Basque Hooky- pintxos & tapas

Sometimes it's hard to convince some people that I am working.
Really I am.
R&D Basque style means research and devour along the gorgeous coast of Biskaia.

Tapas.
Pintxos.
Raciones.
Jamon de Jabuga.
Pelletas.
Bellota.
Bacalao.
Guindilla.
Pimient de Padron.
Kokotxas.

Txacoli.

Get the picture?
This was a week of Basque Hooky with an eye to the products and markets of my favorite parts of the coastfrom San Sebastian/Donostia to Bilbao. Yes, we also squeezed in a visit to the Guggenheim, that looks amazingly in scale now as Nuevo Bilbao grows up around it.

But my favorite night this week was the 4th of July in the old port area of Getxo.
Young, old, dogs and just 2 English-speaking voyeurs indulging in sangria, sidra and pulpo, chorizo in cider, anchovies and olives and the lights of the Port of Bilbao replacing the fireworks.

Perfect.

Milesker

French Summer Food- in small batches

It's too hot to cook.

Even in the outside tiki hut of a kitchen we sweat...
and not just onions and shallots.
With Summer heat comes summer fruit and in a frenzy of small batch conserving Jenny, Matt and I made:

Carmelized Confit Cherry (perfect over ice cream)
Pink Peach Vinegar*
Vinegar of Pruneaux d'Agen* (for deglazing the pan when making sauteed foie gras)
Compote de Rhubarbe
Sirop de Mirabelle (for a Kir Verger- perrier and syrup)

and that was not even trying...


*** to details on making fruit vinegars see the recipe in my book. Basically I poach VERY RIPE fruit (approx 1-2 pounds) in 2-3 cups of vinegar- white for the peach, red wine for the prunes. Cook until the fruit has released itself into the liquid and the liquid has reduced by half. Strain, filter and decant.

Monday with Mushroom Matt

I think one of my favorite things is finding wild, edible foods. Better yet and more specific is finding wild mushrooms. When I score some 'poplar' mushrooms like these, it's just one more reason why I really like living in this area. I didn't even have to look hard, they were right outside my front door!

I also like to think that after a month of rain, we deserve some sort of treat. These mushrooms will do for now. As soon as they hit the pan, my mouth starts watering... Mushroom Matt