Redland Rambles

Hani Khouri says "Cheese!"

Hani Khouri, owner of Redland Mediterranean Organics (and the latest grower to join Redland Organics), makes cheese and ice cream from goat milk. Wait a minute… what’s that… goat milk ice cream? Um, how does it taste? Like really, really good ice cream. And when was the last time that you experienced a flavor like papaya-wild orchid or mango-wild orchid, fruity and sweet with a perfume-y finish. No goat flavors in the ice cream, no worries. How Hani does it is a secret, he says, and I’ve tried to find out.

The ice cream flavors run towards the tropical. There’s jakfruit, mamey, and plain mango, from fruits sourced locally in Redland and subject to availability. For traditionalists there’s vanilla bean, chocolate (to die for), peach, raspberry and strawberry. All flavors are sweetened with agave.

Hani also makes two kinds of cheeses. One is a firm cheese with texture like feta but less salt and no goat-y flavor. It’s

Labneh with olive oil

one of my favorites. I’ve put it in sandwiches and salads, goes great with arugula. Last Saturday I sampled Hani’s latest offering — labneh, a soft cheese with the spreadability of cream cheese, and with the familiar tang of goat (but not too much). Labneh, Hani explained to me, begins as goat milk yoghurt that is drained and salted. No fan of typical goat cheese, I hesitated before sampling the it with olive oil on whole wheat pita — and was pleasantly surprised by its flavor — a mild goat presence, but not too overwhelming — nice!

Also on the Redland Mediterranean Organics menu is hummus, tabouli, falafel and baba ganoush. They’re all super fresh. When I dropped by Hani’s tent last on a rainy Saturday afternoon at the Coconut Grove Organic Farmers Market, he was finely chopping organic mint to stir into the tabouli. (The mint was picked at Bee Heaven Farm just the day before, and so were the scallions.) The invigorating aroma of mint floated into the air and drew people to the tent. “What’s that you’re making,” they asked, and hung around waiting for him to finish.

Stirring mint into fresh tabouli

“So what is local food?” Hani asked as he chopped and stirred. “How far do you go to get locally produced food?” The boundaries of a local food area could be set at 100 miles. Or it could be 400 miles. Hani quoted the Farm Bureau as saying local for Miami is anywhere from Florida. Or it could be 7 hours by truck or plane — now wait a minute, that’s pushing it! But where does local food come from — a warehouse, or the field or orchard? And how does it get to the market — airplane, truck, goat cart or walking? Hani asked again, “How far can local food travel and stay local?” I replied, “Redland Organics CSA sources food from 150 miles or less.” Hani gets his goat milk even closer than that — about 50 feet from his kitchen door to the Nubian goats that he raises. He laughed and said proudly, “I’m a local producer who’s also a chef.” He also sells what he makes, and eats what he sells.

Hungry yet? Find Hani Khouri and goodies from Redland Mediterranean Organics at the Saturday farmer’s market in Coconut Grove on Grand Ave. and Margaret St. (just west of 32 Ave.), or at the new greenmarket by The Alamo at the Jackson Memorial complex on Thursdays around lunchtime. Enjoy!