1.5 oz Casa Nobles Blanco Tequila
1.5 oz Rhubarb Syrup (see recipe below)
1 T tangerine Juice
1 T lime juice
Club Soda
 
Rhubarb Syrup:
8-10 large stalks rhubarb (cut in ¼ -inch pieces)
1/2 c sugar
1 c water
 
1.    Bring sugar and water to boil; remove from heat and pour over rhubarb. Let steep 30 minutes (if desired, strain and repeat steps 1-3 for more flavor).
2.     Strain, discard solids, then reduce rhubarb syrup by half over low heat.

Each year, we accumulate donations through our wine program for four deserving organizations. Their inclusion on our list is based on their work to help preserve diverse food choices, contribute to the local community, support local farmers, and help commit to a more sustainable future. This month we highlight another worthy contender:
 
What Will Allen started in 1993 in Milwaukee, as an organization to put local teens to work, has today evolved into a nationally recognized program with a global commitment to sustainable food systems. With offices in Milwaukee and Chicago, Growing Power serves and "feeds" both producers and consumers. 

Growing Power offers diverse training programs in areas ranging from anaerobic digestion of food waste, to community development, to value-added product development and distribution. Will Allen's 2008 MacArthur "Genius" fellowship award has brought well-deserved attention to the critical work he continues to do in the field.
Growing Power

 

 

Rainbow Smelts: one of the real seasonal delicacies - and currently one of but a few safely edible ones - coming out of the Great Lakes. This small and beautiful fish, which grows most commonly only to 3"-4" length here in the upper Midwest, contains a sweet, succulent, flaky flesh in its striking silver and olive green body. Introduced to our watershed only as recently as one hundred years ago, they've flourished -- sometimes to nearly overabundance, threatening the native walleye population - and declined other times.

Nevertheless, they're still in safe supply and reproduce quickly enough to be a healthy (and delicious!) sustainable, local choice. Because the fish are relatively small by nature and short-lived, there is minimal risk of PCB contamination, something concerning with other fish from our waters.

They are relatively easy to prepare and shine when treated simply.  I find they are best left whole, dusted lightly with seasoned flour, cornmeal, and/or rice flour then quickly pan- or deep-fried in your fat of choice. When cooked properly, the small frames/bones become soft enough to eat, needing only lemons and remoulade or tartar sauce of preference. I have fond memories of introducing my then-two-year-old to the beauty and delicious wonder of picking up the small fried fish by their crispy tails and consuming them with sheer delight, head tipped back, mouth open, at our small kitchen table.

Now, of course, we're both a bit more grown up, and I'm serving them at the restaurant with a warm, smoked fingerling potato salad with lemon Gremolata.
He Who Smelts, Simply Melts

6 T  butter or olive oil
1     large shallot peeled and sliced thinly
1    small yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1    rib celery, thinly sliced
clove    garlic, peeled and minced
1.5 c    button mushrooms, washed and thinly sliced
3    eggs
3    egg yolks
2 c    whipping cream
12    spears large asparagus, peeled and pre-cooked
6-8 oz fresh Morel mushrooms, washed very well and dried on a towel
salt and pepper


·    Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Melt 4 T butter over high heat, and when foaming, add in the sliced shallot, onion, celery, garlic and button mushrooms.  Reduce the heat to medium, add some salt and pepper and gently cook the vegetables five - ten minutes until soft.
·    Add in 1½  cups of the cream, bring to a boil and then remove from heat.
·    Place the mixture in a blender and carefully puree the mixture for three - five minutes, until very smooth.  Set aside.
·    Cut the tips off the asparagus and reserve.  Cut the stalks into ¼" discs and divide them equally among six well-buttered 4" ramekins.
·    Beat the eggs and egg yolks together in a mixing bowl, and add in the reserved mushroom cream.  Beat well to homogenize.
·    Carefully ladle the mixture into the ramekins and place on a cookie sheet and place in the oven.
·    Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of one of the ramekins comes out "clean".
·    While the custards are baking, heat the remaining 2T butter in a pan and add in the cleaned and dried morels.  Salt and pepper them and cook slowly for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so they don't stick or burn.  
·    When the morels seem quite soft to the bite, add in the remaining ½ cup of cream.  Turn the heat up and carefully bring the cream to the boil.  Reduce the liquid by about half its volume and season the mixture to taste.
·    Add in the reserved asparagus tops and set aside.

To serve, carefully unmold each custard in the center of a plate, spoon the morels and asparagus heads around the perimeter, and garnish, perhaps, with a small herb salad atop.

 

Peter Klein bought the farm. Literally.

Back in 2002, when troubled by the fact that many of his favorite fruit vendors were retiring without turning over their businesses to the next generation, Peter took advantage of an opportunity to purchase a Michigan farm which grew the kind of fruit he cherished. Today, Peter's farm and business, Seedling Orchard, offers delicious varieties of fruit grown with respect to both its historical context and sustainable methodology. Seedling has done a tremendous job focusing on revitalizing specific varieties at risk of disappearing, while concentrating also on making a wonderful diversity of fruit and fruit-based products (ciders, smoothies) accessible and available to the public.

Check them out at the market or online: Seedling Fruit