Pappa al Pomodoro

If you haven't had a chance to attend one of our cooking classes yet, you may not know that in addition to being a great chef, Rachel is also quite the dynamic teacher. Check her out at our most recent class, Italian Al Fresco, preparing this delicious tomato soup. Rachel first had it in a small restaurant beneath a little hotel in Sienna, and it blew her mind! It is intensely flavored, yet so incredibly simple; and a great way to use all your garden-grown tomatoes and basil.


Serves 8

About 1 1/2 pounds ripe cherry tomatoes
4 cloves garlic, finely sliced
A large bunches of basil, picked and stems finely chopped - separated
Sea salt & freshly ground pepper
38 oz good quality plum tomatoes
About 1 pounds good quality stale bread
The best extra virgin olive oil you can find (we’re using Ojai Olive Oil)
8 eggs

1. Prick the cherry tomatoes and toss them with two of the sliced clove of garlic and a quarter of the basil leaves. Drizzle with EVOO, sprinkle with salt and pepper, put them in a roasting pan, and cook at 3500F for about 15-20 minutes.

2. Heat a couple table spoons of oil in a pot, and add the remaining garlic and the basil stems. Stir gently and fry for a moment until softened. Add the canned tomatoes, then fill the cans with water and add that. Break the tomatoes up with a spoon, bring to a boil, and simmer for 15 minutes.

3. Tear the bread up into thumb sized pieces, and add them to the pan. Mix well and season to taste. Tear the basil leaves and let the soup sit over low heat for about 10-15 minutes. By this time, the roasted tomatoes will be done. Pour the tomatoes and all the juice from the pan into the soup. Add about 6 tablespoons of olive oil, and stir.

4. In another skillet, heat a little more olive oil over medium heat. Add the eggs, cooking 3 or 4 at a time, until they are just over easy – the whites will be set, and the yolk should be runny. Cook the rest of the eggs while you plate the soup. Place an egg in each bowl, and ladle a bit of soup on top. Garnish with basil and another drizzle of olive oil. Repeat with the remaining eggs, and serve.

We're helping bring the farm to the table

Main Course is taking part in the Ojai Farm to Table Tour from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 17th. Participants get to visit three local farms and indulge in a a local-foods lunch prepared by six area chefs, including our very own Rachel Main!

Here's a sneak peek at what some of the chefs are mixing up:

• Rachel Main: salad of beets, citrus and walnuts.
• Carrie Clough: carrot and mixed bean salad with dill, toasted almonds and crispy shallots.
• Susan Coulter: curried vegetables with forbidden rice.
• Tim Kilcoyne: thai beef salad.
• Caspar Poyck: quinoa polenta pot pie.
• Jeri Oshima: citrus olive oil cake

The event is a fundraiser in conjunction with the Ojai Music Festival. Guests will visit Earthtrine Farm, Ojai Olive Oil and Friend’s Ranch. The deadline to purchase tickets for the event is April 10. Tickets for the tour and lunch are $60 per person. Call 646-2094, ext. 100.

Rachel talks about what makes our product different

Well, our commitment to keeping our food clean is a huge one. Our food is local; I’ve got it coming from an organic farm in Oxnard, an organic rancher in Arroyo Grande, a local lettuce farmer in Carpinteria, and an organic tomato farmer in Santa Paula. We have healthy, free range chickens instead of unhealthy birds that never got to walk around before they were force fed and slaughtered.

We have two owners – Robert and I – who not only are insistent on making a profitable business (and thus create jobs) out of a good, humane idea – to serve healthy food that actually tastes fabulous – but the vision itself is amazing. Think about it: you are what you eat. We take care to make our food delicious, and we are mindful of who raised it and how it was raised. Not only that, we care how it was stored, processed, and how it is treated once it is in our care. Yes, our care.

So, we care. That is the difference.

I was doing some ordering, and I thought I’d share some food costs with you real quick:

Ground Beef:

Feed Lot Corn Fed (cows are allergic to corn. That is why they get fat….and why we get fat when eating them) goes for $2.63 per pound

Our local organic ground beef $4.39

Chicken Breasts:

Tyson cage-raised Chicken Breasts $2.06 per pound

Petaluma Free Range Chicken Breasts $4.49 per pound

So, when people ask what makes our products different, why our food tastes so good, or why I am absolutely insistent that we treat our food with reverence, respect, and integrity, this is why: Everyone else did on it’s way to us. We are creating what our customers will purchase and use to fuel and heal and support their bodies, and it is our hard-earned and well-invested money that is purchasing these amazing products. It’s a business based on HEALTH CARE.

And when you really think about it, it is no more expensive " that burger " you can buy at McDonnalds or Hamburger Habit or In n Out…..you’re going to pay for it one way or another – one day or another.

Enjoy, Rachel