the petite pig

grilled cheese, all grown up

as a child, i could never resist a grilled cheese.  the bite into the crisp buttery crust and then the oozing cheesy goodness . . . it didn't get much better than that.  luckily, in my wiser older years, i've learned to graduate beyond the radioactive orange kraft slices between two pieces of white wonder bread and have upgraded to the most delicious version of this childhood favorite.  for any of you living in san francisco, you've probably heard of the hog island oyster company.  while i've only made it to the farm in point reyes for the fresh oysters, the bar version in the ferry plaza offers according to many the most amazing grilled cheese, which isn't surprising when the three cheeses come from its dairy goddess neighbor, cowgirl creamery, and the bread comes from acme bakery, just right down the plaza.

last weekend, i decided to recreate their sandwich at home and hear what all the rage was about.  on my saturday trip to the ferry plaza farmer's market, i stopped by cowgirl and asked for the three cheeses in the hog island grilled cheese, enough for four.  i was given a mezzo secco, a cave aged gruyere and cowgirl's own fromage blanc.  my second and last stop to complete the best adult grilled cheese ever was at acme bread for a piece of their herb slab. 

when i finally got home to my kitchen, i ended up making an open face melt, topped with some tender oyster mushrooms dug up from my produce bin.  very adult, eh? 

hog island grilled cheese with sauted mushrooms
serves 4

2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1 shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 lb. oyster mushrooms, sliced thinly
2 tbs. sherry
1 tsp. thyme leaves
salt & pepper

1 herb slab
2 tbs. butter
8 oz. fromage blanc
1/2 lb. cave aged gruyere
1/2 lb. mezzo secco

heat up medium-sized frying pan over medium-high heat.  add olive oil, then shallot and garlic.  heat for about 30 seconds before adding oyster mushrooms.  saute for 2 minutes and add sherry.  saute for another minute until mushrooms are completely softened.  toss with thyme leaves and season to taste with salt & pepper.

slice herb slabs into 4 even pieces.  cute each piece in half, to have two slices per sandwich.  butter the crust on each slice of bread.   spread the fromage blanc evenly on each slice of bread.  then layer evenly with gruyere and mezzo secco.  grill for about a minute over a grill pan, over medium heat and then place in an oven under a low broil for about 5 to 7 minutes until cheese starts to boil. 

garnish with thyme and indulge like a child even if you're all grown up now.  i won't tell. 

blueberry creme fraiche ice cream

for any of us who have ever chased after an ice cream truck as a kid, you know how much you look forward to the hot hot heat of summer and all the ice cream cones that come with the season.  even at the ripe age of 26, i know that it would only take a few rings by the ice cream man for me to revert back to the behavior of a four year old, screaming and chasing his truck down the street.  could you blame me though?   it is the ice cream man, he who holds a truck-sized freezer of sweet sweet goodness.

luckily, the ice cream truck doesn't come around too often or i'd still be quite the chubster trying to shed that stubborn baby (i.e., ice cream) fat.  so these days when i'm not chasing down the ice cream truck, i can be found instead in my kitchen putting my ice cream maker to work.  i have to admit, i'm still quite the amateur ice cream churner (or rather watching my ice cream maker churn and knowing when to shut the damn thing off).  i've had some disasters that more resemble ice rock than ice cream but i've also had a few successes. 

i'm still getting rave reviews for my avocado ice cream (think sweet guac) and most recently, i've been practicing making a recipe for meyer lemon creme fraiche ice cream from my most talented pastry chef friend markell lewis.  i've had lemon ice cream at both nopa and zuni cafe, dining institutions in san franciso, and they just couldn't compare to markell's version.  the creme fraiche adds a creamy + tangy dimension that i've never tasted in ice cream before.  i couldn't resist borrowing it for the base of a blueberry ice cream i wanted to make.   from my previous ice rock disasters, i realized i did not need to churn for a full twenty minutes (despite the cuisinart directions telling me to do so).  i decided that this time twelve minutes was going to be my magic number.  the resulting ice cream was deliciously creamy, vibrantly violet, and tangily sweet.  and i have to admit it was better than anything i could get from the ice cream man . . . but i still could use the chasing for some exercise after all that ice cream.   

my next ice cream experiment: vanilla marscapone ice cream anyone?  stay tuned.

*if you are a veteran ice cream churner, please share some of your tips and recipes.  i'm a long way from getting it right.

blueberry creme fraiche ice cream
makes close to 2 quarts of sweet sweet tangy goodness

1 pint blueberries
1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons sugar
6 egg yolks
1.5 cup half and half
1 cup sugar
1.5 cup cream
1 cup creme fraiche
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
pinch of salt

combine blueberries, water and sugar in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the blueberries completely soften.  remove from heat and push through a food mill (using the coarsest disc) to make a blueberry jam-like sauce.  place in a bowl and set aside.

whisk together egg yolks.

heat half and half with 1 cup sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.   when the mixture is hot, ladle one spoonful into the egg yolks and slowly whisk the warmed egg yolks into the half and half.  cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a silicone spatula.  the mixture is ready when it's thick enough to cover the back of a spoon.   take the pot immediately off the heat at this point or else the eggs will cook too much and become curdly (if this does happen, it can be rescued with a hand blender but does change the consistency of the ice cream).   strain the mixture through a sieve and add the cream. 

add blueberry "jam" and creme fraiche to the creme anglaise base.  flavor with vanilla and salt.  stir and chill the fridge for at least 2 hours.

churn in ice cream maker for 12 minutes.  pour into a tightly sealed container and freeze overnight.

a cantonese classic: pork jook with two kinds of eggs

anyone that has spent any time in hong kong knows that jook (also known as congee) is a cantonese classic for breakfast and brunch.  like i said, i never grew up eating oatmeal, but you'd often find a steaming hot bowl of jook cooked by grandma or my mom at the breakfast table.  jook is served all over china, because it's essentially peasant food.  it stretches a cup of rice to a substantial meal for a family of four.  at it's plainest, jook is just rice porridge, watered down rice.  it can be dressed up a little with some soy sauce or black vinegar or a lot with some braised meats.  my favorite version of jook (and perhaps the most classic) is made with lean pork loin and two kinds of eggs: thousand year old preserved and salted.  and i can't have jook without it's most important accompaniment, dough sticks - deep fried goodness at it's tastiest.

pork jook with thousand year old preserved eggs & salted eggs
serves 4 to 6

1 lb. lean pork loin
lots of salt
12 cups of water
1 cup of rice
3 thousand year old preserved eggs (pictured below and found in any asian grocers)
2 salted eggs
1 handful of cilantro or 2 stalks of green onion, chopped
1 dough stick, toasted and sliced into 1/2 inch thick pieces (can also be found at any asian grocers)
red or black vinegar, soy sauce, freshly ground pepper for seasoning

heavily salt 1 lb. of lean pork loin, and when i say heavily, i mean heavily.  give the pork plenty of time to absorb the seasoning, anywhere from two hours to overnight.  when pork has been marinated, place salted pork loin into a stockpot or a dutch oven and cover with twelve cups of water.  bring to a boil and then lower heat keeping the water at a simmer.  cook pork slowly at a simmer for forty-five minutes and then remove from water.  set aside and let cool.

pour in one cup of rice and bring water back to a boil.  lower heat to keep water at a heavy simmer.  cook rice for two to two and a half hours.  when it's ready the rice will start to break up and become incredibly soft and creamy. 

while the rice is cooking, slice up pork and eggs.  for the pork, use a fork to break up cooled piece of pork.  the pork should fall apart, like a piece of braised meat. 

once the rice is the right consistency, add shredded pork and eggs.  garnish with cilantro, dough stick pieces and then season to your liking with soy sauce, vinegar and/or freshly grounded pepper.

eat piping hot!