Sunday, February 13, 2011

Gallery One "For the Love of Art"

Thank you Gallery One!  I had the chance to spend an evening amidst art last night for the Petaluma Ballet's “For the Love of Art”.   As a fund raiser they arrange to have dinner courses in 6 galleries here in Petaluma.  You walk from gallery to gallery enjoying the art and having the next course in the meal.  Being second on the walk, Micheal (owner of Gallery One) and I chose a cheese course.  I created a baby spinach salad with fresh strawberries in a champagne vinigarette, with a caramelized onion chevre flan.  It was a huge hit.  If you did not make it to the event, maybe you can make it for your sweet heart.

1 small onion
1 Tbs vegetable oil
½ tsp thyme

Thinly slice onion and slowly sautee till caramelized, it should have a nice rich color and be very tender.

12 oz Chevre
4 eggs
1 cup Half and Half
Salt and pepper to taste

Place all the ingredients, including cooled onion in a blender, and blend till smooth.  Spray a standard metal cupcake pan with non stick spray.  Divide mix among the cups (8-12), thicker for a fuller serving, thiner for lighter.  Bake at 350 for approx. 10-15 minutes – contingent on thickness.  They will puff way up like a soufflĂ©- great display to bring out of the oven if you can.  Bake till they are golden.

Turn out of the pan and serve with your favorite salad.

We had great comments last night pairing it with a Sauvignon Blanc.

Enjoy
A

Friday, February 11, 2011

Winter Farmer’s Market

Catering is a bit slow this time of year, so I've had time to go to my favorite farmer’s market at the Marin Civic Center on Sunday Mornings.  I discovered a new vendor that I am hoping to pair with this year. County Line Harvest, not surprisingly you can find them at the Sonoma Marin boarder.

I picked up some beautiful red baby mustard.  Mustard is usually pretty hearty and needs cooking but this was beautifully delicate and I used it as a salad green under a piece of roasted Salmon.  I also got some baby carrots to roast.  To keep with the seasonal theme I topped the salmon with a fennel and blood orange tapenade.  Very tasty.  We're on a diet right now, but hubby says he gets the best diet food around. :)

Enjoy
A