Oktoberfest!

Happy October everyone! Here at The Bean House we decided to celebrate October with a Oktoberfest inspired gathering.
On the menu for this lovely meal we had homemade Spatzel (recipe to follow!), bratwurst, pretzels, sauerkraut, homemade Obatzda, semi-homemade strudel, rustic vegetables and of course beer!

Pretzels! We paired our pretzels with Obatzda. Now I had no idea what Obatzda was until that day but let me tell you, if you like cheese, cheese, butter, cheese, beer and onions, this stuff is THE BEST! Obatzda is of Bavarian origin and is made up of two parts soft cheese (we used Brie) and one part butter. Its then seasoned with some some salt, pepper, onions, paprika and beer! I couldn't even get a picture of it, it disappeared that fast!!! 

Really authentic German vegetables

I looked at our menu for the day and realized we needed some veggies! So I decided to whip together rustic, German inspired veggies! I threw together some potatoes, onions, celery, carrots, rosemary, thyme and chicken broth in a Crockpot and let it hangout all afternoon. With our flavorful mains, this was a good, neutral, hearty side to have.

SPATZLE! I have had Spatzle only a few times in my life and somehow in my crazy head decided it would be a good idea to make it for the first time for a bunch of people! Lucky for me Spatzle isn't that hard to make! I'm planning on doing a Spatzle post soon because its so yummy and fun to eat! But if you can't wait that long, check out one of my favorite Youtube channels, My Drunk Kitchen, who celebrated Oktoberfest recently too! 

Two kinds of homemade Mustard graced our table that night; Spicy Beer Mustard and Sweet Agave Mustard. Yum!

What is Oktoberfest without some BRATWURST!? As the centerpiece of our meal, we boiled our little brats in a pool of onions, chicken broth, water and BEER! We were going to be ambitious and hand make some bratwurst but that...never..happened...Onwards! 

....SAUERKRAUT! Once again, we had plans to make our own but that never happened so we bought it from the store and let it hangout with some sliced apples. Oh! and I would officially like to declare my love for Sauerkraut. 

And to complete the meal; our interpretation of Apple Strudel! I'm pretty sure that so long as it's made with butter, sugar, butter, some kind of pastry dough, more butter and a handful of apples it can be called a Strudel. 

I would have to say that this was one of the best meals I have been apart of in a long time, not because my tummy was full or because I got to spend the entire day in the kitchen but because I was surrounded by some of my favorite people. I love Oktoberfest!

Stay tuned! Stay hungry!

-Taryn Julia

We're Going On An Adventure!

Grab your safari gear guys, we're going on a hunt! A wild yeast hunt!!!!

My friend Robert Alan invited me to go wild yeast hunting with me the other day and of course I couldn't say no! Robert Alan works at local brewery and is fortunate to be given the task of hunting for yeast! Many breweries use yeast as a flavor component where as others simply use yeast as a fermenting agent, relying on their hops and wort as the major flavor agent. Our job for this adventure was to locate a wild yeast, local to this area that will highlight the terroir of the area. (Terroir or terre is french for "land." Essentially, it is a group of characteristics of a native area that impart a distinct attribute on local agricultural products). This yeast will hopefully be used for beer!
Yeast is a unicellular organism that changes carbohydrates like sugar into carbon dioxide (bubbles) and alcohol. Beer is just that, bubbly alcohol! Perfect! Let's get on with this adventure..
Being in the San Luis Obispo we are right in the heart of the Central Coast's wine region. After stopping at the brewery in Paso Robles for some yeast hunting gear (portable flame torch, sterilized wet swabs, and gloves) we headed west! Robert Alan has a family friend, a singer-song writer, who owns Poalillio Vineyards and welcomed us onto his estate so we could hunt some yeast! This was our view for the afternoon....

Real rough life....

After taking in the beautiful Paso Robles country side we trekked into the wilderness to gather the yeast....

Real rough conditions....

After randomly scientifically selecting the right sample vine, it was time for business

Using sterilized swabs in broth we were great scientists and made sure to follow protocol in the field. First we started with flaming the mouth of the tube (with gloves on!) in order to reduce cross contamination from the air and from us. 

After flaming, we got right into the thick of things, literally...

We decided to harvest yeast from the skins of the grape as well as the grape vine stem. Yeast, as I was told, grows naturally in the microflora of grapes. Who knew!? Well, I mean, can't you just see it all over them!?

After repeating this a few times (Repetition is the science behind statistically reputable data!) we headed back to the lab in order to plate our samples. 

Using a Schwarz Differential Agar plate and accurate precision, Robert Alan plated four samples of our harvested wild yeast.

After plating and carefully labeling our samples, we let them hang out in the cozy incubator and then we waited....

Update! Three days after our wild yeast hunt there was growth on the plates! (And I'm proud to say that the sample I harvested was one of the two that was showing growth. Yay!) Now we just have to hope that it a usable growth and not a bacteria-mold-yeast-fuzz cocktail growing on agar! *Fingers crossed!*

Update! Four days later....Robert Alan and the lab found usable yeast colonies! 

Update! Five days later.... The usable yeast was mixed with wort (unfermented beer). And now the lab just has to wait for a lower degrees Brix and a lower pH (Brix measures the amount of sugar solids in a solution. So a lower Brix means that there are less sugars in the wort which means the yeasts are eating them! And that's a good thing. Remember when I said that yeast breaks down sugars and make by-products? Some by-products like carbon dioxide lower the pH. So a lower pH could also signify that the wort is being eaten by the yeast! Yay!)

I'll keep everyone updated on the wild yeast hunt! But look! We actually did some real science stuff! Woopie!

So until next time

Stay tuned! Stay hungry!

-Taryn Julia

A Swirl-wind of Yum!

Today in the kitchen we made... Strawberry and Wine Swirl cookies!

A spoonful of fruity strawberry preserves and a splash of Marsala wine makes this fun cookie appealing to not only the eyes but the tummy too! I was too lazy to write a recipe for this one...so for now... eat with your eyes only! 

Stay tuned! Stay hungry!

-Taryn Julia

Did you know....

Did you know that you can regrow celery!? It's true! You really really can!
Celery, Apium graveolens var. dulce, is in the family of plants called Apiacea (or the carrot and parsley posse). You and I know them better as the green things that are sometimes in chicken noodle soup. There are naturally two classes of celery, a white version and a red version. We, as consumers, are typically more drawn to the white version based on its' flavor and crunchy, crisp snap!

Enough about the book-y stuff, let's get our hands dirty and learn how to regrow them!
Here's what you're going to need right now

• 1 celery stalk (all intact)
• 1 ruler
• 1 knife (nothing too hefty)
• 1 glass or plastic container (something you can see into about, that holds about 16 oz of water
• Clean water!

Here's what you'll need to do right now

Making sure that you have a whole intact celery. Now from the bottom (the white part) measure up the stalk about 1 or 1 1/2 inches up (you should be reaching the greenish part now). Take your knife and cut at where you measured 1ish inches. By now you should have a flat bottom with the whiteish beginning of the stalk and a little bit of green. 

Fill up your container halfway full of water (or half way empty for you Debbie Downers). Now place your your celery bottom in the water, place your container somewhere sunny and wait for magic to happen! In a few days (yeah, I said days! Talk about immediate affirmation) you should have something that looks like this!

 A word to the wise, I have tried this about a half dozen times and about 75% of the time I wait too long to plant it! So by the time your roots are about two to three inches long OR you have some leaves growing, go get yourself a little pot and some dirt! Cover the bottom of your pot with some rocks (to make sure the water just doesn't stream out of your pot) and the add some dirt. Place your celery in the dirty and then cover it just enough so that you can still see the leaves. Make sure it is getting plenty of sun and a good amount of water and most importantly some love and within a few weeks you'll have celery growing and you'll never have to buy celery ever again! (Well, that's a stretch but I'm sure you could do it if you planted a whole bunch of them!)

So go stretch out your green thumb!

Stay tuned! Stay hungry!

-Taryn Julia

Miso Hungry!

Today in the kitchen...Miso Marinade Chicken!
Welcome to my new current obsession....Miso! You may be familiar with this salty, grainy, oh so yummy paste in a Japanese staple....Miso Soup! I found this Miso paste in the refrigerated section at the grocery store by the tofu.

So heres the thing, this recipe is a little guess-timate of everything in there. So here's what you'll need...maybe...I think....

• 1/4th cup Soy Sauce
• 1/3rd cup Miso Paste
• 1/2 tablespoon Peanut Oil or Peanut Butter
• 1/4th cup Rice Vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Sesame Oil
• 2 teaspoons Powdered or Ground Ginger (or whole if you prefer!)
• 1/4th cup Coconut Milk
• 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar
• 4 sprigs of Thai Basil
• Any type of meat you want..chicken, piggie, cow, soybean....

Thai Basil you say!? What's that!? Well it looks a little like this...

Thai Basil (Ocimum Basilicum "Horapha"
 has a purpleish steam and dark green leaves
and
is often paired with thai noodles or soups. nom!

Mix all those yummers in a bowl; I would suggest ab owl with a lid and one that is large enough to hold your desired cut of meat. I decided to use chicken, three whole drumsticks to be exact (Don't hate, I"m on a post-grad budget!) 

I let these little guys simmer for about 24 hours but by all means let them wade in that sauce yummers pool for longer than that! I decided to bake the bird at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 35 minutes (or until the inside reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit!) And after waiting very patiently, the lovely birds came out like this.....

It wasn't too dry! It wasn't too salty! It wasn't too sweet!

Right off''ah the bone! 

I think it is safe to say....Winner, Winner! Chicken Dinner! So until next time...

Stay tuned! Stay hungry! 

Super Easy Peasy Cheesy Lasagnaey....

Well that title didn't turn out as planned....anyways
Yesterday was my dear friend Yen-Chis' birthday!! And after asking what she wanted for her birthday I was slightly surprised, slightly excited about her response! The birthday girl requested....

BIRTHDAY LASAGNA! 

What's Birthday Lasagna you say? It's a lasagna.... for your birthday! Here's a secret, I have never ever actually made lasagna because truthfully I have always been too scared to, based on the time and effort it takes to make it! So I decided to pull up my big girl apron and make lasagna! So to ease my way into the lasagna pool and I decided to make an easy peasy lasagna. So this is what you'll need.... 

• Ground Beef
• Italian Sausage
• Some type of Diced Squash veggie
• Diced Onions
• Jar of Spaghetti Sauce (cause your lazy) 
• Ricotta Cheese
• Mozzarella Cheese 
• Lasagna Noodles
• Olive Oil
• Salt
• Water

Some of the stuff and stuff

This is what you'll need to do.....

Step 1: do this.... 

I'm just kidding, let's move on.....

Step 1: REALIZE THAT MAKING LASAGNA (easy peasy or not) IS A VERY AMBITIOUS TASK! And then you.....

Take the Italian sausage out of the casing and with the ground beef, brown over medium heat until they are completely cooked.  Removed meat from skillet as well as 3/4ths of the fat (carefully!).

 Using the left over fat, cook the diced onions and squash until they are palatable (vague...good job Self).

 Return the meat to the pan with the squash and add the (jar) Tomato sauce. Let that hang out.

Step 2: MAKE SURE THAT YOU CHECK YOUR LASAGNA NOODLE BOX AND CHECK TO SEE IF IT IS BOIL OR NO BOIL NOODLES! Because sometimes you purchase NO BOIL noodles from the store and then you boil them and realize that you did more work than you actually needed to making this easy peasy lasagna not as easy peasy as you thought. So do what you must do to cook those noodles. 

Mozzarella Cheese Interlude! Weeeeeeee

On wards! While your water is boiling (if that is the poor choice you decided on) combine one egg with your ricotta and mix!

Side note, Ricotta is a very odd dairy product.

Step 3: Gather a large glass container and layer, layer layer! I went with a Sauce-Noodle-Cheese-Sauce-Noodle......Noodle-Sauce-Mozzarella game plan. But please, layer any way you want.

Like this! 

Step 4: Bake that birthday lasagna for about 30 minutes at 350°F covered in tin-foil and then turn oven off, uncover birthday lasagna and continue to heat for about 5 minutes or until your mozzarella is melted.  Then take that layered yum out and ENJOY! 

I'm pretty sure this picture is blurry. Probably because I was in such a rush to eat! 

I should rename this Lazy Lasagna or Lazy-agna... Overall, it was a successful Birthday Lasagna, everyone at least pretended to like it!! But needless to say I don't think I'll be making any type celebratory lasagna any time soon.

Bonus! Here's a sneak peek inside my personal recipe journal (the magical place that holds all my food ideas, basically exactly how the gears in my noggin works) This is what I call "How to Layer a Birthday Lasagna":

"Figure Here"...good one, Self.

I am still tired from Birthday Lasagna. So....

Stay tuned. Stay hungry! 

Today in the Kitchen....

Our guest star for today is.....

Purple Sweet Potato! 

Also known as.....

Ube!(pronounced Ooh-beh!)

Okinawan Sweet Potato!

but most importantly....

DELICIOUS! 

If you couldn't tell, I love Purple Sweet Potato! I love it by itself, in soup, in pie, as ice cream! I like to use these yummy tubers as an excuse to get my daily serving of vitamin A and vitamin C. It's also a good source of fiber, iron and potassium. Like blueberries, this bright color yam contains antioxidants that help fight the badies in your body. Hi-yah!

Today in the kitchen we are experimenting with Ube-Haupia Pie, more specifically Mini Ube-Haupie pies because who doesn't love small versions of things! I'll let you know how things go... 

Coming up soon, a recipe for 'Me-So-Hungry Miso Marinade.'

Till next time...

Stay tuned! Stay hungry!