The Food Freak

Farmer’s Market Breakfast: Eggs w/ Zucchini, Fresh Peas, Garlic Scapes w/ Toast

August 18th, 2010

It’s Saturday, I just woke up, I’m hungry and there is a farmers market 1 block away from me. What do you think a freak like me is gonna do? I’m gonna go buy something fresh and get down to business.

Ingredients:

4 Farm Fresh Eggs

15 Pods (Approx.) Fresh English Peas

1 Fresh Zucchini

1 Handful of Garlic Scapes

1 Shallot

Some Good Bread

A knob of butter

Salt & Pepper

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First off, shell the peas.

Dice the zucchini. You will know you got a ridiculous fresh zucchini if water starts to expel from it after you cut it (like its doing in the picture below). Halve it lengthwise, slice each half 4 times, then dice it up.

Chop of the garlic scapes, they are a little difficult to work with but just chop it up best you can, it doesn’t really matter.

Scramble the eggs with salt and pepper. If you have some cream, feel free to add it too. I don’t, so I didn’t.

Add some butter to a non-stick pan on medium-high heat. Add the garlic scapes, shallots and zucchini, season with salt and pepper. After about 5 minutes of cooking, drop the peas into boiling hot, salty water for 1 minute. After a minute, add it to the pan, toss together to combine.

Toast off your bread. Add your eggs and stir constantly and once the eggs comes together its basically done. Plate it with your toast and start your day off with a bang!

Breakfast recipe, Farmers Market, garlic scapes, peas, scrambled eggs, zucchini
Breakfast

Crab Cakes/Remoulade Sauce/Arugula, Watercress, Shaved Carrot & Apple Salad w/ Lemon Vinaigrette

August 18th, 2010

Don’t know where it came from but I got smacked with a craving for crab cakes. I looked around the internet to get the idea of how to make them and found some inspiration and came up with a vision for how I wanted to make them. Obviously you need a nice sauce for the crab cakes and since this was going to be my dinner, I needed something else make it a well-rounded dish. So I came up with this salad to go with it. Now…I want to be completely honest with you, my crab cakes were a little too wet in my mind. I think its because I kind of made up the measurements as I went along or maybe I made the cakes too big. This will happen sometimes…if I’m making up a recipe, it may not come out perfect the first time. But I don’t want to deter you from trying this out! Just adjust…that’s what makes you a good cook. If you make this and when you go to try and shape the cakes and they seem a little too loose for you, add some more breadcrumbs to try and tighten it up a little more. Also make a mini crab cake as a test before you make the ones your going to eat, if they come out too wet, you can adjust it without messing up the whole batch. Besides that little quip of mine, the flavors are there for sure. The diced apple in the salad and the crunch of the greens and the shaved carrot go really well with the crab cakes and the remoulade. I like the presentation as well, if you make this for a special occasion, it could be a real show-stopper…you might even get lucky…if its that kind of occasion!

Ingredients:

1 lb. Good Quality Lump Crabmeat (make sure you dig through it a little and make sure there are no bits of shells hiding in there)

1 Small Red Onion, Diced

1 Red Pepper, Diced

1 Yellow Pepper, Diced

1/4 cup Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley, Finely Chopped

1 Tablespoon of Capers, Drained

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

1 Tablespoons Old Bay

About 1 1/2 cup Bread Crumbs

1/2 cup Mayonnaise

1 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard

2 Large Eggs

Frank’s Red Hot

Remoulade (Recipe Follows)

Arugula Watercress and Shaved Carrot Salad (Recipe Follows)

Salt & Pepper

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Get your ingredients prepared (remember, Mise en Place!!)

Take off the head of the red onion but leave the root attached. Slice it down the middle…the lay it flat make nice slices all the way across the onion. Put it in a bowl.

Cut off the top and a little slice of the bottom of the pepper then stand it up and give it one slice down the body. Take your knife and CAREFULLY trim off a thin layer of the inside making sure to take off the ribs and seeds. This makes the pepper easy to make into nice little cubes. If you want, cut the pepper into threes to help make life a little easier. Cut the pepper in to slices, try to make them as even as possible…then turn the strips keeping them lined up…then slice them into little cubes. Repeat with the other pepper. You just bumped your knife skills up about 10 levels!

Put the peppers and onion into a bowl…but keep some of it for plating, the colors will make my white dish pop!

Chop the parsley. You should probably save a tiny bit to sprinkle with the peppers and onions to garnish…such a freak.

Drain and chop the capers. Just throw them in with the peppers and onions (not the ones reserved for garnish!)

You got you things in place now. DO IT!

Heat about 2 tablespoons each of extra virgin olive oil and butter in a small pan on medium-high heat. Add the peppers, onions, capers and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and add the hot sauce, the worcestershire, the old bay toss it to combine and cook till soft, about 10 minutes.

Let that cool down and start to make the crab mixture.

Cover and throw it in the fridge for like 20 minutes. Remember, mine were too wet, if yours comes out the same, add more breadcrumbs.

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Remoulade Sauce:

1 cup Mayonnaise

1 Tablespoon of Capers, Roughly Chopped

1 Shallot, Roughly Chopped

2 Garlic Cloves, Roughly Chopped

4 Baby Cornichons (or 1-2 Big ones, they are just pickles if you don’t know what they are)

1 Lemon, Juiced

½ Cup Flat-Leaf Parsley, Roughly Chopped

½ Chives, Roughly Chopped

Salt & Pepper

I have this 3-in-1 food processor, hand blender and an automatic whisk (which is worthless and I never use). If you have a blender, use that. Prep all the ingredients then add them into the food processor, give it a good zap zap zap! Taste it to check seasoning. If you need to add a little lemon juice, add some. Put it in the fridge and then and let it sit till your ready to plate that goodness.

Chop the chives, parsley and garlic.

Chop the cornichons and capers.

Chop the shallots. I’m going to dice it because my blender isn’t that powerful so I’m trying to help it along, if you have a good blender, just roughly chop.

Through it all in the blender with the lemon juice and the mayo, blend together. Throw it in the fridge.

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Arugula, Watercress & Shaved Carrot Salad & Diced Apple w/ a Lemon Vinaigrette

1 Bunch of Baby Arugula

1 Bunch of Watercress

¼ Cup Chopped Flat-Leaf Parsley

1 Carrot

1 Lemon

1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard

1 Fuji Apple (or whatever Apple you want, who cares)

½ Tablespoon of Honey

3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper

So I always saw Jamie Oliver making vinaigrettes in empty jars because then you can visualize the 3-to-1 Oil-to-vinegar ratio that makes a vinaigrette. Even though I didn’t use vinegar, I though the technique would still work. I tried it here and I was shaking it real hard but it never seemed to emulsify. So I decided to transfer it to a bowl and use a whish to create an emulsion and it worked. Maybe I’ll try it again next time, but I’d suggest using a bowl, adding all the ingredients except the oil. Start whisking and slowly add the oil until you’ve got an emulsion. Readjust the seasoning and you soon will make the most awesome vinaigrettes. But this is how I made this one…

Squeeze about a half the lemon or use the full one if there wasn’t much juice in it. Add the mustard, the honey, salt, pepper and the olive oil. Shake it like a crazy person and try to get the emulsion. If you look closely at the last picture below, you’ll see that it looks kind of broken and when I looked inside, it was too loose when I wanted it to be a little thick. If it sounds like you made the same mistake I did, just pour it in a bowl and use a whisk.

Shave the carrot with a vegetable peeler and dice the apple. Toss with the arugula and watercress and enough of the vinaigrette to coat but don’t leave the salad drowning.

Get your crab cake mixture out of the fridge and heat some butter and olive oil in a non-stick pan on medium heat. Form the mixture into patties and cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side or until they brown nicely.

Start thinking about plating. Grab your remoulade sauce and spoon it on to a plate and spread it into a big circle. Place a crab cake on top of the sauce then gently bunch a handful of the salad on top of the crab cake.

That’s it, serve this up for a date and you’ll blow minds (you may want to perfect your crab cake mixture before actually make this for a date, or you may not blow minds)

As usual, if you make this, email me at scusato@gmail.com and tell me what you think, how it went and what you might do differently. Enjoy!

Apple, Arugula, Carrot, Crab Cakes, Lemon Vinaigrette, Remoulade sauce, Salad, seafood recipe, Watercress
Fish

Who said GMO’s are the only way to feed the world?

August 18th, 2010

Monsanto (I hate you), does this piss you off?

For awhile now, I have felt this dread that someday the food system would become so genetically modified and corrupt that there would be little chance we would ever be able to salvage it. After reading this article on Grist.org by Tom Philpott, that dread was replaced with hope.

For years, the evil doers at Monsanto (while not busy suing innocent farmers out of business for “infringing” on their “intellectual property”) have been touting their genetically modified seeds are the answer to the worlds growing population and subsequent issue of how to feed everyone. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather not be viewed as a science experiment for heartless corporations trying to modify the gene structures in my food so they can make a bazillion dollars on enslaving farmers to grow their crops. Besides, industrial agriculture has not even come close to feeding the world so all you supporter of it, please just go stuff your faces with some corn doused in Round Up (its good at killing weeds and greedy, ignorant capitalists).

Well, it looks like the U.N. finally has got its wits about them. Based on the concept of “agroecology”, we now have the endorsement of the U.N. on the side of good food and good food production practices. We, as individuals can only go so far in our efforts to change the rapidly deteriorating food system that surrounds us…unfortunately we have to rely on Government policy to ensure the safety of our food system. That being said, we are stuck in a waiting game to see how this issue pans out, but at least we have hope on our side. Read the following piece from Tom at Grist.org.

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U.N. panel says sustainable farming practices can “feed the world”

The planet is due to add an additional 3 billion people by 2050, and only chemical-intensive agriculture, goosed with novel transgenic seeds, can possibly hope to feed them all. That’s the agrichemical industry’s mantra, anyway, and it has congealed into conventional wisdom.

But among ag experts, the premise is widely disputed. In fact, many experts think the ramping up of industrial agriculture will be disastrous for the environment, and instead promote “agroecological” practices that can produce plenty of food while also polluting much less.

That was the message delivered at a meeting in June convened by U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food Olivier De Schutter.

So what is agrocecology? According to a U.N. report on the event, agroecological techniques include “agroforestry (planting trees and crops on the same parcel), biological control of pests and diseases through the use of natural predators, water harvesting methods, intercropping, green manure cover crops, mixed crops, livestock management, and a range of additional practices.” In other words, essentially what we think of as organic agriculture, without the rigorous codification.

Such farming styles don’t have a PR machine behind them, unlike patented biotech seeds. Yet their success has been proven, as the U.N. report shows:

The widest study ever conducted on the subject found that agroecological approaches resulted in an average crop yield gain of 79 per cent. The study covered 286 projects in 57 developing countries, representing a total surface of 37 million hectares.

Such “agroecological success stories” abound in Africa. In Tanzania, where the western provinces of Shinyanga and Tabora were once known as the “Desert of Tanzania,” agroforestry techniques and participatory processes allowed some 350,000 hectares of land to be rehabilitated in two decades. Profits per household rose by up to $500 a year. Similar techniques are being used successfully in Malawi.

Advocates for agroecology don’t lack success stories; they lack the sort of political power that comes with a multi-billion-dollar industry like agrichemicals. You can’t patent a technique like cover cropping; and if you can’t patent something, you likely can’t leverage it for cash to hire lobbyists. As De Schutter put it, “What is needed now is political will to move from successful pilot projects to nationwide policies.” Which is precisely the point of my own recent post about “why eaters alone can’t transform the food system.”

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If you hate Monsanto…like I do…tweet “I hate Monsanto” to @thefoodfreak. I wanna know who cares about this!

I’ll be writing more on this issue and more on how much I hate Monsanto as things develop.

Agroecology, FDA, feeding the world, food production, Genetic Modification, Genetically Modified Organism, GM, GMO, Monsanto
Food Industry

Gary Vaynerchuk’s Wine Library TV

August 18th, 2010

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He pretty much got me interested in wine…he’s ridiculous, he’s pretty crazy but I like it…he knows his stuff and keeps it interesting, I’d check him out if I were you…

http://tv.winelibrary.com/

crush it, gary vaynerchuck, wine, Wine library tv
Uncategorized

Pan Roasted Halibut w/ Creamy Lemon and Spinach Farro w/ Toasted Pine Nuts

August 18th, 2010

I’d dare to say that most of you don’t know what Farro is. Understandable. If you do, then you should agree with me that it’s an amazing thing. It’s a delicious grain that is hard to find in a lot of major supermarkets. I get it at specialty stores like Agata & Valentina’s on 79^th and 1^st and you might be able to get it at Whole Foods. It may be difficult for you to track down but you should definitely try. If you don’t find it anywhere near you, just buy it on Amazon, you could get a 3 pack of Roland Semi Pearled Farro from Italy for $21, do it, it’ll last. I first learned about it about 6 months ago and it immediately became one of my favorite things to eat. Every recipe online said to soak it for couple hours then boil it for another couple hours. I’m not about to do that, no way, no how. To me, it looked like Arborio rice (risotto rice) so I thought to cook it like risotto. First time I used it I made Red Wine “Farrotto”, ridiculous. But I drink white wine more than red so yesterday I made the following recipe with spinach. I usually use Kale or Swiss Chard but they’re a pain in the ass sometimes to clean. Spinach is easy. I personally think its best with Kale, booming with nutritiousness and deliciousness. Put a piece of fish on top and you’re a pro. I guarantee, once you try this recipe, Farro will be a staple in your kitchen! Looks hard to make? Its actually stupid how easy it is!

Serves 2 w/ leftovers

1 8-10 oz Wild Halibut fillet, cut into two pieces (Arctic Char is the best fish to use in my opinion but it looked pale, disgusting and not fresh at all at the market so I pulled an audible and grabbed Wild Halibut, go with whatever looks fresh, don’t settle for crap)

1 cup of Semi pearled Farro

1 large bunch of Organic Spinach (Make sure it’s cleaned, if not, clean it…feel free to use Kale, Swiss Chard, or any other leafy green…try something new for a change)

1-2 cups of White Wine that you like to drink

1 Onion chopped

4-6 cloves of Garlic, halved and thinly sliced (The more the better!)

½ cup Toasted Pine Nuts

1 Lemon

4 cups of Vegetable Stock, on standby

A heaping pinch of Red Pepper Flake (Optional, I like it but I forgot to use it here just add it w/ the onions)

A drizzle of Agave Nectar or Honey (Optional, adds a little sweetness)

Salt and Pepper

A knob of Butter (I happened to have truffle butter, so I used that amazing shit)

First and foremost, get your stuff in place (see Mise en Place in the previous post) Slice cloves of garlic in half, peel off the paper, then thinly slice it (always be practicing your knife skills)

When you chop an onion, keep the stem connected and slice the top off. Slice in half, making several slices cross-wise up the onion, then slice it vertically, then run your knife through the onion to chop…it’s hard to explain…just look at the pictures.

So you got your onions and garlic prepped, just measure out your pine nuts and you got all your stuff in place and your ready to bang this dish out!

Put you big skillet on medium-high heat and when its hot, add a 3 count of olive oil, the chopped onions and sliced garlic and cook them until soft.

Add the Farro and try to get every grain nice and covered in oil.

Once the Farro gets nice a toasted (Do not burn it!), squeeze half of a big juicy lemon in, no seeds, and then add a cup or two of the white wine. When the wine starts to evaporate, add about 3 cups of the vegetable stock, no need to measure it, just use your judgment. If later you find you need more, you can always add it…its no problem. Keep and eye on it and cook, stirring every now and then, until it doesn’t taste raw in the middle. It supposed to be a little chewy, that’s one of the characteristics of Farro, its kind of why I love it!

While that cooks, toast the pine nuts in a dry pan (I encourage you try and show off and practice tossing, its part of what makes cooking fun). I like the use the same pan I intend on cooking my fish in. Just wipe the pan out with a paper towel when its done. Reserve 1/3 of pine nuts to sprinkle onto to finish the dish.

Keep checking the Farro and after about 20-30 minutes, it should be pretty cooked, if you can taste its still not cooked, let it go longer and if it needs more moisture, add more stock. When you think the Farro only needs a few more minutes, start prepping your fish. Since Halibut is a diesel sized fish, I usually ask for one nice sized filet and I cut it down the middle into two easy to cook pieces. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the same pan you toasted the nuts on medium-high heat, add a lug of olive oil and drop the fish in the pan and season the other side with salt and pepper. Don’t fuss with them, let’em sear until they get some nice color, about 2-3 minutes a side in a nice preheated pan. Check the doneness by sorta peeking into the center of the fish and if it looks just undercooked, get it out of the pan because its perfect. Let it rest and it will continue to cook through and be moist and delicious.

If you planned it right, once you leave your fish out to rest, most of the stock should be absorbed and the Farro should be just about done. Add some of the Agave or honey, the spinach, 2/3 of the pine nuts, a knob of butter (I’m using truffle butter, oh yes!), a big ole handful of Parmesan cheese and season to taste. To plate, make a nice mound of Farro and top with the Halibut, one more squeeze of lemon, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of the remaining pine nuts.