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GREEN CHOICE: SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD
APRIL 2012
EVOO with Fresh Herbs
IN THIS ISSUE
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OUR NEW eNEWS
Autographed Hat - Head Miller Bob Singletary
A Chance to Win a Hat!

You'll see we've revamped our eNewsletter. We've sought to introduce a cleaner eNews that's easier to read. We'd love your feedback. You can even win an autographed hat from our Master Miller Bob Singletary. Please email your comments to [email protected] and we'll pick the most helpful response.

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE RANCH
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Our New YouTube Videos

Watch an update about what's been keeping our teams busy at the ranch and mill. Also, meet our head rancher, Adam Englehardt.

RANCH UPDATE

MEET ADAM ENGLEHARDT
FACES AT THE RANCH
Bob Singletary and Mary Bolton

In the Lab

Master Miller Bob Singletary and Quality Guru Mary Bolton sampling the new oil made from last fall's olive harvest.

FAN PHOTO OF THE MONTH
Spruce Hill Farm Goat Cheese with Miller's Blend

Send Us Your Photos!

We'd love to see how you're using our extra virgin olive oil. You can win some oil in the process. Simply email   your photo and a brief description to the address below. Put "Fan Photo" in the subject line. Each month we'll pick one to display and send that person some oil.

 [email protected]






CARING FOR OUR PLANET AND FUTURE GENERATIONS
Five Alaska Salmon Species
Photo courtesy of Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute
Spring is gorgeous here. The almond trees dotting nearby farms have burst into full bloom. Our own olive trees will begin blooming next month. We're also welcoming rain after a dry winter. The showers give our teams time to catch up on inside projects, like fixing irrigation equipment. The rain also reduce the threat of frost damaging olive trees starting to wake up for spring.

In our kitchen this spring, we'll be preparing plenty of seafood: salmon, mussels, halibut, sardines, shrimp. We like it poached in a good California extra virgin olive oil, grilled, roasted, and saut�ed. And, like olive oil, seafood is healthy: Uncle Sam recommends we eat seafood at least twice a week for heart and brain health.

But we must be vigilant about what we eat. The growing global appetite for seafood means humans are fishing some wild species to alarmingly low levels.  The Monterey Bay Aquarium notes that in the past decade the Atlantic populations of halibut, bluefin tuna and yellowtail flounder have slumped to all-time lows. The problem isn't confined to the Atlantic.

"Despite our best efforts, the global catch of wild fish leveled off over 15 years ago and 85 percent of the world's fisheries are being harvested at capacity or are in decline," says the aquarium, a crusader for sustainable seafood through its Seafood Watch guide.

We think it's important to eat foods that are sustainable - much like we think it's vital to grow our olives in a sustainable manner. We asked our featured chef, Trey Foshee, about the importance of cooking with sustainable seafood. The San Diego chef gave us a simple answer: "To care for our planet and for future generations."

To help you make sustainable choices in the kitchen, we've included a list of recipes below using seafood. You can consult the Seafood Watch guide for more information.
 
OUR FAVORITE SEAFOOD RECIPES
Marinated Sardine Crostini with Tomato Conserva
Marinated Sardine Crostinie with Tomato Conserva Our featured chef, Trey Foshee, pairs sardines marinated overnight in extra virgin olive oil with avocado and tomato conserva, a homemade concentrated tomato paste. It's served atop a beautifully browned crostini. Sardines taste wonderfully of the ocean. You could marinate the sardines in our Arbequina extra virgin olive oil. Before toasting the crostini, you could deliver another flavor kick to this dish by brushing the crositini with one of our robust oils, like Miller's Blend, Arbosana, or Limited Reserve.

 Click here to see the recipe
Tagliarini with Manila Clams and Calabrese Sausage
Tagliarini with Manila Clams and Calabrese Sausage Napa Valley chef Michael Chiarello calls this dish "one of my all-time favorites." He says that like many of his favorite dishes, this one began with Italian fishermen.  "They brought dried sausages on their boats, caught clams, and cooked the two together for supper," Chiarello writes in his book, Michael Chiarello's Bottega (Chronicle Books, 2010), where this recipe appears. You could prepare this dish using our Everyday oil and give each serving a finishing drizzle of our Arbequina.

Click here to see the recipe
Alaska Salmon with Proven�al Vegetables Vinaigrette
Example Image - 180 x 150 pixels
Photo courtesy of Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute
The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, the source of this recipe, notes Alaska's  "icy, pure waters and the abundance of natural food give Alaska Salmon unparalleled flavor." Here, the salmon is paired with tiny green beans, new potatoes, roasted red peppers, red onion, and olives  dressed with an herb-infused vinaigrette. Our Arbequina or Miller's Blend oils would work well in the vinaigrette. 

 Click here to see the recipe
Olive Oil-Poached Shrimp with Soba Noodles
Example Image - 180 x 150 pixels "When I discovered that poaching seafood in olive oil turns the texture butter-smooth, I fell in love with this technique," Chicago chef Stephanie Izard writes in her book Girl in the Kitchen (Chronicle Books, 2011), where this recipe appears. Izard also notes that when poaching seafood you want the oil's flavor "to soak in, so it's very important to use high-quality oil." Our Arbequina and Everyday oils would be fine choices. 

 Click here to see the recipe
Linguini with Mussels and Spicy Tomato Sauce
Example Image - 180 x 150 pixels
Photo courtesy of Monterey Bay Aquarium
Steamed mussels are paired with a piquant tomato sauce and then tossed with pasta and fresh herbs. The Monterey Bay Aquarium, which provided this recipe, says: "Farmed mussels are a 'Best Choice' because they're raised in an environmentally responsible way." Our Arbequina and Everyday oils would be  a good choice here. 

 Click here to see the recipe
Mahi Mahi Skewers with Tomatoes and Orzo
Example Image - 180 x 150 pixels
Photo courtesy of Monterey Bay Aquarium
"For a simple fresh dinner, top orzo pasta and grilled fish with lots of chopped summer tomatoes and fresh herbs," says the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which provided this recipe. "Add skewers of red bell peppers, onion wedges, and summer squash for a festive accompaniment." The aquarium calls  pole-and-line or troll-caught mahi mahi from the U.S. Atlantic a "Best Choice" here. Any of our oils would be good for dressing the tomatoes.  

 Click here to see the recipe
OUR FEATURED CHEF
Trey Foshee, George's at the Cove
Trey Foshee Cooking What do you get when you combine a classically trained graduate of the Culinary Institute of America with a Hawaiian-born surfer dude? Trey Foshee. The San Diego chef heads the kitchen at the highly acclaimed George's at the Cove, in La Jolla. He's been there since 1999, and continues to influence the local and national dining scenes. His approach to cooking: Use the freshest possible seasonal ingredients that come from local sources. 

What do you think is the importance of sustainable seafood, and how do you incorporate it in your cooking?

The importance? To care for our planet, for future generations. We use seafood that is locally caught whenever possible. We use suppliers we can trust

How do you come up with the ideas for new dishes?

From the ingredients, usually.

You told Food & Wine you got into cooking because "I needed to support my surfing habit." Tell us more about that.


I was directionless, surfed a lot, and needed money. So I started working in restaurants, because it allowed me to work at night and surf during the day. I started in the front of the house as a busboy and gravitated toward the kitchen.

You were born in Hawaii and grew up in Ojai, California. Was food an important thing in your home?

Not really. My mom raised me and she would take me out to dinner fairly often. She
called going out to dinner like a mini vacation.

How do you like to use California Olive Ranch extra virgin olive oil in your cooking - and which particular oil do you use?Trey Foshee 2

We use the COR Blend at the restaurant and we use it for everything: marinades, dressings, drizzling.

Your wife was born to a renowned culinary family in Chile. What do the two of you like to cook at home?

My wife is a great cook - especially soups and stews. I'm not home for meals during the week. So it's usually on the weekends we will grill a piece of fish or a chicken. We have a pizza oven so we do some pizzas.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

Surf, spend time with my wife and two girls, and try to stay healthy.

Thank You!
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