5 reasons why I love Bob’s Red Mill flour and other products and use them daily
Bob Moore and I met at the January 2016 Specialty Food Show in San Francisco. I felt as excited as a teenager meeting Beyonce as Bob has been one of my heroes for a very long time. While waiting in line one of his employees commented that he really loves to talk with the public. I told him that I would do my best to keep our conversation short but it would be hard given my admiration for him.
We should all have a few show-stopping sauces to take a recipe from tasty to transcendent. Trust me, this is one is one of those sauces you’ll treasure and share.
Having come of age in the 1960s in the San Francisco Bay Area, I experienced the folk music era, mini-skirts, peace marches and lots of good ole’ rock ‘n’ roll. In 1969 I moved to the Mendocino Coast and lived in a farm house built in 1886. All this is to say, I know granola!
When the heat’s on, the last last thing you want is kitchen time at the stove or have the oven blasting. This is when sorbets, granitas and popsicles are the best game in town. And what’s better than something bursting with summer flavor but light on the waistline? You can start the process early in the morning, and enjoy the fruits of your labor (pun intended) later in the day when you crave an icy treat.
One of the delightful things about granitas is that you can switch out the flavors and add herbs or spices without screwing things up. This is not baking where everything must be precise. Switch out the lemons for limes or pomegranate juice or watermelon or whatever comes up. With lemon granita you can easily add rum and have a Daquiri Granita or tequila and salt for a Margarita Granita. If you switch from lemons, to limes, add lots of mint to the lime zest/sugar syrup, remove it before freezing, add a little rum and, voila, you have Mojita Granita. Don’t add more than 2 – 3 tablespoons of alcohol to the granita mixture as it might not fully freeze, but you can serve the granita in glasses and pour a little more rum over the top.
My all-time favorite plums are Santa Rosa plums, created by none other than the famous Luther Burbank, who lived in the Santa Rosa Valley at the turn of the twentieth century. The flesh is yellow and red, super juicy and sweet, and the skins are tart purple. They have a heavenly flavor whether you eat, cook or bake with them. I planted a Santa Rosa plum at my home and have missed both the plum and the Blenheim apricot tree since moving.
Well over a year ago I started noticing ads for meal kit delivery services on Facebook. Hmmm, cool idea but not something I’d use. But the ads kept on coming, with enticing shots of produce and interesting entrees. In retrospect, I’m surprised I didn’t bite sooner, but I love the farmers’ markets, talking with the growers, tasting the fresh produce and deciding what to prepare for the week. And, I do love cooking.
Summer has arrived, which translates to grilling, barbecue and outdoor parties and activities. In other words, keep the food part quick and simple. That’s precisely what this salad is: Simple, crunchy, absolutely delicious.
Celery has a number of major health benefits, it’s low calorie, and combined with toasted walnuts, red onion or shallots and an oil and lemon vinaigrette with just a drop or two of vanilla, it’s an easy, light salad.
Every spring I look forward to at least one dish that includes fava beans. Like artichokes and asparagus, favas burst delicious green energy flavor. Truthfully, I never tasted favas until well into adulthood as my mother, who spent summers on her grandparents’ farm in Canada, always said that fava beans were animal feed. To that I say, “It’s good to be a cow.”
Commercial salmon season just opened on the California Coast. Sport fishing for salmon has been open for several weeks now and a friend of mine who crews on a few sailboats out of Moss Landing has shared both the prized Dungeness crabs and fresh salmon fillets from her friends at the harbor. In exchange, I’ve sent fresh pineapple upside-down cake back to her friends as a small thank you. What I’ve found is that those who fish love freshly baked desserts. Works well for all of us!
Given all the bad press on the evils of sugar, we know we need to be judicious about our intake, but it’s oh-so-difficult! We’re hard-wired to love it; sweet is the first taste sensation a newborn baby experiences, and for many of us, sweets are downright addictive. Given that we’re constantly reminded to limit our sugar consumption to prevent obesity, metabolic syndrome, diabetes and tooth decay, you can imagine my surprise when my favorite sugar — maple syrup — was recently declared a super food!
Late July heralds the beginning of the US fig season. In Europe, most especially Italy, everyone who can, has a fig tree. Italian immigrants who came to the US in the late 19th and early 20th century, planted them in barrels in apartment courtyards and cottage gardens, holding onto the memory of warm figs harvested from trees in sun-baked gardens and hillsides. Although I love fresh figs, they aren’t on the radar of many Americans. When I offered some of this spectacular salad to my neighbors, several said they had never eaten figs or they tried them as kids and didn’t like them though after sampling this dish, they converted. Granted, their texture isn’t the most child-friendly, but if this was your experience, I highly recommend trying them again as an adult as you may discover how special they actually are.
Chef June Pagan was legendary in Hollywood circles as she provided the stars with daily meals, glamorous party fare and even delicious emergency diet delights when called upon by the likes of Liz Taylor, Al Pacino, Sally field and Diane Keaton, among many others.
I’m currently enamored with the combination of pomegranate molasses, Mediterranean spices and ground vanilla beans. Sweet, tart, salty, savory. With a fast turn of the wrist you can make a “same old” weeknight meal into an “oh yeah!” dinner. This recipe is liberally adapted from Sunset Magazine. They also used carrots but I think Maui or cippolini onion chunks, or sweet potatoes would be dynamite thrown into the pot with or without the carrots. I had asparagus roasting on the rack above the chicken and was pleasantly surprised by how well it blended, but I wish I’d also had some potatoes roasting too. In other words, adapt, adapt, adapt. I’m thinking pork chops or even pork tenderloin would soak in all this juicy goodness. What about you?
One of the pluses about living on the Central California coast is the fresh fish! I live down the street from a couple of fishermen and occasionally I go out on the Bay with them, though I admit, it’s more for the boat ride and being on the water than it is for the fishing. What I’ve learned as they’ve reeled the fish in, is that the markets use names like “snapper” and “cod” when the fish is actually one of the many varieties of rock fish. I mention this because it really doesn’t matter what firm-fleshed white fish you use to make this and many other fish dishes. It’s more about choosing fresh fish that ideally is also sustainable. If you are concerned about what fish to choose regarding sustainability, check fishwatch.gov.
Many years ago I swore that I would never live where I couldn’t easily get artichokes, asparagus, and avocados. Times have changed and we can now get just about anything anywhere, but living on California’s Central Coast, I live at ground zero for all three of these favorites of mine.
Just about everyone knows how to use avocados but artichokes and asparagus some have special secrets worth sharing. And while I could easily dedicate an entire blog to each of these two vegetables, they have certain shared characteristics and sauces worthy of each so, for the time being at least, I’m combining them into one meaty blog with links to recipes.
Asparagus
Asparagus is a fern. If you look carefully at the tips of asparagus, you’ll see that it has little segments that turn into a fern that looks like the asparagus ferns we grow in pots (and are likely closely related to the ones we eat). It can be grown from seed, but most asparagus that is grown commercially is grown from crowns that take around a year before they produce. Growing by seed takes longer.
If you are unfamiliar with tagines but enjoy trying new recipes are up for exotic flavors, you are in for a treat. The richness and depth of flavor as well as the interesting pairing of ingredients are truly a sensory delight.
Tagines (also spelled tajines) are North Africa’s version of stew, the mainstay and comfort food of people everywhere. The Berbers of North Africa gave the world tagines as well as cous cous; in Morocco, the tagine is both daily food and edible art.
Celery soup appears to have fallen by the wayside over the years, as has celery in general. It’s too bad as celery is a nutritional powerhouse as well as low in calories. And, it tastes good! I remember as a child even Campbell’s canned soup had Cream of Celery, which was often used in condensed form for the liquid in the ubiquitous casseroles of the 50’s. Actually, maybe that’s reason celery soup fell out of fashion; the canned version wasn’t anything to write home about. At any rate, I really like this soup and I hope you’ll try it as it’s really good. On a cold afternoon or evening, add a grilled cheese sandwich and you’re set.
Whenever I prepare a really good stir-fry or have one at a restaurant or a friend’s home, I’m reminded of how delicious this cooking technique is. Fresh, crunchy vegetables, little bites of succulent protein, and ingredients that add brightness and pop in the mouth. That’s how I feel about this recipe. While there are several steps involved, you can easily prep the various segments while listening to music or watching a video, and you can then assemble everything right at the end and put it together quickly and easily.
This is one of those recipes that can be adapted however you’d like. I will say that the combination of ingredients makes a refreshing salad as it contains sweet, salty, juicy and crunchy contrasts. If you can’t find packaged broccoli and carrots cut in fine julienne pieces, you can make your own.
