Popcorn with Shallot Oil
Another fantastic recipe from Wei Kitchen: It’s the perfect snack to munch on while waiting for trick or treaters!
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons shallot oil
½ cup popcorn kernels
Salt, to taste
Method:
1. In a large heavy-bottom saucepan, heat shallot oil. Once hot, add 3 popcorn kernels and cover with the lid. After the 3 kernels pop, add in remaining kernels.
2. Cover with lid and gently shake pan while popcorn cooks. You should hear frequent popping. When popping sounds become less frequent (more than 2-3 seconds between pops), remove pan from heat and transfer popcorn to a bowl. Season with salt and additional shallot oil to taste.
Asian Slaw with Shallot Oil & Amber Vinegar
Fresh and light, this Vietnamese-style salad is beautifully accented by a shallot oil and amber vinegar dressing.
Ingredients:
2-3 cups thinly-sliced Savoy cabbage
1 cup cherry tomatoes
¼ cup thinly-sliced green onion
1 Chantenay carrot, peeled and shredded
1 cucumber, peeled and sliced
¼ cup crushed peanuts
¼ cup crispy fried shallots (see recipe)
Dressing:
3 tablespoons shallot oil
¼ cup amber vinegar
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Place cabbage in a serving bowl followed by all other prepared vegetables.
2. Mix together amber vinegar and shallot oil and pour onto salad right before serving. (Salad can be made up to a day in advance if not dressed.) Garnish top with peanuts and shallot crisps after tossing.
Calendula-Infused Herbal Oil
You can use this oil in salad dressings, or even as an ingredient in salves, massage oils, lip balms, creams, and lotions.
Ingredients:
Calendula flowers
Olive oil
Method:
1. Fill a glass canning jar â…” of the way full with dried calendula flowers. If using fresh calendula, wilt for 12 hours to remove most of the moisture (too much moisture will cause the oil to go rancid) before adding to the jar.
2. Pour olive oil into the jar, making sure to cover the flowers by at least one inch with oil so they will have space to expand. Stir well and cap the jar tightly.
3. Place the jar in a warm, sunny windowsill and shake once or more daily. After about a week, strain the herbs out using cheesecloth. Pour the infused oil into glass bottles and store in a cool, dark place.
Matsutake Mushroom Stir-Fry with Black Rice
Topped with quail egg and a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds, this delicious recipe comes courtesy of Wei Kitchen.
Ingredients:
1 cup Venere black rice
1 pint Matsutake mushrooms, cleaned and sliced into quarters
1 bunch green onion, diced, with white and green parts separated
2-4 tablespoons shallot oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cups F&L chicken stock
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Pickled or soft-boiled quail eggs (see recipe and method)
Toasted black sesame seeds
Method:
1. Pour shallot oil into a large, hot sauté pan on high heat. Add mushrooms to pan and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened and beginning to brown. Add in the white pieces of green onion, sesame oil, and soy sauce. Mix well and distribute mixture evenly across bottom of pan.
2. Carefully spoon rice evenly over your layer of vegetables Pour chicken stock into pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover, turn heat down to low and let simmer for 25 minutes or until rice is completely cooked and all stock has been absorbed by the rice. (Check the rice after 15 minutes to make sure bottom of rice is not burning and to mix evenly.)
3. Add the remaining green onion (diced green stalks) and mix well. Top each serving with your choice of pickled, or soft-boiled quail egg and a generous sprinkling of toasted black sesame seeds. If desired, drizzle lightly with Wei Kitchen shallot oil.
Meyer Lemon & Thyme-Infused Olive Oil
A wonderful gift for family, friends and neighbors!
Ingredients:
1-2 cups high-quality olive oil
Small bundle of fresh thyme stems (leaves still attached), thoroughly washed and dried
Rind of 1 Meyer lemon
Method:
1. Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan.
2. Add the thyme stems and lemon rind and allow to steep several minutes in the oil (oil temperature should be 180°).
3. Cool, strain the oil of thyme and lemon and then pour into a resealable container until ready to use.
Crispy Fried Shallots
These crisp little nibbles are delicious scattered over salad greens or tucked into burgers and sandwiches.
Ingredients:
1 cup vegetable or olive oil
3 large shallots, peeled and sliced lengthwise about â…›-inch thick
Salt
Method:
1. Put oil in a small saucepan. Add shallots and place pot over medium heat. Cook gently, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes (turn down heat if they seem to be coloring too quickly), until they gradually become brown.
2. Place a fine-meshed sieve over a bowl. Transfer shallots to sieve and let drain well. Blot shallots on paper towels. They will become crisp as they cool. Sprinkle lightly with salt.
Roasted Summer Vegetables with Tarragon Vinaigrette
Take note: This light, tarragon-kissed vinaigrette is also wonderful on salads or tossed with pretty much any roasted veggie.
Ingredients:
½ bunch each of gold and Chioggia beets, beet greens and tops removed and thoroughly washed
1 pound Austrian Crescent potatoes, washed and halved (if smaller) or quartered (if larger)
1-2 red onions, sliced into rounds
4 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup fresh thyme, picked
½ cup white wine vinegar
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
For the dressing:
1 bunch fresh tarragon, picked and chopped
â…“ cup champagne vinegar
3 shallots, minced
1 cup canola oil
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 400°. On a sheet pan, toss potatoes and onions with 2-3 tablespoons olive oil, seasoning well with salt and pepper. Roast in oven for 20-25 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.
2. Place beets in a separate small baking dish. Sprinkle thyme, the additional tablespoon of olive oil and white wine vinegar over the pan. Toss to coat, then season with salt and pepper. Cover the pan with a layer of foil. Roast in the oven alongside the other vegetables for 35 minutes. When cool, peel the beets and cut them into quarters.
3. Combine the champagne vinegar, shallots, a pinch salt, canola oil, pepper and tarragon in a glass jar and shake vigorously to blend. Set aside at room temperature while the vegetables are roasting to allow the flavors to marry.
4. Combine all the vegetables on a large serving platter and drizzle vegetables with tarragon vinaigrette, tossing to combine. Garnish with fresh herbs and season with additional pepper as desired.
Variations: This vinaigrette is also wonderful drizzled over baby lettuce greens for a refreshing summer salad.
Lemon Olive Oil Cake with Strawberries
This rustic cake has a slightly-crunchy texture courtesy of polenta and is beautifully flavored by olive oil.
Ingredients:
Farm & Larder lemon olive oil cake mix
½ cup olive oil
1 cup milk or buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon peel
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pint fresh strawberries, washed and sliced
¾ cup crème fraîche or whipped cream
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease a 9-inch cake pan or cast iron skillet with 2-inch sides with some of the olive oil.
2. Whisk together milk or buttermilk, eggs, lemon peel, vanilla, and olive oil. Pour the cake mix into this milk mixture and fold together with a spatula until just combined; do not over-mix. Scrape batter into greased pan and spread evenly.
3. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean and cake pulls away from sides of pan. Immediately run a knife around edge of cake, and turn cake out onto a cooling rack. Allow cake to cool before cutting.
4. To serve, slice cake into wedges and top with sliced strawberries and a generous dollop of crème fraîche or whipped cream.
For optional cake glaze: Combine ¾ cup powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, adding more lemon juice if needed. Drop by spoonfuls over cake after it has been placed on cooling rack, spreading within half an inch of the cake’s sides.
Lemon-Olive Oil Polenta Cake
This rustic cake has a slightly-crunchy texture courtesy of polenta and is beautifully flavored by olive oil.
Ingredients:
Farm & Larder lemon olive oil cake mix
½ cup olive oil
1 cup milk or buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon peel
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup crème fraîche or whipped cream
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease a 9-inch cake pan or cast iron skillet with 2-inch sides with some of the olive oil.
2. Whisk together milk or buttermilk, eggs, lemon peel, vanilla, and olive oil. Pour the cake mix into this milk mixture and fold together with a spatula until just combined; do not over-mix. Scrape batter into greased pan and spread evenly.
3. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean and cake pulls away from sides of pan. Immediately run a knife around edge of cake, and turn cake out onto a cooling rack. Allow cake to cool before cutting.
4. To serve, slice cake into wedges and top with your choice of fresh berries and a generous dollop of crème fraîche.
For optional cake glaze: Combine ¾ cup powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, adding more lemon juice if needed. Drop by spoonfuls over cake after it has been placed on cooling rack, spreading within half an inch of the cake’s sides.
Baked Tomatoes with Farro & Feta
This flavorful and satisfying main dish is stuffed with hearty farro, tangy feta cheese and fresh herbs.
Ingredients:
4 heirloom tomatoes, halved
¾ cup cooked farro
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 teaspoon finely chopped Anaheim pepper
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 450°.
2. Slice the tomatoes from core to core. Remove and discard the seeds and juice, and add the tomatoes to a casserole dish. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Combine the 2 tablespoons olive oil, farro, feta cheese, parsley, garlic, shallot and Anaheim pepper with some salt and pepper together in a small bowl. Fill the tomatoes with the mixture. Bake 20 minutes. Drizzle with a splash of olive oil before serving.