Full Moon Suppers at Salt Water Farm: Recipes from Land and Sea
240
Full Moon Suppers at Salt Water Farm: Recipes from Land and Sea
240Hardcover
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Overview
This menu-driven cookbook offers twelve beautifully crafted meals derived from more than one hundred sold-out evening events at Salt Water Farm, the author’s cooking school in Maine. Even if you can’t make it to one of Annemarie’s monthly Full Moon Suppers, you can re-create them at home, beneath a full moon—or any night—for family and friends.
Each supper includes a portrait of the month: its climate, its rewards, and its ritual kitchen tasks—and a menu inspired by those characteristics. A Full Moon Supper is not only a celebration of the earth and its bounty but a reward for the hard work that goes into food production. These meals pay respect to the elements, the conditions of the earth, soil, and sea, and seasonal traditions as we round the lunar cycle.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781611803327 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Shambhala |
| Publication date: | 05/23/2017 |
| Pages: | 240 |
| Sales rank: | 1,136,956 |
| Product dimensions: | 7.10(w) x 10.60(h) x 0.90(d) |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
Full Moon Suppers At Salt Water Farm
Recipes From Land and Sea
By Annmarie Ahearn, Kristin Teig
Shambhala Publications, Inc.
Copyright © 2017 Annemarie AhearnAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-61180-332-7
CHAPTER 1
JANUARY
THE FULL WOLF MOON
In the month of January, deep snow covers the ground, the wild winds building drifts so high that fences become obscured. Under layers of ice, lake fish swim freely and catch the fishermen's lines. At night, the scent of food, alive or dead, can carry for miles, drawing scavengers across town borders.
It is a desolate time in the wild, but a peaceful time for more domesticated creatures. January is a month for rest and relaxation in the purest of forms. Those of us who make a living on the coast of Maine work tirelessly from May to October so that, come January, we can put our feet up by the fire with a glass of cider or bourbon and flip through a 600-page novel at leisure, guilt free. Such seasonal cycles take some getting used to, but once your body and mind adapt, it's a wonderful life. Like the waning and waxing moon, we gather energy and strength in the winter for the summer's frenzied exertion. But unlike the scavenging wild animals of the night, all winter long, we humans feast!
January's Full Wolf Moon honors the hungry wolves that howl for sustenance outside of villages, their bellies empty. From inside our heated homes, their sound reminds us to be grateful for our stocked pantries and refrigerator doors and, of course, shelter.
In the depths of winter, we can also be grateful for the generosity of the sea. Beneath cold waters are schools of delicious fish that many cooks argue are at their finest in January. Sea urchin are harvested in enormous quantities during their short winter season, lobsters are full of richly flavored meat, and cod is plentiful. Citrus, which so naturally complements seafood, is featured throughout the January Full Moon Supper. To balance the lightness of fish and the acid of oranges and lemons, a decadent cream-based gnocchi graces the table, and a comforting rice pudding finishes the feast.
Vodka Martini with a Vermouth Rinse and a Twist of Lemon
Every host should know how to make a martini, whether or not you drink them. Once you understand the basic recipe, you can add a little olive juice, splash in a touch more vermouth, or drop in a cocktail onion.
* * *
MAKES 1 DRINK
2 ounces vodka
dry vermouth for rinsing
1 strip of lemon peel
Rinse a chilled coupe or martini glass with vermouth and pour the excess into the sink. Fill a bar glass to the top with ice and add vodka. Stir with a bar spoon and strain the vodka into your coupe or martini glass. Drop a strip of lemon peel in the center.
Sea Urchin Butter on Toasts
Sea urchin must be eaten fresh. As a result, it may be a difficult ingredient to come by. It is prized in Japan, and most of the catch from the United States is shipped across the Pacific. A good sushi restaurant will have a source for sea urchin and may recommend it to you if you ask.
Many call sea urchin "the butter of the sea," and one of my favorite presentations of urchin is in compound butter on sourdough toast. The butter will have a rich, earthy flavor and shouldn't taste overwhelmingly of fish.
Opening an urchin is as challenging as opening an oyster. The desired tool for such an operation is a pair of kitchen shears or a sea urchin opener (rather hard to find in this country).
* * *
MAKES UP TO 20 TOASTS
12 unshelled sea urchins
(or 4 ounces if out of
their shells)
2 sticks unsalted butter,
softened
sea salt
1 loaf sourdough bread
With kitchen shears, cut open the sea urchin around what would be the equator on a globe, wearing gloves to protect your hands. Expose the inside of the urchin. Remove the orange morsels and rinse in water.
Gently fold the cold sea urchin into the butter until evenly incorporated. Sprinkle generously with sea salt. Place in the fridge until 20 minutes before you're ready to serve. Allow the compound butter to soften a bit at room temperature.
Cut the loaf of sourdough bread in half and then into thick slices. Toast under a broiler or place on a grill for a minute or two on each side, until grill marks appear. Spread each piece generously with sea urchin butter. Serve warm.
Potato Gnocchi, Lobster, Cream and Tarragon
In winter, lobsters migrate far out to sea. They are typically hard-shelled during deep winter, because it is not safe for them to molt at such great depths and in close proximity to so many deep-sea predators. If you are a hard-shell lobster lover, this is a wonderful time of year to incorporate meaty lobster parts into a meal-especially when smothered in homemade lobster stock, cream, and pillowy pasta.
For this recipe, you'll use the claws, knuckles, and tail meat. Save the legs for a snack. The bodies are used to make the stock, along with the remaining shells and any clear juice that you collect over a bowl when you open up the lobsters. Tomalley (the lobster's greenish liver) and eggs will discolor the sauce and stock, so try to keep them separate.
* * *
SERVES 8-10
2 4 lively 1¼ to 1½-pound
lobsters]
pounds russet potatoes,
peeled and quartered
3 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
eggs, lightly beaten
kosher salt
2 yellow onions, peeled and
roughly chopped
4 carrots, roughly chopped
4 celery stalks, roughly
1 chopped
2 tablespoon olive oil
cups white wine 1 fresh
bay leaf
2 sprigs thyme
2 sprigs parsley
2 sprigs rosemary
12 black peppercorns
4 tablespoons butter
4 shallots, peeled and
minced
1 shot Cognac or brandy
2 cups cream
6 sprigs fresh tarragon,
leaves picked from stems
and stems discarded
Fill a large pot with 2 inches of heavily salted water. (It should mimic seawater; taste it.) Once it's come to a boil, put your lobsters in the pot and cover. Steam lobsters for 6 to 8 minutes and check for doneness: once they've turned red, they only need another minute or so. (They are being partially cooked, as they will continue to cook in the lobster sauce.) Remove lobsters from pot, let them cool enough for you to handle them, and remove meat from shells. Cut the meat into bite-size pieces.
Place the potatoes in a large pot with heavily salted water to cover and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook the potatoes for 25 minutes, or until tender. Drain and let cool. Pass the potatoes through a ricer onto a clean flat surface. Mound in a pile, then create a well in the center. Add flour and eggs to the well. Salt generously with the kosher salt. Using a fork, gradually incorporate the eggs and flour into the riced potatoes until a dough begins to form. Knead by hand until the dough feels soft and pillowy and has a consistent texture.
Divide the dough into 6 portions. Roll each portion into a ½-inch rope, about a foot in length. With a bench knife, cut pasta dough every ½ inch. Using the back of a fork or a gnocchi imprinter, roll pieces along the tines or wood to imprint them with ridges. Flour a cookie sheet and collect the gnocchi on the sheet. In a stockpot, toss the onions, carrots, and celery in the olive oil and a good pinch of salt, cover, and sweat over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Add the empty lobster shells and bodies, white wine, bay leaf, herbs (except for the tarragon sprigs), and peppercorns. Barely cover with water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. If foam rises to the top, skim off with a slotted spoon and discard. Let the stock cook for 30 minutes. Your kitchen should smell heavenly. Strain into a small saucepan and begin to reduce stock over medium heat.
In a large frying pan, sweat the minced shallots in 2 tablespoons of the butter until soft and transparent. Deglaze with the Cognac or brandy (if you're using a gas stove, turn the flame off to prevent a fire). Turn the heat back to high and cook off the alcohol, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cream and 4 cups of lobster stock to the pan and let simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in lobster meat and remaining 2 tablespoons of butter.
Bring a new large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Working in batches, add gnocchi and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer gnocchi to the lobster sauce and toss gently. Plate the gnocchi in small bowls, ladling lobster meat and more sauce over the top. Garnish with tarragon.
Roasted Beets, Citrus, Horseradish Yogurt, and Toasted Hazelnuts
While citrus does not grow in Maine, oranges, lemons, and grapefruit are at their peak in more southern regions in January. A variety of segmented citrus in combination with roasted beets and horseradish cream makes for a rather decadent and colorful winter salad, perfect for offsetting January's monotone landscape.
* * *
SERVES 8
6 red beets, greens and
tails trimmed
2 cups water
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine
vinegar
¼ cup hazelnuts
1 garlic clove, peeled
kosher salt
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 lemon, supremed,
remaining juice squeezed
from the rind and pith and
set aside
1 orange, supremed,
remaining juice squeezed
from the rind and pith and
set aside
½ cup Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon grated fresh
horseradish
red pepper flakes
fresh ground pepper
1 large grapefruit, peeled
and cut in ¼-inch-thick
rounds]
seeds of ½ pomegranate
1 large bunch Italian flat-leaf
parsley, leaves picked from
stems and stems discarded
Preheat the oven to 375'F. In a baking dish, place the beets, water, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and the white wine vinegar. Cover with foil. Bake or steam with very little water in the oven for 45 minutes, or until beets are fork-tender. Drain, peel under cold water, and set aside.
Turn the oven down to 350"F. Lay the hazelnuts on a baking sheet. Toast them in the oven for 8 minutes, or until they become fragrant. Remove from the oven, let cool, and then chop each nut in half.
To make a dressing, use a mortar and pestle to mash the garlic clove with a big pinch of salt until it becomes a paste. Add Dijon mustard and citrus juice; whisk in remaining olive oil.
In a small bowl combine yogurt and horseradish. Add salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.
Spread yogurt mixture on a large platter. Lay grapefruit segments over the yogurt. Arrange beets on top, then supremed orange and lemon segments. Drizzle a few spoonfuls of dressing over the top. Toss parsley leaves with a couple spoonfuls of dressing and sprinkle on top of the beets and citrus. Spoon the remaining dressing around the outside of the beets. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and toasted hazelnuts. Serve at room temperature.
HOW TO OPEN A POMEGRANATE
The easiest (and neatest) way to open a pomegranate is under water. Use a large, sharp knife to cut it in half on a cutting board, then fill a large bowl with cold water. Holding the pomegranate under the water, break the fruit into rough segments and begin releasing the seeds from the pith a few at a time. The seeds will sink to the bottom of the bowl, and the pith will float to the top. Scoop out the pith with your hands and then drain the seeds.
Poached Codfish, Green Olives, Fennel, Saffron, and Tomato Conserva
With a few pints of canned tomatoes from last summer's harvest and a pinch of saffron, a good cook can bring the warmth of the Mediterranean to the table even on the coldest of days.
* * *
SERVES 8
FOR THE TOMATO
CONSERVA
4 vine-ripened tomatoes
3 ablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, gently
smashed and left in their
skins
kosher salt
FOR THE POTATOES
16 fingerling potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, gently
smashed and left in their
skins
1 bunch Italian flat-leaf
parsley, stems removed
and leaves roughly
chopped
FOR THE POACHING LIQUID
2 yellow onions, peeled and
thickly sliced
1 tablespoon butter
tablespoon olive oil
kosher salt
4 garlic cloves, peeled and
roughly chopped
2 fennel bulbs, stalks and
hearts removed and bulbs
thickly sliced
1 quart canned, whole,
peeled San Marzano
tomatoes
10 saffron threads
bay leaves
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1 cup Sauvignon Blanc
FOR THE FISH
1½ pounds of cod or halibut
1 lemon, sliced thinly
fresh ground pepper
½ cup Castelvetrano olives
TO MAKE THE TOMATO CONSERVA Preheat the oven to 375'F. Cut fresh tomatoes into 8 wedges each. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and arrange the tomatoes in a single layer across the bottom. Add the smashed garlic cloves and coat everything in the olive oil. Shake the pan to make sure the tomatoes are well coated. Sprinkle generously with salt. Bake until the tomatoes begin to caramelize on the bottom, about 12 minutes. Flip each tomato and return the pan to the oven for 8 minutes. Tomatoes should be sweet, sticky, and partially dehydrated.
TO MAKE THE POTATOES Fill a 2-quart saucepan with the potatoes and heavily salted water. Bring to a boil and cook over high heat until tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain. In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil, add the garlic cloves in their skins and the potatoes, and sauté over medium heat until the potato skins start to brown, about 15 minutes. Add half the parsley leaves and toss together, reserving the other half for garnish. Turn off the heat and let the mixture rest on the stovetop.
TO MAKE THE POACHING LIQUID In a large, ovenproof stew pot sweat the onions in the butter, olive oil, and a good pinch of salt over medium-low heat. Add the roughly chopped garlic and continue to sweat over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Add the fennel and cook for 10 minutes longer, or until the vegetables are transparent and broken down. Stir in the canned tomatoes, saffron, bay leaves, and red pepper flakes. Continue to cook over medium-low heat until the tomatoes break down and some of the liquid reduces. Add wine and simmer for at least 15 more minutes, until the alcohol evaporates.
TO MAKE THE FISH Preheat the oven to 375'F. Divide the fish into four equal portions. Place each piece of fish in the tomato sauce; top each with a thin lemon slice. Sprinkle with kosher salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bake for 12- to 15 minutes, or until fish is just cooked through. (The hot liquid will continue to poach the fish after it comes out of the oven.)
To serve, spread the potatoes onto a large platter. Transfer the fish to the platter with a spatula and spoon the poaching liquid over the top. Garnish with tomato conserva, Castelvetrano olives, and the remaining chopped parsley.
Cinnamon Rice Pudding, Cara Cara Oranges, Medjool Dates, Wildflower Honey
No dessert is more comforting than a bowl of cinnamon-scented rice pudding, with a touch of booze to relax the belly. A few brightly colored orange slices and a pile of dates add a little sophistication to the presentation.
* * *
SERVES 8
1 cup flame raisins
1 cup Calvados
1 cup water
¾ cup jasmine rice, uncooked
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups whole milk
½ cup light brown sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 Cara Cara oranges, peeled
and sliced into rounds
sea salt
wild flower honey
16 Medjool dates
Soak raisins in Calvados for 30 minutes. While they are soaking, prepare the rice: In a medium saucepan, combine water, jasmine rice, and kosher salt. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook for 6- to 8 minutes. Add half-and-half, brown sugar, and cinnamon sticks. Cook over medium heat, stirring every couple of minutes, until the rice is fully cooked, 15 to 20 minutes. In a small bowl, beat the eggs lightly. Add a few spoonfuls of hot rice to the eggs and stir to incorporate. Then stir the egg and rice mixture into the rice pudding and continue cooking for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla extract until fully incorporated. Let cool, cover, and place in the fridge.
Drain the raisins. Portion the rice pudding into individual bowls, garnish each with a sprinkling of raisins, and serve. Lay orange slices out on a large platter. Sprinkle with a little sea salt, drizzle with honey, and top with dates. Place the family-style orange platter at the center of the table. Make sure that everyone has a small plate for the fruit.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Full Moon Suppers At Salt Water Farm by Annmarie Ahearn, Kristin Teig. Copyright © 2017 Annemarie Ahearn. Excerpted by permission of Shambhala Publications, Inc..
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