Redlands Daily Facts Food Column

As you may know, I write a weekly food column which appears every Saturday in the Redlands Daily Facts Food Section. To read prior columns on-line go to:
http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/food

Or go to RedlandsDailyFacts.com, under the "entertainment" tab, click Local Food!

Chef Lee

Fantastic Fall Soup !

Farmer’s Market Roasted Pumpkin and Green Apple Soup

Note: There are several ways to prepare this recipe. Originally, I made this recipe using heavy cream and bacon! It was delicious, but when cooking for my health conscious mother and sister, I decided to make this delicious soup a bit more healthy to eat.



3lbs Roasted Pie Pumpkin
1.5 tbsp Olive Oil
4 oz Turkey Bacon
½C Onion, Diced
2 Granny Smith Apples, or other tart green apple, peeled, cored, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
12 oz Soft (silken) Tofu
4C Chicken Broth
1 Bay Leaf
1 tsp Sage (dried or chopped fresh)
1C Apple Cider
¾ tsp Pepper
½ tsp Salt

Preheat oven to 350F. Cut pie pumpkins in half, scoop out seeds and loose ‘strings’. Place on baking sheet, cut side down, with thin layer of water covering bottom of baking sheet. Bake 30-45 minutes at 300F. When done, pumpkins should be dark brown to slightly black around edges on skin. Texture of pumpkin flesh should be moist, separating easily from skin. Scoop out filling with large spoon and put aside in separate container.

In pan, or dutch oven, on stove top, sautee ½ C diced onions, diced apples, 1.5 tsp olive oil and 4 oz diced turkey bacon. Sautee all ingredients until soft and translucent. Add minced garlic, sautee additional minute. Add roasted pumpkin, 1tsp sage, 1 bay leaf, 1 C apple cider, 4 C chicken broth. First bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for approx 30 min. Place ½ contents from stove top in blender. (or use a stick blender and blend on stove top). Add half tofu or cream. Put blended contents aside, then blend second half of stove top ingredients. Add second half of tofu or cream to blender. (Hint: Never fill a blender more than half way, always blend first on slow speed and hold lid on top of container!) After second round of cooked ingredients are blended and all tofu is added, return soup to stove top pot. Reheat soup and serve hot. Garnish with chopped chives or spoonful of cream fraiche.

Great Fall Recipe !

Sweet Potato Salad with Orange-Maple Dressing

Dressing
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons Sherry wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Salad
6 pounds red-skinned sweet potatoes (yams), peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 cup chopped green onions
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 cup pecans, toasted, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup brown raisins
preparation
For dressing:
Whisk all ingredients to blend in small bowl. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.
For salad:
Steam sweet potatoes in batches until potatoes are just tender, about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer sweet potatoes to large bowl. Cool to room temperature. Add green onions, parsley, pecans, and all raisins. Pour dressing over; toss gently to blend. Season salad to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.)

Next Farmer's Market Cooking Class at North of Cabo Restaurant, Redlands

The next farmer's market cooking class will be on October 15 at North of Cabo Restaurant and Cantina in Redlands at Noon. The class will feature recipes and cooking demonstrating using seasonal farmer's market ingredients. The upcoming class on October 15, will feature fall produce in recipes such as Roasted Butternut Squash, Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes and Apple-Onion Compote.... all made with locally grown ingredients! Cost to attend the class is $50, and includes food samples of recipes and wine! If you wish to attend, please send me an email to reserve you seat: LFBurton@gmail.com

North of Cabo Restaurant is downtown Redlands at 22 E Vine Redlands.

Best,
Chef Lee

New Cooking Classes !

A new schedule of cooking classes....

Starting Saturday October, 1 2011... the first in a series of Farmer's Market Cooking Classes will be at North of Cabo Restaurant and Cantina Redlands, Ca. Go to the downtown farmer's market, stop by North of Cabo following your market shopping... bring your produce and learn what to do with your fresh veggies and fruits. At North of Cabo, we will teach you what to do with your locally grown produce and foods. Mark your calendar, more details soon !

Chef Lee

Here's the recipe for the Beer Mustard we served at the Slow Foods Redlands-Hangar 24 Event

Beer Mustard

Ingredients
4 tblsp yellow mustard seeds
1 tblsp brown or black mustard seeds
125ml red or dark ale (I used Smithwick’s [3])
75ml cider vinegar
1 small onion (about 100g), finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tblsp honey
1 tblsp dark muscovado sugar (or other dark brown sugar)
0.25 tsp turmeric
0.5 tsp allspice
0.5 tsp fine salt
You’ll also need:
A spice or coffee grinder to grind the mustard seeds and a blender or food processor to blend the mustard fixin’s, plus a jar or jars with non-corrosive lids, sufficient to store about 250g mustard.

Grind half of the yellow mustard seeds to a fine powder. Mix the powder together with the remaining whole yellow mustard seeds and the brown or black mustard seeds in a non-metallic bowl and set aside.
In a small, non-reactive saucepan, mix together the beer, cider vinegar, onion, garlic, honey, sugar, turmeric, allspice and salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer gently, uncovered, for about 10-15 minutes, until it reduces by about half.
Remove from the heat and pour the beer/vinegar mixture over the ground and whole mustard seeds. Leave to stand, covered but unrefrigerated, for about 48 hours. Do have a sniff occasionally during this period – ’tis lovely.
When ready for the last step, prepare your jars. Turn your oven on to 140C. Wash the jars in hot soapy water, rinse thoroughly, and sterilise, either by boiling in water for 10 minutes and then drying in the oven or just by keeping the jars in the oven for at least 30 minutes before using. Allow the jars to cool before filling.
Grind the mustard mixture in a food processor for 3-4 minutes, until the mixture is creamy but the seeds remain coarse and grainy. If the mixture is too thick, add a little more beer or vinegar.
Bottle the mustard, seal tightly with lids that have been dipped in boiling water, and, ideally, allow it to age for another 2-3 days in the fridge before using. It should keep for several months but it will lose flavour over time, especially once opened, so it’s best to keep it refrigerated.
The Variations:
You can vary the proportion of yellow and brown or black mustard seeds in the recipe according to your tastes – yellow seeds are mild, brown seeds are hot and aromatic, black seeds are strong and pungent.

saw this recipe on bonappetite.com, sounds deelish !

Roasted Corn with Manchego and Lime
from bonappetite.com

Ingredients
6 ears of sweet yellow corn, unhusked
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 jalapeño, seeded, finely diced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 lime, cut into 4 wedges
1 cup finely grated Manchego cheese
1/4 cup thinly sliced chives
2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest
ingredient info
Manchego cheese is sold at better supermarkets and at specialty foods stores.
Preparation
Preheat oven to 450°. Roast unhusked corn on a baking sheet, turning occasionally, until heated through and crisp-tender, about 15 minutes. Let cool. Shuck corn and cut kernels from cobs. Discard cobs.
Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add corn kernels and sauté until heated through and light-golden in spots, 3-5 minutes. Add butter; stir until melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Transfer corn to a large wide bowl or deep platter; sprinkle jalapeño and crushed red pepper flakes over. Squeeze lime wedges over; sprinkle with cheese, chives, and lime zest.


Read More http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2011/08/roasted-corn-with-manchego-and-lime#ixzz1V2Y4OjSg