Fleur De Sel Caramels

Sure, it's a bit overexposed in this day and age. Carelessly cavorting around town with shallow but ultra-famous celebs like Big Mac and Dorito. Getting mixed up in embarrassing tabloid-cover scandals involving high blood pressure and making people really thirsty. But all salt really wants to do is make things taste great. Salt is an artist at heart. It's the ultimate collaborator. The trouble comes when other foods take advantage of this kindness, riding its proverbial coattails to fame, fortune, and deliciousness, without contributing much in terms of taste and personality (I'm looking at you, bad Chinese takeout). But the things salt can do when it's shown due respect are utterly astonishing. For starters, check out our recent post on salt's collaboration with vegetables and time that resulted in one of the all-time masterpieces of gastronomy: the pickle. Now, via the currently booming world of artisanal salts, this brave little rock is starting to get the respect it deserves. We're seeing black, pink, smoked, and many other distinguished prefixes proudly joining the now-common sea and kosher on America's spice racks. The only problem is finding a dish deserving of such a rarefied mineral. After all, we can't be simply tossing that expensive Sel Gris de Guérande into a pot of boiling pasta water, now, can we? Well, for those with a bit of a sweet tooth, one particularly scrumptious way to showcase that fine salt, and one which makes for excellent holiday gift-giving, is this recipe for Fleur De Sel Caramel from Epicurious.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
  
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 cup water
• Special equipment: parchment paper; a deep-fat thermometer

Line bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, then lightly oil parchment.

Bring cream, butter, and fleur de sel to a boil in a small saucepan, then remove from heat and set aside.

Boil sugar, corn syrup, and water in a 3- to 4-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Boil, without stirring but gently swirling pan, until mixture is a light golden caramel.

Carefully stir in cream mixture (mixture will bubble up) and simmer, stirring frequently, until caramel registers 248°F on thermometer, 10 to 15 minutes. Pour into baking pan and cool 2 hours. Cut into 1-inch pieces, then wrap each piece in a 4-inch square of wax paper, twisting 2 ends to close.

Congrats Firestone Discoveries Finalists!

Most of you have seen the news, but just for the official record, here is the list of winners from the first round. The finalists are being interviewed this week, so be sure to support your favorites on facebook. The battle has begun! We'll announce the Top 3 for each category very soon, so stay tuned...

DISCOVERIES PATHFINDER FINALISTS

Adam Spiegel

Christine Sterling

Joseph Roldan

Kathleen Nolte

Kim Kulchycki

Kristen Weir

Lisa Kane

Lotchana Sourivong

Thomas Andy Holt

Margie Tosch

DISCOVERIES GUEST CHEF FINALISTS

Scott Beale, Grey Gelding Bistro & Bar, Sarasota Springs, NY

James Gottwald & Rodelio Aglibot, Chicago, IL

Tim Kirker, Bistrot Zinc, Chicago, IL

Jay Norris, Ponte Vedre, FL

Aimee Salas, Valencia, CA

Dean Smith, Spring City, UT

Chef Steve, Yucatan Sunset Catering, Sonoma, CA

Joel Tate, Jackson Hole, WY

Shelley Young, The Chopping Block, Chicago, IL

Patricia Zadony, Chicago, IL

*See their YouTube videos here

Cultured Pickle Shop

"I'd like a pickle"
"A pickle? What kind of pickle? Parsnip? Turnip? Curried Carrot? What?"
"Uh. A pickle."

There's a sign outside of Cultured pickle shop in Berkeley, CA, that says Pickle Shop. Which makes sense. It seems like one of the most logical phrases to put on a sign intended for placement in front of such a shop. Sure, it might strike a more poetically minded person as a bit on the nose. Not a lot of subtext. Little intrigue. Just the facts, ma'am. And sure, there are more verbose, stylistic options. Ye Olde Dispensary of Brine Bathed Curiosities comes to mind. The Lactobacillus Enriched Vegetable Emporium, perhaps. But in terms of verbal economy, Pickle Shop has it pegged. Why then, does this paragon of linguistic efficiency induce a steady stream of slightly befuddled customers, staggering into the shop, unable to acquire the vinegar-soaked, dill-laden cucumber they envisioned, like some poor sap requesting Stevie Wonder's "I Just Called to Say I Loved You" at a vintage vinyl snob-shop? As anyone who's as big a nerd about anything as Alex Hozven is about pickles can tell you, when you spend the majority of your waking hours obsessing over some silly (yet completely fascinating and wonderful) little thing, it's easy to lose perspective. For most people, a pickle is a sour cucumber. For Hozven, a pickle is an alchemical marvel of lactic-acid fermentation; a vegetable, as the Japanese put it, altered without the use of heat. Whether it be standards like kimchee and sauerkraut, or more unusual fare such as picked blood oranges, kasu carrots, which utilize the filtered-off byproduct of sake, or the flash-pickling microbial hotbed of the nuka pot, it's all pickles to her. So if all you want is a dill cucumber, you can probably get one. You just have to know what to ask for. 

June Taylor's Still Room

Do you like jam? We like jam. Especially when said jam is made by someone as as nice as June Taylor. Steeped in the culinary lore of canning and preserving, Taylor and her assistant Magali Hernandez crank out dozens of different seasonal spreads each year. As you would imagine she works directly with small family farms and seeks out heirloom and forgotten fruits. Tasting some of her marmalades, we’re reminded of why breakfast at Grandma’s was so delicious. It makes us happy to think that there’s a grow-and-preserve-your-own revival happening these days! If you are so inclined, as we hope you are, one of the best ways to spend a weekend day is with June in her production kitchen at the Still Room in Berkeley, learning how to make marmalade from a pro. And tis the season for handmade baked goods. One of June's specialties is a traditional English Christmas Cake, which takes a whole year to make. Candied citrus peels and hand dried fruits are just the beginning. Each cake is wrapped in cheesecloth and hand washed with an aged chardonnay brandy from St. George Spirits. The festive outer wrapping paper is water colored by June and letterpress printed. See the operation from June's perspective in this video:

Hot Holiday Music: The Yule Logs!

Holiday music can be divisive, to say the least. For some, a fear of those opening strains of sleigh bells preceding the first winter's many unplanned Jingle Bells encounters is enough to keep them from leaving the house the day after Thanksgiving. For others, it just isn't Christmas until Nat King Cole wishes you a merry one. Of course, there'll always be those brave and enterprising artists hoping to pen a new classic for people to dread in the late Novembers of years to come, or to just give a little spit-shine to a well-worn favorite and make it look new again.

To kick off the beginning of Hanukkah, and the two-weeks-till-Christmas countdown, we'll be digging up a couple fresh holiday jams that the carolers can add to their collections and that the bah-humbuggers can, well, maybe at least find more tolerable than Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmastime."

First off, we proudly present The Yule Logs: a merry little band out of Chico, CA that's made Christmas cheer a year-round commitment. The self-proclaimed "Hardest Working Band in Snow Business," these joyous young fellows deliver the goods. In addition to some tasteful re-imaginings of the classics, they boast a sleighfull of catchy original tunes that strike a perfect balance between tongue-in-cheek humor and genuine sincerity. Mixing slinky surf-guitar, doo-wop harmonies, Beatlesesque melodies, and plenty of straight up rock-n-roll, these tunes sound great anytime of the year, but definitely come in handy when trying find something everyone can agree on for that big holiday dance party you've been planning.

Featured Artist: Richard Gemmell

Illustrator Richard Gemmell, in this new series of illustrations drawn from his memories of a trip to Scotland, creates an vivid juxtaposition between the terrestrial reality of the great outdoors and the ethereal abstractions of modern art, while beautifully capturing the spirit of each.

Global Travel: 24 Hour Visual

This is pretty wild. We just ran across this video, which demonstrates just how interconnected we are during this age of travel. It's a 24 hour observation of all of the large aircraft flights in the world (represented by the yellow dots), condensed down to about 1 minute. This particular snapshot was taken during the summer months.

Maria Bamford's One Hour Homemade Christmas Stand-Up Special!

Times are tough right now. But don't worry about comedian, actor, and nice lady Maria Bamford. She's doing just fine. You see, Maria sold her soul to The Man this holiday season (appearing in a series of ads for Target). And so, to rectify her perceived integrity-dampening decision, Bamford recorded a cozy little one-hour comedy special whilst sitting beside side her two adorable pugs on a couch in her living room. A sort of a penance/Christmas gift to her fans, it's available as a totally free download. In fact, she encourages you to "Enjoy it. Flip it. Gibber it. Put it in a toaster." Not sure what this means.

To say she has a unique comedic voice would be understating it. What she has is a whole Hands Across America of unique comedic voices. But, remarkably, the steady stream of characters speaking through her like some hilarious demonic possession isn't nearly as unsettling as it could be. In fact, the degree to which she commits to these characters, ranging from her own family members to Sid the Schizophrenic Squid, matched with her excess of genuine warmth and sincerity (and the occasional snoring sounds of a sleeping pug), makes for one of the most endearing and lovable comedy specials in memory. Not to mention one of the funniest.

P.S. She's very much the type of comic that grows on you, so if you are at all intrigued, I'd highly recommend checking out the full special. Enjoy!

Maria Bamford's One-Hour Homemade Christmas Special! from Maria Bamford on Vimeo.

Featured Website: 101 Cookbooks

We’re jealous of Heidi Swanson. Photographer, food writer, cookbook author, and prolific blogger, she lives the life we all dream of – wrapped in the cool culinary blanket that is the San Francisco food scene. Did we mention that her particular culinary niche is healthy, natural cooking? When we have a hankering for delicious recipes that feature ingredients like mushrooms, beans, tofu – or insert your favorite veggie here – we turn to her site, 101 Cookbooks for inspiration. In addition to eclectic, flavorful dishes, her photography is striking. There is a exquisite image to accompany her daily featured recipe, which just feeds the inspiration to get cooking ASAP. Her writing and photographs have been featured in The Washington Post, Vegetarian Times, Whole Foods Markets, and on NPR. Projects (past and present) have been highlighted in many national and local publications including the Wall Street Journal, LIFE, Shape Magazine, Vegetarian Times, USA Today, Fast Company, Entertainment Weekly, Glamour, and the San Francisco Chronicle. Her Sparkling Ginger Chip Cookies are to die for, and a perfect compliment to warm, cozy holiday festivities.

A Day In The Life: Trekking The Inca Trail

We caught up with Allan Wright, owner of Zephyr Adventures, and official Inca Trail guide for our Firestone Pathfinder trek in April. Allan is a Seattle native who has traveled to over 50 countries and has lived on 3 continents, so he knows a thing or two about adventure travel. As the Pathfinder announcement nears (just days away!), we wanted to give you a little glimpse of what it will be like on the trail for the lucky winners!

FV: What time does everyone wake up in the morning?

AW: A typical day starts around 7:00 AM when our staff comes by with a wake-up call and hot drinks brought to our bedside. We all then take our time to get up and moving and have a hot breakfast around 8:00 AM. After breakfast, we pack our gear into our bags and leave it in the tents for the porters and hit the trail around 9:00 or 9:30. One of the secrets of our group is we leave a little later in the morning than most people so we have the trail mostly to ourselves but send a porter ahead earlier to grab the best campsite in the next dedicated camp area.

FV: What's a typical schedule like on the trail? And more importantly, what's for dinner?

AW: We walk until about noon, stopping for photos and visiting ruins. We have a guide at the front and one at the end, allowing each person to walk his or her own pace. Our porters will clean up from breakfast, pack up camp, pass us on the trail, and have a hot lunch waiting for us around noon. They are quite amazing. We usually have a leisurely lunch and then have another three hours or so of hiking in the afternoon, arriving to camp around 4:00 PM. We have a couple hours free time to read, take photos, play cards, etc and then have appetizers around 5:30 and dinner at 6:00. The dinners are quite amazing too - the cooks prepare a multi-course meal over camp stoves. Dinner might consist of a tomato and avocado salad, bread with a Peruvian salsa, pasta with a meat sauce (tofu sauce for the vegetarians), and pudding for dessert. It will of course be even better in April with the Firestone wines and our professional American cook.

FV: Do you have a favorite vista on the trek?

AW: The distances are not super long - perhaps 11 kilometers (7 miles) per day on average. The goal is not to rush but to enjoy the scenery. My favorite day of the four is definitely Day 3, when we pass two amazing ruins and hike along a section of trail that is composed entirely of original stones laid down by the Inca. That evening we have an incredible campsite on an open ridge with views of the nearby mountains and the Urubamba River below.

FV: Any recommendations for the most useful tools or gear?

AW: We will send everyone who joins us a Pre-Departure Packet with details about the entire trip, including a packing list. People actually carry very little on their backs: water, snacks, extra clothes, and a camera. One thing to consider is whether to bring hiking poles. I highly recommend them for anyone who has weak knees (they really help on the downhill) or has balance issues. For others, poles are not really needed. If someone does bring them, they need to have rubber tips.

Good luck everyone! Still have a few days to sign up your friends for a greater chance of winning!

Sashimi Style: Handmade Cutlery

We can think of no other culture, where the metalurgical arts play such a dominant role than in Japan. Ruminating on the history and the importance of the sword in Samuri lore, it’s no wonder that the ancient art of sword fabrication became interwoven with that of the chef knife. The oldest known Japanese chef knife is over 1200 years old but real craftsmanship for chef knives began to develop in the mid 19th Century and continued after World War Two, when General MacArther banned the production of swords. With many craftsman out of work, the Japanese soon turned their energy to making some of the best and most highly regarded cutlery known to man. The signature of any Japanese Chef Knife is its sharpness. To achieve this, the knives are razor sharp on one side and slightly concave on the reverse side. This makes delicate knife work easy and sharpening a breeze. Once you try a handmade, traditionally crafted Japanese chef knife, you’ll never go back. Our go-to source is Korin.

It's safe to say that the presence of the internet has seriously cut down on the amount of actual day-to-day, paper and ink, reading that goes down. Which is a shame, certainly. But among the silver linings to this proverbial cloud is the vastly increased exposure we now have to such little nuggets of wonderment as this short clip, a painstakingly detailed work that would have gone largely unseen in the days before broadband. We watch as the novel Going West, by New Zealand author Maurice Gee, is almost literally brought to life as the pages themselves spring into the third dimension and give form to the actions described therein. This particular silver lining happens to be especially lustrous, as the video is in fact among the New Zealand Book Council's admirable efforts to inspire people to read, and specifically to promote the stories and storytellers of New Zealand. Which, incidentally, makes for our second New Zealand themed post this week.

Inca Trail Finalists: Announcement Coming Soon!

As we gear up to announce the first round of finalists for our Inca Trail Trek, we figured it would be nice to revisit the play-by-play, and let you know how it will all shake out.

Ultimately, we will have only one Pathfinder and only one Guest Chef. Let the game begin! Stay tuned for the big announcement - who will make the cut?

Round One: December 15th

• As you know by now, the process for selecting our Pathfinder involves a random drawing. Ten names will be chosen, and will subsequently go through an interview process with our team. Three semi-finalists will be selected to come to Firestone Winery in Los Olivos to participate in the final selection process.
• Simultaneously, ten chefs will be chosen from our Guest Chef applicant videos on the Firestone Discoveries YouTube Channel. We will select the ten chefs who have the highest number of unique video views. Those ten chefs will also go through an interview process with our team. Three semi-finalists will be selected to participate in the final selection process, a live cook-off at Firestone Winery.

Santa Ynez: January 10th

• The three Pathfinder semi-finalists, plus three Guest Chef semi-finalists will be flown to Santa Barbara, to convene at Firestone Vineyards for the final round.

The Cook-off: January 11th

• Guest Chef semi-finalists will prepare a signature dish live at the Crossroads Barn, Firestone Vineyards. Chefs will be judged by the Firestone staff and a panel of esteemed culinary judges on the following criteria: enthusiasm and credibility toward the Firestone Discoveries program and Firestone Wines (25% factor); verbal communication skills and charisma (25% factor); and presentation and taste of the dish prepared in the cook-off (50% factor).
• Pathfinder semi-finalists will attend and simultaneously blog about the cook-off. They will be judged on how they interact with the chefs, winemaking staff and guests of the winery as well as their writing and reporting skills.
• The official winner announcements will take place at the cook-off!

Homeward Bound: January 12th

The Trek! April 17th - 25th

• Our Pathfinder winner will join us for an all-expense paid four-day trek along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, Peru, accompanied by skilled guides, journal while on the journey, take video and snapshots of the view, discover an ancient civilization and make $1000. In addition, post-trip, the Firestone Pathfinder will file reports on the Firestone Discoveries website, including Firestone wine pairings with favorite dishes from the Inca Trail trek. A minimum of 15 blog posts will be required to fulfill the obligations of the position.
• The winning Guest Chef will also join us on the trek, all expenses paid, for the culinary experience of a lifetime. He or she will work alongside Peruvian cooks, drawing up menus, shopping at local farmers markets, and cooking gourmet meals trailside. After the trip, he or she will work with the Firestone Pathfinder on recipe pairings and blog posts

Featured Photographer: David Burdeny

For the first week or so of brisk, wintry weather, I often find myself ill-prepared to fend off the chill. Wasn't it just yesterday that I was breezin' right along, with a smile and a song, short-sleeved and feeling fine. Can it really be scarf and glove time already? But when this rosy-glassed outlook is at odds with the reality of the thermometer, and you find yourself scurrying home, breathing into your cupped hands, a bare neck seeking shelter in shrugged shoulders, there really is nothing quite like that first wave of warmth as you come through the front door of your cozy abode. Even if you soon realize that the thermostat is a good ten degrees below truly warm, that initial contrast between the arctic outside and the toasty interior can make all the difference. But since it's highly impractical to run outside every few hours just to experience that blissful juxtaposition, why not check out some of David Burdeny's beautifully austere photographs of icebergs in Greenland and Antarctica? The winner of the International Photography Awards Nature Photographer of the Year in 2008, Burdeny's frigid shots are guaranteed to make you feel just a bit warmer by comparison.
 

One From the Vault: Ken Nordine's Colors

Have you heard the big news? Magenta has her own gossip column! Finally, the inside scoop on the ins and outs of the entire color spectrum from that nosiest of colors. Of course, if you doubt that the secret lives of colors are really all that exciting in the first place, just ask Ken Nordine. A legendary Chicagoland radio DJ and voiceover man in the 50s and 60s, Nordine had a huge hit with a series of ads for Fuller Paint in which he waxed poetic on the company's various shades and hues. The ads were so popular, in fact, that the station was flooded with requests for them to be re-aired. Instead, Ken Nordine did the only logical thing. He recorded a entire album of such pieces, 34 tracks in all, on which he coolly holds forth on the vices and virtues of Turquoise, the obscurity of Nutria, and the foolishness of Russet. It's an album as almost-overwhelmingly bizarre as it is inescapably fascinating. As a veteran voice-actor, Nordine surely had ample experience imbuing drab copywriting with vim and vigor, and when he applies these same masterful skills to his thoroughly well-imagined color universe, the results are simply stunning. You'll listen in wide-eyed, jaw-dropped astonishment as he casually introduces the supporting members of the Group Called Oop, with Yellow Ocher on bari sax and Burnt Umber, recently paroled, on drums, before finally, excitedly, calling to the stage the star of the show: Sepia! You'll witness the dramatic irony of Olive's somber self-pity, while, elsewhere, "those with the nose for the new (the passionate few)," are about to name Olive the color of the year! And to think, without the insightful insights of Mr. Nordine, you'd have no clue/ of the greenest of greens, and the bluest of blues/ of the ongoing goings on/ of every color, shade, tint, and hue.

Incidentally, the antics of Ken's colors seem to have provided ample inspiration for aspiring animators, including what appears to be multiple class project built around his pieces, one featuring animated paper cut-outs, and another utilizing kinetic typography.

Drinks: Mexican Hot Chocolate

There are few things that capture the richness and beauty of a culture the way chocolate does. Every culture has its own interpretation. Whether melted, frosted, whipped into a souffle, or formed into a sensuous bar, chocolate is an expressive medium of regionality. Nothing stirs our souls more than the coming chill of winter, the warm glow of our fireplace and nice cup of Hot Chocolate made with Mexican Chocolate. This is a primordial chocolate experience, tasting much the same as when it was first made by the ancient Aztec civilization. So revered by the Aztecs, chocolate was used as both food and currency. The botanical name for Chocolate is Theobroma, or “food of the Gods," and was one of the many culinary delicacies brought back to Europe by the Spanish. Mexican chocolate typically comes in tablet form and is somewhat dark, coarsely ground and mixed with an array of spices (think cinnamon, allspice, even cayenne). To make our Mexican Hot Chocolate, we go for Ibarra brand chocolate and take our cues from Rick Bayless, chef-restauranteur-author and master of Mexican cuisine, in his cookbook Authentic Mexican. Pretty simple, and really delicious!

Serves 2-3

2 ½ cups milk (or water)

3.3 ounce tablet Mexican Chocolate, roughly chopped

1. Simmering. In a medium sized saucepan, simmer the milk with the chocolate for a few minutes over medium low heat, stirring constantly to dissolve the chocolate.

2. Beating. Either pour into a pitcher and beat well with whisk or pour into a blender. Regardless, you’ll wind up with a nicely frothy drink. Serve at once.

*Photo is taken from Vegetarian Times magazine

High Tea in a Tree

Combining fine dining and tree houses seems like a great idea no matter how you slice it, but in the land that famously portrayed Middle Earth in the Lord of the Rings movies, it's absolutely inspired. Especially considering that the structure in question, which resembles an enormous chrysalis on the verge of producing a pterodactyl-sized butterfly, could easily pass for some sort of magical elven diner.


The Yellow Treehouse, which was built as part of a promotion for the directory service Yellow, was unfortunately only in operation as a restaurant for a few short months, but luckily for anyone in need of a majestic setting for a classy event, the tree house is currently available as a venue for hire. Anyone for a wedding reception in the trees?

The Interview Project from David Lynch

Filmmaker David Lynch set out on a roadtrip across the country with no real destination in mind; no real parameters or agenda. The only objective was to find people and talk to them: people driving down the road, walking on the sidewalk, mowing their lawns, sitting in bars, you name it. Traveling 20,000 miles over a period of 70 days, the team amassed 121 interviews, which are being released every three days via the Interview Project website. Through the Interview Project, Lynch, in his own unique way, nudges us to meet our neighbors, know our hometowns, to listen and simply let people tell their own story in their own way. From Jess in Needles, California to Arthur in Keene, New Hampshire, prepare to meet a diverse string of characters, and step into their world for a few minutes. Now playing, Episode 062, featuring Cynthia Truesdell from South Kortright, New York.