Chocolate Class

I am the creator of Serene Cuisine and I have worked in southern California - Santa Barbara to Marina Del Rey - as a personal chef for over a decade.   Recently I have found myself focusing more on education and cooking classes which highlight local foods and farmer's market produce.

For Valentine's Day I will be offering a cooking class that will feature chocolate recipes that will range from the classic French to the campy - things you could easily take on a hike with you.  The selection of chocolates will contain all organic ingredients and will use full fat cream and natural sweeteners such as honey, fruit, and organic cane sugar.  The class will be gluten and grain free.

We will be making about 5 - 7 different chocolate recipes that day.

Chocolate Truffles

Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls

Chocolate Coconut Drops

Chocolate Apricot Truffles

Chocolate Ganache

Chocolate Balls

Participants should bring an appetite for sampling and plan to take some chocolates home with them to share with their sweethearts on Valentine's Day.

The class will be held in my kitchen in Thousand Oaks on February 11th from 9 am to about noon.  The cost of the class is $45.00.

To reserve a place in the class I can be reached at lisavalantine@gmail.com.

I think it will be a very fun class and look forward to welcoming some new comers to this class.

The menu may be subject to change depending upon what is available at the markets.

 

Quail Eggs

Quail Eggs

I love to try new things - especially when it comes to food.  When I found a petite package of quail eggs at the market in Santa Barbara I could not resist buying them.  Quail eggs are truly beautiful to look at.  Each egg is different with distinct pearly brown markings.  The inside of the egg shell is tinted a delicate blue color.  Quail eggs are SMALL. Though you cannot tell it from the picture they are actually no larger than the end of my thumb.  I made 5 quail eggs for breakfast this morning.  The five eggs together were about the same size as one large chicken egg.  I found the flavor of quail eggs rich and delicious.  What I like about eating quail eggs is that you get a bit of yolk in every bite.  

I think quail eggs would be amazing in a bento box lunch!

Thai Green Curry

A Recipe From Brett

Yes!  Brett cooks!  The recipe he shared with me is delicious and versatile.

Coconut Thai Green Curry

1 onion chopped
2 T. coconut oil
1 - 2 c. cubed chicken - already cooked
1 - 2 c. veggies - carrots, zucchini, peas, cauliflower or green beans
1 can coconut milk
1/2 c. chicken broth
2 T. asian fish sauce
2 T. green curry paste
sea salt to taste
fresh basil and cilantro

Saute onion in coconut oil until soft and tender.  Add cubed chicken and saute for 2 minutes.  Add veggies, coconut milk, chicken broth, asian fish sauce, and green curry paste.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer gently for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Adjust seasoning and add sea salt to taste.  Serve as a delicious soup and garnish with fresh basil or cilantro.  If you don't have fresh basil - the dried seasoning is good.

Brett

Edible Adventures Update

Carrisa

Initially this blog was inspired by my daughter Carrisa and the powerful decision she made to change her health destiny through dietary change. I wanted to record and commemorate our journey together and the time we spent in the kitchen, garden, and farmer's markets during the summer of 2010.  During that memorable summer we posted photos of some of our favorite kitchen adventures and included many recipes.  Edible Adventures became a scrapbook of our summer fun together.

Now that Carrisa is away at school our kitchen collaboration is not as easy and takes place long distance.  Those frenzied summer months that we spent in the kitchen together have given way to recipes shared over the telephone or e-mailed to each other.

We are both dedicated to seeking out the very best food that we can, favoring what is locally available and in season, and preparing our food with loving attention.

Carrisa continues to cook up delicious whole food meals for herself while maintaining a busy work and school schedule.  She tells me that she does a lot of her cooking on the weekend.

I continue to shop at farmer's markets and spend enormous amounts of time in the kitchen.   I am currently perfecting and refining recipes that will eventually go into a cookbook.  Because I am a cook that does not always follow a recipe and often feels inclined to create the "dish of the moment" I am learning to discipline myself and take more careful measurements of the food that I cook.

Carrisa's Shortbread

THE STORY OF SHORTBREAD

The origin of shortbread dates back to Scotland in medieval times.  Traditionally, shortbread was baked in a large round and served cut into triangles or wedges.

The traditional shortbread recipe is one part sugar, two parts butter, and three parts flour.  The flour that was used to make traditional shortbread was fine oatmeal which is a staple food in Scotland.  Today the commercial versions of shortbread contain wheat flour or even corn and rice flour.

CARRISA'S TRADITIONAL SHORTBREAD

2 scant cups of fine oat flour
1/4 c. butter, cool, but not refrigerated
1/4 c.  sugar
Optional:  rose water for the butter's final rinse

Mix the flour and sugar on a work surface, then dot with pieces of cool butter.  With your fingertips, incorporate the mixture until it resembles bread crumbs.  Then using the palm of your hand, spread out the dough, forcing the flour to bind with the dough.  Gather and repeat three to four times, until you can form a ball of dough.  If the dough remains unworkable and crumbly, sprinkle with 1 - 2 t. of water, and knead again.  Shape into a ball and let rest for 30 minutes in a cool place (think of an unheated Scottish farmhouse.) 

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  On a floured surface, flatten the dough into a disk about a finger thick, and mark off 8 wedges with the tines of a fork pressed clear through the dough.  You can also add decorations with your fork, if you like.  Bake on an un-greased cookie sheet for an hour.  The shortbread should not brown.  When done, remove from oven, cool on a wire rack, break into wedges, and serve with tea.

Lacto-fermented Sauerkraut

 Homemade Sauerkraut

I have been experimenting with making homemade sauerkraut for about seven years now, often with less than satisfactory results.  After years of cycling between the convenience of buying expensive jars of sauerkraut at the market and the frustration of trying to save money and make my own I finally found a recipe that hits the mark.

I discovered the recipe in Sally Fallon's wonderful cookbook "Nourishing Traditions."  I was so thrilled with the results of my first jar of sauerkraut that I now prefer homemade sauerkraut to my former favorite store bought variety.  Every time I see a 14-oz jar of sauerkraut selling for for $9.00 to $14.00 I am glad I know how to make my own.

SAUERKRAUT RECIPE - makes 1 quart

1 medium cabbage, cored and shredded

1 T. caraway seed

1 T. sea salt

4 T. whey

In a bowl, mix cabbage with caraway seeds, sea salt and whey.   Pound with a wooden pounder for about 10 minutes to release juices.  Place in a quart-sized, wide-mouth Mason jar and press down firmly with the pounder until the juices come to the top of the cabbage.  The top of the cabbage should be submerged at least 1-inch below the top of the jar. Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days.  Transfer jars to cold storage or the refrigerator.  Flavor improves with age.

Carrisa One Year Later

June 2011

Hi Everybody.  Here is a a picture of Carrisa and I on a recent visit - one year later.  Carrisa has been eating whole unprocessed foods for one year.  She has been following the principles of the Weston A. Price Foundation as explained by Sally Fallon in her book "Nourishing Traditions" for one year.  Carrisa shops local, buys organic, and cooks her own food while she works and goes to college.  Cooking her own food is not always an easy or convenient thing to do - but it certainly is worth the extra effort.   Carrisa has lost 50 pounds and has not deprived herself or dieted for one day.

Carrisa is a success story and I am very proud of her.