Tomatoes and Other Stuff (UPDATE!)

What again!  Not more tomato stuff!  

After washing, blanching, chopping, freezing and saucing what seemed like a bushel of tomatoes the other day, I still had a bunch of plum tomatoes sitting on the counter looking like they wouldn't last through the weekend.  I decided to oven roast (or dry) the few that remained - so, if you happen to have some Roma or Marzano (any plum variety) tomatoes sitting around, and you've made enough sauce or paste to last a millennium here's a way to use them up.

I'm really happy with the way these turned out - call them roasted or dried, they're worth fixing up this way.  I recommend you try at least one batch.   While it's true that there are many recipes on the internet to follow, I simply sliced my tomatoes length wise (3 slices per tomato making 4 pieces), and put them on a rack after I brushed them with olive oil and pressed garlic (a little salt and pepper helps too).  I prefer to finish them off with a slight drizzle of balsamic vinegar - although you can season them with many other herbs or spices depending on your taste. Again you will find many renditions of this process on the internet, and they all seem worth trying

Once they've been appropriately seasoned, put them in a 200 degree oven for about 4 hours (check every so often).  I like them fairly dry but a little gooey - slightly caramelized.  You can freeze them (will last for 3 months) or simply pop them in the frig (2-3 weeks).  Some cover them with olive oil put I don't know if that's necessary.

They are a delicious addition in sandwiches, any kind of pasta, dressings, pizza, scrambled eggs, etc., etc., etc.  They're fantastic to have around when you need a little extra something.

My Cup Runneth Over - Tomatoes and Other Stuff

I woke up this morning and couldn’t even make it through the second half of that incredible designer granola I’ve been touting.

My stomach was so stuffed from yesterday - when I devoured homegrown tomatoes, stuffed with fresh  tuna salad, and accompanied by a warm baguette of French bread. I had to eat it all when it was still warm and fresh, right?  

Then a little later that day there was the caprese salad with, again, fresh homegrown tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil and drizzled with olive oil and balsamic. This was, of course, the first course to a very delicious brined rosemary smoked chicken and then followed by blackberry pie ala mode.  I think the operative word to use here is “epic”! And it was. 

You may have notice a theme.  Fresh, fresh, and fresh – without a doubt September is the month when we are so overwhelmed with homegrown produce that we live in guilt ridden fear of watching it rot, knowing that we will never, never ever again, until next summer, eat homegrown tomatoes that taste this good or enjoy a warm fresh blackberry pie topped liberally with vanilla ice cream.  Which is true.

But there are other things to do with this stuff besides coming up with a new way to eat it now.  Especially the tomatoes.  They can be canned whole, made into sauce, paste, ketchup, conserve, salsa, pickled, dried, or frozen.  Did I overlook anything here? 

Having received a bounty of assorted tomatoes this week, I thought the easiest way to deal with my windfall was to blanch them, remove the skins, then dice and stuff them into plastic quart bags before popping them into the freezer.  

All of this, of course, took up much more time than I had thought when I started and requires many more bowls, pots, pans, and counter space.  Nevertheless - it’s all worth it – I put in a good days work, pacified my guilt and my glutinous tendencies, didn’t let them rot, and I have a freezer full of fresh tomatoes to use this Winter.

 

I still have some Roma's that I'll slice and dry in the oven, drizzled with garlic, olive oil and balsamic.  These guys are perfectly wonderful inside a panini or plan old grilled cheese sandwich, or incorporated in a salad, pasta and the list goes on and on.

But for tonight - it's pretty hot outside - the perfect evening for a salad with fresh flavorful tomatoes, a cool cucumber, colorful pungent red onion, kalamata olives and a little goat cheese.  Better enjoy them while their here!

Valley of Kings - Waipi´o (Y-P-O)

It’s been several months since I visited the big island of Hawaii.  But I often think about my last day there trekking through the Waipió Valley.  A sacred, and mystical place, steeped in Hawaiian history and culture, it was a fascinating time spent in a very special corner of the world. 

The valley is located on the Hamakau Coast, at the base of an ancient volcano in the Kohala Mountain Range, surrounded by two thousand foot cliffs and waterfalls up to 1,300 feet.  On the valley floor taro and other crops are grown by the locals. A black-sand beach about a mile in length fronts the valley, with Hi'ilawe Stream (aka, Waipió River) flowing from the back of the valley into the ocean midway down the beach.

Known as the Valley of Kings, it truly is a sacred place. For it was the home and burial grounds of Hawaiian royalty for generations, and was inhabited by thousands of Hawaiians at the time Captain Cook arrived at the islands. In the 1800s Chinese immigrants moved in along with White missionaries and traders who established schools, churches, restaurants, a hotel, post office and jail.  Today there is little left of this settlement or the structures that housed the population, as all were washed away by the powerful tsunami of 1946.

Since that time, it is sparsely inhabited by a small community of people who appreciate the simple life, the isolation of the area, and generally avoid tourists as much as possible.  You will see several no trespassing signs throughout the valley, so it is important to remember that we are hiking in someone else’s backyard  - a place that is still sacred in the Hawaiian culture.

On the day of my visit, I’m not sure what concerned me more; the strenuous hike down and back out of the valley, or the terrifying drive down and back out of the valley. For the only way into the valley is a narrow, steep road.  At a 25% average grade and sometimes steeper, it is considered the steepest road of its length in the US, allowing for only 4 wheel drive vehicles to make the trek.  The 3-mile hike, from the overlook to the center of the beach, would be considered an easy jaunt, if not for this knee-buckling, lung-busting grade. Opting for exhaustion over terror we took the hike.

Once in the valley you succumb to a subtle timelessness and serenity. The power of the place settles upon you as you walk down the shaded path to the beach. Then at the end of the path, the beach opens to a captivating view of the black-sand beach and the rushing tide. You're not alone on the beach for there are many surfers and campers nearby, also enjoying the beach and the waves - nevertheless it was still enchanting to walk along the shore in the hollow of the valley.

By the end of the day we began our accent back up the road, sometimes passing up others struggling to reach the overlook and sometimes being passed up ourselves.  When we finally reached the top we were weary, but sufficiently fit enough to hoist ourselves up into the truck and head for home.  The next mornng I took off for the airport and back to Oregon so grateful that I was able (literally able) to take the hike to Waipió Valley before I left.

For more information about the valley, check out the 3 minute video below.  As a professional production it's pretty slick and glossy and tells the story above and then some.  More importantly it is a beautifully done visual portrait which only enhances the story.  Enjoy!

Other posts of my trip to the Big Island of Hawaii include : My Dog Has Fleas, Kona Town, Aloha Kakou! (Greetings to All)

Granola for Grown-Ups

Pecan Pie Granola with Yogurt and Fresh Peaches - YUM!

In the last 50 years (or so) granola has become a stable breakfast food in most homes.  You can make it at home, you can buy it at the market or on the internet, and you can order it in a restaurant.  There's millions (well literally hundreds) of recipes available.  Doing a browser search I came up with more than 30 pages of recipes.

We all know granola is generally made up of things like rolled oats, nuts, dried fruits and some sort of sweetner (honey, agave nectar,  sugar,  molassas,  fruit jam, etc.), but after checking what's available on line, OMG, this stuff has come a long way!  Now you'd think what could they do to granola? Well let me tell you, I found exotic flavors and ingredients like gingersnap, sweet and salty caramel, cafe mocha, chai spice, and extra deep, dark chocolate ---- a whole next generation of granola.

Unlike the original mundane breakfast cereal, this stuff will rock your morning and really is "ice cream worthy".  The descriptive explanations for these mixtures sound more like tasting notes for a fine wine; "with just the right note of salt, a depth of flavor from olive oil, cardamom and maple syrup, and sweet nibbles of dried fruit".  I'd call it a granola renaissance.  As with coffee, chocolate, beer, and food in general, we have taken granola up to a new level, a level where we love to indulge all our senses, as well as verbal decadence.

Pecan Pie Granola

Which brings me to the real reason for my new found interest in the crunchy mix.  A couple of weeks ago I received a package from my daughter-in-law.  The label said, "Pecan Pie Granola" which was a special concoction invented in her kitchen.  I love pecan pie -  I was intriqued.  The next morning I got out my low fat yogurt and milk and commence to partake. It was divine with fresh peaches.  It was divine! After a call to my daughter-in-law, I found out the secret ingredients, or should I say ingredient.  For all you needed to do is look at the stuff and figure out what is in the mix, but she added something else, something that really put it over the top.  Something I cannot devulge for fear of excommunication.

Regardless, it got me to thinking and being a creative, brainstorming kind of person, I came up with my own special granola. Granola for grown-ups.  As you can see I've included Kahlua coffee liqueur as a key ingredient.  A hint of coffee elixir to break the morning fast, hey, why not?

So I proceeded to assemble the ingredients that would go with such a concoction.  Thinking a tropical theme was in order (and using what I could find in the kitchen), I included banana chips, shredded coconut, sesame seeds, almonds, and a handful of pistachios, along with the rolled oats.  Add a portion of brown sugar, salt, and of course the Kahlua and voila - granola for grown-ups.

Although I'm sure, the alcohol evaporated in the baking, I thought it was a great - wild and crazy idea.  Kind of like living in the fast lane on the speedway of life, and a definite ice cream topper.

I must admit that although tasty (very tasty), my daughter-in-law's pecan pie granola is way better - truly a granola that has a Southern influence with a mix of natural and candied pecans, chopped dates, and other secret ingredients. And as I said, combined with fresh peaches, it is divine.  Not difficult at all to envision on top of caramel toffee ice cream either.

For a basic granola recipe, check out a former post on field notes, Granola - Sticks and Twigs.  You can use this recipe as a template and tweak it to please your every granola desire.

Granola for Grown-ups

Kitchen Entertainment - Cooking with Friends

(risotto, risotto carbonara, gluten free)
Kitchen entertainment - adventurous, enjoyable, and a way to get to know about those endearing little idiosyncrasies you'd otherwise never know your friend possessed. Kind of like taking a road trip without the complications.

Truly -  some of the best times I've had were cooking fabulous food with a friend.  I talking about cooking together - participating in the creative process and in the end result. Working together in the kitchen, sharing a cup of coffee or a glass of wine sure works for me.


With this in mind, the other evening I got a spur of the moment call from an old friend. Seems he wasn't doing anything and wondered if I was free too. Would I like to come over, have dinner and catch up on the last 6 months. Yes - I was open and yes - I'd be there at 5. Since this was spur of the moment he hadn't any idea what to prepare, so we hashed back and forth the virtues of various entrees, then settled on an experimental Risotto Carbonara (I love pasta carbonara, he loves risotto). We decided to make this a joint culinary effort, he as the executive chef would come up with a recipe, gather the ingredients, and orchestrate the process - I would function as the sous chef - second in command.

When I arrived, he had the kitchen ready for action. All the ingredients and cooking utensils had been assembled - the stock prepared. We commenced with the process.  He read the recipe - I chopped the onions.




He read the recipe again - I chopped the pepper bacon. (He couldn't locate panchetta and the pepper bacon turned out to be a terrific substitution.)

He sauteed the onions and bacon. I pressed the garlic.

 

Then came the crucial stirring of the rice, and simutaneausly blending in the stock. He poured, I stirred.

After that he grated the pecorino romano cheese and incorporated it into the risotto.

It was going well - we congratulated each other for what looked to be a fine risotto. Oh yes, it called for another glass of wine.

At a certain point the risotto was ready for a short stint in the oven (20 minutes). We then lightly scrambled the eggs and added the creme fraiche to the mixture. (Again, he couldn't locate creme fraiche, so we ended up using the best sour cream I've ever tasted - Organic Valley Organic Sour Cream - and it turned out fantastic!)

Then we took the risotto out of the oven and with the precision of a master chef gently folded in the egg mixture. It was look'n good!

In fact it looked good enough to have come out the pages of Food and Wine.  Even better - it tasted like it came out of Food and Wine.  And  even better than that was the crazy fun we had putting it all together, together.

So here we were with a pretty darn good Risotto Carbonara - the gluten free version of the classic pasta dish.  Never would have thought of it without my friend and visa versa. 

Travels with Charley

(labradoodle, Travels with Charley, Steinbeck)
At the age of 58, John Steinbeck bought a new GMC pickup truck and had it fitted with a custom camper-shell for his personal journey across America. For companionship he took along Charley, a middle-aged French poodle, with whom he has many conversations as they travel together.

Their trip leads them from NewYork to Maine to Seattle to California to New Orleans and back to New York - from small towns to large cities to tremendous wilderness where they encounter the America of 1960,

It took 75 days for Steinbeck to make his 10,000-mile trip and 2 more years to publish his iconic road-trip book, Travels with Charley in Search of America.

They say that Charley was a literary device, but as you become fond of him, it's difficult to think of him as just a "device".  Steinbeck portrays Charley as a wise and precocious companion, protector and a means to connect with the people he encounters. Charley is described as:

 “…an old French gentleman poodle… Actually his name is Charles le Chien. He was born in Bercy on the outskirts of Paris… and while he knows a little poodle-English, he responds quickly only to commands in French. Charley… prefers negotiation to fighting, and properly so, since he is very bad at fighting...  But he is a good watch dog—has a roar like a lion, designed to conceal from night-wandering strangers the fact that he couldn’t bite his way out of a cornet de papier.”

Still much loved after fifty years, Travels with Charley in Search of America provides an intimate look at America as we stumbled into a dramatic decade of upheaval and enormous change. The book was published as a non-fiction memoir, which lately has come under much scrutiny for being "heavily fictionalized". Truth or fiction (does it matter?) this is a gem of a book and an enlightened portrait of 1960 America (or reflective portrait, depending on your age).

Now you're wondering how I've come to enjoy a book written 50 years ago about a aged writer and his aged dog wandering around America.  Truth is, I've come into possession of a semi-French poodle myself. Admittedly he's a French-Canadian, with a distinct French appearance (he could easily pass as a Parisian).

Forgive me as I blather on about how sweet, charming, sensitive, handsome, etc., etc., he is. I am trying, with difficulty, not to go on like an obsessing grandmother showing pictures of her all too perfect grandchildren while going on about how they "really are the most good looking, well-behaved,  above-average children ever born".  But here goes.

I acquired Buddy, the Labradoodle, as a young pup, about 6 months ago.  He was the one (of three young male doodles) that held back and didn't overwhelm me with kisses.  He was the smallest, shyest, and he had the curliest tail. When we got home he never left my side and he pretty much still doesn't.  I wont say he's timid, but he is cautious. For example, I think he encountered the raccoon that lives up in my second growth Doug Fir. I think this because he has refused to go into the backyard for two days and he keeps looking out the window wild eyed.  He once got caught unawares as the automatic sprinkler turned on - it took two weeks for him to venture out onto the lawn again.  If another dog looks at him sternly, he immediately positions himself behind me. I am his protector. It took a long, long time to housebreak him. He rarely barks and I've never heard him whim or whimper so I don't know what kind of watch dog he'll turn into.

He doesn't much like getting into the car, but he jumps onto my bed every morning to wake me up. He's a funny (happy and peculiar) dog and as Steinbeck would say, "...couldn’t bite his way out of a cornet de papier." 

And he really is the most good looking, well-behaved, above average (in many ways, but I don't think he inherited the poodle intelligence) dog ever born.

There I've written it - so, accept in passing, you'll never read another rant about Buddy. He'll stay in the background, but I have to admit I've enjoyed sharing him with you for he truly is a "good thing", and the Charley book is a real winner too.

Here's Buddy with Lucy the Bassett, his true BFF.