Feast

I love the new pan Nick got me for Xmas!

2012-01-06T18:28:00.001-08:00

Moo Shu

2011-12-13T21:39:00.001-08:00

I got a new cast iron wok for my birthday from my mom. Coincidentally, this is my third week on Weight Watchers. Turns out stir frys make healthy eating delicious!

I made Moo Shu, using ground turkey. The recipe can be found at http://m.myrecipes.com/details/searchR.rbml?id=10000000223157.xml&bcat=search&cat=Search%20Result&fl=recipe/moo-shu-pork-with-mandarin-pancakes-10000000223157/

I think I'm gonna live this wok!

Caramel Pecan Tarts

2011-11-13T15:28:00.000-08:00

This last summer we went on an incredible sailing trip up in the San Juan Islands. Half way through the trip we harbored in Victoria, and while we were there we had a luxurious high tea at the Empress Hotel. Now that several months have gone by we thought it would be a great idea to get our fellow sailors together for high tea and a viewing of our San Juan photos.

For the tea Peter made these incredible tarts. They were so good I thought you all might enjoy them. In fact, I think I’ll be swapping these in the place of pecan pie at this year’s Thanksgiving.

Caramel Pecan Tartlets

Pastry
2 yolks
2 tablespoons cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter, cold

Caramel
1 cup sugar
⅓ cup water
½ cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
½ teaspoon vanilla

Toasted whole pecans

For the pastry, whisk together yolks, cream and vanilla and set aside. Combine the flour, sugar, and salt on low speed in a Kitchen Aid with a paddle attachment. When the mixture becomes sandy, add the wet ingredients. Mix just until the dough comes together. Chill.

Roll the cold dough out and cut circles to fit pastry tins. Once the tins are lined with dough place them on a sheet pan and place them in the freezer to chill. Pre-heat the oven to 350. When you are ready bake the tart shells at 350 for 5-7 minutes or until the edges just start to brown.

Caramel can be kind of tricky. Luckily all of the ingredients are cheap, so give it a try and if it doesn’t turn out, do it again. I like to get my caramel as dark as I can without it tasting burnt. It can take a couple of tries to get it just right, so do be scared and go for it.

Before you get started get all of your equipment and ingredients in place. Once you’ve started cooking the sugar you don’t have time to go looking for things. Over medium high heat combine the sugar and water in a heavy bottomed sauce pan. The sugar will melt and begin to boil. After a few minutes the boiling sugar will start to turn a light amber color. You want to continue cooking the sugar until the sugar turns a medium-to –dark amber color and you smell little whiffs of caramel smoke. If you go too far the caramel will taste burnt. When the sugar is a medium-to-dark amber add the cream. Don’t be scared, but it will boil up violently. Have no fear; it will stop after a couple of seconds. Remove the caramel from the heat, stir in the butter and vanilla.

Toast the pecans at 350 until fragrant and beginning to brown.

To assemble, unmold the tart shells. Spoon one tablespoon of caramel and top with toasted pecans. Enjoy…

Roasted Chanterelle Pizza with Sausage and Parmesan Cream

2011-11-02T20:33:00.000-07:00

My friend Dennis texted me yesterday and asked if I wanted any of the chanterelles that he and his partner John picked a the coast. What was I going to say but, "Of Course!"

I emailed Keith and asked him to come over today and cook them. As we traded emails with ideas, nearly instantaneously we emailed each other that we wanted to make a pizza with them. "White sauce and sausage," he said. "Broccoli and cream," I pleaded. This is what came of it:

2 lbs. chanterelles or other wild mushrooms

1 red onion

1 bunch broccoli

1 lb. hot Italian sausage

grated parmesano reggiano

cream

crushed red pepper

coarse salt

2 1lb pizza doughs, homemade our bought but not in a can!

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Clean and tear mushrooms into medium pieces. Cut broccoli crowns into bite -sized pieces. Cut onion into 1/4 inch slices. Coat in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in oven until just browning and no longer steaming, 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, cook sausage in a skillet, breaking into 1/2 inch pieces. Set vegetables and sausage aside.

Increase oven temperature to 550 degrees and put a pizza stone on the bottom third of oven. Roll out dough and put on a pizza peel coated with corn meal. Sprinkle a small coating of parmesano on dough. Arrange half of the toppings on pizza and drizzle pizza with cream. Sprinkle a small handful of parmesano on top and season with salt and crushed red pepper.

Transfer the pizza from the peel to the pizza stone and bake 10 to 12 or until the crust is crispy. Remove to a cutting board and slice after the pizza rests for a couple minutes.

Special thanks to John and Dennis for the generous gift of seasonal mushrooms!

Domino Potatoes

2011-10-22T21:01:00.001-07:00

Mmm...bay leaves plus potatoes and butter, garlic and fleur de sel. Bake at 425 degrees for an hour for crispy, creamy, savory bliss.

The Simplest Pleasure of Summer

2011-09-25T11:29:00.000-07:00

Summer has officially ended and with the turn of the season came the tomato harvest. This year’s harvest was somewhat limited, but the fruit we did get was perfect. Whenever I eat a tomato right out of the garden I always think to myself, why would I ever eat a tomato any other way? Deep natural red, juicy, acidic, and herbaceous.

Tomato Bruschetta

6 slices of good crusty bread
¼ cup olive oil
1 large clove garlic
4 ounces fresh soft goat cheese
2 medium fresh ripe slicing tomatoes
Basil leaves
Salt and pepper

Slice the bread and brush with olive oil on both sides. Toast the bread on both sides under the broiler. Don’t be scared if there are edges that get charred. You can scrape off what is inedible, but the dark toasted bread is great. Rub the toasted bread with the clove of garlic. Spread with goat cheese, and layer with tomato and basil. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

Seared Ahi Flatbread with Tahini Yogurt Dressing

2011-09-15T19:33:00.001-07:00

After returning from our recent sailing trip to the San Juan islands, it was time to reboot the diet. After all, we had 5 meals a day for a week while on the boat (breakfast, elevensies, lunch, cheese plate, and dinner).

Eating healthy food doesn't have to be boring. In fact, it's challenging and exciting to use some new ingredients and flavors to make a "diet" easier to maintain.

Tonight's menu featured these tasty seared ahi flatbread sandwiches. Easy for a weeknight dinner!

1 lb. ahi tuna
cherry tomatoes, halved
pitted kalamata olives, sliced
Italian parsley leaves
sliced roasted red peppers

6 whole wheat flatbreads

Dressing:
juice of 1 lemon
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 cup tahini
1 T honey
1 T olive oil
1 cup low fat plain yogurt
pinch crushed red pepper
salt and pepper

Combine all the dressing ingredients and whisk until incorporated, adding water as necessary to thin the sauce to desired thickness.

Sear the tuna to medium and cut into large dice. Toast the flatbreads, top with tuna, pour a spoonful of sauce, and garnish with the tomatoes, olives, red peppers and finally a few parsley leaves.

Zucchini Pickles

2011-09-11T12:53:00.000-07:00

This week I went back and read one of my favorite cookbooks, The Zuni Café Cookbook by Judy Rodgers. The Zuni Café has exerted a strong influence in the restaurant world since the early nineties. If you look in any chef’s cookbook library you are likely to see this book, dog eared and well worn.

These pickles are especially popular. If you look, you’ll find them adorning some of the best burgers in town. I’ve seen them used at Zefiro, Blue Hour, Castagna, Ripe and others.

Zuni Café Zucchini Pickles

1 pound zucchini
1 small yellow onion
2 tablespoons salt

Brine:
2 cups cider vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoons dry mustard
1 ½ crushed brown mustard seeds
1 teaspoon ground turmeric

Slice the zucchini and onion 1/16th inch thick. Place the Zucchini and onion in a large bowl and toss with salt. Cover them with water and ice cubes and let soak for one hour. After an hour, drain the zucchini and onions and dry them between towels or in a salad spinner.

In a sauce pan combine the vinegar, sugar, mustard, mustard seeds and turmeric. Simmer for three minutes. Once the brine has cooled combine it with the zucchini and onions and let them soak in the brine overnight. The pickles will be crisp and bright chartreuse in color.

Apricot Salsa

2011-08-20T14:24:00.000-07:00

Summer fruit can make particularly great salsas. All through the summer we use peaches, mangos, apricots, berries; really anything we can get our hands on. This salsa is great on fish tacos.
Serves 6

4-5 apricots, peeled and medium diced
½ red onion, medium dice
2 jalapenos, quartered lengthwise and diced small
2 cloves garlic
½ bunch cilantro, finely chopped
Lime juice
Salt and pepper

Combine the diced apricot, onion jalapenos, garlic and cilantro. Add lime, salt and pepper to taste.

Grilled Tuna Tacos with Apricot Salsa

French Fries

2011-08-15T22:02:00.000-07:00

I recently heard Michael Pollan in an interview talk about his food rules. There was one that I really liked. He said, “You can eat as much fast food as you like, as long as you make it yourself.” Because really, how often are you going to make French fries at home? Not often…

Making French fries from scratch can be a tricky process. Most recipes you find call for a two step frying process in order to get that great crispy golden texture that everyone loves. This recipe we saw on America’s Test Kitchen simplifies the process and delivers great crisp fluffy fries. We have dubbed this method “cold fries” because you start with cold oil, but there is nothing cold about the end result.

Even though this recipe simplifies the process, I still only see myself making fries at home a couple of times a year. Enjoy

French Fries (Cold Method)
Serves 3-4

2 ½ pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and cut into ¼ inch batons
6 cups peanut oil
Kosher Salt
1 spring of rosemary

Combine the potatoes and oil in a large Dutch oven. Cook over high heat until the oil has reached a rolling boil. Continue to cook, without stirring, until the potatoes are limp but the exteriors are beginning to firm, about 15 minutes.

Using long tongs or a wooden spoon, stir the potatoes, gently scraping up any that stick and continue to cook until golden and crisp, about 5-10 minutes longer. In the last few minutes as the fries brown add in the rosemary. The rosemary will crisp and can be used to crumble over the fries while seasoning. Using a skimmer transfer the fries to thick paper bag to drain. Season with salt and crushed rosemary. Serve immediately.

Caeser Ceviche

2011-06-27T20:37:00.000-07:00

Ceviche is a great addition to a caeser salad. The tart spicy fish pairs perfectly with the rich garlicky dressing. This salad comes from my favorite restaurant Taqueria Nueve. I miss it dearly.

Mexican Caesar Dressing

1 small clove garlic, chopped
½ small shallot, chopped
2 egg yolks
¼ cup grated cotija
½ small bunch cilantro leaves
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 anchovies
salt and pepper
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
juice of 2 limes
½ cup canola oil

Combine garlic, shallot, egg yolks, cotija, cilantro, mustard, anchovies, vinegar and salt and pepper to taste in a food processor. Process, adding oil in a thin stream until all of the oil is incorporated. Taste for correct seasoning. Toss dressing with two heads of chopped romaine letus. Top with ceviche.
Ceviche

1 lb firm white fish (halibut, rockfish, tilapia, etc.)
1 bell pepper
1 habanero or large jalepeno
½ red onion
½ bunch cilanro, minced
3 roma tomatoes
¼ cup fresh lime juice
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Cut fish into ¼ inch dice. Cut bell pepper, onion into medium dice. Cut off the stem end of each tomato and quarter lengthwise. Cut inside of each quarter out, removing the flesh and seeds, and cut into medium dice. Cut the chili into small dice. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

Baby Cow is Like Buttah: Osso Bucco

2011-06-18T08:45:00.000-07:00

Our friend Terri generously lets us stay at her cabin in the Mount Hood National Forest. It's a beautiful Forest Service cabin by the Zig Zag river. The idyllic setting is perfect for hiking and fishing, so naturally we stay in and eat ourselves silly every time we go. Hey, the forest is just as pretty from the dining room table as it is with wet feet walking along a muddy river bank.

I happened upon some veal shanks a few months ago in the supermarket meat case. I put them in the freezer for the perfect moment. The moment arrived when we were at the cabin for Memorial Day weekend. Rather than heralding the beginning of summer, it rained like hell for 4 days straight. Perfect time for braising.

Now, if you have a problem with veal, let's just agree to not talk about it. I eat meat. I like veal. Politics aside, you can't make a more tender braise than veal shanks. The bones make the sauce like silk.

Ingredients

4 veal osso bucco veal shanks, cut 2 inches thick
1 onion, finely chopped
4 T butter
1 cup flour
1 cup dry white wine
2 cups beef stock
Salt and Pepper to taste
For the “gremolata”
1 clove garlic, very finely chopped or pressed with the garlic press
Zest of 1 lemon, grated
Italian parsley, finely chopped

Dredge the veal shanks in flour. Melt the butter in a cast iron pan or dutch oven. When it begins to brown, add the veal shanks and sear until browned on each side, about 4-5 minutes per side. Remove the shanks to a plate and add chopped onion, sauteeing until golden. Return the shanks to the pan along with any accumulated juices. Add the white wine and beef stock, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and return to a simmer. Cover and braise for 45-90 minutes, until the meat is falling off the bone.

Serve with saffron risotto and gremolata. The marrow from inside the veal bones is magical on a crusty piece of bread. Don't be shy, you've already committed animal cruelty, might as well slurp on some marrow!

Jicama Mango Salad

2011-06-06T20:41:00.000-07:00

This jicama salad is great to serve along with just about any grilled meat. The jicama is sweet and crunchy. Depending on what we’re making you can adjust the ingredients. Get creative.

1 large jicama
2 mangoes
1 red bell pepper
1 shallot
2 roma tomatoes
1 bunch cilantro
juice of 2 limes
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper

Peel and slice jicama into batons. Peel and cut mango from pit and cut into 1" dice. Cut bell peppers into 1/2" dice. Slice shallots finely, and seed and dice tomatoes. Combine Cilantro, lime juice, vinegar and a pinch of salt and pepper in a blender and puree, adding olive oil in a stream until combined. Marinate shallots in dressing for at least 15 minutes, and combine with other items just prior to serving. Add half a seeded jalapeno to dressing when pureeing for a spicy kick. Variation: when it's summer, substitute fresh corn kernels cut from the cob for the mangoes and use basil, lemon and cider vinegar instead of cilantro, lime and white vinegar.

Shrimp Ceviche Cocktail

2011-06-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

½ cup lime juice

1 pound shell on shrimp 40/50 count
½ medium white onion, diced
⅓ cup chopped cilantro
½ cup ketchup
1 red jalapeno, stemmed, seeded and diced.
1 tablespoon hot sauce
1 cup diced cumber
1 avocado cubed
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt
orange slices for garnish
saltines

Bring one quart of salted water to boil. Add the shrimp and bring back to a boil. Immediately remove from heat and poor off the water. Replace the lid and let the shrimp steam in the pot for 10 minutes. Peal and devein the shrimp. Toss the shrimp in the lime juice and refrigerate for one hour.

Add the onion, cilantro, catsup, hot sauce, jalapeno, cucumber, avocado and olive oil.

Serve the ceviche in a cocktail glass with saltines.

Raw Tomatillo Salsa

2011-06-06T20:16:00.000-07:00

There are some salsas that are intense and meant to be used sparingly as a condiment, but this salsa lends itself to just about anything and can be scooped up by the chip full. Tomatillos are bright and acidic like green apples. The heat of this salsa is subtle and builds by the bite. Despite tomatillos looking like green tomatoes they are actually not related. They come from the ground cherry-family.

Makes 3 cups

12 tomatillos
1 medium white onion, diced
2 serrano chiles, stemmed, seeded and diced
1/3 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1teaspoon salt

Remove the papery husk of the tomatillos, wash off the sticky residue and cut them into quarters. In a food processor pulse the tomatillos until chunky. Add the onion, chiles and cilantro and pulse into a thick chunky puree. Add salt to taste and let rest.

A Down Payment on Cinco De Mayo

2011-04-19T22:16:00.000-07:00

One of our key ingredients for Cinco De Mayo is our Strawberry infused Tequilla. It takes several weeks to steep, so this weekend started the whole process.

Coming soon, all of the pleasures of our Cinco De Mayo party.

Cheddar Buttermilk Biscuits

2011-03-15T22:16:00.000-07:00

Cheddar Buttermilk Biscuits

This biscuit is versatile. It pairs nicely with sweet pastries, but its also great with a hearty chili. Its the kind of recipe you can get creative with by adding different herbs or spices. Have fun.

13/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornmeal (preferably stone-ground; not coarse)
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
6oz extra-sharp Cheddar, coarsely grated (2 cups)
3 scallions, finely chopped
1 tsp dried thyme
½ tsp black pepper
1 1/3 cups well-shaken buttermilk

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F. Butter 1 large baking sheet.

Whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, then blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in cheeses, scallions, herbs and pepper with a wooden spoon, then add buttermilk and stir until just combined.

Drop dough in 1 tablespoon mounds about 1 inches apart on baking sheet. Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool to warm, about 10 minutes.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

2011-03-15T21:02:00.000-07:00

A perfect brunch is all about the combination of savory and sweet. As a child I loved brunch at Papa Haydn because we always got pastries and something yummy with hollandaise. The table was set with crisp white linens and a collection of petite muffins, mini scones, palmiers and madeleines. As an adult I still love this collection, but I enjoy it even more with a glass of champagne. Mini Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins perfectly captures the essence of a sunny brunch.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

2 cups all purpose flour
1tsp baking powder
½ tsp coarse kosher salt
¼ tsp baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
zest of two lemons
2 large eggs
1/4 cup poppy seeds

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Butter and flour three mini muffin pans or line with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, and baking soda in medium bowl. Whisk buttermilk and lemon juice in small bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, and lemon peel in large bowl to blend. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition until mixture is light and fluffy, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in dry ingredients in 3 additions alternately with buttermilk mixture in 2 additions. Mix just until blended. Mix in poppy seeds. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups by generous tablespoonfuls.

Bake muffins until tester inserted into center comes out clean, 22 to 24 minutes. Cool in pans 5 minutes. Remove muffins from pans and cool on rack.

Quivering Breasts in Anticipation of Oscar

2011-02-27T21:29:00.000-08:00

In the world of pastry a deep well of inspiration has sprung from the supple cleavage of a bountiful bosom. Just look to the many cream puffs, cakes and custards in honor of Marie Antoinette. The Italians, even more erotic celebrate the virgin’s breast in cookies like, Seni di Vergine and Menni di Vergini.

In tribute to the Oscars I present:

The Gilded Boob
Or for the more modest: Crème Brulee Cookies

Orange Vanilla Bean Crème Brulee
¾ cup Heavy Cream
½ Vanilla bean, split and scraped
Zest of Half and Orange
2 egg yolks
1/8th cup sugar
Splash of Cointreau or triple sec

Bring cream, vanilla and orange zest to a gentle boil. Meanwhile, whisk eggs with sugar until thick and pale. Temper eggs with a little of the cream. Stir in the remaining cream. Stir in the Cointreau and let mixture sit for 10 minutes. Skim off foam and discard. Gently stir and pour into silicone 1/2 “ spheres. Bake on a sheet pan with a shallow bain marie in a low oven until set. Approximately 300F for 12 minutes. The cream will jiggle slightly in the center (like a virgin’s boob, so I’m told) when baking is finished but will firm up as it cools. Place in freezer.

Pate Sucree
2 yolks
2Tbsp cream
½ tspn vanilla extract
2-1/3 cup flour
¼ tspn. Salt
1-1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter, cold

Whisk together yolks, cream and vanilla and set aside. Combine the flour, sugar, and salt on low speed in a Kitchen Aid with paddle attachment. When mixture becomes sandy, add the wet ingredients. Mix just until dough comes together. Chill.

Roll cold dough out and cut circles with a 1-1/4 in round cutter. Bake at 350 untill edges just start to brown. (5-7 minutes)

Assembly:
Unmold crème brulee domes and place on cookie. Sprinkle tops with sugar and torch. Finish with gold leaf or what every you like.

This recipe for Pate sucree is perfect for MANY things and it freezes great. You can make tarts, sugar cookies, crackers for cheese plates. I keep several disks of this dough in my freezer at all times and I whip them out whenever I need a great dessert at a moment’s notice. Enjoy…

Happy Birthday to Me!

2011-02-24T21:14:00.000-08:00

A 36th Birthday Celebration for

Keith Falkenberg

Hosted by Lisa Naito

The Ken Wright Pinot Dinner

Gougeres and Oysters

French Onion Soup

Charcuterie

Foie Gras

Chicken Liver Mousse

Country pate

Duck Salad

Duck Confit and Seared Duck Breast on Winter Greens

Golden Raisin Vinaigrette

Crème Fresh Potato galette

Red Wine Sorbet

Cheese Course

A selection of Cheeses from Foster and Dobbs

Dessert

Chocolate Emalie

Kumamoto Oysters

Foie Gras, Chicken Liver Mousse and Country Pate

Duck Salad with Golden Raisin Vinaigrette and Potato Galette

Casatica di Bufala, Bleu Mont Extra Aged Cheddar, Roccolo and Pleasant Ridge Reserve

* a special thanks to Luan at Foster and Dobbs for this beautiful cheese selection

I am loved.

Thank you to the best friends in the whole world, and

a HUGE thanks to Peter for all of the great food.

Chinese New Year at Cabin 3

2011-02-06T22:16:00.000-08:00

LOP CHEUNG WITH RICE AND POTSTICKERS

OYSTER SAUCE CHICKEN WINGS

BEEF WITH ASPARAGAS

BLACK BEAN SPARERIBS

Thanks Terri

Lobster Squash Bisque

2011-01-16T22:59:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite scenes in Annie Hall is when Woody Allen and Diane Keaton prepare lobsters at their beach house in the Hamptons. This soup always makes me think of that scene.

This soup is smooth, sumptuous and rich. The sweetness of the butternut squash pairs well with the lobster. You can get creative with the soup, it has a great base and it’s just begging for interpretation.

Lobster Squash Bisque

1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 large onion, diced
6 cups fish stock
2 lobsters
1 large butternut squash, peeled and diced
1 tbsp fresh thyme
11/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp orange juice concentrate
Salt and Pepper

In a large pan heat the olive oil. Sauté the onion and garlic. Add the stock and bring to a boil. While the stock is coming to boil, prepare the lobsters. (I prefer putting them in the freezer for twenty minutes. This numbs them like hypothermia. It seems less painful then driving a knife through their heads. There is less flopping. ) Place the lobsters in the boiling stock and place the lid on the pot. Cook the lobsters for 8 minutes. Remove the lobsters from the broth and let them cool. Add the squash and cook over medium heat until tender. Once the lobsters are cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the claws and tail and set aside. Add the shells back into the soup, then add the fresh thyme and cream, and simmer for about 20 minutes. After removing the shells use an immersion blender to puree the soup. Add the soy sauce, orange juice concentrate and season to taste with salt and pepper. This soup can take quite a bit of salt. Dice the cooked lobster meat, divide it among the serving bowls and ladle the hot soup over the lobster meat. Garnish with crème fraiche and croutons.

Citrus Salad with Goat Cheese and Almonds

2010-12-29T17:42:00.000-08:00

One the great joys of cold dark December is the arrival of beautiful bright grapefruit and oranges. Bursting with sweet juice and full of life, these citrus remind us somewhere it is warm and the sun is drenching the soil. When you dig your fingernails into the fleshy peel the spritz of fragrant oil can awaken you out of the deepest of winter doldrums.

Citrus salad pairs beautifully with the rich warm dishes of winter.

Citrus Salad
1 head green leaf lettuce
2 Pink Grapefruit
2 Blood Oranges
1 lemon
3 oz. goat cheese
2 shallots
½ cup toasted sliced almonds
½ cup olive oil
1 tbsp fish sauce
½ tsp black pepper
½ tsp salt

Wash, tear and dry the lettuce.

Supreme the grapefruit, oranges and lemon into a bowl. Reserve the segmented center of the fruit for making the vinaigrette. Slice the shallot very fine and add it to the citrus segments.

To make the vinaigrette squeeze the segmented citrus centers into a bowl. whisk in the olive oil, fish sauce, pepper and salt.

Dress the salad with the vinaigrette, add the supremed citrus, crumble with goat cheese and garnish with the almonds.

Mid-Winter Mussels

2010-12-29T16:42:00.000-08:00

A mid-winter’s meal. Mussels are one of my favorite dishes. There is nothing more sumptuous than a large pot full mussels; fragrant, creamy and full of the sea. These are best served with crusty bread and a rich aioli.

Mussels
4 strips of bacon, diced
1 onion sliced
1 fennel bulb sliced
½ tsp chili flake
1 tsp salt
2 cups white wine
2 cups fish stock
2lb mussels, cleaned
2 tbsp chopped parsley

Clean and de-beard the mussels. Throw out any mussels with cracks or any that seem especially lifeless. Over medium heat render the bacon. Once the bacon is beginning to crisp add the onion, fennel, chili flake and salt. Sauté the onions and fennel until soft and translucent, add the white wine and fish stock. Once the liquid is simmering add the mussels and steam them until they open, about 5-10 minutes. Garnish with fresh parsley and a large dollop of aioli.

Rosalee Hodge's Vanilla Cheese Cake

2010-12-16T21:34:00.000-08:00

One of the themes of this blog is the joy that comes from sharing recipes and traditions. Food has a magical way of connecting us to the ones we love, so I’d like to thank all who’ve shared with me.

This is my favorite cheese cake recipe. This cheese cake has won Best in Show at the Clackamas County Fair, and one year Peter and I made all the birthday cakes for Nick’s firm and this was the office favorite.

Vanilla Cheese Cake
Crust
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
¼ cup sugar
½ cup butter softened

Filling
4-8oz pkg Philadelphia cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
6 eggs

Topping
2 cups sour cream (do not use reduced fat)
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease the bottom of 10” spring form pan. Combine together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and softened butter. Press the crust into the pan. Bake for five minutes at 350. Let the crust cool on a rack while you mix together the filling. Beat the cream cheese in a stand mixer until smooth. Add the sugar, vanilla and mix on medium speed for one minute. Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each. Pour the filling over the crust. Wrap the bottom of the pan with two layers aluminum foil and set it in a roasting pan. The double layer of aluminum foil will protect against any water seeping into your pan. Pour ½ inch of hot water into the roasting pan to create a water bath to keep the cheese cake from cracking while baking. Bake for 40 minutes. Discard the water bath and cool the cake for 15 minutes. Make the topping by mixing together the sour cream, sugar and vanilla and pour it carefully over the cake. Bake for 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Chill 12 to 24 hours. Remove the sides of the spring form pan. Serve with fresh fruit. I highly recommend serving this with raspberry sauce.

In memory of Marlene Thornburg

Hazelnut Toffee Bites

2010-11-30T22:47:00.000-08:00

Mae Copenhagen’s Toffee is famous in many circles. Rich and crunch with a rich deep nut flavor. There are many holiday confections, but very few stands up to Mae’s toffee.

The making of toffee in my family is a long held tradition and great care and pride is taken in passing on the tradition. If anyone would like to learn, I’m happy to share the recipe/ techniques and tips; in fact I’m sure any of my aunts, uncles, cousins or siblings would be happy to share their secrets in making delicious hazelnut toffee. Or, if you are lucky you can place an order for a delicious batch. With that said, I’ve been inspired to branch out.

This year I decided to try a different version of hazelnut toffee. This recipe is for individually coated hazelnuts in toffee, coated in chocolate and rolled in grated nuts.

Hazelnut Toffee Bites

1lb whole raw hazelnuts
1lb butter
3 tbsp. water
2 cups sugar
4oz. bitter sweet chocolate

Preheat oven to 350. Toast the hazelnuts until fragrant. As a general rule, once you smell the nuts they are just about ready to burn. Now is not the time to go start the laundry, you’ll burn them.

Take one ¼ cup of the toasted whole hazelnuts and grate them in a food processor. Set aside for coating the toffee later.

In a heavy pan over medium heat add the butter, water and sugar. Stir the mixture continuously until it takes on the color of finished toffee. When the toffee takes on a dark rich color and whiffs of smoke start to lift from the toffee add the whole hazelnuts.

Pour the mixture through a course strainer onto a silpat or sheet pan. Use a wooden spoon to push the toffee through the mesh. After a major portion of the toffee has passed through the strainer , empty the toffee coated nuts onto another silpat. Working quickly, pull the nuts into individual pieces. I recommend pulling on a pair of latex gloves and going to work.

In a large glass bowl melt the chocolate for coating the toffee coated hazelnuts. I recommend breaking the chocolate into pieces and microwaving the chocolate for 25 seconds. Stir the chocolate and microwave again for 25 seconds if it is not fully melted. Don’t over microwave the chocolate or it will seize up and become grainy.

Working in small batches coat the toffee coated hazelnuts in chocolate and then roll them in the grated toasted hazelnuts. Let the toffee nuts cool before packaging.

Wild Rice Salad with Portbellos and Dried Fruit

2010-11-25T22:22:00.000-08:00

This wild rice salad is chock full of little gems. There are toasted spices, nuts and dried fruit. Each bite brings an earthy burst of flavor. I first saw this recipe on Sarah's Secrets with portland chef Cory Schriber.

8 cups water
2 cups wild rice
2 tsp. salt, plus more to taste
1 bay leaf
12 sprigs of thyme
4 tsp. canola oil
2 pounds chanterelle or Portobello mushrooms, wiped clean and chopped

Vinaigrette
½ cup olive oil
6 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
4 large shallots, thinly sliced
2 tsp. fennel seeds, toasted and cracked
2 tsp. cumin seeds, toasted and cracked
2 tsp. thyme chopped
2 tsp. fresh cracked pepper
1 cup mixed dried fruits, such as cherries, cranberries, raisins, chopped figs, or chopped apricots
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted
1 pound stemmed arugula
8 ounces fresh white goat cheese, crumbled (about 1 cup)

toasted and cracked spices

Directions

To prepare the rice: Wash the rice under cold water for 2 minutes. Bring 8 cups of water to a boil and add the salt, bay leaf, and thyme. Add the washed rice to the boiling water and simmer for 40 minutes, or until tender. Drain the rice and remove the bay leaf and thyme; let cool. (This can be done 1 day ahead of time and refrigerated.) You should have 7 cups cooked rice. OR…swing by Trader Joes and pick up two packs of their pre-cooked wild rice. It’s much easier…

In a large skillet, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from heat, drain well, and set aside.

To make the vinaigrette: In a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, shallots, fennel, cumin, thyme, and pepper and season with salt. Add the dried fruits.

In a salad bowl, combine the cooled wild rice, cooked mushrooms, and walnuts. Toss with the vinaigrette and fruits.

To serve, portion the salad onto a large platter, top with the greens, and sprinkle with the goat cheese.

Pie Means I Love You

2010-11-25T21:44:00.000-08:00

My great grandmother, my grandmother and my mother were all great pie makers. Each generation has taken great care in passing on the skills and secretes of making great pies. One of my favorite memories is of my mother holding my hand in hers as she demonstrated exactly how much water to add while making pie dough.

Lemon meringue pie was one the pies I loved to make with my mother. This recipe comes from my grandmother Mae Copenhagen.

Lemon Meringue Pie

1 ½ cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 ½ cup water
4 eggs, separated
3 tbsp. butter
½ cup lemon juice
2 tbsp. lemon zest
¼ tsp. cream of tartar
½ cup sugar

Make and bake a one-crust pie shell. Mix sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan. Stir in water gradually. Cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens slightly. Beat a little of the hot mixture into the egg yolks. Then, beat back into the pan and boil one minute more. Remove from heat and stir until smooth. Add the butter, lemon juice and rind. Pour into a baked pie shell. To make meringue, beat the egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat. Add the sugar a little at a time while beating until stiff and glossy. Pile meringue onto filling, being careful to seal the edges. Bake at 400. For approximately 5 minutes. Watch it…

Seared Duck Breast with Dried Cherry Port Sauce

2010-11-21T19:48:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while inspiration can strike like lightning. I’ve found some of my best experiences or creative moments have resulted from indulging an inspiration or seizing a moment. This is dish came from that place and/or wild abandon.

This weekend we headed out for our annual trip to Yamhill County for wine tasting and purchasing of this year’s best wines. We headed straight to Carleton Oregon. First stop was Ken Wright, then Lemelson and we finished off our day at Bergstom. In all we samples 20 pinot noirs ranging from this year’s neauve wines to 2006 pinot’s. The challenge during the day was remembering the specific flavor spectrums of each wine and comparing this years tastings with the memories from years past. It was a difficult job, but I dedicated myself to the task.

So, back to the inspiration. After a day of tasting beautiful Pinot Noirs Peter and I got talking about dinner. The day had been filled with the pungent ripe smells of wineries and the tannin of decaying leaves, and quickly we both zeroed in on duck. The dinner was set…

Pan Seared Duck with Dried Cherry Port Sauce

Searves 6

3 duck breast
Salt and pepper

Dried Cherry Port Sauce

½ cup rendered duck fat
1 shallot, diced
1 clove garlic, diced
½ cup dried cherries
½ cup tawny port
1 tsp. black pepper corns
½ cup red wine
½ cup chicken stock
1.5 oz. chicken demi-glace
2 tbsp. butter

Preheat oven to 350. In a small bowl cover the dried cherries with tawny port and peppercorns.

Dry the duck breast and score the fat with a sharp knife. On the stove sear the duck breast fat side down in an oven-safe pan over medium heat. Using medium heat will allow the fat to render and create a crispy crust. Once the duck has achieved a dark golden brown, about 6 minutes, turn the duck breast and transfer the pan into the oven. Bake the duck breast until medium-rare, about 6 minutes. When the duck breast reads 120 degrees on a thermometer remove from the oven. Let the duck rest under aluminum foil while you finish the sauce.

Pour off the duck fat leaving about ½ cup in the pan. Save any fat you pour off. It makes incredible hash browns. Sauté the shallot and garlic. Add the port soaked cherries, pepper corns and the remaining port. Stir in the chicken stock, chicken demi-glace and red wine. After the sauce has reduced whisk in the butter. The sauce should look thick and glossy.

Slice the duck, and pour the sauce over top.

Roasted Bananas with Bourbon Caramel Sauce

2010-11-21T14:51:00.000-08:00

This recipe is a great one to have in your repertoire for an impromptu dinner party; it packs a flavorful punch and you’re likely to have most of the ingredients on hand. There is something very elegant about its simplicity. When bananas are roasted their sugars caramelize making a natural caramel and the flesh develops a lovely cakey texture. The deep rich favorers are the perfect ending to a fall’s feast. Serves 6

Roasted Whole Bananas

6 bananas, pealed
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Bourbon Caramel Sauce

½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup dark corn syrup
¼ cup bourbon
¼ cup heavy cream
2 tbsp. butter

Preheat oven to 350. Grease an oven proof skillet with the vegetable oil and arrange the bananas in the pan with a little room between them. Sprinkle the bananas with cinnamon, brown sugar and vanilla. Roast the bananas in the oven for 15 minutes or until you see nice caramelization.

Transfer the roasted bananas to a platter using a spatula. Don’t worry if they break apart, you can arrange them anyway you would like. In the pan there should be some lovely congealed banana drippings that have caramelized with the brown sugar. These drippings are the beginnings of your caramel sauce. Now over medium heat on the stove top add the brown sugar, corn syrup and bourbon to pan. Stir and let the mixture come to a boil. Once the mixture has reduced and the sugar has caramelized into a dark amber whisk in the heavy cream and butter. Pour the caramel sauce over the bananas and top with whipped cream or ice cream. Enjoy…

Chicken Paella, Andalusian Style

2010-11-14T15:03:00.000-08:00

Paella is powerful dish. The kind of dish who’s deep flavors and traditions have the ability to transport you to another world or time. Each bite connects you with the long history of humanity, like the smoky voice of passionate flamenco singer. It can seduce you into a wild love affair with its exotic spices and complexities. Ok, enough with the dramatic hyperbole. It’s yummy and deeply satisfying.

Chicken Paella

7 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp slivered blanched almonds
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp minced parsley
¼ teaspoon crumbled thread saffron
¼ cup dry sherry or white wine
1 chicken, cut into pieces
5 cups chicken broth
1 medium onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 bay leaf
¼ lb smoked sausage, sliced into coins
28 oz can whole stewed tomatoes
1 ½ Cup sliced mushrooms
2 ½ cup Arborio rice

Serves 6-8

In a small skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil and sauté the almonds and garlic until golden. Transfer to a food processor, add the parsley and saffron, and process to a paste. Stir in the sherry.

Cut the chicken into 2 inch pieces. Season with salt and pepper

Pour the broth into a sauce pan to keep warm over the lowest heat.

Preheat the oven to 400°

Heat the remaining 6 tablespoons oil in a paella pan measuring 18 inches wide. Sauté the chicken over high heat for 5 minutes browning the chicken. Remove to a platter. Reduce the heat and add the onion, green pepper, bay leaf and sausage, and sauté until the onion and pepper are slightly softened. Add the tomatoes, mushrooms, and sauté 5 minutes more

Stir in the rice, coating well with the man mixture. Pour in the hot broth and bring to a boil. Add the almond mixture, taste for salt and continue to boil, stirring and rotating the pan occasionally. Add the chicken pieces and any juices from the platter.

Cook uncovered, until the rice is almost al dente, then place in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes until the rice is cooked to taste. If you like peas in your paella add them when the paella comes out of the oven. They will come to heat and maintain their bright green color.

This recipe comes from the classic cookbook: Paella! By Penelope Casas. I recommend this book to any cooks library.

A Tale Two Pâtés

2010-11-14T14:52:00.000-08:00

Chicken liver pâté can be a lonely item on a buffet. Even I, as an adventurous eater would often pass over the pâté for safer conquests of mini quiches and cheese straws, but a few years ago emboldened with a glass of pinot I jumped head first into the world of pâtés and I’ve never looked back.

Chicken Liver Mousse

1lb fresh chicken livers
1 Cup cold unsalted butter
2 small shallots, chopped
4 tbsp brandy
1tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper

Pick over the livers, removing the stringy bits. In a large saucepan, melt 1tbsp butter over medium-high heat, add chopped shallots, and sauté about 2 minutes, stirring a few times. Add livers and cook just until they lighten on the outside, a scant minute per side. Pour brandy over livers and tilt pan so the brandy pools in one corner. Ignite brandy, allowing flames to swirl over the pan’s edge. Flambé livers, shaking the pan for about a minute, then immediately transfer livers and brandy into a food processor. (livers will still be undercooked; the hot liquid will finish cooking them.) Add salt, pepper and process until smooth. Press the mixture through a mesh strainer into a bowl. Cover and chill overnight.

In a separate bowl, beat remaining cold butter with an electric mixer on high speed until smooth. Beat in a quarter of the liver mousse at time, scraping the bowl frequently. Transfer mousse to ½ cup ramekins and chill, covered, until ready to serve. Makes about 2 cups. This recipe originally came from Robert Reynolds and was published in Portland Monthly: November 2008.

Porcini and Pecan Pâté

1 Cup pecans

½ Cup dried porcini mushrooms

1 Cup boiling water

½ lb Portobello mushrooms, stemmed

2 tbsp tamari

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

½ tbsp. nutritional yeast

½ fresh lemon, juiced

1 tsp chopped rosemary

1 tsp light miso

2 dry-packed sun-dried tomato halves

Salt

Put the pecans in a bowl and cover with cold water. Let stand 1 hour.

Meanwhile, in a small heatproof bowl, cover the porcini with the boiling water and let stand until softened, about 15 minutes. Rub the porcini to remove grit; transfer them to a small bowl. Reserve the soaking liquid.

Cut the Portobello caps in half and, with a sharp paring knife, trim off the dark gills on the underside of each one. Slice the caps into ¼-inch-thick pieces.

In a bowl, whisk together the tamari, olive oil, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, rosemary and miso. Add the sliced portobellos and toss to coat thoroughly. Let stand for 15 minutes, tossing occasionally.

In a small saucepan, combine the soaked porcini and sun-dried tomatoes. Slowly pour in the porcini soaking liquid, stopping before you reach the grit at the boil, cover and simmer over low heat until the tomatoes are tender, about 4 minutes.

Drain the pecans and transfer them to a food processor. With a slotted spoon, transfer the porcini marinated portobelos, and tomatoes to the processor; puree to a coarse paste, adding about 14cup of the porcini cooking liquid. Add a little more of the porcini liquid if the mixture is too thick. Season with salt.

Chill overnight.

The Perfect Pear

2010-11-14T14:03:00.000-08:00

In my opinion cocktails fall into a three categories; booze, magical combinations and life imitating art. Here is what I mean. A good example of a booze cocktail is a Sazerac were the primary flavor of the cocktail is the whiskey. In the magical combination category I think of a lavender gin gimlet, were the lavender and lime bring out unique flavors in the gin. The third category brings together ingredients in order to duplicate something in nature and sometimes hides the flavor of the alcohol. A good example of this type of cocktail is a lemon drop.

The Perfect Pear cocktail falls deeply into the “life imitating art” category. Sipping this cocktail is like closing your eyes and biting into a cold juicy Bartlet pear with the juice filling your mouth and dripping down your chin. Well, hopefully not dripping down your chin, but you know what I mean.

The Perfect Pear

1.5 oz pear brandy

1oz triple sec

.5 oz lemon juice

2 oz pear nectar

Shake.

Side note: I had the opportunity to go to the Clear Creek Distillery to purchase the pear brandy. While I was there I got to taste their new Doulas Fir eau de vie. I was looking forward to it because it reminded me of the Douglas Fir Branch Water this artist used to bring into the Heathman. After talking with the taster, I learned this eau de vie is in fact based on the branch water Dennis l Cunningham makes and they even had some of his art hanging on the wall in the tasting room. Small world…

Apple Tartlet

2008-11-27T22:27:00.001-08:00

When I’m planning a dinner party I always like dreaming up a desert. Unfortunately I don’t always have time to whip something up. I tend to like desserts that involve lots of complicated steps, so sometimes a quick and simple dessert is great to have in the repertoire. This one has a lovely combination of tart apples and buttery puff pastry. To finish it off I spooned a little caramel over each of the tarts. This apple tartlet was the perfect end to a great Sunday dinner.

5 Granny Smith apples diced
1 tablespoon cinnamon
¼ cup sugar
5 tablespoons butter

1 package puff pastry
1 egg

Preheat oven to 375.
Sauté the apples with the cinnamon and sugar in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Once they are tender set them aside to cool. Roll out the puff pastry and cut out 6” circles. Place the puff pastry in molds and fill each with two tablespoons of the apple filling. Brush the pastry edges with egg wash and bake till golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Rediscovering Gravlax

2008-11-23T13:41:00.000-08:00

Gravlax is a uniquely Scandinavian take on Salmon. It’s tender, sweet and lightly spice cured. Gravlax can be hard to categorize. The fish is not smokey or salty enough to be called salt cured. Nor is the fish cooked, but it can’t be mistaken as raw.

Kenny and Zukes has incredible house cured Gravlax. A few weeks ago, Nick picked some up on our way up to the cabin. The next morning we had great bagels with the best gravlax I’ve ever had. Since then it’s been bagels every weekend.

Isreali Couscous with Butternut Squash

2008-10-26T19:53:00.001-07:00

This week is all about fall. On Sunday I made roast duck with a pomegranate reduction, and when Peter and I were planning dinner we came up with this great side dish. Israeli couscous has quickly become one of my favorite ingredients to play with. You can treat it just like risotto, but it’s much easier to make. This one has the great combination of sweet roasted butternut squash and savory couscous.

1 1/3 cups Israeli couscous
¼ c. toasted slivered almonds
½ onion, small dice
1 clove garlic
½ cup dry white wine
2 cups chicken stock
Zest of 1 lemon
2 T lemon juice
olive oil
Salt and pepper
Crushed red pepper
3 T minced Italian parsley
½ cup shredded parmesan
1 butternut squash cubed

Preheat oven to 375. Cut the squash into 3/4" squares. Roast the squash on a sheet pan for 20-30 minutes untill soft.

Saute onions and garlic with a pinch of kosher salt and chili flake on medium heat until softened, 3-5 minutes. Turn heat up to high and add couscous and almonds. Continue to sauté until the couscous and almonds begin to brown. Add white wine to deglaze, then add stock and lemon zest. Bring to a boil and cover, turn heat down to low and simmer until almost all liquid is evaporated, 15 -18 minutes. Add half the parmesan, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons parsley and a tablespoon of EVOO and stir. Stir in roasted squash. Garnish with remaining parmesan and parsley.

Radicchio Caesar Salad

2008-10-26T19:41:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I was at Nostrana for a luncheon and I had their Radicchio Caesar salad. I had forgotten what a wonderful salad it was. The creamy citrus dressing foils the bitter radicchio. In a world of ubiquitous Caesar salads this one will get your attention.

1 head Radicchio
1 Cup picked parsley leaves
2 green onions
croutons

Caesar Dressing
2 cloves garlic minced
1 teaspoon anchovy paste
2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
the zest and juice of one lemmon
½ cup olive oil

For the caesar dressing combine the garlic, anchovy, egg yolks, Dijon, vinegar, zest and juice of a lemon and grated parmesan cheese. With the blender running, slowly add the olive oil in a small steady stream. The dressing should come together into a creamy dressing. Taste the dressing and add salt and pepper as needed.

Wash the radicchio and toss it with the parsley, green onions, croutons and dressing. Garnish with grated parmesan.

Portobello Mushroom Lasanga

2008-10-04T19:41:00.000-07:00

This week for the debate Peter and I made dueling Lasagnas. Peter made his family's sausage lasagna and I made Ina Garten's mushroom lasagna. I like this lasagna because it's rich and creamy and you don't miss the meat in anyway.

Portobello Mushroom Lasagna
From Ina Garten

Kosher salt
Good olive oil
3/4 pound dried lasagna noodles
4 cups whole milk
12 tablespoons (11/2 sticks) unsalted butter, divided
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 pounds portobello mushrooms
1 cup freshly ground Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil with 1 tablespoon salt and a splash of oil. Add the lasagna noodles and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain and set aside.
For the white sauce, bring the milk to a simmer in a saucepan. Set aside. Melt 8 tablespoons (1 stick) of the butter in a large saucepan. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Pour the hot milk into the butter-flour mixture all at once. Add 1 tablespoon salt, the pepper, and nutmeg, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring first with the wooden spoon and then with a whisk, for 3 to 5 minutes, until thick. Set aside off the heat.

Separate the mushroom stems from the caps and discard the stems. Slice the caps 1/4-inch thick. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large (12-inch) saute pan. When the butter melts, add half the mushrooms, sprinkle with salt, and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender and they release some of their juices. If they become too dry, add a little more oil. Toss occasionally to make sure the mushrooms cook evenly. Repeat with the remaining mushrooms and set all the mushrooms aside.

To assemble the lasagna, spread some of the sauce in the bottom of an 8 by 12 by 2-inch baking dish. Arrange a layer of noodles on top, then more sauce, then 1/3 of the mushrooms, and 1/4 cup grated Parmesan. Repeat 2 more times, layering noodles, sauce, mushrooms, and Parmesan. Top with a final layer of noodles and sauce, and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan.
Bake the lasagna for 45 minutes, or until the top is browned the sauce is bubbly and hot. Allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes and serve hot.

Kick'n it Jamie Oliver Style

2008-09-23T19:40:00.000-07:00

Peter made these amazing baked onions served with tomato sauce and polenta. We saw these made earlier this summer on Jamie Olivers new show. The cheesy creamy onion filling was the best part.

BAKED ONIONS
Ingredients
4 good sized white onions, peeled
olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, peeled & finely chopped
4 twigs of fresh rosemary, lower leaves picked & chopped
8 tbsp double cream couple of handfuls of grated Parmesansea salt & freshly ground black pepper
4 slices of pancetta or smoked streaky bacon rashers

Method
1 Boil the onions in plenty of water for 15 minutes until slightly tender. Remove from the pan and allow to cool.
2 Then, with a sharp knife, remove the top 2.5cm/1" of each onion, finely chop and place to one side. If need be, slightly trim the stalk end of the onions so that they will sit flat on a roasting tray.
3 Cut about a heaped tablespoon out from the inside of each onion, keeping the outside intact. Finely chop and add to the rest of the chopped onion.
4 Pre-heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Heat a frying pan and add a little olive oil, your garlic, the chopped onions and just a little chopped rosemary.
5 Fry for a couple of minutes until softened, then turn the heat down, add the cream and remove from the heat. Stir in the Parmesan and season.
6 Wrap a nice slice of pancetta around the middle of each onion and just spike it in place with a sharpened twig of rosemary.
7 Place the onions on to a roasting tray and spoon some of the chopped onion mixture inside each one. Bake in the preheated oven for around 25 minutes.

Golden Pineapple Tomatillos

2008-09-23T19:11:00.000-07:00

This week I discovered some Pineapple Tomitillos at the farmers market. Somehow I have never seen them before. They are like small golden firm grapes with a sweet citrus flavor. They are great eaten all by themselves or they can be used anywhere you would like a sweet tart flavor. I ended up using these in place of mangos in a jicama salad. Unfortunately I found these on the last week that they were in season, but I’ve set a reminder in my calendar for next year. I’m looking forward to experimenting with them more next year.

Tabla Egg Ravioli

2008-09-07T13:13:00.000-07:00

The first time I had this dish I fell in love immediately. It was three summers ago when I walked into Tabla Mediterranean Bistro for the first time. It was a busy night and they sat me at the kitchen bar looking directly into their open kitchen. I saw this ravioli being made and I knew I had to have it. The Tabla ravioli is filled with a ring of ricotta and chard and in the center is an egg yolk. When you cut into the ravioli the yolk spills out making a rich sauce for the pasta. It truly is magic. Since that first bite three years ago I’ve been back every couple of weeks and I always order the ravioli.

Last night for dinner we decided to make the ravioli. I remembered that I had seen a recipe for it in Sunset Magazine so I rooted around and found it. This is a recipe that is easy to adjust, you could put just about anything in it. I think that next time I make it I’m going to do the ricotta filling with basil and lemon zest instead of chard.

Ingredients
About 1 1/4 cups flour

2 whole eggs, plus 6 egg yolks and 1 egg white

1 1/2 teaspoons heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon plus 1/4 tsp. salt

2 cups tightly packed stemmed chard leaves

1/4 cup whole-milk ricotta

1/2 cup grated parmesan

1/8 to 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

1/4 to 1/2 tsp. poppy seeds

Preparation
1. Mix 1 1/4 cups flour, whole eggs, and cream to form dough. Turn out onto a clean surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Prepare a large bowl of ice water and set it next to the stove. Add 1 tbsp. salt and chard leaves to pot. Cook chard until water returns to a boil and leaves are tender, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer chard leaves to ice water. (Keep pot of hot water on stove, but turn off heat.) Drain chard, squeeze out as much water as possible, and chop (you should have about 1/2 cup). Mix chard with ricotta, 1/4 cup parmesan, remaining 1/4 tsp. salt, and pepper to taste. Set aside.

3. Cut a 5-in.-diameter round from a piece of paper and set aside. Unwrap pasta dough, divide into 6 pieces, and pat each piece into a 1/2-in.-thick rectangle. Working with 1 piece at a time, set a pasta roller on the widest setting and roll piece through, dusting dough with flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Fold piece into thirds (like a letter) and roll it through again. Repeat folding and rolling once more for a total of three rolls on the widest setting. Repeat with remaining 5 pieces of dough.

4. Set roller to next narrowest setting and roll each piece through once. Repeat with next narrowest setting. Cut each piece in half and roll through on each remaining setting twice, turning 90° between rolls and trimming as necessary to fit and to keep a basically square shape, until dough squares are thin enough to see through and measure at least 5 in. on all sides.

5. Using paper round as a template, cut 5-in. rounds from each dough square.

6. Assemble the ravioli: Lay 6 pasta rounds on a clean surface dusted with flour. On each round, use a small spoon to arrange 1/6 of the chard-ricotta mixture in a circle about 3/4 in. from the edges, creating a well in the center large enough to hold an egg yolk. Repeat with remaining 5 pasta rounds and chard mixture. Put an egg yolk in the center of each well. Brush edges of pasta with egg white and place a second pasta round on top of each ravioli. Working from the center of each ravioli, gently press the top pasta round onto the filling to make sure there are no air pockets in the ravioli. Press edges firmly together to seal.

7. Bring pot of water to a slow boil. With a 4- to 5-in. strainer or slotted spoon, lower ravioli one at a time into the water (cook in batches of 2 or 3). Cook ravioli 3 minutes. Using the strainer, transfer them to a serving plate, blotting excess water with a paper towel. Top each ravioli with 1 tsp. butter.

8. Sprinkle ravioli with poppy seeds and remaining parmesan. Serve immediately.

Huckleberry Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding

2008-09-01T20:34:00.000-07:00

It took Huckleberries to get my mojo back. We've been catering so much this summer that I had become completely burned out on cooking. Luckily we headed up to the cabin for Labor Day weekend and we cooked up a storm of inspiring food.

This was a great experiment turned home run. I picked up some cinnamon rolls and huckleberries at the farmers market. That night before I went to bed I cut up the Cinnamon rolls at placed them in the casserole dish. I sprinkled them with huckleberries and let the bread soak up a simple custard. In the morning I baked off the bread pudding. It came out rich and cinnamony and the tart huckleberries added a great tart bite.

5 cinnamon rolls
1 pint huckleberries
6 eggs
2 cups milk
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter

The night before cut up the cinnamon rolls and place them in a buttered casserole dish. Sprinkle with huckleberries. Whisk together eggs, milk, vanilla and salt. Pour over the cinnamon rolls and let it soak overnight in the refrigerator.

preheat oven to 350. Arange the 5 tablespoons of butter on the top of the breadpudding and bake for 50 minutes.

Simple Fruit Tarts

2008-08-13T10:48:00.000-07:00

It is crucial to have arsenal of quick desserts that you can pull together at a moments notice. That is why I always try to keep at least one package of puff pastry in the freezer at all times. You never know when you might need to bring an appetizer to a friend’s house or when you might need a late night snack. These simple tarts can be made with just about any fresh fruit that is in season.

Simply Elegant Cherry Tarts (The Oregonian)

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
4 tablespoons sugar, divided
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon grated orange rind or ¼ teaspoon almond extract
2 cups fresh sweet cherries, pitted and halved
(or other fresh, soft fruit)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Roll out pastry to 12 to 14” square. Cut into 16 smaller squares. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and turn up edges, pinching at corners to form a shallow shell. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar evenly over all shells. Combine remaining 3 tablespoons sugar, flour and orange rind or almond extract. (May need to double the amount of flour mixture.

Bake 14-18 minutes. Cool and serve.
(Works well with peaches and raspberries.)d sugar to have enough.) Arrange cherries in single layer on each shell. Sprinkle with flour/sugar mixture.

Cool Creamy Panna Cotta

2008-08-13T10:06:00.000-07:00

I love the simple elegance of Panna Cotta. It is one of my favorite things to make for a dinner party in the summer because it can be made in advance and you don’t have to turn the oven on. During the summer I like to use what ever fresh fruit is available to top the creamy Panna Cotta.

The picture above is from my cousins wedding reception and the picture was taken by Emily Brooks. Thanks Em.

Panna Cotta (Epicurious)

2 tablespoons water
1 ¼ teaspoon unflavored gelatin
2 cups whipping cream
1 ¼ cup plain whole milk yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup sugar

Pour 2 tablespoons water into small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over water. Let stand until softened, about 15 minutes. Whisk 1 cup cream, yogurt, and vanilla in large bowl to blend. Heat remaining 1 cup cream and ½ cup sugar in small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves and cream comes to simmer. Remove from heat. Add gelatin mixture, stirring to dissolve gelatin. Mix hot cream-gelatin mixture, stirring to dissolve gelatin. Mix hot cream-gelatin mixture into yogurt mixture in bowl. Divide mixture among six ¾ cup ramekins, using about ½ cup for each. Refrigerate desserts uncovered until cold, then cover and refrigerate overnight.

Garnish with fresh berries.
(We used fresh raspberries with an added mint leaf – at the last minute…and fresh blueberries with a knotted piece of orange rind.)

A Lovely Dessert Buffet

2008-08-11T15:50:00.000-07:00

As you know I come from a big family that loves to cook. My aunt can put together one of the most beautiful dessert buffets that you will ever see. The table above is from my cousins wedding earlier this summer. Over the next few weeks if permission is granted I’ll be featuring some of the great recipes from the buffet. Here is a list of some of the highlights of the table.

Tuxedo Brownie Cups, Panna Cotta, Mini Cupcakes
Mixed Berry Shortcake(Strawberries, Blueberries & Raspberries) with Whipped Cream in ice bowl, Heart Shortbread Cookies, Lemon Curd Tarts, Simply Elegant Fruit Tarts, Chocolate Caramel Praline Roll, Lemony Blueberry Cheese Tart and Assorted Cookies with Sugared Rose Petals

Cheese Plate
Fresh Fruit Plate
Tea Sandwiches (Radish & Cucumber)
Crostini (Tomato, Basil, Mozzarella)

I’m still trying to get my head wrapped around how she pulled it all off.

The photograph above was taken by my cousin Emily Brooks.

Just the Way I Like It

2008-08-11T13:39:00.001-07:00

I’ve been working on perfecting peach cobbler for a couple of years. I have found that the dish tends to fall into two different categories. The first is a cobbler with a cakee biscuit topping and the other is a thinner crisp with nuts and spices. I tried both styles and I was never quite satisfied. In my mind I wanted a topping that was buttery and rich like a soft sandy short bread, but I also wanted cinnamon, crunchy nuts and maybe even a little oatmeal.

During my trails I found that the biscuit topping could be dry and dull. With the crisps I found that lots of times the topping melted away and was sucked into the cobbler. I couldn’t find a recipe that had everything that I wanted so I made my own and I made sure it had everything I wanted. The result was a double topped peach cobbler crisp. I topped the cobbler with both butter short bread and crunchy cinnamon crisp. In the end it doubled that fat content, but if that what it takes to make me happy than so be it.

Barbecue Lamb at Sudan Farms

2008-07-29T22:14:00.000-07:00

This weekend was the Portland Culinary Alliance’s annual barbecue out at SuDan Farms. For those of you who are not familiar with SuDan Farms, they supply some of the best restaurants in Portland with fresh gorgeous lamb. I had a great time talking with Dan of SuDan Farms about breeding, feeding and butchering lambs. I watched carefully as he skillfully broke down an entire barbecued lamb. I even got to see where my favorite cut of meat “the Hanger Steak” came from on a lamb. I also got a chance to talk with Sue about raising ducks and virtues of raw milk.

I am really enjoying the Portland Culinary Alliance. Its members cover every aspect of the culinary world from nutritionist, to chefs, to food marketers. Every time I go to a meeting I end up meeting some very interesting folks.

Salt and Pepper Squid

2008-07-13T20:51:00.000-07:00

I have a long list of foods that I am dying to make, but never quite get around too. Someday I will conquer duck confit, cassoulet, apple charlotte etc. Well Salt and Pepper Squid has been on that list for a couple of years, but this weekend I took it off the list and moved it over to the “look what I made” list.

Down the street from my house is a dingy little Vietnamese restaurant with fantastic food and their Salt and Pepper Squid is light and crisp with a spicy sweet and salty crust. The squid is cut into rings and then lightly coated in heavily seasoned cornstarch and then deep fried. I think the key to this dish is explosion of flavor between the salt, Szechwan pepper and the sweet tender meet.

The dish is very simple, but I have never worked with squid so I was a little scared. Last week I saw some beautiful squid at the market so I picked up a pound and went to work. Conveniently the squid had been cleaned so all I had to do is give them a good rinse and cut them in to rings. I asked the fish monger to include the tentacle because those are my favorite part, but if the tentacles freak you out then just toss them out.

Strawberry Lemonade / Lemon Drops

2008-07-13T20:17:00.000-07:00

I had two extra pints of strawberries this weekend and I didn’t want them to go to waste so I decided that making some sweet strawberry lemonade would be a great way to use them up. First I simmered the strawberries in with sugar and water. Then I pureed the strawberries and strained the seeds out. Then I just added the lemon juice and water.

Peter discovered that when you add vodka and shake it over ice it makes a great lemon drop.

Burrata with Romesco

2008-07-09T19:40:00.001-07:00

I came across a really special cheese this week. Burrata is a ball of fresh mozzarella filled with a soft creamy center. My cheese shop gets Burrata flown in from Italy once a month. This month I was lucky enough to get my hands on one of them. I wanted to make something simple that would show off the cheese so I make a romesco sauce and served it on crusty bread.

Basil Pesto with Fresh Mozerella

2008-06-29T15:52:00.000-07:00

Peter and I catered a great dinner this weekend and it was great because it was all about fresh ripe ingredients. We wanted to showcase the beautiful flavors of summer and this salad was the best way to go. The salad is very simple, ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, olive oil and basil pesto. This pesto sauce can be used on just about anything. I’m looking forward to using some of it on pasta.

4 cups packed fresh basil leaves, washed well

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted until golden, cooled, and chopped fine

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/2 ounces)

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoonsextra-virgin olive oil

In a food processor purée basil with remaining ingredients until smooth and season with salt and pepper.

To assemble the salad slice a ripe tomato and lay the slices out on a platter. Season the tomatoes generously with sea salt and pepper and drizzle with a fine finishing olive oil. Cover the tomato with a slice of fresh mozzarella and drizzle with pesto.

Mango Salsa

2008-06-25T06:56:00.000-07:00

We all just got back from an incredible sailing trip in the British Virgin Islands. Since we had chartered a large sail boat we were lucky enough to be able to cook all of our own meals. Peter really took the lead on this and went shopping for the week before we got on the boat. The kitchen on the boat was laid out great and both of us were able to work together on putting together some great meals.

For me the best meal of the trip was when we made Coconut Curry Chicken with Mango Salsa. I love this salsa because it is sweet and hot at the same time. You can control the heat by adjusting how many chillies you use. This mango salsa can be used on just about anything so I thought I should share it with you.

Mango Salsa

4 mangos diced
1/2 pineapple diced
2 shallots finely diced
1 scotch bonnet finely diced with seeds removed
1 jalapeño finely diced with seeds removed
2 limes juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt
¼ cup finely chopped cilantro

Combine the mangos, pineapple, shallots and chillies. Pour olive oil and lime juice over the fruit. Stir to combine. At this point taste the salsa and add salt to taste. Stir in cilantro. Serves 8.

Checking Out

2008-06-13T09:21:00.000-07:00

We'll be heading down to St. Thomas for ten days of sailing. We'll be coming back with lots of new cooking adventures. See you in a couple of weeks.

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

2008-06-13T09:14:00.000-07:00

It looks like summer has finally decided to show up. I made my first Strawberry Rhubarb Pie of the season. mmm.

Fromage Blanc Tartlets

2008-06-08T18:52:00.001-07:00

I have a large dinner coming up at the end of the month and I wanted to start the dinner with a great little fromage blanc tart. I did a little test run this weekend and I was really pleased with the final product. Earlier in the week I stopped by my cheese shop Foster and Dobbs and talked with the owner about what cheese I should use. She was generous enough to talk me through and let me taste several cheeses. I settled on a plain fromage blanc. After I settled on a cheese it was time to put some thought to the pastry crust. For the last couple of years I haven’t been very happy with my pastry crust. It’s been hard to work with and temperamental. I found a recipe that I think solves all of my problems.

I combined the fromage blanc with some fresh tarragon, thyme, chive and chervil and then piped the cheese into the tart shells.

For crust
3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
10 tablespoons (about) ice water

Make crust: Combine flour, sugar and salt in processor. [Alternately, you can use a pastry cutter to make your dough, as I did.] Using on/off turns, cut in shortening and butter until coarse meal forms. Blend in enough ice water 2 tablespoons at a time to form moist clumps. Gather dough into ball; cut in half. Flatten each half into disk. Wrap separately in plastic; refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. Let dough soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.)
Using a biscuit cutter cut out rounds and press them into a mini muffin pan. Bake until golden brown at 350.

Raspberry Opera Cake

2008-05-27T20:28:00.000-07:00

This months Daring Bakers challenge was kind of fun. I've always wanted to make an opera cake, but it's one of those recipes that I just couldn't get around to making. This month we got to make a "light" opera cake. Normally an opera cake is made with chocolate and espresso butter cream, but this time I had to make the cake with light components. I'll admit that I didn't get very adventurous and I went with a flavor combination that I know works well together. The first layer is an almond cake. The cake was then moistened with a lemon syrup. The first two layers were filled with raspberry buttercream. The third layer was topped with white chocolate raspberry mousse.

In the end I was pleased with the challenge. It was a good day spent in the kitchen.

Tart Sweet Hot Delicious

2008-05-18T21:48:00.000-07:00

This isn't so much a recipe, but rather a great discovery. Pineapple topped with Thai chillies and flake salt. This makes a great dessert on a hot night. The pineapple was sweet and juicy. The salt is a pleasant contrast and the chillies give the pineapple a complex heat. Give it a shot.

White Chocolate Toffe Oatmeal Cookies

2008-05-10T21:09:00.000-07:00

This morning I was perusing my favorite food blogs and came across this great recipe. I had to drop everything and make these cookies. As it turns out they are fantastic. These oatmeal cookies are light and crunchy with a rich buttery flavor. When you bake these cookies the small chunks of caramel bubble up into a crunchy toffe. Makes 24 cookies. Adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

1 Cup flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons butter (1 ½ sticks)
1 Cup sugar
¼ Cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ½ Cup quick oats
4 oz white chocolate chopped into small chunks (NO white chocolate chips)
3 oz chewy caramels cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350.

In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until smooth. Slowly add the flour, oats, white chocolate and caramels.
Scoop the dough into round balls about 2 tablespoons in size. Place six on each cookie sheet. Press them down slightly until they are about ¾” thick. Bake for 12-16 minutes until golden brown. Cool cookies on a cookie rack.

queso fundido

2008-05-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

Cynco de Mayo

2008-05-06T20:45:00.000-07:00

The star of Cynco de Mayo was our new commercial gas grill. Each burner has 25,000 btu's. I'm not quite sure what that means, but I can tell you this baby can cook. The portable grill is hot fierce mess. We seared off twenty pounds of hanger steaks, chicken verde and spicy shrimp.
On a side note Cynco de Mayo marks our blogs one year anniversary. If you want to take a look at last years celebration go check out here.
Even the Jack and Rufus got in on the fun.

Lemon Chicken

2008-04-20T18:41:00.000-07:00

A New Aproach to Tzatziki

2008-04-18T21:25:00.000-07:00

I will admit right up front that I have absolutely no preconceived notions of Tzatziki. Peter called this afternoon and suggested that we take dinner to Greece tonight, and I was quick to jump on board. I’ve been thinking about cucumber salad lately and I wanted to take a stab at Tzatziki. So in my mind I wanted a tart creamy salad jam packed with herbs and crunchy cucumbers. I’m not sure if its proper to call this dish tzatziki, but the resulting salad was absolutely fantastic.

I’ve been watching Kyle Kwong’s show Simply Chinese and she does a lot of quick pickles with cucumbers and celery. I was thinking this was the perfect opportunity to try out this new technique. So basically what I did was dice the cucumber and then tossed them with salt and sugar and let them set for fifteen minutes. The salt pulls the water out of the cucumbers and the sugar helps balance the flavors. After fifteen minutes I drained off all of the excess liquid and then let them soak up the red wine vinegar. To finish the dish off I combined the pickled cucumber with Greek yogurt, minced garlic, lemon zest and fresh mint, tarragon and parsley.

Garlic and Horseradish Potato Gratin

2008-04-14T14:40:00.000-07:00

I admit it: I totally stole this recipe from my former employer. Actually, I only saw my old boss make this while I was walking in and out of the kitchen, but it was so good that I remembered its simple ingredients and preparation.

Make this with steak, it's a match made in heaven. It's also amazing refried for breakfast. When we went sailing over Labor Day Weekend last year, we made so much that we had it with every meal for two days!

3 lbs. potatoes

10-15 cloves garlic, peeled

1 - 4 inch piece fresh horseradish root

parmaggiano reggiano or other melty, yummy cheese

1 pint heavy cream

salt and pepper

crushed red pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grate the horseradish. Combine with garlic cloves and cream and heat in a small saucepan on low heat until simmering. Remove from the heat and let steep 20-30 minutes. Meanwhile, peel and slice the potatoes into 1/8" slices. Arrange the potatoes in a gratin dish, sprinkle with generous amounts of kosher salt and ground pepper. Pour the cream mixture over the potatoes and grate the cheese over the top. Cook in the oven until the potatoes are cooked through and the cheese is gold and bubbly.

The Magic of Spring

2008-04-12T17:47:00.000-07:00

Today was pure magic. After weeks, no months of rain and dark skies the sun burst through today with a vengeance. The market was off the hook. It was packed, people where smiling and I even talked with complete strangers. It’s amazing what happens in Portland when the sun shines. Peter and I are having some friends over this weekend for a spring vegetable Frito. We’re going to fry up baby artichoke hearts and fiddle head ferns. We’re also going to make morel mushroom pasta.

After working in the yard all day we were to tired to cook, so our spring meal will just have to wait for one more day.

The First Week of the Farmers Market

2008-04-05T17:45:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning at 6:30, and as soon as I opened my eyes I started thinking about what I was going to find at the market today. Naturally it was a cold and rainy morning, but that didn't stop the crowds. It was great to see so many happy faces and even some familiar ones.

Peter and I grabbed a couple of fun things. We got fiddle head ferns, radishes, nettle greens, green garlic and spring onions. I think we'll find something fun to make with those tonight.

Oven Baked Thai Ribs

2008-03-22T14:13:00.000-07:00

This recipe made its first appearance at our Iron Chef competition a few years ago. The secret ingredient was chilies and Peter and I did dishes from around the world using chilies. I think my favorite were the oysters with a Vietnamese sauce. Spicy, salty, sour and sweet. It’s perfect for oysters. But anywho… back to the dish at hand. Oven baked ribs really couldn’t be easier. The ribs are baked for an hour and then basted in the oven for another hour. When you’re finished you’ve got dark spicy tender baby back ribs. I’m sure this recipe would work well for just about any rib, but I like it with baby back ribs.

3lbs pork ribs

1 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 cup Mirin wine
1 tablespoon curry paste
1 tablespoon finely chopped lemon grass
1 lime zested and juiced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
fish sauce to taste

Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil and place the ribs and ½ cup water into the pan. Cover the pan with foil and bake for one hour. While the ribs are baking prepare the basting sauce. In a medium saucepan heat the oil. When in it’s hot add the garlic and the ginger and cook it quickly. Add the mirin, curry paste, lemon grass and cook until the mixture is reduced by half. Remove from the heat and add the zest, juice, soy sauce and fish sauce.
After one hour remove the foil and brush the ribs with the sauce. Baste the ribs about every 10 minutes or so for about other hour. Remove from the oven and cool slightly then cut the ribs and serve them warm.

Coconut Cupcakes

2008-03-13T22:28:00.000-07:00

Frisee and Radicchio Salad with Cider Vinaigrette and Aged Goat Cheese

2008-03-09T14:33:00.000-07:00

The beauty of this salad lies in its contrasts. Crunchy radicchio and tender frisee are both bitter. The cider vinaigrette is sweet and salty and complements the greens very well. Finally, the aged goat cheese gives a creamy balance to the tart greens and dressing.

For the vinaigrette:

1/2 gallon filtered apple cider or juice

3 T apple cider vinegar

1 small shallot, minced

1/2 clove garlic, minced

1 T dijon mustard

3/4 c. canola oil

pinch crushed red pepper

salt and pepper

Boil the cider until it has almost all evaporated, until there is about 1/2 cup syrup. This will take about 1 hour. In a blender or food processor, add 1/4 cup of the syrup, vinegar, shallot, garlic, mustard, and crushed red pepper. Blend in oil in a thin stream until incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

2 small heads radicchio, about 1 pound, sliced thin

1/2 lb. frisee, rinsed

1 small package candied walnuts (or 1 c. roasted walnuts)

1 apple, sliced

1 pear, sliced

1/4 lb. aged goat cheese

Combine the radicchio, frisee, walnuts, apple, and pear in a large bowl. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Add enough vinaigrette to lightly coat. Toss together, season with pepper, and shave the goat cheese over the top.

Smoked Salmon Benedict

2008-03-09T13:21:00.001-07:00

Our cousin Sandy lives in Kent, WA and brought us some smoked salmon made by her husband, Kirk. We all agreed that it was the best smoked salmon we had ever had. My first thought was, benedicts! This dish is not for the faint of heart.

Start with a toasted, buttered english muffin. Pile on some smoked salmon. Next comes a poached organic egg. Finally, a generous dollop of hollandaise sauce, with more on the side. Sprinkle with a pinch of cayenne and tear some italian parsley leaves. Yum!

Hollandaise Sauce

4 egg yolks
juice of 1 lemon
3 T tarragon vinegar
12 peppercorns
1-1/2 cup (3 sticks) melted butter
sea salt
ground cayenne pepper

Place a large glass bowl over a pot of simmering water to make a double-boiler. Melt butter in a small saucepan and keep warm. Heat lemon juice in the microwave for 30 seconds. Using a small skillet, crush the peppercorns, put in the skillet with the vinegar and simmer on high heat until the vinegar has almost boiled off and thickens, to about a teaspoonful. Strain into the double boiler using a fine mesh sieve.

Place the egg yolks in the glass bowl and whisk until the yolks begin to thicken. Add the hot lemon juice and continue to whisk until the yolks begin to thicken again. Add the melted butter in a very thin stream and continue to whisk until all the butter is incorporated. The sauce should be thick enough so that it folds back onto itself from a spoon in ribbons. If it is too thick, whisk in some of the simmering water from the double boiler. Season with sea salt and a pinch of cayenne and serve immediately.

Vanilla Cheese Cake

2008-03-06T10:49:00.001-08:00

There is a certain joy when you find a recipe that delivers a perfect product every time. You don’t have to worry about it. You know your guest are going to love it, so you can relax. I know that that there are thousands of cheese cake recipes out there, but this one is the quintessential vanilla cheese cake. With each bite your focus goes right to the creamy texture. The flavor is not over powered by vanilla or sugary sweetness. I definitely suggest serving it with a tart raspberry sauce.

One year I got a bee in my bonnet and decided to enter five different cakes in the county fair. They all got blue ribbons, but this one took Best in Show. This recipe comes from Rosalee Hodges of West Virginia.

Crust
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
¼ cup sugar
½ cup butter softened

Filling
4-8oz pkg Philadelphia cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
6 eggs

Topping
2 cups sour cream (do not use reduced fat)
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease the bottom of 10” spring form pan. Combine together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and softened butter. Press the crust into the pan. Bake for five minutes at 350. Let the crust cool on a rack while you mix together the filling. Beat the cream cheese in a stand mixer until smooth. Add the sugar, vanilla and mix on medium speed for one minute. Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each. Pour the filling over the crust. Wrap the bottom of the pan with two layers aluminum foil and set it in a roasting pan. The double layer of aluminum foil will protect against any water seeping into your pan. Pour ½ inch of hot water into the roasting pan to create a water bath to keep the cheese cake from cracking while baking. Bake for 40 minutes. Discard the water bath and cool the cake for 15 minutes. Make the topping by mixing together the sour cream, sugar and vanilla and pour it carefully over the cake. Bake for 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Chill 12 to 24 hours. Remove the sides of the spring form pan. Serve with fresh fruit. I highly recommend serving this with raspberry sauce.

Eight Little Lambs

2008-03-02T22:43:00.000-08:00

This weeks Sunday Supper was a celebration of late winter. We were treated to one of those rare days in March when the sun shines warm and the fresh buds on each tree burst open. On Saturday we were feeling especially inspired so we started throwing ideas around to come up with an extra special Sunday supper.

Saturday’s sunny prelude to spring had us thinking about lamb. Immediately we settled in on lamb shanks. As per usual our guest list had grown to sixteen so this cut of meat was perfect. We hadn’t prepared lamb shanks before, but Peter gave them a traditional braise and they turned out beautiful. I was thrilled to see our uninhibited guest tear into the lamb with enthusiasm. I’ll have to admit a platter of sixteen lamb shanks is not for the faint of heart.

Along with the lamb we had Duchess Potatoes and a Radicchio Salad with a reduced apple cider vinaigrette. This is one of my favorite salads. To make the dressing we boiled down an entire gallon of cider. It gives the dressing deep flavors of caramel and apples.

Keith and Julia

2008-02-29T09:49:00.000-08:00

This month was my first adventure with the Daring Bakers. For those of you who are not familiar with The Daring Bakers, we are a group of food bloggers from around the world that take on a new baking adventure every month. The great thing about the group is it forces you to take on baking projects that you would normally avoid. Some of the challenges in the past have included making croissants from scratch, pulling sugar, making puff pastry and cream puffs.

This month we made french bread from the famous recipe written by Julia Childs. She wrote a beautiful 18 page recipe detailing every step in the processes. I've never made bread before so I was a little nervous, but I'm happy to report that everything turned out just right. I guess I picked up a few things watching my dad make bread all of those years.

The thing that struck me was how long the whole process took. I started at 7 am and took the bread out of the oven at 3:30 pm. I had a whole month to do the project, but I had a really hard time finding a day when I had 8 hours to hang out at home. The bread was actually quite simple, but with incredible bakeries like Ken's and The Pearl in town I think I'll just buy my bread.

Be sure to check in next month to see what the next adventure of The Daring Bakers entails.

Korean Crispy Vegetable Pancakes

2008-02-24T10:47:00.000-08:00

This morning we were sitting around trying to think up something to make for breakfast. Down the street from our house is a little diner and the Korean woman who owns it makes these incredible vegetable pancakes. They are made with potatoes, carrots and green onions and held together by a light egg batter. So Peter and I put our heads together and came up with this recipe.

2 Cups all purpose flour
2 eggs lightly beaten
1 tablespoon canola oil
8 green onions green parts only cut into 3" slivers
1 medium carrot pealed and grated
4 medium potatoes cut into match sticks
salt and pepper
In a medium bowl mix together flour, eggs and oil with 11/2 cups water until a smooth batter is formed. Stir the green onions, carrots and potatoes into the batter. Cook the pancakes in a non stick skillet on medium heat. They should take about 3 minutes on each side. We finished our pancakes off with a fried egg, sour cream and hot sauce, and then we washed them down with fresh made Mimosas.

Organics to You Update

2008-02-20T17:09:00.000-08:00

Still mostly apples and pears with a few root veggies thrown in...

Focaccia Bread

2008-02-20T17:03:00.000-08:00

Ever since we installed butcher block counter tops, I have had this overwhelming urge to make focaccia, the crispy olive oil-infused Italian bread. It's really pretty easy once you get started. Plus, the smell of rising bread dough is magical.

Ten01 Sparkling Wine Dinner

2008-02-10T12:11:00.000-08:00

Last night we went to the Sparkling wine class at Ten01. Sommelier Erica Landon has put together a fantastic monthly program of wine classes and wine dinners. Each two-hour class covers in-depth information about wine production, regional characteristics and some of the science behind what creates the subtle differences from one wine to another.

In addition to getting to taste 5 or 6 wines Chef Jack Yoss created several food pairings to go with each wine. The food and wine pairings were truly inspired.

Here is a break down of what we had last night. Read it and weep.

Northwest oysters on the half shell with and apple-pink peppercorn mignonette
2004 Wachtenburg Winzer, Riesling Sekt, Germany

Dungeness crab salad with citrus segments, on butter lettuce
2002 Argyle, brut Willamette Valley Oregon

Seared Sea Scallop on a pistachio puree *
NV Tattinger, Cuvee Prestige, Champagne France

Housemade Charcuterie with grape must mustard
NV Domaine des baumard, Corail, Cremant de Loire

Housemade Peach Sorbet
2007 Elio Perrone, Sourgal, Moscato d’asti, Italy **

*The Sea scallops with the pistachio puree were out of this world! So often scallops get paired with a bright acidic glaze or sauce, but this went in a completely different direction. This dish was about parallel flavors. With the scallop you had a deep buttery sear and the sweet succulent meat. That was complemented by the nutty, sweet and slightly green flavor of the impossibly smooth pistachio puree. Then just to hammer home the point the dish was garnished with whole toasted pistachios, so you got this crunch with all of those other soft lovely textures.

I’m still learning my words to describe wine so I’ll just say that the fuller body of the Cuvee Prestige made the pairing just sing.

**This Moscato d’asti was something truly special. When I first sipped the wine I was hit by the sweet peach flavor, but then the creamy mouth feel blew me away. This was like no wine I’ve ever tasted before. One dining companion blurted out that it was like a creamsicle. They paired this wine with a simple peach sorbet. The two combined to form pure magic.

The next class is going to be on the wines of Burgundy. See you there.
For a reservation call 503 226 DINE. 1001 NW Couch St. Portland, OR 97209

Cheese Straws

2008-02-03T20:50:00.001-08:00

I've had this recipe tucked away in my family cookbook for several years. I found it originally in the New York Times and I've been meaning to make it ever since. I was headed to a Super Bowl party so I thought these would be perfect. These cheese straws have a bold cheddar flavor with light, crispy bite. They turned out flakey, crispy and packed full of cheese flavor.

1/2 lb cheddar cheese
1/3 lb Parmesan cheese
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon dry mustard
pinch cayenne
8 tablespoons chilled butter
4 tablespoons ice water, if needed

Preheat oven to 450
grate cheese by hand and place in a bowl. Pulse flour, mustard and cayenne in processor. Add butter and process untill butter and flour are combined. Pulse in cheese. Turn out onto counter and knead by hand, adding a few drops of ice water if neccessary. Roll out into a rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. on a lightly floured surface or between 2 sheets of parchment, then cut into 1/2 inch strips as longs as you like. Bake on parchment paper for 5-8 minutes untill golden brown. Be sure not to over bake them because they will become bitter and off flavor.
Yield: at least ten servings.

Spicy Salmon Tatare

2008-01-28T21:03:00.000-08:00

This weekend my friend Kent had several cooks over for a cooking / dinner party. When we arrived at his loft we were presented with a large packet of what we were going to be making for the night. The entire evening’s menu came from Bobby Flays Mesa Grill Cookbook.

For years I’ve watched Bobby Flay cook on the food network, but I’ve never eaten at any of his restaurants. The dishes that Kent picked did a great job of highlighting Bobby’s style of layering flavors and textures in each dish. In the end we ended up with about 15 different recipes. I have to say I was really impressed with each of the dishes. My favorite dish of the evening was the spicy tuna tartar with an avocado relish served on top of white corn polenta cake.

Salmon Tartare
Adapted from the Mesa Grill Cookbook by Bobby Flay
Serves 8

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon chipotle Chile puree
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound fresh salmon cut into ¼ inch dice
3 tablespoons capers, drained
¼ cup thinly sliced green onion whit and green parts (about 3 )
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
salt and pepper

To make the tartare, whisk together the mustard, chipotle puree, and oil in a medium bowl. Fold in the salmon, capers, green onion, and cilantro until combined. Season with salt and pepper. The tartare can only be made 10 minutes in advance.

An Army of Mini Burgers

2008-01-24T15:07:00.001-08:00

The Best Chili

2008-01-20T15:52:00.000-08:00

I never really thought much about Chili until recently. When I was growing up it was one of those dishes we had for lunch on Saturdays. My mom would brown off a pound of ground beef and then added a large can of chili to it. To me it wasn't that bad, but nothing special, in fact my favorite part was the Cheetos that were often served along side.

This last year my friend’s Jeff and Peter made chili for us when we were up at the cabin skiing. This chili was all about actual chilies and it completely changed the way I think about chili. This chili was made with the simplest ingredients: dried chilies, onions and beef. The flavor was direct, rich and deep. There were no beans or anything else to muddle it up. I’ve started to experiment with these ingredients to come up with a perfect recipe. The first big hurdle to get over is buying dried chilies. I’ve always felt really intimidated by the bags of dried chilies at the market. There are so many types I wasn’t quite sure where to start, so I’m just going to have to figure it out. I found a simple resource to sorting out the chilies. I’m sure this list of chilies with their pictures is kind of limited, but I liked it because it was so simple.
I purchased three 4oz bags of chilies: guajillo, hot new mexico reds and mild new mexico reds. To use the Chilies they need to be reconstituted and then puréed and pushed through a sieve to remove the outer skins. This sounds like a lot of work, but it’s not. I cut the tops off of the chilies and then emptied their seeds out. Using a knife I sliced the chilies open and opened them up flat. I placed the chilies in a heat proof bowl and covered them boiling water. I also put a small plate over the chilies to make sure they were submerged in the hot water. They need to soak for about 30 minutes. I used this time to get working on the other parts of the chili.

After the chilies have soaked for thirty minutes take them out of the water and put them into a food processor or blender to puree them. Be sure to keep the water that they’ve been soaking in because you will need add some of it to the food processor when your puréeing the chilies. I let the food processor run for a couple of minutes until the chilies looked really smooth. I placed a fine sieve over a small bowl and used a spatula to push the puree through the sieve. I was surprised by how many skins are left in the end. You really don’t want to skip this step. On an earlier batch I thought I could get away with just pureeing the chilies and skip the straining, but the final product just wasn’t very appealing because you can feel the plasticy skins in your mouth no matter how finely they’ve been puréed.

I was kind of surprised when I tasted the puree. In my mind I was expecting a hot searing sauce like Adobo, but in reality it was mild, sweet and fruity. I think it would be a really fun experiment to try different combinations of chilies and see how the puree changes. I think that will help me sort out their flavors.

The chili turned out great. I'm still working on a final recipe. I want to do a couple more test to get it just right. Every year at the county fair they have a chili cook off. If I get my recipe sorted out I think I should enter. As a side note Peter bought some dried sweet corn that we used to make spoon bread. It was great. The kernels were pretty large so I pulsed them in the food processor first. The spoon bread had a much more dynamic flavor than when I use plain cornmeal.

Guacamole Time

2008-01-20T15:47:00.001-08:00

I've posted about guacamole in the past back on our old blog speakeasy, but it's the perfect time of year to make guacamole so I thought I might talk about it again. With all of the fires in Cailifornia this year I was all prepared to pay a fortune for avacados, but aparently all's well cause they were $1 each at the store. So go out and make yourself some guacamole. As an extra little tip check out Juanita's chips. At my store they are sold in the "mexican" section. I'm not sure why they are sold on a different isle from the rest chips, but I suspect it's because the other chips felt inferior.

Guacamole
4 avocadoes
½ jalapeno, minced
½ roma tomato, seeded and diced
2T red onion, minced
1 clove garlic minced
1t cumin
2 limes, zested and juiced
salt and pepper
½ bunch cilantro

Try to get the avocadoes a few days in advance so they are nice and ripe. I like to score the avocado flesh with a pairing knife so when you spoon it out it comes out in small pieces. Combine all of the ingredients in to a large bowl. Use a large fork to combine the ingredients to the texture you like. I prefer to leave it a little chunky so you can really enjoy the texture of the avocado.

Caesar Ceviche at Taqueria Nueve

2008-01-16T11:44:00.000-08:00

Most of the time when I’m looking over a menu I wont even give a second thought to any kind of Caesar salad. It’s surprising that a salad that is so ubiquitous is often so bad. Even worse is the Chicken Caesar, dry and bland. I just don’t like the idea of adding a chicken cutlet to an already disappointing salad. So no chicken Caesar for me, thank you.

However, the Caesar Ceviche at Taqueria Nueve kind of rocks this world. It’s interesting, unique and really tasty. The luscious tart ceviche is the perfect foil to the creamy dressing. When I first starting dining at Taqueria Nueve this salad was one of my favorite items, but after twenty or thirty times I kind of burned myself out. Just recently I came back to it and I’m trying to remember why I ever tired of it before. Oh Caesar Ceviche, why are you so good to me?

To read a great comprehensive review of Caesar salads around Portland jump on over to Extramsg.

Something Fun and New

2008-01-11T12:20:00.000-08:00

I've been ringing in the new year with a terrible cold, so I haven't been doing much in the kitchen. However I have been sitting on the couch reading food blogs and I've come across some fun stuff.

The first is Wine Rendez-vous. It's fun blog written by Oliver Magny. He's a young french Sommellerie and he shoots short little videos about wine. I found it very entertaining.

The second is a food blog called Taste Spotting. They collect all of the most interesting new postings on food blogs from around the world. So you can easily browse through and click on what ever looks interesting. It's like having a cooking magazine the changes every single day.

Go check them out.

Buche de Noel II

2007-12-26T21:09:00.000-08:00

After my first Buche de Noel I was feeling pretty good about my Christmas cake skills. My aunt asked me to bring one to Christmas dinner and I thought it would be fun to turn it up a notch and get creative. I used the same chocolate soufflé cake recipe from the first buche and I used the same base buttercream but I added my favorite raspberry sauce to change it up. This raspberry sauce brings a bright fresh flavor to the buttercream. In fact I think this is one of the handiest sauces to have in your repertoire. The intense fresh raspberry flavor adds a huge punch to any dessert. It's one of those recipes that I make so often I've commited it to memory. I know that you will love it too.

This recipe comes from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Barnbaum. I use my copy so often that it falls open to all the right pages and the whole thing is covered with little stains and chocolate smears. This book should be in every cook's kitchen. I think the best thing about this book is how Rose goes into why things work and gives you understanding so you can start to make changes on your own.

Raspberry Puree Sauce

2 12oz bags of frozen raspberries with no sugar added
2t lemon juice
2/3C sugar

Thaw the berries in a strainer over a medium sized glass bowl. I usually do this over night. Once the berries are completely thawed they should have given off about 1 cup of juice. You now are going to microwave the juice on high until the juice is reduced to ¼ cup. In my high powered microwave it takes about 6 minutes. You can do this on the stove as well, but I found that it was easy to burn or over caramelize the juice on the stove.

Puree the raspberries in a food processor and the pass them through a fine sieve to remove all of the seeds. Once you have passed all of the berries through the sieve you should have about 1 Cup of raspberry puree in the bowl. Now combine the concentrated juice with puree and add the lemon juice. At this point I taste the sauce to see how much sugar I want to add. I find that I rarely use all 2/3 Cup of sugar. It just depends on how sweet the raspberries are.

Organics to You challenge, week one

2007-12-26T20:19:00.001-08:00

It has proven easy to eat the produce we got from Organics to You. The fruit was gone in no time. The apples, pears and satsumas were bursting with flavor.

Tonight featured a salad with the green leaf lettuce, prepared with a whole grain mustard vinaigrette. Topped with some sliced roasted beets, crumbled blue cheese and a medium-boiled egg and the salad was done.

On the side was our favorite potato salad, using the yukon gold potatoes and some pickled red onions.

Lastly, I just roasted the sweet potatoes and served them with a little pat of butter and some fleur de sel.

It doesn't get any better, especially since the veggies are so flavorful. Those crazy vegetarians may be on to something, at least until Organics to You starts selling meat!

Hambeans

2007-12-26T17:39:00.000-08:00

We had a rather large ham to eat for Christmas Dinner #1 with the friends, and the first thing I thought when looking at that leftover ham in the refrigerator was that the magic lies in the ham bone itself rather than the meat. I am one of the few people I know that actually has a special tool just for extracting marrow from bones.

I know, it sounds gross, but you've got to try some marrow from an osso bucco once without knowing it and you'll surely remark how delicious it is. In this case, the marrow from the ham bone gives its flavor to these beans. Even Keith, who remarked, "I don't really like beans," ate bowl after bowl.

We got a jar of chow chow from our friend Adam for the holidays this year. Chow chow is a traditional southern relish often made with green tomatoes and other green vegetables, and tastes sweet and sour. Nick remembered eating beans with chow chow as a kid, so that served as the inspiration for this dish.

I basically followed the recipe on the package of beans I bought, but spruced it up a little bit.

1 ham bone from leftover baked ham with 1 pound of reserved diced ham

2 lbs. mixed beans (we used one package of Hurst's Hambeans)

1 large onion, small dice

4 carrots, small dice

4 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups ckicken stock

1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes

juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp. crushed red pepper

1 bunch kale, chopped

Place beans in a large pot, cover with 2 quarts water. Allow beans to soak overnight, or at least 8 hours.

After draining, add reserved ham, ham bone and broth, along with 4 cups water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered 2 and a half hours. Add onions, carrot, chili pepper, kale and garlic and simmer an additional 30 minutes. Add lemon juice and tomatoes and season to taste with salt and pepper. If the beans are too thick, add water to thin, depending on the texture you want. Remove ham bone and serve with rice or on its own as a stew, topped with a tablespoon of chow chow if you have it.

This recipe makes a huge amount! However, it freezes well and will last a week in the refrigerator.

Mae Copenhagen's Toffee

2007-12-22T12:31:00.000-08:00

The Perftect Dish, Beef Cheek Bourguignon

2007-12-21T16:10:00.000-08:00

I was recently watching the documentary Unzipped, which follows Isaac Mizrahi through the creation of his 1994 fall collection, and it got me thinking how sometimes a great dish can be like a designer dress. A designer can create a silhouette with just two simple lines. With the stroke of a pen they can reduce a dress down to its purist form. Determining the height of a hemline alone can speak volumes about a dresses history, context and trendiness. I think you’ll find that it’s the details of the construction will really let a designer dress shine. You’ll find a dress that is made from exquisite fabric and hand sown. It’s this attention to detail, craftsmanship and concept that set a dress apart as fashion. So what’s all this talk of high fashion have to do with Beef Cheeks? Chefs like designers have to find a way to take the familiar ( Beef bourguignon ) and turn it into something fresh and sublime. So this is how we get to the Beef Cheek Bourguignon at Le Pigeon.

Chef Gabriel Rucker has taken on the rustic French dish beef Bourguignon and brought us the incredibly elegant and sophisticated Beef Cheek Bourguignon. When I was presented with the dish I was struck by how simple it was. In a wide shallow bowl there was a small collection of vegetables. There were tender carrots, roasted onions and several disks of pan fried potatoes. On top of this were two succulent pieces of braised beef cheeks. All of this was glazed with spoonfuls of the darkest, richest broth I have ever tasted. The Beef Cheeks are braised so dark they look as if they have been lacquered, and they are so tender and sweet that they just melt away in our mouth.

I think what makes this dish so interesting is the way that Chef Rucker has simplified this dish to five key components and then he found a way to highlight the character of each component and what it brings to the dish as a whole. Simply stunning.

Le Pigeon
738 E Burnside St.
Portland, OR 97214
503 546 8796

Potatoes Anna

2007-12-20T16:13:00.001-08:00

Yet another French classic. I have to say, eating at Beast really brought out the Frenchie in me. I often forget that in culinary school we learned French techniques, but I eschewed them for the Italian food that was so in vogue in Portland a few years ago. I often forget that French bistro classics are just as hearty and delicious.

These potatoes are delicious. In this case, we used butter and duck fat. Duck fat is kind of like fish sauce, it smells weird but tastes delicious. And potatoes married with duck fat are to die for, as we have seen before on this website.

3 large russet potatoes

8 tablespoons butter (or duck fat, or combination)

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Peel and slice potatoes lengthwise into 1/8" slices. Melt butter.

In a large nonstick skillet, brush bottom of pan with butter. Arrange potatoes in a pinwheel formation. Brush with more butter and season generously with kosher salt and pepper. Potatoes can take a lot of salt, so don't be shy! Repeat until all of the potatoes are used and pour any remaining butter on top.

Bake for about an hour until the potatoes are tender and browned on the bottom. Invert onto a serving plate and grate some parmagiano reggiano on top if you like. Easy!

Root Vegetable and Rainbow Chard Gratin

2007-12-20T15:52:00.001-08:00

This dish is rich, and I mean RICH. It tastes light and has lots of veggies, but it's deceiving. However, for a special occassion it's perfect. One of our diners even remarked that they don't eat those veggies very often, but in this iteration they were good. (holla, Casper!)

4 carrots

2 large parsnips

4 baby turnips

16 cups rainbow chard

one large onion, small dice

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 c. heavy cream

4 T. butter

parmagiano reggiano

1/2. lb. grated aged gruyere

nutmeg

salt and pepper

extra virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Heat a very large pan on medium high heat. Add shallots and a pinch of crushed red pepper, saute quickly and add garlic. Saute for 30 seconds longer. Add chard in batches with a pinch of kosher salt and continue to saute until the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper and grate a pinch of nutmeg on top.

Arrange root vegetables in a layer in a large baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, half the gruyere and some parmagiano reggiano. Repeat with another layer of root vegetables. Add the sauteed chard on the top layer. Pour the cream over the whole concoction and grate additional parmagiano reggiano on top. Dollop the butter all over the top.

Bake for 45-60 minutes until gold and bubbly. Allow to cool 30 minutes prior to serving.

Note: you may substitute all kinds of vegetables, squash or whatever you like. This is a basic gratin recipe and has many variations.

Frisee aux Lardons

2007-12-20T14:28:00.000-08:00

Sounds fancy, but it's just a salad with bacon and egg. This is a classic French bistro salad, which gets its creaminess from the yolk of the poached egg.

Usually, this salad is served with a warm vinaigrette made with the rendered bacon fat, but we substituted a cold champagne vinaigrette. Served with a cheddar gougere and a glass of champagne, you feel very fancy, but ultimately it's just salad.

It's time to mention the beauty of Voget's meat. They have a whole variety of smoked and cured meats, and their bacon is the best I have ever tasted. Check them out at http://www.vogetmeats.com/.

1 bunch organic frisee (endive)

1/2 lb. slab bacon, cut into 1/2" cubes (you can use sliced bacon, we did)

6 eggs

parmesano reggiano

For vinaigrette:

3 T champagne vinegar

1 tsp. dijon mustard

2 T bacon fat, melted

1/4 c. olive oil

1 T. honey

pinch crushed red pepper

salt and pepper to taste

Cook bacon on low heat until browned but not crispy. Drain and reserve bacon fat for vinaigrette. Mix vinaigrette ingredients in a liquid proof container and shake shake shake your moneymaker until it's combined. Set aside.

Poach 6 large eggs until just set and still runny in the center. Remove to a bowl of ice water and set aside.

Wash and rinse frisee and put in a large bowl with cooked bacon. Season with salt, add enough vinaigrette to coat and toss. Arrange on plates, top with a poached egg and grate parmesano reggiano on top. Serves 6.

Apple Cherry Mostarda

2007-12-19T11:59:00.000-08:00

For our Ham Christmas dinner we wanted to make several accompaniments for the meat. We concluded that we wanted honey mustard, horseradish aioli and then some kind of fruit chutney. We talked about it for a while and threw some ideas back and forth about what we thought would be nice with the ham. Peter remembered a condiment that they used to make at Ripe called Mostarda with peppers, fruit and vinegar. We used that as a starting point and then got creative. I’m glad we did because the results were spectacular. Here’s what we came up with.

Apple Cherry Mostarda
4 red peppers diced
1 yellow onion diced
¼ t chili flakes
4 Fuji apples pealed, quartered and sliced
2 C frozen sour cherries
1T dark mustard seeds
1/4C rice wine vinegar
1/4C honey
salt and pepper

Saute the peppers and the onion in a large sauté pan. When the peppers start to soften add the chili flake, apples, cherries and mustard seed. Let all of this cook for a few minutes while the apples release their juices. After a couple of minutes add the vinegar, honey and salt and pepper. Cover the pan and let the chutney cook down for ten minutes. Test one more time for seasoning and adjust accordingly. Chill for an hour.

The Omnivore's Dilemma

2007-12-17T22:13:00.001-08:00

I am currently reading The Omnivore's Dilemma, which is a revolutionary study of the current state of the food industry. You might say it looks like the celery above.

One of the most important lessons of the book is the need to support local, sustainable organic farmers. The book is making such an impression on me that I decided to introduce these products into my every day life. I have to admit that, until now, I just reached for the cheapest vegetable I could fine, unless I was making a special dinner.

I now realize that it's time to use the best ingredients all the time. So I signed up for Organics to You, a local company that delivers locally farmed organic products to your door. We'll start featuring each basket, delivered every two weeks.

This will be a great challenge to see if we can utilize all of the product. How exciting! Here's this week's basket:

Looks good, huh? http://www.organicstoyou.com/

Buche de Noel

2007-12-17T22:03:00.000-08:00

This year I decided that I wanted to take on a Christmas classic. The Buche De Noel is a traditional French cake that decorated to look like a Yule log. I’ve always been a little scared of rolled cakes. Sometimes making the genoise can be a little tricky and I’m always scared that cake will crack when I roll it. After watching one of my favorite episodes of Sarah’s Secretes in which she and Nick Malgieri make the Buche de Noel, I got the courage to give it a shot. It worked out great. As an added bonus I also learned a new technique for making buttercream that is a lot easier than the tradition method and results in a light and lovely buttercream.

Buche De Noel
Adapted from Nick Malgieri, Perfect Cakes

Espresso Buttercream
4 egg whites
1C sugar
3 sticks of butter
2 T instant espresso powder
2 T brandy
2 T vanilla extract

Chocolate Roll Cake
6oz semisweet chocolate
¼ C raspberry liqueur
2 T unsalted butter
6 eggs separated
pinch of salt
½ C sugar

I’m really excited about the technique for making this buttercream. It’s really easy and it gorgeous. Separate 4 egg whites into your mixer bowl. Whisk in the sugar and place the mixing bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water. You are going to whisk the mixture over the simmering water to melt the sugar. You’ll know when the sugar is melted the mixture suddenly becomes thin and runny. At this point take the bowl to the stand mixer and using the whisk attachment whisk the eggs until the outside of the bowl is room temperature. Replace the wire whisk with the beater and add the butter. Don’t freak out if the buttercream looks like it’s separating or like cottage cheese. Turn the mixer on high speed until it comes to a light fluffy texture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix together the instant espresso, brandy and vanilla in a small bowl and then add it to the buttercream.
This cake is really easy to make and has a great texture. It’s light and dense at the same time. Heat oven to 350. In a double boiler over simmering water melt the chocolate with the liqueur and butter. Once the chocolate is melted whisk in the egg yokes one at a time. In the mixer beat the egg whites and sugar till you have stiff peaks. At this point fold one quarter of the egg white meringue into the chocolate to lighten the mixture. Then fold the chocolate back into the meringue. You don’t want to over mix the meringue and deflate it. Using an offset spatula spread cake batter into a prepared sheet pan. By prepared I mean lay a sheet of parchment paper in the bottom of the pan. Bake for 20 minutes.

After the cakes has cooled for a few minutes in the sheet pan, place another sheet of parchment on the cake and cover it with another sheet pan. Now you will have a kind of sheet pan cake sandwich. This makes it really easy to flip it over and release the cake. Carefully peal back the parchment that baked on the bottom of the cake. I flip the cake one more time so I end up with newly exposed bottom of the cake on a fresh sheet of paper. This probably makes no sense at this point, but when you have a cake in front of you it's much more intuitive.

Now we get to the really cool part. Rolling the cake. Spread a nice layer of buttercream over the entire surface. Using the paper start to fold the cake over. As you pull the paper up the cake will naturally roll. Easy Peasy.

To get a nice tight even roll take the edge of the sheet pan right against the cake. Grab hold of the bottom edge of the paper and push gently. The paper will squeeze the cake into a beautiful roll. Twist the ends of the paper and refrigerate the cake for an hour.

This isn't a great picture but you get the idea of how it turned out in the end. I cut the cake to make the branch on top and frosted the cake with more buttercream to look like bark. I finished it off with little marzipan mushrooms. I'm really glad I attempted this cake. I'm not sure if I'll make it very often, but it was a great learning experience. I'm definitely adding a lot more roll cakes to my repertoire.

Tabla $24 Prefix dinner is back !

2007-12-17T15:42:00.000-08:00

Good news Portland diners. Tabla is bringing back their $24 prefix menu. The prefix menu is one of the reasons I fell in love with Tabla. You get a chance to try different things on the menu and it's an incredible deal.

Tabla
200 NE 28th Ave
Portland, OR 97232
(503) 238-3777

www.tabla-restaurant.com

Christmas Dinner

2007-12-17T10:30:00.000-08:00

Christmas Dinner #1 (dinner and gift exchange with friends)

Menu
Appetizer
Seckle Pears wrapped in Prosciutto
Cheese Plate: aged gouda, triple cream bleu, herbed chevre

First course
Sharp Cheddar Gougere with Veuve Clicquot
Frisee with Champagne Vinaigrette, Lardons of Vogette's Bacon and Poached Egg

Main event
Baked Ham, Potatoes Anna, Root Vegetable and Chard Gratin
Accompaniments of honey mustard, horseradish aioli and apple-cherry mostarda

Dessert
Buche de Noel

Later this week we will be following up with recipes and pictures. Stay tuned!

French Onion Soup

2007-12-10T12:23:00.001-08:00

You've all had french onion soup, which also means you have had bad french onion soup, as most of the time it is. I didn't even love this version, but it's a work in progress. My problem with french onion soup is that it doesn't usually have much body or mouthfeel. I recently had this soup at Beast, which was made with duck and veal stock. Now that's broth! Here's a passable quick version.

Keith made a very good point about french onion soup: one large cheese toast makes the whole experience frustrating because you have to hack at the bread to break it up. The solution: why not just use home made croutons? Here's how it all goes down:

Make some beef stock. I didn't, but I'm telling you to because canned beef broth is crap. All of it. That's part of the reason my version wasn't that good. After you have done this, move on to the rest. Substitute beef broth bulked up with store bought demi glace if you are lazy like me.

Caramelize some onions, see recipe below.

Add about 1/2 cup of sherry to the caramelized onions and bring to a boil, deglazing pan if necessary. Add 8 cups of beef broth and bring to a simmer. Simmer on low 30-45 minutes until soup has reduced some and begins to thicken. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and pepper flakes. The broth should be sweet and meaty, slightly salty and with a small kick from the pepper flake.

Make some big croutons, cooking until they are crispy on the outside but slightly soft in the center. I used a french batard because it has a lot of crumb and air pockets in it, perfect for absorbing all that great broth.

Ladle the soup into oven-proof bowls. Working fast, throw some croutons on top, sprinkle with shredded gruyere and broil until gold and bubbbly. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Carmelized Onions, why are you so good to me?

2007-12-10T12:14:00.000-08:00

I admit it, I am biased against anyone who doesn't like onions. Either learn to like them, or move along. I am only partly kidding. I understand some just haven't learned to eat onions, so here's a way to entice the onion virgin. Caramelize them. Don't cheat and add sugar or balsamic vinegar, put down whatever you are doing and take the time to caramelize them right. Then, you can use them in a tart, put them on meat, or make french onion soup.

3 lbs. yellow onions

4 T butter

2 T olive oil

salt and pepper

one sprig thyme

one bay leaf

Slice the onions thinly. Heat a large, heavy-bottomed pan to medium high heat and add butter and olive oil. Add onions to pan, sprinkle with about 1/2 tsp. of salt and stir together. Add sprig of thyme and bay leaf. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook onions, uncovered. Stir only occassionally to keep from burning, but not too often so they can caramelize, about 45 minutes. Let cool. Remove thyme and bay leaf and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Christmas Cookie Fiasco

2007-12-09T17:15:00.000-08:00

I’m sure that I can thank my mom for my love of Christmas cookies. Every year she would make tin after tin of Christmas cookies. There were Russian Tea Cakes, Pepperkakor, Spritz, Thumb Print cookies and toffee. Any time we left the house in December we would take a platter of cookies to share with friends. Everyone loved them. I love that tradition and every year I have grand plans of delivering tins of delicious cookies to all of my dear friends. There is one small problem. As much as I love baking, I find cookies tedious. There is a lot of clean up and endless trips to the oven. As far as cooking goes I find them very unsatisfying. The thing that amazes me is that I never remember my mom complaining about making all of those cookies.

That being said this weekend I planned on hunkering down and making my cookies to give away. I was going to start off with something easy, Spritz. I love these little buttery almond cookies. I needed to get a cookie press first. Last year I bought two but ended up returning both of them because neither one worked very well. This year I found on that had a better design, but I’m still not convinced. I’m not sure exactly what went wrong, but they turned out terrible. First the cookies came out of the press unevenly and then they spread out really thin and burned. This is a recipe that I’ve been using for twenty years and this is the first time it’s gone this bad.

I consulted with my Aunt Nancy (one the experts I like to consult with) the next day and she said that her recipe had 2-1/2 C flour where as my recipe only had 2-1/4 C. I think we found the culprit. I’ll try another batch this week and hopefully things will turn out better.

Food on the Road

2007-12-05T14:18:00.001-08:00

Our dear friend Adam will be guest blogging, starting a new feature called Pedestrian Food. He'll be checking out food carts around town. Food carts are one of the best ways to have cheap ethnic food, usually for about 5 bucks.

Although these "roach coaches" often look less than appetizing, if you find the right one you can get some great food. Adam and I met today and went to a Thai cart by PSU. The food was prepared to order, but my Pad Kee Mao left something to be desired.

Stay tuned for Adam's review!