Dark Chocolate Balsamic Reduction with Strawberries over Vanilla Bean Gelato

This recipe is so easy…I just finished making it for my wife, Jackie. It’s guaranteed to make a wonderful Valentine’s Day dessert in less than 5 minutes! Enjoy — Carmelo Sigona

Ingredients:

• 1/3 c Sigona’s Dark Chocolate Balsamic
• ½ lb. fresh strawberries, stems removed and sliced lengthwise
• Gelato Massimo’s Vanilla Bean Gelato

Directions: Heat 1/3 c. Sigona’s dark chocolate balsamic in a large skillet at med high until reduced by half.

Add 1/2 lb sliced strawberries and stir for about 30 seconds. Remove from heat and serve over a healthy scoop of Gelato Massimo’s Vanilla Bean Gelato

Cook’s tip: let gelato soften slightly before serving, it’s so much better and easier to get out of the container!

Local vendor spotlight: CHOCOLATE a galeria of chocolate and wine

Local Vendor Spotlight: CHOCOLATE Galeria of Chocolate and Wine

As our gift to you, we’ve partnered with CHOCOLATE to present you with a gourmet caramel & chocolate dipped Granny Smith apple from Sigona’s that’s festively wrapped and decorated for Valentine’s Day!

By Carmelo Sigona

With chocolates this fantastic, you’d think Brec Swan, owner of the one-year-old, gold-medal winning CHOCOLATE a Galeria of Chocolate & Wine located in Santa Rosa, Calif., had been making chocolates since he first stepped up on a stool as a child to help his mother cook dinner. A career as a chocolatier, however, is a passion he discovered later in life.

Brec (right) and some of his chocolatiers with freshly-dipped chocolate & caramel Granny Smith apples for our Valentine's giveaway.

From dark chocolate hearts filled with delectable, creamy, hand-churned caramel (it takes 8 hours to make a batch!) to chocolate and caramel dipped apples drizzled with red- and pink-colored white chocolate, CHOCOLATE makes anything you can imagine with or out of chocolate. As our gift to you for Valentine’s Day, we’ve partnered with Brec to give away the latter for free! That’s right…a gourmet caramel and chocolate dipped Granny Smith apple from Sigona’s that’s festively wrapped and decorated for Valentine’s Day!

We’re so excited to offer the dipped apples for the Valentine’s bonus coupon! The quality of this caramel, buttery and not too sweet, partnered with richness of the chocolate is perfectly complimented by the tart flavor of the crisp Granny Smith apple. The Valentine’s-colored chocolate drizzles add the perfect touch, making entire package almost too pretty to tamper with (trust me, you’ve never seen an apple like this)…but it’s hard to resist a chocolate-caramel dipped apple for long. CHOCOLATE left us with samples last week and they disappeared almost before we could say thank you!

CHOCOLATE’s  gourmet chocolates are “adult chocolates;” they’re made for the mature palate as they do not contain a lot of sugar, there are no “fillers” in the chocolate and they only use fresh, high-quality products sourced as locally as possible. For example, they only use fresh cream in the caramel and the ingredients for chocolate are sourced from Guittard Chocolate Company in Burlingame, Calif.

A sea of dipped apples! We'll have dark choolate, milk chocolate, a pink-colored white chocolate and a white chocolate dipped apples to choose from.

“Brec’s chocolates have a certain excellence about them, both in taste and sight, that you just can’t beat,” said John Nava, specialty foods buyer for Sigona’s. “All it takes is one bite to know these creations have been made by a team of experts with the best-quality ingredients.”

It was in the late 1990s that Brec discovered his desire to learn more about chocolate. He had come across a gourmet chocolate store in Rohnert Park in California’s Sonoma County and was so impressed with the store and its business he decided he wanted to become a small part of the operation. Brec then worked on and off for two years as part of the store’s team, happily working with customers behind the counter, packaging, and in the kitchen to learn as much as he could about the business.

A CHOCOLATE chocolatier adds a layer of gourmet chocolate.

“I loved the customer service aspects of the business because people were always happy to see me and they appreciated my input on special custom orders,” said Brec. “It did not matter how many times a customer would come back [to buy more chocolate], they would always be happy to see me behind the counter and I was always happy to see them smiling when they left. It was during this time that my dream of being an owner of a Chocolate business began to be more consistent.”

With the help of expert chocolatiers from former Sonoma County-based chocolate shops, Brec brought his dream to reality by opening of CHOCOLATE, a Galeria of chocolate and wine. With his team of tried-and-true, award-winning expert chocolatiers, CHOCOLATE is company that thinks outside the box and is continually looking for ways to take the company to the next level using unique ingredients, designs and presentations.

“It only makes sense to use fresh fruit with our chocolate,” said Brec. “Sonoma County is in an agriculturally-rich area and we’ve covered nearly all of its fruits, from orange segments to raspberries, in chocolate. Our chocolate-dipped strawberries, for example, are very popular for weddings. One of our favorite new items are the chocolate-caramel covered seedless grapes; they’re unique and the flavor and texture combination is outstanding. This is just another reason we’re excited about this partnership with Sigona’s: their produce, our chocolate – - it’s a win-win.”

Though the company is just a year old, it’s has a very impressive list of accolades: From the Sonoma County Harvest Fair, CHOCOLATE has been awarded:

• A gold medal for an orange caramel crispy
• A gold medal for a Brazilian egg nog liqueur truffle
• A silver medal for a spicy Chai Latte liqueur truffle
• A silver medal for a Raspberry creme gelee dessert with white chocolate
• A bronze medal for a chocolate lemon caramel marshmallow

Is your mouth watering like mine?

Sonona is also the heart of wine country, and during the time Brec and his team worked at various chocolate shops in the area, they came to be wine and chocolate pairing experts as customers were constantly asking which chocolate went best with certain wines. With this skill in its arsenal, CHOCOLATE often holds wine and chocolate pairing seminars for businesses and events for a flat fee. You can bet we’ll invite

In addition to the dipped apples, we're offering to give away 50 apples sitting on a beautiful hand-etched glass plate. See our contest page for details!

CHOCOLATE to our festival later this year so we can all learn about chocolate and wine pairing! Wine truffles are also one the specialties for this growing company. They also use ports, liqueurs, champagnes, Tequila and Bourbon…a huge Father’s Day hit the beer truffle!

Though apples and caramel have been paired together about as long as peanut butter and jelly, this chocolate-caramel apple from CHOCOLATE isnot to miss. We’ll have a selection of milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate and white chocolate that’s made pink, especially for Valentine’s Day. We’ll also have a handful of dipped apples on a hand-etched, heart-shaped glass dish for $6.99 – a beautiful gift as a beautiful price.

PS – you can get another plated apple for FREE…no purchase necessary…by participating in our contest here. The first 50 to answer get a plated apple for participating! Click here for details!

Win a plated gourmet chocolate-caramel apple – no purchase necessary!

Be one of the first 50 to correctly answer all the questions below (that’s right, one of the first 50) and get a FREE caramel-chocolate dipped apple set upon on a beautifully hand-etched glass plate from CHOCOLATE, a Galeria of Chocolate and Wine. No purchase necessary, just participation! Email your answers to share@sigonas.com.

This apple is different than the bonus coupon offer this week because this one comes on a beautiful, heart-shaped, hand-etched glass plate. The plate alone is a gift in itself, you can use it later as a candy dish or a candle holder, and who can resist a chocolate-caramel dipped apple!

Again, winning is simple. Be one of the first 50 correctly answer the quiz questions (send answers to share@sigonas.com) below and you win! Think you’ll win? Be sure to read the fine print below the quiz!

Hint: all the answers can be found in current and past e-newsletter issues, on the Sigona’s blog or on the Sigona’s Web site. Good luck!

1. What variety of apple is under all that delicious handmade caramel and chocolate on the giveaway this week?
2. What apple variety was used to create Sigona’s Heirloom Apple Pie gelato made by Gelato Massimo?
3. An apple a day keeps the ____ away?
   1. Electrician
   2. Doctor
   3. Dentist
   4. Phone bill
4. What’s the name for New York City?
   
   1. Yankee World
   2. Taxi Town
   3. The Big Apple
   4. Trumpacoppolis
5. Which is not a variety of apple sold at Sigona’s?
   
   1. Wine Sap
   2. Black Twig
   3. Mutsu
   4. June Lady
6. What was the name of Sigona’s fruit stand when it first opened in Morgan Hill in 1975?
   
   1. Apple Valley Acres
   2. Sigona’s Farmers Market
   3. Coyote Berry Acres
   4. Green Acres
7. From our Local Vendor Spotlight features, name four local vendors and name the product(s) they sell at Sigona’s.
8. From our Farm Focus features, name four farmers and name what produce they provide at Sigona’s.
9. From our Chef’s Corner feature, name four chefs and their restaurants we’ve highlighted.
10. What has been your favorite bonus coupon item thus far?

Winners will be notified via email. At the time of notification, winners will be asked whether they shop at Stanford or Redwood City. Their prize will be available at the store of their choice and must be picked up in person between Wednesday, February 10^th and Wednesday, February 17^th.

1. 1. Electrician
   2. Doctor
   3. Dentist
   4. Phone bill

Tips for Healthy Living

“Tips for Healthy Living” have been a hit and we want to continue to touch on topics of interest to our readers. I’ve learned that working out to keep fit is sometimes not enough, and if you really want to avoid injuries and have the ability to work out into your later years, this series of health tips we will be presenting is for you! – Carmelo Sigona

Coordinating the lower body with the upper body.

The Kettlebell clean or dumbbell clean lift is used to help coordinate the lower body with the upper body.

To begin this exercise, hold the kettlebell with straight arm reaching downward.  Legs are in a squatted position with the head up and lower back straight (as shown in the picture on the left).

The object of this exercise is to use your legs and hips to hoist the weight over your head (as shown in the picture on the right).  This exercise teaches you how to maximize lifting using your legs while holding the weight with your hands.  This is a full body workout and is excellent for building stamina and coordination.  Use light weight first and progress to heavier weight as you improve your technique and form.

Ask a trainer to help if necessary. This is typically used for building leg strength and quickness for athletes.

Simple, Healthy, Delicious: Cherimoya

Almost everyone has a favorite way of eating cherimoya, whether it be out of hand, in a fruit salsa, or frozen and added into a smoothie…it’s such a unique and versatile fruit!

Cherimoya Salsa with Papaya and Avocado

Right now we have two fantastic varieties of papaya (a yellow-flesh for $3.99 lb. and a red-flesh for $1.99/lb.) as well as organic, California-grown Hass avocados at 2 for $3…the two combined with cherimoya and other standard salsa ingredients make a mouth-watering, fresh-tasting dip for chips or a topping for a white fish, such as Mahi mahi. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• About ½ a papaya (total about 1 cup), peeled and diced
• 1-2 cherimoya, peeled, seeded and diced
• 1-2 mango, peeled and diced
• 1 cup pineapple chunks
• 1 large diced avocado (squirt some like juice on the diced avocado to help it from turning brown)
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 shallot, diced
• 3 limes, juice only
• 1/2 cup Sigona’s Fresh Press olive oil
• 2 red Thai chilies, seeds removed, diced
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 TBL organic Agave nectar
• Salt & Pepper

Directions: Cut, dice and juice ingredients as noted above. Mix everything together in a bowl and chill for 10-20 minutes to let flavors meld. Serve chilled.

Cook’s Note: remember, salsa is one of those dishes with which you have all creative liberties. Add more or less of any ingredient you wish to make it your very own!

Chinese New Year: February 14

Chinese New Year: February 14, 2010

The Year of the Tiger

During the Chinese New Year, many foods and colors take on symbolic meanings. Here are a few interesting symbolisms. Be sure to check out the Kumquat recipes below!

Tangerines and oranges (with their leaves intact) are passed out freely during Chinese New Year. The Chinese words for tangerine and orange sound like luck and wealth. It’s customary to take a few of these citrus fruits to celebrations as a way to pass along good wishes for the upcoming year.

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Pomelos look like jumbo-sized grapefruits and symbolize abundance, prosperity and fertility. The Chinese word for pomelo sounds like the word for “to have.”

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Kumquats, small, entirely edible fruits (you can eat the skin and all) that look similar to oranges, symbolize wealth for their golden color. Incidentally, in China, kumquats are called “Gam Gat Sue.” The word Gam rhymes with the Chinese word for gold. Kumquat trees are also used for decoration during the holiday.

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Thai Broccoli and Yu Choy (pictured): Thai Broccoli does not look or taste like the ordinary broccoli. These greens have long stalks with soft delicate leaves and sometimes tiny white flowers. Yu Choy is a Chinese green renowned for its flowering sweet and tender stalks. Sigona’s has partnered with a small, local farmer in Fresno to bring you fresh cut bunches of Yu Choy and Thai Broccoli right from the farm.  See the recipe for a healthy stir-fry below!

Following are two recipes for Kumquats from our friend Luisa Ormonde. Luisa is a private chef and caterer based in San Carlos and we absolutely getting recipes from her that help showcase our produce, meats and specialty foods. Enjoy!

Tri Tip Roast with Kumquat and Red Onion Salad

All the produce in this recipe is local and the combination of the Cara Cara oranges with Kumquats makes this dish burst with fresh flavor. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds grass-fed Tri Tip Roast (Marin Sun Farms)
• Kumquat, Green Peppercorn and Garlic Paste (recipe follows)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (We recommend Sigona’s Fresh Press olive oil)
• ½ a fresh Cara Cara or navel orange, juiced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 large bunch mâche lettuce
• 1 cup fresh kumquats, thinly sliced and seeded
• 1/2 a red onion, thinly sliced red onion
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves

Directions:

1. Set the Tri Tip in a large, shallow glass or ceramic baking dish. Add the Kumquat, Green Peppercorn and Garlic Paste and rub it all over both sides of the flank steak. Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate the steak for at least 2 hours or overnight. Let the roast return to room temperature before grilling.
2. Scrape the paste off the steak, *if desired, then grill or broil** the roast, turning once, until browned, about 12 minutes for medium rare. (**If broiling, position the shelf 8 inches from the heat. Broil the roast for about 5 minutes on each side, then set the oven to 375 and bake for about 16 minutes to reach desired doneness.) *NOTE: If the steak is cooked with the paste on, some of it may fall off when the steak is turned. Let the Tri Tip roast rest for 10 minutes.
3. In a large bowl, combine the olive oil with the orange juice. Season with salt and pepper and then whisk until the salt dissolves. Add the greens, kumquats and red onion and toss well, then transfer the salad to dinner plates.
4. Using a sharp knife, thinly slice the Tri Tip roast on the diagonally, across the grain. Arrange the slices on the salads. Garnish the plates with the cilantro leaves and serve the steak immediately.

Make Ahead Tip: The cooked steak can be refrigerated overnight. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Kumquat, Green Peppercorn and Garlic Paste

This flavorful paste can be used to marinate fish, poultry, pork or beef.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh kumquats (2 1/2 ounces)
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (We recommend Sigona’s traditional balsamic)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon green peppercorns in brine, drained and coarsely crushed
• 1/2 tablespoon black peppercorns, cracked
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 3/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped scallions
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (We recommend Sigona’s Fresh Press olive oil)

Directions:

1. In a food processor, pulse the kumquats until finely chopped; do not puree. Transfer the kumquats to a small saucepan and add the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, light brown sugar and honey. Cook over moderate heat, stirring often, until the mixture reduces to a thick paste, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the paste to a bowl and let cool.
2. In the processor, pulse the green and black peppercorns with the garlic and sea salt until the peppercorns are finely chopped. Do not puree the mixture. Add the scallions and cilantro to the processor and pulse to a coarse paste. Add the peppercorn mixture to the kumquat paste and stir in the olive oil until blended.

Make Ahead Tip: The paste can be refrigerated in a jar with a tight-fitting lid for up to 3 days.

Stir-Fried Greens

Follow directions for either Yu Choy or Thai Broccoli. For stir-fried Thai Broccoli, cook for greens for 3 minutes. Enjoy — Carmelo Sigona

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch yu choy or Thai Broccoli
• 1 tps. Sigona’s Fresh Press olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• Salt

Directions: trim  ½” from each stalk. Cut the stems into 3” pieces. Heat a skillet over high heat until hot. Add the oil and swirl to coat the wok. Add the garlic and stir-fry for a few seconds. Add the Yu Choy or Thai broccoli and Stir. After about 30 seconds, it’ll start to wilt down. Stir bringing up the greens at the bottom to the top. Add salt to taste. Cook for 1 ½ minutes or until stems are tender. Serve immediately.

Chanterelle Mushroom Risotto

The Chanterelle mushroom is one of the most distinctively-flavored mushrooms around. If you haven’t seen it already, we have a beautiful display of fresh-picked, local Chanterelles by the registers in the Redwood City store, and with it we recommend this recipe. It’s unbelievably delicious!

Ingredients:

• 3 TBL Sigona’s Fresh Press olive oil
• 1 TBL butter
• 2 shallots, finely chopped
  

  Chanterelle display at our Redwood City store.

• 1 pound Arborio rice
• 1 cup dry white wine
• about a quart of good chicken stock, heated and kept warm in a separate pan
• 2 cups chanterelle mushrooms, prepped as detailed below
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 or 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley for garnish
• salt and pepper to taste

Note: You can either sauté or roast the chanterelles. To sauté, chop the mushrooms and sauté in olive oil or butter until they are just starting to brown a little. Season with salt and pepper. To roast mushrooms, cut them into quarters, drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Roast for about 15 minutes at 450 degrees. Let them cool slightly and then chop them into smaller pieces before you add them to the rice.

Directions: In a large pot, melt the butter with olive oil and saute the shallot until transparent. Add the rice and stir it until it is well coated and shiny. When it starts to sizzle, add the wine and then let it evaporate. Start adding the stock a ladle at a time, never drowning the rice; keep stirring. As the liquid begins to be absorbed, add another ladle of broth and stir. When about half of your broth is used, add the mushrooms.

Keep cooking, adding broth when the rice has absorbed most of it until the rice is cooked “al dente”, not soft but cooked through. The rice should not be dry but with its own “sauce”.  Add the cheese, and parsley, cover and let sit for 3 or 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Sigonas Specials: Feb. 3-9, 2010

Simple, Healthy, Delicious: Steak and Citrus Salad

Simple, Healthy, Delicious: Steak & Citrus Salad

I just love the combination of citrus, avocado and steak – it’s good as a fajita or as a salad using the following recipe. The sweetness of a Honey tangerine mixed with the burst of flavor from a grapefruit is fantastic. Serves 4.

• Lean Top Sirloin steak(s) for 4 people (total of 2 – 2.5 lbs. should work)
• 1 Honey tangerine (see below for cutting instructions)
• 1 Ruby Red grapefruit (see below for cutting instructions)
• 2 TBL Sigona’s Persian lime olive oil
• 1 1/2  TBL Sigona’s Honey Ginger balsamic
• Red leaf and Romain lettuce, chopped or torn into bite-sized pieces (remove the core)
• ½ red onion, thinly sliced (See notes below)
• 1/2 English cucumber, cubed (or substitute with any other salad veggie you wish, such as radishes or carrot)
• 1 avocado, cubed
• salt & pepper

Cook’s Notes

Slicing Citrus: It takes time and patience, but is well worth the effort! To do this, cut the top and bottom off of your grapefruit. Slice the peel from the fruit, top to bottom, getting as close to the flesh as possible. Once the peel is removed slice any remaining pieces of pith from the fruit so no white remains. Then, slice closely along the sides of each membrane to neatly remove the sections in between. And there you have it!

For the red onions: To take the heat out of the off-season red onion, slice ahead of time and set in cold water for about 10 minutes then drain or pat dry.
Directions: season meat with salt and pepper and grill or sauté to your likeness. Set aside.

Cut oranges and grapefruits as directed, set aside. Slice avocado open and cube meat (as suggested in the previous e-news) Set aside.

Whisk together the oil and balsamic, season with salt and pepper. Add the lettuce, onion, vegetables and citrus segments. Toss to combine and plate the salad evenly between 4 dishes. Top salad with the steak strips and avocado cubes.

Local Vendor Spotlight: Casa Sanchez

Fresh, Locally-made Chips & Salsa just in time for the Super Bowl

What’s a Super Bowl party without chips & salsa? The two together offer so many more options than just chips & dip…you can make nachos, top potato skins, garnish a chili, taco soup or salad, even a hamburger…the possibilities are endless!

Casa Sanchez, one of our local vendors, knows just how much Bay Area residents love their chips and dip during Super Bowl weekend – it’s one of the busiest times of year! As a result of our great relationship with Casa Sanchez, the company is participating in our coupon program Feb. 3-9^th so that we may offer you a bag of all-natural Casa Sanchez tortilla chips and a tub of salsa for free (a value of $7.48) and just in time for the Super Bowl!

A glimpse in the Casa Sanchez tortilla factory -- the family has been part of the Bay Area since the 1920s.

Though the Casa Sanchez Company has been part of the Bay Area since the 1920s, when Club Sanchez restaurant and nightclub opened in San Francisco’s Fillmore District, their family’s products have been offered for 90 years.

Roberto and Isabel Sanchez came to San Francisco from Mexico in the early 1920s and opened the first mechanized tortilla factory in Northern California. Their recipes for fresh chips, guacamole and salsas have been on through generation to generation.

The Sanchez family uses only all natural ingredients, no artificial preservatives, additives, coloring or sweeteners in their products, which are also gluten free and GMO free. This practice is used across their product line of tortillas, chips and guacamole, as well as their natural and fresca salsas, just as Roberto and Isabel Sanchez did, to maintain the flavor, integrity and quality of their products.

Their fresh Salsa Roja, for example, is three-generation old salsa recipe from Zacatecas, Mexico, brings a simple and flavorful combination of California tomatoes, mild jalapenos, diced onions and crushed garlic to a home style salsa. Their guacamole, some say, is better than homemade. It’s packed with Haas avocado chunks and fresh veggies just like what their Grandma Sanchez used to make.

A little history: After the Sanchez family opened the restaurant and nightclub in the 1960s, their offerings expanded to include a line of other packaged goods, including the first packaged fresh salsa in the country sold at supermarkets!

Do you have a funny feeling you recognize the Casa Sanchez logo for another reason outside the world of chips & salsa? Does the word “tattoo” ring any bells? If so, that could be because of one of the more wild marketing ideas Casa Sanchez tried out in the 1990s – an idea that brought them national media attention!

Marty Sanchez, one of Roberto’s grandchildren, put a sign in the store window which I’m sure she thought would get more of a laugh than action. The sign, with a picture of the company logo, read: Tattoo me on yourself and get free lunch for life! To their surprise, so many people wanted in on the free-lunch-for-life tattoo deal within a few months of the initial announcement that the restaurant decided to limit the number of participants to 50. The idea was voted one of the top 5 marketing ideas of the year by Forbes magazine!

Based on 2008 Nielson ratings, Casa Sanchez’s salsa is now the highest selling salsa in California. I have to agree with those who say Casa Sanchez’s products are better than homemade, and that’s due to their outstanding fresh ingredients. I love mixing the guacamole with a bit of hot salsa for an extra punch, and you have to appreciate how Casa Sanchez is sure to appeal to different heat pallets by offering a range of mild to hot salsas. Everyone has a different preference and they nail it each time!