What a charming word pumpkin is.  It’s the kind of word that feels good to say.  Place more emphasis on the second P and you’ll see what I’m getting at.  Kinda makes you grin doesn’t it…pump-kin.  Or are you more of the punkin’ type? 

What’s the deal with pumpkins?

Not my favorite vegetable, but this time of year I still have fun cooking it.  It’s grand…even the smaller sugar pumpkins have a dramatic look and notion to them.   I only cook fresh pumpkin for fun.  Canned pumpkin has a taste that is expected and rich.  Plus, it’s a helluva lot easier. I enjoy using it for bisque, bread, pie and as a sugar carrier, but I’ve never found the texture to be ideal.  As a raw product, it can be a little cumbersome to break down and it’s quite watery;  veering toward stringy instead of dense.   I realized about 7 years ago, that if I’m going to cook with pumpkin, it’ll come from a can…a Libby’s can.  I’m not sure exactly what they do to to remove water; meaning roast it then purée, or purée then reduce?  But they do a great job of obtaining a dense, rich product.  A product none of us will ever achieve or re-create.

A pumpkin of a different color

Libby’s uses a proprietary pumpkin known as a Dickinson pumpkin.  Dickinson is old school,  like Pilgrims and Indians old school.  It has a beige-matte exterior with  bright orange, dense, thick flesh and minimal seeds and strings.   Really more like a pumpkin shaped butternut rather then a classic ornamental.  Speaking of butternut…that’s my go to squash for all things squashy.  I enjoy Acorn and a couple others, but butternut is the squash king of texture and sweetness.

Here are a couple recipes to play with.  One is a simple cobbler with raw diced pumpkin, and the other is a pie recipe that you’ll not only love, but it’s easy and healthier then the classic.  Healthy as in low glycemic, not caloric count.

Pumpkin Pie

1 15oz can pumpkin
2eggs
1c whole milk
½c pure maple syrup
1T flour
1tsp cinnamon
½tsp ground ginger
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350°. Whisk Everything together, pour into a prepared crust and bake until just set, about 50 minutes. Let cool and serve with cream.

Pie Crust:
2 ¼c all-purpose flour
8oz salted butter, cold, cut into 1/4″ pieces
1/4-1/3c ice water

In a cold processor bowl, buzz the flour and butter until incorporated but still left with small butter chunks. Remove to a large bowl and drizzle in the water. Stir at first by holding and swirling the bowl to toss in the water. Then, quickly agitate/stir with finger tips to distribute water into the flour then pour the crumbly mess onto a couple pieces of plastic wrap. Wrap into a tight disk or ball and refrigerate for an hour. Remove the plastic wrap and roll out with a rolling pin using more flour to prevent sticking. Roll the finished dough around the rolling pin to easily transfer to the pie plate.

Cobbler

1 sugar pumpkin, cleaned, peeled and diced
2T butter
1tsp pumpkin pie spice, Trader Joe’s is better then Spice Islands
6T butter
½c milk
1c sugar
1c flour
1tsp. baking powder

Preheat oven to 350°. Heat a large oven proof pan over high heat until hot. Add the 2T butter and the pumpkin to cook and brown. Only add enough pumpkin to cover the bottom of the pan, not a pile. Once softened and browned, stir in the spice and the 6T of butter to melt.

Whisk together the sugar, flour and baking powder. Whisk in the milk; and pour the batter into the pan, starting with the edges, then all around. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour. Let cool and garnish with the pumpkin cream

Pumpkin Cream:
1T canned pumpkin
3T Maple syrup or sugar
1c heavy whipping cream

Whip until stiff peaks.

Does a Louisiana crab boil need to take place in Louisiana? I think not.

I’ve got a brother.  He lives in Las Vegas.  My brother has a friend named Scott.  Scott lives in Vegas.  Scott is from Baton Rouge which is about 45 minutes north of New Orleans.  One night, Scott and my brother had a breakthrough so profound that it altered the course of our lives.  They reached that moment of enlightenment, only attained through the perseverance of consuming vast amounts of fermented barley based liquids.  A moment of clarity if you will; when everything becomes clear and there is no question about the road that lies ahead.  Yes, they drank enough to become…geniuses.

Finding what we need

A plan was made and carried out to obtain fresh crab.  Enter me…the guy in sunny, saltwater San Diego; where the bounty of the ocean is at our fingertips, and the crabs run free for the taking!  Yeah, no.  Here’s the thing:  We wanted fresh crab that has body meat–for that, our choices are limited.  East coast Blue crab is well…on the east coast.  Out here we can get Dungeness crab, but it’s on the north coast and it’s not crab season.  

San Diego has rock crab, which are cool, but they only have claw and arm meat.  Some Asian markets have farmed crab but no reason to bring farmed crab from San Diego.  So, Scott and my brother tracked some down at an Asian market around Vegas for about $15lb.  Shrimp was from Costco; frozen but still big and tasty.

The cook

We could’ve used another big pot for all the non-crab items, but other than that it went great.  Everything was cooked and seasoned perfectly, and this was my first time sitting down to a whole crab, crab dinner.  I love the bold Southern nature of this type of meal.  The flavor of the boiling spice is complex with clove, bay, onion, garlic and chile that is “slap yo mama” spicy; all backed by a heavy hand of salt and a confident measure of MSG.  

The American bounty that cascades over the table is a standard and a testament to our culture as Americans and our truly American Southern food history.  After the feast there were a few crabs left, so my wife and I got after it and picked out all the meat for crab cakes the next morning.  Which were by the way, the best crab cakes any of us had had…ever.   After we cleaned up the tables I felt like Pig Pen…except the little dust clouds surrounding me were funky clouds of crab.

I’ve been to crawfish boils, so this wasn’t my first “boil”, but for some reason this time makes me want to do a boil here at the house. Maybe because my brother is down with it; so it’ll be a fun project/party to do. Probably without the whole crab though; keep it simple with one pot…maybe for New Years…we shall see.

Here is a pictorial timeline and a rough recipe

The Recipe

I think we had a 60qt pot…maybe 40.
Placed crabs in strainer basket and placed it all in the pot of cool water to measure the proper displacement. Removed crabs and brought water to a boil. Used 3 bags of Boiling spice and a cup of table salt. Would’ve added a lemon or two but we forgot. Stir it up so the spice is completely dissolved, then cover and bring back to a hard boil. Quickly add the crabs and cover. Bring back to a hard boil and boil for three minutes. Turn off heat and let the crabs sit for an hour and a half.

For the vegetables we did a separate pot with the same amount (by ratio) of boiling spice. Boiled the potatoes, carrots, garlic and onion for 15 minutes then shut it off to sit for thirty. Seperately boiled the corn for 5 minutes, then added the shrimp and turned off the heat to sit for 15.

I love a good old wives tale. Ahhhh, age old traditions of families passing down shitty information in the kitchen is an awesome part of human and culinary history.  From oil in pasta water to prevent sticking, to cutting off the root side of an onion to prevent crying; the answers we create when we don’t know the answer is a great exhibition in human creativity and stubborn naivety.   

Family food History

There is not a more common bond with our family and its history than the memories passed down through food; now if we can just get all the info right, we’ll be unstoppable!  I myself have preached completely false information, with all of the best intentions.  But food facts and culinary history are not always in written form, so we are often only as good as our sources.  

The test

Recently I did a little test to put a doosey to bed.  Being in Southern California we’re accustomed to avocados being a regular part of our diet, usually in the form of guacamole.  Ever since I can remember, it has been a common practice to place avocado seeds in finished guacamole to help prevent browning.  I have always called bullshit on this methodology, but it continues to pop up at parties.   So here is photographic proof of this old wives tale…plus a recipe for guacamole.

As you can see; after 48 hours and intermittent checking, there is no difference in oxidation between the two bowls.  Both also displayed the same depth of oxidation.  After 24 hours the guac was still green and ready for service.

Lemon or lime juice…(citric acid), is not only a delicious flavor additive for guac, but it lowers the PH, making the oxidizing enzymatic bonds slow the #@*! down.  That gives you a few hours to bask in the bright green glory; but if you need it to last longer then that and past 24 hours, plastic wrap must be applied directly on top of said guacamole.  The browning does produce a bitter flavor, so if you did not add enough lemon or forgot to place the plastic wrap tightly over the top?  Scrape that brown off before service.

4 medium to large avocados (Haas, Fuerte, Bacon and Reed are best)
3-4T fresh lemon juice
1/2tsp or more garlic salt or kosher or sea salt
1/4tsp or more fresh ground pepper

Mash everything together and add more salt and lemon juice to taste.
*This is the most basic recipe but it works. Always feel free to add one or all of the following to taste.
minced cilantro
fresh minced garlic
minced hot chile
chopped tomato
chopped onion
pico de gallo

And don’t forget fresh fried chips if you really want to blow minds.

I, (like most with taste buds) love BBQ.  If my wife wasn’t so rad, I might’ve married it. (I looked into it..totally okay in Mississippi.)  BBQ comes in all shapes, flavors and sizes. Everyone tweeks their recipe just a little different than the next person, as they should.  But South Carolina style looked to separate itself.

So much variety from just a few basic principles. Season meat–smoke or slow-cook meat–dress meat (with something sweet and sour).  How you get those three rules done is up to you.

SC Gold

Another regional wrinkle in the BBQ tradition is the mustard based style made popular in South Carolina.  The areas from Columbus to Charleston were settled by German immigrants. Maybe the Germans familiarity and love for mustard led to the regional style loved there today?  I dunno…seems logical enough, Germans do some crazy rad shit.  Here is a recipe that is versatile for any pork product or fatty meat.  The addition of the liquid smoke in the recipe is for those who can’t, or don’t smoke their meat. Similarly, the butter is for those that like a little cheat to their meat. It’s not needed, but it’s nice.

The Recipe

2c prepared yellow mustard  
1c sugar
½c brown sugar
1½c cider vinegar
½c water
½tsp cayenne
2 tsp ground cumin
4 garlic cloves minced
4T minced onion
1tsp fresh black pepper
2tsp Worcestershire sauce
2tsp liquid smoke (Hickory)
2T butter (optional)

Simmer everything together for about twenty minutes over low heat; then whisk in the smoke and butter.  Season to taste with salt…I can’t remember if I added any because the meat is already salted from the spice rub.  Speaking of spice rub…

2T kosher salt
1T sugar
1tsp paprika, pepper, cumin, thyme

Mix and liberally dust over your pork shoulder before baking or crock potting.   Always good to do this the night before, but if you didn’t. Just try to do it as soon as possible before baking, mine was 5 minutes :-|

The bounty of a wine paired dinner is because I have a lot of notes to hit.

Sunday was another wonderful wine pairing dinner that left 8 people very happy, a little full and perfectly faded. Those three ingredients always make for a memorable evening.

I like requests

If you don’t know me or know how I roll; I use the San Diego farmers markets to guide my menus.  Most of my parties, (especially pairing dinners) are driven by what is seasonally awesome.  I’ll get an idea of what you want–and don’t want, then I head off to the market. Once there, I pick what is interesting and/or beautiful.  The host usually has a request regarding proteins, for this party, no red meat.  I actually love dietary requests because I enjoy narrowing my scope of thought.  Sometimes I get a little twitchy if I have too many options.  

If you’re curious what I did; here is a synopsis.  Sorry I don’t have more pics, but the ones I took, just don’t do the food justice.  Maybe I need to hire a photographer.

The Business

Starting with the cherry peppers, they were stuffed with a luscious onion bread pudding and roasted. Then drizzled with praline olive oil.

Baby green tomatoes were then served. Kept whole and breaded with corn flour and ground panko, then fried in peanut oil and served with sweet jalapeno remoulade.

The corn was used for corn soup with crispy onions, oregano flowers and avocado that was pressed in sea salt and smoked paprika (Chardonnay)

Baby turnips were braised in achiote butter with wilted spinach around pickled and seared Armenian cucumber, seared scallop and peeled white plum. (Pinot Noir)

The tomatoes were simply roasted and plated with ricotta gnocchi, sauteed shitakes and fresh thyme; topped with cinnamon and sugar broiled grouper and soy truffle broth. (Cabernet Sauvignon)

Strawberries were macerated with habanero over a fresh orange, vanilla biscuit filled with passion fruit crème fraiche. (Riesling)

Thermo wars have wreaked havoc on your fridge. Protect yourself, for the love of God.

Hot soup:

How do you cool it down, and why?  Let’s dive into a little science and a little wives tale.

Soup or broth is a protein rich environment for bacteria to quickly propagate when the liquid is between 40 and 140 degrees.  So, cooling broth down for refrigerator storage should be done as quickly as possible.   To do that, place your hot bowl into a large ice bath and stir regularly.  Ice bath is ice water held in a larger container than the one you’re trying to cool. Remember to stir regularly and keep the water icy.

Things being as they are, sometimes your choices for action are limited.  Some people might decide to place the hot broth in the refrigerator. Seems logical. To put the hot bowl into a colder environment. The problem is not, whether or not the broth cools better in the fridge; but that the difference in heat reduction is miniscule, and does nothing more then condensate and heat your fridge.  So, if you don’t have ice, or an ice paddle. Placeit somewhere dense and cold like a garage floor. Then move and stir it often until cool enough to refrigerate. If you do not have a garage, try to ventilate the area and move as much air as possible. Placing it on a cookie cooling rack would help a well.

I still have people ask me about this and sometimes it’s nice to know the whys along with the actions.  So if an ice bath is not an option for you, leave it on a cool dense surface and stir regularly to distribute heat and incorporate cool air.

Chia seeds are tha bomb.  I was introduced to these little earthen miracles of nutritional density about 6 years ago. And as a matter of fact, am drinking some right now. (with watered down OJ in case your were curious.)  

Chias make sense to me; which is why I’m always shocked when people don’t appreciate them enough to eat them.  When I find foods that are little earthen miracles of nutritional density, I can’t help but get excited.  Like Christmas excited.  Like, “tax error in your favor” excited.

Oh, the nutrients!

Chias are rich in protein, fiber, antioxidants, omega-3’s, glutamate, iron, calcium, magnesium, zinc, blah, blah, blah.  You’ve heard the “superfood” spiel before.  I really just enjoy their texture and their hydration support.  The nutritional advantages are gravy and just set my mind at ease with the knowledge that they are indeed a great nutritional supplement.  I really just enjoy drinking them.  Think tiny pearl-iced tea balls without the chew.  I find their texture when soaked to be a wonderful way to break up the monotony of hydrating.  I feel like I’m always drinking water but at the same time, am always thirsty :-|  Maybe I need a doctor…email me if you know a hydration specialist.

Texture not for you?

Not everyone enjoys the texture chias bring to liquid but marathoners use them as a slow drip hydration supplement.  If you’ve never seen ’em in action, chias are able to pull in and retain water like a gelatinous water filled bubble…I love the texture but have realized it’s not for everyone.   They can be used in recipes as a binding agent and can be sprinkled into food without any pre-soaking, but like I said I just drink em.  Buy online to save moulah but they do keep inching up the price.  I used to get them for $6lb…now they are $8-$10; here’s a source: http://www.getchia.com/

To me eggs are magic.  I know I’m not alone in this, but not much on our planet can keep up with eggs.  The combination of nutrition, sustenance, and pleasure I get from a perfectly cooked egg is hard to beat.  I just had an over easy egg with buttered toast this morning and it once again caught me off guard.  It’s a combo I’ve had countless times and it still makes me moan in disbelief.  I decided to write about eggs because I came across some pics I had of my new favorite pizza. 

Good and Weird

Then, (As I was scrolling the web for ideas on cooking with Corn Flakes) I came across an idea so devious…it had to be awesome.  Soft boiled egg with Corn Flakes and, wait for it…vanilla ice cream.  With my curiosity piqued, I needed to try this; so try it I did. 

It was pretty damn good.  Crunchy custard is how I’d describe it.  If you like custard or French vanilla ice cream then you’d enjoy this fun little ditty.  For guests; you can pre-cook, cool and peel your eggs, then bring em back up to heat with a minute and a half in hot water.  If I were to plate this for wow factor instead of private hom-nom food tasting, I’d scoop the vanilla then make an indention and place it back in the freezer for 10 minutes.  Then to plate on top of a pile of flakes and place the warm egg in the indentation, garnish with fancy salt.

You know chef hats right?  Le Toque Blanche?  Well, the ridges on chef toques had 101 ridges signifying the 101 preparations of an egg a chef should be able to execute.  There are many more ways then a hundred but the tradition stuck; at least that’s what I learned in  cooking school.   

Also…the aforementioned farmer’s pie?  Make it as soon as possible; here’s how it goes.

Farmers pizza:  Make pizza dough as you would normally for a personal pizza and use a 450° oven.  For toppings, scatter the ingredients listed below using the arugula liberally and as a nest for the egg in the middle.  This pizza is meant to cook about 12 minutes, so prep your crust accordingly.

Olive oil, chile flake, salt, caramelized onion, chèvre, arugula, one egg and a little cooked bacon as an added option. 

More Egg Ideas

Two new ideas to re-introduce you to the egg.  If you still struggle with classic morning preparations, don’t be scurred, here’s the low-down.

Soft boiled: place older eggs (fresh eggs are harder to peel) in a pot of boiling water for 6 minutes.  Remove to an ice bath until cool enough to peel.

Hard boiled:  Place eggs in a pot and cover with water.  Bring to a boil then cover and turn off heat and let it sit for 12 minutes.

Poached:  bring three inches of water to a boil in a medium sauce pot with a tsp of salt and 2tsp vinegar.  Lower heat to a simmer and gently crack the egg into

Scrambled:  Heat a skillet over medium heat until very hot.  Whisk the egg(s) with 1T (per egg) water, milk or cream .  Lightly coat the skillet with fat, pour in the egg, sprinkle with salt and gentle scrape from the bottom till desired doneness.

Shirred/baked:  Preheat oven to 350°.  Grease a ramekin, crack in an egg or two and bake for 15ish minutes.  Feel free to add a tablespoon of cream before baking and anything else you want to taste.  i.e. cheese, bacon, garlic onion…whatev’s.

Over easy:  My personal favorite; heat a skillet over medium heat until hot.  Coat the pan with fat, either lightly or liberally, then gently crack in the egg.  Season with salt and cook about one minute, then confidently flip and cook another minute or 30 seconds.

One last thing.  Some people are sensitive to cholesterol.  I get it, I feel for ya.  Eggs do contain a good amount of it.  If you don’t have any issues already then don’t worry about how much you are getting from a couple eggs.  Cook ’em in oilve oil and you’ll be good to go.  As another little side note:  Hopefully anyone with raised LDL levels re on some sort of HDL rich oil to bring your body into balance.  Remember that all fats are not equal and neither is all cholesterol.  Virgin coconut oil raises HDL levels quickly and easily; now go get yer egg on.