From Jesse Cool

One bite of the crisp sweetness of the pear, the saltiness of the olive, and the creaminess of the Brie is unforgettable. This tart works both as an appetizer with champagne or as a dessert with glasses of ruby port.

Crust

1 cup organic unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup very finely ground walnuts
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup ice water

Filling

1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 organic pears, cored and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
4 ounces Brie cheese, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and halved

To make the crust: In a large bowl, combine the flour, walnuts, salt, and pepper. Grate the butter into the mixture. Using your hands or a pastry blender, work the butter into the flour mixture until the pieces are about the size of peas.

Add the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and blend until a soft, moist dough is formed. Form the dough into a ball, then flatten into a round disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

On a well floured board, roll the dough into a 1/8″ thick oval. Fold the dough in half and place in the center of the prepared baking sheet. The edges will fall over the side.

To make the filling: Arrange the onion in the center of the crust, leaving a 1 1/2″ to 2″ edge to roll as a hand-formed crust. Arrange the pears on top and sprinkle with the sugar and thyme. Top with the Brie and olives. Using your hands, roll the outer part of the dough under to form a crust. Crimp the edges.

Bake for 20 – 30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.

Makes 8 servings

Kitchen Tip: Another way to prepare this free-form tart is by baking it on a pizza stone. Or, for a more formal tart, shape the dough in a tart pan.
~~
Jesse Cool is author of Simply Organic: A Cookbook for Sustainable, Seasonal, and Local Ingredients, owner of CoolEatz Restaurants and Catering, and lives in Menlo Park, California.
Photo by Lisa Koenig.
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From Jeff Cox

And much as wine has played the infidel,
And robb’d me of my robe of honor—well,
I wonder often what the vintners buy
One half so precious as the stuff they sell.
–The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

I firmly believe, as Benjamin Franklin said, that wine proves God’s love for mankind. Wine completes the evening meal. It is the finishing touch for everyday dinners and essential for special occasions. If the wine is particularly good and properly aged, it can steal the show.

But must it be organic?

Behind that question lies a story. Years ago, some producers who were more focused on the political implications of organic wines, than the sensuous aspects of the beverage itself, made some pretty poor wines with the word “organic” loudly displayed on the label. Organic became synonymous with mediocre in the public mind.

On the one hand, many fine wineries wanted their grapes grown organically because they knew that a biologically active soil would produce better tasting grapes. They didn’t want themselves and their vineyard workers exposed to harmful chemicals, and they wanted to preserve the purity of the beautiful countryside where fine wine grapes flourish. But they didn’t want to put organic on their label, because that would hurt sales. And I didn’t blame them.

That reluctance is finally changing, due mostly to the quality of the wines now being made with organic grapes. The demand for organic wine has resulted in a boom in organic viticulture in California, where total organic acreage has zoomed from 178 acres in 1989 to approximately 20,000 acres today. As Jonathan Frey of the rigorously organic Frey Vineyards in Mendocino County says, “We’ve doubled production to more than 30,000 cases just in the last five years.” It’s becoming easier and easier to find really good organic and organically-grown wines in supermarkets.

Like Frog’s Leap Zinfandel? It’s organically-grown. Like Sinskey Pinot Noir or Benziger Merlot? Organically-grown. Kenwood Cabernet? Organically-grown. Phelps, Lolonis, Fetzer, Bonterra, Coturri, Niebaum-Coppola, ZD wines, Morgan—organically-grown. And the list goes on and on. But you wouldn’t necessarily know it from their labels.

Stores like Whole Foods have a special section just for organic wines. But snooping around a regular wine shop for “organic wines” can be confusing. Here’s how to tell what’s what.

An American wine labeled “organically grown” or “made from organically grown grapes” means that the vineyards have been handled in accordance with the National Organic Program administered by the USDA, and additionally in accordance with the organic certifying agency of the state in which they were grown. In California, that’s the California Certified Organic Farmers. In Washington State, it’s the Washington State Department of Agriculture’s Organic Food Certification Program. In Oregon, it’s Oregon Tilth, and in New York, it’s the Northeast Organic Farmers’ Association. Such wines may have sulfur dioxide added to preserve the wine.

If wines are labeled “transitional,” that means that the vineyards are handled organically, but the necessary three years since conventional culture ceased have not yet passed.

Wines labeled “organic wine” means the fruit is certified organic and the wine is made with no sulfites added.

Biodynamic farms must meet not only the USDA and state certification standards, but also be certified by the Demeter organization, an internationally recognized certification agency for biodynamic agriculture. Just remember that all biodynamic farms are organic, but not all organic farms are biodynamic. Biodynamics is a story for another time.

At least eight wineries in California and Washington produce what most would consider “organic wine,” that is, made with certified fruit and no added sulfites. These labels are Frey, H. Coturri & Sons, La Rocca Vineyards, Orleans Hill, Nevada County, Wine Guild, Organic Wine Works, and Badger Mountain.

Easier to find are “organically-grown” wines, such as Lolonis and the Bonterra label from Fetzer, which produces close to 100,000 cases per year through a full range of vitis vinifera varieties. New York State has Silver Thread Vineyards, Four Chimneys, and Swedish Hill. In Oregon, there are Amity, Archery Summit, Brick House, Cameron, Cattrall Brothers, Cooper Mountain, and St. Innocent. And in Washington State, China Bend. And more organic vineyards and wineries are coming on line all the time.

Resources for Organic Wine

Access these websites or call these phone numbers to discover the world of organic wines.

Chartrand Imports—Paul Chartrand imports or distributes organic and organically-grown wines from Australia, Europe, New Zealand, and the U.S. (800) 473-7307. www.chartrandimports.com.

Organic Wine Co.—Imports organic French wines to the U.S. (888) ECO-WINE. www.ecowine.com.

Organic Vintages—Certified organic wines, sparkling wines, and beers. (877) ORGANIC. www.organicvintages.com.

Organic Wine Press—Organic wines from around the world. (541) 347-3326. www.organicwinepresss.com.

Coq au Vin Recipe

This wine-infused dish is easy to make and wonderfully delicious. I’ve tried it with several kinds of red wine and with whites, and I prefer it made with a good bottle of Pinot Noir. Ideally it should be served with the same wine used in the pot.

2 pieces thick cut bacon
3 ½ lb. organic chicken cut into 8 pieces
1 medium onion, diced
½ carrot, peeled and diced
3 Tbl. all-purpose flour
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
3 cups organic Pinot Noir
1 cup organic chicken stock
2 Tbl. tomato paste
½ lb. sliced mushrooms
2 bay leaves
½ tsp. dried thyme
½ tsp. dried oregano

Using a large Dutch oven, fry the bacon until it’s done and most of its fat is rendered into the bottom of the pot. Remove the strips and reserve. Add the chicken pieces to the bacon fat and brown them on both sides, about four minutes on a side. Remove the chicken to a plate and reserve.

Pour off most of the fat and add the onions and carrots, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the flour and add the salt and pepper. Turn the heat to low and stir until the mixture turns light brown, about five minutes.

Add the wine, chicken stock, tomato paste, mushrooms, and herbs and stir thoroughly. Bring up the heat, stirring well, until the mixture boils. Add the chicken and bacon back to the pot and let the liquid come back to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 30 minutes.

When the chicken is done, remove it to a platter and put it in a warm oven. Bring the sauce to a boil and reduce it until it’s syrupy, stirring constantly. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve.

Serves 4.
~~
Jeff Cox is author of The Organic Cook’s Bible and lives in Sonoma County, California.

Coming March 4, 2008 – The Organic Food Shopper’s Guide
Image Credit: Frog’s Leap
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From Lisa Barnes

There’s an important food science question circulating at my son’s preschool… what are those black little things in banana bread and muffins? Most just assume it’s something to do with the overripe bananas. But one of my son’s teachers (and a foodie with a cooking background) says she’s never noticed them in her breads. She even brought me a sample. But now that the mystery has gone on, she and I have made various banana breads and muffins with various results — all tasty but some with black things and some without. Recently I was at a cooking class at Restaurant TWO in San Francisco and asked Andrea the pastry chef. She probably thought I was crazy. She said “I don’t know. I’ve never not had them in my bread”. But then I’ve seen pictures in magazines and cookbooks both with and without the little black things.

I’ve consulted the “big book” too. That’s Harold McGee’s On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. OChef.com takes questions about “life’s vexing cooking questions”, however, they say due to the volume of questions you’re never sure of a timely answer. He has a mention about ingredients such as blueberries and walnuts being folded into batters and turning colors (such as blue and green) and this is because of the solids in the batter and the distribution (or over use) of baking soda. But these little black things are pretty uniform. So I’m not satisfied with that as an explanation for the bananas.

I’m hoping someone who reads this will know what I’m talking about and might even be able to solve the mystery. Anyone?

Organic Mini Banana Apple Bran Muffins
(from The Petit Appetit Cookbook)

These mini muffins have all the flavor of a big muffin, but fit nicely into little hands. Of course you can also make these in a regular full size muffin pan, just remember to increase baking time to 15 to 18 minutes and check for doneness. Be sure you’ve already introduced wheat and eggs before giving these muffins to baby. This also makes a good use for baby’s extra apple puree.

1 cup organic wheat flour
½ cup organic oat bran
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ cup (1 stick) organic unsalted butter
¾ cup organic applesauce or homemade apple puree
3 medium organic bananas, 1 mashed (about ½ cup) and 2 sliced
½ cup organic light brown sugar
2 cage free, organic eggs

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease 24 mini muffin cups or 12 regular muffin cups.

With a fork, combine flour, bran, salt, and soda in a small mixing bowl. Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat or in a microwave for 25 seconds on High. In a large bowl combine butter, applesauce, mashed banana, sugar and eggs. Mix together with a rubber spatula. Add flour mixture to applesauce mixture and stir until just blended. Batter will be lumpy and very moist.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling two-thirds full. Place banana slice on top of each muffin. Bake for 12 minutes, or until golden brown and set. Cool muffins in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes before turning out muffins.

Makes 24 mini muffins or 12 regular muffins
~~
Lisa Barnes is author of The Petit Appetit Cookbook: Easy, Organic Recipes to Nurture Your Baby and Toddler and lives in Sausalito, California.
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From Dave Smith

Wholesome Harvest Organic Meats
In 2001 a young Iowa farm wife who was very committed to feeding her children safe meat and encouraging responsible farming practices in her region set out on a mission to “eat well, save the earth, and the small farms on it” She designed our simple label on her home computer and the original vision statement for our group remains unchanged… Wholesome Harvest voluntarily surpasses the USDA organic standards as the only organic brand to pledge to forsake any confinement, feedlot or factory farming of any species (even when allowed by the USDA organic rules) to bring you the absolutely highest standards of nutrition, animal welfare and land stewardship… Select the Producer Number as printed on your Wholesome Harvest meat package to see and read about the farmer who raised your meat.

Leeks and Gruyere Souffle, Step-By-Step Recipe (Just Baking)
One thing I made yesterday in my kitchen was this Gruyère and Leeks soufflé. It was heavenly delicious: Creamy, light and very comforting. I know a lot of people get scared of soufflés; they have this reputation of being hard to make and don’t like to wait for anybody. But like most reputations, what you hear is not always true. If you’ve ever whipped up some egg whites or made a mousse, then there is no reason in not making soufflé. This time, I decided to give you a step-by-step recipe in making leeks and Gruyère soufflé. I hope you will enjoy it.

The Tomato Soup Special Recipe (Kids Cuisine)
Soup season is well under way in our household. You will likely find soup on our dinner table at least twice a week this time of year. Steaming hot bowls of soup are so comforting and warming during these months of frigid temperatures and early sunsets. My children have not always been soup eaters, and it will often take a bit of coaxing to entice them to even try a strange new soup. Eventually they give in, though, and sometimes are surprised to find that they enjoy what has been ladled into their bowl. Every time we have soup, at least one of my children mentions that we should have tomato soup again.

Garlic Lovers White Bean Soup Recipe (FoodieFarmGirl)
Old-fashioned comfort food is back in style. Elegant restaurants proudly offer mashed potatoes on their menus. Food magazines tell us that there is nothing more satisfying than having a modest pot of beans simmering on the back of the stove. Of course, some of us never stopped cooking with dried beans, for we know that they are handy (they store nearly indefinitely), reliable, inexpensive, practical, and extremely good for you. In short, they are indispensible.

Egg Salad Sandwich Recipe – the only one I’ll eat (101 Cookbooks)
I’ve realized that 90% of the challenge here is properly boiling the egg. You need to boil it so the center sets yet stays moist. You also need to avoid the green/grey ring thing that surrounds the yolk in many hard boiled eggs. I use the same technique here that I learned camping with a hardcore egg enthusiast. It has worked for me flawlessly ever since. The key is to avoid over cooking, and to dunk the eggs in a bowl of icy water to stop the cooking after you remove them from the hot water. I always use good quality eggs – but something to keep in mind, the fresher they are, the harder they are to peel after boiling.

Olive Oil Crackers Recipe (101 Cookbooks)

Alice Waters’ Baked Goat Cheese with Lettuces Recipe (Chef2Chef)

Goat Cheese Smashed Potatoes Recipe (Group Recipes)
~~
Dave Smith is author of To Be of Use: The Seven Seeds of Meaningful Work and lives in Mendocino Country, Northern California.
Videos Credit: Cooking Up A Story
Image Credit: 101 Cookbooks
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From Greg Atkinson

When folks made beef stew before World War II, all the ingredients were organic by default; agricultural chemicals were rare and expensive. Now, older folks complain that modern foods don’t have the flavor of the stuff they remember from childhood. It’s important when selecting the vegetables for this stew to choose the darkest, most colorful carrots and sweetest peas. Organic ingredients are your best bet.

Makes 4 servings

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons flour
1 pound naturally raised stew beef, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 cups peeled and sliced organic carrots
2 cups sliced organic celery
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
4 cups organic beef broth
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
2 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound organic red potatoes
2 cups (about 4 ounces) sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 cups frozen organic sweet peas
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley

1. Put the olive oil and butter in a heavy soup pot over medium-high heat and stir until the butter is melted and sizzling hot. Stir in the flour and continue stirring as the mixture foams up. Keep stirring the roux over medium-high heat until the foam subsides and the mixture is uniformly nut-brown colored. This will take about 15 minutes.

2. Stir the beef into the roux and cook, stirring regularly, until the beef is browned on every side, about 5 minutes. Stir in the carrots, celery, and onion and cook for 1 or 2 minutes longer to heat the vegetables through. Stir in the beef broth and the garlic and cook the stew over medium heat, stirring every few minutes to prevent sticking, for 45 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Wash and cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes and stir them into the stew. Continue cooking until the potatoes and beef are tender, about 30 minutes. Stir the mushrooms into the stew.

4. When the mushrooms have taken up enough of the broth to sink into the stew, turn off the heat and stir in the peas and parsley. As soon as the peas are heated through, the stew is ready to serve.

[For biscuit crusted stew, make biscuit dough and fit it over the stew in individual ovenproof bowls. Bake them on a tray in a 400°F oven about 30 minutes or until toppings browned. -Ed.]
~~
Greg Atkinson is author of West Coast Cooking and lives on Bainbridge Island, Washington.
© Copyright Greg Atkinson
Image Credit: Mt. Vernon Farm
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