Classic holiday appies and aperitifs

Filling for 1/2 doz. eggs: all yolks, bit of mayo, relish that has had liquid drained, chopped ripe olives (any type, or combo of several; save pimento for garnish), bit of prepared mustard (go with something textural, like whole grain, english pub mustard), s & p, and any other seasoning that moves you.  Forget using *anything* inedible as bedding for your finished eggs.  Here, Touching Earth's microgreens were a perfect element for plating up these delicious, pop-the-whole-thing-in-your-mouth deviled eggs.  :)

"Fresh" eggs are actually not the best eggs to use for deviled eggs.  Be sure to use older eggs (eggs keep for weeks if properly stored in the fridge) if you want to end up with smooth whites for your presentation.  With fresher eggs, the shell and its membrane are difficult to pull off the cooked albumin, resulting in less-than-favorable chunky whites.

Herbed butter and Sunnyfield Bakery's butternut squash bread --the only way to fly for this cold-smoked Coho salmon!  Herbs used for the butter included chervil (lots!), tarragon, parlsey and chives.  Yum.

I refuse to buy farmed salmon for many reasons, the least of which is its bland flavor.  With native stocks of wild salmon protected uunder the Endangered Species Act, I break the rule of localness and opt for wild salmon harvested from waters on the west coast--specifically those caught via sustainable methods, and the sales of which sustain communities that depend on healthy rivers and fish.  Many brands sell only farmed fish.  Look for those who procure wild salmon, particularly from one-line, one-hook methods.

Visit Ceres Street Wine Merchants for your holiday bubbles and stills!  David is awesomely knowledgeable and friendly (and a punny guy), and the atmosphere of his store is nostalgic and quaint.  You'll love it.  For our Thanksgiving nibbles we highly enjoyed this bottle of Moncontour's dry rosé that he recommended.  He did us right with its versatility; it was perfect with the salmon.

Oysters.  Learn how to shuck them properly, i.e. do not pop their hinges while holding them under running water.  I almost popped the big one when a friend did so with oysters they bought for serving on the half-shell.  Invest in a proper oyster knife or choose your best paring knife--one with a super rigid blade, watch a fishmonger or as many online videos as it takes, and then give it a go.  These local water quality improvers found their demise in a batch of classic New England oyster and bacon stuffing (thank you once again, New Roots, for that awesome jowl bacon). 

Finfish with Cherry Tomatoes, Scapes and Zucchini

Fresh, local NH-caught cod baked with zucchini and cherry tomatoes and served over cilantro-lime rice

A Perfectly Local Valentine Dinner for Two!

All thanks to the diversity of foods at the recent Winter farmers' Market in Exeter this weekend!




Riverside Farm greens dressed in honey cider vinaigrette made with local cider vinegar, sunflower oil, honey, mustard (Reye's from Eastpoint, ME) and herbs from Herb Farmacy.  Apples from Hackleboro Orchards, cheese from Sandwich Creamery.

 

Valicenti Organics farro pasta tossed in their own red gravy, served with Me & Ollie's parisian baguette doctored up with fresh local butter and garlic.



Flourless chocolate torte made with fair trade/organic Green & Black's 72% cacao chocolate, minimal sugar (only 3 Tbsp in the entire recipe!), local eggs and butter, topped with honey sweetened, freshly whipped Brookford Farm cream and decorated with spots of raspberry glaze (from leftover homemade jam) and decorating candies.  Served with Sweet Baby Vineyard raspberry wine....

Ingredients in any of the above that were not selected from local sources:

Salad:
pistachios
sugar
cayenne pepper

Garlic Bread:
flour and yeast in bread
parsley

Torte:
chocolate
vanilla extract
decorating candies

Everything else entirely local!!

Reds, Purples and Browns, Oh My!

 First comes red...

Grassfed T-Bones from Twister-Allie Farm in Sanbornton, NH, accompanied by Wilderotter Vineyard's 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon

Then comes purple...

Peruvian potatoes and shallots from Heron Pond Farm in South Hampton, NH, flavored with sage and thyme from my garden, tossed in extra virgin olive oil and roasted at 375 for ~35-40 minutes 

Then comes a luscious morel cream sauce...(click 'Read More')

2 x 2 = 4 (Or, Two Friends, Two Pizzas, Four Wines!)

This is what happens when certain friends come over on a Tuesday night:

Toppings included fresh red bell peppers charcoaled over the cooktop flame, seeded and chopped; 6 or 7 kinds of olives, freshly cracked and chopped; freshly grated mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, and small gobs of chevre (derishuss!); sundried tomatoes; sweet, buttery roasted garlic cloves; anchovies, and parsley.

The olives and peppers were checkerboarded on one dough, while the garlic, anchovy and sundried tomatoes were layered with goat cheese on the other.  Both pizzas were grilled right on my cooktop griddle, drizzled with olive oil and salted with Hawaiian black lava salt.  YUM.

This is also what happens when certain friends come over on a Tuesday night:

The 2007 Karmere Barbera (far right) stole my heart.  Luscious, soft fruit-forward (plum) on the tongue, and completely chewy (caramel) in the mouth.  We quaffed it I'm afraid, due to the goat cheese having a whopping brie-like flavor and consistency.  The 2007 Karmere Primabera (2nd from right) was also chewy and round, but more spicy (cinnamon, I think) than the Barbera.  Dillian's 2008 Vino Nostro (3rd from right) was simply dee-lish-uss.  Delicious!  This wine is a blend of zin, syrah and barbera grapes.  Plum on the nose, and more plum, and strawberry, on the tongue.  The 2006 Scott Harvey Syrah was nicely peppery and ripe with blueberry, and actually started off our night.  What a great night!

BIG wines in Amador, CA

Twelve of us--six New Englanders and six Arizonans--spent four days visiting small, family-owned vineyards in Amador County, CA, last week. Many of the wineries employ sustainable operations, including solar power, wind power and biodynamic farming. As important, they produce fantastic wines for very reasonable prices! Lots of new, big, chewy reds and luscious whites were tried ('quaffed' is more like it), and I've listed a few below. All I can say is, LOOK FOR 'EM!

This yummy, salty and savory plate contains many goodies that I turned our friends onto while out there: fresh asparagus and fennel that I tossed in local olive oil and s&p and grilled for serving; three varieties of olives that were super buttery and perfectly brined; organic salami; various crackers and breadsticks from local CA bakers; and, last but not least, chunks of delectable, creamy and firm goat cheese called 'Roussette' made by a local cheesemaker who dined with us (along with her winemaker husband!).

Olives included Green Cerignola Olives (in front, the largest of the three shown), Nicoise Coquillos (in back, the small deep purple ones) , and to-die-for Castelvetranos--a meaty, buttery, bright green olive (nope, no food coloring - just a perfect brining solution) that is sure to convince any olive-hater otherwise! All from Italy, I must confess.

Where did I find all these ingredients while driving from San Francisco up over to our final destination in Amador County? Why, at the famed, independently-owned Sacramento Natural Foods Co-Op of course! :) While perusing Google's map of the area (for determining a good route for us New Englanders), I came across their website. Talk about a perfect location off the highway--it took us all of 5 minutes out of our way, and was well worth the effort. We loaded up on the groceries for the "big feast" (14 people), which, if you recall, was detailed in my previous blog titled 'My Favorite Coffee Mug'! And guess what? The were only a couple of deviations from my original menu, one of which was the squid.  It ended up fried calamari the night before the feast. I obtained glisteningly fresh, sustainably-fished Pacific squid at the co-op, cleaned them, and lightly coated them in a mix of flour, corn meal, garlic powder, chili powder and s&p before frying in a bit of olive oil (alas, these were the available pantry items for me to choose from). We squeezed fresh lemon over them and loved every bite!

As for the wines, they were delish. Lots of Barberas and Zinfandels and Petite Syrahs well worth looking for. Here are a few names and harvests to seek out:

My Favorite Coffee Mug

Here in New Hampshire we're still experiencing temps in the 30's-low 40's during the day. There's still snow on the ground in my area, but the chippies have been seen emerging from their wintering dens for nearly a week now. The red squirrels are seemingly more active and acting more territorial, and there were five species of woodpeckers evident at my feeders the day before yesterday. I love that the Spring Equinox is only a month away. Check out my 'Spring Equinox' page for fun, inspiring ways to celebrate spring foods.

Two weeks from today...