Spinach Bacon Quiche

1 cup Swiss cheese
1/4 cup squeezed frozen spinach
1/2 c melted butter
3/4 c bisquick
3 eggs
1 1/2 c milk
1/4 c onion
1/2 c bacon
Blend in blender
350 45 min

ICaramelized-Honey Brûlée

Ingredients
SERVINGS: 8
* ¾ cup honey
* 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
* 3 cups heavy cream
* 1 cup whole milk
* ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
* 8 large egg yolks
* 3 tablespoons sugar
* Eight 6-oz. ramekins
* A kitchen torch
Preparation
* Preheat oven to 300°. Place honey in a medium saucepan and scrape in vanilla seeds; save pod for another use. Cook over medium-high, swirling pan occasionally, until honey darkens and smells almost burnt (don’t worry, this is what you’re going for!) and bubbling begins to slow, 5–8 minutes. Gradually add cream, then milk, to caramelized honey, stirring constantly until combined.

* Whisk salt into egg yolks in a medium bowl, then stream in honey-caramel mixture, whisking constantly. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup. Divide among ramekins.

* Place ramekins in a large baking dish lined with a dish towel (it will keep them from sliding around) and pour in boiling water around ramekins so it comes halfway up sides.

* Bake until edges of custards are set but centers still jiggle slightly, 65–75 minutes. Remove ramekins from water bath and let custards cool, about 1 hour. Chill until firm, at least 2 hours.

* Just before serving, sprinkle custards evenly with sugar and heat with torch until sugar is melted and caramelized to a deep amber color.

Brew Day

The Frenzys Left Coast Pale Ale Extract Kit.


Started 3 Gallon CGSpring Water in kettle with 8 oz Crystal 15 L and 12 oz Crystal 60 L steeping grains. Set timer for 30 mins and droppedk in probe. Water hit 170 at about 27 mins so turned off and let it steep for another 3-5 mins.

Removed grains and brought to a rolling boil, took about 13 minutes. Turned off water and added Ultralight extract, and returned to boil.

Dropped in 1 oz of Amarillo Hops and set the timer for 60 minutes.

At 15 mins left added 1 oz Amarillo

At 5 mins left added whirfloc

At 1 minute left added 1 oz Amarillo Aroma hops.

Began cooling in sink filled w/ice water at 4:30-5:10. Put sanitized lid on with sanitized mixing spoon resting inside. Stirred and swirled boil pot around to chill to 72 degrees and then transferred to plastic carboy sanitized with star San. Added 2 more gallons CG Spring water and 3/4-1 gallon of filtered fridge water to bring back to 5 gallons.

Pitched yeast at about 70 degrees and gave a good shake.

Put sanitized stopped and 3 piece airlock on, wrapped with a towel and put in 71 degree room. It's about 5:30pm

Target OG -- 1.050-1.055 Actual 1.053
Est. SRM -- 11-14
Est. IBU's -- 50-55
Est. ABV % -- 5-5.5

Yeast: WLP001 California Ale



$2.49 steeping grains
$5.62 hops
$ .26 Whirlfloc
$21.99 ultralight extract
4 ioz cane sugar
---------
=$30.36

Wash your hands. Seriously. It’s in the recipe

Wash your hands. Seriously. It’s in the recipe

Brian's Sweet and Spicy Nuts

Just in time for Christmas...

Ingredients
1 large egg white
2 cups unsalted pecan halves
2 cups unsalted roasted cashews
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Kosher salt

Directions
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Beat the egg white with 1 tablespoon water in a large bowl until foamy. Add the nuts, sugar, cumin, cayenne, cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon salt and mix well. Spread the mixture on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until the nuts are mostly dry but still slightly sticky, about 40 minutes.

Remove the nuts from the oven and stir. Reduce the temperature to 200 degrees F. Return the nuts to the oven and bake until crisp about 30 more minutes. Stir to loosen the nuts from the baking sheet; cool completely on the sheet.

Hollandaise Sauce

1 tablespoon lemon juice
Three egg yolks
One quarter stick butter cubed
Three quarters stick butter melted
Salt pepper cayenne pepper and tarragon to taste

Squeeze 1 tablespoon lemon juice into a metal mixing bowl whisk egg yolks and begin heating  over Simmering pot of water. As a yolks warm add in the quarter cubed butter. Once sauce begins to stiffen slowly add melted butter ice cream incorporating as you mix. Finish by seasoning with salt pepper cayenne pepper and tarragon to taste.

The Workhorse Loaf: Simple Crusty White Bread

This all-purpose bread recipe produces a crusty plain white loaf that's classic and delicious. The quantities given here yield two crusty hearth loaves with an open crumb, and is a great starting point for learning to bake bread at home.

INGREDIENTS
* 1000 grams all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
* 700 grams room-temperature water, divided if using active dry yeast
* 22 grams salt
* 4 grams instant yeast, 5 grams active dry yeast, or 10 grams fresh yeast (see note above)
* Vegetable, canola, or other neutral oil, for greasing
DIRECTIONS
1.
If using instant or fresh yeast, combine flour and all of the water in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. If using active dry yeast, combine flour with 650 grams water and combine yeast with 50 grams warm water; let yeast stand until foamy. Mix flour and water at low speed until they are fully incorporated and form a uniform dough. Alternatively, combine flour and water in a mixing bowl and mix using a dough spatula until dough forms. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let the dough rest for at least 15 minutes and up to 1 hour.
2.
Add salt, along with either the instant yeast, fresh yeast, or the active-dry yeast solution, and mix at low speed or by hand until salt and yeast are fully incorporated and dough is smooth.
3.
Turn stand mixer up to medium-high speed and mix until the dough feels elastic and bounces partway back when indented with your thumb, about 3-5 minutes. If mixing by hand, skip this step.
4.
Working with oiled hands, gently transfer dough, being careful not to tear its surface, to a lightly oiled mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let dough stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Uncover dough and fold it in half, being careful not to compress it too much. Re-cover with plastic wrap and let stand until dough has increased in volume by half, about 1 hour 30 minutes longer.
5.
Transfer dough in one piece to a lightly floured work surface. Using a bench knife, divide dough in half and shape each portion into a ball. Dust the tops of the dough balls with flour, cover with a towel, and let rest for 15 minutes.
6.
Shape the dough into rounds once again, folding the dough under itself to create a smooth surface with a seam on the bottom. Let dough rest on the work surface, seam-side down, for 5 minutes. Transfer each dough ball, seam-side up, to a bowl or basket lined with a lightly floured linen cloth or plain, not-fuzzy kitchen towel. Refrigerate dough balls or store in a cool place until dough has nearly doubled in size, about 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes.
7.
Meanwhile, set a Dutch oven on the oven's bottom rack and preheat oven to 500°F (if your oven has a convection setting, do not use it).
8.
Remove 1 loaf from the refrigerator and gently turn it out, seam-side down, into the preheated Dutch oven. With a razor or paring knife, score the full surface of the dough with 2 parallel lines roughly 3 inches apart. With a spray bottle filled with water, lightly spritz the surface of the dough. Cover and bake for 15 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 450°F and bake for 15 minutes longer. Uncover and bake until crust is dark brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.
9.
Transfer loaf to a wire rack. Allow to cool for at least 1 hour before slicing. Return Dutch oven to oven, and reheat at 500°F for 10 minutes. Then repeat with the remaining ball of dough.

Onions: Living the Sweet Life

We’re peeling back the onion this week to see why this ancient vegetable with a 5,000-year run of popularity is still a favorite on the chopping block. Considered medicinal and life-sustaining in its early days, the onion is still magical, needing only a frying pan and a patient chef to transform its flavor from sharp and tangy to an extraordinary caramelized sweetness. Even Julia Child was moved to say “It would be hard to imagine civilization without onions.” Read on for a tear-less look at this remarkable root…

Onion worship. Thriving for thousands of years in a variety of soils and climates, onions were prized for attributes well beyond flavor. They prevented thirst, and could be dried and preserved for later consumption when food might be scarce. In Egypt, they were literally objects of worship, symbolizing eternity because of the circle-within-a-circle structure. The Greeks fortified athletes before the Olympic Games with onions – to eat, drink and rub on their bodies (can’t imagine that locker room odor today!). Pliny the Elder recorded the Romans’ beliefs that the onion was a cure all, inducing sleep, and healing mouth sores, dog bites, toothaches, dysentery and lumbago. The Pilgrims brought onions with them on the Mayflower, only to find that Native Americans already grew and used a strain of wild onions, eating them raw or cooked, as a seasoning or as a vegetable. During the Revolutionary War, General Ulysses S. Grant was quoted as saying, “I will not move my army without onions!” and proceeded to wait for three cartloads of them – good rations for the troops, yes, but the juice from the bulbs was also used as a salve for wounds. After the war, growers started adapting varieties to different American climates, with globe onions in cooler New England and Mid-Atlantic climates, and Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian-derived onions in the south, according to Food and Drink in America.  And here’s a fun fact from 1000 Places to See Before You Die to try on your foodie friends: New York was originally dubbed the Big Onion because you could remove endless layers without reaching the city’s core.

The 21^st century onion. Now the third largest fresh vegetable industry in the US, according to the National Onion Council, Americans consume an average of 20 pounds each year. Onions are in the mix more than ever, with consumption up 70% in the last two decades, in no small part due to their healthy dose of quercetin - a type of antioxidant compound with anti-inflammatory, anti-cholesterol and anticancer properties.  But the main reason for their soaring popularity is sheer versatility: from raw to caramelized, marinated to roasted, onions are an integral part of recipes at every meal time and nearly every ethnic cuisine. Restaurants buy truckloads of onions for rings, blooms, appetizers, soups, sandwiches, salads and pizza. There’s the yellow onion, with a tangy sweet flavor, good raw or caramelized; red, the fast casual favorite, good for grilling, charbroiling and roasting; and white, the classic ingredient for Mexican cooking.  Caramelized onions are one of the 2000s sweetest success stories, stirring up not just the traditional French onion soup, but dishes such as:

·        Wild Mushroom Onion Melange: caramelized onions and garlic complement the earthy flavor of Cremini, Shiitaki and wild mushrooms in this classic dish that can be served with grilled or roasted beef, pork, veal, poultry or game or as an accompaniment for pasta, polenta, grains or roasted vegetables.

·        Caramelized Onion, Gruyère, and Bacon Spread

·        Scrambled Eggs with Caramelized Onions

·        Green Beans with Caramelized Onions and Walnuts

·        Caramelized Onion Burgers

·        Kale and Caramelized Onion Grilled Cheese

·        Roasted Asparagus, Mushroom, and Onion Pizza 

AVOCADO UPDATE

The market continues to stabilize . Growers have reacted to the low prices on small fruit and have started size picking in the field; this should even out the size curve as well as the prices on small fruit.

Good supplies of 40s and smaller continue to arrive from Mexico.  32/36ct remain limited as they currently make up a small percentage of the harvest.

Ripe programs are on track, and consumers are finding ripe avocados on the shelves so this should spur movement.  There are strong Mexican avocado promotions ramping up which should also strengthen the avocado demand.  

Expect stabilizing markets and good supplies through the remainder of the November and December.  We anticipate a short gap in supply in mid-January, following no-harvest Christmas holidays.  Calavo will prepare to the best of our ability for this foreseen gap. 

Breadsticks Rising: Pile Up an Endless Supply

Soft, warm, chewy, with just the right touch of butter and garlic…is there a carb delight more appreciated than the breadstick? Food for Thought stops munching long enough to dig into the legend, the lore and lusciousness that goes well beyond the breadbasket.

Well bread. The original Italian bread sticks, grissini, originated in the Piedmont region of Italy, but exactly when is open to question, according to The Nibble. One legend says a physician in 1675 invented grissini to feed the very ill nine-year-old duke of the House of Savoy, who was suffering from food poisoning from bread polluted by pathogenic intestinal germs. The good doctor asked the court’s baker to take the dough from the normal ghersa bread, cut it into narrow pieces, then stretch the dough until it was a long thin strip, and bake it until it was crispy. The grissini diet worked wonders, and not only did the young duke’s health improve, but he grew up to be a healthy adult, becoming the first Piedmont king in 1713. According to this version, that’s why grissini became the preferred bread in the Savoia household, known by all visiting royalty and aristocrats of the time. But…it may not be completely accurate. Historical records indicate that in 1634, a Florentine abbot found a novelty bread “with a bizarre shape, that is a bread loaf an arm long and thin like dead bones” in a town outside of Turin – a strange but recognizable description of a breadstick. And even further back in culinary history is a reference to a dish called pane (bread) barotellatus (stick). Whenever or whoever invented it, one of the grissini’s greatest fans was Napoleon Bonaparte, who founded a stagecoach service at the beginning of the 19^th century, mostly dedicated to delivering ‘les petits batons de Turin’ or ‘little sticks of Turin.’

There’s more than the breadbasket in store for these rising stars. Prosciutto-wrapped breadsticks are on Giada De Laurentiis’ appetizer tray for good reason…they’re easily prepared and swiftly consumed. More? Make a cheesy breadstick pizza or try Southern Living’s haystick breadsticks - sprinkle dry ranch dressing mix before baking, tie in little bundles, and enjoy with a marinara sauce dip. Go healthy with James Beard award-winning author Martha Rose Shulman’s whole wheat and rosemary, rye caraway or seeded semolina and rice flour breadsticks. Or take a cue from the breadstick king, Olive Garden (more to come on that), which last year rolled out the breadstick crostini and a breadstick sandwich to diners who couldn’t get enough of even endless portions of the ridiculously addictive bread.

All love for Olive Garden. If you want to recreate this enduring chain’s famous bottomless basket of scrumptious, warm breadsticks, we have the Top Secret recipe from ‘food hacker’ Todd Wilbur, who proudly claims he’s been creating original clone recipes of America’s favorite foods since 1987. He guesses, most accurately, that the breadsticks are proofed and sent to each restaurant, where they are baked golden brown, brushed with butter and sprinkled with garlic salt. Wilbur also reveals that he experimented with the yeast and flour before settling on what you’ll see listed below. The crucial step, according to Wilbur, is the two-stage rising process. Here’s how:

What’s inside.

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon warm

water (105 to 115 degrees F)

16 ounces bread flour (3 cups)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened

What’s on top. 

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

Instructions. Dissolve the sugar and yeast in the warm water in a small bowl or measuring cup and let the mixture sit for 5 minutes, or until it becomes foamy on top.  Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Use the paddle attachment on a stand mixer to mix the softened butter into the flour. When the yeast mixture is foamy, pour it into the flour mixture and use a dough hook to combine the ingredients and knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes. Place the dough in a covered container and let it sit for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until it doubles in size. Measure out 2-ounce portions and roll the dough between your hands or on a countertop to form sticks that are 7 inches long. Place the dough on parchment paper-lined baking sheets, cover and set aside for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size once again. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake the breadsticks for 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Brush each one with melted butter and sprinkle with a little garlic salt as soon as they come out of the oven…be assured they won’t last long!

From Ocean to Table: Yellowfin Tuna Swims Swiftly to the Top

Called “the Michael Phelps of the fish world” for its fast-swimming ways, the yellowfin is a star of Olympic proportions among tuna. This week, Food for Thought gets its long lines ready to reel in this much-valued catch of the day…don’t let this be the one that got away!

Making a splash in Vietnam. To meet the rising global demand for tuna, the Vietnam yellowfin tuna fishery has put more than 2,000 fishing vessels to work, racking up nearly $370 million in export value in 2014. Now the most important wild-capture export product in Vietnam and the #2 exporter to the US, the yellowfin tuna fishery is focused on achieving MSC certification.

The lean (but not mean) swimming machine. Thunnus albacares, better known as yellowfin tuna, are considered the fastest and strongest of all big game tunas, according to the Seafood Choices Alliance. The need for lots of oxygen to power its muscles is what makes the yellowfin’s flesh pinkish red – the result of a protein called myoglobin that stores the vital oxygen and serves as a pigment, reports The Salt. This colorful fish has a dark metallic blue body, silver belly, and of course, the distinctive yellow on its dorsal fins, finlets and a strip on its side. The maximum weight reported for a yellowfin tuna is 880 pounds, but you won’t find many of those big boys…most weigh in at a more manageable but still sizeable 388 pounds. For all their heft, they are an excellent source of healthy, extra lean protein, low in saturated fat and sodium, and rich in niacin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, phosphorus, selenium, magnesium and the all-important omega-3 fatty acids.

A rare treat. Mild tasting, with a firm texture, yellowfin is more flavorful than albacore. Grilling or searing brings out its best qualities…but be careful not to overcook, or your prized fish will become tough, tasteless and cardboard-like. There’s virtually no prep you can’t use with the adaptable yellowfin – broil, deep fry, poach, saute, smoke, steam or blacken. Try baking tuna steaks with a squeeze of lemon over the top, a light application of olive oil and a sprinkle of herbs and spices for a taste of simple deliciousness.

Looking for more ways to hook diners on this popular powerhouse? Everyone from Emeril to Bobby Flay has taken the bait, see below for some of the tastiest takes:
• Grilled yellowfin tuna with sun-dried tomatoes and corn, or mango salsa
• Grilled citrus fresh tuna steaks with orange, lime and grapefruit juices, dry sherry and cayenne pepper
• Grilled yellowfin tuna teriyaki (soy sauce, ginger and honey)
• Yellowfin tuna steaks glazed with balsamic vinegar, brown sugar and soy sauce
• Seared sesame-crusted yellowfin tuna with a side of wasabi mashed potatoes
• Pain bagnat, a specialty of the Provence region of France, featuring whole wheat bread encircling a classic Salad Nicoise (raw tuna, raw vegetables, hard boiled eggs, anchovies and olive oil)
• Soy marinated tuna rice bowl, with traditional slices of nori and omelette
• Smoked yellowfin tuna dip
• Spicy yellowfin tuna tacos
• Yellowfin tuna and macaroni salad
• Satay yellowfin tuna (onions, garlic, capsicum, peanut sauce and coconut milk)

For more information please click here.

To order click here

Wine & Chocolate Stroll 2015 • Thursday, May 7th • 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Enjoy a fun-filled evening of wine tasting, decadent chocolates and shopping during Danville's Spring Wine & Chocolate Stroll. Select businesses will stay open late to host some of our area’s finest wines, which will accompanied by gourmet chocolate samples. 

Stroll throughout downtown Danville and enjoy the sounds of jazz music throughout the evening. Be sure to stop in at your favorite stores to see their latest spring offerings.

Tickets are $35 per person and can be redeemed for wine glasses at the corner of Hartz & Prospect Avenues from 5:30-7:00pm the night of the event. Any remaining wine glasses will be available for sale starting at 6:30 pm. 

For more details and to buy tickets click here!

Happy National Nougat Day!

Every March 26th it's the same thing, yes, it's National Nougat Day. While that may not sound all that important nougat history is important and it's very international.  Here you thought nougat was just the filling on your 3 Musketeer or Milky Way bars. Why not take a gander over here at the Honey Traveler blog for more history on nougats through time, and in different geography.

Candy bar with nougat from The
How Stuff Works Website.
http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/nougat2.htm

True Grits

If you need proof that Southern food is rising again, take a look at the region’s most iconic dish, grits. Not only has its menu penetration doubled in the last decade, grits have busted out of their cozy breakfast nook right on through to dinner hour, growing a phenomenal 84% since just 2011. To channel waitress Flo from the ‘70s hit TV show Alice, it may well be time to not just “kiss my grits” but give them the full Southern-fried treatment…grits sticks?  You betcha!

           

Before you take grits from breakfast bowl to appetizer plate, start with the basics and learn how to cook grits like a Southerner. We’re taking a leaf from the pages of the Heritage cookbook by legendary Southern chef Sean Brock, who advises soaking the grits for at least six hours, preferably overnight, skimming off any chaff and hulls, and then cooking in a big pot (grits expand) as quickly as possible for maximum corn flavor. Use the soaking water, not milk to cook, and stir like crazy to keep the grits moving until the water comes to a boil. Take off the heat for 10 minutes after boiling, put a lid on top to hold in the steam, and the flavor, and then cook for an hour over low heat. “Stir, stir, stir… the rule in my kitchen is if you walk past grits cooking, give them a stir,” says Brock, who also cautions chefs to make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot and keep the sides of the pot clean so the uncooked grits that will stick there don’t find their way into the finished product. When the grits are soft and tender, they’re done and ready to be eaten as is with a little salt, hot sauce, lemon juice and butter…or use as the base for a variety of dishes from classic shrimp and grits to post-modern grits and bits pancakes.  Grits sticks, dubbed “Georgia French fries” by author Diane Pfeifer in her Gone with the Grits gourmet cookbook, were simple but trendsetting, made by putting firm slices of cooked grits in the deep fryer.

As Southern Living recognized back in 2012, “this favorite Southern food isn't just for breakfast.” Their popular recipe for Pepper Jack Poppers proves the point, using cooked grits, freshly shredded pepper Jack cheese and Parmesan cheese, chopped fresh cilantro, a garlic clove and sweet mini bell peppers broiled to a golden crisp to create a distinctly different appetizer for the happy hour crowd. Deep South also noted grits’ higher profile among the region’s innovative chefs, with stone-ground the new go-to grit at upscale restaurants all along the “Grit Belt.” From Charleston, SC to Birmingham, Ala to Savannah, GA, the new face of grits is evident, with dishes like skillet-seared yellow grits with gravy, smothered crawfish on fried grits, grits and fried chicken combos, fried salmon, leek and grits appetizers, stuffed and rolled grits and spinach canapés. The movement of grits from quirky Southern breakfast to gourmet delight couldn’t have happened without Bill Neal’s 1982 game-changing recipe for shrimp and grits at Crook’s Corner restaurant in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. His grits fused with cheddar and parmesan and topped off with jumbo shrimp, mushrooms and bacon so pleased NY Times food critic Craig Claiborne that he published the recipe in 1985, elevating the humble dish to fine dining status.

           

Nowhere, however, are more grits eaten than in the small town of St. George, SC, home to the Worlds Grits Festival since 1986. Along with fried fish and grits dinners, grits-filled balloon tosses and the choosing of the Grits Queen, the Grits Cook-Off yields a never-ending array of innovation each year. We leave you with a winning recipe from the Food Network at the 2007 Festival:

Hush Puppy Grits

1-beaten egg

½-cup buttermilk

1-cup grits

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2-teaspoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Shortening or cooking oil for frying

Freshly ground black pepper

In a bowl stir together the egg and buttermilk. In another bowl combine the grits, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon sea salt. Add the egg mixture to the grits mixture. Stir just until moist. Heat the shortening to 375 degrees F. Drop the batter by tablespoon into the deep hot fat. Fry about 3 minutes or until golden brown, turning once. Drain the hush puppies on paper towels and season with pepper to taste.

A Little Bite of History. Chef’s Line Grit Stix -- Pimento Cheese and Grits; two Southern favorites. 

Metro Deli All Natural Fire Smoked Ham -Sooo.... gooood!

The Beer Necessities

Stunning in its simple pleasure, beer battered foods hold us in their thrall with their golden shell of tangy, yeasty bliss. Cod and onion rings, chicken strips and calamari, fish tacos and mushrooms, are irresistibly coated with equal finesse. Why has this timeless classic evolved into hot new trendsetter? And even more important, can you really get drunk from eating beer-battered fish?  Pour a nice cold one, and we’ll tell all.

Blame it on the bubbles. One of the best plays beer brings to its batter partner is the leavening effect. Getting air into the batter via beer’s carbon dioxide bubbles makes the batter expand, giving it the light, crispy texture that’s caused many a craving.

An art in the motherland. No country has a deeper affection for the twin pleasures of deeply fried cod or Pollock and crispy fries than England, so we went to the country’s leading newspaper, The Guardian for some tips. Food writer Felicity Cloake embraces her proud heritage, writing: “Proper fried fish is a British art form and needs little in the way of embellishments. Beer and raising agents, and good hot fat are all you need for pure, unadulterated happiness. And a piece of fresh fish, of course.” She advises us to chill--refrigerate the beer and freeze the flour for 15 minutes before using to achieve an almost ethereally light result. The batter has to be “seriously cold so that when it hits the fat, the reaction happens.”

Jamie Oliver a friend of US. Foods goes traditional, seasoning the fish fillets on both sides to remove any excess water and make the fish really meaty, and for the batter, whisking flour, beer and baking powder together until shiny. Another leading British chef, Tony Fleming, lets his flour, yeast, beer, sugar and salt mixture stand for two hours in a warm environment to let the yeast ferment before whisking into a smooth batter. And if you’re going to be a true Anglophile, don’t forget the mushy peas!

A science in the States. Across the pond, the chemistry behind the taste has proven particularly intriguing to culinarians. ChefSteps, a high tech cooking company led by Chris Young, award-winning food writer and founding chef of Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck Experimental Kitchen, reveals the two secret ingredients that raise their beer batter above the pack: low-gluten cake flour for a lighter, more delicate crust and a small amount of vodka. Vodka too? It’s added, he explains, because alcohol evaporates far more easily than water, which helps the beer batter cook much faster in the fryer. “This means that you get a crisp batter-coating before the fish inside has been overcooked. If you try it side-by-side with non-vodka batter, there is no mistaking the difference,” assures Young. 

Meanwhile, Smithsonian Magazine was doing some deep dives into its own deep fryer, testing the difference between beer-battered fried foods and those fried in water-based batter with a team from USDA's Southern Regional Research Center. Armed with quantities of wheat flour, long-grain rice flour, pre-gelatinized rice flour, canola oil, Vidalia onions, tilapia filets and beer, they whipped up six equal batches of batter: three with beer and each of the flours, and three with water and each of the flours. With an article titled “beer batter is better, science says so,” you’d be correct in assuming that beer pounded the competition: a 9 to 18 percent greater oil uptake was recorded for beer batters, with softer, crispier tilapia and onion strips the happy result.

So it’s not surprising that Americans love to batter up, with deliciously crispy morsels in every possible permutation: fish fries, chicken strips, onion rings, jalapeno strips, pickles, mushrooms, avocados, tofu, grilled cheese sandwiches, even fritters and doughnuts. It’s even mainstreamed into the fast food world, with Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s February rollout of beer-battered fish sandwiches and tacos made with Redhook ESB (Extra Special Bitter) ale. Capitalizing on the popularity of craft beers and the observation of Lent was the impetus, but it still is an unusual move for a fast-food restaurant to serve alcohol-tinged foods. Not a problem, assures Brad Haley, chief marketing officer at Carl’s and Hardee’s. “There's no actual alcohol remaining in the sandwich or tacos after it's cooked, so anyone can eat or order it. But you can certainly taste the beer flavor in it,” he told USA Today. Taking a menu item that’s trending in casual and fine dining elevates the chains to beyond fast food, according to industry experts, and many sense a hit in the making.

Harbor Banks® Seafood aligned with Alaska’s long-term fishery management and sustainability practices are virtually unparalleled, and when you combine this wild-caught cod with a batter made with Alaskan-brewed white ale, you have a compelling story and a tremendous fish to go with chips, appetizers and more.

Happy Ravioli Day!

March 20th is National Ravioli Day.

Ravioli are a traditional type of Italian filled pasta, made up of a filling, sealed between two layers of thin egg pasta dough, and are usually served in either a broth or with a pasta sauce. The fillings can vary, per recipe, and may include meat, cheese, vegetables or seafood. Ravioli can be savory or sweet.

Five Food Finds about Ravioli

◦The first mentions of Ravioli was in the 14th century Venus.

◦The word ravioli is from an old Italian word riavvolgere (“to wrap”)

◦Canned ravioli was pioneered by Chef Boyardee in the 1930’s

◦“Fresh” packed ravioli lasts up for several week while fresh made lasts for just a few days.

◦ Italian tradition is to serve vegetarian ravioli, particularly on Fridays. Meats is served as a side or later in the meal.

Servings: 6

INGREDIENTS

1 c Roseli® Italian sausage

2 oz Hilltop Hearth® flour

36 oz Glenview Farms® milk

18 oz Chef's Line™ pumpkin ravioli

12 oz Roseli® Gorgonzola cheese

tt salt and pepper

PREPARATION
In a sauté pan, heat sausage until it starts to slightly brown. Add flour to soak up oil. Stir in milk and mix completely. Bring to a simmer.
Blanch ravioli in hot water for three minutes. Remove and add to sauce. Add cheese and fold until cheese is fully melted. Season to taste.

Pat LaFrieda on Hamburgerization

Taste the difference

In the meat business, Pat LaFrieda is legendary. Any New York carnivore will tell you that his company, Pat LaFrieda Meat Purveyors, supplies the best meat products hands down – cutting steaks for the most discriminating clients and creating custom beef blends for many of the best hotels and restaurants in Manhattan. Now, all of America can finally taste his exceptional beef – with the most flavorful, savory burgers that we have ever found.

Features/Benefits 

•Made with Distinction: USDA Choice Angus chopped beef from whole, boneless primal or subprimal cuts; whole muscle, not trim 

• Performance: chopped in small batches from the best and most flavorful meats to yield the finest burgers 

• Cost Savings: fresh-refrigerated burgers with a shelf life of 28 days 

• Labor Savings: preblended varieties of short rib and chuck save you hours of prep 

Pat LaFrieda Angus Beef Burger, only available from US Foods

Kohlrabi: Superfood’s New Best Seller

Fresh  Harvested Kohlrabi

It’s not a cabbage or a broccoli, or a radish or an onion, or for that matter, a bird or a plane (although some say it does resemble a hot air balloon), but kohlrabi is a true superfood, and now a super seller. What has pushed this odd-looking, knobby purple or green vegetable with the even odder name to the top of the culinary A-list, racking up a 200% increase in menu penetration last year? This week, a crash course in all things kohlrabi.

Part of the cabbage family (its name means ‘cabbage turnip’ in German), kohlrabi goes way back, first mentioned by Apicius in his oldest known cookbook from imperial Rome, and beloved by Charlemagne, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 800 AD, who ordered kohlrabi to be grown in the lands under his reign, according to Vegetarians in Paradise. Consistently grown in Europe by the 1500s and Northern India in the 1600s where the Hindus considered it an important staple, kohlrabi came to America in the 1800s, but never took on the mass appeal of other vegetables…until now.

Part of this not-so-newcomer’s appeal is what Martha Stewart Living food editor Sarah Carey calls “a delightful combination of familiar tastes…the texture of a radish and the sweetness of jicama, with a slight hint of broccoli. The edible leaves are like a milder version of collards."

It may not be easy on the eyes, but kohlrabi is easy on the prep. A vegetable peeler is all you need to eliminate the outermost layer of the bulb. “Be aggressive in your peeling,” advises Greens + Grains cookbook author Molly Watson, “for the skin is rough and heavy and forbidding, all the better to keep the only mildly curious away from the supremely crunchy, sweet and tender vegetable underneath.”  Now, it’s good to go in a variety of ways, according to kitchn.com:

Raw: Toss them in a salad (it absorbs the flavor of salad dressing well), grate for a super slaw, or eat them plain with just a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkling of sea salt.

Pureed: Make it up in a creamy pureed soup of its own with some savory spices, or add to cream of potato, mushroom or broccoli soups.

Fried: Kohlrabi fritters are easy, just shred, mix with an egg and a few tablespoons of flour or breadcrumbs, drop small mounts onto a greased skillet, flatten slightly with the back of a spatula, fry until both sides are crispy. Even the kids will eat it, as long as you don’t tell them what’s inside. 

Roasted: The outside caramelizes and the flavor sweetens, making a great addition to a roasted veggie platter or paired with potatoes or squash for a satisfying side. Or slice unpeeled kohlrabi very thinly, toss with olive oil and coarse salt, and bake for an hour until crisp and golden.

Barbecued: Slice or chop kohlrabi and toss with a little extra virgin olive oil, a dash of salt, wrap in aluminum foil and grill for 10 minutes.

Steamed: The versatile kohlrabi hits it stride steamed; use in frittatas, stir-fries, pasta dishes, empanadas, calzones…no limits here!

But don’t stop here, “Recipes for Health” columnist Martha Rose Shulman suggests spicy pickles a la kimchi, Kohlrabi and Celery Root Puree (like buttery mashed potatoes only healthier), Greek-Style Kohlrabi Pie (sub in for spinach), Vegetarian Spring Rolls with Shredded Kohlrabi, Kohlrabi Home Fries (cut into matchsticks, fry up with a little oil and some bold seasonings), and a completely outstanding Kohlrabi Risotto.

And of course, kohlrabi doesn’t wear its superfood designation lightly, but packs in the vitamins C, A and potassium, boasts antioxidants galore and is no slouch in the fiber department either…and does it all for 19 calories a half cup.  Kohlrabi, your time has come.

Cross Valley Farms® Superfood Slaw Only availabe from US Foods – Super foods are foods that are naturally full of nutrients, antioxidants and the things that are shown to improve well-being and longevity. So we packed six of them into this matchstick slaw. It’ll bring a fresh, crisp, colorful crunch to any dish, hot or cold.

Happy National Pound Cake Day!