Food News – May 18, 2012

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New York Times story profiling how Thomas Keller and Andoni Luis Aduriz want to keep the focus on food and not politics.

The Journal of Consumer Research has released results of a study that has found a correlation between eating meat and a perception of masculinity.

Debate over the coming foie gras ban in California was certainly lighting up the Twitter universe this week.  Reuters wonders whether it could be a national trend.

In a refreshing act of common sense, Minneapolis legislators quickly revised regulations to overturn the temporary restriction on food trucks outside of Fulton’s downtown brewery.  Lonely Blonde’s for everyone.

A very well written article in Gastronomica by Ed Lee, that touches on the disconnect that many of us (myself included) encounter between what we consume and the ugly part we don’t like to think about.

Egg and Cheddar BLT with Sambal Mayonnaise

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I love BLT’s, though I don’t find myself making them all that often.  I am not sure if it is the fact that it takes a bit more preparation than the typical sandwich, or if the veggie to meat ratio is too high.  This particular BLT though, does not encounter the latter problem.  The egg and cheese definitely add a lot of weight to the sandwich, and with both butter and mayonnaise used, Gastrofine will not be winning any healthy blog awards in 2012.  Moderation, right?

I have been using sambal chili paste a lot in my cooking lately.  The kind I use is made by Huy Fong, the makers of the infamous Sriracha sauce, which is also no stranger to mayonnaise.  Sambal provides more of a kick than Sriracha, and is much more vibrant in flavor.  The amount used in this recipe is such that it doesn’t hit you right away, but adds a nice layer of flavor, and warms the tongue just enough between bites.

Ingredients:
2 strips of bacon, cut in half
2 plain English muffins
2 slices of large heirloom tomato
2 small handfuls of mixed greens
2 large eggs
1 oz sharp cheddar, thinly sliced
3T mayonnaise
1t Sambal Oelek chili sauce
1T butter – softened
Salt
Pepper

Makes 2 sandwiches

1) Mix the Sambal Oelek into the mayonnaise and set aside.
2) Fry the bacon until brown, crisp and cooked through. Set aside on a paper towel.
3) Spread the butter evenly between the 4 pieces of English muffin, and toast until golden brown. Divide the cheese between the two top slices of each muffin, and melt in either your toaster oven or broiler.
4) Season and cook the eggs to your liking. I like them somewhere between over easy and fried, with a yoke that is still runny, but has a nicely browned white.
5) Spread a thick layer of Sambal mayo on the non-cheesy half of the English muffins (though I would not recommend using all the mayo called for in the recipe unless you’re running a few miles after eating this).
6) Top each English muffin with a slice of tomato, a small handful of mixed greens, a couple of strips of bacon, an egg, and the other half of the sandwich. Enjoy for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Oatmeal Walnut Pancakes with Blackberry Purée

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I have made oatmeal pancakes before, but many recipes call for using whole oats.  I am not a fan of the texture when they are left whole, so grinding the oatmeal in a food processor until it is like a coarse flour improves, in my opinion, the pancakes dramatically.  The walnuts add a nice earthiness to the pancakes, and the tartness of the blackberry puree helps cut through it all.

¾ C whole oats – ground into coarse flour
½ C all-purpose flour
1 C chopped walnuts
1 T dark brown sugar
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
Pinch of kosher salt
2 C buttermilk
1 egg – beaten
1 ½ T unsalted butter – melted; plus more chilled butter for griddle
6 oz (1 small container) Blackberries

1) You can buy chopped walnuts, but I pulsed them in a food processor for about 15 seconds.  There should still be large chunks.

2) Pulse the oats in a food processor until it resembles a coarse flour.

3) Puree 6 oz of blackberries for about 30 seconds.  You will be left with a seedy puree, which I actually enjoy. You can, however, strain the puree through a fine metal strainer, however you’ll be left with a somewhat thinner puree.

4) Pre-heat your griddle to a medium heat and pre-heat your oven to 170 degrees.  Combine and mix the oats, flour, walnuts, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl.

5) Combine and mix the buttermilk, egg and melted butter, then add to the dry ingredients and combine.

6) Spread some butter over your griddle.  Using a ¼ C measuring cup, dollop the pancakes onto the griddle.  Flip the pancakes when the edges start to look a little done, and you have consistent bubbles throughout the top of the batter.  Over a medium heat, they should take about 3-4 minutes per side.

7) Keep finished pancakes warm in the oven before serving.  The recipe will make about 14 pancakes.

Wine and Food in Napa Valley’s Yountville, CA

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Two of my very good friends were recently married in Santa Monica, CA, so Victoria and I decided to extend our trip and travel up to Yountville, CA in the heart of Napa Valley for a couple of days.  Aside from a quick day trip to the relatively unknown (and based off my experience with their wine, for good reason) region of Temecula in southern California, this was our first venture into wine territory.  For foodies, Yountville is somewhat of a Mecca, being home to a number of Thomas Keller’s operations – most notably the French Laundry – as well as spaces by Michael Chiarello and Richard Reddington.

Wanting to make the most of California’s scenic driving opportunities, we left Santa Monica early in the morning to head up the coast, as opposed to driving up I-5.  The interstate would have shaved quite a bit of time off the drive, but the Pacific Coast Highway sounded much more appealing.  We accepted that it would be a long day (and it was), and decided to just take our time, making stops along the way.  Our first notable detour came in Los Alamos, a sleepy little town sprinkled with a couple of antique shops and a market that would be easy to drive right through.  We saw a sign for both a gas station and wine shop, and decided to pull over.  Once inside the wine shop, we took a seat at the tasting bar, where we were greeted by a couple of friendly young women pouring wine from Casa Dumetz winery.  After settling into our first pour, Victoria and I both did a double take as Emelio Estevez emerged from the back room, holding a case of wine.  He plopped the case down behind the bar, gave us both a friendly “hello”, and then proceeded to start stocking the shelves behind the bar.

Apparently, his partner Sonja was very interested in becoming a winemaker a few years back while working in a flower shop in Malibu.  One day, he pops in, they get to talking, and he explains to her that he is planting some vines to start producing wine.  I guess the rest is history, and now they run a great little operation with a small tasting room in a small California town that would be easily overlooked on a map (and if I remember correctly, did not even have one stop light on the main road).  We picked up a bottle of both their Grenache and Syrah and got back on the road.  I will fast forward through the beautiful, yet long and mildly stressful drive through Big Sur along the PCH, and simply say that it was a long drive, and I slept very well once we got to the Petit Logis Inn in the heart of Yountville.

Our day began with pastries and macarons from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery, which was literally right next door to our inn.  The coffee was excellent, and the pastries without a doubt lived up the hype.  Buttery, flaky, chocolatey.  Exactly what you would want (and expect) from a Thomas Keller croissant.  After a little shopping and wandering around town, we popped into Cornerstone Cellars for our first tasting of the day.  Yountville is littered with a dozen or so tasting rooms from various wineries, so you don’t even have to leave town to sample some of the offerings.  Cornerstone offered a great selection or reds, as well as the most affordable cabs of all the tasting rooms that we went to.  They were not the best we tried, but for the price ($30 – $40) a bottle, were quite good.  Kerry, our pourer at Cornerstone, suggested a couple of other places to try in town, hooked us up with some deals (i.e. 2 for 1 tastings), and we were off to Jessup Cellars, followed by Beau Vigne, which poured my favorite cabernet of the trip.  I enjoy strong, bold cabs that aren’t afraid to give you a punch in the side, and their Soda Canyon cab delivered on all fronts.

After what turned into quite a long tasting session, the focus turned to Yountville cuisine.  First, at the suggestion of Oscar at Beau Vigne, we headed across the street to the Tacos Garcia food truck.  Catering to both the local workers, as well as people coming in from wine tasting that are craving something other than a prix fixe menu, Tacos Garcia delivers a wide variety of tacos for $1.50 each.  I can guarantee you it is both the cheapest, and one of the tastiest meals you can get in Yountville.  We had beef tongue and grilled pork tacos, and $6 later, left happy and full.

Dinner later that evening was at Ad Hoc, Thomas Keller’s more casual eatery that offers a prix fixe three course meal for $52, plus additional charges for wine pairings.  We sprung for the pairings, as well as the additional $12 seared pork belly course.  Overall, the meal was very, very good all around.  We were sat right around the time of our reservation during the height of dinner service, and the attention throughout the night was more than enough.  The food itself was simple on the surface, but delivered flavors that well exceeded my expectations.  The short ribs – which were the main course – we very juicy, and just smoky enough to not be overwhelming.  The pork belly was perfectly seared, with a nice crispy skin.  Dessert consisted of raspberry sorbet served with a gooey peanut butter and chocolate brownie.  Imagine the best Reeses cup possible.  That wouldn’t come close to comparing to our dessert that night.

We meandered home that evening with our heads floating from the wine and amazing cuisine.  Tired, but ready for one more day in the Napa Valley.