Witch's Brew? But Good for You!

I've known Quinn Wilson for quite awhile now. She's a terrific chef, a wonderful cooking teacher, and just a good person. But I have to admit, my eyebrows have been raised since I heard about this new business she started called Balanced & Bright. It's a result of an interest she developed in traditional foods a couple of years ago. As her business card says, it's all about health, wellness, and radiance. And it comes in the form of a bone broth that is her new product. Now, if you Google bone broth you'll find it referenced as a magical elixir with healing benefits. I tend to be a skeptic about these things, but I also grew up with a grandmother who relied on a lot of homemade, what we might today called homeopathic, remedies. And I have to think that bone broth tastes a lot better than her boiled grapefruit--although not nearly as good as honey and lemon for a sore throat.

Quinn is also making another product, which is what I recently got to see her make, along with our friend Julie Darling. It's a master tonic that is touted as being able to put the kabosh on viruses (once you see what's in it, you'll get behind that), but also said to maximize blood circulation, detoxify the blood, and even "turn around the deadliest diseases." Okay, that's pushing it as far as I'm concerned. But as someone raised on Jewish penicillin, I can see how an herbal mixture brewed with apple cider vinegar can be a formidable opponent to the common cold.

I tasted Quinn's bone broth and it's quite lovely. The boiled mixture of beef bones from pastured cattle, water, apple cider vinegar, and a secret ingredient (I know what it is but was sworn to secrecy) has a gentle, sweet flavor. The fat, collagen, gelatin, and vitamins and minerals drawn from the bones by the vinegar are said to help with joint issues and digestion. Quinn noticed that after making it at home for herself her skin became smooth and supple, her hair shinier, and her nails stronger. Quinn drinks it like a tea, but also cooks with it. In fact, she recently sauteed apples in the broth which she baked into an apple pie. She also adds it to her dog Honey's food,which she says has made the dog's coat soft and shiny. In fact, Quinn is working with a dog food company to add it to their food.

You can make bone broth at home, of course, but Quinn emphasizes that the key to making a quality bone broth that lives up to addressing medical issues is that the bones must come from pastured cattle. She gets her bones from Da-Le Ranch, Sage Mountain Farm, and Homegrown Meats. And, she suggests that for general health and healing, a person must drink between three to four pints a week, and six pints a week after having surgery. You can order it by the pint on the website Big Cartel. It comes frozen, so defrost it overnight in the refrigerator before using and be sure to skim off the fat on the top--but use it to cook with, too.

Now for the Master Tonic. This witch's brew literally took my breath away. And Julie's and Quinn's. And made their eyes run. Why? Because the ingredients are limited but oh, so potent: fresh horseradish, fresh chiles, onions, ginger root, and garlic cloves. All in equal parts. All chopped or grated as the ingredient warrants.

I remember my grandfather peeling, then grating fresh horseradish for Passover seders when I was a kid. This was no more fun--there's a reason why most of us buy it prepared at the market. Between that, the jalapeños, and the onions, Quinn and Julie were vying for the goggles. And I was reeling, too.

You can buy the tonic from Quinn but, should you want to make this yourself, here's the recipe they use. Note, wear gloves and goggles when making it.

 
Master Tonic

1 part fresh chopped garlic cloves
1 part fresh chopped white onions (or the hottest onions available)
1 part fresh grated ginger root
1 part fresh grated horseradish root
1 part fresh chopped chiles (cayenne, jalapeños, serranos, habaneros, African bird peppers, or any combination of the hottest peppers available)
Raw, unfiltered, unbleached, non-distilled apple cider vinegar

Fill a glass jar 3/4 of the way full with equal parts of the fresh chopped or grated ingredients. Then cover completely with the vinegar.

Close and shake vigorously. Then top off the vinegar if necessary. Keep the jar in a cool, dark place for two weeks. Shake the tonic daily a couple of times.

The recipe calls for beginning the formula on the new moon, then straining and bottling the mixture on the full moon two weeks later. Filter it through a clean piece of cotton, coffee filter, or colander, then bottle and label.

Don't toss the solids. Think of what you have there! It's the makings of a marinade or salad dressing or dip. Julie added some to a mashed avocado to make guacamole.

 
As for drinking the tonic. I tried a shot of it and rather liked it, except for the whiff of fermentation it gives off. It's strong and spicy, as you'd expect. The suggested dosage is 1/2 to 1 ounce two or more times a day as needed. Perfect in a shot glass. Store your master tonic in a dark place. It won't go bad (given the ingredients, could it ever?). I can absolutely see how it would give a cold or flu a good fight. My nana would have loved it!

You can contact Quinn at balancedandbright@gmail.com to order the tonic.




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Su-Mei Yu's Savor San Diego Hits KPBS This Thursday

San Diego food lovers know Su-Mei Yu, the longtime owner of Saffron in Mission Hills. She's been a culinary fixture in the community for well over 25 years, as both restaurateur and cookbook author with titles including Asian Grilling, Cracking the Coconut, and The Elements of Life. So with that deep a connection to food and to San Diego it only makes sense that she has now turned her talents and enthusiasm to television to show off many of the local producers who represent what she considers the best of San Diego's foodstuff.

Su-Mei Yu with farmer Noel Stehly at Stehly Farms in Valley Center

Her new show, Savor San Diego, debuts this Thursday at 9:30 p.m. on KPBS (airing again on Saturdays at 3:30 p.m.). The six episodes taped so far reflect the diversity of Su-Mei's interests: hand-crafted tofu, grass-fed beef, avocado oil, citrus, seafood, farmers markets and community gardens. These far-ranging subjects, however, have something besides being local to San Diego in common--they exist to get people back into the kitchen. And that, says, Su-Mei, is why she's tackling this project.

"I did it because I want people to cook again," she emphasizes. "We have so much bounty. I want people to see what's available because it's all so good."

Su-Mei learning how tofu is made, with owner Shawn Daniels in purple apron.

Su-Mei is a big and lively personality and it comes through in the first episode, which I viewed on Saturday at a launch party she hosted. It's aptly named "The Yin-Yang of Protein"since it features a tofu maker and rancher. Each episode of Savor San Diego is divided into three segments, a focus on two different venues and then a short cooking segment that ties the two together. In this first episode Su-Mei first visits San Diego Soy Dairy in El Cajon, which for more than 30 years has made organic, small-batch tofu. Su-Mei cheerfully dons an apron and billowy blue hair cap, then eagerly follows owner Shawn Daniels around the plant as she--and we--learn how tofu is made.

The city girl from Bangkok on horseback with rancher Joel Mendenhall.

We next see Su-Mei up in Palomar Mountain on the Mendenhall Ranch and through her meet low-key  sixth-generation rancher Joel Mendenhall, who for several years has partnered with Matt Rimel in producing HomeGrown Meats. Su-Mei's bravado in getting up on a horse to tour the property comes through in her laughing plea to Mendenhall that, "I'm just a city girl from Bangkok!" She's then hoisted onto the horse and trots off behind the young cowboy. We learn from Mendenhall about the benefits of grass-fed beef and how the cattle are raised.

Then comes the tie-in with an open-air cooking demo on the ranch. Su-Mei, with Mendenhall beside her, prepares "Mama Yu's Beef & Tofu Stir Fry." It's a simple recipe, packed with protein obviously, but also lots of vegetables--and certainly accessible to the home cook.

Each episode of Savor San Diego, says Su-Mei, took two days to film. What made it easier was that, other than the fishermen, she knew everyone featured. "I've been cooking with their ingredients for years."

Su-Mei in the Olivewood Gardens teaching kitchen.

One episode, however, veers away from the vendors and reflects her social work background.  "Cultivating Communities" features the New Roots Garden in City Heights and Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center in National City. "I'm involved in community, in refugees. Once a social worker, always a social worker," she says. These two places touch her heart, not only because they grow  fresh, healthy food, but because their mission is to educate neighborhoods and help build community. Clearly this is a way for her to show how powerful that can be.

You can see the show promo here:


Savor San Diego - KPBS Promo from FortyOneTwenty on Vimeo.

You can also learn more about Savor San Diego and get the recipes on www.savorsdtv.com. Additionally, Saffron is offering a premiere special on Thursday, May 2: One whole chicken, jasmine rice, Cambodian salad and five dipping sauces for $14. And, they suggest pre-ordering.




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Grass-Fed Hot Dogs for When Summer Finally Comes

Last year when I toured the pastures of Mendenhall Ranch in Mt. Palomar with Matt Rimel, Rimel talked about his plans for the future, which included making hot dogs--grass-fed beef hot dogs -- for his line of Homegrown Meats. Well, the dogs are a reality now and I picked up a sample at his La Jolla Butcher Shop. It doesn't feel like hot dog weather but someday the gloom will lift and we'll be in the mood. And, if you're looking for something tasty and healthier in your bun, these dogs will do it for you.

In fact, the hot dogs are hormone free and contain no added preservatives or MSG, and are gluten free. The beef is seasoned with evaporated cane juice, sea salt, mustard, paprika, celery and cherry powders, and celery seasoning. It's refreshing to read the label and understand what all the ingredients are.

Now, they don't have the snap of a dog with a casing but grill them or put them under the broiler, like I did, and the sweet flavors of the beef really come through with a nice crunch. Everyone has their own favorite hot dog toppings. No ketchup for me, thank you. I like a good, strong mustard, chopped onions, and sauerkraut. Lacking sauerkraut today, I chopped some of the sweet and hot pickles made by SoNo Trading Company. The perfect lunch!

 

You can find Homegrown Meats grass-fed beef hot dogs at the La Jolla Butcher Shop on Fay St. in La Jolla and at Seaside Market at 2087 San Elijo Ave. in Cardiff. They come in a package of eight.



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The Gourmet Club is Homegrown

One of the most enjoyable of all culinary pairings is wine and cheese -- once you figure out what goes with what. We're going to have a guest who can help: Dan Pilkey, the sommelier with Addison at the Grand Del Mar. At 27, he's the youngest to have attained the level of advanced sommelier from the American Chapter of the Court of Master Sommeliers -- and only the second in San Diego. There are only several hundred who have reached this rank in the U.S.

Pilkey, who grew up in the wine business, will give us some tips on how to mix and match wines and cheeses. And, we'll try to emphasize some more summery wines so that you can go out and try some of his suggestions now, whether it be at a picnic dinner during an outdoor concert or as a special course of its own at your summer dinner party.

Matt Rimel's Homegrown Meats/La Jolla Butcher Shop opened last Saturday (see my previous post). Robert and I will talk about this new shop and what it means to have locally grown, grass-fed beef available to San Diegans for the first time.


The Gourmet Club is the tastiest meeting in town. Join Robert Whitley and me this Wednesday morning on signonradio.com from 11 a.m. to noon Pacific. You can also podcast the show and listen at your convenience.

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Homegrown Meats. Really.

Poor Matt Rimel. Here it is, Saturday, the day his new shop, Homegrown Meats/La Jolla Butcher Shop, is opening. He’s got a back room filled with meat and a grill party planned on the little patio in front of the shop. He’s got to be stoked about what the day will bring.

And, he goes and breaks his foot. So, while we’re all enjoying a beautiful Saturday afternoon in La Jolla eating burgers—his burgers—he’s at the hospital.

Well, Matt, thanks for calling and letting me know the shop was opening. I was there to check it out and I hope you’re not in too much pain.

Fortunately for Matt, his partners and staff kept all the balls in the air and customers happy. The first thing you see at the shop, which is in the same little strip mall on Fay Ave. as his restaurant Zenbu, is a display of sumptuous heirloom tomatoes, as well as a selection of fresh oregano, thyme, chives, basil and greens grown by Chef Andrew Johnson of The Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe. Rimel has partnered with Johnson to provide fresh produce for sale at the La Jolla Butcher Shop.

But, inside the shop, is of course, where the important stuff is and there’s a good selection of protein—basically a mix of local grass-fed beef from Mendenhall Ranch in Mt. Palomar and natural prime meats, such as beef tenderloin, pork chops, top sirloin baseballs, veal cutlets, slab bacon and leg of lamb.

The shop also sells Muscovy ducks, prosciutto and Diestel turkey breasts from Sonora in Northern California. There’s pheasant and squab. Savory cumin sausage and herb sausage. Veal sausage and roasted tomato sausage. Skewers of fish, red onion, tomato and green peppers. Wild boar bacon.

To round things out, there are Bread & Cie baguettes and Raptor Rubs, dry rubs from a local company that donates a percentage of its profit to the Montana rescue facility, Raptor Ranch.

Obviously, the story here is the local grass-fed beef. I know I was surprised to learn that we have ranchers in the area. After all, we’ve been programmed to think that if we want the good stuff it has to come from the Midwest or beyond.

But, Joel and Jenna Mendenhall are the latest generation of ranchers in San Diego County and they’re working with the La Jolla Butcher Shop to supply them with beef. According to Joel Mendenhall, they have 100 head of cattle in line for the butcher shop and another 100 cows being bred.

Now is it totally local? Not quite yet. Mendenhall says that the closest USDA-approved slaughterhouse is up in LA. So, his cattle are transported there and then the meat returns to San Diego for sale. “We’re working on getting a USDA-approved facility on our ranch to keep it purely local,” says Mendenhall. He explained that the cattle are a F1 cross of English breeds—the Aberdeen Angus and Hereford breeds. “The Aberdeen Angus are known for their good tasting meat and their hardiness,” explains Mendenhall. “The Herefords give us a bigger size.”

Behind the counter and visible to customers are a refrigerated room for storage and where the breaking down of the meat is done and a small dry aging room. Hanging on display in the dry aging room were the front and hind quarters of one of those Aberdeen Angus crosses, a large whole prosciutto as well as most of a lamb carcass. Partner Peter Morris and butcher Lee Denham explained that the beef will be spending two, three, even four weeks aging before the butchers break it down. “We try to buy the meat as whole as possible,” says Morris, who is a long-time friend and hunting companion of Rimel’s.

That was a huge attraction to a young Iranian man who came in for some more unusual lamb parts you certainly can’t find at the grocery store. He was thrilled to find a lamb neck and was waiting for some other parts to be trimmed to take home to make kaleh pacheh, a traditional Persian breakfast dish. Basically, he explained, you brown the meat and bones, then braise it overnight on the stove in water with a bay leaf. About an hour before serving, add salt, pepper and turmeric. The liquid becomes gelatinous with a profoundly rich flavor perfect for dunking fresh traditional flat bread. When I researched this, I found that it’s often served with lemon wedges and herbs.

I didn’t go that far afield. First I went outside to enjoy a juicy slider burger grilled and served by one lone grown up and his posse of adorable little kids.

Then, I returned inside and selected a grass-fed rib-eye steak. While Denham took it in the back to trim it, I asked Morris for some coaching on how to grill it to bring out the best flavors. He said to let it come to room temperature and season it with just a little salt and pepper. Then put it on a grill over medium heat, no more than four minutes a side for medium rare. Then take it off the heat and cover it with foil for at least 10 minutes to let the juices reintegrate with the meat.

So, last night I fired up the grill. I trimmed a few small leeks, heated them in the microwave for two minutes to get them soft, then brushed them with olive oil. I had a roll of polenta in the pantry (one of those great staples for when you’re too lazy to make rice or couscous or whatever). I sliced it up and also brushed the slices with olive oil. All went on the grill.

Earlier in the day I had opened a package of hot peppers I had found at Andre’s Market on Morena Blvd. Aji Amarillo Mirasol Seco, the package said. Yellow Mirasol hot peppers. They were a lovely rusty orange and I couldn’t resist them.

I also couldn’t figure out quite what to do with them. So, I soaked them for several hours in water. Then I decided just to boil them. By then the peppers were pretty flexible so it only took about 20 minutes to completely soften them. I removed the stems, added them to the food processor with a couple of tablespoons of the water they boiled in and pureed them—seeds and all. Then I added most of a head of baked garlic, salt and olive oil. Another go at pureeing. The mixture was hot but not inedibly hot (which I’d feared). But, the roasted garlic wasn’t enough. So, I added three minced cloves of raw garlic and a little more salt and olive oil. That did it. Heat, smokiness, layers of garlic flavor.

That was the accompaniment to the steak (and will be the basis of a marinade for chicken tomorrow). I took the rest of the roasted garlic and mashed it in a small bowl with a few tablespoons of olive oil and some grated parmesan cheese. I brushed this mixture on the still grilling slices of polenta. I closed the lid and let it melt into the polenta for a couple of minutes once the steak was off the heat and resting.

It was a fine dinner. The steak was fresh tasting, kind of sweet and very tender. The yellow pepper paste complemented the meat with its smoky heat. The leeks were crispy on the outside and lusciously soft inside. The polenta just melted in my mouth.

Now, here’s the challenge. I really enjoyed the steak, but at $22 or so a pound, it’s a luxury for many of us. I know that the folks at La Jolla Butcher Shop will now want to call me or send me a note to tell me how much value I’m getting for that $22. I get it. Really. I know that the cheap cuts at the grocery store aren’t good for me. Aren’t that good period. Nevertheless, this is not going to be a stop for everyone all the time.

But, if you can afford it, buying meat that was locally grown and well-fed on what it was meant to eat is invaluable. It tastes delicious, it’s much healthier for you and better for the environment.

Homegrown Meats/La Jolla Butcher Shop is located at 7660 Fay Ave., Suite C in La Jolla Village.

Have some thoughts about Homegrown Meats/La Jolla Butcher Shop or other markets in San Diego? Do you have a favorite neighborhood market or shop that carries unique or unusual foodstuff? Let me know or add to the conversation by clicking on comments below:

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Foodstuff Miscellany

It's a quiet Thursday before the 4th, but food folks are busy...

• Eclipse Chocolat is holding a Cupcake Extravaganza Weekend, starting Friday. Owner Will Gustwiller has 36 flavors available at once and is counting on you to come in and help rate your favorites. The idea is to pare down to 16 or so in rotation. A box of nine will be $20. Each cupcake will have a rating card, which also serves as an entry to a Grand Prize Raffle (think Willy Wonka and the golden ticket). The winner will receive a VIP Eclipse Pass for a box of nine cupcakes every week for two months. Eclipse Chocolat is located at 2121 El Cajon Blvd. at Alabama in University Heights.
• Pinkberry buzz has arrived. The frozen yogurt chain opened its 59th store this week in downtown San Diego at the Hard Rock Hotel at 207 Fifth Ave., across from the San Diego Convention Center. A second San Diego store will open later this summer in Hillcrest. No comment about its "healthy and all-natural" claims.
• Keep an eye out for the July 15 opening of Homegrown Meats, a new butcher shop that's the brainchild of Matt Rimel, owner of Zenbu, Mesquite and, of course, Rimel's Rotisserie & Local Seafood. Homegrown Meats will be located next door to Zenbu at 7660 Fay Ave. in La Jolla and feature locally raised grass-fed beef from Mendenhall Ranch on Palomar Mountain, local wild turkey, ostrich, lamb, chicken and duck (when in season)--all hormone free. You'll also be able to pick up farm-fresh produce courtesy of a partnership with Chef Andrew Johnson of The Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe. While the initial opening will be low key, Rimel will soon announce a grand opening to be held in August, with, of course, a tasting barbecue for customers. Be sure to check the homegrownmeats.com website to get the most up-to-date information about the openings.

P.S. Check out Maureen Clancy's wonderful site for a description of Rimel's favorite fish dish on the grill. He told us about this on The Gourmet Club yesterday and stomachs began to rumble with pleasure just at the thought of it. Easy to make and obviously finger-licking...well you know the rest.

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