French baguettes in Orange County!

Did you hear our whoops of joy a couple of weeks ago?  We have found what we consider to be - by far - THE BEST baguettes to be found in Orange County.  Chewy and tasty inside, with a satisfying crunch to the crust, we find ourselves looking for any reason at all to justify the drive to Costa Mesa so that "gee, while we're in the neighborhood..." we can pick up another one of these gems.  You can find them at Surfas Culinary District, recently opened in the South Coast Collection (SOCO) in Costa Mesa. 

While you're in Surfas, good luck escaping with just the baguette - this is a playground for anyone who loves to cook (or eat, for that matter!).  There are terrific cheeses, olive oils, and balsamic vinegars to sample before you buy; many interesting and unusual jams, condiments, and flours; plus a whole range of unique cooking and baking ingredients.  Oh, and did we mention the chef's equipment and serving items?  This is a store that (like its parent store in Culver City) serves the restaurant and catering industry, so you can even pick up a chef jacket and some chef pants while you're there.

SOCO has some other very cool stores, and a farmer's market every Saturday.  We will fill you in on these in a future post.  In the meantime, enjoy those baguettes - but be sure to leave one for us!

Stir-Fried Calamari

Much lighter and more flavorful than the typical fried version, this delicious appetizer could not be easier to make.  And at around $8 per pound at Santa Monica Seafood in Costa Mesa (our go-to seafood store), it's a bargain for a dish that works for even the most special occasions.  Best cooked in a wok; but a heavy saute pan will also work.

1 pound squid tubes and tentacles
kesulu spice*
1/4 C. peanut oil

Slice the tubes horizontally into 1/8" slices, forming rings. 

Season with kesulu or other spices. 

Heat the wok over high heat until very hot; pour in half the peanut oil around and down the sides of the wok.  Let the oil heat until shimmering.  Add half the squid to the wok all at once, and stir frequently to cook uniformly.  Cooks in about two minutes - be careful not to overcook!

Serve at once, and prepare the second batch in the same way.  Best enjoyed hot off the wok, with your diners served right at the counter.







* kesulu is our house blend spice, which we'll be selling soon on this website.  In the meantime, your combo of red pepper flakes or other chili powders will work.

Ajiaco (Columbian Potato Soup)

In searching for a dish to serve at the Sous Chef's book club meeting (which featured a Columbian author this month), we discovered a delicious-sounding Columbian soup called Ajiaco. Normally served with chicken, we developed this vegetarian adaptation.  It's a wonderfully warming soup for winter.

Ingredients

Soup:

2 quarts homemade veggie stock (plus or minus - enough to just cover the potatoes)

1 large or 2 medium onions, medium-to-fine chop

4 bay leaves

2 pounds russet potatoes peeled and cut into rough 1-inch chunks

2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, split into quarters lengthwise, then cut in half

1 pound Red potatoes, peeled, split into quarters lengthwise, then cut in half

3 Tbl. chopped parsley

1 ½ C. frozen corn (fresh is better but hard to find in winter)

 

Aji: 

3-4 green onions, finely minced (about 3/4 cup)

2 tablespoons finely minced cilantro

1 jalapeño chile, seeded and finely minced

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

   

Garnishes:

½ cup sour cream, thinned with 1 tablespoon milk

½ cup capers, rinsed, drained, and roughly chopped

1 ripe avocado, chopped

Procedures

Combine onion, bay leaves, potatoes, and parsley in a large saucepot or Dutch oven. Add enough stock to cover the solids by 1-inch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook until potatoes are completely tender and falling apart, 20-40 minutes depending on the cut of the potatoes, adding more water as necessary. Discard onion and bay leaves. Using whisk, mash potato pieces against side of pot and stir vigorously to thicken soup. The soup should be thick, with large chunks of potatoes still remaining.

Add corn and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until corn is heated and soup is thickened to the consistency of thick heavy cream, about 5 minutes longer. Remove from heat.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

While soup is cooking, make the aji: Combine green onions, cilantro, and jalapeño in small serving bowl and add water until just covered. Season generously with salt and stir to combine. Set aside.

Serve soup with chopped capers, sour cream, chopped avocado, and aji added at the table.

Adapted from:

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2010/09/ajiaco-colombian-chicken-and-potato-soup-recipe.html

Chipotle Shrimp and Grilled Corn Quesadillas

This is one of our favorite go-to recipes when we need a quick and delicious meal. 

Ingredients:
4 large flour tortillas
Chipoles in adobo sauce, pureed - 2-4 Tbl, depending on how hot you like it
1/3 to 1/2 pound jack cheese, grated
1 pound seasoned* cooked shrimp, chopped into bite-sized pieces, brought to room temperature
1 bunch (about 6) green onions (mostly white part), chopped
1 ear of corn, grilled and removed from the cob

Preparation:
Thinly spread1/2 to 1 Tbl chipotle sauce on each tortilla. Sprinkle the jack cheese on each, then top with shrimp, green onions, and corn.  Fold each in half, then saute in a little butter and olive oil on a griddle or in a large flat pan over medium heat.  When golden, flip over and cook until done on the other side.

Serve with sour cream and sliced avocado.

This recipe serves 4.

Note:  A couple of time-saving tricks are: having the shrimp pre-cooked and frozen in recipe-ready quantities; having the chipotle sauce pureed and frozen flat in a ziplock bag for easy portioning as needed; and having a dozen ears of corn pre-cooked on the grill, cut off the cob, and frozen into portion-sized ziplock bags.

* We use our "kesulu" house blend of spices, which we will be selling online in the near future.  In the meantime, you may use any dried chili and pepper spices you like.

Do You Know What's in Your Food?

While most Americans believe we have the right to know if we are eating genetically engineered foods, there are in fact no requirements for manufacturers to tell us if we are.  California's Proposition 37 seeks to remedy this with the nation's first law requiring labeling of genetically engineered foods. This grassroots campaign is being massively outspent by the major corporate agribusinesses who have successfully lobbied the federal and state governments to keep the consumer in the dark.  This cartoon (from 1999!!) says it all:



While different people may have various reasons for wanting to know what's in our food, we all believe that it's our right to know what we eat.  And without labeling of genetically engineered foods, we can't make informed choices.  Prop. 37 (and the national Just Label It campaign) simply advocates for the labeling of genetically engineered foods - nothing more, nothing less.

As the election draws nearer, you can expect massive deception and misinformation from the opposition.  The simple fact remains that this ballot measure doesn't ban or restrict genetically engineered food; it simply requires disclosure and gives the consumer the choice to purchase or not.  If Prop. 37 passes in California, other states are sure to follow. And maybe, just maybe, the FDA will follow suit and we can join the nearly 50 other developed countries (including 15 in the European Union) that have laws requiring labeling.

For more information on this, go to these links:
http://justlabelit.org/
http://www.saynotogmos.org/index.htm

Tofu Parmesan

This is a terrific twist on the Italian classic.  Serves 4.

Super firm tofu (we love Wildwood Organic), sliced into four pieces, approximately 3" by 6" by 1/3 inch thick each
1 C. flour, placed in a shallow bowl
2 eggs plus 6 Tbl. milk, beaten, placed in a shallow bowl
1 C. Panko bread crumbs, placed in a shallow bowl
1/3 C. extra virgin olive oil
4 Tbl unsalted butter
Salt and pepper
2 C. fresh or slow roasted marinara sauce
2 C. shredded mozzerella cheese
1 C. shredded parmesan cheese

Season the tofu on both sides with salt, pepper and garlic powder.  Dredge in the flour, then egg-milk mixture, then Panko breading. Sautée in the butter and olive oil mixture over medium heat until golden on both sides (approx. 5 minutes per side). Remove to a baking sheet. Top with marinara sauce, then shredded mozzarella, then the parmesan. Bake in a 475° oven until cheese is melted and golden (approx. 10-12 minutes, but watch closely to prevent burning). Enjoy! 

Fresh Marinara

We recently posted our Slow Roasted Tomato Marinara - here's a quick and delicious alternative for those days when you don't want to turn the oven on.


4 lbs fresh tomatoes; halved, seeds removed, then cut into quarters

  (You may substitute canned tomatoes, but drain well before using)

1 fresh red jalapeno, halved, stemmed, cored and seeded

8-10 scallions; rough chopped white parts and some green

2 cloves garlic; peeled, crushed

4 tbls extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbl Aleppo pepper
½ cup packed fresh basil; rinsed, roughly chopped
Salt & pepper

Gently sauté onion and garlic in olive oil  until soft (~5 minutes).  Add remaining ingredients except for basil, salt & pepper.  Briskly simmer for 50 minutes (20 minutes if using canned tomatoes).  Add salt, pepper and basil, and simmer for another 10-15 minutes.  You may need to turn up heat a little to evaporate excess moisture.

Cool slightly, transfer to stainless steel bowl, blend to smooth using a wand blender.  (If not using wand blender, can be done in blender but make sure the sauce is well cooled - otherwise you will have a ceiling full of Marinara.)

Adjust seasoning and enjoy on pasta, pizza, and Tofu Parmesan.  This sauce also freezes very well.