Olive Oil Cake

On Saturday I made an olive oil cake using Alice Waters' recipe in her dessert book. It was very simple to make, though I didn't have any real Sauternes and used an inferior dessert wine. Maybe next time I'll try it with my cousin Peggy's Limoncello, or even with some of the lemon verbena sugar syrup plus some white wine. It was terrific with some homemade ice cream, both strawberry and peach. More on that, after I take a picture!

Lemon Verbena

One of my lemon verbena plants (foreground in picture) has gotten quite big, so I decided to prune it. But what to do with the leaves? I looked online and did not find many recipes for lemon verbena but did discover one for lemon verbena sugar syrup, which I made. Now I have about a cup of the sugar syrup, some of which will go into iced tea. I may try some of the leaves in my salad tonight, or maybe in a green sauce for some tuna we’re grilling. I think it will have to be chopped very fine, as the leaves are tough.

Stay tuned for more…

Huevos Rancheros Verdes with Black Beans

My cooking class with Barbara Pool Fenzl at Rancho La Puerta was a lot of fun, but unfortunately I didn’t take any pictures of the food or the cooking school. I volunteered to make the Huevos Rancheros because I’ve never been able to poach eggs. This dish uses a green sauce, which I love, and black beans—also a favorite. I’m including a few more photos of the ranch along with this recipe. One is of the dining hall from outside and the other is our last night's dinner--the only one with wine. I'll try the "huevos" at home soon!

Huevos Rancheros Verdes with Black Beans

--By Barbara Pool Fenzl

Sauce
½ pound (about 5) medium tomatillos, husked, stems removed

2 cloves garlic, peeled

½ cup coarsely chopped onion

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup cilantro leaves2 serrano chiles, stemmed and seeded

1 ripe avocado, peeled and diced

Beans, Eggs, & Assembly
1 tablespoon canola or corn oil

1 can (15 ounces) black beans
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons white vinegar

4 large eggs

4 corn tortillas (6 to 7 inches in diameter)

½ cup grated Cotija cheese (or substitute Monterey Jack)

½ cup finely chopped cilantro

For sauce, place tomatillos in a medium saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower heat and simmer until tomatillos are soft, about 20 minutes. Drain off water and put tomatillos in a blender with garlic, onion, lime juice, salt, cumin, cilantro and serranos. Puree until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in avocado.

In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat; add the black beans, undrained, and mash them with a fork while stirring them over the heat. Season to taste and cook until warm and slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Keep warm.

To poach the eggs, place water in a skillet or shallow pan to a depth of 2 to 3 inches. Add vinegar and heat until water is at a low boil. Carefully break eggs into the pan and cook until the whites become opaque, about 2 1/2 minutes. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and gently place on paper towels.

For assembly, preheat broiler. Wrap tortillas in a damp, clean kitchen towel or damp paper towels. Cook for 1 minute on high power in a microwave oven. Place warm tortillas on a baking sheet and spread each one with black beans; top with an egg, about 3 tablespoons sauce and 2 tablespoons grated cheese. Place under the broiler just to melt the cheese. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.

Rancho La Puerta

I just returned from a week at a spa in Baja CA, and, boy, it couldn’t have come at a better time. It’s a beautiful spot, about 40 miles from San Diego, and we had perfect weather while there. I particularly enjoyed two-mile morning hikes, Pilates and water aerobics, and I also attended writer’ workshops in the afternoons. We had a cooking class one evening at the ranch’s cooking school, which has 8-acre organic garden attached. Unfortunately, I did not take any pictures at the cooking school or gardens.

The food at the ranch was terrific! Lots of fruit and vegetables, soup and salad at both dinner and lunch, along with a choice of two entrees—and you could ask for both! I didn’t lose any weight, but I didn’t gain any either. I probably ate more volume than usual—due to more exercise—but no meat, almost no bread or butter, and no wine (until the last night). It’s a beautiful place, low-key for a spa, and not at all fancy or snobbish. I would definitely recommend it. Here’s the link to the website: http://www.rancholapuerta.com/

The food picture above is from lunch the last day; the other shots are of the grounds.

Artichoke & Fava Barrigoule

Another dish I liked from this weekend was the Artichoke & Fava Barrigoule, which I plan to make next weekend, since I still have lots of artichokes and I brought home some favas from Georgeanne's house. It's a pretty simple recipe, but labor-intensive, as both the favas and the artichokes require some work. I'd recommend it for a small group, so I'm giving a recipe for 4.

Artichoke & Fava Barrigoule
1-2 Tbs. green garlic
4-6 artichokes,, trimmed and quartered
1-1¼ lbs. fava beans, removed from pods with skins off
1-2 Tb. extra-virgin olive oil
2-3 Tb. white wine
2-3 Tb. chicken broth (optional)
Sprigs of fresh thyme
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Sauté the garlic in a frying pan with a lid, then add the artichokes and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Next add the fava beans and sauté for a minute or two and add the white wine, scraping up any bits. If more liquid is needed, add the broth (or water). Add salt and pepper to taste along with the sprigs of thyme, and cook over low heat covered for about 15 minutes, or until artichokes are tender. Serve hot or at room temperature.
Saute the garlic in the olive

Provence In California

Last weekend I attended “Provence in California” at Georgeanne Brennan’s house just outside of Winters, here in Yolo County. The two-day cooking class was a gift from Laura and Anne, who found Georgeanne in the last issue of Gourmet. (In May, she was written up in Sunset.)

The classes were lots of fun, with great food at the end of each day. Her cooking style is much like my own, so I didn’t learn “new techniques.” However, I did get to work with a new (to me) ingredient: sardines, which I cleaned and we cooked in Georgeanne’s pizza oven. (See photos.) I also made an easy lemon tart that I’ll add to my short list of desserts—like me, Georgeanne says that she’s not much of a baker, and this tart lets you press the dough into the tart pan, rather than rolling it out. We made lamb one day, much like mine from the previous weekend (but roasted, not grilled), with lots of fresh herbs plus potatoes and onions. The pizza-making reminded me how much fun it is, so I’ll be making pizza again, after probably a dozen or more years.

Georgeanne also runs classes in Provence, so maybe I’ll get there too, someday. Here is the recipe for the Meyer lemon tart—unfortunately I didn’t take a picture.

Georgeanne Brennan’s Meyer Lemon Tart—10 servings

For the pastry
1½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
½ cup cold butter
1 large egg

For the filling
4-5 lemons (may be made with any lemons)
1¼ cups sugar
2 large eggs
10 Tb melted butter

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Have ready a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. To make the pastry, combine the flour and ¼ cup of sugar in a bowl and stir until well blended. Cut the butter into small pieces and add to the flour mixture using a pastry cutter, until the mixture is crumbly. Add the egg and mix it into the dough with a fork. Press the dough evenly into the tart pan; it should be about ¼ inches thick. Line the crust with aluminum foil (and beans or pie weights if desired) and bake until slightly firm, about 10 minutes. Remove the weights and foil and continue baking another 5 minutes or so until firm and barely colored.

Finely grate the zest of 2 or three lemons, and then halve and juice enough lemons to measure ¾ cup of lemon juice. In a bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the sugar and eggs until pale yellow. Gradually pour in the melted butter beating constantly, and then stir in the lemon zest and juice. Gently spoon the filling into the tart shell and bake until the crust and filling are golden and firm to the touch, about 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely before serving.

Dinner for 25!

I’m cooking dinner for 25 people this weekend, a mini-fundraiser at $50 a person for a group I belong to here in Davis: the University Farm Circle. It’s a spring menu from the south of France, with lots of my favorite recipes. If I have time (and remember), I’ll take some photos. Here’s the menu:

Appetizers: finger food only
Mixed olives with herbed goat cheese
Duck bites
Baguette/ cheese/fruit
Mixed nuts

Dinner: served buffet-style
Grilled spring lamb, with mint salsa verdé
Baked salmon, with olive and basil butters
Lavender pasta, with wild asparagus & spring vegetables
Red potato and red onion gratin
Warm green bean salad, with garden lettuces and arugula

Desserts: various
Aunt Mary’s cheesecake
Strawberries and fruit compote
Chocolate truffles

Beverages:
Red, white and rosé wines from Bogle
Mixed drinks
Seltzer & Sparkling juices
Decaf French-roast coffee