God Made A Factory Farmer

Like most people I am sure you watched the Super Bowl.  And if you did, you might have seen a Dodge commercial about farming.  In my opinion,  the Dodge commercial was a little corny and boarding on exploitative.  You can watch that video here.

Right after the original Super Bowl ad aired, there was a spoof of the commercial that was made by Nick Wiger and uploaded to Funny Or Die.  People sometimes say things are "funny because they are true."  Well, this video is just true.  So true, that it is hard to see what is funny.  You can watch the video below.

God Made A Factory Farmer - watch more funny videos

All Reds for Valentine's Day

We are excited this week because our All Red potatoes are back in season and just in time for Valentines day.  These potatoes are red on the outside and light pink on the inside.  This makes them perfect for showing that special someone how much you love them at the dinner table.  All Reds are a round potato and are super versitile.  You can use them for anything from mashing to baking.  Try them this week when they are fresh out of the field. 

Re: Our Trip Around The Sun...

Tehachapi is under snow and it’s raining here in Rancho Cucamonga.  It’s kind of a dreary day.  That’s a sharp contrast to how hot a year it was for us at Weiser Family Farms.  As is everything in life, it was a mixed bag.  On the whole, however, it was tremendous.  Heck, I would rather pridefully recall how fantastic our melon crop was received this summer versus wonder what might have been had the birds not feasted on our parsnip crop (they’re coming...probably even before we get a Farm Bill). 

This year, we had some great events like our late August’s hosting of a Alex’s Lemonade fundraiser at our Tehachapi ranch last August.  Chefs Suzanne Goin, Neal Fraser and Paul Kahan all donated their time to raise money for Alex's Lemonade.  A great cause that has our unwavering support. We also had our moments of loss, particularly the sad passing our our good friend, Dennis St. John.  Dennis’ cheerfulness and helpful nature is missed tremendously.  

All those individual moments that made up one crazy trip around the sun. We were fortunate to have so many wonderful friends and customers share the trip with us.  Thanks for the pleasure of your company! Hey, the more the merrier so tell your friends about us.  Tell them to check us out at weiserfamilyfarms.com, follow us on twitter (@weiserfarms), or like us on Facebook. There, I blew the mood with a bunch of crass commercialism.  Sorry.

As for 2013? AllI can say is, as the great Ralph Lawler says, “Fasten your seat belts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride!” A happy and prosperous new year to everyone!

Get Roasting

It is Winter which is the prime time to use the oven.  There is nothing that I love better than a lovely mix of roasted root vegatables.  Check out the classic recipe below.  It will warm up even the coldest of nights.

Roasted Root Vegetable Medley*

Ingredients

• 8 to 12 slender carrots, peeled and trimmed
• 8 to 12 baby turnips, peeled
• 6 to 8 fingerling potatoes, scrubbed and cut lengthwise in halves
• 1 or 2 large parsnips, peeled, trimmed, and cut diagonally into 1-inch-thick slices
• 1 or 2 medium onions, trimmed, peeled and halved, each 1/2 cut into quarters
• 1 or 2 large beets, peeled and cut into thick wedges
• 1 or 2 kohlrabi bulbs, peeled and cut into thick wedges
• 1 celery root, trimmed and halved, halves cut crosswise into 1-inch-thick slices
• 1 whole head garlic, separated into cloves, unpeeled
• 2 or 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, sage, or thyme
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Put all the vegetables and the herb sprigs in a large baking dish. Season well with salt and black pepper, drizzle generously with olive oil, and toss them with your hands to coat them evenly.

Put the baking dish in the preheated oven and cook, stirring the vegetables occasionally, until they are tender and golden brown, about 45 minutes. Serve the vegetables from their baking dish or transfer them to a platter to accompany a roasted main course.

*Copyright Wolfgang Puck and Food Network

Kabocha = Pumpkin

Thanksgiving is almost upon us.  As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, Kabocha squash is a Japanese pumpkin.  They are generally much smaller (and easier to cut) and sweeter than your average cooking pumpkin.  Because of this they are an ideal substitue for anything you would traditionally use pumpkin for.  A couple weeks ago we posted a recipe for mashed Kabocha squash.  This week check out this Kabocha Squash pie recipe:

Kabocha Squash Pie with Spiced Crust

Ingredients

Squash:

• 1 small to medium kabocha squash, cut into sixths, seeds removed
• Olive oil

Crust:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for bench flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 grates fresh nutmeg
• Pinch kosher salt
• 1 1/2 sticks cold butter, cut into pea-size pieces
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 to 3 teaspoons ice cold water

Filling:

• 4 large eggs
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup bourbon, optional
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Heavy cream, for garnish
• Pinch cinnamon, for garning

Directions

For the squash: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Put the squash on a sheet tray, toss lightly with olive oil and toss in the oven. Roast the squash until a fork slides in and out easily, about 45 minutes. Remove the squash from the oven and let cool. Remove the skin and puree until smooth. Place 3 cups squash puree in a large mixing bowl, reserve the rest for another purpose.

For the crust: In the bowl of a food processor combine all the flour, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Toss in the butter and pulse until the mixture looks like grated parmigiano. Add in the egg yolk and a few drops of the ice water. Pulse until the mixture starts to come together into a ball. Add a few more drops of water if the mixture still seems dry.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work board. Using the heels of your hand, schmear the dough straight forward and roll it back with your fingertips. Repeat this process two more times. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Remove the dough from the fridge and let warm up for 5 minutes. Roll the dough out into a large circle and lay in a deep pie dish. Trim the dough all the way around so there is only 1/2-inch overhang. Fold the dough under and crimp the edges decoratively. Make sure the edges don't extend beyond the pie plate rim. Prick the dough all over with a fork. Lay aluminum foil over the dough to cover and fill the pie plate with baking beans.

Place the pie plate on a sheet tray and bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and baking beans and bake for 5 more minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.

Reduce the heat in the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the filling: In a small bowl, beat the eggs until they are smooth. Beat in the cream. Add the cream/egg mixture to the squash puree and beat to combine. Beat in the condensed milk, brown sugar, bourbon if using and vanilla. Beat until the mixture is well combined, 1 to 2 minutes.

Pour the squash mixture into the prepared pie shell. Place on the sheet tray and place back into the oven for 25 minutes. Rotate the pie and bake until the mixture barely jiggles when shaken, another 20 to 25 minutes. If the crust starts to get too dark, place a pie shield ring on the pie to protect the edges from burning.

Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool for at least 1 hour before cutting.

Whip heavy cream with a pinch of cinnamon until stiff peaks, and top the pie as a garnish.

Recipe copyright Anne Burrell and Food Network