FarmStandSoup

Olive oil and S & P
4 large, meaty slices of beef shin bone (about 2 1/2 lbs)
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 leeks, white and light green part only, diced
4 celery stalks, thinly sliced
4 carrots, peeled and diced
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 TB dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 32 oz box beef broth
1 qt water
2 bay leaves
Corn kernels sliced from 2 ears
2 turnips, peeled and diced
3 red potatoes, not peeled, but diced
Scant 1/2 cup barley
3 baby zucchini, diced
1 small yellow squash, diced
1/2 lb green beans, cut into 3/4 inch pieces

Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Best quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling over finished soup (optional)

Cut meat away from the shin bone, remove the silvery rind and cut into 3/4 inch pieces. Heat an eight-quart or larger pot, add olive oil, the bones and the chopped beef. Season with S & P and sauté until the meat is crusty and most of the marrow has dissolved. Remove meat and bone and add the onions and leeks and sauté until translucent. Add celery and sauté for 10 minutes and add carrots and sauté for 5 more minutes.

In a separate skillet, heat a small amount of oil and add the mushrooms and the garlic. Sauté until brown and add oregano and thyme and toast the spices for 2 or 3 minutes. Add the mushroom-garlic mixture to the main pot and add the meat and the bones, the tomatoes, broth, water and bay leaves. Simmer, covered for 30 minutes.

Add corn, turnips, potatoes and barley, cover and simmer for one hour. Add zucchini, squash and green beans and simmer until tender, about 30 minutes. Correct for salt and pepper.

Serve in soup bowls, top with a spoon of grated cheese and drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil over the top. Makes about 7 quarts and freezes well.

Serving the soup with this hearty bread makes a complete and satisfying meal.

Mozzarella and Rosemary Foccacia
1 1/3 cups warm water (not over 115 degrees)
1 package rapid rise or regular yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
2 2/3 to 3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup olive oil, divided
1 pound whole milk mozzarella cheese
20 San Anselmo or other cherry type tomatoes, sliced
1 TB fresh chopped rosemary
1 TB dried oregano
1 tsp kosher salt

Measure water in a one quart Pyrex cup, add yeast and sugar and let sit for 10 minutes to proof. Add 2 cups of the flour to the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, add salt and the proofed yeast mixture. Mix with the dough hook attachment for about ten minutes, then slowly add additional flour until the dough is still soft, but no longer sticky.
Put 1/4 cup flour into a zipper plastic bag and shake. Add dough ball, seal the bag and place it in a large bowl of 100 to 105 degree water. Let rise until double and turn the dough out onto a floured surface and shape it into a 13 x 18 rectangle.

Place dough into a half-sheet baking pan and sprinkle it with olive oil, top with the cheese, tomato rounds and spices and drizzle additional olive oil over all. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake at 425 degrees for about 25 minutes.


		Farm Stand Soup
Sometimes all you have to do is set one foot inside a new establishment and you instantly know you’re in a good place. Such is the case with “The Farm,” a fruit and vegetable stand at the intersection of Spreckels Boulevard West and Highway 68. I know you’ve seen those wildly oversized painted cut-outs of farm workers in their fields anytime you drive to the peninsula from the 101 corridor. The folks at The Farm are so proud of that artwork that they are glad to be known as the “Home of the Giant Farmers.” They have farmed their five acres for the past nine years growing the very best organic produce. Now, I’m not a zealot when it comes to organic produce (as hedonistically as I live my life the very last thing that’s going to take me out of this world is a double shot of Raid), but the growers who take the trouble to farm organically just seem to produce products that taste better. I love cooking out of a garden and now I can do that and let someone else do all the hard work. At this time of the year, the variety of vegetables and fruit is just amazing and they also have a kitchen boutique, artisan breads from a bakery in Castroville, unusual bottled drinks, big beautiful bouquets of their own flowers, a mini Noah’s ark of a petting zoo where kids are more than welcome and fresh brown eggs from hens that have names. It’s a fun place and the prices are very reasonable. (A bunch of celery big enough to shore up a sagging roof is just a dollar.) But the thing that makes The Farm worth a detour is the strawberries. They are the best I have ever eaten. Their aroma is intense, they’re deep red all the way through and drip down your chin juicy. For more specific directions and a list of upcoming tours and special events go to www.thefarm-salinasvalley.com. I had to taste a little bit of everything so I bought the ingredients for this soup. I then spent a lovely afternoon tasting and dicing, sautéing and simmering and feeling for this little span of time, life is darn good.			The Farm Stand Soup Olive oil and S & P 4 large, meaty slices of beef shin bone (about 2 1/2 lbs) 1 large yellow onion, diced 2 leeks, white and light green part only, diced 4 celery stalks, thinly sliced 4 carrots, peeled and diced 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 TB dried oregano 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes 1 32 oz box beef broth 1 qt water 2 bay leaves Corn kernels sliced from 2 ears 2 turnips, peeled and diced 3 red potatoes, not peeled, but diced Scant 1/2 cup barley 3 baby zucchini, diced 1 small yellow squash, diced 1/2 lb green beans, cut into 3/4 inch pieces Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese Best quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling over finished soup (optional) Cut meat away from the shin bone, remove the silvery rind and cut into 3/4 inch pieces. Heat an eight-quart or larger pot, add olive oil, the bones and the chopped beef. Season with S & P and sauté until the meat is crusty and most of the marrow has dissolved. Remove meat and bone and add the onions and leeks and sauté until translucent. Add celery and sauté for 10 minutes and add carrots and sauté for 5 more minutes. In a separate skillet, heat a small amount of oil and add the mushrooms and the garlic. Sauté until brown and add oregano and thyme and toast the spices for 2 or 3 minutes. Add the mushroom-garlic mixture to the main pot and add the meat and the bones, the tomatoes, broth, water and bay leaves. Simmer, covered for 30 minutes. Add corn, turnips, potatoes and barley, cover and simmer for one hour. Add zucchini, squash and green beans and simmer until tender, about 30 minutes. Correct for salt and pepper. Serve in soup bowls, top with a spoon of grated cheese and drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil over the top. Makes about 7 quarts and freezes well. Serving the soup with this hearty bread makes a complete and satisfying meal. Mozzarella and Rosemary Foccacia 1 1/3 cups warm water (not over 115 degrees) 1 package rapid rise or regular yeast 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp kosher salt 2 2/3 to 3 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 cup olive oil, divided 1 pound whole milk mozzarella cheese 20 San Anselmo or other cherry type tomatoes, sliced 1 TB fresh chopped rosemary 1 TB dried oregano 1 tsp kosher salt Measure water in a one quart Pyrex cup, add yeast and sugar and let sit for 10 minutes to proof. Add 2 cups of the flour to the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, add salt and the proofed yeast mixture. Mix with the dough hook attachment for about ten minutes, then slowly add additional flour until the dough is still soft, but no longer sticky. Put 1/4 cup flour into a zipper plastic bag and shake. Add dough ball, seal the bag and place it in a large bowl of 100 to 105 degree water. Let rise until double and turn the dough out onto a floured surface and shape it into a 13 x 18 rectangle. Place dough into a half-sheet baking pan and sprinkle it with olive oil, top with the cheese, tomato rounds and spices and drizzle additional olive oil over all. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake at 425 degrees for about 25 minutes.
	Courtesy of: Real Estate & Living www.somocorealestate.com