Smoke'n Summer

Is there a symbol of the summer?  Is it a shimmering pool surface about to be broken by the wild screaming cannonballs of children, or a cold glass of ice tea sweating in your warm hand?  My summer always starts with an ice cold margarita and ends with some sweet and smoky goodness from my grill.

Every one of my summers has had a theme.  Whether it is a song that we played all the time, a drink we always made or an activity we always were participating in, every summer has been unique.  Last summer was my "M" summer, Margaritas, Mojitos, and Mint Juleps.  My roommate and I would throw pool parties every Friday, Fiesta Friday if you will, and have all the components for the drinks laid out across our bar.  For those with limited mixology training we had recipes hanging on the wall.  I would make beef and chicken tacos with all the toppings, queso fresco, pickled jalapenos, guacamole, salsa, fresh flour and corn tortillas.  We would drink, swim and eat till the sun went down then do it all again next week.

This summer's theme is centered around my grill.  I wanted to take some classic dishes and twist them into something new.  Isn't that what it's all about?

The first creation actually came about because of one of my co-workers named Jessie.  Jessie loves chicken.  I cannot say that enough, that boy eats chicken every single day!  Whether it's fried, grilled, smoked, or baked he is eatin' him some chicken!  So one day he comes up to me with a case of chicken leg quarters and told me to do something new to them, something that he has never had before.  Challenge accepted.  We rubbed the legs down with a spiced chamoula rub (cayenne, paprika, and cumin) mixed with our good friend David Peaks seasoning salt, (Salt, rosemary, pepper, onion powder, granulated garlic, and thyme) then added a bit of brown sugar to sweeten the pot.  We then smoked the chicken for four hours low and slow, then as they walked out of the smoked we placed them on a hot grill just to crispen the skin and a nice char to the spices.  After the grill we drizzled the chicken with extra virgin olive oil, chopped cilantro and fresh lime juice.  The smoke and the heat were in perfect harmony while the light fresh flavor of the lime and cilantro kept the flavor roller coaster rolling!  Jessie was pleased, so much so that he bought another case of leg quarters and asked me to do the whole case!

This one’s for all the gluten free people out there, taco pasta!  Arrowhead meat company now sells corn pasta that tastes very much like a corn tortilla.  So that got us all thinking, why couldn't we take a traditional street taco and create a fun and different pasta?!  We started with a wonderful herbed olive oil marinated tenderloin taco with sautéed red onions tossed with lime juice and fresh cilantro.  We marinated the tenderloin overnight a mixture of sautéd garlic, red chili flake, oregano, black pepper, and a pinch of salt in olive oil.  Then it was grilled adding bits of char and smoke to the meat.  We tossed the meat and onions with the corn pasta then topped everything with queso fresco and some more fresh cilantro.  The pasta was the perfect stand in for the traditional corn tortilla, adding both a rich corn flavor and a wonderful pasta texture.  This might become my new summer treat!

But how can we all celebrate summer without a cool refreshing beverage to help beat the heat!  So we decided to take on of our favorites, the margarita, and make it a bit more interesting.  Introducing the Grilled and Smoked Margarita.  We started by smoking the salt, this added a fun and deep dimension to the salt.  To get the flavor of the grill all the way through this cocktail we grilled limes and used the juice in the margarita mix.  The margarita is then complete with a smoked salt rim and a grilled lime wedge garnish.  Perfect for those hot summer days and nights!  Cheers!

Stay tuned for more inspired dishes from Lon Lane's Inspired Occasions Research and Development Department!

The patty pan squash is niether a patty nor a pan, discuss.

One summer, when I was young, my grandmother planted two zucchini plants.  I showed up one day to find her exhausted, sitting in her kitchen chair, staring at rows upon rows of glass jars.

"It just won’t stop!  Every day I go out there and pick all that I can see and the next day there are a dozen more the size of my arm!"

She spent that summer picking and canning every single zucchini amounting to a grand total of 120 pints of zucchini relish, 20 pints of zucchini pickles, and 12 loaves of zucchini bread.  I know, she was a machine!

This year my garden has blessed us with an almost never ending bounty.  Every morning I harvest every vegetable I can find, yet the next morning I come across a half dozen more that I had over looked.  So what do I do with this overflowing horn of plenty ?  Well, I believe the correct term, in the parlance of our time, is "get a little crazy".

Zucchini and squash have become the “Beige” of the gourd family.  They are so common in today’s markets, with their year round availability; most people don't even notice them anymore.  But in our garden they take center stage on this fun and exciting dish for summer, “Garden Fettuccine” with goat cheese and roasted tomatoes. 

We sliced the squash and zucchini on the mandolin for perfectly uniform "noodles", then sautéed them in extra virgin olive oil, salt and fresh cracked black pepper. The noodles were then tossed with a sauce made from fresh vegetable stock, white wine, thyme, garlic, shallot, red chili flake and fresh lemon zest.  When plating, we positioned them side by side then brought the colorful duo together with a goat cheese medallion topped with hot roasted cherry tomatoes straight from the garden.    The combination of textures and flavors were outstanding, the goat cheese medallion acted like an egg yolk melting into the noodles creating a silky smooth sauce.  The earthy notes of thyme paired with garlic and shallot danced ever so delicately with the acid of the white wine and lemon zest all set off with the slight lingering heat of the red chili flakes.  Perfect for these hot days of summer.

But what summer plate up would be complete without something from the grill?  Well I couldn't agree with you more, so here is our new summer classic; grilled patty pan squash topped with Lebanese eggplant with basil and fresh tomatoes, goat cheese and shaved parmesan.  The patty pan squashes we are growing grew a little bit bigger than we ever anticipated.  But with their size they never lost the sweet squash flavor only to be accentuated by the intense heat of the grill.  The eggplant was made using Ichiban Japanese eggplants freshly picked from the garden, mixed with sautéed mushrooms, onions, garlic, fresh tomatoes, brown sugar and fresh basil.  The combination of sweet and savory, herbal and cheesy, perfectly played with the sweet and savory crunch of the grilled patty pan.

But, I would be remiss if I did not discuss my lost favorite, okra.  Okra has been a favorite vegetable of mine ever since Lamberts Cafe doled them out by the buckets to me while I waited to catch a hot “throwed” roll.  But this noble plant of African origin deserves so much more than just a quick batter and fry.  No this glorious pod deserves its time in the lime light, a chance to be more than another fried snack at the forgotten foods buffet.  So we created this treat, roasted red okra spoon bread!  Roasting the okra pods brings out all of the wonderful herbal aromas and nutty flavors of the plant while eliminating the slime so feared by okraphobics.  The pods were then diced and stirred into a soft spoon bread batter made with rich vegetable stock, shaved parmesan and roasted grape  tomatoes for an added sweet pairing.  The spoon bread was then baked to a golden hue; A perfect side dish for any southern dining experience.

This year our garden is growing inspiration, all we have to do is keep up with the harvest…and, stayed “Inspired”.

Stay tuned for more inspired dishes from Lon Lane's Inspired Occasions Research and Development Department!

Day off Dinner

We all need a day off every now and then.  A time to step away from our job and do something for ourselves, something that will melt away the stress of the week and rejuvenate us for the week ahead.  On my day off I did what any good Research and Development Chef would do, I hosted a dinner party!

I have just moved into my new condo, I was still waiting on my table and chairs to be delivered, and just couldn't fight the urge to have a special group of people over to celebrate my very first dinner party!  But I couldn't play this one safe, just because my crowd was family doesn't mean I could phone this one in.  No I had to bust out all the stops and really set the tone for my new life in the heart of Westport.

During the summer the grill is my tool of choice.  Fast and direct or low and slow a fired up grill loaded with goodies for friends and family is a Norman Rockwell painting of summer.  And in the spirit of back yard cookouts I wanted to make the grill the focal point of the entire dinner.  I wanted to elevate the standard meat and potatoes fare with light and fun dishes to both entertain and delight!

The evening needed to start with a bang, set the tone, get these people just screaming with anticipation for the next course.  So I went a little crazy and came up with something amazing, a grilled polenta pizza margarita!  The polenta was made in a traditional style with rich homemade chicken stock, shave parmesan and fresh cracked black pepper, but I scaled back on the amount of stock to create a firm yet delicate crust.  After a brief period in the cooler to firm up I oiled the crust with olive oil and took it to the grill.  The parmesan created wonderful crisp grill lines while imparting that great toasty cheese flavor throughout the crust.  The pizza was then topped with tri color, home grown, heirloom tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella slices.  A second trip to the grill to melt the cheese then the whole pie was topped with fresh picked dark purple and sweet Italian basil a robust balsamic reduction and extra virgin olive oil.  The contrast of sweet tomatoes,crisp smokey crust, the toothy texture of the polenta and the melty goodness of the mozzarella almost made me forget about every other pizza out there.... almost.

Now that I had their attention we moved on to the main event.  I started with a salad and pasta combo, homemade fettuccini noodles with a fresh clams, julienned zucchini and white wine sauce tossed with fresh herbs and home grown red chili's. The clams were steamed in a mixture of crisp white wine, fresh thyme and a little home grown cayenne pepper.  While they were steaming away the julienned zucchini was sauteed with extra virgin olive oil, garlic and fresh thyme.  The sauce and zucchini were combined then tossed with the noodles still steaming from their pot of salted water.  The sweet clams were highlighted by the bright flavor of the wine and fresh herbs while the cayenne pepper brought up the rear with a sweet floral heat.   A wonderful light pasta for a hot summer day.

The scent from the grill would waft into my house every time I opened my door, guiding my guests through their current course and setting the stage for the next.  Grilled hearts of romaine were plattered right off the grill and dressed with shaved parmesan, seasonings and drizzled with homemade Caesar salad dressing.  The cheese melted into the grooves and the dressing coated each of the leaves.  The char added a smoke and bite to the romaine, the melted cheese added a creamy texture and the dressing kept the salad fresh and bright.

 

Our main course was next, herb brined rotisserie chicken with roasted tri colored pearl potatoes with red onion and rosemary.   The chicken we brined with salt, sugar, white wine, lemons, garlic, peppercorns, fresh basil, rosemary, thyme, oregano,and sage pulled right from our garden.  The chicken turned slowly on my rotisserie while the potatoes roasted in the drip pan underneath.  The brine kept the chicken super moist, the grill made the skin golden brown and crispy, and the potatoes were the perfect medium of texture and roasty flavor.  

The last course of the evening was a throwback with a fun modernist twist, an Amalfi coast Ricotta Tort topped with a fresh blueberry and lemon verbena compote.  The torte is like a very light whipped Italian cheesecake, bursting with the flavors of fresh lemon and tangy ricotta.  The sweet and tart blueberry compote was enhance by the herbal bite of the lemon verbena.  It was a perfect ending to an amazing dinner, leaving us all satisfied yet not stuffed. 

Summer is the time of year for fresh and light.  Smoke and char add elements to our familiar dishes that turn them from old favorites to new classics. 

Stay tuned for more inspired dishes from Lon Lane's Inspired Occasions Research and Development Department!

Green Dirt Dinner

I had to take my time with this post.  I wanted to make sure everything was perfect and I conveyed, to the best of my abilities, the magnificence of this event.  I want to share with you all an evening, no, an “Experience”, at Green Dirt Farms brought to you by Lon Lane’s Inspired Occasions.

Every birthday is special, but when you have several family members celebrating together, well that’s something else entirely.  This last week our clients handed us the keys to our own personal toy land, and told us to have fun!  This toy land was called Green Dirt Farms, in Westin MO, and we played…oh how we played!

Before I give you the details, I feel the need to tell you how this whole thing started.  Several weeks ago my dad walks up to me, adorned with that devilish smirk he often  wears when he is about to drop some amazing news upon our ears, and informs me that we will be doing a dinner at Green Dirt Farms(GDF) for 30 guests,  so get excited.

My mind was spinning, but where do we start?  The meat, the cheese, and the very grounds themselves were ripe with possibilities for wonder and amazement.  Not only that our gardens at the company were so full (we were harvesting every week!) but our list of supplies for this event was growing by the second, pun intended. The first farm on site visit set our color palate of lavender and Purple (thistles), sage greens, blackberry (just in season) and lemon that will be used throughout the meal.

This dinner prep started two days before the actual event.  A delivery man in beat up jeans and worn in work boots came knocking on our door with two fully dressed spring lambs in his hands.  These were beautiful and tender, and our chefs and I got to work exuberantly breaking them down.  We sectioned off the legs, the racks and the chops, careful as surgeons but giddy as school children.  I removed the liver and set to work on a pate, my mouth eagerly awaiting the final product.

Now out at GDF I must say we were all speechless.  The grounds were immaculate, the old lamb barn was beautiful and the stained glass window in the barn bathed the entire family farm table in a radiant, rich glow.  Our kitchen crew set to work preparing the grills, organizing the kitchen, and prepping the meat.  A two man band, the Texas Experience, pulled up and soon the barn was full smooth classic country songs and the sweet smell of the grill. 

As the guests arrived they were greeted with wine, beer, and a signature cocktail called the “GDF Thistle” (a mixture of scotch, bitters and sweet vermouth) full service bar and wines carefully selected to compliment the menu.  With cocktails served, we awakened their taste buds with a crock of lamb liver pate highlighted with cassis and served with a blackberry, basil and cassis jam and rye toasts, an assortment of house crafted pickles, GDF fresh peppercorn sheep’s milk cheese, figs, salt and pepper grissini, sticks of celery, and rounds of garden grown cucumbers.  

While the guests milled about admiring their surroundings we passed a few delectable little bites, watermelon radish canapes on white bread with salted butter, grilled lacquered bacon wrapped cassis poached figs stuffed with sheep’s cheese and smoked almonds, and (a favorite of mine) grilled whole grain pizza topped with GDF nettle sheep’s milk cheese, watermelon radish tops, caramelized onions and thistle from the grounds of GDF.  The grill perfectly mimicked the char and crispy crust you get with a tradition wood burning oven; I practiced this pizza crust several times on my new Broil King at home to make sure I got everything right.

As the guests found their seats, the Texas Experience band started to play a little softer and Dad and I entered the barn to introduce the “experience” describe the first course;  chilled watermelon radish top soup with GDF fresh yogurt, diced pickled radish and fresh cucumber.  This was a fun dish to create because I love radishes but never had any use for the tops.  However, the flavor and texture of the young radish tops reminded me of another unused and often discarded green, nettles.  So we adapted a nettle soup recipe from my grandparents and created a beautiful bright green soup that is vibrant, yet subtle and refreshing.  The gentle crunch and bite from the pickled radishes paired so well with the crisp fresh cucumber while the  fresh yogurt added another tangy-velvet element rounding out the soup.

 

The next course was an all grill salad, grilled endive, radicchio, and fresh fiddle head ferns topped with GDF Spicy sheep’s milk cheese, rosemary walnuts and drizzled with blackberry vinaigrette.  The texture and crunch of the grilled lettuces and the soft spiciness of the sheep’s cheese was brought into balance by the tart and sweet dressing while the fiddle heads provided an added nutty and earthy touch.  The plates returned to our kitchen “sparkling” clean!

On to the main event, the Lamb!  We rubbed the lamb with olive oil, rosemary, lemon and cracked black pepper.  Once it hit the grill we seasoned each piece with a dusting of kosher salt and when they were almost done, we glazed them with a blackberry currant mint sauce.  It was the second prettiest thing I have ever seen!  We plated up this course with black “forbidden” rice tossed with oven roasted grape tomatoes and fresh corn cut from the cob.  Sautéed Brussels sprouts with a whole grain mustard and crisp chardonnay glaze finished the plate.  Later, we passed the racks on copper trays for an added flair.

 

The dessert was a triumph in my eyes because we made one of the best ice creams I have ever tasted, fresh GDF sheep’s milk cheese and lemon verbena Ice cream.  Picture the best cheesecake you have ever had, and then melt that down and make an ice cream.  The texture was a mixture of silk and velvet while the cheese and lemon verbena provided a subtle yet pleasant tang.  We scooped the ice cream into old fashioned soda glasses and topped them off with sparkling French lemonade tableside served with our signature chocolate soufflé cookies .

As a parting gift, each guest was presented with a bagged and decoratively tied cookie that replicated the intricate stained glass window;  the “Trademark” of the old lamb barn turned dining room.  The three panels of the window represented our three Birthday celebrants and the cookies were inscribed with each of their names under each of the three panels.

 

We have attended some amazing dinners, cooked a few more, but we have never had the honor to produce anything like this “farm to table dinner” and “dining experience”. 

That night, under a clear star studded sky, we were players in what turned out to be the “Perfect” evening.  It was a rare moment that will stay with us (and especially me) forever.

Summertime Osso Buco

When I think Osso Buco my mind immediately goes to the Italian classic done Milanese style.  The rich and unctuous meat slowly braised in a deeply rich broth of wine, stock and tomatoes.  The meat yields to the barest pressure of your fork while sauce mixes with the golden saffron risotto underneath.  Just writing this makes me dream of cold nights in Italy warming my soul with meat and wine. 

But that’s just the problem, this amazing dish is a staple of the winter, where you need the heavy and rich to take the chill off your skin and keep you warm on your journey home.  But what are we, the devotees to low and slow braised proteins, supposed to do during the hot summer months?  I thought I would never find the answer until the answer found me. 

One of our purveyors brought over some samples of this new product, a 4 inch cut pork osso buco, and the gears in my head started spinning.  Pork is much lighter than beef, takes very well to low and slow braises, and contains all of that lovely porky goodness that sends me over the edge.  But how was I to prepare them?  The classic Italian way with heavy flavors of red wine and beef stock would not do.  No, to make this right we needed to travel outside of the norm and head to the south of France.

I took a page from my regional pork belly post and went with a Provencal flavor profile for this cut of pork.  I needed to concoct my flavor profiles with a feathers touch.  Not to many heavy flavors to overwhelm the pork, but not to light that the dish falls flat. 

I started by seasoning the shanks with a little salt and then let them sit for just long enough for the salt to pull out some of the surface proteins to promote caramelization.  Then I seared them in a glorious combination of pancetta and bacon fat, pancetta for the bouquet and bacon for its smoky salty goodness.  Then I deglazed the pan with celery and onions sautéed till lightly golden.  The herbs, tarragon, parsley, rosemary and chives were then introduced to party so the heat could bring out all of their floral flavors.  Once the pan started smelling like the south of France in spring, I poured in lemon juice, chicken stock and a dry white chardonnay.   The pork was added back to the pan; the ethereal broth was heated back to a boil and then placed in the oven for 3 hours. 

The meat, the meat…. I umm sorry I was lost in the memory of that melty succulent pork.  The meat was tender as pulled pork with the body and substance of the best pork roast.  The sauce was mixed with a little brown sugar and reduced to gravy that should have been poured in a snifter and enjoyed like a fine cognac.

A fine main dish needs a great side, and here I present the pork with some fresh picked sautéed dandelion greens topped with bright lemon zest.  The bitterness of the greens played perfectly with the sweet and tanginess of the pork and sauce.  But if you are looking for a more substantial side try our apricot whole grain mustard polenta made with stone-ground apricot mustard, shaved parmesan, and rich chicken stock.  The polenta turns this dish into an instant fall classic.

Stay tuned for more inspired dishes from Lon Lane's Inspired Occasions Research and Development Department!

Devotion or Obsession??

Everyone, foodies and non-foodies alike, has one food that they treasure.  One dish that always makes them either happy, nostalgic, excited or all three!  This dish is protected like a younger sibling on the school yard, and when you see people abusing it the situation turns ugly.  This is a tale of my treasured dish, risotto and the lengths people go to protect their favorite food.

Several years ago I spent a semester abroad in Florence, Italy, studying at the Apicius Culinary Center.  Now Italy is known for many things, living inexpensively is not one of them.  As the months went on my bank roll became lighter and lighter my culinary options became limited.  I started looking for cheap items that could stretch the remaining Euros I had left, while still leaving me satisfied enough to enjoy the nightlife(this is a tale of risotto not my poor priority choices).  Then one day our teacher taught us a classic dish, osso buco Milanese, and gave me the best present of the semester! 

I don’t like to jump to assumptions but everyone in that class must have been extreamly lazy, stoned or drunk to be as bad as they were.  My partner and I, mostly me because he couldn’t figure out how to cut onions without slicing the tip of his finger off, made a perfect risotto while everyone else’s looked sad and goopy.  Needless to say the teacher loved me and at the end of the class that day I asked if I could take some of the raw rice back home to “practice my technique”.  She gave me a 5 kilo bag, about 11 pounds!!!

Since I lived right next to the market, and spoke just enough Italian at the time, I begged all the butchers for bones.  Fish bones, chicken bones, beef bones, any animal they had I was asking for the bones.  I would take them home, caramelize them in several skillets then make rich stocks.  Wine was always plentiful and cheap, and granna padano cost almost nothing.  I spent the last few weeks of my adventure abroad living on hot bowls of that beautiful rice, and my love affair became a lifelong commitment.  Now I have a full garden of supplies, and risotto is my canvas upon which I paint the bounty of spring.

This first dish is inspired by a classic, Champagne risotto with julienned zucchini and clams with fresh squash blossoms.  The champagne gives the dish a lightness and crisp flavor, accentuating the sweet clams and the floral zucchini.  The fresh clams are first cooked in the stock used to make the rice then place right on top of the plate while the zucchini is stirred in right as I pulled the pot off of the stove.  This left a beautiful sea note throughout the dish and a nice contrast of textures between the al dente rice and the semi crisp zucchini.

My next dish was inspired by my dad and his love of all things beet.  It’s a white wine risotto with roasted golden beets, house pickled beets, fresh tarragon and thyme.  The combination of the sweet pickled beet against the roasted caramelized goodness of the beet provided a wonderful mix of both flavors and textures.  The earthy fresh thyme complimented the light anise of the tarragon to enlighten each grain.  Then to really take this over the edge we topped it with a balsamic glaze seared sea scallop and a drizzle of balsamic syrup.

This dish is a tribute to my grandfather and the most amazing sweet corn he used to grow on the farm every year.  I made a sweet corn and oven roasted tomato risotto topped with sautéed fresh sweet corn and grape tomatoes.  I used champagne for this as well because I didn’t want a powerful wine flavor fighting with the subtle flavor of the corn while still providing the acidity required.  Each kernel burst with a sweet flavor and the tomatoes brought a dark caramelized flavor for body.  It was a hearty yet light tale of the garden in spring.

Oh and about the lengths some people go to protect their beloved dishes I introduce my buddy, let’s call him Joe.  Joe is an amazing cook, giant smart ass, and fiercely loyal.  We were both working at this Italian restaurant and Joe was training me on the sauté line.  As he was explaining how to make the risotto the executive chef came in and stopped him. “No, we don’t finish the dish with stock we use cream.  How else do you think it gets creamy?”  Joe looked at him right in the eye then back to me.  “If you put cream in that rizzo I will find and kill your children.”  Then under, his breath loud enough for both of us to hear, he mumbled, ”Idiot.  To some people you just don’t mess with their dish.

Stay tuned for more inspired dishes from Lon Lane's Inspired Occasions Research and Development Department!

Growing some Happiness

This is my garden.  This is where I spend several hours every day, watering, weeding, planting and harvesting.  This is both a link to my past and a gateway to my future.  This is my garden.

Four years ago my mother and I took on the task of cleaning up the vacant lot next to Inspired Occasions, turning weed and clover filled space into a lush collection of raised bed gardens and tomato cages.  This year we are growing 24 different variety of heirloom tomatoes, 6 different kinds of spicy peppers, Japanese eggplants, golden and purple raspberries, rhubarb, beets, carrots, swiss chard, blueberries, patty pan squash, zucchini, okra, 5 different kinds of radishes, salsify and a series of herbs thriving in the warm spring sun.

 

This project has become a labor of love for both my mother and I because the task became personal on so many levels.  My mother and I would laugh as we planned out the beds, talking about how grandpa would be so proud of us and spouted off a few of his more memorable quotes and carpentry tips.  As we labored in the hot sun building the beds she would regale me with tales of the farm from when she was a little girl, or even stories of my grandpa when he was young. 

As we started filling the beds, and planting all of the herbs and vegetables, we would repeat pearls of wisdom my grandmother told us.  I shared stories of summers helping my grandmother in her big garden on the farm weed and harvest all of her crops.  I had a nasty habit of eating the radishes and green beans faster than she could pick them. 

Every spring the garden becomes a large part of my life, because it’s not just a bunch of plants, it’s a link to my past and a constant reminder of loved ones gone and the times we spent together.

The first harvest of the year yielded a massive mound of plump french and red radishes and sweet swiss chard.  While I love radishes I had never thought of a use for the tops, till now!  I made a tasty and delicate radish top soup with creme fraiche, slice of fresh radish and diced cucumber.  The soup was cool and delicate while still having almost a nettle bite, perfect for a hot spring day!