Crab season

It’s right about now that I begin to panic. We’re a bit more than halfway through Dungeness crab season and I am just not sure that I have eaten enough of those sweet, meaty, hard-shelled beauties. Oh, how I love Dungeness crab! It has only been two days since my last meal consisting of crab and I feel – already – as if I need another fix. It was lunch out at Scribe Winery for our winter wine club party. They did a lovely job with the feast, as they tend to do, serving charming little bamboo boxes filled generously with boiled crab, lightly dressed greens from the winery’s own gardens, a hunk of grilled peasant bread, and – the best part! – a wee cup of homemade mayonnaise in which guests were meant to dunk their crab. I was completely psyched to have scored an extra little cup of that addictive stuff. If there’s one thing I love more than crabs, it’s homemade mayonnaise. You put those two things together and let the swooning ensue. The more popular accompaniment to crabs must be melted butter, but oh yes, homemade mayonnaise is where it’s at. A Meyer lemon version actually suits me just fine. So, it is with rivulets of crab juice dripping down each forearm, collecting on the layers of newspaper spread out on the dining table, that I will dig into as many more Dungeness crabs as this I can get my hands on.

CSA season

Spring is just around the corner so now is the time to sign up to support our small, local farms by joining a CSA or Community Supported Agriculture. Next to growing your own, there is certainly no easier way to enjoy a beautiful selection of super healthy, just-picked, local produce. At an average of about $20 per week, the cost is surprisingly low, especially when you consider the outstanding quality and quantity of produce members receive. Paul’s Produce, you’ll more than likely recognize from the Farmer’s Market – you know the stand with the outrageously sweet carrots and the most gorgeous greens – offers a seventeen week CSA which consists of an overflowing box that generously provides produce for a family of four. Thoughtful touch: each share arrives with the wonderful addition of recipes featuring that week’s goods. Members pick up their shares at either of Sonoma’s markets during season. Email Candi at candied@vom.com or call 996.6610 for information on how to join. The small, but lovingly tended Lunita Farm offers a CSA membership that runs twenty-six weeks, with delivery or pick up options in the Sonoma area beginning on May 14. Each week members will receive a box filled with just-picked, organically grown produce, including an assortment of about eight kinds of vegetables, one fresh herb, and one variety of fruit. The membership is a bountiful array of produce that easily satisfies a family of two to four! Choose from weekly or biweekly shares and sign up before March 15 and receive a discount. Call or email Rachel for more information or to join at 494.9210 or lunitafarm@gmail.com.

On The Menu
Join Annie Simmons and Ramekins for a demonstration cooking class entitled “A Fun and Festive Oscar Party.” Students will learn to prepare a glamorous menu of dishes perfect for hosting an amazing Oscar party, from a special cocktail, to fancy finger foods, and even something sweet. The class is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Sunday, February 26, and costs $90. Call Ramekins to reserve your spot at 933.0450.

• Celebrate Black History Month with a Southern inspired winemaker dinner with the President of the African American Vintner’s Association and owner of Sharp Cellars, Vance Sharp, at the Community Cafe on Friday, February 24 at 6:30 p.m. The four-course dinner, paired with wines is $39.95, plus tax and gratuity. Call the Community Cafe at 938.7779 to make your reservations.

• Also tomorrow night, Friday the 24, join the Valley Wine Shack and Cochon Volant for a “Mardi Gras Dinner” of fried oysters, Andouille and seafood gumbo, and bread pudding featuring Sonoma’s own Hooker’s House Bourbon. The price per person is $35. Reservations are required and can be made by calling the Wine Shack at 938.7218.

My pick for this month’s most delicious event

Purchase your tickets soon for the work-in-progress screening of the documentary film, “The Organic Life” and Farm to Table Dinner at Jack London State Park on March 3. Produced by local filmmaker Casey Beck, this beautifully produced film is a yearlong chronicling of life on a small Sonoma farm. After the film, guests will enjoy a farm-inspired dinner featuring produce from Paul’s Produce, prepared by the girl and the fig, served with wines from Coturri. Live music from Rhys Wade and several other local musicians will entertain guests. This one time screening is a fundraiser to help complete this timely documentary as well as a forum for community discussions on food, agriculture, sustainability, and the arts. The evening will benefit both the film, as well as the park, and is the first of many such events to be held there. Tickets are $150 each and can be obtained by calling 939.5735.

Meyer Lemon Aioli
The perfect accompaniment to Dungeness crab!

1 garlic clove, peeled
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 extra large egg yolk
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh Meyer lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated Meyer lemon zest

Smash the garlic with the flat side of a chef’s knife and mince well. Place the mashed garlic, salt and egg yolk in a blender. With the blender running on high speed, slowly drizzle in both oils, drop by drop. As the mixture begins to thicken, add the lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve immediately.

Kristin Jorgensen is one of Sonoma’s most passionate, food obsessed residents. In this weekly column, she covers all the delicious happenings, foodie events and restaurants in Sonoma, the rest of Wine Country and beyond.  Find her blogging daily as the Cook (thecardiganandcook.com) or via email at foodandwine@sonomasun.com.