Lighthearted Locavore

10 Great Foods at New Orleans "Jazz Fest"

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 14:44:00 +0000

You won't see food vendors with names like Emeril Lagasse, Paul Prudhomme, Leah Chase, Susan Spicer or other chef celebrities at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival 2013 (aka Jazz Fest), which runs Friday, April 26th to Sunday, May 5th this year, but you will find some truly delicious N'Awlins culinary classics and awesome music, and crafts. Experts say Jazz Fest attracts more food lovers than any other New Orleans event, Mardi Gras included.

New Orleans Jazzfest Food Court, April 27, 2012 (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Like handicapping your agenda for a five year old at the Magical Kingdom at Disney, navigating the gigantic fairgrounds can be challenging for the uninitiated. Festival goers need to be strategic about which of the 11 music stages to grab a seat at and when, and which of the 60 vendors to dine with. Projected attendance is estimated at 400,000 fans over the seven days of events.

Operated by independent restaurants and caterers from Louisiana, some of which have snagged a highly coveted place at Jazz Fest for decades, the offering is a totally unique menu of local foods, including alligator, trout, crawfish, sweet potatoes, made with lots of spice, love and soul.

Follow your nose and your stomach, or follow the crowd -- the longer the line the more popular the dish. Here are some of my top 10 favorites in 2012 (servings are generous so don't forget to share).

1) Crawfish Monica® is probably the most famous Jazz Fest dish. Pasta and crawfish in a creamy (and top secret roux-based) sauce that's so good the recipe and the name have a copyright. Kajun Kettle Foods has been at Jazz Fest for 30 years. Line length: LONG.

Note: This year there are 18 crawfish dishes (by some accounts over 150,000 pounds worth of crawfish will be served).

Creamy, crawfish Monica (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

2) Pheasant, Quail and Andouille Gumbo -- a sophisticated and rich gumbo for game lovers that will not disappoint. Prejean's Restaurant, Lafayette, LA. Not everyone loves game, but if you do, this is gumbo is a must. Line length: MEDIUM-LONG.

Pheasant, Quail and Andouille Gumbo (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

3) Cochon de Lait - for the truly die-hard, this succulent slow-smoked for 12 hours and shredded suckling pig with cabbage and horseradish sauce served on a piece of French bread has the longest line of all the vendors at Jazz Fest (plan to wait 20 minutes during peak times). Love at First Bite (Walker's Southern Style Barbecue), New Orleans, LA. Line length: VERY LONG.


Cochon de Lait Po-boy (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

4) Mango Freeze - for a light, refreshing and delicious sorbet nothing beats this crowd pleaser as a snack, to cleanse your palette or for a healthy dessert. WWOZ Community Radio. Line length: MEDIUM.

Mango Freeze (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

5) Soft Shell Crab Po-Boy -- restaurants all over New Orleans specialize in this classic, piping hot deep-fried soft shell crab sandwich but eaters claim there are none as good as this po-boy at Jazz Fest (perhaps the crabs just like the music). Galley Seafood Restaurant, Old Metairie, LA. Line length: Varies, MEDIUM to LONG.

Soft Shell Crab Po-Boy (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

6) Freshly Shucked Oysters on the Half Shell -- you can get all kinds of oysters at Jazz Fest -- fried on French bread or in a spinach salad, and Oysters Rockefeller -- but, there's nothing more beautiful than the raw briny bilvalve that you can get inside the Grand Stand ($7 for a half dozen in 2012). After missing 2011's Jazz Fest due to the BP Oil Spill, these oysters are harvested from Louisiana's Black Bay and available again in 2013. They are not only huge, but also delicious.J&M Seafood, Kenner, LA. Line Length: LONG

Louisiana Black Bay Oysters (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

7) Vietnamese Spring Roll (goi cuon) with peanut dipping sauce -- these vermicelli and lettuce stuff shrimp spring roll are light and tasty. If you're trying to watch your calorie intake this is the "go to" meal. I had mine for breakfast with a cafe au lait and a bite of a sugary beignet. Ba Mien Vietnamese Cuisine, New Orleans, LA. Line length: MEDIUM

Shrimp, Vermicelli, and Rice Paper Rolls (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

8) Jama Jama and Plantains combo platter of spicy Jama Jama (sauteed spinach) and fried ripe plantains will set you back $8 and is a great lunch or late afternoon snack for another healthy and yummy choice. Bennachin Restaurant on Royal Street in the French Quarter, New Orleans, LA. Line length: MEDIUM.

Plantains and Sauteed (Spicy) Spinach (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

9) Beignets and Cafe au Lait from Cafe du Monde -- need I say more? Hot fried dough covered in powdered sugar (my stepdaughter's breakfast) and a cup of chicory coffee with milk (for me)......mmmmm!!! Cafe Du Monde, New Orleans, LA. Line Length: VERY LONG

Cafe du Monde's Iced Cafe Au Lait and Sugar Covered Beignets (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

10) Trout Baquet -- a generous portion of pan-roasted and super buttery local trout topped with Louisiana crabmeat. A full meal or for sharing -- this is great for dinner before the last show. Baquet's Li'l Dizzy's Cafe (29 years at Jazz Fest), New Orleans, LA. Line Length: MEDIUM.

Trout Baquet (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Check out the complete listing ( Directory of the Food and Location at Jazzfest). I'm committed to try the fish tacos from Taqueria Corona, and some Alligator Pie and Alligator Sausage this year. Tell me what your favorite foods are.....

DRINKS

Strawberry Lemonade (Joyce's Lemonade) - on target to sell 30,000 gigantic cups at this year's week-long event of the most refreshing lemonade you'll ever taste, I can't imagine a day at Jazz Fest without it to counter the heat and the crowds and wash down the food.

My favorite Iced tea - Orange Mandarin -- was discontinued this year because the vendor couldn't get enought ingredients. It's been replaced by a new flavor Ambrosia (Black Berry). Also, try the Rose Mint by Sunshine Concessions. If you're from the North, go for the unsweetened tea. Sweet tea, which is flavored with honey, is my husband's favorite, and he's from the the South.

Strawberry Lemonade (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

SNACKS
Sweet Potato Chips with Powdered Sugar

Fatty's Cracklins

St. Francisville, LA

Sweet Potato Chips -- don't say "no" to these fried bits of heaven with a sprinkle of powdered sugar. It was hard to just have a taste and not devour a whole bag!

Fried Sweet Potato Chips (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Oh, and between courses don't forget to enjoy the music. Here's a sample of the 2013 music line up: Billy Joel, Dave Matthews, Jimmy Cliff, Terrence Simeon, Dr. John, George Benson, Allan Touissant, Fleetwood Mac, Willie Nelson, George Benson, Earth Wind and Fire, Taj Mahal, plus dozens of Cajun and Zydeco, Jazz and Gospel bands (over 400 bands are scheduled). Will I see you there?

Superstorm Sandy Sizzling Sautéed Scallops

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 02:26:00 +0000

Never mind the risk of total devastation due to Super Storm Sandy or postponed opening day while officials tested the waters for bacteria, the bay scallop season has officially started! I can already hear the familiar sizzle of the first scallop hitting the pan and taste the delicate and sweet-as-candy excitement on my tongue.

Over the years, I've tried dozens of recipes with some of my favorite ingredients – garlic, shallots, tomatoes, heavy cream, saffron, orange, panko, Pernod, white wine, and tarragon. But, when it comes to the first of the season bivalves, I like to keep it really simple: scallops, butter, salt, pepper and a spritz of lemon.

I’ve got a pound of just delivered Nantucket Bay scallops in my refrigerator at my apartment in New York and the anticipation is killing me.

Nantucket Bay Dry Scallops - November 2012 (photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

RECIPE
Superstorm Sandy Sizzling Sautéed Scallops
1 pound local bay scallops

3 tablespoons butter

Lemon slices

Salt and pepper

NOTE: Pat scallops dry to remove excess moisture and cook in batches of about 1/3 of a pound so the pan is not crowded and the scallops brown. For tender scallops, do not over cook. Overcooked scallops are rubbery.

1. Heat a large heavy skillet on high heat and melt one tablespoon of butter.

2. Add one third of the scallops and cook over high heat until brown, or about 2-3 minutes maximum.

3. Turn browned scallops over and continue cooking until still slightly uncooked in the middle, about 1-2 additional minutes. Store just cooked through scallops on a plate and cover with foil). Repeat until all scallops are cooked. Season.

Early word on how good or bad the season will be is unclear. I’m optimistic for a bountiful year like the Lesters in East Hampton ( Bays Abound with Scallops This Season). More pessimistic reports point to concern about high rates of die-off due to algae blooms this summer (Scallops Suffer Massive Die-Off: Red Tide May Be To Blame).

Healthy Sauteed Carrots and Maple Syrup

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Sun, 04 Nov 2012 14:36:00 +0000

When I was a girl, I remember pulling bright orange carrots out of the ground from our suburban garden and making this sauteed carrots and maple syrup recipe with my dad. I've been watching my calorie intake lately, so I lightened up the traditional recipe by cutting back on the butter -- this recipe is just 1 Weight Watchers Points Plus points per serving. The 1/4 cup of water helps keep the calories to a minimum while maintaining the rich and satisfying flavor and all important "mouth feel" of the butter.

When serving guests, I use a premium and local butter and the more expensive (and really fun!) multicolored heirloom carrots. I peel them for a pristine look, but if its a family dinner, I'll use everyday carrots and skip the step of peeling (more fiber that way too)!

Sauteed Carrots and Maple Syrup
8 servings
2 pounds carrots, scrubbed, peeled and cut into coins
2 T butter
2 T local maple syrup
1/4 cup water

Add all ingredients. Heat and cook covered for about 5 minutes. Stir and cook uncovered for another 5 minutes until liquid has reduced and carrots are cooked through. If carrots cook before the liquid is reduced, remove the carrots and set aside and reduce the liquid. Pour syrup reduction over the carrots and serve.

That's a Wrap: Grilled Swordfish with Cucumber and Peach Salsa Salad Recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 01:57:00 +0000

Grilled Swordfish, Cucumber and Peach Salsa Salad Wrap (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

There's nothing like a mix of summer fruits and vegetables -- cucumbers and peaches are great right now -- chopped to make a "salsa salad" recipe that accompanies locally caught, grilled swordfish. And, in a lightly grilled tortilla wrap.

Salsa Salads dress up fish or shellfish, chicken, pork or tofu, and are incredibly versatile. Easy to make, salsa salads use the same flavor principles as tomato or fruit salsas but with larger chunks, and less juice.

Two of my favorite salsa salad ingredients are cucumbers, for the cool crunch, and juicy peaches. This cucumber peach salsa salad recipe adds a lot of color and zip to an otherwise boring meal of white swordfish and white tortillas -- great for the family but special enough to serve to guests.

Some years ago, when I was at Rancho La Puerta in Mexico, I learned the "master recipe" for salsa from the chef. Ever since then, I've been mixing and matching ingredients from each of the salsa categories -- being sure to have flavors that are sweet, savory, hot, pungent, acidic, herbaceous, salty -- to create flavorful and healthy meals.

Cool/sweet: tomatoes, peaches, mangos, pineapple, melons, oranges or grapefruits, avocados
Color/crunch: green peppers, jicama, cucumber, corn, red onion
Heat: jalapeño, red onion, any chile peppers available at the market (be careful it's not too hot)
Herb: cilantro, parsley, mint, basil, even oregano and thyme
Acid: red or white wine vinegar, balsamic, lemon, lime
Pungent (optional): chopped garlic, minced ginger
Add a pinch of salt or sugar, as needed, tasting as you go, to achieve a balance of flavors.

So, now that cucumbers are available at the market (and tomatoes) go ahead and mix together tomatoes/cucumber/oregano/balsamic/garlic/salt for an Italian inspired salsa or go to the Caribbean market and pick up a mango for a mango/cucumber/red onion/mint/ginger more of a Southeast Asian and exotic salsa salad.

I decided to stick with what's at the farmers market for a peach/cucumber/red onion/jalapeno/cilantro salad over fresh caught, grilled Long Island swordfish.

RECIPE

Grilled Swordfish with Cucumber and Peach Salsa Salad in Tortilla Wraps

4 medium swordfish steaks

Olive oil

8 – 8” white wheat flour tortillas, lightly grilled

8 handfuls of Mesculen greens, washed and dried
1 1/2 cups cucumber

1 cup ripe peaches

½ cup of red onion

1 jalapeno pepper

3 tablespoons fresh cilantro

Juice of one lemon

Brush swordfish steaks with olive oil. Over a medium heat, grill swordfish steaks until just cooked through. Break into bite sized pieces and set a side to cool. Refrigerate if necessary, but bring to room temperature when you're ready to serve.

For the salsa salad, which can also be made ahead, cut cucumber and peaches into roughly equal chunks, and combine with diced onion, minced jalapeno and cilantro in a bowl and toss with the lemon juice.

When you're ready to eat, grill the flour tortillas over a medium fire until grill marks show (don’t over cook or the tortillas will harden and be too crisp and likely break when you try to wrap the ingredients).

To Assemble: Set out the 8 tortillas. Divide the greens, swordfish and salsa into 8 equal parts depending. Down the middle of the grilled tortilla, leaving room on both sides to wrap around the fish and salad, place a handful of greens, pieces of swordfish and, using a slotted spoon add the salsa salad (since the pieces and lemon are very juicy use the slotted spoon so your wrap is not too soggy). Wrap and eat.

Serves 4-8 for lunch or dinner.

3 Easy Cucumber Soups

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 20:24:00 +0000

I'm not really sure how I ended up with nearly two pounds of tiny little cucumbers in the fridge and I'm the only one in the family who eats cucumbers. But, whenever I fall into the vegetable conundrum of too many of this or that and I'm not sure what to do with it all, I turn to Vegetable Love, the 708-page all-veggie cookbook by Barbara Kafka.

Back in 2005, I met Kafka, whose name I had known for years, for the first time at a Vegetable Love book signing --- my friend Nancy Messing had worked for her right out of cooking school and I went to high school with her daughter Nicole, doctor turned cabaret singer, and her son. She inscribed my copy "For Lexi, Life keeps making connections and food helps - Barbara Kafka". The second time I met Barbara was this past Mother's Day at Nicole's awesome show at Don't Tell Mama in New York's Theater District. (Mom and I loved the show.)

Today, I made two hot soups, Cucumber Curry Soup, a unique and delicious soup with a distinct curry flavor and Elegant Cucumber Bean Soup (click to pages 356 and 357 in Vegetable Love). And, one cold, Cucumber Gazpacho.

Mini Seedless Cucumbers (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Both hot soups have a Cucumber Puree base (recipe on page 357) which is cucumber and fresh chicken stock cooked for 30 minutes and then pureed into a creamy base.

Cucumber Puree, Recipe from Vegetable Love (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

The cucumber curry soup combines lightly browned onions cooked in butter and curry powder, which packs a lot of flavor,

Sauteed onions in butter with curry powder (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

with lemon and lime juice, non-fat yogurt, kosher salt and cilantro. Simple.

Ingredients for Cucumber Curry Soup (served hot) (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

You can make this India-inspired soup ahead and combine the ingredients at the last minute then garnish with yogurt and cilantro.

Vegetable Love's Cucumber Curry Soup (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

The second soup, Elegant Cucumber Bean Soup, combines pureed cooked green beans

Cooked green beans in a food processor (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

as well as some of the Cucumber Puree reserved from the first soup recipe with additional chicken stock and a few drops of heavy cream.

Ingredients for Vegetable Love's Elegant Cucumber Bean Soup (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

The taste of green beans is the dominant flavor making it tasty even for my cucumber rejecting family.

The Cucumber Gazpacho recipe soup in Vegetable Love has far more cucumbers than the typical gazpacho soup, hence the inclusion of cucumber in the name. If you're like me, I prefer using more cucumbers to balance the acidity of the tomatoes and spiciness of the onion and jalapeno pepper.

Cucumber Gazpacho from Vegetable Love (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

As with any cold soup recipe, choose a good quality olive oil to showcase the fresh from the garden taste. I like to garnish gazpacho with freshly picked mint from the yard. This recipe includes mint in the soup too! Summery and light. Yum.

Spicy Crawfish Étouffée Recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 22:24:00 +0000

After scanning the internet and my Louisiana cookbooks for a crawfish étouffée recipe, I found one over on NOLAcuisine.com to guide me -- étouffée's a great dish for using up leftover crawfish (or shrimp in a shrimp étouffée recipe).

Crawfish Etouffee Plated with White Rice (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Saturday, we hosted 35 friends for a traditional crawfish boil at our house in Southampton. We had 70 pounds of live crawfish (aka "mudbugs", craw daddies, crayfish) shipped up from a farm/pond in Natchitoches, LA along with 5 pounds of crawfish seasoning.

Boiled Crawfish in Seasoning with Corn and Potatoes (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

As planned, we had a huge amount of crawfish leftovers which I froze to make stock, étouffée, crawfish Monica (which is a pasta dish in a creamy sauce) and to eat whole. The recipe at NOLAcuise is a "almost the perfect" recipe in my view -- the right amount of thickness, great crawfish flavor and "tingling on your tongue" spiciness. Too many recipes include tomatoes or tomato paste which I don't like in an étouffée, or use corn starch instead of a classic roux (which is criminal) or use water or chicken stock for the base instead of homemade crawfish stock (also criminal) and not enough hot sauce or creole spice (tasteless).

Yesterday, I made an easy and flavorful homemade crawfish stock, and the NOLAcuisine étouffée recipe with a few modifications.

Modification 1: I made a peanut butter colored roux from equal parts of flour and butter and set it aside.

Peanut Butter Roux (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Then, I cook the trinity of onions, celery and green pepper in some melted butter BEFORE adding the roux back to the pan.

Trinity of Onion, Celery and Green Pepper (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Trinity with Roux (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Modification 2: I had some creole seasoning that I blended last week on hand -- a mix of onion powder, garlic powder, dried herbs (oregano, basil, thyme), peppers (black, white, cayenne, paprika) and celery seed -- so didn't use NOLAcuisine's mix. The recipe/proportions can be found at Gumbo Pages. I added this in right before the roux, which I followed the stock, garlic and herbs as instructed.

Trinity with Creole Seasoning (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Addition of Garlic and Herbs to Crawfish Etouffee (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Modification 3: I added the peeled crawfish tails into the pan during the last 5 minutes of cooking since they were already pretty well cooked and not 35 minutes earlier as the recipe called for.

Plate of Peeled Crawfish Tailed Leftover From Saturday's Boil (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Crawfish Etouffee in the Pan (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Modification 4: If you're new to etouffee and Cajun cooking you may want to cut back on the spices that are called for in the recipe and taste and modify as needed right before serving -- I suggest cutting the hot sauce and creole seasoning in half.

The most important step was rinsing off the spices that were left on the crawfish from the crawfish boil before making the stock or peeling the tails. I did this by bathing the crawfish in huge pots of very cold and clean water, rinsing and repeating three times with pots of clean, fresh water until the water ran almost clear.

Ingredients for Crawfish Stock (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Crawfish Stock (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

I made a gallon of the stock from heads and tails, water, onion, celery, lemon, garlic, a bay leaf and pepper) and only used a few cups and froze the rest.

Now that I've found a great recipe for étouffée (with special thanks to Danno at NOLAcuisine, does anyone have a good crawfish Monica recipe?

About the Crawfish

Crawfish season runs from December through June in Louisiana's Cajun Country. With the help of experts at LSU AgCenter AquaCulture, Crawfish Farming has becoming part science and art. Check out the mud ponds and traps in the LSU AgCenter's photos.

Nose to Tail, Root to Top Cooking: Interview with Lighthearted Locavore

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 16:28:00 +0000

I pride myself on being resourceful, particularly when it comes to cooking and, as a locavore, I'm clearly no stranger to nose to tail and root to top eating. Imagine my curiosity when Nancy Gerschman, queen of the complete utilization of foods (skins, stems, stalks, past peak, leftovers, scraps, and the like) over at the "blog for the unspoiled", Expendable Edibles , contacted me to do an interview.

Lexi Van de Walle, Lighthearted Locavore, at the stove (Photo: Wendy Van de Walle)

It's always fun to read a piece after an interview and recollect the conversation -- thanks for a thought provoking hour, Nancy.

Click on over and read the article and find links to the recipes Nancy wrote about:
Interview With Lighthearted Locavore, Lexi Van de Walle Nancy Gershman on Expendable Edibles, a Blog for the Unspoiled

Here are a few quotes from Nancy's article:

"Sometimes when I’m really lazy, I’ll even buy food from Fresh Direct Local which has gigantic vegetable, meat, dairy and seafood departments – often from the same vendors I see at my local farmers market."

"Expendable Edibles is a really neat idea….because my parents were born in the early 30’s it really tapped into my whole sensibility about not wasting things"

“I use lobster shells right from somebody’s plate at one of my dinner parties to make a lobster broth. What could be better than a quick lunch of shrimps boiled in your own lobster broth?"

“I keep Nori wrappers in the fridge and quite frequently use them as seafood wraps…I do the exact same thing with (Vietnamese) rice paper"

“Ends of carrots and carrot tops often go to our dogs, English cockers (those hunting dogs with floppy ears). Our dogs eat brown lettuce, cucumber peels, softening rutabaga; basically the more cabbage-y, the more they like it. Anything cruciferous, or with root vegetable origins they love.”

Full article: Interview With Lighthearted Locavore, Lexi Van de Walle Nancy Gershman on Expendable Edibles, a Blog for the Unspoiled

5 (More) Great Things to Eat at N'Awlins Jazz Fest

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 14:11:00 +0000

Yesterday, I posted 5 Great Things to Eat If You Only Have One Day at N'Awlins Jazz Fest. Today, I have five more.

1) Raw Oysters -- you can get all kinds of oysters at Jazz Fest -- fried on French bread or in a spinach salad, Oysters Rockefeller -- but, there's nothing more beautiful than the raw briny bilvalve that you can get inside the Grand Stand ($7 for a half dozen). Back this year, after missing 2011's Jazz Fest due to the BP Oil Spill, these oysters are harvested from Louisiana's Black Bay. They are not only huge, but also delicious.

Louisiana Black Bay Oysters (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

2) Vietnamese Spring Roll (goi cuon) with peanut dipping sauce -- these vermicelli and lettuce stuff shrimp spring roll are light and tasty. If you're trying to watch your calorie intake this is the "go to" meal. I had mine for breakfast with a cafe au lait and a bite of a sugary beignet.

Shrimp, Vermicelli, and Rice Paper Rolls (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

3) Jama Jama and Plantains combo platter of spicy Jama Jama and fried ripe plantains will set you back $8 and is a great lunch or late afternoon snack for another healthy and yummy choice.

Plantains and Sauteed (Spicy) Spinach (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

4) Beignets and Cafe au Lait from Cafe du Monde -- need I say more? Hot fried dough covered in powdered sugar (my stepdaughter's breakfast) and a cup of chicory coffee with milk (for me)......mmmmm!!!

Cafe du Monde's Iced Cafe Au Lait and Sugar Covered Beignets (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

5) Trout Baquet -- a generous portion of pan-roasted and super buttery local trout topped with Louisiana crabmeat. A full meal or for sharing -- this is great for dinner before the last show.

Trout Baquet (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

DRINKS

Strawberry Lemonade - on target to sell 30,000 gigantic cups at this year's week-long event of the most refreshing lemonade you'll ever taste, I can't imagine a day at Jazz Fest without it to counter the heat and the crowds and wash down the food.

Strawberry Lemonade (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

SNACKS

Sweet Potato Chips -- don't say "no" to these fried bits of heaven with a sprinkle of powdered sugar. It was hard to just have a taste and not devour a whole bag!

Fried Sweet Potato Chips (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

MUSIC
Nathan and the Zydeco Cha Chas

Great to see these guys on Saturday, April 28th.

Back in 2005, for my husband's big 50 birthday celebration, Nathan and his band first played the Zydeco Festival in Connecticut on a Friday night in June, then took the ferry over to the south fork of Long Island to get to our house in Southampton for Henry's birthday party on Saturday night. I have fond memories and lots of photos of the guys sleeping on our lawn. We also have a bunch of their CDs and just love the zydeco sound and Nathan's charm.

Nathan Williams Sr. on the Accordion (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Crescent City Farmers Market: April 28th, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 13:03:00 +0000

Zipped over to the Crescent City Farmers Market for a half hour before heading out to Day 2 of Jazz Fest. It was so exciting to see, photograph, buy and eat fresh, locally grown strawberries. And, to catch up with Richard McCarthy, co-founder of the market in 1995 and my husband's cousin.

Strawberries are in peak season in Louisiana now -- the start of the season is a good two months before ours in New York.

After grabbing a cup of coffee, I bought some berries (which I devoured in the car on the way to Jazz Fest), a pound of Creole Jasmin Rice which I'll pack in my luggage to take home, a watermelon lime juice (so refreshing), and then introduced myself to the folks over at the New Orleans Eat Local 2012 Challenge table.

I talked to Gina about the challenge, which helps connect eaters via the resource guide to farmers markets, CSAs, U-Pick and restaurants, to local Louisiana foods during its 30-day challenge that runs from June 1 to June 30th this year. There's also recipes, cookbooks and a guide to the Lousiana Harvest calendar on the website. (Lighthearted Locavore is a partner blog for Northeast Organic Farmers Association of New York's Locavore Challenge which is headed into its third year this fall).

The highlight of my visit was finding Richard McCarthy on my way out of the market for a quick hello. It was great to hear about his daughter, wife and parents, and all the good work going on at Market Umbrella, his non-profit which is dedicated to the local food movement. Besides running the farmers market, Market Umbrella has helped New Orleans get back on its feet post-Katrina and post-BP oil disaster and is dedicated to connecting farmers, fishermen and eaters throughout the region and food justice and food access issues (got to love their program to double the value of food stamps at their markets). McCarthy is also a great resource for understanding food politics and policy issues locally, nationally and internationally. In fact, he's named one of the market tents the "office of homeland serenity". LOVE THAT!!!

RECIPES

I love to make strawberry rhubarb compote, strawberry sorbet, strawberry ice cream, strawberry jam, strawberry yogurt pops, strawberry jelly omelets, and strawberry breakfast smoothies (check out Lighthearted Locavore for 10 great recipes).

New Orleans Jazz Fest Food: Kick Off

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:56:00 +0000

Henry and I arrived in New Orleans last night and kicked off Jazz Fest, which starts today and goes through Sunday, May 6th, at one of our favorite restaurants in the world, Gautreau's. Tables were booked weeks ago, but my husband, who is from New Orleans, has been taking friends and clients to Gautreau's for decades and knows Patrick Singley, the owner (thanks for squeezing us in, Patrick).

Gautreau's Restaurant Chef Sue Zemanick and Owner Patrick Singley (photo: Gauteau's)

Gautreau's Restaurant Dining Room (photo: Gautreau's)

Chef Sue Zemanick is hot right now, and it's no surprise -- the food is inventive and flavorful and the presentation elegant -- a perfect complement to the old world surroundings of the dining room which is in a 19th century pharmacy. Zemanick is up for the James Beard Foundation "Rising Chef of the Year" award (yes, she's just 30 years old). She's got my vote -- we had an amazing meal served with a side of Southern hospitality.

I loved the soup special, tomato and watermelon gazpacho with crabmeat, and can't wait to recreate the recipe this summer (I'm hoping Chef will give me some clues). Henry enjoyed the house favorite app, seared scallops with sage brown butter. For dinner, I had the "locavore" special, sautéed Gulf of Mexico grouper, which was cooked to flaky perfection and served with farmers market wild ramps and a mushroom medley. Henry savored every bite of the classic duck confit (minus one bite which I snagged). We ended the meal with blueberry buckle and huckleberry ice cream and the cheese plate. (Sorry there are no photos -- forgot the Nikon and the iPhone pics are awful).

Anyhow, need to hop in the shower and get ready for Jazz Fest. Just three hours til I taste some Crawfish Monica and duck gumbo for lunch.

Click here for my October 2008 post on N'awlins Restaurants, including Gautreau's -- I can taste the cold asparagus soup with crab, and risotto and crab dinner from three years ago.

Paul Simon and Food: Parsley, Sage, Cornflakes and Mother and Child Reunion Chicken

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:57:00 +0000

Did you know that Paul Simon’s in town? He’s playing a couple of nights at Jazz at Lincoln Center with Wynton Marsallas and the Jazz@LC Orchestra with special guest, and one of my other music royalty favorites, Aaron Neville of New Orleans.

In anticipation of the concert, I started to think about Simon’s music and couldn’t avoid coupling his songs with my other passion, food. Within just a few minutes of research online, I discovered a little bit more about Simon’s music and food besides lyrics “parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme” and what I call the "Kellogg's Cornflake" song (Punky's Dilemma).

Waffle Guitar Player by Bill Wurtzel, guitarist and author of Funny Food (read more below)

Scarborough Fair

Many catering companies and restaurants have named their businesses “Scarborough Fair” after the Simon and Garfunkel song of the same name. While most have come and gone over the years, none have had the staying power of the famed “parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme” lyrics of this S&G remake of an English ballad. About a love affair that consummated during the medieval 45-day trade fair in the seaside town, Scarborough, England, where spices and foods and other items were bought and sold, the fair was a 45-day event sandwiched between two Catholic feasts: the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Feast of St Michael. Quite a few “Simon and Garfunkel Chicken” recipes pop up on the Internet too – seasoned with parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, no doubt.

Punky’s Dilemma (Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel)

Nonsensical and fun. I love the light breakfast lyrics:

“Wish I was a Kellogg Cornflake,

Floatin' in my bowl takin' movies,

Relaxin' awhile, livin' in style,

Talkin' to a raisin who 'casion'ly plays L.A.,

Casually glancing at his toupee.

Wish I was an English muffin

'Bout to make the most out of a toaster.

I'd ease myself down,

Comin' up brown.

I prefer boysenberry

More than any ordinary jam.

I'm a "Citizens for Boysenberry Jam" fan.

Bridge Over Troubled Water

A young man from Queens, New York, Simon wrote quite a bit about English places and traditions – he went there in the 1960s for inspiration. The bridge in the song is supposedly the Bickleigh Bridge in Devon built in the 16^th century and next to the Fisherman’s Cot Inn on the River Exe. The area is well-known for its fresh fish, wine festivals (Devon Wine Week), farmers markets, and bar at the inn, the Devon Pub, where Simon spent a bit of time writing songs, and eating the locavore fare. My favorite version of Bridge Over Trouble Water is the duet with Paul Simon and Aretha Franklin.

Mother and Child Reunion

Apparently, Simon ripped the title of this reggae chart-topper (#4 on US Billboard) straight from a menu at a Chinese restaurant in New York’s Chinatown. A chicken and egg dish at Say Eng Look, a top Shanghai restaurant that thrived for decades until it closed in 1996 (Mimi Sheraton gave Say Eng Look three stars in her review of the restaurant for the New York Times in 1982), the "Mother and Child Reunion" recipe is basically a Chinese chicken and rice soup with a scrambled egg stirred into the piping hot broth right before serving. Tastes delicious particularly with the sound of Jimmy Cliff's steel drums in the background and Paul Simon on vocals.

I have to say, right now I’m “feeling groovy” about seeing them tonight -- Paul and Aaron feel like "old friends"

About the Funny Food Guitar Player: Bill Wurtzel, is a jazz guitarist, food artist and author. Bill knows how much I adore Paul Simon and sent me this funny food when he heard I was going to the show tonight. Bill has played with Howard Morgan for Paul Simon when Simon was on tour some years back. Morgan, renown guitarist who died earlier this year, was one of Paul Simon's guitar teachers.

Chefs for The Marcellus: Help Protect New York's Food Shed From the Dangers of Shale Fracking

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:31:00 +0000

My life has been so hectic lately keeping the family unit going and downsizing our apartment, that it feels like I'm the last locavore in New York to focus on one of the most critical food issues in our region today: hydraulic fracturing and shale fracking, two highly controversial and chemically intensive techniques that blast open rock shale to access natural gas.

The problem, for New Yorkers in particular, is the Marcellus Shale Formation, which covers a vast area from Southern New York to Ohio and West Virginia, is in the same area as the Catskill Watershed, which keeps our city's taps flowing with delicious and pristine water, and dozens of dairy, produce and livestock farms, and wineries and breweries in Southern New York.

Several of my food advocate colleagues have joined together and formed a non-profit, Chefs for the Marcellus, to raise awareness (and funds) to protect the region from fracking. The organization has two events this month:

Thursday, April 19, at 1:00 p.m. Heritage Radio Network, The Farm Report
Log on live or download the podcast to hear Chefs for the Marcellus founders Hilary Baum and Heather Carlucci-Rodriguez discuss fracking and its impact on local agriculture. Joining them on The Farm Report — a show devoted to farming issues on internet-based Heritage Radio — will be Luce Guanzini, a goat farmer from Tioga County (PA).

Sunday, April 29, at noon to 4:00 p.m. Pesto Fest to Benefit Chefs for the Marcellus
Guests at this event will be treated to pesto dishes prepared by professional chefs from Manhattan and Brooklyn as well as members of the community; herbal nibbles prepared by Ger-Nis instructors, host of the event, and Chefs Carl Raymond and Melissa Rickets; live jazz, compliments of The Evan Schwam Trio; and an herbal libations bar featuring fresh seasonal herbal drinks brought to you by Brooklyn’s Wolf & Deer & Ger-Nis. Event info and to buy tickets ($25)

Special thanks from Lighthearted Locavore to Hilary Baum of Baum Forum, Jimmy Carbone of Jimmy's No. 43, Eric Weltman of Food and Water Watch, and Holley Atkinson for being on the cutting edge of food issues in New York.

I'll be in New Orleans for Jazzfest and unfortunately will miss Pesto Fest -- it should be a great event, The moving vans come on April 30th -- I can't wait to get my life back, and write more about fracking and other critical food issues -- it's been a while! Oh, and don't worry I'm staying on the upper west side; we're just moving across the courtyard!

Pink Slime: A Case for Meatless (Mondays) In School Cafeterias

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 20:21:00 +0000

Pink Slime. It's gross and scary. I'm not talking about the dayglow slime from space alien movies that my teenagers watch but the "meat" filler in the hamburger-like meals found in schools across the country that has been in the news for the past couple of weeks.

Banner art courtesy of Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer

Also known by the industry as Lean Finely Textured Beef or Boneless Lean Beef Trimmings (BLBT), food advocates, journalists and parents are teaming up to get this ammonium hydroxide treated (yes, you are right to be thinking about the 99 cent bottle of ammonia under the kitchen sink) meat waste scraps that's run through a centrifuge, pulverized and pushed through a tube, goop that would otherwise not be fit for human consumption, off supermarket shelves and school lunch trays.

Elected officials are getting behind the ban too. Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer's office called to let me know that Stringer would be leading a campaign in New York to pressure NYC's Department of Education, which has the largest feeding system in the world behind the US Department of Defense, to ban pink slime immediately and not wait to "phase out" it out which is a vague commitment, at best, to end the use of the pink slime.

With a letter to the DOE's Chancellor Dennis M. Walcott (read the letter here ) and press conference (read press release), Stringer kicked off an appropriately charged but sympathetic effort to persuade the DOE to act quickly.

Referring to the great strides the DOE has made in recent years to serve healthier and tastier foods, and teach children about nutrition and where their food comes from, BP Stringer says "I take pride in the fact that DOE School Food has, on so many occasions, been a national leader on better school food options." before he delivers the punch "That is why the persistence of pink slime in DOE menus stands out as an unfortunate anomaly".

Acting sensitively, Stringer asks for accountability, "If there are legitimate barriers to an immediate removal related to vendor contacts or other logistical concerns - and DOE can clearly articulate those concerns -- then a more deliberate approach may be warranted".

The barrier Stringer refers to is the New York City Department of Education, like many schools, have long-term contracts with their vendors, that the DOE is financially liable for, and detailed plans for ordering, delivering, storing and serving nearly a million meals a day.

Photo courtesy of Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer

The issues are complex and the questions are many.

How did our nation and its institutions, particularly the US Department of Agriculture, become so tolerant of low quality, cheap meat and meat-like products, including pink slime burgers? Countries such as the United Kingdom have banned pink slime largely because the process is not deemed safe (the purpose of the ammonium hydroxide is to kill E-coli and other bacteria that infects the waste scraps). Safeway, McDonald's and Taco Bell have also banned pink slime.

Why are Americans so obsessed with eating meat? Not only is meat expensive, compared to vegetarian options such as rice and beans or eggs, but eating too much of it can make you sick -- cancer, heart disease, obesity -- due to saturated fat and calorie density. If school districts can't afford to serve meat in its natural, and more expensive state, such as lean, antibiotic- and hormone-free ground steak burgers, and need to cut costs, they they should seriously consider alternative sources of protein and increase the number of meatless (vegan or vegetarian) meals.

Is there money to be found in New York City Department of Education adopting more meatless meals in a way similar to the Baltimore Public School's association with Meatless Monday, a non-profit initiative of the Mondays Campaign and in partnership with Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and Columbia University? Largely fueled by the public health response to America's childhood obesity epidemic, school food has been in the spotlight for several years, with hundreds of case studies about the increase in "good for you" foods and reduction of "junk" foods, and likely at an increase in cost. As Stringer notes when discussing NYC's Department of School Food, the transformation has been impressive. Why stop now? Why not go pink slime free AND adopt more meat free days?

How to Host A Festive New Orleans Dinner Party

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 17:09:00 +0000

Lace table cloth, roses, toy crawfish and whimsical plates (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Entertaining is about people. When I host a dinner I prefer a small group of four to six so that I can focus my attention on the guests. A party is a wonderful way to get to know people, entertain friends and family, celebrate or seal a business deal.

A theme party makes it extra special and doesn't require too much extra work. Our favorite theme dinner is a Creole menu, New Orleans style. Henry, my husband, is from New Orleans and people love it when we serve a classic New Orleans meal.

An elegant party, large or small, is a complex affair – however, with planning it doesn’t have to be difficult. Three courses will leave your guests satisfied.

For the first course, gumbo is a traditional appetizer -- during the fall and winter months I often make pheasant and duck gumbo with birds that we have in the freezer (my husband's a hunter). Gumbo is the perfect make-ahead meal, ideal for a dinner party.

A seafood dish for the main course is also traditional. Meuniere Amandine sauce over a sautéed fish filet, also one of my favorites, is typically made with sea trout from the Gulf of Mexico. Fluke is a great substitute, and local to the Northeastern US, for Gulf of Mexico sea trout. I frequently refer to a recipe from the “grand dame” New Orleans restaurant, Galatoire’s.

For dessert, a Southern favorite, is bread pudding which is also a crowd pleaser. I enjoy using seasonal ingredients, and a fun variation on traditional (or chocolate) bread pudding is this one made with sweet potatoes and apples.

Pheasant Hunt, Southampton, New York (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

For any dinner party, select recipes that you are comfortable cooking and can prepare ahead. Plan your menu at least five days in advance. Shop ahead for your ingredients, if you can, but leave buying fresh ingredients, such as seafood, to the day of your event.

Tabletop accessories and music help set the stage. New Orleans is a culture that blends highbrow European elegance and folk traditions of American Indians, and Caribbean, Italian and Spanish settlers. Cover the table with an old-fashioned white lace tablecloth, and use polished silverware if you have it. To add contrast, consider casual and colorful plates -- I just happen to have whimsical dinner plates with crawfish, tabasco and lemon designs.

The final touches really add authenticity to the meal and set the mood, red roses and a bright red, toy crawfish. The juxtaposition of lace, roses and whimsical fun is quintessential New Orleans. Play some Louis Armstrong and Zydeco music and your all set.

To ensure a delicious meal, choose high quality and local ingredients. Fish that you or a local fisherman caught, game that was hunted or vegetables that you grew or picked up at the farmers market add interest to the meal.

A good dark roux can take about a half hour to make

Being a locavore, I prefer scratch cooking to using canned or prepared foods and like to procure ingredients from local sources. In planning the gumbo I make sure I have enough birds in the freezer, and prepare stock (using duck, pheasant and/or chicken carcasses that I store in the freezer) a few days ahead. You can also prepare a roux ahead of time (a time consuming but important ingredient in gumbo) -- a deep brown color makes for a traditional roux and takes about a half an hour to make. I used duck fat that I purchased from the butcher for a super rich roux, deep brown in color. Inventory your ingredients and shop for non-perishables at least three days in advance.

French 75's make for a festive cocktail

I always include my husband and helper. Not only does he cook but he loves to pair wine and food. French 75 cocktails, made with gin, lemon and champagne, and a relish tray make for a simple start when your guests arrive. For dinner, Henry pairs the wines to selected match the spicy gumbo and selects a more delicate wine for the Fluke Meuniere Amandine Sauce.

Planning ahead and anticipating every detail of what it takes to flawlessly produce a multi-course meal is the key to being a relaxed host. Several days ahead, select and iron your linens, wash glasses and dinnerware, and polish the silver, if necessary. For each recipe, I ask “how much time do I need in the kitchen after the guests arrive?” I make lists and get as much as possible done in advance. With staging any event, mistakes and oversights happen.

Lighthearted Locavore heating up the first course (smiling and relaxed)

By 2:00, the gumbo was cooked. By 4:00, the bread pudding was out of the oven and the sauce was made. By 4:20 I had done the meuniere sauce twice (the first one burned). By 5:00, the relish tray, bar and glasses, were set up. By 5:30, the advance prep for sautéing the fluke, the only step of the dinner that had to be cooked last minute, was completed. At 5:40, I showered and dressed and still had 45 minutes to relax before the guests arrived. At 7:00, the party begins.

Long Island Fluke Meuniere Amandine Garnished with Parsley and Lemon

Sweet Potato Bread Pudding with Apple Cider Glaze

MENU and RECIPE LINKS

Pheasant, Duck, and Andouille Gumbo
Pheasant, Duck Stock, + Organic Chicken Andouille Sausage Gumbo Made with File and White Rice (recipe)

Galatoire's Fluke Meuniere Amandine
Traditional New Orleans Preparation of Sautéed Fluke Fillet and Creole Seasoning topped with Butter, Lemon and Almond Sauce (recipe below)

Sweet Potato Bread Pudding with Apple Glaze

Louisiana Sweet Potato Commission’s Recipe (recipe)

French 75 Cocktail (recipe)

RECIPE 

Long Island Fluke Meuniere Amandine

Adapted from Galatoire’s Cookbook

Meuniere Sauce (see below)

2 cups milk

½ tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 egg

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

4 oz. butter

6 8-oz. fluke fillets

2 cups flour

3 tbsp. sliced, toasted almonds

1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges

Prepare the Meuniere Sauce, set aside. In a bowl, whisk milk, seasonings and egg. Dust fluke with flour, place in milk, dredge in flour again. Shake off excess. In a heavy pan, melt butter over medium-high heat and sauté for 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Place one fillet on each plate, spoon Meuniere sauce and sprinkle toasted almonds and parsley on top. Serve with a lemon wedge.

Meuniere Sauce

4 oz. butter

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

Melt butter over low heat until it begins to brown. Add remaining ingredients. Whisk until dark brown. Remove from heat and set aside.

All photos by Lexi Van de Walle

Making Breakfast Fun For National School Breakfast Week

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 02:55:00 +0000

Funny Food Chick-Hen by Food Artist Bill Wurtzel

All week, Monday-Friday, March 5-9, school districts across the country will be celebrating healthy breakfast food for National School Breakfast Week.

Funny Food "Egg-Cela" Train by Bill Wurtzel

The purpose of National Breakfast Week is to build awareness of the US Department of Agriculture's breakfast program and encourage children to eat a healthy breakfast so they can perform at their best in school.

Funny Food Eggomania by Bill Wurtzel

Not only is a healthy breakfast tasty, but it can also be fun. What better way to engage children with learning about nutrition than making easy-to-design funny faces, animals, toys and other characters out of breakfast food the way Bill Wurtzel, food artist and jazz guitarist, does?

Part of Bill's plan is not only to help children use their imaginations and play with their food in creative ways but also provide encouragement for parents and teachers to offer a variety of healthy proteins, grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, dairy and oils to teach children about balance.

Funny Food Frogberry by Bill Wurtzel

The best part, when children are all done playing with their food (and taking a photo), is watching them devour what they make.

Schools breakfast can be found on school buses, on kiosks and carts, in classrooms and, of course, in cafeterias. With Funny Food, now you can find fun and silly breakfasts in art, photo and video studios too.

Research shows that children who eat a healthy and balanced breakfast are less likely to overeat later in the day which can be the difference between being overweight (or obese) and achieving a healthy weight.

Funny Food Skipper by Bill Wurtzel

Not only is a balanced breakfast part of a healthy lifestyle, but so is physical activity like jumping rope or playing sports. According to Michelle Obama's Lets Move! campaign, children need 60 minutes of moderate to rigorous activity every day to build lean muscle, reduce fat and build strong bones and joints.

Happy National School Breakfast Week. What a great way to start the day.

For More Information About Funny Food and to

Download A Boatload of Free Workshop Materials for Home or School Use

Visit the Funny Food Website and Select "Workshop Materials"

Pre-order the book here.

Spend the Day with a Locavore Visionary

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 23:55:00 +0000

Gramercy Tavern's Executive Chef Michael Anthony

joins over 30 local food visionaries in

a "day in the life" online auction to support

JUST FOOD, NYC's non-profit dedicated to

farmers and local food eaters.

Gramercy Tavern Executive Chef Michael Anthony (Photo: Just Food Website)

Do you have a burning desire to spend the day with Gramercy Tavern Executive Chef Michael Anthony and learn about how the restaurant stays at the top of the ratings and other inside secrets of one of NYC"s star chefs (and locavore)?

Or want to spend the day behind the scenes with NYC's top independent caterer, Liz Neumark, the socially conscious Owner/CEO of Great Performances?

One of my favorite food blogger teams, Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, co-founders of the amazing Food 52.com, will be sure to dazzle a food writer or home cook with their recipe testing, video production, contest judging and more in their Brooklyn kitchen.

Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, Food52 (Photo: Just Food Website)

How about getting your hands dirty with a visit to Columbia Country's (NY) Grazin' Angus Acres and Grazin' Restaurant to herd cattle and eat lunch with Farmer/Owner, Dan Gibson?

BIDDING OPEN NOW THROUGH SUNDAY, MARCH 11th

Over 30 local food visionaries all together (see the complete list below), including a baker, a brewer, a forager, chefs, farmers, writers, activists, and more -- dedicated to local food, the environment, and food justice issues and who want to spend the day apprenticing winning bidders.

Proceeds from the auction go to support Just Food's many programs, including community supported agriculture, urban farming, food pantry, food justice and education.

Bidding is open through Sunday, March 11th. Don't miss this once in a lifetime opportunity to learn from some of NYC's finest food professionals. Get in on the action and bid to win exclusive lots in Just Food's 2012 "Day in the Life" Auction here.

YOU HAVE TO BID TO WIN

(click on the links for Lightheated Locavore articles and photos)

Michael Anthony, Gramercy Tavern Executive Chef and Partner

Loren Brill, Founder, Sweet Loren's

Brooklyn Swappers, Jane Lerner and Megan Paska

Joel Bukiewicz, Cut Brooklyn Artisan Knife Maker

Jimmy Carbone, Jimmy's No. 43 Owner

Mary Cleaver, Cleaver Co. and The Green Table

Keith Cohen, Orwasher’s Bakery Owner

Jake Dickson, Dickson's Farmstand Meats Owner

Rick Field, Ricks Picks Owner

Ben Flanner, Brooklyn Grange Urban Farmer

Jason Foscolo, Food & Agriculture Lawyer

Nicole Franzen, Food Photographer, Nicole Franzen Photography

Jacques Gautier, Palo Santo Chef

Kelly Geary, Chef and Author, Sweet Deliverance and "Tart and Sweet"

Dan Gibson, Farmer/Owner, Grazin' Angus Acres and Grazin' Restaurant

Kristy Hadeka, Brooklyn Slate Company Owner

Brian Halweil, Edible Magazine Publisher

Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, Food 52 Co-Founders

Jack Inslee, Executive Producer, Heritage Radio Networks

Eve Kaplan-Walbrecht, Farmer, Garden of Eve

Johanna Kolodny, Print Restaurant Food Forager

Robert Lavalva, Founder, New Amsterdam Market

Patrick Martins, Heritage Foods USA Founder

Liz Neumark, Great Performances Owner/CEO

Annie Novak, Eagle Street Rooftop Farm Urban Farmer and Educator

Karen Rivara, Oyster Grower

Kelly and Sonya Taylor, Kelso of Brooklyn Owners

Ben Van Leeuwen, Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream Owner

Karen Washington, La Familia Verde Community Garden and

Farmers Market Urban farmer and Advocate

Rachel Wharton, Writer, Edible Magazine

Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts, Vidalia Onion, Balsamic and Honey

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 02:03:00 +0000

I love roasted vegetables in the winter. The marriage of balsamic vinegar and the delicate sweetness of honey with oven roasted sweet potatoes, bitter Brussels sprouts and sweet Vidalia onion is a tongue tingling combination that packs a lot of flavor. This is a very easy recipe that even Brussels sprout haters will enjoy.

RECIPE

Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts, Vidalia Onion

with Balsamic and Honey Glaze

2 medium or 1 large sweet potato, cut into steak fries, peel on

1 stalk (1 lb.) Brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut into uniform sizes

1 Vidalia onion, or other mild/sweet onion

2 T good quality balsamic vinegar

1 T extra virgin olive oil

2t raw and local honey

Sea salt, black pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees(F). Scrub and pat dry sweet potato, then cut into steak fries leaving the high fiber and tasty skin on. Remove the outer dry skin from the onion and cut into quarters. Clean, dry and trim the Brussels sprouts, removing any yellow or wilted leaves, and cut larger sprouts in half. In a bowl mix together the balsamic vinegar, olive oil and honey to make a dressing for the vegetables. Place cut sweet potatoes and onion in one roasting pan and the Brussels sprouts in another. Pour half of the dressing over the Brussels sprouts and toss. Using a pastry brush, brush the remaining dressing on the sweet potatoes and onions. Roast 20 minutes, remove the pans from the oven and toss the vegetables. Set aside the Brussels sprouts if they are cooked through and return any uncooked vegetables to the oven being careful to brown but not burn them. Check again in 10 minutes for doneness. Sweet potatoes and sprouts will pierce easily with a fork. Mix vegetables together when they are done and salt and pepper generously. Warm to serve.

Locavore's Dilemma: The Walmartization of New York City's Food System

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 21:52:00 +0000

Back in 1989, I visited Wal-Mart’s headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas. As a young grad just out of the Kellogg School of Management and brand manager at Pfizer, I was mesmerized by the emerging corporate giant, and admired the huge stores, since we had nothing like them in New York, and I was stunned by their incredibly low prices.

Wikimedia Commons

Until recently, I haven't given much thought to Wal-Mart. I was happy to put Wal-Mart in my rear view mirror after what seemed to be an endless task to fulfill a gigantic custom order of Barbasol shave cream that was shrink-wrapped by hand in 3-can value packs -- we didn't have shrink wrap on the assembly line -- and at a huge cost to the company. Why did Pfizer fill this custom order for just a few pennies profit per can? Because, back then, Wal-Mart represented about one-fifth of the consumer division's sales and to lose shelf space at Wal-Mart would have undoubtedly been the catalyst for the demise of the division's more profitable brands (Ben-Gay, Visine, Plax, Barbosol). Wal-Mart wanted 3-packs of shave cream and so they got them.

Wal-Mart’s squeeze on the supply chain, including gigantic consumer packaged goods manufacturers, is well documented, as is its predatory pricing, and reputation for depressed wages, poor labor practices and anti-union stance.

Studies show that Wal-Mart, with its fiercely competitive business practices, is responsible for the closure of hundreds of thousands of stores in rural and urban communities. And its 1.4 million employees, representing 1% of the nation's employment, are the largest user of entitlement benefits such as Medicaid, Food Stamps, and housing subsidies, as many of Wal-Mart’s employees have become “the working poor” and live at or below the poverty line due to low wages.

Wal-Mart is also known for creating jobs, its "everyday" low prices, including for groceries, and generous philanthropy.

Wal-Mart is back on my radar. One reason is that Wal-Mart wants to open stores throughout New York City and has been in the local papers. And, the other is food. Wal-Mart’s growth strategy, now that it has saturated the rural and suburban markets across the US with its more than 3,800 stores, is to expand into urban areas, such as Chicago, Washington DC and New York, specifically in areas Wal-Mart executives have identified as "food deserts".

Also recently, Wal-Mart has wandered into my neck of the woods -- the locavore movement -- and promised to buy more "locally grown" food from sustainable farms. In partnership with Michelle Obama, Wal-Mart has made strides in its long-term goal to significantly reduce the sodium and sugar in hundreds of its own and its supplier’s food products.

I have to admit my head is spinning.

With its groceries priced at an average of 15% less than most stores for many of its products, might Wal-Mart be the answer to “food deserts” in our low income neighborhoods?

Is it good that Wal-Mart is buying food from local farmers and promoting organics as Corby Kummer, who I admire, persuasively suggests in The Atlantic Monthly . Or, is this just a public relations ploy by Wal-Mart to “greenwash” their role in the rapid globalization of the food supply, while they continue to squeeze suppliers which results in the exportation of food production and processing overseas in the same way they forced American manufacturers to export manufacturing to China where labor is uber cheap?

Will local NY area farmers benefit from Wal-Mart’s pledge to buy a billion dollars in locally grown produce or will they struggle even more financially due to Wal-Mart’s efforts to turn New York State's diverse fruits, vegetables and dairy products into "cheap food", just another consumer packaged goods commodity with razor thin margins like shave cream?

What will happen to the tens of thousands of ethnic grocers, bodegas and independently owned supermarkets that are rooted in communities and neighborhoods throughout New York that Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer predicts won't survive the “Walmartization” of New York?

Or, the hundreds of local and healthy community food initiatives (emphasis on the word community)?

With food sales estimated at over $125 billion per year, in just over 20 years Wal-Mart has 20-25% market share of all grocery sales in the US (over 50% share in 29 US markets). Do we want this kind of control of NYC's food system to go to one company -- which buys food direct from its suppliers, including local farmers -- particularly as NYC is about to invest millions of dollars in taxpayer money to modernize the Hunts Point Wholesale Food Market?

Isn't it a good thing they are taking unhealthy ingredients, sodium and sugar, out of the food system, including demanding its suppliers to change their formulas at a tremendous cost to the suppliers? I applaud aspects of Walmart's "GREAT FOR YOU" initiative.

But, what does the US Department of Justice have to say about some of the high-cost demands by Wal-Mart on its suppliers, suppliers that have become dependent on Wal-Mart?

Will our federal antitrust laws protect New Yorker from Wal-Mart’s monopolistic and anti-competitive behaviors before it achieves 50% share of NYC’s grocery sales?

How can the City rationalize keeping out Wal-Mart, when other big box stores have moved in and there are plenty of areas already zoned for large format retailers?

Is there a justifiable argument that the "Walmartization" of the City will reduce tax revenue as a result of grocery workers labor unions being forced to renegotiate contracts to compete with anti-union Wal-Mart, which pays workers half of what union stores pay, or risk their supermarket employer’s bankruptcy?

Can the City demonstrate lower tax revenue due to the inevitable closure of thousands of small, locally owned stores when Wal-Mart "blankets" the City with a projected 159 Superstore food outlets in five boroughs?

Or, will we have to rely on anti-Wal-Mart publicity and press conferences at Manhattan’s City Hall to keep Wal-Mart away?

If Wal-Mart is inevitable, can New York’s unions negotiate with Wal-Mart to hire union labor? What can and should the City and State be doing to ensure our community’s downtown’s small stores selling fresh foods, farmers markets and community supported agriculture not only survive but remain an important part of the local fabric of our diverse City?

If Wal-Mart moved in to New York, I'd like to think it wouldn't affect my life much. I'd still be able to buy my food direct from farmers and fisherman (or so I hope). So why do I care?

No longer a consumer products brand manager, now I am a food systems advocate and blogger for Lightheated Locavore and The Daily Meal. I advocate for affordable, fresh, healthy and local food. I support community food and public health initiatives such as community supported agriculture (I'm a member of Chubby Bunny on West End Avenue and support Just Food), farm-to-school, and farmers market nutrition program for low income families, and believe the anti-obesity public health campaigns, such as NYC's portion control and Michelle Obama's Let's Move/Chefs Move to School , are all hugely beneficial and brilliant.

While some want to write off the locavore, slow food and good food movements as being "elitist", I believe there's a huge risk in ignoring the hard work and accomplishments that food advocates, neighborhood leaders and government agencies have had with local food and healthy food initiatives. There are some incredible community-supported and entrepreneurial initiatives going on, many in low income neighborhoods and not just in wealthy southern Manhattan, as well as public health campaigns. There are programs and business models that support farmers, help conserve farmland, connect rural farmers with urban markets, promote rooftop and urban farms, and improve the health of people in low income areas, particularly NYC's school food and after-school programs. There's an explosive growth of farmers markets and community support agriculture in all five boroughs.

The recent focus in the media on the diet-related disease and the childhood obesity epidemic has accelerated these community food efforts, and funding, and underscored the importance of understanding the food system and connecting people, particularly children, with agriculture and "scratch" cooking. So have books and movies written and produced by former New Yorkers, such as Michael Pollan's "Omnivores Dilemma" and Eric Schlosser's "Fast Food Nation" and "Food Inc." which help connect the dots between the food system and disease, unfair labor practices and destruction of the environment for millions of readers and fans.

A new book, “The American Way of Eating: Undercover at Wal-Mart, Applebee’s, Farm Fields and the Dinner Table” by Brooklynite Tracy McMillan, who worked in Wal-Mart’s produce department at a store near Flint, Michigan, was reviewed in yesterday’s New York Times Book Review. McMillan is critical of the way Wal-Mart manages its produce department (thanks Mom for directing me to the review).

The Times reviewer, Dwight Garner writes, “The produce sold at the Walmart where she works is second-rate, often slimy, mushy or merely bland. “Walmart doesn’t always have the freshest stuff,” one manager says to her. “That’s how we keep the prices low.” The produce management is so sloppy that “the newer among us are still working our way from recognition to acceptance, as if advancing through the stages of grief.” Much of her time in Walmart’s produce department is spent trimming rotted leaves (small bunches of lettuce have usually been trimmed many times) and “crisping,” a method of rehydrating limp greens so they appear to be fresh.

A recent report issued by New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene suggests efforts may be working but there's more work to be done. "While the City has made strides in combating the nationwide trend of growing obesity, the majority of adult New Yorkers (nearly 57%) and two out of every five New York City elementary school children remain overweight or obese and the health consequences are dire” (January press release).

Access to affordable, fresh, healthy food has increased tremendously in New York's poorest neighborhoods not only via more locally grown farm food, raised in community gardens or sold at farmers markets, but also from the efforts of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's initiatives such as the healthy bodega campaign to increase fruits and vegetables and reduced-fat milk and dairy stocked at corner markets; calorie posting in chain restaurants; Greencart branded fruit and vegetable stands in low income areas; and, Health Bucks, which provide a bonus coupon to farmers market shoppers who use food stamps.

What will happen to the Harvest Home Farmers Market, the Grassroots Farmers Market, the Bushwick Farmers Market, and La Familia Verde and their 58 farmers markets that I wrote about last Spring?

For the past decade, New York's Mayor Bloomberg and other elected officials have led the way to make NYC a healthier city and make the food system more sustainable and just, including creating incentives for supermarkets to open in "food deserts".

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, who has worked tirelessly to build a solid vision of a sustainable food system in NYC, has spearheaded farmers markets in Harlem and engaged dozens of food advocates in conferences and written several forward-thinking reports. His latest report tackles the effect of Wal-Mart’s expansion in just one uptown Manhattan location, "Food for Thought: A Case Study of Wal-Mart’s Impact on Harlem's Healthy Food Retail Landscape" (11/2011). Stringer recommends a pro-active stance by the City to bolster small food markets in "food deserts", and support urban agriculture and community food initiatives to ensure the survival of these important community food models.

Stringer's food systems reports include: "Red Tape, Green Vegetables" (4/2011); "FoodNYC: A Blueprint for a Sustainable Food System (2/2010), which I had a hand in writing; and, "Food in the Public Interest" (2/2009). City Council Speaker Christine Quinn followed with FoodWorks (11/2010), a robust vision of NYC's food system that builds on Stringer's research and also includes dozens of policy proposals and recommendations.

In the hundreds of pages of recommendations and proposals, neither Quinn nor Stringer suggest Wal-Mart is the solution.

New York has become known nationally and internationally for its effort to overhaul the way food is grown, distributed, consumed and disposed of as the result of the work of government, anti-hunger, social justice and food advocacy non-profits, community leaders, chefs and eaters, writers and bloggers, as well as local, regional and national farms, fishermen, ranchers and businesses. Will we also be known as the City that kept Wal-Mart out?

"Bringing Wal-Mart to NYC would not only damage local retailers and wage-earners, but would erode the great advances communities are making to increase access to affordable, fresh, healthy food." Jacquie Berger, Executive Director of Just Food, stated in Scott Stringer's press release .

Is corporate giant Wal-Mart’s business model, which is to blanket a region with its stores, force its employees onto public assistance, and businesses to close, and predicted consequence, reduced access to healthy, affordable, fresh and locally grown food, something New Yorkers can afford even if Wal-Mart offers "everyday low prices"?

I say “no”. While NYC's food system is admittedly extremely complicated and our "food deserts" are real and pose a long-term threat to the health of New Yorkers, many of them children, Wal-Mart is capitalism run amuck. They have a history of egregious behavior despite its impressive public relations machines and efforts to greenwash their offerings and ingratiate themselves on New York's real estate community, elected officials, locavores, food advocates and anti-hunger and other non-profits, some of which have benefited from Wal-Mart's $4 million donation to NYC in 2011.

Food and Water Watch, a national organization, and local food and labor organizations say “no” too.

What do you say?

What can you do?

Join Food and Water Watch, Walmart-Free NYC, Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), Brooklyn Food Coalition, Hunger Action Network of New York State, Alliance for a Greater New York (ALIGN), New York Communities for Change, the Black Institute, Retail Action Project and other food and labor advocates for

a press conference at

City Hall, Manhattan on Thursday, February 22 at 11:00

Read Food and Water Watch's Press Release here.

And, don't miss the 16-page report “Why Wal-Mart Can’t Fix the Food System”, which reads like a really well-written business school case study, here.

Follow me on twitter @lightlocavore

"Food With Integrity" - Chipotle's Slow Food Message

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 04:22:00 +0000

I was a big fan of Chipotle Mexican Grill's commercial video "Back to the Start" that just aired on the Grammy's when I first viewed it last year at the James Beard Foundation's conference "Sustainability on the Table How Money and Media Influence the Way America Eats".

Using animation, "Back to the Start" takes a farmer from traditional and sustainable farming to industrial factory farming and back to free-range and humane livestock farming that he started with.

Twitter was buzzing for over an hour after the commercial ran. People who vowed not to tweet during the Grammy's couldn't help themselves. The commercial is GREAT!

"We have to end Monsanto-style farming, support organic free range no chemical foods! says tweeter @margaretspence.

"Best commercial ever" said another viewer.

After 19 years, this is Chipotle's first TV commercial. Farm activist and country singer Willie Nelson sings the song "The Scientist" originally by Coldplay to 26 million television Grammy viewers.

According to the New York Times as of last week "The Willie Nelson rendition of “The Scientist” has been downloaded about 25,000 times so far, and 60 cents from each 99-cent download has gone to Chipotle’s foundation" (Chipotle Cultivate Foundation). The foundation donated $250,000 to Willie Nelson's Farm Aid in 2011.

In its press release, Steve Ells, founder, chairman and co-CEO of Chipotle said "We are changing the way people think about and eat fast food. We have always understood the importance of serving food that is raised right, but that is a difficult thing to communicate with the limitations of traditional advertising. 'Back to the Start' tells the story of a farmer's journey from traditional farming to an industrial food production model, then back to his roots of traditional farming again - a story that tracks closely with some of our suppliers and that demonstrates why we think it is so important to serve food made with ingredients from more sustainable sources."

I have yet to try a Chipotle burrito, but I'm glad to know it will be made from "good" "slow" and "real" food.

Now back to the Grammy's ... Adele wins Best Album...

Lobster Puff Pastry Pizza for Valentine's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:34:00 +0000

Love is in the air and there's nothing like a homemade and fancy lobster recipe to impress your girlfriend, husband, boyfriend, or wife on Valentine's Day -- Lobster Puff Pastry Pizza.

This pizza recipe is not any New York corner pizza joint’s pizza but one that turns some of my favorite ingredients into a luxurious pizza that one might find in a Parisian restaurant.

With many of the fragrant flavors you'd use in "bouillabaisse", a Provencal-style fish soup, the aromatic flavors in this pizza will excite all your senses.

For the seafood toppings, I like to use local seafood. Montauk lobster is delicious any time of the year, particular on special occasions such as Valentine's Day, local swordfish and Peconic bay scallops, which are in season til March. The steaming liquid for the seafood provides the aromatic Provencal flavors -- white wine, water, fennel, orange zest and saffron -- all ingredients in a traditional bouillabaisse. And, for the vegetable toppings, I roast and chop vegetables to add to the bites of seafood: plum tomatoes, fennel and red pepper. I prefer fresh tomatoes when they are in season although good quality canned plum tomatoes, preferably organic, can be drained and gently squeezed to remove excess liquid and used as a substitute for fresh.

The sauce is simple: roasted plum tomatoes, red pepper, fennel and garlic. To keep the fennel moist, pour a hint of wine to the pan. Garlic and wine are used liberally in bouillabaisse.

I love the challenge of a hand rolled, folded and turned puff pastry made with flour, water and butter. However, it is very time consuming and easy to mess up. To save time, I suggest buying a good quality puff pastry that’s pre-made. Many of the finer supermarkets carry puff pastry (my Whole Foods sells Dufour Pastry Kitchens, a local, New York City brand).

To create visual excitement and convey the contents of the lobster puff pastry pizza, use cookie cutters to make tiny puff pastry lobsters, scallops and fishes. For me, the best part of making this pizza is assembling the cooked pizza on a serving platter and garnishing it with the puff pastry seafood creatures. Magnifique!

Like most pizzas, this Bouillabaisse pizza recipe is best when it’s made fresh and served immediately as puff pastry is more fragile than traditional pizza dough. Everything can be prepared ahead of time, and the crust baked and pizza assembled just before serving. Serve with a simple salad, light dessert, and a cold glass of bubbly champagne. Happy Valentine's Day.

RECIPES and ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS
Lobster Puff Pastry Pizza with Lobster, Scallops, Swordfish and Roasted Tomato, Fennel and Red Pepper
Makes two 6 x 11” pizzas (4 servings):

Puff Pastry Crust and Garnishes
Prepare puff pastry dough at least one day ahead
1-pound of good quality frozen puff pastry dough
OR
Make your own puff pastry. You’ll need the following ingredients to make your own dough and a reliable recipe (click here for a step by step recipe from Julia Child with photos).

Unbleached all-purpose flour

Cake flour

Salt

Ice water

Unsalted butter 

Thaw frozen puff pastry according to the package directions OR prepare homemade puff pastry. Roll puff pastry to a thickness between a quarter and an eighth of an inch thick. Cut your pizzas into whatever size or shape you like. I made 6 x 11 inch rectangles using a homemade pre-measured piece of parchment paper as a stencil so my crust would fit exactly onto my platter (recommended). I also cut four half inch by 6” pieces and four half inch by 11” pieces to “fortify” the perimeter of the rectangles with mini walls to visually (and literally) hold the sauce and toppings on the puff pastry crust.

You can easily make individual or medium pizzas using whatever shapes and sizes your cookie sheets and imagination can accommodate – circles, squares, a large fish or scallop shape, even a fishing boat. That’s the joy of working with puff pastry. If your dough becomes warm refrigerate for 15 minutes and proceed. Warm dough will not puff.

After making the pizza crust, bake immediately – directions below -- or refrigerate the newly cut shapes on a sheet of parchment paper. Proceed with making the optional garnishes using either additional puff pastry or scraps from making the crust. You can make puff pastry garnishes by hand or with fun shaped cookie cutters. Be sure to keep the dough cold and minimize the amount of handling to preserve the hundreds of layers that give puff pastry its “puffiness”.

As with the crust, bake immediately or cover and store the shapes on parchment paper in the refrigerator until ready to bake. It’s best to roll and cut puff pastry as near to baking time as possible.

Baking directions are below.

Roasted Vegetable Sauce and Toppings
May be prepared up to two days ahead:

15 plum tomatoes, halved and deseeded
3 fennel bulbs, trimmed and sliced
3 tablespoons white wine
olive oil
garlic, diced
Roasted red pepper
Salt and pepper

NOTE: The roasted tomato, fennel and red pepper will be used in both the sauce and the topping.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray four glass roasting pan generously with olive oil. Spread out the tomato halves in two pans and sliced fennel in two additional pans. Add garlic and wine to the fennel to keep the fennel moist. Roast fennel and garlic for about a ½ hour or until the fennel is soft, and roast the tomatoes for an hour to yields 4 cups of tomatoes and 2 cups of fennel. In the meantime, in a broiler or on the stove top, roast one red pepper by charring the skin and removing the charred outer skin and seeds and keeping the delicious flesh.

Chop cooked tomatoes and fennel into ½ inch pieces. Set aside one cup of the diced tomatoes, one cup of the diced fennel and ½ of the red pepper for the sauce. The remaining ingredients will be used for the topping or stored for future use.

To make the sauce:
In a food processor, puree one cup each of tomato and fennel and half of the roasted pepper (deseeded) for a nice thick sauce. Season with salt and pepper.

To make the Seafood, Vegetable and Cheese Toppings:
Seafood and cheese may be prepared up to three hours ahead of assembly. See the recipe above for the recipe for roasting the vegetables.

Poaching Liquid for the Seafood
6 cups of water
2 cups of white wine
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, rough chopped
4 stems of parsley
3-4 fennel fronds
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon of orange zest
A generous pinch of saffron

Seafood:
One 1-1/2 pound lobster (yields 8 ounces lobsters meat)
8 ounces scallops, trim and discard muscle and cut into ½ inch pieces
8 ounce swordfish steak, skin removed and cut into ½ inch pieces

Cheese
4 ounces of local Mecox Dairy Gruyere style cheese or a French Gruyere

Prep and measure the ingredients for the poaching liquid. Prep the seafood.

Poaching the seafood.
In a 16-quart stockpot, add all of the poaching liquid ingredients and bring to a gentle boil. Steam the lobster for 9 minutes in the poaching liquid (larger lobsters take longer – add 3 minutes per pound) with a tightly covered lid. When the lobster is done, remove from the stockpot and let cool. Reserve the liquid to poach the scallops and swordfish. When the lobster is cool, remove shell being careful to keep the claw meat and lobster tail intact. Set aside. With the poaching liquid on a low simmer, poach the uniform ½ inch pieces of scallop and swordfish for 2 minutes until just cooked. Remove quickly with a slotted spoon and place in a colander to drain excess liquid. Cut the lobster tail and any broken claw meat into ½ inch pieces being sure to save any whole claws for the top.

HINT: Save the lobster shells for stock to be used in another recipe.

Grate the Gruyere cheese using the large holes of a box grater.

Baking the Puff Pastry and Assembling the Pizza
An hour and fifteen minutes before serving
Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F). For thin, crisp crust, roll puff pastry to between one-eighth and one-quarter inch thick on a well-floured surface. Using a knife and ruler, and cookie cutters, make your puff pastry dough shapes. For the pizza crust, cut the bottom crust of the pizza to a 6 x 12 inch rectangle and cut miniature walls for the top of the crust (two – ½ x 6 inch and two ½ x 12 inch). You will need two crusts for this recipe.

For the decorative cookies, use cookie cutters such as a lobster, fish, and seashells to add fun to your pizza presentation.

Place crusts and cookies on parchment paper lined cookie sheets and pierce several holes in the bottom shell with a fork to deflate some of the puffiness and get a crust more like a traditional crust that better accommodates toppings. It’s important to work quickly with the dough as warm puff pastry dough turns to mush and will lose its puff. If necessary, return cut shapes to the refrigerator before baking to keep the dough chilled. Cook pastry until golden brown and crisp (20-30 minutes or more depending on the size and thickness of the shape). Leave the crust on the parchment paper and cookie sheet since the pizza will go back into the oven to heat the toppings and melt the cheese.

Set up your toppings in separate bowls or plates (roasted fennel, roasted tomato, roasted red pepper, lobster, swordfish, scallops, and cheese). Heat the sauce. Using a spoon and a rubber spatula or silicon brush, apply sauce to the crust. Then, add the toppings to the pizza in the proportions that you prefer saving the cheese for last (I used a small amount of Gruyere or about 2 ounces on each of the 6x11 inch pizzas so as not to overpower the seafood with cheese).

Once assembled, put the pizzas in a 375-degree oven for about 8-10 minutes or just enough time to heat the pastry and toppings and melt the cheese. Be careful that the crust doesn’t burn. You can heat and serve any remaining toppings to serve along side the pizza for a hearty and complete meal.

Two 6” x 11” rectangular pizzas serve 4 people.

Locavores Descend on Mohonk Mountain House

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 02:01:00 +0000

When Henry and I first drove up to Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, we couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of the 1870's Victorian castle, stone turrets and picturesque setting. We arrived Friday afternoon, during a bright and sunny moment of an otherwise stormy day, and just in time to kick-off Locavore Weekend.

From a cooking demo, with Ric Orlando of New World Home Cooking Co., wine and whiskey tastings, and local food and crafts artisans sharing their goat cheese, cookies, cupcakes and beer and celebrating the Hudson Valley, to learning more about the local food movement in New York from Lea Kone of NOFA-NY. It was a great weekend, I met lots of new people, and it was a true pleasure to present the Lighthearted Locavore's tips on buying and eating locally-sourced food in a storybook setting to so many lovely people.

Chef Ric Orlando, Apple-Leek Soup Demo (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Special thanks to the charming and talented dinner partners and Chefs Ric Orlando and John Novi of Depuy Canal House, father of 'nouvelle cuisine' and other "gustatory marvels" (People, 1983), for an amazing dinner and Whitecliff Vineyards for the tasty Gamay Noir buzz. And, to Katie, Elizabeth and Samantha for pulling off such a great event.

Foie Gras Pate, Spinach Mousse, and Rice Paper Habit with Fennel and Beet (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Novi prepared a local foie gras pate flavored with Tuthilltown whiskey that I had tasted a few hours earlier.....

Whitecliff Vineyards, 2010 Gamay Noir, Gardiner, NY and a glass of bubbly (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Our table of nine, including Ric, his wife Liz and family, John, and tastemakers Alison and Ken on a Dish Trip Foodie Travel Adventure, Henry and me, enjoyed several bottles of of the Hudson Valley's Whitecliff Winery's Gamay Noir, and some bubbly Ric had stashed in his room...

Cheers, Alison Benford (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

The locavore lobster and grits entree Orlando prepared was seasoned with Creole spices, including some kick-ass peppers and Andouille sausage.

Montauk Lobster and Wild Hive Grits (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

The cheese plate, which Novi curated, was a cow's milk cheese with cumquats from a New Paltz farm and local bread and butter.

Harpersfield Tilsit Cheese and Candied Cumquats (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

And, finally the Dressel Farms grown apples made a delicious cake -- despite being full I ate every last bite, including the ice cream and the mint leaf!

Warm Apple Walnut Cake (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

There was lots of fun activity on Twitter (@chefricorland, @lightlocavore, @dishtrip, @bonsaidollfern) and a post-trip review on Trip Advisor declaring Locavore Weekend at Mohonk Mountain House to be "locavore-rific". Hope to see you all next year!

21 New York City Winter Farmers Markets Open

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:06:00 +0000

Apples at Columbus Avenue Greenmarket and Yellow Taxi (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Around February, even the most die-hard of locavores are challenged to find fresh local food in New York City and Long Island (unless of course you have a double-wide freezer or canned and dried foods that you preserved last year stashed under the bed).

In preparing for a presentation I gave last Saturday at the Mohonk Mountain House Locavore Theme Weekend (Hudson Valley), I was pleasantly surprised to discover there are 180 farmers markets in New York State that are open all year long. Twenty-one of those markets are right here in New York City with an impressive 15 accepting electronic benefits cards/food stamps (EBT).

And, good news for Manhattanites -- you can shop at a Greenmarket seven days a week this winter (daily schedule below). Look for me at the Upper West Side market on 79th Street and Columbus Avenue on Sunday -- I'll be stocking up for the Giants vs. Patriots game.

21 New York City Winter Farmers Markets
(For times, exact locations and a list of vendors, check out GrowNYC's website)

Manhattan: 
97th Street Friday (EBT) 
82nd Street Saturday (EBT) 
79th Street Sunday (EBT) 
Abingdon Square Saturday
 Bowling Green Tuesday & Thursday  
Columbia Thursday & Sunday (EBT) 
Dag Hammarskjold Plaza Wednesday  
Inwood Saturday (EBT) 
Port Authority Bus Terminal Thursday 
Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal Tuesday & Friday (EBT) 
Tompkins Sunday (EBT) 
Tribeca Wednesday & Saturday  
Tucker Square Thursday & Saturday 
Union Square Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday (EBT)

Brooklyn: 
Brooklyn Borough Hall Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday (EBT) 
Carroll Gardens Sunday (EBT) 
Cortelyou Rd Sunday (EBT)
 Fort Greene Park Saturday (EBT) 
Grand Army Plaza Saturday (EBT)
 Greenpoint McCarren Park Saturday (EBT)
Queens: Jackson Heights Sunday (EBT)

Now Open in Long Island (Weekends, check for dates and times)
••••G&G LI Farmers Market Huntington, Melville and Northport (Western Suffolk County) Newsday and Facebook listings
••••Sag Harbor Farmers Market, (Hamptons, Eastern Suffolk) Facebook page

New York State Directory
**** Farmers Market Federation of New York Market Listings -- Open for Winter

Some of my winter locavore favorites....seafood, milk, ice cream and cheese, dried beans, wheat and corn flour, baked goods, pork, beef, chicken, duck and turkey (especially turkey sausages), apple juices, canned goodies (tomato sauce, sweet and savory jams and jellies, pickled veggies) and, of course, wine and beer. I also like to talk to the farmers about the upcoming season and share recipe notes with other locavores. See you at the markets.

How to Make Peking Duck for Chinese New Year's

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:34:00 +0000

Sliced Peking Duck Served with Pancakes (photos: Lexi Van de Walle)

The Chinese culture is known for its festive banquets, particularly for weddings and Chinese New Year's celebrations, and crispy Peking duck. Cooking Peking duck at home is fun but also quite time consuming. I found this recipe to be relatively easy to follow and strongly suggest it's worth the try. January 23, 2012 marks the new year so out with the "year of the rabbit" and in with the dragon.

Long Island Pekin Ducks (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Fresh Long Island Pekin Duck Being "Fan Dried" (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

A Hot Bath for the Duck (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Crispy, Roasted and Ready for Slicing (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

The key to good Peking duck is the many-stage and all-day process of drying the skin, removing excess fat and glazing the bird with aromatic ingredients so that the roasted bird is crispy on the outside, lean, not greasy, and very moist on the inside.

Choose fresh -- never frozen -- Long Island duckling, whenever possible. And start cooking the night before or early in the morning to allow the skin to dry out before cooking. Drying the skin is step one. Hang it using a string wrapped under its wings and over a kitchen cabinet knob and use a fan to speed up the process.

While the duck is drying, you can go shopping for fresh vegetables to serve. I like to mix green and purple scallions, and serve a side dish such as bok choy.

A 5-minute bath in a honey glaze is step two. Lower the duck into the wok so as not to splash the hot liquid.

Step three is drying the freshly glazed skin again using the same method as step one. The Time-Life recipe calls for one hour in front of a fan at this stage; however, I followed other recipes that called for longer drying times (the drier the skin the crispier the duck).

Rolling the Peking Duck Pancakes (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Diving the Pancakes (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Steaming the Pancakes (Photo: Lexi Van de Walle)

Two flour-water pancakes made with a cookie cutter are brushed with sesame oil, stacked and rolled again, cooked in a hot pan for two minutes and then separated. It is fun to peel the pancakes apart.

When I have it, I use beach plum jam instead of hoisin sauce although store-bought hoisin works equally well.

About 2-1/2 hours before you plan to serve dinner, and when the skin is dry like “parchment paper”, roast the duck.

As detailed in the recipe below and shown in the top photograph, the duck is plated on a serving dish, separating the various parts and serving on different plates (crispy skin, legs, breast meat). To serve, diners take a pancake, brush on hoisin or beach plum jam sauce using a scallion that's been cut to make a "paint brush", put duck meat and skin on top on top of the pancake, and then roll it up with the ingredients inside. Then, take a heavenly bite.

The dragon is a symbol of power and wealth. What could be better than a meal fit for an emperor -- Peking Duck?

RECIPE
Peking Duck-- A Dish Fit for an Emperor
Adapted from Time-Life's

Foods of the World Chinese Cooking

1 duck

Bath:
8 cups water
¼ cup honey
4 slices ginger root, sliced 1/8” thick
2 scallions

Wash duck. Wipe dry and tie string under wings. Hang in a cool place in front of an osillating fan for 2 hours. Fill a large wok with bath ingredients. Stir and boil. Lower duck into the boiling liquid and ladle liquid over duck to moisten all sides (continue for 5 minutes). Hang duck again and fan for 3-6 more hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place duck breast side up on rack in a roasting pan filled with 1 inch of water. Roast for one hour. Lower to 300 degrees (F), turn duck breast side down and roast 30 minutes. Turn breast side up again, roast 30 minutes until internal temperature reaches 180 degrees. Let sit on top of the stove for 15 minutes before carving. Using a sharp knife cut off crispy skin, carve legs and wings from the bird and slice the meat. Cut the skin into neat bite size pieces and the meat. Serve skin, legs and wings, and duck meat on separate serving platters.

Brush sauce onto pancake using scallion brush, add duck, some crispy skin, and scallion garnish. Roll pancake like a taco and eat. Serves 4.

Beverage Pairing: Serve with red or white wine: white Riesling or red Pinot Noir. Long Island has some great wines to pair with the Long Island duck.

RECIPE
Beach Plum Sauce
Heat until bubbling and let cool: ½ cup of beach plum jam, 1 tablespoon of local honey, 1 tablespoon of brown rice vinegar, ½ tablespoon of grated ginger root and ¼ teaspoon of Thai pepper.

RECIPE
Pancakes
For a video and tasty recipe, check out Videojug’s How to Make Chinese Pancakes.
You’ll need flour, water, sesame oil, sugar and a few special tools, including a rolling pin, cookie cutter and stop watch. Pancakes can be made ahead and steamed right before serving.

ABOUT THE LOCAL FOODS
Crescent Farms: Of literally hundreds of Long Island duck farms from the 1930’s and 1940’s on Long Island, only two remain.

Sang Lee Farm: largest grower of Asian vegetables for Community Supported Agriculture and Farmers Market customers

Duckwalk Vineyards and Winery

Paumanok Preserves and a few other local jam and jelly entrepreneurs make jam with local beach plums. Beach plums are native to Long Island and Cape Cod.

Honey by Don Sausser Apiaries of Southampton

Creamy Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Maple Syrup Froth

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 00:43:00 +0000

There's nothing more wintery than butternut squash soup -- creamy roasted butternut squash soup topped with maple syrup froth and a dash cinnamon.

Photos: Lexi Van de Walle

First, cook the diced squash in stock with some onions and garlic.

Photos: Lexi Van de Walle

And, then prepare the milk and maple syrup for the froth.

Photos: Lexi Van de Walle

After the vegetables are soft, run them through the blender or food processor and top with froth and cinnamon.

Not only is this soup delicious but you can also feel virtuous knowing that you're off to good start for the new year at only 115 calories.

RECIPE
Creamy Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Maple Syrup Froth

6 one cup servings

5 cups of vegetable stock or non-fat chicken broth
1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 butternut squash, trimmed and deseeded
1 potato, peeled
1 apple, peeled

1/2 cup organic 2% milk
2 Tablespoons pure grade A medium amber maple syrup

Prepare vegetables as indicated. Cut squash, potato and apple into one inch cubes. Add stock, onion, garlic, squash and potato to a medium sized soup pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add cubed apples. Simmer for another 10 minutes. Pierce the vegetables with a fork to test for doneness. When cooked through, turn off heat and let cool. Pureeing in a blender or food processor until velvety smooth. Reheat when ready to serve and garnish with a dash of cinnamon and spoonful of maple syrup froth.

To make the maple syrup froth, stir the maple syrup into the milk, then use your favorite kitchen tool for frothing as you would if you were making a cappuccino or latte.

Photos: Lexi Van de Walle

If you don't have a special frothing wand or cappuccino maker with a steamer attachment, add the milk and maple syrup to an oven proof glass jar, such as a Ball jar, and vigorously shake the milk for about 30 seconds to create bubbles.

Photos: Lexi Van de Walle

Microwave the milk in the glass jar for about a minute and it will froth up even more. Now it's ready to spoon on top.

Photos: Lexi Van de Walle

Or mix in to the velvety rich and colorful soup.....

Curried Red Lentil Soup with Jalepeno, Lemon and Ham

noreply@blogger.com (Lexi Van de Walle) — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 00:14:00 +0000

This recipe for Curried Red Lentil Soup with Jalepeno, Lemon and Ham was a big hit some time ago on Lighthearted Locavore -- and also got some attention from my editor at The Daily Meal. It's so easy and delicious.

REPRINT:
Perhaps it's because I'm married to a Southerner from Louisiana, but the idea of putting a ham bone and jalapeno pepper in an otherwise traditional Asian Indian curried red lentil (dal) soup recipe seemed like a worthwhile experiment.

Thick, tasty, red lentil soup (Photos: Lexi Van de Walle)

It's freezing in New York (30 degrees (F) going down to the twenties tonight) and all across the globe for that matter so a nice warm soup -- that cooks in less than a half hour -- is a great idea no matter whether your in Louisiana, New York, Tripoli or Bangladore. Better yet, I made the soup, not with locavore ingredients, but with foods I had in the fridge and pantry (it's too cold outside to shop)!

Red lentil beans, garlic, ginger, carrot and jalapenos (Photos: Lexi Van de Walle)

This recipe can be made vegan using vegetable stock and no ham, which is more like a traditional red lentil dal as Indians typically don't eat pork for cultural reasons.

Or include chicken broth and/or leftover ham, which adds some great flavor to an already tasty dish. Play around with the amount of curry and the vegetables -- perhaps add some celery or cilantro or a can of garbanzo beans (I did which made the soup into a rich almost stew like meal).

RECIPE SECRET: The addition of the lemon juice at the end is a must!

RECIPE

Curried Red Lentil Soup with Jalepeno, Lemon and Ham

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced

1 carrot, peeled and grated

1 tablespoon mild or medium curry powder (if hot curry powder, use less)

1 1/2 cups dried red lentils, rinsed

4 cups of chicken or vegetable broth

2 cups of canned tomatoes, chopped

2 tablespoons of lemon juice (or more to taste)

salt and pepper

Optional: leftover ham bone or cooked ham hock, 1 can of garbanzo beans, 1 celery rib chopped

Garnish: thinly sliced jalapeno pepper or chopped cilantro

In a saucepan, heat oil and add onion, pepper, garlic, carrot and curry powder. Saute for 5 minutes, stirring occassionally. Add lentils, chopped tomato and broth (and optional ham bone or ham hock) and bring to a boil. Immediately reduced heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes until lentils are soft. If using a ham hock, remove from the soup, cut meat into 1/2 cubes and discard the fat and bone. Add salt and pepper to the soup and stir in lemon juice. Taste. Add more lemon juice, if desired.

Serve in cups or soup bowls and garnish with a thin slices of jalapeno pepper (or a dollop of yogurt). For a thinner soup, add more broth.