Percolating

I have no pithy quote.  I'm here to say that I've been percolating and baking, cooking, sewing, running around being a mom and all around delving head first into my mid-life crisis about 15 years too soon.

I've got food and life adventures to share.  Right now, I'm smitten with canning.  Can't wait to share with you. 

Stay tuned...

It's been a busy week at my end of the world. Lots of commitments, drama, death and dismemberment. Well, maybe not dismemberment. But some death and a funeral to attend.

I've stepped back also to try to get a grasp of what the conversations that interest me are about in the blogosphere. I'm flailing around and trying to find my way around this new endeavor. I'm not sure where I fit in, or if I even have a voice to add to the chorus. I identify with bits and parts of the food bloggers, and mommy bloggers, and even some of the newbie crafters. I wouldn't say I am firmly in any of those spheres, however. In the end, this may end up not being anything more than an electronic journal of food and wines I like and some meandering musings. I have to figure out if I'm ok with that, or if I want to commit more time to make it more than that.

But in the meantime, let's get on to the weekend cheese, and just for kicks, let's throw in a conversation about wine pairings.

The weekend cheese:

Humboldt Fog

Humboldt Fog is a goat milk cheese made by Cypress Grove Chevre, of Arcata, California, in Humboldt County. It is named for the local ocean fog which rolls in from Humboldt Bay.
Humboldt Fog is a mold-ripened cheese with a central line of edible ash much like Morbier. The cheese ripens starting with the bloomy mold exterior, resulting in a core of fresh goat cheese surrounded by a runny shell. As the cheese matures, more of the originally crumbly core is converted to a soft-ripened texture. The bloomy mold and ash rind are edible but fairly tasteless. The cheese is creamy, light, and mildly acidic with a stronger flavor near the rind.
This cheese won first-place awards from the American Cheese Society in 1998, 2002 and 2005.

I first tried this cheese as part of a cheese plate I was putting together for a small gathering. I wouldn't say it was the standout cheese of the three, but something about it intrigued me. It is very creamy, so it's like a spreadable cheese in that sense, and I did find that the flavor seemed to develop after a few days of having opened it.

I've had to get it a few times and try it in different combinations to get a real sense of the flavor profile. After having done so, I have to say that I like it best at room temp with water crackers. It is also good with some crusty french bread, but the water crackers seem to allow the focus to be more on the flavor of the cheese. It pairs equally well with a white or red wine. But I would certainly stay on the lighter end of those two. I've liked with a sauvignon blanc, or a very buttery (light on the oak) chardonnay and also with a light beaujolais or pinot noir. I would not say it pairs as well with the bolder flavors of a Sauvignon, Syrah or Merlot. Although, I found that a nice Cabernet has a nice contrast between the berries of the wine and creaminess of the cheese. My favorite pairings thus far, however, have been with some of the New World red blends. Try it with some Sexto, or Pillar Box Red.

Overall, I would say that this would not be a showstopper cheese (outside of the presentation) in a large gathering; but I would certainly save it for a smaller gathering where fewer distraction would detract from the simple complexity of the flavor profile.

Happy Monday everyone!

Overreaching your goals, oh yea and cheese to go with the whine...

"Blue cheese contains natural amphetamines. Why are students not informed about this? "
Mark E. Smith

Umm yea, the whole baking multiple loaves of bread coupled with the reality of running a household and chauffering kids to games and practices, nevermind the cleaning and cooking (my family likes to eat for some reason), throw in there an "I have to clean my house" meltdown - I had to do a little adjusting in terms of what I could realistically accomplish.

So, no cinnamon bread for the kids this weekend. Instead we combined the "clean the house" meltdown with the kids desire for baked goods and made some Honey Bran muffins that I had the mix for in the cupboard (thank you Martha White!).

Also good because after having the epiphany that home-baked goods are leaps and bounds better than packaged mixes, I'm resolving to try to bake from scratch this year. Check in with me on that goal about mid year when I say "eff it" and become a Martha White and Duncan Hines devotee again.

However, I did manage to bake the bread from that wondeful recipe I found. And now that I know I haven't completely butchered it, I can tell you I found it via Ivory Hut. She's convinced me that I need to pick up that book.

Let me tell you, that bread is better than advertised! It is fabulously crusty on the outside and soft and perfect on the inside. It is also very very easy to make. Trust me on this one. I was all stressed out about it not coming out right because I used tap water (following Ivory Hut's lead) and then my kitchen is all sorts of drafty so the Hubby had the brilliant idea to set the bread mixture on a cookie cooling rack on top of the heating register to proof. I should have taken a picture! I was worried about the kids knocking it over while they ran circles around the house, I was worried about a random house bug crawling in, or it getting TOO warm. I was all sorts of worried, until I got too busy running kiddo to practice and going to the store for the cornmeal I needed but didn't have and defrosting the sausages for the dinner I was making, and trying to tackle the laundry, and oh my god how did my house get so dusty... so then I forgot about it. And when I remembered, it had proofed perfectly!! So that's my advice, be too stressed and crazy to think about it, and it will come out perfect. Because after all of that juggling and running around, here was the end product:















And believe me, the picture does not do it justice.

Other things I managed to accomplish this weekend? Well, we did have the chicken and the lovely Chardonnay went very well with it. I also cemented my belief that this wine has to be one of the best value priced reds around:

Seriously, I've tried it with the short ribs from last week, with the sausage and garbanzo beans from last night, with the standing rib roast I made over the holidays and also as a sipping wine when noshing with my best friend or while cooking dinner. Go out and get it before everyone realizes how good it is and they jack up the price like they did with my beloved Sexto.




Ok, so what about the cheese portion of this post? Here it goes... did you know that blue cheese contains natural amphetamines? I mean, that quote up there says it, so it must be true right? Something to do with the ageing and mold and all. But anyways. I love cheese. I mean, I really love it! So I tend to hunt out artisanal cheeses to try out. I like to pair different combos for interesting flavor profiles, I like to eat them with bread, or crackers and fruit. I like to pair them with different wines. Some of the most fun ever is going to my guy at the liquor store (yea, I got a guy) and hunting down a wine to go with a cheese I'm swooning over.

So, I thought, I need a schtick. Everybody's got one, a recap or recipe or something. How about "the weekend cheese"? Couple with the "weekend wine"? Hmmm still fleshing it out. But at least for now, here is the weekend cheese:

The weekend cheese:


Montagnolo cheese

Montagnolo is a triple cream soft ripened blue cheese, carefully crafted by the master cheese makers of Kaserei Champignon in the alpine mountain region of Bavaria, Germany. The buttery texture and rich, piquant flavor intensifies as it ripens. This cheese was inspired by delicacies of the Renaissance and a time when cheese making was performed by cottages and families in this region.

Seriously, if you've never had this and you have a halfway decent cheese shop in your neighborhood, run out and get it now! It is amazing and worth every penny of that $10 you are likely to spend on a medium sized wedge. Besides, it contains natural amphetamines, which is really helpful if your weekends resemble mine and you tend to get weirdly high strung and stress yourself out. We could all use some nature-endorsed drugs, right? I mean, that's why we run, work out, eat chocolate, etc and stuff.

Anyways, this is like the perfect middle ground blue cheese. It's so creamy and smooth that it entices those that shy away from the spicy bite of the more traditional Roquefort Blue Cheese. And for those of us that completely groove on that spicy bite, it has enough of the bite to make you happy, but the creamyness of it gives it a whole other dimension.

Ok, I'm tired now. I think this is the most I've written. Time to get on with the rest of the week!

Fridays

When do you start your week? Some people start it on Sunday, with the ritual of going to church and taking the day for family. Some start on Monday, first day of the work week and see their weekends as the end reward.

In the past couple of years, I’ve realized that my week actually begins on Friday evening. I used to think I started over on Saturday. But it’s not true. Friday is when I being to look to the week ahead. Friday is when I plan menus, grocery shop, hunt down that special recipe or two. Friday is when I begin to visualize the week ahead, take a deep breath and plunge ahead.

I haven’t completely fleshed out the menu for next week yet. But my special projects thus far consist of baking cinnamon bread (at the request of the son), and making a crusty french bread out of a recipe I found. I love to pick up baguettes to eat with cheese and wine throughout the weekend and week. I was planning on tackling a baguette this weekend, but then this other recipe caught my eye. It’s based out of the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. (You know I’ve got that book my wish list!)

Regular menu will include a roasted chicken on Sunday, I think. Throw in some seasonal squash, maybe some mashed potatoes and rosemary rolls… yum! I have a nice Francis Coppola Chardonnay that is buttery without being too oaky that I’m betting will go really well with it all.

It’s a start. Tonight I’ll finish writing the menu out, hunt through cupboards for items to replenish, check calendars for next week’s activities, make notes on errands and chores. The lists never end, do they?

And when I finally sit down, sometime around 11pm, I’ll have a glass of wine (I’m thinking that Leese-Fitch Pinot Noir will fit the bill), and look forward to the week ahead.

Knitting and making new friends

"The reward of friendship is friendship itself." --Unknown.

Last night I attended the inaugural meeting of a knitting circle. You can go ahead and blast that image of grannies sitting around with sweet tea and quick breads discussing the sermon from church the previous week. This meeting included adult beverages and fabulous apps, and four smoking hot ladies! Complete with saucy tales and peppered with some questionable language. In short a ladies night without the tired out bar scene, which would be inappropriate for some of us anyways as two are married, one engaged and the other involved.

We had a blast! We laughed and shared and knitted and ate and drank. Good times were shared by all. We are all mutually glad to have started this little group and I look forward to a year filled with knitting projects and friendship.

After a pretty rocky start to the new year in that whole interpersonal relationship front (not at home, just extended relationships) I really needed this evening to remind me that I can connect with people and make friends. We may all be at different stages of our lives (I’m the only one with non-furry kids right now) but we had such a great time! And I marveled at the fact that at this stage of my life which is filled with so many family commitments, I could still be swinging a version of girl’s night and making new friendships.

This is what it’s about…and all those other people that have tried to rain on my parade these past couple of weeks with your own preconceived notions and skewed perceptions…I have a message for you – you can SUCK IT!

Baking Bread and other Rituals

"[Breadbaking is] one of those almost hypnotic businesses, like a dance from some ancient ceremony. It leaves you filled with one of the world's sweetest smells...there is no chiropractic treatment, no Yoga exercise, no hour of meditation in a music-throbbing chapel. that will leave you emptier of bad thoughts than this homely ceremony of making bread."
M. F. K. Fisher, The Art of Eating

One my resolutions this year was to really learn how to make a good loaf of bread. Not just throw it together and hope it comes out, but to hone in on a recipe and know it intimately, to understand how the ingredients come together, and how to finesse the best results from them. I want to be able to see how the dough is forming and know at a glance if it's too sticky and will need more flour, if it requires more kneading, etc. I want to come to a point where this process is as natural to me as breathing, as cooking rice, and making a hundred variations of chicken, just something innate which resides under my skin.

Intimacy and immediacy are what rituals are about, and for me, what food is about. The process of spending an afternoon in the kitchen preparing a meal out of the simplest of ingredients, is ritualistic, meditative and cathartic. It is through the many steps of dredging, browning, braising, or measuring, creaming and kneading that I begin to purge the everyday stressors of life, it is how I express my love to my family when I just cannot find the words.

I needed that this weekend. Something involved and nurturing that I could lose myself in. I'd already received the explicit request to have something, anything, other than soup this week! So I made sure my menu for the week had no soup in sight. Instead, this week we are feasting on roast chicken, short ribs, spaghetti with a quick meat sauce and plenty of lovely home-made bread.

BTW, I think I've found a recipe I want to work with for a while. The results were better than I'd even anticipated. I decided to do some research and added wheat glutten to the recipe, also, I moved away from the rapid rise recipes and plunged into the process of "making a sponge" for bread, adding a little sugar as suggested by Tiffany.

Here is the recipe as posted on Tasty Kitchen

Honey Oatmeal Bread

Ingredients
4-½ teaspoons Active Dry Yeast
½ cups Honey
4 Tablespoons Butter
2-¼ cups Water
1 Tablespoon Salt
2-¾ cups All-purpose Flour
4 cups Whole Wheat Flour
1 cup Quick Cooking Oats
1 whole Egg

Preparation Instructions
In a medium bowl (or in a saucepan), heat the butter and honey until the butter is melted. Add the water; the mixture should be warm (120-130 degrees). Stir in the yeast and let sit until bubbly, about 10 minutes (this is called making a sponge).
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine salt, yeast mixture, 2 cups whole wheat flour and 1 cup all-purpose flour. With mixer on low, gradually blend liquid into dry ingredients until just blended. Increase the speed to medium, beat for two minutes, occasionally scraping bowl. Gradually beat in the egg and one cup of whole wheat flour to make a thick batter. Continue beating for two minutes. Stir in oats, 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup all purpose flour. Knead till smooth and elastic. Use more flour if dough is too sticky (I usually add about 2/3 cup more).
Place in a greased bowl and cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
Punch the dough down. Turn onto a floured surface; cover with the bowl and let rise for 15 minutes. Shape into loaves and let rise for 1 hour in greased 9 x 5 loaf pans.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.
(You can make the dough in a bread machine, using bread flour instead of all-purpose flour. Use the dough mode setting for the largest size loaf. Follow the recipe’s directions for the second rise and baking.)

Brief Interruption

To the vast unknown, and all my loyal non-readers: I have some posts in draft form, but first I'm fiddling with the format. It's starting to annoy me.

Struggling...

"Dismiss what insults your soul.” – Walt Whitman

I wanted to write a post about the snow and early school closings and making cookies with the kids. But I think that will have to wait until later.

I'm struggling with the need to tell someone off and violently shake their smug and minsinformed ideas of who I am and what a situation is. I'm struggling because although I have all sorts of brilliant things I could say that would level her, I know that the right thing to do is just not engage. Keep my trap shut and walk away. Even though I am once again being vilified and my name and reputation disparaged. I am struggling to do the right thing and help my husband instead of adding one more item to the tawdry mix. One more problem for him to deal with.

I am struggling so so very hard. But I'm keeping quiet. I'm trying to remember that you cannot change people's minds when they are already so deeply invested in their indignation and anger. I'm trying to remember that there is no workable outcome... no gain in any of this. These are not my friends, I do not want them to be my friends. They are fair weather friends, and gossiping hens. I would not associate with them if I was not related to them through marriage.

sigh...

It seems I've made a life of keeping quiet though. A life of swallowing so many words in so many different instances. In the end it has rendered me mute. I, who used to be prolific in my expression of self, to the point of absurdity. It was absurd. I was overly dramatic and absurd. But not these past 15 years. These past 15 years I can barely open my mouth to say how something makes me feel. To express frustration and anger.

"Let's not talk about our feelings, let's just tamp them down" has been my motto.

But this is my outlet. My voice out into the ether. And I need to learn to speak again...even if I cannot rage and cut them down to size. I have to be able to say to the world at large that who these people perceive me to be is so far removed from reality, it's ming boggling...comical...pathetic... sad... so so very sad.

I'm tired of being silent. I am tired of being the scapegoat. I am tired of walking away and turning the other cheek.

I know there is no other way. But at least I can say it here that I'm tired of it. Even if I don't post the brilliant and scathing post I wrote in a cathartic rush a day ago.

I can still say here that this is total, utter and complete BULLSHIT.

That felt better.

It's cold.

"It [soup] breathes reassurance, it offers consolation; after a weary day it promotes sociability...There is nothing like a bowl of hot soup, it's wisp of aromatic steam teasing the nostrils into quivering anticipation." Louis P. DeGouy, Waldorf-Astoria chef), The Soup Book (1949)



It's cold. For a person like myself that grew up in Southern California, it is freakin' cold! And if you think I'm kidding, here's a picture of the fountain outside my work building, taken while I left work yesterday:

















Add to that the fact that I've started off the New Year with some developing sinus issues (always the overachiever!), and I think it's safe to say that I've been better.


But I've been worse too.


Silver lining time: Living in a place with seasons makes me appreciate them all in ways never imagined. And since all roads lead back to food, as far as I'm concerned, this frigid clime makes me all the more appreciative of soup and all its wonders. Nice, piping, hot, healing soup. Chicken soup, matzo ball soup, meatball soup, posole (as previously mentioned), and now I give you Sausage, Lentil and Kale soup.


I wish I could take the credit, but I cannot. I actually found this recipe via Everyday Food from Martha Stewart. Go figure. I've tweaked it here and there and made it my own. Basically I doubled it and intended to freeze the other half, but we keep eating it instead. Also, I used white onion instead of yellow.


This soup is good. It's better than good. It rocks our world. I've made this soup every week (except for one) since mid-November.


Here is the recipe, and buen provecho!







Sausage, Lentil and Kale Soup

From Everyday Food, December 2009

Ingredients


2 tsp extra virgin olive oil

8oz sweet Italian sausage, casings removed

2 celery stalks, thinly sliced

1 medium yellow onion, diced

6 cups chicken broth

1 bunch kale, torn into bite size pieces (stems removed)

coarse salt and ground pepper

2 tsp red-wine vinegar


Preparation


1. In a large dutch oven or heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high, Add sausage and cook, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, until golden brown, about five minutes. Add celery and onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add lentils, broth, and 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a rapid simmer, partially cover, and cook until lentils and vegetables are tender, 25 minutes.


2. Add kale and season with salt. Return soup to a rapid simmer, cover, and cook until kale wilts, about 5 minutes. Remove soup from heat, stir in vinegar, and season with salt and pepper.

2010 Resolutions

We are all making them, aren't we? Resolving to better ourselves, eat better, exercize more, be more organized, etc etc. There's something to be said for it. A new year has 365 days of opportunity. Why not start of trying to seize it all?

Last year Tiff and I set off with a list of goals. Some we met, some we surpassed and we added new things to the mix. We challenged each other, vented and laughed at our failures and successes. At the end of this past year I was struck at how much personal growth I'd had, and how many goals I'd met...and I thought "Yea, I'll take another."

So, here is the plan for more of the same this year:

*Make a list... make copies of the list so I don't lose it and have an excuse!

*Share the list and run with it.

I'm breaking up the list into categories to keep it from being too overwhelming.

This year I'd like to:

Food and Kitchen

*Learn how to bake a decent loaf of bread

*Learn how to bake a decent cake

*Purchase more local meat and fruit and vegetables

*Participate in a few weeks of our local farmer's market CSA program


Health and fitness

*Get back in the gym.

* Run 2 5k's

*Take a stab at that spin class and pray I don't make a fool out of myself


Home Care

*Purge, purge, purge! I have too much stuff. Don't we all? This year I'm going to try to break up my house into zones and concentrate on an area every 2 -3 months.

*I fell off the wagon with the weekly cleaning list that was working beautifully, need to start again.

*Continue to encourage my son to take on more responsibility. This kid does his laundy at 8!! Score!

*Replace back door, get estimates for driveway and bathroom remodel and make a decision already!!


Finance

*Don't lose momentum. Keep saving money, keep debt at bay.

*Don't be a miserly martyr either. ;-)


Family

*I need to get past all the BS and just call my siblings more often. 10 minutes of tuning them out will still be better than not calling at all.

*I need to let my dad just talk. There are a million things to do and the time difference makes it hard to let him ramble...but let an old man tell his stories, right?

* Ditto for Mom.

*Give the hubby more credit. He makes me nuts...but he's a good guy and I love him.

*Take more pics and share them! Time goes by too fast.

Friends

*Tell them they rock more often! ;-)

Crafts

*Use the skills I learned this year! Sew some dresses for the girl, make some simple gifts throughout the year to give at Christmas, read and practice!

*Dissassociate knitting from crazy instructor! (yea, that's going to be tough)

And of course, try to keep up this blog and have fun with it and not take it too seriously.

Seems like a lot... but there are 361 days left in the year. Plenty of road ahead to make a dent.

Happy New Year!

The last few years I've welcomed every new year with a ritual I adopted from my mother. I make posole, big steaming cauldrons of pork and hominy stew, and I open my home to friends and family for an Open House. No ceremony, just come by and have some posole. Bring a bowl, bring the kids, bring your hangover if you have it and have some soup.

Truth be told, I have changed it up a bit, as I usually do. My mom makes menudo (tripe and hominy stew), but there's no way I'll be able to get my husband, kids, and friends to try it. So, I make posole. And while I'm being truthful, this year there was only one honored guest as most everyone was sick and I was feeling a little run down myself. Miss Tiffany of The Nesting Project stopped in. If you haven't checked out her blog, you should. I still thank my stars that she moved next to me and became my neighbor and best friend.

So, not quite the same traditional Open House, but you've got to roll with it, right?

Still, there is something restorative about beginning the year like this. Surrounded by loved ones, and nurturing our bellies and spirits. Bolstering ourselves for the challenges of the New Year (including taking down the Christmas tree!!).

This year, this is my new challenge. To try to channel my thoughts and goals and begin to write again. It is overwhelming and intimidating and exciting. Like all new adventures should be. I've been stalling forever because I have no idea what to write about. The idea that abounds is "Write about what you know". Well, I don't really think I know anything. So my best friend says "Write about what you love". And that I can do. I love good company, good food and good wine. I love my family and friends fiercely.

I love a good steaming bowl of posole and how it restores my energy for the coming day, week, month, year.

Here's a virtual bowl for you too.

Buen provecho!