The recipe, which comes from our friends at Viking Range, also uses an intriguing ingredient for flavoring: honey. In addition to all-purpose flour, the recipe calls for semolina, a coarse grind of high-protein durum wheat which hails originally from the Mediterranean.

King Arthur Four notes that semolina “gives gorgeous color and great flavor to breads, pizza crust, and pasta.” King Arthur says you can substitute semolina for “some (or all) of the all-purpose flour” in a bread recipe.

Focaccia’s roots date to antiquity. “In ancient Rome panis focacius denoted a flatbread cooked in the ashes,” writes food historian and author Alan Davidson in The Penguin Companion to Food (Penguin Books, 2002). In ancient Rome, focus meant hearth. There followed the term focacia, and ultimately focaccia in modern Italian.

Cookbook author and olive oil expert Fran Gage developed a focaccia featuring pumpkin seeds and thyme. They’re mixed into the dough.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

It’s also a good idea to keep the oil away from heat and to minimize its exposure to oxygen.

Which brings me to a question we field frequently: “How to store extra virgin olive oil?”

For starters, olive oil doesn’t get better with age. Just the opposite.

“Unlike wine, olive oils do not get better with age,” writes Australian olive oil expert Richard Gawel in an excellent FAQ. “Extra virgin olive oils are best consumed young as it is at this time when their fresh olive like aromas and flavors, and the health giving polyphenols are at their peak.”

The bottom line: Avoid saving a special bottle of EVOO for use at some future occasion years down the road. Instead, the oil should be used sooner versus later. We recommend using the oil within 30 to 60 days once it’s been opened.

It’s also important to remember olive oil is a form of fruit juice. It’s perishable. Exposing an oil to air will speed up the oxidation process and will eventually cause the oil to go rancid.

In general, you want to store your extra virgin olive oil in a cool, dark place.

Olive oil has four key enemies:

1. Time – The time from tree to crush to fully produced oil must be as brief as possible.
2. Temperature – The optimal storage for olive oil is 60 to 69 degrees Fahrenheit.
3. Oxygen – Exposure must be minimized or eliminated during storage.
4. Light – Exposure must be minimized or eliminated at all times.

Here are some suggestions and thoughts to keep in mind:

• Store olive oil in a dark cupboard and away from direct light. Ultraviolet rays can break down an olive oil over time.
• Try to store olive oil in a cupboard away from any heat source. It can get damaged if exposed to warmth or heat from a nearby stove or oven.
• Avoid refrigerating your olive oil. It can damage the oil. “Each time the bottle is removed from the cold, condensation can form on the inside of the lid and drop into the oil, introducing oxygen,” writes olive oil expert Fran Gage.

As I mentioned, we bottle our oils in dark colored glass to guard against light . Our larger bag-in-box packages – which many chefs use – also protects the EVOO from light. The boxes have the added advantage of preserving the oil’s flavor longer. That’s because the  the bag inside collapses as the oil is dispensed. The oil doesn’t come in contact with oxygen because the bag is flushed with nitrogen.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

Now I’ve discovered what could possibly be a better – or at least healthier – recipe for pecan pie. It involves making the crust from extra virgin olive oil instead of butter.

The recipe comes to us via our friends at Viking Range Corp. and culinary educator Elaine Trigiani.

The Viking experts say the key to making a shortcrust pastry with olive oil is to get the oil to the consistency of butter.

“Measure the oil, pour it into a glass bowl, and place it in the freezer for about 1-1/2 hours, or until it is very thick, but not too hard,” they advise.

I love the idea of substituting extra virgin olive oil in place of butter for health reasons. In addition, the flavor of EVOO adds a new flavor dimension. Olive oil expert Fran Gage says a delicate extra virgin olive oil such as Arbequina is a good one for baking.

You can check out our selection of dishes for the Thanksgiving holiday. They all use extra virgin olive oil.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

Years later, when my own son was in elementary school, we threw an annual pumpkin carving party at our house for Halloween. It was a blast. Families would bring their kids and pumpkins. We’d  head to the garage and carve the pumpkins in our own creative ways.

Past memories and the present come together in the following dish perfectly suited for this time of year: sautéed pumpkin cubes with cannellini beans and Olio Nuovo.  The recipe comes to us courtesy of olive oil expert Fran Gage.

“This autumn dish celebrates pumpkins and fresh new olive oil on a base of cannellini beans,” she writes in her book, The New American Olive Oil (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2009). Gage served the dish as a starter for a multiple-course pumpkin dinner.

Pumpkins, of course, are everywhere in late October. And next month we’ll begin shipping our Olio Nuovo, the freshest extra virgin olive oil we produce.

Gage drizzles a few tablespoons of Olio Nuovo over the sautéed pumpkin cubes and beans before serving. (You can check out her other suggestions for pairing Olio Nuovo with food.)

Gage used a squat French heirloom pumpkin called rouge vif d’etampes when she prepared the sautéed pumpkin for the pumpkin dinner. That particular variety features a deep orange skin and flash. A worthy substitute, she added, would be sugar pumpkins or butternut squash.

Good eating and trick or treat.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

Photo courtesy of Jeff Alexander and DHC © Alexander Imaging

We expect to begin shipping Olio Nuovo next month. I bring it up because I’m thinking about how to pair food with our robust extra virgin olive oils, namely Olio Nuovo and Arbosana EVOO.  (Click on these links if you want to read about delicate extra virgin olive oils, such as Arbequina, and medium oils.)

The guidelines below come from a talk I attended at the University of California, Davis, Olive Center. Olive oil expert Fran Gage led the discussion.

Robust oils deliver the highest pungency and bitterness. They also provide the highest level of polyphenols – the chemical substances found in plants that may reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer. According to Gage, robust oils also last longer than delicate or medium oils.

Here are Gage’s guidelines for pairing food with robust oils:

• Brushed atop bruschetta
• In Spanish romesco sauce
• With soups in general, as an ingredient and/or drizzled on top
• In the seafood medley paella
• With garlic mashed potatoes
• Drizzled on top of a grilled and sliced rib eye steak
• In biscotti, such as those pictured here
• In olive oil ice cream. Here, too, the guidelines are flexible. Famed pastry chef and author David Lebovitz suggests a delicate Arbequina EVOO in his excellent olive oil ice cream.
• For all things chocolate – although chocolate is actually a special case, according to Gage. It pairs well with all types of olive oils. (Is there anything not to like about chocolate?)

One final note: In her book, The New American Olive Oil (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2009), Gage dishes up a delicious spaghetti made from Olio Nuovo. The noodles are simply tossed with peeled and sliced garlic, a pinch or two of red chile flakes, Olio Nuovo and some fleur de sel.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

The guidelines below come from a presentation given by olive oil aficionado Fran Gage. I heard the talk during a recent conference at the University of California, Davis, Olive Center.

I’ve already written up Gage’s guidelines for “delicate” extra virgin olive oils, such as our Arbequina.

Medium-style EVOO, according to Gage, has a pleasant bitterness and pungency. These oils also “tend to be very versatile,” she writes in her terrific book, The New American Olive Oil (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2009). “The best of these olive oils have characteristics of both delicate and robust oils.”

Some examples of medium-style oils: Those made from French olive varietals such as Aglandau and Bouteillon, or the Spanish varietal Hojiblanca, according to Gage.

Gage noted her pairing suggestions aren’t hard-and-fast rules and other styles of olive oil can be substituted successfully. That said, here are her suggestions for foods that pair well with medium oils:

• Basil pesto which includes garlic
• Red wine vinaigrette
• Bitter greens
• Corn salad
• Spicy dishes, such as the curry-flavored mayonnaise featured in Gage’s book
• Fish dishes which are spicy (Gage calls for a medium oil in her escabeche recipe)
• Sautéed or slow-roasted meat dishes such as lamb shanks

I’ll wrap up soon with a look at robust EVOO.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

Gage walked us through matching various foods with three different styles of EVOO:

1. Delicate oils, which have a slight bitterness and fruitiness. Most of the oils California Olive Ranch produces fall into this category.
2. Medium oils, which offer a pleasant bitterness and pungency
3. Robust oils, which deliver the highest pungency and bitterness. These oils, which include our Olio Nuovo, also deliver the highest level of polyphenols – the chemical substances found in plants that may reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer.

Gage went out of her way to say these aren’t hard-and-fast rules. They’re excellent guidelines, however.

To start, here are some guidelines for using delicate oils such as our Arbequina varietal:

• As substitutes for butter. (The conversion is always replacing four parts butter with three parts EVOO – so four Tablespoons of butter becomes 3 Tablespoons EVOO.)
• For all-purpose mayonnaise and mashed potatoes
• With tender salad greens
• Drizzled over meats to bring out the sweetness of the meat
• With dishes that use blue cheese
• For “strong” pestos such as one made from wild arugula
• With tomatoes that aren’t quite ripe
• In dishes with strong tastes and components, such as smoked fish/salted cod
• As an ingredient when making pizza dough
• When baking cakes and cookies. It’s always a good choice for baking.
• For pound cake.

Next up: pairing foods with medium oils.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

Olive oil expert Fran Gage says as much: “Color isn’t an accurate indicator of quality or taste,” she writes in her book The New American Olive Oil (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2009).

That’s why professional olive oil tasters use a special blue glass – like the one pictured here – when they taste oils.  The blue tint masks the oil’s color, so it won’t influence a taster’s judgment.

But an olive oil’s color will tell you other things. Olives harvested early in the season, for example, are naturally very green and therefore produce a greener oil.

Australian olive oil expert Richard Gawel offers more details:

“Olives picked early in the season tend to make green colored oil as they contain higher levels of chlorophyll,” he writes in a very informative FAQ posted on the Internet.

“Olives harvested late in the season will typically produce more golden colored oils due to a higher level of natural occurring levels of carotene-like substances. Both oils may be technically equivalent in quality but very different in style.”

What’s more, you want to avoid buying extra virgin olive oil in a clear bottle to see its color. Light is among the enemies of EVOO. Together, heat, light and oxygen promote oxidation and can make the oil rancid.

“If you purchase a very green looking oil, make sure it is stored in a dark bottle in a dark place,” advises Gawel. “The stuff that makes it green (chlorophyll) helps start the reaction that makes oils rancid, but only in the presence of light.”

That’s the main reason we choose dark colored glass to bottle our extra virgin olive oils, including our new Everyday California EVOO.  Stay tuned for more information about that new oil.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

“You can deep fry with extra virgin olive oil,” Gage told us. “There is a popular misconception that extra-virgin olive oil cannot be heated to the temperatures needed to deep fry.”

She then related a story about using extra virgin olive oil to make “fabulous” French fries.  The fries were prepared for a lunch celebrating the publication of her book about California’s artisan producers of extra virgin olive oil, The New American Olive Oil (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2009).

After some experimentation, Gage settled on the use of Russet potatoes instead of Yukon Golds. She also opted for a two-stage soak of the potatoes in cold water – the first with the potatoes peeled, the second with them cut into classic fry shape.

The extra virgin olive oil was heated to 380 degrees Fahrenheit. Gage then crossed her fingers.

“Timing was perfect the day of the event. As I was concluding the extra-virgin olive oil tasting the kitchen staff was putting final touches on the dishes,” noted Gage on her Web site. “When everyone was seated, the staff passed hot-from-the fryer fries. They were glorious, with a cleaner taste than any fried potato I have ever had.”

On her web site, Gage offers up more information about deep frying with extra virgin olive oil:

“Certainly 450 degrees Fahrenheit is too hot for extra-virgin olive oil, but at 380 degrees, maybe a bit higher, the oil will not smoke, which indicates a breakdown of its components,” notes Gage.

“The smoke point depends on the initial free fatty acid content of the fat. Refined oils that have been stripped of their fatty acids are what most people use for deep frying. But extra-virgin olive oil has a very low fatty acid component, making it eminently suitable.”

Food scientist Harold McGee, in his classic tome On Food and Cooking (Scribner 2004) notes that the breakdown of the fat during deep frying “can be slowed by using a tall, narrow pan and so reducing the area of contact between fat and atmosphere.”

McGee added this important consideration: “The smoke point of a deep-frying fat is lowered every time it’s used, since some breakdown is inevitable even at moderate temperatures, and trouble-making particles of food are always left behind.”

That said, I think I’m ready for some EVOO French fries now.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch

“This basic idea, frying fish and then marinating it in olive oil and vinegar, is used in many parts of the world where fish is plentiful – the Mediterranean, the coast of Portugal, and in Latin America,” said Gage. “It’s a dish that is best made ahead so the flavors can mingle.”

Gage also noted that because this is essentially a pickled dish, the vinegar needs a medium extra-virgin olive oil for balance. She also cautioned against using sable because it has a softer texture than cod.

Escabeche
8 first-course or 4 main-course servings

2/3 cup (5-1/4 ounces) medium extra virgin olive oil, divided
fine sea salt
1-1/2 pounds fresh cod or halibut filets, about 1/2- to 3/4-inch thick
2 medium onions (about 1 pound), peeled, cut into halves, and thinly sliced
1 large carrot (5 ounces), peeled and cut into thin slices

freshly ground black pepper
3 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
1/2 small chipotle pepper, seeds and ribs removed
1/3 cup (2-2/3 ounces) white wine vinegar

1. Heat ¹/³ cup of the extra virgin olive oil in a medium skillet over high heat until it trembles, becomes aromatic, and a drop of water sputters when it hits the oil. Turn the heat to medium, sprinkle the fish with salt, and sauté it without crowding until it is opaque and flaking, 3 to 5 minutes a side, depending on the thickness of the fish. Cook in batches if necessary. Transfer the cooked fish to a plate and reserve.
2. Either wash the skillet or use another one. Heat the remaining ¹/³ cup extra virgin olive oil over medium heat until it trembles and becomes aromatic. Add the onions and carrot. Sprinkle with salt and a few grindings of pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are translucent and just starting to color, about 10 minutes.
3. Add the garlic, bay leaf, chipotle pepper, and vinegar. Bring to a simmer and cook until the onions are very soft and the carrots tender, about 10 more minutes. Taste for salt and pepper.
4. Pour any liquid that has accumulated under the reserved fish into the pan and bring to a boil.
5. Arrange the fish in one layer in a serving dish deep enough to accommodate the sauce. Pour the hot sauce over the fish.
6. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for up to 4 days, until ready to serve. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Let’s hear your feedback.

Bon appétit,

Claude S. Weiller
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
California Olive Ranch