Polenta-Yesterday and Today and more at chefshop.com/enews EXCLUSIVE SUBSCRIBER 5% OFF CODE polenta  Recipes | Chef's Pantries | Shop for Food & Ingredients | Food Blog Yellow Corn Flour! Made for Polenta and more! Polenta may not be exactly what you think it is. We often think of polenta as yellow corn (meal) that is coarsely ground or large grained and used to make “cakes”, with a firm result. There is a lighter, “straw” colored polenta as well, most often served all’onda, “with wave”, like mashed potatoes. A third “flour” made of buckwheat is used to make polenta as well. History tells us that cereal grains are, in fact, the first “polenta” ingredient. As early as 300 BC, a mixture of cereal grains, such as the three farros (einchorn, emmer, spelt), barley, millet and buckwheat were used to make a porridge (polenta) of farro. Corn probably came to Northern Italy from the east via Turkey and China in the 1400’s, with limited use. It was then imported from the America's to northern Italy in the 1630’s. Corn Polenta gained dominance quickly as it was more flavorful than the cereal grains and it was inexpensive to grow. From the north to the south, polenta is part of the food culture of Italy today. When making polenta with corn or buckwheat, it is stirred with a softwood stick (a wooden spoon) in a copper lined pot. Pour the polenta in a light rain into the boiling water, keeping it all suspended to avoid clumping. This Maranello variety is a short stalk, high yield corn that comes from the north in Gazza, Italy. Gazza is about 100 klicks to the south of Trentino and about 250 klicks to the west of Milano. This small company grows corn and produces corn products, including this bright yellow corn flour coarsely ground, and the Biancoperla (pearl white) corn flour, finely ground. The Italian corn flour dish we know as polenta in fact has many more uses than the basic “porridge”. Polenta is not just a base for which meat or fish is plopped on top, it is an integral ingredient sensation for the bite that it creates. The Silver Spoon has 14 recipes with polenta. Think of it as an ingredient that you have to cook before you use it. Put extra polenta in a pan, chill, cut into “sticks” and bake to make fries. You can use the corn flour to coat your favorite fried food in lieu of or in combination with white wheat flour. This corn flour is great to be used in pancakes, biscuits and your own handmade pasta. Shop Now for a nice Yellow Polenta! * Biancoperla Stone Ground White Corn Polenta Stone ground, white corn polenta, made from the rare, heirloom variety of corn called Biancoperla. In the 1950s, the more productive, hardier hybrid corn varieties replaced the open-pollinated varieties like Biancoperla, which where more difficult to grow, and have lower yields. However, some farmers continued to cultivate the white corn and passed down the seeds from generation to generation. But Biancoperla stone ground polenta is also known for its delicate flavor. While other more high-yielding varieties of corn for polenta came to be cultivated in this and other parts of Italy, a few careful farmers in Veneto region continued to grow this prized corn varietal; Biancoperla, which has tapering, elongated cobs with large, bright, pearly-white kernels. This variety was most widely planted during the second half of the 19th century, and even in 1950 it still covered over 50,000 hectares of land. Shop now for Pearly white Corn Flour * Basic Polenta Recipe It takes time and attention to make it right. It is a recipe that reminds you that food is more than just eating, it is a process that makes you whole, inside and out. Time does not equal difficulty or skill. Make your Polenta right and you will be a hero, a superstar. All it takes is time, a little concentration. I find if you solve the world's problems whilst you stir the results are better. It can take 45 to 60 minutes to make. And it should, as longer is better. Click here for The basic Polenta Recipe! * Red Currants in Syrup It is hard to believe, but this jam has been made the same way since 1344. The story goes that some French Monks in the small village of Bar-Le-Duc, in the Lorraine region of France, had an idea about how to use the delicious red and white currants that grew in the region to make an exquisite jam. The currants have a wonderfully tangy flavor, but they also have many little seeds. So the Monks set out to find a way to remove the seeds, while leaving the current, and all its unique and wonderful flavor in tact. The monks developed a process known as seeding. A seeding specialist delicately holds a single red currant or white currant berry between their thumb and forefinger. The seeder then uses a sharpened goose feather to extract the six to eight pips while leaving the berry and all its pulp and juice in tact. Learning to seed properly requires years of training. This is a process that cannot be replicated by machine - it must be done by hand. The most experienced of seeders can seed as much as nine pounds of the tiny berries in a day. Red Currants in Syrup * Dreamy Creamy Drinking Chocolate! Drinking chocolate can (and should) match your feelings for the end of the day. Rich and loose. Full of vibrancy, mellow or just plain sweet. We like to make our drink from many different sources of chocolate. From a packet mixed in hot water to melting chocolate in heavy cream. From dark to milk chocolate, each has its place in the hot chocolate lovers life. This creamy hot chocolate is perfectly dreamy when the conditions are just right. After a long day on the slopes, in the summer sitting around the campfire or on your deck as you watch the sun drop below the horizon. It's just about right! Shop now for Creamy Dreamy Hot Chocolate! * This oil will change your Life! Katz Meyer Lemon Olive Oil. So limited in supply we will only mention this here. If you know it then get it now. Limit one per person. Shop now for Meyer Lemon Olive oil. Limit one per person! * Organic Emmer - Farro Farro is a grain that's been enjoyed since ancient times. It's high in fiber, protein and nutrients, non-GMO and absolutely delicious - nutty, full-flavored and with an appealingly chewy texture. This one is also organic. Sound too good to be true? It's not - and we couldn't be happier! Read on for serving suggestions, more about this wholegrain farro, and a bit of background on our local Washington State growers. Farro, also known as emmer,* was one of the earliest domesticated crops in the Near East, where it was highly valued as a crop that would do well in poor soil. There are even indications of humans consuming emmer as early as 17,000 B.C.- even before the advent of agriculture! It was grown in Egypt and Mesopotamia and eventually migrated, as many grains did, through the Mediterranean region and Europe. Organic Emmer - a Farro - Shop now! * Castelas Olive Oil Castelas, Provencal for "old castle", is also the name of the olive groves in the Callee des Baux de Provence where Castelas olives are grown and pressed. Castelas, a 111 acre olive grove is located in the Vallee des Baux de Provence Appellation d'Origine Controlee (AOC) area. It's in this magical place - hundred-year-old olive groves, the Chateau des Baux, among the great landscape of the Alpilles hill range -- that Catherine and Jean-Benoit Hugues built their mill. The oil is extracted within 12 hours of harvesting, producing an olive oil of impeccable freshness, expressing the green and fruity character of this exceptional terroir. Castelas has been awarded the gold medal at the Concours General Afticole in Paris for eight years. Shop now for Fabulous French Oil! * Easter is April 1st. Colomba Spring Italian Bread "Doesn't Get Any Better than Colomba" "This is a fabulous panettone and do not pass up the opportunity to purchase this. Thank you ChefShop for making this product available to us." Chris from Viera Time to pre-order your spring panettone! Stop by and have a cup of Chai at the shop! ChefShop Cocoa Powder! Deep chocolate experience "This cocoa takes anything chocolate to a whole new level. The depth and smoothness is beyond any brand I have used, and I have used many. Intense chocolate experience, but not bitter or harsh. Be prepared to be asked for repeat performances!" by Seth Find ChefShop Cocoa Powder here! Store Hours - come visit and taste this weeks flavors! Monday thru Saturday 10AM to 5PM. ChefShop.com 1425 Elliott Ave W Seattle, Wa 98119 206-286-9988 Our parking lot is to the north of the shop next to Champions Party Supply. Easy open parking lot. Click here to see the map. This Week's Recipes Master Emmer Recipe Simple as boiling water. Green Beans with Walnuts & Walnut Oil Recipe Substitutions work with this basic recipe. Though if you want it to be outstanding then it is best to use the best you can afford. Basic Dairy-Free Pancake Recipe Simple adjustments to the recipe have made this fruit based dairy free virtually fool proof. See what you missed in previous Newsletters Pop Your Own Sweet & Savory, Mix It Up with Morocco A Better Corn Nut, Toasted Corn Snack That is Just Right! How Many Miles Does a Bee Fly? ChefShop.com Toll-free: 1-800-596-0885 You've received this email because you have purchased from us or subscribed. 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