Stone fruits macerated in little more than Chateau Ste. Michelle’s Late Harvest White Riesling make a simple, sangría-esque summer dessert.
Single-Varietal Vinegars -California's Wine-Friendly CondimentsBy Carole Kotkin
Opulent aromas of sweet apricot. Luscious flavors of ripe peach and plum. A lengthy finish spiked with bright Bing cherry notes. These descriptors roll off the tongues of wine drinkers year-round. But at the height of summer, it's time to get reacquainted with the fruits whose essence we so often invoke when swirling, sniffing and sipping.
Stone fruits, with their naturally vibrant qualities, offer indisputable rewards when eaten fresh from the orchard. Their very appearance at roadside stands and greengrocers seems to brighten our outlook and lighten our step, invoking sensory memories of summers past and affirming that the days, indeed, have become longer. And although there may be nothing quite as sublime as digging into a bowl of corn flakes crowned with freshly sliced peaches, it requires only a little more effort to compose any number of harmonious masterpieces using stone fruit either as a focal point or an accent.
Wine country chefs, whose proximity to cherry, apricot, peach and plum orchards can be as close as their back door, are especially versed in stone fruit-based cooking. Their refreshing interpretations, which range from soups to sorbets, can rival the most distinctive wine in bouquet and flavor, yet these dishes also pair exceedingly well with a spectrum of reds and whites.
No amount of cooking expertise, however, can make up for a lack of quality ingredients. When picked too soon, stone fruit, so named because of the single pit they contain, can be almost flavorless. And if left on the tree to ripen and then packed carelessly, they will likely bruise.
"Nothing is better than a fruit in its own proper season, perfectly ripened and handled with care by the people who harvest it," notes Alice Waters, the venerable chef-owner of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California, in her book Chez Panisse Fruit.
Waters was among the first to contract with area gardeners to grow organic herbs, lettuces, vegetables and fruits for her restaurant in the early 1970s.
Today legions of chefs emulate her, insisting that produce be grown for maximum flavor - by certified, designated growers - instead of transportability.
Stone fruits are the building blocks for complex dishes - salads, soups, salsas, chutneys and sauces - that appear well before the dessert course.
Indeed, the classic, old-fashioned appeal of a peach almost contradicts its modern possibilities, not to mention the peach's circuitous journey to the American table.
The peach originated in China, where it was believed to impart the power of immortality. Persian traders discovered the sumptuous fruit and took it home. After Alexander the Great's conquest of Persia, the peach eventually found its way west into Roman orchards. In the 16th century, Spanish explorers brought it to the New World, where Native Americans quickly adopted it, planting peach trees as they migrated through various regions of the country.
Characterized as either "freestone" or "clingstone," referencing how easily the flesh separates from the stone (cooks favor freestone because of this quality), peaches are now grown throughout the United States. Nearly 2,000 hybrid varieties exist, of which 200-odd are sold commercially.
Which state grows the best peaches - California, Georgia, New Jersey - is constantly debated among fans of the fruit. Despite these rivalries, Georgia is the most well known for its peaches. In summer, driving through this Southern state's rural districts, you know you're in peach country before spotting even the first orchard because an intoxicating fragrance permeates the air.
The peach is so revered here that it's commonly served at state functions. When he cooked for two Georgia governors (Zell Miller and Joe Frank Harris from 1987 to 1991), Chef Scott Peacock, now the executive chef of Watershed in Decatur, recalls showcasing the yellow, white, freestone and clingstone peaches harvested from the trees at the governor's mansion: "The crop was so abundant that the trees bent from the weight of the peaches."
Peacock, co-author of The Gift of Southern Cooking: Recipes and Revelations from Two Great American Cooks (with Southern cooking legend Edna Lewis), buys his peaches from either small organic farmers or from the Georgia State Farmers' Market in Atlanta. "One thing I learned as a young chef is that a great [dish] doesn't have to be fancy," he says, "as long as it's made with integrity and every [ingredient] is the best of its kind."
Although Georgia is officially nicknamed the "Peach State," California is the country's largest producer of peaches and nectarines (the latter differs from its cousin only in the lack of a single "fuzzy" gene). Dan Lewis, the chef at Ironstone Vineyards in the Sierra Nevada Foothills, grew up in Monterey, California, and recounts that peaches and other stone fruits grew in everyone's backyard. "If you didn't have a certain variety of peach that you wanted, you swiped one from your neighbors," he confesses. "My grandfather's orchard in the Russian River Valley had six varieties of peaches, plums and nectarines." He notes that taking a bite of a perfectly ripe, sweet peach, warm from the sun, with the juice running off your chin, is a sensual experience. "It doesn't get any better than that," he says. "Peaches are my favorite fruit."
Lacking his own orchard, Lewis, author of a forthcoming Ironstone Vineyards cookbook, now buys heirloom peaches from Goldbud Farms in Placerville. "You can smell them a mile away," he enthuses. And when it comes to cooking with them, he says they adapt beautifully. "Their sweet, musky earthiness marries with wine and savory foods," such as a lavender-laced peach soup or a salad of butter lettuce, red onions and fresh nectarines dressed with a nectarine-Chardonnay vinaigrette.
Goldbud Farms owner Ron Mansfield plants about 40 acres of stone fruits, which is a small commercial crop by California standards. To ensure perfect, unblemished fruit, he sorts by hand and cradles the fruit in wood crates for shipment. "My goal is to provide a completely tree-ripe piece of fruit - it's ready to eat now - with very strong flavors," he says. "It may not be a good traveler, but its taste will be sublime. For example, the old Indian Blood variety is not too attractive - it's grayish green with long fuzz and a creamy white interior with purple and red swirls - but when it's a little firm it tastes of raspberries and when soft, the flavor is floral Muscat. Once you've tasted one, you'll never forget it," he says.
Craig Shelton, chef/proprietor of The Ryland Inn in Whitehouse, New Jersey, says "white peaches are the best-tasting peaches on the planet," and agrees that the "buttery-textured peaches make a perfect complement to crisp and tangy salad greens." He also notes that white peaches, sometimes called Summerwhites, which he purchases a few miles away at Mellick's farm in Tewksbury, have a marked affinity with a range of herbs and spices. He demonstrates such in a langoustine salad with salsify, green almonds and kumquats flavored with caraway seed, bay leaf, thyme and peach pectin, recalling that a Condrieu (the Northern Rhône white wine crafted from viognier) tasting compelled him to experiment with these ingredients. "The wine is so evocative of peach blossom, acacia and tropical fruit, like oranges and kumquats, I was inspired to apply that yin/yang combination to a salad," he says.
It is no coincidence that these basic harmonies exist. After all, peaches, plums, apricots and cherries are generally grown in the same regions that also prove favorable to wine grapes for the same reasons. In the Sierra Nevada Foothills of northwest California, for example, the summer days are hot, the nights cool and breezy. Stone fruits mature slowly under these conditions - as do grapes - developing rich, full, finely balanced flavors that are missing from crops rushed to ripeness in hotter regions.
The area's "mountain grown" plums are particularly prized by stone fruit lovers like Chef Annie Roberts, daughter of Margrit Biever Mondavi and co-author of Annie and Margrit, Recipes and Stories from the Robert Mondavi Kitchen. "I prefer the Santa Rosa plum because it is firm and holds its shape in cooking, and the pit comes out easily," Roberts says. This quality is especially important when the fruit needs to be decorative as well as flavorful, as it is in Roberts's plum galette accented with slivered almonds, which she serves with the Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Moscato d'Oro. "I grew up with fruit desserts in the European tradition. The best thing about them is that you don't feel full afterward," she remarks.
Plums themselves are rife with tradition. Centuries ago, the English began describing anything highly desirable as "plum" because the fruit itself tasted so wonderful.
Second only to peaches in stone fruit production, plums are grown on five continents, come in a stunning array of shapes, colors and sizes, and can be divided into two categories: Japanese and European. The former (better known as Italian, President and Empress), which actually originated in China but were imported to the United States from Japan in the 1800s, are the sweetest and smallest variety. The classic Japanese-style plum is the Santa Rosa, a deep red, round fruit with rosy-amber flesh that was developed by horticulturist Luther Burbank in Sonoma County. European plums, often referred to as prune plums, tend to be smaller in size with a higher sugar content. There are more than 200 varieties of the latter, with California dominating domestic production. One hybrid worth looking for is the Pluot, which is primarily plum crossed with some apricot for sweetness and texture.
Like most stone fruit, fragrant, sweet, alluring apricots are native to China (references date back to 2205 B.C.). As its Latin name, prunus armenicaa, suggests, the fruit was probably introduced into the region of the Mediterranean by way of Armenia. The Greeks knew it as early as 287 B.C., and apricots are still widely grown in the Middle East. Scholars have even suggested that the apricot, not the apple, was the Garden of Eden's "forbidden" fruit.
Not until the apricot reached California (via Spanish missionaries), however, was it propagated in the New World. The first major commercial crop was produced south of San Francisco in 1792, and today California is responsible for 98 percent of the entire national harvest. Because it is extremely fragile, only 23 percent of the crop is sold as fresh fruit.
Some of the state's finest apricot-growing districts are in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, where warm summer days and cool nights help many varieties mature slowly and develop a rich, balanced taste.
Discerning chefs will always sniff the fruit, because if it doesn't smell good it will not taste good. Kimball Jones, executive chef at Wente Vineyards' on-site restaurant and co-author with Carolyn Wente, of Sharing the Vineyard Table and The Casual Vineyard Table, doesn't pay much attention to the variety of apricot, "just as long as the fruit is ripe and tastes delicious." He buys apricots from Frog Hollow Farms, a certified organic grower in Brentwood.
The farm, located about an hour from the winery in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, is owned by Alfred "Farmer Al" Courchesne. "Variety, ultimately, is what determines taste," he contends. "We grow goldensweet, Robada and orange red. These apricots are incredibly sweet with a high brix," he says. "Our Brentwood apricots are grown on rich, clay loam soil with alluvial deposits, and this great soil, combined with our unique microclimate, creates a terroir that other areas can't match. People love our apricots because they make a great eating experience."
Chef Jones showcases the apricot's juicy versatility by baking them with farmers' cheese on flatbread and topping them with prosciutto, arugula and lemon vinaigrette. "The salt in the prosciutto and the acid in the vinaigrette balances the sweetness in the apricots," he explains. He pairs his specialty with a crisp Ivan Tamas Winery Sauvignon Blanc or even an off-dry Tamas Riesling. "I like a wine - whether it's red or white - that's fairly fresh without a lot of oak so it won't overpower fruit dishes."
Alternately, one can offset fruit acids and sugars by introducing wine into the actual recipe. For example, chef-owner Cory Schreiber of Wildwood Restaurant in Portland, Oregon, and author of Wildwood: Cooking from the Source in the Pacific Northwest, makes a compote of dried and fresh cherries combined with a mixture of wines - "Zinfandel for heartiness and Port for sweetness and fruit," he says - to accompany his wood-roasted pork chop. A salad at Wildwood, a lovely construction of chopped cherries, golden beets and goat cheese with a citrus vinaigrette, is another lesson in how simply fruit can be transformed into an exhilarating and attractive late-summer dish. "It's a great balance of sweet and sour in the vinaigrette and salt in the cheese," Schreiber notes.
Cherries are a natural choice for Pacific Northwesterners. Originating in Asia and cultivated throughout Europe and North America, this most diminutive of stone fruits arrived in the region with Henderson Lewelling, an area pioneer who planted them in western Oregon in 1847. America's best-known sweet cherry, the Bing, was developed on Lewelling's farm in 1875, and was named for one of his Chinese employees.
Today Oregon and Washington together turn out 60 percent of the domestic sweet cherry crop, which totals more than 650 million pounds of tart and sweet cherries each year. Michigan grows about 75 percent of the tart cherry crop.
There are literally hundreds of cherry varieties worldwide, but about a dozen are cultivated commercially in the United States, and these fall into three basic categories: dark sweet, such as Bing and Schmidt; light sweet, like Royal Anne (often yellow with a pale red tinge); and sour or pie cherries, like Montmorency, which make up the bulk of the world's harvest.
Schreiber buys delicate, sweet Rainier, Lambert and Queen Anne cherries from small farmers on both the Oregon and Washington sides of Hood Valley, nestled between Mount Hood and the Columbia River. He says the area's weather and mineral-rich blend of volcanic and sandy soils are cherry-friendly: "Coupled with the dueling climates of the western Cascades and the arid eastern desert, it's a fruit- and wine-growers paradise."
Scott Webster, co-owner with brother Addison of a third-generation orchard business and on-line retailer in the Hood River Valley, The Fruit Company, grows cherries on both the Oregon and Washington side of the Columbia River. "You can dig down 50 feet into the unique, heavy, loamed soil. We don't have to compensate with artificial materials to build it up," he says. What Webster doesn't grow, he buys from farmers in Yakima and Wenatchi. "We just want the absolute best."
His favorite cherry is the rosy-blushed, gold Rainier. "It's a challenge to grow because you can lose your whole crop in a bad rain, " he says. Just as it is with wine grapes, a lot of rain during the growing season almost always results in watery, tasteless fruit. Conversely, fruit grown in a dry season is usually the sweetest because the sugar is more concentrated.
Washington's Yakima County alone produces more cherries than most states. It is also becoming one of the most important areas in the country for wine grapes. Thanks to some dormant volcanoes - Mount Rainier and Mount Adams - the soil here is rich in nitrogen, while melting snows from the mountaintops provide the requisite moisture.
Chef John Sarich, Chateau Ste. Michelle's culinary director and author of John Sarich's Food & Wine of the Pacific Northwest, willingly undertakes a three-hour drive to Yakima to buy Bing, Lambert and Queen Anne cherries "as big as ping-pong balls." He fondly calls them "two-bite cherries," and says, "They actually crack when you bite into them." He notes with regret that most of these whoppers are exported to Japan where they sell for as much as $1 apiece.
Though some classic dishes feature cherries, such as duck Montmorency, contemporary usage is more varied. Sarich prepares braised rabbit with Merlot and cherries which, he writes, "have a natural affinity for our Meritage wines produced in the same region. These robust wines are packed with concentrated flavors and aromas of dark cherry, with notes of coffee, mint, oak and spice that highlight the cherries and herbs in this dish." Game meats such as venison and squab also pair well with cherries.
Whether you're eating them out of hand, baking them in pies or turning them into savory dishes, the abundance of farm-designated, orchard and heirloom stone fruit varieties allows us to enhance our cooking with their very specific characteristics. When paired with wine grown in the same appellation, the allure is at once deceptively simple and wonderfully rejuvenating.
Food Editor Carole Kotkin is a Miami-based cooking instructor and consultant who co-authored Mmmmiami - Tempting Tropical Tastes for Home Cooks Everywhere.
Peach-Lavender Soup
From Chef Dan Lewis of Ironstone Vineyards
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chopped fresh lavender
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 10 medium peaches, peeled and pitted
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup Amaretto
- 1/2 cup crème fraîche
- 1/4 cup roughly chopped toasted almonds
Cut the peaches in chunks and purée with the lemon juice, Amaretto and lavender syrup until smooth. (Superfine sugar may be added if the fruit is not sweet enough.)
Ladle the soup into chilled bowls and top with a dollop of crème fraîche. Arrange the almonds on the crème fraîche and sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of lavender.
Serves 6
Tomato-Peach Salsa From John Sarich at Chateau Ste. Michelle
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced
- 2 peaches, peeled and diced
- 2 nectarines, peeled and diced
- 1 fresh mild green Anaheim chili, seeded and diced
- 6 green onions, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
- Juice of 2 limes
- Salt to taste
Makes 4 to 5 cups
Nectarine and Butter Lettuce Salad From Chef Dan Lewis of Ironstone Vineyards
- 2 ripe nectarines
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot
- 1 cup Chardonnay
- 2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 2 heads butter lettuce
- 1 shallot, peeled and thinly sliced
Scrape any remaining pulp from the vanilla beans into a blender. Add the browned nectarine and wine mixture and purée until smooth. Pour the mixture into a bowl, add the brown sugar, vinegar, and pepper and slowly whisk in the oil.
Cut the remaining nectarine in half and cut each half into 9 slices.
Toss the lettuce with half of the nectarine vinaigrette and place some in the center of each plate. Fan 3 nectarine slices over the lettuce and top with the sliced shallot. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the salad and sprinkle with the pepper.
Serves 6
Queen Anne Cherry & Golden Beet Salad From Chef Cory Schreiber of Wildwood Restaurant
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
- Juice of 1 orange
- 3/4 tablespoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 pound small to medium gold or yellow beets
- 1/3 pound Queen Anne or Rainier cherries (yellow/red varieties), pitted and cut in half
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 medium red onion, peeled, cut in half and thinly sliced crosswise
- 2 ounces soft goat cheese
- 1/4 pound mixed baby greens
In a medium saucepan, cover the beets with water and add the salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20-35 minutes, or until tender. Let cool slightly and peel. Cut into 1/2" thick wedges and place in a medium bowl. While the beets are still warm, toss with 1/3 cup vinaigrette. Add the pitted cherries and sliced red onion to the cherries and let stand for 30 minutes.
Place the lettuce in a separate bowl and toss with the remaining vinaigrette. Season to taste.
Spoon the cherry, beet and red onion mixture onto four plates and crumble some of the goat cheese onto the mixture. Place the dressed greens in the middle of the salad and serve.
Serves 4
Rosemary and Garlic-Crusted Chicken Breasts with Port-Marinated Nectarines From The Casual Vineyard Table
by Carolyn Wente and Kimball Jones
- 2 tablespoons Port
- 1/4 cup dark molasses
- 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 4 to 5 large nectarines, quartered
- 5 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
In a bowl, stir together the Port, molasses, vinegar and honey. Add the nectarines and toss lightly to coat evenly. Marinate at room temperature for about 20 minutes.
In a small bowl, combine the rosemary, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and mix well. Place the chicken breasts on a platter and coat each one with the rosemary-garlic mixture, pressing gently onto both sides to create a crust. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes.
When the grill is hot, remove the nectarines from the marinade, reserving the marinade. Place the nectarines on the grill rack and grill, turning once, until cooked through and tender but not mushy, about 8 minutes on each side. Grill the chicken breasts for about 10 minutes on the first side, then turn and grill the second side for 7 minutes, or until the meat is springy to the touch.
While the nectarines and chicken are grilling, pour the nectarine marinade into a small saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, until slightly thickened.
To serve, place a chicken breast on each plate. Drizzle the reduced marinade over the chicken and place 3 to 4 nectarine slices alongside. Serve immediately.
Serves 6
Roasted Pork Loin with Gewürztraminer-Apricot Compote From Wildwood: Cooking from the Source in the Pacific Northwest by Cory Schreiber
- 1 cup Gewürztraminer
- 1 cup apple cider
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 whole vanilla bean, split and scraped, or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 8 ounces dried apricot halves
- 1 4-rib pork loin roast (about 21/2 to 3 pounds), bone removed
- 11/2 teaspoons salt
- 11/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon unsalted butter
Preheat the oven to 350°. Season the pork with 1 teaspoon of the salt and 1 teaspoon of the pepper. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Brown the pork on all sides. Place on a rack in a roasting pan and roast in the oven for about 45 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the pork registers 145°.
Remove the pork loin from the oven, cover loosely with aluminum foil, and let stand for 15 minutes.
To serve, cut into 4 portions and spoon on the warm apricot compote.
Serves 4
Maple-Glazed Salmon with Peach and Papaya Chutney From John Sarich at Chateau Ste. Michelle
- 1 ripe papaya, peeled and diced
- 2 ripe peaches, peeled and diced
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, thinly sliced
- 1 shallot, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil
- 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 2-pound salmon fillet
- 1 cup apple juice
- 1 cup real maple syrup
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Salt to taste
Preheat oven to 425°. Remove the pin bones from the salmon fillet using small, needle-nose pliers. Place salmon in an oiled, nonreactive baking pan. In a nonreactive bowl, mix together the apple juice, maple syrup, lemon juice and salt. Brush salmon generously with this mixture, reserving some for basting. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, basting and checking frequently for doneness. The salmon is cooked when the last bit of meat in the center loses its bright color.
Divide the salmon into equal portions and serve warm with room-temperature Chutney.
Serves 4
Plum and Pinot Gris Sorbet From King Estate Winery
- 5-6 ripe black plums
- 1 cup King Estate Pinot Gris
- 1/2 cup sugar for an intermezzo or 3/4 cup sugar for a dessert
Makes 3 to 4 cups
Fresh Fruit in Late Harvest White Riesling From John Sarich at Chateau Ste. Michelle
- 2 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced
- 1 ripe nectarine, sliced
- 5 ripe plums, sliced
- 1 cup sweet cherries, pitted
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- Juice of 1/4 lemon
- 1 cup Late Harvest White Riesling
- 4 sprigs fresh mint, for garnish
Serves 4
Quick Cherry Tart From John Sarich at Chateau Ste. Michelle
- 2 cups vanilla wafers, finely ground
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups Bing cherries, pitted
- 1 small bunch fresh mint leaves for garnish
Meanwhile, whip the cream cheese until smooth. Fold in the sour cream, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla, mixing well. Fold in the cherries. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie crust. Chill for at least 2 hours, or overnight. Divide into serving portions and garnish with mint leaves.
Serves 8
Flatbread with Apricots, Farmer's Cheese, Prosciutto and Arugula from Chef Kimball Jones of Wente Family Estates
For the topping:
- 1/2 recipe pizza dough, divided into 4 pieces
- 4 ounces fresh farmer's or mild goat cheese, crumbled
- 4 ripe apricots, thinly sliced and tossed with lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 8 slices prosciutto
- 1/4 pound baby arugula (about 50 leaves), or regular leaves cut into chiffonade
Working with one piece of dough at a time, stretch it with flour-dusted hands into a round about 1/8" thick (or as thin as you can make it without tearing it) and about 8" in diameter. Place on the pizza paddle and sprinkle with one-fourth of the cheese. Arrange one-fourth of the apricot slices on the cheese. Slide the flatbread from the paddle onto the pizza stone in the oven. Cook for about 6 minutes, until the edges and bottom are a rich golden brown. If any bubbles form in the dough, pierce with a sharp knife. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough, cheese and peaches. As you take each flatbread out of the oven, slide the next one in. Or, if your pizza stone is large enough, you can cook two or more at a time.
As you remove each flatbread from the oven, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of the lemon juice, cover with 2 slices of prosciutto, and cut into 12 wedges. Top each wedge with an arugula leaf and serve immediately.
Makes eight 8" to 10" pizzettas or four 14" pizzas
For the Pizza Dough:
- 2 cups warm water
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 41/4 cups bread flour, more as needed
To prepare by hand, combine the water, yeast, and sugar in a large bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves and the yeast starts to bloom.
Add the salt and olive oil and stir well. Slowly stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. Add just enough to be able to work the dough; it should still be a little sticky. Transfer to a floured surface and knead by hand for 15 minutes, until smooth.
Oil the sides of a bowl that is at least twice the size of the dough, place the dough in the bowl, and cover with a towel. Let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, until doubled in volume.
Remove the dough from the bowl and punch down to release any air bubbles.
Divide into 8 equal portions for pizzettas or 4 portions for pizza. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a tight ball. Place on a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before using. The dough can rest in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 hours, or it can be frozen for longer storage. If you freeze the dough, let it defrost in the refrigerator for at least 3 to 4 hours before using.
To shape the dough, dust your hands with flour and begin slowly stretching the dough, always working from the outside edge. Stretch and shape the dough into rounds. If you don't feel comfortable with this method, on a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into the size for your pizzettas or pizzas. Place the dough on a floured pizza paddle or on the back of a floured baking sheet. Arrange the toppings on the dough and cook according to the recipe instructions.
Makes 4 flatbreads or 48 appetizers
Roasted Pork Loin with Lambert Cherry Compote From Chef Cory Schreiber of Wildwood Restaurant
- One four rib pork loin ( about 21/2-3 pounds) Chine bone removed
- 11/2 teaspoons salt
- 11/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon butter
Lambert Cherry Compote
- 1 cup red wine with a little spice, such as zinfandel or syrah
- 1 cup apple cider
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 cloves star anise
- 2 cloves
- 1 whole vanilla bean split and scraped, or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 8 ounces fresh Lambert or any variety of fresh non-pie cherries, pitted
- 1/2 pound cleaned spinach leaves
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
To make the pork: Preheat oven to 350°. Season the pork with 1 teaspoon of the salt. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat. Brown the pork on the top fat side. Place on a rack in a roasting pan and roast in the oven for about 45 minutes, or until an instant read thermometer inserted in the center of the pork registers 145°.
When the pork is cooked, remove from the oven, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let stand for 15 minutes. Sprinkle the ground black pepper over the top of the pork loin.
Warm a medium sauté pan with the remaining olive oil to a low heat, add the spinach leaves and wilt them slowly, turning constantly, Adding salt and grated nutmeg. Drain off any excess water after it is cooked.
To serve, cut the pork loin into 4 portions. Distribute the spinach onto plates and top each portion with a slice of pork. Spoon the cherry compote on top of the pork and serve.
Serves 4
Apricot-Ginger Chutney From Chef Kimball Jones of Wente Family Estates
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup onions, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons minced ginger
- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, diced
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup dry white wine such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3 cups apricots, peeled, pitted and sliced (substitute peaches or nectarines)
Heat the olive oil over medium-low heat in a non-corrosive sauce pan. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, bell peppers and jalapeño peppers and sweat, stirring often. Do not brown.
Add the cider vinegar, white wine, brown sugar, mustard seeds, allspice and cayenne. Cook over a medium heat until the mixture starts to thicken and has formed a good sweet/sour flavor.
Add the apricots to the liquid mixture and season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Makes about 4 cups
- CK
