Stop and Smell the Lavender. Sometimes you have to just stop and smell the flowers and in June in Sonoma you have plenty of opportunity to do just that. The annual June lavender harvest is celebrated in small and big ways all over Wine Country: Matanzas Creek Winery and Sonoma Lavender Farm both held great festivals over the weekend; on the Girl and the Fig’s dessert menu you’ll find a to-die-for lavender crème brûlée and you can even experience a heavenly lavender-shea butter massage at the Lodge’s Raindance Spa. For my money, the most sublime way to take pleasure in our area’s most fragrant commodity is to make homemade lavender ice cream! For some delightfully bewildering reason, the simple combination of good cream, local honey and a tad of fragrant lavender blossoms makes me swoon.
Say Cheese. With spring behind us, I mourn the passing of fresh English pea season, but luckily have a summer tradition that more or less makes up for it. Maybe. As the weather heats up, the prospect of turning on the oven always seemed less and less appealing. Hence resulting in my husband and my summer-long, much anticipated weekly “Cheese for Dinner” night. It was especially exciting when we previously were the proprietors of a cheese shop and were able to order super fancy, luxurious cheeses at bargain wholesale pricing! Typically, we make two or three choices: usually one stinky, interesting or unusual cheese we haven’t had and one or two favorites. Since bread is almost as important as the choice of cheese, we pull a couple baguettes from our well-wrapped stash in the freezer, which we hoard from either Bouchon Bakery in Yountville or the epitome of baguette perfection, from Berkeley’s cult bakery, ACME Bread. Accoutrement, you ask? Quintessentially, for me a perfect piece of seasonal fruit and maybe a bit of Katz raspberry flower honey and tomato and sliver of red onion for the hubby. Olives are always appreciated and a few thin slices of salame or pâté are a plus. Sometimes little bits of leftovers are thrown on the board, many times resulting in some of my most memorable meals.
As Sonomans, we have the good fortune to have a multitude of divine cheeses being produced within a stone’s throw, which the husband and I frequently choose. Procuring these cheeses from the source is always the most fun and if we have the opportunity to do so, we try to visit a local cheese maker. Luckily we also have many exemplary purveyors of cheese in town. Sheana Davis’ Epicurean Connection stocks an extensive selection from near and far and will happily offer samples, suggestions and the biggest bonus: cuts and wraps to order and hard to find local chutneys, jams and condiments that pair nicely with your choice. The vast cheese case at Sonoma Market can be overwhelming at times, but the staff is helpful and will give you a taste or cut a fresh piece, but you’ll have to ask. Our go-to cheese, a favorite for any crowd is Cowgirl Creamery’s Mt. Tam. This buttery, soft, exquisite cow’s milk cheese is made from the revered organic milk from Marin’s Straus Family Creamery and is typically priced well at Sonoma Market. So, grab a super frosty bottle of dry rosé and a hunk of cheese and announce to the family that dinner’s on!
Go Fish. Whole fish. Are you a fan? I would easily put dining on a well-prepared whole fish up there with, say…getting kissed by George Clooney! Is that weird? There is just something about eating a fish whole. I think it is the same premise as enjoying meat on the bone, which is simply divine as well. Or, maybe it’s something in our very being, something caveman that remembers when fish and meat didn’t come sealed in plastic, sitting on a little piece of styrofoam or possibly it’s just fun to be allowed to eat with our fingers in public? The cooking method is less important than the fact that it must not be overcooked. Deep fried, whether it’s covered in a Thai Panang curry or served alongside a homemade New Orleans rémoulade, is the epitome. While steamed over lemongrass à la Vietnam or poached and served cold with a lively lemon-dill aioli sounds especially nice on a summer evening. My most recent memorable whole fish experience, which I continue to daydream about, was had at our very own La Salette. The Branzino – a European seabass – was skillfully prepared in the restaurant’s blazing hot wood burning oven, imparting a wonderfully smoky aroma and then doused in a brilliant sweet and sour sauce. When given the chance, I choose whole fish – just don’t ask me to share it.
Small Bites: This evening and every Thursday evening through the summer, Wedekind’s Garden Center is staying open until 7:30 p.m. for their “Sip, Shop and Support” events. You’re invited to come, sip complimentary wine from a featured Sonoma Valley winery – tonight is Little Vineyard – enjoy delicious nibbles from Wedekind’s own Alex Finn, listen to live music and shop for your summer garden needs. Rich Little will be “tappin the twig” of his incredible Chapman stick tonight, while musical acts EZ Kewl, Dave Roche and Alex Garcia each take their turn on future evenings. Ten percent of all purchases made during these enchanted summer evenings will benefit the Sonoma Valley School Garden Project, a project that is near and dear to my heart and very important to the future of our children’s health. For more information about the Sonoma Valley School Garden Project call 935.9566 and for details on evenings at Wedekin’s call 938.2727. Wow, it’s been warm this week! Not excited about slaving over a scorching hot grill on the Fourth? A very cool idea…call Shiso Sushi and get your roll on. Order some super fresh, icy cold sushi platters and Asian salads to be delivered just in time for your holiday gathering. Call Shiso’s Ed Metcalf for more information or to place an order as soon as possible at 650.862.6633. This Saturday, if I were in town, I would be heading straight to Benziger – oh that Pinot Noir, deCoelo! – for their Reds, Whites and BBQ! From 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. you’ll find hot deals on their cool, newly released barbecue friendly wines. Stock up for your Fourth celebrations, your cellar or just because they’re scrumptious. Call 888.490.2739 for more information and to make reservations.
Honey Lavender Ice Cream
Makes about 1 qt
Recipe from Platter of Figs, by David Tanis
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup half-and-half
2/3 cup best quality honey
2 tablespoons dried edible lavender flowers*
2 large eggs
1/8 teaspoon salt
Bring cream, half-and-half, honey, and lavender just to a boil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, then remove pan from heat. Let steep, covered, 30 minutes.
Pour cream mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl and discard lavender. Return mixture to cleaned saucepan and heat over moderate heat until hot.
Whisk together eggs and salt in a large bowl, then add 1 cup hot cream mixture in a slow stream, whisking. Pour into remaining hot cream mixture in saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat back of spoon and registers 170 to 175°F on thermometer, about 5 minutes (do not let boil).
Pour custard through sieve into cleaned bowl and cool completely, stirring occasionally. Chill, covered, until cold, at least 3 hours.
Freeze custard in ice cream maker. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden.
