With San Francisco Beer Week coming up, and February ushering in Strong Beer Month in the City, it seems like the perfect time to revisit our Beer & Chocolate Taste Project from the fall…

The September 19^th, 2009 Recchiuti Taste Project event featured beers from Magnolia Gastropub & Brewery, so I felt it was my cross to bear to go in and try some of their beers.  They call me “lush,” but I very rarely indulge in beers.   I enjoy beer, but usually gravitate towards cocktails and wine instead.  I tried three selections from Magnolia.  The first was their Cole Porter which had a beautiful, chocolaty aroma and taste with a smooth and creamy finish. I was very impressed, but suddenly had a craving for a big piece of chocolate cake.  I don’t even have a sweet tooth!   The Good Thyme Girl joined me for the tasting and agreed. She added that the beer seemed so soothing that it might even go well with spicy foods that require something to calm the tongue.

The Good Thyme Girl ordered Bonnie Lee’s Best Bitter, a light bitter.  It lived up to its bitter name and we both enjoyed the taste of wheat and grains. Its yeasty aroma was like being right next to someone kneading dough. This beer was wonderful on its own.  I would have been happy to have had another if I didn’t have to try a third selection.

I finished the evening off with a New Speedway Bitter.  After my first sip, I thought that it would go perfect with something fresh out of the deep fryer like nicely battered fried fish or croquettes.  It was fruity and crisp.  My poetic companion called it the “champagne of beers.”   Just lovely.

I’m looking forward to my next visit to Magnolia Pub.   Apart from the beers, their food is fantastic as well.  The people I was with got some delicious burgers, fried Miyagi oysters from Marin, and pork nuggets with a honey mustard sauce.  It all looked fantastic.  If you find yourself in the Upper Haight, definitely stop in.

Until next time.

Popularity: 2% [?]

This post originally appeared as part of Barley and Hops…

FLIGHTS  & TASTING NOTES

Blue Bell Bitter Cask Ale

Kona Coffee – pulls out the coffee & cream quality of the beer for a very confection-like flavor.

Candied Orange Peel – hoppy bitterness subsides from the citrus and chocolate, pleasantly light.

Proving Ground IPA Cask Ale

Cardamom Nougat – enhances skunkiness, spiciness in beer, bitter profile is highlighted.

Ginger Heart – white chocolate mellows the bitterness adding a creamy, mild spiciness from the ginger.

Star Anise Pink Peppercorn – beer and truffle balance each other, an interesting and pleasant surprise.

Weather Report Wheat Draught

Force Noir – the maltiness of the beer becomes pronounced as the cacao and vanilla is pulled from the brew.

Star Anise and Pink Peppercorn – bright spice notes appear, allowing the personality to shine from this beer.

Candied Orange Peel – a complex citrusiness comes forward, almost tasting like a “Shandy”

Prescription Pale Draught

Fleur de Sel –  the salty creaminess enhances the flavor of the brew.

Candied Orange Peel – draws out the fruit notes from the beer.

Big Cypress Brown Draught

Burnt Caramel – balances flavors and runs in tandem with beer.

Force Noir – vanilla notes are drawn, driving the chocolate tones out.

Burnt Caramel Almonds – nutty, caramel tones come through with the beer.

Dark Star Mild Cask Ale

Kona Coffee – expected  rich coffee flavors appear.

Honey Comb Malt – creamy, vanilla malt undertones are present.

Sesame Nougat – smokey, toasted nut and caramel flavors become pronounced.

Popularity: 2% [?]

In the culinary world, a lot of attention has been paid in recent years to the marriage of sweet and savory, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say there has been an intellectual exploration of blurring the line between the two. A manifestation of this trend has been the increasingly popular sea salt caramel that is now made by several – perhaps most – chocolatiers. We have been making our Fleur de Sel Caramel for about five years and it is our best selling confection. Historically, caramel has often had some salt added to enhance flavor, but the recent trend involves a greater proportion of salt and the use of high end specialty salts, like the hand-harvested fleur de sel we use.

However, it isn’t so much the salt that makes our caramel distinctive: it’s the burnt sugar. All caramel is burnt sugar you say? Well, not really, and I’ll explain the difference as we go along.

Making caramel of this style can be broken down into two cooking processes, the first for flavor, and the second for texture and firmness. For that first part, we make what is called a dry caramel, named as such because it is simply caramelized sugar with no liquid added.  This is often done by starting with part of the sugar, adding portions and swirling the pot, with the aim of melting all of the sugar without letting the color get too dark to avoid the bitterness that is one of the flavor aspects of darker caramel. Unfortunately, keeping a caramel very light in color does not allow the creation of all the other rich, intense flavors we associate with caramel. In fact, in another blog post, Michael Recchiuti has this to say:
“My take on burning sugar is to take advantage of the intense flavor sugar offers when pushed to its limits, by actually cooking granulated cane or beet sugar to a deep amber color, just before carbon state. Why use sugar solely as an ingredient when you can explore all of what is has to offer in the sweet world, don’t be afraid, and burn it!”
So, we like to make sure we extract every bit of flavor the sugar has to offer without dying of asphyxiation or calling the fire department. Here is how we do it.
We start by pouring all of the sugar into a copper pot. Since we make a bigger batch than anyone would make at home, we use what is called a FireMixer, as pictured.

The fire mixer is an awesome tool! It is a mixer with a huge burner, either gas or electric powered, and is ideal for cooking many different confections. When the sugar first starts cooking, we let it go without stirring it until it looks like Jed Clampett shot a hole in the ground, and lots of white smoke emanates from the bowl, which might make you hungry for a bag of chips. At that point, there is a pool of nearly black burnt sugar in the bottom of the bowl, so we give it a quick stir to put some fresh sugar in the bottom of the bowl. When it looks like Jed missed another critter and the cardinals have selected a new pope, we stir again, and we alternate the stirring and waiting until most of the sugar is becoming clumpy and colored, at which point we will let the agitator spin and stir the caramel continuously.

At first, the sugar looks like clumpy sand of various shades of brown, but it quickly transforms into a liquid caramel. This caramel will already be dark, richly flavored, and smoky, due to how we burned it in the beginning, but we’re going to take it a step further. We will continue cooking until it is a deep amber, at which point there will be sort of a porter-style “beer head”, and there will be an ample amount of blue smoke, sort of like you see at a barbecue pit. We have now achieved Michael’s goal of turning plain sweet sugar into a flavor powerhouse.

Once the caramel is this hot, its natural tendency is to continue cooking and burning, and if it isn’t stopped, it will blacken, foam, and rise, potentially making a mess that is dangerous and nearly impossible to clean. So, we turn off the heat, and slowly add an invert sugar (glucose, honey, corn syrup, etc.) which effectively stops the first stage of cooking. After that is added, we will slowly add cream that has been scalded. At this point, the caramel has cooled from the high 300s down to the low 200s, and it is time to cook the caramel again, this time for texture and hardness. We turn the heat back on and go until the caramel reaches the mid 200s, and we again add something to arrest the cooking, this time it is butter. The last ingredient we add is Fleur de Sel. If it were added earlier in the cooking, there would be enough moisture and agitation to dissolve all of this beautiful salt, so we add it at the very end so that each piece of caramel will have a subtle salt crunch and flavor.
While the most difficult part of the process, the cooking, is now complete, we still have to pour the hot caramel, which has to happen quickly before it cools and sets up. We have a few marble tables onto which we place silpats and oiled frames. One person will measure out the caramel, and two more will then pour and spread it into the frames. When everything is poured, the frames of caramel are left to set up overnight.
On day two, we will move a few tables together and assemble our crew for cutting the caramel. First, one person will use a rolling cutter, as Peter is demonstrating, to cut the frames of caramel into strips. Peter has a lot of awesome tattoos, my favorite being the sign from a diner near the Holland tunnel entrance in New Jersey. Next, someone will use the guitar to cut the strips into squares, which are then separated and placed on sheetpans.

The last step is enrobing. The little squares of caramel are placed in rows on the chain link belt of our enrobing line, where they will pass under a “curtain” of liquid, tempered dark chocolate, and immediately afterward, someone will drizzle stripes of white chocolate onto the caramels. The caramels are now complete, and they will pass through our cooling tunnel to help the chocolate to set up so they can be packaged.

That’s the end of my take on making our Fleur de Sel Caramel. If you haven’t tried it, scoot on down to our store in the Ferry Building and treat yourself to your next addiction. Tell the staff I said hello.

Popularity: 4% [?]

With our dedicated panning specialist (Pat) down for the count with a chest cold, it fell to me to pan the dried, tart Michigan cherries for our Cherries Two Ways.  Now, I’ve panned many a batch of Burnt Caramel Hazelnuts and Burnt Caramel Almonds in my time, but the cherries are new to me and a little trickier, so I’ve been told.  I actually got excited to try my hand at something new, though without Pat’s guidance I was a little bit apprehensive.  Today was my maiden voyage and I got my dear friend and colleague Anthony to snap a couple pictures of the process.

First things first, I piled all 75 lbs of the cherries into the panner.  It’s a shame the picture I took can’t convey the smell of those cherries, semi-enclosed inside panner walls, emitting their intoxicating sweet-sour essence of cherry .  Having an extreme soft spot for tart dried cherries, I think I exhibited herculean restraint by not snacking on them and by, instead, heading off dutifully to fetch some pitchers of Michael’s specially blended, 64% Valrhona chocolate.

With the chocolate by my side, I flipped on the panner and began adding the first layer- just a splash of chocolate to get the cherries tumbling and very lightly coated.  Then I added the second layer, then the third, distributing the chocolate with my hands after each addition before the chocolate got a chance to set up.  After each addition of chocolate, we use our portable refrigeration machine, affectionately named “Recchiuti-Bot”, to cool the product and help the chocolate set up.

As it turns out, that the cherries are fairly forgiving as long as you watch them and employ patience.  You can’t rush the additions of chocolate, or rather, you can try to rush things but will soon come to regret it.  As impatient as tend to be, I have embraced Pat’s philosophy that rushing the chocolate at certain stages of panning will only lengthen the drying and separating processes, and will ultimately lead to an inferior product.  So!  Patience is a virtue, grasshopper, and I think I was patient enough with my cherries to be rewarded with a satisfactory end product.  Which is good, because if they were all stuck together a certain perfectionist Recchiuti panning pro would have let me have it.  Bullet dodged!

The last stage of the panning process for the dried cherries is to polish them up to a lustrous shine.  This is a little tricky and relies heavily on having ideal weather conditions.  We ended up waiting a whole week before the conditions were right to polish, at which time Pat put together his polishing station and watched the cherries like a protective mother-hen guarding her eggs, eyeing them closely and monitoring their development every inch of the way.  In the end, they turned out really well, though we’re still working out the kinks in our set-up.  Stay tuned for further adventures in panning and beyond!

Popularity: 6% [?]

As the holiday season approached this year, we in the Recchiuti ‘family’ were thinking of a fun, festive way to welcome winter to the City. One of the benefits of splitting my time between the Ferry Building shop and our offices and kitchens in the Dogpatch neighborhood is getting to be around the fabulous Ferry Building as it is decked out for the holidays and coming into work where the kitchens’ many baking and chocolate-y projects perfume the entire building with tantalizing scents. For me, nothing warms the heart and home like the smell of fresh baked goods (and a decked out tree, of course). My favorite days at the office are when the kitchens bake the graham crackers and permeate the office and kitchens with the wonderful rich scents of cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla. So it seemed the perfect way to usher in the holidays would be to bake something spectacular to get us in the swing of things. And since baking wasn’t festive enough we decided to go a step further and turn our grahams into the ultimate ‘gingerbread’ house.

First things first, we needed to create a sturdy base for our house. Enter Angelica, Recchiuti’s wonderful Kitchen Manager, who led me into the great unknown (aka the Recchiuti Kitchens), to experiment with our Graham Cracker dough. After consulting my trusty Joy of Cooking I created some pattern-pieces for our house and tackled the rolling, measuring, layout, and cutting of the house. I learned the hard way that this delicious and wonderful smelling graham dough is a sticky adversary, and began the chilly, somewhat floury journey into cutting out my pattern pieces and prepping them for baking. Next was the all-important baking test: would the grahams hold up in a larger than normal size? Would they bake evenly? Would they bleed and grow? Would they break? Angelica, Peter (one of our chefs), and I had our doubts… After 16 minutes of anticipation the results were in, and the grahams passed with flying colors! Beautifully golden, perfectly crisp and strong, they were the perfect platform to construct our All-Recchiuti masterpiece.

With the grahams cooling, I now got to move on to the fun part. With the oh-so-patient Peter watching me, I was set up a station in the kitchen to make a batch of Royal Icing so I could assemble our house. Oh the joys of professional kitchen equipment! (I made a second, successful batch at home, have no fear, beloved home chefs!) With icing in hand – that is, in a pastry bag – the building could begin. I used a spare cutting board covered in parchment as my base for the house, and after a few sticky icing overflows and one wall cave-in, I had a house!

Now the hard part… waiting, for at least an hour, to decorate it. We took the time to come up with crazy and creative ideas for decking-out our Graham Cracker creation. I had wild notions of enrobing the entire house in tempered chocolate and then decorating on top of it (the sheer weight of all that chocolate might have collapsed the entire project!). Angelica suggested drizzling tempered chocolate for rooftop decorations and I (more reasonably now) was looking forward to a Candied Orange Peel log pile, Marshmallow snowman, and Pates de Fruit Christmas lights and stained-glass windows.  I finally tore myself away from staring at the house long enough to whip up a fresh batch of icing to decorate the house, and after an hour of not-so-patiently waiting, it was time to decorate the house!

After frosting the roof, piping icicles off the eves, and plenty of frosting and Extra Biter Chocolate Sauce glue, (and a little snacking) we had  sweet creation. Just a few tips: if you cut the Pates de Fruit in half, the un-sugared side is marvelously sticky and requires no additional ‘glue.’ Marshmallows are great for anchoring unstable walls or for snowbanks, and also great as snowmen! And don’t be afraid to be creative, using non-food items to embellish your creation and add a personal twist to this holiday classic!

We used: Recchiuti Graham Crackers for the walls and roof; Candied Hazelnuts for the border; Pates de Fruit for the windows; Recchiuti chocolate box pads for the door; a gold Recchiuti seal attached with some Extra Bitter Chocolate Sauce for the knob; a combination of PEPs and Cherries Two Ways for the walkway; Recchiuti Vanilla Bean Marshmallow for the snowman (his nose is made of blended Pates de Fruit, with buttons and eyes of Extra Bitter Chocolate Sauce coal); Candied Orange Peel for the log pile; Pates de Fruit for Christmas lights; and finally a Crimson Recchiuti Ribbon to top off our All-Recchiuti creation.

Popularity: 6% [?]

If your brown sugar is lumpy, push it through a sieve before measuring it. Also, refrigerating the dough for at least 3 hours before rolling and baking helps to relax the gluten and blend the flavors. If the graham shapes bleed or grow during baking, cut them while still warm to pit the pattern shapes. Once assembled, the house should sit for at least one hour for the icing to harden before you begin decorating.

Graham Crackers
Yield: 2 12-inch-by-18-inch sheet pans

⅓ cup whole milk
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, preferably Madagascar Bourbon
4 tablespoons mild-flavored honey such as clover or orange-blossom
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons whole-wheat flour, preferably stone-ground
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
5 tablespoons unsalted butter with 82% butterfat, chilled, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 cup packed dark brown sugar

Royal Icing
Yield: about ¾ cup
2⅔ cups confectioners sugar
2 large egg whites

MIX THE DOUGH
•    Whisk the milk, vanilla extract, and honey together in a bowl. Set aside.
•    Sift both flours, the salt, and the baking soda together into the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and beat on medium speed until the mixture looks like coarse meal. Beat in the brown sugar until on sugar clumps remain.
•    With the mixer running on medium speed, add the milk mixture and beat until a smooth dough forms, 2 to 3 minutes.
•    Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and pat it into a 5-inch square. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

CUT THE PATTERN
Using parchment or butchers paper cut out and label your patter pieces as follows:
•    One 7-inch wide x 5-inch tall pattern piece for the sides of the house.
•    One 8½-inch wide x 6½-inch tall pattern piece for the roof.
•    One 7½-inch wide x 9-inch high pattern piece for the front and back of the house.
(To form the peak for the front and back of the house: fold the pattern piece in half lengthwise. Mark 5-inches up the side of the paper, two staggered sections. You will cut the shorter section (4-inches) to create the peak of the roof. Using a ruler, angle the ruler diagonally from the top of the folded side out to the mark. Cut along the ruler and unfold your pattern piece. You should now have a ‘house’ shaped pattern.)

BAKE THE CRACKERS

•    Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottoms of two 12-by-18 inch sheet pans with parchment paper.

•    On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough ⅛-inch thick. If the dough is sticky, lightly flour the surface of the dough before laying down the patterns. Place your patterns on the dough before cutting so you can map-out how to best use your space. Using a sharp knife, cut two copies of each pattern piece from the dough. If the dough gets too sticky, chill the dough for a few minutes and continue cutting.
•    Transfer your cut pieces to the parchment covered pans, spacing them ½-inch apart.
•    Bake on the middle shelves of the oven, rotating the pans 180 degrees halfway through the baking time, until browned on top, about 16 minutes. Cool completely on the pans on wire racks.
•    Store pieces in an airtight container until ready to assemble the house.

MAKE THE ICING
To glue your house together use Royal Icing. To make Royal Icing:
•    Using an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, mix together the confectioners sugar and egg whites on high speed until the icing is cool and holds stiff peaks. You may add more confectioners sugar until the icing is stiff enough. Transfer to a piping bag or press wax paper or cling wrap against the surface of the icing to prevent it from drying out until you are ready to use it.

MAKE THE HOUSE
•    You may use a pastry bag or a small spatula to apply the lines of icing. Working on a large tray or plate, lined with wax or parchment paper, start by putting the house front, sides, and back together.
•    Pipe a line of icing on each end of one side piece. Place it between the front and back, adjusting as necessary to make the house square. Repeat on the other side piece.
•    Working one side at a time, pipe icing along the angled front and back edges. Place the roof piece against the icing and gently press to lightly hold it in place until the second roof piece is added. Repeat for the second roof piece and pipe icing along the top edge of the roof pieces, adjusting them to fit snugly together to form a peak.
•    Reinforce seams of house with extra icing. Let the house stand for at least one hour, until the icing hardens, before decorating.
Decorating your house: remember, have fun, be creative, and enjoy!

Popularity: 7% [?]

Bittersweet – it’s the pure emotional description of how I spent the weekend of October 3^rd and 4^th. This marked the finale of Recchiuti Confections 2009 Taste Project, clear blue skies with a slight chill in the air reminding me that summer has passed and the tease of winter is approaching.  This means to those of us who are in a seasonal business that we are slowly climbing up the roller coaster towards the peak before inertia throws us up and down the tracks eventually screeching the a dead halt.  So explains some of the feelings of bittersweet brought on by this last gathering.

Our final partnership is with Acme Bread Company. Monica Contois the heroine retail manager at Acme in the Ferry Building is joining Michael in what is now a define Recchiuti style in the project – we won’t simply be pairing bread with chocolate – we will also incorporate stages of bread making or re-purposing bread oriented foods into appetizing creations. A brainstorm meeting was held earlier at Zuni Café (hmm, I must have missed the memo to join them at that meeting) ideas are bounced back and forth, a menu emerges.

BREAD & CHOCOLATE MENU

Panzanella – A bread made with Acme batard, Far West Fungi chanterelles & glacier greens, finished  chili flakes, 64% semisweet Maris Otter dragées, oyster mushrooms, McEvoy olive oil and fresh mint.

Savory Tartine - Acme sourdough baguette open-faced sandwich of Ploughgate Creamery’s Willoughby cheese (Albany, VT), drizzled Valrhona 64% chocolate garnished with fresh rosemary and artisan finishing salt and pipette of McEvoy olive oil.

Pretzel – House made pretzel sticks made with Acme sourdough dipped in dark chocolate and garnished with artisan salt. A “refresher” drink of active bread starter, burnt sugar, balsamic vinegar with a touch of St George Spirit cacao brandy finished with a shot of seltzer water.

Dogpatch Pop Tart – A pop tart made with Michael’s buttermilk scone dough recipe. Filled with candied orange peel and semisweet chocolate.

Bread Pudding – Bread pudding made with Acme croissant topped with crème caramel and encased in a burnt sugar cage

Ice Cream Sliders – Cacao nib ice cream sliders made with Acme pain de mie served with a side of Recchiuti PEP (Peppermint Thins)

Saturday October 3^rd

The last of the Taste Project has proven to be somewhat of a family affair. Joining us on Saturday in service, is Hannah who from Boston adds a charming east coast edge to the retail team at the Ferry Building Recchiuti Store – she is also famous for coining the word “Delicious-ness”. Hannah uses it frequently with customers in describing various Recchiuti confections like the Candied Orange Peel and seasonal specials like the Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies, customers in turn nod knowingly; acknowledging how the newly inscribed word resonant with them. Alongside Hannah are Sugey (lived in Boston and speaks of it with much affections, big Red Sox fan) who spearheads Recchiuti Customer Service at 3^rd St and Jessie also in customer service (our in house songwriter and joy spreader). Today Jessie is riding shot gun with Peter our last Tasting Project chef de cuisine as they both are culinary school graduates and are entrusted to plate the various savory and sweet concoctions about to unfold. 

Familiar faces dot the tables as we welcome people into the tasting room – many have attending multiple tastings and familiar with the routine. For those unable to attend here’s a peek at what we do…

Lights are dimmed, tea candles are lit at each setting alongside the tasting menu, the tone is calming, warm and cozy, (well, as cozy as you can be with twenty-five people sitting in a U shaped table) – frequently we will have a  tiny cup of pre-tasting sample – in this case; un-milled wheat berries a precursor to bread. Movement catches the eye as a two separate walls are projected with silent  images; one is a day at Acme – dough is mixed, rolled out, cut and baked – this was filmed weeks before by Michael to allow Monica a reference point as these images typically ignite conversation or specific questions of curiosity. The other is an instructional CD from the award winning book Dough (again a bittersweet moment as this is the very book that beat our book Chocolate Obsession at the James Beard Awards). All this adds texture and further excitement to the attendees as education and information fills the room.

Enter Michael and Monica – with each course is served they both speak with excitement of what their passions bring to the dish placed on the table. Anecdotes and factual details are shared with everyone; it’s not only about what they know of bread & chocolate – it’s more than that, it’s what we in the artisan food industry live for, it’s what we eat, drink dream about and in the case of Recchiuti Taste Project what we share with those who want to catch the contact high from living the life we do here in the bay area. The love for food and drink and where things come from, how they are prepared give us the common bond for a short time this Saturday afternoon in Dogpatch. Throughout the courses Hannah, Sugey and I glide about serving and clearing and Jessie and Peter set up for following courses. Jessie, Sugey and I take turns taking photos to document for Sugey’s posting on our Recchiuti fan Facebook wall and for my writing of the Recchiuti blog.

During a short break which incorporates a tour of our kitchen with the making of a course tasting, as a side we have already baked off pretzel sticks made with Acme sourdough. The pretzel is to accompany a drink, a very special drink – Monica and Michael have concocted a beverage that includes active bread starter it is presented in with seltzer water that makes it look like a root beer float. The foamy drink has a syrup made with St George Spirits cacao brandy, balsamic vinegar, burnt sugar blend; the flavor is reminiscent of Saba  (currant balsamic vinegar) with notes of caramel, red berries, just enough bitter sourness from the vinegar  and foamy bread starter – it’s unexpectedly pleasant.

As everyone files back into the tasting room warm buttermilk scone in a Pop Tart shape filled with chocolate and candied orange is warmed and served, a nice palette cleanser for those who may not have enjoyed the unusual drink they just consumed.

We continue on through the next two courses without a hitch, Michael and Monica on-going banter out front, behind the scenes team Recchiuti work together in plating and finishing touched on the last two courses.

The first of the two day tasting goes by without incident – what little tension from anticipation has dissipated as well all know now what is expected for the tasting on Sunday. We quickly and efficiently set up and prep for the next day and off we go …

Sunday October 4^th

We begin with a new service team – back are Peter and Sugey but to replace our Saturday gals:

Peggi a dear long-time friend who most  willingly replaced me in the break of dawn waking and tending of the Ferry Plaza Farmer’s Market  tent on Green Street all those years ago before the Ferry Building was resurrected. Peggi was referred to as the “market wife” as she and Michael would bicker from time to time like an old married couple as I snuggled into a sleep-in at home before heading into the kitchen to prep. It’s funny because to this day old Green St Market customers tell me at the store, that they were very close to Michael and his wife as they frequented the market back in the day – little do they know I’m Michael’s wife or at least the wife that was spared the bickering at pre-dawn on a Saturday morning.

Also on hand is Jason – he’s a very special family member … that is to Monica, another married couple in this ever growing Recchiuti family of characters. Jason is an extraordinary sales man; he has this deep low growling sexy Barry White kind of voice. We often send him out to conquer ladies who dismiss the female members of the team only to curry favor with Jason; purchasing armful of suggestions he has gently made. He is our James Bond, we make sure we shake him and not stir …sigh! Okay, focus – Jason is the welcoming host, he will take up the station of greeter and gatekeeper at the back entry. Sundays the building is locked down so we need Jason to guide people into the enclosed parking lot and in the building.

Peter is in for a surprise this morning– Unbeknownst to him Michael in his typical cowboy fashion has decided to make burnt sugar cages to top off the breading pudding course, this was not on the menu or planning. Peter’s eyes light up as this is the first opportunity for him to get direct mentoring from Michael; after a quick lesson they are both skillfully drizzling molten hot sugar over a ladle and creating an battalion of golden domes in sugar.

In the mean while I get a strained call from Monica – she calmly explain that her oven had gone on the fritz and Jason will be coming soon with as many pain de mie buns as they were able to make. Here’s where the previous mention of “heroine” part comes in Monica handles the emergency at the bakery with professionalism and efficiency then dashes over to fulfill her commitment to us – bloody hell! How she does handle all this in one morning and still shows up with such vigor to set up her live yeasty bread starter mise en place is beyond me!? But then again she is married to James Bond so it may be the prerequisite to have super powers.

The energy is high and positive as we all take of prep and setting up for day two. The panzanella is the first course and works like clock-work since Peter has worked out the kinks for the first day, the smell of olive oil cooking up chanterelle mushrooms and toasting bread permeate the room. All goes well, on to the next courses and the kitchen break. Jason is running back and forth between assisting Peter and helping with serving.

Finally the bread pudding course is upon us – the sugar cages are gently placed on each of the plates. It looks like a miniature village of sparkling, golden castles. Peggi and I grab the first plates and head out to serve. As I turn back to get more plated sugar domes I see Sugey emerging from behind the curtain beaming with her bright smile – the addition to the dessert has set a wonderfully glowing feeling for everyone – it shows on Sugey’s happy face as she proudly sets down the plate. Michael made the right choice to add this extra bit on this last day of our project.

We finish off with comfort food – Michael’s amazing cacao nib ice cream atop a toasted pain de mie bun, if that’s not enough we add aside garnish of our newly launched long awaited PEP – Peppermint Thins. Michael has told a story of his favorite “American” candy as Junior Mints, for years he has been thinking of a way to capture the cool but not overpowering minty-ness balanced with just enough chocolate … he has succeeded! We now offer it online, at the store and in our pantry at home to enjoy when watching a movie projected on the wall – our version of a large screen as we have not owned a television for years, I’ll make a bowl of popcorn and Michael will nibble on PEP’s and that is how we will spend our weekends for now that the Taste project has ended we have the free time to rest, recuperate and plan for the 2010 Taste Project. Michael and I have been brainstorming on other ideas to make it interesting for the next round – who knows if you attend next year you may be served by a Market Wife, Red Sox fan or even James Bond … see you there!

Popularity: 8% [?]

1. How did the concept of the Taste Project series come to be?

This project evolved out of the idea that we could use our work space in an alternative way.  In the summer months the room that now holds our Taste Project events, doesn’t get much use.  After about the third class, where I was mostly just teaching and showing guests what I do, I decided to change it up and include other producers—people who are doing different things in the industry.  I wanted to find a way to incorporate all of the different elements that contribute to the processes of the food industry (farmers, retailers, artisans, writers), but not lose focus in educating people.  I didn’t want this to be the type of event that people perceived as a push to promote our products, but rather one that allowed everyone to see what’s going on in the Culinary world.  Ultimately, I feel like it’s a celebration of the person I’m collaborating with, and also a way to expose their product to Recchiuti fans.

2. Of all the Taste Projects, which has been your favorite?

Probably the salt tasting, which I know was also a favorite of our customers as well.    Salt has become really popular in the past couple years, so it was definitely a fun product to work with.  I also really enjoyed the beer tasting.  As the project has evolved and matured, we are able to deliver a bigger message and a more complex taste experience.  With the beer event, we deconstructed the product which allowed guests to taste the actual components of the beer and also better understand the process of what it takes to make it.  Because this is not something that can be done with all other products, I thought this event was so special.  In the end, I think this was one of the more educational events.  The guests seemed to be able to really understand beer because they experienced it.

3. What pairing would you like to do in the future that you have not yet done?

I really want to work with chefs in addition to producers.  With that in mind, I would like to do some meat pairings; one possibly with this fifth generation butcher I know from Switzerland.   I think it would be really cool to break down a whole pig and then celebrate all the parts of the animal.  If I were to do this type of pairing I would probably have several interesting items on the menu such as loin wrapped with ground chocolate and herb seasoning.  I was also thinking about something that would work with chocolate and part of the drippings—maybe a stock and chocolate lollipop.

I think it would also be interesting and fun to work with another chocolate maker or pastry chef.  This wouldn’t be a chocolate “throw down”, but rather an event that incorporates two different styles.  It would break the barriers and show that I really like these other people and appreciate their craft.

4. Every event focuses on pairing chocolate with another specific ingredient.  What is your favorite recipe from the Tastings? Why?

From the last tasting (Bread) I loved the sour starter with the balsamic reduction (balsamic vinegar and chocolate), and seltzer water.  The vinegar broke down the starter and the seltzer gave it some attitude.  It was definitely an unusual pairing that I really enjoyed!

Also, I thought the king trumpet mushroom tarte tatin was a unique, exciting recipe.  It needs a little work, but I liked how it looked visually and the fact that you’re crossing the barrier of a savory item and turning it into something sweet and unexpected.  The problem was that the mushrooms needed to cook longer—they were a little firm.  Ultimately, I thought it looked great and had a living quality to it.

5. What do you enjoy most about engaging in this type of event?

I really enjoy working closely with artisans and producers.  Also, having direct contact with people who’ve really supported us makes me feel good.  Now we can give back to them!  They have a chance to connect with US and can walk away with new knowledge about Recchiuti.  Then people go off and talk about it in a positive way.  The effort we put into these events is realized and appreciated.

6. If you could change one thing about the way the events are set up/executed, what would you change?

I would probably change the seating layout so that it was more service friendly and would bring people together in a more cohesive way.   As it is now, not everyone feels like they get the same kind of attention; some may feel more separated than others. However, we are very aware of this and try our best to be as inclusive as possible.  I think we will be able to fix the problem by using wireless microphones or changing the layout a bit.

7. When first coming up with a Taste Project menu, what are the things you consider?

I first consider a strong connection with whomever it is I’m hosting.  Sometimes there just are disconnects, but I try to work with it.  I ask myself several questions:  “how can I compliment their craft or product or passion?”  And “how does that translate?”  Once I think about these things, I start to create my menu.  Often times, if I’m not completely satisfied with the way something tastes, I will go ahead and make changes to the recipe; sometimes even the same week or day of the actual event.

8. Would you be interested in further exploring one of the pairings you’ve already done?

Yes. Probably more salt.  As I said earlier, salt is really popular these days and I think it would be worth revisiting.  Another cheese event would be cool too.  I’d like to have a cheese maker come in and maybe bring in a goat so that our guests can get a better idea about the cheese making process.

9. As this Taste Project series comes to an end, and you start to think about next year, what can Recchiuti fans look forward to in 2010?

I think it’s going to be a much more refined experience overall as far as the room, the service, and presentation go.  There will definitely be more interaction also—it will be a hands-on experience for everyone involved.  There will be more layers, more depth, and more stimulation to all senses.  I’m very excited for what’s to come.

Popularity: 9% [?]

It’s eight-thirty in the morning at Magnolia Pub and Brewery, the glass windows are clouded and dripping with precipitation while the fog is cool and sits low in the upper Haight-Ashbury neighborhood where our newly favorite pub is located.

Beer drinking is relatively new to me, call me a snob, most of my legal age drinking years had been dedicated to spirits and wine – I would not touch beer if I were stranded on a deserted island with mountains of kegs as my only means to hydrate … let me explain, my first and traumatic relationship with beer was in high school back in Hawaii where I grew up – Primo beer; I liken this fluid to foamy, yellow, sour water. I recall swigging bottles of Primo with the rigor of an old sailor only to be spent for the rest of the evening into the early morning over a toilet bowl as the world around me spun like a carnival ride gone berserk!

Mind you I’m talking a million years ago in my youth – when I knew nothing about anything. Since then, although nary a bottle of Primo has touch these lips – it appears the brand has embraced everything about my place of birth that I find dear to my heart. So begins the healing process, purging me of the “Primo Incident”

http://www.primobeer.com/homePage.aspx

Although my first memories of beer is not of IPA or Stout or Lager or anything near the lesson I was soon to learn about artisanal brewing.

Michael and our friend Photographer/Filmmaker Tom Seawell are already in the thick of the process. I’m joining the Recchiuti Confections crew down in the basement of Magnolia where the brewing is done. Michael is filming as Tom multi tasks as film director and shoots still shots for my blogging purpose. Head Brewer Ben Spencer is a blur of movement, like a juggler in the midst of having a dozen balls in the air; he is focused and moving in a rhythm of familiar repetition – almost second nature in the routine of beer making. Sweat dripping off him as the sweet malt scent permeated the air, steam billowing and water running off the walls.

Quick synopses of brewing – as understood by the woman who went for years without drinking beer.

HEIRLOOM MALT

First step of beer making is cooking the malt (grain) this extracts the sugars needed to feed then yeast in the fermentation. Some of the types of malts used are Maris Otter Pale Malt, Crystal Malt and Chocolate Malt each offering its own distinct flavor profile.

WORT

Sweet wort (pronounced wert) means “Plant” in German. This is the flavorful sweet liquid that the cooking of the grain has created; creamy and malty in taste and basically like a cereal juice, the spent grains are kind of like over-cooked Irish oatmeal.

ADDING THE HOPS

After the sweet wort is made dried (which looks like little rabbit food pellets) hops are added to give depth of flavor, although always added in the brewing it lends itself to the style of beer, like IPA or Bitter Ale in that the amount and the blended type of grains establishes the profile. Either dried or highly perishable fresh hop can be used – with fresh hops, timing is everything, a small window of twice yearly is available to the brew master. More cooking is done

FERMENTATION

After cooking the sweet hopped wort, the liquid is drained, cooled and transferred to the barrels in the fermentation room, the final step is the addition of yeast.

Magnolia story continues…

In rolls Dave Mclean the visionary of Alembic further up Haight Street the neighborhood and Brew Master for Magnolia Brewery. He is an encyclopedia of beer information; not only of method in brewing but history and science of it. His passion and love for what he does is clear, any question thrown at him opens up yet another anecdote of the brewing history or a brewing experience which has lead Magnolia to the various flavor profiles developed over the years. Dave is funny and engaging but at the same time he has one eye locked in on Ben as a friendly repartee is being batted back and forth between all of us. Dave doesn’t miss a beat, he checks in periodically to be sure the Recchiuti crew is not distracting Ben too much as this is liquid gold in the works … there are many a fan who will be depending on the perfection of the brewing. Still Dave makes the time to tell us more tales …

Here’s one he shared;
Twice a year in the rare chance of getting fresh hops timed just right with a the brewing of sweet wort, it’d critical that the hops are cut, shipped and added to the wort within hours; the wort waits for no one.  A call comes in that freshly harvested hops are on its way via UPS courier to Magnolia, the timing couldn’t be more perfect – that is until the early morning deliver of hops is a “No Show”. In sleuthing for the missing hops, it is discovered that the USDA has suddenly deem this particular shipment of hops interesting enough to delay for inspection, much to their chagrin the hops will not be delivered until possible the next – this is too late by then mold and other  impurities will have manifested itself and no longer any good for the wort. YIKES the wort! Ben scrambles to find some dried hops to add to the ready and waiting wort and a brew they affectionate refer to as “the USDA” has been born. Eventually fresh hops gets re-sent to Magnolia, the old (formerly fresh) hops also get delivered with not a single explanation as to why it was delayed, Hmmm? I say “Beer Nuts!” to the powers that be.

Back to tales from the brew …

Dave has just taken a sip of a sample Ben has pulled from the cask room for quality control (sure, yeah, of course!) – “Not bad” says Dave, he’s just tasted the USDA,  if nothing else this somewhat traumatic incident has turned in to a fun legend for Magnolia to share.

Michael and I bellied up to the bar to conduct an unlikely pairing of chocolates (Recchiuti Confections chocolates to be precise), we asked for a flight of beers and we were off and running, here’s what we came up with.

FLIGHTS  & TASTING NOTES

Blue Bell Bitter Cask Ale    

Kona Coffee – pulls out the coffee& cream quality of the beer very confection like.

Candied Orange Peel – hoppy bitterness subsides from the citrus and chocolate, pleasantly lighter.

Proving Ground IPA Cask Ale

Cardamom Nougat – enhances skunky, spiciness in beer, bitters are pulled up in the profile.

Ginger Heart – white chocolate mellows the bitterness adding a creamy, mild spiciness from the ginger.

Star Anise Pink Peppercorn – beer and truffle balances each other, very interesting and pleasant surprise.

Weather Report Wheat Draught

Force Noir – the maltiness of the beer becomes pronounced as the cacao and vanilla is pulled from the brew

Star Anise and Pink Peppercorn – bright spice notes appear allowing the personality beam from this beer    

Candied Orange Peel – a complex citrusiness comes forward, almost tasting like a “Shandy”

Prescription Pale Draught      

Fleur de Sel –  the salty creaminess enhances flavor

Candied Orange Peel – draws out the fruit notes from the beer

Big Cypress Brown Draught   

Burnt Caramel – balances flavors runs in tandem with beer

Force Noir – vanilla notes are drawn, driving the chocolate tones out

Burnt Caramel Almonds – nutty, caramel tones come through with the beer

Dark Star Mild Cask Ale        

Kona Coffee – expected  rich coffee flavors appear

Honey Comb Malt – creamy, vanilla malt undertones are present

Sesame Nougat – smokey, toasted nut and caramel becomes pronounced

TASTE PROJECT MENU

First Course

HEIRLOOM MALT

-          Chocolate Malt, Crystal Malt, Maris Otter Pale Malts (presented as a pure tasting)

-          Malt Dragées; Maris Otter Pale Malt covered with layers of  Recchiuti 64% Semisweet Chocolate

-          Caramelized Barley Malt Mendiants(also 64% Semisweet)

Second Course

WORT

-          Wort Soda garnished with Malt Foam Cube with a “Pipette” of Fresh Wort. A reduction of sweet wort is added to ice, finished with seltzer water. Frozen malt foam as a garnish is pierced with a pipette

Kitchen Tour

HOPPED WORT

-          A reduction of Hopped Sweet Wort is folded into White Chocolate Ganache. A casted shell of Recchiuti 64% custom blend by Valrhona holds the ganache filling.

Third Course

FLIGHT

-          Blue Bell Bitter with Candied Orange Peel

-          Spud’s Boy IPA with Star Anise and Pink Peppercorn

-          Big Cypress Brown with Burnt Caramel

Fourth Course

STOUT

-          Smokestack Lightening Stout Shooter, Chocolate Stout Tort (see recipe below) and Stout Gelée

Fifth Course

FLOAT

-          Recchiuti 64% Semisweet Chocolate Ice Cream floating on Magnolia’s Dark Star Mild

Whoever said beer didn’t go with chocolate has been proven absolutely incorrect. The mastering of both chocolate and beer making has proven equally challenging, the complexity of blending, the perfection in timing parallel each other – how long to brew, when to add the hops vs.  roasting cacao and tempering curves.

For someone who avoided beer drinking for decades, I have to admit I have come to see the light – thrown in a cabana boy with cold towels to wipe the sweat off my tanning forehead I just might think about cracking into a bottle of Primo on the white sandy beaches of Hawaii … this could be a follow up story to this beer thing. I’ll get right on it!

Popularity: 18% [?]

Stay tuned for more updates on this event including a play-by-play of the tasting and a behind the scenes look at Magnolia Pub’s Haight Street brewery. In the meantime quench your thirst with some delicious photos and a peak at the menu from the September 19th Taste Project with Michael Recchiuti and brewmaster Dave McLean from Magnolia Pub here in San Francisco!

Heirloom Malt

A tasting of three (chocolate, crystal, maris otter pale malt ) heirloom malts, malt dragée and a barley mendiant.

Wort

A refreshing wort soda garnished with a malt foam cube.

Hopped Wort

White chocolate ganache flavored with hopped wort encased in Recchiuti’s 64% Valrhona chocolate.  

Flight

A flight of three Magnolia brews paired with Recchiuti chocolates…

Blue Bell Bitter with Candied Orange Peel

Spud’s Boy IPA with Star Anise & Pink Peppercorn

Big Cypress Brown with Burnt Caramel

Stout

Smokestack Lightening Stout shooter, chocolate stout tort and stout gelée.

Float

Chocolate ice cream float made with Magnolia’s Dark Star Mild beer.

Popularity: 18% [?]