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Chef's Notes |
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September 2007
Heirloom Tomato Heaven
Heirloom tomatoes take their time ripening, just like wine grapes. Our long growing season here in the Russian River Valley gives both these vines time to develop deeply flavored fruit. This time of year, as you travel Westside Road from Healdsburg to Hop Kiln Winery, you will see Tomato Heaven on the left, just about two miles from town. Here, a local family grows 180 heirloom varieties. They place a pop-up tent next to the field and sell an array of delicious, vine-ripened tomatoes. They label the varieties; for example, "Black Prince sends any tomato into the stratosphere." This organic farm uses the honor system: customers weigh the tomatoes, use the handy cost-calculating chart and put money in the till. I am growing heirloom tomatoes in the garden at Kenwood Inn and Spa, and I pick them when they are ripe but firm. Stored outside in a dark place, they keep well for a week or so. The big ones are my favorites; sliced, they are like pieces of meat. Here is a simple, tasty salad that features a variety of these tomatoes - striped, red, yellow, your choice. For each serving, use a cold salad plate. Pour a little extra virgin olive oil on the plate; add salt and freshly ground pepper. Slice the unpeeled tomatoes and arrange them over the oil. Thinly slice red onions and drop a few pieces over the tomatoes. Drizzle with fig balsamic vinegar, available in our Tasting Room. Shave ricotta salata cheese over the top and finish with thin slices of fresh basil. This, too, is tomato heaven. Enjoy with a glass of Hop Kiln Sauvignon Blanc. June 2007 White Peaches and Wine This year in Sonoma County the chilly winter and mild spring weather provided perfect conditions for peach tree flowering and fruit set. The crop is huge, juicy and flavorful. The early white peaches, with delightful names like Spring Snow, Sugar Lady and Summer Sweet, are at the Farmers’ Markets right now. Last evening I peeled two white peaches, thinly sliced them and placed them in a glass pitcher. I opened a bottle of Thousand Flowers and poured half of it over the peach slices. After 30 minutes in the refrigerator, the fruit and wine had exchanged flavors. Before our dinner of green salad and linguine with clam sauce, we drank the cold, refreshing wine and enjoyed the summery peaches dressed in Thousand Flowers.
May 2007 Try this bruschetta; it is out of this world. Bruschetta is the ancestor of garlic bread. This version features fresh fava beans, plentiful at farmers’ markets this month. Purchase a lot, because 4 pounds of beans will yield about 1 ½ pounds shelled – and that’s before you peel them.
March 2007 PASQUETTA, Easter Monday
In
I recommend you adopt the Pasquetta (pronounced pa squay tah) tradition. Have a picnic on Easter Monday (April 9 this year). Share your hard-boiled Easter eggs and leftover lamb; add some fresh cheeses and foccacia. Bring along some strawberries and bottles of our spring releases: 2006 Gewürztraminer, 2006 Sauvignon Blanc, 2006 Chardonnay, non-oaked.
February 2007 A Valentine Dinner from Chef Renzo
January 2007 Recipes
December 2006 Recipes Winter Salad The Indispensable Utensil Trapani Artisan Sea Salt |
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