Simplicity....and the help of some friends

Yesterday was my birthday.  Since that was a Monday, in my circle of friends and family that means a weekend of dining out, drinks and celebrating in all ways possible. 

This was Sunday at one of my favorite places on the planet, Domaine Carneros, with some of my favorite ladies on the planet.

On my birthday night my friend Tom took me to NOPA in San Francisco for one of the best meals I've had in a long time (but anytime someone else cooks for me and does the dishes, I'm a happy girl!)....I wish I had taken pictures of our food, but it was so dang good that I forgot!  But here's a look from our birds-eye view... best table in the place because it overlooked the kitchen, so we got to watch all the action.

We started with a grilled flatbread with bacon, mission figs, bell peppers, crescenza (an Italian cheese), and arugula.  Sooo good.  Tom got the rabbit over the creamiest polenta I've ever tasted  and haricots vert. I was torn between the rotisserie chicken with grilled bread, avocado, blue cheese, walnuts & sherry onions (come on!) or the Moroccan Vegetable Tagine with toasted almonds and lemon yogurt.  Tom said, "You know what the chicken's gonna taste like, right?" Well yeah, chicken.  "But do you know what the tagine will taste like?"  To some people that might make them order the chicken, because it's kind of a sure thing, but I realize an adventure when I see one.  And a culinary adventure is my favorite kind.  Good chioce (good advice, Thomas)....spicy, creamy, perfectly blended flavors and textures.  I was full.  But then came the "birthday dessert," house made peach ice cream with a cinnamon-sugar shortbread cookie.  Now, I'm really done!

I woke up this morning still full.  My friend Dana made me a fantastic minestrone soup for lunch that was the perfect little amount of food.  Then came dinner time, still not really hungry.  I was supposed to be testing my sweet corn bisque and panzanella salad, so I can scale them for my Farm to Table dinner on the 22nd.  I bought all the ingredients, but when I came home and discovered that the lovely Chris had left a basket of fresh tomatoes (among other veggies fresh from the garden) on my front porch, I decided on a decidedly simpler evening bite.

Tom surprised me with the gift of two ceramic knives last night, and there'so better way to check out the sharpness (is that a word?) of your knife than seeing how it cuts through a tomato.  These cut through them like a hot knife through butter!  (I highly recommend these Kyocera knives).  I took a bit of my baguette (reserved for my panzanella salad test.....ooops) drizzled it with a little olive oil, topped it with chopped tomatoes (red and yellow sprinkled with sea salt),  freshly picked basil leaves from my garden, and smoked mozzarella.  Bake it at 350 for about 10 minutes until bread is crispy and mozz melts, then drizzle with balsamic.  I thought after days of not cooking that I would go bigger than this, but this was perfect.  Sometimes simple is all you need.  Sometimes simple is perfect.... especially when you're using fresh, in-season ingredients.  Don't stress; think simple.

Yum it up!

Farm to Table....really!

A few months ago  I was introduced to Lisa Marvier, who had just opened Farm Girl Nursery close to my home in Marin County.  It's a beautiful little oasis tucked away in the country, where she grows tons of fruit and veggies, raises pigs, chickens, roosters, goats, ponies, bunnies, and if that's not enough, she also rescues race horses.  She is one wild powerhouse, and I am so glad to call her a friend.  We met because of a mutual interest in teaching people; Lisa teaches people how easy it is to grow your own food, no matter what space you have (I think I saw her growing something in a lunch box!), and I teach people how to cook those foods.  What started as a potential business partnership has turned into a beautiful friendship. Love that lady!

As I've written before, we started with a kids' camp, where they spend the day learning, harvesting, playing, feeding farm animals, etc.  And then I take them into the garden to collect fresh veggies and fruit for a lunch that we cook together.  It's a whole lot of fun!

Our latest venture is Farm to Table dinners: a five course meal inspired by and created from the bounty of the farm.  Last night was our very first....

This was the scene when I arrived.  In a matter of hours this table would be filled with 18 eager diners.  By the end of the evening, these strangers would become friends, and my heart would be full. 

We started with a Stacked Caprese Salad using colorful heirloom tomatoes and basil from the farm, sandwiched between fresh mozzarella and drizzled with sea salt, freshly cracked balck pepper, balsamic and olive oil.  This is a prefect illustration of what I love to tell people: when you use fresh, in-season produce, there's very little you need to do to it to make it taste fantastic.

We followed that up with a new favorite of mine, green gazpacho.  This chilled soup is a new Bauman College recipe (not sure of the origin beyond that), and it was love at first bite for me (and apparently everyone else last night!  I've made slight adjustments to the recipe (below), but it's essentially anything green and fresh: avocado, peas, cucumber, zucchini, green grapes, chile pepper, tomatillos, cilantro, mint, lime juice and coconut water (OK, that last one's not green).  Soooo refreshing, especially on a hot night like we had that night!  I garnished it with a little brunoise of watermelon radish, giving it a nice color contrast and a little spicy kick..

The next course was my creamy farrotto, made with fresh summer squash, onions, garlic and corn from the farm. (I think Lisa dug into it too fast to take a picture, but you've seen it a million times in this blog.).  That course was followed by the main dish, organic chicken breast stuffed with herb goat cheese, served over braised greens from the farm and topped with a tomato salad...

We finished with a delicious dessert (which unfortunately escaped a photograph, also... I'm going to blame the wine on that one!)  I made a free-form tartlet, with a nut & date crust, topped with berries sauteed in coconut oil with a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg.  On the side we served a homemade vanilla ice cream.  I'm not a fan of white sugar, so we used coconut palm sugar, which because it's natural, is brown.  This created a lovely mocha colored ice cream (just whole milk, cream, vanilla, and the sugar) with a distinct maple flavor.  I'm not a big sweets girl, but dang, that was delish!!!

It's one of those days when I am so thankful that I decided to take a big leap of faith, change my life and take up cooking.  The love and appreciation from that table warmed my heart.  And it inspires me to cook and cook and cook some more....

What inspires you?

Farm Girl Gazpacho
Serves 6-8

3 tomatillos, husks removed, and chopped
1 avocado, pitted and peeled and chopped
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 cup chopped zucchini
1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1/2 cup green grapes
1/4 cup fresh or frozen peas
8 mint leaves
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped chives
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 1/2 cups coconut water
1/4 fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste

• Place tomatillos, avocado. jalapeno, cucumber, zucchini. bell pepper, grapes and peas in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth.
• Add mint, cilantro, chives, and garlic and process again to combine.
• Add the mixture to a blender and add the coconut water, lime juice, and olive oil, working in batches if necessary.
• Blend the soup a few minutes until completely smooth and creamy.  Season to taste with salt & pepper.

Yum it up!!