Spicy Slaw with Shredded Chicken

25. July 2011 · 2 comments · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: ,

How can something so simple and so fresh and bright be so packed with flavor and utterly delicious?  I’ll most definitely make this slaw all summer because it incorporates two of my favorite things in life: local/seasonal produce and Sunset Magazine.  I picked up my CSA box on Sunday and had a bunch of yummy produce to cook for the week: cauliflower, beets, garlic, greens, summer squash and zucchini, herbs, and a beautiful head of cabbage.  When I thumbed through the latest issue of Sunset, I saw a recipe for Spicy Slaw and figured I might as well go for it.

I tweaked it a bit and was blown away and how tasty and perfectly seasoned this slaw was.  And there’s no mayo in it so it isn’t heavy or at risk of spoiling on a picnic.  It was actually in a feature about food to make while camping.  Next time I go camping, I’m for sure going to bring this dish.

I added some shredded chicken and a soft/medium boiled egg on top and turned it into a main dish.  You guys are gonna love it!  So fresh, healthy, and easy.  Bon appetit!

Spicy Slaw with Shredded Chicken
Serves 4

Ingredients:

Slaw:
4 chicken thighs or 2 large chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
1 beautiful head of cabbage (1 lb), cut into shreds
1/4 red onion, cut into long slivers
1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 large carrot, grated
4 soft/medium boiled eggs

Dressing:
3 tbsp chopped cilantro
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 heaping tbsp sweet/hot mustard
juice from 1 lime
2 tbsp agave nectar or honey
3 tbsp champagne vinegar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
fresh ground pepper to taste

Method:
Combine chicken, cabbage, bell pepper, onion, and carrots in large bowl (be creative with your veggies here.  Grate up some raw beets to give it more color…).

Whisk together dressing ingredients, reserving some cilantro for garnish.

Toss slaw with dressing, making sure it’s well coated.  Transfer to plates and top each serving with a sliced up egg.  Garnish with remaining cilantro and dig in!  You’ll want to eat this all summer long.

 

The Long Way Home

19. July 2011 · Write a comment · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hops!

I took Hwy 219 from Newberg to Woodburn on my way to the winery and drove through some purdy country roads and found a hop field (or orchard?) in St. Paul (home of the annual St. Paul Rodeo, hence the “purdy”).  I love how they climb up the  wires and make a curtain of green.  I kid you not, I almost rear-ended a garbage truck looking in awe at these.  But rest assured, I pulled over to take the photo.

Thanks iPhone and the CameraBag app.

Beet Pickled Deviled Eggs

18. July 2011 · Write a comment · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags:

One of the most memorable and impressive appetizers I’ve had at a restaurant or otherwise were the beet-pickled hard boiled eggs at Grüner in Portland.  They were so creative and had such a beautiful visual representation.  When I get some baby beets in my CSA box last week, along with some farm fresh eggs and shallots, I set out to recreate the tasty little pinkies.  It was way easier than I thought too, and so fun!  And they definitely impressed Allison and Kelly who came over for dinner that night.  The yolks can be deviled in so many different ways so I went to go ol’ Tastespotting for some ideas.  I mixed a couple different recipes and came up with this one:

Beet-Pickled Deviled Eggs with Crispy Shallots
Yields 16 halves

Ingredients:
8 large farm fresh eggs
3-4 baby beets or 1 medium beet, sliced thin
3 cups water
1 cup distilled white vinegar
4 small shallots, sliced
1 tsp sugar
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup hummus
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
2 tsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp diced green onion
Dash of Cayenne
Dash of Paprika
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Hard boil them eggs.  I prefer starting the eggs in cold water, bringing them to a boil and keeping them at a boil for 7-8 minutes, then running them under cold water.  Once cooled, peel and set aside.  Be careful when peeling because you want them to look goooooood on the plate.

In a medium saucepan, bring water, vinegar, beets, shallots, sugar, and bay leaf to a simmer and cover until beets are tender, 10-15 minutes.  Cool completely uncovered, then transfer to jar, add unpeeled eggs, and put in fridge to marinade overnight (or at least 2 hours).  I let mine marinate for almost 24 hours.

When ready to serve, remove eggs from pickling mixture, slice in half and carefully removed yolks and place in a medium mixing bowl.  Stir together with hummus, lemon juice, mustard, green onion, cayenne, salt and pepper.  Use a small spoon or piping bag to fill eggs.

For the shallots, heat butter over medium-low heat and add shallots and a little salt.  Cook down until caramelized, then keep going until they get crispy.  These are the yummiest little nuggets ever!

Place shallots on top of filled eggs, and sprinkle with paprika.  We drank these with an ’09 Rosé of Pinot Noir from Lachini Vineyards in Oregon, but a Gruner Veltliner would be awesome too.

The Long Way Home

11. July 2011 · 2 comments · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , , , , ,

Summertime in Oregon means green.  It means sunshine and golden hues.  It means growth and warmth and beauty.  For me, it means taking the long way home.  I moved out to wine country in November, right when everything was closing up for the winter.  I’ve been waiting for this season for months and now I’m soaking it all in.

There are so many beautiful back roads lined with vineyards, fields, gardens, orchards and views of the valley.  Country life is a lot slower than city life and I’m hardly ever in a hurry to make it home.  I’ve learn in my life that it’s not all about the destination, but that the journey is just as important.

There is beauty in the journey and the detours that we might miss if we’re always in a hurry to get from point A to point B.  Every time I take the long way, I’m making it my challenge to find something beautiful that I would not have seen on the straight path home.  Stay tuned for the journey.

Here are some of the latest beauties:

Field on Wilsonville Rd 3 miles from my house. I feel so serene here.

Who doesn't love a red barn with a golden glow?

So warm. Imagine me on a blanket in this field wearing a straw cowgirl hat. PERFECT!

Waxing Crescent Moon.

The perfect blue.

Alloro Vineyard at sunset. Felt like Italy.

What are these little white flowers? I've been seeing fields of them everywhere. This is on Lebeau Rd in Sherwood.

Loved these dandelions! I took Wilsonville Rd home from Portland yesterday because it was a beautiful afternoon and 99W thru Tigard just felt wrong.

Make a wish!

 

Outstanding in the Field

06. July 2011 · 3 comments · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , , , , , ,

My mom and I started drooling over the pictures from Outstanding in the Field last year and have been so excited to be part of one this year.  OITF is a traveling farm dinner that goes around the country (and to Europe this year!) and sets up the most beautiful tables in the most beautiful places.  They sources all their meat, produce, and wine from local farms, chefs, and vintners and it’s not uncommon to be sitting next to the farmer who raised the pig that you’re eating.  Might seem weird, but it’s awesome if you think about it!  The pig had a name and lived in a green pasture instead of being crammed in pens and walking around in its own…well, you know.  You never know, I just may pick up my life for a season and travel with OITF next season.  It’s seriously in the works ;)

It was so much fun to enjoy this event in Oregon with my parents, but also with Clare Carver and Brian Marcy of Big Table Farm.  The are salt of the earth people and know how to savor life on a farm and enjoy the fruits of their labor.  Give me a pink farm house in the middle of canyon over a chic downtown loft anyday.

Ok people, drool on.  But keep in mind that my camera ran out of batteries before the food even came.  At least I got to enjoy the meal without distraction.

And because this here bloggy has a foodie theme, here’s the menu for y’all:

Ayres Creek chickpeas, crudité, parsley purée
Square Peg pork terrine, toast, mustard seed
Bay shrimp, basil, green garlic aioli
2009 Riesling, Big Table Farm, Brooks Estate Vineyard

Amy’s greens & veggies, Clare’s eggs, Brian’s Vinaigrette
2009 Pinot Noir, Big Table Farm, Cattrall Brothers Vineyard

Ayres Creek Frumento, Big Table Farm spiced hen, grilled squash and chilies
2009 Pinot Noir, Big Table Farm, Willamette Valley

Square Peg Farm while hog; hams in hay, buoy smoked sausage & belly, roasted herbed loins, liver mousse.
Ayres Creek zolfino beans & wild greens
2009 Pinot Noir, Big Table Farm, Resonance Vineyard

Brown butter shortbread, Viridian Farms strawberries, raspberries, and cream.
2008 Syrah, Big Table Farm, White Hawk Vineyard, Santa Barbara

Crispy Polenta with Garlic Scapes and Sauteed Kale

03. July 2011 · 1 comment · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , ,

I am loving having a CSA box!  There are so many fresh veggies in there each week, and some that I’ve never even had before!  My friend Toni from Boulder Locavore posted this recipe last week and I got really excited.  I adapted it a little bit to use more of my CSA box, but it turned out wonderfully.  I was so blessed to make this for my best friend Zoe and our great friend Angie.  I even opened a couple great bottles of wine and we laughed, cried, and thoroughly enjoyed our day and evening together.  Hopefully this meal will bring about as much greatness in your day as it did to mine.  I added a bit of protein to this recipe by buying couple good sausages from the meat case at Whole Foods you can eat this as is and be sat-is-fied!

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

For the polenta:
1 cup polenta, or corn grits
1/2 cup milk (I used hazelnut milk)
2 cups water
Salt/pepper to taste
1 tbsp of butter (have any of that herbed butter left?  I used some of that!)

For the sauteed kale:
6 cups or more kale or any braising green, rinsed, dried, and torn into bit size pieces
1 cup baby fennel, chopped, separating fronds and bulbs
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
All of your garlic scapes, cut into 1 inch pieces
Salt/pepper
Olive oil
Optional: Red pepper flakes for a little kick

Method:

Make the polenta first since it takes some time to set.  Spread butter in a loaf pan and set aside.  In a medium sauce pan, bring water, milk, and pinch of salt to an almost boil.  Slowly stir in polenta and bring heat to low.  Stir constantly for 10 minutes or so until polenta is thick like oatmeal.  Stir in butter, a pinch more salt, and fresh pepper.  Transfer to loaf pan and stick in fridge for 30 minutes to cool and firm up.  You’ll want it firm enough to slice into patties and grill them.

When loaf is firm, slice into 1/2 inch-ish slices.  Heat butter and/or olive oil in heavy skillet over medium high heat.  Add polenta patties to pan and brown them on each side until they are crispy and heated through.    Transfer one patty per plate and get ready for those sauteed greens.

While patties and getting crispy, start the saute.  You’ll need to multi-task on this one so be prepared.  In a large skillet, heat oil over medium.  Add fennel bulb, red bell pepper, garlic scapes, and pinch of salt/pepper and saute for about a minute.  Add fennel fronds and red pepper flakes if you want and continue to saute for a couple minutes until fennel is translucent and garlic scapes starts to give off an aroma. In batches, add kale and saute down until they begin to wilt.  Do this is 3 or 4 batches so you don’t overload the pan.  Once the kale is wilted and deep green, plate up on top of grilled polenta.

If you wanted to brown up some sausage, add that to the plate too.  You can either add the sausage crumbles or bits into the saute and plate it up as one, or grill it up separately and serve on the side like I did.

Bon appétit!

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