the great loquat event-part one

ernest, my carpool buddy/food-wiki and i are planning to have a canning party in which we will tackle vast amounts of loquats, also known to me as loquat-apaloosa (my idea).
these are the things you talk about when you drive to San Bern every monday.
what is the loquat you say?? well first of all, it is not a relative to the kumquat.
the loquat is a fruit indigenous to southeastern China, and is also known as the Japanese Medlar. over the years, i have met a number of people who have loquat trees in their yards, however the reason you do not hear about them often is that their harvet time is about 2 seconds. not really, it is about 2-4 weeks, basically about enough time to know they are in season and then they are gone. plus they go bad very quickly, which is why you do not see them in the stores.which leads us to this loquat event. we are going to try to preserve as many loquats as possible, in a number of ways as well. if you have a loquat tree & are in Orange County, PLEASE get in touch with me and i will be more than happy to take them off your hands.
please send all inquiries to:
delilah snell
714.836.8727
i will be letting you know how this all turns out.

master food preserver-week3

week 3 started out a little bit different from the prior weeks as we decided to venture out of going directly to class and instead ventured out to partake in the culinary delights that are San Bernadino.
leaving an hour earlier than normal, we traveled a few miles to one of two recommended Mexican restaurants (literally across the street from each other). weather (and the wanting of a cold Negra Modelo) lead our clan to Lucy's, a quaint, old-school establishment that had yet to see the modernist, hipster evolution that is quite the attraction in Orange County (which there are several that i LOVE). this was immediately apparent in the interior: reminiscent of a local late-night haunt w/ simplistic lighting, vinyl booths and plain decor. Lucy's is not really concerned with the "look" but rather serving you up with some damn-good cheese-covered, diet-is-over, yumminess that took your mind off the wall and kept it focused on the plate-the way it should be. we scarfed down fish tacos, nachos, and a curious but super yummy dish-the New Mexico Enchilada (which i guess is not really common in these parts), and yes some Negra Modelos.

(exhibit A: New Mexico Enchiladas)

simply put, Lucy's may be a little off the beaten path, but a breath of fresh air amongst the chains that seem to saturate San Bern.

which leads us (happily) to our 3rd week in MFP...and to another session of canning via steam/water bath. to make this clearer, there are 2 distinct methods of canning: water/steam bath or pressure canning. the 2 methods are distinguished by the pH (or acidity) of the particular food being preserved and SHOULD not be intermixed-this is a big-time no-no for any kind of preservation (unless you like getting incredibly ill).
last week, we focused our work creating jams (and jellys, conserves, butters) or items that have a high pH and the use of pectin, sugar and heat to preserve. because the fruit (some) has a high acid content, the combination of sugar and pectin allow a lower heat to be used and thus you can use a steam/water bath method. the "transition point" (my wordage), in whether to change methods (to pressure & higher temp) is determined by whether the product is above or below a pH of 4.6.
under 4.6 (acidic)=water/steam bath (lower processing temp)
over 4.6 (more alkaline)= pressure canner (higher processing temp)
now what do you do when something is 4.6 or 4.8??? well, as we learned from making stirred tomatoes, by adding lemon juice or vinegar helps bring the pH down. make sure you use pH paper to make sure of this.
i have to say, i was really excited about learning to work with tomatoes. from soup bases to pasta sauce, savory gifts...basically everyone eats tomatoes!

(ernest: prepping the tomatoes for blanching and other ingredients)

(testing the pH of the tomatoes-has to be lower than 4.6!)

(this week's snacks: preserved cherries and apple cobbler!)

again, i was hanging out at the snack area a ton-hey the apple cobbler was super good! i also had to gain a keen understanding of the complex flavors of the apple-pie filling that we were about to make...never stop learning!

(instructor Connie)

if you haven't had the chance to have homemade pie filling-WOW, you will never go back to that store-bought crap again. if you can do this, start making it now and you will have a great holiday gift.
the only problem with this class is that there seems to be a a little problem with planning the activities of the class: things always seem to be running behind a little and if it wasn't for Ernest bringing his bag of tricks, we would have been left peeling 30 apples by hand! even though we had the peeler, we were just getting the apples to process right around 9pm (when the class ends).

(the apples that would not be- RIP)

PS: we had to leave before the apples were finished processing, but we heard latter that when the apples came out of the steam bath, they exploded after the rings were taken off (rings are the "screw-top" part of the jar. there was apple-sugar mess everywhere and after waiting an extra 30 minutes, the class had to clean up a mess instead of take yummy apples home :(

affordable art-wool & water

i just found these incredible paper dolls from artist Amy Earle of Wool & Water (i LOVE this name).
this used to be the thing back in the day, i remember cutting out Barbie and various other cartoon celebs and folding paper costumes to them. they were not the most entertaining, now that i think about it, i was probably more entertained by trying to cut everything in the lines than actually putting the clothes on.
anyways, Amy's dolls are completely the opposite. these images are haunting and whimsical at the same time...they remind me of a Tim Burton film ala Nightmare Before X-mas.
for only $12, you can't beat these designs, which i like both hanging like a puppet or against some textured fabric in a frame. i want one!

(before)

(and after)

check out Amy's blog, Pushed Under about her works.

things in the mail

very excited by the mail today...not that it isn't usually. having a store you are always getting cool stuff in the mail (orders, catalogs, samples, magazines) and the not cool stuff like bills :(
but today in particular i was caught off guard w/ 3 wonderful things:

1.Charlie Krafft sent me a surprise gift: if you do not know who Charles Krafft is then shame on you! before i get into it, Charles is a fantastic artist out of Seattle who creates amazing porcelain weapons and other thought provoking items (like a skateboard with Martha Stewart's face or Delft plates with strange images)...he gave me a porcelain bloody-tooth pin last year that is the topic of many conversations (and a dear treasure). here are some of his works below:(here is Charlie with his skateboard)

Charlie is a dear friend whom i met years ago while i was waitressing at the Gypsy Den and he was a visiting artist at Grand Central. through our love of Marx and all things philosophical, we have been in touch ever since. i havent heard from him in a while so i must admit i was surprised to see in the mail a package that looked like a catalog, but it caught my eye with this "signature" stamp.

(this kind of rocks right?)

Charlie gave me a book on Cioran a philospoher that we both love-the sweetest things are those least expected. thank you!

2.we are in a book!: NY Times journalist Mia Navarro's book came out today and guess what-we are in it as a resource of places to buy gifts from for a conscious wedding! her book: Green Wedding: Planning Your Eco-Friendly Celebration is simply scrumptious! the photos alone are worth it! we will be having a signing here on May 16th (an look for a review soon too!). i am so excited for her-congrats Mia!

(my name in a book!- must be good:)

3.the Zip-Its have arrived!: this sounds lame, but i have been waiting to get these little plastic do-dads that clean your drain out for YEARS! i purchased mine years ago at a local hardware store and have been raving about them ever since. i have been calling and emailing them to just get a few, and now they are here! for $5 this thing lasts forever and is well beyond worth its cost. (yes i have no life).

affordable art-dkim

i absolutely LOVE this great find Brooklyn-based artist and designer d kim.

(drunk ambition)(the stars are against me tonight)(making pictures)

unfortunately, i do not think that these prints are on recycled paper with veggie-based inks (like most prints i recommend), but these images communicated a type of whimsy of nature to me. something like i would have in a dream or is i was a young girl again building my barbie mobile from a shoe-box. plus each one is around $35.

review-Natural Products Expo West

i love March.
the first warm days of Spring, slightly warmer evenings, i start seeing berries in our CSA basket and best of all: Natural Products Expo West that happened over the past weekend.

(just the beginning: take a taxi or have some one drop you off)

this convention is the biggest (at least on the west coast) natural event this part of the country and i am always so very thankful that they choose to have this great event at the Anaheim Convention Center, literally 2 exits on the freeway away from the store, it doesn't get any better than that!

the economy and Expo West:
i have to admit, i was a little worried about the attendance numbers with the economy. my fears were quickly relieved though as there was absolutely NO parking by the time i arrived (about 30 min after the show started), just like always. personally i think the natural/green business is going to get a boost from the recession as people are really paying attention to where their money goes (on quality/health) as well as a distrust of big biz/imports (which i have to say was still present). single biggest thing that i noticed, or rather overheard were conversations where people mentioned that they were, "previously in mortgage/real estate/some other biz" but had recently starting doing something new. what i liked even more: a lot of these people were very happy about where they were working now.
Expo West is not cheap, and it's mad popular hence the place is usually at max capacity. what i happened to notice this year was there were several booths simply left empty, not a ton but enough no-shows to notice. paying for the booth is one thing, but if you factor in filling the booth, display items, staff, staff travel accommodations, rentals...well you have a lot of money going to the event.
vendors and such:
love going to this convention and overall, i would recommend trying/bribing/begging to get into this event, especially if you like to shop at Mother's Market, Henry's, Whole Paycheck etc...there are a number of great products and Expo West is the place where new products get introduced, manufactures present new items that will be released soon and where you the customer can simply TRY items without wasting $ on a game of, "well it looks good on the package".
i know i said this last year and i will say it again: there are some pretty obvious green/natural-washing examples here. A lot of the "big names" present at Expo West; you know, the people that take up the center, high priced areas of the convention floor...i started seeing this last year, and this year was no exception (hint: these are the names you have heard about forever, regular brand names). if you dont know already, many of the organic brands that we have come familiar with have actually been bought by conventional major food conglomerates (MORE on this to come). i heard later from a customer that Cargill (no es bueno) was even there-yikes!
i also noticed that there were no clear sections for "organics" vs. non-organics, making it confusing to those who are not paying attention.

(i dont know what he was doing, but he was having a great time!)

overall:

i love this show, yes there are things that need to changed (like clearly separating things like organics, fair trade, etc...) but i really like how Anaheim Convention Center is trying to walk the walk: use of biocompostables, good recycling, better food choices than most convention centers. again, this show is a must at least once if you can get in.
favorites:
because of my time constraints, i was not able to see the whole show, which totally sucked. but from what i did experience:
- Dalby Day skin oils. she was wonderful and SUPER nice!
-Togo Ware. they are coming out with some new goodies that we will be getting in very soon, LOVE them.
- soyrizo! LOVE it, COOK it...and they are coming out with a spicier version! plus they were cooking up some awesome tacos and had their full line available.

(this is one of 3 stations w/ soyrizo goodness!)

-Pirates Booty their booth rocked and they seemed like they were having a great time (see below)...lots of awesome new samples. good for one of the bigger guys (i am trying to find out ifthey are owned by some BIGGER guy).

(the lady pirate was an awesome sport!)

-Alter-Eco. LOVE them!! fair trade dried goods, totally yummy and they are coming out with some black quinoa (they also have red-very good). see them here soon.
-Juniper Ridge. LOVE these guys, they have the best display by far and the people that make up this great company are sincerely the most awesome and reflective of the products they make..LOVE-i just wish we sold them here!!

(need to get these mason jar drink dispensers-ASAP!)

(fair trade & organic at the push of a button!)

grossest moment:

i ate a cheese sample using a toothpick from the dirty container! by accident of course!

i will be sure to post some tips on doing Expo West in the next week on how to gear up, navigate the show and know what is what-stay tuned!

master food preserver-week 2

it has been a busy week, so i am a little late on posting my 2nd week of MFP.

(where the magic happens)

had to cram the night before for my 1st quiz as a master food preserver. and guess what?? i forgot my notes at the store so that i could study on the way to class!
thank jah for my carpool buddy Ernest, who is a culinary STUD! this guy makes his own vinegar, flavored liquors and god-knows what else...i totally lucked out having Ernest as my buddy, b/c i am getting much more than a canning course-talking to him is like talking to a food-wiki!
so back to class-i have a problem of having the quizes "open-note", not because i didint have mine, but because if we are going to be educating the public, i need to at least know the basics without having to drag my books and notes and such around all the time. understanding and studying the basics of food preservation on-demand is why we are taking the class. i think it is perfectly fine to get questions wrong-it only means that there are topics that we have to go back and make sure we understand more.

(quiz time!!)

that being-i did pretty ok for no notes, again Ernest helped me out by lending me his. and after a brief lecture on the basics of jams, preserves, jellys, conserves and fruit butters (which are all variations of steam canned fruits with sugar-or high-acid foods), we set out on our first lab: carrot cake jam & pepper jelly.

(Ernest with the mad knife skills working the pears for the Carrot Cake Jam)

(sterilizing the lids and preparing the Carrot Cake Jam)

i have always had this weird thing about "savory jelly"-you know, the pepper, carrot, non-conventional fruit type spread (umm mint jelly or sugar with peppers people!), this doesnt set good with me (no pun intended). I was clearly changed though when i sampled some of Instructor Connie's pepper jelly on crackers with cream cheese-YUM! i know i am the last person on the planet to think so, but this totally works!

(snack time! i spent most of the evening here-hey it's good!)

(pepper jelly: looks nasty but is VERY good-don't worry i will make you some)