I Went to Utah and All I Got Was This Stinking Cheese

And if you know me, you know that's a good thing. Bringing home cheese, that is.

Ironically, Utah is pretty darn cheesy. Wisconsin and even California get all the ink, but Utah isn't exactly a slacker in the culture department. Dairy farms abound in my beloved town of Logan where I went to college (USU - go Aggies!), and the area is home to Cache Valley Dairy among others... makers of cheese cheese and more cheese (ooh! they have a Facebook fan page - signing up now!). While going to school in this dairy-drenched dot on the map most of my peers were gaga over the fresh, truly famous Aggie Ice Cream, served up on campus by the Ag department. But not me. I always - and still do - go for the cheese.

Despite the proliferation of Utah cheese production, admittedly, the vast majority of it is your typical varieties: cheddar, Swiss, colby, Monterey jack... even the dreaded American. So it has been with great curiosity and enthusiasm that I have been following one of Utah's only artisan cheese makers, the Beehive Cheese Company.

For a couple years now, I've been reading the accolades upon accolades being heaped on this small Northern Utah cheese producer. In particular, I was intrigued by one of their cheeses called "Barely Buzzed" - a cheddar that is hand-rubbed with coffee and lavender buds. Coffee AND cheese? Two of my vices wrapped up in a single package? Sign me up.

Barely Buzzed is available here in the Bay Area at a few select artisan grocery stores and cheese shops, but I'd never gotten my hands on any. So when I wandered into the cheese section of a South Jordan Harmon's grocery store during a recent quick trip to Utah and was faced with a full array of Beehive Cheese Company selections, I loaded up. Barely Buzzed, of course, went right into the basket. Twice. Then, in talking to the knowledgeable cheesemonger, she hooked me up with a selection of cheeses that were a great representation of what Beehive has to offer: a Swiss, plus two different versions of Beehive's Promontory Irish-style cheese, the Apple Walnut Smoked variety (self-explanatory), and the Butter Bound variety (where the rind is hand-rubbed with butter during the aging process... mmm.... butter).

Unfortunately, the Harmon's cheese section didn't carry the complete line of Beehive cheeses... so I'm still dreaming of trying their SeaHive (hand rubbed with Beehive wildflower honey and local Redmond RealSalt), the Squeaky Bee Curds (in flavors like Habanero and Rosemary), and of course, the Aggiano (recipe courtesy of USU). I'm also bummed that I didn't have the chance to visit their actual creamery. But it's on my list, and sometime when I'm in Utah for more than 36 very booked hours, I vow to make the pilgrimage.

But I left the Beehive State with my treasured souvenirs hand-carried on my lap the entire flight back to the City by the Bay. I'd like to say that I shared my bounty, or that I incorporated the cheeses into some fabulous recipes... but nope. I kept them all to myself, and doled out slices to myself over the next week or so whenever I wanted a special treat. (Oh who am I kidding? My haul lasted only a couple of days!). How very cheesy.

Bringing Home the Bacon: Working Hard as a Taste Tester

One thing I know for certain: competitive eating is not in my future.

This past week, I had the opportunity to bust free from my cubicle for a day and take on the serious and very important task of "official taste tester" for an upcoming fundraising event put on by my employer (previous post here). The event is an annual Wine Auction held in Napa Valley, and as a member of the event committee, our events director figured that I would be an appropriate and discriminating judge of the meals we would potentially be putting in front of our guests, what with my love of food and all.

Well duh. A day at the office, or a day spent tasting truffled filet mignon in Napa Valley? Love of food aside, the tastings will win every time.

So off we went, the two of us and our empty stomachs (I was rightfully counseled to not eat breakfast that day). Our itinerary included separate sit-down tastings with two of Napa's premiere caterers, plus a site visit to the winery where the event will be held. I took only my iPhone, so apologies in advance for the mediocre photos, but photography wasn't in the forefront of my mind. Like I said, filet mignon was on the agenda. I do have my priorities.

So we're just going to call them Caterer #1 and Caterer #2. I assumed that we would be having nibbles of the proposed menus, sharing a plate or two just to get an idea. But no. We walk in to Caterer #1's tasting room to a fully set table with beautiful linens, a complete set of wine glasses, and flatware for a four-course meal… for each of us. And that's what we commenced to have, all before noon.

Here's Caterer #1's menu:

• Amuse Bouche Trio Plate: Mini BLT with pancetta, arugula and sweet 100 tomato served on sourdough crostini; butternut squash soup in an espresso cup with a dollop of creme fraiche; smoked Alaskan Salmon on a purple Peruvian potato Napoleon with horseradish cream and fresh dill.
• Salad Course: Woodland mushrooms, sun dried tomato and teleme cheese tart baked in puff pastry with organic Bay watercress, toasted pumpkin seeds and an apple cider verjus.
• Entree: Pan-seared filet of Colorado beef topped with a ragout of wild mushrooms and crispy fried onions; served with spinach Yukon Gold potato puree, sauteed asparagus, roasted golden baby beets and a cabernet shallot jus.
• Dessert: Valhrona Chocolate Splendor, with layers of bittersweet chocolate mousse, vanilla custard and rich fudge cake served with raspberry coulis.
• Extra Sweet Treat: A platter of thin, flaky almond cookies and hand-rolled dark chocolate truffles, served with coffee.

In addition, we also sampled the proposed staff/volunteer meal (the one the worker bees like myself wolf down in the wings the night of the event between duties). Caterer #1 offered a penne pasta dish with wild mushrooms, yellow sweet corn, sun dried tomatoes, roasted garlic, fresh tarragon, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and freshly shaved parmesan. Grilled chicken and a salad of mixed greens would be served as well (but gratefully for my full belly, not at the tasting).







The food just kept coming. And coming. There was even a bread basket on the table - I'm quite certain it never even got touched. In addition, Caterer #1 had gone to the extra effort of getting two different wines from the winery where the event will be held, just to assure us that the wine/food parings would work well. I tired to be good and not clean my plate, knowing I had another complete menu tasting within an hour of leaving the first. Nonetheless, I walked left Caterer #1 REALLY full.

My hands-down favorite dish from Caterer #1's lineup was the second course; the mushroom tart with the watercress salad was amazing. It was a beautiful meal in and of itself. If we wind up using them, I will have to find a way to score myself that particular plate on event night. I'll start plotting now.

So we waddled out of that first tasting, and headed to our second. We may have paused for a minute to let the food settle. I'm not sure - I was in a food coma.

We arrive at Caterer #2 to a similar, although much more casual, set-up. A tasting table, simply set, but obviously meant for a sit-down, multi-course meal. Once again, dish after dish of beautifully-prepared food was placed in front of me, and I went to work.

Here's Caterer #2's menu*:

• Entree: Grilled bistro filet with a spicy barbecue sauce, served over white cheddar/fire-roasted jalepeno grits; sauteed spinach with olive oil and sea salt. (During the course of the tasting, we determined that if we were to choose this caterer, we would change the barbecue sauce to a veal essence sauce. Just sounds more akin to a $300-per-plate event.)
• Volunteer/staff meal: Penne pasta two ways - basil pesto; bolognese. Served with grilled cheese toasts.
• Dessert: They rolled out five - count em, five - different desserts for us to try (one of each, served family style). They included three different variations of chocolate decadence, and two different versions of an apple tart.
• Extra Sweet Treat: Chocolate Decadence Lollipops with mint creme Anglais.

*(We only asked to taste certain courses from this particular caterer. We felt that some of their courses were straightforward enough that a tasting wasn't required. For example, their proposed salads were either a Caesar, or an heirloom tomato/buffalo mozzarella Caprese.)





Once again, the food just kept coming. And it was all good. Very good. Keep in mind both caterers were preparing a menu for the Fall during the doldrums of Winter, not exactly ideal when everyone in this neck of the woods touts seasonal/local ingredients. No matter - they both pulled it off, with apologies for some of the out-of-season items. All I can say is, I can't wait to try some of these dishes when the ingredients are in season - wow!

My favorite dish from Caterer #2 was one of the desserts. There was a rustic apple tart that was divine; it was like a mini apple pie with a crumble topping. A perfect Autumn dessert. And they served it with organic creme fraiche ice cream from Napa's own Three Twins. Heaven.

In the end, it's going to be a tough choice as to which caterer to pick. There were incredible aspects to each meal. In a perfect world, we could have a mashup: the salad course from Caterer #1, the dessert from Caterer #2…. and flip a coin for the rest of it.

It was a fun day and a fun experience, but as I said at the beginning of this post: I'm not cut out for competitive eating. I honestly don't think I ate that much in the scheme of things, but to ingest so much food in such a short amount of time was challenging. I didn't eat anything else the remainder of the day. So to any professional or competitive eaters out there, my hat's off to you. My rookie tummy is still recovering!

My Poor, Neglected Blog

Picture This: ...

By Morry Anne Angell

Book Preview

Boy, have I been absent from this blog, or what? It's not that I haven't been cooking, eating or sharing memorable meals with friends (never), it's simply that I've been busy working on another project. Y'all will recall that I was recently in Thailand and Laos (plenty of memorable fare there!), and since returning home, I not only put up an entirely new blog devoted to my travels called "Picture This: Northern Thailand and Laos" (if you haven't seen it, my feelings are hurt! Scoot on over there post haste!), but I've been working feverishly to design and produce a book as well.

I'm pleased to report that after editing more than 400 images, writing draft after draft, doing extensive research on Buddhism and the Thai/Lao cultures, and creating dozens of layout mock-ups, "Picture This: Northern Thailand and Laos" the book is officially done! It has nothing to do with this blog, but I'm so darn proud of it that I had to share, and maybe garner some understanding for my lack of food blogging as of late. It's a beast, for sure: 386 final images, 254 pages, but it's the book I wanted to create. No cutting corners or sacrificing content to keep the cost or page count in check (the beauty of self-publishing). However, because it is such a brick, I doubt it will be a big seller at a whopping $131.95 per copy (the downside of self-publishing). I dare say it's worth it, but I realize I'm prejudiced!

So please follow that link right up there to at least take a peek at the preview; you'll see that I haven't been slacking... just otherwise occupied. But now that I've got that project crossed off my list, I can get back to more Fare to Remember blogging - yay!

Here's to more memories in 2010!

Having a Swinging Good Time

Thank goodness for friends. And food. Thank goodness for great friends sharing great food. This past week was a rough one - drama at the office, devastating news from a family member, working over the weekend, missing too many workouts, procrastinating on personal projects - surely, there must be something redeeming in the works, right?

The Swingers* to the rescue.

I've written before about the close-knit group of fitness freaks together with whom I work out several nights a week (read a previous post here); it seems that our dinner parties are turning out to be legendary, and an immense source of fun and joy. This past weekend was no exception. With a weighty week gratefully behind me, a Swingers dinner party was all I needed to momentarily leave my woes behind and simply laugh. And eat.

It was a good old-fashioned crab feed: sweet, fresh cracked crab, salad, bread, wine. Throw in a couple fantastic appetizers, a little something sweet for dessert - voila, a party is born. I knew the evening was going to lift my spirits right off the bat, when an email rsvp came from a certain Swinger who previously thought he wasn't going to be able to make it. Blowing off his other plans, he simply wrote, "I'm itching for some crabs! I'll be there!"… and the tone for the evening was set.




The laughs… oh the laughs. It does a body good to go home with a belly full of a healthy, delicious spread; cheeks that hurt from smiling so much; and a head in the clouds with the gentle buzz from some spectacular wines.

So thank you Swingers, yet again, for being my escape from the mundane, my release from the day-to-day. Your friendship means the world and your appetites continue to impress (that's why we work out, right?). Love you!

*We are called The Swingers because we work out with kettelbells, where swinging the heavy iron bells is a key exercise. It is not a reflection of promiscuous lifestyle. At least that I know of. :)

Another Fresh Start

If you live in Marin County and you are any sort of food aficionado, you are well aware of two of my favorite local restaurants: Insalata's and Marinitas, both just doors apart in San Anselmo. Both restaurants are the domain of chef/owner Heidi Krahling, who consistently maintains these two stellar eateries to ongoing acclaim. In addition to running two successful restaurants, Heidi is a busy mom of two teens and even recently found the time to write a cookbook, aptly named "Insalata's" (her uber-appropriate family name, btw). Needless to say, when Heidi decides to bottle up her secret for success, I'll be first in line to purchase what certainly will amount to a magic (and delicious!) potion.

I've been a fan of Heidi's for more than a decade. In the late 1990s, I had the opportunity to photograph her at work when she was a featured chef at Marin Ballet's Great Chefs in Great Homes series. At that time, Insalata's was fairly new, and I had yet to actually eat there myself. But after that evening of watching her in the kitchen, I made the pilgrimage to the restaurant and was instantly enamored with the fresh, healthy, delicious Mediterranean fare; I couldn't even begin to tell you how many times I've eaten there since. When she opened her Latin-focused Marinitas not too long ago, I didn't wait but a week to get my margarita-starved self in the door. I'm not kidding when I say I often catch myself daydreaming about the restaurant's deconstructed tamales.

So yes, I'm enamored of her cooking. So enamored that I have adopted her off-the-charts famous Fattoush salad as my own (even included it, with homage and credit to Heidi, in the Fare to Remember cookbook). But through all these years, despite eating at both restaurants often, ordering tray after tray of takeout from Insalatas catering service, and even having several mutual friends, my path never did cross with Heidi's. Until last week.

Remember when I wrote about the Fresh Starts Cooking School run by Homeward Bound of Marin? (No? Silly you. Check out the previous post here.) Well Heidi was February's featured chef at Fresh Starts; there was no way that I wasn't going to be in the audience. Besides, I had a hot-off-the-presses copy of her book to get signed, a very thoughtful gift from a vendor that I work with whose company had printed the gorgeous tome (thanks again Judith!). I rounded up some friends to accompany me, and a random Wednesday evening suddenly was full of promise.

Heidi's class certainly didn't disappoint. She presented recipes from her new cookbook, so the dishes were all Mediterranean inspired, and were some of my favorites that keep me coming back to Insalata's time and again. She was so personable and fun, I felt like I was in the kitchen with a girlfriend. In fact, Heidi, if you're in the market for a new friend, I'm available! :) Turns out, we have a couple things in common in the kitchen: she doesn't bake all that much, and she loathes following a recipe. Sound like me? And, of course, we have the common appreciation for fresh, local ingredients prepared with world-influenced flavors.

Through the course of the evening, Heidi chatted her way through a demonstration of six different recipes (even including a baked dessert - what a trooper!):

• Portuguese Caldo Verde - A white bean, potato, chorizo and kale soup; a.k.a. "comfort in a bowl."
• Eggplant Muhammara and Carrot Houriya - Two chunky dips of Syrian origin that simply beg to be scooped up with pita chips (ironically, variations of these two dishes are also included in the Fare to Remember cookbook, submitted by another friend and called by different names. I was thrilled to find out their proper names; in Fare to Remember, they are simply called Roasted Eggplant Dip and Carrot-Harissa Puree… which now seem lame. I even featured the carrot dip right here on this very blog - I do love it so!).
• Za'atar - A parsley/sesame seed-based condiment popular in Arab cuisine; delicious when poured over hummus or served with either of the two dips named above.
• Fattoush Salad - Her signature… there might have been a riot had she not included it.I think she rolled out a stat something along the lines that if there are 100 people in the dining room for lunch at Insalata's 75 of them would be having the Fattoush Salad. You gotta give the people what they want!
  
• Coconut Macaroons - Moist and delicious cookies with a recipe simple enough I might even try my hand at them. Might. If the sky were falling. LOL.

So my friends and I watched, took notes, laughed… and ate. I snuck a photo or two, and even did have a conversation with Heidi at the end of the night after she had signed my book. (Even though I am a fan, I'm still pretty shy… it took a friend initiating the conversation for me to jump in. Thanks Heidi for being so cool.)

Once again, it was a great evening, thanks to Fresh Starts. If you're in Marin - or within driving distance of Marin - please consider coming out to support this wonderful program. Chances are, you'll see me in the front row!

Fattoush Salad
By Heidi Krahling

Salad Ingredients

• 3 hearts of romaine, torn roughly by hand (about 6 cups)
• 3/4 cup sheep's milk feta cheese, crumbled
• 3/4 cup vine-ripened cherry tomatoes, halved
• 3/4 cup English cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
• 1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted
• 1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup cilantro, finely chopped
• 1/3 cup mint, finely chopped
• 2 pita breads

(Note: I add grilled chicken chunks to mine, as pictured above.)

Vinaigrette

• 1/3 blended oil (75% canola, 25% extra virgin olive oil)
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon cumin seed, toasted and ground
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make the pita chips: Trim edges off pita, keeping a circle shape; split horizontally into two halves. Cut each half into six triangles; arrange on baking sheet. Toast in oven until golden, dried and crispy, about 12 minutes. Let cool. Break chips into large pieces.

To make the vinaigrette: In a small skillet, over low heat, gently warm oil and garlic until fragrant. IN a medium bowl, whisk together oiland garlic mixture, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt, cumin and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

To serve: In a large bowl, combine salad ingredients and about 3/4 of the viniagrette. Toss well, adding more viniagrette as needed to coat the leaves. Serve immediately.

Now Weir Cooking!

If you could support a really good cause, take in a cooking demonstration by a famous chef, and eat a great meal all at the same time, wouldn't you do it? Of course you would. So I've been eager for months to check out the new-ish cooking classes offered by Homeward Bound of Marin, a nonprofit providing programs and services for homeless individuals and families based in Novato.

Yes, you did just read that correctly. In addition to providing an impressive array of services to the homeless such as housing, counseling and credit repair, Homeward Bound has a host of food-based job training programs as well. In their gorgeous, brand new facilities located in the decommissioned Hamilton Field military base, Homeward Bound runs the Fresh Starts Culinary Academy (culinary training for Homeward Bound residents and community members alike); a catering operation (Fresh Starts Catering); a business producing chocolate truffles and jellies/jams/sauces/preserves (the Halo Truffles and Halo Homemade line of fine foods); AND the Fresh Starts Cooking School... which is where I come in.

The cooking school brings in local celebrity chefs about once a month to teach demo classes to anyone who wants to sign up. The sold-out January class featured Chef Joanne Weir of PBS fame; my friend Carolyn and I were on hand to see the energetic chef in action.

The class did not disappoint. Joanne demonstrated four different recipes in the beautifully-equipped demo kitchen, and was chatty and engaging and witty and informative the entire time. She's known for her simple yet scrumptious dishes (pizzas being one of her signature dishes), and those she showed us were no exception (menu listed below). I learned some great pointers on how to hand-whip egg whites into perfect peaks; a time-saving yumm-o recipe for a bruschetta appetizer; tips on how to expertly prepare salad greens; and even some great insight into the art and craft of Tequila making (Joanne's latest cookbook is all about Tequila). She was backed up by the Culinary Academy students, who by the time her demo was complete, had made her recipes in sufficient quantities to feed the salivating room full of people.

Sausage Bruschetta

Winter White Salad

Smoked Salmon, Creme Fraiche, Caviar Pizza

Chipotle Chocolate Souffle

(Oh wait... no pictures? That's right. Too busy eating.)

Please visit Joanne's blog or website for some amazing recipes - I'm keeping all of the above ones to myself!

At any rate, I left the class feeling very well fed. And that's not necessarily just because of the great food. I really fell for Homeward Bound as an organization, and became an instant fan of the innovative ways they are helping to find solutions to homelessness. I feel a strong pull to go and volunteer for them, and am hoping I can make that happen in the near future. In the meantime, I hope to go back for more cooking classes, and if you're in the area, you should too! Next up in February: Chef Heidi Krahling of Insalata's and Marinitas. You can sit next to me - I'll be in the front row!

Raising the Bar, part 1: Lemon-Lime Slice

The Aussies are here! And they come bearing recipes! Let's see if I can get you up to speed in 500 words or less:

• Good friends Marc and Christy welcome son #1, Kieran, into the world last February.
  
• Goal: get Kieran through his first year of life without sending him to day care. 9-week stints of maternity leave, paternity leave/vacation time and local grandparent care get them through 9 months. That leaves 3 months to go.
  
• Enter the Australian grandparents, Margaret and Bruce. They came from Down Under to finish out the year as Kieran's daytime care providers, but manage to throw dinner parties and make untold amounts of goodies as well.
  

So the dashing young Kieran brought them here, but I have luckily been on the receiving end of their culinary dalliances a couple of times during their soon-ending tenure. This cookie-esque bar is apparently a favorite sweet treat back home, and everyone who has tried it here has loved it as well. And I even made a batch myself! After sharing a batch lovingly made by Margaret with friends at a holiday social gathering (and watching them all disappear before I could snap a photo), I had to try my hand at making them so I could share them here, properly documented. I took the batch I made to yet another social gathering, and once again - huge hit. They're tangy and tart - and despite all the coconut, they're not overly coconutty (that's a word - swear). And music to my ears: no baking required. They honestly couldn't be any simpler. So, thank you, my visiting Australian friends for sharing. I hope you come back soon!

Lemon-Lime Slice
Contributed by Christy Giambastiani via Margaret Gillard

Base:

• 2 cups animal crackers or graham crackers, crushed
• 2 cups shredded coconut
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 4 tablespoons butter
• Rind of 2 lemons and 2 limes

In a saucepan, on low heat, melt butter and blend together with condensed milk. Pour this into the cracker crumbs, coconut and rind of the lemons and limes. Mix well and press this mixture into a 9x12-inch glass baking dish. Level it out. Refrigerate for a few hours, then spread with icing after refrigeration.

Icing:

• 3 cups of powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Juice of 2 lemons and 2 limes
• 2 cups coconut

Stir the powdered sugar, butter and lemon/lime juice over low heat. Pour over base, spreading evenly. Sprinkle with coconut and refrigerate for an hour to set. Cut into squares.