News from North Pond |
March
2008 |
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News From North Pond
- As difficult as it might be to imagine we'll ever make it through this winter, the March newsletter tells us spring is just around the proverbial corner! Soon, though probably not soon enough, we'll be inundated with leafy green things and baby vegetables. If we can just hold out...
- During the third week of March, we'll be participating in the Tap Project, trying to draw attention to one of the world's scarcest resources: water. During World Water Week, thousands of restaurants nationwide will be helping UNICEF reach its goal of reducing by half the number of people worldwide without access to safe water and basic sanitation. For that week here in the restaurant, each donation of $1 for the tap water normally poured free of charge will provide a child 40 days of clean drinking water. For more information, visit the Tap Project website.
 And the (figurative) Easter Bunny is scheduled to arrive here on the pond Sunday, March 23. As in past years, we'll be offering an all-day Easter eggstravaganza brunch, with service from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 pm. We'll have a three-course prix-fixe format, with a choice of four options in each course. As of this writing, space is still available for you and the family. But act fast as this one traditionally sells out before too long.
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Tips from the Green Market Lettuce Rejoice!
Lettuce, because of its quick germination time and rapid growth, is typically one of the first vegetables harvested each spring. Unfortunately, many consumers never get past the refreshing-but-watery iceberg head lettuce or the ubiquitous and familiar romaine for the classic Caesar. But so many other varieties exist - with a diversity to please almost anyone.
There are tender leafed and mild red and green butterhead and bibb varieties. The re are speckled and crimson-splashed broadleaf and oakleaf varieties. There are smaller, frillier, and heavier-textured looseleaf maroon varieties.
And let's not forget about the delicious wild and overwintered herbs that will soon crest, too. Dandelion greens, watercress, lamb's quarter, and even parsley will soon again see the light of day as the interminable snow melts and the ground softens from the sun! Branch out and test and taste some new varieties by themselves - instead of in the generic, industr ial Mesclun mix packaged in gassed bags. Better yet, buy some seeds and grow the varieties yourself. There are few things easier to grow than lettuce; you can even do it on the windowsill of your apartment if you've got the interest. |
Drink of the Month
Tangerine Dream
Here's a bright cocktail to get you in the (Easter) Brunch spirit.
1.5 oz Hendrick's Gin
1 tsp cassis
1 ea tangerine or
clementine, juiced
and strained
splash lemon juice
2 oz sparkling water
- Pour cassis in bottom of fluted glass.
- Fill glass with ice.
- Combine gin, strained juice, lemon juice and sparkling water.
- Carefully pour over ice.
- Garnish with wheel of tangerine.
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Farm of the Month
Your Garden
(via the Seed Savers Exchange) 563.382.5990
Seed Savers Exchange is a nonprofit, membership-based organization that stores and shares heirloom garden seeds with the community. Saving seeds is a vital step in preserving heirloom varieties of our agricultural heritage for future generations.
The Exchange has built a network of people committed to collecting, conserving, and sharing heirloom seeds and plants, as well as educating consumers about the value of genetic and cultural diversity. One of Seed Savers' annual publications is the "Seed Savers Yearbook," which makes available the seeds of more than 11,000 rare varieties of vegetables, fruits, and grains.
Now is the time of year to consider and purchase seeds for the upcoming growing season. The magnificent assortment of seeds available through Seed Savers should satisfy anyone looking to design or complement their garden this spring. We include their seeds in the little seasonal packets we offer our guests upon the completion of their evening meals here at the restaurant. For more information, visit the Seed Savers website.
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Tips from the Fish and Meat Market
Rock on Rockfish
Alaskan rockfish is currently on the menu here at North Pond. A slow-to-mature, bottom-dwelling sea creature, the rockfish has been heavily overfished from Canada to southern California. A responsible and effective Alaskan management plan has been in place over the past several years and has limited or prohibited the catch further northwest. This year, however, an abundance of rockfish has allowed the Alaskan Department of Fish and Game to open a small quota for a short time.
We've been lucky enough to get some of this meaty and succulent fish that some compare to a grouper or snapper - two sea creatures also with threatened populations. Here at the restaurant, we're grilling rockfish and serving it on a bed of scorched green wheat alongside some fabulous California citrus and a chicken jus. Come in and give it a try before the quota is met and the fishery closes again.
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Recipe of the Month
(Spring Greens with) Mustard-Chervil Vinaigrette
2 Tbl sherry vinegar
1 Tbl dijon mustard
2 Tbl water
1 tsp wildflower honey
salt and pepper
1 tsp walnut or
hazelnut oil
¼ c olive oil
¼ c sunflower or canola oil
¼ c chervil, picked - leaves only (optional)
- Whisk together in a small bowl: the vinegar, mustard, water and honey, with a pinch of salt and (white) pepper.
- Whisk in the walnut or hazelnut oil, followed by the olive and vegetable oils.
- Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
- Chop the picked chervil and toss in with the vinaigrette just before dressing the greens of choice.
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Charity of the Month
The Fair Food Foundation
734-213-3999
The Fair Food Foundation, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is committed to addressing and improving access to fresh, local, sustainably-grown food in this country's most vulnerable urban communities. The foundation believes that this access is a basic human right, and is achievable by empowering local leadership to reconnect the urban and rural communities to the food we eat and the land on which it is grown.
The Fair Food Foundation Website |
Another Couple of Pithy Think Pieces
A propos of the consideration of declining or endangered fish populations, here's an article from a short while back that you might've missed:
New York Times "Europe's Appetite for Seafood Propels Illegal Trade"
And here's another interesting visual piece to stimulate your thoughts about what each of us eats every week:
Time Magazine "What the World Eats"
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