Jesus did have a sense of humour is my guess.......

The day has come...I am now a shameless whore for promotion. Or am I? I am realizing in a climate of home canners, gardeners and fermenters : it is the ones who walk the talk and live as they project that have the real deal behind the lid.

So for the first time at Gourmet Grazing On The Green I got hassled about my riff on religion(one angry older gentleman who hadn't had a good belly laugh in years). I guess I'm a bad bad girl and that persons Jesus has no sense of humour. I mean no disrespect or blasphemy ...the very opposite and little levity in a era of rebuild after a very tough greedy economic disaster is healthy for all of us. Lighten up and see my passion for what I do and share with the public is not anything less than my version of love. OK nuff on that I really don't have time or energy to have a circular argument with someone over my sense of harmless humour. Fly your freak flag my friends. Come one come all you freaks, geeks, and all around characters I embrace you. Rest of you ease up  there are so many more important battles to be fought. Good thing "CHEESES OF NAZARETH" cheese shop isn't around here good golly could you imagine?

OK back to fun stuff....GOURMET GRAZING ON THE GREEN  The event of the season here in Santa Cruz county. A community fund raiser for local Cancer programs like Jacobs heart. It is an event that not only raises tens of thousands of local dollars(over a million since 1995) to help beat the big nasty C; yet a day for our public to be able to come face to face with those of us that feed and libate our fair county. From local beer brewers to wine makers, restaurants to the mom n pop operations that keep us who we are and local Market New Leaf with us little cottage industry food producers having a day to feed the souls of our community while loving those who couldn't be there because of the C word. We were one for a day and it really is an A HA moment when you are part of such a bigger animal.

Food is love and the binder that keeps humanity together. We ALL have some sort of relationship and culture with food (good or bad the relationship is there). For food is the bridge over troubled waters and this weekend proved that so beautifully. All of us people have so much more in common than ever gets admitted. Can you imagine if treaty talks were in a Grazing format? You just can't get pissed with beauty in your belly and sharing the experience with another. OK OK no Cumbayahh holding hands but just a real moment on a real day supporting real people. Not faceless corporations. You could bump into a Farmer, a brewer, a cook,a butcher, a cheese maker, a chef, a vintner his wife, a cupcake queen or even a littl ole jam girl all working, living with you in this county trying our best to make the world a little better place to live. Find fault in that.....

This weekend I was proud to be amongst my fellow lovers of the land and those who we feed. So when I'm toolin down the road in my little BLUE NUN that grin you see is my feeling good about my town.

OK all I have carrots to pick and cherries to macerate,I'm procrastinating as usual.

Go on get outside our summer has just arrived. The tourists are back to their lives now we can enjoy ours without the traffic and our beaches free. scoot!!!


Fellows at the Graze(if I missed you I so appologize)63 in all vendors......

Sones,  Beauregard,  Silver mountain,  Muns, B School,  Hallcrest,  Villa,  SC Mountain, Vino Tabi,  SCM Brewing, SmoQe,  Seabright brew,  Delk honey,  Coastal Catering, Rio, Shadowbrook, Johnnys H, Chaminade,  New Leaf,  Redwood hill,  Bargetto, Mission Hill Ice Cream,  Zameen, Alfaro,  Kathryn Kennedy,  Friend in Cheeses, Loma Prieta , Poetic, Stars cup cakes, Hollins house, Peachwoods, SC Farms,  Roudin Smith,  Hulas, a brewery in Capitola forgot name bomb beer, Fresh prep kitchens, ok Im stuck thats all I can recall.......

Point is what a collection of the finest SC has to offer all under one goal.....

Nobody sent me the memo Carrots are the IT thing to Jam.....

. Looking for my fall offerings I've been wanting to delve into the F.I.C. way of turning this sexy little root into a slamma jamma pairing for all things fall....wow whoa hey now WTF? I get on the old info highway and looky there the Blog -o -ramas have made the carrot the IT root to jam. Humph. ok well silly me once agin head down not realizing what the Jones' are up to and now I'm in challenge mode.
Reasearch has commenced and there have been an odd slighlty yawn- worthy attempts going on(from what I've seen). I bought a few and sat down with some Mahon and a nice little hunk of Burnet to see what these buggars had to offer. uhhh well hmmmm. Nice. pumpkin? Butternut squash perhaps? Lots of baking spice and orange yet not many signals that I was eating carrot. I almost got the baby food thing happening ....urge to spit up on my chin, burp, then shit my pants.....Is this the message I want to convey with my root offering? Computer says.. NO( Little Britain reference)
Now Now I'm not being a twat, I just didn't see anything out there in real life or cyber the idea I had for a carrot preserve. So I feel I can proceed without over doing the IT root of the season. There is room to rock this baby and I'm up for the challenge.
I think the root and I have a special bond. About ten years ago I had a bumper crop in Pleasure Point and was so proud of said crop I yanked up a root ,stomped to FU Tattoo in my muddy Wellies and told Jason"give me a big ole dirty root on my arm" He replied "of course you do Tabitha...sit down" The rest is history...I am a girl of the dirt and the carrot is my scepter I must find a better way........




CARROT JELLY

5.5C. fresh organic carrot juice (we love the Breville juice Foundation Elite)
STRAIN this pup through coffee filter or the resulting jelly will look like a fetus.
zest of two meyer or pink lemons juice of one
.5 C. fresh pressed apple juice
pinch of sea salt
pinch of fresh ground cardomon
pinch of Anardana powder (pomegranite pip dust)

ok here goes the odd bit....1C.golden sultans soaked in Grappa set aside longer they soak the better.

6T. pectin
8C. organic cane sugar you want that bit of molassas.

Boom chica Boom boom you now have your Mise En Place in order. Go roll up your sleeves, put on some clogs(trust me bulging veins from a career in standing will not get you laid)
A little Persian Music on the pod and a nice glass of Pomelo spritzer (xoxox Sean )

Time to get our Jelly on...

Big pot heavy bottom( like me)

Add juices, spices then heat for ten min to let the flavours mingle, do not rush this coutship she will betray you. Now add pectin while heat is on medium. Dissolve that pectin my friend or its a buggar party in the jelly. Bring to a full rolling boil almost can't stir down and add the sugar. dissolve all the sugar and once again bring to a full roiling boiling bubble. The timer is set for one minute exactly.

There is enough said these days about jars, clean, boiling etc....you know what to do ....sterilize , have ready to engage and all will be well in carrot town.

The minute is up. Pull off that heat and onto a heat absorbing surface.

In each jar add five soaked sultans.

pour through your trusty sterilized funnel half a jar of jelly . Then after all jars (approx 12) have been half filled add three or five sultans then topoff the jars  with remaining jelly. Skim the blech from the top, a small grapefruit spoon works best.The film will surrender if gentle.

Lid, then steam bath and the next morning when wake up with orange fingers and mouth. You know you did good. A turkey sandwich will never be the same......

Now atleast I know there is room for all of our creative bursts and this little puppy with her 24K sparkle will not let you down. Fall is near and the larder is full , share with your friends all that you've done this summer and sit back and enjoy a Bunnys best friend........Carrot jelly...


well a week later and I wont be using this recipe for my biz.... I love it my friends love it but I need and want better.....Cardomon Carrot Marmalade it will be.. I wanted more citrus tang to off set the carrot earthyness. so be it I can change my mind if I want to....

The reality of fruit math

This seasons bounty of stone fruit here in the Bay is one of the largest bumper crops I have ever witnessed in my cooking career. From little French plums with the bright yellow interiors, to Santa Rosa plums big sweet and crimson. I have been traveling to backyards, road sides and orchards with bucket in hand and dreams of sugar plum fairies helping me process all this fruit. Before this year BFIC(before friend in cheeses)I had no idea how much fruit it takes to create a jar of jelly,so lets do the math .

Yesterday ten a.m. drove to Willow Glen to a private home to pick about 65 to 70 lb of amazing plums. done by noon with a tub full of near perfect aubergine orbs. Then off to the kitchen. In a stock pot(big enough to fit a ten year old boy) rinsed the fruit de leaved and added zest of three lemons ,split a vanilla bean and added two gallons of water and a good toss of sea salt. 12:30pm. Cooked the plum slurry for about an hour to soften and let the color of the skins bring its bit to the plum party. Take off heat and strain three times with smaller mesh each time for fining. One p.m. Now 65-70 lbs of fruit yielded me as you see in photo only 21 gallons of juice that still needs one more strain after completely chilled so solids fall to bottom. Four hours later not one jar of finished product......

LAVENDER PLUM JELLY

Ball canning recipe with my twist.(use Ball recipes for the formula then color outside of the lines from there)

Have 8 80z jars sterilized and lids ready to go. Keep jars warm in low heat 150 in oven so when adding molten jelly your jars won't explode.FYI.

5cups of strained fined Plum juice

1cup unfiltered cold press apple juice(I do Mac apples from my tree)

pinch of salt

split of 1/4 vanilla bean scrape seeds good visual in the finished product

6T of prepared crystal pectin (dextrose,fruit pectin. citric acid)

Big non reactive pot please

add above ingredients and whisk the pectin til completely dissolved. 

Bring to a full roiling boil . boiling like it is about to crawl up side of pot and spill over.

Now for every cup of sugar have a t. of Lavender let sugar/lavender infuse at least six hours..

7.5C of Lavender infused sugar.

Add to the boiling plum party whisking constantly till all sugar is fully dissolved. Important for no lumpy bumpy jelly.

Bring back to the full roiling boil and set timer for one minute. No more no less ONE MINUTE. so don't got pour a drink or feed the Squirrel stay put and watch this pot.

Pull pot after the minute is up.

Remove jars from oven and do not place directly on counter temp can explode the jars. Keep on sheet pan or sil pat. Get your canning funnel (of course its sterilized) and pour the jelly into a tempered glass measuring cup with a pouring lip.

fill your jars leave an air gap  then  with a spoon skim the top of jelly to remove scum and the lavender heads. I lets a few float on top for a very pretty visual when the jelly is opened. Lid . Then off to the steam bath they go. 10 min please.

Pull from steam pot. Let cool and set 24 hour and don't move them til they completely set.

Viola 10 hours later 65-70 lbs of fruit is now in jars with a crystalline shimmer and unlimited possibilities in the world of pairing. So when you raise your eye at my $8.00price tag for 8 oz do remember all the love, care, time and labour it took to bring you this jar of summer from your own "backyard"it really is an investment in your community, culinary happiness and the preservation of American food traditions. Not ofter such importance passes your lips.

 Literally a jar of self harvested local small batch jelly takes over 24 hours before one jar is ready. From picking, processing, fining, producing, setting it takes time alot of time to make sure you have access to a product only time can give. If I cut corners and shaved time you could tell and tell me an earful of why it is just not the same....I refuse to short cut. For me this is the time very well spent for you for me and for food in general. Respect. 

with cheese, french toast, salumi , foie gras or on your fingers this sexy little minx will be a favorite for sure.

Thank you and this is my story and I'm stickin to it.

Mama has purple fingers,sore feet and smile....wink

Hail to the Tannins......

 

My baby English Black walnuts growing away. Between me laying in my hammock below while La Quita my near tame PREGNANT Squirrel(she's a floosey I can't control) loads up on these tender green morsels.
My grand plan this season is one with two countries in mind.....To Make batches of Nocino and jars of Pickled walnuts. A little bit country a little bit Roman. So here I patiently wait for another week or two while the tannin filled green cocoons are still intact.
I'll get back when the time is right, I just wanted to whet your appetite for what's to come. A little Liqueur to go with a Charcuterie Terrine studded with this English delight. Behold the tannins and rope them into submission I say!
Ok enough procrastination my Dragons Lace seedlings are glaring at me, time to plant .....good day from the GHETTO VINEYARD in the SKY

OK I'm back and have alot to report...so hang tight and learn a little bout this hard nut to crack the WALNUT. Now as you know there is history lesson we need to cover before we get in the nut and pickle her.

In the early 1800's Spanish Franciscan monks established missions along the California coast. Part of their taming of the natives included the cultivation of food, plants, trees and fermentation(wine baby wine)  in the areas surrounding the missions. One area that eventually became the city of Walnut, California, was home to the San Gabriel Mission named for the Gabrielino Indians, originally of Shoshone origin. Many acres of walnut trees, originally brought from Spain, were planted here and became known as "mission walnuts." These first walnut trees produced small nuts with very hard shells. Good to have a mighty farm truck to run them over to get at the meat...just sayin.
During the first half of the 1800's, land grants of several acres were issued, and ranchos were established. Walnut groves became well established on these land grants by the1870's in Southern California near Santa Barbara.
In 1867 Joseph Sexton, a horticulturist, initiated California's first commercial walnut enterprise when he planted a grove of English walnuts in Goleta, a small town in Santa Barbara County. Within a few years, 65% of all fertile land in this region was planted with Sexton's English walnuts.
In spite of this early success, by the late 1930's the commercial walnut business was destined to move northward to Stockton, California, where improved irrigation, better pest control, ideal climate, and rich soil were more conducive to larger yields.
Today, the California walnut has found its ideal home in the center of the state, an area that produces 99% of the commercial United States walnut supply which is odd to me, I grew up in Fresno a nary a walnut tree did I spy.. On the global market, California produces two-thirds of the world's supply of walnuts. Other countries that grow commercial walnuts include Turkey, China, Russia, Greece, Italy and France.
Though the first walnuts to arrive in the United States came from Spain in the early 1800's, the French contributed many of their varieties during the latter part of the nineteenth century. Ofcourse the French wanted a piece of the action.

La Quita spying on us while we picked the green nuts....she was chattering away about my cat Oscar Wilde having a mad crush on my surley Old English Speckled Hen Aunt Sponge..humph who'd a thunk. K back to history of das Nut.
So anyhoo let's back up a touch and get a bit of sense of how this baby has all sorts of cultures claiming the walnut as thier own. The walnut has a very hard shell and lasts for several months without much thought or care making it a perfect travel snack for the Neolithic traveler(not the Irish type in a caravan)thus showing up in the Himalayas, Persia(claims origin) Turkey, Shanidar caves of Iran and was also found in an ancient shit pile in Switzerland. Alrighty then. The Greeks clain first to cultivate but failed . Small nuts with small oil yeild.Persians did much better. Same period in Perigord France petrified Roasted shells have been unearthed. Traveling nut she was.....
Point being this mighty one was all over in a very short peiod of time and was highly regarded...Persian Walnut were only consumed by the royal family and in 2,000BCE tablets were discovered with great details of the Mesopotamian (Iran)Gardens of Babalons large walnut groves....
ok enough I'm bored too.

From Baklava to Nocino there is a plethora of varied cuisines that feature the walnut. I'm going to my roots for this easy recipe to pickle the young nuts. But before we gotta fight the mighty tannins

So there it is through the eyes of a chemist.

Tannins are a large astringent (meaning it tightens pores and draws out liquid)with proteins.

When you apply ( cant get this sentance to jive sorry)

tannins  to your skin you can instantly see the skin contract. Put them in your mouth and your cheeks pucker. Medicinally, tannins are used to draw irritants out of your skin such as the venom from bee stings or poison oak. Next time you get stung, pull some fresh bark off the twig of a nearby tree, chew it up and apply it to the sting. The irritation will go away within seconds. Tannins are also applied to burns to help the healing and to cuts to reduce bleeding.

Another every day interaction with tannin is in tea (from the tea plant....not herb teas). The tradition of adding milk to tea has the added benefit of causing the tannins to bind to the proteins in the milk rather than to the proteins in your liver and kidneys. When you drink tea without milk, you are literally tanning your insides.

Tannins occur in nearly every plant from all over the world, in all climates. It is found in almost any part of the plant, from root to leaves, bark to unripe fruit (ever bitten into an unripe persimmon?). Algae, fungi and mosses do not contain much tannin. Many plants don't contain a useful amount of tannin.Most trees contain plenty of tannin. It is concentrated in the bark layer where it forms a barrier against microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria (when hides are stuck into tannin baths the bacteria are also killed).

PICKLED WALNUTS WITH ALOT OF INTERPRETATION

Pick the walnuts whilst they are still green and the outer shell is still soft. Most recipes say that June is about the best time to pick them yet this slow to start season has my trees a little behind the nut. We picked the first day of July and there was alot less nuts than I had expected Mother Nature will do as she very well pleases.... The soft shelled walnuts are then soaked in a BRINE (salt water)  salty enough to float an egg and change brine with fresh every five days for up to 12 days. The walnuts are then drained and left to dry in the air(top of my hot tub is a great place but the squirrels just think Ive left scooby snacks so I keep the nuts in a chicken wire basket with a mesh lid to keep the snackers out. . The fluid(tannic acid) in the walnuts causes a chemical reaction to take place and the walnuts turn dark brown to black in colour. The now black walnuts are then placed into jars and a PICKLING solution poured over them. This can vary from a straight forward pickling VINEGAR to a solution containing spices and sugar. The walnuts are sealed and then left in the jars for anywhere between 5 days and 8 weeks depending on which recipe is followed.

Vague I know......6% white vinegar is best and traditionally clove,  ginger,cinnamon, are the classic. I use pink peppercorn, one star anise,one stick of cinnamon, a few pods of cardomon and a bay leaf . The ammounts is up to your taste and  understanding of each spice. Clove or Anise tread lightly yet cinnamon likes to party. Fresh ginger vs dried will bring different atributes as well. For a batch with 10- 8oz jars filled with nuts .......vinegar to fill, 1 star anise, 1 stick of cinnamon, pinch of cardomon, pinch of pink peppercorn and a bay leaf last  3T. sugar. Heat this party up to get the flavours rollin and bring to a boil then fill jars. Seal and put them up.....

Wait ohh wait you will. By Thanksgiving the pickles should be begging off the shelf for a soire'e of cured meats, cheeses and all things fall...nmeat pies, terrines and Bourbon.

Thats my story and I'm stickin to it....

Now the 40 yes 40 gallons of five types of plumb juice needs to surrendered into my plumb lavendar jelly, Persian compote,butter and ice cream(reward for boy racer and all his help). The beauty of living in the most wasteful of societies is there is tons of fruit who have lived out thier life looking pretty on a tree in a suburban hood just waiting for me to glean.

 

Sweet alliums come to mama

After a long weekend feeding the souls of the adventurous ones out in the Santa Cruz Mountain AVA

Jams,preserves ,jellies n such have brought out a bevvy of enthusiasts with love in their heart and not much skill to back the want for a lovely product. (calm down I'm not talking about you it is just a generalization to make my point)Hence the world of sweet vs savory and the balance that has been forgotten.

  I have nibbled my share of "onion jams" from SKILLET Truck (or Airstream) to Bbq joints all over and I have been let down ,even dissapointed a bit. Overly sweet forced jams with hunks of onion either cooked to death or not near  it's destiny: origin unknown with too much brown sugar no spice and sitting on the fence of blechhhh.

  Time and a little care can create a celebration of the mighty allium. As complex as a wild ramp or as simple as a globe red oinion. So today I'm going to let you in on my secret, my recipe that keeps a roof over my head selling my wares to the fine folks of the Bay....Join me on a bit of a journey and isnt anything worth its value a journey?

 

SPRING ONION JAM

This sweet, sour, savory nuggets of lumpy  love could be thought of as a Marmalade but the jam like consistancy is more my liking in terms of definition.

4 lb Pipin or Granny Smith Apples

1lb of red globe onions. gather all the papery peels and do not toss this is an important ingredient when making you stock .the color with bring a vibrancy and a color that will zingggggg

2 oranges zested and halved

2 cinnamon sticks

1T madras curry

pinch of sea salt

3C. white wine vinegar 5%

3C Turbinado sugar

OK time to get the stock pot out. halve the apples toss in the pot , cut the tops and bums from the onions and peel the papers and toss in pot. ohhhh just add everything except the sugar and skinned red onions.

Add a cup of water to the slurry and place over med high heat til all the apples are almost completly broken down. The house is going to smell exotically intoxicating with the curry ,cinnamon mingling with the apples cirtus and skins.

Strain the stock and soak in the amazing color and smells that will rise form the slop. A Chiniose works best and another pot to catch this elixir. After draining (put a weight on the slurry to get every bit of liquid and flavour this mess has to offer)

Put aside.

Break out your Mandoline and set the blade ot 1/8inch and slice all the remaining onions.

Add to stock and refridge over night, this flavour bomb needs some alone time to get to know each other and macerate the onions. DO NOT CHEAT you miss this step its all going to be in vain when your jam sucks. Sooo it's day two.

Pull out your stock pot with the happy pool of crimson onion goodness. Add your sugar and whip out the candy thermometer we are going to 220 and it's gonna take a bit so pour a bourbon and pull up a stool you are gonna be at the stove for a spell. Begin on high and let the onions start to soften in the pool of spice and onion essence. As soon as it begins to hard boil and rise lower the temp to be able to handle the lot. The added cooking time tenderizes the onions in a way only time can achieve. The photo below is the onions beginging to become translucent and you are only a third of the way done. the changes you see will clearly signify the stages of this process in the long wait to get to 220 (jelly set temp) It seems from 218-220 is a long ten minutes again do not walk away you will be let down.

After about fifteen minutes the onions take on the deep jewl tones of the stock and your house is purfumed for the rest of the day. You know you are getting closer and the liquid takes on a thicker slower bubbling roll almost like they turned to Bubble Machine soap. The slow gurgling and verge of the oinions breaking down is the sign you are almost there. 218 hovers on the thermometer for what seems a decade and then the mercury jumps to attention and pops right on the 220 mark .Count to twenty and pull the pot. Sweet JEEZUS something very special just entered your life.

Let this pup cool for about three to five minutes while you dig up your stick mixer with I hope a metal not plastic blade.(will melt trust me)Whizzz your jam just to break up the long strings of jammed onion for easier consumption. a long string of onion jam slapped on your chin after a big bite of that Buffalo buger can be a bit nasty. I like my food in my mouth not on or around it.

There you have it a complex enticing jam that is worth its time and a little effort. A jar of this in your hand when going to a weekend cook out you are sure to be the hero. This picture is of my Charcuterie and Spanish cheese plate that I served last Friday for my wine club at a local restaurant with a bright Albarino, onion jam, spicy dry Chorizo, Caper berries, Picholine olives, almonds, La Serna(washed rind triangle in the back) , Beuna Alba (cheese slivers in front)and San Simon(the batons under the chorizo). The grilled onions were a great exercize in different onion application and last a bit of my forbidden fruit marmalade. (we  covered that already) 

Agian if you don't wanna just call me I've got ya covered.

BEUNO APPITTO

Turophile is'nt a dirty word.......

 I know the photos are not exactly about Starter cultures and Bag cheeses......but it's in the same neighbor hood of tried and true tecniques and tools are some times your best ally in the world of food.
OK this cheese grater is from the oldest Italian restaurant in San Jose (Paolos)and this grater has been keeping pasta loving folks in Granna, Parm,Crotin,Pecorino etc etc for almost a century. If only this baby could talk.....so just enjoy the pictures of a working piece of historic food art while I wax on about the essentials of Mesophillic Starters and a cheese to make with it....(yes mom I knmow never end a sentance with a preposition blah blah blah)





MESOPHILIC STARTER CULTURE

There are a ton of variatals of cultures to make a ton of different types of cheeses, yet all are either from two catergories. 1. Mesophilic the low temp lover (below 102 degrees) 2. Thermophilic(heat lover hence the THERMO prefix) Soft cheeses in general are in need of the Meso Culture and today I'm whippin some GERVAISE today so Meso is the word......

Now ofcourse you can ring up New England Cheese Supply and they will gladly send you some freeze dried packes to keep in the freezer for your cheese making whims but that is not fun and to make your own will give a better depth of flavour depending on how far you let the culture set.


 2 cups of FRESH store bought Cultured Buttermilk.( different from the whey left over after a butter churnin party)

2. Let the 2 cups of buttermilk reach room temperature (70 degrees F/21 degrees C).I put mine on top of the ice box it's warm n cozy up there.

3. Then allow the buttermilk to ripen for about 6-8 hours. (Store bought buttermilk does not have a high enough concentration of bacteria to serve as a starter culture without ripening.)

4. The resulting buttermilk will be much thicker and sour then what you started with. It should have the consistency of fresh yogurt, if it doesn't let it sit a few more hours.

5. Pour this culture into a full sized CLEAN ice cube tray and put into your ice box. As with all steps of cheesemaking, cleanliness will save your ass to wash up.

6. Once frozen, remove the cubes and put into a CLEAN sealed container or plastic freezer bags. It is a good idea to label the container and date.

7. The resulting ice cubes are each 1 ounce of mesophilic starter.

8. Add these cubes (thawed) to your recipes as required. The cubes will keep for about one month.

To make more starter simply thaw one cube and add into 2 cups of fresh milk. Mix thoroughly with a fork or a whisk. Allow the milk/culture to stand at room temperature (70 degrees F/21 degrees C) for 16-24 hours or until the consistency of fresh yogurt. Then follow from step 5.

This is the easiest and greenest way to go about culture needs. Ordering and having it sent takes paper, electricity, petrol and the carbon footprint is so not worth the fun you can have doing it yourself especially since you have to power and control to set how much influence your culture can have on your finished product.

GERVAISE CHEESE (BAG CHEESE)

WTH? you ask is Gervaise..well I'll tell ya. This easy, minimal equiptment fresh cheese come from the Cote D'or region of France and what else hails from the GOLDEN DOOR? Wine baby lots n lots of world class wine. That being said where there is wine being produced there is certainly Goat and Sheeps milk cheeses to follow. Gervaise is similar to Neufchatel but Normandy has it's own twist with less fat content and Gervaise to me when you bag it for a bit longer has a lovelyness I can't resist almost Chevre esque but not. Gervaise has a longer history of a peasant cheese that didn't get much gormand respect until recently when us wacked out Turophiles found this to be easy, yet complex at the same time....Kinda like moi. Oh and I can get Boy Racer to do anything if I give him some on a hunk of crusy bread and my Spring Onion Jam...

DAY ONE ...YES DAY ONE

2 2/3C.  Whole goats Milk
1 drop liquid rennet & 2T. water (enzyme from stomach lining of Kid or Thistle; in mid Evil times in France, Italy they set cheeses with snail phlegm...really)
1 1/3C. Goat cream (sorry you gotta find a goat farm or get a cream seperater) If unavail you can use Cows cream. But try to find it. In Bay area you have a ton of resources.
2oz or 2 cubes of Meso starter defrosted in a sterile glass cup or bowl.

Mix the dairy together in a sterile bowl and whisk. (sterilize all equipt before hand with hot water and 1T of bleach to gallon of water)
Warm to 65F add the defrosted culture.. Mix Mix Mix
Add the drop of rennent to the water before introducing to the dairy rave goin on .
Add to dairy and stir gently for five minutes. STOP Stirring if milk begins to coagulate.
Let her set for twenty four hours in a draft free warm area covered in cheese cloth to avoid bugs,pets or dust from contaminating the curds o love.
DAY TWO

Now the cheese should be pulled from the sides of pan and the solids should be a mass with watery whey on the edges. jiggle this puppy and a Jell-o jingle will play in your head. Basta the curd has set. waka waka waka pass the Bourbon please...

You can either make one large mass and ladel into a Chinoise(cone shaped collander or China cap us cheffys call it) with a layer of sterile cheeses cloth lining the Chinoise. between ladels sprinkle sea salt or herbs or nothing but atleast salt it will raise the flavour bar. DO NOT toss the drained whey please. You can feed your garden, a kitty, boil potatoes, pasta or make a batch of Ricotta (twice cooked) waste makes hjaste and I have not time for that. Back to curds while draining you might need to get your sterile spatula and scrape down sides of Chiniose. Drain for up to six hours depending on how "tight"you want your cheese.

Me on the other hand as you see in the above photo I use cheese baskets 10oz size for easier to store,serve and handle plus I love the basket weave shape after. so I do same as above but in the small baskets.

When you are done wrap in wax paper or cheese paper(wax on one side) and store in a drawer in fridge. Never ever would you put your prized cheese in the door or with the rest of food to adopt a bevvy of not nice smells and flavours. Ofcourse you would'nt. Now chop chop get to eatting this is only to last a week if you can resist that long. So there you have it, a lovely little ditty bout culture and curds...

go on get cooking.......

FONDUE :FLAME,FUN AND SAUCERY

Once apon a time, a very lonely Swiss shepard, tending his flocks on a precipitous and isolated Alpine slope, sat down to eat his customary meal of bread,cheese and wine. "my GOD!" (well perhaps Mein Gott! if he was in a German speaking canton,which is more likely. )"I simply CAN NOT face this stuff AGAIN! There must be ein anderer Weg !"And so,in sheer desperation,he lit a fire under his iron pot(standard shepherd equiptment)and did something that was to shake the food world to its very foundation :he melted the cheeses and wine together in the heated pot,and then dunked his sturdy peasant bread into the hot dreamy mixture.

This,so ledgend has it,was the first fondue. Im not of a mind to dispute this tale. The Swiss,after all ,in addition to making first class cuckoo clocks,growing edelweiss and yodeling are ardent dunkers,starting with thier morning hot cocoa and dipping steadily through after dinner coffee.

FONDUE SANTA CRUZ STYLE

The extra kick ass ingredient in this cheese fondue is Porcini mushrooms, which is found all over the Santa Cruz mountains during the rainy season(which will NEVER end this year...3.2 inches June 4,2011). They will simmer in the cheese imparting a rich earthy nose and the terroir driven effect is so worth the addition to this amazing fondue. If you prefer a simple cheese fondue you are on the wrong page. Ofcourse a classic simple kirsch laden fondue has its place but why oh why be average when here in California we have right in our back yard such amazing gifts from Mother Nature.

4T.  Of a good local Alambic brandy such as OSOCALIS , pure heaven made right in Soquel at Soquel Vineyards Home base, by the former distiller from Germain-Roban waka waka waka
3T arrow root ( binder and thickener so proteins wont jack up your Swiss adventure)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for serving
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 cups dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
1 Big  garlic clove, minced
1t. gresh grated nutmeg or for cool factor grate the nutmeg righ before searving to get garlic smell off your digets and the perfume of the spice will be heaven. Last the little red freckles of nutmeg on top is visual candy.
as much fresh black pepper as your heart desires my muffin.
1 pound high quality alpine cheese such as Gruyère, Emmental, Comté. grated
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms,wizz em in the spice grinder to a coarse grind.
1 loaf peasant bread, cut in 3/4 inch cubes. or more....boiled fingerling potatoes, hari coverts, beets,apples, fingers.......

Note: Have all of your ingredients ready before you begin  I.E. Mise en Place baby . Once you start, the fondue will come together quickly, and during this time it must be constantly stirred. The fondue must not come to a boil during this time.

Combine brandy, arrow root, salt, 1/2t. black pepper or more or less nobody will judge, and nutmeg in a small bowl, stirring to dissolve the arrowroot. Set aside.  Slurrry it tis.
Add wine and garlic(when fondue pot is empty rub the whole clove of garlic all over the inside of pot to purfume the party) into a large heavy saucepan or fondue pot. Heat over medium heat until tiny bubbles form, giving the wine a fizzy appearance without bringing to a boil. Add cheese one handful at a time, whisking constantly until each handful is melted before adding the next – do not let the fondue boil.
Once cheese is added, continue stirring one minute – do not let the fondue boil, broken record....
Stir in slurry. Continue stirring until mixture thickens to fondue consistency. ( If your fondue remains thin, add 1 more tablespoon arrow root diluted with 2 tablespoons white wine.) If using Porcini, stir the mushrooms into the cheese at this point. Remove from heat. Pour cheese into a warm fondue pot if necessary. Serve immediately hopefully with big glasses of Kabinet a hot tub a bubblin and some Rev. Al Green a croonin. Clothing optional or even have a key party.....

Eat up let the cheese drip down your chin have some levity and just be in the moment of a party food of the Seventies and a survival meal for Shepards.


Mamma loves you

It is the JOURNEY not the destination that counts...

Getting my ducks in a row before an event tomorrow. I love the process beyond the food. Its the visual feast of the supporting actors when a spread is presented that gets my heart beat going. The secrets behind the philosophy of form n function in still life. Oh Rocking out to Genesis Lamb Lies Down on Broadway..Its that kind of day. Pass the Single Malt....go on do something with your day. Scoot.
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Mmmmm Asian Red meat!

May just never warmed up here in Santa Cruz and Winter veggies are still reigning supreme.I jumped to the opportunity to serve up some of my favorite roots. Radishes. Now in general most Americans think of radishes as these red things to avoid on a bland sad veggie tray from the Mega Super. Alas America you are once again missing the boat to simplicity. This vibrant little love is a cousin to the Daikon and at first glance looks like any other Turnip. Then you break open this beauty and a rainbow winks back from deep ruby to a faded Irish moss the colors says so much to the eyes when anticipating the mouths adventure.

       In Mexico the classic red radish is a perfect mate to some spicy fare to cool the palate yet leave a bite. Where as in France ,Spain and throughout the Mediterranean little Breakfast Radishes (small long half white half pink)eaten as a late afternoon snack with sweet cream butter and sea salt is simple perfection.

       The Watermelon Radish or Rose Heart or Shinrimei,Xin li Mei and my favorite the Asian Red Meat Radish. Is very common in Asian cuisine world wide and the almost sweet quality of this radish goes so well with salty fatty foods. Not only is the Meat Radishes Colors an amazing addition to any plate it is a stand alone beauty that signifies a lazy afternoon enjoying the simplicities of life.

      The plate above is a combo of classic red radish to give a spicy bite with some local Watermelon radish, Pork Salumi, my very own sweet cream cultured butter and a small dish of dried Porcini sea salt. If memory serves we drank a wonderful tank fermented SCM Chardonnay and a Mendocino Malbec Rose.........Thank you my little Red Meat..........

Even if its out of season there still is a reason to pull out the jam pot.

My beyond nice neighbour came over yesterday with a big bag of vine tomatoes. She was gifted these babies and now I am the proud parent of re gifted out of season food. What's a girl to do? Well waste not no matter the season. Sooo. I whip out the smoke box and got the jam pot warmed up.
Soaking some apple wood in apple juice while the oven heats up. Halved the tomatoes, quartered a shallot,cut up an apple, splash o Balsamic a plop of brown sugar sea salt pepper and a rangy handful of creeping thyme from the garden. All in a pyrex.
Drain the apple juice soaked chips and got my lil smokie on the bottom of oven with pyrex on lowest rack. And...the oven door shuts. 25 min. Til its all brown bubbly hot mess.
ok here we are at hot bubbly mess in the pyrex. The house is filled with apple wood smoke. cough cough choke ...blechhhhh ahhhhh I love it. The dog smells like a camp fire so as you see in my insane close up of molten hot tomatoes n apples, the caramelization on the edges and broken down nature of it all is telling you its gonna be a good night in Jam town.

 She surrendered to fifteen minutes in the pan with some apple cider vinegar, some more sugar and dose of sea salt. 220 takes forever to get to but oh so needed to get that perfect jam consistency.
Patience Grasshopper it will pay off in grand ways. so I only yielded one vintage pint canning jar plus enough to bribe Boy Racer to wrangle the chickens tonight.
I need to tweek this recipe for certain so I'm not telling you yet all the details. Its a tad lack luster in the smoke department. I need to let it play Fire House a bit longer. I think more shallot would be nice balance and get the sugars right. Now don't get me wrong it rocks and I'm gonna be macking on Chevre dipped in this elixir of Love Apple goodness for awhile. It just can be better and this was a very cool Canary in the coal mine experiment.
So awesome that a gift from a neighbor(thank you DJ xoxo)has gotten me on a Dexters Lab afternoon on this much too temperate Sunday in May up here on the Ghetto Vineyard.

RIVER CAFE ....THIS IS AN artisnal Cheese plate.

Went to check out the River Cafe formerly the River St Cafe and Cheese Shop.
Looked basically the same in side minus the small "coffin" cooler of cheeses and fresh local products. More room to sit. Very nice looking composed salads in the case and a small menu on chalk board. Ok good start. I look up (bit high but small space) there were some nice breakfast items and a small selection of lunch nibbles. Ohhh sweet a Cheese plate an ARTISINAL CHEESE plate at that for $11.00 bucks. Ok let's see what these ladies have to say about said Cheese Plate...."Hi , so what cheeses do you have today on the cheese plate" I ask with a smile. UHHHH pregnant pause. "Uhh hmm I don't know maybe Gouda?". "Oh can you see what cheeses being artisinal and all I'd love to know" so she asked a cute girl in the pantry area what the selection was. " We have Gouda, Blue and Carmody" "Great what type of Blue and where? I know Carmody awesome. Gouda? Milk? Region, age?" You'd thought I'd asked her if her if she had Beaver milk cheese. She looked at me like I was an idiot. Sighed at me and told me finally Point Reyas Blue, Carmoday and some three year Gouda maybe goat no idea from where. I asked to taste the gouda still not deterred. She brought out a plastic wrapped hunk of Definitely Rembrandt Gouda(mass produced Dutch Cows milk) shaved me a piece that was all plastic taint hell and walked away. Uhhhh WTF? For $11.00 people should know what they are getting not attitude. I gave up ordered a yumm VERVE coffee Macchiatto and left.
Just bummed me out. I do not know if it is the same owner (I think Heidi) and knowing its a small local shop was so hoping it could have been better. There was ALFARO wines to sip but a half empty bottle of room temp Rose on display case? And the nasty exchange for no reason is not going to help bring folks in the door. Very pricey for such service. $12.00 for Cheese toast? And $11.00 for a trio of uninteresting mass produced cheeses minus Carmody I love. I give. So I post a picture of my event last Saturday at SKOV winery. That is Artisnal. That is Cheese and that's no Bull.
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Over analysing food is over rated. Stop drop and roll with the beauty.

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A stolen moment when the universe is a perfect place

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Through my Irish eyes...

There once was a man from Ghass whose balls were made of glass. He clicked then together and played Stormy Weather and lightning came out of his ass.......... Have a great day.