“If I ever get depressed,” says Cindy Callahan, “I go sit on a stump and watch my lambs.”
Cindy, a former attorney, sits in the dining room of her ranch house in Valley Ford, Sonoma County. Her son Brett pops into the open kitchen, retrieves something from the fridge, says, “Hi,” and departs. Mainstream middle-class living, it would seem, except for the fact that Cindy is cradling a lamb, feeding it milk out of a large beer bottle. It’s lambing season and winter rains have been pounding the entire coast of California. Some lambs are too weak to nurse outdoors, so Cindy has brought them inside till the weather improves and the babies are stronger.
“Sheep are not very smart, they just eat and tend their young,” Cindy says. “But there’s something very calming about them.”
When Cindy and her late husband left San Francisco for the bucolic hills of Sonoma, Cindy bought some sheep, more or less as a hobby. Soon she had more lamb than the family could use. So she called Chez Panisse, the Berkeley restaurant famous for supporting small farmers, and they began to buy lamb. Cindy read about certain cultures that raised baby lamb and she began selling these to California restaurants. But it wasn’t until a friend visiting the farm raved about the splendors of sheep’s milk yogurt that the Callahans began to wonder if they didn’t have something even more valuable and creatively satisfying than lamb raised for its meat. They had as a by-product gallons and gallons of sheep’s milk.
When they learned that one of their favorite cheeses, Roquefort, was made from sheep’s milk, they knew they had to start making cheese. After a trip to Italy in 1992 to learn about cheese making, they began fashioning what they hoped would be the main product of Bellwether Farm. Son Brett tends the sheep, son Liam makes the cheese.
Cindy says that they make cheese for the same reason vintners make wine. “Why do people make wine?” she says. “There’s the science of it, but above that, there’s the creativity of it.” The Callahans’ cheese is handmade and varies slightly from season to season. In the summer, the milk tends to be higher in protein; in winter, higher in fat. These factors influence the resulting cheese.
They produce from six hundred to eight hundred pounds of cheese a week from the milk from their sheep and from Jersey cows. They make three different cheeses from each milk, and they make ricotta from the whey, or liquids, left over from each milk.
“I like sheep’s milk cheeses because the flavors are so complex,” says Cindy.
In 1986, Cindy had bought her lambs mainly to keep the grass short. Within a decade, the Callahans had built the first sheep dairy in the state and they now have a thriving business in handmade cheeses.—M.R.
ARUGULA COULIS
1 cup kosher salt
1½ cups (6 ounces) arugula
1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
ROASTED PEPPERS
¼ cup julienned (¼ inch thick) roasted red peppers
¼ cup julienned (¼ inch thick) roasted yellow peppers
1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons minced chives
Kosher salt
One 4- to 6-ounce wedge pecorino Toscano or other pecorino, rind removed
½ cup baby arugula
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Balsamic Glaze, in a squeeze bottle
6 ccroutons
We serve this Italian-style sheep’s milk cheese in an Italian style: on crostini with roasted bell peppers and a purée of arugula. We use the Callahans’ artisan cheese, but you could use any pecorino.
FOR THE ARUGULA COULIS: Bring a gallon of water to a boil in a large pot, then add the salt and bring to a rolling boil. (The water needs to be boiling rapidly to maintain the boil once the arugula is added.) Add the arugula and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, until the stems are tender. Drain the arugula and place in an ice-water bath to chill.
Remove the arugula from the water and squeeze out the excess water. Place the arugula in a blender with just enough water to allow it to blend and blend to a purée. Spread the purée on a tamis and allow to sit for 5 minutes to drain any excess liquid. Discard the liquid and pass the purée through the tamis and then return it to the blender. Add the olive oil and blend well. Remove to a container. Refrigerate until you are ready to use it, or for up to a few hours.
FOR THE ROASTED PEPPERS: An hour before serving, toss the peppers together in a small bowl with the oil, vinegar, chives, and salt to taste. Set aside.
Using a mandoline, cut the pecorino into thin triangular slices; you will need a total of 30 slices. Fan the slices in 6 groups of 5 slices each.
TO COMPLETE: Toss the baby arugula with olive oil and salt to taste.
Squeeze a ring of balsamic glaze dots onto the center of each plate: To do so, squeeze the bottle until a bead of glaze starts to come out the top. Hold the bottle at about a 75-degree angle, with the tip of the bottle touching the plate, and, maintaining a slight pressure on the bottle, drag the tip around the plate to form the dotted line. (This takes a little practice; just adjust the angle of the bottle and the pressure exerted until you achieve the desired effect.)
Place a spoonful of arugula coulis in the center of each ring of glaze. Top each with a portion of the roasted peppers, a crouton, and a fan of cheese. Garnish each fan of cheese with a stack of baby arugula salad.
makes 6 servings
Bell Peppers
Olive Oil
I’m amazed that I can dislike a vegetable in its raw form yet manipulate it into something I love. I don’t like raw peppers, but this simple preparation is one of my very favorites. The peppers keep for weeks in the refrigerator.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Cut the peppers lengthwise in half. Trim and discard the white ribs and seeds. Brush the peppers with olive oil and place cut side down on the baking sheet. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they have softened and the skin has loosened from the flesh. Place in a covered container for several minutes to steam and loosen the skin further. When the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel off the skin and discard any remaining seeds or ribs.
Parmigiano—Reggiano Custards with Romaine Lettuce, Anchovy Dressing, and Parmesan Crisps
ANCHOVY DRESSING makes 2 cups
1½ tablespoons chopped garlic
1½ tablespoons chopped shallots
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 salt-packed anchovy fillets, deboned, soaked in milk to cover for 30 minutes, drained, and patted dry
1 large egg yolk
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup canola oil
Freshly ground white pepper
CUSTARDS
⅔ cup heavy cream
⅔ cup milk
3½ ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, cut into ½-inch pieces
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper
3 cups chiffonade, or long narrow strips, romaine lettuce (cut from the “hearts,” or small inner leaves)
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Freshly ground black pepper
12 Croutons (from a baguette), about ¼ inch thick
Twelve 1-inch (or the diameter of the molds) Parmesan Crisps
Parmigiano-Reggiano shavings for garnish (made with a vegetable peeler)
Balsamic Glaze, in a squeeze bottle
I frequently return to classical preparations and look for a way to reinterpret them, using the standard elements but surprising you with them. Here those elements include a Parmesan custard set on croutons, a chiffonade of romaine, and a Parmesan crisp, with a classic Caesar dressing.
FOR THE ANCHOVY DRESSING: Pureé the garlic, shallots, vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, and anchovies in a blender until smooth. Transfer to a mixer with the paddle attachment and beat in the egg yolk. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the oils. Season with white pepper. Cover and refrigerate. There will be more dressing than you need for this recipe, but the extra can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
FOR THE CUSTARDS: Place the cream, milk, and Parmigiano-Reggiano in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let the flavors infuse for 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 250°F.
Whisk the eggs and yolk together in a medium bowl. Reheat the cream mixture until it is hot. While whisking, gradually strain the cream and milk onto the eggs to temper them. Season with salt and white pepper.
Ladle 2 tablespoons of the custard mixture into each of twelve 1- to 2-ounce aluminum foil baking molds, timbale molds, or other small molds. Place the molds in a roasting pan and add hot water to come about halfway up the sides of the molds. If you are using foil cups and they float, place a baking sheet or pan over them to hold them down. Cover the roasting pan with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until the custards are just set; the edges should look set, but the very centers may not be. Remove the molds from the water bath and refrigerate the custards for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.
TO COMPLETE: Toss the romaine with the Parmigiano-Reggiano and just enough dressing to lightly coat the lettuce. Season with pepper to taste.
Place a spoonful of dressing on each plate. Run a small paring knife around the edge of each custard, dip the molds briefly into hot water, and unmold each custard onto a crouton. Center one crouton in each pool of dressing. Lay a Parmesan crisp over each custard and top with a stack of the salad. Place shavings of cheese over the romaine and garnish each plate with a ring or a small pool of the balsamic glaze.
pictured here makes 12 servings
Perail de brebis is a wonderful soft French sheep’s milk cheese with a thick-as-honey interior. It’s ripened in small disks that are a perfect size for two people.
PEAR PURÉE
6 allspice berries
15 black peppercorns
1¼ cups water
3 tablespoons sugar
2⅔ cups (6 ounces) dried pear halves, cut into ¼-inch dice
PEAR RELISH
¾ cup peeled and diced (1/16 inch) ripe French Butter, Bosc, or other firm pears
3 tablespoons diced (1/16 inch) red onion
1½ tablespoons peeled and diced (1/16 inch) red bell pepper
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
ROQUEFORT MOUSSE
4 ounces Roquefort
¾ cup milk
1 gelatin sheet, soaked in cold water to soften
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
DACQUOISE
1¼ cups (4 ounces) walnuts
½ cup (2 ounces) all-purpose flour
8 tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted butter, well softened
2 large egg whites
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Roquefort, pears, and walnuts—I take this traditional combination, tastes we know go well together, and manipulate it into something elegant and unusual, without losing that reference point. For the finished dish, a Roquefort mousse, a purée of dried pears, and a walnut cookie, or dacquoise, are served like an English trifle. This is best presented in small crystal bowls or glasses with about a four-ounce capacity.
FOR THE PEAR PURÉE: Wrap the allspice berries and peppercorns in a piece of cheesecloth and tie the bundle with a piece of string to form a sachet. Combine the water, sugar, and sachet in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add the diced pears, cover with a parchment lid, and continue to simmer gently for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the pears are plump and very soft; there will be some liquid remaining.
Remove the sachet and purée the pears with the remaining cooking liquid in a blender until very smooth. Transfer the purée to a container (there will be 1 to 1½ cups of puree) and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. The pear purée will keep for a few weeks.
FOR THE PEAR RELISH: Combine all the relish ingredients in a saucepan and cook over very low heat for 20 to 30 minutes, or until all the liquid has evaporated and the ingredients are tender. You should have about ⅓ cup of relish. Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
FOR THE ROQUEFORT MOUSSE: Crumble the Roquefort cheese into a bowl and let sit at room temperature until the pieces have softened.
Heat the milk in a saucepan until it is hot to the touch and pour it over the cheese. Allow the cheese and milk to sit for a few minutes, then scrape into a blender and blend for about 10 seconds to combine. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and rewarm it slightly, just so it’s hot enough to melt the gelatin. Squeeze excess water from the gelatin and whisk it into the warm liquid to dissolve. Strain through a chinois into a bowl and place in the refrigerator to cool.
Using a whisk, whip the cream in a metal bowl until it just begins to form soft peaks; it should still be pourable. Fold the cream into the Roquefort mixture, one third at a time. You should have about 1½ cups of mousse.
TO COMPLETE: Spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of pear purée into the bottom of each serving dish or glass. (The amount you use is a matter of taste as well as the size and shape of your dishes. Wide bowls will need more purée than narrower glasses.) Smooth the top of the purée and top each with about ¼ cup of the Roquefort mousse. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours to set, or for up to a day.
FOR THE DACQUOISE: Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line a 12- by 16-inch baking sheet with a Silpat (see Sources).
Place the walnuts and flour in the thoroughly dry bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse the mixture carefully until the nuts are finely ground and powdery in texture; do not overprocess, or the nuts may become oily and pasty.
Whisk the butter in a bowl until it resembles mayonnaise in consistency. Fold the nut and flour mixture into the butter. It will be somewhat dry at first but will come together.
In a second bowl, whisk the egg whites until foamy. Add the salt and continue to whisk until the egg whites are blended but not yet holding peaks. Fold half the whites into the nut mixture to combine, then fold in the rest (it will resemble muffin batter).
Use an offset spatula to spread the dacquoise batter in a layer 1/16 to ⅛ inch thick over the Silpat liner. The dacquoise must be marked into circles the same size as the top of the trifles. Measure the diameter of the top of the finished trifles and use a cutter of the same size to mark circles in the dacquoise. Mark several more than needed; you may need extras because of their fragile nature.
Place the pan in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes, reversing the pan after 10 minutes to ensure even cooking. The finished dacquoises are medium brown and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and, while they are still hot, place the cutter on the premarked circles and rotate it back and forth between your fingers to recut the disks. Let them cool, then store the dacquoises in an airtight container.
Just before serving, set a dacquoise over each trifle and garnish with a quenelle, or small oval scoop, of the pear relish.
pictured here makes 6 servings
Three ⅛-inch-thick slices bacon, frozen and cut into ⅛-inch cubes
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1½ tablespoons sherry vinegar
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Six 1¾-inch rounds Brioche, cut ⅔-inch thick
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) unsalted butter
6 quail eggs
¾ cup frisée lettuce
1 teaspoon minced chives
12 small wedges Perail de Brebis or other soft sheep’s milk cheese
Freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Place the pieces of bacon in a small skillet over low heat and cook until browned. Remove the bacon to drain on paper towels.
Whisk the mustard and vinegar together in a small bowl. Stir in the olive oil with a spoon. The dressing should be “broken” in appearance rather than emulsified.
Use a 1-inch round cutter to make a hole in the center of each bread round. Melt the butter in a large nonstick ovenproof skillet over medium heat. When the butter is frothy, add the rounds of brioche. When the bottoms are golden brown, remove the pan from the burner, flip the brioche rounds over, and break a quail egg into each hole. Return the skillet to the burner and cook until the bottoms are golden brown. If the egg whites still look uncooked, place the skillet in the oven for 30 seconds or so, just to set the whites.
TO COMPLETE: Toss the frisée with the chives and just enough dressing to lightly coat the greens. Place a small mound of frisée on each plate and sprinkle with the bacon. Arrange 2 wedges of cheese alongside each pile of greens. Set a warm brioche round next to the lettuce and cheese; sprinkle black pepper over the plate.
picturedhere makes 6 servings
Grilled Farmhouse Cheddar, Early Girl Tomato Consommé, and Butter-Fried Chips
TOMATO CONSOMMÉ
18 to 24 very ripe Early Girl tomatoes (about 6 pounds) (or the most flavorful variety available), cored and halved
1 dried chipotle pepper, soaked in hot water for about 30 minutes to soften, and drained
6 each red, yellow, and green cherry tomatoes, such as Sweet 100, Golden Jubilee, and Green Grape
Salt to taste
POTATO CHIPS
1½ cups Clarified Butter
1½ cups canola oil
2 each very small purple, Peruvian baby red-skinned and very small Yukon Gold potatoes
Kosher salt
GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH
3 ounces white Cheddar cheese, cut into paper-thin slices
12 crustless 2-inch squares Brioche (recipe follows), ¼ inch thick
¼ cup Clarified Butter, melted
Grilled cheese—Kraft Singles and Wonder Bread—taken to another level with slices of brioche and a beautiful farmhouse Cheddar. Serve it with tomato soup just as Mom did when you were a kid—a dish straight out of an American childhood, refined into haute cuisine. Note that the tomatoes for the consommé need to drain overnight.
FOR THE TOMATO CONSOMMÉ: Place the halved tomatoes in a food processor with the chipotle pepper and pulse until the tomatoes are finely chopped. Line a bowl with a clean, damp cotton dish towel or a triple layer of cheesecloth. Pour the chopped tomatoes and pepper into the towel. Bring up the edges of the towel around the tomatoes and tie with a piece of string to form a pouch. Discard the liquid in the bowl. Hang the bag of tomatoes from a rack in the refrigerator, suspended over the bowl, and let drain overnight. (Or hang it from a wooden spoon set over a deep container.)
The next day, there should be about 2 cups of tomato water, or consommé. Strain it and chill for at least 1 hour, or up to 1 day.
Blanch the cherry tomatoes in lightly salted water for a few seconds to loosen the skin. Remove the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and plunge them into an ice water bath to cool. Remove the tomatoes and peel them with a small paring knife. These can be held at room temperature for a few hours before serving.
FOR THE POTATO CHIPS: Heat the clarified butter and oil in a small deep saucepan to 300°F. Meanwhile, cut the unpeeled potatoes on a mandoline into paper-thin slices. Deep-fry them in batches, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they are crisp and the oil around the chips is no longer bubbling. (The moisture in the potatoes causes the bubbles and once they stop, the chips will be crisp.) Transfer to paper towels to drain.
TO COMPLETE: For the grilled cheese sandwich, divide the cheese evenly among six pieces of the brioche. Top with the remaining slices of bread to form sandwiches. Brush each sandwich on both sides with the clarified butter.
Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook the sandwiches, turning once, until the brioche is golden brown and the cheese has melted. Cut each sandwich in half on the diagonal to form two triangles.
Place 1 of each color cherry tomato in each of six demitasse cups. Season the consommé with salt and fill the cups with the chilled tomato consommé. Place each cup on a serving dish and arrange a grilled cheese sandwich and a portion of the potato chips alongside. Sprinkle the chips with kosher salt.
pictured here makes 6 servings
⅓ cup very warm water (110° to 115°F)
One ¼-ounce package active dry yeast (not quick-rising)
2⅓ cups (10½ ounces) cake flour
2 cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour
⅓ cup sugar
2½ teaspoons fine sea salt
6 large eggs, at room temperature
20 tablespoons (10 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 1-inch cubes, plus butter for the pans
Chef Jean-Louis Palladin makes some of the best brioche I’ve ever had; this is his recipe, and it’s the one we use at the restaurant. Start this a day before you want to make it, as it has to rest overnight. Combine the water and yeast in a small bowl. Let set for 10 minutes, then stir until the yeast is completely dissolved. Set aside.
Sift together the flours, sugar, and salt into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the dough hook. Add the eggs and beat for 1 minute at low speed, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula as needed. Slowly add the dissolved yeast and continue beating at low speed for 5 minutes. Stop the machine, scrape any dough off the dough hook, and beat for another 5 minutes. Add the butter cubes, about one quarter of them at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each addition. Once all the butter has been added, beat for 10 to 15 minutes more.
Place the dough in a large floured mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place until doubled in size, about 3 hours.
Turn the dough out onto a generously floured work surface and gently work the air bubbles out by folding the dough over several times while lightly pressing down on it. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
Generously butter two 8½- by 4½- by 3-inch loaf pans. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface. With floured hands, divide the dough in half and shape it into two rectangles to fit the loaf pans. Place the dough in the pans and let the dough rise uncovered in a warm place until it is about ½ inch above the top of the pans, about 3 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the brioche until it is well browned on top and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately turn the brioche out onto a wire rack.
If using immediately, let the breads cool for 10 minutes, then slice and serve. If serving within a few hours, promptly wrap the hot bread in aluminum foil and store at room temperature until ready to use. If freezing, immediately wrap the hot bread in foil and promptly freeze; when ready to use, reheat (without thawing, and still wrapped in foil) in a 250°F. oven until heated through, 20 to 25 minutes. The bread can be kept frozen for up to 1 month.
If using the brioche for croutons, let the loaf sit at room temperature, uncovered, to dry for a day.
makes 2 loaves
