Tag Archives: photos

  • Attempting The Zuni Caesar Salad

    September 3, 2013

    24 Comments

    Zuni Caesar Salad.

    Zuni Caesar Salad.

    There are few more iconic dishes in the San Francisco Bay Area than the Zuni Caesar Salad. The Caesar Salad may come in and out of style, and heaven knows there are some truly criminal insipid versions out there, but here in Norcal it is still a dish that puts butts in seats at the best restaurants (and the best homes….or farms). And while there may be better versions out there to discover, we make an (almost) annual pilgrimage to Judy Rodger’s Zuni Cafe to get our Caesar Salad….and it is still amazing.

    zuni2zuni3zuni4And a good Caesar Salad is a true masterpiece. Crunch from the romaine and croutons, a rich but acidic dressing and a big dose of umami from anchovy and parmesan combine into true alchemy, a dish that is more than the sum of its parts. But oddly enough, we don’t make many Caesars here at the farm. We weren’t sure why, but we decided to remedy the situation and try to make Caesars at home. And since the Zuni Cafe Cookbook is one of our favorites, we just had to open it up and give the “best” Caesar recipe a try. Easy enough.

    zuni5zuni6zuni7Except that it isn’t really easy at all. The recipe itself is very simple. Judy Rodgers has no tricks that a good home cook wouldn’t know or couldn’t follow. She just gives you solid technique and a list of common ingredients (and the Caesar is made from readily available ingredients). But that is what makes it hard. There is no place to hide. Like many classic dishes (think Caprese Salad) there is no way to mask inferior ingredients or shoddy work. You need to find the best ingredients and then do everything to make them shine. No shortcuts, no appliances, no pre-made, no pre-grated, to pre-peeled, no pre-washed and no making things ahead of time. Just manual labor at the time of service. This salad is real work. But good work.

    zuni10zuni8zuni9So is it worth it? Hell yes. Was ours as good as Zuni’s? Hell no…but damn good, nonetheless. And better than almost any other restaurant version we’ve had. We will make this at home much more often, even with the extra effort. But here are our key takeaways: homemade croutons from good artisan bread are a must (we knew this, but for a Caesar even more important), you need fresh garlic with no bitter green shoots, be very picky with the romaine and take only the best pieces, wash the romaine and then totally dry the leaves (bone dry, seriously, take the extra two minutes and dry those greens), and be very generous with the parmesan….that may be real key.

    zuni11zuni12zuni13And the parmesan really is the key (IMHO). You need good anchovies (salted are better but quality, well-drained oil-packed anchovies will work). You can’t do without good olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice or fresh eggs for the dressing. But in the end, this recipe is a crunchy parmesan delivery service. You must use the real thing, and three ounces of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano is a lot, but the genius of the recipe is that even when a bunch of the parm sticks to the bowl (and it will) there is enough to coat almost every leaf and crouton. So you get alternating bites of bread with parmesan and then romaine with parmesan, or a combination. Think about that….yes, think about that. Uh-huh, we thought so…hard to do better. Continue reading →

  • Singapore Shrimp Satay (Satay Udang)

    August 31, 2013

    14 Comments

    Singapore Shrimp Satay (Satay Udang)

    Singapore Shrimp Satay (Satay Udang)

    It may be “Labor” Day weekend, but when summer is coming to a close the last thing we want to do is heavy work in the kitchen. Nope, we want quick, easy and tasty dishes for the grill. We want to maximize our outside time with friends, eat good food and perhaps enjoy a few tasty beverages (and whine that real live starts again). But what if we want to go beyond the standard burgers and hot dogs? Enter satay, the Southeast Asian staple of some kind of protein on a stick cooked over a hot fire. Meat..Stick.. Fire….Yumm….More????

    satay

    Mix one of these before you get started.

    Mix one of these before you get started.

    We aren’t sure were we first tried this dish, also called Satay Udang, but it was one of those dishes were we immediately said, “we gotta make this at home”. There are all sorts of shrimp satay, but this version uses a sweet and spicy marinade most often associated with Singapore street food, and if you say “Singapore”and “street food” you will get our immediate culinary attention. (FYI, Singapore created food courts just for street food vendors to control sanitation…..and just maybe tax revenue.)

    satay11satay10satay9The key to this dish is a spicy marinade with aromatics, coconut milk, hot peppers and a surprise element of crushed macadamia nuts. The nuts are ground so they don’t add crunch, but they do lend a surprising richness to the shrimp that augments the coconut milk. The other slight surprise is a four-hour marinating time, as most fish marinades are under an hour, but in this case the shrimp handle the marinade just fine.

    satay8satay7We found this recipe at Saveur but did make a few changes. Firstly the original recipe calls for three Thai Bird chiles. Thai’s run at 50k to 100k Scoville units and are very hot. If you like spice, but don’t love it, we suggest Cayennes at about 30k or Serranos at 15k. These peppers are still spicy and taste great, but won’t blow your head off. (As it is, don’t breathe too deeply or touch your eyes while making the marinade…trust us on this one.) Secondly, we added some extra coconut milk to mellow the spice a bit more, but you can add less if you like.

    satay6satay4Otherwise, putting this dish together is easy. Process the aromatics and peppers, cook them with the coconut milk, chill the mixture, add the shrimp and marinate for 4 hours. Then skewer the shrimp and cook over a hot fire. The cooking mellows the heat of the chiles and what you get are beautiful charred shrimp with a perfect mix of sweet and spice with just a bit of crunch. Good stuff and a nice change of pace for the holiday. Have fun this weekend!

    satay1Singapore Shrimp Satay (Satay Udang):

    (Adapted from Saveur)

    Notes Before You Start:

    • The size and heat of chiles vary. Thai Bird chiles tend to be small, Serranos medium and Cayennes larger. The original recipe wants three Thai chiles, we used one Cayenne and would suggest two Serranos. Err on the side of less spice, you can always add it later.
    • The recipe also calls for Kaffir lime leaves. If you don’t have the leaves, the zest of a few limes can substitute.

    What You Get: Very flavorful shrimp that work as a snack, with rice or in tacos.

    What You Need: A hot fire.

    How Long? About 4 and a half hours, but only about 15 minutes of active time. The only thing you have to do is wait on the marinade. Weekend dish.

    Continue reading →

  • Tiramisu Layer Cake

    August 27, 2013

    32 Comments

    Tiramisu Layer Cake.

    Tiramisu Layer Cake.

    We gather that Tiramisu means “pick me up” in Italian. While a fitting translation, in our family it might as well mean “disappearing cake” (or in my case “expanding waistline”). We enjoy all sorts of desserts here at the farm, but everyone (and quite a few friends) agree that Tiramisu is a very special treat. This stuff goes fast. Tiramisu is hard to resist, and as a big cake, it is even harder. Too easy to go for seconds….way too easy.

    tira3tira4In truth, we have a local bakery that makes an excellent version of Tiramisu cake that we occasionally bring home. But Carolyn and the boys decided to make their own, and we are glad they did. After looking at a few recipes, they combined elements from King Arthur Flour, Martha Stewart and our favorite basic yellow cake recipe into a simple, delightful recipe. This cake looks complicated, but it is easier than you might think.

    tira5tira6This Tiramisu cake is really three basic recipes combined into one dish. You have a simple yellow cake, a coffee syrup and the mascarpone filling / frosting. For gear, all you need are cake pans, a springform pan (nice but not required) and an electric or stand mixer and you are business. The only tricky thing about making this dish is cutting layers from the yellow cake. A cake cutter is a nice tool here, but otherwise a serrated knife and some patience will do the trick.

    tira7tira8As for time, this recipe has only 30ish minutes of active time, but the dish does require a few hours of inactive time. First, you do need some time to bake and cool the cake. Next you need to cut the cake layers, brush on the coffee syrup, apply the mascarpone filling and dust on some cocoa powder. Easy enough. But then you need to let the cake set up in the fridge for a few hours, and at least 4 hours is better. For me some of us, those hours did seem to pass sloooowly….but our patience was eventually rewarded with a perfect bite. This cake has everything; light, moist cake, sweet coffee, creamy filling and a blast of cocoa. And it was big enough for a second piece. Excellent.

    tiraTiramisu Layer Cake:

    Notes Before You Start:

    • For cleaner edges and better presentation it is best to build this cake in a springform pan, but you can go without. The cake will still taste great.
    • The yellow cake recipe yields two cakes. You only need one for the recipe, but now you have extra cake. Always good to have extra cake, and this cake freezes well. Otherwise, halve the recipe, if you like.

    What You Get: Tiramisu as a cake. A very good make-ahead dessert for a crowd.

    What You Need: A mixer and 8 or 9 inch cake pans. An 8 or 9 inch springform pan is nice to have.

    How Long? 4 hours with about 30 minutes of active time. You can make this dish any time, just plan ahead to allow the time in the fridge.

    Ingredients:

    (Makes a cake with 12-16 servings)

    Yellow Cake:

    • 3 cups (12 3/4 oz.) all-purpose flour, sifted
    • 1 tablespoon baking powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
    • 2 cups (14 oz.) granulated white sugar
    • 4 large eggs
    • 1 cup whole milk
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    Coffee Syrup:

    • 1/2 cup water
    • 2 teaspoons espresso powder
    • 1/4 cup sugar

    Mascarpone Filling:

    • 1 cup heavy cream
    • 8 oz. mascarpone cheese at room temperature
    • 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
    • Cocoa powder, for garnish

    Assemble:

    Yellow Cake:

    1. Grease 2, 8 or 9 inch round cake pans with shortening and then dust evenly with flour. Tap out excess flour. Place the rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
    2. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
    3. In the large bowl of your mixer beat the butter until soft and smooth. Add the sugar and beat until light and smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Stop and scrape the sides of the bowl a few times while mixing.
    4. With the mixer at slow speed, alternately add the flour mixture and milk, starting and ending with the flour. Stir in the vanilla.
    5. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans. Smooth the batter in the pans so they cook evenly. Bake in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean and the cake tops are lightly springy.
    6. Remove the cakes from the oven and cool in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Then remove the cakes from the pans and place on a wire rack. Allow the cakes to cool completely before cutting or frosting.
    7. You will have an extra cake with this recipe. You can wrap the cake tightly in plastic and freeze for future use, if you like. (Or just eat some cake.)

    Coffee Syrup:

    1. In a small saucepan stir the syrup ingredients over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a full rolling boil, remove from the heat, and set aside to cool.

    Mascarpone Filling:

    1. Using your mixer at medium speed, whisk the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Do not overbeat the cream, as the you want a smooth texture.
    2. In another bowl, whisk together the mascarpone and the confectioners’ sugar until smooth.
    3. Gently fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture until completely incorporated.

    Tiramisu Layer Cake:

    1. Remove the top brown crust from the cake (so the syrup will soak in). Cut the cake in half horizontally. Place one layer of cake into a springform pan that’s been lined with a piece of parchment or waxed paper.
    2. Sprinkle the cake with half of the coffee syrup. Spread half of the mascarpone filling onto the cake. Top with the second piece of cake. Sprinkle with the remaining coffee syrup and let it sit for several minutes, then top with the remaining mascarpone filling. Refrigerate for several hours or until well-chilled.
    3. To serve, run a thin spatula around the edge of the pan. Remove the springform. Move the cake to a serving platter. Sprinkle with cocoa powder. Serve cold. Refrigerate any leftovers.
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  • House-Smoked Almonds (And A California Salad)

    August 23, 2013

    19 Comments

    almond

    House-Smoked Almonds.

    almond1

    California Salad.

    Summer is drawing to a close here at the farm. Not so much the weather, it will be warm and sunny for a while, but the kids are returning to school and things start to get busy again. We would like to say that without the rest of the year we wouldn’t enjoy summer as much, but that is just a lie. We like our “slow” time with the kids, friends and family. It doesn’t ever get old. But such is life…the rest of the year arrives whether we like it or not.

    almond4almond3Meanwhile, we do have a few more summer cooking projects to tackle and have worked hard to fit them in. The first was trying sous-vide, deep-fried, all-belly porchetta from j.Kenji Lopez-Alt at Serious Eats (recipe here). It was simply AWESOME, but so rich we will save it for special occasions. Sad to say, no photos, there was a lot going on and when we deep fry we prefer not to be distracted by taking pictures (it’s that hot oil and fire thing). But now that we made the dish, you may see a post for this recipe around the holidays.

    almond5almond6The other, easier, project was smoking our own almonds for snacking and adding to salads. This is something that is just as awesome, even if it seems a bit more umm…normal pedestrian. Smoking your own almonds over fruit woods (with just a touch of hickory) gives you a light smoke flavor, with clear fruity notes that takes the almonds to another level. Finished with a touch of fine salt and olive oil, you have an almost perfect snack with multiple flavors and a delightful crunchy texture. And these are nothing like the heavy salt/fake smoked almonds you buy in a can. These are better in every way. Hard. To. Stop. Eating. Them….Must. Stop. Eating. Them….. 😉

    almond7And smoking your own almonds is incredibly easy, it just takes time and a bit of gear. For the gear you need a stove top or outdoor smoker, but any rig you have for smoking meat will work. You also need a cheap, disposable aluminum pan with holes poked in it to hold the almonds but still let smoke through. For wood, we heavily suggest a mix of 90% fruit wood (apple or cherry) and 10% hickory. The fruit wood is sweeter and the touch of hickory gives that slight “bacony” flavor without overwhelming the almonds.Then smoke the almonds at 225 degrees F for 30 to 120 minutes, depending on your taste (and you can taste during smoking). We went about 80 minutes and thought the flavor had good balance. One note is that the smoke favor will strengthen a bit as the almonds cool, so we suggest you take the almonds out just before you think they have enough smoke flavor.

    almond8While the almonds were warm, we added a touch of fine salt and some olive oil just to coat the nuts. We went about 1 teaspoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of oil to coat 1 pound of nuts, but we suggest you slowly mix and taste as you go, it is all part of the fun. You could add other seasonings or even a touch of citrus zest, if you like. Then let the almonds cool and have at them.

    almond9How to serve the almonds? As a snack is the obvious choice, but smoked almonds truly sing in salads. The sweet, salty, smoky and crunchy notes of the almonds bring almost any greens to life. We like a simple salad of sweet greens, chopped smoked almonds, diced apples and blue cheese with a simple vinaigrette. And since we have both Macintosh and Gravenstein apples ready in the orchard, we got to use our own apples in the salad. We made a “California-grown” theme of it and used local greens (we ate all of ours from the garden already) and blue cheese (Point Reyes Blue) along with the apples and almonds. Delightful, and it could almost compete with the porchetta…almost. But it was a good complement, and we will certainly enjoy this salad more often.

    almond2House Smoked Almonds:

    Notes Before You Start:

    • You want to smoke raw, unsalted almonds if you have access to them. But you can smoke roasted and salted almonds, just smoke for less time and do not add much seasoning.
    • You can experiment with other woods like oak for smoking, but almost all resources suggest using mostly fruit woods to keep the smoke from smothering the sweet almond flavor.

    What You Get: The best almonds you’ve ever had.

    What You Need: An indoor or outdoor smoking setup. A cheap aluminum pan.

    How Long? 2-3 hours, with 20 minutes of active time. Weekend dish, but the almonds keep for a while and can be enjoyed any time.

    Ingredients:

    • 1 pound raw, unsalted almonds
    • Fine salt
    • Olive oil
    • Fruit wood and hickory chips or chunks, for smoking

    Assemble:

    1. Soak your wood chips for at least 30 minutes. Set up your smoker to smoke at 225 degrees. Add the wood chips.
    2. Take a medium aluminum pan and poke holes in the bottom. Place the almonds in the pan and then put the pan in the smoker. Smoke the almonds for 30 to 120 minutes, tasting after 30 minutes. Remove the almonds from the smoker when you get to the desired smoke flavor.
    3. While still warm, place the almonds in a bowl and slowly add the oil and salt, mixing and tasting as you go. When you reach the desired level of salt let the almonds cool and serve.

    California Salad:

    Ingredients:

    (Serves 6-8 as a side salad)

    Salad:

    • 2 heads sweet green lettuce like green-leaf, mache or butter lettuce
    • 1 cup chopped sweet / tart apples like Macintosh
    • 1/2 cup chopped house-smoked almonds (recipe above)
    • 1/4 cup blue cheese, crumbled
    • Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

    Vinaigrette:

    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 2 teaspoons red wine or sherry vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
    • Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

    Assemble:

    1. For the vinaigrette, combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk until combined. Taste and adjust oil, vinegar and seasoning. Set aside.
    2. Wash the greens and make sure they are completely dry. Tear the greens into small pieces and them place in a large salad bowl. Dress the greens with half of the vinaigrette and add more as needed. Season with salt and pepper.
    3. To finish the salad, place the dressed greens on plates and top with a mix of the almonds, apples and blue cheese. Serve.
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