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Dec 2009  
Cookbook Giveaway
Featured Chef
Alice Medrich's
"Pure Dessert"
Pure Dessert

Click to Enter Giveaway
via email reply with 'Dessert' in subject line
Winner chosen Dec 15

Congratulations to Rosemary, our Nov winner!

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Events in Season
Fancy Food Show
San Francisco  .  CA
Jan 17 - 19
VISIT OUR BOOTH!

Golden Globes
CA Olive Ranch to be featured by Chef Katsuo "Suki" Sugiura of the Beverly Hilton Hotel
January 17
Beverly Hills  .  CA

Julie, Julia & Jamie
Cooking Demonstration
Featuring Recipes of Julia Child
Jan 23 - 24
Ojai Valley Inn & Spa  .  CA


A Special Dessert Issue
It's Holiday Season!
DessertTis' the season of holiday tradition. It's a season filled with endless reason to get together with friends and family.  And, most often these celebrations tend to include a wide array of tantalizing foods in which to indulge  -  tasty appetizers, mouth-watering entrees with delectable, seasonal sides.  But where would the holidays be without the guilty pleasure and countless stream of tempting desserts?

This month, "In Season" celebrates desserts made with extra virgin olive oil.  At first it may sound strange to use olive oil in a traditional dessert you've enjoyed for years, but it is actually easier than you think. (For butter-to-olive oil conversion suggestions from top chefs and cookbook authors, click here.)  By replacing butter and other fats with extra virgin olive oil, not only will the taste and texture delight, it'll make those tempting treats just a tad bit healthier for you.

Using olive oil in your holiday baking won't give you carte blanche permission to eat two dozen Olive Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies or an entire Chocolate Ripple Pound Cake.  But it will surely offer you peace of mind that you are taking a step in a healthier direction. 

Just like pairing wine with foods, you can similarly explore the many  different varietals of extra virgin olive oils and how they each pair with different dessert recipes.  First consider the type of dessert you'd like to prepare -  either baking a cake or preparing a dense, rich chocolate sensation -  you may choose from a delicate, fruity varietal to a robust, flavorful burst of fresh extra virgin olive oil.  (Don't miss our Food Pairing blogs!)

To this point, chocolate may be complimented by using a light drizzle of a robust extra virgin olive oil, such as  our Olio Nuovo, along with a sprinkle of sea salt.   Recipes that include nuts, such as Harvest Biscotti with Walnuts and Pears, may be enhanced by using our Arbosana, with nutty tasting notes and a medium pungency.  Baking a cake may require a smooth, clean taste with a balanced pungency, such as an Arbequina.  Of course, what holiday dinner isn't complete without a seasonally delicious slice of pie?  Try our Everyday California Fresh EVOO for Pecan Pie, recipe courtesy of our friends at Viking Range Corporation and chef instructor Elaine Trigiani.   Or try a fresh Pumpkin's Pie, from "Olive Oil Desserts" cookbook author Micki Sannar.  Both are sure to amaze and delight!

So whatever delectable dessert you create this holiday season, there is an extra virgin olive oil that will compliment and enhance in flavor,  in texture, and in taste. The health benefits of using EVOO will be the large dollop of whipped cream on top!  So enjoy in good health!
 Featured Dessert Recipes
Paired with CA Olive Ranch EVOO

Chocolate Recipes and More!

Thanks to Featured Chef Alice Medrich


Perfect Olive Oil Pie Crust
Courtesy of Micki Sanner "Olive Oil Desserts"
Olive Oil Pecan Pie 2
Olive Oil Pecan Pie
Courtesy of Jen Samples

Vegan Lower-Fat Chocolate Walnut Fudge Brownies
Courtesy of Fran Gage "New American Olive Oil"

Rosemary Pinenut Cookies
Courtesy of Jeff Anderson
Chef Director of Culinary Innovation

Safeway, Inc.
Chocolate Cremoso

Bon Appetit!

 Featured Chef
Alice Medrich
Pastry Chef  |  Renown Cookbook Author
Alice Medrich is one of America's foremost dessert experts.  She's credited with launching the "American love affair with chocolate truffles." Medrich's four decades of success has inspired many to follow their passion in the culinary arts.

Her inspiration began abroad.  While living in France in 1973, Medrich's Alice Medrich 1elderly landlady asked her  to help make  chocolate truffles for Christmas.   It was love at first bite. Medrich eventually returned to Berkeley and began to recreate the chocolate truffles she'd crafted with her Parisian landlady. After some initial success, she decided to hone her skills and did a stint at the Len�tre pastry school outside Paris.  A couple years later she opened Cocolat, a  gourmet dessert shop in Berkeley.  She soon garnered critical acclaim.  Gourmet declared: "Cocolat is to chocolate what Tiffany's is to diamonds."

Medrich sold Cocolat in 1990, after having expanded it into a chain of stores.  Cookbooks were next.  Medrich's  "Cocolat:  Extraordinary Chocolate Desserts" won the Julia Child Award for the Best First Cookbook.  Medrich soon filmed an episode for the PBS series "Baking with Julia", hosted by Julia Child.  
 
Today, seven cookbooks later, Medrich is a three-time winner of "Cookbook of the Year," winning two James Beard awards and an award from the International Association of Culinary Professionals.   Her most recent book, "Pure Dessert", was named one of the top cookbooks of 2007 by Gourmet, Bon App�tit, and Food & Wine.   A creative force and acclaimed dessert authority, she's rightfully dubbed The First Lady of Chocolate.

Medrich loves to work with pure flavors in unusual ways.  In "Pure Dessert", you'll find a cake scented with sesame oil, lavender-scented French cookies known as tuiles , and rose geranium ice cream. All show her clear gift of extraordinary dessert making.

We spoke with her about the use of olive oil in her dessert making. "I'm noticing a shift towards cooking with olive oil because of the different flavor profiles to pair with your dessert ingredients.  Much like a painter has a palate of different colors, olive oil varietals come in many different flavors and choices to work with.  You just have to find the best one that plays with the flavor you are trying to achieve."

Harvest Retreat Dessert TableMedrich said that for her Chocolate Almond Torte she experimented with two  extra virgin olive oils made from different olive varietals,  Arbequina and Arbosana

"Both versions were good, but I found  the Arbequina's fruitiness brought an upbeat flavor when paired with the type of chocolate I used.  That's the fun of experimenting with different oils and different ingredients.  Much like different wines, from mild to robust, every oil has a different flavor profile.   The health benefits are just a bonus!"


Learn to make Caramel and Blood Orange Truffles among other delicious creations from Medrich herself at San Francisco's Tante Marie Cooking School next Feb. 17-18.  She'll also be teaching at Ramekins Cooking School on Feb. 13 in  Sonoma, Calif. -  just in time for a Valentine's Day retreat in the northern California wine country with your significant other.

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Don't miss Medrich's next book release, "The Cookie Project", due next fall 2010, with another to follow in 2011!

Read our latest Alice Medrich blog post from our Harvest Retreat!
 Thank You

Happy Holidays from all of us at
California Olive Ranch!
California Fresh COR



Holiday
Gift Idea

gift
This holiday season, instead of bringing wine as a hostess gift, make Chocolate Arbequina Truffles, a recipe created by our featured chef, Alice Medrich.

Be sure to include the recipe card along with a bottle of our award-winning extra virgin olive oil! 

Guaranteed to impress - take our word for it!

Take the stress out of holiday shopping! Order NOW!