My new obsession

Hello, friends!

I hope this finds you well and that you have been enjoying this fantastic weather. This, right now, is the time of year that I live for.  October is the best month there ever was, in my humble opinion.  I can start eating soup again! And I can steal all of my child's Halloween candy! And wear my 25 different cardigans! And all the mosquitoes are dying! Oh, and football, if you're into that sort of thing.

What's going on here at the store, you ask? Cayenne Olive Oil.  It is my new obsession.  And it is also this month's featured oil!  That means that bottles 200 ml and above are 20% off.  Just look at it.  It's so pretty.  And it is hot.  Like, kick you in your pants hot.  I use it on everything now.  I added some to the top of my biscuits and gravy this weekend, just because I can't stop.  I'm planning to make my favorite Chicken Gumbo tomorrow and use a tiny bit of it in the roux, because I. Can't. Stop. I am truly in love, friends.  I think you'll find that it becomes a kitchen staple for you as well.

I just placed an order for some good ole Extra Virgin Olive Oil that racked up medals at the Los Angeles International EVOO Competition.  We are getting the Best of Show Chilean Koroneiki as well as the Gold Medal Picual.  They are beautiful.  Keep in mind, these are still the Southern Hemisphere oils.  The Northern Hemisphere will start crushing their olives in the next couple of months. But the where doesn't matter so much as weather conditions for the growing season, how quickly the olives are pressed, and the manner in which they are pressed (i.e., cold pressed), etc.  Any way you shake it, we make it a point to provide you with the best olive oil available in the world.

Oh, and we have some really tasty new chocolates from Taza.  These are stone ground and minimally processed, so they are a little gritty, not too sweet, and perfect for an afternoon pick-me-up.

I feel like it has been a really long time (3 and a half months, approximately) since I have seen your lovely faces, but now I'm back in the store with a baby in tow.  We're going to see how it works bringing Little Miss up here in the afternoons.  She may be screaming, or she may be totally into chatting with you.  We'll find out!


Now that I'm back to being a (sort of) working mother, I feel like I should become a crock potter.  But let me tell you, I have failed at every single crock pot recipe I have tried.  I have Pinterest boards with crock pot recipes abound, and I have yet to find one that I can get behind. (But I'm open to suggestions.  If you have a good one, send it my way!) I have mastered this brown rice recipe, because it's really hard to mess up rice. I have taken to making a big batch of it at the beginning of the week and then eating it for lunch and dinner.  My favorite quick lunch is sauteed spinach and a fried egg with the brown rice, soy sauce, Toasted Sesame Oil and Cayenne Olive Oil (no, really, I can't stop). My dinners have consisted of a very fast stir fry of sorts, really a variation of the aforementioned lunch.  But if you have a batch of rice hanging out in the fridge, it makes this month's recipe come together in about 10 minutes.

The recipe I'm going to share with you is easier than making Hamburger Helper (is that still around?) and has no frills about it.  It is called...Stir Fried Beef with Chili Oil and Basil. It calls for Fish Sauce, and if you have never cooked with it before, I will warn you, you may open it and think, "Dear God, this smells like cat food!"  You wouldn't be wrong.  The ingredients are anchovies, water, and salt.  Smell aside, it can transform a dish.  I urge you to try it in your next Asian fare, such as this one.  If you really don't want to do it, use a good Soy Sauce or just mince up an anchovy and go about your merry way. I like to eat this with a side of steamed or roasted broccoli and bell peppers, if I have them.

That pretty much sums us up!  Now get out there and enjoy this lovely autumn day.

Stir Fried Beef with Chili Oil and Basil
Adapted from Orangette
Notes: You can use the Cayenne Oil for the stir fry, the egg, or just as a drizzle over the top as a finishing oil, depending on how spicy you want this.  You could also use the Basil Olive Oil, Garlic Olive Oil, or Extra Virgin Olive Oil and throw in a chopped chili for the heat. This comes together really quickly, so have everything you need close by.  This recipe can be doubled very easily.  I do it regularly.

4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil, divided (Cayenne Chili or EVOO or Garlic or Basil)
1/2 lb. ground beef
1 Tbsp. Fish Sauce
pinch of sugar
1/4 c. chicken stock or water
Handful or 2 of fresh whole basil
2 eggs
limes wedges
cooked rice

Heat a large wok or skillet over high heat, add 1 Tbsp. oil, add the garlic and stir fry for a few seconds, until fragrant.  Add the beef and continue to cook, stirring regularly, until the beef is cooked through.  Add fish sauce, sugar, basil and chicken stock and stir until basil is wilted.

Meanwhile, heat another Tbsp. oil and fry your eggs.  You want the egg white part crispy and the yolk runny.

Scoop rice into bowls, then pour the beef and broth over the rice and top it with an egg.  Give it a squeeze of lime and you are set!

I hope you like it.

Cheers,
Andrea

My lunch...every day....