Big storm? S'more please!

In solidarity with my friends and family in the mid-Atlantic this past, blizzardy weekend, I figured it was time to snuggle up by the fire at the farmette. And what better thing to make than s'mores? I've been wanting to make marshmallows, so once I found unflavored gelatin at the store, off I went to the kitchen with a bottle of corn syrup, some sugar, and vanilla. The doctor and I stirred, and the first batch failed miserably since the sugar mixture was far too hot. But the second time round, it worked like a charm, and an hour after they set, we had marshmallows! Granted, ours were square and not as stiff as commercially made marshmallows, but they still melted just right in the fire and made delicious s'mores. (Between us, the gamer and my dearest, we did some damage to 'em.) Then we had to deal with the resulting sugar rush with a round of Rock Band: Beatles.

Kimchee, kimchi, yummeeee!

Ok, the kimchi came out great - my friend Kenny describes it as "very fresh." Here, for the recipe seekers, is Karen Solomon's recipe which is quite easy (makes about 5 pints):

3 large heads Napa cabbage, chopped into 2-inch pieces
1 c kosher salt
10 cloves garlic, sliced
1 (2-inch) piece ginger, peeled and minced
1 c Korean dried chile flakes
1 bunch green onions, sliced

"Put the cabbage in a large colander set over a bowl or in the sink. Toss the cabbage with the salt; your hands are best tools for this job. Let sit for about 40 minutes to express some of the excess moisture.
You'll notice that cabbage has decreased in volume. Dump the liquid in the bowl, rinse off the excess salt, and pat the cabbage dry with a clean kitchen towel. Pour the cabbage into a clean bowl and add the garlic, ginger, chile flakes, and green onions. Toss well. Loosely cover, and let it sit overnight or longer, up to 3 days, with the flavor growing more intense and fermented. Stir and taste every 12 hours or so, and move on to the next step when the flavor is to your liking. Note that it will release a most fragrant perfume and a good amount of liquid. Both are desired effects. Pack the kimchee tightly into pint-sized Mason jars, including enough liquid to cover all the solids. If you need more liquid, add the smallest amount of cool tap water possible. Keep refrigerated, immersed in the brine, for up to 2 months."

"Fragrant perfume" is a bit of an understatement: it really really helps to have an extra fridge in the garage for this one. The doctor said she could smell it outside her garage. I can only imagine what it would have done in my small fridge!

Ringing in the holidays and the new decade

Had an opportunity to try a lot of the results of our preserving work, and also tried some new things over the holidays. Here's the tally:

- Peaches in brandy: wonderfully mellow, *very* peachy brandy, and we served 'em simply - in a bowl, with a little bit of the brandy "juice" and a dollop of whipped cream
- Artichokes in oil and lemon juice: good, still crunchy, and will have to compare with the brined ones the marketeer and the lawyer made
- Pears in vodka: unbelievably alcoholic, and the pears were still crunchy. Not as effective as last year, and I'd change two things: make sure the pears are riper and use brandy instead of vodka for a smoother result
- Gravlax: tasty again, consumed on New Year's Day with scrambled eggs
- Foie gras with fig chutney: a revelation! So unbelievably GOOD!

New: kimchi (still fermenting); really easy to make, and we'll see how it turns out (although it's already making it clear it needs a separate fridge)

I also made a batch of lemon curd in response to repeated demands from my friend Mike. He went home with a full pint, which I think will keep him happy for awhile. It's one of the easiest things to make, and since it doesn't require heat processing, hardly requires the time/effort of full-on canning.

Finally, it turns out that I really really need to make more creme de cassis - mine almost disappeared to LA one night, proving its popularity. Big challenge in the coming year: find black currants so I can make *proper* creme de cassis!

Happy New Year one and all!

Carciofi for Christmas?

The marketeer called me this week to tell me she and her husband, the lawyer, had bags of artichokes, and would I want to come help them "put up" the 'chokes? Certo! Especially since I'd never had a chance to do artichokes before. Off I went, jars and St. Helena olive oil in hand.

We did two batches: one brined and the other in olive oil. Both types will be ready in about 3 weeks. It was incredibly easy - most of the time spent was in preparing the artichokes. The lawyer - who grew up in artichoke farmland - showed me how to trim them properly so they aren't tough or bitter.

Next time I want to do some whole baby artichokes - anyone have any recipes they like?

I think it actually worked!

This Thanksgiving, we celebrated the life of my late, lamented uncle. Now, he was an odd man - after his death, 5 (FIVE) guillotines were found in his house. One (which I particularly remember) was dedicated to chopping the heads off asparagus; particularly effective over dinners when - as kids - we visited him. The gravlax went over well - of course, these are my relatives, but two of them lived in Norway for several years, so I'm feeling confident. :) The salmon was firm, deep red, and quite tasty when served with capers, onions, some lemon and dill.

And the turkey (all 18 lbs) was quite delicious - the consensus was that it was better than last year (wow!). I think that might have had something to do with the fact that this year it wasn't a Butterball, but rather a "natural" turkey that didn't have hormones/ antibiotics injected like the usual Butterball behemoth. While it wasn't a heritage turkey, the dark meat sure did taste good, and it was done in 3 hours flat. Yum yum YUM! The only thing I missed was a decent pecan pie - I'm definitely making one next year.

Tomorrow we'll eat leftovers and joke amongst ourselves about the previous night's stories. In the meantime, happy Thanksgiving one and all!

Thanksgiving

Made the "Judy Bird" this afternoon: a dry-brined recipe from Judy Rogers of the Zuni Cafe in SF. I shouldn't say I made the bird, just started the process of brining and will cook it on Thursday (all 18 pounds). It came out beautifully last year so I'm looking forward to my second time around.

And I tried something new today - I prepared gravlax. I've always wanted to make things like cured meats, and gravlax is basically cured salmon. I rubbed equal amounts of sugar and salt into some nice salmon fillets, covered them in dill, wrapped them in plastic wrap, and put them in the fridge where they'll sit quietly for the next 3 days, upon which they'll turn into something resembling smoked salmon without the smoking. A classic Scandinavian or North Baltic dish, which I'll be serving prior to my family's Thanksgiving feast in Florida. :)

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you Americans, wherever you are!

Time for dem pears again, hon

I finally tasted the creme de cassis, and darn if it isn't good! Got that confirmed by a couple of "tasters" of the kir royales that I made, who agreed that not only was it good, but it was doing a good job of covering up some rather miserable bubbly someone had given us as a freebie (thankfully, that was after we'd had some good champagne). Note to self: always use decent sparkling wine!

Since the kitchen I have is considerably smaller than the doctor's in Sonoma, and not very conducive to hot water canning, I decided to continue with the alcohol-based preserving. The marketeer gave me some beautiful pears she and the lawyer had picked last weekend, so I mixed some Red Bartletts and Boscs in a lovely, big Italian jar I bought recently, and added vanilla, sugar, and about 5 cups of vodka. Since it needs to sit for at least 3 months (preferrably 4), it'll probably be New Year's before we can try the resulting liquor. Just when we'll need it!