Top Ten Finds at Fancy Foods, Part One

 

Fresh air, fine living, fabulous ideas.  That’s the Alfresco way.

So, I headed to the recent Fancy Food Show http://www.specialtyfood.com/ in Washington, D.C. This event showcases everything edible that upscale supermarkets, gourmet and gift shops, and culinary emporia might want to sell—and their customers might want to buy.

With my one-day pass, I knew I had to navigate through literally thousands of booths to find out what’s new with Heartland food artisans, as well as what’s new around the rest of the country.

Now for the drum roll. . . . .

Top Ten Fancy Food Finds 2011, Part One



Candy Box Cake and photo by Carey Iennecaro



1.  Chocolate. 
In Kansas City, I’m a devoted Christopher Elbow Chocolate fan http://www.elbowchocolates.com/. But I also love Vosges Haut-Chocolat from Chicago. I got to taste several new Vosges chocolate creations, including the amazing Black Salt Caramel Bar, bathed in 70% dark chocolate, which won a Gold Award at the show.  Combining caramel, dark chocolate, and blood orange in the Blood Orange Caramel Bar?? I’m all over that too.

vosgeschocolate.com

2. Bacon.  

In the Nueske’s booth, I talked with Tanya Nueske and Marlys Connor about their Wild Cherrywood Smoked Bacon. Okay, I talked and sampled.  Okay, I sampled. Wild Cherrywood is my new favorite bacon. I once had a wild or chokecherry tree growing along my backyard fence, but this bacon is smoked with wood from an old, untreated cherry orchard in Wisconsin that has been left to go wild again.  The bacon is made with no extra nitrates or nitrites. Dry-cured texture, smoky flavor, slight sweetness—no wonder it won a Gold Award at Fancy Food.

nueskes.com

3. Dessert CSA—or SOS?  

What a concept!  Natasha’s Mulberry & Mott bakery in the tony Leawood area of Kansas City recently started a Dessert CSA that has turned into a huge hit. Inspired by San Francisco pastry chef William Werner’s “Tell Tale Society” dessert subscription service, pastry chef Natasha Goellner decided to create her own, playfully based on the community agriculture model.  For $35 each month, subscribers receive new flavors of her signature macarons, homemade marshmallows, and other goodies. The bakery itself looks like Marie Antoinette just left a moment ago—all baby blue, sugar rose pink, meringue white, and those fabulous clear Louis Ghost chairs.  Soon, you can order from them online.

http://www.natashasmulberryandmott.com/

But, back to Fancy Food. If you don’t live near such a bakery, you can still do Dessert CSA—or Dessert SOS—with goodies I tasted there. 

The Daphne Baking Company makes small to-die-for tarts that come frozen; you simply thaw and serve. I sampled the Passion Fruit and Pumpkin.  They also do Lemon, Chocolate, Chocolate Raspberry, and Macadamia Nut.

http://www.daphnebaking.com/

Sometimes, however, the situation calls for macarons in several flavors and colors. Through Fabrique Delices in Hayward, California, you can enjoy frozen macarons that taste darn good after thawing, in the following flavors: Chocolate, salted caramel, lemon, mango, strawberry, raspberry, pistachio, cappuccino, and vanilla. They come in sort of a clear egg carton, a dozen at a time. Ask your local retailer to get them in. The macarons are not yet up on the company's web site.

 

http://www.fabriquedelices.com/

4. Mozzarella Cheesemaking Kit. 

When I was in D.C., I had a meal of simple little plates or “piatti piccolo” courses at Osteria Bibiana http://www.bibianadc.com/. My favorite was simply burrata, a fresh mozzarella-and-cream cheese, with grilled zucchini, zucchini puree, and fresh mint. Heaven.
Fresh makes all the difference, and many Italian restaurants make their own mozzarella tableside, so I was intrigued by the Mozzarella Cheesemaking Kit by Roaring Brook Dairy.  You supply a gallon of full fat milk, and the kit provides the rest. Make the cheese, then grill a little zucchini, chop some mint, and you’re almost there.

http://www.roaringbrookdairy.com/

5. Grenadine

When I was growing up, grownups drank whiskey sours—and later margaritas, Harvey Wallbangers, or daiquiris--not wine. Little kids got Shirley Temples or Roy Rogers versions, which are drinks made from grenadine syrup swirled into Seven-Up. Of course, pomegranates were virtually unknown in Ohio (except for one memorable year, when I found a pomegranate in the toe of my St. Nicholas stocking and ate it seed by seed). But the grenadine I remember was little more than colored sugar syrup. My, my how grenadine has changed, at least if you order yours from Sonoma Syrup Co. It actually tastes like pomegranate, as it's made with 45% pomegranate juice. Not just for cocktails, kiddie or otherwise, I could see this drizzled over fresh orange slices, then garnished with fresh pomegranate seeds. Their bottled Olive Juice for martinis is also good.  

http://www.sonomasyrup.com/

A Tale of Fresh Peaches and Peach Leaves

“My peaches aren’t doing well this year,” my friend tells me.

“Did you spray them?” I ask.

“No,” she says, with a tinge of regret.

“Well, that’s great! Can I come over and pick some?” 

She rolls her eyes.  It's the silver lining to the cloud, as I see it. 

Heartland cooks who lived far from a grocery store (and way before you could order online) used fresh peach leaves as flavoring for custards, sauces, and syrups, and this use-what-you-have-in-your-own-backyard mentality deserves a comeback. 

The sugar-crisp almond flavor these fresh peach leaves impart is more delicate and well, natural, than bottled flavorings.

Get your unsprayed peach leaves from a neighbor's tree or order them ahead from an organic U-pick orchard or a farmer's market vendor. 

Try to get the best and ripest Midwestern regional varieties of peaches you can find, like Red Haven, Glow Haven, Briscoe, or Summer Pearl—or whatever variety is best in your area.

Tip: If, try as you might, you can’t find fresh peach leaves, you can still make the pouring custard. Simply bring the cream to a boil in Step 1. Then proceed to Step 2. Whisk in the almond extract at the end of Step 2. 

Fresh Peaches with Peach Leaf Pouring Custard

Serves 4

1 cup half and half

12 fresh peach leaves, rinsed and patted dry (or ½ teaspoon almond extract)

3/4 cup sugar

5 large egg yolks

Lemon juice to taste

4 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced

1. In a saucepan, bring the half and half and peach leaves to a boil.  Remove immediately from the heat, cover, and set aside to infuse for 30 minutes. 

2. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until well blended.  Strain the cream onto the egg yolk mixture (discarding the peach leaves) and whisk to blend.  Pour the egg yolk mixture back into the saucepan and whisk constantly, over medium heat, until the custard coats the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes.  Do not boil or the custard will separate.  Taste the custard and add lemon juice (and almond extract) if necessary.  Remove from the heat and cool. 

3. To serve, arrange fresh peaches in bowls or glass dishes and spoon the pale yellow custard over them.

Black Raspberry Season

Best-Kept Secrets

We’re coming to the end of U-Pick time for black raspberries throughout the Heartland.  


In case you've never had the good fortune to taste one, the flavor is as you might expect--part tart blackberry, part sweet red raspberry. You can sometimes find these berries at farmer’s markets, but black raspberries seem to be one of those “best-kept secrets” that people often ascribe to many things Midwestern.   




Black raspberries grow on low, shrubby bushes and ripen from dark pink to dark purple anywhere from early June to mid-July.

From homemade to high style, black raspberries feature in eveyrthing from farmhouse pies to seasonal restaurant desserts. Pachamama's in Lawrence, Kansas, scatters black raspberries over hazelnut meringues. NAHA in Chicago makes a black raspberry and lemon balm sorbet. Patrick Fahy, pastry chef at Avec and Blackbird in Chicago has gone all out with a "brown butter cake sauteed in brown butter, served with black raspberries, borage, goat cheese, caramel goat's milk ice cream, and a tableside pour of red raspberry consomme. Superb," he comments. I guess so! 


If you can’t grow or pick them yourself, here are a few delicious mail order ways to enjoy this seasonal treat. As you'll see, Ohio is especially famous for black raspberry artisan foods.


Graeter’s Ice Cream. I grew up in Cincinnati, where a “chili fix” (a 5-way or a cheese coney to quell hunger) and a visit to Graeter’s for a signature ice cream or an oh-so-good coffee cake were weekly habits.  Taking my kids to Graeter’s in Mariemont on summer evenings for ice cream. . . I’m indulging a bit of nostalgia here. . . .


Graeter’s afficionados vote Black Raspberry Chip as their favorite flavor. Is it yours?

http://www.graeters.com/raspberry.aspx



Sweet Corn and Black Raspberry Ice Cream
from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams



Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams.

Dynamo pastry chef/entrepreneur Jeni Britton Bauer sources full-flavored milk from grass-fed cows and local farm-fresh goodies for her signature Ohio Sweet Corn and Black Raspberry Ice Cream. I love the look of the ice cream sandwiches made with her fabulous ice cream sandwiched between large macaron-like cookies. She also has a cool movie on her home page that just makes you smile—or crave ice cream.

Visit one of her Columbus, Ohio, ice cream shops, or check out all the summer flavors at http://jenisicecreams.com/categories/Flavors/Seasonal-Flavors/



Mrs. Miller. She's not the Mrs. Miller who was known for her warbling "Tiny Tim-like" voice. This Mrs. Miller grew up in an Ohio Amish family of 14 kids. By 1973, Esther Miller was making and selling homemade noodles from her home kitchen. It soon turned into a bustling business. Her magic culinary touch later turned to preserves. Her Black Raspberry Jam consistently receives rave reviews from customers for its fresh-picked flavor--without being too sweet. The Millers’ large family still makes the food and runs the business from Fredericksburg, Ohio, “where traditions of hard work, love of family, good ethics, and enjoyment of life’s simple pleasures are prospering,” the Millers say.

http://www.mrsmillersnoodles.com/product/Homemade_Black_Raspberry_Jam

You Say Tomato

Meet the Father of the Tomato,
Learn How to Grill-Smoke Tomatoes,
and Make Smoked Tomato and Basil Butter

I spend part of my culinary life in a “working tiara”—as a BBQ Queen with friend, bbq-er, and cookbook co-author Karen Adler.  Lucky for me, that black visor duded up with all those rhinestones also doubles as a garden hat.

Last year, I visited Kurlbaum Tomatoes in Kansas City, Kansas, for inspiration. Sky Kurlbaum and family grow heirloom tomatoes that, he swears, taste just like the ones grown 35 years ago on the family farm in Sandoval, Illinois. Today, their heirloom varieties are a roll call of famous people and places: Abraham Lincoln, Amana Orange, Black Krim (from the Crimean Sea), Russian Purple, and Pantano Romanesco.



Black Krim Heirloom Tomato



The Father of the Tomato?  Kurlbaum also makes a case for an Ohioan—Alexander Livingston—as the Father of the Tomato. In Reynoldsburg, Ohio, Livingston started working with tomatoes in 1856--ones that had “heavy ribbing, hard cores and often had hollow seed cavities,” writes Kurlbaum.  No wonder tomatoes hadn’t really caught on yet.

“Livingston's goal was to produce a strain of tomato that was smooth skinned, uniform in size, fleshy and that excelled in flavor –all the things that are loved and often taken for granted about tomatoes today,” continues Kurlbaum.   Read more about it at the end of the “Tomato Varieties” section at http://www.kurlbaumtomatoes.com/

For me, all that planting, weeding, and tending my garden is beginning to pay off. I just harvested my first tomato of season.

The first tomato deserves to be enjoyed al fresco—fresh from the garden, warm from the sun, maybe with a little sprinkle of sea salt.

But as the harvest revs up, as Heartland harvests do, it soon becomes time to do something more than eat tomatoes fresh.

When I have more fresh tomatoes than I want to eat, I like to smoke them on the grill. I do a little yard work at the same time and throw a few pin oak sticks on the fire, but you can use any hard wood (like apple, cherry, hickory, maple, oak, or pecan).

How to Smoke a Tomato. Prepare an indirect fire in your grill, meaning a fire on one side and no fire on another.

Stem the tomatoes or cut them in half (depending on how big they are), brush them with a little olive oil, and put them in a disposable aluminum pan, stemmed or cut side up. If you like, put fresh basil leaves in each tomato.

When the fire is hot, throw a few pieces of wood on hot coals on a charcoal grill. For a gas grill, make an aluminum foil packet to enclose ½ cup fine wood chips and poke a few holes in the packet; place the packet close to a burner. When you see the first wisp of smoke, place the pan of tomatoes on the indirect or no-heat side and close the lid of the grill. In about 20 minutes, the tomatoes will have a burnished appearance and a smoky aroma.

Freeze some, then use some more to make Smoked Tomato and Basil Butter. 




Russian Purple Heirloom Tomato

  Smoked Tomato and Basil Butter Recipe. Simply take 2 sticks of salted butter, softened, and place  in a bowl. Add about 3 smoked tomatoes, skinned and seeded, and finely chopped basil to taste and blend it all together with a fork. Use it on grilled bread or steak, baked potatoes, planked scallops or shrimp, or tossed with hot pasta or grilled vegetables.

Watch the BBQ Queens make Smoked Tomato and Basil Butter http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfFu8SrdZX0

Honeycrisp Apple Pie. White-Oak Smoked Bacon. And Farmstead Chevre. Oh, My!

The Heartland has become, once again, a garden of eatin’!

In upcoming blog posts, I’ll highlight Midwest food artisans that really strut their delicious stuff. These Indiana food finds are well worth a detour—or a point and click—to visit.

Capriole. In southern Indiana, Judith Schad led the way, making her award-winning, artisan goat cheese since the late 1970s. Try their fresh chevre or their aged Old Kentucky Tomme and Wabash Cannonball.

 www.capriolegoatcheese.com

Claus’ German Sausage & Meat. Claus Muth’s bacon is double smoked over white oak, so bacon-lovers make a special trip to this Indianapolis, Indiana store, just for the bacon. (317) 632-1963. www.clausgermansausageandmeats.com

Golden Run Sorghum. This rich, brown sorghum made in Camden, Indiana, is offered for sale by Prophetstown, a historic, non-profit working farm in Brookston, Indiana.  A mixture of sorghum, fresh lime juice, garlic, and a little vegetable oil makes a great grilling glaze for duck breast, chicken, or pork.

www.prophetstown.org/farmproduce.html

Locally Grown Gardens and Bakery. This charming Indianapolis store showcases local produce, some of it heirloom varieties, a great pulled pork sandwich, and fabulous homemade pies—especially their Sugar Cream Pie and Honeycrisp Apple! Local chef Ron Harris has a devoted following.

http://locallygrowngardens.com/Welcome.html

Two Cookin’ Sisters. Kristi Robinson Rensberger and Kim Robinson are the two cookin’ sisters who make up-tempo jams, jellies, salsas, and condiments in Brookston, Indiana. Try Grannie’s Garden Tangy Tomato Jam—spread it over a baked flatbread dough, then top with fresh herbs and shavings of a Wisconsin Parmesan for a fabulous appetizer. (765) 563-7377.

www.bigsistersalsa.com

Red, White, and Blue

“On a picnic morning, without a warning,” goes the opening song of the 1955 film “Picnic,” which was filmed in the Hutchinson/Halstead area of south central Kansas. When you’re yearning for a little bit of summer or a bit of adventure, make this portable dessert that you can bring along to a potluck, a picnic, or a Fourth of July celebration.

With a nod to fresh cream and berry treats beloved by those of Scandinavian descent, this no-bake dessert features a homemade blackberry syrup flavored with a little lavender (from your garden or favorite herb emporium). Just a little bit of lavender makes the berries taste, well, “berrier.”   The Blackberry Lavender Syrup is also good over shaved ice for a wonderful snow cone, or over pancakes and waffles. The cheesecake-flavored  topping holds up well in the heat.

Canning jars are the new compotes, so buy a dozen in the canning section of the grocery or hardware store and use them over and over again. Use this recipe as a template with other fresh fruits and good quality syrups (fresh peaches with almond syrup, raspberries with raspberry syrup--you get the picture). 
 

Summer in a Jar

Serves 8 to 12

Blackberry Lavender Syrup

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

1 teaspoon dried lavender buds

1 cup blackberry jam

Fresh lemon juice

2 cups cubed, frozen and thawed pound cake

2 cups fresh blueberries, blackberries, sliced strawberries or a mix

1 cup Blackberry Lavender Syrup, plus more for drizzling

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup sour cream

¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Fresh mint or lemon balm sprigs to garnish

1.  In a large, microwave-safe glass measuring cup, combine the sugar, water, and lavender. Microwave on high until the sugar dissolves, about 3 to 4 minutes. Whisk in the blackberry jam. Let the mixture steep for 20 to 30 minutes. Season to taste with lemon juice, strain the mixture into a bowl, and let cool.  Use right away or store in a covered glass jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

2. Divide the cubed cake or cookie crumbs among 8 half-pint canning jars or place in the bottom of a trifle bowl. Arrange the fruit over the cake or cookie crumbs. Drizzle the individual canning jars with 1 tablespoon syrup or use all in the trifle bowl.

3. Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, and vanilla in a food processor and process until smooth. Divide the mixture among the canning jars and spoon over the fruit or spoon all over the fruit in the trifle bowl. (Can be made ahead, covered, and refrigerated up to 24 hours before serving.) Serve chilled or at room temperature drizzled with a little more syrup. Garnish with a sprig of mint of lemon balm, if you like.

Staycation! Tasty tour of the Heartland in just 6 minutes. Listen in.

Easy BBQ for Summertime Fun

I just got back from the IACP Conference in Austin, Texas.  One memorable dinner, hosted by The Lisa Ekus Group, had us sitting under a huge oak tree on the grounds of the old Hotel Saint Cecilia , a secluded estate with rock star clientele. 

What did we eat at those long tables?  Barbecue, of course.  Texas-style, from the famous Lambert’s. That’s a true alfresco experience!  

Here’s a fresh bbq idea—outdoor/indoor smoke-roasted pork shoulder or butt. It’s a dish that rewards in many ways.  It’s easy on the cook, as you can do the smoke-roasting outdoors in late afternoon, then put the pork in the oven indoors to slow cook overnight. (If the weather is bad, you can do the whole thing in the oven.) The fat in the meat keeps it moist, even if you overcook it, which is difficult to do. You can slice and serve it on a platter or pull it apart to serve on sandwiches. And pork shoulder or butt is inexpensive. What more can we ask of a dish?  The Sooey Sauce is equally rewarding.  You simply thin a Kansas City-style barbecue sauce with a few ingredients and people will think you slaved all day.  You can freeze any leftovers. Serve this with your favorite slaw.

Smoke-Roasted Pork Shoulder with Sooey Sauce

(adapted from Heartland: The Cookbook)

Serves 12

Two 3-1/2 lb. boneless pork butts or shoulder

1 cup prepared mustard

1/4 cup ground black pepper

1/4 cup smoked or sweet Hungarian paprika           

2 tablespoons granulated garlic or garlic powder    

2 tablespoons onion salt        

2 tablespoons packed light or dark brown sugar      

1 1/2 tablespoons dry mustard          

1 1/2 tablespoons celery seeds         

1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder         

3 cups hardwood chips, 3 wood chunks, or 3 (3-inch diameter) sticks (mesquite, hickory, oak)

Sooey Sauce:

1 cup spicy tomato barbecue sauce, such as KC Masterpiece or Whole Foods 365

1 cup apple cider

2 tablespoons clover or wildflower honey

1.  Slather the pork butts with mustard. Combine the pepper, paprika, granulated garlic, onion salt, brown sugar, dry mustard, celery seeds, and chili powder in a small bowl. Sprinkle this rub all over the pork butts. Place the pork in a disposable aluminum pan. Set aside for 15 to 30 minutes or until the surface of the meat is tacky to the touch.

2. Prepare an indirect fire, with a hot fire on one side and no fire on the other.

3. For a charcoal grill, scatter the wood chips/chunks/sticks on the charcoal. For a gas grill,  place wood chips in a smoker box or a foil packet poked with holes near a gas burner on a gas grill.  When you see the first wisp of smoke, place the pork on the indirect side of the grill and close the lid. Smoke-roast for 2 to 3 hours, adding more charcoal as necessary, or until it has a darkened crust or bark and a good smoky aroma.

4. Transfer the pork indoors to a 250°F oven. Loosely cover the meat with foil and roast for 8 to 12 hours or until you can insert a meat fork in the pork and easily twist it.

 Note:  In bad weather, you can still make this indoors. Just start out at 350°F oven for 2 hours, then lower to 250°F for another 8 to 12 hours or until you can do the twist test.

5. Stir the Sooey Sauce ingredients together in a saucepan over medium heat until just warmed through. To serve the pork, shred the meat, discarding any fat or gristle. If you like, add a little sauce to the meat. Serve the pulled pork with the remaining sauce at the table.