Our 5th Annual Harvest Fair and Pumpkin Patch is this Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm. We go all out for this event and we’ll have something for everybody–animals, rides, crafts, facepainting, gourmet food, apple cider pressing, apple tasting, great music, demonstration bee hive, bagpipes, farm tours, and more! Here’s the rundown.
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Although this salad is known to many as Israeli salad, it seems it is more commonly called Arab salad in Israel. No matter what it is called, a variant of this exists in most places throughout the Middle East, and in Israel- a country of immigrants-there are hundreds of versions all based on family heritage or personal preference.
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This sauce walks a fine line between charred and simply burnt. The flavor hits something primal-earthy, funky, yet sweet. Some people are taken aback or put off by the first taste, but feel compelled to try it again, and then they slather on whatever they are eating. The sauce seems to bring flavors out of whatever it is with-steak tastes more beefy, yet gains sweetness. Salmon tastes more of the sea. Used with roasted winter squash and you get more nutty and sweet characteristics, and a gorgeous plate. It keeps well and is great to have on hand for adding to sandwiches, eggs, or dipping carrots into.
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Steve and I have been named as finalists for the 2013 Leopold Conservation Award. (We were finalists in 2012 as well–see Leopold Conservation Award). The $10,000 award is given to one California farmer each year by the Sand County Foundation, California Farm Bureau Federation and a group called Sustainable Conservation, to recognize “extraordinary achievement in voluntary conservation by private landowners.”
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Another recipe from the Quickles file. Cauliflower lends itself beautifully to this technique-it maintains it crisp texture yet no longer tastes raw, and the blend of lavender, fennel seed, and peppercorns brings out the sweetness of the cauliflower. The lavender will tint white cauliflower, but if you use purple cauliflower the color is even nicer. These are nice to serve as an appetizer or as a side to accompany braise and stews, roasts, burgers, or as part of a salad. They go really well with a dish of lentils topped with a poached egg. It turns out kids like them as well, and they last for quite a while in the refrigerator.
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The apple in this brings out the sweetness of the cauliflower, and the potato adds body and echoes the nutty flavors of cauliflower. The Apple Balsamic vinegar can be found in gourmet shops and better grocery stores. It is a syrupy vinegar made as Balsamic vinegar is made, but uses apple juice as a starting point rather than grape.
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We’re experiencing lovely days here on the farm as fall approaches, sunny and beautiful. The pumpkins are coloring up nicely and we’re getting excited for our Fall Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival coming u
p on October 5th. (Please plan to join us!)
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This does not use as much oil as a standard vinaigrette, so is much lighter. Excellent on cucumbers or a “slaw” of savoy or nappa cabbage with grated carrots. For sesame oil, I favor Kadoya brand for its pure clean flavor and aroma. If you can find it, try the Black Sesame seed oil for a deeper flavor. Using a blender for this dressing makes it a snap, although shaking it up in a quart jar with a tight fitting lid is good too.
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This is the basic polenta I serve at home in colder weather. When it is warm, I don’t bother with the mascarpone. If you do not use the mascarpone, you might want to up the Romano and/or Parmesan. The mascarpone or cream cheese adds silkiness to the polenta, and the corn stock adds depth and amplifies the natural corn flavor of polenta. You can use vegetable stock, or a meat stock also, or plain water works, too. Exercise caution while making polenta as it bubbles like lava and can burn! Long sleeves and a towel over the hand helps while you learn the ropes.
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Here, farro stands in for the rice in a little chewier, earthier rendition of risotto. Farrotto may actually predate risotto. This iteration, with the chard and plenty of garlic is quite down-to-earth, but you can use the same technique with mushrooms or lemon zest and juice to make it lighter flavored.
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This simple recipe gives tons of flavor from something that would normally be thrown out. This stock can be used to enhance dishes made with corn such as a succotash or corn sauce, or used instead of water when making polenta-it really makes the corn flavor sing here. It can also be used as a glaze by reducing it down to a syrup and then drizzling it on something like roast halibut or chicken.
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This dish is a medley of concentrated late-summer flavors. The fresh tomatoes are cooked down to concentrate their sweetness, and the polenta is made from stock made from corn cobs which really brightens its flavor.
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Blame it on Christopher Columbus. The whole pepper-chili thing. Pimienta is Spanish for pepper, and pepper was one the reasons Spain financed Columbus’ trip in the first place. He didn’t find pepper, but he did find a cheap fiery substitute. In an effort to link chilies to pepper he called them pimentos, which in turn was translated to peppers. In all likelihood, Columbus brought some back to Spain on his first return.
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The dice of colorful vegetables and the mix of flavors and textures is like confetti, making this easy soup a celebration of the season. If you have pesto in the refrigerator already, go with the pesto in lieu of the basil leaf shreds as it will reduce the workload. If you wish to make this a more substantial soup, think about adding beans or some pasta.
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This is a substantial salad that could serve as a light supper, and is about the interplay of the sweet, fruity, and acid, and soft components of the peppers, onions, and tomatoes in contrast with the crunchy, salty, slightly fatty roast pancetta wheel. Red Oak leaf lettuce is perfect for the bed. If you do not want to make the basil oil, substitute basil shreds and just use olive oil and balsamic vinegar. In lieu of pancetta, you could use buffalo mozzarella or goat cheese rounds. See Chef’s Notes for ideas.
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Here is a basic “recipe” I use a lot, especially in the summer; this is for “roasted” onions. It is more of a technique than a recipe, as it only calls for onions and flame, really. These onions are a key ingredient to my dark vegetable stock as they lend a depth of flavor, deep color, and the pectin helps to produce a density or viscosity to the stock that is usually derived from animal products. I use these onions in braises, soups, and salsas. Tossed with a little vinegar (red-wine or balsamic) then placed on toasts they make a nice quick appetizer. They elevate roasted peppers. These onions find their way into eggs, pastas, and sandwiches. Good for pizza, too. Grill a few and keep them in a sealed box in the refrigerator. They last 4-5 days.
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Inspired by Waldorf Salad, this has a lighter dressing and has cheese added, based on the classic pairing of apples and cheese.
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Made to go with Apple Celery Almond and Cheese Salad, this dressing is a natural for anything sharp and nutty as well. Arugula, sprouts, escarole, all would be complemented by this dressing.
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The winter squash have pretty much sized up as much as they are going to. We’ve cut the water off and over the coming weeks we will let the plants dry up completely and the squashes themselves to cure. I’ve heard people say
that sugars and nutrients flow from the drying vines into the squashes during this period, and whether this is true or not, the squash do seem to have better flavor and keep better when fully cured in this way.
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Our 40-acre home farm is divided into two parts. Approximately half of the farm is in an agricultural easement and must be used only for organic farming purposes in perpetuity. The other half, a mix of oak woodlands and hilly grassland that reaches down and into the waters of Harkins Slough, is in a conservation easement. It is forever safe from development and cannot be farmed either.
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Although this may sound odd, it is a wonderful flavor booster. Essentially, you are seasoning an oil for cooking or flavoring by cooking raw shrimp shells and aromatics and gently infusing oil with the flavors and aromas of a dish of sautéed shrimp. Use this oil to season fish before cooking, flavoring seafood soups and stews, pasta dishes, etc. It goes wonderfully with saffron and corn, and is at the base of a wonderful sauce of pureed fresh corn and saffron. If you only cook a few shrimp at a time, put the few shells into a zipper bag and force out all the air before stashing them in the freezer until you have enough to make the oil.
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Use this dressing where you might use a Louie (1000 Island type) dressing, or with seafood. This recipe was designed to go with the Romaine Salad with Seafood and Shellfish Dressing, which includes instructions for saving the liquid from draining tomatoes. If you are using tomatoes, and have the liquid from them as they drain, great! Use it for flavor and color. If not, don’t worry about it.
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This recipe takes its inspiration from Crab Louis salad, but the dressing is a lightened version made with oil infused with shrimp shells. This oil is very aromatic and wonderfully evocative of the sea. This oil is a great flavor booster for pasta dishes, seafood soups, bouillabaisse, or light sauces for seafood such as a red pepper coulis.
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Lacinato, also called cavolo nero (black cabbage), is a kale that benefits from long cooking. Its deep flavor and sturdy texture blend well with the chewy quality and sweet flavor of farro. This dish can be cooked with extra liquid to make a soupy dish, or cooked until dry as here. You could put the finished dish into an oiled gratin dish and crack eggs into it and bake it with cheese for a light entrée, or toss in sausage for a one pot meal.
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