Have you ever wanted to roast a whole pig but didn’t feel confident enough to do so?  Don’t worry the mystery is gone and the work is done, simply use a LA CAJA CHINA.  Using the Chinese method of cooking from the top down and relying on radiant heat you can sucessfully cook a whole pig, 70-80 lbs, in less than 4 hours.

While the coals are cooking the pig below you can even use the grill to barbeque from the top in the conventional method.  Add a rotisserie and cook a chicken or two at the same time, all just by using the LA CAJA CHINA.   Please visit www.lacajachina.com for more information and if you are interested in purchasing one send me a message as I distribute them. 

One of the leaders in their industry,  Zinio offers hundreds of magazines and educational textbooks digitally .  In an effort to support sustainability Zinio, based in San Francisco, has partnered with over 850 consumer brands of magazines and books to bring you digital books and magazines.

Their unique reader allows for functions never before available.  Cut and paste a paragraph or highlight and send an e-mail instantly.  Please visit their website, www.zinio.com to view features and benefits of digital reading and at the same time help our ennviorment.

For a company overview please see http://www.zinio.com/about

Are you interested in the food you eat, where it came from, how to prepare it and our choices effect us?  If so visit this site   http://slowfoodnation.org/slow-food.

We are what we eat and locally we have no excuse to not be eating the freshest fruits and vegatables.  Your support of the local farming community is appreciated and hope to see you at our Farmer’s Market, Saturdays 8-12.

Growing up in Brentwood the only local golf courses were located in Bethel Island and Antioch.  Golf’s growing popularity, the community’s growth and in an attempt to make the area a destination and life style has increased the demand for additional golf courses.

Currently there are 8 local golf courses, Antioch, Brentwood, Bethel Island, Deer Ridge, Discovery Bay, Shadow Lakes and Roddy Ranch and Pittsburg. I do not golf but someday would like to try the game and relax (hah, hah).  

Please check the following links on two local courses, any suggestions or comments are appreciated

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3lOy6CDpeI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvwSW_Tm-_0

Considered to be the creation point for the Miwok Indian tribe,  Mount DIablo is sacred to all California Indian tribes.   Of those tribes who viewed Mt. Diablo most made pilgrimage to the summit for ritual ceremonies. 

In 1851 the mountaintop was selected as a starting point for public domain surveys.  The Mount Diablo base and meridian lines derived through these surveys are referred to in legal descriptions of real estate throughout 2/3 of California and parts of Nevada and Oregon.

Toll roads to the mountain were opened  in 1874 with two stages every day from Walnut Creek, Danville and Mountain House, a 16-room hotel about three miles from the summit.  The hotel offered all of today’s conveniences and was well know for excellent food and servie.  Visitors from all over Europe and America enjoyed the hotel, which also hosted many events and weddings.  In those days you had not see the West unless you watched a sunset, sunrise or full moon from the mountain. 

In 1891 the summit observation platform burned down and hotel business declined, shortly thereafter the hotel burned down as well.  A parcel of land was designated a state park in 1921 and much of the rest was declared a game refuge. 

Standard Oil placed a ten-million-candlepower navigation beacon on the summit in 1928.  So powerful was the beacon that it could be seen by ships 100 miles at sea.  More land was acquired by the state for the park and in 1931 Mt. Diablo State Park was formally dedicated and opened to the public.   

The Fourth Annual “Fall Harvest Celebration” fundraiser will be held on Sunday, September 14, 2008 from 5-9 PM at the Historic Taylor Ranch in Byron.  Please join us for a feast of local food, wine and olive oil all produced just a few miles from where the celebration will be held.

Establised in 2002, BALT’s charge is to help create & maintain a viable and sustainable agricultural industry in our local Agruculture Core. Until this past June funding for BALT’s effort was provided by the City of Brentwood, through developer mitigation fees. Now that BALT is self funding the communities participation is more important than ever, how can you help???  If you are interested in the preservation of farm land please attend the harvest celebration, you can also donate to BALT and write a comment to show support.

As a former member of the original City of Brentwood’s committee that establised guidelines for ag preservation and also a former member of BALT’s Board of Directors I am committed to helping create a sustainable enviorment for local farmers.  To just preserve the land for open space is not enough, we must continue to grow and harvest local produce.  Not only is our local soil some of the best in the world but we also have the water and are within 50 miles from the largest consumer of food, SF Bay area. 

Your support not only supports our efforts but will also help in preserving the heritage of our community.

Please visit www.brentwoodaglandtrust.org for further information and dates of upcoming events.  Also visit my archives for previous posts regarding local agriculture. 

Looking for an unconventional, foolproof method for cooking salmon? 

Try this intresting recipe…

Prepare Salmon

2 tablespoons lemon or blood orange infused olive oil (www.brentwoodoliveoil.com)                                   

4 6-ounce salmon fillets

1 large lemon and juice from 1 large lemon                                                                               

1) Place a piece of heavy duty foil on flat surface, shiny side up

2) Grease foil with one tablespoon olive oil, place 2 fillets side by side on foil

3) Fold up edges and spread 1/2 juice on salmon, salt and pepper to taste, place a slice of lemon on each fillet

4) Continue to fold and finish by crimping the edges to form a water and air tight seal

5) Place salmon packets on top rack of dishwasher and run through entire cycle

6) Remove salmon from dishwasher, discard foil and serve topped with basil sauce

Tips:

Do not use economy or short cycle (too cool) , also do no use pots and pans cycle (too hot).  Use normal cycle with heat option.

Pesto Sauce

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese, plus some for garnish 

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (www.brentwoodoliveoil.com)

1/3 cup pine nuts, plus a few more to garnish

3 medium size fresh garlic cloves

salt and pepper to taste

Place basil and pine nuts in food processor and pulse a few times, add garlic and pulse again

Slowly add the olive oil and continue to pulse, add cheese slowly and pulse until fully blended

Add salt and pepper to taste, will make approximately 1 cup

Tips…

Not all is needed for Salmon recipe, store leftover tightly covered in refrigerator for up to 1 week OR

Cook 1/2 lb of penne pasta according to package during last 10 minutes of dishwaser cycle, once salmon is done, mix the balance of pesto sauce with cooked penne, garnish with pine nuts, cheese and sprig of fresh basil, will serve 4. 

Serve with salmon and nice crusty sourdough bread, pair with a nice Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc.

Enjoy! 

Summer is in full swing and outdoor grilling is the preferred method of cooking for the 8 out of 10 households in America.  My patner, Deb Miller, and I asked ourselves this question, “Is it possible to Grill Green?”  After thoughtful discussion we concluded that cooking outdoors does keep the inside of your home cooler, reducing the need for air conditioning, a energy savings all in itself.  But how to keep emissions low??       

I spent some time researching cookbooks, the internet, and talking with a few “green-minded” friends to compile the following tips:
1. Cook with gas if you can. With by far the lowest carbon footprint among fuels used to cook food in backyard barbecues, propane, or its cousin, natural gas, has many economic and environmental benefits.

2. Do not use ordinary charcoal briquettes. The most popular brands emit 105 times more carbon monoxide than propane, release more greenhouse gases than wood and send lots of harmful VOCs (volatile organic compounds) into the air. Use green products such as the 100 percent organic natural briquettes produced by Lokkii.

3. Use organic fire starters, chimneys and lint. If you must use lump charcoal or briquettes, do not use liquid starters; they are among the most toxic substances and contain petrochemicals which contribute to global warming. If you need a liquid fire starter, use an organic brand.

4. Shop and buy locally. Buy local products, including your backyard beverages, thereby saving fossil fuels. Think of the amount of fuel and the huge carbon footprint needed to fly or truck products from other regions of the United States to your hometown, or to fly in products from overseas.

5. Use natural cleaning products. When cleaning up the barbecue pit and food preparation areas of the kitchen, don’t use ordinary chemical cleaners. Clean up green with a natural cleaner such as Orange Plus (made from orange oil, which is free-rinsing, phosphate-free, biodegradable and penetrates hard-to-remove grease and grime), or SoyClean’s BBQ Grill Cleaner (a safe, natural, soy-based, non-toxic USDA-approved product) that rinses away with water, to soften and loosen the char, grease and burned residue on the grill.

6. Never use plastic bags when you shop. They can take 1,000 years to biodegrade in the dump, and trillions of them are produced every year. Instead, carry along your own tote bags. One cloth or hemp bag used for one year will replace upward of 300 plastic bags. Or, if you must use plastic bags, recycle them.

7. Use biodegradable or compostable plates, bowls, bags and utensils when barbecuing or picnicking away from home. A good example is the Stalkmarket brand, which fashions its plates, bowls, platters, cups and utensils out of a byproduct of sugar cane production. The Stalkware products decompose in 4 to 6 months on your compost pile. Or use Bambu all-occasion bamboo veneerware cutting boards, plates, bowls and utensils, which are made from the highly renewable material. Bamboo is one of the earth’s fastest-growing plants, needs no replanting, grows without fertilizers or pesticides and is harvested from controlled stands with an astounding growth cycle of three to five years.

8. Use cloth napkins. They can be washed and reused time after time. Inexpensive kerchiefs and bandanas come in all colors. Also, use natural laundry soaps and fabric softeners and air-dry items

For more tips read “The best barbeque on earth” (Ten Speed Press) and remember  to be safe…………….good grilling
 

Is quality service learned or part of one’s inherent ability?  While this is a question in any business and the answer is probably both, service or the lack thereof seems to magnified in the restaurant business.  While vising many a restaurant, regardless of prices or reviews, I have experienced many levels of service. 

Generally the service is consistent from all employees, whether good or bad, and commensurate with prices or type of restaurant (sit down, stand up, fast food, etc).  None of us enjoy bad service but if it is at least consistent throughout all employees we would know what to expect and can act and order accordingly.  Think about a home plate umpire, the pitcher rolls the ball and it is called a strike, SOMETIMES, if we know it’s going to be a strike, ALWAYS, one would probably swing.  In both cases the guessing is what takes the fun out of the experience and unfortunately one that will always be remembered.

Maybe service levels should be on the menu and based on the time you have to spend eating you can order the level of service required…………novel idea isn’t it???????  At least the service ordered or expected will be paid as per the customer and not the tips some expect regardless of their worked performed.  What do you think?

With some of the best soil in the state it’s no wonder our Ag Core can grow some of the best fruits and vegetables known to man. When Balfour, Guthrie and Company purchased the Marsh Ranch (over 12,000 acres) in 1910 the area was know for agriculture.  In 1890 Brentwood was the largest shipping point for grains between San Francisco and New Orleans. In 1922 the first orchards were planted in Brentwood and in 1925 the first Apricot Festival was held. The year 1945 saw the first sweet corn planted in Brentwood and in 1992 the first festival celebrating corn was held, the Brentwood CornFest.

Although Brentwood agriculture has decreased from the days of Balfour and Guthrie, we are still blessed with the rich soil of the Delta and a climate that is conducive to growing premium produce. Though Brentwood has  traditionally been known as farming community, urbanization has permanently removed valuable agriculture land. Fortunately, Contra Costa County saw the need for viable agriculture and developed the Ag Core, which consists of 6,500 acres in East Contra Costa Irrigation District (ECCID). The Ag Core area is protected from development as it exists outside the urban limit line, zoned for large parcels and subject to land easements that will guarantee agriculture production.

The action by Contra Costa County was followed by the City of Brentwood and allowed the City to impose mitigation fees on developments for preservation of agriculture. Funds generated from the mitigation fees City are to be used to preserve agricultural land through conservation easements. For this land conservation to work, however, farming must be economically viable for family farmers in our region.

Local branding with the slogan “Brentwood Grown”, initiated by David Navarrette and later given to the City of Brentwood is now Trademarked by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office #78737384 will also help in creating economical viability.

Studies have shown that through the marketing efforts of “Brentwood Grown” that consumers recognize Brentwood to be a premier source of local fresh fruit, vegetables, wine and olive oil.

To aid in the viability of farming we now have a Farmers Market held on Saturdays from 8-12 in the heart of downtown. New ordinances by Contra Costa County allow for larger fruit stands, wineries and olive oil producing facilities. The Harvest Time Organization helps promote farming and local products and gives local farmers a voice in numbers.

We are all fortunate to live in such a great city. What began with grains, then stone fruit, to sweet corn and now wine and olives will ultimately be a legacy to the beginning farmers as well as those to though “out of the box” and planted crops that some thought would never be viable. This is most evident with the rapid plantings of grapes for wine and olives for olive oil.

What’s the next crop for Brentwood……..only time will tell.