Silver City Culinary Extravaganza

[David Ross]

I cannot do justice to our wonderful evening by attempting to describe it while exhausted, so I'll keep the words to a minimum and just post pics for now.

The dinner was held at one of the most beautiful homes I have seen in New Mexico. It was like a jewelry box full of beautiful things to entertain the eye at every turn. Our hosts were lovely, fascinating people, and everything made by Chef Mel was delicious.

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Lord what a delicious looking feast. Can you post some recipes for us?

[gfron1]

I'll see if Mel will share recipes (if she even has them).

The only other thing I'll say about the dessert, and then I'll do some detailing in P&B, is that I was afraid of doing what we call in American pop culture - jumping the shark - taking things too far and killing it. But, I don't see any difference in finding inspiration in a bar of soap versus a good wine, a flower, or anything else. Sometimes we find inspiration in odd places. This time it was rubbing my underarm in a shower in Palm Springs.

[Anna N]

I'll see if Mel will share recipes (if she even has them).

The only other thing I'll say about the dessert, and then I'll do some detailing in P&B, is that I was afraid of doing what we call in American pop culture - jumping the shark - taking things too far and killing it.  But, I don't see any difference in finding inspiration in a bar of soap versus a good wine, a flower, or anything else.  Sometimes we find inspiration in odd places.  This time it was rubbing my underarm in a shower in Palm Springs. 

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Oh yes to the recipes especially the Thai lime shrimp!

I hope you were in the shower, not a show when you rubbed your underarm!

[Beth Wilson]

Ditto on the recipe request here! Looks like the perfect food to warm us up to forget the fresh snowfall yesterday!!

Thanks for sharing your lovely part of the world with us! It is spectacular!

Oh, and I am envious of the Maple Syrup. Went out to The Max Burt farm to get some over the holiday and he has been cleaned out until the next syrup run. That stuff is black gold up here!

[Tri2Cook]

I cannot do justice to our wonderful evening by attempting to describe it while exhausted, so I'll keep the words to a minimum and just post pics for now.

The dinner was held at one of the most beautiful homes I have seen in New Mexico. It was like a jewelry box full of beautiful things to entertain the eye at every turn. Our hosts were lovely, fascinating people, and everything made by Chef Mel was delicious.

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Wow. Just f'ing wow. Beautiful meal.

Rob, we're gonna have to do some forum brainstorming one of these days. I love unusual inspirations and incorporating unexpected ingredients for desserts (which has resulted in some messes along the way but it's fun), the celery soap theme is awesome.

[Verjuice]

Kerry's class... Pictures say it all.

[Verjuice]

[Verjuice]

Lunch was burritos from Don Juan.

That's Lexi whooshing past in the background. Bean and cheese with red:

Picadillo with spicy jalapenos:

Chicharron:

Relleno burrito with green chile:

'Cia. So effing adorable:

Gorgeous Lexi. She is Rob's girl:

[gfron1]

It looks like we're going to be providing delayed gratification on this whole weekend. The fact is - it hasn't stopped, and we just had no friggin' time to post much more than pics. The cheese party is over and I'm ready to pour myself into bed and wake up on Monday, but its up early for a dog walk and the long drive to the airport in El Paso. The good news is that I'll have most of tomorrow to catch up, post pics, respond to comments, etc.

I'm used to the cheese parties, so Kerry and Verjuice can do most of the talking there, but it was a huge hit - good crowd and good cheese (unfortunately its rarely good wine).

I'm off to bed, and I PROMISE great stuff tomorrow summing up the weekend.

[Verjuice]

I can't believe it's over!

I had such a good time. You guys are awesome. Thanks for everything.

Now, for the sugar coma...

[Kerry Beal]

The cheese party was wonderful. Got to meet lots of the locals - quite an ecclectic bunch. The deal is that folks bring food and drink, sample the cheese and purchase it if they like it.

We had wonderful tamales made by a neighbour of Rob's - perfectly thin masa around a not too spicy filling with a fresh salsa to accompany them. Absolutely delicious.

Verjuice and I stood close to the door and Rob would signal us when one of the members who was a good cook came in - we'd follow them upstairs to be sure that we could sample what they had brought - after we took pictures of it of course.

We took along some of the Sauvagine cheese and the stinky cheese - you could smell it whenever you entered that room. The Sauvagine was popular- the stinky cheese received mixed reviews.

[Rembrant Wood]

Not much to say about this dessert since its not going to be part of the weekend - it will be long gone by then, but here's Amernick's Pumpkin Cheesecake with Pecan Squares.  I just need to find someone to give it to.

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Oh my.......my fav deserts have long been a really good punkin' pie,a decent cheesecake and just about anything with plenty of pecans.

[gfron1]

Alright - relaxing in a hotel in El Paso where I'll spend the night until my spouse flies in. Kerry should be getting close to Canada by this time and Verjuice should be just about at Albuquerque. I'm sure both will have more info and pics to share once they get settled. A very busy and somewhat bizarre weekend.

I'll start with the dessert. The key was the celery. How to get the flavor in, but keep it enjoyable and not distracting. I had juiced 4 C. of celery juice, which then boiled down to 1 C. of concentrate. It wasn't very concentrated, but definitely purer. I ran it through my fine mesh chinois to get the particles out, and reboiled with celery seed. I then restrained and added the sugar to make it a syrup, which I boiled down again.

I brought it to softball and added it to the egg whites.

Then I put it in a piping bag and that seemed like it didn't work as well as I had hoped. You can see it went from very silky smooth to somewhat broken. There was no delay between whipping and piping, so all i can figure is piping through the tip was the problem. But here is the final product.

I'm still happy with the taste, just not the texture. The other problem was my mousse seemed to break instead of staying smooth.

Tri2Cook - I would love to brainstorm - that's the fun part for me!

[gfron1]

The cheese party. There's always a crowd at the food table.

Here's Kerry sampling some of the tamales that had just arrived.

The tamale maker - Consuelo.

Verjuice had a great conversation with my mad Hungarian friend.

And the cheese. These are the cheeses that Kerry brought. Both were fantastic, but the one of the left was just over the top good! The one on the right was so strong that it knocked me backwards when I opened it.

[gfron1]

And the chocolate class. Here are some of the chocolates that were made - transfer sheets with magnetic molds.

Demonstrating molds and luster dust.

Kerry in action

and Kerry with Dustin, a local kid who has taken every one of our cooking classes - he's gonna be good!

[Verjuice]

Rob modestly neglected to mention that my new buddy...

=

Verjuice had a great conversation with my mad Hungarian friend.

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was previously the subject of one of his great kitchen masterpieces:

One distraction is over.  Here is the almost complete cheese bust...step by step:

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[gfron1]

and my motivation to create THIS gesztenyetorta.

[gfron1]

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I love the juxtiposition of these two pics!

[gfron1]

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This is a passionfruit caramel - and maybe mango too - just fantastic!

[Verjuice]

Someone said that the darker caramels were passionfruit and the lighter ones were mango, but I said no way! They're the same flavor (passionfruit and mango combined). Maybe different batches account for the difference in color.

Kerry, can you confirm that my palate is in working order?

Yes, they were awesome, and I disgraced myself by eating well over a dozen.

Edited January 14, 2008 by Verjuice (log)

[maggiethecat]

What a first-class example of what happens when Society members get together from all over the damn place. I've been following your weekend intently, learning so much and salivating so steadily. Doc Choc, you might be responsible for spawning a new generation of chocolatiers from New Mexico . Rob, you're quite the host.

I'm glad the Sauvagine was a hit at the cheese party; I want to wallow in it. But Kenogami? I'm not surprised it's stinky, because Kenogami was a newsprint town like Trois-Rivieres, my Quebec home town. Oh, the whiff downwind from the sulphite mill! I can't tell you how chuffed I am that Kenogami is in the cheese biz.

[Kerry Beal]

Someone said that the darker caramels were passionfruit and the lighter ones were mango, but I said no way! They're the same flavor (passionfruit and mango combined). Maybe different batches account for the difference in color.

Kerry, can you confirm that my palate is in working order?

Yes, they were awesome, and I disgraced myself by eating well over a dozen.

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Your palate is in perfect working order. Both light and dark caramels are mango and passionfruit together, but the puree is added at a different time, giving a different result.

[Kerry Beal]

What a first-class example of what happens when Society members get together from all over the damn place. I've been following your weekend intently, learning so much and salivating so steadily. Doc Choc, you might be responsible for spawning a new generation of chocolatiers from New Mexico . Rob, you're quite the host.

I'm glad the Sauvagine was a hit at the cheese party; I want to wallow in it. But Kenogami?  I'm not surprised it's stinky, because Kenogami was a newsprint town like Trois-Rivieres, my Quebec home town. Oh, the whiff downwind from the sulphite mill! I can't tell you how chuffed I am that Kenogami is in the cheese biz.

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Maggie,

I'm so glad you recommended the Sauvagine - it was a fabulous cheese and I think I'll need to get a little to have here at home.

Kenogami smelled worse than a pulp mill I've gotta tell you. Double vacuum sealed bags and parchment in between to prevent 'smell seepage' was required, but it stunk to high hell when it was opened and after you picked it up your hands smelled even after washing.

[ludja]

Thanks for sharing your fun cooking and eating weekend with us!

Kerry, did you find you had to make adjustments in your recipes when cooking at altitude? If so, is it a simple temperature adjustment?

[Kerry Beal]

Ok, got my pictures uploaded so I'll try to give a little travelogue from my perspective. I must apologize in advance for the pictures I didn't take.

I left home on Wednesday afternoon, deciding it would be wisest to spend the night in Buffalo rather than attempt to get to the airport for 6 am from my place. (A wise choice as it turns out since apparently in Buffalo you should be at the airport 2 hours in advance of your flight. Perhaps I was a bit early - as the check in's weren't even open when I arrived. They hit me up to $25 for overweight luggage - I was taking down a fair amount of stuff.)

I hit Tomric plastics in Buffalo first, grabbed a mold or two, then mailed off a couple of items at the post office and went looking for eG'er Patris. We had met once before when she attended the class I taught at Premier Gourmet. We started with tea, went on to have dinner at a wonderful soup place (she'll have to chime in and supply the name - I've forgotten), all the little stores along Elmwood Avenue, Target (to get more of those Reynolds vacuum sealers) and Wegmans (just to drool). We are definitely two people meant to shop together. One of the cutest items we saw on Elmwood Ave were a set of 4 gingerbread man cookie cutters - one with a leg missing, another with the head bitten off - sick, just sick!

When I arrived in Albuquerque 5 hours ahead of my next flight I stopped in at the Great Lakes airline desk and was told I couldn't check in until 4 hours before the flight. Since I planned to explore town for that time I decided to try the fine art of negotiation. No luck with that. With my already overweight luggage and a small plane I was getting nervous about the whole checked luggage thing, but apparently I was allowed 3 pieces so he sent me off to buy a little wheeled tote to put some of my stuff in. I then grabbed my luggage and started repacking it in front of the counter. Surprise, surprise I happened upon a couple of boxes of chocolates in my luggage, which I immediately handed over to the folks behind the desk - and miracle of miracles - my luggage got checked in an hour early. It's amazing what you can buy with chocolate!

I headed off in a cab for Duran's for lunch - as recommended on the topic I started on what to do on a long lay over in Albuquerque. I had the green chili stew with homemade tortillas (it really threw me when they asked if I wanted butter on my tortilla) and an order of guacamole. I didn't have the nerve to pull out my camera. (Of course I wasn't surrounded by two other eG'ers with their cameras yet).

Then I hopped on the bus and headed for Costco. I can't get over seeing booze in a Costco, and moreover cheap booze in a Costco. I didn't find anything too exciting there, but I did buy some lovely candied dried pear slices that I knew would be nice dipped in chocolate at the classes.

It was COLD in Albuquerque. I arrived at the bus stop that went to the airport. There was an rather rough looking amputee at the bus stop when I arrived and I started asking him questions about when I could expect the bus. When he finally snapped at me "Ma'am, I ain't the goddamn bus driver!" I sat down quietly to freeze and wait for the bus.

Only one other passenger and I were flying to Silver City. He'd never been on a prop plane before and was a mite nervous.

I finally got out the camera.

Gorgeous views out the plane windows but I lost the sun too soon.

We unpacked the vacuum packed chocolates - I guess altitude has to be considered.

Firmer centers travelled better.

I believe the caption should read - "no profile shots"

Seriously you've got to see 'The Curious Kumquat' - Rob and his spouse's store - it is amazing - it has everything!!! If you are ever searching for some strange ingredient you can't find anywhere else, drop him a line - I'm betting he'll have it.

So we spent a few minutes making the ganache for the class on Friday, then headed off for our first mexican meal (previously documented by Verjuice).

Friday's class was great fun with the high school students, I even got a chance to take a couple of pictures.

Dipping everything they could find in the pantry.

Sometimes you just need to relax while you lick the pan.

Here's eG's own 'Patrick' - my step and fetch it for the two days of classes. I wish I had someone like him at home. I need minions.

At the Kountry Kitchen for lunch - the order of the day is pictures before forks.

Verjuice takes a picture of her meal (then each of our meals). You notice I've cropped out most of the face. She's a touch camera shy. I did get some nice pictures of her however.

Rob takes a picture of his meal.

I snap a picture of mine. Then we can eat.

I wanted to add a couple of pictures to our dinner - one to show the wonderful lizard on the kitchen wall - so much more interesting than a kitchen witch.

And one of Marmaduke the great dane.

Saturday's lunch from the drive through burrito vendor.

"We'll help you eat your lunch"

A couple more pictures from the 'Cut the Cheese Club'.

Consuela's fabulous tamale.

Rob getting ready to unveil the cheese.

Rob - and the entire gallery realizing there are breasts above the fireplace. A nice picture, but probably not enough to make anyone switch teams.

I had a fabulous time. It was a whirlwind of activity. Lots of great food, excellent companionship. I could have used a bit more shopping time. I wanted to go through the Curious Kumquat with a fine toothed comb and bring home all the goodies I've been having trouble acquiring. On the way to the airport we dropped in to a place that sold dried chili's but it was closed, so I managed to leave New Mexico with out dried red chili's if you can believe that. I also left without a bottle of tequila! However shall I make Mexican Buttermilk?