Edible Santa Barbara Summer 2019

edible

ISSUE 42 • SUMMER 2019

Santa Barbara

Celebrating the Local Food & Wine Culture of Santa Barbara County

San Ysidro Ranch

Meyer Lemon Tart at the Stonehouse

Wishful Recycling Wine Trailblazers A Beer in Every Kitchen Noey Turk T E N

Y E A R

A N N I V E R S A R Y

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L O Y A L

T O

L O C A L

F R I E N D S

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F L O W E R S

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F A M I L Y

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F O O D

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F U N

Taking a stroll at the farmers market is the perfect way to get inspired with the season’s bounty every week at one of our area’s six markets. Be sure to mark your calendar for this quarter’s Special Cooking Demo.

Saturday, Sept 7 Sansum Clinic Presents: Farmers Market Cooking Demos Join Edible Santa Barbara and Sansum Clinic for live cooking demonstrations at the Farmers Market by some of our favorite local chefs, physicians and nutrition experts.

You will learn about making food choices for optimal health and discover new techniques for preparing seasonal offerings.

Demos will be held at 9am, 10am and 11am.

6 Markets • 6 Days a Week • Rain or Shine S AT U R D AY S

T U E S D AY S

T H U R S D AY S

Downtown Santa Barbara Corner of Santa Barbara & Cota Street 8:30am – 1:00pm

Old Town Santa Barbara 500 & 600 Blocks of State Street 3:00pm – 6:30pm

800 Block of Linden Avenue 3:00pm – 6:00pm

S U N D AY S

W E D N E S D AY S

F R I D AY S

Camino Real Marketplace In Goleta at Storke & Hollister 10:00am – 2:00pm

Solvang Village Copenhagen Drive & 1st Street 2:30pm – 6:00pm

100 & 1200 Block of Coast Village Rd. 8:00am – 11:15am

(805) 962-5354

SBFarmersMarket.org

Carpinteria

Montecito

facebook.com/SBFarmersMarket

Sansum Clinic’s health education programs are designed and conducted by board-certified physicians, registered dietitian nutritionists, registered nurses, certified diabetes educators, physical therapists and other specialized professionals. Many programs are free of charge and are open to all members of our community.

SansumClinic.org

edible

SANTA BAR BAR A

®

page 16

WIL FERNANDE Z

LIZ DODDER

summer page 28

Departments 6 Food for Thought

26 Global Local Cuisine

by Krista Harris

South Carolina Lowcountry

9 In Season 10 Seasonal Recipes Peach Gazpacho Peaches and Cream Three Ways Peach Smoothie

16 Edible History Montecito’s Storied Ranch Blossoms Anew

by Liz Dodder

20 Edible Garden Exotic Fruit Trees

by Joan S. Bolton

24 Drinkable Landscape

page 12 2 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

JOSHUA CURRY

Time to Increase Your Celery

by George Yatchisin

Cuisine and Sustainable Seafood

by Laura Booras 66 Event Calendar

68 Eat Drink Local Guide 72 The Last Sip Summer’s Don’t-Miss Dish

by Liz Dodder

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edible

SANTA BAR BAR A

®

Features 30 Wishful Recycling

page 27

And Why We All Need to Use Less Plastic

by Janice Cook Knight

Recipes in This Issue

40 In the Greenhouse with Noey Turk

Appetizers

Building, Rebuilding and Protecting Healthy Habitats

by Nancy Oster

28 Aunt Lea’s Pimento Cheese 27 Fresh Crab Dip

46 A Beer in Every Kitchen

63 Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho 10 Peach Gazpacho 49 Summer Calypso Gazpacho 64 Tomato Basil Salad

by Zach Rosen

52 Santa Barbara County’s Wine Trailblazers

by Wendy Thies Sell

60 A Farm at UCSB The Edible Campus Program

by Pascale Beale

Soups and Salads

Main Dishes & Side Dishes 64 Roasted Branzino with Ratatouille 27 Tomato Pie 50 Tropical Magic Marinade

Desserts 12 Peaches and Cream Three Ways

Beverages & Syrups ABOUT THE COVER

San Ysidro Ranch Meyer Lemon Tart at the Stonehouse. Photo by Liz Dodder.

4 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

25 The Bikini Bod Cocktail 25 Celery Seed Simple Syrup 14 Peach Smoothie

WIL FERNANDE Z

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FOOD FOR THOUGHT In the fall of 2011, Janice Cook Knight wrote an article called “Let’s Put Plastic in its Place” and we encouraged readers to take a “Plastic Challenge” for the month of October. I remember how difficult that challenge was (far harder than doing the Eat Local Challenge), but also how eye opening it was.

The idea was to eliminate singleuse plastic, not all plastic. Things like refusing plastic straws, bringing my own bags to the grocery store and Krista at Casa Dumetz, Los Alamos. carrying a reusable bottle for water— those were pretty easy. But it was incredibly hard to avoid plastic in most food packaging. Yogurt, hummus, cheese, tortillas—it turned out that many of my favorite products were packaged in plastic.

Now, eight years later, Janice has written another article on the subject in this issue and we are again encouraging readers to take a Plastic Challenge. The good news is that now grocery stores don’t give away plastic bags, and restaurants don’t automatically use plastic straws. But recycling plastic is still difficult, maybe even more so (which you’ll read more about in Janice’s article). And single-use plastic still pervades our food packaging and our lives.

So this July, and all summer, I am going to focus on making a few more incremental changes to avoid single-use plastic. For starters, I’d like to give up my addiction to plastic zip-top bags. I’m also going to make a concentrated effort to always have on hand those small reusable mesh bags that I can use for small items of produce at the farmers market or bulk bin items at the grocery store. And I’m going to choose non-plastic containers whenever possible. I already buy milk and cream in glass containers. Can I find yogurt in glass containers or will I have to make my own yogurt?

It’s difficult to say how much reducing your use of plastic can help our global environmental issues. It could be argued that eliminating a few plastic items from our lives doesn’t address the fundamental problems of climate change or our excessive consumption lifestyle. But I see it as a gateway. Each small action can lead to further steps and to spreading the message that our actions matter. Those of us who participate in reducing our use of plastic can bring awareness to the need for longer-term solutions to help the planet. I hope you join me this summer!

Krista Harris, Editor and Co-Publisher

Email us at info@ediblesantabarbara.com to let us know what you think about single-use plastic.

Tag us on Instagram with any photos you take of plastic-free finds @EdibleSB. 6 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

edible

SANTA BAR BAR A Member of Edible Communities

Edible Communities James Beard Foundation Publication of the Year (2011)

PUBLISHERS

Steven Brown & Krista Harris EDITOR

Krista Harris RECIPE EDITOR

Nancy Oster COPY EDITING & PROOFING

Doug Adrianson DESIGNER

Steven Brown ADVERTISING & EVENTS

Katie Hershfelt ads@ediblesantabarbara.com SOCIAL MEDIA

Jill Johnson

Contributors Pascale Beale Joan S. Bolton Laura Booras Fran Collin Joshua Curry Liz Dodder Wil Fernandez Helena Hill Janice Cook Knight Nancy Oster Zach Rosen Wendy Thies Sell Carole Topalian George Yatchisin Edible Santa Barbara® is published quarterly and distributed throughout Santa Barbara County.

Subscription rate is $28 annually. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be used without written permission from the publisher. Publisher expressly disclaims all liability for any occurrence that may arise as a consequence of the use of any information or recipes. Every effort is made to avoid errors, misspellings and omissions. If, however, an error comes to your attention, please accept our sincere apologies and notify us. Thank you.

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EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 7

in Season this summer Summer Produce Apricots Artichokes Asparagus Avocados Basil Beans, green Blackberries Blueberries Cabbage Cantaloupe Celery Cherries Chiles Chives Cilantro Collards Corn Cucumber Dill Eggplant Figs Grapefruit Grapes Lavender Limes Melons Mint Mulberries Mustard greens Nectarines Onions, green bunching Peaches Peppers Plums/Pluots Raspberries Squash, summer Strawberries Tomatillo Tomatoes Turnips Watermelon

Year-Round Produce

Almonds, almond butter (harvested Aug/Sept)

Apples Arugula Beans, dried Beets Bok choy Broccoli Carrots Cauliflower Chard Dandelion Dates

(harvested Sept/Oct)

Edible flowers Garlic

(harvested May/June)

Herbs

(Bay leaf, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme)

Kale Leeks Lemons Lettuce Mushrooms Onions, bulb

(harvested May/June)

Oranges Pistachios, pistachio oil (harvested Sept/Oct)

Potatoes Radishes Raisins

Summer Seafood Halibut Rock fish Salmon, King Sardines Shark Spot prawns Swordfish Tuna, albacore White seabass Yellowtail

Year-Round Seafood Abalone (farmed) Black cod Clams Oysters Rock crab Sanddabs Urchin

Other Year-Round Eggs Coffee (limited availability) Dairy

(Regional raw milk, artisanal goat- and cow-milk cheeses, butters, curds, yogurts and spreads)

Fresh flowers Honey Olives, olive oil Meat

(Beef, chicken, duck, goat, rabbit, pork)

Potted plants/herbs Preserves Wheat

(Wheat berries, wheat flour, bread, pasta and baked goods produced from wheat grown locally)

(harvested Sept/Oct)

Spinach Sprouts Squash, winter

(harvested July/Oct)

Walnuts, walnut oil (harvested Sept/Oct)

Yams

(harvested Aug/Sept)

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 9

seasonal peach

Recipes

Peach Gazpacho When two of our contributors in this issue submitted recipes for gazpacho, I had to make it a trio and include this savory peach gazpacho. There is nothing like a chilled soup to start off a summer meal. While this is not a traditional Spanish gazpacho, it will pair well with everything from paella to Spanish tortillas. Customize with your choice of garnishes.

Makes 4 servings 4 large peaches, peeled, pitted and cut in chunks 1 small Persian cucumber, peeled and cut in chunks 1 green onion, roots and dark green ends removed, roughly chopped 1

⁄ 2 clove garlic, chopped

1 tablespoon, plus a little more, olive oil 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar 1

⁄ 4 cup filtered cold water

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste Garnish

Egg Salad Sandwich

Place the peaches, cucumber, onion and garlic in a blender or the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times until puréed.

What to do with your beautiful onion-skin-dyed Easter Add the olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and water, and purée. eggs? First on the list must be a classic egg salad sandwich.

Add additional cold water if needed to achieve a pourable soup-like You have many variations to choose from so you won’t get consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning. Place in the refrigerator to tired of them, even if you’ve made dozens of eggs. chill for an hour or until ready to serve.

Makes 2 sandwiches Serve in small bowls or small glasses garnished with a couple or 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and coarsely chopped more of the optional garnishes, if desired. You can also set out 2 tablespoons mayonnaise or 1 tablespoon mayonnaise bowls of garnishes and let each person garnish to taste.

Salt and pepper, to taste

Additions: • A tablespoon of something crunchy, such as capers, chopped celery, chopped pickled vegetables, chopped radishes or chopped onion • A sprinkling of chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley, basil, cilantro, chervil or tarragon • A dash of something tangy, such as lemon or lime juice, or the pickled juice or caper brine if you used either of those or a dash of white wine vinegar Bread (sliced bread, baguette, bagel, roll, croissant or slider bun) Additional mayonnaise and/or mustard (optional) Additional pickled vegetables (optional) Lettuce Combine the eggs, mayonnaise, seasoning and additions and mix until incorporated but2018 with 10 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER FALL 2019a still chunky texture. Taste and add more seasoning or additions if needed.

GARNISH IDEAS A fan of avocado slices Chopped fresh peaches Thinly sliced green onion Thin slices of spicy peppers Chopped chives or other herbs A drizzle of olive oil Ice cubes (great when serving on a hot day) — Krista Harris

JOSHUA CURRY

and 1 tablespoon crème fraiche

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 11

Peaches and Cream Three Ways These are really more suggestions than recipes. When I was young and visited my grandparents in Red Bluff, they served homegrown peaches with cream poured on top with breakfast. I had never seen such a thing and was instantly entranced. But don’t stop there, peaches have a natural affinity for anything cool and creamy.

Makes 2 servings

NUMBER 1 2 peaches, pitted and sliced Heavy cream

Arrange peach slices in a low bowl and pour heavy cream on top.

NUMBER 2 1 can coconut milk (not low-fat) 1–2 tablespoons granulated or superfine sugar, optional 2 peaches, pitted and sliced

Recipes

NUMBER 3 2 peaches, pitted and sliced A couple scoops of vanilla ice cream

Arrange peach slices in a low bowl and top with scoop of ice cream.

Make it dinner party worthy with a garnish of edible flowers and fresh mint.

— Krista Harris

12 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

JOSHUA CURRY

seasonal peach

Refrigerate the can of coconut milk overnight. Open the can, spoon off the solids and place them in a large (preferably metal) mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until soft peaks form. Add sugar, if desired. Arrange peach slices on a plate and add the whipped cream to the top. Garnish with a sprinkle of turbinado or brown sugar.

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seasonal peach

Recipes

Peach Smoothie When you have a surplus of peaches, you may need to freeze some. Then you can make smoothies whenever you like. Here’s a basic formula that you can customize with whatever healthy additions you like.

Makes 2 servings 1–2 peaches, fresh or frozen, in slices or chunks 1 banana, preferably frozen, in chunks 6 ounces yogurt

⁄ 4 to 1 cup orange juice or cold water

Place peaches, banana and yogurt and ¼ cup of juice or water in blender and process, adding more liquid as needed to get a pourable consistency. If you like frostier smoothie, add ice cubes or other frozen fruit. Garnish with a slice of peach and serve with a paper straw if you want to get fancy.

— Krista Harris

14 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

JOSHUA CURRY

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edible

H I S T O RY

San Ysidro Ranch

Montecito’s Storied Ranch Blossoms Anew Words and photos by Liz Dodder

H

igh in the mountains of Montecito stands a piece of California history. A small citrus grove, planted in the late 1800s, stretches and blooms in the fresh ocean air. The spring sun shines down on the grove, adjoining kitchen and herb gardens, flowering pathways and old adobe and stone buildings. The grove is bursting forth with bright yellow Meyer lemons; it offers this bounty on over 500 rolling acres between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains, known as San Ysidro Ranch.

San Ysidro Ranch has been a mainstay of Montecito since it first welcomed guests in 1893, providing a lush hideaway in the hills for discerning travelers and celebrities too. This is where Vivien Leigh and Sir Laurence Olivier exchanged vows; it’s also the setting of John and Jackie Kennedy’s honeymoon retreat.

16 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Other famous guests include Audrey Hepburn, Lucille Ball, Bing Crosby, Groucho Marx, Winston Churchill and Sinclair Lewis.

Full of history and luxury, the ranch encompasses 41 guest cottages, a historic adobe home and ranch house and two fullservice restaurants. Plow and Angel—a nod to the namesake of the ranch, Saint Isidore, patron saint of farmers—is a locals’ favorite, serving classic, upscale comfort food in a Europeanpub setting. The Stonehouse, which was built in 1889 as a packing house to handle the ranch’s citrus production, offers a lounge, dining room with fireplace and creek views, as well as patio dining with ocean views.

This land was originally titled in 1769 by the King of Spain and used by missionaries. After the land passed from Mission Santa Barbara ownership to the Olivera family in the early

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The picturesque setting and lush lemon grove at San Ysidro Ranch.

1820s, they built an adobe house on the property in 1825 (which still stands today as a state and county landmark and one of the oldest buildings in Montecito). As citrus in California grew in importance, it became a working citrus ranch in the 1800s. The San Ysidro Citrus Ranch, which would later become the Johnston Fruit Company, harvested an average of 300,000 oranges and 100,000 lemons annually.

The lemon grove is much smaller today with only 30 trees, and the complete harvest of Meyer lemons goes to feed the diners at the ranch’s two restaurants.

Last year’s infamous Montecito mudslide almost changed all that. The resort was one of the hardest hit by that deadly river of mud, which damaged or destroyed over half of the ranch’s buildings and deposited mud four feet up the historic adobe walls. Fortunately, experts were able to save the adobe, and the lemon grove was completely spared.

After that day, San Ysidro Ranch, along with much of Montecito, was closed for more than a year. It took 15 months of restoration to bring the buildings and the damaged grounds back to life. With the ranch buildings and cottages now open and historically intact, guests won’t see a clue of what the ranch has overcome in all those months. The restaurants are again turning out a few of the old favorites, but mostly the dishes are new and refurbished, still fed by the lemon grove.

At the helm of the kitchen is Chef Matt Johnson.

18 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Johnson has Southern and Central California under his skin; he graduated from Santa Barbara’s School of Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management, worked throughout Europe, then returned to Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo, Pebble Beach and finally Montecito. His philosophy focuses on organic inspiration and culinary artistry, along with pleasing the many regulars as well as guests from afar.

The tableside Steak Diane at The Stonehouse is still a staple, as is his classic Lemon Tart: two guest favorites Johnson is proud to serve. Everything else is new or a twist on the old with a goal of providing a wide variety of flavors and textures, and a warm place for folks to just hang out. Look for the Pan Roasted Scallops with braised oxtail, romanesco, king oyster mushrooms, corn purée and black garlic vinaigrette or the Crispy Veal Sweetbreads with Jerusalem artichoke, Belgium endive, port, sunflower sprouts and kumquat vinaigrette.

The star dessert is always the San Ysidro Ranch Meyer Lemon Tart, served with blackberry compote, crisp meringue and orange-blossom honey cream. Johnson says people ask for the recipe all the time (read how he makes it on the last page of this magazine!) and that the ranch’s Meyer lemons from the 30tree grove make the sweetest lemon curd. And Johnson knows Meyer lemons—he once created a five-course dinner at The James Beard House featuring Meyer lemons from this historic grove. The blackberries are from a local farm in Oxnard, the orange-blossom honey from Ojai and the edible violas from right here on the ranch.

From the dirt, survivors blossom anew.

Liz Dodder is a drinker, eater and traveler who has eaten five kinds of foie gras in one day. She’s also a blogger, writer, photographer, recipe developer, web designer, social media maven and Certified Specialist of Wine (CSW). CaliCoastWineCountry.com See The Last Bite on page 80 for details on the Meyer Lemon Tart.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 19

edible

GARDEN

Left to right: Jujube fruit tree, bananas and cherimoyas.

Exotic

Fruit Trees

by Joan S. Bolton

I

f growing exotic fruit seems like it’s only possible in a vacation setting far away, think again. There are a number of tropical, subtropical and otherwise interesting fruit trees that do well in Santa Barbara County, and early summer is a great time to plant them.

You’ll have the most choices in the South County, where coastal conditions are kind to bananas, cherimoyas and even some mangos and papayas in frost-free locations.

North of the Gaviota Pass, Lompoc, Buellton, Solvang and the Santa Ynez Valley don’t exactly qualify as being in the banana belt. But there are still interesting possibilities, including jujubes, loquats, paw paws and pomegranates.

20 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

How Low Can You Go? A number of exotic fruit trees that thrive here hail from Central and South American regions where frost is virtually unknown.

But others are endemic to China and the eastern United States and tolerate more cold.

To start, figure out the lowest winter temperatures in your garden. If you don’t use an outdoor thermometer, look to the Sunset Zones, which establish baseline temperatures (both high and low, along with rainy and dry periods, wind, humidity and growing season) throughout the West.

In a band along the coast, Carpinteria, Santa Barbara and Goleta are all zone 24, dominated by marine air and with

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winter lows rarely below 45°. The foothills behind all three cities are Zone 23, a thermal belt with winter lows averaging 45° and little frost.

North of the Gaviota Pass, Buellton and Lompoc are Zone 15, with lows from 28° to 21° and record lows from 26° to 16°.

Solvang and the Santa Ynez Valley are Zone 14, with winter lows 40° to 35° and extreme lows from 27° to 17°.

Within those readings, microclimates abound. For example, I live in a canyon west of Goleta less than a mile from the ocean.

Rather than hovering around 45°, our winter lows are often below 40°. The lowest temp this past winter was 32° and frost appears at least half a dozen times or more each year.

Yet because our yard slopes from a 400-foot-tall hill in the back to a creek another 25 feet below in the front, the coldest air (which is heavier than warm air) slides down the hill. Some chilly air pools along the back of our house, but most wraps around the sides and flows into the creek below. With heavy frost, we may see significant damage on the sides of our avocado trees that face the hill and bear the brunt of the moving cold air mass, but see zero damage on the sides that face the creek.

Depending on your terrain, you can take advantage of the concept by planting at the highest point in your yard or on the lee side of a wall, fence or dense hedge. It’s all the better if that vertical surface is south- or west-facing and is a dark color that absorbs heat during the day, then radiates it at night.

Other Considerations Many exotic fruit trees are fine with full sun or part shade.

However, all but the most cold-tolerant detest wind. If your best location is out in the open, consider building a wind screen composed of a couple of redwood posts and shade cloth or wood lattice on the windy side of your tree.

Most of the trees also need fertile soil, impeccable drainage, regular fertilizer and irrigation, plus general TLC. If that seems like a lot, remember that all that nurturing means delicious fruit for years to come.

At planting time, dig a hole twice as wide as the container and not quite as deep, so that your new tree sits three to six inches higher than the ground. If drainage is a problem, plant on a slope, mound or in a raised bed. Mix the excavated soil with ⅓ ½ as much well-aged compost and/or palm and cactus mix. Fill the hole with the blend and mound the excess up to the soil line on the trunk. Shape a basin around the tree and soak the soil.

Mulch with two to three inches of fine-textured organic material, keeping the material a few inches from the trunk, then water again. Continue irrigating daily for a few more days, until the soil is saturated.

In general, you’ll then water deeply about twice a week for the first two months, once a week for the next two months and once a month after that. However, check the watering instructions for your particular tree. For instance, longan and lychee prefer wet conditions, while mature carob, pineapple guava and pomegranate trees can go dry between waterings.

22 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

The type and frequency of fertilizer can vary greatly from one tree to another, too, so check the fertilizer requirements. Also know that it may take a couple of years before your exotic trees begin bearing fruit, and up to five years before they reach peak production.

Choices California Rare Fruit Growers (crfg.org) is the gateway source for delving into the intricacies of growing exotic fruit. The group offers the following guidelines regarding which low temperatures can harm or kill your trees.

From Most Cold-Tolerant to Least Paw paw (Asimina triloba) Harm: -10°; Kill: -31°

Jujube, Chinese date (Zizyphus jujuba) Kill: -30°

Pomegranate (Punica granatum) Harm: 5°; Kill: 0°

Persian mulberry (Morus nigra) Harm: 5°; Kill 0°

Fig (Ficus carica) Harm: 25°; Kill: 10°

Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) Harm: 25°; Kill: 14°

Pineapple guava (Acca sellowiana/Feijoa sellowiana) Kill: 15°

Carob (Ceratonia siliqua) Harm: 25°; Kill: 20°

White sapote (Casimiroa edulis) Harm: 28°; Kill: 22°

Strawberry guava (Psidium cattleianum) Kill: 23°

Longan (Euphoria longan/Dimocarpus longan) Harm: 30°; Kill: 24°

Cherimoya (Annona cherimola) Kill 25°

Banana (Musa acuminata) Harm: 32°; Kill: 26°

Lychee (Litchi chinensis) Harm: 29°; Kill: 27°

Papaya (Carica papaya) Harm: 31°; Kill: 28°

Joan S. Bolton is a freelance writer, garden coach and garden designer who confesses to a lifelong love affair with plants. She and her husband, Tom, have filled their four-acre property in western Goleta with natives and other colorful, water-conserving plants. They also maintain avocado, citrus and fruit trees and grow vegetables and herbs year-round.

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Time to Increase Your Celery

by George Yatchisin PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVEN BROWN

M

aybe it’s just my age—that age that makes one begin a story “maybe it’s just my age”—but a celery stick symbolizes every person’s dream to look swimsuit summer fashionable. You know, when you end up sadly uttering, “I won’t have the cheese course, just give me celery,” as you regret that surprisingly large number your scale flashed at you that morning.

So let’s instead celebrate celery’s salty-peppery subtlety in a cocktail, and we can still feel we’re sort of slimming for the season. The Bikini Bod Cocktail is refreshing, gorgeously incandescent jade green, well-iced and easy on the eyes. It gives us all something to aspire to.

Of course, celery tends to be pretty humble, despite once being a massive Southern California crop. A recent David Karp article in the Los Angeles Times tells of its rise and fall (a twisted tale of Japanese internment and real estate investment), but also points out that today 80% of the country’s celery supply comes from California, with Santa Maria as one of the chief spots to find the best. Lucky us at our farmers markets, then.

For summer it doesn’t hurt to be able to at least pretend a drink is good for you, and right now there’s a publishing cottage industry extolling the benefits of celery. As with any claim suggesting one food is a miracle bullet, you have to take these notions with a grain of (celery?) salt, but it’s nice to imagine a Bikini Bod Cocktail will lower inflammation, reduce blood pressure and even reduce the risk of cancer, as some assert. At least it will certainly increase smiling.

This drink doesn’t mess around, offering celery four ways—the stalks, the leaves, the seeds and celery salt—but each has its own slightly different character. The seed simple syrup provides sweet depth, the juice a bright spice rack, the leaves a bit of crunch, the salt for the rim an almost funky mushroom note. Then the lithe slip of absinthe brings a hint of anise, adding to the green flavor of the drink, if that makes sense. You don’t even need a green-colored absinthe.

24 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

I tested this cocktail with vodka, which works, but the nuances you get with an actually flavored spirit work even better, given celery itself is rather mild. That’s why I settled on gin, with its juniper notes, but it’s also fun to use a more exotic gin, so that’s why I recommend Gin Mare from Barcelona.

Available in the U.S. for the past three years, its bottle looks like a giant nail polish, but I promise it’s much better than that. It’s meant to evoke the Mediterranean, and since Santa Barbara is supposed to do so too, it seems a good fit, with its notes of olive, basil, rosemary, thyme and citrus.

George Yatchisin happily eats, drinks and writes in Santa Barbara.

He blogs at GeorgeEats.com.

Recipes The Bikini Bod Cocktail Makes 2 cocktails 4 ounces gin (Gin Mare recommended) 3 ounces fresh celery juice 1 ounce lemon juice, Meyer preferred 1

⁄ 2 ounce celery seed simple syrup (recipe follows)

1

⁄ 2 ounce absinthe (clear preferred)

Lemon juice for rimming

16 TAPS

OF UNIQUELY CALIFORNIAN, INNOVATIVE, CRAFT BEERS

Celery salt for rimming Celery leaves for garnish

To make the celery juice, start with a bunch of celery (organic, as non-organic can often be covered with pesticides). Chop off the bottoms of the stalks and compost them; chop off the tops—with leaves — and reserve. Chop the stalks into 2-inch-long pieces. In a juicer or high-powered blender, pulverize the chopped-up stalks.

Celery is quite fibrous, so be prepared for this juicing phase to take longer than you might imagine. Often it’s good to feed in a piece of celery at a time. Adding up to a ½ cup of water can also help and not overly dilute the juice. Afterward, strain the juice into a jar where it can be stored.

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Rim your glasses before making the cocktail. In a shallow small bowl squeeze a bit of lemon juice (a few tablespoons); in a small dish pour a half tablespoon or so of celery salt. Take a double Old Fashioned glass and carefully dampen a quarter of its outer edge with the lemon juice. This is powerful stuff, so you want each drinker to have the opportunity to taste as much as she prefers. If you get any on the inside, wipe it clean. Then carefully, at a 45° angle, roll the outer, dampened edge of the glass in the celery salt.

Clean again as necessary. Set aside (or even in the freezer).

To make the cocktails, add the gin, celery juice, lemon juice, simple syrup and absinthe into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake to chill.

Double strain into the rimmed glasses. Add 1 large ice cube to each.

Garnish both with a celery leaf.

Celery Seed Simple Syrup 1

⁄ 2 cup sugar

1

⁄ 2 cup water

1

⁄ 2 tablespoon celery seeds

In a small saucepan, bring all of the ingredients to a boil. Lower heat to simmer and stir so all of the sugar is dissolved. Heat for 5 minutes.

Let cool, strain to remove celery seeds and pour into a small jar.

Continue cooling to room temperature. Store in fridge. Will remain good for approximately a month.

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global

LOCAL CUISINE

Crab dip.

South Carolina Lowcounty Cuisine and Sustainable Seafood

by Laura Booras PHOTOGRAPHY BY WIL FERNANDEZ

O

nce or twice a year, I fly home to Charleston, South Carolina. As my plane descends over the marshlands, I am bombarded with memories of my childhood in the South: devastatingly powerful Hurricane Hugo, family picnics under a beach umbrella and alligators crossing the road on a hot summer night. As the doors to the airport open, the heat and humidity always hit me like a wall. It’s somewhat suffocating, but in a way that embraces me, too, welcoming me back to the Deep South.

When people think of Charleston, they think of beautiful colored houses on Rainbow Row, cobblestone streets and, of course, Southern food. But for me, it’s a little deeper.

Everything moves a tiny bit slower. As a child, I spent sunrise to 26 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

sunset covered in pluff mud or wrinkled from swimming in salt water. We baited blue crabs with chicken necks, pulling them into a net ever so slowly, and my grandfather stood on the end of the boat as the sun set, throwing a cast net and pulling in masses of fresh sweet shrimp.

The Lowcountry is a geographical and cultural region along South Carolina’s coast, including the sea islands such as Seabrook and Kiawah, where my family spends summers. The food from this part of the South is intricately laced with the history and culture there. Obviously, seafood plays a huge role, along with the fresh produce that thrives in this area. Our family gatherings always included piles of fresh boiled shrimp, my Aunt Lea’s world-famous pimento cheese, and freshly caught crab. In the

Fresh Crab Dip

Tomato Pie

Using fresh crab takes this dish to another level. Serve with toasted baguette slices or toast points.

It’s never pretty, but it’s just delicious. Serve hot or cold.

6 tablespoons butter

3–4 large ripe tomatoes

1

⁄ 2 cup finely chopped onion

1 piecrust (homemade or store bought is fine)

1

⁄ 2 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

6 tablespoons flour

1 cup grated Monterey jack cheese

11

⁄ 2 cups milk

1 pinch cayenne 2 teaspoons dry mustard 1

⁄ 2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

1 cup grated white cheddar cheese Juice and zest of 1 lemon 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 4 fresh rock crabs, steamed then picked 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400°. In a large heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until soft and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Whisk in the flour and cook until the mixture smells like a freshly baked cake, about 4 minutes. Slowly add the milk, whisking constantly, and simmer until thickened.

Add the spices and then the cheddar cheese and remove from heat.

Stir to melt.

1 cup mayonnaise

⁄ 2 cup chopped herbs (I use a combination of basil, parsley and thyme) 1

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425°. Bake the piecrust in a pie pan for 8 minutes, until set. Remove and cool. Adjust the oven to 325°.

Slice the tomatoes about half an inch thick. Make 1 layer of tomatoes. Sprinkle with half of the onions and half of the chopped herbs. Add another layer of tomatoes, then the rest of the onions and herbs. Top with another layer of tomatoes.

In a small bowl, mix the cheeses and mayonnaise together. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the top of the pie with a layer of the cheese mixture, spreading it as evenly as possible.

Bake for 1 hour, until lightly browned on top. Let sit for about 10 minutes and then serve.

Add the juice and zest of the lemon, the Worcestershire sauce and the crab. Season and stir in the parsley. Pour into a baking dish and bake for 30 minutes, until hot and bubbly.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 27

From left: Local crabber Steve Escobar and Laura Booras.

2 tablespoons minced onion 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper 4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, but be careful not to over-process. Serve with celery and/or thin crisp crackers.

Wine Pairings Aunt Lea’s Pimento Cheese This recipe has been a favorite in my family, and luckily, my Aunt Lea makes it for every special occasion, so we can get our fill. It’s absolutely delicious as a party appetizer, but you can also put it on sandwiches, in macaroni and cheese, or make it into a grilled cheese.

2 pounds extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated 1 (6-ounce) jar chopped pimentos, drained 1 cup mayonnaise

28 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

S

2017 Buttonwood Santa Ynez Valley Sauvignon Blanc This classic, minerally Sauvignon Blanc has the mouth­ watering stone fruit and citrus flavors that go so well with rich, buttery seafood. On a hot summer day, this is all you want in your glass.

2017 Samsara Zotovich Vineyard Chardonnay This bright, complex Chardonnay is a stunner. Perfectly integrated oak creates a subtle roundness that contrasts with the peach and lemon zest so prominent in this wine.

summer, when the tomatoes are ripe and red, tomato pie is simply required. This is the kind of food that makes me think of home.

Being near the coast here in Santa Barbara provides delicious seafood as well, and even though it centers around colder-water species, it’s just as fulfilling and delicious. And we are fortunate to have access to local, sustainable seafood. “The Santa Barbara Channel is one of the biodiversity hotspots of the ocean,” Kim Selkoe of Get Hooked Seafood shared with me. “It’s very productive and there is lots of variety, and we are lucky to have the ability to sample so many types of seafood.”

Get Hooked Seafood, a local community-supported fishery (CSF) program, is one of the ways I have been able to learn more about the bounty from our local ocean over time. The program focuses on sourcing the best local products for consumers who care about making better decisions regarding our oceans. As she has developed this program, Kim has learned more about the seafood business and all that’s involved, and she is able to support local fishers each and every week. I personally love the seasonal aspect of the program: Though ridgeback shrimp season ends around May or June, salmon, rockfish, black cod and yellowtail will be coming on board through the summer. And we can enjoy crab year round in Santa Barbara.

Since crab has always been one of my favorite things, I joined local crabber Steve Escobar on his boat, the Ocean Pearl, one morning at the Santa Barbara Harbor. “Crabby Steve,” who has been fishing since 1991, has always been an admirer of the ocean and its bounties. As we pulled up a trap full of rock crabs, he shared that he typically leaves on his boat around 2 on Friday morning, returning between 8 and 11 in the evening. After a quick nap, it’s off to the early morning Saturday seafood markets.

This past week, the seas had been rough; in fact, many other fishers at the harbor commented on how difficult conditions had been. This dedication to bringing in the very freshest, very best seafood made me grateful. In order for us to have the freshest seafood, these folks are willing to lose sleep, risk seasickness and leave home for the open water.

Steve saved me four of his most beautiful rock crabs, and once home, I steamed them and used my little kitchen mallet to break the hard shells. As a little girl, I loved picking crab meat out of the shells. For me, the reward of a bite of sweet crab meat was worth the necessary effort. I’ve shared the recipes that have been my favorites over time. Y’all, my Aunt Lea Clement’s pimento cheese is life changing.

The mysterious open sea yields all kinds of delicious foods for us here on land, and we owe it to ourselves to find the best, most sustainable options so that we can continue to enjoy them for years to come. There are always going to be times where my Geechy soul needs to go back to the Lowcountry. It’s a part of me. But for now, I feel lucky to call Santa Barbara home.

Alumna of the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, Laura Booras is the CEO and director of winemaking at Riverbench Vineyard & Winery in the Santa Maria Valley. She lives on the vineyard, where she regularly hosts food writers, celebrity chefs and wine critics for unique meals prepared with locally sourced ingredients.

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Wishful Recycling And Why We All Need to Use Less Plastic

by Janice Cook Knight HELENA HILL CONTRIBUTED TO THIS STORY

Worldwide, the recycling rate for plastic is only 9%. The rest ends up in landfills and the ocean.

30 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

H

ave you ever stood over a recycling bin and wondered if what you were tossing in was, actually, recyclable? An empty paper coffee cup, maybe, and that plastic lid. What about last night’s to-go containers: plastics with a #5 stamped on the bottom?

Back in 2011, Edible Santa Barbara proposed reducing the use of plastics by issuing a challenge. I took the challenge myself and wrote about it, and about ways we can personally reduce our plastic use. Eight years later, I wanted to know what, if anything, had changed. What can be recycled in our community? Have there been improvements to recycling, and have we reduced our plastic use?

In the past, China bought our recyclables, processed them and used them for industry. In 2018, China suddenly stopped accepting our plastic and cardboard. They raised their cleanliness standards and our waste wasn’t sufficiently free of contaminants such as food, pollutants and moisture. They also have plenty of their own recycling to deal with.

This has left the U.S. in a lurch: Suddenly cut off from overseas recycling, we’ve had to scramble to process our own “refuse.”

This is much larger than Santa Barbara, California or the United States. It’s a global problem. Worldwide, the recycling rate for plastic is only 9%. In the U.S., it’s about the same, just under 10%. Our plastic use is growing: According to an article in National Geographic last year, about half the plastic ever manufactured has been made in the last 15 years, and we’ve been making plastics since about 1950. Plastic use is rising rapidly.

There are currently no financial incentives in place to return many plastic food containers we use, like the CRV (California Redemptive Value) program for some glass and plastic drink bottles and aluminum cans. Our CRV is so low (5 cents) that people often don’t bother to return items anyway.

What about using biodegradable or compostable containers?

The standards establishing which of these containers are biodegradable or compostable are inconsistent, and often, containers labeled compostable can only be broken down in a

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 31

commercial composter, hotter than the temperatures you can have to want to buy the items we are disposing of. Recyclers achieve in a home compost pile. Santa Barbara doesn’t provide want glass; they want aluminum and other cans. They want a commercial composting bucket residentially. Even if it did, (dry, clean) paper and cardboard. They only want some plastics, the commercial composting facility available to the city, used mainly the #1 and #2 plastics, especially the thicker, larger ones. mostly for waste from local businesses, especially restaurants, They don’t really want to bother with them if they are too small “isn’t able to process these types of materials, because the or if the plastic is thin. Plastics #3–7 are not for the bins. No processing time is not long enough. It’s also nearly impossible more #5s, typically all those yogurt and sour cream containers. to determine whether a fork is a mistakenly thrown in plastic Part of the problem with getting recyclers to take #5 containers fork or a compostable plastic—so all plant-based plastics are was that they were typically contaminated with food residue. pulled out and sent to the landfill,” says Bryan Latchford, the The plastic bottles #1 and #2 must also be clean and dry, so public outreach coordinator for the City of Santa Barbara’s that the paper and cardboard in the bin don’t get wet; when Environmental Services. wet, they can’t be recycled and are tossed out. No food in the recycling can, please! No pizza boxes: They belong in the trash, What happens to single-use plastic once we’re finished even when the pizza’s gone. The grease contaminates it. Give with it? A container can be recycled, composted, up-cycled or bottles a quick rinse first and put the cap back on (better chance down-cycled, or it goes into the trash. From the trash, it goes the cap will get recycled, too). to a landfill. And in countries with a poor sanitation system, the plastic ends up in streams and rivers—and ultimately in the Our “mixed bin” recycling has been easy for us, but a mess ocean, in extremely large quantities. for sorting, especially because of the plastic bags we used to throw in. Now, Santa Barbara County doesn’t want us to put Plastic is never truly recyclable, in the sense that bottles plastic bags into the blue bins at all. The bags are often not and cans are. A can of aluminum can be recycled into more clean, for one thing, and the aluminum cans, ad infinitum. But a plastic bottle can’t be recycled Many of us have been “looking the other biggest problem is that they get caught in the sorting machinery, into another plastic bottle without way” when it comes to recycling. We’ve slowing down the process. When the addition of some virgin plastic tossed all paper, glass, plastic and metal you place recyclables in your blue resin to make it stronger. It can bin, make sure they are loose, not be up-cycled, meaning made into in the can and figured that it would all bagged. something more valuable than get sorted into proper containers and the original material, like a trendy The city will be rolling out reused, somewhere down the road. backpack or a colorful outdoor the new guidelines and notifying rug. It might be down-cycled, households by the end of summer, meaning made into another plastic product, like children’s toys though you can see the guidelines online now. Styrofoam or plastic for decking, or garden supplies. After those products doesn’t go in the bins, either. Dispose of it in the trash, or you become broken or obsolete, then what? What happens to old can bring it to Heal the Ocean in Santa Barbara. They’ve found toys, or decking made of hard plastic? As they start to break someone who wants polystyrene, a typically hard-to-recycle down, they’ll still go to the landfill. Their demise has only been substance. postponed.

Other things that don’t go in the blue bins, though they We are lucky, in Santa Barbara County, to have a landfill to used to: No milk cartons. They have a plastic coating. A send it to. Our county is building an anaerobic digester at our lot of what we thought was getting recycled, really was not.

Tajiguas landfill, which will substantially reduce waste, reduce Those paper coffee cups and cold beverage cups? That kind of methane emissions and generate energy. Some cities on the East cardboard gums up the works. Same with napkins and paper Coast, such as Philadelphia, don’t have the space for all their plates. The plastic lids should also go in the trash, along with excess plastic and are having to incinerate it, and not always plastic utensils, packages of condiments and chopsticks. Don’t with air quality protections in place. The city of Memphis is try to recycle tetrapaks, which are the boxes used for juice and stopping their recycling programs and sending recyclables to some milks, and that don’t need refrigeration. They’re a weird the landfill. Other cities are doing the same thing. It turns out mix of paper, plastic and foil, notoriously difficult to recycle. that most recycling programs were never terribly profitable, Nobody wants to deal with them. anyway, and have gotten worse as consumers put things in the Having fewer items to put into the recycling bin doesn’t recycling that were never meant to go in there. You can’t blame sound like an improvement. Keep in mind, though, that only consumers for being a bit confused, though.

2.5% (by weight) of the recycling in our bins is plastic. Of In Santa Barbara, the rules for our blue bins are changing. what ends up in the blue bins, 40% is paper; 15%, cardboard; Recycling is a business. Our city and county partner with 20.5%, glass; 2%, metals. Electronics and batteries account MarBorg Industries, which in turn sells paper and cardboard, for a small percentage. Close to 20% of what gets put in the glass, metal and plastics to recyclers. This means that recyclers recycling bin is actually mixed trash.

32 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Not All Plastic is Recyclable

But here’s what you can put in your curbside recycling: Plastic marked #1 (PET or PETE)

Plastic marked #2 (HDPE)

Full Name: Polyethylene Terephthalate Recyclable, if clean and dry (leave caps on): • Clear and green soda bottles • Cooking oil bottles • Peanut butter jars • Salad dressing bottles

Full Name: High Density Polyethylene Usually milky or solid colors and rigid containers Recyclable, if clean and dry (leave caps on): • Milk jugs • Some yogurt and margarine tubs

Note: Other lightweight, clear or green, glossy, rigid containers that sink in water are not currently recyclable.

Note: Detergent bottles, shampoo bottles and other containers are usually recyclable, if clean.

For more info, visit LessIsMore.org

To recycle plastic bags, Ablitt’s Cleaners has come to the rescue. Owner Sasha Ablitt wanted to recycle the plastic bags dry cleaning comes in. Ten years ago, she searched to find someone who wanted that kind of thin film plastic, and she found Trex industries, which uses this kind of soft plastic, recycling #4 and #6, to make outdoor decking (though bags are not always marked with numbers). She’s invited the public to bring their plastic to Ablitt’s. It’s the same thin plastic used for produce bags at supermarkets, and to wrap grocery pallets, and used to wrap water bottle packs; also, they take bubble wrap and the plastic around your newspaper. It’s stretchy, and tears easily and jaggedly when torn. Some zip-top bags are also

made of this plastic, but no zips are allowed—cut them off and throw away. You can bring the plastic to Ablitt’s, and also to the CEC and SB Channelkeeper, but only if it’s clean and dry. This means no plastic used for food storage. Food contaminates it and can spoil a whole batch of plastic near it, and it will need to be thrown away. We can’t recycle the thick, stiff plastic zip bags many food products come in. Read the guidelines on these sites (see resources). No snack chip bags either: They’re a mix of aluminum and plastic that’s difficult to recycle. This year, Sasha Ablitt estimates she will recycle eight tons of plastic through this program. Not too shabby.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 33

Alternatives to single use plastic include reusable grocery bags, milk in glass containers, eggs in cardboard and using your own reusable containers for produce and bulk bin items.

You can also bring plastic bags to supermarkets, which are required to take them back. However, I talked to one recycler in the Los Angeles area who was warehousing plastic bags they’d collected from a supermarket chain. Because China went out of our recycling business, he was waiting to find an American company who could take the stuff. Meanwhile, I’d rather take my plastic bags to Channel Keepers, the CEC or Ablitt’s, because they know where it’s going.

Let’s not forget the reason we like plastic. It’s an amazing material: lightweight, yet relatively strong. Able to be made into products as diverse as bags and clear bottles to hold water and other liquids; portable containers for everything from chips, cookies and cheese sticks to dried fruits and nuts. Plastic material becomes a wrap for meats and is made into trash bag liners, so things don’t leak and spill, and plastic provides a coating on cardboard milk containers. In a way, it’s been a miracle material. It’s used in a myriad of medical devices.

Just looking around my office, I see plastic everywhere: my computer, copy machine, tape dispenser, phone, calculator, scissor handles, pens. But while most of the items in my office will have years of use, the plastic used for many food and beverage containers are designed to be used just once. As Kathi King, outreach and education director for the Community Environmental Council, told me, “The best plastic single-use container is the one you didn’t use.”

34 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

What Did Grandma Do? A form of plastic made from cellulose, called celluloid, was invented in the late 1800s. Later the process was modified to be made from petroleum. Manufacturing began in the 1950s, and then we went hog-wild with the stuff.

I like to imagine my Kansas grandparents providing food for their growing family during the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s, before plastic was invented. At first they lived on a farm; later, a house in town. Somehow they got by without plastics! Milk came in glass bottles. Sandwiches were wrapped in wax paper. Leftovers were stored in a bowl in the refrigerator with a plate on top.

Aluminum foil was invented in 1910, so they had access to it, but I’m sure they didn’t use much of it, because it was relatively expensive and they were thrifty. Yes, I’m sure the garbage leaked sometimes, but I know there was a lot less garbage. They didn’t have recycling, except for returning the milk bottles to the dairy.

If they could, they reused things we now just throw away.

I remember, because in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s they were still reusing and saving everything, including used, clean foil. As kids, we thought they were crazy. Grandma washed and reused plastic bags, and had a stack of used plastic food containers in her cupboard that she used for leftovers. So did my mom and dad. They never got over the “saving” mentality.

Many of us have been “looking the other way” when it comes to recycling. We’ve tossed all paper, glass, plastic and metal in the can and figured that it would all get sorted into proper containers and reused, somewhere down the road. This is called wishful, or aspirational recycling, also known as “wishcycling.”

We imagined that even Styrofoam, if we tossed enough in, might get recycled. Won’t recyclers get the message, we thought, that Styrofoam should be recycled? Sometimes the items we tossed in, though theoretically recyclable, still contained food. It should have been put in the trash to begin with. While I wish our city could recycle more, much more, I’m starting to avoid buying items in packages I know are destined for the trash.

I imagine a better future for us, one that is much less wasteful. If food items must be packaged, I imagine products that will break down into truly safe, compostable components, derived from sustainable materials that can be grown quickly and without pesticides: bamboo or perhaps hemp. And more and more, I imagine a return to buying foods in less plastic packaging. The “zero waste” philosophy is increasingly an option (see Resources for a great TED Talk).

I watched a movie about what happens when plastic breaks down into tiny pieces, called microplastic. The movie is Oceans: The Mystery of the Missing Plastic (see Resources). Plastic is breaking down in the oceans and traveling all around the world.

Many plastic bottles are lying on the ocean floor. Little tiny bits of plastic are being eaten by fish and plankton and shellfish, eventually making their way into us. Those who think we are

not all one organism had better think again.

Does microplastic in the oceans have negative health effects?

Fish and shellfish are compromised by it. Just how eating fish contaminated with microplastics will affect humans is yet to be determined. We are the experiment.

Larger pieces of plastic float between oceans, and are colonized by algae and other sea creatures, such as crustaceans which attach to them. Because of the nature of plastics’ floating possibilities, the organisms living on the plastic are distributing themselves to parts of the globe where they haven’t been before.

There are long-reaching effects of this. Species introduction is often a crapshoot.

I remember how hard it was for me to always remember to bring bags into the supermarket. Now I almost never forget. But I do forget to bring those little nylon or net produce bags with me, and last Saturday I forgot to bring them to the farmers’ market, too. Awkwardly I bought most items without bags, to deal with when I got home, but if you’re buying a lot of apples, or oranges, or snow peas or green beans, anything numerous and small, you want to put them in something. So, I broke down and took a couple of plastic bags. I usually remember to keep used plastic berry containers, the kind from the supermarket, in my basket, and I reuse them for many months.

They keep my berries better than the green baskets they come in at the market, which always spill, even inside a bag, resulting in squished berries and loss. I’ve seen other shoppers bringing their own reusable containers. (Continued on page 38)

RECYCLE PLASTIC BAGS & FILM PACKAGING Recycled plastic bags and wraps become durable home and garden products

CASE WRAP (eg. snacks, beverage cases)

 YES!

AIR PILLOWS (please pop them)

DRY CLEAN BAGS

or pre-washed salad mix bags  frozen food bags  degradable bags  food wrap  nothing with lots of tape or stickers (small amounts of both ok)

NEWSPAPER BAGS

BUBBLE WRAP & BUBBLE-ONLY ENVELOPES

all items must be clean and dry

DROP OFF LOCATIONS

 ziplock bags  produce bags

NAPKIN, PAPER TOWEL, BATHROOM TISSUE AND DIAPER WRAP (packaging)

RETAIL BAGS

NO

BREAD BAGS (turn inside out)

cecsb.org/ditchplastic 14 W Gutierrez Street

714 Bond Avenue

26 W Anapamu Street

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 35

Alternatives to Single-Use Plastic: Take a Plastic Challenge Straws Kudos to all the restaurants and businesses who are helping eliminate the mindless consumption of plastic straws. Most of the time people don’t miss having a straw plopped in every beverage they order. And for the disabled community or for times when a straw really does come in handy, thankfully there are alternatives.

Disposable and compostable straws come in paper and other compostable materials. Reusable straws in silicone, metal and glass are durable, functional and often stylish.

Bottles and Beverage Containers One of the best things you can do is to stop buying plastic bottles of water. Doesn’t everyone have a plethora of travel mugs and water bottles crowding their cupboards?

Bring Your Own You probably also have a large collection of reusable grocery bags, now just make sure that there are some with you when you are out shopping.

Don’t stop at just grocery bags; bring your own reusable containers for small produce items such as berries. You can also bring your own containers when buying take-away prepared food. At a deli or meat counter, ask that your food be wrapped in paper or ask if they can put your food in a reusable container that you provide.

Produce and Bulk Bin Bags Buying fresh produce and shopping from bulk bins can save on packaging, but not if you use the disposable plastic

36 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

produce and bulk bin bags. Some stores are switching to compostable plastic bags and some offer paper bags for the bulk bins. But if you are looking for a good reusable option, try lightweight, washable mesh bags.

Look for Alternatives to Plastic Packaging It’s hard to avoid buying food products that aren’t wrapped in one or more layers of plastic. But once you start looking you’ll find beverages in glass or aluminum, milk in returnable glass bottles, yogurt and condiments in glass containers, pasta and bread in paper bags, spices in glass jars, etc.

Food Storage Bags Yes, you can wash and reuse your zip-top plastic bags, but they don’t always last very long and are so easy to just throw away. If you invest in some silicone bags, you’ll definitely keep reusing them. They can also be used in sous vide cooking.

Food Wrap and Covers If you are in the habit of wrapping food and covering bowls with plastic, you’ll need a couple of products to replace the ubiquitous plastic film on a roll. If you are covering a bowl, there are several reusable options.

First you could simply put a plate over the container or transfer the contents

to a container that has a lid. If you want something more flexible, Bee’s Wrap (pictured above) uses beeswax-coated cotton cloth to cling to your bowls or to itself. It comes in various sizes and shapes and is organic and washable. Great for wrapping odd-shaped items, too.

Another option is a stretchy or silicon bowl cover. They come in a variety of sizes and stretch to fit a container. They are even dishwasher safe.

You might want to rediscover the benefits of waxed paper. It’s great when you need something lightweight and disposable. You can use it to wrap sandwiches, hunks of cheese and other food. You can find it on a roll or as small open bags that can be folded shut.

Progress, Not Perfection There’s no need to drive yourself crazy trying to do everything all at once. Change a little bit at a time to incorporate lasting habits. Use and reuse what you have on hand. Try to find local stores to support before buying online.

Share your challenge and progress on social media: Tag @EdibleSB, @PlasticFreeJuly and use the #PlasticFreeJuly and #ChooseToRefuse hashtags.

Communities around the globe are concerned about plastic ending up in landfill and polluting the oceans ... that’s why 120 million people worldwide are choosing to be part of Plastic Free July

Will you join the challenge?

Please join our effort to help the environment. Choose to refuse single-use plastic during July.

Yes, I will join the challenge!

1. Visit our website plasticfreejuly.org

2. Choose what you will do Avoid single-use plastic packaging Target the takeaway items that could end up in the ocean Go completely plastic free

3. Choose the length 1 day

1 week

1 month

Always

AVOID LANDFILL WASTE, REDUCE YOUR ECO-FOOTPRINT, PROTECT THE OCEAN. PLASTICFREEJULY.ORG EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 37

Resources Styrofoam Recycling Heal the Ocean Santa Barbara 1430 Chapala St., Santa Barbara Call 805 965-7570 for hours.

HealTheOcean.org

Plastic Bag Recycling Ablitt’s Fine Cleaners 14 W. Gutierrez St. Santa Barbara Call 805 963-6677 for hours.

Ablitts.com The Community Environmental Council and Santa Barbara Channelkeepers offices will now be additional dropoff locations for post-consumer film plastic. In addition to the Ablitt’s dropoff, community members can also drop off to CEC at 26 W. Anapamu St., 2nd Floor (near Chapala), or to SBCK at 714 Bond Ave. (near Milpas) between 9am and 5pm, Monday through Friday. Go to cecsb.org/recycle-film-plastic to download a printable PDF of which film plastics you can and cannot recycle.

Article that will shock and inform you “Plastic,” National Geographic, June 2018 https://www.nationalgeographic.commagazine/2018/06/ plastic-planet-waste-pollution-trash-crisis/

Movie worth watching Oceans: The Mystery of the Missing Plastics On Amazon Prime Video

TED Talk Zero Waste Is Not Recycling More, but Less, with Bea Johnson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWnsmzSSgdI

A song to inspire I Do Not Need a Bag, by David Roth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygBWQohg9PY

A book to help heal the earth, and your heart Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer, published by Milkweed Editions

Last night my husband threw away a container that had held seasoned, gluten-free bread crumbs, because it was a #5.

I must say there’s some peace in knowing what’s recyclable and what isn’t. Now I need to call that company and ask them if they’d consider putting those crumbs into a glass jar. Of course, I could make my own, though chances are the bread, and even the flour I could buy to make the bread, would be wrapped in some kind of plastic. And what about the delicious hummus sold at the farmers market? Their containers are made of super thin #1 plastics, same as the clear boxes at the supermarket that hold pre-cut fruit. Though theoretically recyclable, they are so light, have so little plastic material in them, that it doesn’t pay for recyclers to bother with them. Even if I clean them and put them in the blue bin, they’ll probably end up in the landfill. I could make my own hummus, of course. But this fellow offers a very tasty product, and convenience. How do we both support business and stop all this packaging?

I like learning which plastic films are recyclable and which aren’t. I’m still saving a bag of things I don’t know how to recycle, yet. I keep hearing there’s a website somewhere, where I can send everything… though that’s not practical. I keep practicing wishful recycling, hoping I can find a home for every container where it will somehow, magically, have another life, rather than just a single use. I’m starting to wish I’d never bought the item in the first place. Can I give up potato chips?

I love potato chips, but the bags they come in are impossible to recycle (though Terra Chips has a bag recycling program for theirs, see Terracycle.com) Who needs to take responsibility for better recycling? Food producers? Government agencies? Consumers? It’s clear to me: All of the above.

The country of Norway is leading the way in recycling, by offering a more substantial buy-back than our state’s CRV program. In Norway, close to 95% of recyclables are actually getting recycled. They’ve made it easy and accessible, with dropoff boxes readily available. In an effort to clean up their waterways, the European parliament just voted to ban single-use plastic cutlery, cotton swabs, straws and coffee stirrers by 2021.

The directive will also ban polystyrene cups and cups made of plastics that degrade into small pieces.

I love the world so much—my children, my husband, my grandchildren—that I will never stop hoping to make it better, imagining it healthy. I wish we didn’t have to spend so much time and energy fixing things that should never have been broken. Funny, we’ve spent so much technological energy breaking the world; will we use technology to repair it? Maybe.

The world has powerful restorative energies, all on its own.

I still simply love the world. It is my only home.

Participate in a Plastic Challenge Plastic-Free July Resources and sign up at PlasticFreeJuly.org

38 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Janice Cook Knight is the author of the Follow Your Heart Restaurant cookbooks. She and her daughter Sarah recently launched the food blog TriedAndTrueKitchen.com.

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City of Santa Barbara Ordinance Targets Ocean Pollution

Plastic Straw, Stirrer, and Cutlery Ordinance When July 1, 2019 Who What

Food or Beverage Vendors (This does not affect the retail sale of straws in bulk or straws included in prepackaged items)

Exemptions Apply Call us for details.

Banned All plastic and compostable plastic straws and stirrers.

On Demand (must ask)

All plastic and compostable plastic utensils.

All other single-use straws (ex. paper, noodle)

Recommended Reusable and washable straws, or skip the straw!

For more information visit SBRecycles.org or call (805) 564-5631 EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 39

In the Greenhouse with Noey Turk

Building, Rebuilding and Protecting Healthy Habitats

by Nancy Oster PHOTOGRAPHY BY FRAN COLLIN

Noey Turk in the greenhouse.

40 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Cilantro planted in a straw pot.

I

glance at my cellphone. A text from Noey Turk, owner of Yes Yes Nursery, reads “See you at the greenhouse at 9am.”

It’s already 8:30 and a flashing sign on the freeway warns me that there is a bicycle race on San Marcos Pass, so I stay on the freeway, wishing I’d left earlier. It’s drizzly and overcast— what Santa Barbara locals call a typical “May gray” morning. I head toward the Santa Ynez Valley where, thanks to the rain, green hillsides are once again nourishing hungry cows. Light filters through a white blanket of clouds, intensifying the yellow, orange and purple colors of roadside wildflowers and revealing deep rich shades of green in the foliage —yellow and blue-green variations I never notice on sunny summer days.

I text my apologies ahead and arrive 10 minutes late.

Greeting me with her characteristic bright smile, Noey leads me into a large greenhouse. I stand among tables of healthy plants and take a deep breath, soaking in oxygen and breathing out carbon dioxide in exchange. Noey’s greenhouse is a calming, peaceful place filled with light and teeming with life.

I remember back to my interview with Noey nine years ago—when she’d described her decision to leave the fluorescent light of university corridors, where she was in graduate studies in physics, to grow seedlings in a sunlit nursery on her family farm. Since that interview, her business has grown and taken on a new emphasis. She has built this greenhouse, added a partner EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 41

42 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

and been active on the board of the Santa Barbara Certified Farmers Market Association, where she currently serves as board president. We have so much to catch up on.

At the end of a long metal table, Noey fills 20 straw pots from a tub of potting mix and arranges the pots onto a black tray. “I’m planting parsley,” she says, sprinkling a pinch of seeds into each pot. The potting mix is her own formula. “Peat moss is one of the biggest carbon sinks on the planet. Harvesting peat disrupts that process, so I make my own mix using a coconut husk medium called coir, rice hulls, red lava rock and sand.

It’s the most ecological recipe I could come up with,” she says.

“And you can plant these straw pots right in the garden to avoid damage to the plant’s delicate roots when you transplant them.”

I follow as Noey carries the tray past rows of tables containing vegetables, herbs and flowers—a greenhouse in full production. “When did you get this greenhouse?” I ask.

“I salvaged it from a Montecito estate in 2011,” she says with a sparkle, indicating a story waiting to be told. A friend helped her dismantle and pack the worn structure and tables into a roll-on container which MarBorg delivered to the farm, where Noey unpacked and sorted the pieces by type. “We’d had no time to label the parts before packing, so basically I was looking at a huge pile of metal,” she says. Seeing her dilemma, some friends connected her with Glen Dittmar, a farmer living nearby who had rebuilt a salvaged greenhouse on his family’s apple farm.

Glen worked with Noey for eight months to redesign, upgrade and rebuild the greenhouse. As a result, Noey and Glen built not only a new greenhouse, but a new partnership as well.

I ask Noey if she still plants all the starts for her parents’ farm. “No,” she says. When Debby and Shu Takikawa’s farm The Garden of ….. scaled up from six acres to 60 acres, it was more than she could supply, so they found a larger commercial grower. “That freed me to focus on my passion for teaching people how to grow their own gardens,” she replies.

We walk back to the seed table, where Noey looks at her planting list. Cilantro next. A heavy brown plastic dinosaur holds down the list. Other dinosaurs hide among the potted plants. I point to them. “Refugees I rescued from my brother Ky’s toybox when he got too old for them,” she says. “Now people bring them to me. I guess this is a pretty good habitat for plastic dinosaurs,” she laughs.

“It’s a gardener’s job to create habitats.” She explains: A habitat is an environment that supports an organism with the things it needs to thrive. “That includes providing food and medicinal plants as well as creating beauty (because at the end of the day it’s really nice to have a beautiful spot to sit).”

“I think people are deeply tapped in to a sense of peacefulness in a healthy environment. It’s a deep trigger for us; when you hear birds singing and see flowers blooming, you know something good is going on.”

Opposite top left: A honeybee attracted to the Clarkia flowers. Top right: Noey holds the flowers of local native Dudleya cymosa. Bottom left: Peppers Bottom right: a rescued toy amongst the Duudleya pulverulenta.

“We also need to restore and protect the habitats of our native pollinators. The pollinator situation is dire. Glen and I have an acre of certified organic land where we propagate native plants to invite our local hummingbirds, butterflies and native bees to come back onto the farm—pollinators who often have relationships with the specific native plants.

The Clarkia bee, for example feeds primarily on Clarkia pollen and nectar. We see at least a dozen species of native bees on our property and the more native plants we grow, the more native bees we see. We offer these pollinators an oasis of protective space where they are not exposed to pesticides of any type. We see native plant restoration as a way to protect our little postage stamp of earth and to share our appreciation for native plants with others.”

Noey and Glen sell their native plants, culinary and medicinal herbs and vegetable seedlings weekly at three farmers markets: Wednesday in Solvang, Saturday in Santa Barbara and Sunday in

Noey with Glen Dittmar.

Ojai. All sales are direct sales made through the market.

Noey has been on the board of the Santa Barbara Certified Farmers Market Association for seven of the past nine years.

As president of the board, she has become a spokesperson for the 115 small farm owners who sell at one or more of the six Santa Barbara County farmers markets. I ask her to give me some insight on the role these markets play in supporting our community’s small local farms.

Historically, direct sales of fresh produce sold anywhere but on the farm were constrained by regulations designed to ensure the safety of wholesale farm produce shipped across country. It wasn’t until the California Direct Marketing Act of 1977 exempted small farms from these labeling and packaging requirements that small farmers were free to sell their produce directly to consumers in a farmers market setting. The first of EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 43

Noey Turk at the Solvang Farmers Market.

these Santa Barbara markets was held on a Saturday morning in March 1979 at the Santa Barbara Mission.

“The idea of direct marketing goes all the way back to the beginning of civilization,” Noey asserts. “People would come together as a community to trade or sell their wares. Farmers markets allow farmers to be more diverse in what they grow.

I can tell just driving by a farm whether it is a wholesale farm or a market farm. A market farm has a succession of different crops, often with rows of flowers in between, while the wholesale farm has large blocks of one crop that all get harvested at the same time.”

“The farmers market is a lifeline for farmers just starting out,” says Noey with a nod to her own experience. “There’s a steep learning curve and farmers run at one of the lowest profit margins of any business. We also have a lot of uncertainty—droughts, fires, floods and pest infestations can be economically devastating.”

“Our association charges 5% commission on market sales, one of the lowest fees in the state. Some cities subsidize their farmers markets, but we have stayed independent. That commission covers all of our costs, but we run on a shoestring.”

I ask Noey for her perspective on the relocation of the Saturday market if that site is chosen for the new police station. The Saturday market has been in the Cota Street location for 35 years. “Our Saturday market draws 3,000 to 5,000 people every single week of the year,” she notes. “A lot of farmers also do the smaller markets, but they depend on the Saturday market to stay in business.”

44 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

“This is the largest of the six markets and it brings in more than half the association’s revenue. That income helps to give our smaller markets a chance to take root. Noey worries that “any impact to the Saturday market will have repercussions throughout the whole association.” She says, “I stay up at night thinking about it, but always go back to the feeling that I’m advocating for these small farmers and their children. Many of our local farms are multi-generational—I am the third generation to farm our land.” She wants to protect this habitat established by her grandmother and other small farms like it.”

“Small diverse farms provide long-term food security for our community. I’ve never felt any sense of opposition to the police station or to the needs of our law enforcement community and we should not be asked to choose between these two critical needs: public safety and food security. We need to address both.”

Clearly, transplanting the Saturday market would require thoughtful consideration to understand the market needs, identify what has made it successful in this location and to protect its vigorous roots wherever it is located in the future.

During our discussion, Noey has finished planting herb seeds and moved on to cucumber seeds. She stops abruptly and calls out “No! Towhee… Oh, come on… I just planted those!” A California Brown Towhee is poking its beak into the newly planted pots, flipping potting mix onto the table. We rush to those tables with a thin white row cover sheet and place it over the freshly planted pots. Noey formally introduces me to Hoppy Bird, who frequently shares Noey’s greenhouse habitat. Last year Hoppy hatched a nest full of baby chicks right inside the greenhouse.

A popping thud suddenly reverberates through the greenhouse. “It’s the sun warming up the metal structure,” explains Noey. Another pop. The sun is breaking through the clouds and filters in, illuminating the greenhouse’s flying insect patrol. Insects such as tiny parasitic wasps and hover flies have come to dine on pests such as aphids and greenhouse white flies.

This is a pesticide-free space.

“Even organic pesticides don’t distinguish between the good and bad insects,” Noey points out. So she relies on beneficial native California bugs to keep the pests in check. She explains that healthy habitats are not about exclusion; they are about negotiation and finding the right balance. Well, that gives me something to think about on my back to Santa Barbara.

Indeed, it’s time for me to head back. It turns out the bicycle race warning was for tomorrow, not today. “The native prickly phlox is in bloom on San Marcos Pass,” Noey says. “It’s a pink wildflower with a nighttime fragrance.” It’s one of Santa Barbara’s many seasonal treasures—I’ll definitely take the Pass.

As we leave the greenhouse I glance back at the potting table. Hoppy Bird has jumped into the tub of potting mix. She’s digging, rolling and fluffing her feathers—taking a morning dust bath. Yes, life is good on this farm. Cin Cin! Nancy Oster has written for Edible Santa Barbara for the past 10 years.

She is grateful for interviews with farmers like Noey Turk, who make her stop to look at the world around her and see things she might have missed.

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A Beer in Every Kitchen

by Zach Rosen PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOSHUA CURRY

H

oney and biscuits. Papaya and guava. Caramel and bacon. These aren’t the items off of a shopping list but simply a glimpse of the many flavors found in beer. The outrageous range of aromas and tastes that beer can deliver is what makes it so potent in food pairings. But it doesn’t stop there. Any of these flavors can be put into the next dish you cook by just using a single ingredient: beer.

46 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

From baked goods and batters to braised meats and marinades, there are many ways to incorporate beer into your recipes.

Between the various cooking techniques and the variety of beer flavors there is an endless array of possibilities once beer enters the kitchen.

Beer is mostly water and can be treated as such when cooking with it or adapting it to a recipe. As with any ingredient, though, there are some general rules and considerations when cooking with beer. The bitterness of a beer is the first thing to think about when selecting the right brew for a recipe. If the beer is going to be heated, and especially if it will be reduced down, the bitterness can concentrate in a very harsh way. This is similar to how tannins need to be treated when cooking with wine.

Hoppy beers like IPA and Russian imperial stout go wonderfully in baked goods but should be avoided in reductions and cooking techniques where a lot of liquid will be evaporated off. Blonde ales, wheat beers, doppelbock and other styles that put emphasis on malt and yeast over hops will be better suited for these processes.

A Fleeting Flavor From tropical fruits to pine trees, hops contribute a diverse and bountiful aroma to beer. But be aware that if the beer is going to be simmered or cooked for an extended amount of time then much of that delightful aroma will dissipate during cooking.

Typically speaking, floral and fruity notes in beer are delicate and quick to disappear. There are always exceptions. I’ve often found that extended cooking of a hefeweizen will leave a residual banana note in the dish.

Clove, bubblegum, pepper and other phenolic aromas might be dulled in their finesse when reduced or boiled but can also concentrate in a way similar to bitterness. This is something to be aware of when simmering with styles like hefeweizens, Belgian beers, or anything that has been aged on wood.

Covering the pot as it cooks will help reduce the loss of aroma; I’ve found that the best technique is to retain a little of the beer to add in during the last five minutes or so of cooking.

This extra dose of fresh beer will give the dish an aromatic punch that otherwise might have gotten simmered away. This is most relevant with soups and stews where the dish will be slowly cooking for an hour or more. In soups, usually anywhere

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 47

from one quarter to a half of the stock in a recipe can be replaced beer. Try the Lupine Porter from Night Lizard Brewing Co. in a by beer. Add more beer for lighter-flavored styles and less for blue cheese, thyme and portobello mushroom sauce. Just stir in heavier or bitter beers. gnocchi and crumbled breakfast sausage and top it off with a fried egg for the decadent Sunday brunch of your dreams.

Most beer styles will work in some form of soup. Wheat beers add a fulfilling heartiness to chicken soup and a dark lager Liquid Bread deepens the flavors of beef stock. Even a tart Berliner weisse Beer and fried foods just go together, making beer batter the will liven up a gazpacho. If you are replacing stock with beer in perfect fusion of the two. Oftentimes a simple lager is used in the a recipe just remember that the salt content will be lower than batter, but don’t cut your culinary experience short. IPA will lace before so will need correcting. As with cooking any dish, taste as a floral fruitiness to the average fish and chips or an American you go and adjust accordingly. wheat like the Fool’s Gold from Pure Order Brewing Co. can add Beer in stew is a classic and there are countless recipes for a citrus edge to your next tempura batter. But really, beer can be beer-based chilis and other slow-cooked dishes. Ambers, browns used in a whole range of batters and doughs. Replacing a third of and stouts often find themselves in beef chili although there are the water with beer in a standard many variations on this theme. olive-oil pizza crust will produce a A habanero IPA in a white chicken Lighter-colored beers tend to work dough that has a light springiness chili will give it a spicy herbal twist. with fish, chicken and pork.

Amber from the carbonation and crust An amber rye ale will contribute that browns easily from the extra a complex richness to goulash that beers and darker are better with beef, sugar and protein found in beer. complements the paprika- and lamb and other richer meats.

Rye beer makes a wonderful caraway-laden dish. pumpernickel. Just add butter and One traditional example of a cranberry orange chutney made with the sweet-sour Flemish red using beer as a cooking liquid is with steaming mussels. This style of beer for a tasty and quick breakfast.

Belgian standby is perfect for Santa Barbara, where local mussels are as close as the farmers market. Normally a simple blonde ale With baked goods, if the recipe calls for water, it can be is used but I recommend trying with the light Belgian brew called partially or completely replaced by beer. If it only asks for dairy, Mini Monk from Draughtsmen Aleworks. try splitting the volume between equal parts beer and dairy. Using a heavier version of dairy like half and half or cream can help Steaming foods such as vegetables or dumplings with beer compensate for any dairy being removed. For dairy-free baked can take advantage of the rising aroma from boiling beer. Brussels goods, coconut milk is a natural fit for the mocha notes of a stout sprouts can be steamed with IPA to lace a subtle hoppiness in each sprout. or the chocolate and spiced banana flavors of a dunkelweizen.

The bitterness in beer will work harmoniously with bitter Ending on a Sweet Note greens and other vegetables. An orange and IPA vinaigrette will Malt flavors can range from honey to dark chocolate, making bring some zest to your next salad or beets in a lemon witbier beer the ideal ingredient for adding to dessert. The mocha flavor cream sauce with mint garnish can provide a sunny start to a of stout is an obvious choice, however there are many other meal. The witbier, Merci Pierre from Third Window Brewing options available. The spices in a pumpkin beer or the maple Co., is made with coriander, kumquat purée, key lime and orange quality of a brown ale such as Restraint from Institution Ales can peel and is particularly well suited for this dish. add a soothing warmth to a homemade doughnut or your favorite The Meat of the Matter cupcake recipe.

There are plenty of beer marinade recipes out there and the Fruited and sour beers are a nice way to provide contrasting acidity in beer will help tenderize the marinating meat. Marinades elements to the other sweet notes of a dessert such as the tart are your chance to play around with hops and really let the full cherry flavors of a kriek lambic in a cheesecake. The sharp peach gamut of beer flavors shine. Sweet stouts and smoked porters will tones of Peche from Telegraph Brewing Co. made into a spiced beef up any barbecue sauce. honey cream sauce will work just as well in a bread pudding as it does atop a peach cobbler.

Try using a curry lemon and cilantro marinade made with a hazy IPA like Tropical Magic by Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. These sour styles also do wonders in a beer float, where the the next time you are marinating fish. acidity adds a dash of contrast to the ice cream. Finish up your next summer barbecue with a pistachio gelato, grilled cantaloupe The general rules of protein and wine apply here as well: and a sprig of mint topped off with Captain Fatty’s kettle-soured Lighter-colored beers tend to work with fish, chicken and pork.

Calypso Cucumber.

Amber beers and darker are better with beef, lamb and other richer meats. As always, there is room to play around.

Really, the possibilities are endless when cooking with beer.

Stout can add depth to chicken mole and the peppery notes As you experiment with different styles and techniques you’ll of a saison work wonders when deglazing the pan from steak au easily see why beer belongs in the kitchen. Just remember to save poivre. Cheese sauces are particularly potent when made with enough beer to drink with the meal.

48 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Cooking with Beer Recipes

Summer Calypso Gazpacho This light summer soup gets its acidity from the kettlesoured beer Calypso Cucumber. It can be a quick and easy lunch or served alongside traditional toppings of chopped ham and hard-boiled eggs for a more substantial meal.

Makes approximately 8 servings 6 large ripe tomatoes (about 3 pounds), peeled, seeded and chopped 1 small red onion, chopped 1 small cucumber, peeled and chopped 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped 2 stalks celery, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 teaspoon fresh minced basil 8 ounces Captain Fatty’s Calypso Cucumber 1

⁄ 4 cup olive oil

1 piece of bread Salt and cracked pepper to taste

After peeling the tomatoes, use a fine-mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Make sure to retain as much liquid as possible from the tomatoes. Chop all of the vegetables and add them with the tomatoes into a blender or food processor. Purée the mixture. Add the olive oil and beer and continue to purée. Soak the bread in water for a few seconds and then squeeze out all of the liquid. Add the bread to the mixture and blend smooth. More or less bread can be added to achieve the desired consistency. Transfer to a nonreactive bowl, cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Remember that since this soup is not being heated, the finished dish will contain some alcohol.

Serve with a variety of toppings such as garlic croutons and basil chiffonade or finely chopped onions, bell pepper and tomatoes.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 49

Tropical Magic Marinade This quick marinade is a perfect fit for summer barbecuing.

It has subtle notes of guava and citrus from the hazy IPA, Tropical Magic. This marinade will go well with chicken, fish and even vegetables. Try it the next time you’re barbecuing kebabs.

Makes approximately 1½ cups 2 tablespoons soy sauce 2 tablespoons honey 6 ounces pineapple juice 6 ounces Figueroa Mountain Tropical Magic 1 teaspoon finely grated ginger root 1 tablespoon minced garlic 1 tablespoon minced green onions 1 tablespoon sesame seed oil 2 tablespoons olive oil

In a medium bowl, whisk the soy sauce and honey until they are combined. Then add the pineapple juice and beer into the bowl and combine with the honey and soy mixture. Add the rest of the ingredients and whisk until smooth.

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Where to Find the Beers Mentioned in this Article Mini Monk from Draughtsmen Aleworks DraughtsmenAleworks.com Merci Pierre from Third Window Brewing Co. ThirdWindowBrewing.com Tropical Magic by Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. FigMtnBrew.com Lupine Porter from Night Lizard Brewing Company NightLizardBrewingCompany.com Fool’s Gold from Pure Order Brewing Co. PureOrderBrewing.com Restraint from Institution Ale Company InstitutionAles.com Peche from Telegraph Brewing Company TelegraphBrewing.com Calypso Cucumber from Captain Fatty’s CaptainFattys.com Zach Rosen, Certified Cicerone®, is a beer writer and event designer living in Santa Barbara. He is currently an artist-in-residence at SBCAST, where he is developing interactive art installations focused on multi-sensory beer pairings.

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Santa Barbara County’s

Wine Trailblazers

by Wendy Thies Sell PHOTOGRAPHY BY FRAN COLLIN

Richard Sanford

52 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Whether they’re called pioneers or visionaries, one thing is certain: They helped to blaze the trail for a wine region that less than 50 years after its birth is now considered one of the best in the world.

The first generation of winegrowers and winemakers in Santa Barbara County shared a common love of wine and a level of fearlessness, and many are still passionately producing world-class wine in one of the most special places on earth.

Richard Sanford When Richard Sanford arrived in Santa Barbara County nearly five decades ago, most of the ranches at the time raised cattle or dry-farmed barley and garbanzo beans. Leery farmers told Sanford that wine grapes would never grow there.

Nevertheless, with science as his guide, Sanford, a geographer, painstakingly studied the climate records of Burgundy, France, and discovered nearly identical Mediterranean climate conditions between Buellton and Lompoc. One of the earth’s few transverse mountain ranges runs east-west there, allowing ocean fog to cool the land at night and burn off during the day. Sanford calls the effect “refrigerated sunshine.”

He and botanist Michael Benedict planted the first Pinot Noir vines in the region in 1971; the legendary Sanford & Benedict Vineyard, along Santa Rosa Road, in what is now the esteemed Sta. Rita Hills AVA. He founded Sanford Winery in 1981 and planted the first certified organic vineyard in the county, El Jabalí Vineyard, in 1983.

“It’s been very exciting to be pioneers in organic viticulture in our region,” said Sanford. “The most important thing for an organic farmer to know is that it’s possible.”

Weathering many storms in the challenging wine industry over the decades, Sanford and his wife, Thekla, began a new venture, Alma Rosa Winery, in 2005. Today, at age 78, a grateful Sanford looks forward to the new winery facility in the works and new vineyard plantings at Alma Rosa ranch.

“It’s been a spiritual journey as well as a business for me,” Sanford said. “My time on the planet has been very satisfying.”

His pioneering viticulture efforts were rewarded in 2012 as Sanford was the first Central Coast winemaker named to The Culinary Institute of America’s Vintners Hall of Fame.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 53

Fred Brander

Fred Brander

Ken Brown

Fred Brander and his father, Erik Brander, planted their 34-acre vineyard in Los Olivos in 1975. Four years later, they built Brander Winery.

Today, more than 200 wineries are based in Santa Barbara County. When wine pioneer Ken Brown was hired as Zaca Mesa Winery’s first winemaker in 1977, there were just a handful of fellow vintners.

“My first commercial vintage was 1976,” said Brander.

“The only other producer that was before me, other than Santa Barbara Winery, was Firestone in 1975. I made some wine in 1974 also.”

Brander fondly recalls the early days: “It was really fun because there was really no pressure. It wasn’t competitive and it was so easy to sell wine. That’s probably the biggest thing that has changed: Our wines have gotten a lot better, yet at the same time they’re much harder to sell just because of the competitive nature of the business; there’s just so much wine out there on the global market.”

“It was a very small industry,” recalled Brown. “When I’d get together with all the other winemakers, we could do it at one kitchen table because there were only five or six of us!

Brander has earned the title “King of Sauvignon Blanc in California.” Remarkably, 75% of his 15,000-case production is Sauvignon Blanc.

Brown’s early responsibilities included buying the new winery’s equipment, planting vineyards and hiring the staff. Zaca Mesa did an enormous amount of research both in the vineyard and winery because the region was so new; there was so much to learn. Zaca Mesa served as a winemaking training ground and was known as “Zaca University,” with many Zaca Mesa alumni going on to enjoy successful wine careers, including Jim Clendenen (Au Bon Climat), Bob Lindquist (Qupé), Adam Tolmach (Au Bon Climat and Ojai Vineyard) and Lane Tanner (Lane Tanner Wines and Lumen), among others.

What would Brander’s dad think of the now-$2-billion Santa Barbara County wine industry that they helped to start? “I think he would be amazed at the growth and I think he would be pretty pleased that we were one of the first to jump in,” said Brander. “I think he would be definitely surprised how much wine is a part of the Santa Barbara economy and the lifestyle.”

While at Zaca Mesa, Brown planted the first Syrah grapes in the county. He continued experimenting with grape varietals when he founded Byron Winery in the Santa Maria Valley in 1984, planting the county’s first Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc.

Brown sold Byron Winery to Robert Mondavi in 1990 and established Ken Brown Wines in 2003.

“There was a lot of magic then,” said Brown, reminiscing about the early days. “Everyone had enthusiasm about making wine! It was a great, great, great time! We were all really proud but probably more than anything, really surprised because we just had no idea of the potential of the area.”

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Ken Brown

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Jim Clendenen

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Jim Clendenen No one has circled the globe more times touting Santa Barbara County’s wine industry than Jim Clendenen, “The Mind Behind” Au Bon Climat Winery. Clendenen logs more than 200 days a year traveling domestically and internationally, promoting the region and his celebrated wines.

What is his message about Santa Barbara County when traveling around the world? “We have the most extraordinary climate for growing grapes that you can imagine,” said Clendenen. “We have totally mild winters, we have absolutely spectacular cool foggy and cloudy summers and grapes come out the other end after a very long time on the vine in exquisite balance, if you’re looking for that. I’m looking to make a wine that is exactly what they’re looking to make in Burgundy.”

Clendenen’s first job in the wine business: bottling Fred Brander’s 1976 Gewürztraminer. What was his payment for his long day’s work? “A case of Gewürztraminer.”

After a stint as Zaca Mesa’s first assistant winemaker, Clendenen and Adam Tolmach founded Au Bon Climat (ABC) in 1982. Now, 37 years later, ABC is receiving some of its highest scores from wine critics. “Decades later, we are overnight successes,” Clendenen says, tongue in cheek.

Clendenen’s two grown children, Isabelle and Knox, are now working with their proud dad, helping to sell ABC and Clendenen Family Wines, both locally and abroad.

“It’s a good time to look back on it,” added Clendenen.

“I’m content.”

Rick Longoria “One doesn’t set out to be a pioneer,” said Rick Longoria, who founded Longoria Winery in 1982 and established the first winery in Lompoc in 1998. Others followed and today the area is a winemaking hub that includes the Lompoc Wine Ghetto and Sta. Rita Hills Wine Center.

Longoria’s first wine harvest was in 1976 while he was cellar foreman at Firestone Winery, the county’s first estate winery.

His career includes winemaking stints at J. Carey Cellars and Gainey Vineyard.

Today, Longoria Winery produces 12 different wine varietals and Longoria is eager to make wine from new local plantings of Graciano and Mencia, two Spanish varietals recently introduced in the valley.

“We are farming grapes much, much better than we were back in the early days,” explained Longoria. “I’ve had recent experiences of tasting my wines from the ’80s and they’re good.

It’s amazing that they’re as good as they are given how relatively poor farming practices were back then. Without a doubt, I’m making far better wine now than I was back in the early days and that’s due to vast improvement in the way wine grapes are farmed now.”

“I’ve been very lucky!” said Longoria. “I still want to be part of it and I still get really excited about the potential of our area.”

Rick Longoria

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 57

Lane Tanner “We just wanted to make wine; selling it was almost secondary,” reminisced Lane Tanner, the Central Coast’s first independent female winemaker. Her first winery job, in Northern California in 1979, required more than a bit of muscle.

“I actually had to clean barrels by putting chains in it and then water and then roll the barrel back and forth so the chains break off the tartrates,” said Tanner. “Trust me, after about two or three barrels, that gets to be a lot of work! It was OK for me because I was very strong, but I think that definitely limited the number of women that went into the field at that point. The nice thing is, as I’ve gotten older, we’ve gotten more technology and now pretty much you don’t really have to be that strong to do almost anything. Really, the industry has gotten easier.”

Tanner arrived in the Santa Ynez Valley in 1981 with her chemistry degree in hand, for the enologist job at Firestone Winery.

She worked at Zaca Mesa before landing her first winemaker job, in 1984, at Hitching Post Wines. Nicknamed the “Pinot Czarina” for her passion for Pinot Noir, she started her own label, Lane Tanner Wines, in 1989.

“Pinot Noir just works with my body chemistry to give me the most wonderful high,” said Tanner. “There is just something about Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir. There would be no other place I’d want to make wine; point-blank, none.

It’s so deep inside of my body.”

It’s been a road full of highs and lows. Tanner’s piece of the pie kept shrinking as “big money” arrived in the region and flooded the market with Santa Barbara Pinot Noir. “At that point, I was breaking even; maybe not even breaking even.”

After a decade, she retired her eponymous wine label. But she couldn’t stay away from the winery. In 2013, she entered into a partnership with Will Henry to make Lumen Wines.

“I wake up in the morning and think I’m one of the luckiest people in the wine industry right now,” said Tanner.

“I get to make wine; I have a partner who’s just so good to me; he and his wife, Kali Kopley, do all the sales; I get to do everything I love and nothing I hate and I get a paycheck!

I’m loving it! I’m the happiest I’ve ever been.”

Lane Tanner

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Bob Lindquist and Louisa Sawyer Lindquist

Bob Lindquist & Louisa Sawyer Lindquist A pioneer in the American Rhône wine movement, Bob Lindquist worked his first wine harvest near Gilroy in 1975.

While managing a tasting room in Camarillo, he made repeat trips to the Santa Ynez Valley and he realized his destiny lay in Santa Barbara County.

“On my days off, I would come up and visit Sanford & Benedict and Firestone Winery and Santa Ynez Valley Winery and places like that,” Lindquist recalled. “I fell in love with it and I knew this was where I wanted to be.”

His first hands-on winemaking experience came at Zaca Mesa.

Lindquist soon established his own winery, Qupé Wines, in 1982, producing the first Syrah and Viognier in Santa Barbara County and the first Marsanne in California. In 2015, Lindquist was just the third person to be honored by the Rhone Rangers with its Lifetime Achievement Award.

“We are still making wine the same way we were in 1982,” Lindquist said. “We’ve improved the equipment we use, but the basic techniques that we use are still the same. We use tried-andtrue traditional methods. Great grapes always rise to the top.”

Lindquist and Qupe’s new owner, Vintage Wine Estates, parted ways in early 2019. “I’m very proud of what I accomplished with Qupé, as being the pioneering winery for Rhone varieties in this area. Hopefully, that legacy will endure.”

Lindquist and his wife, winemaker Louisa Sawyer Lindquist, recently launched a new wine label: Lindquist, made from “clean” grapes, grown organically or biodynamically. Their first Lindquist wine is a 2017 Grenache. The couple owns a wine tasting room in Arroyo Grande and Sawyer Lindquist Vineyard in the Edna Valley.

Sawyer Lindquist is a wine industry visionary in her own right; “California’s First Lady of Albariño” produced the white Spanish varietal in 1999, the first Albariño vintage in the state.

On being female in a male-dominated industry: “It’s a different playing field now than it was 10 or 15 years ago and that’s noticeable,” said Sawyer Lindquist. “The world is changing; now it’s no big deal, really.”

Wendy Thies Sell is a four-time Emmy Award–winning journalist, travel, wine and lifestyle writer and emcee. Wendy anchored the local TV news on California’s Central Coast for 12 years at KSBY and KCOY. She resides with her family in northern Santa Barbara County.

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PASCALE BEALE

The raised beds at the UCSB Student Farm are designed for maximum production.

A Farm at UCSB

The Edible Campus Program

by Pascale Beale

N

estled against the transparent playground wall of the Orfalea Family Children’s Center lies a nascent garden. The rectangular 12,000-square-foot plot is undergoing a metamorphosis: What was once flat, nondescript, unused land tucked into a corner on the west side of the UCSB campus is now a burgeoning, vibrant, student-led farm with organic vegetables in some of its newly built beds.

The seeds for the UCSB Student Farm were first planted more than 10 years ago as Katie Maynard, sustainability coordinator and advisor for the Edible Campus Program, explained when we met at the emerging farm on a recent sunny afternoon. Katie, whose ebullient enthusiasm for the project 60 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

inspires everyone who meets her, detailed the long road she, the students and all the supporters of this project have had to travel to arrive at the groundbreaking ceremony that finally took place last autumn.

The Edible Campus Program, a collaborative effort between the Associated Students Food Bank and UCSB Sustainability, was created (in part) to address the important issue of student food insecurity, by repurposing underutilized land on the UCSB campus for sustainable food production, creating productive gardens that supplement the two on-campus student food banks with free, fresh, organic, vegetables and fruit.

Maynard recounted the staggering statistic that some 48% enthusiastic groundbreaking ceremony, complete with silverof undergraduates and 31% of graduate students have, at tipped shovels, hard hats and broad smiles all around. some point in their student life, struggled to have sufficient, “For the last 12 years we’ve been running school gardens nutritious food, according to National Policy Institute surveys in Hawaii, so it seemed like a natural fit for us to help UCSB completed in 2015–16. get their first student farm off the ground,” said Kim Johnson The correlation between students’ rates of success (at during an interview at the groundbreaking ceremony. “We were completing courses on time, general well-being and positive excited to hear about the UC Global Food Initiative when that mental health) and their access to sustained healthy food has launched four years ago, so we reached out to hear what UCSB been well documented, effectively showing that those without is doing in that space. Then Edible Campus got started, first access to proper nutrition struggle to regularly attend classes, with the fruit trees and now the farm. We’re hoping this will have lower grades and higher dropout rates, and report more lead to a lot more.” illnesses, and mental health problems compared to their foodItching to see the farm take shape, the not-necessarilysecure peers. exciting yet important groundwork had to be laid first.

In an effort to address this issue, in late 2017 the California Meetings with the county health department, contractors and legislature approved the Hunger-Free Campus Bill, providing design firms to finalize plans were necessary before the first funding to help public institutions address student hunger—the plants could be nestled in the beds. That initial phase including first legislation of its kind in the permitting, grading, underground country. At UCSB, the Edible irrigation and electrical systems When completed, the farm will have Campus program is central to the and fencing, which took another food security initiative. few months to complete, delayed at 37 raised beds surrounding a three- to times by our unusually wet winter.

Ten years ago, the marvelously named Associated Students four-tiered permaculture forest of fruit Patience, as any farmer will tell you, is a virtue. With more clement Department of Public Worms (yes, weather and thousands more worms), the core group within the trees, bushes and low-lying plants. volunteer hours, the farm is now Edible Campus Project, created a about to bloom. campus-wide composting program, the product of which eventually led to growing food that could As you can imagine, “Funding and developing this project be harvested for student consumption. The initial food-growing has been (and continues to be) a mammoth task,” explained project began in the summer of 2015, with the Urban Orchard: Katie Maynard, highlighting the student-driven Fund for Santa seven citrus trees planted in Storke Plaza. The orchard was Barbara, and introducing me to Alex Moon, the student coordilaunched with the financial support and mentorship of the nator for the Campus Program. Alex and other fellow students Johnson Ohana Foundation, an organization founded and have been grant writing for years, resulting in grants from 14 directed by USCB alumni Jack and Kim Johnson, who have different community foundations and sponsors in the area. been devoted proponents of this program since its inception.

“Some of the students are no longer at UCSB, having The orchard was followed by the Hydroponic Vertical graduated before we broke ground on the farm,” said Katie, Garden Project, launched in April 2017. The vertical gardens are but she told me they stay in touch to find out how the farm is managed, nurtured and fed by the nutrient rich worm tea, made progressing. It is evident that so many people have toiled long by students from the Department of Public Worms (DPW) and hard to see this farm emerge from the dirt. It has been a and produce everything from peppers to tomatoes to melons community-wide, student-led effort. Alex, who spends a great on their towering structures. The third, and key, component to deal of time reaching out to his fellow Gauchos, spoke about the Edible Campus program is the long-awaited Student Farm, the upcoming summer workshop series for new gardeners, the which members of DPW run on a day-to-day basis.

“Greeks Go Green” program, recruiting volunteers from the Greek Life communities and launching the Saturday Morning The new farm, now rapidly taking shape, was designed Live program, which helps DPW staff to build, tend and

by Kim True from True Design Landscaping, incorporating cultivate the now-14 different Gardens that make up the Edible students’ ideas into the final working plan. When completed, Campus. Alex spoke passionately about this project, as did the farm will have 37 raised beds surrounding a three- to fourall the people I met on the farm that day. Volunteering in the tiered permaculture forest of fruit trees, bushes and low-lying gardens, he said, “helps build community partnerships.” plants. The farm design also features a greenhouse, composting area, pergola, farm shed and a flexible space dedicated to Caroline Conrad, the feisty and energetic operations education, from pre-K to college level. coordinator for DPW, whom I also met at the farm, shovel in hand, directing the USCB weightlifting team in the moving of On October 10, 2018, the beaming, hardworking hundreds of pounds of dirt, mulch and building blocks for parts volunteers, DPW and Edible Campus staff, surrounded by of the new beds, took time to explain the growing program UCSB Chancellor Henry T. Yang, the Johnsons and other and the future hopes for the farm’s output. The first harvest, sponsors, supporters, friends and family, took part in an EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 61

from the four initial raised beds, was designed to produce the maximum output for minimum input. The results, harvested in April, were gratifying: 40 pounds of spring onions, 30 pounds of radishes and 15 pounds of beets, along with bunches and bunches of herbs.

The next round of planting, which would make any gardener proud, included blossom-festooned zucchini, towering tomatoes, running green beans and peppers, chives, green onions, vibrant eggplants and cucumbers, with dainty bunches of cilantro and garlic chives (good for pest reduction) nestled in between. It occurred to me that I should take one of their classes to seriously brush up on my gardening techniques. Caroline, Katie and Alex all spoke about the workshops, both for gardening and on food nutrition, that they offer to the Isla Vista community.

As more of the raised beds are built (the goal is to have 10 finished and planted by July) food production from the farm will increase fresh food deliveries to the UCSB Food Bank.

Caroline and the DPW team have been planting vegetables that are culturally appropriate to the diverse student population at UCSB and that are easy to prepare. Once all the Edible Campus projects—the citrus trees, the vertical gardens and the farm— are in full production, the goal is to double the amount of fresh produce distributed annually by the AS Food Bank, adding 12,000–17,000 pounds of freshly picked, organic food to the students’ tables.

“Food pantries traditionally rely on leftover produce, often gathered from grocery stores right before food gets tossed out.

This leaves students with limited options, since they have to quickly consume that produce. What we’ll be able to do is provide freshly picked fruits and vegetables, where we can pick those items that same morning and bring them to the food bank the next day,” said Katie.

The thousands of students who use the food banks will soon have more varied, fresh food choices. As Margot, a sophomore studying hydrology who was volunteering the day I visited and who uses the AS Food Bank, told me, “I like knowing where my food comes from. This is a great way to get fresh food!”

As the tools were put away at the end of the day, it was evident that growing, preparing and sharing food is a universal community builder. The look of satisfaction on everyone’s face was evident. As I walked toward my car, the sun setting in the west, I looked at the plants and imagined what I would make with them if I were harvesting that beautiful crop.

Resources For additional questions or giving opportunities, please contact Katie Maynard 805 448-5111. Visit: https://giving.ucsb.edu/Funds/Give?id=312 http://www.sustainability.ucsb.edu/campus-farm/ Pascale Beale grew up in England and France surrounded by a family that has always been passionate about food, wine and the arts. She was taught to cook by her French mother and grandmother. She is the author of The Menu for All Seasons, Salade, Les Fruits and Les Legumes. Visit her website and blog: The Market Table at PascalesKitchen.com.

62 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Recipes Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho Gazpacho, a chilled tomato soup that has its roots in Andalusian cuisine, is the perfect antidote to hot summer days. Big, juicy heirloom tomatoes make incredible gazpacho. This is a simple recipe made to showcase this sumptuous fruit. I like to use deep red tomatoes that give the soup an intense, beautiful color.

Makes 8 servings 3 pounds heirloom tomatoes, cored, peeled and halved 1 cucumber, peeled and cut into large chunks 2 tablespoons tomato paste 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons fig balsamic vinegar A large pinch coarse sea salt 8–10 grinds fresh black pepper 1

â „ 3 cup chives, finely chopped

4 green onions, sliced Zest and juice of 2 lemons 1 handful lemon basil leaves, chopped 3 tablespoons basil olive oil

Place all the ingredients except for the basil leaves and basil olive oil into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the gazpacho is a little chunky. Be careful not to overmix.

MEDIA 27

Refrigerate the soup for at least 30 minutes before serving. To serve, pour the gazpacho into soup bowls or glass jars. Drizzle with a little of the basil olive oil and garnish with the chopped basil leaves. I like to serve grissini (pencil-thin Italian bread sticks) or some olive bread with this soup.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 63

Tomato Basil Salad Every November since 1998, the potters of Santa Barbara have joined forces with many of the city’s best restaurants for an event called Empty Bowls, a benefit for the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County. For months prior to the event, potters make and then donate hundreds of bowls to the cause. On the day of the event, local chefs make a prodigious amount of splendid soups. Your ticket entitles you to choose a bowl—which is then yours to keep—and sample the soups.

I have been fortunate enough to attend for the past several years. Every year I have found a beautiful lapis-colored bowl, each one unique. I treasure my collection, some of which are pictured here. They are perfect for a bowl of soup and, of course, this vibrant salad.

Makes 8 servings 3 tablespoons lemon olive oil 1 tablespoon pear Champagne vinegar or white-wine vinegar Salt and pepper 2 pounds cherry tomatoes (different varieties), large ones halved 1 handful Thai basil leaves, roughly chopped 1 handful basil leaves, roughly chopped 1 small handful mint leaves, chopped 3 tablespoons chives, finely chopped 1 small handful cilantro leaves Feta or goat cheese (optional)

In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil and vinegar to form an emulsion. Add a good pinch of salt and 4–5 grinds of black pepper.

Place serving utensils over the vinaigrette.

Add the tomatoes and all the herbs to the bowl. When ready to serve, toss to combine well and divide among 8 bowls. Serve with some toasted olive bread or baguette, to mop up all the lovely tomato-basil juice in the bottom of the bowls. You can also add some crumbled feta or goat cheese for a nice variation.

Roasted Branzino with Ratatouille

MEDIA 27

Ratatouille is a dish that is dear to my heart. My mother taught me to make this when I was a little girl. I’d sit on the kitchen counter and help chop zucchini and tomatoes while she would cut up the onions and eggplant. She showed me how to cook all the vegetables separately just as her aunt had showed her. I treasure the idea that at least four generations of my family have been making this dish, almost unchanged, for nearly the past hundred years. We often serve ratatouille with roasted chicken or grilled fish for dinner and if you have some left over the next day, it’s marvelous in an omelet.

64 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Makes 8 servings

FOR THE RATATOUILLE Olive oil 4–5 medium yellow onions, peeled, halved and thinly sliced 1 large or 2 medium eggplant, diced into ½-inch cubes 4–6 zucchini, diced into ½-inch cubes 8–10 medium tomatoes (Romas work well), cut into small pieces Salt and pepper 1 bay leaf

Pour a little olive oil into a large heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven over low-medium heat. Add the onions and cook until soft and lightly browned, about 8–10 minutes.

While the onions are browning, pour a little olive oil into a large skillet over medium heat and sauté the eggplant until soft and browned, approximately 8–10 minutes. You may need to do this in batches. Add the cooked eggplant to the onions. Add salt and pepper to taste.

In the same large skillet, pour a little more olive oil and add the zucchini. Cook until lightly browned, about 5–7 minutes. Add the cooked zucchini to the eggplant-onion mixture.

To the same skillet add a touch more olive oil and cook the tomatoes over high heat for 2–3 minutes, letting any juice evaporate or thicken.

Add the tomatoes to the eggplant-zucchini-onion mixture.

Cook all the vegetables together with the bay leaf, a large pinch of salt and some pepper for 30–40 minutes, uncovered. Remove the bay leaf just before serving. Spoon the ratatouille onto a large serving platter.

FOR THE FISH 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 large handfuls flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped 4 green onions, ends trimmed and finely sliced 2 tablespoons chives, finely chopped 1 large handful cilantro, finely chopped 3 tablespoons dill, finely chopped Zest and juice of 2 lemons 3 whole branzino fish (10–12 ounces each), cleaned and scaled Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine all the ingredients except the lemon juice and the fish in a medium sized bowl.

Make 4 parallel, horizontal, ½-inch-deep cuts into both sides of the branzino. Insert some of the herb mixture into each of the cuts and into the cavity of the fish. Place the prepared fish onto a lightly oiled baking dish or sheet pan. Sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and 4–5 grinds of pepper. Roast in the center of the oven for 20 minutes.

MEDIA 27

Place the cooked fish on the ratatouille, pour a little lemon juice over the fish and serve immediately. Filet each fish and serve with a good helping of the ratatouille.

Branzino is also known as loup de mer or European sea bass.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 65

W SU I NMTM EE R REEDDI IBBLLEE E VVEEN NTTSS W E D N E S D AY – S U N D AY

JULY

10–14 JU LY

128th Annual Santa Barbara County Fair

S AT U R D AY

JULY

13

Summer Loving Vineyard Tour

11am–10pm daily at Santa Maria Fairpark

Noon–4pm at Casa Dumetz vineyard

From jams and jellies to pies, photography, homemade quilts and floriculture, the fair provides visitors with an abundant, interesting mix of educational fun. Award-winning wines, fine art, live entertainment, agriculture, horticulture, junior livestock auction and rodeo. SantaMariaFairpark.com.

Visit the vineyard where winemaker Sonja Magdevski grows grapes for her stunning wines. Lots to see—bring a hat, visor, sunscreen and plenty of water for this stunning time of year. More info at CasaDumetzWines.com/Events.

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY – S U N D AY

W E D N E S D AY

S AT U R D AY

JULY

13

JULY

13–14

JULY

JULY

White Party—Summer Bash

Santa Barbara French Festival

Northern Thai Pop-Up

Vintners 5 Miler

5–9pm at Root 246, Solvang

9am at Sanford Winery

11am–7pm at Oak Park in Santa Barbara

Every Solvang 3rd Wednesday Root 246 offers a special 3-course menu for just $25+ per person. Join Chef De Cuisine Crystal “Pink” DeLongpré for a Northern Thai pop-up restaurant experience. Visit Root 246 on Facebook for special menu items and to make a reservation.

Enjoy a morning run (or walk) through Rinconada and Sanford & Benedict vineyards in the beautiful Santa Rita Hills in the Vintners 5 Miler. Celebrate at the Finish Line Festival with a glass of Santa Barbara County wine and local eats. All proceeds benefit the Santa Barbara County Foodbank. $50–65; Register at SBVintnersRun.com.

Noon–3pm at Martian Vineyard, Los Alamos Celebrate Martian’s summer bash in all white. Enjoy summer snacks, white sangria and tons of fun. Ticket includes exclusive owner access and customized case of wine. More info and tickets at MartianVineyard.com/Events.

One of Santa Barbara’s favorite festivals celebrates the exciting, rich and entertaining French culture. Get ready to enjoy great food, wine, mimosas, crepes, delicious pastries, music, dance and, of course, the infamous Canine Cavalcade.

Free and family-friendly.

FrenchFestival.com.

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20

S AT U R D AY

S U N D AY

T U E S D AY

JULY

JULY

JULY

Rockin’ Our Roots Concert

Sourdough Bread Baking Class

5–10pm at The Little Door, Santa Barbara

20

21

2–6pm at Buttonwood Farm & Winery

F E B R U A RY

Master the fundamentals and science of baking sourdough bread with head baker and owner Brendan Smith. Includes sourdough starter and recipe. Coffee, light lunch and wine included. $125.

Tickets at BettinaPizzeria.com/Events.

S AT U R D AY – S U N D AY

S AT U R D AY

W E D N E S D AY – S U N D AY

JULY

JULY

JULY 31– AUGUST 4

Surrounded by Food & Wine Multi-Chef Dinner

Edible Santa Barbara Summer Release Party

27–28 Enjoy the sights, sounds and tastes that define the traditional Greek way of life. Stroll through Santa Barbara’s beautiful Oak Park and experience the simple pleasures of life in a Greek village. Free and family-friendly.

SantaBarbaraGreekFestival.org.

Stop by The Little Door on Tuesdays for endless moules-frites (mussels and fries) and live music with DJ Fab. Every Tuesday 5–10pm; LittleDoorSB.com or 805 560-8002 for reservations.

T U E S D AY

JULY

11am–7pm at Oak Park in Santa Barbara

Endless Mussels & Fries

8:30am–12:30pm at Bettina, 1014 Coast Village Rd., Santa Barbara

Come rock our roots with a summer concert at beautiful Buttonwood Farm Winery. Sit back, relax and enjoy two live and lively bands. Bring a lawn chair, a picnic and your dancing shoes (or flip flops) as you sip estate wines and feel the groove of the vines. More info and tickets at ButtonwoodWinery.com.

The Santa Barbara Greek Festival

23

27

6:30–9pm at Riverbench Vineyard & Winery, Santa Maria Chef Clark Staub and Chef Laura Booras serve a side-by-side dining experience in a stunning outdoor vineyard setting.

Eight total dishes will feature ingredients grown alongside the vines in Riverbench’s garden and orchard. $120–150. Tickets at Riverbench.com/Visit-Us.

66 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

30

6–8pm at Bossie’s Kitchen, Santa Barbara Join us as we celebrate the release of the Summer issue of Edible Santa Barbara. Mingle with Edible writers and contributors and pick up a copy of the new issue. Free to attend; food, wine and beverages available for purchase. More info at EdibleSantaBarbara.com.

Old Spanish Days Fiesta A celebration of Santa Barbara’s heritage, through music, parades, fiestas, dancing and family events. Serious foodies frequent the mercado at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church with its wide array of authentic Mexican cuisine and entertainment. Full listing of events can be found at OldSpanishDays-Fiesta.org.

For updates and more details on these and other events, visit EdibleSantaBarbara.com T H U R S D AY

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY – S U N D AY

AUGUST

AUGUST

AUGUST

Summer Cooking Class

Eat, Play, Love Los Alamos

Clone 667 Pinot Noir Wine Tasting Flight

1

M AY A U G US T

11am–2pm at The Bear and Star, Los Olivos Sip on wine as you learn to make The Bear and Star classics of deviled eggs, cornbread, tri-tip and pie from the immensely talented and extremely entertaining Chef Trent. $120; tickets at TheBearandStar.com.

10–11

3

1–5pm, Bell St., Los Alamos

At Riverbench Winery Tasting Room, Santa Barbara

A fun afternoon stroll through Los Alamos, sampling wines, beers, appetizers and desserts from local businesses. There will be an opportunity to win prizes too. Proceeds will benefit the Friends of The Library, Los Alamos. Tickets $40.

Available at: squareup.com/store/friendsof-the-los-alamos-library

Sip through four expressions of clone 667 Pinot Noir. Experience three vintages of One Palm and the 2013 Tributary Pinot Noir in this deep dive into clone 667. Flight of four wine tastings for $20; free for club members.

Tickets at Riverbench.com.

S AT U R D AY

S U N D AY

S AT U R D AY – S U N D AY

AUGUST

AUGUST

AUGUST

AUGUST 31– SEPTEMBER 1

Sustainable Swordfish Salute

Music. Wine. Food. Ranch.

Live Music at the Winery

6:30pm at Bluewater Grill, Santa Barbara

Harvest Winemaker Dinner 5:30–9:30pm at Alma Rosa Winery, Lompoc

3–6:30pm at Rancho San Julian

Bluewater’s legendary Chipotle Blackened Swordfish with Roasted Corn and Avocado Relish, featuring harpooned swordfish caught in local waters by the restaurant’s own private fishing boat, Pilikia, pictured above. Paired with handselected white wines. $40; 805 845-5121 to make a reservation.

A beautiful winemaker dinner at Alma Rosa’s Historic Ranch House honoring the start of Harvest. Featuring “Michelin Plate” restaurant First & Oak of Solvang, enjoy a perfectly paired four-course dinner that will blow you away. $165; more info and tickets at AlmaRosaWinery.com/visit/events.

Celebrate all that the end of summer has to offer at historic Rancho San Julian.

Appetizers made from farm-grown produce, a wine tasting with local winemaker Alison Thomson of L.A Lepiane, tour and historical overview of the ranch with Elizabeth Poett and wine-paired dinner under the arbor. 21+; $125; TheRanchTable.com.

T U E S D AY

13

24

S AT U R D AY

SEPTEMBER

SEPTEMBER

SEPTEMBER

Farmers Market Cooking Demos

Field to Vase Dinner 5–8pm at Ocean View Flowers, Lompoc

Taste of Coast Village Road

Meet flower farmer Frank Costa of Ocean View and learn about the various flower varieties grown across hundreds of acres while enjoying an artisan dinner in one of the nation’s most unique coastal flowergrowing environments. Part of a series of intimate, must-attend gatherings. $185–$210; AmericanGrownFlowers.org.

Featuring the unique flavors of Coast Village’s burgeoning restaurant scene.

Dozens of eateries from Montecito’s lower business district as well as local wineries and breweries will participate in this exclusive event. More info and tickets at CoastVillageRoad.com.

F R I D AY – S U N D AY

S AT U R D AY

F R I D AY – S AT U R D AY

SEPTEMBER

SEPTEMBER

SEPTEMBER

Solvang Danish Days

Hardcore Cider Tour

Santa Barbara County Farm Day

7

9am, 10am and 11am at the SB Farmers Market, at corner of Cota and Santa Barbara St. Sponsored by Ridley-Tree Cancer Center, this farmers market event will feature live cooking demonstrations. You’ll learn tips and techniques for preparing healthy, seasonal offerings at the market.

S AT U R D AY – S U N D AY

SEPTEMBER

14–15

Ride the Ranch 9am–3pm at Rancho San Julian For the first time, The Ranch Table is offering a horseback ride on historic Rancho San Julian. Get an overview of horse tack and riding tips from Elizabeth Poett and Jaye Ganibi from Vino Vaqueros. Enjoy a two-hour ride to the back of the ranch, traditional barbecue lunch and local wine. 18+; $500+. Book

by August 14 at TheRanchTable.com.

Noon–3pm at Zaca Mesa Winery Relax and unwind at the winery Labor Day weekend with family and friends while you enjoy complimentary live music featuring Different Strings and Sean Wiggins. Pack a lunch and relax in the courtyard with a glass of wine in hand. Free to attend; wine available for purchase. ZacaMesa.com.

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY

SE PT E MBER

25

20–22

Downtown Solvang California’s premier Danish heritage festival turns 83. Weekend highlights include Aebleskiver; Danish-style beer and wine garden; parades, music and dancing; axe throwing, a Viking encampment and a Solvang Food & Photo Tour. Live like a Viking and eat like one, too. More info and tickets at SolvangDanishDays.org.

7

14

21

2–5pm on Coast Village Rd., Montecito

27–28

1–4pm at Elings Park, Santa Barbara Enjoy unlimited tastings from some of the world’s top craft hard cider makers, savor mouthwatering food from local food trucks, groove to live music and purchase your favorite bottles to take home at the Core Store tent. $30+; SippingSyndicate.com/hard-core-cidertour/santa-barbara/.

At various farms in Santa Maria and Lompoc Kick off the weekend with a “Farm-toTable” dinner at Tres Hermanas Vineyard & Winery in Santa Maria on Friday. On Saturday, create your own itinerary to experience a day of agricultural activities and meet the farmers who grow the food you eat. For more info and tickets, visit SantaBarbaraCountyFarmDay.com.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 67

edible

SA NTA BARBA R A COUNT Y

E AT DRINK LOC AL GUIDE Santa Barbara County has its own unique food tradition and lifestyle. We’d like to help you find some of the area restaurants, bakeries, food producers and specialty retail shops that contribute to the distinctively Santa Barbara experience. From Ballard to Carpinteria, and from catering to wine tasting, our Guide will help you find what you are looking for and more.

Farms & Ranches Jimenez Family Farm 805 688-0597 JimenezFamilyFarm.com Small family-run local farm specializes in sustainably grown food and their famous handmade pies, quiches and small-batch preserves. Visit them at the farmers market to purchase produce, pies, jams and naturally fed and farm-raised rabbit, lamb, pork, goat and poultry.

Winfield Farm 805 686-9312 WinfieldFarm.us Taste the magic of Winfield Mangalitsa! Mangalitsa ground pork (the real hamburger) and hickory smoked bacon are now featured in the Larder Meat Company’s Larder Club meat box, delivered monthly throughout California (sign up at http://www.lardermeatco.com).

You can also order through our Mangalitsa Market on the Winfield Farm website—please call first! Follow us on Facebook (WinfieldFarmBuellton), Twitter (@ WinfieldFarm.us) and Instagram (Winfield_Farm).

Food & Restaurants Backyard Bowls 5668 Calle Real, Goleta, 805 770-2730 3849 State St. Santa Barbara, 805 569-0011 331 Motor Way, Santa Barbara, 805 845-5379 BackyardBowls.com Santa Barbara’s most innovative breakfast and lunch spot featuring Acai Bowls and smoothies. They also offer oatmeal, yogurt and more.

Ballard Inn & Gathering Table 2436 Baseline Ave., Ballard, 805 688-7770 BallardInn.com Elegant accommodations, attentive staff and awardwinning cuisine make the Ballard Inn & Gathering Table one of the most sought-after small luxury inns in the Santa Barbara Wine Country.

68 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

Barbareño 205 W. Canon Perdido St., Santa Barbara 805 963-9591 Barbareno.com Offering an approachable take on the fine-dining experience, Barbareño highlights the traditions and specialties of the Central Coast through creative story-driven dishes and ingredients from local farmers.

Sit in the main dining room and enjoy the enticing atmosphere of an open kitchen, or outside on the lush patio alongside the Santa Maria grill. Dinner nightly 5–9:30pm; closed Tue.

Bettina Montecito Country Mart 1014 Coast Village Rd., Montecito, 805 770-2383 BettinaPizzeria.com A cozy neighborhood restaurant serving naturally leavened Neapolitan-style pizza made with seasonal California ingredients. Whether you’re celebrating a special occasion or just grabbing a spritz at the bar, Bettina is committed to simplicity, community and hospitality that makes guests feel at home. Open Fri through Sun for lunch and nightly 5–10pm.

Bob’s Well Bread 550 Bell St., Los Alamos, 805 344-3000 BobsWellBread.com Making bread the old-fashioned way: handcrafted in small batches with the finest ingredients and baked to perfection in a custom-built stone-deck oven. Drop in to taste what visitors and journalists are raving about as “worth the drive”—signature Pain au Levain, awardwinning artisanal breads, croissants and specialty pastries. All-day menu of made-to-order breakfast, lunch and weekly special dishes. Indoor-outdoor picturesque café. Thu–Mon 7am–6pm. Café closes at 3pm. Closed Tue and Wed.

Bossie’s Kitchen 901 N. Milpas St., Santa Barbara, 805 770-1700 BossiesKitchen.com Located in the historic D’Alfonso building with the cow on top, Bossie’s Kitchen offers seasonal farmers market dishes in a casual counter service setting. Chef-wife team Christina Olufson and Lauren Herman’s menu

features garlic and herb-roasted chicken, sandwiches on house-made bread, soups, salads, sides and nightly specials. Open for lunch Tue–Fri 11:30am–2:30pm; dinner Tue–Sun 5pm–close; brunch Sat–Sun 10am– 2pm; happy hour Tue-Fri 4:30–6pm. Closed Mon.

Bouchon 9 W. Victoria St., Santa Barbara, 805 730-1160 BouchonSantaBarbara.com Bouchon sources all of its ingredients using an “asfresh-and-as-local-as-possible” approach. Experience fine dining, excellent regional wines and relaxed service in a warm, inviting ambience. Private dining in the Cork Room is available for groups of 10–20. Dinner nightly 5–10pm.

Bragg Live Foods Bragg.com Founded in 1912 by Dr. Paul C. Bragg and now run by his daughter Dr. Patricia Bragg in Goleta, Bragg Live Food Products offers organic and natural health products and publishes self-health books. Available locally at Fairview Gardens’ Farm Stand, Lassen’s, Gladden and Sons, Tri-County Produce, Whole Foods Market, Lazy Acres and in the health section of your neighborhood grocery store.

Bree’Osh 1150 Coast Village Rd., Montecito, 805 969-2500 Breeosh.com Bree’Osh is a French artisan bakery café specializing in sweet and savory brioche bread made with traditional sourdough. Featuring local, organic, high-quality ingredients. Open daily 7am–2pm. Serving breakfast and lunch daily 7am–2pm

Ca’ Dario 37 E. Victoria St., Santa Barbara, 805 884-9419 38 W. Victoria St. (inside the Santa Barbara Public Market), 805 884-9419 250 Storke Rd., Goleta, 805 884-9419 1187 Coast Village Rd., Montecito (coming soon!)

CaDario.net Chef Dario Furlati’s flagship eatery offers a fine Italian dining experience featuring authentic recipes made with fresh, local ingredients. Handmade pastas, local

seafood, weekly farmers market specials and an extensive Italian wine list. Located in the heart of the downtown Arts District. Serving lunch and dinner Sun–Thu 11:30am–10pm, Fri–Sat 11:30am–10:30pm.

Ca'Dario Pizzeria in the Public Market offers a casual, urban atmosphere to enjoy authentic pizzas, salads and appetizers. Open daily 11am–9pm. Ca' Dario Cucina Italiana in Goleta is open Mon–Sat 11am-9pm.

Lazy Acres

Plow to Porch

302 Meigs Rd., Santa Barbara, 805 564-4410 LazyAcres.com

805 895-7171 PlowToPorch.com

Santa Barbara’s best source for wholesome, natural and organic foods and products with real people dedicated to providing unmatched personal service. Mon–Sat 7am–11pm, Sun 7am–10pm.

Chocolate Maya

The Little Door SB

Plow to Porch Organics is a local organic/pesticide-free produce and grocery delivery service to members who subscribe. They simplify the purchase of local fresh organic produce and other organic, local foods in order to inspire good nutrition, support local farmers, protect the environment and make eating healthy food fun!

15 W. Gutierrez St., Santa Barbara, 805 965-5956 ChocolateMaya.com

129 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara, 805 560-8002 TheLittleDoorSB.com

The Project

Chocolate Maya handmade chocolate confections: a variety of velvety truffles and chocolate-dipped temptations that are made from the highest-quality chocolate (Valrhona, Felchlin, Mesocacao including small beanto-bar artisans couverture) fresh local ingredients and exotic findings from their travels overseas.

A unique experience featuring specialty ales, craft cocktails and a new, fresh menu from Chef Ramon of Corazón Cocina. Opening summer 2019.

La Cocina

Featuring a charming outdoor patio overlooking the Spanish Colonial architecture of the renowned Courthouse. Offers a magical ambiance and sense of communion around the table. Executive chef Oscar Ledesma draws inspiration from the farmers market and French Mediterranean flavors to accentuate his contemporary American fare. Open Sun–Thu 4:30–10pm, Fri–Sat: 4:30–11pm, Happy Hour 4:30–6pm.

7 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara, 805 277-7730 LaCocinaSB.com

McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams

Farm-to-table Central Coast Baja Cuisine in the heart of downtown Santa Barbara’s theatre district. Enjoy seasonal south of the border–inspired cocktails and snacks at the bar or slip away to Baja for an authentic meal in the dining room or al fresco on the breathtaking patio. Open daily for dinner 5pm–close; happy hour 4–5pm.

Corazón Cocina 38 W. Victoria St., Santa Barbara, 805 845-0282 CorazonCocinaSB.com Located inside the Santa Barbara Public Market, offering homemade, local, unique and fresh cocina Mexicana. Join Chef Ramón Velazquez for fresh ceviches, mouthwatering tacos and homemade agua frescas. Open Mon–Fri 11am–9pm; Sat–Sun 10am–9pm.

The Food Liaison 1033 Casitas Pass Rd., Carpinteria, 805 200-3030 TheFoodLiaison.com Catering. Counter. Classes. Utilizing many locally grown organic ingredients, enjoy daily rotating entrées and soups, seasonal menu and gourmet salad bar. Corporate and event catering since 2013. Sign up for cooking classes online. Lunch counter Mon–Fri 11am–3pm.

Giannfranco’s Trattoria 666 Linden Ave., Carpinteria, 805 684-0720 Giannfrancos.com Experience authentic Italian regional cuisine at this family-owned and family-operated trattoria in downtown Carpinteria. Chef Giovanni prepares each dish from the freshest local and imported foods to offer his creative take on Tuscan grill specialties.

Weekday lunch served 11am–3pm. Weekend lunch served noon–3pm. Dinner served 5–9pm; closed Tue.

The Hitching Post II 406 E. Hwy. 246, Buellton, 805 688-0676 HitchingPost2.com A favorite of locals and visitors since 1986. Serving wood-grilled fare, prepared in the regional barbecue tradition, along with their highly regarded Hitching Post Wines. Casual and relaxed setting.

Il Fustino 3401 State St., Santa Barbara, 805 845-3521 ilFustino.com Il Fustino is Santa Barbara’s first and finest olive oil and vinegar tasting room. Il Fustino purveys only the finest and freshest olive oils, all grown and milled in California. They also provide an unparalleled selection of artisan vinegars. Mon-Fri 11am–6pm; Sat 11am– 5pm; Sun 10am–3pm.

120 State St., Suite B, Santa Barbara 728 State St., Santa Barbara, 805 324-4402 McConnells.com McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams, founded in Santa Barbara in 1949, is now in its third generation of family ownership. They make their ice creams as they always have: from scratch, using Central Coast, grassgrazed milk, cream and the finest local, sustainable and organic ingredients from partner farms, artisans and purveyors they’ve worked with for decades. No preservatives. No stabilizers. No additives. Ever. A 70year sweet legacy of keeping it real.

Montecito Country Mart 1016 Coast Village Rd., Montecito, 805 969-9664 MontecitoCountryMart.com The Montecito Country Mart has been renovated and preserved, with its original barbershop, post office, market and old-fashioned toy store, as well as Rori’s Artisanal Creamery, Bettina, Merci, Caffe Luxxe, CO Collections, Kendall Conrad, Little Alex’s, Malia Mills, Hudson Grace, James Perse and Space NK Apothecary.

Open Mon–Fri 10am–6pm; Sat–Sun 10am–5pm.

Olive Hill Farm 2901 Grand Ave., Los Olivos, 805 693-0700 OliveHillFarm.com Specializing in local olive oils, flavored oils and balsamic vinegars as well as many locally produced food products. Olive oil and vinegar tastings with fresh local bread available. Open daily 11am–5pm.

Pico 458 Bell St., Los Alamos, 805 344-1122 PicoLosAlamos.com Located in the historic 1880 General Store, offering a casual dining experience with innovative cuisine made from locally-sourced ingredients. Co-owner/Chef Drew Terp worked under Michelin-star chefs, including José Andres, Alain Ducasse and Masa. The extensive wine list has earned a Wine Enthusiast “Top 100 Wine Restaurant” award two years running. Open Tue–Thu 3–9pm; Fri–Sat noon–10pm; Sun Burger Night noon–9pm.

Plow & Angel at San Ysidro Ranch 900 San Ysidro Ln., Santa Barbara, 805 565-1700 SanYsidroRanch.com Enjoy a comfortable, convivial atmosphere in this locals’ favorite. Famous for its mac ’n’ cheese and awardwinning ribs, the Plow & Angel is the place to see and be seen. The cozy ambiance is enhanced with original artwork, including gorgeous stained-glass windows and an homage to its namesake, Saint Isadore, hanging above the fireplace. Open for dinner 5–10pm; bar open 5–11pm weekdays and until midnight Fri–Sat.

214 State St., Santa Barbara, 805 869-2820 TheProjectSB.com

Ramen Kotori 1618 Copenhagen Dr., Solvang, 805 691-9672 RamenKotori.com Mom-and-pop ramen shop offering farmers market– inspired Japanese dishes including traditional Shoyu ramen, Karaage Japanese fried chicken, gyoza pot stickers, kimchi fried rice and seasonal pickles.

Open Wed–Sun noon–2:30pm for lunch and 5:30–9pm for dinner.

Renaud’s Patisserie & Bistro 3315 State St., Santa Barbara, 805 569-2400 1324 State St., Santa Barbara, 805 892-280 1187 Coast Village Rd., Montecito, 805 324-4200 RenaudsBakery.com Renaud’s is a bakery specializing in French pastries and French-style cakes, as well as a bistro offering an extensive menu for breakfast and lunch. Open Mon–Sat 7am–5pm; Sun 7am–3pm.

Root 246 420 Alisal Rd., Solvang, 805 686-8681 Root-246.com Solvang restaurant Root 246, in the heart of Santa Barbara wine country, boasts inspired and inventive menus by Chef Crystal “Pink” DeLongpré, who crafts seasonal dishes rooted in her food philosophy of utilizing local, organic vegetables and organic, grassfed, pasture-raised animals. Expansive wine and spirits lists, hand-crafted cocktails. Open at 4pm, Tue–Sun. Late night in the lounge: Fri and Sat until midnight.

Santa Barbara Certified Farmers Market 805 962-5354 SBFarmersMarket.org

Six markets, six days a week. Schedule on page 1.

Savoy Café & Deli 24 W. Figueroa St., Santa Barbara, 805 962-6611 TheSavoyCafe.com A family owned and operated café featuring scratch cooking. Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner for the past 12 years. Award-winning salad bar, bakery, soup, hot and cold prepared foods, coffee and tea bar and excellent selection of wines by the glass.

Cozy atmosphere, dog friendly patio. Open Mon–Sat 7am–8:30pm; closed Sun.

San Ysidro Ranch 900 San Ysidro Ln., Santa Barbara, 805 565-1700 SanYsidroRanch.com Now reopened! Nestled in the Montecito foothills of Southern California’s wine country, San Ysidro Ranch has provided a tranquil vacation destination for over a century. Visit the Stonehouse, named one of the 50 best restaurants in America by Open Table, or visit Plow & Angel for a comfortable and convivial atmosphere.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2019 | 69

Scratch Kitchen 610 N. H St., Lompoc, 805 819-0829 Scratch-Kitchen.com With a wealth of local and seasonal produce and local wines, Scratch Kitchen aims to highlight all the best culinary elements of the Lompoc and Santa Ynez Valleys. Open for Lunch: Tue–Sat 11am–3pm, Happy Hour: Tue–Sun 3–5pm, Dinner: Tue–Sat 5–9pm, Sunday Brunch: 10am–2pm, Sunday Dinner: 5–8pm.

Solvang Olive Company 1578 Mission Dr., Solvang, 805 213-1399 SolvangOliveCo.com Solvang Olive features locally grown olive oils, fruit and balsamic vinegar and handcrafted gourmet olives. The Solvang store also carries olive oil beauty products, tableware and cooking ingredients created

by Californian artisans. Tasting room open Mon–Thu 10am–5pm, Fri–Sun 10am–6pm.

Stonehouse at San Ysidro Ranch 900 San Ysidro Ln., Santa Barbara, 805 565-1700 SanYsidroRanch.com Located in a 19th-century citrus-packing house, the Stonehouse features a relaxing lounge with full bar service and a separate dining room with crackling fireplace and creekside views. Guests can dine on the ocean-view deck––a wood-burning fireplace and heated stone flooring provide year-round comfort. The regional cuisine is prepared with a palette of herbs and vegetables harvested from the on-site chef’s garden.

Lunch 11:30am–2pm Mon–Sat; dinner 6–10pm daily; Sun Champagne brunch 10:30am–2pm.

Succulent Café Wine Charcuterie 1555 Mission Dr., Solvang, 805 691-9444 SucculentCafe.com Comfort food with a twist, prepared with seasonal and local farm-fresh ingredients. The best charcuterie plates around feature farm-fresh cheese, house-made jam, pickled vegetables, nuts and fruit. Great local wine, craft beer and signature cocktails. Open Mon, Wed– Fri 10am–9pm, Sat–Sun 8:30am–9pm; Happy Hour 3–5pm; Closed Tuesday.

Wine & Beer Alma Rosa Winery 250 Industrial Way A, Buellton, 805 688-9092 AlmaRosaWinery.com Alma Rosa wines express the distinctive spirit and character of the soils, sun exposure, fog, cooling winds and over four decades of experience in this beautiful Sta. Rita Hills sub-region of Santa Barbara wine country.

Tasting room open Fri–Sun 11am–5:30pm; Mon–Thur noon–5:30pm.

Andrew Murray Vineyards 5249 Foxen Canyon Rd., Los Olivos, 805 686-9604 AndrewMurrayVineyards.com Andrew Murray, a grape-growing pioneer and Rhône varietal visionary in Santa Barbara County, founded his winery in 1990. Andrew and his team look forward to sharing the AMV experience with you at their stunning Estate Winery and Visitor Center along Foxen Canyon Road. Tasting room open daily 10:30am–5:30pm.

Au Bon Climat 813 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara, 805 963-7999 AuBonClimat.com The tasting room and the Jim Clendenen Wine Library are known for world-class Chardonnays and Pinots.

Jim Clendenen has been making wines of vision and character for over 30 years, along with other varietals.

Amazing lineup of current releases and library wines 70 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2019

available. Tasting room open Mon–Fri noon–6pm, Sat and Sun 11am–6pm.

August Ridge Vineyards 5 E. Figueroa St., Santa Barbara, 805 770-8442 AugustRidge.com August Ridge crafts wine that combines the spirit of California with the restrained, classic elegance of wines from northern and central Italy. Distinctive wines from the Paso Robles region to be opened as you gather for a meal, surrounded by friends, family and loved ones.

Tasting room open Sun–Mon, Wed–Thu noon–7pm, Fri–Sat noon–8pm. Happy Hour Mon and Wed 3–6pm.

Closed Tuesday.

Babcock Winery & Vineyards 5175 E. Hwy. 246, Lompoc, 805 736-1455 BabcockWinery.com A passion for revolutionary farming and conservation continue to define this family-owned Sta. Rita Hills winery. Stunning single-vineyard Pinot Noirs are showcased alongside acclaimed Chardonnays and other varietals. Chill in the super soulful tasting room filled with vintage art and eclectic treasures. Tasting room open daily 11am–5:30pm.

Babi’s Beer Emporium 380 Bell St., Los Alamos, 805 344-1911 BabisBeerEmporium.com Great beer. Impeccable selection. Great fun.

Adventurous beer drinkers can discover unique, hardto-find craft beers, ciders and special projects—on tap or in bottle. Stay to have a bite from Valle Fresh’s tacos and tapas menu. Thu 4–8pm, Fri–Sat noon–8pm, Sun noon–6pm.

Barden Wines 32 El Paseo in the center courtyard, Santa Barbara, 805 845-8777 BardenWines.com Located in the historic El Paseo complex, the new Barden Tasting Room focuses exclusively on wines sourced from Sta. Rita Hills, handcrafted by Margerum Wine Company. Select from a flight of current releases or exclusive Library Wines. Enjoy Barden wines by the glass on their dog-friendly patio.

Buttonwood Farm Winery 1500 Alamo Pintado Rd., Solvang, 805 688-3032 ButtonwoodWinery.com In 1968 Betty Williams came to Buttonwood, creating a life that found expression through a connection with the land. The vineyard now has 33,000 vines with a mix of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Marsanne, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Syrah. Tasting room open daily 11am–5pm.

Carr Winery 414 N. Salsipuedes St., Santa Barbara 805 965-7985 CarrWinery.com Carr specializes in limited-production wines including Pinot Noir, Syrah, Pinot Gris and Cabernet Franc. Enjoy the ambiance of a working winery while sipping delicious wines on the patio or at the barrel-top bar.

Wine tasting, wine on tap and wines by the glass served daily. Monthly art shows and live music. Daily 11am–9pm, Sun 11am–6pm.

Casa Dumetz 388 Bell St., Los Alamos, 805 344-1900 CasaDumetzWines.com A boutique winery specializing in Rhône varietals crafted with premier Santa Barbara County fruit. Their wines are sold almost exclusively at their tasting room in historic Los Alamos and through their wine

club. Open Thu noon–7pm; Fri–Sat 11am–7pm; Sun 11–6pm, Mon noon–4pm. Vineyard tours and barrel sampling available by appointment.

Foxen Vineyard & Winery 7200 and 7600 Foxen Canyon Rd., Santa Maria 805 937-4251 FoxenVineyard.com The Foxen Boys’ winery and tasting room features Burgundian and Rhône-style wines. Visit the historic shack “Foxen 7200” for Italian and Bordeaux-style wines.

Picnic tables and scenic views at both locations. Open 11am–4pm daily.

Kitá Winery 300 N. 12th St., Unit 1A, Lompoc, 805 819-1372 KitaWines.com Established in 2010 as a small, premium wine producer, Kitá’s focus is on respecting the balance of soil, climate, location and taste. The word “Kitá” means “our valley oak” in the Santa Ynez Chumash language of Samala. Open Thu–Fri 2–6pm, Sat noon–6pm and Sun noon–5pm.

Lafond Winery Vineyard: 6855 Santa Rosa Rd., Buellton, 805 688-7921 Funk Zone: 111 Yanonali St., Santa Barbara, 805 845-2020 LafondWinery.com Lafond Winery & Vineyards is the sister label to neighbor Santa Barbara Winery. With the first grapes belonging to Lafond Vineyards being planting in 1962, owner Pierre Lafond established the first commercial winery in Santa Barbara County. The Lafond label specializes in Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. Visit the Funk Zone tasting room Sun–Thu 10am–6pm, Fri–Sat 10am–7pm or the vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills 10am–5pm daily.

Lama Dog 116 Santa Barbara St., Santa Barbara 805 880-3364 LamaDog.com Craft beer taproom and bottle shop located in Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone. Open Sun–Wed 11:30am–10pm, Thu 11:30am–11pm, Fri–Sat 11:30am–midnight. @lamadog

Longoria Wines 415 E. Chestnut Ave., Lompoc, 866-759-4637 LongoriaWine.com Longoria Wines is a small family-owned winery with over three decades of producing acclaimed artisanal wines from some of the finest vineyards in Santa Barbara County. Enjoy a tasting or a glass of wine in the tasting room or lounge of the restored historic JM Club at their new winery facility in Lompoc, open daily 11am–4:30pm.

Margerum Wine Company Tasting Room at the Hotel Californian, corner of Mason & Helena, Santa Barbara 805 845-8435 Winery Tasting Room, 59 Industrial Way, Buellton; 805-686-8500 MargerumWines.com Enjoy wine tasting at the new Tasting Room venue at the Hotel Californian in the Santa Barbara Funk Zone.

Indoor and outdoor patio seating, with an indoor mezzanine that can host private events. Handcrafted Rhône varietal wines from Margerum Estate vineyard grapes and from grapes grown at top Santa Barbara County vineyards. The winery in Buellton is open on Sat–Sun for wine tasting and winery tours.

Martian Ranch & Vineyard

Zaca Mesa Winery

Community Environmental Council

9110 Alisos Canyon Rd., Los Alamos 805 344-1804 MartianVineyard.com

6905 Foxen Canyon Rd., Los Olivos 805 688-9339 ZacaMesa.com

26 W. Anapamu St., 2nd Floor, Santa Barbara 805 963-0583 CECSB.org

The Martian Ranch tasting room is open Wed–Sun 11am–5pm. Taste their estate-grown biodynamically farmed wines for an out-of-this-world experience!

Winery tours daily; vineyard tours on the weekends.

Enjoy wines by the glass, bocce court, horseshoe pit and dog-friendly picnic areas. Open Wed–Sun 11am–5pm. Mon and Tues by appointment only.

Since 1973, Zaca Mesa Winery has crafted distinctive wines from their unique mesa-top vineyard. As an early pioneer of the region, they now have 150 acres planted, specializing in the production of estate-grown Rhône-style wines. Tasting room and picnic area open daily 10am–4pm. Call for more information on winery tours and private event space.

For nearly 50 years, CEC has incubated and innovated real-life solutions that directly impact climate change.

Our programs lead to clean vehicles, solar energy, resilient food systems and reduction of single-use plastic. We educate and activate the community by producing events like the annual Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival.

Riverbench Vineyard & Winery

Specialty Retail

The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County

137 Anacapa St., Ste. C., Santa Barbara 805 324-4100 6020 Foxen Canyon Rd., Santa Maria 805 937-8340 Riverbench.com Established in 1973, when the first Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes were planted on the property.

For years since then, some of the most renowned wineries have purchased Riverbench fruit for their wines. In 2004, Riverbench began producing their own still and sparkling wines in limited quantities, with many available exclusively through their tasting rooms in Santa Maria and Santa Barbara. Open in Santa Barbara 11am–6pm daily. Open in Santa Maria 10am–4pm daily.

Santa Barbara Winery 202 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara 805 963-3633 SBWinery.com Santa Barbara Winery is the oldest winery in Santa Barbara County. Established in 1962, Pierre Lafond pioneered the commercial vineyard business under the Santa Barbara Winery label in the Sta. Rita Hills.

The winery and tasting room is located in Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone and is one of the only fully operating wineries of its kind in the urban district.

Tasting room open Sun–Thu 10am–6pm, Fri–Sat 10am–7pm.

Telegraph Brewing Co. 418 N. Salsipuedes St., Santa Barbara 805 963-5018 TelegraphBrewing.com Handcrafting unique American ales that embrace the heritage of California’s early brewing pioneers and use as many locally grown ingredients as possible.

Visit the tasting room, open Tue–Thu 3–9pm; Fri–Sat 2–10pm; Sun 1–7pm. Telegraph beer is available at many restaurants and grocery stores in Santa Barbara County and throughout California.

Ablitt’s Fine Cleaners & Launderers 14 W. Gutierrez St., Santa Barbara 805 963-6677 Ablitts.com In the dry cleaning industry for over 100 years, the Ablitt family proudly uses the GreenEarth Cleaning system, which is exceptionally gentle and is not hazardous to the environment and cleans with less energy and water than traditional dry cleaners.

Concierge pickup available. Open Mon–Fri 7am–7pm, Sat. 8am–5pm, closed Sun.

Buckaroo Grills 805 689-6081 BuckarooGrills.com Offering a variety of wood-burning barbecue grills with a variable speed fan system that allows you to cook as quickly as you would on a gas grill but with that coveted wood-fired flavor.

CBD & Honey Body Care by Life Elements 805 423-6529 CBDNHoney.com Life Elements CBD & Honey body care soothes aches and pains, relieves inflammation, hydrates and repairs dry skin. Locally handcrafted with organic, full spectrum hemp-derived CBD and pure bee goodness of beeswax, honey, propolis, royal jelly and pollen. A natural health alternative for your medicine cabinet.

Tecolote Bookstore 1470 E. Valley Rd., Montecito 805 969-4977 Tecolote Bookstore is an independent bookstore located in the upper village of Montecito. Open Mon–Fri 10am–5:30pm; Sat 10am–5pm; closed Sun.

Professional Services

Wine Collector’s Room

American Riviera Bank

414 N. Salsipuedes St., Santa Barbara 805 689-3569 WineCollectorsRoom.com

525 San Ysidro Rd., Montecito, 805-335-8110 AmericanRivieraBank.com 1033 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara 805 965-5942 AmericanRivieraBank.com

Santa Barbara’s newest private wine storage facility.

The Wine Collector’s Room has over 40 private, climate-controlled lockers and a members-only lounge. Daily 11am–9pm, Sun 11am–6pm.

The Wine Shepherd 30 E. Ortega St., Santa Barbara, 805 963-1012 WineShepherdSB.com The Wine Shepherd is a wine bar and wine retail shop featuring local and international wines. Taste Lumen wines made by Lane Tanner or explore the tasting menu which focuses on rare, esoteric and old vintage bottles. Located next to The Black Sheep Restaurant in Santa Barbara’s Presidio neighborhood. Open Tue–Sun.

Offering a local and sustainable approach to banking.

The founders of American Riviera Bank are a carefully selected group of successful, prominent, experienced and influential community and business leaders who understand the unique needs of the Santa Barbara community. Montecito branch open Mon–Thu 9am–5pm; Fri 9am–5:30pm. Santa Barbara branch open Mon–Thu 8am–5pm, Fri 8am–6pm.

805 967-5741 FoodbankSBC.org Working every day to move people from hunger into health. The mission of the Foodbank is to provide nourishment to those in need by acquiring and distributing safe nutritious foods via local agencies and providing education to solve hunger and nutrition problems in Santa Barbara County.

Ken Helman 718 622-5727 KenHelman.com Teacher, singer, pianist and songwriter Ken Helman has a gift for helping people express themselves through their own unique vocal instrument. Ken creates a powerfully motivational atmosphere in which his students at all levels can access the freedom and joy that singing connects us to.

On Q Financial 1332 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara, 805 845-0694 OnQFinancial.com Since 2013, On Q Financial’s goal has been to ensure the mortgage process is streamlined and smooth for every client. Their team even works closely with community partners to provide homebuyers’ workshops to the Santa Barbara community. They are ready to help you purchase a home or refinance your existing home loans—in Santa Barbara and beyond.

Sansum Clinic SansumClinic.org Sansum Clinic’s health education programs are designed and conducted by board-certified physicians, registered dietitian nutritionists, registered nurses, certified diabetes educators, physical therapists and other specialized professionals. Many programs are free of charge and are open to all members of our community.

SBCC Foundation 805 730-4401 SBCCFoundation.org The SBCC Foundation was established in 1976 to provide Santa Barbara City College with private philanthropic support. The foundation acts in partnership with the college and bridges the gap between available public funding and institutional need, as determined by the college leadership. The SBCC Foundation provides more than $4 million annually for student success programs, scholarships, book grants and other critical needs of the college in order to support SBCC students as they prepare for careers, transfer to four-year universities and pursue lifelong learning goals.

Visit Santa Maria SantaMariaValley.com Just like our barbecue, the recipe for our way of life requires simplicity, character, soul and a touch of spice.

Hit the road and explore all you can do in and around Santa Maria Valley. You’ll find it’s the perfect home base, where you can eat, drink and do more for less.

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Don’t-Miss Dish Words and photos by Liz Dodder

San Ysidro Ranch

Meyer Lemon Tart at the Stonehouse

Lemon desserts are the quintessential finish to any meal: tart, sweet, palate-cleansing, light… simply classic and delicious. And for the ultimate lemon dessert in Santa Barbara County, head to the (newly reopened) Stonehouse at San Ysidro Ranch. Here, Chef Matt Johnson shines his light on the classic lemon tart.

A cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange, all Meyer lemons used at the resort come from the ranch’s own trees and are juiced by hand to make the sweetest lemon curd Johnson has ever tasted. His lemon tart is the celebrity of the menu, and guests constantly ask for the recipe. Here’s how he makes it.

For the crust: Whisk 1 egg, a pinch of salt and some vanilla in small bowl. Set aside. Whisk together 2 cups flour and 1 cup sifted powdered sugar until combined, then cut in a half cup of cold diced butter until crumbly in texture. Mix with paddle attachment of stand mixer until there are no large lumps, and mixture becomes a little more yellow. Lastly add egg mixture. Mix until it starts to come together and finish by hand until completely smooth. Wrap and place in fridge for at least 2 hours before rolling out. Then, either roll out or press dough into 9-inch tart pan or smaller tart pans. Bake at 350° until light golden brown, 15 – 20 minutes. Let cool.

For the lemon curd filling: In stainless steel bowl combine ¾ cup Meyer lemon juice, 3 eggs, 1 egg yolk, ¾ cup sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon vanilla.

Place over double boiler and whisk constantly until thickened and 180°. Remove and strain through mesh strainer. Cool to 140°. Add 1 ⁄ 8 cup cold diced butter and blend with hand blender. Pour lemon filling into crust.

Bake at 350° until filling is set, 15–20 minutes. Let cool.

For the orange-blossom honey cream: Whisk together 1 cup heavy whipping cream, 1 tablespoon powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons of orange-blossom honey and a pinch of salt until medium soft peaks form. Add more honey if desired. Top tart with honey cream, fresh blackberries and meringue, if desired.

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Liz Dodder is a drinker, eater and traveler who has eaten five kinds of foie gras in one day. She’s also a blogger, writer, photographer, recipe developer, web designer, social media maven and Certified Specialist of Wine (CSW). CaliCoastWineCountry.com Read more about San Ysidro Ranch on page 16.

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