9 Things You Should know about Butternut Squash Seed Oil

Carol had been so excited about the arrival of Stony Brook Butternut Squash Seed Oil, that when if finally arrived, I just had to find out more about it. I spoke to Greg Woodworth yesterday about what makes it so special, and did a taste test earlier in the week. Here are some of the key points:

1. It’s made from the seeds of squash that are cut up to be sent to supermarkets, which previously were just being thrown out. Now they get turned into oil. Hooray for sustainability!
2. The squash is all grown in upstate New York. Isn’t it great to have a locally-made alternative to olive oil?
3. It’s great for dunking breads, especially whole grain loaves.
4. Ditto for raw veggies—I had it with some snow peas, and it was fantastic.
5. It’s probably the only butternut squash seed oil in existence.
6. While they intend it as a finishing oil, it has a high burn point, so it’s totally suitable for cooking with.
7. Drizzle it over just about anything off the grill: chicken, asparagus, beef, tomatoes, onions. (My next experiment with it: grilled scallops, sea salt, a shpritz of lime, and a drizzle of oil. Can’t wait!)
8. As far as oils go, it’s very healthy. Check out their website for more details on that.
9. Drizzle a little bit of it over watermelon. Seriously, just do it. Trust me.

 
Bill Shube
Shubie’s Food and Wine Guy

The Kyoto Cocktail

Chef Lynne's Kyoto Cocktail was such a hit this weekend, we thought we'd share the recipe with those of you not lucky enough to have had a taste. It was so refreshing, we wish we could drink it every day!

Kyoto Cocktail

Ingredients (serves 4-6, depending on how thirsty you are!)

3 T fresh thyme, finely chopped

2 T fresh grated ginger

4 Meyer Lemons (add one for garnish)

1/2 C Stirring's Blood Orange Bitters

3/4 C Black Currant Fruit Syrup or Black Currant Liqueur (Creme de Cassis would work, too)

1 1/3 C Saké

1 bottle Prosecco

Chili Oil (optional)

1. Juice lemons and mix with thyme, ginger, Saké, blood orange bitters, and black currant syrup. Mix well and allow mixture to settle.

2. Pour Prosecco and lemon-sake mixture into serving glasses in equal proportions. Stir well.

3. Drizzle with chili oil and stir (optional).

4. Garnish with slice of Meyer lemon and enjoy!

And a few tips we learned while making this marvelous creation:

• It's best to make the lemon-Saké mixture ahead of time and let it sit in the fridge for a couple of hours to let the flavors settle in. If you do so, you can strain the mixture before serving--it gets rid of the little leafy bits and ginger pulp, and you still hang on to all the flavor.
• After straining, add whole sprigs of thyme for some extra aroma.
• Some people love ginger, others don't. If you're a lover, heap it on--an extra tablespoon won't hurt (and throw in the chili oil, too, if you're really daring!) If not, feel free to reduce the amount.
• When mixing, we suggest equal proportions of the Prosecco and lemon-sake mixture, but experiment with it--you might find a small splash of the mixture is just right for you. Or, you might want just a touch of fizz with your lemon-Saké-ginger juice.

A Great Father's Day, and My New Favorite Red

I was spoiled for Father’s Day this year. I went for a bike ride with my grand-daughter to Hawthorne Pond to look for ducks. After a quick stop at the store, I was back home for lunch and a nap, and I woke up just in time for a great family dinner. Carol made burgers, hot dogs, corn, and a salad, and brought home some of our favorite side dishes from the store (the chickpeas and rock shrimp salad is just too good); and I got to share a bottle of my new favorite red, Le Loup dans la Bergerie, with Dougy and Billy. 

(the winery)

I’ve been a fan of southern French wines for years now. The weather is just right for wine making, and the land is plentiful, which translates to good wine at a good price. Le Loup dans la Bergerie (pronounced, more or less, “luh loo dawn la bear-jurEE,” but feel free to just call it Le Loup), from the Languedoc region in southern France, is a perfect example. It packs a lot of wine for just $12, with layers of pure blackberries and raspberries and a streak of anise on the nose. Clean and perfectly ripe on the palate, I can’t think of another red I’d rather be drinking this summer. It went great with the burgers last weekend, but I can picture drinking it with chicken dishes, pastas, salads, or simply on its own at the end of the day. I’m sure the Shube household will go through at least a case of it this summer. 

(vineyards, and the Pic Saint-Loup mountain in the background)

It comes from Domaine de l’Hortus, a fantastic winery run by the Orliac family, in a small region in southern France called Pic Saint-Loup. Billy took some photos when he visited the winery a few years ago, posted here. The region is stunning, with the Pic St.-Loup and Hortus rock formations marking the landscape, and the wines can be very distinctive when done right. The Orliacs are among the best winemakers in the Languedoc, and this wine is done absolutely right—it was the cherry on top of a perfect Father’s Day! 

George Shube
Shubie's Owner

The Real Balsamic

A few days ago, we found ourselves running low on dessert, so we called Dad at the store and asked him to bring home some ice cream. We were more than a little dismayed, though, when he showed up with a pint of vanilla in one hand, and a pint of chocolate chip in the other. Dad has a fantastic palate, as many of you probably know, but his taste in ice cream can be a bit boring. We were looking forward to something a little more…exciting.

So what topping did we reach for to add some pizzazz to our vanilla ice cream? Vinegar, of course!

Yes, you read that right. But not just any vinegar. Balsamic vinegar. And not just any balsamic vinegar. Real balsamic vinegar. (OK, mostly real balsamic vinegar. But I’ll get to that in a minute.)

Real balsamic vinegar differs from the stuff you find on supermarket shelves in a number of ways, but the most important one that I want to focus on here is obvious: the taste.

You've all had the supermarket stuff before—it's thin and acidic, maybe a little sweeter than the red wine vinegar. We all love it for dressing salads, but it isn't good for much more than that.

Real balsamic is other-worldly: it is thick, syrupy, and highly concentrated. Sweet and tangy, it has complex aromas of dried fruit, wood, caramel, mushrooms, and spices, and is absolutely mouthwatering. My first taste of it was literally a life-altering experience in terms of my career as a foodie.

Making real balsamic is a very complex and expensive process, though, and prices on authentic, certified Modena Balsamic Vinegar are high ($150 for 3.5 ounces is not uncommon). Fortunately, a few producers in Italy have begun adopting the traditional methods of making balsamic vinegar and paired them down a bit to reduce the cost. While these vinegars don’t have the depth and concentration of flavor that the real stuff has, they come awfully close, and are much more affordable, usually in the $40 to $50 range for an 8.5 oz bottle (don’t forget—this is still highly concentrated stuff, so a little goes a long way!). This vinegar is much beloved at Shubie's, and we always make sure to keep it on our shelves. Rubio and Villa Manadori are the two main players in the “faux balsamic” market, and are almost always in stock. This is, of course, the "mostly real" balsamic vinegar we sprinkled over our vanilla ice cream.

Ice cream isn’t the only use for this super-condiment. I’d suggest serving it drizzled over grilled meats or seafood, sprinkled on top of a tomato-basil-mozzarella salad or some strawberries, or tossed into a pasta dish. And lately, our chef Lynne Aronson has been making some roasted heirloom tomatoes with Rubio balsamic that are just to die for. She’s also come up with a cocktail recipe that’s as surprising as it is delicious. Make a cocktail with balsamic vinegar for your friends some time, and they’ll be impressed. Enjoy!

-Bill Shube
Shubie's Food and Wine Guy

The Balsamico
1 oz Vodka
4 oz Soda water
1 tsp Rubio Balsamic Vinegar or equivalent
Simple syrup or sugar to taste

Stir well. Garnish with basil leaf (optional). Sip, relax, enjoy (required).