Recipe Creation: Grilled Fig, Peach + Goat Cheese Pizza

This recipe is easy, seasonal, and perfect for a warm evening when you want to get out and take advantage of your grill (or someone else's).  You can throw on any of your favorite ingredients and change it based on whatever is in season, or happens to be in your fridge.  I use pita bread as the crust because it makes nice individual pizzas, but you can also use pre-made or homemade pizza dough.  If you are like me though, making homemade pizza dough after work is not in the cards.  You can take this concept on the road too, and have a little "pizza bar" and your guests can make their own personal pizzas with different toppings.   The possibilities are endless...

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 2 pitas (whole wheat or white)
• 1/2 cup part-skim ricotta
• 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
• 4 figs, sliced thinly
• 1 peach, cut in quarters and sliced thinly
• 1/4 shallot or red onion, sliced thinly
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

-Preheat grill on medium-high heat.

-Meanwhile, sauté shallots in olive oil until translucent and slightly crispy.

-Remove shallots from heat and set aside.

-Spread about 1/4 cup ricotta on each pita and top with sliced figs and peaches.

-Sprinkle with crumbled goat cheese.

-Place pita pizzas on the grill and cover.

-Grill pizzas for 10-15 minutes, or until the pita begins to crisp and the cheese begins to melt.

-Top with crispy shallots, and season with salt and pepper.

~Enjoy~

Restaurant (Re)creation: Hog Island's BBQ'd Oysters

If you are going to have oysters in Northern California, you can't go wrong with the fresh little bivalves from Pt. Reyes.  Hog Island Oysters is a favorite spot to stop for BBQ'd oysters and wine on picnic tables overlooking Tamales Bay.  I just experimented with their BBQ'd oyster recipe from The Hog Island Oyster Lover's Cookbook and the recipe was quite a hit.  I made them for a lawn party we had and doubled the recipe and they disappeared in minutes!  Now you can bring Pt. Reyes home with you and enjoy your own BBQ'd oysters with a nice glass of bubbly in your backyard.

Makes 2 dozen oysters

Ingredients:

• 1 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Dash of Tabasco sauce
• 2 dozen small Sweetwater oysters

Directions:

-In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients and stir to blend.  Cover and let sit for an hour.  (Sauce can be made up to 2 days ahead).

-Prepare a medium hot fire in a charcoal or gas grill.  Place shucked oysters on the center of the grill and spoon 1 tbsp of sauce onto each oyster.

-Cover grill and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until the sauce begins to bubble.  Don't overcook!  

-Serve immediately on a rock salt lined platter.

-Eat them quickly before the disappear!

Hog Island Oyster Farm

20215 Shoreline Highway

Marshall, CA 94940

(415) 663-9218

www.hogislandoysters.com

Restaurant (Re)creation: Nopa's Corn Soup with Walnut Pesto

I found this recipe in The Bay Area Homegrown Cookbook by Aaron French, which features tons of great recipes from local bay area chefs.  Nopa happens to be one of my favorite spots and I have yet to have a bad meal there.  Chef Laurence Jossel generously shared this corn soup recipe in French's cookbook and I couldn't be happier.  The only thing I did differently is I didn't strain the soup through a colander and instead opted for a thicker consistency.  Either way, the flavor combinations are dynamite.  Take advantage of this recipe now while corn is in season and readily available at the farmers' market.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

For the soup:

• 3 medium yellow onions, diced medium
• 1/2 clove garlic, sliced
• 1 jalapeño
• 2-3 tbsp. olive oil
• 12 basil leaves
• 10 ears corn
• 1 cup cream
• salt, to taste
• water, as needed

For the walnut pesto:

• 1/2 cup shelled walnuts
• 1 clove garlic
• 3 tbsp grated parmesan
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 10 fresh basil leaves
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

For the soup: 

-Gently sweat the onions, garlic, and jalapeno in the olive oil until onions are translucent, about 15 min.

-Season lightly with salt and add the corn, cream, and enough water to cover.  

-Simmer slowly for 20 minutes.  

-Puree the soup and strain through a large-holed colander.  

-Adjust seasoning and serve with a dollop of walnut pesto garnish and basil leaves.

For the walnut pesto:

-Combine all ingredients except the basil in a food processor and puree until smooth.  

-Add the basil and puree quickly, keeping in mind that the basil will turn brown if blended more than necessary. 

-Stir in salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 6

Nopa

560 Divisadero St.

(415) 864-8643

nopasf.com

Restaurant (Re)creation: Bi-Rite's Honey Lavender Ice Cream

I was surprised by how much I liked this ice cream.  I am always a sucker for cookies and cream, or vanilla bean, or something with chocolate or caramel, but wasn't so sure about an herbal ice cream.  Leave it to Bi-Rite Creamery to turn an herb into a delicious ice cream flavor.  It smells like a spa, and tastes like heaven with the perfect combination of honey and lavender.  Even though it's creamy, it somehow manages to be very refreshing and light.  In terms of ingredients, I would recommend using organic dried lavender and Strauss dairy products, if you can find them.  It's a bit of a labor of love to make, but totally worth it.  Plus, though it might not be "healthy," it totally feels like spa ice cream ; ) We can thank Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones for this fabulous recipe.

*ps. You will need an ice cream machine

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 3/4 cup low fat milk
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons organic dried lavender
• 5 large egg yolks

Directions:

In a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat, stir together the cream, milk, honey and salt.

Once the mixture begins to bubble, remove from heat and whisk in the lavender.  Cover and let steep for 15 minutes.

Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl and wash out the saucepan.  Return cream mixture to the pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs to break them up.

Put the pan of cream and milk over medium-high heat.  When the mixture begins to simmer, reduce heat to medium.

Carefully scoop 1/2 cup cream mixture to the bowl with the yolks, whisking the eggs constantly. Then add another 1/2 cup cream mixture and continue whisking.  Leave the remaining cream mixture
in the pan.

Now carefully pour the egg and cream mixture back into the pan with the cream and stir with a spatula.

Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly until it is thickened and coats the back of the spatula (1-2 minutes).

Strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a clean container and set in an ice bath (bowl with ice water in it).  Once it is cool, remove the container, cover it, and refrigerate for 1-2 hours (or overnight).

Freeze in your ice cream machine according to directions.

Enjoy right away or, for a firmer ice cream, freeze for at least 4 hours.

Bi-Rite Creamery
3692 18th Street
San Francisco, CA
(415) 626-5600
biritecreamery.com

Recipe (Re)creation: Burrata Summer Salad

Happy 4th of July!  I made this lovely little salad for a BBQ I threw over the weekend and it disappeared within minutes.  I based it on this recipe from What's Gaby Cooking.  The key to the salad is fresh, seasonal ingredients.  Look for white peaches, colorful heirloom tomatoes, basil, and fresh white corn at the farmer's market.  With the basil in particular, the smell alone will make you swoon.  When you buy the burrata, make sure its packed in salted water in a little plastic baggy.  It is best when eaten within 24 hours but that shouldn't be a problem.  I guarantee this salad will be gone well before the fireworks can attempt steal its thunder.

Ingredients:

• 2 ears of white corn, shucked and cut off the cob
• 3 heirloom tomatoes, sliced
• 2 white peaches
• 5 ounces burrata, torn
• 6 large basil leaves, sliced thinly
• Sea salt flakes (Maldon is best)
• Balsamic reduction

Directions:

-Assemble all vegetable and fruit ingredients in a large bowl.

-Top with creamy bits of burrata and fresh basil slices.

-Sprinkle with sea salt flakes and drizzle with balsamic reduction.

-Serve (and devour) immediately.

Recipe (Re)creation: Homemade Refrigerator Pickles

~From top: pickles on day 1, pickles on day 3 ~

I recently discovered Omnivore Books in my neighborhood and came across a book signing + pickle making class featuring food blogger/cookbook writer Marisa McClellan. Not only did I buy her fabulous book, Food in Jars, but I also had the pleasure of making my own homemade refrigerator pickles.  They are incredibly tasty and are deceptively easy to make.  It can be your new party trick.  Homemade pickles? Don't mind if I do...

Ingredients

• 5 peppercorns
• 2-3 shakes of dill seed
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1 english cucumber, quartered
• 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 pinch pickling salt

Directions


-Put sliced cucumbers and all dry ingredients in a mason jar.
-Boil the water and vinegar in a pot.
-Pour the water + vinegar brine into the jar with the cucumbers.
-Seal the jar and refrigerate for 3-4 days.
-Enjoy!

Flavors of the Month: June

• Watermelon Mojito Poptails- I made these a few weekends ago for a BBQ and they were a total hit! The peppermint extract adds a surprising twist.  They are amazingly refreshing and oh-so-subtly boozy.

• Maker's 46- Just as advertised, it's "a complex whisky with a taste that doesn't need to be acquired."  Great on the rocks and very sippable (even for a novice like myself).

• Blue Star Beer- This wheat beer is the perfect brew for a warm summer day.  It is light, fruity, and refreshing.  It's similar in body to Blue Moon, but its even tastier.

• Sweet Potato Pop Chips- This flavor is brand new and is arguably the best!  It's sweet, salty and incredibly delicious.  

• Weber S-310 Grill- We just bought this grill and love it.  It has two side tables, front-mounted control knobs, and ample grilling space.  It pricey but totally worth it.

• Pasta Gina- This little pasta shop is my new favorite spot in Noe Valley.  The owners, husband and wife team Gino and Gina, make fresh pasta, sauces, salads and desserts every morning.  Their homemade pasta and their tiramisu are my current obsessions.  Such a great find!

• Bi-Rite Creamery- This Mission staple is famous for their cones and sundaes made exclusively from Straus Family Creamery products.  Salted caramel is their most sought-after flavor, but all of them are incredible.  You can also order custom ice cream sandwiches, ice cream cakes, and sundaes for your next party.  You'll be the coolest kid on the block.