Chez Panisse (recipe included)

admin — Wed, 20 May 2009 04:50:35 +0000

We went for lunch in the cafe. This is a real treat. If you don’t know, Chez Panisse has defined the “eat local, organic, and sustainable” food movement on the west coast and way, way beyond. Award-winning chef Alice Waters is, of course, a legend in sustainable and seasonal and local and a master at making simple food delicious. A blurb about the restaurant: Alice and Chez Panisse have become convinced that the best-tasting food is organically grown and harvested in ways that are ecologically sound, by people who are taking care of the land for future generations. The quest for such ingredients has largely determined the restaurant’s cuisine. Chez Panisse has tried for years to make diners here partake of the immediacy and excitement of vegetables just out of the garden, fruit right off the branch, and fish straight out of the sea.

There is a dinner served in two seatings with a fixed-price menu of three to four courses. The menu changes every night and showcases the season’s finest ingredients sourced from local purveyors. We had lunch in the cafe, which is less expensive and features a menu with apps and a few meat entrees.

We started with an avocado/citrus/beet salad, and this was my favorite item by far. It was perfection: beets and thinly sliced blood orange with the most delicious avocados salted and covered in cracked black pepper, with a simple olive oil citrus dressing. I found the recipe and want to share it here. You could also use walnut oil, which pairs well with beets.

Avocado & Beet Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

Ingredients
6 medium red or golden beets
sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
extra virgin olive oil or walnut oil
1 large shallot, diced fine
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon orange juice
Chervil sprigs
1/4 teaspoon chopped lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon chopped orange zest
2 firm ripe avocados

Whisk in 3/4 cup oil and stir in the chopped chervil, lemon zest, and orange zest. Taste for seasoning.

Cut the avocados in half lengthwise and remove the pits. Leaving the skin intact, cut the avocados lengthwise into 1/4″ slices. Scoop out the slices with a large spoon and arrange them on a platter or individual dishes. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange the beets over the avocado slices and drizzle with the vinaigrette. Garnish with a few chervil sprigs.

Farmers’ Market Report

admin — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 04:58:59 +0000

Spring is here. And that means the markets are going to pick up in a big way. Winter citrus disappears gradually, and springtime baby beets and asparagus give way to delicious summer stone fruits and berries. Cherries, peaches, pluots, strawberries, blueberries…. yum.

I shop at the Berkeley Farmers’ Markets and at the San Francisco Ferry Plaza market. The Berkeley markets have an awesome sea vegetable selection from a woman who harvests them up in Mendocino. Sea veggies like wakame, hijiki, and kelp are very high in trace minerals – great for adrenal health and stress management! The SF market is larger and has a better organic meat selection.

San Francisco Ferry Plaza farmers' market

Asparagus is cropping up now, perfect oven-roasted with olive oil, sea salt, and fresh cracked pepper. And I love the baby beets, slightly sweeter than their larger parents. Beets are in season now and are excellent for the liver and are good roasted, steamed, and even raw (see recipe below that will convert even the most hard core beet hater), and BONUS: the greens are equally healthful – don’t forget to saute those up with some garlic. It’s like getting 2 veggies in one! Try golden beets too. Roasted golden and red beets are excellent served over arugula with goat cheese.

I made the following recipe a couple years back at a Berkeley Farmers’ Market cooking and nutrition demo. It’s a raw salad and very magically delicious (hence the name “surprise”) when the flavors meld. Excellent spring salad, very liver-loving. Kids love it too. Enjoy!

Beet Salad Surprise
2 baby beets or 1 large red beet
1-2 carrots
1 apple, pink lady or fuji
1/4 c chopped walnuts (pecans or almond slivers are good variations)
2-3 Tbs. shredded coconut meat
1-2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/8 c raisins (optional)

Grate beet, carrots, and apple in a large bowl. Toss with olive oil. Sprinkle nuts and coconut; toss all ingredients together. Adjust to taste; garnish with a pinch of nuts and coconut on top before serving. Raisins make a great optional topping that kids love!
Makes four 1/2 cup servings.

Nutritional Info per 1/2 cup:
Calories: 106
Protein: 2.45 g
Carb: 10.4 g
Total Fat: 6.7 g
Monounsaturated fat: 1.9 g
Polyunsaturated fat: 3.1 g
Saturated Fat: 1.4 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Fiber: 1.53
Vitamin A: 391 RE; 39% daily allowance
Vitamin E: 1.36mg; 13% daily allowance
Folate: 20mcg; 9% daily allowance
Magnesium: 28 mg; 8% daily allowance
Potassium: 197mg; 9% daily allowance
Iron: .57mg; 5% daily allowance
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Holistic Nutrition Bytes--San Francisco Nutrition Consultation » beets

Chez Panisse (recipe included)

Farmers’ Market Report