The Southern California Spring Garden Show
From Your Herbal Garden Seminars
Thurs. April 28th 2 p.m.
Sun. May 1st 11:30 a.m.
Free
Tag Archives: herbs
Microgreens & Sprouts
Sat. March 19th
10 – 11 a.m. Free
We’ll be exploring the world of
Microgreens & Sprouts
Moved to Sat. March 19th 10 – 11
Join us for some conversation and a tasty bite!
The Plant Stand
2972-A Century Place
(In the back)
Costa Mesa, Ca
(714) 966-0797
Photo from Earthwise Gardening
March Cooking Class
Demo Cooking Class
We still have some spaces for our March 24th class! Sign up today!
March Menu
Leek Tart with Goat Cheese & Olives
Pork Scallopini with Leek Caper Vinaigrette
Olive Oil & Herb Roasted Winter Vegetables
Wild Mushroom Bread Pudding
Sea Salt Caramel Apple Cake in a Jar
Class Dates:
Seal Beach Tasting Room
Thursday, March 10th SOLD OUT!
Catch the same menu on Thurs. March 24th
6:30-8:30, approximately
Call (562) 296-5421 for reservations
Temecula Tasting Room
Saturday, March 12th 12 – 2, approximately
Call (866) 654-8396 for reservations
Photo: Bill Granger’s Leek Tart
Easy Pizza Margherita
Pizza, Flatbread & Calzone
Makes 2 flatbreads
*Stir the flour with a table knife to lighten the flour; it becomes compacted as it rests. Dip your measuring cup into the flour and use the knife to sweep the excess flour off the top of the cup. According to King Arthur Flour it should weigh 4 ¼ ounces.
Dough recipe adapted from ‘Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day’
Sauce recipe will yield 2 cups and hold for several days. Adapted from Sunset Magazine
- 1 ½ cups lukewarm water
- 1 packet granulated yeast, 2 ¼ teaspoons
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 3 ¼ cups King Arthur unbleached white flour, measured with the scoop and sweep method*
- Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ small onion, chopped
- 2 small cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound fresh tomatoes, quartered or 1 lg. can whole or crushed tomatoes
- 1 small can tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 granulated sugar or more as needed
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- Sea Salt and fresh pepper, to taste
- Pinch crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- Pizza Margherita Topping
- Sauce
- Mozzarella, torn into pieces
- Fresh basil, torn into pieces
Dough: (Make at least 1 day up to 5 days ahead of time)
The water should be warm to the touch but not more than 110°, and add the yeast to the water.
Add salt to the flour and whisk to distribute using a large bowl or a plastic food container with lid. Add the water to the flour all at once and mix with a wooden spoon or wet hands, the dough will be sticky. No kneading is necessary.
Loosely cover with lid and let stand at room temperature approximately 2 hrs. The dough can rise longer, up to 5 hours without affecting the results. The dough is easier to handle if you can make it the night before and refrigerate overnight.
Working on a lightly floured surface, pinch off a palm sized piece of dough, shape into a round, rectangular or square shape. Dough is sticky so keep some extra flour nearby, dust your hands as necessary to shape the dough. If the dough starts to snap back you should let it rest for a few minutes and then resume shaping. I use a rolling pin to thin the dough out to my desired style
Place onto parchment paper, a dusted pizza peel or the bottom of a dusted baking sheet. You can use anything you want providing the pizza can slip right off onto the rack.
If you are baking in an oven, preheat your oven to 500° or as high as it will go. Top the dough with anything you like, slid it into the hot oven and bake for 12-14 minutes.
Sauce:
Heat a deep saucepan big enough to hold all the ingredients, add the oil and onions and sauté until translucent. Add the garlic and stir briefly.
Place all the ingredients along with the garlic and onions into a blender, or use an immersion blender and puree.
Ladle or spoon onto pizza dough leaving an clean edge around the outside of the dough. Sprinkle or place the cheese on top and bake on a hot pizza stone for about 6-8 minutes, checking frequently. Sprinkle with fresh basil and let rest for a minute or two before slicing. Mangia!
Temecula Olive Oil Tasting Room, Seal Beach Feb. Cooking Demo
Temecula Olive Oil Tasting Room
Seal Beach
Thur. Feb. 4th Sold Out!! Repeat class available Thur. Feb 18th, don’t miss out!
6:30 – 8:30, approximately
Also presenting this Valentine Day menu in the
Temecula Olive Oil, Temecula Tasting Room in Old Town
Sat. Feb. 13th, 12-2 Still some spots available
See below for reservations
Panzanella Salad with Ca. Avocado
A classic Italian salad with Toasted Bread Cubes
Creamy Ca. Avocado & Blood Orange Olive Oil Vinaigrette
Individual Puff Pastry Filet Mignon Tarts
with Caramelized Onion-Mushroom & Blue Cheese Sauce
Grilled Asparagus with Lemon Gremolata
Spring asparagus with a Garlic-Lemon Dust
Strawberry Brownie Bites
For Seal Beach Reservations please call:
562-296-5421
For Temecula Reservations please call:
951-693-0607
How To Make Perfect Gravy
Christina Peters, The Food Shooter, and I decided we needed to make a second video using the Perfect Stock recipe and this is what we offer you today. You will have Perfect Gravy for your holiday, just follow our simple tips!
Bone Broth or Stock
There is very little difference between bone broth and stock, actually it’s just the addition of a good apple cider vinegar like Bragg. The terms broth and stock are confusing as they seem to be used interchangeably for one another. Broth is usually made from the meat where stock is made with bones. Stock is a little hardier and more flavorful, both enhance any dish you use them in or if you just heat and eat as a soup. They keep well for 3 days refrigerated, you can re-heat the stock and keep for another 3 days or freeze for up to 6 months. I like to freeze in 1/2 cup portions so I can use the stock to make rice instead of using water. Vegetables simmered in stock is also a great way to get extra flavor. When making stock be sure not to add salt until it is all finished, the stock will reduce as it cooks and if you salt it initially it will become over salted.
Here’s a quick little video that Christina Peters & I made
The Food Shooter and The Chef
Braised Short Ribs
Easy Braised Short Ribs
Braising a tough cut of meat over a long period of time makes the meat deep, rich and delicious. With a small amount of preparation and a long cooking time these are easy to make and warms you up on those cold winter days. Make extra! You’ll want them for leftovers, you can make a ragu out of them, a pot pie or even a Shepherds pie for quick weeknight dinners. You’ll get more flavor out of the short ribs if they are on the bone, they will fall right off the bone after their long slow cooking so they’ll be easy to remove.
Serves 4
- Olive oil
- 1/3 cup flour (or more as needed)
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper
- 4 pounds short ribs on the bone
- 1 brown onion, chopped
- 1 medium carrot, roughly chopped
- 2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste (double concentrate from a tube-found in the ‘Italian’ section
- 2 tablespoons flour
- ¼ cup dry red wine
- 1 qt. beef stock, may use chicken stock
- 1 bouquet garni (1 bay leaf, 1 sprig thyme, 2 sprigs Italian parsley tied together in cheesecloth
Heat oven to 350°.
Mix flour, salt and pepper together in a shallow bowl or on a plate.
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium high heat; add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan.
Dry short ribs well and dredge in the flour mixture, shake off the excess and place the meaty side into the hot oil. Do not crowd the meat in the pan or it will not brown properly. This is the most important step in braising so take your time. Remove the ribs, set aside and continue until all ribs are browned.
In the same pan, add more oil as necessary, add onions, carrots, celery to the pan and sauté until lightly browned.
Add tomato paste and stir to coat all the vegetables and cook the paste a little, about 2 minutes.
Add flour and stirring constantly cook for another 5 minutes without burning. The flour may turn a little dark but that’s fine.
Add the dry red wine to the pan and scrape the bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan. Let reduce and thicken slightly. Remove from the heat.
Return the ribs to the pan, cover with stock and add the bouquet garni. Put the lid on the Dutch oven and bake for 3 hours. Remove bouquet garni.
Juices may be thickened into gravy with a beurre maníe, roux or cornstarch slurry.
Beurre Manie, Roux, Cornstarch Slurry
Beurre Manie
Mix together equal parts softened butter and flour until it looks like thick butter and all the flour is incorporated.
Roux
Melt 2 Tb. butter in a pan, add 2 Tb. flour, whisk together and cook until lightly browned
Cornstarch Slurry
2 parts cold water mixed with 1 part cornstarch
Whisk any of these into your hot liquid, stirring until thickened. Don't over-cook the cornstarch slurry or it will start to break down and become thin again.
Chestnut-Apple Dressing
Love the taste of chestnuts in your dressing? It’s easy with Peeled & Steamed Chestnuts! I find them at Gelsons, Bristol Farms, Lazy Acres or you can order them direct from Melissas. Here’s my favorite recipe…
Chestnut-Apple Dressing
- 1 loaf artisan bread -- cut into cubes, toasted until lightly browned
- 1 box cornbread mix -- baked and cut into pieces (Trader Joes has an excellent brand)
- 1 onion -- diced
- 4 ribs celery -- diced
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh sage leaves
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme leaves
- 1 stick unsalted butter -- (1/2 cup)
- 1 pound fresh chestnuts -- shelled and peeled, chopped coarse, or 1pkg. vacuum-packed whole chestnuts, chopped
- 2 small apples (organic) -- golden delicious, cut into 1" pieces with skin
- 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 1 egg -- lightly beaten
- 1 cup turkey stock -- or chicken stock, as needed
Fresh chestnuts in shell:
With a sharp knife cut an X on the round side of each chestnut. Spread the chestnuts in one layer on a baking sheet and bake the chestnuts in a preheated 450 oven for 10 minutes, or until the shells open. Remove the chestnuts, a handful at a time, and shell and peel them while they are still hot.
Preheat the oven to 350°
For dressing:
In a large pan, sauté the onions, celery, sage, thyme in the butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until the vegetables are softened, add apples and the chestnuts, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the vegetable mixture to the bread pieces, tossing the mixture well, stir in the parsley and salt and pepper to taste, and let the stuffing cool completely. Add the egg and enough of the stock to just bring the dressing together.
Bake for 20 minutes covered; uncover and continue baking 15 minutes or until lightly toasted on top.
Book Signing & Wine Tasting
Saturday & Sunday, Nov. 21 ~ 22 Events!
DON’T MISS THIS WEEKEND
IN TEMECULA!
Mary Platis, Author of Cooking Techniques & Recipes with Olive Oil &
Chef Debbi, Author of ‘What’s In Your Pantry’
are teaming up to bring you
Cooking From The Pantry Series!
First stop
Temecula Olive Oil Co.
Temecula tasting Room
Cooking Class Demo-Wine Tasting & Book Signing
Sat. Nov. 21st
12 – 2 $45.00
Menu
Mediterranean Vegetables in Olive Oil
Fresh Tomato Risotto
Baby Beets and Brussels sprouts Salad
Turkey Rollatini with White Wine, Porcini Mushroom Pan Sauce
Pumpkin Olive Oil Cake with Vanilla & Fig Balsamic Compote
For Temecula Reservations please call:
951-693-0607
Second stop
Sunday, Nov 22nd
Book Signing and Wine Tasting 12 ~ 2
Sponsored by
Holiday Gifts to Make
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Cooking Class
Temecula Olive Oil Co., Seal Beach
November Class
Thur. Nov. 12th 6:30-8:30 (approximately)
Smoked Trout Canapés with Pickled Onions and Mascarpone
Pomegranate, Bacon and Brussels Sprouts Salad
Braciole
Italian Stuffed Beef Rolls
Mushroom Bolognese
Chocolate Raspberry Linzertorte
10 – 20% off on all purchases the night of the class
Class Sponsored by
NOW TAKING RESERVATIONS!
Seal Beach Tasting Room By Reservation only, call: 562-296-5421
Classes are $45; Pre Paid Reservations only
Feel free to BYOB
