HONEY-MASCARPONE FROZEN YOGURT

You know that feeling when you bring home a new cookbook and as you flip through the pages, you find yourself bookmarking recipe after recipe? To me that's the first sign of a great cookbook. Confirmation of greatness comes when the recipes deliver delicious results. Well, Yogurt Culture, by my buddy Cheryl Sternman Rule, is that kind of book. There are so many recipes I want to make, I've lost count. And every one I've tried has been simple and fantastic.

Yogurt Culture is about yogurt of course, but it goes way beyond what one might expect of yogurt recipes - yes there are wonderful lassis, smoothies and tatzikis, but with well over 100 recipes, Cheryl tempts us with Smokey Egglant-Tahini Dip, Coriander-Lime Grilled Chicken (our family loved it!) and Regal Creamy Beef Curry, just to name a few.

The first recipe I made from Yogurt Culture was this delectable Honey-Mascarpone Frozen Yogurt and I knew I had to share it with you. Cheryl's clever additions of mascarpone, lemon zest, olive oil, and vanilla bean elevate fro yo to a heavenly level of sophistication, yet the recipe couldn't be much easier to make. Cheryl suggests drizzling a bit of olive oil over the frozen yogurt and I readily second that notion. My favorite concoction is a kind of summer sundae -  Honey-Mascarpone Frozen Yogurt with slivers of donut peach, marcona almonds and that splash of olive oil. I think you'll love it too.

INGREDIENTS from Cheryl Sternman Rule's Yogurt Culture

• 2 1/2 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) mascarpone
• scant 1/3 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• scrapped seeds from 1/2 plump vanilla bean
• finely grated zest of one lemon
• optional for serving: sliced peach or nectarine, salted-roasted marcona almonds, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together yogurt, mascarpone, honey, olive oil, vanilla, and lemon zest.

Pour mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. You can serve the frozen yogurt in this soft serve form, or transfer the frozen mixture to a small baking dish and place it in the freezer to harder further.

When you're ready to serve the frozen yogurt, take it out of the freezer 10-20 minutes before serving to allow the yogurt to soften a bit.

I suggest topping the frozen yogurt with peaches or nectarines, marcona almonds and a light drizzle of olive oil.

 Serves 4

BRULEED POMELOS WITH HONEY + NUTMEG

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!  I don't know about you guys, but every time the New Year comes around I'm so grateful for the citrus bounty. What better way to bring brightness to winter than cutting open a Meyer lemon, Ruby Red grapefruit, juicy little Kishu, or sumptuous blood orange?

These past few weeks, we've been downing citrus like we're in a heavy battle against scurvy. While I'm always happy to devour citrus in its unadorned natural state, I've been having fun caramelizing the fruit under the broiler. I've played around with a bunch of tasty flavor combos, but my favorite of the moment is pomelo slathered in honey, topped with a sprinkling of fresh nutmeg. I think this simple treat would make a delicious partner to so many breakfasts and brunches - from eggs and bacon to a hearty bowl of oatmeal.

I hope the new year is treating you well so far. Here's to a delicious 2015!
xoxo
E

BRULEED POMELOS WITH HONEY + NUTMEG serves 4

• 2 ripe pomelos (Ruby Red grapefruits would make a nice substitute)
• 4 heaping teaspoons honey
• freshly grated nutmeg (please please grate whole nutmeg yourself with a microplaner - the freshly grated spice is so much more aromatic than the pre-ground variety) - keep in mind... if you're not a fan of nutmeg, you could use cinnamon instead

Slice pomelos in half. (I suggest cutting a slice off the bottom of each half so that the pomelos will stay stable with a nice flat surface.)

Crank up your broiler.

Place pomelo halves on a baking sheet, face up. Slather a heaping spoonful of honey onto the flesh of each pomelo.

Place pomelos under the broiler until the tops are bubbling and the pith turns golden brown. (This takes about 5 minutes with my broiler.) Pull the tray from the broiler and immediately grate nutmeg over the pomelos - it will happily blend with the warm honey and juicy citrus.

Serve warm.

BACKYARD FIGS WITH GREEK YOGURT, MARCONA ALMONDS + HONEY

I went swimming with my mom on Sunday morning. (Well, technically it wasn't exactly swimming, but I did submerge myself in the Pacific and loll around in the waves for a while.) This may seem like a perfectly normal thing to do if one imagines the Hollywood version of California, all sunshine and palm trees. But the Bay Area doesn't meet this tropical vision. Ours is the land of fog, chilly summers and icy waters. Too much of a wuss about the cold, I (until Sunday) had never dipped more than a toe into the water in the 35 years I've lived in Northern California. Paul, on the other hand, surfs regularly. And our kids - Lilah a self proclaimed penguin and Otis who never seems to get cold - have swum many times, but not I.  I've happily stayed on shore, usually bundled in sweaters and scarves, watching everyone frolic in the surf. Even swathed in a wetsuit the waters are seriously chilly, but this time, I was determined to try something new. I have to say, it felt invigorating and life affirming to move beyond my comfort zone even in this tiny way.

A dip into unknown waters seems an apropos metaphor for my life at the moment. Since sending my book into the world last month, I feel as though I'm taking the plunge on a daily basis. I'm connecting with new people every day... Hosting a big party for my community. Teaching classes. Giving talks. Sitting on panels. Doing book signings. Giving interviews. It's all new for me. Despite my introverted leanings, I'm trying to approach this adventure with an open mind and heart and so far I've been blown away by the warmth and generosity I've encountered. When someone meets me with a smile and shares a story about their own love of cooking or even how my book might be bringing a little extra joy to their kitchens, I'm blown away and filled with gratitude.

As I pondered what recipe to share today, at first I imagined something elaborate and celebratory, but after I took a few quiet moments to breathe and reflect on what my body is craving these days, I realized that once again I'm inspired by the simple goodness that the season has to offer. Our backyard fig tree is bursting with huge juicy fruit and I thought I would let nature's exuberance mark this occasion by letting the figs shine in their own delicious way. Today's recipe isn't really a recipe at all, but an acknowledgment that if we take a moment to a look around and appreciate the magic that nature has to offer, we'll be met with great reward.

INGREDIENTS per serving

• 2-4 fresh ripe figs, sliced
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup Greek yogurt
• a handful of salted, roasted Marcona almonds
• a drizzling of honey

You can serve juicy figs with creamy Greek yogurt, honey and salty crunchy Marcona almonds - these delicious companions - for breakfast of course, but this dish also makes a wonderful afternoon pick-me-up or a not-too-sweet dessert. The layers of texture and flavor are heavenly!


It seems as though I'm not the only fig-lover out there.... Here are some other delicious fig recipes from around the web:

Phyllis's Fig and Blue Cheese Tart
Cheryl's Fig Leaf Ice Cream
Laura's Dark Chocolate Fig Cinnamon Buns
Stacy's The Wonder of the Fig
Sarah's No churn Fig + Coffee Ice Cream
Kathryn's Fig and Almond Torte
Elizabeth's Fig and Cantaloupe Salad
Kasey's Yogurt, Mascarpone and Fig Tartlets 
Carolyn's Brown Butter Almond Tea Cakes with Figs

POACHED APRICOTS

When Vibrant Food arrived in my mailbox a few weeks back I did a little jig. San Francisco writer and photographer Kimberley Hasselbrink has become a buddy of mine over the past couple of years - we've both been writing and shooting our first cookbooks, riding that roller coaster at the same time, and now here she is with her book in print. For real.

Kimberley's book is gorgeous. It's packed with stunning photographs and recipes with great flavor combos all organized by season, just the kind of food I like to cook. I got my copy of Vibrant Food right before we left for Greece. (Yes, I'm back in Greece with P, the kids, and my mom soaking up sun and family time before my own book hits stores August 19th.) I didn't have nearly enough time before we left to really dive in, play, and cook from Kimberley's book the way I wanted to, but I did get a chance to make her poached apricots a couple of times before we hit the road.

If you're an apricot fan, you like that tangy-sweet thing these beauties have going for them. Surprisingly, I've found that the tartness only intensifies when the fruit is cooked, so I like pairing the poached apricots with vanilla ice cream. The creamy sweetness of the ice cream mixes with the silky tartness of the apricot (flavored with just a hint of rose water, cardamom, and honey) in a really nice way. One of my favorite things about this recipe is the way the texture of apricot really changes during poaching... the fruit becomes tender and velvety.

Happy Summer everyone!

INGREDIENTS slightly adapted from Kimberley Hasselbrink's Vibrant Food
printable recipe

• 8 ripe, but firm, apricots
• 2 cups tap water
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 tablespoon rose water (if you're not a fan of rose water you can leave it out)
• optional: vanilla ice cream

Slice apricots in half and discard the pits. Set aside.

Bring water and honey to a boil in a medium saucepan (large enough to hold the apricots). Whisk occasionally to integrate the honey as it melts. When the liquid comes to a boil, add cardamom and rosewater. Whisk again to blend all ingredients, then add apricots to the poaching liquid. Simmer the fruit for 3-6 minutes, keeping in mind that a riper apricot will need less poaching time.

Use a slotted spoon to remove apricots from the pan. Set aside and simmer the poaching liquid until it reduces by half into a lovely syrup.

Serve apricots with vanilla ice cream with a drizzling of syrup. Easy and delish!

ALMOND CAKE WITH CARDAMOM + BLOOD ORANGE

A rich, moist almond cake with a hint of cardamom and blood orange zest, with a simple side of blood orange slices... yep I gotta say, this cake is really working for me. I'm a total sucker for almond flour, my favorite ingredient in GF baking. I deeply appreciate that almond flour creations don't even try to mimic your standard wheat flour baked goods. Instead, almond flour treats have their own distinct flavor, texture, and magic deliciousness that no other flour can achieve - and I like that everything is packed with nutty protein.

Can I digress for just a moment to talk about our current citrus obsession? We are crazed around here as the winter citrus season winds down. Paul has been juicing up a storm - blood oranges, tangerines, cara caras, grapefruits, pomelos - whatever he can get his hands on. And two weekends ago, Paul and I walked over to our friend Laura's house to raid her extremely happy Meyer tree. I preserved a ton of lemons which will go to good use in the next few months - a tangy preserved lemon salad dressing seems to go with everything spring and summer.

GO WITH ANYTHING CAKE  adapted from Lucas Holloweg's Good Things to Eat

printable recipe

• 3 eggs, room temp
• 150 grams (5 1/2 ounces) powdered sugar, divided
• 175 grams (6 ounces) almond meal
• pinch of crumbled sea salt flakes
• 1/2 blood orange, juice and zest (if you don't have access to blood oranges, any nice orange, tangerine, or lemon will work here)
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• for serving: 2-4 blood oranges, peeled removed and slices 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Separate egg whites and yolks. In a medium mixing bowl, mix yolks with 125 grams (4.5 ounces) powdered sugar. Add almond flour, crumbled sea salt flakes, orange juice and zest, and cardamom. Stir to combine all ingredients - the mixture will be thick and paste-like. Set aside while you whisk your egg whites.

Before whisking egg whites, be sure to clean your whisk and bowl thoroughly so that there's not a hint of oil/grease to inhibit the eggs from whisking properly. I rub my whisk and bowl with a slice of lemon - the acidic juice cuts through any residue. Whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Add the remaining sugar and continue to whisk egg whites they've formed stiff peaks.

Fold egg whites into the yolk/almond mixture. Don't overmix... we want some streaks of white after mixing.

Prep a 7 inch cake pan. First, thoroughly butter the inside of the pan. Then, cut a round of parchment paper to fit into the bottom of the pan - butter the paper too, just in case. Pour the batter into your prepped pan. Bake cake on the oven's middle rack for 35 minutes.

Let the cake cool on a rack before slicing. (Before removing the cake from the pan, be sure to slide a knife down around the edges to make sure it easily separates from the side of the pan.) Keep in mind... any gooey center of the cake will firm up as it cools.

Before serving, dust the cake with powdered sugar. Serve your slices of cake with rounds of blood orange on the side.

Serves 6-8

GOODBYE 2013 + A SIMPLE ZUNI DESSERT

Every time the calendar changes I feel the weight of tucking away another year. I cannot believe 2013 was the year my babe turned 13, or that I actually finished writing my own book. Those milestones, both personal and momentous, fill me with deep gratitude. At the same time, 2013 was a year where many of my dear friends' parents and grandparents became ill or passed away. In these middle years, I feel sandwiched between the hope and possibility I see in my kiddos and the messy pain of witnessing loved ones stoop, ache, and slow.

Judy Rodgers was one of those we lost last year. Though I never met her, Rodgers deeply impacted me, along with so many others. I treasure the lazy Sunday afternoons P and I have spent at Zuni snugged into a tiny table near the long zinc bar, grazing on oysters, Caesar salads, crispy fries, chilly martinis. Life doesn't get better than that. Digging deeper into my memory, I see myself eating at Zuni before my Senior Prom feeling very grownup in uncomfortable heels and a fancy dress, made to feel totally at home in Rodgers' restaurant. A decade ago, Rodgers' brilliant cookbook, The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, let us bring her food into all of our kitchens. Her perfect roast chicken is the one Paul makes on a weekly basis, her brined turkey is the one we sit down to every Thanksgiving.

When Rodgers succumbed to cancer last month, I knew I wanted to mark her passing here, to pay my respects. I thumbed through her book looking for just the right recipe to embody what I loved about her food. As I flipped to the final pages, I found the recipe I wanted - dates stuffed with mascarpone, pistachios and pomegranates plus mandarins, blood oranges, and a splash of orange blossom water - a simple, beautiful, delightful dessert infused with Rodgers' magic.

DATES stuffed with MASCARPONE, POMEGRANATE, PISTACHIOS + MANDARINS, BLOOD ORANGES  and a splash of ORANGE BLOSSOM WATER

INGREDIENTS adapted from Judy Rodgers' The Zuni Cafe Cookbook
printable recipe 

• 4 mandarins
• 2 blood oranges
• splash of orange blossom water 
• 8 ripe dates - Medjools are always my favorite
• 8 teaspoons mascarpone
• 30 roasted/salted pistachios, shelled and coarsely chopped
• seeds from 1/2 pomegranate 

Prep mandarins and blood oranges by slicing the top and bottom off the unpeeled fruit. Resting each orange on its flat bottom, use a sharp knife to cut off strips of peel and pith, rotating the citrus and cutting until the fruit is naked and ready to be sliced. Once the peel is removed, slice the citrus horizontally into nice pinwheels. Scatter the citrus rounds onto a plate. Add a light splash of orange blossom water to the citrus - I'm amazed at the dreamy way the orange blossom water heightens the natural perfume of the fresh citrus slices.

Cut each date with a slice large enough to remove and discard the pits. Carefully stuff each date cavity with 1 teaspoon mascarpone. Press some chopped pistachio and pomegranate seeds onto the mascarpone. Scatter the remaining pistachio and pomegranate onto the plate if you so desire.

Rodgers' brilliant combination of flavors, textures, and colors is the embodiment of seasonal brightness on a plate. Thank you Judy.

Serves 4 
  

POMEGRANATE GRANITA

Granita. I'm a sucker for sparkly jewel-toned shards of delicious ice.

Light, refreshing, and super easy to make, granitas are my go-to dinner party dessert. While I do enjoy granitas in the heat of summer, I actually prefer them after heavy winter fare, when a rich dessert just feels like too much. This pomegranate granita would be wonderful after a hearty veggie stew, a feast of succulent roasted meat, or even Thanksgiving dinner.

Pomegranates have a tangy, tannic, earthy flavor which I find mysterious and totally irresistible. Straight pomegranate juice can be quite intense so I've added orange juice and zest to mellow things out just a bit, and the extra layer of flavor adds a wonderful citrusy brightness to the dessert.

We all need an easy recipe (which can be made in advance) to help out with the holidays, right?

 

INGREDIENTS
printable recipe

• 3 cups unsweetened pomegranate juice
• 1/3 cup tap water
• juice and zest of one large orange or two smaller satsumas
• 1/2 cup light agave nectar
• optional for serving: candied orange peel; whipped cream with a splash vanilla extract & sweetened with powdered sugar or agave

In order to thoroughly integrate all ingredients, vigorously shake up pomegranate juice, water, orange juice, zest, and agave nectar in a large lidded jar or old milk bottle (you can also use a mixing bowl and whisk if that's easier for you).

Transfer liquid mixture to a baking dish and place it in the freezer. Every hour or so, remove the dish from the freezer and scrape the solid bits with a fork. After a few hours of freezing and scraping, your granita will be ready to serve. (Keep in mind that the shallower the baking dish and more spread out the liquid, the quicker the chill.) If you forget to scrape the granita regularly and end up with a frozen block of pomegranate ice, go at it with a fork until you have a beautiful flaky consistency.

If you are a serious pomegranate lover like my kids are, serve little glasses of this granita all on its own. You can also top it with candied orange peel, or keep in mind that the granita is absolutely delicious topped with billowy sweet whipped cream.

Once it comes out of the freezer, granita melts quickly - be sure to eat it immediately after serving.

Serves 6-8. Keeps in the freezer for 2 weeks.
 
 

CHOCOLATE DIPPED ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Come June, my head spins as end-of-the-year school functions approach with rapid fire. And this year, I also find myself in the last week of finishing the manuscript for my book, which feels very much like giving birth to a 3rd child! Life is extremely busy, and can feel like a bit of a whirlwind for someone like me who enjoys being social, but also craves slowness and quiet.

My natural clock keeps telling me it's time for summer vacation - my inner teenager wants to sleep 'til noon, laze around in the sun, read trashy novels, and gobble ice cream sandwiches while belting out, "School's out for summer... School's out forever..."

Have you tried an It's-It? Ice cream, sandwiched between two oatmeal cookies, then dipped in chocolate... that's right. That's the kind of summer treat I'm craving these days. It's-Its were created in San Francisco in the 1920s and you can still find them tucked into ice cream freezers all over the West Coast. When I saw a recipe for homemade It's-Its in Jennie Schacht's charming new book, I knew I had to make them with Lilah and her buddy, Anni.

I hummed Alice Cooper the whole time.

INGREDIENTS - slightly adapted from Jennie Schacht's I Scream Sandwich!
(printable recipe)

Oatmeal Cookies:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour {GF folks: I use Pamela's Bread Mix and Flour Blend}
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• generous pinch of sea salt
• 1 1/2 cup rolled oats {GF folks: be sure to buy GF oats}
• optional: 1/2 cup raisins

Chocolate Shell:

• 1/2 pound semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil

 Ice Cream: Jennie makes her own, but I was too lazy this week.

• Store-bought vanilla ice cream for filling. For those of your who can't tolerate dairy, try Coconut Bliss... it's really creamy and good. {GF friends: be sure to check the ice cream label to be certain it's gluten-free}

Preheat oven to 350.

First, go ahead and make your cookies. In a standing mixer with the paddle attachment, or using a medium mixing bowl with a hand-mixer, cream together butter and sugar.  Add egg and vanilla. Blend until ingredients are integrated.

In a separate small mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. While the standing mixer is still whirling, slowly add the dry ingredients. Finally, add oats to the batter. Mix until batter is well blended.

Line 1-2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop dough onto the lined cookie sheets. Jennie very wisely suggests making 24 tablespoon size cookies. (We went ahead and made 14 bigger cookies - piggies, I know. From here on out, I'll stick to Jennie's reasonable portions!) Give the cookies some room to spread during baking, and use your fingertips to flatten the dough a bit, flatter disk-shaped cookies make for more manageable ice cream sandwiches.

Bake cookies for 8-12 minutes until golden, rotating the cookie sheets halfway through baking to ensure even browning.  Let cookies cool for 5 minutes on their baking sheet, then transfer them to a rack to finish cooling.

Once cookies have cooled completely, scoop (slightly softened) ice cream between two cookies to make a sandwich. Stick the prepared sandwiches in the freezer on a parchment-lined baking sheet to chill thoroughly before dipping them into the chocolate shell.

Making the chocolate shell... Gently melt chocolate with coconut oil in a double boiler, or microwave. Once the chocolate is warm, liquidy, and smooth, stir and you've got your dipping chocolate.

Take each fully-frozen ice cream sandwich, and dip it halfway into the the melted chocolate. Let the drips fall away and then return the dipped sandwich to your cold, parchment-lined baking sheet.  Freeze the sandwiches again for 15 minutes, until the chocolate had chilled and hardened.

Eat and enjoy! Wrap any extra ice cream sandwiches in parchment and store them in the freezer until you're ready to munch again.

makes 12 ice cream sandwiches (we made 7 monster-size sandwiches, but I will definitely stick with a more manageable size next time)


Happy Summer everyone!!!

If you want more summer ice cream deliciousness, check out Phyllis' genius recipe for S'Mores Ice Cream on Food 52...

BAKED APPLES WITH HAZELNUTS, MAPLE CREAM + CREME FRAICHE

Last month I decided to say no to refined sugar for the time being, just to give my belly a break. I LOVE sweet treats and tend to go a little overboard when surrounded by tempting sugary concoctions. In years past, I've taken white sugar out of my kitchen for long stretches of times (for years, in fact) and I'm amazed at how much better I feel when I do.

Deprivation is not an option for me, so I get a lot of joy from playing with alternative sugars and whipping up natural sweets.  Honey, coconut and date sugars are always wonderful, and a jar of maple cream, recently to given to me by my awesome neighbors Rich and Caitlin, begged to be put to good use. I like to think of maple cream as nature's caramel! These baked apples, sweetened with the maple cream, satisfy my sweet-tooth while keeping my belly happy. I hope they warm your bellies too.

You can serve the apples as dessert of course, or you could eat them on top of a bowl of oatmeal for
breakfast.

INGREDIENTS
{printable recipe}

• 6 apples: pink ladies and honey crisps are wonderful here
• 1/2 cup crushed toasted hazelnuts (toasted pecans or walnuts are also great)
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg
• zest of 2 small lemons
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, sliced into 6 pats
• maldon flaky sea salt 
• for topping: maple cream, creme fraiche ( for making your own creme fraiche, try this easy recipe), heavy cream

Preheat oven to 375.

Peel the upper 5th of your apple. Use a pairing knife to cut out the core - you want to cut a wider opening at the top, tapering down to the bottom of the apple. Place cored apples onto a baking dish or cookie sheet. If one of your apples won't sit up straight, slice a tiny bit off the bottom to give it a steady base.

Stuff apples with crushed hazelnuts. In a little cup or bowl, combine maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon zest. Scoop a spoonful or two of this tasty liquid over each hazelnut-stuffed apple. Place a pat of butter onto the top of each apple. Sprinkle on some flaky salt.

Place stuffed apples into the hot oven. Cook for 25-35 minutes until the sides of the apples have a little give when you press with your fingers. I like my baked apples pretty firm and just cooked through, not at all mushy.

While the apples are baking, scoop creme fraiche into a little pitcher. Use a fork to whisk in just enough heavy cream make the creme fraiche a pourable consistency.

Serve apples warm with a pitcher of runny creme fraiche and a ramekin of maple butter (amazing stuff!) or another pitcher of maple syrup to scoop over the baked apples.

Serves 6

STONEHOUSE OLIVE OIL + BLOOD ORANGE BROWNIES

Back in September, Trish from Stonehouse Olive Oil hired me to shoot some new images for her website. When I got Trish's call - I was stoked at the opportunity to work for a woman who is passionate about her business, especially when that business is such a delicious one. I first met Trish almost 20 years ago when she and P worked together at Alice Waters' Cafe Fanny - as long as I've known her, she has dedicated her life to good food. I'm guessing that many of you are probably already familiar with Stonehouse from their shop at the SF Ferry Building. If you don't know these oils, you should. They are awesome, and I am totally hooked.

The photos above are from a field trip last month to Talcott Ranch in Carneros. When Trish offered to let me tag along, I jumped at the chance to walk through an olive grove at harvest time - the array of olive trees dripping with ripe fruit was simply breathtaking. Getting to see, touch, and smell the place where my food comes from always inspires me and makes me quite hungry!

Trish's life has been all about olive oil for over 15 years. Being food obsessed myself, one my favorite things about this project has been hearing Trish share her knowledge of oils and her food philosophy in general. Her enthusiasm is contagious, and I wanted to share with you guys...

Erin: So many of us food-lovers are ultra conscious of where our produce comes from, but we don't always have the same depth of knowledge about olive oil. The seemingly countless olive oils lining the market shelves can be daunting for consumers. Plus, all the controversy about bogus extra virgin oils from Europe has left me all the more confused. What are you guys up to at Stonehouse?

Trish: Here at Stonehouse, we taste through all our oils at the end of crush (harvest time) and select only the oils that are fabulous. I use our oils all the time, and we have a very loyal following that keeps us honest! We also have our oils certified but the COOC, the California Olive Oil Council, which has some of the most stringent extra virgin requirements in the world.  The COOC  is the best insurance a customer has these days to make sure they're buying the real deal.

It's overwhelming how corrupt the international olive oil industry is. Although it makes perfect sense, when you consider olive oil is one of the top commodities in the world, worth billions and billions, and it is incredibly unregulated.  It is not an exaggeration to say most of the extra virgin olive oils in the supermarket are not only NOT extra virgin, but not even 100% olive oil.  For people who want to know more, Tom Mueller wrote a great article for The New Yorker years ago, and followed it up with a book this year, for those who want to geek out on the subject. 

Erin: Name a few food artisans/cooks/purveyors who inspire you? 

Trish: There are so many!  I have to give 1st nod to Full Belly and Riverdog farms, as probably 70-80% of what I eat is grown by them.  Alice Waters and Michael Pollen get a lot of press in the food movement, and deservedly so, but the farmers themselves are the biggest heroes for me, because they really have skin in the game-- their lives on the line, their physical bodies-- in a way writers or restaurateurs do not.

And Capay Valley is a special place for me. It's been a pleasure to watch the farmers there grow and become part of the Farmer's Market revolution that has culminated with the opening of the Ferry Building in 2003, which is a kind of mecca for me.  Even after 10 years, I still feel blessed and weepy every time I walk into that building.  It's so gorgeous I feel lucky and honored to be a part of it.  And we're one of the most successful stores in there, which still blows my mind. Sometimes I think, wait, do I really have a store here? or am I dreaming?


Erin: What are your most dogeared cookbooks?

Trish:  The #1 most beat up is Fields of Greens, partially because it's 20 years old and one of my 1st cookbooks.  As a young vegetarian it was my 'joy of cooking,' my go-to bible.  Many of my standard dishes are from that book.  I guess I've turned back to it now because of my health issues and it has the 60's/70's cross cultural cooking I still like.  Remember the 1st time you made gazpacho and felt sophisticated?  

Alice's The Art of Simple Food is great - it feels like the culmination of all her years of experience.   I like the variations of the recipes she offers, so that each recipe really has 5-6 versions, which is how I cook, rarely the same exact thing twice.  Her Vegetables is a standby as well. 

Plenty, by Yotam Ottolenghi is a newer cookbook I'm cooking my way through and loving (Jerusalem is on it's way).  I'm also big on blogs these days for inspiration--Smitten Kitchen and Heidi, and of course Yummy Supper!

STONEHOUSE BLOOD ORANGE BROWNIES 

These brownies are not your standard fare. They do have all that dense chocolate goodness you want out of a brownie, plus the blood orange oil, quinoa flour, yogurt, and ample dose of cinnamon make for a surprising and healthful bite. With ingredients like these, we could even eat brownies for breakfast. Yum!

INGREDIENTS - thank you Trish!
{printable recipe}

• 1/2 cup cocoa powder (Trish suggests Valhrona, 100% cacao)
• 1 cup quinoa flour
• 1.5 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon Ceylon Cinnamon (or a 1/2 teaspoon standard cinnamon)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup yogurt
• 1/3 cup Stonehouse Blood Orange Olive Oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350.

Into a medium mixing bowl, sift dry cocoa, quinoa flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and salt - dry whisk to mix, set aside.

In a standing mixer, or using a hand mixer, blend the eggs together then add yogurt, blood orange oil, and vanilla and mix until combined. Slowly add dry ingredients into the mixing bowl. Continue to mix until well blended.

Wipe the insides of a 8x10 inch pan with a little bit of Blood Orange Oil. Pour the batter in and bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.