INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Place the tuna a largish non-reactive bowl, and drizzle with just enough oil to moisten the fish. Use you fingers to gently toss the fish in the oil.

Scatter the tobiko over the fish and gently mix in.

Spread out the mixture in the bowl and then scatter then avocado over all. Scatter the chervil over everything, trying to avoid clumps of the herb. Drizzle with a little more oil and very gently fold the avocado and chervil into the tuna and tobiko.

Divide the sashimi into four even portions. Center a 2 to 2½ inch ring mold in the center of a small plate and fill it with a portion of sashimi.

Level the top of each portion and move on to the next plate. Scatter a few flakes of salt on the sashimi and a few around the plate, then place one or two chervil leaves on top.

Serve right away.

Chef’s Notes:

For an added note of brightness, you could drizzle a tablespoon of Meyer lemon juice or orange juice over the tuna after the oil. Adding it after the oil will protect the fish from the citric acid which will start to “cook” the fish and discolor it. You could also mince a little Meyer zest and blanch it, then scatter into the mixture.

If you do not have ring-molds handy, or want a different look, this recipe looks beautiful presented in things like martini glasses, flutes, wine glasses, and shallow bowls. Look around your cupboards, you might be surprised to see what would work.

If you feel the need, you could serve this with thin slices of toasted baguette or small sheets of nori. This would also go well with a slaw of Savoy cabbage and carrots with a lemon chervil dressing, or bedded on butter lettuce with micro-greens and the same dressing.

Serves: 4

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Add the lemon juice to a largish bowl and add cold water to almost fill. Use a mandolin to shave the fennel very thinly across the narrow side lengthwise over the water. When the fennel is shaved, put the bowl in the refrigerator.

Put some water in another bowl and shave the carrots very, very thinly at a shallow angle over the water. Place this bowl in the refrigerator. Allow the vegetables to chill for at least an hour, but not much more than 3 or the vegetables will get waterlogged.

When you are ready to serve, drain the vegetables and blot with a towel. When they are quite dry, toss together to mix, then add enough dressing to lightly coat. Plate the salad and scatter with the chopped herbs, and season with salt and pepper.

Chef’s Notes:

If you wish, you could use a peeler and scrape some P’tit Basque or Romano cheese over the salad. You could also add blanched and minced Meyer lemon peel to the salad.

Serves: 4

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Smash garlic and rosemary needles in a mortar and pestle or bowl. Add olive oil and infuse at least 15 minutes.

Use the rosemary stalks for the skewers. If they are not stiff enough, start with a metal or bamboo skewer and run the rosemary stick in with the skewer. Remove the skewer or not as you choose. (You can take it out after the vegetables are grilled, or before, depending on how strong the rosemary stalk is.)

Skewer squash through the edges, adding a piece of scallion every 2-3 pieces of squash. Skewer the scallion across the diameter.

When skewers are complete, drizzle with lemon juice, turning to get all the squash. Marinate 10 minutes or so.

Paint skewers with garlic rosemary oil all over, then scatter rosemary needles all over, then season with salt and pepper. Don’t be shy with the seasonings. Marinate 30 minutes or so.

Grill over a medium-high flame until tender and hot all the way through, but not mushy. This should take around 10-15 minutes.

Serve on the skewers, or not, as you choose.

Serves: 4

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Heat the oven to 425°F. Cover a sheet pan with a sheet of foil larger than the pan, then wrinkle the foil so it has ridges that will lift the carrots off the flat surface. (This enables more even cooking without giving rise to strips of more cooked carrot where it was I contact with the pan.)

Rub the carrots with some oil, then sprinkle with cinnamon and garlic powder, and a little salt and pepper. Place in the hot oven and roast in the middle for 45 minutes, or until they are tender all the way through.

In the last twenty minutes of cooking of the carrots, heat a large sauté pan over medium heat and film liberally with oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions and toss to coat with oil. Cook until they are soft and starting to color.

Push the onions to the rim of the pan and allow any oil to cover the pan bottom. If there is none, add a little to the pan. When hot, add the cumin and coriander seed, cooking until fragrant. Stir into the onions, then add half the mustard greens. Use tongs to turn the greens and incorporate the onions and spices into the greens.  As soon as the greens are wilting, add the rest of the greens, and wilt gently.

The carrots should be done about now. Remove them from the oven and slice into ½-inch thick slice on a shallow diagonal. Add them to the mustard greens and toss everything to combine. Season with salt and pepper, toss again, and serve.

If there is a lot of liquid in the pan bottom, use tongs to serve the vegetables, then reduce the liquid in the pan, adding a touch of oil. This should thicken up a bit and form a “sauce” to be poured over the vegetables.

Chef’s Notes:

If you want to bring up the sweetness of the carrots a bit, brush them with a little agave syrup in the last 15 minutes of cooking. To further move the dish to a “sweet and sour” mode, add a tablespoon or two of white balsamic or white wine vinegar to the greens towards the end of cooking.

If you wish to move the dish to western hemisphere, use a little bacon or smoky Pimenton de la Vera at the outset with the greens, and skip the cumin and coriander. Roast the carrots on a bed of rosemary with garlic, and use agave or honey to glaze the carrots during the last 15 minutes of cooking. You could use sage for the carrots with less rosemary, and add in the cumin and coriander to the greens and go Southwest American. Serve with cornbread and some beans.

Serves: 4

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Add the salt and pepper to the cream in a non-reactive bowl. Whip the cream until it is starting to thicken.

Add the lemon juice and whip until the cream thickens and resembles a Ranch or other creamy yet pourable dressing.

Fold in the chervil and allow flavors to marry for 15-20 minutes before using.

Yield: Around ½ cup

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen

Chervil is an herb not often seen fresh in the US. It is a delicate herb, in structure and flavor. It has a flavor similar to basil, tarragon, and anise, but is far subtler, and there is a bit of an Italian parsley note as well. It lends a pleasant clean and sweet note to the blend that is enhanced by the marjoram. Tarragon adds an earthiness that melds with the chives and parsley, and enhances the anise notes of the chervil. Chives are the bass line of the group, and parsley wraps them all together with its clean, almost sharp, flavor.

Try this fresh if you wish, or dried for the traditional take. This blend goes well with fish, chicken, and vegetables such as summer squash and carrots. It is good added to a beurre blanc at the end, or scattered over grilled lamb meatballs at the end as well.

Chervil and chives are not herbs that do well with long cooking, so wait until the end of a recipe before adding, or add if the cooking time is short or quite gentle.

INGREDIENTS:  

METHOD:

Place all the ingredients into a non-reactive bowl and gently mix.

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen, via the traditional cuisine of France

Measure T would undo the 2002 urban limit line set by voters in Measure U, a long-debated, thoroughly researched and well-supported delineation that protected the area’s farmland from urban sprawl. If we do pave over this farmland and manage to attract the sort of box store that supporters of the measure are counting on, this will draw shoppers away from the struggling downtown Watsonville area, further imperiling the small business owners who are trying to make a living here. There are large empty lots and an empty department store available on what is still a pretty, historic Main Street area with character. Why can’t we encourage new local businesses to come in to these areas? We should be encouraging growth of a local economy filling in the many unused commercial lots rather than finding new ways to move local money into the hands of huge multinational corporations.

We of course have a personal interest in this measure. If it passes and developers purchase the land, we would lose our lease on the Redman property, which we have farmed for almost a decade. And perhaps more important, we would lose the Redman House Farmstand, which provides Watsonville area residents with access to fresh organic produce five days a week. (There are no natural grocery stores in Watsonville.)

But the bigger issue is that if we pave over our farms, how are we supposed to feed a growing population? This land is truly some of the best farmland in the world. The farms existing on these properties are already employing people and contributing to the local economy. It is being used for its best use already, contributing to our city and our nation’s food security.

I just had to get that off my chest, because I can’t vote in this election. Our home is just outside the city limits of Watsonville. On the face of it, when I look around I see overwhelming rejection of Measure T in evidence—lawn signs, newspaper editorials, many local officials and community groups, even the Santa Cruz County Business Council all have come out against the measure. But in the end it will depend on those voters within the city limits who are interested enough to come out to vote for a special election on this single measure. If you happen to be one of those, please vote No on Measure T!

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Cut radishes into quarters from stem to rootlets.

Bring 2-3 quarts of water to a boil and add a big pinch of salt.

Place the radishes into a strainer and dunk into the boiling just long enough for the radishes to lose the raw edge. Remove from the water and drain. Pat dry with a towel.

Heat a 10-inch sauté pan over medium heat and add the garlic clove. Cook the garlic in the oil until oil is fragrant and the garlic is starting to color. Be sure to turn the garlic and use both sides. Once the garlic is getting brown, remove from the oil and discard.

Carefully add the radishes to the oil, and toss to coat. Sprinkle with a little sugar, and toss again.  Lower heat and gently cook radishes so they caramelize and color gently. Avoid cooking to the point where they are mushy. The radishes should retain a little crunch.

While the radishes cook, dip the leaves into the remaining boiling water and blanch 30 seconds or until the leaves just wilt. Drain the leaves through a colander and transfer to a blender. Add the parsley and ½ cup of vegetable stock. Add a little salt and pepper, and start the blender on low. If the greens do not want to move, add more stock. Once the blender is going, blend for 1 minute. (Keep an eye on the radishes…) Taste the sauce. If it seems overly “green” dilute with more stock. Blend until the sauce is thoroughly liquefied, but be careful; over-blending can heat the greens and they will cook and turn khaki colored. If the sauce is quite strong and green tasting, adding the optional tablespoon of butter will smooth out the flavor and add a nice silky quality. Just add it to the blender and puree it in.

When the radishes are cooked, remove them from the pan and set aside. Add the sauce to the pan and gently heat it through.

When hot, lay down a splash of sauce and add the radishes atop the sauce.  You could also just add the sauce to the pan with the radishes and cook to heat the sauce through and then serve them mixed.

Chef’s Notes:

This is an assertive dish, so if you are having other vegetable dishes choose carefully and keep them simpler. Some may find the sauce too “green” for their taste, but if you like sorrel, nettles, and turnip greens this may be right up your alley.

Serves: 4

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Toss squash with enough oil to coat.

Heat a straight sided sauté pan or chef’s pan over medium heat, then generously film pan bottom with oil. When hot, add onions and toss to coat. Sauté until “clear”. While onions cook, use fingers to break up the tomatoes, saving all the juice. Add the garlic and cook until softening and aromatic. Add half the herbs, then the tomatoes and their juice. Cook over medium heat, tossing and stirring to break down the tomatoes. Add the rest of the herbs and simmer over low heat. Season with salt and pepper.

While breaking down the tomatoes, heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. When hot, film the bottom liberally with oil. Season the squash aggressively with salt and pepper.

When oil is almost smoking, add enough squash to fill the pan in one layer and not be super crowded. This is to promote browning and avoid steaming.

Sauté the squash chunks to color the cut sides golden brown, lightly blistered in places. When the squash is well colored but not soft, pull from the pan and finish the rest of the squash. Hopefully you have a large enough pan to do this in one fell swoop.

When all squash is browned, add it all into the sauté pan and pour the tomato sauce over the squash, simmering until the squash is tender (but not falling apart or mushy).

Scatter with Parmesan cheese if you wish, or pass separately as you serve the squash hot.

Serves: 4

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen

INGREDIENTS:

METHOD:

Put the carrots into a pan with enough water to cover by 1 inch and bring to a boil. If any orange foam rises to the surface, skim and discard. Reduce the carrots to a simmer and cook until they are tender, around 10-15 minutes.

Once tender, remove from the water with a slotted spoon and keep warm. Return the carrot water to a boil and boil to reduce by 50%.

Add the Basil Syrup and the butter. Lower the heat to low and reduce the carrot water by half, and add the carrots back in. Toss to coat them and continue cooking to reduce the pan liquid to a syrupy glaze, stirring the carrots to ensure they are all coated. Season with salt and pepper, scatter with the basil shreds, and serve.

Serves: 4

Source: Chef Andrew E Cohen