Honey Habanero Hot Sauce

There is a guy in our produce department that special orders chiles from one of our farmers.  He shared a handful of the chiles with me (3 anaheims, 2 orange habanero-looking, 2 red habanero-looking, 2 small green, and 1 small red).  The only thing I can think to do with them is turn them into hot sauce:

1 head garlic
1 1/4 cup carrot, roughly chopped
1 1/4 cup onion, roughly chopped
4 habanero-type chiles, stemmed
3 small mystery chiles, stemmed
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp salt
2 tbsp honey

Note of caution:  I wear gloves when dealing with hot chiles - especially when I don't know exactly how hot they are - because I do not want them anywhere near my face or other sensitive body parts.  And if you've ever dealt with chiles and then touched your face, you know what I'm talking about!  If this by chance happens to you, soak your burning skin in milk to help take the fiery sting away.

Break garlic cloves apart and roast on a baking sheet in a 400 degree oven until blackened in spots, turning occasionally until soft, about 15 minutes. Cool, peel, and set aside.

In a saucepan, combine the carrots, onion, chiles, salt, vinegar and 1 1/2 cups of filtered water. Cover partially and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the carrots are completely soft. (Careful not to inhale the steam!)

Blend all ingredients & their cooking liquid together until smooth.

Makes about 4 cups, which keeps for months in the fridge and makes great gifts.

Dia de los Muertos Potato Salad

Mi familia and I celebrated Dia de los Muertos by visiting the gravesite of my great-great-grandmother, Narcissa.

We had a lovely family BBQ at my brother's; we sang and played piano and danced with my little nieces.  I made potato salad:

2 pounds mixed small heirloom potatoes (purple, red, fingerling...), cut into 1/2" pieces
rice vinegar
olive oil
10 backyard chicken eggs, rinsed clean
handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, grown in my garden, chopped
1 small red onion, diced fine
1/2 cup sweet pickle relish
2 ribs celery from Chino Farms, diced
3/4 - 1 cup homemade mayo
2 tablespoons stoneground mustard
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

In a covered pot, cover potato pieces with water and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until potato is soft but not mushy.  Drain. Drizzle lightly with rice vinegar and olive oil, toss gently, and allow to cool.

Hardboil the eggs -
In a small pot, cover eggs with water and bring to a boil.  Cover, turn off heat, and let sit for 10 minutes.  Drain.  Cool eggs by submerging in cold water.  Peel, chop into 1/2" pieces, and add to potatoes.

Stir in the rest of the ingredients, adding salt & pepper to taste.  My family likes it heavy on the mayo, so this recipe is pretty creamy.

Next year, I'll bring Narcissa tamales...

DIY Figgy Newtons & Preserved Figs

These will not mesh with the luau theme of my aunt's party this weekend,  but 'tis the season.  And if we can control ourselves from eating them all, here's what we'll bring:

Figgy Newtons
1 stick cold butter, cubed
1/3 cup evaporated cane sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3 cups fig preserves (recipe follows)

Drain figs from their syrup (I'm reducing the syrup to save for another recipe). Puree figs into a thick paste.  Return figs to stove and simmer, stirring, to a thick jam consistency.

In a large bowl, cream butter & sugar together.  Add egg, vanilla, and zest and combine.  Add flour, baking powder, and salt and stir until well combined.

Using lots of flour for dusting, roll out dough into long stripes about 3-4 inches wide, 1/4 inch thick.  Spread fig paste and fold dough in half lengthwise and seal dough by pressing together along the edges.  Cut into squares and bake on parchment on cookie sheets at 350 degrees for 25 minutes until cookies begin to brown.

Fig Preserves
2 cups filtered water
6 cups evaporated cane sugar
9 inches of cinnamon stick
a lemon, seeded, quartered, sliced thin
1/4 orange, seeded, sliced thin

8 cups (36 ounces) fresh figs from my mom's neighbor's tree, washed & destemmed

Combine water, sugar and cinnamon in a pot and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and add figs and citrus slices.  Cover and cook 45 minutes.

If not using right away, can by filling sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space, add lids and rings (not too tight).  Boil jars for 15 minutes on a canning rack.  Remove from water bath and let sit, undisturbed overnight.

(adapted from HGTV recipes)

Spinach Linguini with Mushrooms

Even though I was babysitting 2 little girls, that did not detour me from making this dish.  The girls both assured me that they liked mushrooms (but I keep the pasta separate just in case).

1/2 pound spinach linguini, boiled until al dente in salted water
olive oil
1/2 red onion, quartered and sliced thin
sea salt
a few sprigs of thyme, leaves only
6 ounces cremini mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
1 large clove garlic, minced
black pepper
small handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
small handful pinenuts, toasted

Cook and drain pasta, return to pot and toss with a drizzle of olive oil to keep from sticking together.

In a large saute pan, heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil over medium-low heat and lightly caramelize the onions (add thyme also if using dried), stirring frequently.  Increase heat to medium-high, add another tablespoon of olive oil and the mushrooms, stirring frequently until browned.  Turn off heat and add garlic (and thyme if fresh), stir and let sit covered for a couple minutes.  Add sea salt & pepper to taste.  Serve over pasta, topped with parsley & pinenuts, drizzling more olive oil as needed.

No-spouse Acai Bowl

While my spouse is away this weekend, I'm taking the opportunity to make foods I love but he can't or won't eat (for this recipe, that means greens & coconut)...

an acai packet, unsweetened (not something I usually buy but I had a coupon)
3 smallish lacinato kale leaves (love this stuff!)
1/2 frozen banana (free from work: one (of many) major bonus of working at a grocery co-op)
1/3 mango (also free from the co-op)
a handful of frozen berries (I've been stockpiling from this summer's farmers market bounty)
a generous splash of coconut milk or apple juice
spoonful of local honey or 1-2 dates
1/2 teaspoon local bee pollen (optional)
1/2 teaspoon cacao nibs (optional)
slice of fresh ginger (optional)

I do not have the uber-expensive vitamix but I do have a quality blender and it handles acai packets like a champ! Add just enough coconut milk (or other liquid) so it will blend well.  Top with fresh fruit (strawberries from JR Organics Farm) and granola. Update: new favorite acai bowl topping - shredded coconut!

Sourdough Pancakes

Wow.  It is really unbelievable how good these are.  Who knew?  They sounded pretty weird when I first read about them in Wild Fermentation.

But they are ethereal, quite literally.  And of course delicious; actually, the most delicious pancakes I've ever had.  An if you're the type who wakes up hungry (I am not), there's practically no waiting for these to make it to your plate.

This recipe is adapted from The Tassajara Bread Book:

The night before:
1/2 cup starter
2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or flour of your choice)
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons rolled oats (or flour or other grain)
2 tablespoons wheat germ (or flour or other grain)
2 cups lukewarm filtered water

Mix together in a glass bowl, cover with a towel and let stand at room temperature in a draft-free spot overnight.

In the morning:
Remove a cup of the mix (this can be used your starter moving forward).  To the remaining mixture, add
1 beaten egg
2 tablespoons oil
1/2 cup milk (or more for a thinner batter)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons rapadura sugar
1-2 tablespoons of chia, hemp, or other seeds or nuts (optional)

Mix ingredients gently but thoroughly.  Melt a couple pats of butter in a skillet or griddle on medium high heat.  Pour small (close to silver dollar-sized) pancakes and flip when they bubble and have cooked edges (really quickly).  Cook them about another 20-30 seconds (until cooked).

Serve with your favorite pancake toppings.

This also makes heavenly light, crispy waffles!

Spiced Nectarine Preserves

I recently tried a spiced nectarine preserve (or at least, that's what I'm guessing it was) with goat cheese on a crisp, thin bread slice that had been baked with olive oil.  I was at a wedding and the bride is foodie, urban homesteader, and event planner.  It was, of course, a beautiful, delicious farm reception, complete with handmade marshmallows for fair trade chocolate s'mores we made ourselves over a bonfire during a stunning sunset.  Her brother catered, the groom served a homebrewed saison, and wood-fired pizzas were made, while we watched, with locally grown ingredients.  We ate on locally crafted wood tables with sweet, small bouquets of flowers most likely picked on the farm.  It was an affair after my own heart.

And as soon as I tasted those preserves, I knew I had to try to make them.  And lucky for me, nectarines are in season; so I asked my friend/farmers market vendor selling nectarines if they had any overripe fruit they couldn't sell, picked up multiple pounds of the stuff, did some recipe research, waited for the sun to set and the weather to cool a bit before building up a sweat over a hot stove, and came up with this...

6 cups chopped nectarines (remove pits but keep the skins - the pectin is in the skin), from Smit Orchards
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice, from a Schaner Farm lemon
3 cups rapadura sugar
rounded 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves
a slightly crushed cardamom pod (try to fish it out before canning)
a scant pinch of ground cayenne, just for kicks
1 teaspoon homemade vanilla extract

Cook fruit, juice, & sugar at a soft boil for 30-minutes; reduce heat if needed to prevent burning.  Stir often and skim off foam from the surface.  Stir in spices, turn off heat and stir for 5 minutes.  Ladle into sterilized canning jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Wipe rims and jars clean with a damp cloth.  Seal each jar with a lid and barley tighten bands.  Process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.