Christmas Feasting

Christmas at Oak Creek Ranch is all about the food.  This year was no exception.  In addition to the usual cookie baking marathon, I baked bread.  I pulled my sourdough starter out of the refrigerator, where it had been hibernating, and fed it twice a day for a week until it was thick with bubbles.  Brett grumbled as he vacuumed flour from the floor after each feeding.  I used my basic recipe but I played with the amount of water until I had a nice wet, but still manageable, dough.  I stretched and slapped it, rested it, then stretched and folded it before creating nice taut balls that finished with a slow proofing in the refrigerator overnight.  I was rewarded with two beautiful loaves, crusty, high and moist.  Brett stopped grumbling when he saw the loaves.

On Christmas eve, I made a roast crown of pork with an apple cider and fig sauce.

Christmas day was the most ambitious -- prime rib, scalloped potatoes, green beans amandine, and bread.  My dad provided some especially tasty wine and we had a jovial meal.  Camille captured Brett doing his Rudolph the Reindeer imitation.

I love to cook for my family; it is a tangible gift of love that I give them.  Nothing makes me happier than watching them at the table, admiring the ruby red meat and scooping mounds of potatoes onto their plates.

Craving Lasagne

All the cold rainy weather we've been having made me crave lasagne.  We invited our friends, George and Nancy, to join us for dinner Sunday and I spent the day in the kitchen.

I baked a loaf of crusty bread.

I assembled the lasagne: lots of homemade sauce (there's nothing worse than dry lasagne); ricotta blended with an egg, parsley, salt & pepper; mushrooms; sausage; and mozzarella cheese.  I sprinkled some Parmesan on top and set it aside to go in the oven when they arrived.

Dessert took a long time.  I should have realized that a three page recipe was going to be time consuming.  The crust was lightly perfumed with lemon zest and rich with egg yolks; a layer of crushed petit buerre cookies and a boat-load of apples and calvados-soaked raisins then filled the pan; then a custard was poured over the whole thing and baked.  A dusting of powdered sugar before serving and, voila, dessert.

Brett took a double serving of lasagne to start and went back for seconds.  I guess it turned out alright.

Chez Panisse

Kyle lives in Berkeley now.  He lives verrrrry close to Chez Panisse, Alice Waters' famous restaurant.  Being a hard-core foodie, the restaurant has been on my bucket list for a number of years.  Kyle got the foodie gene (and Camille is developing a taste for fine dining as well).  I was able to get reservations for dinner so Brett and I took Kyle and Ana there for dinner.  It was Kyle's birthday gift and birthday dinner all rolled into one (an exceptionally nice one this year).

There are two seatings for dinner.  The menu is set and posted as the week begins.  No substitutions, no changes to the menu, no allowances.  You come and eat what is served.  End of story.  We were all okay with that, and waited for the menu to post.

When we picked up Kyle and Ana, she confessed that she was nervous about the fish course.  Ana isn't a fish fan but she was game to try it -- and Kyle volunteered to finish that course for her if she didn't like it.

The restaurant is in a narrow house with handful of tables downstairs in the restaurant.  A more casual cafe is located upstairs.  The lighting is warm, the service superb, and food exquisite.

We started with an aperitif - Perseco infused with rosemary; and goose on a canapé.

The salad was one of my favorite courses -- chicory and mint salad with crispy beets, creme fraiche, and steelhead roe.

The fish course was striped bass with fennel purée, coriander and olio nuovo.  Poor Kyle, Ana ate all of her fish, including the crispy skin.

The main course was squab cooked over the open fire, with sage and tangerine sauce, parsnip purée, kabobha squash fritters and watercress.  It was to.die.for.

Dessert was tarte tatin with Calvados ice cream.

The food and the restaurant lived up to its reputation.  Kyle said he didn't want the meal to end, he savored every bite.  Brett couldn't stop talking about the parsnip purée -- and Ana couldn't believe how wonderful the fish tasted.  Fish!  Who would have thought it could be so tasty.

Hot Weather Meals

We are in the midst of another heat wave with temperatures approaching triple digits and no relief until the end of next week when it dips down to 90.  I don't know about you, but I don't like cooking big meals when it is hot.

We've been living on fruit from the farmers market.

Rhubarb from the garden.

Salads.

And grilled everything: salmon, burgers, chicken, clams and mussels.

I'm not a big fan of summer heat but I am a huge fan of summer food.

Goat Burgers

Scared you, didn't I?  No, we don't eat our goats; or any goats.  But the goats do eat my hat.  They mobbed me; chewing on my hat and my sleeve.

And the burger part?  That was lunch on the viewing stand.

Brett's burgers -- meat, bun and BBQ sauce.

My burger -- lots of veggies burying the burger.

We're hoping for a quiet day tomorrow.  We've had showings Friday, Saturday and today.   A lovely English couple came back today for a second look-see.  They seemed to like what they saw.  The daughter is a dressage rider.  Fingers crossed.

What a Weekend

I took a couple days off of work last week to attend a Wine and Food festival with my dad in Carmel.  Every year he goes and he treats one of us kids, or our spouses, to a ticket.  This year was my turn.  Brett planned to hang out with my mom and sister when he wasn't chauffeuring my dad and I to the affair.  About three hours into our drive to Carmel, my dad called and said he wasn't feeling up to going.  We swung by my parents' house and picked up both tickets.  Brett and I went together and feasted on amazing food (big name chefs from all over the country) and wine (the big wiz bang wineries from Napa, Paso Robles and Washington).  That was Thursday.

Friday, we decided to take a small detour to look at horse property in the gold country east of Sacramento.  It was a good three hours to the real estate office in Roseville.  Once there, we climbed into the realtor's car and she drove us through the windy roads, up and down the hills, crossing the American River numerous times.  We found a house that we liked.  A house that we REALLY liked.  We're going to make an offer on it but I don't know if it will be accepted since it will be contingent on our place selling.  Living at the top of a mountain is a bit... unique.  There aren't any properties like ours on the market.  Will it take a week or a month or ??  I guess we'll find out. 

What do you think of the house?

And the barn?

 and the big fenced pastures?

There's an arena, a hen house, an orchard... pretty nice.

After finishing up with the property hunt, we climbed back in our car and drove to Paso Robles -- another five hours.  How crazy is that?  We were wiped when we got to our B&B.

Saturday, we attended a party at a winery we like and picked up some wine.  My dad was feeling better so he and my mother met Brett and I at the party.  We sat at a table, in the winery owner's backyard, by a pool, sipping wine and nibbling on pizza fresh off the BBQ.    For dinner that night, my son Kyle met us at my favorite farm-to-table restaurant, Thomas Hill Organics.  Lori Skoog asked me to take pictures of our food.  I almost forgot (sorry, no pictures of the appetizers).

I had scallops and Manila clams in a wonderful broth with black rice and bok choy. 

Brett had Hawaiian monchong (fish) with kumquats and oranges and all kinds of colorful fruits.  He said it was amazing.

Kyle had the hanger steak (college boy - hollow leg - going for the steak) with avocado and ... I forget.  He cleaned his plate in nothing flat.

Sunday, we drove home.  And collapsed.  It was a good weekend but exhausting, to say the least. 

The Lion's Share

Last year, shortly after I broke my toes, Brett's son broke his foot.  It was a doozy, freak of a break.  He crashed on his bicycle on his way home from work as the chef at a restaurant in San Diego.  The break required a couple surgeries, pins, plates and an immobilizing cast for what seemed like forever.  Needless to say, he lost his job since he couldn't stand or walk on the foot.

Around Christmas time, Scott was back on his feet/foot.  He was hired as the executive chef at a restaurant called The Lion's Share in San Diego.  The restaurant had a very successful bar, with exotic decor and creative drinks but the food side of the business was only so-so.  They hired Scott to work wonders on the food side and he has.  He created an interesting and creative menu and the restaurant side has been steadily gaining in popularity.  They serve a lot of game and exotic meat -- the restaurant name and decor give you the feel of being on an African game hunt.

Last Sunday evening Brett and I went to dinner there with Brett's sister, Dana, and her husband, Doug.  We went early so we would all be home at a reasonable hour since Monday was an early work day for all of us.  We were also at the restaurant before the evening rush arrived so Scott was able to come out and talk to us about our food.

Brett and Scott

 Scott prepared a prixe fix meal for us with small, tasting size plates.  He wanted us to sample all menu items he was most proud of.  .... Three and a half hours and twelve courses later, we staggered out of the restaurant.  The food was amazing.  I'm not surprised.  Scott is a very talented chef (and I'm not just saying that because he is Brett's son).  I took pictures of each course to share with you -- although sometimes I forgot and took a bite first.  I couldn't help myself.  It was all so good and so interesting.

Ready?

Doug and Brett

Me and Dana

Here we go...

1.  Chicken livers chopped and mixed with herbs and dates.  Dana called this "pizza" but it was way better than pizza.

2. Crispy White Anchovy with lemon and golden raisin vinaigrette, Arbol chili and egg.  I'm not a huge anchovy fan, other than mixed into sauces, but this was really good.  Salty, but not too much, and sweet.  I would definitely order this again.

3. Deviled Eggs:  There were four eggs, each with a different filling (caviar, proscuitto, vegetable and a savorysweet one).  We cut them in half to share and  forgot to take a picture while they still looked pretty.

 

4.  Poblano Braised Frog Legs with black garlic and scallions.  Okay, I had never had frog legs before and wasn't sure what the texture would be but, OMG, they just melt in your mouth.  So tender and tasty.  Yum!

5.  Grilled Oysters with truffle, parsley and lemon.  I thought of our friend, Christian, who loves oysters when this course came out.  He would have been in heaven.  After eating the oyster, I picked up the shell and licked it.  No lie.  Don't tell.

6.  Texas Red Fish with grilled tomatoes, polenta and beet sauce.  This is Brett's new favorite fish.  It was moist and mild with a wonderful crunchy skin.  The tomatoes burst in my mouth, warm and juicy. 

7.  Braised duck meatball with grilled peach & ginger coulis, cilantro, serrano chili.  I love duck but I'm not a big meatball fan so I didn't go as crazy over this as the rest of our table.  They all thought it was amazing.

8.  Roasted Bandera quail with Calabrian chili couscous, caulifower, arugula sauce.  Brett dutifully tried the cauliflower despite "hating" that particular vegetable.  Then he gave the rest to me.  That was A-OK with me.  This was another of my favorite dishes.  Everything worked great together from the couscous with a hint of heat to the crispy salty skin of the quail to the roasted sweet cauliflower. 

9. Rabbit wrapped in savoy cabbage with thyme potato gnocchi, brown beach mushrooms, sweet pea puree and madeira jus.  This is one of the most popular items on the menu and I can see why.  By this time, I was full and having trouble finishing my little plate.  But I did.

10. Lamb Bolognese topped with goat cheese ravioli.  This was very good and also very rich.  I ate half and gave the rest to Brett.  He scarfed it down.

11.  Grilled kangaroo with a chickpea waffle, pea tendrils, and a cherry reduction sauce.  Brett thought the meat was delicious.   It certainly had good flavor and the sauce was perfect (Scott has always excelled at sauces).  Kangaroo is lean, the way grass fed beef is, so it isn't a tender meat.  I was really too full to enjoy it at this point.  Both Dana and I were sliding most of our food onto the plates of our husbands (who were happy to oblige).

12.  Dessert!  From the left:  Hazelnut Bread Pudding (too full to do more than taste it), Goat Cheese Mousse with blueberry and basil (I ate every bit of this), Mexican Chocolate and Chipotle Cookie (I ate half.  A good cookie with a hint of heat.  Dana wrapped hers in a napkin to take to work the next day.  Smart girl; I wish I'd thought of that).

If you ever find yourself in San Diego, make a stop at The Lion's Share.  The food, the drinks and the ambiance are fantastic.

Turn Around Trip

Friday morning, after lunging Winston (Yay!!  I worked with my horse!), Brett and I headed up to the Central Coast to move Kyle out of his campus apartment.  It took forever to get there -- LA traffic on Fridays, even mid-day, is just awful.  We pulled out of our driveway at 10 am and parked in front of the Carlton Hotel in Atascadero at 4 pm.  We checked in, dropped our bags and headed up to Paso Robles to taste some wine at Per Cazo before Lynne closed at 5:00.  We made it! -- and spent a wonderful hour nibbling cheese, trying her new releases, and catching up.  We bought two bottles (so hard to just pick two) and went back to the hotel. 

I settled into a big comfy chair in the room with my foot up while Brett got back in the car and drove down to San Luis Obispo to pick up Kyle for dinner.  There were no rooms to be had in San Luis Obispo since the university commencement ceremonies were going on.  So, we were stuck in Atascadero, 25 minutes to the north.  The hotel is a small, historic (built in 1924) boutique inn bursting with character.  It was quiet, clean and very comfortable.  We were pleased.  When Brett returned with Kyle, we drove back to Paso Robles for dinner at one of my very favorite restaurants: Thomas Hill Organics.

Thomas Hill is an organic farm in Paso Robles and they have a small, patio seating, restaurant that serves creative cuisine using ingredients from the farm.  The menu changes constantly and it is always delicious.   The menu Friday night said that they were celebrating cherries and apricots.  Fruit was in almost every dish.  I remembered my camera and remembered to take pictures of the food  -- despite the chuckles from the couple at the next table over. 

My salad: Baby greens and pea tendrils with cherries, kumquats and sesame crumbles

Kyle's starter: a halibut bromade (baked casserole) spread on crostini

Brett's halibut with pickled watermelon and strawberries.

Kyle's hanger steak with a fried egg.  He was dubious at first, but said it was wonderful

My duck breast on purple rice with Asian greens and grilled peaches (that you can't see)

Saturday morning, Brett and Kyle moved Kyle out of his campus apartment and into the off campus apartment he will live in for the summer while he is working (campus housing is not available during the summer).  I sat at my parents' house with my foot up, visiting, while they worked.  Sweet deal, no?  We all met up for lunch in Morro Bay at the Dockside fish market.  The fishing boats unload their catch there and you can get fish sandwiches, salads and fish and chips to eat ... well, dockside.  A harbor seal swam up the side of the dock and rolled around in the water looking at us.  When we didn't toss him any fish, he swam off.

We were back home at 10 pm last night.  Poor Brett did a lot of driving in two days.  We aren't going further than the barn today.