Estrella Damm INEDIT

Ferran Adria, considered by many to be the world's greatest chef, closed down his restaurant El Bulli last year.  So the chance for my wife and I to taste his food went from slim to pretty much non existent.  My wife did come across a bottle of beer at her work that was created by Ferran Adria, the Damm brewmasters, Julia Soler, and El Bulli's sommelier team called Estrella Damm INEDIT.  So for me to taste anything created by him I think I am going to have to settle for his beer.  When I first went online to find it I thought it was going to be very expensive and hard to find.  Turns out I could get it at the Bevmo close by and it is selling for only $9.99 for a 750 ml bottle, not to bad.  We had a small 4th of July barbecue last week and decided to open it up to have with our burgers and hot dogs.  We both enjoyed it.  It is a nice, light, easy drinking beer.  Here are the tasting notes I got off of their website:

Tasting notes: High intensity and aromatic complexity. Its appearance is slightly cloudy. Fruity and floral to the nose, with a yeasty sensation and sweet spices reminiscences. Creamy and fresh texture, soft volume and delicate carbonic. Long aftertaste and pleasant memory.

Made to accompany the festival of flavours modern cuisine offers us. For Sommeliers trying to accomodate different types of flavours has always been a nightmare... now there is a solution!

With its delicate, sophisticated bubbles this beer can take acidic, sweet and sour flavours by the hand. the symphony of flavours in each dish is different, but there can be a common thread capable of unifying them all, for a sense of continuity so there is no need to switch drinks. This beer has a rich and highly adaptable bouquet. In other words a unique personality: smooth yet complex.

If you go to their website you can listen to video's about the beer, read a lot of good info on it, and find out where to get it.  www.estrelladamminedit.com  

Cooking Duck Breast

My wife and I both really enjoy duck.  Last week we agreed that I would show her how to cook duck breast, and she would show me how to bake one of her delicious pies.  Cooking duck breast at home is easy, quick, and very tasty.  

Place duck breasts on cutting board and wipe dry with paper towel.

 Score the duck breast, cutting through the fat, but being careful not to cut into the flesh.

Season with sea salt and pepper.

At home I have a nonstick saute pan, make sure it is big enough so the pan is not crowded.  Place the breasts skin side down over medium heat.

Now season the flesh side with sea salt and pepper.

As the fat renders, drain into a container and save.  Duck fat has great flavor.  We used the reserve fat to cook our asparagus in later on.

 Flip the duck breasts onto their flesh side after the skin is caramelized, having a deep brown color. This usually takes between 8-10 minutes.

Cook the duck breasts for about another 1-2 minutes flesh side down to achieve a medium rear to medium doneness.

Take duck out of pan and place on clean cutting board.

Loosely tent foil over duck breasts to rest, 5-7 minutes.  I had to use this bowl because I forgot to buy foil at the grocery store.  Oops.

Slice duck and you are ready to eat.

Duck is great to eat without any sauce, having a great flavor all on its own.  But duck also goes with many flavor combinations.  For a quick sauce, reduce a 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar to a syrup consistency and drizzle on top.  Hope you enjoy.

2008 Chateau De Lugagnac

After a busy Holiday weekend at work, Sunday night my wife and I decided to have a relaxed night at home. We grilled up some Korean short ribs and asparagus, along with some sides of beans, quinoa, pork rillette, and romesco sauce from her work. We opened up a bottle of the 2008 Chateau De Lugagnac. It is an easy drinking Bordeaux at a great price point. Nice wine with good fruit, spice tones, and structured tannins at a great price point. I bought this at www.klwines.com but also saw it on www.amazon.com for $11.29 per bottle. Give it a try and let us know what you think.

Farmer's Market

Have you been to your local Farmer's Market lately?  Now is a great time to go and visit.  With an amazing variety of fruits and vegetables in season, you can eat fresh, seasonal, and local.  My wife and I just visited the San Luis Obispo Thursday night market earlier this week. While there you can have dinner from one of the street food vendors, be entertained by one of the music acts going on, and get your grocery shopping done.  Wherever you are living their is sure to be a Farmer's Market near you.  What is great is that they are all different.  Varying in size and what they offer.  But it is a great way to eat seasonally, healthier, support local business, and maybe even try some new fruits or vegetables.

Neither of us had ever had duck eggs before, so we decided to give them a try.

The berries are great for snacking on, but we bought some to be used in a berry pie my wife is going to bake.

Our collection from the Thursday night market.  

By the time we got home we ended up with duck eggs, kale, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, cilantro, cauliflower, plums, fresh squeezed blood orange juice, asparagus, broccoli, beets, carrots, celery, cabbage, lettuce, and avocados.  We usually don't come home with this much but our refrigerator was pretty bare when we left for the market.  We will use these foods for snacks, sides in dinner entrees, to bake a pie, and will juice a lot of these vegetables as well.  

You might read this and look at these pictures and think that we must be health nuts.  But the truth is that I am hooked on soda's, eat to much fast food, and am about 30 pounds overweight.  My wife eats much healthier than I do, but together we probably eat to much processed food.  Going to the local Farmer's market is a great way to start changing some eating habits, and to get excited about healthy food again.  Whatever your reason is for going to the Market, we hope you enjoy.