I was in Napa Valley in March enjoying the sunshine and seventy degree temperatures. Yes, I know California needs rain but I was glad for the dry week when I was there. I was in Calistoga at the north end of Napa Valley. Didn't go for the wine so pretty much hung out in Calistoga--a town of about 5,000 people and a main street one street wide and two blocks long. Calistoga is an area of natural mineral water. It was developed in the mid 1800's as a tourist spot for people who visited "to take the waters". The town was named by one of the founding fathers, Sam Brannan who story has it loved his alcoholic beverages. In an attempt to imitate the then-fashionable Saratoga Springs, NY, he declared "the Sarafornia of Calistoga!" And the name of Calistoga stuck!
Ten miles away from Calistoga in St. Helena is the west campus of the Culinary Institute of America, American's premier professional cooking school. They offer tours of the school and buildings and cooking demonstrations for the general public. The CIA purchased the earthquake-damaged Christian Brothers Monastery and distillery in 1994. They repaired and converted the massive stone building into a professional cooking school. While we could not enter the actual professional kitchen "classroom", we could look. Imagine--15,000 square feet of commercial kitchens and bakery/pastry kitchens! http://www.ciachef.edu/california/
I did take a one-hour cooking demonstration and tasting that was great fun. It was taught by one of the instructors in a fabulous teaching kitchen--imagine the kitchens you see on the Food channel with lecture hall-style seating for observing! The dish prepared was a Moroccan chickpea vegetarian dish. It was served over cous cous and paired with pita bread and a rose' wine.
I had recently tried a similar dish at home so came away with a few ideas about improvements. Below is a recipe with ideas from several sources.
Indian Spiced Chickpeas and Tomatoes
Serves 4 as a side dish, 2 as an entrée
1 T olive oil
1 tsp cumin, ground
1 tsp turmeric, ground
2 tsp curry powder
1 T fresh ginger root, grated
1 medium onion, chopped
1 14oz can diced canned tomatoes
2 T raisins
2 cups cooked or 1 14 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup fresh cilantro or Italian parsley
Heat a large skillet on medium heat and add the olive oil. Add cumin, turmeric and curry powder and stir for about 30 seconds. Add the ginger and onions and stir gently to coat. Cook, stirring frequently, 6 minutes or until the onion softens. Add tomatoes and cook 2 minutes. Add chickpeas, salt, pepper and water. Stir to combine, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Garnish with cilantro or parsley and serve. As an entree' this can be served over rice or cous cous.
I have added cooked chicken or chopped toasted cashews to boost the protein. This dish benefits from sitting overnight as the flavors mingle and become more intense. Refrigerate and reheat.
You can use any curry power you like. Some are spicy-hot while others are mild in heat. I used the vindaloo curry powder available at the Market Spice Shop in Seattle's Pike Place Market. This is a medium hot curry blend. They have many others and their quality is superb.
http://www.marketspice.com/store/category/indian
Nutritional information: (without chicken or cashews)
Calories 170
Protein 5 grms
Fat 14 grms
Carbohydrate 9 grms
