Got Sorrel?



Winter visited us again. We had three days of rain, cold, wind and even winter storm warnings in the Sierra. Between storms I took this shot of the oak in front of my house. Imagine how heavy that tree must be with all the rain caught in the leaves.

Don't have any sorrel in your garden? Sorrel is not as popular here in the U.S. as it is in Europe. It is almost never in the market. I am not sure why. Perhaps it is because it wilts easily once it has been cut. But surely European markets and wholesalers to restaurant have the same problem. Whatever the reason, if you are going to buy sorrel you will probably have to find it at a farmers market and even that is iffy. Maybe you will just have to find a plant. When you do it will probably be the Garden Sorrel (rumex acestosa)

If you live in zone 5 or warmer, you can grow sorrel easily and once you have it you will have it for a long time. A plant will last for at least three years, maybe much longer. Every year or so you might find an off-spring popping up. If you don't need it as a replacement, you can share with a friend. Sorrel forms a mound about a foot high.The plant doesn't take much care. A little compost when planted and another handful from time to time. It likes full sun.

I found my plants at my farmers market. Sorrel can be planted from seed, but I have never tried. There are a number of varieties including one, Spinach rhubarb (r.abyssinicus) which grows up to eight feet tall. The leaves can be used like spinach, the stalks like rhubarb. That sounds a bit out of my realm of reality. I grow two kinds of sorrel. Plain old Garden  Sorrel is my stand by. Its leaves are soft, green and more rounded than my second plant. I assume my newer one is related to the French sorrel (r. scutatus) as its leaves are sharply pointed. It is a smaller mound; the leaves have red veins. The color is striking and tiny leaves add that lemon tang to a salad. I bought it because I read that Love Apple Farm was growing it for Chef David Kinch at Manresa Restaurant and I wanted to try it.

Sorrel is used both as an herb and as a vegetable. One usually removes the stem as in other greens. The majority of recipes call for making it into a puree first. It does well in leek based soups, in cream and butter sauces adding a tang similar to lemon. You might want to try it julienned to fine strips to top a fish, especially a white fish like halibut. Top that with melted butter. The puree can be added to a stuffing for chicken or fish.
Here in zone 8B the sorrel is available all year around. In some areas it dies back and in others it needs to be replaced annually. Check with your advisors. As to nutrition, you will find it a source for vitamins A and C and oxalic acid (like spinach).

Sorrel Tart
tarte d'oseillie
This tart has a mild sorrel taste and is very delicate. Serve warm.



Crust

1 pie crust (yours or purchased)

Line a 9", shallow tart pan with the pie crust. Fill with pie weights or beans and bake at 350 for 6 minutes. Remove and let cool. It is only half cooked at this point.

Pureed Sorrel

About 10 ounces of sorrel, stems removed.

1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth

1/4 cup butter divided

If you don't have a scale the sorrel would be about the same size as a healthy bunch of spinach from the market.

Stem then dice the sorrel. Place in a skillet with the broth and bring to simmer. Cook, stirring until the broth has evaporated. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and stew the mixture until the sorrel has become a puree and any liquid is gone. Remove to a bowl and let cool.

The Rest of the Ingredients

1/2 a large white onion, diced very small

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

3 eggs

1 tablespoon minced chives

Freshly ground pepper to taste

Chive blossoms, if desired

Add the remaining butter to the skillet and saute onions slowly over low heat; do not brown. This will take time. Remove and add to sorrel Mixing well. Set aside. 

Heat oven to 375

Whisk together the eggs, cream and pepper. Mix the egg mixture with the sorrel mixture and pour all into the pie shell. Bake at 375 for about 40 minutes. Check for doneness by dipping a knife into the custard. If it comes out clean it is ready. It should be just a little jiggly in the center. Set on rack to cool slightly. Decorate with chive blossoms if desired. The tart should be served warm.



 



The Season is On!

is

The Iris have started their season

The weather is great and the gardens are blooming. It is that part of the garden year when we plant and plant and dream of what we will reap No thoughts of the wild turkeys tearing up the greens nor raccoons eating the fruits of our labor, just visions of what will be on the table later. Such a lovely time of year.

While waiting for the weather to cooperate and let me into the garden I noted a few websites that might help anyone who is new to this gardening bit. In the Christian Science Monitor I found Eight Keys to Growing Great Vegetables, excellent advice for the novice as well as those of us who have been around a while.

Roaming around the electronic landscape I found another goody. Patricia Wells has a new book out. I have been a fan of hers since she published The Grand Diplome books. Sorry for the grief they caused her, but ever so grateful for the books. Should you run upon a used set, buy it! You will be ever thankful you did. But to her new book, Salad as a Meal. The recipes are great and as you may know she is a master at explaining things thoroughly and correctly. She is an excellent teacher.

Recipe

As I perused the recipes in Salad as a Meal, I got to thinking.....I have a great recipe to go with these great salads. I hadn't used it for some time so I got it out, made it and yes, this is the roll to go with salads. They are feathery light but there is enough "spunk" here to stand up to almost any dinner or luncheon salad.

Be sure to use good extra sharp Cheddar for this. The pepper should be ground as coarsely as your pepper grinder allows. As I said, this roll has spunk!

Peppery Cheddar Rolls

Ingredients

3 cups all purpose flour

1 scant tablespoon instant dry yeast (1 package)

2 tablespoons potato buds (instant potatoes)
1 Tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper

3/4 cups milk

1 tablespoon sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons oil

2 eggs, room temperature; one for the dough, one for the glaze

2/3 cup coarsely shredded extra sharp Cheddar cheese

Sesame seeds, optional

Into a large bowl place half of the flour and all the yeast and pepper. Stir to mix. Warm the milk slightly (to about 90 degrees). Add the salt and sugar, stirring to dissolve. Pour this into the flour mix, add the egg and beat for 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl and continue beating for four minutes.

Stir in the cheese. Add 1 cup flour and beat for another two minutes. Change to dough hook, or turn out on a floured board and beat in or knead in all or most of the remaining flour. The dough should clear the bowl but still be soft and sticky if using a mixer or should be soft, have the structure to form a ball and still be sticky if kneading.

Place the dough in a well oiled bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place for 90 minutes. When well risen turn out on a flowered board, deflating the dough just enough to work with it. Cut into 12 pieces.

Roll each into a rope about 8 inches long.

Make a loop with this rope, placing right end over the left.

Continue with what was the right end and move it under the circle and up into the middle. Tuck in securely

Take the remaining end and pull it over and into the center of the bun, poking it in deeply. If it isn't  perfectly smooth, don't worry, it won't show in the end.

Set on parchment covered baking pan. Repeat with each rope. Quickly beat the remaining egg, just enough to mix well. Paint each roll with this egg glaze. Sprinkle with sesame seeds if using. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes. Heat oven to 375 and bake 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Serve warm with summer salad.

Enjoy

The World in Bloom

A shade rose I bought from Jackson Perkins years ago. Can not find it in their catalogue now.

The world is in bloom. Even the first of the roses are open. It is almost Easter and the weather is almost normal, for which local gardeners are really grateful. Of course, I am now behind, way behind, in my garden chores. Once again we jump from "when will the weather cooperate so we can get things done" to "how did I get so far behind?" I will spend the next few weeks just trying to catch up.

My onions are coming on nicely, at least the sets are. Those from seeds do not seem to be going anywhere. Those seedlings still under lights have been transplanted out of flats into individual cells. Will that help? Some say it will.



Small slender teaspoon held all those acorns easily.


 I am finding strange volunteers. Earlier Muscare started popping up in odd places. I thought that might be because the acorns were so very small last fall (see photo) that the squirrels were desperately digging up anything they could find. Now I find a Freesia in a place where they have never been. Did they transplant that, too?

Clematis climbing an Oak tree

The Clematis has been blooming for about a week. The tomatoes are out on the front porch, getting some sun and/or drizzle and looking pretty happy. The winter squash are still under grow lights but will go outside soon. I am trying two new varieties this year. How could I resist Bakers catalogue's "Red Warty Thing"? The other, also from Bakers, is a Bush Butternut squash. I am doing more and more in pots these days since it is easier to find a spot of sun for a flower pot than for an entire raised bed. Last year my pots were quite successful for both winter and summer squash as well as tomatoes and peppers in pots of various shapes. Most, but not all, are self watering which seems to be saving water as well.

Recipe

For Easter I thought I would share with you something I learned when we lived in Georgia. I was very young and rather naive about the customs and food habits of the different parts of the U.S. when I first arrived in the South. It was fun learning things like how to cook an entire Country Ham in a pot of Coca Cola. This began a life long learning experience.

As you probably know, Coca Cola was born in Georgia and when I was there it had a strong hold on its place in the diet of the people, at least all of those I met. Now, I have to admit, I never actually adapted that method of ham preparation for my family but I did  a shorter version, braising a ham steak in Coke. It was quite good. If you want to try it, simply brown a thick ham steak (I use butter) in a skillet, add Coke to just cover the steak. Cover the skillet and simmer, until it is tender, about 10 to 20 minutes. Remove from skillet and serve. If you wish you can reduce the liquid left in the skillet and pour over the ham.

This really isn't such a far step from all the other sweet things we add to our hams and the taste of Coca Cola is a lot more complex than maple syrup or other glazes we use routinely.
I am not going to suggest that you try one of those recipes for your Easter dinner, but I do want to share an idea that might be a nice change from the glaze you have been using on your baked ham.

Dried Cherry Sauce

1 tablespoon oil
1 cup finely chopped onions
1 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup Coca Cola
1 cup dried, pitted cherries

Heat oil in skillet and add the onions. Stir, then slowly cook until transparent but not brown.
Put the cornstarch in a small bowl. Stir in just enough broth to make a loose paste. Stir in the rest of the broth and then add the mixture to the onions. Stir; bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened.
Add honey, lemon juice and Cocoa Cola. Cut half the  cherries into halves and stir into the mix. Simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool a few minutes. When cool enough not to be dangerous, place in a food processor and coarsely chop. Return to the stove, add the rest of the cherries and heat until the added cherries are plump.
Glaze the ham about 15 minutes before it comes out of the oven, and again after it comes out of the oven. Or use as a sauce over the carved meat just before serving.
This makes about 3 cups of sauce and goes well with ham, duck, roast pork and smoked meats and poultry.

There is no picture this posting as I haven't made the sauce for this year's dinner yet, and I don't have a archive pictures from a previous dinner. I can tell you it is a deeply colored sauce and kind of bumpy.

I will post this while en route to see the grand kids... have a nice weekend!

Spring, winter, spring again

Last posting I told you how cold it was here in Northern California. It was. The day after I posted that the temperature shot up to a surprising 80 degrees, almost 20 degrees above normal. The following week the weather was a little above normal and really just lovely. Yesterday the temperatures dropped back to 10 degrees below normal and I was cold all day; we had just barely missed a serious frost the night before. Had it come it would have been a disaster to the budding grape vines. Goodness knows the growers don't need any more bad turns after the last very terrible year.

Everything has started to bloom. We have gone past the "yellow season" and into more colors. The camellias, above, are giving a great show this year. The countryside is covered with the pink and white apple blossoms. I do think Spring may actually have come.

Onion update. The sets I bought from Johnny's are doing fine. I have clipped them and they sprout right up again. The next test will be if they bulb up. When the warm weather sets in we shall see. For the most part the seedlings I set out have failed. Weather? Me? I can find a few but even those don't seem to be getting anywhere. I have more to set out, we will see if the timing makes a difference.

Recipe

Spring brings thoughts of lettuce. In my garden the winter lettuce is almost gone and the new lettuce isn't very big yet.
This recipe is not really for garden lettuce. Iceberg is preferable; Romaine could be used.

It is a  wonder that we do not usually eat lettuce as a vegetable. The French eat cooked lettuce and the Chinese make great use of it ... in China. I have never seen it in a Chinese restaurant in this country. I suspect the proprietors of same try hard to appease their customers. Why else did I find Baguettes and butter in that Chinese restaurant just outside Boston? Gloria Bley Miller's definitive Chinese cookbook, The Thousand Recipe Chinese Cookbook has several recipes for cooked lettuce and I don't remember that any of them involved using the lettuce as a container.
This recipe may look long and involved but I do think you could get it done in about 20 to 30 minutes the first time and a lot faster after you have done it once.

Lettuce with Shrimp, Chinese Style

1/2 pound shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 nickel size slices of ginger, minced

3-4 scallions
1 medium size Iceberg lettuce

2 teaspoons Shao Hsing wine (or dry sherry)
1/8 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons unflavored oil, grapeseed is nice
1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
1 clove garlic, crushed

1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper (or 1/4 teaspoon black pepper)
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Directions:
Preparation

Set platter in a warm place

Blot off excess moisture from shrimp and place in a bowl, add cornstarch and ginger and toss to coat.

Cut scallions diagonally into 1 inch pieces.

Pull apart the head lettuce and roughly tear into three to four inch squares.

Mix together the broth and the wine.

Now you have done all the work. From here on it is  just a matter of putting it together.

Heat a wok, or a large skillet, over medium heat. Add oils. Add the garlic. Heat, stirring, until the garlic starts to take on color and has flavored the oil. Remove the garlic and discard. Into the skillet add shrimp, salt, sugar and peppers. Stir fry for about 1 minute. Shrimp will be just barely pink.

Remove shrimp to a warm place. Add lettuce and scallions to skillet and stir to coat. Cook for about 1 minute more. Return the shrimp to the skillet and finish cooking, about 1 minute more. Turn  the heat to high and add the stock and wine. Spoon the lettuce onto the warm platter, top with the shrimp and continue cooking the liquid until it is reduced. Pour over the shrimp and serve immediately.

Shao Hsing wine is quite inexpensive, usually way under $3. It adds a quality to this dish that sherry does not and is worth looking for. Put the cap back on and it keeps in the pantry for about forever. To pronounce it .... Shao rhymes with what you say when you get hurt, "Ow", and Hsing is "sing".