Food Woolf – Page 17

LA's best kept wine secret: The Wine Hotel

If you find a hidden gem or an amazing bargain, do you tell the world or keep the information to yourself? For some, keeping the inexpensive getaway, a cheap ethnic market or clothing sale under wraps is essential in maintaining their front of the line status as well as keeping the hidden spot’s prices low.

For others, there is no such thing as a secret spot. These sorts of people tell anyone that will listen their “insider information” until that secret spot becomes so popular it’s ruined. Then there are people like me, a half-breed of secretive local and flamboyant big mouth, who believes there’s a happy medium to the Secret vs. Success issue. When I find a secret spot, I feel obligated to share my newfound information with trusted friends.

Which is why I thought I should come out and tell you, my trusted readers, about the amazing little wine store that almost no one in LA knows about. If you don’t live in LA, stop reading. But if you live anywhere near the 3rd and Fairfax area, you really ought to know that there’s an amazing wine store just around the corner. And it’s hiding from you.

Located on the corner of Third and Cochran, this windowless (and seemingly door-less) yellow building is easy to miss. Other than the hand-lettered sign that simply reads “The Wine Hotel” outside, there is nothing to tell potential customers that there is a wine store located somewhere inside. But there is. Trust me.

Things to know before you go:

The first thing you should know before you visit the current incarnation of The Wine Hotel is that it is a wine store and wine storage facility in transition. Recently purchased by world renown wine specialists and wine collectors Rudy Kurniawan and Paul Wasserman, the pair plan to turn this once unsuccessful wine storage facility into Terroir: a wine buyer’s and wine collector’s Mecca.

Going against all feng shui laws, the front door is located in the back of the building. The only way to access the door, requires you to take a walk down the battered back alleyway. The door, once you locate it, looks like this:

Though this pretty, windowed, wood door may appear to be locked, it probably isn’t. Push, pull and when all else fails, knock. Once inside, Dan, the store’s friendly wine expert and only employee, will most likely be the face that greets you.

Dan is an agreeable guy that reminds me of a brainy Simpson’s character, who will always greet you with a nod or a grin and is always ready to share with you his incredible wealth of wine history and tasting notes. Tell him what you like and what you want to spend and get ready for a wonderful wine education. Take notes if you are fast of hand, because Dan has a lot to of great information to share. Want a show stopping Rioja for under 20? Dan recommends the R. Lopez de Heredia, “Vin Cubillo” Crianza, 2002. How about a tasty white from the Alto Adige? Dan might suggest the 2006 Garlider “Valle Isarco” Muller Thurgau, for less than 10 bucks. Dan’s fast and furious suggestions are punctuated with excited information, intriguing names, tid-bits on little known grapes and funny stories. Most surprising, even the rare and collectable bottles sport reasonable price tags.

Be warned, there’s nothing fancy about the current incarnation of The Wine Hotel. The space has an office in transition, rough around the edges feel–but not for long. Extensive renovations will soon be undertaken which will transform the space into a sleek and modern retail space, wine storage facility and tasting room.

In the meantime, I suggest spending a some time to talk with the highly educated wine sellers and follow their suggestions as you decide just how much well-priced wine you can afford to buy RIGHT NOW–before it becomes the popular wine destination it plans to be.

The Wine Hotel (soon to be Terroir)
5800 West Third Street
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-937-9463

Hours:
Monday- Friday 11:am to 7:00pm
Saturday 11:am to 7:00pm
Sunday closed

July 24November 14

Save your pennies for dinner: go to the library

Photo from: elevenfortyfive.com

Every penny counts when you’re trying to cover the bills, fill up the gas tank, pay down credit card debt and still have a little coin to invest in a fancy meal now and then.

So, in the effort to save some cash I’m cutting a lot of corners. I cook at home for almost every meal. I’m the Iron Chef of leftovers. I stay away from gourmet delis, wine shops, cooking supply stores, bookstores and fancy restaurant row. I skip the coffee shop and drink one (free!) cappuccino while I’m working at the restaurant. I walk to most my errands.

And, in another foodie, cash-preservation step, I’m not buying ANY cookbooks. Instead, I’m raiding the local Los Angeles Public library for every great cookbook they have.

I love the library

So before you run over to your local library, just keep one thing in mind: If you live in Los Angeles, don’t even try to take out anything by Alice Waters or Thomas Keller for the next month or so. I’ve got all of the Keller and Waters’ cookbooks. According to my library account status, I’ve got these babies for another three weeks.

Thanks to the ticking clock of the library book due dates, I’m extremely motivated to read through all of my borrowed cookbooks. For the first time really, I’m truly reading cookbooks. I’m skimming the pictures and studying the elegant essays and personal pieces these two great chefs offer in all of their books. Quite honestly, reading cookbooks feels like going to cooking school.

Boy, have I been learning a lot.

First off, Alice Waters’ Chez Panisse Fruit is AMAZING. If you shop at farmer’s markets or participate in a CSA, you should really get this book. Chez Panisse Fruit not only offers hundreds of amazing and sometimes very simple recipes, Waters takes the time to discuss the glories of every fruit featured in the book with her well researched introductory essays.

An Alice Waters Fun Fact:

* Did you know that apricot pits can be used for baking needs?

According to Alice in Chez Panisse Fruit, inside the pit is a kernel, called the noyaux. The noyaux can be used to flavor amaretti cookies, custards, ice cream and liquor. To remove the noyaux, simply roast the pit at 350 F for 10 to 15 minutes and crack them open. It should be noted that the noyaux has a toxic enzyme that is destroyed by heat: so be sure to roast the center kernel again for a few minutes to make sure it is safe to consume.

I’ve really enjoyed reading and cooking from the Chez Panisse Café Cookbook a great deal. Alice’s recipes feature the most casual dishes of Chez Panisse and allow the home chef easy access to cooking in the style of one of America’s most respected and ground breaking Cal-French restaurants.

If you want an example of a great and easy to make dish, just check out my previous post about Prosciutto wrapped scallops.

from ruhlman.com

After hearing that Thomas Keller would be returning to Los Angeles to open a new Bouchon, I got very excited to start reading up on this French Laundry chef. His books are beautiful to look at and have plenty of personal stories to bring the reader into his thought processes behind all of his restaurants.

Thomas Keller’s Bouchon is a beautifully photographed book that’s chocked full of wonderful essays and insights into French bistro fare. Though author Michael Ruhlman’s writing is incredibly tight, the size and weight of Bouchon makes it better suited as a culinary, coffee table book than a functional cookbook. That being said, the recipes in this book are not as daunting as the haute cuisine of the French Laundry. The bistro fare, though it may seem simple, requires thoughtful and specific recipes. The authors and chefs come together to describe the steps of preparation with research to back it up. Reading Bouchon gave me the impression that maybe there could be a handful of dishes I could make without making a fool of myself.

A Thomas Keller Fun Fact:

* Thomas Keller’s first real teacher in French cooking was a Frenchman named Roland Henin. It was in Henin’s Rhode Island restaurant that Keller learned one of his first, and memorable cooking lessons: how to dress a salad.

According to Keller:

He would salt it, then put on the oil to coat the lettuce and protect it from the acid, and then he would add the acid. He would never combine the two then pour them on: vinegar was the seasoning element. What made watching him exciting was the anticipated joy of eating that salad, the richness of the oil, the sparks of vinegar that would come through.

Cooking from a library book may be a scary idea for anyone like me that has a difficult time keeping prepped ingredients from ruining one’s own personal cookbook pages. I do my best to keep these borrowed books clean when I take them into the kitchen with me. Though I’ve managed to splatter just an eensty-teeny bit of oil on one page of Alice Waters’ Café Cookbook, I notice I’m not alone in the occasional spots and smudges on the pages. Clearly, I’m not the only one trying to save some coin for a really great meal.

July 22November 14

Craigie Street Bistrot on U.S. Corn

Michael Pollan’s book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, has made a real impact with a lot of people. If you’ve been reading this blog lately, you’ll know his writing and research has changed the way I eat and shop. Coming across others that have been “infected” by the fever on conscious, political eating is not only refreshing–it’s reassuring.

My friends over at the Cambridge Massachusetts restaurant, Craigie Street Bistrot continue to blow me away with their active commitment to making delicious food that’s good for the local economy, good for the local farmers and is environmentally conscious of its carbon foot print.

If you’re too busy to read Pollan’s book, you might be interested in reading this great essay on corn I found on the Craigie Street Bistrot blog.

Craigie Street Bistrot: U.S. Corn

July 21

Perfect pairing: 2007 Domaine Roland Schmitt Riesling Glintzberg

There’s nothing better than a delicious glass of wine that pairs well with a dish. If you’re making prosciutto wrapped scallops, why not drink this refreshing, bone dry Alsatian Riesling with it?

2007 Domaine Roland Schmitt Riesling Glintzberg

The Schmitts are known as one of Alsace’s very few producers that still make a classic dry Reisling. Grown in gravelly limestone soil of the Gran Cru Atlenberg, this hand picked wine is cool fermented in stainless steel vats. Very little, if any, residual sugars remain—giving this wine a zippy acidity.

Flavors are reminiscent of a salted lime, almonds and a fresh minerality. The acidity and zest of this wine is extremely refreshing with seafood such as a sweet and fatty scallop wrapped in bacon!

Available at K&L wines for under $17

July 21

Prosciutto Wrapped Scallops: A Recipe from Alice Waters

After some seven months of posting recipes and food reviews, I was pleasantly surprised to receive a culinary request from my filmmaker-friend, Jesse:

I have a question to ask you: I’ve started hosting these little soirees at my house lately- a small group of intellectuals and artist types, who come for an evening of frolic, food and film. I pick a film that most of them have not seen or not seen in years, and design a meal around the film’s locale or origin.

We started with “Big Night” and I made timpano. Then we did a Chinese evening with “The Last Emperor” (my 2nd favorite film…”City Lights” is still #1 in my heart). And for my next eve, we are hitting the streets of Paris, with a George Roy Hill film I’ve always loved, “A Little Romance,” starring a young Diane Lane and an old Laurence Olivier.

For the menu, I’m thinking “Paris Bistro”…but am having trouble coming up with ideas for courses. So I thought you might have some suggestions?

How exciting! A request for MY food advice?! Hooray! My food blogging has paid off! Someone values my culinary advice! Sure, Jesse is a good friend…but a food blogging person has to start somewhere. Right?

Being one to respect authority when it’s given to me, I decided to do some serious research. After much cookbook reading, I felt it best to turn to one of our country’s greatest culinary icons: Alice Waters. Since the early 70’s, Waters and her Chez Panisse team have created mouth-watering dishes inspired by the French Bistros she visited as a college student. At Chez Panisse Café, the simple dishes are thoughtfully prepared from fresh, local ingredients that are either foraged from local environs or purchased from nearby farms.

The following dish is an incredible example of how fresh ingredients, when paired well, can create a memorable bistro dish made only from a handful of simple ingredients.

Baked Scallops with Proscuitto and Lemon Relish
Adapted from the Chez Panisse Café cookbook

Ingredients:

1 pound medium-sized fresh sea scallops Note: the scallops I bought were big enough to serve 2 scallops each (which are about 1/8 lb each). You may choose to cut big scallops in half—thereby creating the visual effect of a “larger portion size”

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

6 – 8 slices of Prosciutto

Handful of young greens (lettuce, cress, rocket or mache)

Few drops of red wine vinegar

Salt and Pepper

½ cup Lemon Relish*

Preheat oven to 475 F.

Remove the tough “foot” from each scallop. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat a cast-iron pan or a heavy, oven proof skillet over medium high heat. Pour in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil or enough to coat the bottom of the pan. When the oil is nearly smoking, add the scallops in one layer. As soon as the scallops begin to sizzle, place the uncovered skillet on the top shelf of the oven.

Check the scallops after five minutes. They should be nicely caramelized and firm to the touch. If the top portion is not yet golden colored, gently flip the scallops with a fish spatula in order to caramelize the other side. Cook for an additional 2-3 minutes, or until caramelized. Remove from oven.

Drape the prosciutto slices over and around the scallops.

Quickly, put the handful of greens in a small mixing bowl and lightly drizzle with a touch of olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. Toss by hand. Add individual portions of seasoned greens to each plate and then arrange the prosciutto wrapped scallops on top. Spoon a small amount of Lemon Relish over each serving.

Note: You may want to serve one perfectly wrapped scallop as a delicious first course, or a few as an incredibly satisfying main.

*LEMON RELISH
Adapted from the Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook

1 large shallot, diced fine

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar (or lemon juice)1 large lemon (if Meyer lemon is available use it!)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoon chopped tarragon

Salt and Pepper to Taste

Put diced shallot in a small bowl. Add vinegar and a pinch of salt. Let macerate for 10 to 15 minutes. Cut lemon into 8 wedges. Remove the seeds and white pith from center of each piece. Cut across the wedge into thin, triangular slivers. Combine the slivered lemon and shallot and add more salt. Stir in the olive oil, parsley, tarragon and some freshly milled pepper. Taste and adjust for seasoning.

Spoon relish on top of prosciutto wrapped scallops.

July 17November 14

How to make a politically correct steak

Grass Feed Steak with Pan-Seared cherry tomatoes and basil
Adapted from Gourmet

3 tbsp olive oil
2 1 ½ inch thick Porterhouse Steaks or beef loin (about 1 ¼ lb each)
4 tablespoons of kosher salt
6 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced length wise.
4 cups cherry tomatoes
2 cups coarsely torn, fresh basil leaves

Bring steaks to room temperature one hour before cooking. Rub with Kosher sea salt.

Preheat gas grill (on high) for about 10-15 minutes.

Put steaks directly on grill. Cover and don’t touch. Depending on the thickness of the steak, cooking time should be between 5-10 minutes per side. Be careful not to overcook! After about 5-6 minutes, check the internal temperature of the steak with a meat thermometer. The thermometer should be inserted into the center of the thickest part, away from bone, fat and gristle.

When the center of the steak reaches 130 degrees F, you’re ready to flip over your steak for a perfect medium rare. 145 degrees F for medium. 150-155 http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.giffor medium well. 160 degrees F for Well done. For more information on cooking temps go .

Finish cooking the 2nd side (it should be about equal to the same amount of time for the first half of cooking). Put the steak on serving platter and let rest for 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the olive oil to a medium sized skillet. Heat over meium-high heat until it shimmers. Add the garlic and sauté until golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a paper towel or plate. Add tomatoes to hot oil (be careful! Oil will spatter!), then lightly season with salt and pepper. Cook, covered and stir occasionally, until tomatoes start to wilt, about 2 minutes. Stir in any meat juices from the serving dish. Scatter basil over tomatoes and then serve over steak.

To really bring this dish up and over the top, serve it with Zuni Cafe’s salsa verde.

Salsa Verde
Adapted from Zuni Cafe Cookbook

½ cup tightly packed, chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
½ cup mint (de-stemmed)
1 tablespoon capers (rinsed and dried between towels)
1 tablespoon chopped anchovies (packed in salt or oil)
1 tablespoon red onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons sliced and chopped almonds
½ to ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 lemon (remove the zest. Finely chop. Reserve juice)

Combine the parsley, mint, capers, zest, onion and a few pinches of salt, pepper or chili flakes to taste. Add half of the olive oil. Stir, then taste for seasoning. Add more oil and salt to taste. Since salt doesn’t dissolve right way, give the salt a bit of time to dissolve before you add more. Stir in rest of ingredients. Transfer mixture to a container that minimizes exposure to the air.

Don’t refrigerate, but set in a cool spot until needed. Refrigerate leftovers!

July 17November 14

How to eat a politically correct steak

Ever since I read Michael Pollan’s book, Omnivore’s Dilemma, food shopping is a lot more difficult. Besides the fact that finances are tight–for us and most of the people we know—I am acutely aware that how we spend our food money really can make a socio-ecological difference. Suddenly, I feel a lot like the young, political eater I used to be when I was a University of Massachusetts undergrad.

Though my days as a life-long, political vegetarian are over (I was an anemic and sickly vegetarian), I am perfectly willing and able to stop eating certain things because they aren’t good for the local economy, the environment, and—ultimately–for me. But what, from a culinary point of view, will all this political eating mean for my tastebuds?

Pollan’s book suggests that if consumers purchase local and direct from the farmer whenever possible, they not only taste a much better and healthier product, their food dollars will enable local grows to thrive and compete with big conglomerate farms that take all sorts of ecological shortcuts with chemical fertilizers and price gouging (thanks to governmental subsidies). So if I pay a little more for a gallon of milk from a family owned dairy, Pollan suggests, I’ll not only be healthier, I will be sending a message to the big dairy conglomerates that hormones, drugs and poor treatment of animals in order to make a cheaper gallon of milk, just isn’t worth it.

But just because I shop at Whole Foods a couple of times a month doesn’t mean every food dollar can enact positive social change. Though the packages on the perfectly maintained shelves of Whole Foods may say “organic” or “free range” or “all natural”, doesn’t mean they’re the best choice for the environment or my body. To be a good, political consumer, I need to be mindful and pragmatic before every purchase.

Though it’s easy to be an armchair liberal or conservative, it’s another thing to be hold a firm political position in one’s daily life.

A carnivore’s dilemma

Being a mindful and political shopper is difficult. I have to consider all sorts of questions. Do I really need to buy tomatoes shipped in from Holland if there are local farms that can sell them to me fresh off the vine at the farmer’s market? Should I forgo my menu and buy a line caught fish or should I stick to my shopping plans and get a farm-raised, color pellet-eating cousin? Can I afford the extra money to buy meat from a cow that’s free range and grass fed or should I pack up my political standards and save twenty bucks and eat one that’s been raised in a tight pen and forced fed a diet of grain–a diet it was never meant to eat?

Political eating

After spotting Gourmet Magazine’s cover photo of a grilled steak covered in roasted cherry tomatoes, I started planning a dinner party with some friends. I purchased cherry tomatoes, garlic, parsley and mint at the farmer’s market. Unable to make it to the neighborhood butcher in time, I ventured to my local Whole Foods at 3rd and Fairfax.

The meat counter selection offered a handful of choices: various organic beef cuts ($14.99/pound and up), free range grass-fed beef loin ($31.99/lb), and free range grain-fed (90% grass fed and 10% grain fed) organic Porter house ($27.99/lb). Based on the criteria of my political eating (force fed, pen raised beef is not an eating option), however, my choices were definitely limited.

For pure politics, I purchased almost 2 lbs of the 100% grass fed beef loin steak. For culinary and economic purposes, I saved a few bucks and got almost 1.5 lbs of the partially grain fed porterhouse (Neiman Ranch 90% grass fed and 10% grain fed beef). As I watched the butcher wrap up my steaks, I wondered, with some guilt, how significant that 10% of grain would be to the quality of the meat. Had I just let ten percent of my political ideals slip away? Maybe.

Side by side taste test

As the steaks cooked side by side on the grill, my husband and I talked with our guests about the politics of eating. We shared stories of Alice Waters, the Edible School Yard, the Center for Food Justice, Slow Food, Michael Pollan and think about it later chef types (Anthony Bourdain on any episode of No Reservations comes to mind). But when the steaks were finished cooking and were ready to serve, we carefully closed our eyes and tasted.

Bite for bite, both steaks were delicious. Granted, the two steaks were different cuts (and, to be fair, both were prepared slightly differently–the grass fed cut was cured with a salt/spice rub and the Neiman ranch was rubbed only with kosher salt), but both garnered equal amounts of praise.

The 100% grass-fed beef loin (or beef tenderloin) was incredibly tender and velvet-like. The taste of the grass fed loin was both juicy and moist.

The Neiman ranch (90/10 grass/grain fed) Porterhouse, was a meatier steak. It was also quite juicy and at times had much more flavorful morsels, thanks to the meat’s occasional marbling.

When polled, most of the table had a hard time deciding which steak they liked more. Considering the biased side-by-side tasting, it was clear a rematch was needed.

Stay tuned for an upcoming rematch…

July 14November 14

Zingerman’s: The Service

“Zingerman’s is the only deli-and-service nirvana I know” –Eating Well

When it comes to eating out, I’m obsessed with finding good food and great service. It’s hard for me not to, since I work in the restaurant business. In the words of my sweet, generous husband, I tend to “go all Norma Rae” on service issues. When I see bad service and poor management, I want to stand up on a table and say “It’s all about great customer service!” But then my husband reminds me that maybe that kind of behavior will either get me carted away by the police or fired. I take this stuff very seriously. Maybe a little too seriously.

When I find great food, I’m elated. When I find a passionate server or bartender, I clap like a giddy school girl. When I find both great food and great service (which, unfortunately, is rare) I become a volunteer spokesperson for the joint.

Unlike many diners, I always walk into restaurant ready to love it. Based on my numerous years in the restaurant business, I know my eagerness to see a place succeed is just not the norm. Call me the optimistic pessimist. When it comes to dining out, I always want to believe that something great can happen.

The thing is, so few restaurants want to put in the time and effort to create a great experience for the diner from the front of the house (the service staff) to the back of the house (the kitchen staff). The food may be well thought out, but the service staff is neglected and left to their own (bad) habits. Or the service could be impeccable and the food is sub-par. Getting both parts of a restaurant right is very, very hard.

Can I get a drum roll please

Which brings me back to Zingerman’s. I know. I’ve been writing a lot about that place this week. But after all the writing (okay, I’ll say it, cheerleading), I would be short changing the place if I didn’t take a moment to express how impressive Zingerman’s trademark service is.

Beyond the incredibly delicious hand picked heritage foods and their artful presentations, Zingerman’s well-trained staff is always attentive, ready to help, knowledgeable and prepared to go the extra mile for the customer.

On a recent trip, my mother in law was presented with a handful of balloons (that had to be painstakingly filled up on-the-spot) when she mentioned it was her son’s 40th birthday. Sandwiches were hand delivered with a smile by an employee that that had to search the two floor dining room in order to find us. Our Roadhouse server, seeing that I was an information hungry foodie, answered all of my food related questions and offered historical background for many of the dishes. Ari Weinzweig, owner of Zingerman’s, went out of his way to make myself and my family feel welcomed and appreciated. He even took the time to find and read my blog after I mentioned it to him. At the Roadhouse he even filled our water glasses while telling us the story of the Pennsylvania sweet corn.

Every time I visit Zingerman’s, I’m blown away by their can-do attitude.

How do they do this? By dedicating huge amounts of time and effort into their people. To borrow the words of Ari Weinzweig, my service hero and author of Zingerman’s Guide to Giving Great Service, in order to give great service one must:

1. Teach great service
2. Define great service
3. Live great service. The management staff spend enormous amounts of time walking the walk of great service by actively showing their staff how to give good service.
4. Measure it.
5. Reward it.

If you’re in the service business and take your job seriously, you ought to buy yourself a copy of Zingerman’s Guide to Giving Great Service. It will teach you everything you need to know about getting successful results for great service.

July 13November 14

Zingerman’s Roadhouse: Proof That American Food Is Delicious

Up until recently, I’ve never considered myself a real fan of “American cuisine.” Granted, I love apple pie and hamburgers, but when it comes down to great cooking, I tend to look to other countries for inspiration.

And I’m not alone. Even in the finest kitchens in the United States, American fare isn’t exactly heralded as high cuisine. This country may have some amazing, world-reknown chefs, but more likely than not, these stand-out culinary stars are cooking a hybrid of gastronomic styles. Take for example Alice Water’s Cal-French, Mario Batali’s Americanized Italian, David Myer’s Cal-French-Japanese, or even David Lentz and Suzanne Goin’s Baltimore-French-Japanese. When it comes to being an American chef, it’s all about expressing your local ideas and borrowing from the culinary masters of other cultures.

When you come from a country known to the world as the great American melting pot, it can be difficult pin-pointing the truly American dishes. But if you start to ask around, you’ll find there are a number of dishes that American’s clearly call their own.

A Culinary Education

After my recent trip to Michigan (and multiple trips to Zingerman’s and all of its many incarnations), I’m starting to understand what makes American food great.

The Roadhouse, the seventh in the family of Zingerman’s food-friendly ventures, offers diners a chance to eat their way through many of the culinary traditions and regional cooking styles of America.

Diners can grab take out from the cleverly re-tooled and permanently parked silver bullet camper for drive-through, or may linger at a table in the spacious restaurant that offers bar seating, multiple dining areas, a back patio and a private dining room.

Main dining room

back patio — Zingerman's Roadhouse Back Patio

The ever-friendly and well-trained Zingerman’s staff seem as if they’ve been waiting all day just to happily guide you to your table or barstool. The dining room is open and inviting with its kitchy salt-and-pepper displays, open kitchen and hand-printed music posters lining the walls.

Drink Menu at Zingerman's Roadhouse — The Roadhouse Drink Menu

In the tradition of Zingerman’s, the drinks are handcrafted and are made with the local produce, freshly squeezed fruit juice and house-made marachino cherries. The bartenders smile as they muddle and mix handcrafted cocktails like Mojitos or their signature cocktail the Knickerbocker, made with Brugel Dominican Dark Rum, Bol’s Orange Curacao, fresh raspberries and freshly squeezed lemon juice.

The education begins

The first course in American cuisine begins with Chef Alex’s appetizer sampler.

Sample Plate at the Roadhouse — Appetizer sampler

In this one dish, diners get a cross-country tour of flavors. Starting with the South and its hush puppies (made with organic yellow and blue corn) and the moist and tender roadhouse ribs, our palates travel to Baltimore and its sweet and salty crab cakes. The appetizer plate tour ends at the Tex-Mex border with a cheesy, wild mushroom quesadilla. Other not to be missed appetizers are the hand-cut sweet potato fries with a spicy mayo and Ari’s Pimento Cheese, a classic southern starter of celery “chips” served with a dip of aged Vermont cheddar, mayo and chopped pimentos.

Sweet potato fries and spicy mayo — Sweet Potato Fries and Spicy Mayo

Getting an advanced degree

Instruction in American culinary appreciation is taken up a notch at the Roadhouse with its entrees. The North Carolina pulled pork is moist and rich with salty sweet flavors from almost an entire day’s worth of roasting. The meat is hand-pulled, chopped and blended with a spicy vinegar sauce and served with Michigan-grown mashed potatoes and served with Southern style braised greens. The Texas Cabrito, a slow-smoked, hand-pulled, free-range goat, with a special basting sauce, is both earthy and moist.

After eating the Roadhouse Buttermilk-Fried, Free-Range Chicken, I really began to appreciate my nationality.

Buttermilk fried chicken — Zingerman's Roadhouse Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Fried chicken nirvana is discovered once it is delivered to the table in a paper-wrapped picnic box. Thanks to the local, Amish farm-raised, free-range chicken, the meat tastes more real than any fast food chain’s ever could. The meat is moist and plump while the buttermilk batter is crispy and light–offering the perfect counterpoint to the delicate earthiness of the meat. Sides of local mashed potatoes, brown gravy and yellow mustard slaw make the dish an American inspiration.

My husband was silent—with the occasional moans of culinary happiness–as he savored every bite of his full rack of Neiman ranch pork ribs. Served on a generous portion of creamy grits, the long cooked ribs are so moist and tender it doesn’t take much more than a gentle nudge of your fingers to get the sweet and savory meat to fall off the bone.

The side dishes are equally impressive as the entrees they support. Take for example the creamed corn made from John Cope’s dried sweet corn, made from John Cope’s dried sweet corn, a classic staple in Pennsylvania since the 1900’s.

Picked at the peak of sweetness, the dried corn not only imparts sweetness to the dish, but also gives a playful texture that works well with thin bath of cream. The macaroni and cheese, an American staple, gets its proper respects with an assortment regional takes on the classic idea. Our favorite was the Roadhouse Macaroni & Cheese, made with a 2 year old Vermont raw-milk cheddar and the Martelli family’s artisanal macaroni from Tuscany.

Rounding out the regional education in American fare, are the decadent desserts.

Trip to Zingerman's Roadhouse — Ari's Donut Sundae

Ari’s Original Doughnut Sundae, is a donut smothered in a bourbon-caramel sauce, vanilla gelato, whipped cream and Virginia peanuts. The Magic Brownie Sundae, a quintessential American classic, is a Bakehouse brownie drowned in chocolate sauce, vanilla gelato, whipped cream and toasted pecans.But it was the pecan pie, a pile of toasted pecans surrounded by a rich brown sugar custard made from unrefined Mauritian brown sugar, that made me want to stand up and sing the national anthem.

A trip to Zingerman’s Roadhouse is not only a great place to eat, it also offers the observant guest an education in quintessential American food and what makes it great. Suddenly, I’m really proud to be an American.

Zingerman’s Roadhouse
2501 Jackson Ave.
Ann Arbor, MI 48103
(734) 663-3663

July 12

Culinary Mecca: Zingerman's Deli

Almost everyone has their favorite place to eat when they go home. If you’re from New England it could be the down-the-road clam shack with its towering fried seafood plate and fresh-from-the-sea lobster rolls. Maybe it’s the pizza joint that’s been making pies for generations. If you’re from the South, your first meal might be at the mom and pop BBQ joint with the fall from the bone ribs, or the railroad car diner that serves the greatest fried chicken and grits.

If you grew up in the Midwest, more than likely, Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor Michigan is not only on the top of your list of places to visit, it IS the list.

Started on the ides of March in 1982, Zingerman’s began as a small, brick faced delicatessen. Zingerman’s quickly became a local favorite for their reuben, hand-made sandwiches, and unbelievably impeccable customer service. Since its opening, Zingerman’s has continued to grow in popularity, spurring Zingerman’s growth into a culinary mecca.

Rather than letting its popularity propel the business outside of Michigan, Zingerman’s has remained fiercely loyal to the locals. Zingerman’s continues to grow and currently has numerous well-run eateries that include a creamery (for home made gelatos, ice cream and cheeses), a bake house (for freshly baked bread and sweet treats), a coffee shop (for gourmet coffee and bake house treats), a Road House (for delicious, regional American food and handmade cocktails) and ZingTrain, a consulting and training branch that teaches business the successful business and training models of their business.

Ever since opening day 26 years ago, lunch customers can still be seen braving the elements to line up around the block to wait their turn for a Zingerman’s sandwich. Everyone has a different strategy to finding the best sandwich. Some never stray from the classics (the #2 Ruben, the #11 Pastrami special, the #48 Binny’s Brooklyn Reuben, the #73 Tarb’s Tenacious Tenure), while others adventure beyond the usual and try to sample all the newest staff-created sandwiches.

What you should know before you go:

Culinary mecca: Zingerman's Deli — Study the menu. There are lots of great choices!

Get a hold of the deli menu and study it before you arrive. Ruminate. Plan. Know what you’re getting before you step through the front door.

Get in line at Zingerman's Deli and get inspired!

Zingerman’s award-winning signage, eye catching food packaging and delicious aromas can easily distract a person.

The Zingerman’s food counters are to any foodie, what sirens were to seafarers. Planning ahead will allow you to leisurely peruse the cheese and bread counters, rather than sweating your choices as you furiously struggle read the small print on the sandwich boards.

If you’re only visiting once, try a few things. Get a pastry. Sample some cheese. Splurge and get two sandwiches.

Eat half and save the rest for the drive (or flight) home. Drink a delicious coffee handpicked by the owners from a far away coffee plantation.

Buy something from the retail area. Olive oil, jelly, cookies and cookbooks travel well. Zingerman’s Guide to Good Eating will teach you how to find all the foods you’ve been longing for.

Zingerman’s Deli
422 Detroit Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48104

June 28

Ice Cream Man!

Growing up, summer was spent fully submerged in water. With the liquid-air humidity of July and August, whole summers were spent playing Marco Polo, jumping off granite cliffs in Gloucester, or fighting the undertow at the beach reserve.

After swimming all day, my brother, sister and I always had a ferocious appetite that couldn’t be ignored. My mother almost always came prepared with a picnic basket. But sometimes, if we were really good, Mom would give us a dollar so we could go buy ice cream from the Ice Cream Man.

Everyone had their favorites. The creamsicle. The frozen strawberry shortcake. The push-pop. But for me, the best was always a classic ice cream sandwich. Beneath the paper wrapper were two soft, frozen chocolate cookies hugging a rectangle of pristine plain ice cream. Or maybe it would be two mammoth chocolate chip cookies holding together a frozen wheel of vanilla ice cream. Regardless of the formation, the play of textures always captivated me.

I enjoyed the challenge of eating the sandwich. I’d plan each mouthful so that I could avoid the inevitable see- saw of two cookies pushing together and squeezing out the precious ice cream between them. I’d take a bite and quickly lick away the extra, oozing ice cream trying to escape out the side.

Though I loved my ice cream sandwiches, they often left me feeling sad or upset at myself for making a mistake in how I ate my precious dessert. I either rushed to keep the ice cream from melting or savored the flavors too long–only to lose half the sandwich to the ground and the awaiting ants. Sometimes, this was always the saddest of mistakes, I let one of my hungry parents take the sandwich from my hand to “help me.” I’d watch their over-sized tongue lick away the edges of the ice cream and suddenly the ice cream sandwich wasn’t mine any more. After that, I really didn’t have much interest in finishing my ice cream.

So many lost ice cream sandwiches

I haven’t really thought much about ice cream sandwiches. Until now.

Just around the block, at food importer and gourmet marketplace Joan’s on Third, I have discovered the glory of gelato on brioche. Known to southern Italians as the food of choice on hot sweltering days, it’s an adult ice cream sandwich that’s so good you’ll want to stop everything you’re doing to focus on devouring every delicious bite. Its powerful combination of buttery brioche and rich, soft gelato will make you territorial for every last bite.

For just $5.50 you can experience one of the best flavor combinations in town. For the record, this isn’t a dessert to be savored. The gelato melts fast and you don’t want to waste one bite!

JOAN’S ON THIRD
8350 West Third Street
Los Angeles, CA
323 655 2285
www.joansonthird.com

June 26November 14

Keeping it real

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the idea of being a “real” cook. I mean, can you be a real cook if you use pre-prepared items? Do real cooks use pasta sauces from a jar? Do real cooks use frozen vegetables? Do real cooks buy frozen pie dough?

Nancy Silverton, one of my chef heroes, believes that you don’t have to make everything from scratch in order to be a good cook. As a matter of fact, her newest book is based on this premise.

In Twist of the Wrist, she shows home cooks how to make healthy and delicious meals at home with a handful of fresh ingredients and pre-made items that can be found at the local store. So if bread maven Nancy Silverton says it’s okay to cook at home with pre-made items, surely that means you can be a real cook and use store-bought, prepped items…Right?

If you happened to read the great article my friend, writing partner (more about that someday soon) and fellow food blogger, Leah of Spicy Salty Sweet wrote about trying out a recipe from the Twist of the Wrist cookbook, you’d probably end up saying “NO” to that question.

Leah is an incredible cook and when it comes to making a meal, she almost always prefers making everything from scratch. And when I say everything, I mean everything. She makes her own pasta, her own pizza dough, her own ice cream…But then, Leah self-admittedly calls herself a kitchen masochist, which makes me believe that maybe there is hope for the prepared food aided cook. Maybe a real cook like Leah might believe you don’t have to cook everything at home in order to consider yourself a “real” cook. Maybe.

Okay, so I’m obsessing

The reason I’ve been thinking about this subject, is because I recently made a pie with store bought frozen pie crust. Now, if you’ve been reading Food Woolf lately, you’ll know that I’m trying to get over my fear of pastry. Which hasn’t necessarily been easy. I’ve messed up measurements, I’ve had to bake and rebake a cobbler until I got it right.

So when I bought the ingredients for a pie and put together a recipe that was inspired by Fine Furious Life, a fellow food blogger, I was really excited to go into work at the restaurant and tell the girls in the pastry department about it.

“Oh really?” they smiled. “What’d you put in it?”

I rattled off the ingredients. They nodded with interest. Until I told them I used a frozen pie crust. Their eyes went dim. Did I just say “frozen pie crust”? In the pastry department? What was I thinking?

I gulped back my embarrassment as I skulked out of Pastry. I was crestfallen. Until I spied this month’s Bon Appetit. In the June issue, they featured a rustic plum and port tart recipe that, get this, called for a refrigerated pie crust.

A ha!

Victory, I thought! Bon Apetit appeals to real cooks, right? They recommend prepared pie dough. Surely I must be taking all this prepared food item stuff way too seriously.

Yeah. Seriously.

What follows is this delicious, easy, fast and fresh Rhubarb, Nectarine and Cardamom Pie. It’s really great fresh from the oven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Be sure to drizzle a bit of freshly ground cardamom and some Maldon sea salt on the ice cream to make it really special.

Rhubarb, Nectarine and Cardamom Tart
adapted from a recipe from Fine Furious Life
Makes one pie

Two pack of pre-made pie crusts. I used organic pie shells from Whole Foods.
1 1/2 pounds rhubarb, cut in 1-inch pieces
4 nectarines seeded and sliced in 1-inch cubes
1 nectarine cut into wedges
1/2 cup sugar
1 orange, juiced
12 fresh cardamom pods, opened, seeded and ground
2 tblsp raspberry jelly

Bonus points if you use:
Maldon sea salt
A pint of vanilla ice cream
A handful of cardamom pods, opened, seeded and ground

Prepping the cardamom:
To open the cardamom pods, use the back of your knife or a mallet. Take out the black, flavorful seeds and put them into your mortar. Hand grind with the pestle until the cardamom is more like a rough powder.

For the filling:
Combine rhubarb, nectarines, sugar, orange juice and cardamom in a bowl. Transfer to a large skillet. Stir over medium-high heat until liquid starts to bubble. Reduce heat to medium. Cover and simmer until rhubarb is almost tender, stirring very gently in order to keep rhubarb intact. About 8 minutes.

Drain rhubarb and nectarines well, reserving the sugared juice. Add the juice from bowl to skillet. Boil the juices until it becomes a syrup or a medium-to-thick reduction. Mix in preserves. Cool. Very gently add the rhubarb and nectarines to the mixture.

Preheat oven to 375F. Follow the directions for the frozen pie crust (thaw and pre-bake one of the two pie crusts. Reserve the other for the lattice top). Once the pie crust is cooked (about 20 minutes), add the fruit mixture. Line the top of the pie with the nectarine wedges.

Prepare the lattice top:
Carefully transfer the second, uncooked pie crust dough onto waxed paper. Cut one inch strips into the dough and lay across the top of the pie in a lattice pattern.

Bake for about 40 minutes, or until filling is bubbling thickly and crust is golden brown.

NOTE: This post was amended on 6/29

June 25

My friend, the Michelada

When it’s hot out, the last thing I want to do is put on heavy layers of clothes. Or exercise. Or work. Forget cooking.

If I’m not working on one of these unbearably hot July days, I’m hiding out in my apartment with my trusty fan, a spray bottle of cool water and dreaming of the refreshing beverages like Nan’s iced tea, lemonade, or a Michelada.

aaaah, Michelada

The Michelada, for anyone unfamiliar with the drink, is a “prepared beer”, or a beer cocktail, from south of the border. Using little more than chili, salt, lime and Worcestershire sauce, a glass of light beer is transformed into a transcendent adult beverage that is so delicious and fulfilling, it can make you forget how hot it is outside.

Michelada

For the Chili salt

Mix a handful of kosher salt with a pinch of cayenne pepper or Thai chili.

Mix together in a mortar and pestle. Taste.
Note: I make my own chili salt with Kosher salt and a Thai chili “paste” I found at the Asian market. Feel free to experiment with other chili peppers and your favorite salt. Or, if it’s just too hot out to think about that sort of thing, skip the experimentation and just buy a chili salt mix which can be found in the spice section of most supermarkets!

For the Drink
1 Can of Tecate (or any light beer with very little flavor)
1 lime (cut into wedges)
2 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
1 dash of hot sauce
ice

Rub the lip of the glass with one of your limes. Dip the rim of the glass onto a plate covered with chili salt. Put glass aside.

Throw the 4 lime quarters into your cocktail shaker. Muddle until the juice is released. I suggest muddling the limes to give the drink it’s necessary texture. But if you don’t have a muddler, just squeeze the juice in the glass. Add two dashes of Worcestershire sauce, 1 dash of hot sauce (or more if you like it really spicy). Add ice. Shake to coat the ice with the spice and lime juice. Pour contents into your salt-rimmed glass. Add beer to the top.

You will find that there is still plenty of beer left over in the can. The beauty of this drink is how it starts off really spicy and as you add your beer, it becomes lighter and lighter.

Though I don’t drink beer often, this drink is so unbelievably refreshing and easy to make, it’s got me thinking that maybe I should keep a six pack in the fridge. Enjoy!

June 23

Art of the bar

Maybe it’s because I grew up in a sea-side village in Massachusetts, but fresh fruit wasn’t something I was accustomed to. Fresh fish, yes. But fresh fruit? Ah, no.

Exotic bananas, kiwis and citrus fruits could be bought for an inflated price at any of the major New England based grocery stores, but they were purchased knowing full well they were treasures from far away. Crisp apples, juicy pears, fat strawberries, tart blueberries, soft raspberries, mouth watering melons and delicate concord grapes were mine, but only for the fleeting dog days of summer and cool nights of fall.

As a bartender in Cambridge, Mass., I made plenty of cocktails. I made the classics (Martinis, margaritas, and simple mixed concoctions) with brand name liquors with sour mix from a plastic bottle, canned pineapple juice, coconut mix, orange juice from Florida, or soda. Fruit, for an east coast bartender like me, was never a featured element. Lime, orange and lemon were visual flourishes, only to be used as a garnish.

Calfornia Flavors

It wasn’t until I moved to California that I tasted a fresh cocktail. My understanding of what a drink could be was changed forever when I tasted my first handmade Mojito. I was floored (literally) by the fresh flavors of lime and mint and the balance of acidity and sweetness.

Suddenly, I understood that cocktails shouldn’t be a barely disguised alcohol delivery system–it should be a delicious, refreshing, appetite enticement made with as much care as a diner’s first course.

During my time working in California restaurants, I learned how to make cocktails with hand-squeezed citrus, freshly muddled herbs and specialty liquors and perfected the art of balancing sweetness and acidity. Then, when I starting running a restaurant that specialized in hand made cocktails, I was free to show my creativity behind the bar and create amazing cocktails from fresh, seasonal produce for the restaurant. It was, by far, the most fun and rewarding part of my job.

Though popping open a ready-to-drink bottle of wine can be undeniably easy, making a great cocktail at home doesn’t have to be difficult.

Creating a cocktail

Here are a few simple rules to follow when making a fresh cocktail:

1) Use great, fresh ingredients
Fresh fruit and citrus should be juicy. If you discover you’ve purchased “dry fruit” (fruit that just isn’t giving up its juice easily) either toss the fruit or, if you don’t want to go back to the store, double up on the amount of fruit you use in order to get the correct flavor.

2) Maintain balance
Acidity and sweetness must always be in balance with each other, as well as the alcohol. Don’t let one ingredient hog the limelight. Everything in well-crafted drink, must perform together, in unison.

3) Taste
Don’t be afraid to take a little taste of what you’re making to make sure it’s right. A great bartender, like a chef, must always taste in order to maintain consistency.

4) Experiment
Don’t be afraid to try something new. Buy fresh fruit and taste them. What flavors would go well with it? What does it remind you of? A favorite pie? A childhood popsicle? These trusted flavors can lead you and your cocktail making to great places.

The following is a recipe I created this weekend after tasting the sweetness of a ripe pluot, fresh from the market.

Dapple dandy
Half plum, half apricot, the pluot’s intense sweetness and playful acidity is the perfect center point for this refreshing summer time drink.

1 ripe pluot, cut into thick wedges (a ripe plum could work, also, though you may need to add more lime juice to balance the flavors)
Juice of one lime
Simple syrup* to taste (about 2-4 tablespoons)
1/8 tsp. almond extract
1-1.5 ounces premium vodka
Ice

Muddle the pluot wedges (in either a cocktail shaker or pint glass) until most of the juice is released. Add the juice of one lime and almond extract. Fill shaker with ice. Add vodka and shake to mix well. Taste. Pour into glass and serve.

Enjoy!

*Making your own simple syrup is easy. It’s just one part sugar to one part water. Boil water, add sugar. Take off heat when sugar dissolves. Let cool. There’s a simple, step by step recipe here.

June 22

LA on Foot

photo by Douglas Morgenstern

Me, I’m lucky. I live in an amazing, centrally located LA neighborhood called “Miracle Mile”. In this famed place of miracles, I have everything I need just 5 to 10 blocks from my home. There’s a movie theater, a museum, a library, a newly opened wine store, more than a handful of restaurants, three grocery stores, a farmer’s market and a laundromat. For years I’ve done most of my local shopping on foot. And though I live in a rather populated area, I’ve been a lonely walker in the city, never quite sure why my neighbors haven’t caught on to the ease (and financial return) of walking. Until now.

With record high heat and the nation’s highest gas prices (my corner gas station sells the “cheap” gas at $4.69 a gallon), the city sidewalks are finally being used by people other than myself, tourists and the homeless. In what may be the first time in decades, many of Los Angeles residents are enjoying their weekend plans on foot.

Though doing errands on foot may not be a novel idea for city residents outside of southern California, the sprawling city of Los Angeles county covers a total area of about 500 miles, making driving to destination almost a necessity.

Change afoot

People all over the city are noticing there’s a change afoot. Residents that usually take weekend trips to the beach are walking to the local grocers to buy enough food to fill one or two reusable canvas bags so they can BBQ in the back yard. Couples skip the gym and walk a mile to the movie theater. Instead of rushing off to drink ice coffee in their car, money-conscious consumers are enjoying free air conditioning and reading the paper.

Suddenly, the streets are filled with smiling faces, people with canvas shopping bags and paper umbrellas to shade them from the sun. Of course, this goes against the popular Los Angeles tradition of driving half a block to get a cup of coffee as satirized in the popular Steve Martin movie “LA Story”.
()

Finally residents are leaving the car at home and walking.

Though the prices at the gas pump are unbearable, it’s good to see a major shift in the way people think about local transportation. If everyone spent more time on foot, perhaps we could see a dramatic shift in the state of the environment as well. Regardless, it’s nice to see people out of their cars and walking in the neighborhood.

Here’s to positive change.

June 20

In Italy

In Italy
An excerpt from a poem by Nobel Laureat in Literature Derek Walcott
Published in The New Yorker
April 21, 2008

“…Light
older than wine and a cloud like a tablecloth
spread for lunch under the leaves.
I have come this late
to Italy, but better now, perhaps, than in youth
That is never satisfied, whose joys are treacherous,
While my hair rhymes with those far crests, and the bells
Of the hilltop towers number my errors,
Because we are never where we are, but somewhere else,
Even in Italy…”

******

Reading this incredible poem immediately brought me back to Italy and to my undeniable love of that place. In just a few words, Derek Walcott rekindled my love of all things Italian–the ancient light. The hills. The small stores filled with fresh ingredients and grey haired ladies with rounded bellies. The skyline of green trees, blue sky and sparkling waters. The food, and the love of food of all of its inhabitants. The smell of baking bread, of chestnuts, of wine aging in casks, of olives hanging from the trees just days from picking. The amazing culinary characters we met during our October honeymoon.

Dear reader, though this may not be my traditional post, please consider this a recipe for nostalgia.

June 14November 14

Happy Father's Day

Dad,

Thank you for working so hard to take care of us, your children. Thank you for the sacrifices you made at such a young age in order to feed and shelter us. Thank you for your ferocious loyalty and love. Thank you for instilling in us the belief that hard work and passion is the most important element we can give to our life and work. Thank you for believing in us, no matter what paths we take.

Thank you for our curious sense of humor. Thank you for Sunday morning memories of the Funnies and donuts. Thank you for giving us the love of the grill, the ocean and swimming in the quarry.

Thank you for telling me that everything I do is magic.
I love you.

June 11

Stone Fruit Cobbler

With summer already on its way, it’s time for a bevy of backyard barbeque’s and dinner parties. The minute I read the June Gourmet I thought I found the perfect party-time dessert. Unfortunately, Gourmet’s original recipe for a stone fruit cobbler didn’t dazzle the crowd as promised. However, after a bit of tweaking, I think I’ve come up with a crowd pleasing version that wows guests and makes them want to dive in for more.

MARKET SUGGESTIONS

Nectarines at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market

If you live near a farmer’s market, I suggest buying stone fruits that are in season. In Southern California, you can find nectarines, plums, pluots and peaches in abundance.

Plums at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market

Peaches at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market

For simplicity’s sake, I suggest using only plums and nectarines in this recipe. That way all you have to do is pit and slice and never have to peel off the skin. Otherwise, if you pick peaches or pluots, you’ll need to remove the skin before cooking. Also, choose firm fruits as they are a better choice for baking.

Stone Fruit Cobbler
Adapted from Gourmet magazine
Serves 8 (or a handful of gluttonous people)

For the filling:
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
¼ cup all purpose flour
3 lb mixed stone fruit, pitted and cut into ½ inch thick wedges (8 cups).
1 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
¼ tsp pure almond extract
NOTE: I adjusted the amount of sugar required from the original recipe. Keep in mind that after blending together the filling ingredients, you may want to increase the sugar level if the fruit mixture tastes overtly sour.

For the biscuits:
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cornmeal (not stone-ground)
2 tsp baking powder
½ teaspoon (rounded) salt
2 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into ½ inch pieces
3 cups (plus 1 Tbsp) heavy cream
4 Tbsp demerara sugar

Make filling
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F with the rack in the middle. Butter a 3 quart glass or ceramic baking dish.

Toss together filling ingredients in a large bowl. Spread filling into the baking dish. Bake until just bubbling 15-20 minutes.

Make topping
While the filling bakes, whisk together sifted flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Blend together the dry ingredients with your fingers until the mixture resembles a course meal. Add 1 cup cream and stir until a dough forms.

Turn dough onto a floured surface. Lightly dust the dough with flour. Roll out the dough with a floured rolling pin until it’s ½ inch thick and is 10-inches around in diameter. Cut out dough with a 2-inch cookie cutter (or use the top of a small to medium sized glass). Gather scraps and re-roll once to cut out more biscuits.

Arrange biscuits ½ inch apart over hot filling. Brush tops with remaining Tbsp cream and sprinkle generously with sugar. Bake until topping is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling in the center. About 25-30 minutes. Let cool a few minutes before serving.

Whip the remaining heavy cream until it forms soft peaks. Serve cobbler and finish the individual portions with a generous dollop of whipped cream.

Suggested dessert wine paring:
Brachetto, a semi-sweet sparkling rosé, or my all time favorite: Vin de Bugey, a semi-sweet sparkling rosé from France.

I’ve brought this cobbler to several parties already. It’s an easy recipe that results in a real show stopping dessert!

June 10April 29

Culinary Aha! moment

get over fear of baking — Not all sugars and measurements are the same

Sometimes life offers up little discoveries that remind you to stay sharp and be humble. You learn to swim after fearing it all your life. You read a book you always thought was “too deep” for you. You meet a stranger that inspires a courageous journey. You see stars in the sky and realize how small you are. You observe a piece of artwork that inspires a new idea. You taste a Madeline and suddenly the glories of youth are remembered.

These shifts in perspective, be it big or small, can redirect your life in an instant. Oprah calls this flash of understanding an “Aha!” moment. These life changing moments certainly do have a Sherlock Holmes-esque “A ha!” or “Egads!” quality to them.

My Aha! moment

I had one of those eye-opening moments a few days ago during a conversation with a long time friend, Anne, over lunch. She’s a former model turned pastry chef (what a great combination, right?) and is one of the most honest and real people I know in Los Angeles. So not only can I talk to this smart and lovely woman about life, but I can also ask her all sorts of questions about baking. Maybe too many questions about baking. But she doesn’t seem to mind it. Considering my fear of making desserts, I think Anne is the only one that will teach me to get over it. ASAP.

So, back to the “Aha” moment. I was in the thick of asking for Anne’s culinary perspective on a cobbler recipe I was perfecting, when I asked her how she measured out her recipes.

“Kitchen scale,” she said. “Though, I have a few of my early recipes in cup measurements.”

Damn, I thought. I really do have to go out and by a kitchen scale. With the cost of gas weighing heavily on my wallet, I asked, “Is there a way to make sure to get perfect measurements from my measuring cups?”

Without missing a beat Anne answered. “Yeah. That’s easy. Just scoop and level the ingredient out.”

I immediately pictured my big glass measuring cup filled half way with flour.

“Yeah, but what if the recipe calls for 2 cups and your measuring cup holds 4? How do you level it out then? By punching it down?”

Anne gave me a Kung-fu master smile. “You’re using a liquid measure to measure dry ingredients, Brooke. You need dry measuring cups to measure flour.”

CUE SOUND: record scratching

AHA! Egads! THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF MEASUREMENTS?!!

No wonder my baking skills aren’t great. I didn’t know how to measure my ingredients!

Dry measurements vs. liquid measurements

If I had paid attention in my high school science class, I would have known that liquids and dry products measure differently. In the interest of anyone else that may be as in the dark about measurements as I am, I offer this quick and easy lesson.

In baking, accuracy is one of the most important skills for the cook. Follow recipes closely and use the correct measuring tools and accurate measurements. Using dry measuring cups allows for proper leveling and volume.

DRY MEASUREMENTS
Dry measurements should be put in individually portioned (nestled) dry measuring cups (or a professional grade portion controlled measuring cup). Ingredients are then leveled off the top with the back of a knife or spatula. This website strongly recommends using a scoop to fill the measuring cup with dry ingredients and not to use the measuring cup itself. Otherwise, your measurements will be off.

SPOON MEASUREMENTS
Despite what my mother told me about using kitchen spoons, measuring spoons are necessary in creating accurate measurements in baking. Measuring spoons should offer a wide range of sizes including 1/8 teaspoon, 1/4 teaspoon, 1/2 teaspoon, 1 teaspoon, and 1 tablespoon.

LIQUID MEASUREMENTS
Liquid measuring cups usually come in 2 or 4 cup containers which allow for pouring. Liquid measuring cups allow room at the top of the container for the curvature (meniscus) of the liquid.

This helpful website gives conversions for national and international kitchen measurements.

Aha moments can be a little unnerving at first, but in the end they can make you a better person, or in my case, a better cook.

June 3November 14

Inspirational Dishes

Eating at a great restaurant is inspiring.

If you can get beyond the the daily challenges of the service industry, working at a great restaurant is galvanizing.

While working in a great restaurant: I met and fell in love with my husband. I found some of my best friends. I discovered (and tasted) wines from all over the world. I became a foodie. I learned how to make a miserable guest happy. I unraveled the mystery of cheese making. I gained an acute sense of taste and smell. I sampled a panoply of dishes and made them my own.

This spring time antipasti, is one of them.

This is one of those great restaurant dishes that once I tasted it, I needed to know how to make it. The following is my interpretation of the dish we currently serve at the restaurant.

Peas Mint and (home made) Greek Yogurt Cheese

3 tablespoons (a full palm’s worth) of Greek Yogurt Cheese
(Note: see previous post for the full recipe). To save time, goat or sheep’s milk cheese will do.
1 cup of sweet peas (in the pod), juilienned
1⁄4 cup red onion, diced
Juice of one lemon
3 tablespoons of a good red wine vinegar
1⁄4 cup Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Maldon sea salt (or a good finishing salt)

*Begin preparation of Greek Yogurt cheese one day before serving with salad!

Toss the julienned peas and onion with the olive oil, lemon juice and vinegar.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Put on plate and serve with a small round of your home made Greek Yogurt Cheese. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and pinch of Maldon sea salt.