ASK THE SPLENDID TABLE® by Lynne Rossetto Kasper
Host of The Splendid Table®, American Public Media’s national food show. Ask questions and find Lynne, recipes, and station listings at splendidtable.org, or 800-537-5252. Copyright 2006 Lynne Rossetto Kasper
Dear Lynne, I’ve had a couple too many clunkers with mail order gifts -- lousy quality, careless packing, not arriving in time. Could you help me with some dependable sources for really exceptional mail order food gifts?
For instance, last year I got a jar of jam that changed my mind about jam forever. Stupidly, I tossed the jar. That is the kind of thing I’d appreciate -- small, really good things, and also where to get a few blowout gifts for the family. Many thanks and Merry Christmas, Jay
Dear Jay, With the raft of good choices available, I’ll stick to a short list of solid sites I’ve used over the past several years. Quality and dependability are high in each one, and so is price. Yet, for instance, a jar of jam like the kind I think you loved is about $12. Seemingly ridiculous for jam, but reasonable for the gift budget. And once tasted, “ridiculous” goes out the window.
1. Katz and Company (katzandco.com) , a little company in the Napa Valley, cooks up the lushiest, chunkiest, truest tasting apricot jam I’ve had so far. Their Branches Apricot jam will not be available until June 2007, but this is a case where sending a gift card promising what is to come is a good thing. They wait for the season, do small batches with select fruit, and when the jam’s gone, there is no more.
2. June Taylor Jams ( junetaylorjams.com) is another prime source for marmalades and conserves. Like Katz and Company, Taylor works in small batches, and she coddles each one with techniques which create deep, layered tastes. Her Meyer Lemon Marmalade is so true to flavor you think you are standing under the tree. I’ve never had a jar from her that has not been a standout, and she has stock year ‘round on most items.
3. Chef Shop (chefshop.com) is a fine all around site for food gifts. Their chocolate bars and baking chocolates could keep us happy for a long time -- they have brands you don’t see all over the place. The new press 2006 olive oils are in from Italy are their feature right now. And being a pushover for canned olive-oil packed specialty tuna fish, I like the brands they carry (Yes, there are some of us who would love getting tuna fish for Christmas!).
For the spurge gift Chef Shop has a orchard-to-home program. A local family farm picks their outstanding cherries ripe, packs them and overnights the fruit in early summer.
4. Tea Source (teasource.com) is my local tea shop which also mail orders teas and tea paraphernalia. Since you can order anything from two ounces on up, small gifts are possible.
Tea Source’s creator, Bill Waddington, personally sources his own teas from India, Sri Lanka and China. Aside from being a walking encyclopedia on the subject, his teas are prime. Right now I am in my Ceylon period (I like my tea with milk and sugar and Ceylons take kindly to this treatment) drinking Bill’s Ceylon Doombagastalawa Estate, OP which is aromatic, slightly sweet and has a soft fruitiness to it, and his Ceylon Pedro Estate FOP 1 which is bright, astringent and faintly sweet. There are more exotic teas and all of them come with specific brewing instructions.
5. Gustiamo.com is the site for deeply regional Italian foods of sound quality, For the Italophile cook, their ValTaro dried porcini mushrooms (the Rolls Royce of dried porcini) with a box of one of their single wheat pastas made by Latini would be like giving a perfect diamond. They carry a fine pannetone, the Italian sweet bread/cake that means Christmas morning for many Italian-Americans (not to mention how good it is for bread pudding for New Year’s day.
6. Zingermans.com is the big brother of food sites. Their own artisan breads, raw milk and artisan cheeses (including homemade Liptauer -- the Hungarian spread that’s addictive) from America, Italy, and France, oils, cured meats, condiments, candies, pastries, and on, and on. Quality is high, so are prices, but you will not be disappointed.
Dear Lynne, What can I do with bagged salad that is starting to wilt in the bag. It isn’t bad, but it isn’t good enough for the salad bowl. This happens all the time -- I don’t use it by the end date and have to throw it out -- what a waste of money. Help! Greens Girl
Dear Greens Girl, We are channeling each other. Last week the same dilemma developed in my refrigerator. My solution is my usual: When in double roast. But roast with other vegetables which contrast with the salad-- something sweet, something earthy and some that marries everything together which nearly always means onions. Here is my improvisation. Vary it with carrots, other greens, shallots, scallions and turnips. Seasonings can be almost anything you’d like.
Roast Greens with Rutabaga, Sweet Onion and Yams
Serves 4 to 6
The roast can be kept several days in the refrigerator and reheats very well.
2 5-ounce bags spring mix, or baby herbs
2 to 3 medium onions, cut in quarters or sixths
4 medium rutabagas, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch thick, bite-size pieces
2 medium yams, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
8 sprigs fresh thyme
12 fresh sage leaves
1/4 tight-packed cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon each ground cumin, allspice, and coriander
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
salt to taste
3 to 4 tablespoons good tasting extra-virgin olive oil
1. Preheat oven to 450º. Spread a sheet of heavy duty foil over a large, shallow roasting pan (a half sheet pan is what I use). Slip it in the oven to preheat.
2. In a large bowl, toss together all the ingredients. Carefully take the hot pan out of the oven, turn all the vegetables onto it and spread them out. Don’t worry if they pile up a bit. Roast 1 hour, turning occasionally. Check to see if rutabaga is soft and greens are wilted and dark. They should border on being crisp. Roast another 20 minutes if necessary, Season to taste and serve hot, or rewarm.
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Comments: 11
Ellen Chace
Thanks!
Andrea Gallagher
i believe I saw a recipe for Maple Spiced nuts in the Baker's Chronicle but when I went back to check, I found I had mistakenly deleted the issue. can you help me. Thanks, I love the Baker's Chronicle.
Beth Finster
Every Christmas, my uncle gives out lemon curd as a gift. It's a family tradition and we all look forward to it, not buying any substitutes until we get our sugary, citron dose under the tree. What I want to know is are there any other kinds of curds to make and do you have any recipe suggestions? I've seen lime curd at UK import stores, but are there any more exotic options like mango or raspberry? I figure I can make these substitutes and expand my taste buds while not defying the rules of tradition. Thanks so much for your help and have a wonderful holiday season.
Nevin
Thank you,
Every summer I have a bumper crop of basil in my yard and I love to make pesto with it. I freeze at least a year's worth (a little goes a long way!) but there's still more and more basil out there. I thought pesto might make a nice holiday gift for family members, but I'm not sure how to package it to keep it safely from August through December. Can I can it like jam? Any suggestions?
Love your show and your weekly columns! Thanks for the great suggestions and I always enjoy the bits of extra advice at the end of each recipe.
Charlene
Both my children have just graduated from college and I am sending them on the Grand Tour of Europe. I have been looking for a guide to eating through Europe -- not the high end restaurants but the folk foods and the everyman specialties of a city or area -- and something cheaper than Apple's guide.
I know everyone tells you this, but I love your show -- my weekend cannot start without the Splendid Table. Thanks so much.
I have a plum pudding recipe that is about 180 years old and calls for a pound of suet. My question is, can lard or perhaps vegetable shortening be used in leau of suet? I have had a hard time trying to locate a good clean suet.
Many thanks for the Buche de Noel recipe via the Baker's Chronicle. For years I've hankered to tackle one and thought after reading and re-reading your recipe that it'd be the one. The genoise turned out perfectly and with it I had no qualms. You were absolutely right - the french buttercream is down right voluptuous with a dozen egg yolks and pound and a half of butter.
My problems lie with the sugar syrup. I used a small All-Clad pot (6" wide) on my vintage 1973 Hotpoint electric eye stove top. The thermometer was calibrated correctly, but by the time it reached 250 degrees the sugar was not completely liquid in the middle. ( I resisted mightily the urge to stir and used the dampened brush on the sides only. All the ingredients were placed in the pan in the order you advised.)
My resulting buttercream is gritty. Delicious, but gritty. Here are my burning questions: What steps could I take to prevent this from happening next time? Why is it not advisable to stir the syrup?
I do love the show and appreciate your careful coaching. Thanks