Crock Pot Stock

I may be in Spain at the moment, but that doesn’t insure warm weather. It’s winter here, especially in the mountains. Winter, as in snow!

It calls for soup, maybe stew. But absolutely, stock is required.
Have you ever listened to the big chefs saying that making your own stock is so worth it? I hear the message and resolve to make my own stock. Then repeatedly, I don’t carry through. Yes, this is my experience; the thoughts of simmering something all day just doesn’t fit my schedule. Solutions in Spain are so pragmatic it’s no surprise that this is an idea conceived there. Make stock in the crock pot! It is nothing short of genius and results in the best soups imaginable. Those chefs are right!

Ingredients:

This list of ingredients is very loose. It’s what I used, but amounts can be altered to taste and make the herbs and spices to your liking. I used chicken thighs with skin and bones; thighs are the most flavorable part of the chicken to start with and using pieces with skin on and bones in just sweetens the deal. Let’s get started, ten minutes is all you need; no need to peel anything.

4 plump chicken thighs with skin and bones
1-2 large carrots
1 large yellow onion
3 garlic cloves
1-2 large stalks of celery
parsnips would be nice but I hadn’t any

………….no need to peel;  just chop vegetables into big chunks. Put everything into crock pot with plenty of hot water to cover and cook on high until it gets going, up to 2 hours. Then I turned the  pot to low and added the following seasonings:

salt and pepper to taste
something for heat, I used 2 small dried red chilies
3-4 bay leaves
dried parsley
Italian seasoning, or your choice

………….turn crock pot to low and let it simmer until your chicken is falling off the bone. Remove chicken from the stock and allow it to cool. Remove skin and bones and set aside the chicken. Strain the broth, add chicken back to broth, check for seasoning and voila, you’re set to go

VALENTINE'S DAY..... Past? ... perhaps not, that depends… in Spain….

    

As the 14^th of February approached this year, we did things we’ve been programmed to do.  Chocolatiers formed chocolate into hearts and cupids then dipped strawberries into a divine concoction, restaurants staged elaborate dinners and charged elaborate prices for them, children exchanged cards, the sale of red construction paper and lace doilies sky rocketed and florists seized the moment……..  so, do you feel well loved?

Actually, all of this is fine and good so long as you have that perfect someone with whom to share your affections, someone who sends you a card or maybe flowers or purchases candy and promises to love you at fever pitch forever and ever. Herein lies the problem; forever and ever is hard work unless you happen to be a dog! A proper canine’s affection is constant, reliable, unswerving and remains so forever and ever no matter where you are in this world.  What does this have to do with the subject at hand?    ……….let’s steal away to Spain where Valentine’s Day is barely given a nod.  But instead, during this time of year there is a grand fiesta called the festival of Saint Antonio or St. Anton, the patron saint of animals. It’s a time when city, town and village priests bless animals and pray for their health and safety throughout the coming year. Surely, as you love your pet, (of course, it loves you) you will take it to the fiesta of St. Anton. Every village in the area which I frequent keeps this celebration, although not particularly in the same way nor on any exact date. At Val D’Alba the focus is on dogs and horses, mules and donkeys. Other villages may focus on smaller animals, such as kittens and goldfish. Owners and their darlings begin to assemble hours ahead for a parade which may not begin until 11:00 pm!

 

This parade of animals and owners which can last up to two hours is led by a group of magnificent black steeds, immaculately groomed and ridden by señoras in traditional costumes including the wide flat brimmed hats and long black capes. The posture is perfection, tall and erect, heads held high, both horse and rider. It is a glorious sight. Mounts of every sort follow, some huge, some small, some with braided manes and some with ribbons, some being led, some ridden by caballeros and some by children; many smaller horses and donkeys pull diminutive carts occupied by wide-eyed niños. There is the inevitable splendid coach pulled by six matched white beauties. It could be a fairy tale.

 

Of course, it’s cold, February in the mountains is chilling and your breath freezes almost before leaving your body.  Never mind, the procession snakes its way through small winding streets and eventually the crowds join in and all advance to the edge of town. There the real celebration begins to unfold.  A huge bond fire has been lit and when fully burning, flames reach the height of a two story building. Every animal is lead, driven or ridden around the fire three times…..even the coach with six white horses. Finally, the priest appears and the traditional blessings are recited and chanted beneath the cold, clear, star studded sky just as they have been, probably for hundreds of years. Excitement continues to mount for the fiesta is about to break into full throb. Tables of drinks, all sorts, appear and the official pastry is passed among the crowds. Ladies of the village have spent considerable energy during the previous week baking the St. Anton’s cakes – hundreds and hundreds of them. With a taste and texture somewhere between bread and pie crust, these pastries are formed into circles, flavored with anise, sprinkled with sugar and served only once a year!

It won’t be until the wee hours of the following morning that man and beast, tired but blessed, will make his way home for a well earned rest.

 

One parting glance at the celebration of St. Anton. The priest of a small village very high in the mountains of Castellon Provence is a particular lover of the event and an excellent rider as well.  His favorite horse being a magnificent black stallion. He always chooses the night of a full moon for the celebration of the blessing of the animals. He dresses more like, well, a Zorro type than a priest for this particular night and arrives on horseback. But more note-worthy are his exits. Toward the end of the merriment, he mounts his horse, rides to a slight rise in the land where he is perfectly profiled in the full moon, pulls his horse to a rear, waves his hat, then his greeting booms forth as he rides off into the night……….”Viva St. Anton”

Ah, that I could end this blog with such style…….

 

 

 

 

QUICHE LORRAINE with SWISS CHARD -- LITE VERSION

This is so utterly delicious and won’t hurt your waistline because I’ve eliminated the crust (you won’t miss it—all the flavor is in the filling!)  The body of the quiche is made with turkey bacon and milk instead of cream.  For extra goodness, there are greens in it.   Easy, quick to make, this one is a winner.

½ lb. Turkey Bacon – cut into ½ inch pieces
Good splash of Olive Oil
1 Red Bell Pepper – roughly chopped
Bunch of Swiss Chard, stems included -- roughly chopped

2 cloves of Garlic – finely chopped (optional)
2 Tablespoons flour
5 Eggs

Bunch of scallions (spring onions) –chopped including greens tops
1 cup grated cheese -- I like to use a blend of sharp cheddar and parmesan
Sea Salt
Red Pepper Flakes to taste
Whole Milk, at least 1 cup

ASSEMBLY

Heat up a skillet and add olive oil.  Brown the bacon pieces then add chopped red pepper, stems of Swiss Chard and garlic if using.  The chard stems take longer to cook than the leaves.  Do not overcook the vegetables, just a sweat then add the chard leaves.  Sprinkle flour over mixture and blend.  Set aside to cool.

In a bowl whisk the eggs, add the scallions, grated cheese, salt and pepper flakes.  Allow the bacon mixture to slightly cool and add to egg mixture.  Carefully blend. 

 Now a bit of eye-balling….add enough milk to bring the amount of ingredients up to the size of your quiche pan.   I used a clay pie dish to bake, but any oven safe pan is fine.  Oil or butter pan.

Bake in a 375 F degree for 45 minutes until golden on top and test with a knife which comes out clean.

TEA TIME

It’s cold enough now that a pot of tea is an essential at the breakfast table, and other times as well!  In fact, there’s a steaming mug here on the desk at my hand – Earl Grey and I are old friends.  I picked up the tea habit all those years living in England.  Wenford Bridge Pottery was such an endearing place and definitely was still inhabited (haunted is not the right word) by my then (and still) deceased father-in-law, Michael Cardew.  He was a genius and established as one of the great ceramists of the 20^th century.  He was obsessed with food (as well as pottery.) The discussion used to run something like this:  Perhaps the reason Michael was hungry all the time was that he was so preoccupied with pots.  Or was he so brilliant at pot making because food was constantly on his mind?  Whichever, a man after my own heart.

But we, you and I, were talking about tea!  I don’t want to go into all the details of a tea ceremony or expound eloquently on the choices:  black, Indian, China tea, green or all the endless flavors on grocery shelves.  But I do want to relate a somewhat charming experience I once had in Washington DC concerning the proper way to produce a pot of tea!  Forgive me, I was living in England at the time and had traveled to Washington for my son, Branko’s graduation from Georgetown Law.  He had booked me into “The George”, (short for George Washington of course) a lovely hotel, just right for an older mother!  The french have such a preferable way of pronouncing George -- much easier on the tongue. 

The first morning, I went down to have tea and toast.  When done right, it is the best way, absolutely, of starting the day.  The dining room was what one would expect in a hotel of that sort; waiter, attired in black tie, performing perfectly.  Having found a copy of the Washington Post, I settled in, lacking only morning tea.  A cup and saucer arrived with a tea bag (ouch) balanced on the saucer and not even taken out of its wrapper.  A little pot of water came too, but not hot, only tepid.  One hates to complain to such a kind waiter, so ……Tea bag into pot and add some not hot water, of course, it wouldn’t brew, I gave up, ate a piece of toast and returned to the room. There I fished a piece of hotel stationary from the desk drawer and wrote a polite letter to the restaurant manager.  Surely I am not the only person ordering tea in that establishment and I would be improving the quality of life of the whole bunch.  I explained to him (or her) how little effort it takes to make tea properly.  Preheat the pot and if you must use a tea bag, at least unwrap it and put it into the pot, then fill with boiling water.  Nothing less than boiling will do.  An additional pot of boiled water on the side is nice.  I also mentioned that it did not befit this lovely hotel to serve tea as I had received it, then complimented the staff in general and wished them all well. 

At all costs, I did not want anyone to get into trouble or to embarrass anyone.  In the interest of anonymity, I left the note unsigned and did not add my room number!  The next morning I returned to the dining room for the usual.  The waiter, ever pleasant and polite, brought a cup and saucer with no tea bag!  Then with a charming smile of self-satisfaction, set two small steaming pots in front of me.  I knew that one was tea and one was water.  He bent down to my ear and whispered, “We even preheated the pot Madame”.  I had been found out.  But what a pleasure it was!

Incidently, if you ever get your hands on a Wenford teapot, don't let go!

DELICIOUS DECISION TO DETOX

January, and we (well some of us) are slightly expanded with good food, great food, rich food, sweet food, grandmother’s food.   Oh dear!  Hide the mirrors.  The French (you know, the thin ones) have a saying: ‘pour être belle, il faut souffrir’.  Literally, this means: ’ to be beautiful, it is necessary to suffer’.  That may go over in France, but I don’t much like the sounds of it on good old American soil. There’s a less stressful way to deal with overindulgences.  Yes, we could probably use a bit of detox, but let’s not suffer as we go.  Here is a little gem of a recipe for detox, and you won’t suffer at all.  Over the next few days, I hope to post a few more. 

Avocado Salad

This is absolutely the best way of eating avocados I have ever tasted and others agree!!

INGREDIENTS

2 avocados

2 fresh lemons, zest and juice

½ red onion, peeled and finely chopped   

2 small to medium tomatoes or one large,  roughly chopped

Bunch of fresh coriander, roughly chopped leaves

1 red chili, deseeded (unless you like it hot, some do!)  and finely choppeD

Splash of balsamic vinegar

3-4 Tablespoons Olive oil (good salad quality)

Sea salt

A bit of sugar if it is your taste

Zest lemons into a bowl, then cross cut and squeeze juice into the bowl as well. Cut avocados in half, top to bottom.  Twist to separate halves.   In a chopping motion, pierce pit with blade of knife.  Twist a bit and the pit should easily come out. 

Do not peel, but hold each half, one at a time in the palm of your hand, skin side down.  With a small sharp knife, cut avocado flesh (do not cut through peel) in a crisscross lattice type fashion.  Use a spoon to scoop out the chunks of flesh into the lemon juice and zest.  Toss a bit so that avocado pieces are all coated with lemon juice.

Now add all the chopped veggies to lemon mixture and gently stir, just to blend. 

 Add oil, vinegar, salt and sugar (optional).  Again, gently stir to blend.  Keep in refrigerator.

This salad has good keeping quality, but best to eat soon rather than later.  It is good on its own or over green leaves.

HAPPY NEW YEARS, my friends……..a year to focus on health!

PLUM SOMETHING

Sad, isn’t it, when I can’t decide what to call it?  Actually, it is an option, a diversion from pumpkin and pecan pies.  For weeks before Thanksgiving, I think about pumpkin and pecans, ahh, with a true gourmand’s dedication.  By now, three days later, my soul and every desire are fully satiated with these wonderful foods,  (various forms, the best always being pies, of course).

As well as the fact that while grocery shopping yesterday (lots of company) the plums were on sale for 69₵ a pound.  Can’t pass that up!  And this is the form it took on…..perhaps, you, too, would like a diversion?

First, we simply must give a nod to Jack Horner…….

Little Jack Horner

Sat in a corner

Eating his Christmas pie.

He put in his thumb and pulled out a plum

And said, “What a good boy am I”!

And a little point of interest…you know, I can’t help it……

The earliest reference to this well-known verse is in a ballad by Henry Carey published in England, of course, in 1725.  (Little Jack has been around for a while)

Now he sings of Jacky Horner

Sitting in the Chimney-corner

Eating of a Christmas-Pie,

Putting in his thumb, Oh Fie Putting in, Oh Fie!

His Thumb Pulling out, Oh Strange! a Plum.

So, passing to the next holiday, here’s my Plum Something.  It is so easy, so yummy and a light alternative for sweets.

2 pounds plums (ripe is nice if you can find them)

1-3/4 cups of sugar

1 fresh lemon or bottled lemon juice to equal

1 stick of butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond essence
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt

………………………………………………….


Preheat oven to 350° F

       Cut plums into halves and/or quarters depending on the size of plums and remove stones.  Place in a baking dish large enough to leave plenty of extra room for the dough.  Sprinkle lemon juice over plums.  If using a fresh lemon, it is nice to use the zest as well although you may have to add a little more sugar, it does give a wonderful tarte/sweet  taste.  Sprinkle with ¾ cup of the sugar and set aside while mixing dough.

       This is a takeoff on a classic English sponge mixture.  Cream softened butter and remaining 1 cup of sugar together.  Add two eggs and continue to mix until batter is lite and a pale yellow.  Add almond essence.  Mix together flour, baking powder and salt.  Mixing with a whisk is as good as sifting.  Add little by little to the sugar/butter and mix everything well.  Spoon batter over plums and sprinkle liberally with sugar for a nice finish on top.

Bake in a 350°F oven until nicely browned and the released juices from the plums are bubbling away.  Then ENJOY

I shall adjourn on a serious note:


"What is more mortifying than to feel that you have missed the plum for want of courage to shake the tree?” - Logan Pearsall Smith, author

   

FRENCH BEANS & VINAIGRETTE

My beans are finished now. It’s the heat and no amount of watering is satisfying their needs. But oh well, it has been a glorious season! Before I put the whole bean thing away until next spring, I feel a need to document some ideas and observations. The beans I grew this year were “Jade Green Bush Beans” obtained from John Scheepers. Scheepers has by far the best seeds I have ever used and the greatest number of hard to find varieties. It’s just a joy to hold their catalogue in your hands. Find details to order a catalogue at the end of blog.

We ate these Jade Green beans so many ways and they are superb. Even though this variety is not one of the official “French beans” (more later), one would never know. They needed picking almost every day and I am sure that if this heat wave would have abated, there would be fresh beans still.

I steamed them, boiled them, featured them in stir fries and so on but what I want to talk about is beans with a French twist, used as a cold vegetable (slightly cooked) served as a perfect summer salad or even as an entrée.
Before going on, a quick aside about cooking methods though: I picked up a book about Julia Child of which I own everyone ever written, about her or by her, as does anyone else who is mad for French food. Anything about her makes for a fascinating read in my opinion. Mentioning opinions, she certainly had them! One that applies here: she maintained that the proper way (and only way) to cook vegetables for optimum taste is in a large pot of salted, boiling water. Forget the steaming scene. That sounded so outrageous that I had to try it. Julia says that the beans (in this case) taste so much better cooked in salted water that you will eat so many more of them and therefore consume more vitamins than if you were sticking to the bland steamed version. They were very good! But you must try yourself! Of course, butter, butter, butter melted over in Julia’s style.

Back to beans and vinaigrette: there are so many ways of serving french beans--- cooked with new potatoes, simply on their own, mix green and yellow beans, or feature them marinated in a major salad such as a Nicoise…..sky’s the limit.

To begin, there are a few rules of thumb: whatever method you use, don’t overcook the beans---tender crisp is enough. Drain the beans well and add the vinaigrette while they are still hot. Another basic fact is that when making any vinaigrette the rule is 3 to 1. 3 parts oil to 1 part acidic….mainly vinegar or lemon juice.

We all talk about a classic French vinaigrette, but what exactly is it? This again, is a matter of taste and the following recipes are the ones I’ve adjusted to my taste. So you can certainly take liberties as well. Adjust to a larger amount if you have a lot of beans.

Basic vinaigrette
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
6 Tablespoons extra virgin Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
Salt / Pepper to taste
1 teaspoon sugar
1 clove of fresh garlic, smashed – this is definitely my addition and is optional, but so good!
……..whisk as you add each ingredient; the dressing will thicken quite nicely.

This is also very nice with the addition of fresh chopped herbs, even if it’s only parsley, mint or basil. Add to warm beans, they will absorb it quickly.

Ready for a topping! 

Sort of Caesar Salad Dressing……great on steamed beans
1 clove of fresh garlic, smashed, half a clove if you’re not crazy about garlic
4-5 anchovy fillets (drain off oil)
2-3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese (fresh is great if you have it)
2 Tablespoons sour cream
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
6 Tablespoons EV Olive Oil
Salt and pepper
Big pinch of sugar or to taste
Place everything in a processor. Pulse until pulpy and more or less smooth. Do not process to the puree stage. Of course, use this on any salad, but it is wonderful over a big bowl of fresh French beans

Creamy Vinaigrette
Use the basic rule of 3 parts oil to 1 part acidic option. Add natural unflavored yogurt. (Greek is the best) 2 teaspoons should be enough unless you have a lot of beans. Pinch of salt and pepper to season and whisk until smooth. It’s always permissible to add a pinch of sugar. This vinaigrette can handle any sort of fresh herb you might want to add…..dill, rosemary, parsley, even mint.

Have fun with this and experiment on your own. Almost any summer vegetable served with good vinaigrette is a real treat.

Here are some notes which are copied from the John Scheeper’s Kitchen Garden catalogue, just in case you might want to try your hand at French beans in the future.

"Beans are the mainstay of the kitchen garden: both easy and rewarding. Store-bought can’t compare with home-grown beans; modest toil and small bean patches yield large returns. To satisfy zee French in you, four are haricots verts or ultra-slim ‘filet’ types, difficult to find at the market and coveted by chefs everywhere. Pick french types when they are scandalously thin. Don’t wait until seeds form in their tender pods because by then, the sweetness is compromised.

#1200 Nickel Baby Filet Bush Beans:
Imagine a platter of perfect baby filet beans, lightly steamed, gleaming bright green, glistening with a touch of the finest olive oil! This is the Nickel haricot vert, originating in France. This filet reliably produces lots of incredibly straight, uniform baby beans, approximately 1/4" in diameter, with no strings attached! Harvest at 4” when the taste is indescribably delicate and the texture? “Incroyable!”

#1210 Soleil Baby Filet Bush Beans: 57-62 days
Your kitchen garden color palette is sure to be complimented by these lovely golden filet beans. Soleil is French for sun and if you like wax beans, you will love these. Pale yellow, uniform and straight, Soleil is a baby filet bean with the subtle, buttery flavor of wax beans and yields a concentrated harvest to grace your summer table. Babysit filet beans carefully, harvesting at about 4” long, between 1/6” and 1/4” in diameter right before eating for a taste of heaven on your plate. Serve with a light sprinkle of chopped fresh chervil to bring out Soleil’s sweetness

#1230 Roc d'Or Bush Beans: 55-60 days
We love beans from France - the French do great breeding work when it comes to their favorite vegetable. We chose Roc d’Or because it surpasses other wax varieties in production, appearance and flavor. Roc d’Or is a continuous yielder of slim, round golden-yellow beans. It is excellent for fresh eating, canning or freezing.

#1280 Vernandon Filet Bush Beans: 50-60 days
Filet beans are a gourmet gardener’s dream come true and Vernandon is an authentic haricot vert, coming to us from a private breeder in France. Vernandon produces heavily on disease-resistant plants, yielding a bounty of thin filets with an exceptional uniformity, ‘meaty’ texture and delicate, rich flavor. Harvest using scissors or kitchen snips, between 1/6” and 1/4” wide and about 6” long. No bigger! Filet beans like this are nearly impossible to buy at the market. These elegant beans are so very delicious. We like them best lightly steamed and served simply with butter and a little sprinkle of salt."

To obtain a catalogue:
John Scheepers; 23 Tulip Drive PO Box 638 Bantam, Connecticut 06750
Phone: 860-567-6086 Fax: 860-567-5323     www.kitchengardenseeds.com.