Heading to the Headlands

Last weekend I decided to visit some of my good friends in the Bay Area for a weekend of eating, drinking, surfing, and of course... cooking!

I met up with my good pal, curator Joseph Del Pesco and his wife Helena Keefe, at the Headlands where Helena has just finished up a residency with her collaborative project Alula Editions.

Joseph and I woke up early last Saturday to catch some surf in Bolinas bay, and after two choice rides on a long board over the course of three hours, I decided it was time to call it a day. On the way back to the headlands we noticed a little roadside farm stand know as the Gospel Flat Farm Stand.



The produce was amazing! We picked up a large bunch of the most beautiful squash blossoms i'd ever seen, a giant bunch of fresh beets with greens, basil, fresh sage,a sack of baby artichokes, and an immense red onion with the stalk still on. The produce spoke to me and it said:

"Stuffed squash blossoms with a roasted garlic cream sauce served with baby artichokes roasted in balsamic vinegar, followed by beet gnocchi with butter sage sauce served with beet greens sautéd with shallots"

Joseph and I picked up a bottle of Sancerre and a bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and off we went. What a pleasure it was to cook in the Headlands kitchen designed by artist Ann Hamilton!

The Squash blossoms are a relatively easy procedure:

Ingredients:
16 oz. Ricotta
1/2 cup Pecorino Cheese ( I prefer Toscano, but often have to settle for Romano)
1/4 finely chopped Basil
1 egg
Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients and put into a pastry bag. Extrude the mixture into the center of the flowers without ripping the petals.

Batter:

1 cup flour
2 Eggs.

Beat the eggs and dip your stuffed flowers into them. Roll your egged flower in the flour ( ha ha! ) and repeat. Gently lay you battered flour into your hot oil ( I used canola at about 375 degrees f) Wait till the batter is lightly browned, and then remove the flower and place on a paper towel to rest.

The cream sauce is also very simple as well:

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp Flour
4 Tbsp Butter
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
10 roasted garlic cloves
Salt and pepper to taste

Make a roux with the butter and flour. Whisk in your roasted garlic cloves and add your cream. Reduce until thickened and season to taste.





















The beet gnocchi were a cinch!

Ingredients:

3 medium beets
16oz ricotta cheese
1 egg
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups flour


Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wrap beets in foil and roast until tender, about 1 hour.
Cool 15 minutes. Slip skin off beets; discard skins. Coarsely grate beets. Place 3/4 cup grated beets in large bowl. Stir in ricotta, egg, 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Mix in 1 cup flour. The Gnocchi dough should be similar to play-dough, and shouldn't be too sticky. Add flour as needed, but don't let the mixture get dry.

Lightly dust a rolling surface with flour. Pinch off racket ball sized mounds of dough and roll out into 1/4" to 1/2" coils. Cut off 3/4" lumps and flick up the back of a fork or a gnocchi board to make the little dumplings.

Place them in boiling water and cook for about 2 minutes, or until they float. Remember, your gnocchi are already technically cooked... you're just cooking the egg acting as a binder, so don't over cook them or they'll get mushy! For these we used a butter sage sauce, which is basically just butter lightly browned with fresh sage cooked in it, but a nutmeg cream sauce would also be fantastic. For that sauce just do the same as the garlic sauce above, but instead of adding garlic, use 2 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg.



It was an amazing dinner to celebrate not only good friends, but the launch of a really great project, Alula editions. If you haven't checked it out yet, go to: http://www.alulaeditions.com/

and check out the really great work that Helena, Amber and Kristin are doing. Cheers ladies!

Naughty Little Tartlets

It’s starting to get hot and sweaty out here in Far West Texas; and when it gets sultry, I get in the mood for citrus. And while I prefer the tang of a good lime, Texas is certainly the place for some big juicy ruby red grapefruits. Being that I tend to lean towards the experimental type in the kitchen, I thought I would whip up something sweet, tangy, and creamy for this evening’s delight. Most of the desserts that came to mind tonight seemed boring, and didn’t offer the promise of much pleasure under the pressure of my rolling pin. But soon my mind wondered to the memory of my younger years, and my days of trying anything I could pick up on the street. I soon found myself craving the sticky sweet topping of a sinful Sunday tart in Florence. Now I’ve had my share of tarts, but never made one myself. So I mixed and matched some recipes from Saveur, Chow, and Betty Crocker, and this is my rendition of a naughty little tart:

Fresh Berry Tart with Grapefruit Custard

Ingredients:

Crust:

¾ c chilled butter

¼ c sugar

2 c flour

pinch of salt

ice water to mix

Filling:

¾ c fresh squeezed grapefruit

2 Tbsp grapefruit zest

½ c sugar

4 egg yolks

3 eggs

4 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 1⁄2" pieces and chilled

Directions

Custard:

1. Whisk together the sugar, grapefruit zest, egg yolks, and eggs in a 4-qt. saucepan.

2. Whisk in the grapefruit juice and cook, stirring, over medium heat, until the mixture begins to simmer and thicken.

3. Remove from heat; whisk in the butter 1 piece at a time until incorporated.

4. Strain the curd through a sieve set over a large bowl; press plastic wrap onto surface. Chill before using.

Crust:

1. In a mixer combine all dry ingredients and set speed to low

2. Add butter and mix until a crumbly mixture

3. Add water a little at a time until the dough is moist (YOU DON’T WANT IT STICKY!)

4. Hand knead into a ball, wrap in plastic, and let chill in the refrigerator for about an hour.

Assembly:

1. Divide crust into four equal balls.

2. Roll out crust and slump into oblong ramekins.

3. Bake at 375° for 15min or until edges are golden

4. Let crust chill on the counter until warm to the touch

5. Pour even amounts of custard into ramekins

6. Top with fresh berries (You can toss them in a bowl with honey before topping if you’d like)

7. Refrigerate until cool and ready to serve.

As evidenced by the photo, these little tarts turned out scrumptious. The grapefruit was pleasingly crisp and refreshing in the warm evening, and the butter crust just melted in my mouth. Nailed it!

Coozy for my Cock Sauce

I can't believe how long it has been since my last post! A lot has been happening... totally re-landscaped my back yard, built a small guest house from scratch, and of course... a whole lotta' cook'n! Of that cooking, a lot of it has been with the foodie favorite Sriracha... or as the gourmets like to call it "Cock Sauce."

The other day we went to the U.S. Border Patrol open house in Marfa, and while there were no T-shirts with "Run For The Border" printed on them, I was delighted to get a coozy with "Protected by U.S. Border Patrol." I thought it would be kind of funny to have a Thai hot sauce protected by U.S. Border Patrol coozy meant to keep things cold... but that's just sort of my inside kitchen joke.

I have a confession to make.... I had never had the stuff until 2 months ago, but better late than never, right? I've been putting it on pizza, falafel, curry, and with lime, salt, and a shot of Mezcal..... electrifying... literally. But of everything we've done with this amazing red ambrosia, nothing has been as gratifying as our Thai peanut dressing.

1/2 C peanut butter
1 lime, juiced and half of the peel zested
2 1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp seasoned rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp honey
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp minced ginger
1/2 C roughly chopped cilantro (stems and all)
1/2 C Canola oil
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2-3 tsp sriracha sauce
2-4 Tbsp water

We tossed a little of this sauce in with fresh greens and topped it with jicama, mangos, black sesame seeds and some Teriyaki grilled shrimp.... AWESOME! This sauce is also amazing on a steak sandwich... but feel free to throw on a little more cock sauce for extra flavor if you need to.

Never Mind The Doughnuts, Here Come The Crêpes!

I would have never suspected that tonight I would discover one of the best dishes - nay - best experiences I’ve ever had! After a day of working in the studio, I came home hungry but unenthused to cook. A glance in the fridge didn’t reveal much, and the local Pizza place -The Pizza Foundation…Amazing!- was unfortunately closed. I dug deep into my soul and found what creativity I had left to make something of what was available. I decided that a batch of buckwheat crêpe batter leftover from the weekend would be sufficient. We found the recipe on David Lebovitz’ blog, and it goes a ‘lil something like this:

"Buckwheat Crêpes

18-20 crêpes

It's best to let the batter chill overnight, but let it come to room temperature prior to frying them up. And keep stirring the batter as you go while frying since the flour tends to sink to the bottom.

2 cups (500 ml) whole milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3 tablespoons (80 gr) butter, salted or unsalted, melted
1/2 cup (70 gr) buckwheat flour
3/4 cup (105 gr) all-purpose flour (In France, I use type 65)
3 large eggs

In a blender, or with a whisk, mix together all the ingredients until smooth. Cover and chill overnight.

To fry the crêpes, remove the batter from the refrigerator about an hour before frying. Stir it briskly; it should be the consistency of heavy cream. (If not, you can add a tablespoon of milk.)

Heat a 8- to 9-inch skillet on the stovetop. You can use a real crêpe pan that's been seasoned, but I use a Tefal non-stick skillet which works great.

Drop a tiny piece of butter or neutral oil in the hot pan and wipe it around with a paper towel. (I only do this for the first crêpe.)

Lift the pan and pour 1/4 cup of the batter in the middle of the hot skillet, swirling the pan to distribute the batter quickly and evenly. The pan shouldn't be too hot or too cold: the batter should start cooking within a few seconds, giving you just enough time to swirl it. It may take a couple of crêpes for you to get your rhythm.

After about a minute, run a non-stick spatula around the underside of the rim of the crêpe, then flip the crepe over. I grasp the crepe with my fingers, but you're not me (...consider yourself lucky!) and I'm not you. So use the spatula if you wish.

Let the crêpe cook on the flip side for about 30 seconds, then slide it out onto a dinner plate. Repeat, cooking the crepes with the remaining batter, stirring the batter every so often as you go.

Crêpes should be served warm. To rewarm the crêpes for serving, fold the crepes and put them in a baking dish covered with foil. Heat them in a moderate oven until warmed through."

So I made some savory crepes with manchengo, oyster mushrooms, bell peppers deglazed in sake…..not bad. But then the magic happened. Over the weekend Emily introduced me to the Lemon and sugar method, where by one sprinkles lemon juice and sugar on the crêpe just before serving. This technique gives a swift kick of summer in winter’s ass…it’s fantastic. But looking around the kitchen this evening I realized we had used all the lemons. However, we had two Citron Vert (pretentious French for lime) and I figured I’d try the substitute. My god!.....nothing has ever been more magical. The sensation is beyond words, and my only reaction was to begin jumping up and down singing…ask Emily, it was a hilarious act for her. I refused to settle at my discovery, and decided to push the limits of possibilities. I took a bottle of our homemade vanilla extract and sprinkled a few drops on the surface with the limejuice just before removing it from the iron pan. The result was nothing short of one of the most incredibly experiences I have ever had…I kid you not, this transcended transplendent!

If you are reading this get up and do this now….now I say! Life is too short to miss out on this!

Fresh linguini tossed with butter beans, caramelized shallots, and basil, served in a pool of garlic pea sauce.

Maybe I’m in a green phase because I feel a bit like Andy Warhol right now for making all these bright green dishes. Perhaps I was channeling Warhol from the dead - or someone else for that matter - because I have no idea where this meal came from, I only know that it was fantastic!

So here’s what we did:

Make fresh pasta. I love making fresh pasta, and with our Kitchen Aid mixer it’s sooo easy. We use a version of the Kitchen Aid recipe that we’ve tweaked:

5 medium eggs

3 Tbsp water

2 Tbsp olive oil

3 ½ cups semolina four

1 tsp. fine sea salt

Place ingredients in this order into your mixing bowl: flour, salt, eggs, water and oil. Use your paddle attachment until you have a consistent mix. If the dough mix still looks dry, add a little bit of oil or water, but be careful to not overwet the mix. We’re going for a consistency just like PlayDough. Once you have a good consistency, switch to the dough hook and work into a ball for about 2 minutes. Break up this ball into 8 smaller balls, and that’s what you’re going to roll. We rolled our sheets to a 5 before cutting them.

The sauce. This sauce is simple:

6oz of frozen or fresh peas

1 Tbsp of butter

3 cloves of garlic

1 cup Half & Half

Salt and pepper to taste

Sautée the peas in butter until they are tender. Then add your garlic and stir to prevent burning for about 2 minutes. Adding the garlic second assures you won’t burn it and will give it a stronger taste in your sauce. Then add your Half & Half. Stir and bring to a light simmer. Remove from heat and use a stick blender or a food processor to purée the sauce to a desired consistency (I liked ours a little chunky). Add salt and pepper to taste.

The Beans:

I have no idea where I got the idea to use Butter Beans, other than that they came to me in a vision and I was guided to them in our local grocery store. I used canned Butter Beans, but I’m sure fresh ones are even better. You’ll need:

1 Shallot

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 can of Butter Beans

1 sprig of Fresh Basil chopped or hand torn

Sautée the Shallot in olive oil until it begins to turn translucent. Add your butter beans and sautée for a couple of minutes. When the skin of the beans begin to wrinkle or slightly brown, remove them from the heat and add your basil. Done.

Here’s how I assembled the dish. Boil your pasta for about a minute…just until it’s tender…remember it will continue to cook a bit from the trapped heat once you strain it. Place it in a mixing bowl and add your bean mix. Mix well adding olive oil, as needed, to coat all the noodles. Ladle your sauce onto place and with a set of tongs place your pasta on top. Grate fresh Parmesan on top and serve warm. Serves 2 - 4

West-Texas Food-Off

The other day we had a good ‘ol West Texas cook off -Marfa Style!- with local celebrity chef Rocky Barnett. Here’s a great video of Rocky doing his thing in the Hudson Valley:

Well it all started by asking if we could see Rocky’s Pigs. As you might recall Rocky was mentioned in the New York Times recently for his pig raising: http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/11/22/travel/22journeys.html

Rocky took us out to his friend Mary Farley’s house where he keeps his pigs.

Mary is a major bird enthusiasts and has a ton of chickens.... well not literally, but there has to be over twenty. We lucked out because a couple of the hens had laid eggs. Mary raises a variety of chickens so the hues of the eggs ranged from toasty browns to subtle shades of turquoise; gorgeous!

Then Rocky took us to meet his little piggies… which are anything but small. When we arrived at their pens they were all foaming at the mouth. Rocky explained to us to not be concerned as his pigs know that when they hear Rocky coming it means food, so they start salivating like a fat kid in Cafe Tartine (That one's for you Eddy). I’ve met some cute pigs in my day, but these pigs were far from cuddly…. that’s good because it means they’ll be easier to eat. After we wrapped up tending the pigs we headed back to his place for a sip of Tequila. Rocky asked us if we’d like to try something different, and broke out a bottle of homemade Kahlua made by local legend “Crazy Johnny.” Johnny is infamous for his vintage Cadillac limo complete with long horns on the hood and murals of the West Texas landscape on the side, and for his home brewed sotol-based absinthe. I had this stuff once and it nearly killed me, so when Rocky broke out the Kahlua I was a bit hesitant. The liquor was fantastic! Made from local mesquite honey and Big Bend coffee, Johnny’s Kahlua kicked the juevos out of the brand name.

After a couple of drinks it occurred to us to use what we had collectively in our two refrigerators and cook ourselves a feast for dinner. Emily and I raced home to raid our fridge, and stopped by the local grocery store to pick up some Dead Guy Ale, Sammy Smiths, and some Early Grey chocolate. We got back to his place and organized the ingredients:

Baby Butter Lettuce, Beets, Roasted Pumpkin and Avacados, Lavender Butter, fresh baked homemade bread, Gruyere cheese, Crème Fraîche, Broccoli, Vanilla Beans, Milk, Fresh Eggs, Cilantro, Bosc Pears, limes, and shallots. To top it off I brought some home made venison sausage that Emily’s father had caught, and Rocky brought some boudin sausage he had just acquired from the eastern part of the state.

Here’s what we made:

Pear Gruyere bruscetta sautéed in lavender butter and vanilla bean.

Quiche with a fresh butter cilantro crust with Gruyere, broccoli, shallots and freshly laid eggs.

Roasted Beet Avocado Pumpkin salad in a balsamic and lime zest vinaigrette with butter lettuce and crème fraîche dressing

Baked sausage with stone ground mustard

And of course, homemade Kahlua with Earl Grey chocolate.

As you might imagine, we went home fat and happy. Three cheers to Rocky.

Communal eating is incredibly important to me. If I could I would do it every night, most Americans do not embrace such a concept. When I lived in Florence I hug out with a group of Tuscan artists, many of whom were just barely getting by financially. Despite their financial difficulties these artists ate like kings because each would bring an ingredient for the feast, and an inexpensive bottle of wine (it's true, you can get good wine on the cheap in Tuscany). Thirty or so artists would show up and we would spend hours eating pastas, salamis, salads, beans, soups, bread...you name it. Furthermore, these meals established a positive community, a group of people who genuinely cared for eachother based on the dialogs they had created over delicious meals. These dinners were the inspiration for the meals Emily and I would later serve for our friends when we lived in the Bay Area, and during special events when we are abroad.

In my opinion the United States is in a spiritual depression, one created through the isolation of consumer culture. This country needs a pick-me-up, and I think a great beginning would be if people could begin to cook and eat together. I'm sure you've had a dinner party before, but do it more often. Ask your friends to each bring what they can or have at home and see what you can create. Find spaces to cook and eat in large numbers. If your kitchen is too small, go on the roof. If the roof is out of the question then find a park, or even a community center. Spaces for creating community surround us, and food is the optimal catalyst.

Kale-Potato-Leek potage

Kale-Potato-Leek potage served around Turnip mash, garnished with roasted kale, caramelized shallots, and crème fraîche.

Believe it or not, Far West Texas is cold in winter, making it a perfect time for a hearty winter soup. My wife and I took a jaunt down to our two local grocery stores to see what was in season.

Kale, Potatoes, Leeks and Turnips were just about the only veggies that didn’t look like they had been as pumped on roids as a 1970s Schwarzenagger. Ironically, what we did with them seems to be more like a dish found in Austria than the high desert of Texas.

My wife, Emily, was inspired by David Lebovitz’ food blog, and his recent entry on potato leek soup.

Being the California boy that I am, I thought the recipe seemed delicious enough but could use some tricked out customizing. The result: Kale Potato Leek potage served around Turnip mash, garnished with roasted kale, caramelized shallots, and crème fraîche.

Recipes:

Potage (fancy name for thick soup):

8 cups of water (you could use chicken stock if you like)

1 bunch of kale de-stemmed and chopped

3 medium leeks

5 red, and 3 medium russet potatoes peeled and cut into 1in cubes

2 tbsp butter (home made is best)

2 bay leaves

1 sprig of fresh thyme

A pinch of cayenne

Salt and pepper to taste

Thoroughly wash and chop leeks. Add leeks and butter to stockpot and sauté on medium heat until soft. Add kale and stir until wilted. Once both your kale and leeks are bright green add your potatoes, water, bay leafs, and thyme. Bring to a boil until potatoes are tender. Turn off heat and remove bay leaf. Stick-blend the potage until you have a creamy consistency. If you don’t have a stick blender a blender or food processor should work, but be careful of the quantity you blend at any one time as you can easily create a mess.

Turnip Mash:

3 large turnips cut into 1in cubes

2 tbsp butter

1 chopped green onion

Salt and pepper to taste

Boil turnips until tender. Remove from heat when done and drain. Place turnips back in pot and add butter. Mash turnips until even and mix in green onion. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Garnish:

Roasted Kale:

4 leaves of kale de-stemmed

2 tbsp olive oil

a pinch of sea salt and coarse black pepper.

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and lay flat on a baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes, or until edges of Kale are crisp.

Caramelized Shallots:

2 large shallots cut lengthwise

1 ½ tbsp butter

Place shallots into pan with butter. Cook on medium heat until shallots are translucent with brown edges. Remove from heat when done.

Assembly of potage:

Place a large spoonful of turnip mash in the center of the bowl. Ladle in potage around the mash edges. Drizzle crème fraîche and lay roasted kale on the surface of the potage. Garnish the mash with caramelized shallots. Severe warm.

Serves 6.