Nurturing my inner... fit for a king

Saturday mornings without the farmers' market in these winter months has left me void. I knew I needed to fill that time with something as culinarily exciting.  Really, I couldn't be expected to table my cooking creativity until May.  So in the past couple of weeks I've taken to a weekend morning trip to Whole Foods; Fair Lakes location.  Because it is MUCH bigger than the one in my town.

Every visit to that store is truly an adventure.  Something new to discover.  An exotic food item or perhaps a new way of making familiar standbys.  Last week, I noticed  a man near the sushi bar cutting up Peking duck and making them into tacos.  He put down a little plum sauce, some roasted duck and then shaved scallions.  This week he was there doing the same and I couldn't resist.  I picked up one for $2.99 to bring home and have for lunch.

I bet they made the duck with a rotisserie
because it was so moist.

Before I left the store yesterday, I got an idea.  Shoot, I could make duck!  Sure, I never had before, but how different could it be from chicken.  I asked the guy in the poultry section if they carried duck and he said they did, picked up a package and handed it to me.  But it was two duck breasts and I only wanted one, so he kindly repackaged just one for me and relabeled it.  Now that is a customer-oriented store!

Seared Duck Breast

1 duck breast
salt

Repackaged and just the right amount.

I had only wanted the duck breast and nothing else, but at that point I wasn't going to complain to the kindly meat man that this came with additional parts.  This meant a little more manual labor for me.  I first cut off the wing and then sliced the meat off the rib cage.  (I put those aside and I'll show you what I did with them later.)  Not my idea of fun, I am no butcher in the making, but if women 100 years ago could do it then so could I.

Duck has a unique flavor that I don't feel needs much seasoning, so all I did was lightly salt it.  I scored the top crosswise through the skin and fat, but not into the flesh.  This will help the fat melt and escape during the cooking process.  And that is what you want.

You don't want to cut too deep.

I planned on cooking my duck in the oven after I seared it on top, so I needed to employ a pan that could be used safely in both.  First step, I put it skin down in the pan on medium heat.  It will smoke a little, but not too much.  The fat will slowly render and release.  After about 5 - 10 minutes on that side, it was ready to flip.

Fat will melt away and the duck will shrink in
length and increase in thickness.

Skin side was browned and I just wanted to sear the other side for another three minutes or so to lock in the flavor and juices.

Off to a good start, I'd say.

Lately I've read a lot about not throwing away fat from cooking meats.  And duck fat, my friends, is in.  Very hip.  All the rage.  I've most often seen duck fat fries popping up all over bar food or small plate menus.  So I tilted my pan and took out the rendered fat with a spoon, placed it in a small container and into the freezer it went.  The duck got covered with the lid for my brazier and was sent into the oven at 350 for 10 minutes or until the internal temp was 140.  (Other people will say 125 is fine, but I don't eat meat rare, nor pink.  I will always choose a slightly higher meat temp to ensure doneness, while avoiding making the meat into jerky.)

Future duck fat fries? Perhaps.

Out of the oven it came, after the meat thermometer hit the mark, and the duck will look a little something like this:

Looks done to me. And I had the science
to back me up.

You don't want to cut duck right away.  Best to let it rest for 10 minutes and allow the meat to absorb the juices back in.  (If you cut it right away, they will just all spill over your cutting board and your duck with be dry.)

A little 10 minute snooze.

After the duck has rested properly, take a sharp knife and cut it on an angle.

Cooked perfectly to me!

Of course, then there was the pan with all those wonderful bits of stuff left behind.  I couldn't let that go to waste.  So I thought I'd make some mushrooms in it.

Wasn't up for making a sauce.

I would need a couple ingredients.  One for the mushrooms, one for my plating later.  First up, the vinegar.

A few Asian staples.

I thought some mushrooms would be a nice side item to go with duck.  I bought these shitake, presliced.

Seemed as easy as buying the whole ones
and they were the same price.

I tossed the mushrooms into the pan with the bits, added just a splash of the rice vinegar, a couple tablespoons of duck broth (you can find this at the bottom of my posting) and sauteed them until soft.  Making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan and incorporate all that extra flavor.

These mushrooms are so tasty on their own,
but the duck fat made them even better.

Something new.  I tried this at the salad bar at Whole Foods recently and loved it.  Black rice.  Aka, Forbidden Rice.  So I bought some to make on my own.

Onyx & Emerald Rice

1 cup black rice, cooked
1/4 cup shelled, steamed edamame beans
sprinkle of salt

Stateside brand of black rice.

The reason it's called Forbidden Rice is because in China, it was considered the Emperor's rice and no one else was allowed to eat it.  (Ugh, I can't stand class systems!  I'm rebelling by making it in my middle class home.)

It's my rice now!

I added 1/2 cup uncooked rice to two cups of water, which lent itself to a little over a cup of cooked rice.  I hate to run low on water when cooking rice, so I added a little more than they suggested.  Plus, I fully expected to drain this type of rice when it was done.  (Wish I had a rice cooker though.  I may still get one.)  The water will start out clear, but wait.

Won't be this way for long.

30 minutes later, you have perfectly cooked rice in black liquid.  Which is slightly creepy, but you're royalty now!  You can handle your new found fame.

Slightly swampy. Doesn't seem that special.
Wealthy people are weird.

A quick drain in a colander with a little shakey shake to get rid of the water.

Isn't that cool?

I took a short cut next, to be honest.  I was not going to steam my own edamame (soybeans) today.  I picked up some at the salad bar, but you can also get them frozen.  I gave these a quick rinse in warm water to take the chill off of them before adding to the rice.  The salt is important to add because it goes really well with the soybeans and enhances the flavor of a very basic side dish.

Bright, neon green.

Now to plate.  Fun part!  I've seen this in restaurants.  They take a dollop of sauce, hit it on the plate and smear it with the back of the spoon.  So I did that.

Reminds me of painting, only with kitchen utensils.

I gathered up a scoop of mushrooms and piled them in the corner next to the plum sauce.

I was planning two zones on the plate.

I fanned out three pieces of duck over the sauce trail and then created a small mound of the rice and edamame mixture on the other half of the plate.  I love the visual contrast of the dark, sharp charcoal and bright, leafy green together.  A mini treasure trove of onyx and emerald jewels!  Fit for an emperor.  (Or regular schlubs like us now that we've gotten into the royal rice stash.)  I am not a respecter of finances when I make dinner.  Everyone is welcome at my table.  That is my official decree.

Simple Asian-inspired fare with a
fancy presentation.

So you're wondering what I did with the left over duck wing and rib cage.  I decided I would make broth.  (As I eluded to earlier in my post.)  Unfortunately, I didn't have much at home to make it, so I had to improvise.  I had an onion and some fresh cilantro.  So I tossed those in a pot with the duck parts and some water and simmered for around 45 minutes.

What else ya gonna do with left over
random, inedible duck parts?

I poured the contents of the pan through a strainer into a couple old take out soup containers that I had saved.  (So don't throw those away.  You might need them one day for a project such as this.)  After they cooled for a while, I put the tops on and put them into the freezer.

Leave room for freezing expansion.

Now when I want to make soup or boil some quinoa, I have fresh stock to use as a tasty base instead of plain water.  A little planning ahead is cost effective and can ensure a flavorful future.  Rich or poor, this is just a wise way to stretch your dollar.

Nurturing my inner... mix-it-up leftovers

Well, where the heck have I been?  Truth be told, I've been feeling a little under the weather.  When my stomach is in any form of protest, I don't find myself in the mood for food; to eat it or even write about it.  (Blech!)  But now that I'm feeling over the weather (why don't we ever say that, right?), I'm back in business, catching up from days gone by.

This was a tasty little post-Thanksgiving number.  What to do with left over turkey that doesn't involve a sandwich.  (Well, not a sandwich in any traditional capacity anyway.)

Turkey Bacon Salad

1 cup left over cooked turkey, diced
2 strips cooked turkey bacon (if only for the irony), chopped
1/2 avocado, diced
1 tbsp mayo
1 tbsp ranch dressing
1/4 cup Colby Jack cheese, shredded
1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
2 flat breads

You can adjust the amounts to get the ratio you like best.  It's really a sort of, little-of-this and little-of-that, dish.  Throw in some stuff, taste it, add a bit more of something, taste it again.  You'll just know when you've got it.

Leftovers are not so bad. They just need
a little enhancement.

Avocado is really a great food that has the right kind of fat.  Your body does need fat, contrary to some diet fad teaching, and avocado is a good fat to have.

Ripe avocado has slight give when pressed.

Throw in the avocado for starters.

Not such a bad starting place.

I realized there was no need to step it out.  Just cut everything up and put it in the bowl.

Lovely colors, textures, flavors. Reminds me
visually of an artist's palate.

Toss it all gently.  I would recommend starting with less mayo and dressing and adding more as you like.  Because you can't take it out when you've got more in it than you want.  But the turkey will soak it up some, so if it seems a little creamy, it may end up drier in just a short while.

Takes like five whole minutes.

I was determined not to put this in a sandwich, and hey I had no sandwich bread at home anyway, so I searched around the freezer and found some flat bread.  Quick 20 seconds in the microwave and it was pliable once again.

Flat bread freezes really well.

About half a cup got piled onto on the flat bread.  I wasn't going for an amazingly picturesque photo with this one.  It just tasted great.

Fold, pick up and bite. Sort of like a taco.

My mom doesn't like leftovers and I can't for the life of me figure out why.  I think it's great to cook once and eat twice.  (Or more.)  And you're not limited to the exact same meal redeux.  A few new, fresh ingredients and you'll feel like you have a whole brand new discovery!  Does that seem like a leftover to you?

Nurturing my inner... when the past meets the present, pt 2

Up next is the big guy.  Because he takes the longest in the oven.  My timing wasn't perfect to have everything piping hot at the exact same time, but I think I did pretty well for my first attempt.  I'm sure you'll be even better at it than I was.

Part 2: Sage and Rosemary Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy

3 lb turkey breast, with the skin
2 tbsps butter, room temp
dash of salt
sprinkle of pepper
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, whole
2 sprigs of fresh sage, whole
2 cups of turkey stock
2 tsps flour

Gratuitous shot of my holiday kitchen towels.  Might as well be festive while you're in a cooking frenzy.

Mom buys me these. They come in super
handy with the messes I make.

I don't own a roasting pan... yet.  Which nearly caused me to freak out that day because I thought, well, what the heck was I going to cook the turkey in?  Good thing I bought this 3 1/2 quart Le Creuset buffet casserole pan.

The perfect size for my purposes.

No way was I going to make a huge turkey all for me.  I already had the plan to make just a turkey breast.  I am mostly a white meat eater anyway, so this cut was going to be just enough to step up to my task.

Such a manageable size for a small group.
And very affordable.

Into a bowl went the butter, salt and pepper.  I mushed it up to make a paste.

The vehicle for the flavor you're about to add.

Peel back the skin and create space underneath.

Icky, but necessary.

Spread most of the butter on the flesh under the skin. 

Turkey masseuse.

I just went with two common fresh herbs that work extremely well with turkey: Sage & Rosemary.

Can't use dried today. Sorry, no substitutes.

Take out a couple/few sprigs of each.

So woodsy and strong.

Tuck the whole sprigs on top of the butter, but under the skin.

Will infuse the meat with flavor.

Boxed turkey broth was easy enough to use here.

No need to make your own.

Pull the skin over the herbs and use the remaining butter on the top so it will assist with browning.  That will help create the crispiness too.  Then add a couple cups of broth to the bottom of the pan.  I used that to baste the turkey about every 15 minutes with a spoon.  Covered that up and into a 375 degree oven it went.

Moisture is your friend today.

After an hour or so, I wanted to see how the old boy was doing.  I took him out and put in the meat thermometer.  Not even 120, so certainly not done yet.  Back in he went, but with the lid off.  You can add more broth to the bottom if you need it.

Handy meat thermometer.

About 2 - 2 1/2 hours (total time from the start) later, and after your meat thermometer comes up to 170, you're in business.  These things definitely take time and everyone's oven is different.  Don't rush the process, just plan for it to take a while.

Wow.  Look mom, I did it!

Take the turkey breast out of the pan, put on a plate and cover with a piece of foil.  Let sit so the juices don't run all over the place when you go to carve it.  10 - 15 minutes should do it.

Tucked away to rest.

What you will have left in your pan is the condensed broth and drippings.  This will become your gravy.

The start to a great gravy.

Take your pan and put on top of your stove, turn up flame until you get it to a simmer.  Add a teaspoon or two of flour while constantly whisking, until it's the viscosity you prefer.  My family likes to use Wondra, a very fine flour, which creates less lumps.  I didn't have that, so I used regular flour.

Add as much flour as you'd like until it's as
thick as you want it.

To make sure I had no lumps, and to rid myself of all bits of left over herbs, I used a small strainer and passed the gravy through it.  To make it easy to pour into the strainer, I used a ladle to take it out of the pan and put it into my two cup measurer that has a handy pour spout.

Lumps are the enemy!

This gravy is going to really complete the turkey experience and add that lovely moisture back in.  But there is more left to do.

Nurturing my inner... small town girl

In late October, a friendly coworker who knew of my growing interest in organic foods and connection to my own growing up in the country, invited me out to her homestead.  While she works in a metropolitan area (where I live), she lives about an hour out West.  In our neck of the woods (that's country folk talk for you city slickers), you can be in a bustling city one minute and in a rural farm town in less than an hour.  That kind of diversity is one of the many reasons I call Northern Virginia home.  So let's take a little tour just outside of my every day bubble.

The drive out to Berryville, VA was on a gorgeous blue sky day with fluffy white clouds dabbed here and there.  Perfect fall weather.  (I do realize I am driving while taking this pic, but I was watching the road and just put the camera right on top of my steering wheel to steady and snapped a few random pics.  I didn't take my eyes off the road, so no need to send the fuzz to cart me away to the clink.)

It took a nice picture anyway. Random as
it was. Seriously! Put the phone down.

First stop in Berryville was a neighbor's farm.  We caught the owners as they were leaving for the day, but when you live this far out, I guess you're very trusting and just allow people to roam your property unmonitored.  (To city dwellers = panic!!)  Time to check out the animals.

Introducing Glory the goat.  (Apparently it was dinnertime for the old gal.)

It was sadly not milking time. Super bummer!
I am so definitely coming back for that.

Behind the house was the chicken coop.  Which had a hen house attached.  That makes sense as you gotta keep the ladies warm.  We went inside and my coworker reached in the cubbies (like summer camp bunk beds only for birds) that normally hold the chickens (who were actually roaming about freely) and picked out fresh eggs.  Thank you generous, and unaware, chickens!

Affordable chicken housing. With a good view
of the wood shed.

Now for a little current application of time gone by values.  As I mentioned before, the neighbors all know each other.  Some of their families have owned these farms for tens of dozens of years.  There is something to be said for long histories.  I'm all for it.  Some of the good people of this area have created what they call "The Shack."  It's a little, wooden shed with a screen door, shelving and a refrigerator.

Looks unassuming, perhaps.

What these local friends do is this...  Each person has their own speciality.  Since they often have more than they need, they take a bunch of their products and put them in the fridge, freezer and on the shelves.  There was pasta sauce and beef in the freezer, goat cheese and eggs and in the fridge, and on the shelves - freshly baked bread!  (I know, was this something out of a movie?)  This way, they can offer their excess to their neighbors and get something they don't have in exchange.

On the wall was a board with prices (all very reasonable) for the various goods.  And a log book, with an honor system, that each person writes down what they take and what they owe.  The next time they see their friend, they pay them.  I LOVED this idea!!!  I am trying to find a way to do this in the condo atmosphere I'm a part of.  So far it's been me making too much food and running out of freezer room, so I have to offload it to my friends to make space.  (They are more than willing to "help me out," by the way.)  But swapping and variety sounds like great fun to me.

Fresh, made that morning, crusty,
sourdough bread. For the love!
This is exciting.

Seeing as it was a farm, I feel the need to show you a piece of industrial size equipment.  Here is a tractor.  How can anyone drive this thing?!!  (Think they'd let me?  If only they had left the keys in it.)

I did suppress the urge to hop on it and
give it a whirl. For now.

And of course, what is a farm without cows.  This one was pretty rotund.  Likely a happy cow.  I loved it!  The whole place was quite scenic.  Stone walls, pastures, trees...

Darling cow having a snack. An animal
after my own heart. Well, stomach.

My coworker also keeps her horse at her friend's place.  The larger horse below is Ginger and oh yes, I was told I could ride her sometime when I come back out again.  (Yippee!)  She was so sweet.  Got to pet her and introduce myself properly.  And now, I want a horse.  I loved Ginger!  (Think she'll fit in my condo?  I knew I should have bought a garage.)

Sun was starting to lower and I liked the way
the light hit the lens. Cute, little, white
horse saying, "Hey! Come pet me."

You know there will be food involved, so be patient.  But for now, history to work up an appetite.  Another reason to love the town of Berryville?  They protect farmland like nobody's business.  I took a picture of a sign and was told that much of the land in this area is fully protected against commercial development, for all time.  Now that's a cause I can get behind!

"Forever protected" - do you love that or what?
I'm a fan of this easement.

Well, what's a trip to a small area in the country without a trip to the country store. Locke Modern Country Store in Millwood, VA.

Exterior is rugged and natural.

Whoa, when I went inside there was a HUMONGOUS wine selection.  I couldn't believe this tiny facade held such a magnificent bounty!  There was more wine there than in some of my local wine shops.  And they were having a wine tasting that day.  I bought a fantastic Rosé that I featured at the wine tasting I blogged about recently.

Country folks like their wine, that's obvious.

And what is a delightful store without a delightful person at the helm.  Peggie Simon.  Lover of all that is nature and all around smart lady.  She gave me a brief personal history and I learned that local, sustainable foods supporting isn't new for her.  No sirree-bob.  What preprocessed, refined sugar rock have we been living under for the past thirty years?  Peggie caught the health train way early on and has spent many years getting us misinformed, lazybones up to speed.  She recommended a book, "The Omnivores Dilemma," and said that book really will open your eyes to so much.  I'll have to check it out.

Peggie - Organic foods trail blazer.

I won't rewrite history by going on and on about the store.  You can read more about it in an article in the Washington Post.  I'd like to focus on a few products.  Like homemade granola.  Is that not like so Mother Earth?

And you thought homemade granola went
out with bell bottoms and shag carpets.
Not so!

They also had a couple double door fridges with all kinds of products too numerous to mention.  Soups, meats, veggies, cheeses.  Lot's of great local specialties.  (I bought a fab dried sausage that I sliced up super thin for a party recently.)



Is it hard to exercise restraint? Oh yes it is.


One thing I had to try was their own homemade pot pie.  Anything that promises a flaky crust, yeah, I'm in!  I'll show you an initial shot now and we'll revisit later when I actually bake it up.  In the meantime, it went into the freezer and I went on to another local haunt.

Freshly made. It's a hot ticket at the store.

The Berryville Farmer's Market.  Held in a local parking lot.  Not big in square feet, but big on yummies.

Fruit stand. It was apple season.

I liked seeing the tents and the neighbors chatting.  Reminded me of simpler days.

I bet they see each other nearly every
Saturday morning.

It was hard to walk and talk and eat and photograph, so this is a little blurry, but I wasn't going to miss out on showing you this wonderful, mini ham biscuit.  Something I didn't grow up with in New England.  Great walk around and shop food.  Two or three bites and that's it.

Well, shopping for food does make you hungry.

I don't know what kind of fertilizer they were using, but I took a picture of these zucchinis in relation to normal-sized peppers to show you they were as large as baseball bats!  Oh my goodnight!  You could feed a family of 10 on one!  (I was tempted to buy one for myself, but really now, I wasn't sure it would fit through the front door of my place.)

How can vegetables grow this large?

Did someone say barbecue?  The pork as it came right out of the smoker to the right, shredded and ready to go to the left.  My kind hostess bought a big container of beans and my only regret is that I didn't photograph it!  I tasted them later and those beans were AMAZING.  I'm going to make her bring me some next Spring when the market reopens.  They were made with several kinds of beans, some creamy, large white ones, and had huge pieces of BBQ pork all through it.  They sell by weight so you can get as little or as much as you want.  (Honestly, the beans will knock your socks off and you'll want to buy a huge tub of them.)

I just made myself hungry.

On to local projects.  Another great thing about small towns is that they like to preserve their history instead of leveling it and building another generic strip mall.  This old barn was being renovated into a new community center without altering the integrity of the original external structure.  I'm glad there are preservationists around for just these reasons.

The convenience of the new cannot replace
the beauty of saving the old.

Wow, I had a big day!  A super fun day.  And I was pooped!  My hostess doesn't know it, but I took a picture of the incredibly inviting guestroom I got to stay in.  Seriously, who wouldn't want to stay here?  The bed made me want to jump into it like a kid!  (I didn't.  That would have been rude on my first visit.)

Like a hotel. Green and white fresh color
scheme. So very comfy. *yawn*

I'm pretty sure I was out like a light within moments of snuggling into that downy softness.  But wait!  Back to the pot pie.

I brought it home to my mom's because this was something to share.  Fresh out of the freezer.

Should serve about four to six people.

Because it was frozen, the cook time increased.  The package said 350 for an hour, but we put it in at 400 for an hour and 20 minutes.  All stoves cook differently, so some guesswork is involved.

We used a thermometer to make sure the
internal temperature was high enough.

I tried my best to let it rest for just a bit, but, dangit, I was too hungry!  A corner square was mine!  (Okay, I did serve my mom first.  I'm a good kid, really.)  It had giant chunks of white meat chicken, hearty veggies, a flaky crust as promised and creamy gravy.  I say, it was a hit!  (This they already knew when they sold it to me.  I can see why people are repeat customers.)

Flaky, creamy, veggie, meaty.

I love adventures.  Local road trips.  Meeting regular people.  Discovering new places.  Tasting extraordinary things.  My hope is that more city people hop in their cars on a Saturday morning and drive an hour out to the many small towns that dot our great country and patronize places like Locke's Modern Country Store.  The treats and the people are wonderful and will brighten your day.  You might even learn something new while you're out exploring.