a soft, stuffed bundle.
5. Place seam-side down on a plate, and sprinkle with a little more mint

West African sweet potato & peanut butter soup

2009-10-16T23:09:00.000-07:00

KMK farmers Kyle and Michele Reynolds have brought to market the first sweet potatoes of the season. You’ll never want to eat store bought again! Fresh sweet potatoes live up to their name. If sweet potatoes are picked, packed and shipped to market and sit in the store, the sugars turn to starch. So get a couple of pounds and make this east silky smooth and low fat soup. Full of beta carotene and other vitamins they are good and good for you! I’m serving this Saturday at the Visalia Farmers Market. I hope you’ll come taste a sample.

West African Sweet Potato and Peanut Soup
Cooks Illustrated International Cookbook
serve 4-6

INGREDIENTS:
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium onion, minced
1 tsp light brown sugar
3 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed (about 1 Tbsp)
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp cayenne pepper
3 ½ cup chicken broth
2 cups water
2 pounds sweet potatoes peeled, quartered & lengthwise and sliced thin
3 Tbsp peanut butter
ground black pepper
1 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

DIRECTIONS:
1.Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.

2.Add the onion, brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon (2tsp) salt and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is softened about 5 to 7 minutes.

3.Stir in the garlic, coriander and cayenne and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

4.Add the broth, water and sweet potatoes and peanut butter. Bring to a boil over high heat.

5.Turn the heat to low and cook, partially covered, until the sweet potatoes are easily pierced with a knife, 25- 30 minutes.

6.Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender or food processor, until smooth and then return it to the saucepan. (The soup can be refrigerated for up to 2 days; reheat over medium low heat).

7.Season with salt and pepper to taste, stir in the cilantro and serve.

What can I make with eggplant?

2009-10-03T17:43:00.000-07:00

I hear this question frequently. Of course there’s always ratatouille, but what else? One of the local farmers, Kyle of KM K Farms, is begging me to demo eggplant, so I’m on the lookout for new eggplant recipes that I can make easily on my one burner butane fueled stove. And voila, the October issue of Food & Wine had a vegetarian dish featuring roasted eggplant from my favorite staff chef, Grace Parisi. It was yummy, and best made in an oven to sweeten the veggies, via the hot roasting process. It felt good to ‘eat green’ and meatless. I served it with a side of sliced yellow tomato and fresh cilantro, yogurt on top the dish and naan flat bread. I substituted the canned chickpeas, with soaked garbanzo beans cooked for 12 minutes in my pressure cooker, and switched out the spinach for farm fresh baby Russian kale, de-ribbed and cut into strips.
Unfortunately I can't make this dish on a one burner butane burn stove outdoors, so I’m still looking for a primo eggplant recipe for the demo on Oct 17 

Curried Eggplant with Chickpeas and Spinach
Ingredients
2 large garlic cloves, minced
Kosher salt
2 teaspoons Madras curry powder
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 medium eggplant (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1 large onion, cut into 1/2-inch wedges
One 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained, or homemade about 2 cups
1/4 cup finely julienned fresh ginger
Freshly ground pepper
One 5-ounce bag baby spinach, or use baby Russian kale, de-ribbed and sliced, 1 ½ “
Warm naan and plain yogurt, for serving
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 425°.
2. On a work surface, mash the garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt.
3. In a large roasting pan, mix the paste with the curry powder and vegetable oil.
4. Add the eggplant, onion, chickpeas and ginger, season with salt and pepper and toss well.
5. Spread the vegetables in an even layer and roast for about 30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the eggplant and onion are tender.
6. Stir in the spinach (kale) and roast just until wilted, about 2+ minutes.
7. Serve with warm naan and yogurt.

Roasted Tomato Tarts

2009-09-29T10:00:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday I joined artist Marjorie Brandon and several others to celebrate her 97th birthday. When I asked how she was that hot afternoon surrounded by the love of her friends, she said,'Well, I'm drinking champagne and I'm 97. That about says it all." I think of Marjorie as my role model for successful aging. She is still creating collage art and living independently in my neighborhood. We were asked to bring along an appetizer, so I pulled out some of this summer's roasted tomatoes out of the freezer, and made these easy tarts in a few minutes. They quickly disappeared off the buffet table! Enjoy.

Roasted Tomato Tarts
Serves 6

To roasted grape, Roma or large cherry tomatoes:
Wash and cut each tomato in half lengthwise.
If needed, scoop out the green or white stem section.
In a large bowl, toss with salt and pepper, 1+ Tbsp chopped blanched garlic, and olive oil, to cover but not drown.
Place them face up on a foil lined rimmed baking sheet.
Roast in 450° oven (or on a gas BBQ grill) until they have reduced in size and are beginning to brown about 20 minutes+
These freeze well and can be used on pizza and pasta.

To prepare the tarts:
1 sheet (about 10 by 12 in.) frozen puff pastry (14-oz. package), thawed in the frig overnight

1 ½ cups roasted tomatoes, see above

2 Tbsp+ fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. On a floured surface with a floured rolling pin, roll out pastry to 16 by 18 in. Cut pastry in thirds lengthwise and in half crosswise. With a wide spatula, transfer the 6 rectangles to baking sheets.
4. Spread the roasted tomatoes in the center of each rectangle, leaving a 1 1/2-in. border bare.
5. Bake until pastries are richly browned, 15 to 20 minutes.
6. Sprinkle with fresh basil chiffonade, or fresh thyme. Serve tarts warm or cool.

Pain Perdu & fresh fruit al fresco

2009-09-22T08:47:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday I was ambitious in preparing pain perdu, aka French toast, topped with sautéed fresh fruit. Doing a demonstration is a lot like cooking when you are camping but even more difficult, because you must bring water and all the equipment you need. Needless to say as I was driving to the market I realized I had forgotten 2 piece of essential equipment. But ‘all’s well that ends well’, and the results were well received. You can also top the toast with fresh fruit tossed with Triple Sec , grated orange peel and honey if needed to sweeten. The day old baguettes bread I used on Saturday were graciously donated by the master European baker at our market, Varouj Kachikian of Dolce Arte . Enjoy!

PAIN PERDU with SAUTEED SEASONAL FRUIT
known in America as French toast

SAUTEED FRUIT:
1+ Tbsp butter
4 cups seasonal fruit peeled and sliced (apples, pears, plums, peaches, berries etc)
grated nutmeg and cinnamon to taste
Grated orange peel
1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the fruit
3. Sautee until the fruit softens.
4. Taste and add honey or sugar if needed
5. Add fresh grated nutmeg, cinnamon, orange peel or lemon peel
PAIN PERDU:
3 large eggs
6 tablespoons sugar
6 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/4 cup milk
Ten ½ inch-thick slices of day old baguette, brioche or challah
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1. In a shallow dish whisk together the eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt, then add milk.
2. Add the bread and turn to coat; let the bread soak for 10 minutes.
3. Add each slice to the skillet. Cook over moderate heat until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Flip the bread slices and cook for 3 minutes longer.
4. Serve warm with the sautéed fruit on top.

Butternut Squash is Here

2009-09-14T22:08:00.000-07:00

Butternut squash, the first of the ‘winter squash’, with it’s hard peel, is here. Although it is still very warm in the San Joaquin Valley, these yummy cool weather squash are ready to turn into soup, braise in fresh apple cider, stuff into fresh ravioli and make into traditional hand made gnocchi. I decide to try my hand at gnocchi and it was surprisingly is easy. You can do it alone but it was more fun in the classroom with several people to do the hand rolling. Do not be tempted to add more flour. Unlike other handmade pasta, this dough is wetter and softer. When they are all rolled, shaped and spread out on a floured pan, bring a BIG pot of water to boil. Cook them in two batches if your pot isn’t large enough to hold 3 times more water than gnocchi. Cooking is quick, so don’t start until the rest of the meal is ready. The ’sauce’ is fresh and traditional with the use of fresh minced sage.

Butternut Squash Gnocchi
From Sunset Magazine

Ingredients
Serves 8
1 butternut squash (about 2 lbs each
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
3 to 3 1/2 cups flour, plus more for shaping
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage
1 Tbsp lemon zest
1/2 cup freshly shredded Parmesan cheese (or other hard cheese, such as Asaigo or pecorino), plus more at the table
Freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
1. With a ice pick or sharp knife, poke holes all over squash. Microwave it on high 10 minutes. Let sit until cool enough to handle. Halve squash lengthwise; scoop out and discard seeds. Flesh should be tender when scraped with a fork; if it isn't, microwave on high (cut side down) in 1-minute intervals until tender. Let sit until cool enough to handle. Scrape out flesh (discard peel) and mash until smooth.
2. In a large bowl, thoroughly combine 2 cups mashed squash (save any extra for another use), 1/2 tsp. salt, the white pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in flour, 1 cup at a time, until a dough forms (it will pull away from inside of bowl).
3. Turn dough out on a generously floured work surface. With well-floured hands, knead dough 10 to 12 times.
4. Divide dough in half and cover 1 batch with plastic wrap. Roll other batch into a 3/4-in.-thick rope and cut into 1/2-in.-long pieces. Press with the backside of a table fork. Put pieces on a floured baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and set aside. Repeat with remaining dough.
5. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil gnocchi until they rise to the surface, about 4 minutes; cook 30 seconds longer and then lift with a slotted spoon, making sure water drains from gnocchi, and place in a large serving bowl.
6. Gently toss with butter, fresh sage, lemon zest and cheese and a sprinkling of black pepper. Serve hot and pass extra cheese at the table.

Fabulous Fall Figs

2009-09-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

Many of my students had never seen or tasted a fresh fig. This is because they are fragile, have a short shelf life and are hard to ship. This means few are ever seen in the grocery store except dried. Chuck and Mary Cornett picked about 20 fresh Mission figs and we made this amazing simple and gorgeous appetizer. We served it on a bed of fresh romaine lettuce and it was a 5 star dish. Let me know if you agree.

Grilled Wrapped Fig Appetizer
Wrap each fig with a slice of bacon or pancetta.
Alternate the figs with firm fresh peeled peach slices.
You may skewer them if needed with a toothpick or bamboos skewer that you soaked overnight.
Then roast/broil/grill until the bacon is brown and crisp. This is best done on a foil lined pan, to make clean up easy and to collect the yummy bacon-fig juices. It's a shame to do it on a grill and let the juices all drip down onto the flame. You can do it on the grill using a disposable pie pan.

I haven’t made this fig salsa yet but if I find figs at the Thursday night market or Saturday I will and of course I’ll get my camera out.
California Pepper Fig Salsa
Adapted from California the Fig Advisory Board
2 1/2 cups diced fresh California figs
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 jalapeño pepper; stemmed, seeded and minced
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon chopped or grated fresh ginger
Combine salsa ingredients in medium bowl and stir together. Cover and chill for several hours to blend flavors.

Rustic pear tarts

2009-09-14T21:36:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday's seasonal table class meet, and after our trip to the Visalia Farmer’s Market, we brought back local Barlett pears from KMK Farms and Eversweet pears from O So Fresh Farms. With these beauties, we made 2 delicious pear desserts, a pear sherbet and these rustic pear tarts. They are easy, beautiful and yummy. You can also use the last of this summer’s fresh peaches instead. Or for a savory treat, replace the pears with some red cherry tomatoes roasted in olive oil and garlic, switch the orange marmalade out to basil chiffonade, and add fresh ground pepper and sea salt in place of the sugar.

Rustic Pear Tarts
From Sunset, SEPTEMBER 2008

Fresh pears and purchased puff pastry add up to an incredibly easy seasonal dessert.
serves 6

1 sheet (about 10 by 12 in.) frozen puff pastry (14-oz. package),thawed

2 or 3 firm-ripe pears, such as Bartlets, Bosc or Comice

About 1/3 cup orange marmalade

1 egg, beaten to blend

About 2 tbsp. raw sugar, (turbinado sugar)

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Lightly butter 2 large baking sheets.
3. On a floured surface with a floured rolling pin, roll out pastry to 16 by 18 in.
4. Cut pastry in thirds lengthwise and in half crosswise. With a wide spatula, transfer the 6 rectangles to baking sheets. Prick the centers with a fork to keep them flat during baking.
5. Core pears and cut into thin wedges. Arrange, slightly overlapping, on pastry rectangles, leaving a 1 1/2-in. border bare (angle slices if necessary).
6. Warm marmalade in a microwave oven to melt, then brush over pears.
7. Fold border over edge of pears, stretching slightly and pressing down to hold. Brush new edges with egg, then sprinkle turbinado sugar over tarts, especially pastry edges.
8. Bake until pastries are richly browned, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve tarts warm or cool, with slightly sweetened fresh whipped cream.

Cooking with Fresh Grapes, II

2009-09-03T22:49:00.000-07:00

Last year I planted a fence with root stock wine grapes, of Syrah and Counoise varieties from Tablas Creek Winery in Paso Robles. I like fresh grape leaves to stuff and make traditional dolmas. Because the vines were very young, I did not have grapes last year. But this year there were lots of succulent clusters under the big mature leaves.
Veraison, when the grapes turn from green to purple, was inconsistent, but regardless of the color, these small jewel-like grapes were delicious and very juicy. They inspired me to make what may become the first sign of fall, a rosemary flat bread studded with grapes, Gorgonzola, honey and fresh chives. You can use the fresh grape topping on a foccacia bread as I did or your favorite pizza dough recipe. The local honey from farmers Charlies and Mary Cornett, with my own home grown rosemary, grapes and chives made it a locavore specialty.

Rosemary flat bread studded with grapes, Gorgonzola, honey and fresh chives
ingredients

• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 cups bread flour, plus more for rolling
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 2 teaspoons chopped rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 pound grapes (1 1/2 cups)
• Coarse sea salt
• 3 ounces Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled (1/2 cup)
• 1 tablespoon local honey
• 1 tablespoon snipped chives
directions
1. In a large bowl, whisk the yeast and sugar with 1/4 cup of the flour.
2. Stir in 1/4 cup of the warm water and let stand until slightly foamy, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the rosemary, fine salt, pepper and the remaining 1 3/4 cups of flour and 1/2 cup of water; stir until a dough forms.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes.
5. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover and let rise in a draft-free spot until billowy and doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
6. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°. Place a pizza stone in the bottom of the oven, and preheat for at least 30 minutes.
7. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Press and stretch the dough into a 13-inch round, then transfer to a lightly floured pizza peel. Press the grapes into the dough and sprinkle with sea salt.
8. Slide the flatbread onto the hot stone and bake for about 12 minutes, until the crust is golden and the grapes have begun to release some of their juices.
9. Sprinkle the cheese on top and bake for about 2 minutes longer, until the cheese melts. Slide the flatbread onto a work surface and drizzle with the honey and sprinkle with the chives. Cut into wedges and serve.

Cooking with fresh grapes?

2009-08-23T20:14:00.000-07:00

Chicken Breasts Veronique
This recipe is from my personal family cookbook, and I think my mom found it in an early Napa Valley wine cookbook. It pairs oranges, a winter crop with grapes, a summer fruit. It is so delicious and beautiful that I crossed the “locavore line” and I bought Aussie oranges to make it. The Thompson grapes were give to by local Italian farmer, Mr. Colucci.

Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
• 4 skinless boneless chicken breasts halves
• ½ cup of finely diced orange(this is about 1 med size orange)
• zest of the orange
• 1 Tbsp honey
• ½ cup dry white wine
• ¼ tsp dried tarragon
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
• 2 tsp cornstarch dissolved in ½ cup cream
• 1 ½ cup Thompson seedless grapes
Sprinkle chicken breasts with 1 teaspoon salt and pepper. If they are thick, you can slice them in half lengthwise. If you have the time, place each piece between 2 sheets of was paper and pounding them into ½” cutlets. This will produce a very tender breast.
Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts to butter; sauté until light brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Add chopped orange and zest, honey, white wine. Crush the tarragon between your palms then add to pan.
Cover and simmer gently about 8-10 minutes or until the chicken is done. Remove breasts to a warm platter.
Deglaze the pan with the cream that has the cornstarch mixed in. Bring to simmer, stirring constantly. Add the grapes bring back up to a simmer. Do not boil after adding the cream as it will separate. Pour over the sauce over the chicken breasts,
Bon Appetit!
Ps. It will turn out perfectly if you’re wearing pearls a la Julia Childs, while you are preparing it 

Saturday night supper, from the generous farmers

2009-08-16T13:49:00.000-07:00

I returned from my demo at Farmers Market with some lovely young yellow and red bell peppers, a gift from Becky of Terry Farms. They were small and tender so I stuffed them whole and skipped the precooking in the recipe below. I also baked them in my gas grill and at the half way point, I added a tri-tip roast. (I just refuse to turn on the kitchen oven when its so darn hot outside!)

I filled out the meal with a salad of farmer Betty’s Golden Gem orange colored cherry tomatoes and Armenian cucumbers, my home grown Juliet red tomatoes, feta, cheese, kalamata olives, a pinch of both chopped fresh mint and lemon thyme. I lightly tossed with DeLeonardis local olive oil and my dad Harvey’s homemade red wine vinegar. I used a trick I learned form Cook’s Illustrated, to keep the salad from becoming wet and soggy; before adding the other ingredients, I put the cut cherry and Juliet tomatoes in the salad spinner.
I paired the meal with Red Wire, a hearty red blend from New Zealand, see Rocky’s tasting notes at the left.

From Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Suppers. I bought this little cookbook used and it’s loaded with vegetarian wine pairings and meal planning. Of course it’s hard to go wrong with her recipes, because her focus is seasonal ingredients from the local farmers.
Quinoa has the highest protein value of any grain and its flavor is comparable to couscous. It is sold in health food stores, and if you can’t find it can substitute rice

Stuffed Yellow Peppers

Ingredients
2 cups water
2 Tbsp water
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 pinch salt
1 cup quinoa, rinsed well
3 Tbsp olive oil, extra-virgin divided
1 bunch green onions, including 2 inches of the greens, thinly sliced
2 each jalapeno peppers, finely diced, seeded if desired
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin ground
2 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen, thawed, 3 ears cut off the cob
8 ounces spinach leaves
1/2 cup cilantro, freshly chopped
4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
black pepper, freshly ground to taste
2 large red onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup white wine
4 each large sweet bell peppers, yellow or orange
Directions
1. Bring 2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt and quinoa. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until the grains are tender and reveal their spiraled germ, about 15 minutes.
2. If your peppers are large and mature, you will need to precook them. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Drop the peppers into the simmering water and cook until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife but not overly soft, 4-8 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 400F.
4. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wide skillet over medium heat.
5. Add scallions and jalapenos; cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes.
6. Add garlic, cumin, corn, spinach and 2 tablespoons water and cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach is wilted, about 1 minute.
7. Transfer these vegetables to a large bowl. Add the quinoa, cilantro and feta; toss to combine. Season with pepper.
8. Wipe out the skillet, add 1 tablespoon oil and heat over medium-high.
9. Add onion sliced and cook, stirring frequently, until they start to color around the edges, 3-5 minutes. Deglaze the pan by pouring the in wine and with a wooden spoon, scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper and transfer the onions to one large or two medium baking dishes large enough to hold the peppers.
10. Slice peppers in half lengthwise without removing the tops or stems; remove the inner membranes and seeds. Or if the peppers are small, remove the stem and core, leaving them whole.
11. Transfer the peppers to a cutting board and fill with the quinoa vegetable mixture and place in the baking dish (or dishes).Drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over the peppers.
12. Bake the peppers until heated through, 20 to 30 minutes. Switch heat to broil; cook until tops are browned, about 4 minutes.
13. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Calabacitas

2009-08-13T22:54:00.000-07:00

The zucchini and other summer squash are still very abundant, so here's the Southwest side dish I demonstrated at Saturday August 15th Visalia Farmer's Market. I used cream and chopped thai basil and a few fresh diced tomatoes for the optional ingredients. Enjoy!

Calabacitas
Serves 4-6
Great with barbecued chicken, pork or steaks

2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 medium white onion sliced
4 cups calabacitas (yellow or green squash) diced
6 green onions, finely chopped
1 cup corn kernels
1 cup roast green chili, seeded, peeled & chopped
salt and pepper to taste

optional seasonings:
½ cup chicken broth
1/4 cup whipping cream
diced fresh tomato
fresh chopped cilantro or basil
grated jack cheese

1. Sauté garlic, onion and squash in butter and olive oil for about 5 mins. Add the chopped green onions and sauté for 1 minute.
2.Add green chili, corn and optional liquid if used.
3.Simmer about 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4.Add optional seasonings and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve hot.

Homemade Pizza Sauce for Grilled Pizza

2009-08-13T22:49:00.001-07:00

Yes, its another tomato recipe. I still have tomatoes and the freezer isn’t full yet so I adventured into pizza grilled on my gas BBQ, with of course homemade sauce. My inspiration was the August issue of Sunset. I grew up with my mom using Sunset recipes carefully cut from the magazine, then I used the annual editions and now I go on line to myrecipes.com

The pizza sauce was spicy and delicious and I suggest that you do as I did, and make a double batch so you can freeze half. It takes about 2 hours from start to finish but this slow long cooking creates the caramelized rich flavor that you can’t buy in a jar or can. You can top the pizza with cooked mushrooms & peppers, any thin sliced salami or cooked sausages and of course cheese. Or try adding fresh chopped arugula or caramelized onions. You can use frozen purchased dough or use the Sunset Recipe for dough below. This will produce a very thin crisp crust that works well on the grill.

Fresh Tomato Pizza Sauce

Makes 1 cup

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
4 large red tomatoes (2 lbs. total), peeled & chopped
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves

Preparation

Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat.

Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Stir in tomatoes, sugar, chili flakes, salt, and pepper.

Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring often, until very thick, about 1 1/2 hours.

Stir in fresh oregano after it has thickened.

Grilled pizza video clip, using the Sunset magazine technique. http://www.myrecipes.com/recipes/grilling/video/0,31108,1905054,00.html

Sunsets’ Best Pizza Dough

Time: 3 hours, including rising.

Yield Serves 6

Ingredients

1 package (2 1/4 tsp.) active dry yeast
About 6 tbsp. olive oil, divided
4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Preparation

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir yeast into 1 1/2 cups warm water (100° to 110°). Let stand until yeast dissolves, about 5 minutes. Add 1/4 cup oil, the flour, and salt. Mix with dough hook on low speed to blend, then mix on medium speed until dough is very smooth and stretchy, 8 to 10 minutes. Dough will feel tacky.

2. Cover dough and let rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.

3. Punch down dough and let rise again until doubled, 30 to 45 minutes. Meanwhile, cut 6 pieces of parchment paper, each about 12 in. long. Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for medium heat (about 350°; you can hold your hand 5 in. above cooking grate only about 7 seconds).

4. Turn dough out onto a work surface and cut into 6 portions. For each pizza, lay a sheet of parchment on work surface and rub with 1 tsp. oil. Using well-oiled hands, put each dough portion on a parchment sheet. Flatten dough portions, then pat into 9- to 10-in. rounds. If dough starts to shrink, let rest 5 minutes, then pat out again. Let dough stand until puffy, about 15 minutes.

5. Flip a round of dough onto grill, dough side down. Peel off parchment. Put 1 or 2 more dough rounds on grill. Cook, covered, until dough has puffed and grill marks appear underneath, about 3 minutes. Transfer rounds, grilled side up, to baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough. (Grilled rounds can stand at room temperature up to 2 hours; reheat grill to continue.)

6. Arrange your choice of pizza toppings (below) on grilled sides of dough. With a wide spatula, return pizzas, 2 or 3 at a time, to grill and cook, covered, until browned and crisp underneath, rotating pizzas once for even cooking, 4 to 6 minutes.

Make ahead: Complete dough through step 1, then chill, covered, at least 3 hours and up to 2 days (dough will double in size, and flavor will develop as it stands).

101 Seasonal Summer Salads

2009-08-06T10:28:00.000-07:00

Mark Bittman of the NY Times is amazing. He posted a wonderful list of 101 summer salads. So if you're in a rut, check this list out for great new ideas and combinations of seasonal ingredients.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/22/dining/22mlist.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss
Sometimes all a home cook needs is an inspiring list like this and then like magic a great seasonal salad is created and savoured!

Fish, Fennel and what else? Tomatoes of course!

2009-07-28T18:01:00.001-07:00

I’m still making tomato sauce for winter nights ahead, and trying to eat them now too. So yesterday after the sauce was finished, I decided to pair the sauce with fish. One of the vendors at our farmers market sells wild fennel pollen and I decided to use it in creating this easy healthy dish. This fish preparation uses the usual Mediterranean ingredients which of course includes the tomato sauce made with olive oil, garlic and onions, and with both fresh fennel & fennel pollen, and kalamata olives.
The fish I used was Orange Roughy but you can substitute another firm white fish.This can be baked in the oven but because its 100+ degrees in Visalia, I decided to baked this fish dish in heavy duty foil lined with parchment paper on my gas grill.
The method is simple: each ingredient is layered one on top of another, then the packet is folded shut and place in the center of a the medium high grill, and the cover is closed.
First place on the parchment/foil sheet, one sliced fresh fennel bulb, a small sliced red onion (¼ cup), ¼ tsp fennel pollen, cover these vegetables with ½ cup of your fresh (or thawed frozen) tomato sauce. Place 1 lb of fish filet on top, add another ½ cup of tomato sauce, another ¼ tsp of fennel pollen and ¼ cup chopped pitted kalamata olives. Bake just until the fish flakes easily and is no longer translucent. Open the packet and check with a fork after about 10 minutes. It’s not necessary to complete close the packet if you need to continue baking the fish.
This will serve 3-4 and is lovely with a lightly dressed fresh green salad.

Peaches, Peaches, Peaches

2009-07-16T11:49:00.000-07:00

Peaches are here and they are very juicy and delicious. Thankfully some of the best peaches are in our own farmer's market this month. This Saturday July 18, I was at the Visalia farmer's market demonstrating how to make stone fruit salsa, and you'll find a master recipe here. You can substitute peaches with pluots or nectarines, or use all three. This is good with chips or served with a chili rubbed grilled pork tenderloin, or grilled chicken. I used rice wine vinegar instead of citrus juice for the acid it was delicious. I also used lemon basil instead of the cilantro.

Peach Salsa
Because I think of fruit salsa as spontaneous and I use what I have on hand, it is hard to write a recipe for salsa, but there are a few guidelines. Use ripe but firm peaches, peeled or unpeeled; diced bell peppers and/or onion; an acidic liquid of some sort, either fruit juice or vinegar; and, if you don’t want to stop there, a handful of some other pungent or flavorful ingredient, from the spicy (chipotles, for instance) to the sweet (such as honey). The proportions of peaches to other ingredients can vary so this makes it extra hard to write a specific recipe, but here’s a good place to start.
Remember to start chopping and mixing, and when the salsa looks and tastes about right, let it sit for at least an hour or so to allow the juices and flavors to blend, and then serve/eat.

2 ripe, but firm medium peaches
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (or rice wine vinegar, or other citrus juice)
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup diced red and/or green bell pepper
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon (or to taste) minced jalapeno pepper, (or Serrano chili)
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste

Great with roast pork tender loin, grilled fish, or chicken breasts.

home grown tomatoes, home grown tomatoes....

2009-07-08T08:17:00.000-07:00

Only two things that money can’t buy are,
True love and home grown tomatoes…..

I guess I’m a better gardener than I thought, because my counter top is covered with large grape tomatoes, plump Romas and beautiful beefsteaks. So last night, under a full moon, I made classic marinara sauce and roasted a baking sheet full of grape tomatoes. I packed them in gallon zip lock bags, flattened them out and then placed them in my small, but essential, garage freezer.

Here are some tips on how to do the same with your own home grown tomatoes or some beauties from your farmers market.

I think my favorite tip this summer has been blanching garlic before using it. This takes out the raw flavor and mellows it a bit. It’s especially important when you aren’t cooking the garlic, such as in dressings. A good example is the classic Italian Insalata Caprese, a salad of sliced fresh tomatoes, layered between fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil leaves, topped with chopped garlic, olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar, plus fresh salt and pepper to taste.

To blanch garlic: Separate the clove, unpeeled and place a pot of boiling water for about 1- 1 ½ minutes. Drain, cool and peel. Store in a glass jar in the refrigerator until ready to use, within a week.
When making sauce, it best to take the time to peel and seed the tomatoes. If left on, the peel becomes a mini roll up and has unappealing texture, and the same is true of too many seeds.
Peel and seed tomatoes:
Place whole washed tomatoes with an X cut into the bottom, into a boiling pot of water to 30 + seconds. Remove the whole tomato, cool, then the peel will easily slip off. Cut each around the belly, then wiggle you r fingers into the seed pockets over the sink, to remove many of the seeds. There is a lot of flavor around the seeds so you don’t need to remove them all. Now you’re ready to add your fresh homegrown tomatoes to your favorite sauce recipe. Substitute these flavor bombs into any recipe that called for canned whole or diced tomatoes.
Roasting grape, Roma or large cherry tomatoes:
Wash and cut each tomato in half lengthwise. If needed, scoop out the green or white stem section. In a large bowl, toss with salt and pepper, chopped blanched garlic, olive oil, to cover but not drown . Place them face up on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet. Roast in 450° oven (or on a gas BBQ grill) until they have reduced in size and are beginning to brown. Top with chopped fresh basil, and serve along with bread or over pasta, on pizza etc.
A small batch of roasted tomatoes can be done using the same method and ingredients on the stove top. These will be wetter and are best served with good bread to soak up the juices. These are amazing and taste similar to sun dried tomatoes. When you pull them out of the freezer this winter, they will be a bit of summer sunshine.

For still more tomato recipes and a great guide to fresh herbs, from Food & Wine:

http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/tomatoes/1

http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/herb-guide

cool sorbet idea

2009-06-29T05:50:00.000-07:00

It's very hot everywhere in California, so here's a cool idea. Lavender is plentiful right now because it loves the dry heat of summer. Try this easy and elegant sorbet with some fresh lavender from your garden or farmers market. A small scoop alongside another sorbet like plum or even commercial ice cream is very beautiful.

A link to a video I did for the local paper last year is alongside. It includes 2 more sorbet recipes, one for strawberry and another for roasted apricots. Enjoy!

Lavender Sorbet
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
1 tablespoon lavender flowers
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice & 2 tablespoons vodka
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar and water until the sugar dissolves. Add the lavender flowers; stir until mixture comes to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand approximately 10 minutes.
Place a fine strainer over a large bowl and pour syrup mixture through (straining out the lavender flowers). Add lemon juice and vodka to the strained syrup mixture; stir until thoroughly blended.
Ice Cream Maker - Transfer mixture to ice cream maker, process according to manufacturer's instructions.
Freezer Method - Pour into container, cover, and place mixture in the freezer. When it is semi-solid, mash it up with a fork and refreeze again. When frozen, place in a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Cover and refreeze until serving time.

Grilling Squash

2009-06-20T16:53:00.000-07:00

Today's Farmers Market was full of squash so here's another great way to serve it. Make sure the grill is on medium not high and keep an eye on the squash. The key to the wonderful flavor is to put the seasoning on after you grilled the squash. In this case that is a lemon basil dressing. I usually serve this room temperature and prepare it on my gas grill before I do the meat, fish or chicken.

GRILLED ZUCCHINI AND RED ONION
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated May 2009
After about five minutes, faint grill marks should begin to appear on the undersides of the vegetables; if necessary, adjust their position on the grill or adjust the heat level.

Ingredients
1 large red onion , peeled and cut crosswise into four 1/2-inch-thick rounds
3 medium zucchini (about 1 pound), ends trimmed, sliced lengthwise into 3/4-inch-thick planks or a mixture of several different squash
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1 small garlic clove , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1/2 teaspoon)
1 teaspoon finely grated zest from 1 lemon plus 1 tablespoon juice
1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
Instructions
1. Thread onion rounds, from side to side, onto 2 metal skewers. Brush onion and zucchini evenly with ¼ cup olive oil and season with 2 teaspoons kosher salt (or 1 teaspoon table salt) and pepper to taste.
2. Whisk remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, garlic, lemon zest and juice, mustard, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt (or ¼ teaspoon table salt) together in small bowl; set aside.
3. Grill vegetables over medium heat, turning once, until tender and caramelized, 18 to 22 minutes (move vegetables as needed to ensure even cooking.
4. Transfer vegetables to platter; remove skewers from onion and discard any charred outer rings. Rewhisk vinaigrette and pour over vegetables. Sprinkle with basil and serve.

Pluots or Plum Torte

2009-06-17T16:46:00.000-07:00

The market is bursting with purple pluots and red fleshed plums right now and my favorite dessert of the summer is this classic torte. My mom shared this recipe with me many years ago; I think it's simplicity is the secret to it's fabulous flavor. You can substitute the plums out with nectarines or peaches when the mood strikes and these stone fruit are ripe.
A springform pan is essential, and can be used to make other cakes, like cheesecake.
PLUM TORTE

1 c sugar
½ c unsalted butter
1 c unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
2 eggs
12+ purple fleshed plums*, split in half
Topping: sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon

Cream the sugar and butter. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and eggs and beat well.
Spoon this batter into a 9-in springform pan.
Place plum haves skin side up on the top of the batter. Sprinkle lightly with sugar & lemon juice, depending on the sweetness of the fruit.
Sprinkle with about 1 tsp cinnamon.
Bake at 350 for 1 hour.
Remove and cool. Serve warm or cool, plain or with ice cream. Good for as breakfast coffee cake too.

*Or use pluots, nectarines or peaches

Farmers Market Demo, June 20, 2009

2009-06-15T19:44:00.000-07:00

This Saturday June 20, 2009 I'll be at the the Visalia Farmers Market (on the corner of Caldwell and Mooney Blvd) demonstrating a quick and easy stir fry that will help you use the ever abundant zucchini as well as other seasonal squash varieties, plus carrots and seasonal fresh herbs. This will be a colorful side dish with grilled chicken, burgers etc.
The key is to grate and drain the squash before stir frying to keep the vegies crisp, not soggy.
I hope you drop by on Saturday for a sample, and to tell me what you're cooking with our early summer San Joaquin Valley produce.

Confetti Squash & Carrot Sauté

Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated, July 1995

Use any fresh herb on hand, varying the amount depending on its
intensity. For instance, use two tablespoons of basil, parsley, or chives
but just one tablespoon of oregano, thyme, or tarragon.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons olive oil
3 medium squash, crooked neck, zucchini etc rinsed, trimmed,
shredded, and squeezed dry
2 medium carrots , peeled and shredded
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves , or tarragon, basil, or mint
Table salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Shred trimmed zucchini on the large holes of a box grater or in a food processor fitted with the shredding disk.
2. Wrap shredded (and drained, if instructed) zucchini in towels to squeeze out the excess liquid. Proceed immediately with recipe.
3. Heat oil in 10-inch (preferably nonstick) skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Add zucchini, carrot, and garlic; cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 7 minutes.
5. Stir in herbs and salt and pepper to taste.
6. Serve immediately.