Gray Day and Nettles

Melancholy n
1. Sadness or depression of the spirits; gloom: "There is melancholy in the wind and sorrow in the grass" (Charles Kuralt).

Today was such a day. A day of cold concrete, needlessly being watered by inaccurate sprinkler systems. Not finding your favorite microwave popcorn at the store and having to settle for something inferior. Coming to terms with the fact that dysfunction is the reality du jour. When you don't believe in this world and want nothing more than to sleep and dream... Methinks I'll be in a funk for a while. Sometimes you've got to ask, "Which I is I?"

Today, I think I shall recount the story of the nettle plant. I was all but 5 years old or so when I discovered a tiny plant growing in the ditch of lava rocks between our house and our neighbors. I thought it was so beautiful. I didn't know what it was at that age. Mesmerized by this greenery that decided to sprout where no other plants had dared to sprout, I sat down beside it and made up a little song that I sang to the little plant, extolling its virtues. I don't know why I was so mesmerized by this tiny specimen. I had a huge backyard full of tall native plants, thistles, and grasses, plum and cherry trees that kept me quite busy. I would go collect certain plants and pretend I was Julia Childs, cooking up some fancy soup on my cardboard stovetop. This little plant was the first that I'd ever sang to, and my last. I went to stroke it's leaves with affection when this horrible prickly feeling came into my fingers. I didn't know what it was. I was in such pain. I couldn't believe that this little plant could hurt me so. Angry and hurt, I stomped on the little plant, trying to grind it into the rocks. And learned my lesson about the pretty plant that stung. Only later on, in college, while reading a book on native edible plants, did I learn what that plant was, and how nutritious it is, if you're lucky enough to be able to pick some and get it into a pot to cook without stinging yourself. I'm no longer angry with stinging nettles. I have a healthy respect for them. I'm quite aware of them when I'm out hiking and will avoid them respectfully. That is, unless I have a pair of gloves on me and want to try to make some stinging nettle pasta. How I love this flora so...

Panna Cotta Cameo with Raspberries

I've never had panna cotta before, so I was eager to try making it myself after receiving the two ceramic jelly molds I ordered from Crate & Barrel Outlet . I couldn't be more delighted with the results. And I discovered that I can create a cameo effect by using raw milk and unhomogenized cream. The result looked beautiful adorned with salmon colored raspberries. And I must confess, I had eaten a quarter of it before I realized that I hadn't taken a picture of it yet. There's such an anticipated moment when unmolding a dessert. And it was such a suprise that my choice in dairy created a tiered effect. Such a happy accident. I'm not sure if the effect was the result of the raw milk, or the type of cream I used, but it was definitely scrumptious.

Ingredients:

1½ envelopes of unflavored gelatin

3 tablespoons cold water

2 cups heavy unhomogenized cream (Organic Valley or Straus)

1 cup raw milk (Organic Valley or Claravale Farm)

1/3 cup sugar

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

canola oil


Directions:

1. Sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let sit 2 minutes to soften.
   
2. In a large saucepan, heat cream, milk, and sugar over medium flame, until the sugar is dissolved.
   
3. Whisk in the gelatin and stir until dissolved and incorporated.
   
4. Remove from heat and add vanilla.
   
5. Brush canola oil inside the mold or molds you will be using.
   
6. Pour into your choice of mold and let set in refridgerator for at least 4 hours.
   
7. If it's unwilling to come out of the mold, dip your mold in hot water for 5 seconds and try again.
   
   

The Irish

I must learn how to make this dense and beautiful loaf lovingly referred to by the Irish as "Brown Cake." Hopefully there's still time before my co-workers return home to their native land of taters and crisps after visiting the scorching hot desert of bright lights, and loose morals, aka: Las Vegas. Yes, we refer to them simply as "The Irish." And if you can understand a word now and then that comes out of their mouths, you'd realize that they are indeed speaking the english language.

Yes, immigration officer, those two up front wearing the lei's, the boy and the girl, we suspect that they are plotting something mischevious and should be prevented from boarding any planes. Well, it's worth a try. We've already let one go, it hasn't been the same since. I'll be sad to see them go, but they are but wee ones, and they've got a bit of schooling to do. Hopefully they will come back next year and we'd all be able to hone our ears to understanding 75% of what they're saying, the first time around.

A Rare White White-Tailed Doe

Isn't she beautiful? She was happily grazing away and I was able to get within 8 feet of her and was also lucky enough to have my camera on hand. Kinda a magical moment, I would say. She is not an albino as her eyes were brown. And she made the strangest honking noise to make me aware that I was getting too close.

Dairy Review

I was struck by a conversation I had with some co-workers from Ireland regarding the difference in the taste of milk here in the US. They said our milk was like water, lacking flavor. And while I might agree with them when it comes to nonfat milk, I wondered whether there was a significant difference in the taste when it came to organic, or raw for that matter. I had tried the Straus Family Creamery line of products but didn't find any noticeable difference from your ordinary milks except for the fact that there was at times, a layer of cream on top. Horizon, another organic milk, wasn't noticeabley different as well. Both brands just let you can feel a bit better about buying them. But low and behold, in the Berkeley Bowl dairy case, I became intrigued with Claravale's Raw Milk . There's also something very nice about milk that comes in glass bottles. After my first taste, I would have to say that I'm completely hooked. It's amazing what a difference there is in taste. It's such a noticeable difference, full of depth and flavor, that I don't think I could ever buy the regular stuff again. After some sleuthing on the internet, I found that there are only two dairies left in California that make raw milk, which means, besides going through a filter, it comes basically, straight from the cow. The dairy is small. 60 cows out in pasture, each one wears a bell, and has a name. I think this is the the dairy of those "happy cow" ads. The breed kept is more for flavor rather than production. They are not given antibiotics or growth hormones. It's basically the way it should be. And after reading about the health benefits of raw milk, and the health problems associated with the way conventional milk is processed in this article, I'm definitely converted. Unfortunately, the milk council is quite a powerful lobby of large scale, mass dairies, that have tried repeatedly to get raw milk sales banned. I can't believe that in most states, this delicious and nutritious milk I've just encountered, is against the law. Thank goodness, they didn't succeed in California. The only other natural, unprocessed milk dairy in California is Organic Pastures. According to my good friend Sarah, who has tried their milk, it's her definite favorite. They're much larger, with a herd of 350 cows. They actually devised a machine that goes to where the cows are out in pasture to milk them. And they're also available for purchase online.

O Chame Lunch

Went to O Chame this afternoon and had a very nice lunch. We started with an appetizer of Seared Tuna Sashimi with Braised Leeks and Horseradish sauce which was delicious! The leeks were simply sweated and was a nice mild savory note to the slightly smokey taste of the tuna tataki. The horseradish sauce was not of the wasabi variety but of the english type mixed in a creamy mayonnaise based sauce in which I detected sesame seed oil and soy sauce. Then I moved on to a nice bowl of Udon Topped with Smoked Trout, Mustard Greens and Enoki Mushrooms. And had an amazing dessert of Caramel Balsamic Gelato which was intensely fruity, vinegary, sweet, sour, cold, and very addictive. And a light Sherry Custard which was like a dessert version of Chawanmushi, except that it was sweet and was topped with a lovely Sherry. It was silky and smooth. The appetizers and desserts seemed highly creative compared to the entrees but all was excellent. I would definitely go back there again.

Blueberry Galette

On my last shopping trip, I found 5 pounds of blueberries on sale for $1.50. I've never had so many blueberries before at my disposal. After pondering what to do with my bounty, I decided upon making a galette. Actually two of them. One I gave to my sister and her husband. And the other was shared between me and my sweetie. This was a nicer alternative to a blueberry pie, I think. A perfect balance between crust and fruit. Not too sweet. But very sad when it's all gone and all you have is a picture to remind you of the delicious moments you had. Not to fear though, I still have quite a good number of blueberries left. And if I don't use them all making some muffins or scones, I can see an encore of the galettes in my near future.

Ingredients:

1 lb fresh blueberries (3 cups)

1 (9-inch) round of pie crust dough

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar

1 (9-inch) refrigerated pie dough (from a 15-oz package)

1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

3 tablespoons milk


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and butter foil.
   
2. Stir together blueberries, cornstarch, juice,
   cinnamon, salt, and 1/2 cup sugar in a large bowl
   until combined.
   
3. Place pie dough onto baking sheet, then
   spoon blueberry mixture into the center of the dough, leaving
   a 1½" border around edge.
   
4. Fold the edges of the dough over 1" of blueberry mixture,
   pleating dough, then dot blueberry filling with butter
   pieces. Lightly brush pastry with some milk
   and sprinkle with the remaining teaspoon of sugar.
   
5. Bake until blueberry filling is bubbling and pastry
   is golden, about 25 to 30 minutes. Cool slightly on baking
   sheet on a rack.
   
   

High Tea @ Lovejoy's

Who: Three Ladies What:Trying to remain prim and proper whilst eating finger sandwiches, scones, and sipping three different pots of tea.Where:Lovejoy's in SF. Where no two plates are the same, nor the chairs, teapots, teacups, or even the spoons are for that matter. Maria treated my sister and I to an amazing experience of High Tea in the cutest shop I've ever been to. I'm so glad I had my camera with me!


We each had our own full teapots of tea. Maria had the Vanilla Herbal Tea, which was like drinking vanilla pudding, especially if you put cream and sugar in it like I did. My sister ordered the Apricot Tea, which was so fruity I thought I had taken a bite out of a piece of fruit. And last but not least, I had the traditional Earl Grey Tea, which was, hands down, the best pot of Earl Grey I've ever had! It was so glorious I'll probably go to sleep tonight thinking about it.

Our scones and finger sandwiches were equally as heavenly. The scones, light and fluffy with raisins, served with Devonshire Cream and Strawberry Jam was scrumpdillyumptious! We even dipped in and had some cream on its own! That stuff is amazing! Anyone know where you can buy the stuff? The sandwiches were an assortment which included: cucumber and cream cheese, ham and english mustard (it was sinus clearing stuff that would have made a proper lady blush), smoked salmon and capers, roast beef and horseradish, mandarin orange and cream cheese, and finally, cheddar and chutney. Not only did this experience tickle my tastebuds, it also indulged my love for antique china, furniture, and tablesettings. What a lovely Saturday afternoon! Thanks Maria!

Bored of Rocky Road?

Then check out Part I of interesting ice cream flavors from Japan, and Part II.

Pleasures of the Day

This is the array of flowers I picked today. I wish I had my camera with me in the garden. Everything is looking so spectacular! And the sweet peas are so fragrant. If only I can set up camp next to my garden and sleep next to the heady ambrosia of scents, I'm sure to have very sweet dreams.





And these are the various sizes of strawberries I find growing in my garden plot. I think I found two giants today. First I'm gonna find ya, then I'm gonna eat cha! Sadly, many were found by slugs and snails before me. O'well. Got a bunch of tomatoes as well as basil, an artichoke, and a lone spear of asparagus. I'll be having my veggies for dinner tonight!




And you'll probably find me at various times of the day, sitting in my newly acquired wingback chair. I've always wanted a wingback chair. I dunno why. But it seems like the perfect chair to be sitting in with a good book. It makes me giddy just looking at this chair in my room. It's leather, with a down filled seat-cushion and I sit in it every chance I get. It is my official "Reading Chair." And it's super comfy. Yes, it's the "Comfy Chair" as well.