Tasty Tips from the Valley

As some of you may know, I was out in California a few weeks ago. That's where I snapped the photo of the...grapes that had dried into raisins seen in the last post (while out with the Senior Gleaners).

While there, I went to the Taste of the (Salinas) Valley, an event where local chefs created finger food from the abundant local produce. During the two hours of heavy hors d'oeuvres, three things stood out.

A Monterey BBQ joint--Willy's Smokehouse--combined beef brisket and pulled pork (or, as it's called in Carolina, barbecue) to good effect. Served on thin slices of French bread with a bit of (local) cole slaw, this was right up my alley. As you probably have guessed, I'm more likely to appreciate this mixture more than any cabernet sauvignon blend.

Next, I picked up the idea of making salad dressing with apple cider vinegar. The chef serving me said that this works really well when the salad includes chopped apples. Of course, a salad topped with pink slices of tenderloin, candied pecans and gorgonzola cheese would probably taste great with motor oil vinaigrette.

Creamy Lettuce Soup sounds like something that wasn't meant to be. I'm happy to report that it's great and I'm not alone in this assessment. Served by the literary folks of the Steinbeck House, it combined the best of lettuce and, well, half and half. Of course, it didn't hurt that the lettuce was grown about two miles down the road. You can try to emulate the recipe, albeit with a few more food miles:

Creamy Lettuce Soup
Melt 2 Tbs. butter in a two quart pan.
Add 1/2 Cup chopped onion and cook until soft.
Stir in 2 Tbs. flour and 1/2 tsp. white pepper, blending until bubbling.
Add 2 Tbs. dry chicken soup base, 3 shakes of Tabasco sauce.
Cook 15-20 minutes.
Add 2 Cups half and half, heating slowly to just below boiling.
Shred 2 Cups iceberg lettuce just before serving to retain crispness.
To serve, put 1/3 Cup of shredded lettuce in bowl, add hot soup, serve topped with grated nutmeg or parsley.