It is Satsuma time here in Baldwin and Mobile counties! Needless to say when I spotted them and the beautiful lettuces from Craine Creek Farms at the farmer’s market, I could not wait to use them in a recipe. I knew a fresh, tasty salad was in my family’s future. According to Blake Nichols with Sessions Farms, the variety I purchased from him is the LA Early, which as you would suspicion by the name, is an early maturing Satsuma mandarin cultivar.
Green Sweet Crisp Lettuce and Satsuma Salad with Satsuma Poppy Seed Vinaigrette
Ingredients purchased at Farmer’s Market:
1 pound Satsumas
Head of Green Sweet Crisp Lettuce
Honey

Before preparing the vinaigrette and assembling your salad, you will need to cut segments from 2-3 Satsumas and juice the remaining. If you have never cut segments from citrus fruits, there is a great video at http://www.finecooking.com/videos/segment-citrus-fruits-salads-salsas.aspx showing you how. Be sure to select the largest Satsumas for cutting the segments. I know this might be tedious, but it is well worth it. Plus it really helps to improve your knife skills. I found this variety to be very juicy, so I had no problem extracting a cup of juice. Also, by placing the segments in a strainer over a bowl, you will get more juice as they sit to utilize in the vinaigrette if needed.

Satsuma Poppy Seed Vinaigrette
Yield: 3 1/3 cups

1 cup Satsuma juice
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1½ cups canola oil
⅓ cup honey
½ cup white vinegar
4 tbsp. sugar ( optional depending on sweetness of satsumas. Add 1 tbsp at a time to taste)
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
½ teaspoon almond extract

In a small pot, whisk together the juice and cornstarch until smooth. Heat while whisking. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Let cool slightly.
Whisk together the remaining ingredients in a bowl. After the juice has cooled slightly, add it to the bowl and whisk until smooth. Vinaigrette can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a week.

I selected the green sweet crisp lettuce to use as my salad base. It is like a blend of romaine and bibb giving you the best of both. This lettuce is an excellent one to serve especially to those who are picky, but are trying to add more leafy greens to their diet. Since one of my older sons would be in town, I knew it would be the perfect one. It does not take much to prepare this lettuce. Simply twist off the root end. Rinse off the lettuce under cold water. Tear the lettuce into bite size pieces. This lettuce is so tender you do not need a knife. If you have a salad spinner, spin dry the lettuce. If you don’t, simply place a few paper towels on your counter. Spread the lettuce evenly over them. Carefully roll up the paper towels to absorb excess water. The less water there is on the lettuce, the better the vinaigrette will stick to it.

As far as assembling the salad, I prepared side salads by evenly dividing lettuce amongst 4 bowls. By the way, since the only part of the lettuce I couldn’t use was the root, I had plenty of lettuce to make 4 more salads for anther meal from that one head. Next, I added Satsuma segments to each bowl (more to mine!) I happened to have some cinnamon glazed pecans on hand which were a great addition. Lastly, I drizzled a small amount of vinaigrette onto each salad. It did not take much at all. No need to drown your salad and hide the great flavors of the lettuce and Satsumas. I know, not much to it, but you don’t need much when you have great, fresh ingredients. You can easily add a cheese like Feta, add some red onions, use almonds instead of pecans, or make it an entrée salad by adding grilled chicken or steak. Just have fun and enjoy!

Submitted by:
Dede Trotter
Culinary Dreams, Inc.

10/22/2013 

Chef Spotlight:

Dede Trotter, Owner of Culinary Dreams

Heather: I am here today with Certified Culinarian, Dede Trotter, owner of Culinary Dreams.  Tell me, Dede, all about Culinary Dreams, and where you are located?

Dede: Thanks, Heather.  Yes, I am very excited that my dream of opening a Cooking Center is finally happening! Culinary Dreams is located at 2101-D U.S. Highway 98 in Daphne.  It is in the Fountain Square Shopping Center.  Culinary Dreams will offer a variety of Cooking Classes each month for all age groups. I will really focus on encouraging children and teens to learn to cook in a healthy way. For example, for those students heading off to college, I am planning to offer “College Survival Cooking Classes.” Another example of a class perhaps I will offer is “Impress Your Date Cooking Class.”  I want the classes to be fun, informative, and practical.

Heather: Now, Cooking Classes aren’t the only thing that Culinary Dreams is offering, right?

Dede: Oh, no, Heather.  I will be offering Cooking Birthday Parties for kids, Bridal Shower Cooking Parties, Baby Shower Cooking Parties, and something I am really looking forward to is Cooking Camps in the summer for Children and Teens.

Heather:  Will the classes be more instructional where you just lecture, or will they be “hands on” as they say, and everyone has the chance to actually cook?

Dede:  Hands on.  For kids, I have some age-appropriate and size appropriate cooking utensils.  Everyone will get to put on an apron—I’ve got kid’s-sized and adult aprons—and enjoy the class participation.

Heather:  Is there anything else distinctive about Culinary Dreams that we should know about?

Dede:  Well, I will be offering Meal Preparation each week.  I will have a rotating menu of fresh cooked meals that people can call in order and eventually go online and order.  People who place their order by Thursday of one week will be able to pick up their meal during the next week.  I will be using “Dual-Ovenable” pans, so that meals can be refrigerated or frozen, and they can then be reheated in the oven preferably or in the microwave.  I think people will like this flexibility with the pans.  Also, my goal is for the menu to be seasonal, because I want to use the freshest ingredients—that kind of leads me to you…ha.  I am so excited about this Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market because I want people to know we will be getting as many of our vegetables from local growers who are using the best growing practices possible.  Culinary Dreams is very committed to supporting our local farming community!

Heather:  That’s awesome, Dede.  I’m glad that we’ll have the chance to “work together” so to speak.  I was wondering are you going to have any retail items for sale at Culinary Dreams?

Dede:  Yes we will!  They will be things you would not typically find in other area stores.  For instance, the cooking utensils for kids I mentioned earlier will be available for sale.  I will be selling a wonderful pecan oil.  Also, I will be selling some small appliances from Breville. And, for those with gluten allergies, I will be selling gluten-free and even some egg-free bread and cake mixes from two wonderful ladies I got to know this summer who developed these mixes from their own need, since they both have Celiac Disease.  I’ll have other items for sale but this gives you an idea, I think.

Heather:  Very, very good.  How can we get in touch with you?  What is your website?

Dede:  Culinary Dreams’ phone number is 251-621-0026.  The website iswww.culinarydreamsinc.com  The website is being professionally done by some great Baldwin County folks at Bear Face Media and will be fully functional in early November of this year.

Heather:  Thank you, Dede.  We’re looking forward to having you here in Baldwin County and what you’ll be adding to this community!

Dede:  My pleasure!