Gold At The End Of The Rainbow

GOoD for you,  HeALtHY, LOw fat, LOw sodium, fat FReE  are all major marketing terms pushed on todays health conscious society. With the trend of organic and local making their way into households via Wholefoods and farmers markets people are finally starting to realize there is more to keeping your body healthy besides buying 90 calorie packs to replace those double stuffed oreos. With my cooking background and multiple nutrition classes under my belt I have been trying to stress this point. It is important what you put in your body. For many it is unnecessary to consume vitamins and minerals in the form of a pill if you "eat the rainbow", meaning try and have a serving of every color fruit and vegetable a day.
After nine months of indulging myself in the culture of Napa Valley  I took a drastic approach to eat healthy. For years I have been wanting to try a detox. With a new appreciation for fruits and vegetables I decided there was no better time. I chose the seven day detox by Dr. Alejandro Junger featured on Gwyneth Paltrow's goop.com to kick start my renewed eating habits. This one was great for me. Every day's meal was completely mapped out and it was not 7 days of starving myself. I actually found myself trying to keep up with the multitude of meals and snacks.

A typical day on the goop detox

DAY FOUR

7am (or upon rising): Glass of room temperature lemon water
8am: Herbal tea
10am (breakfast): Mango and Coconut Milk Smoothie
11:30am: Coconut water
1:30pm (lunch): Miso Soup with Watercress
4pm (snack): A handful of blueberries
6pm (dinner): Steamed Salmon and Greens

After finishing the detox I have found that besides losing weight I was more energized through the entire process. By consuming the appropriate amount of nutrients my body functioned the way intended. This is motivation enough for me to continue to "eat the rainbow".

Graduation Day

This post is a bit over due but I am officially an alum of the Culinary Institute of America!!!  After walking in my high school and college graduation ceremonies I expected the same old, when is this going to end thought, sigh of relief...it was a very enjoyable afternoon. Unlike any other graduation before, this ceremony was personal and even did what it was supposed to and offered usable future advice. Two students down since our start in July, 31 fellow classmates and I climbed the stone steps of the Greystone building, toques standing tall and alumni pins glistened as the rest of the student body clapped while we entered our ceremony. One of my favorite chefs, Chef Lars Kronmark, spoke giving great advice on how to suceed in this industry followed by Chef Sheamus Feeley of Farmestead giving equally valid advice. The outcome of all the advice...positive attitude and endurance.

I have taken that advice and am now back in Chicago working as a line cook at a upscale, Asian fusion celebrity hotspot.

2011 ACAP14 Graduating Class

Other students clapping for us as we entered graduation

Winery Highlights

Pre CIA, before living in the Napa Valley, and of course the time I thought opening a bottle of wine that was even a dollar over the cost of two-buck-chuck was expensive I could not appreciate the complexities of a port. Why drink a thick overly sweet dessert wine. I then visited Jessup winery. The wine educator there made me start to understand ports. There is a time and place for port. He had me imagine just finishing a meal and retiring into the den, sitting in front of a fire, and slowly sipping a port while enjoying the company of friends over some cheese. That was as Oprah says, my "aha moment!".  I became less dreadful of the tasting experiences that involved port. I started to pick out their nuances and eventually even asked for a tasting if it was not offered. 

I now can create new images in my head. Port does not need to be limited to a fireside chat after dinner. Soak dried fruit in it and serve it on top of a duck breast. You can even get crazy and serve it pre-dinner. Everyone loves brie en cruet as an appetizer, try a glass of port with it. It is about getting past the immediate sweet flavor and tasting the individual fruits and even the sometimes present brandy. 

I was not about to end my stint in America's wine growing region without bringing home a bottle of port to signify my pallet's growth. After enjoying the Benziger Family Winery (Biodynamic Wine Makers) and purchasing their award winning 2008 Bella Luna Vineyard Pinot Noir from the Russian River Valley(first pinot noir to win against the French in competition), I could not help but take their advice and visit their other winery Imagery Estate Winery. There I purchased my first bottle of 2007 Petite Sirah Port. 

Benziger Pinot Noir

Imagery Port and Snifter

Recipe Box

Ceviche
garnish of english cucumber and citrus supremes

With the snowy season slowly coming to an end, there is nothing better to get us in a tropical mood then a refreshing plate of spicy citrus ceviche. This dish was made for my Cuisines of Americas class. It is supposed to be a Peruvian ceviche, but lets be honest there was no recipe followed and it quickly became a mix of Peru, Mexico, and Florida. A Peruvian ceviche uses blanched fish and is tossed in acid at the last moment. It is the technique, fish, and supplemental  ingredients that determines the type of ceviche.

CEVICHE

2 oranges juiced (seeds and pulp removed)

5 lemons juiced (seeds and pulp removed)

5 limes juiced (seeds and pulp removed)

3 habanero peppers minced (seeds and membrane removed)

1/2 red pepper diced

1/2 bunch cilantro rough chopped

1 red onion diced

1 cup shrimp peeled, deveined, and chopped

1 cup scallops chopped (muscle removed)

1 sea bass fillet chopped

1 mahi mahi fillet chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Note: Any mixture of seafood may be used. Best to use what is freshest for the season and the area you are living in.

Prepare all ingredients by having all cleaned, chopped, and ready for use. 

Blanch whole peeled shrimp in boiling water then shock in ice water to stop cooking process. 

Combine all citrus juices with vegetables and chillies. Toss all seafood in mixture and season to taste with salt and pepper. Let sit covered in a refrigerator for 3 hrs to overnight. Ready when majority of fish has turned opaque from acid. 

*It is important to remember that you are dealing with a raw product and proper sanitation must be carried out. The acid from the citrus fruits will denature proteins and kill most bacteria, but there is still no heat being applied to most of the ingredients.

Restaurant Review

Bar and Communal Table

Open Kitchen

I have a officially been converted to the vegi way of life. Not that I ever had anything against vegetables. I am always game for a vegetarian meal once in awhile, but dinner at Michelin star restaurant Ubutu in Napa could have changed my meat and potato ways. They are a vegetable cookery restaurant that does not claim to be vegan or vegetarian. With an attached yoga studio there is an earthy urban hipster vibe throughout the entire restaurant. Chef Jeremy Fox passed the torch down to 26 year old CIA alum Aaron London who is continuing the glory. Perfectly seasoned and beautifully presented you walk out not feeling over stuffed but extremely satisfied. The service is on par with the food. The staff were all very helpful and friendly throughout the entire night. At the end of the meal, coming back to my seat, I passed Chef London. I thanked him for a gorgeous meal and without asking he followed me back to our table to introduce himself to our entire party. 

"David Littles" Potatoes; kraut ash, caramelized sauerkraut, radish, black kale

Spiced Almonds

Amuse Bouche: Spicy Mushroom Soup

Garden Snake; greens, leaves, flowers, roots, truffled pecorino

Chiaggia Beets; smoked blue cheese, "bacon" avocado, crushed olives

Steam Bun; burrata, citrus marmalade, sunchoke

Garden Infused Fiore; artichokes in various preparation, caramelized grapefruit, 

Arbuckle Grits; hedgehog mushrooms, fried egg, cheddar, goats ricotta fennel frond beignets

Compressed Brownie; pine needle ice cream, pine nut pudding,  kumquat

Espresso

Mignardise: S'more

The Best Thing I Ever Ate?

Mondrian Cake
Vanilla cake, Red velvet cake
Valrhona Chocolate ganache

I took a cue from Chris Cosentino and the Food Network recently. While on a trip to San Francisco's Modern art museum, the SF MOMA, I stopped by their rooftop coffee bar, which is operated by Blue Bottle Coffee, for a blood sugar upping. Pastry Chef, Caitlin Freeman, has taken a creative approach to creating her cakes and cookies by modeling them all after different pieces of art around the museum. 
Chris Cosentino on a recent episode of The Best Thing I Ever Ate  made a claim that the Mondrian Cake at the SF MOMA was the best piece of cake he 
had ever eaten. My friends and I got a piece to share and found it beautiful to look at, but maybe not the best piece of cake we had ever eaten. The crumb(inside of cake) of the cake was moist and dense, and the ganache piping, used almost like caulking work, was very tasty. Later research led me to discover how this cake is made. 
“Freeman makes one Mondrian cake per day. She bakes a big oblong white cake and smaller yellow, red and blue cakes, and cuts them into long thin shapes. She coats each of the pieces in ganache – a thick, rich covering of cream and dark chocolate – reassembles it all in a long loaf pan, lets it chill overnight, then ganaches the whole thing.

Each slice has squares of yellow, blue and yellow interspersed with white squares separated by dark chocolate lines.” Further reading on how the Mondrian Cake is made. 

I think where we went wrong was thinking that a piece of $8 cake, claimed to be the best dessert ever eaten, was going to send off some sort of fireworks in our mouths. Was it tasty and interesting to look at, yes....but the best piece of cake I ever ate, thats up to the judges. 

Piet Mondrian, Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue, 1935-1942

Winery Highlights

My time in the Napa Valley is sadly coming to an end. With only five weeks left till I move on, my wine tasting experiences have become more frequent. This week I tried 11 new wineries. My favorites of the bunch were Stags Leep Wine Cellars, Schweiger Vineyards, and Dutch Henry. Culminating my week of wine tasting I went with a group of friends Friday night to a local restaurant named Farmstead. They have a beautiful outdoor seating area with a fireplace and couches. We used the opportunity to crack open 4 bottles of wine we had purchased earlier in the day. With the fireplace roaring and an amazing dinner being consumed around a beautiful setting, we had a lovely time making new friends and sharing our wine. In our group was an ex-employee of Duckhorn who shared with us his bottle of Golden Eye 2007 Pinot Noir. When I first arrived in Napa I was just discovering wine and figuring out my favorites. I am now happy to say I will never stop tasting, but I have arrived at my conclusion.  05' cabernet sauvignons are my all time favorite, but Pinot Noirs are my go to wine and my favorite of the bunch is the 07' golden eye, I was lucky enough to enjoy Friday night. Arriving at 6:00pm and closing the restaurant at 11:30 we met new friends, shared a glass of wine with 2 of our  Chef's from the CIA and talked to classmates dining there as well. The staff was very accommodating and did not even charge us the low $2.00 corkage fee. We later requested they do because it is donated to charity.

The farmstead burger is top in Napa. Served with home-fries and homemade ketchup and topped with arugula and a fried egg

DIY Olives

My Olives have now been sitting in salted water leaching their naturally bitter flavor and softening for a month. They are doing great. I expected them to take around 9 months to be fully edible, but after nervously tasting them I expect them to be done in around 1 or 2 months. One thing I noticed is the loss of color that is occurring. My prediction is that the salt in the water is having a reaction with the pigments in the olives. Purple fruits and vegetables contain a pigment called Betalaine. With the addition of an alkaline they become tender and dull in color. 


The promised recipe for home cured olives...
1 qt. ripe olives
room temperature water to cover
1/2 c kosher salt
place all in qt container mix and mix until majority of salt is gone. Cover container with a lid place upside down and leave untouched in room temperature until softened and no longer bitter. About 3 months (will update on exact time, once mine are finished)
Once done, drain olives and place in mason jars with flavorings. 

• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 6 tablespoons distilled white vinegar

This is only one recipe. Many spices, citrus, vinegars , and oils may be added. 

Recipe Box

Most will think I am crazy for saying this, but I am actually extremely sick of eating dinner at the Culinary Institute. I'll put it in perspective....Imagine yourself having to eat restaurant style food for every meal over months of time with no choice of what you are eating. It sounds like I am complaining for no reason, but seriously it gets to you.

My desperation drove me to the local safeway for a last plea of just plain soup. My food snob light bulb went off and my attention was re-directed to the seafood counter when I saw the sign that said crabs 1.99/lb. How could I not. The Seafood attendant even gave me one for free. I was able to buy two fresh, never frozen  dungeness crabs for less then the cost of the bottle of safeway brand mustard I bought to accompany it. Sounds sketchy right...The store had been sent double their order and for once the customers got to benefit. 

My simple dinner went in a slightly different direction, but it was still simple to make. Besides the crab, I used only what I had in my room to make this dinner. Yes, normal people do not have a full set of knives sitting next to their bed, but believe me I got creative.

Crab with Apple and Avocado Salad 

1 boiled, cleaned, and chilled crab

1 apple chopped small

1 avocado chopped small

1/2 sweet onion diced

splash orange liqueur

splash pomegranate juice

Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine avocado, apple, and onion. Toss and season with liqueur, juice, salt, and pepper. Top with crab and enjoy!

When making in a true kitchen setting to refine the presentation I would mold the salad in a circle using a pvc pipe and take the crab meat out of the shell so that it has a layered neat look. 

Out of the Kitchen

On a recent venture to Sonoma I discovered a nostalgic candy store with many favorites I had not thought about in years. My friends and I had so much fun playing "remember this" and "Omg did you ever have that". With a name like  Tiddle E. Winks, how could anyone pass this store up. It is a very small store, but the walls are packed from floor to ceiling with everything from old Hershey Bars to Teaberry gum. Above the register the wall is covered with different versions of the Tiddle E. Winks game. I of course did not leave empty handed. I was able to resist opening my purchases in the car and a chewy bar and a few pieces of cinnamon hotdog gum (minus 1) made it home safe with me.