Travels and Tastes of Spain (part 3) - Olive oil tour

 

I finally got to do something very foody and see a bit of countryside in the process.  On the last day in Granada we decided to pass the afternoon with an olive oil tour promising great views, tastes and treats.  For a bit more money, we were told we could even try some of the local wines… how could I pass that up.

We were driven to a tiny village sitting at the foot of the original Sierra Nevada Mountains.  Got a bit of an interesting facts about olive and almond trees, how they grow, how this village irrigates the fields with the spring water coming off the mountains with an irrigation system build in the 14^th century and still working and practical today.  Olive trees can live virtually forever and the most optimally producing olive tree should be at least 50 years old, it is said that with age, olive trees produce better quality olives even though the crop is less.  So we got to touch and marvel at olive trees that are hundreds of years old.  Appreciate almonds and pomegranates growing in between the olive trees (it is believed that if you plant an almond or pomegranate tree near an olive tree, the olive fruit will absorb some of the scent from the almond or pomegranate flowers).  In the village we got to drink from a public fountain with water coming straight off the mountains, the water is believed to restore youth.  I wanted to bathe in it but an obnoxiously pretty young French woman beat me to it.
We got to see the old olive oil mill, built in 14^th century and astonishingly operated in almost exact same way until 1920’s. 

14th century olive oil mill

 

As we sat down to an olive oil tasting, I was a bit anxious if I would be able to pick out the differences or recognize good oil.  After all, I have never been to an olive oil tasting, I am not sure how it is done and what I am supposed to be looking for.  However, I do know what kind of olive oil I prefer, so I was going to approach this experience with the same aplomb as a novice wine drinker defends his likes and dislikes.

The tasting was very well narrated, so not only did we learn how you should be tasting olive oil, but a bit about the type of oil you were tasting, about the production process and what notes and properties we should be looking for in each oil.  I did learn a few new things and will be re-reading the back labels on all my olive oils the minute I get home, as it seems that what is being sold as good olive oil on many occasion is a blend of many oils including refined ones. 

What fascinated me most is that how little the actual process of making olive oil has changed from the ancient times to the present, even with the use of industrial machinery, the basics are exactly the same.

Blind donkeys were used to for the job of making olive paste...I think my husband just revolutionized the process

But back to the tasting, the way to taste olive oil is not by mopping it up with a piece of bread as commonly thought.  First you smell the oil as you would wine, judging the aromas as perhaps, fruity, nutty, grassy, citrusy…etc… As the tasting cup is warmed in your hand you judge how the aromas might have changed, it very similar to waiting for the wine to “open up” by aerating it or swirling the glass.  Than you take a little sip, just enough to coat your tongue, the sides of your mouth and the roof.  You may feel a bit or a lot of tingling in the back of your throat, it is normal and is a good way to judge whether the olive oil is fresh.  (By the way, the oil only keeps for 4 month after it open, at that is for filtered oils, unfiltered have even shorter shelf life. So you should not hoard your oils, use them while they are optimally fresh and good for you).  After that first initial taste, you can take a little piece of bread and soak it with olive oil.  This second taste with food can give you a good idea of what the oil will be like at your dinner table.  By the way, all the oils we tasted are Extra Virgin Oils, which are different from Virgin oils, which should mostly be used for cooking.  Extra Virgin olive oil of good quality is generally used for finishing dishes, for salad dressing and for dipping.

 

The palate is cleansed with a piece of apple and we move on to the next oil to taste.  I was very impressed with how easy it was to distinguish what I liked and what I didn’t like.  Although to tell the truth, all the oils offered for tasting were exceptional.

From the whole group of olive oil tasters only two people opted to do the wine tasting, me and my husband… what a surprise.  Having done so many tastings in the US I was wondering how the Spanish conduct it.  For starters we were given a tapa of iberico ham cured on the tallest peak of the Sierras right over the village we were in; the plate also included some local manchego like cheese, which was mild and very pleasant.  All wines we tasted were produced locally.  The white was very pleasantly dry, even though it contained a Muscat grape.  Spanish Muscat is picked earlier, before the sugar sets in, therefore if you prefer drier whites, do not bypass Muscat Spanish wines, they are delicious especially with sea food. 

 

The red was a blend of several grapes, crafted by a retired gentleman in this same village.  He makes wine as hobby and only bottles a few hundred cases a year, which makes this wine exceptionally interesting to try as you would not be able to taste it anywhere else in the world.  We got a lesson on Spanish Sherries, which range in spectrum from a dry white to syrupy like very sweet dark sherry.  I personally did not care for the dry sherry, it tasted more like medicine to me, but upon hearing how our guide uses it in cooking, I may try it, if I can find it.  The sweet dark sherry is a delight if you like port or if you like the sweeter glazes for game meats or reductions to compliment both savory and sweet dishes.

And why was I never given ham and cheese at a wine tasting in the US?

All four of us thought the olive oil tour was great fun and provided a great break from walking cobblestone streets and looking at old buildings.  With a little bit of a different perspective on the olive tree and Spanish country side we boarded an overnight train to the final stop - Barcelona.

To be continued….

Travels and Tastes of Spain ( part 2)

  Seville greeted us with smoldering heat and a town of ghosts…. Walking the streets after 3p.m you would think that the entire population of the city has been abducted by aliens.  They really do take their siesta very seriously around here, and no wonder, the afternoon blistering sun is the kind that can drive you to madness.  The city literally dies from about 2 pm to about 7 p.m., when the hellish sun starts to subside.  That only leaves a few hours of business in the morning and a few hours at night, which explains a lot about the state of Spanish economy.  Sleepy, sweaty tourists are wondering the ghostly streets looking for something to do, visit a site, eat or shop, but all the attractions close in the afternoon and the shops and restaurants, even if open, have no interested in selling you anything. 

Very empty hot streets despite the cloth covers stretched from the roofs

 

The imposing gorgeous Seville cathedral, which dates back to the Moors and combines the architecture from practically all periods, was closed even though the sign outside indicated it should be open for another ½ hr.  So we headed toward the main royal palace or the Alcazar with no hopes of getting in as the guide book indicated it should be closed now.  One thing I learned traveling in Spain is that information provided in guide books, web sites or even on the doors of all attraction sites should not be trusted.  Things open and close based on their own unpublished schedule and you should consider yourself lucky you got in at all. 

The Cathedral

and the view from the 11th century tower

 

 

Alcazar’s architecture is representative of the region’s history.  It combines the Arab style castle with Gothic and Baroque elements… it is beautiful.  You can’t stop staring at the intricate carvings covering the walls, the starred and gilded ceilings and domes, the pools of water interlined into gardens and courtyards… It makes you think of Arabian legends and Sheherezada’s tales in 1001 nights.

 

If only I was a sultan....living in Alcazar...

 

There are plenty of interesting things to visit in Seville, as long as you manage to stay out of the outdoor shopping mall which occupied about quarter of the city.  Littered with shops of every possible brand name, I felt like I did not leave the US.  The part of Seville I loved is tucked into the old part of the city, around tiny streets and plazas lined with orange and lemon trees. Small restaurants hiding away in courtyards, which you could never even see from the street but can only discover by shamelessly peeking into open doors, never knowing if you would find a restaurant, as store or a private families’ gathering. 

One of the little tiny resturants tucked away into a cortyard

 

 As long as you learn to keep the clock like the locals, you can discover amusing things to do like stroll over the Trianna bridge, right behind a 14^th century church there is a nice food market (Merkato de Trianna).  I was hoping to find a spice stall or some dried fruits and nuts (you would expect this in the south of Spain, where the culture is still very heavily influenced by Moors).  There were no spices, no nuts, no olive oil, not tea or coffee.  Lots of great pork and game and seafood though, but I couldn’t quite tuck a raw pork chop into my suitcase. 

Now that's game.. fur and everything

These are lives snails and the original and traditional protein for the paella... we were lucky to taste one that evening.

 

 The food in Seville was typical tapas, good some places, not so great in others.  Walking alone the streets littered with outdoor tables, looking at what other people are eating is a good bet in choosing a place.  If a restaurant seems busy and you like the look of dishes on people’s tables… go for it.  I had some amazing gazpacho served with a slick of good olive oil on top, some wonderful grilled sardines and some more octopus, this time grilled and served with a bit of thin pesto. The brazing liquid from the ox tail stew was scented with cloves and orange peel, which is the idea I will certainly steal.   All things prepared with only a handful of ingredients, yielding such complex flavors, I was surprised and hopefully inspired. 

Gaspacho provides a cool break from the afternoon sun

Grilled octopus

Sardines are grilled whole, guts and everything inact..not for the squirmish

 

By the time we were ready to leave Seville, we have walked every tiny street at least twice and some waiters begun to recognize us… a definite sign we overstayed in this town.   A three hour train ride to Granada was uneventful, with nothing to look at except and endless sea of olive trees. 

for every sheep in Scotland there is one million olive trees in Spain

Granada’s main attraction is the Alhambra, which is huge castle, palace, almost a city in size, atop of a giant hill.  It contains the Nasrid palaces, a site one needs to visit at least once in a lifetime.  People come from all over the world and most seek nothing else of Granada except Alhambra; it remains Spain’s most visited historical site.  But be warned, the Alhambra complex sits on top of a very long, very steep hill, which we climbed not once but twice, thanks to my son’s complete inability to read a map.  The palaces, baths and the Generalife gardens leave Seville’s Alcazar in the dust and are not the site that can be explored quickly.  As we were strolling though these magical places, we were trying to imagine how life looked in them back in the day.  It was easy imagining yourself as part of Emir’s entourage or in my case most likely part of the harem.

 There are other structures in the complex, like the Alcazabra, which are the remnants of an ancient fort, the church and various other structures.  The gardens stretch for miles occupying more than half of the territory and are so exotic and breathtaking that no matter what I write, I cannot do them justice.  Since pictures speak a thousand words, here they are…

Granada is a charming little city with streets lined with orange, lemon and pomegranate trees , an occasional apricot tree, which beautiful ripe, delicious fruit, which went untouched by the locals and tourists… until we go there…  There is a maze of little streets leading up to a beautiful Cathedral, and many palaces, which were unfortunately closed seemingly permanently, because we could not find any evidence that they ever open despite conflicting information in the guide books.  

As we explored the city and walked along the Cathedral wall, I turned a corner and finally got what I was looking for… a real, genuine, Arab spice market….   My eyes jumping out of orbits from excitement and my nostrils at the ready to experience the good, the bad and the exotic, I went to explore.  These were the flavors and scents like I never experienced, things tasted and smelled like they meant to, just fresher and more pungent.  To my pride, I could identify almost every spice and pepper by site, it got a bit more complex with dried herbs and plants.  At first it was easy, oregano, rosemary, lavender, a few plants I only know the names of in Russian, but that I walked inside the shop and saw dozens of baskets filled with plants I have never seen.  I decided to stick to basics and buy only the spices I use and use often, so countless little plastic beggies later, I moved on to teas. 

We are a big tea drinking family, but are lazy when it comes to making proper loose tea.  Sticking a tea bag in a cup is much easier, that is why I still have tea from Scotland.  Here, I could not pass up the opportunity to stack up on tea blends from all over the world, black, green, red teas blended with herbs, fruit, spices in every imaginable combination.  I had to restrain myself as I had no idea how much all these spices and teas were to cost, there were no prices anywhere.  Before I went inside to pay, I checked out the saffron section and here with the prices posted, I was amazed and how comparatively non-expensive saffron was to the one sold in US.  I thought for sure, there must be something wrong with it.  The nice woman who was helping me through the whole shopping spree saw my reluctance and let me try and taste all the varieties.  This was definitely very good quality saffron an there was nothing wrong with it; I was still not sure which one to pick, so I asked her which one she preferred.  With not one common word of language between us, we seemed to understand each other perfectly; she even gave me her saffron rice recipe and advised me on the properties of each tea I bought.  So back in the shop with my credit card in hand, I was mentally calculating how much the mountain of teas and spices and all that saffron will cost and beginning to sweat, but when my total bill came to only 51 Euros I though the nice woman made a mistake.  I expected to pay at least twice as much, if not more for the things I bought… Not believing my luck, I grabbed the bags and headed into the maze of an Albacin, which means market in Arabic…  The market is touristy, but pleasant enough, replicating the crampness and feel of the medina.  With little shops selling all types of local souvenirs, pottery, hookah pipes, harem pants and embroidered pillow cases. 

The maze and abundanceof an Arab market ( Albacin)

The food in Granada was mediocre at best.  A little tired of uninspiring tapas we had high hopes for the street of tea houses serving Middle Eastern cuisine.  The day before, we were very impressed with the selection of coffee and tea there, having a menu of more than 50 teas and as many coffees, served according to consuming culture’s preference.  For example, my daughter’s Pakistani tea with a black tea blend served with milk and sugar.  My Moroccan tea was delicious with fresh mint leaves blended with very light and delicate black teas and spices.  Arabic coffee was prepared with cloves and the little honeyed pastries were flaky and delicious.  As good as their tea was, the food was lacking, the cous-cous was bland, the kababs dry and the soup plain inedible…. Well, they do have a nice ambiance and they are called tea houses for a reason.

 

Tranquility of a Tea House

Another thing about food in Granada is the portion sizes.  I don’t know who they think all these tourists are or where do we come from, but it looks like Granadian chefs watched the “Super size me “ documentary and thought it was a good thing… The portions are enormous… even for tapas.  One tapa plate can be counted as a full dinner plate and a little appetizer of cheese and pate turns out to be enough to feed ten.  A pitcher of Sangria is assumed to be a minimum of full litter and a little order of grilled pork and French fries for my daughter was so large, the plate had to be carried on the tray with two handles. 



One of the favorite’s treats throughout our trip was breakfast of toast and tomatoes.  It is a traditional Spanish breakfast and will surely become a staple in my house.  Simply grilled toast is drizzled with olive oil, topped with finely chopped fresh tomatoes, topped with more olive oil and salt.  Simplicity is key, all that matters is the quality of the tomatoes and the olive oil.  And how do you know a good olive oil?  You go on the olive oil tasting of course….

To be continued….

Travels and Tastes of Spain ( Part 1)

Madrid

Where to start? Well, 2 babies crying for 7 hrs straight on the plane, maybe a good start.  This made sure that we got to Madrid with only about 2 hrs of sleep between the 4 of us and a lot of ground to cover.  True to our families’ nature we decided that walking the whole old city of Madrid in one day would be a good idea.  We just didn’t count on one thing -  Damn, it is hot in Spain.  And not the “oh, it summer, the sun is shining “ kind of hot, it is like the afternoon sun is scorching through your brain leaving the rest of your body dehydrated and bloated and unable to take a single step.  The shady side of the street provides marginal relief but it does not really make much difference.

After checking out the main Cathedral and the Royal Palace we walked all the way back to Plaza del Sol taking the old city and narrow cobble stone streets around Plaza Mayor.  We sort of stumbled (via the carefully planned route) onto a wonderful Merkato de San Maguel, which provided the first glances into the world of Spanish cuisine. 

Tiny bytes of anchovies and olives, perfect bytes of fresh cheese and tomatoes, glances upon hanging Iberico hams and the sight of the most beautiful fresh sea food, offered just the right amount of mouthwatering anticipation. 

the selection of olives was stuggering

Ceviche so fresh it is almost swimming away

 

Fresh cheese, similar to mozarella but creamier and with a bit of a tang

But it will be a while before we get to eat anything. First we walk, and we walk and we walk… we bake under the 4 p.m. sun, and then we walk some more…  After hours of wondering and trying to ignore the heat, the hunger and exhaustion, we ended up shopping for a new back yard look at the Royal Palace gardens, and here I made the worst of mistakes, I give up the guide book and the map.  For the first time in my life I was too tired to read the map or care where and how we are going.  After numerous amounts coffee, water and wine , all I wanted was a nice nap on any of the green lawns we are passing.  This new city, the sights, no longer interesting, I can only think of my unbending swollen fingers and closing eyes.  I relinquished the map, to my son, who I was hoping, inherited the navigation gene from my side of the family, and who, I was hoping will lead us to food and shelter or at least out of non-ending god damn, royal gardens…. Let’s just say that the only navigator in this family remains to be me…  We did make it out eventually and stopped off for a snack at the most touristy destination imaginable at a café in Plaza Mayor.   Normally I would try and stay away from such places, on the very beaten path, catering to tourists, usually serving crap at most premium price, but we were exhausted, and one thing I learned from traveling with my kids, it is better to just give up and eat anywhere.  There will be plenty of opportunities to look for a perfect meal later.  Well, I was pleasantly surprised; we ended up tasting one of the best prepared octopus dishes we would taste through the whole trip.  Simply sautéed in butter and olive oil, with just salt and pepper, and a bit of smoked sweet paprika, the octopus was prepared perfectly, soft, not chewy; it almost melted in your mouth.  Washed down with a nice bottle of Spanish white, for a price less than a glass in Manhattan, and things were looking up. 

Sauted octopus with Papprika

 

There is a great vibe to Madrid, with locals and tourists alike partying in the streets, drinking, eating, and small winding streets littered with outdoor cafes and restaurants.  We saw none of this the first night, by nine in the evening Madrid has won over our bodies and we were fast asleep.

Madrid has won!

 

The next morning disaster struck, in my tired haze of previous day, as I gave up the guide book to the men in my family, and they managed to lose all of the research I have done for the entire trip.  There were a whole bunch of papers tucked into the pages of the book, outlining what to see and when, in each city, complete with siesta times for all the sites, train schedules and much more.  I spent months on that research and it was now gone, dropped somewhere between Plaza Mayor and god knows where.  On top of that we were practically cut off from civilization as the internet on our phone was not working and hotel wi-fi was going in and out.  I was furious, upset and feeling very cutoff from all my points of reference.  Traveling with just a book like we did for ages, seemed obsolete.  After a few hours I reluctantly agreed to continue with the trip and deal with my I-Phone dependency in private, so we boarded a train to Toledo.  I guess I will just have to travel the old-fashioned way.

Toledo

Toledo becomes breathtaking as you are hiking up the hill toward the city walls and see the old world magnificent gates to the city.  It continues to mesmerize you as you get lost around the narrow winding streets and passages.  Once you get over the bad quality of the map they give you at the train station, you surrender yourself to the flow of the alleys and eventually end up at one of the biggest and most beautiful cathedrals in Europe.  Stroll around the Jewish quarter, visit numerous sword shops and begin looking for a snack and a break from the heat. 

Tiny winding streets of Toledo

As we were taking in the sites in the morning I spotted a charming looking place with a great tapas menu in one of the plazas, but when it came time to find it, we just could not.  We circled around the same area, stumbling on a sleeping basset hound at least five times, but kept ending up at the wrong plaza.  It was like the place was cursed and the woman steering tourists toward a plaza Mayor Eatery was a witch.  Again, we gave into the food fate and just sat down.  After some interesting interactions in Spanish and trying to decipher a menu from which I only understood some general terms we ordered.  Boy, do these Spaniards know their food!  We were served an Iberico pork chop, cooked medium rare, which tasted like haven and melted in my mouth.  It was pure, succulent porkiness at its best and I again marveled at how simply it was prepared.  Spanish white wine from the north regions was beautiful and crisp, and I was sad that in the US we hardly have any Spanish whites.

This cutie was just sleeping in the street.  He bacame less cute with each exausted circle we made ending up at the same place

An unforgettable pork chop

All in all, Toledo was a so far a highlight, as Madrid was not as inspiring as we hoped, the city has a few neighborhoods which can be enjoyed, especially around the museum part of town, but overall it is dirty, laden with beggars and lacking a unique charm.   Since we had one more night in Madrid, we were hoping to find a more charming part of town than what we saw so far, so we headed back anxious to finally eat a celebrated tapas dinner.  We ended up in a small place on a busy restaurant street frequented by locals and finally, finally, got to experience true tapas…. Huge grilled prawns, which squirt juice everywhere as you peel them, grilled Padrone peppers,  toasts laden with tomatoes and ham, grilled tomatoes oozing with caramelized goat cheese , boudin noir ( blood sausage),and a nice bottle of red all for the price of a couple of drinks back home….  Churros dipped into hot chocolate with coffee toped with frozen custard to finish the day and we were ready to move on to Seville.

Grilled King Prawns as sweet as butter and probably the messiest food on the planet

 

 

I was looking forward to seeing the Spanish country side, being that Spain is a fruit basket of Europe, I expected to see lush fields, orange groves and lots of charming little farms.  All we saw were olive trees, millions of them, occupying every foot of land stretching to the horizon.  Rocky, burned out soil and olive trees.  Nothing else, just dusty, grayish olive trees.   For all these olives you would think that olive oil would be sold on each corner, but to my surprise we only saw one tiny shop in Seville and just a few places in Granada selling it. 

Seville greeted us with smoldering heat and a town of ghosts….
To be continued....

Once Upon a Summer....

Once upon a time, there was a big yellow dog, called Nikita....

It may be odd to write about food and loss at the same time.  It may be odd, but it feels right to me, after all, food can make one feel better, calm the grief, even if just for a few minutes.  We lost the sweetest, cuddliest and the smartest dog.  We loved Nikita to the point of obsession and she paid us back with pure devotion.  Something about our relationships with our pets makes the tears run freer and heavier, something about the simplicity of these relationships makes them so hard to give up. They give us a purest for of love attachment, unconditional, uncomplicated, unselfish...and we pay them back by this crazy attachment we them.

Nikita was a good dog, but she was more than that to our family.  She was a master of forgiveness, granting us clemency for springing “the monster of all dogs” upon her senior head.  She was a teacher, first teaching my than toddler daughter to keep her food close and her hair ribbons even closer (Nikita had quite a thing for those)… and then teaching the young “Monster dog” how to properly behave in polite society.  She was a stealth thief with countless achievements, she once stole a sandwich while I was STILL MAKING IT without me noticing it… she once ate a whole basket of corn bread I made for Thanksgiving while I turned my head for one minute… she also stole countless sticks of butter when she was young and would swallow them whole, all keeping an innocent expression: “What? Me? No… Look, I am not even chewing" Nikita was a charmer, everyone loved her until she barked endlessly, begging to play catch.  She was an accomplished swimmer, chasing tennis balls and ducks in the lake, performing for the crowd of on-lookers in the park.  She was my warm pillow in the winter, my comfort on bad days, and someone to always count on to lick the tears off my face.  She was a friend, a constant companion, and I miss her terribly.

Nikita loved the summer and was miserable in the winter.  She would sunbathe on the deck for hours, until her silky fur would become scolding hot, and then she would turn over and bathe some more.  Summer meant ball chasing, hikes and swimming in the lake.  Nikita was our calendar, April through October; she would lounge around on the stairs, moving from step to step with the morning sun.  She never did it in the winter. Somehow she knew when the sun was warm even though the temperature in the house was unchanged.  A big yellow dog basking in the warm rays was the first sign of spring even when it was still cold outside, and when she moved from the stairs to our bedroom in the mornings, it was the first sign of winter.  It never sized to amaze me, how will I be able to tell now?

My heart is heavy now, but I know that all dogs go to heaven, where there is no pain, where there is endless summer with plenty of lakes to swim in and plenty of tennis balls to play with, and hopefully someone to throw them.

She loved summer, and in her memory I can make it last a little bit longer.  This preserved summer peaches recipe is pure sunshine; it is summer in a jar. As I was making these peaches, she was wilting away and has not eaten anything for days, but as I was peeling the peaches she came over and looked interested.   One last beg...I didnt know it would be the last thing she ate...a sweet sunshine peach.

I didn’t want to make peach jam, I wanted to preserve fresh peaches and let them keep their texture and fresh taste so I let the syrup remain liquid.  These sweet, sweet, summer peaches are a perfect complement to ice-cream, morning oatmeal or a bowl of cottage cheese.

Summer in a Jar Preserved Peaches.

10 lbs of peaches pitted and cut to bite size pieces (you can leave the skin on or peel it)

Additional 5 lbs of peaches, pitted, skinned and cut into wedges

5 cups of sugar

Juice of 2 lemons

2 cups of water

1 ½ cups of macadamia nuts (optional)

I use a simple formula, ½ cups of sugar per 1 lb of peaches

First make the preserving liquid by combining the 10 lbs of peaches, water, and sugar and lemon juice in a large stock pot.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 1 hrs.  Strain out the cooked peaches and continuing to simmer the liquid until it is reduced by at least 2/3.  The process is similar to making jam, but you don’t have to wait until the liquid “Jells” as long as it coats the back of a spoon it is fine.

Once the preserving liquid seems thick enough add the additional peaches and the macadamia nuts.  Turn off the heat and stir once.  Immediately pour into the preserving jars.  I don’t bother with the actual preservation process as I keep my jams and preserves in the fridge, so I just run the glass jars in the dishwasher for a few minutes and pour the preserves while the jars are still very hot.  Tightly lidded they should keep in the fridge for at least a month.

Once upon a time, there was a big yellow dog, called Nikita...sleep in piece, my friend.

Lazy summer day with a memorable menu

The summer is drawing to a close and with only a few lazy weekends left, I feel sad.   I love summer, I am sad to see it go away.  Somehow I still feel entitled to a vacation for the entire length of warm months, must be school kid in me.  The fact that I occasionally need to go to work in the summer irritates me as if I am being interrupted doing something really important ( like lounging around by the pool and drinking wine).  I still have a very great trip to look forward to, but then it will be over.  Hopefully a trip to Spain will fuel me with culinary and writing inspiration to last the winter months. 

Every spring I have the most ambitious cooking projects planned for the summer months, I even though I pretty much get to cook what I wanted, I had virtually no desire to write about them until now.

With August, comes the most beautiful produce of the season, and it is a shame not to capture those flavors.  Corn is sweet and young, figs are abundant and there are 30 pounds of peaches on my kitchen counter waiting to be jammed.  There is also a case of new gadget of mine, a brand new birthday gift of a smoker, which I need to master.  My friends must have had ulterior motives in picking it out, it is almost industrial size, not that I am complaining. 

To capture the season’s flavor and to play with my new toy, I decided on sweet summer corn chowder and a variety of smoked goodies.   The two recipes below turned out to be one of the best things I ever made.  The soup made such an impact that my children who do not like any soups had three helpings each and the ribs were everything a good BBQ should be… succulent, sweet, spicy and just a bit charred.

Any chowder by definition is laden with butter and cream but I had the most silky and beautiful corn chowder which was vegan when I dined in Finger Lakes earlier this summer.  I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the recipe to re-create this soup, but could not come up with any thickeners other than butter and cream, until I came upon a recipe for corn butter.  It is brilliant and simple and makes this soup (and other dishes) light and healthy.  I did not stick to a fully vegan version as I used chicken stock and crisp pork shoulder as a garnish, but it certainly can be made fully vegan by using vegetable stock and omitting the pork.

 Summer corn chowder.

12 stalks of corn peeled and cornels cut off.  I like the tri-color corn for this as it makes for a prettier color and I find it sweeter.

1 small white onion chopped very fine

2 garlic cloves chopped very fine

1 carrot chopped very fine or pulsed in a food processor to almost a paste

2 small celery ribs chopped very fine or pulsed in a food processor

2 tbs of olive oil

1 cup white wine ( optional)

4 cups of chicken or vegetable stock

3 small or medium white or yellow potatoes

5 sprigs of fresh thyme

¼ tsp of cayenne pepper

Salt and white pepper to taste

Cubed smoked pork shoulder or bacon for garnish (optional)

Make corn butter.  Cut of the cornels of the corn stalks by running you knife a full length of the stock.  Reserve about 1/3 of the cornels to use in the soup.  Using the blender on Liquefy setting for good 3 -4 minutes, process the rest of the corn until it a very smooth paste.  You may want to do it batches.  Using a mesh sieve, strain the corn mixture into a heavy bottomed pot.  It is best to use the rubber spatula to push as much of the corn mixture through the mesh.  Cook the strained corn paste on low heat stirring constantly until it starts to thicken, about 5 minutes.  At this point you can store it in a fridge for up to a week and use it to flavor anything from sauces, pastas and risottos instead of butter.  The corn butter has an amazing flavor, it is sweet and savory and buttery and luscious. 

To make the soup, heat the olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot, add the onions and the garlic and sauté until translucent.  Add the carrot and celery and cook on medium heat for 2-3 minutes stirring occasionally.  Add the white wine (if using) and cook for a few minutes, until reduced by about half.  Add the corn butter ( you should have about a 1 ½ cups) and the stock.  Add salt, white pepper and cayenne pepper and simmer for 10 minutes.  Peel and cut the potatoes into a small dice (the size of the potatoes cubes should be just a bit bigger than a corn cornel).  Add the potatoes and the reserved corn cornels to the soup and simmer until the potatoes are al dente.  If you wish, you can add a few tablespoons of cream to the soup, but I find it unnecessary, the sweet corn butter really creates a wonderful texture.

To serve, crisp up some cubed bacon or smoked pork shoulder and add to each bowl.  This soup is wonderful served chilled or hot, but I liked it best at room temperature.

Smoked Ribs with Fig BBQ Sauce.

2 full racks of baby baked ribs, trimmed

For the brine

20 cups of water

2 cusp of kosher salt

1 cup of brown sugar

2 tbs of hot sauce

Fresh ginger cut up ( about 1 inch knob)

1 lemon halved

2 tbs of worstershire sauce

2 tbs of soy sauce

2 tbs of smoked paprika

2 tbs of Mexican chili powder

1 tbs of dry mustard

1 tbs of whole fennel seeds

For the Fig BBQ sauce

1 small yellow onion diced

1 inch of fresh ginger cut up

8-10 fresh figs preferably very ripe cut up

1 fire roasted pepper diced

2 tbs of honey

2 tbs of brown sugar

2 tbs of chili powder

1 tbs of hot smoked paprika

1 tsp of cayenne pepper ( more or less to taste)

2 tbs of salt ( less or more to taste)

1 can of pure fire roasted tomatoes

½ cup of ketchup

2 tbs of soy sauce

2 tbs of balsamic vinegar

Prepare the brine by combining all the ingredients in a stock pot.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.  Let the brine cool fully.  Place the ribs in the brine, making sure they are fully covered and refrigerate for at least 24 hrs.

Discard the brine before cooking.  Cook the ribs using a smoker or a grill on BBQ setting ( very low hear 200F to 250F) for 3 hrs ( or when the meat is tender and begins to fall off the bone), using whatever smoking wood you like ( I used apple wood, because that was all I had).  You can even cook them in the oven if you wish but you will not get the smoked wood flavor.

While the ribs are cooking, prepare the BBQ sauce.  Heat a few tbs of olive oil in a pot and add the onion and the ginger.  Cook stirring for a few minutes. 

Then add all the spices and all remaining ingredients at once.  Bring to a boil and let simmer on very low heat for 30 minutes.  Transfer to a food processor and pulse until smooth.  Check the seasoning and add salt if needed.

In the final 20 minutes of cooking, brush the ribs on both sides with the BBQ sauce.  Transfer to a grill ( or if cooking on the grill already, increase the heat to medium).  Cook for 2 minutes, flipping often and brushing with more BBQ sauce after each flip, until the ribs are nicely charred.  Serve right away with more BBQ sauce on the side.

These are pure finger licking goodness!