Spring Art Boutique Delights

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:

1. Rub a 9 " round cake pan that is 1 ½" in height with about 2 tsp butter, then dust very lightly with flour.
   
2. Preheat the oven to 350°
   
3. Sift the flour, with the baking soda and salt, set aside.
   
4. 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.
   
5. Add the sifted flour mixture to the large bowl and fold gently with a spatula. Add the carrots, nuts and raisins. Fold in gently.
   
6. 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

1. Arrange orange slices, overlapping slightly, on large rimmed platter.
   
2. Whisk honey, pomegranate molasses, ground cinnamon, and sea salt in small bowl to blend; drizzle evenly over oranges.
   
3. Sprinkle oranges evenly with chopped dates.
   
4. 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

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

1. 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.
   
2. In the same pot, heat the olive oil.
   
3. Add the celery, onion and leek and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 7 minutes.
   
4. Add the chicken stock, 4 slices of the cooked bacon, 1 rosemary sprig and a pinch each of salt and white pepper.
   
5. Simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 15 minutes. Discard the bacon and rosemary.
   
6. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a blender or food processor.
   
7. 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.
   
8. Add all the peas and parsley to the processor and puree. Adding a few Tablespoons of broth to loosen the soup.
   
9. Transfer the soup and reaming broth to a large bowl set in another bowl of ice water to cool.
   
10. In a small sauce pan bring the cream, garlic and rosemary sprig to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for about 5 mins.
    
11. 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

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:

1. 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.
   
2. Trim the carrots and peel if using larger ones; or scrub the smallest baby carrots. Trim the tops leaving about 1"
   
3. 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.
   
4. 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.
   
5. 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

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

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

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

1. 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.
   
2. 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.
   
3. Repeat the blanching process 2 more times, covering the peels with fresh water and adding another lemon half.
   
4. 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.
   
5. 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.
   
6. 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.
   
7. Optional: dip one end in dark chocolate

Seasonal sweet treats: February means chocolate!

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.