Apple, Manchego & Chives

By Steph Farrar

My folks moved to Naples, Florida, an income tax-free state, almost a decade ago. They’ve always loved the water no matter where they've lived. I was basically raised on boats, in and out of galleys, heads, staterooms, pretending to learn port from starboard, bow from aft. We’re talking Tennessee River floating, slalom skiing, wave-running next to a nuclear facility. Not quite the California way of things. Not quite the peaceful, warm Gulf coast of Florida either.

It wasn’t a huge surprise when my parents made the move to the West coast of Florida to build their dream home on the water. It was time. They had braved the South long enough; it was time to enjoy all they had worked for. Unfortunately that great idea, building a dream home, took two years to complete and drained most of their stored enthusiasm for the Gulf Coast.

Years later, after completion and a resolving repose with staying put, my folks wear their Naples pride playfully. Naples more recently boasts dozens of amazing restaurants and watering holes, but is still anchored in the quiet, temperate Gulf. For the last few years we’ve visited for Thanksgiving, which is usually right around my birthday. And there is only one place I like to spend my birthday in Naples: Cafe Bar Lurcat.

There are three reasons why: 1. Great wine list 2. Fried rice topped with soft boiled egg 3. Apple, chive, manchego salad. So this week, I’m insisting Cafe Bar Lurcat comes to me. In Cali.

Simple Ingredients

This is one of the easiest things you will ever make. And one of the most delicious. The apples and cheese so closely resemble each other, it’s hard to pick them apart. The only things which divide them are taste and the touch of green at the end of the apple stalk. The apples have that bitter, sweet lemon kick and the cheese is so salty and nutty it could kill anyone with a nut allergy. With the tiny crunch of chive and little kick from the pepper, your taste-buds will be pleased. I like to cut the apples last, since they brown so quickly. If you must cut them earlier, squeeze lemon over them, cover and refrigerate.

Cut em like matchsticks

If you can believe it this salad can stay in the fridge for about a day or two, with the right amount of lemon to preserve. If you wanna follow this dish with the Pancetta Leek Fried Rice, you’ll have the closest meal to Lurcat since Lurcat. I mean really when are you ever going to Naples, Florida? Sorry Mom and Dad.

Summer!

Apple, Manchego & Chive Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 Granny Smith Apples, cored and cut into matchsticks

• 6 oz manchego cheese, cut into matchsticks

• 2 tbsp chopped chives

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• Juice on one lemon

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Using a mandolin, slice apples and cheese into the same width slices. Then cut each slice into matchsticks. Unless you have a mandolin with a julienne blade, then use that of course.

Combine all ingredients into a bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Store covered in refrigerator for one to two days max.

A,M,C on brick

Leftovers and Chicken Salad

By Steph Farrar

My husband and I started a side musical project a few years ago called Bubble and Strife. Our anecdote: Husband and Wife. Husband and Strife. Bubble and Squeak. Bubble and Strife.

In short, Leftovers.

Sam was in a band for almost 15 years called Phantom Planet and I was in a band called Agent Sparks. Unfortunately both have disbanded and life has moved on, but the music is still out there... and will be forever. So in a sense the music never dies, even if you want it to.

After a few years of neither Sam nor I grazing a stage, we decided it was time to face that long-winded fear. We, leftovers of years of touring and making music, compiled a handful of original songs and covers and somehow pulled off a thirty-five minute set, opening for Ben Ottewell from Gomez. For our first show, it was pretty damn good... especially for new parents who were operating on little to no sleep at the time. It's now been over a year since our last show... that urge is coming upon us both again.

So on to leftovers. Do you ever buy rotisserie chickens from the market? I buy at least one a week, even if I plan to roast a whole one at some point during said week. It's nice to have around, especially with a picky kid-eater. Fried rice, chicken pasta with broccoli, minced lettuce cups, and definitely chicken salad.

Add whatever you have around, nuts, dried fruit, crunchy fruit

My first favorite way to enjoy leftovers is a schmorgesborg of whatever is in the fridge: chicken, carrots, celery with hummus, jarlsberg and brie cheeses with salami and crackers, a spicy mustard or fig dip, grapes, almonds, and always tons of olives.

My second favorite? Chicken salad. If the diced chicken is accompanied by a crunchy fruit and/or vegetable, dried fruit of some kind like cranberries or raisins, a nut of some sort, some herbs, a tiny dollup of mayo or yogurt, olive oil, salt and pepper... we'll eat the whole bowl in one sitting.

Chicken Salad2

If I'm not daytime drinking wine, I'll always settle for a Pellegrino aranciata. The chicken salad doesn't even need bread, but if you have it and aren't on a starch-free fix, enjoy an italian or French loaf slice, even a cracker.

Aranciata always

When you're done with your rotisserie chicken, don't trash it! Stick it in your slow cooker, add water, onion, celery, carrots, herbs, salt and pepper. Let it slow cook overnight, strain solids and bam... you'll have an incredible homemade chicken stock. Full recipe to come.

I'm proud of my leftovers. You should be too.

Chicken Salad with Cranberries, Apple, Toasted Walnuts

Ingredients:

• 1-2 lbs. diced rotisserie chicken

• 1/4 cup chopped red onion

• 1/2 cup toasted walnuts

• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

• 1/4 cup dried cranberries or raisins

• 1/3 cup diced green apple

• 1/4 cup diced celery

• 2-3 tbsp mayo or greek yogurt

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• Juice of one lemon

• salt and pepper

*toast french loaf slices, top with olive oil, chicken salad, sliced avocado and arugula & season with salt and pepper

 Directions:

Literally put everything in a nice size bowl and gently mix together.

Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy as a salad, sandwich, or appetizer on a cracker

Inspired and a Bowl of Soup

By Steph Farrar

Not too long ago, a few friends joined Sierra and I for a summer bowl of soup, cornbread, mango micheladas, mint margaritas and a key lemon tart with blueberries. Even on a hot summer day, a bowl of soup can work... as long as dear friends share a seat in the shade and join us sipping something cold.

Fixins

This past week, Sam and I were miraculously able to see a few movies together, two in the theater, two at home. While I love going to the movies, the two documentaries we watched on Netflix at home were not only informative culturally and socially, but they were inspiring on a subject I've been focused on lately: a life's dedication to work and how that dedication and love of work leads to success. First we watched Jiro Dreams of Sushi, a 2011 David Gelb film, following the 75 year career of, arguably, the world's finest and hardest working sushi chef. And secondly we watched Senna, the 2010 Asif Kapadia film which documents, entirely from raw footage, the impeccable career of Brazilian Formula One driver Ayrton Senna.

While the films have nothing to do with Chicken Tortilla Soup and having friends over for an afternoon party, I've been obsessing, clinically and radically, over food, its preparation, its science, its beauty, and its grip on me for the last few years. Even more so in the last few months. After watching and somewhat studying Jiro and Ayrton's allegiance and passion for their work, I'm beginning to finally understand how loyalty to ones craft is born: continue doing what you love and never stop, never concede. The legendary English marathoner, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, only months after having heart surgery, ran 7 marathons in 7 days on 6 different continents. I'm reminded of one of his best quotes,"That part of the human mind which tells us to give up... that part is suspect."

It seems like a little ole' housewife thing to do: enjoy cooking and feeding people. Seemingly the opposite of female evolution. I fear my doctor and lawyer friends, my career motivated artist and fashionable lady-friends might jeer at this. Alas, I can not avoid or deny the sheer pleasure it gives me.

So, I will. I will continue cooking, inviting friends for dinner, posting, writing, working, doing what I love... and never stop. That is, until my presence becomes a nuisance or in any way interferes with the product, the meal, the race. I'm trying to avoid coming across like a motivational speaker here, but it's hard to not be inspired by the relentless work ethic of Jiro, who has loved every single day of his life in work, making the same thing over and over again, for the ten special guests who grace his subterranean Roppongi Hills subway sushi stop.

It's hard to avoid being influenced and encouraged by Senna's unyielding desire to be number one, to put to shame that arrogant Frenchman, Alain Prost, to win more World Championship's than anyone in history, to exist as the idol Brazil needed and deserved.

A bowl of soup does it for me. Friends visiting for a drink, a football game, a chat, a sweet dessert to complete a perfect afternoon in the Los Angeles sun. If I've done that right, I'll do it over and over, forever, continuously, relentlessly. If that brings joy to my soul and to my friends' palettes and personas, I've won.

Friends

*Photos courtesy of Christopher Wray-Mccann

Chicken Tortilla Soup with Cornbread

Soup Ingredients:

• 3/4- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into cubes

• 1 tbsp. olive or vegetable oil

• 1/2 small onion, chopped

• 1 tbsp. chili powder

• 1 tbsp. tomato paste

• 4 cups low sodium chicken broth

• 6 cilantro stems

• 1/2 cup corn kernels

• 1/2 cup black beans 1/2 cup diced cherry tomatoes crushed tortilla chips

*diced avocado, chopped cilantro, crumbled queso fresco, sour cream and lime wedges for serving

Soup Directions:

Heat oil in large pot over medium heat

Add onion and cook for about 3 minutes

Stir in chili powder and tomato paste and cook for 30 seconds

Add broth and cilantro stems and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 10-12 minutes, until reduced to 3 cups

Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to broth. Cook for 3 minutes

Discard cilatro stems

Divide corn, beans, and tomatoes between bowls. Pour piping hot broth over ingredients.

Add avocado, lime, cilantro, cheese, and sour cream. Enjoy!

Serves 2

note: if you have oven-proof soup bowls, keep in warm oven before adding corn, beans, tomatoes and chips. Soup cools rather quickly once the hot broth touches the cool ingredients.

Buttermilk Cornbread

Grandmother's buttermilk cornbread from www.allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter

• 2/3 cup white sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup buttermilk

• 1/2 tsp. baking soda

• 1 cup cornmeal

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8-inch square pan

Melt butter in a large skillet. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Quickly add eggs and beat until well blended.

Combine buttermilk with baking soda and stir into mixture in skillet.

Stir in cornmeal, flour and salt until well blended but a few lumps remain. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in oven for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cheers my dears

Sweet Summer "Succotash"

By Sierra French Myerson

Lately, even breathing has been hard work and uncomfortable.  The slightest movement adds to the sticky stress of the heat.  I’m a native Angeleno, and yet, I still complain (and act surprised and overwhelmed) by the inevitable summer heat that strikes us every single year without fail.  And, on top of being one of the weather whiners, I’m a hypocrite.  I beg for all of the booty that the sun gods provide us, and then I carp about the seasonal circumstances that help to create the harvest. See, I’m a total produce whore.  So, when the tomatoes, corn, peaches, and other summer goods start to show up at the farmer’s markets, I go crazy.  They completely get me off.  What?!  I’m perpetually single.  I have to have something to look forward to, and a perfect, sweet, and slightly ugly heirloom tomato is that for me.  Come to think of it, that’s actually my ideal man-type too, just a bit taller than a tomato.  Hmm, I wonder what that means?

Succotash3

Needless to say, when the time is right (and, I’m properly ill-at-ease walking around outside, let alone breathing), a huge bounty of fruit and veggie love accompany me home from the Sunday farmer’s market.  Though they’re just for me, and any friends/family I might end up cooking for that week, I’m never worried my edible purchases will end up unused or buried in the trash.  Before I can even think about all of the rousing things I want to create with my summer market loot, I’ve eaten a quarter of it on it’s own.  A tomato sliced with a little Maldon salt, a cob of corn merely grilled or steamed, a peach...they do themselves justice.  Therefore, their unadulterated beauty is two-fold to me, they are beyond delicious, and they don’t need much finessing, i.e. kitchen heat.

Chop Chop

Turning the oven on in my un-a/c’d cottage-like apartment is a game-changer.  Fan schman.  The added heat makes the already motionless air come to a complete and hot standstill.  The other day, I was longingly looking at my remaining week’s veggies.  I was missing cooking and dying to eat them all at once.  Mission accepted:  use as many vegetables as I am inspired to use while cooking as little as possible.  Corn, summer squash, heirloom tomatoes (duh!), red onion, garlic, basil…a “succotash” of sorts.

To all you food purists out there, I didn’t use lima beans, so I know I can’t officially call it a succotash.  Regardless, it was simple, light, and so tasty.  Good veg don’t lie.

A quick sauté.

Sweet Summer "Succotash"

My only footnote to this recipe would be to use whatever vegetables inspire you. Though,  I do think corn is a perfect cornerstone.  Also, I used it as side dish to breaded chicken but, I think it would make a killer pasta with orrechiette, or incorporated into a more substantial salad with arugula or a grain. Just go with it.

What you’ll need:

• A good glug of extra virgin olive oil (approx. 1 Tb.)

• ½ a red onion, chopped

• 2 cloves of garlic, minced

• 2 ears of corn, shucked and cut of the cob

• 1 medium or 2 small summer squash (whichever kind you fancy), diced

• 1 medium heirloom tomato, large dice

• 2 pats of butter (approx. 2 Tb.)

• A generous handful of cherry tomatoes, halved

• Salt and black pepper, to taste

• ¼ tsp. red pepper chili flake (optional)

• 1 Tb. basil, torn

Directions:

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic.  Season with salt and pepper.  Stirring frequently, cook for 8-10 minutes until onions are translucent. 

Add red pepper chili flake, if using. 

Add squash.  Stir to combine.  Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes until squash starts to cook through and soften. 

Add corn.  Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Add chopped heirloom tomato.  Turn down heat to medium-low.  Add a pinch of salt and black pepper. 

Stir to incorporate all of the ingredients. 

Add butter.  Take off of the heat.  Stir until butter is melted and makes a slight sauce. 

Gently mix in cherry tomatoes and basil.  Serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Mixed Berry Pie

Sweet and tart.

By Sierra French Myerson

There are many things that I'm proud of in my life, but one of the greatest is my immense group of very close friends.  For ages, we have been celebrating the 4th of July at the Farrar's in Malibu.  The "grown-up Farrar's" (Sam's parents), that is.  We've gone from being debaucherous 20 year olds to the grown-ups themselves.  The house has been host to many great parties and monumental moments over the years for all of us.  Granted, the parties do look different now.  There are bouncy houses and juice boxes replacing the glory days of our 20's.  But, one thing has maintained over time, all of the faces are the same.  The unwieldy strength of "the bros" is a true force with which to be reckoned.  You Can't Stop Us remains our battle cry (thank you Uniform Circa!).  

Casa de Farrar has really been a cornerstone for French & Farrar.  Steph and I have cooked, cleaned, and played together there, on many occasions,  in the beautiful kitchen with a view.  We've done formal dinners (an epic New Year's eve weekend), Steph's first roast chicken, lots of hot dogs and burgers, and many of my pies.  In fact, I think I may have single handedly created a baking dish collection for the house with all of the pies I've brought to the parties.  They're nothing fancy...Just good crust, whatever ripe fruit the season has delivered, and not too much sugar.

I love making dough!

Steph's and my culinary fun is really just another reason to bring all of our dear friends together.  We might be different, but we are identical in believing that food + friends = happiness.  But, beware!  If you're ever lucky enough to be invited to Steph's in-laws for their annual 4th of July party, bring a different dessert or be prepared to have Sam's mom hide the berry pie all to herself.  I'll be sure to make two next year…one for Pearlie and one for the bros.

Mixed Berry Pie

*For the crust, use your favorite Pate Brisee recipe.  And, look forward to my ultimate one in a future post.

What you'll need:

• 2 large disks of your favorite pie dough

• 2 pints fresh blueberries

• 1 pint fresh blackberries

• 1 pint fresh raspberries

• Juice from 2 juicy lemons, approx. 1/4 cup

• Pinch of salt

• 1 cup of sugar plus a bit extra for sprinkling

• 1/4 cup cornstarch

• Egg wash (1 egg whisked with 2 Tb milk, cream, or water)

Directions:

Generously flour your work surface.  Roll out one disk of dough, and press into the bottom and up the sides of a standard pie pan.  Place in refrigerator while you make the filling.

Stir together the berries, lemon juice, cornstarch, sugar, and a pinch of salt.  Fill the pie shell with the filling.

Roll out the second disk of dough, and cover the filled pie.  Use your creativity here…a traditional covered pie, a rustic lattice, cut-out stars, etc.  Refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Brush top of pie with egg wash, and sprinkle with extra sugar.  Place on a baking sheet (I usually line mine with parchment paper or tin foil for easier clean-up).  Bake for 45 minutes.  Let cool.

Patty's Cucumber Gin Cocktail

By Steph Farrar

I have loved Gin for a very long time. I even capitalize the word when I don’t need to. If I’m able to go out for a nice dinner with my husband and perhaps don’t have to wake at dawn the next morning, I will start my night with a Gin martini. Extra dry, basically zero vermouth, and tons and tons of olives. I’m an olive fanatic. It's even possible I drink Gin so I can eat the olives.  No wait, I love Gin. But the olives really help soak up the booze while I’m waiting for an appetizer, hopefully Malpec or Kumomoto oysters.

Dill is so pretty

But enough about me. Let’s talk about you, enjoying Gin, even if you never have before. I can break you. And I will with this drink. 3 ounces of Gin sounds like a lot, I know. Most drinks are four ounces though, and we get a little soda water in there, and veggies and herbs, so whatever. Enjoy your healthy, well-rounded cocktail. Feel good about yourself.

Ice cream scoop muddle

I based this little concoction on a ‘mocktail’ I found in Food and Wine's August 2012 issue. I know cucumber and Gin make sense. And cucumber and dill love each other. So partnering the three seemed like a win. And I was right. I’m going to call this drink “For Patty,” cause she’s a serious Gin lover. And I’m a serious Patty lover.

Agave is best.

You know what I mean. Just drink it. And please eat some oysters if you can.

Dill, Cucumber Gin Cocktail

Ingredients:

• 3 ounces Gin, preferably Hendricks or Plymouth

• 1/3 cup cut cucumbers, plus one disk for garnish

• 2 paper-thin, lengthwise slices of cucumber

• 1 tsp dill finely chopped, plus sprig for garnish

• 3 wedges of lime (and/or lemon), one for garnish

• 1 tbsp agave nectar splash soda water

Directions:

Place cucumber, dill, agave syrup and juice of two lime wedges in a martini shaker and muddle together, breaking down the cucumber and lime. If you have a mortar and pestle that will work as well. I didn’t have a muddle this day, so I found a nice wooden ice cream scoop with a flat end. Worked great.

Line a highball glass with cucumber skin and fill with ice.

Fill shaker 3/4 with ice and add gin. Shake all ingredients well. I like this drink frothy.

Strain cocktail into cucumber lined glass. Fill with soda water.

Garnish glass with lime and cucumber wheel, and a sprig of dill.

Add a straw and enjoy.

Juiced: Almond Milk and Greens

By Steph Farrar

A few months ago, I began to feel toxic. Too much wine, too many verditas shots (thank you Esme and Cayman), not enough sleep. As a temporary single parent, I started to feel a little anxious.  Sam was still away on tour. I’d been cooking for one and a half for two months and finding it creatively challenging.

My best friend, Lola, has been a fan of the Earth Bar in L.A. for a few years actually... juices, vitamin shots, simple organic treats and eats, an overall health-food-store. Juices are called Detox Lemonade, Gimme Greens, Raw Recovery etc., not I Am Beautiful, Hear My Woman Roar, or My Spirit is Special. So I gave it a go. Not too crunchy for me.

Bottles and bottles

A juice cleanse is the most L.A. thing I have ever participated in. I was pretty jazzed to give my liver a snooze, sleep well, back away from the kitchen and test my will power. As a lady who lives to cook, not eating food is nearly unbearable. Especially when on the sixth juice of seven, cooking arugula pesto linguine for Vesper, and not eating it.

So I did it. For three full days. A raw juice cleanse of 1400 wimpy calories. I have never slept or felt better in my life, or even had more energy. I’ve also never been a very good breakfast eater, which I know, is a detriment. But I am generally not hungry in the morning. I don’t like to eat when I’m not hungry, and practically zero percent of any convincing to eat food before 11 am will result in success. Unless... it’s juice.

The only bummer about this cleanse was the amount of plastic bottles I went through... 21 total and three plastic raw soup containers. I kept them all for pictures. And then of course recycled them. I even asked if I could return the bottles for reuse at Earth Bar. “Ah, no.” “Gross” was their implied response.

The dreaded 'Total Greens'

Seven $6-9 juices in addition to early morning delivery, a raw soup and ‘am/pm’ pills... this cleanse was relatively affordable, considering I didn’t eat a thing for three days. There was only one juice that I had to hold my breath to drink, the Total Greens, which basically tasted like I’m assuming the ground must taste.

But I did it... I made it through, lost five pounds and felt amazing. I went to bed early the last night so I could wake up three hours before my toddler to eat real food and drink hot coffee. And yes, I’m still not into breakfast even though that soft boiled egg and soldiers never tasted better.

Now a few months later, I’ve been craving these juices and the way I felt, especially in the morning. The first juice is called Gimme Greens, the second Chlorophyll Boost, the third and most delicious thing ever, Almond Milk flavored with dates and vanilla. My new goal: make them at home. I dragged down the Breville juicer we were given as a wedding gift six years ago and have used once; I found a spot on the crowded counter in our kitchen, storing a few of the gazillion cutting boards I boast.

Soak them overnight

Almond Milk2

Almond Milk4

I haven’t quite mastered the juices, but wow are they filling, energizing and expensive. Two pounds of kale makes like a half ounce of juice. I’ve discovered the key to juicing is more vegetables, less fruit. Otherwise you’re drinking more sugar than necessary, more concentrated fruit than you would ever consume in a day. Use the fruit to sweeten the veggies.

Kale Juice1

Kale Juice2

I have been starting my mornings with Gimme Greens then Almond Milk, in addition to a forced bowl of cereal or yogurt. Be warned, while juices provide a great deal of energy and balance, they are generally high in calories as well. But damn, do I feel good!

Drink juice so you don't look like that guy

Gimme Greens - my Earth Bar version

Ingredients:

• 1 Green Apple

• 1/2 Cucumber

• 2 oz Spinach (optional, but why not)

• 1 Regular Lemon

• 1 bunch Kale (roughly 6 stalks)

 Directions:

If you have a juicer, combine all ingredients, whole, juicing one at a time.

If you don't have have juicer, you can use a blender, and strain any and all solids that form, either through a sieve or cheesecloth.

Almond Milk, with dates and vanilla

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw almonds

• water for soaking

• 3-4cups water ( I prefer closer to 3, so the milk is fuller-bodied)

• 2 pitted dates, chopped

• 1/2 tsp vanilla salt and pepper (optional)

 Directions:

Soak the almonds in water overnight or for at least 6 hours.

Drain the water from the almonds and discard.

Blend 3-4 cups of water, almonds, dates and vanilla until well blended and almost smooth.

Strain the blended almond mixture using a cheesecloth or other strainer.

You can keep the meaty product left from the almond milk. Makes a yum almond butter with a little added salt.

Homemade raw almond milk will keep well in the refrigerator for three or four days.