When I visited New Delhi, India a while back, I got addicted to the freshly prepared Pomegranate juice which took 4 people to prepare it. One person to cut and peel the skin, two people to remove and separate the juicy pips from the fruit, one to juice it through a specially made Pomegranate juicer. It is a laboriously task, pomegrante juice was not readily available just anywhere even in New Delhi. I only got to taste it in a New Delhi town club which provided a sunday buffet fest for its members.
Being in Singapore where we don't grow our own food, and we pretty much import everything(Talk about having big carbon foot prints) We get fruits as far as South Africa or Egypt. It was pomegranate season a few weeks back and at the local supermarket, I spotted Pomegranates from Afghanistan. The country is famous for its beautiful fruits like apricots and grapes, pity we don't get them here. I was excited! Fruits from an exotic warcountry!
Transporting these Pomegranates from this remote place to our city I suspect would have been difficult with the bad transport network over there. I could'nt imagine how much effort it took for these large beautiful pomegranates to reach our supermarkets.
It was worth the effort and it was more expensive compared to the ones from India. The Afghan pomegranates were sweeter and have a deeper ruby red color compared to the pale pink ones we regularly get from India. I got a few Afghan pomegranates from the supermarket and decided to juice them.
Juicing pomegranate was time-consuming and require pain-staking patience to remove the juicy dark ruby red pip one at a time. I had previously tried it before and failed miserably by squeezing it with muslin cloth. It resulted in disappointingly little juice with much of the precious nectar soaked by the cloth. A previous time, I ran the pips through a blender and it resulted in a bitter cloudy liquid because I juiced the white bits with it to save time.
The best way I found was cutting the pomegranate in half, and slowly pick the pips individually without breaking the ruby red sap.
I ran the pips through my new cold press juicer and it worked!. A whole fruit gave me half a glass of deep ruby nectar.
Yes it was worth all that effort and probably try it again next season. Meanwhile it is back to drinking bottled pomegranate juice for the moment.
Best way to Juice a Pomegranate
Cinnamon Buns
I love Philosophy products, they alway come up with some great food-smelling products. There were too many to choose from Sephora, lemon custard, pumpkin pie, vanilla birthday cake. I picked up a few realistic smelling body wash like lemonade and apple. More disappointing were the cocktail line (margarita, daiquri, mimosa) shampoo trio that I got.
This is one of my favorites, Cinnamon Bun. It smells like cinnamon ginger bread. What's great its a shampoo, bubble bath and body wash all in one. Good for travelling.
On the bottle, it gives you a recipe for creating your own cinnamon bun. Not tried it out yet. Let me know if it works out.
Philosophy's Cinnamon Buns Recipe
1/4 cup warm milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 portion dry yeast
1/4 warm water
2 1/2 cup flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon
4 tablespoon soften butter
2 eggs
- Mix all ingredients except yeast, water, flour let it cool,
- Stir and dissolve yeast in warm water
- Add yeast to first mixtutre, beat until mixed
- Add 1 1/2 cup flour, cover and let rise for 1 hour
- Add remaining flour, blend well, knead until smooth.
- Put dough in greased bowl, cover, let rise until double its size.
- Punch down, shape rolls, let rise for 1 hour,
- Bake at 400 degree F (204 degree C) for 8 mins.
The Dumb-Down consumer
"I never knew how cruel foie gras (goose liver) is," said a friend while we were having dinner together. I looked wide-eyed and half amused at the comment. She knew how goose and ducks were force-fed but it never dawn on her on how cruel it was. She was quite detached about the cruelty issue.
Call me a snob and elitest, I scoff at people who don't care where what they are eating comes from or how it was grown or processed. You should be aware of what you are eating. Sad to say, many of us are pretty much dumb-down consumers.
The dumb-down result didn't just happen over-night. Here in Singapore, since 1970s, consumers were slowly created and the dumbing down process begun.
I would also say it is the lack of awareness, the disconnection of our agricultural roots and the cover-ups from industralised food chain producers that helped evolute people into the such un-educated detached consumer.
"Don't tell me how it was processed or where it comes from, how endangered it is, I don't wanna know, as long as it taste good, I don't care."
- a closet-eyed self declared gourmet acquaintance
For me, I use to be an un-aware eater with a strange curious yearning on how food was cooked and where it was grown. I had grown a little disgusted at mass-produced food and how food affect and harm our environment. Endangered animals and seafood are still being eaten, and more animals and fishes are reaching endangered levels. Our land continue to be poisoned by growing pesticide and nitrogen based fertilisers. We have de-evoluted into a singular crop based agriculture and industralised food chain. Many of our beautiful wide-range fruits, vegetables and other produce has been on a steep decline to extinction.
Reading the local food forums, often I come across self-declared food gourmets raving about some rare and endangered produce. Here in Singapore, we are known as food lovers, however I beg to differ. These so-call foodies are rather ignorant gluttons. Most are obsessed about eating, but don't really care much about how the food was produced.
For me, the worst kind of person is the kind who is all too happy to eat anything and turn a blind eye, brushing under the carpet where food comes from and how it was treated. We need to be aware of what we are eating only then we can make our own decisions, judgements and actions. These very decisions and actions affect our environment, our planet.
Alice Louise Waters , influential American food activist on sustainable food, once said "Eating is a political act, and the choices you make have consequences beyond the table"
So You are a Bluff Vegetarian
"So I want real vegetarian food, can you provide that?"
"What kind of food do you want?"
"The real one, not bluff one."
In my previous life, I helped arrange corporation & organisations functions. As with any dinner events in Singapore, you need to cater for people with diverse food restrictions ranging from Halal to Vegetarian Meats. This event co-organiser was given the prominent role of pushing my buttons by fufilling the needs of 5 vegetarian in the group of around 200 plus.
After much probing, she finally came back to me after refusing to explain what sort of vegetarian meals she wanted (she was suppose to ask the Vegos, i guess she didn't), declaring that all of them should be taking vegetarian meal that is purely chinese even though some were indian vegos. Asking what it meant, she got irritated and said, not the bluff types who take vegetable and fish &animal products. No garlic or onion type, you know the 'Real Vegetarian.
And no, she is not a vegatarian herself, she eats decayed and crude flesh of dead animals.
If you are a little more open minded about people's diets, and not so much of a food nazi, here's the list :
Types of 'Real' Vegetarians
Lacto-ovo- vegetarian
They don't eat animals like beef,pork, poultry, seafood but do eat animal products like dairy and eggs
Lacto-vegetarian
No eggs, but does eat dairy products
Ovo-vegetarian
No dairy products but eats eggs
Vegan
No meats of any kind or animal products like dairy, eggs, or processed food containing animal derived ingredients like gelatin or foods that uses some animal based product in the manufacturing and processing like sugar, some cooking oils and honey.
Pescatarian
One who eats no animal flesh with exception of fish. Some Pescatarian eats seafood.
Proper term for is Pesco Vegetarian, one who eats fish and vegetables and not Pescartarian (one who eats only flesh of fish)
Pollo Vegetarian
One who eats no other animal flesh other than poultry
Jain Vegan
By religion and belief, strict Jain eats no root vegetables like garlic, carrots, potatos. Anything that kills or disrupt other living creatures is strictly forbidden.
Mahayana Buddhist Vegan
By religion, eats no pungent smelling vegetables or any vegetables that excite lower senses like chilli, garlic, onions.
Flexitarian/Semi-vegetarian
Eat a mostly vegetarian diet, but occasionally eat meat.
Raw vegan/Raw foodist
Eats unprocessed vegan foods that are not heated above 46oC some say 60oC.
Macrobiotic
Eats whole grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and soy products and seaweed, allows some types of fish. Eats to keep the yin and yang in balance.
Fruitarian
Strictly eats only the fruit of the plant.
Hippocrates Soup
This delicious and healthy soup is both medicinal and cleansing. One of my personal favorites, it is sweet and naturally fragrant, requires no added salt or seasoning. The Hippocrates Soup is also used as soup stock for my other soups and as a base for other recipes. All ingredients are organic where possible. Always get organic potatos and tomatos for this soup as the pesticide levels for these produce tend to be much higher in non-organic ones.
The soup is always served every lunch and dinner as a starter soup for Gerson Therapy (GT) patients. Its a pre-requisite menu for GT patients. While much of GT is directed to liver cleansing, this special soup is designed to help cleanse the kidney and nourish the body. No salt or other condiments should be added for obvious reasons.
The main medicinal ingredients are leeks, celeriac (celery root), parsley root. Potatos are added for carbohydrates and tomatos, garlic onions are added for taste. Here in Singapore, parsley root is rare and hardly available in the shops so I omit it. You can find celeriac (seasonal) in Singaporean gourmet supermarkets like Tanglin Supermarket, Jasons, Culina and NTUC finest. If celeriac is unavailable, replace with celery stalks.
Recipe : Hippocrates Special Soup
Makes four portion for two days
Ingredients (use organic produce where possible)
400g medium celeriac
250g medium onions
250g celery stalk about 3-4 medium stalk
500g roma tomatos
500g potato
400g leeks
300g parsley root (if available)
3-4 cloves of garlic (as desired)
1 stalk parsley herb (condiment)
filtered water
Method
1. Wash all the vegetables thoroughly, unpeeled, cut in small cubes.
2. Add just enough filtered water to cover the cut vegetables in non-aluminum based pot.
3. Cook all the ingredients under low heat 60-80 degrees Celsius for 1.5-2hours in firmly
covered pot.
4. Remove tender and soft vegetables from heat, run through food mill/blender. Remove fibers
or peels.
5. Blend still warm ingredients thoroughly till soup is thicky and creamy. Only blend the soup
while its warm, otherwise the soup will form a sticky and starchy texture when cooled.
6. Allow soup to cool before storing in refrigerator
7. Make enough for about two days only.
Notes :
- You can vary the taste by adding semi-dried tomatos or roasted garlic to the soup.
- Portions of Leeks, celeriac, celery stalks, parsley root should remain as prescribed.
- The unblended version can be used as Vegetable Stock for other recipes.
- The soup should be cooked at low and slow heat to preserve its valuable nutrients and keep it easily digestible. In fast and high heat cooking, the cells burst and the minerals go out of their colloidal composition, it becomes more difficult to be absorbed.
- The soup pot must be non-aluminum and must have a closely tight heavy pot lid to prevent steam to escape.
My vegan version of Chermoula
The recipe is modified for Gerson Therapy cancer patients which omits strong aromatic spices and oils in their strict diet.
Recipe : Chermoula
Makes around 500ml marinade
Fresh Ingredients :
- 1 red onion
- 5 garlic cloves
- 90g organic coriander, including stalks
- 150g organic Italian Flat leaf parsley
- 1 strand saffron (pounded)
- 1/2 bunch organic mint leaf
Other Ingredients :
- 1.5 Tablespoon Ras el Hanout
- 200ml Flax oil
- 1/2 lemon - juiced
Modified Ras el Hanout :
(roast the mixtured spices in low to medium heat in wok)
- 1 bay leaf (pounded finely)
- 1 teaspoon thyme (pounded finely)
- 1 teaspoon ground mace
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground anise
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon coriander seed (pounded finely)
Optional for Non GT patients :
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- I teaspoon turmeric
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Method
- Blend in food processor for 1 min, all the fresh ingredients and roasted Ras el Hanout except flax oil and lemon juice. Texture should be pesto-like.
- Slowly add small portions of Flax oil and lemon juice to the mixture till thick and paste form.
- Cover marinade mixture to eggplant, sweet capscium or squashes. Grill.
Caretrace - a website that traces where your food comes from
Commercial and industrial agriculture and businesses have long severed our ties with the people and the land that grow our food. We as consumers have stopped being conscious of where our food comes from, our children only knows that food comes from the supermarket.
Won't it be great to meet the people who grow and produce our produce, our foods. That gives us a little choice on our purchases and how the items we buy affects our environment and the people who are dependant on it. Being conscious about our food sources allows us to be more pro-active in building a more sustainableEarth. Start asking ourselves, how does eating meat affect our environment, or how does growing this apple with pesticides affecting our health and the health of the land?
This new website Caretrace(http://www.caretrace.com) I found recently, has a great idea of connecting us to the source. Being new, it hardly has any food items on the list and minimal information. It would be a delight to see it grow and expand. Do support it.
Here's what it says about Caretrace :
Caretrace allows you to learn more about the origins of your food and the people who produce it. Trace products to a farm and read biogs, watch videos and explore maps.
You can also link products to projects and find out how some of the money spent is going to good causes which benefit the local communities where these products are made.
Eating raw potatos poisonous?
"Do you know that eating raw potato is poisonous?"
A friend munched on while we were making some lunch conversations of my recent fascination on raw foods. He was not the first person to tell me that. The first person who gave me that info, warned by not to go raw on potatos. I did give him a little old home folk remedy piece, the raw potato juice, rich in potassium and other minerals is use to treat gout,rheumatism and arthritis.
My aunt's brother in-law has been drinking raw potato juice every morning on a daily basis for the past few years is still very much alive and without any side effects.
Intrigued and wondered if this is yet another urban legend, a false or misleading fact not verified but passed down by many innocent folks who take word of mouth as facts.
So ok, we are told since young, that we shouldn't eat green potatos or potatos with sprouts runs true, well partly.
Potatos originated from South America, comes from the Solanaceae nightshade family, it is one of the most commonly cultivated tubers in the world.
Potato contains Solanine & chaconine, glycoalkaloids that is concentrated in the leaves and the sprouts of the plant. However it is not the green in the potato that is poisonous. Its the chlorophyll that gives the Green. Potatos contains chlorophyll resulting from excessive exposure to light. This same process of photosynthesis that produces chlorophyll also produces solanine, that are toxic and affects the body's nervous system.
So avoid eating the green tubers or new sprouts, remove any of the budding sprouts, remove the green skin. Cooking the spud above 170 °C or 340 °F does destroy some concentration.
Solanine mostly contains just below the skin of the spud, but in some spuds, the level varies. So you could probably remove the skin and still able to eat the green spud.
Fun facts :
Non-organic potatos contain high concentration of pesticides. They may contain dieldrin (lung cancer) and methamidophos (muscle and motor cranial paralysis), and aldicarb (respiratory paralysis). So where possible, eat Organic Potatos.
Not so Fun Fact:
Wanna know what the medical term for Potato Poisoning called?
Solanum tuberosum poisoning.
Symptoms
* Hypothermia (lower than normal body temperature)
* Paralysis
* Shock
* Fever
* Slowed breathing
* Dilated pupils
* Vision changes
* Stomach or abdominal pain
* Vomiting
* Diarrhea
* Slow pulse
* Headache
* Delirium
* Loss of sensation
* Hallucinations
Quick cure : Induce vomitting, swallow activated charcoal, admit to emergency.
More Fun Facts on the uses of Raw potatos :
Cure Common Warts
Raw potatoes are chock full of Potassium, Vitamin C and Iron. If you have a common wart you want to get rid of, cut off a piece off a raw potato. Rub the flesh side over the wart so it's completely covered with the juice. Then, discard the potato piece. Don't rinse the juice off. Do this daily until the wart is gone.
Soothe Minor Skin Burns
Another unusual use for a raw potato is to treat minor burns. The next time you get a burn, peel and dice up a small potato- or use a piece of a peeled potato, depending how large the affected area is- into fine pieces. Add a bit of tap water, just enough to make a paste. Apply the potato paste to the burn and let it set undisturbed for several minutes. You should feel relief from the pain.
Remove Berry Stains From Your Hands
Berry stains are tough to remove. Rub the stains with a peeled, raw potato, they should come right off! Finish by rinsing the juice and the berry stains off your hands with plenty of tap water.
Remove Excess Salt From Soups and Stews
Cut up one or two washed, raw potatoes and drop them into the pot. Allow the potato to cook for several minutes, then use a slotted spoon to remove the pieces. The potato will have absorbed the excess salt.
Get Rid of a Throbbing Headache
Slice the potato in half and place a piece on each temple. Gently rub your temples with the potato until the pain lets up.
Give Your Geraniums a Nutritional Boost
If you're planting young Geranium plants, or you have existing plants that are looking a little anemic, a raw potato can help make them grow better. Just cut up a small raw potato and place it into the hole along with the plant. To give existing Geranium plants a boost, dig some of the soil out and away from the stem. Place the pieces of raw potato around the stem, then replace the soil.
Raw Potato juice to your Car Washer
Add raw potato juice in your organic vegetable based environmentally friendly car detergent.
It helps disintegrate tough stains or spots on your car without damaging the paint work.
What organic food to buy if you can't go fully organic?
Studies based on 1999 studies by Consumers Union (CU)and the Environmental Working Group (EWG)
The two groups analyzed the amounts and toxicity of pesticide residues found in conventionally grown food samples by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. While most of these foods don’t exceed safety tolerances for a dose of a single pesticide, most contain multiple pesticide residues. CU and EWG have also considered combined exposures and risks to children. One-year-olds eat three times as many fresh peaches, per pound of body weight, as do adults, and more than four times as many apples and pears, according to CU’s Consumer Reports. In addition, children’s rapidly developing bodies are more vulnerable than adults’ are. Pregnant women should take care, too, as many pesticides cross the placenta to expose the fetus. Although DDT and related chemicals such as dieldrin have been banned in the U.S. for over 20 years, these pesticides can still be found in foods that absorb them from the soil. To reduce your pesticide exposure, you can peel fruit that you would normally just rinse, such as apples and pears. Some pesticides, like dieldrin, aldicarb and DDT, however, are systemic, pervading the flesh of the vegetable or fruit.
10 Fruits And Vegetables To Buy Organic
Peaches
Summer’s blushing fruit contains high residues of iprodione, classified as a probable human carcinogen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and methyl parathion, an endocrine disruptor and organophosphate (OP) insecticide. Methyl parathion has caused massive kills of bees and birds. According to Consumer Reports, single servings of peaches "consistently exceeded" EPA’s safe daily limit for a 44-pound child.
Apples
Apples may contain methyl parathion. Both fresh apples and baby food applesauce can also contain chlorpyrifos, an OP which has caused large bird kills. CORE Values IPM apple growers are trying to phase out OPs.
Pears
Pears, both fresh and in baby food, can also come with methyl parathion, as well as the OP azinphos-methyl, which is toxic to freshwater fish, amphibians and bees.
Winter Squash
Dieldrin, a chlorinated, carcinogenic insecticide, exceeded the safe daily limit for a young child in two-thirds of positive samples. Another potent carcinogen, heptachlor, also showed up. DDT and its breakdown product, DDE, were detected in baby food squash.
Green Beans
Green Beans can contain acephate, methamidophos and dimethoate (three neurotoxic OPs), and endosulfan, an endocrine-disrupting insecticide, which showed up in baby food, too. Acephate disorients migrating birds, throwing them off course.
U.S. grapes contain methyl parathion and methomyl, a carbamate insecticide listed as an endocrine disruptor; imports may contain dimethoate.
Strawberries
The enhanced red color of strawberries comes from the fungicide captan, a probable human carcinogen that can irritate skin and eyes, and is highly toxic to fish. While the lethal soil fumigant methyl bromide doesn’t show up on the fruit, it has harmed California farm workers, and depletes the ozone layer.
Raspberries
These berries can contain captan, iprodione and carbaryl, a suspected endocrine disruptor that has also been found in plum baby food
Spinach
Permethrin, a possible human carcinogen, and dimethoate dominate spinach’s toxicity ratings, but CU notes that residue levels have been declining as U.S. farmers reduce use of these insecticides. DDT has been found in spinach, which leads all foods in exceeding safety tolerances.
Potatoes
Pesticide use on potatoes is growing, CU warns. They may contain dieldrin and methamidophos, and children eating potatoes risk getting a very high dose of aldicarb, CU says.
Note: In an update to its 1999 report, Consumers Union announced two more foods high in chlorpyrifos or other pesticide residues: tomatoes and cantaloupe.
The Sprouts of Life
Ever have trouble digesting beans or grains properly?
Want a great and cheap way to stay healthy?
Sprout them!
For those into Raw and Living Foods, sprouts are an essential part of the living diet.
The Lowdown on Sprouts:
- Enzymes , digestion and Nutritional info
Some of the most nutritious are rye, fenugreek, wheat, mung bean, lentils, and alfalfa. The increase of vitamins in sprouts is tremendous during the sprouting period, compared to the unsprouted seed. Studies from India and Asia show increases in carotene and vitamin A, Dr. C.W. Bailey of the University of Minnesota showed, in a study attempting to establish the importance of enzymes in the human body, that vitamin C value increased by 600 percent in sprouted wheatgrass.
Many Brassicas sprouts (such as broccoli, cabbage, mustard, radish) contain high amount of anti-oxidants and increased vitamins and minerals.
According to John Hopkins University researchers estimates that a three day Broccoli sprouts contains 20 to 50 times the anti-oxidant compound sulfurophane than matured broccoli. Radish seeds may also have the anti-cancer potential according to Australian researchers (Australia Department of Primary Industries Queensland)
How to Sprout (takes 2-3days)
Sprouting is easy, a little time consuming, but its highly nutritious and great low budget option for those who find organic produce too expensive.
- Soak your beans in filtered clean water for 12-24 hours (depending on beans). Quality of water is important if you want your sprouts to taste great.
- Use a wide mouthed glass jar and filling up to one third of it with seeds. Sterilise the glass jar with hydrogen peroxide. Fit a piece of mesh (or muslin netting) over the mouth of the jar with a rubber band. The jar should be airy and slightly exposed.
- Rinse and drain the beans four times for every 8 hours, Find a cool place out of the sun to keep your jar tilted downwards at an angle to keep your beans oxygenated. Cover with tea-towel - beans need darkness to germinate.
- Rinse the beans with fresh filtered water. This is important. Germinated seeds/beans in our tropical and humid weather encourages bacterial and fungal growth. But regular rinsing with water oxygenates the seeds, preventing fungal growth. If sprouts smells bad, dump it and restart.
- When sprouts are ready, give them final rinse. Sprouted tail should be at least 2 times the length of the bean/seed
- Make sure the sprouts are completely drained of fluids and lightly moist. Store them in the fridge in a glass jar or zip-lock bag.
Further reference
-Book: "Sprout for the Love of Every Body"by author Viktoras Kulvinskas
- Raw and Living Food Website http://www.living-foods.com/articles/
Charlie Trotter : Mango Coconut Curry
From Charlie Trotter's "Raw"
This is my favorite, its easy and quick. Not a fan of cashew milk, plus its difficult to get bland raw cashews. Most cashews in Singapore are roasted and salted and extremely expensive. I replace it with almonds or sometimes rice milk.
For substitutes I use calamasi lime instead of key lime.
Agave syrup instead of maple. I also add soaked mejol dates for a further body.
Mango, Coconut And Curry
Serves 2
1/4 cup chopped young Thai coconut meat
1/2 cup coconut water
1 mango, peeled, pitted and chopped
1/4 cup raw cashews, soaked for 8 hours in filtered water and drained
1/4 cup cashew milk
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed Key lime juice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup maple sugar
1 1/2 cups crushed ice
1 teaspoon Indian Spice Mix or sweet curry powder, plush extra for garnish
Combine the coconut meat and coconut water in a high-speed blender and process until smooth. Remove half of the puree from the blender and reserve. Add the remaining ingredients to the coconut puree in the blender and process until smooth. Pour into chilled glasses and spoon an equal amount of the reserved coconut mixture on top of each glass. Sprinkle each serving with a pinch of spice mix.
Charlie Trotter : Fennel Morel Roll
From Charlie Trotter's "RAW". This is rather complicated and relatively pricey dish. Fennel is hard to find this time of the year. Last I saw fennel on sale in Singapore was Culina at Dempsey road. You can find Morsels at the same store at the usual inflated Culina prices.
Morel Fennel Rolls
Serves 4
This preparation is simultaneously earthy and refined. The flavors of the morels and the fennel work together harmoniously, and both are successfully offset by the accompanying vinaigrettes. The opal basil in one provides a clean, peppery, floral flavor, while the mustard seeds and the chile vinegar in the other add a refreshing and decisive bite that nicely harnesses all the flavors on the plate.
Fennel Puree
1 cup chopped fennel
1 to 2 tablespoons filtered water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Celtic sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Morels
12 large dried morel mushrooms
1 1/2 cups filtered water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Sliced Fennel
1/3 cup thinly sliced fennel
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
Celtic sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Opal Basil Vinaigrette
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh opal basil
Celtic sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Mustard Vinaigrette
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chile vinegar
2 tablespoons mustard seeds, soaked for 10 to 12 hours in filtered water and drained
Celtic sea salt and freshly ground pepper
16 fennel fronds, each 1 inch long
freshly ground pepper
METHOD
To Make the Fennel Puree: In a high-speed blender, combine the chopped fennel, 1 tablespoon water, and the olive oil and process until smooth and thick, adding more water if needed to create a thick, but not stiff, consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside about 3/4 cup to use for the layering of the morel slices. Reserve the remainder for another use.
To prepare the morels: Combine the morels, water, and olive oil in a bowl and let soak for 1 hour to rehydrate. Remove the morels from the liquid and slice each mushroom into 1/2-inch-thick rings. (Save the trimmings for another use.)
To prepare the sliced fennel: Combine the sliced fennel, olive oil, and lemon juice in a bowl and toss to mix. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To make the Opal Basil Vinaigrette: Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, and basil in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To make the Mustard Vinaigrette: Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, and mustard seeds in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
ASSEMBLY - To layer the morel slices: Place a morel mushroom ring on a work surface and place a few marinated fennel slices on the ring. Spoon 2 teaspoons of the Fennel Puree over the slices and top with fennel frond. Top with a second mushroom ring, followed by a few marinated fennel slices, and 2 more teaspoons Fennel Puree. Top with a final mushroom ring and then a fennel frond. Repeat until you have 8 mushrooms stacks in all.
Place 2 mushroom stacks in the center of each plate. Spoon the Opal Basil Vinaigrette and Mustard Vinaigrette around the mushroom stacks. Top with pepper.
WINE NOTES - Morel mushrooms are a luxury food item, so why not pair them with a truly special bottle of wine? The feminine grace of Comte de Vogue's Musigny Vieilles Vignes makes it the quintessential Burgundy. The earthy, mushroomy, and anisey flavors of the dish call for a wine that has a bottle age to soften its hard edges. Lighter-bodied Pinot Noir from the village of Chambolle-Musigny, where the grand cru Musigny Vineyard is found, not only tastes like the soil in which it was grown, but also has the elegance and finesse to allow all of the flavors in the dish to be appreciated.
Charlie Trotter : Crusted Cashew Cheese
From Charlie Trotter's "RAW", takes 3 days to prepare.
Three Peppercorn-Crusted Cashew Cheese With Honeycomb And Balsamic Vinegar
Serves 4
This is a stunning combination of textures and flavors. First, there are the juxtapositions of the crunchy peppercorn pieces and the creamy cheese, the crispy Smoked Almonds and the chewy dried apricots, the erotic gooeyness of the honeycomb mounds and the elegant crispiness of the thyme sprouts. Then we have heat, sweetness, pepperiness, sourness, and acidity all rolled into one. The result is a complex, yet harmonious, enticement.
Smoked Almonds
1 cup raw almonds, soaked for 8 to 10 hours in filtered water
1/4 teaspoon smoked salt, crushed
1 cup Cashew Cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons black peppercorns, crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons green peppercorns, crushed
1 tablespoon pink peppercorn shells, crushed
1/4 pound honeycomb, broken into small pieces just before using
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots
4 teaspoons 12-year-old Villa Manodori balsamic vinegar
8 teaspoons micro thyme sprouts
Celtic sea salt
To Make the Cashew Cheese:
Yields 3 cups
3 cups raw cashews, soaked for 10 to 12 hours in filtered water and drained
1/4 cup Rejuvelac (see below)
1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
In a high-speed blender or a Champion juicer with the blank plate in place, process the cashews until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the Rejuvelac and salt, mixing well. Line a sieve with a double thickness of cheesecloth and place over a bowl. Transfer the mixture to the sieve, drape the cheesecloth over the top, and leave in a warm place to ripen for 12 hours.
Remove the cheese from the cloth-lined sieve. Shape the mixture into a round, place in a covered container, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, or until it firms up. Use immediately, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
To make the Rejuvelac:
Yield 4 cups
1/2 cup wheat or rye berries
filtered water as needed
In the evening, place the wheat or rye berries in a sprouting jar, and fill the jar with water. Let stand overnight. The next morning, drain the berries and spread them on a sprouting rack (a plastic or glass rectangular container lined with wet paper towels can be substituted). Leave them to sprout for 1 to 2 days, rinsing them 3 times a day. They are ready when 1/4-inch tails have emerged.
Place the sprouts in a wide container with at least 3-inch-high sides and add 4 cups filtered water. Let stand in a warm spot for 12 to 14 hours, or until liquid smells lightly fermented.
Strain off the liquid (this is the Rejuvelac) into a clean jar. Use immediately, or cover tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The same sprouts may be used 3 more times to make additional Rejuvelac.
METHOD
To Make the Smoked Almonds: Drain the almonds, place in a bowl, and toss with the smoked salt. Spread the almonds on a nonstick drying sheeting on a dehydrator shelf and dehydrate at 105-degrees for 24 hours, or until crisp. Remove the almonds from the dehydrator, quarter 4 almonds lengthwise, and coarsely chop 8 almonds. Reserve the remaining almonds for another use.
To Prepare the Cheese:
Press the Cashew Cheese into a ring mold 5 inches in diameter and 1-inch deep. Combine all the peppercorns in a bowl, stir well, and then sprinkle the peppercorn mix onto the top of the cheese. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. Carefully remove the cheese from the mold and cut into 4 wedges.
ASSEMBLY: Please a wedge of the peppercorn-crusted cheese on each plate. Arrange one-fourth of the honeycomb pieces, dried apriocots, and Smoked Almonds in a line down the plate. Spoon 1 teaspoon of the vinegar around the honeycomb pieces, apricots, and almonds. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of the thyme sprouts and salt to taste.
WINE NOTES: Abundantly scented Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley reflects the honey, apricots, and smoked almond flavors of the dish. The Cashew Cheese is generously crusted with peppercorns, which adds up to some spicy heat. Savennieres made by Nicolas Joly is a unique and complex wine that becomes more focused when it is paired with this course. Joly is also one of the most outspoken champions of biodynamic farming.
Charlie Trotter : Portabello Pave
Here's a slightly less time consuming Charlie Trotter receipe take from his book "Raw"
Portabello Mushroom Pave' With White Asparagus Vinaigrette
Serves 4
The meatiness of the marinated portabellos is enormously satisfying, but the aromatic flavor of jalapeno, garlic, ginger, cilantro and soy are what pushes this creation over the top. The creamy white asparagus contributes richness and acts as the perfect cohesive element. Button or cremini mushrooms are suitable substitutes for the portabellos.
Pave'
6 large portabello mushrooms
2 1/2 cups filtered water
1/2 cup nama shoyu
1/4 cup minced, peeled fresh ginger
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 jalapeno chile, seeded and minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup minced shallot
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
White Asparagus Vinaigrette
2 stalks pencil-thin white asparagus, trimmed
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons grape-seed oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons raw tahini
1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons white sesame seeds
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground coriander
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons filtered water
Celtic sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Freshly ground pepper
METHOD
To make the pave': Remove the stems and gills from the mushrooms. Discard the stems and place the gills in a bowl. Add the water and let stand while you slice the mushrooms. Cut the mushrooms on the extreme diagonal into paper-thin slices.
Combine the shoyu, ginger, garlic, chile, cilantro, shallot, and lemon juice in a bowl. Strain the liquid from the mushroom trimmings, discarding the solids, and add the liquid to the shoyu mixture. Carefully dip each mushroom slice into the shoyu mixture and lay the slices in the bottom of a shallow container. Pour the remaining shoyu mixture over them. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Line a 4-by 2-inch pan with plastic wrap, allowing an overhang on 2 opposite sides. Remove the mushroom slices from the liquid and layer them in the prepared pan, overlapping the slices and continuing until you have used all the slices. Cover with the overhanging plastic wrap and press down gently with your hand. Top with another pan that fits into the rim, then place a 2-pound weight on the second pan. Refrigerate the pave' for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Just before serving, remove the weight and the second pan, then invert the pave' onto a cutting board and peel away the plastic wrap. Cut into 4 equal pieces, reserving any juices that drip from the pave'.
To Make the White Asparagus Vinaigrette:
Slice the white asparagus into 1/4-inch pieces. Combine the asparagus pieces and mint in a bowl and toss to mix. In a high-speed blender, combine the grapeseed oil, vinegar, lemon juice, tahini, sesame seeds, shallot, garlic, coriander, and water and process until smooth. Pass the puree through a fine-mesh sieve placed over a bowl. Fold in the asparagus mixture and season to taste with salt and pepper. Measure out 8 tablespoons; reserve the remainder for another use.
ASSEMBLY: Place a piece of the pave' in the center of each plate. Spoon the reserved juices from the pave' around the plate. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the asparagus vinaigrette around the plate and top with pepper.
WINE NOTES: Pisoni Estate Pinot Noil offers an exciting contrast to the earthy flavor of the portabellos. Located in the Santa Lucia Highlands of California's Monterey County, Pisoni's estate vineyard is planted with ungrafted Pinot Noir vines that produce wines of incredible intensity and richness. These deftly balanced wines will also elevate the soy and sesame flavors of the dish.
Charlie Trotter Raw Recipe Bleeding Heart Radish Ravioli
From Charlie Trotter's Book "Raw"
Bleeding Heart Radish Ravioli With Yellow Tomato Sauce
Diced yellow tomatoes, marinated in olive oil, act as the sauce and provide a complementary acidic note to the herbed cheese filling and crunchy radish. For a different textural effect, process the tomato sauce in a high-speed blender. Here in Singapore where it's tough getting yellow organic tomato and herbs, substitute with normal red ones.
Ravioli
40 very thin slices peeled bleeding heart radish, each at least 1 1/2 inches in diameter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Celtic sea salt
1 1/4 cups Herb Cheese (see below)
2 large very ripe yellow tomatoes, seeded and cut into medium dice
2 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon sherry wine vinegar
Celtic sea salt and freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoons fresh opal basil flowers or micro leaves
To Make the Herb Cheese:
Yield 1 1/4 cups
1 cup Cashew Cheese (see recipe below)
4 teaspoons filtered water
1 teaspoon minced shallot
1/4 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon large flake nutritional yeast
1/4 teaspoon Celtic sea salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
Combine the Cashew Cheese, water, shallot, lemon juice, yeast, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a bowl and stir until thoroughly mixed. Stir in the basil and thyme until evenly distributed. Taste and adjust with additional salt, if needed. Use immediately, or store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
METHOD
To make the ravioli: Use a 2-inch ring mold to cut each radish slice into a perfect round. Rub the radish slices with the olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt. Place 1 tablespoon of the cheese in the center of half of the radish slice. Carefully place a second radish slice on top of the spoonful of cheese and gently press the outer edges together to create a seal. Repeat to make 20 ravioli in all.
Combine the tomatoes, chives, olive oil, and vinegar in a bowl and mix gently. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
ASSEMBLY - Using a slotted spoon, spoon one-fourth of the tomato mixture into the center of each plate. Arrange 5 ravioli over the tomatoes, overlapping them slightly. Spoon some of the juices from the tomatoes on top. Sprinkle with the basil flowers.
WINE NOTES: There are a number of good possibilities here. Sanigovese springs to mind because it is one of the few red wines that is not flabby when paired with tomatoes. Isole e Olena Chianti is light-bodied, fruity red. During peak season, when tomatoes are at their sweetest and ripest, a Barbera from Vietti or Dolcetto d'Alba from Pio Cesare would be a good choice.