Brunch at The Library Bistro
I love to eat breakfast out on weekends but I also love to pack my days as full as possible. Many restaurants don’t begin serving until around 10:00 am, which ends up interrupting the goal of getting lots of stuff done. So I’m always looking for places that open earlier and, when I’m meeting friends, are centrally located to make it easy for everyone.
This past weekend we decided to try The Library Bistro located in The Alexis Hotel. It was a perfect location and they begin serving at 8:00 am. We arrived at 8:30 am, and were immediately seated. We chose a booth, which looking back was not the best decision. The booths are pretty cramped and even with just two of us, I had to strategically find a place for my feet.
The menu is short but with enough variety that there’s something for everyone. However, I wasn’t that impressed with the food. It was okay, but just okay.
We split two plates. The first was a Monte Cristo. The Library Bistro version is a triple layer, half sandwich. In theory it’s filled with ham, swiss and smoked cheddar but there was very little taste of anything other than the bread. The marmalade served along with it was very good and saved the sandwich from being totally boring.
We also ordered huevos rancheros. These had much more flavor but they were “elevated” to a place where they barely resembled the standard definition and were therefore disappointing.
While breakfast at The Library Bistro is not the worst offering in town, it’s nowhere near the best. I doubt I’ll return.
The Library Bistro
92 Madison St
In the Alexis Hotel
Seattle
206.624.3646
Roasted Banana Ice Cream
It looks like we might get a few days of summer in a row! Time to crank up the ice cream machine…
This recipe is from The Perfect Scoop
I especially like this recipe since I can indulge in the ice cream without feeling too guilty. With no eggs or cream, it’s a little lighter than most ice creams, yet the bananas give it a rich flavor and thick texture so you don’t feel like you’re skimping.
Roasted Banana Ice Cream
- 3 medium-sized ripe bananas, peeled
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp butter, cut into pieces
- 1½ cups whole milk
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp fresh lemon juice
- ¼ tsp coarse salt
- Optional: 1 Tbsp golden rum
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Slice the bananas into ½” pieces, toss them with the brown sugar and place in a 2 quart baking dish. (I use an 8″x8″ pan.) Bake for 40 minutes, stirring once, until bananas are browned and cooked through.
Scrape the bananas and the syrup from the pan into a blender or food processor. Add the milk, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, lemon juice, salt and rum, if using. Pureé until smooth.
Chill mixture in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 hours (it should be chilled through). Then freeze in an ice cream maker following manufacturer’s instructions.
At this point the ice cream will be thick but very soft-set. Place in the freezer for at least 2 or three hours for a “scoopable” ice cream.
Quintessential Gourmet
On Western Avenue, just north of the main area of Pike Place Market, Quintessential Gourmet quietly opened its doors a few months ago. It was such a quiet opening that, although I remember hearing about it, I soon forgot about it. On a recent Sunday morning walk, Michi and I noticed the shop and stopped in to check it out.
Inside the shop there are rows of stainless steel containers filled with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, many fused with other ingredients providing a range of flavors. All of them are available for tasting and once you’ve found the one (or maybe the many) you’d like to take home, there are a variety of sizes from which to choose.
I sampled several interesting flavors but just recently stocked up on a bunch of olive oil so held off on a big purchase. There was one vinegar I could not resist though, so a small bottle of Maple Balsamic made its way home with me.
I bought it specifically because I was on my way to buy salmon (and it turned out, scallops, too!) and the vinegar seemed like the perfect light flavor to enhance it.
I thought about reducing the vinegar to a thick glaze but decided to use it as is, instead. I lightly brushed the salmon with the vinegar before grilling it on a cedar plank and again just as the salmon came off the heat. I also braised chopped kale, added a few golden raisins to it and then drizzled that with the vinegar. The vinegar was wonderful in both uses. Balsamic vinegar is a little bit sweet. The maple increases the sweetness and adds a little richness but the vinegar still has a nice tang.
In the photo below you can see how the vinegar darkened the salmon a little. The run-off on the plate is from the kale. The patty on the plate is a risotto cake made with the leftover risotto from the scallop dinner.
I’m looking forward to going back and discovering more flavor treasures sometime soon.
Quintessential Gourmet
2001 Western Avenue, Suite 110
Pike Place Market
Seattle
206.467.4856
Mushroom Risotto and Sea Scallops
With the unseasonably cool weather (hopefully leaving us today) I’ve been craving comfort foods the last few days. On my Sunday morning visit to Pike Place Fish Market the guys brought the fresh sea scallops to my attention and a plan was born!
I first made a simple Mushroom Risotto with a recipe similar to this one, although I used 3/4 cup rice with 1 quart of stock. After adding the cheese I stirred in 1 – 2 cups of chopped kale, and let it steam while I finished off the scallops.
The scallops were also simply prepared. Make sure they are completely dry and then sear them in a cast iron pan – any skillet will do but cast iron gives a beautiful sear – with a little hot oil and butter for about 3 minutes per side.
Marché (Seattle)
Several months ago one of Seattle’s premier fine dining restaurants, Campagne, transformed itself into Marché, a more casual bistro and wine bar. Ownership also changed, however, Daisley Gordon who’s been the executive chef at Campagne (and at Café Campagne, which remains unchanged) is still in charge of the kitchen and, in fact, is the new owner.
I owed a friend a birthday Happy Hour and we decided that Marché was the place for it. I’d been hoping the weather would be nice enough to enjoy their courtyard seating but no such luck. The day was gray and a little on the cool side so we opted to sit inside in the bar area, which is a really cozy space. It’s so cozy it actually makes me look forward to our dreary winters and spending a little time here. We chose one of the few tables by the window so we could watch the activity of Post Alley.
Happy Hour at Artusi
When summer arrives in Seattle, Seattleites do everything they can outside. Finding outdoor seating for Happy Hour is a must for many of us. Artusi, located right next to it’s older sibling Spinasse, on Capitol Hill fills the bill with a double row of two-person tables outfitted with brightly colored chairs inviting you to make yourself comfortable and settle in for a while. The one caveat is it’s a little noisy since the tables are close to the street and a stop sign is at that corner.
The Happy Hour menu offers a handful of small bites, specials on Campari cocktails, beer and wine. While the menu offerings aren’t extensive there is a nice selection of savory bites which periodically change to keep it interesting. If you don’t see something on the Happy Hour menu that catches your interest you can always order from the main menu.
iSi Twist’n Sparkle Recall
Late last summer I made sparkling lemonade and used the iSi Twist’n Sparkle to add carbonation to the lemonade. While I love the product and have had no issues with it, apparently some of the bottles have exploded and there have been some injuries. iSi has issued a recall for them. If you own one of these products your best choice is to contact the store or online shop where you purchased it. If for some reason that’s not an option you can contact iSi directly. You can find more information on this website.
Outstanding in the Field Visits Vashon Island
First, information about Outstanding in the Field since I haven’t talked about them for some time. Jim Denevan, a chef and artist based in Santa Cruz, California, founded OITF in 1999 . They bring together diners, chefs, vintners, farmers and other producers (foragers, fisherman, etc) to create dining events on local farms. All of the events follow the same format but each event is unique to the location and the participants involved.
The largest events serve about 150 people – a few are larger and some are smaller. The diners arrive in late afternoon at the designated farm, or occasionally a beach; check-in and grab a glass of wine; then mingle while appetizers are passed through the group. After an hour or so someone from the OITF organization will formally greet the group and provide background and information about the evening. Next, the host farmer gives a tour of the farm. Then it’s to the long table for the family style meal. Groups of eight are your “family” for the evening. Throughout the dinner some of the other producers will talk a little about their work and products.
It’s been a few years since I enjoyed an Outstanding in the Field (OITF) dinner here in the Seattle area. I’ve combined my love of travel with my love of these events to attended events in other areas. This year a dinner on Vashon Island caught my attention so four of us reserved our spot and took the short ferry ride to the island on July 10th. Summer has finally arrived in Seattle so after the morning marine layer burned off the sun came out in all its glory. We crossed sparkling blue waters, then arrived on the bucolic little island.
Summer Soups
I had forgotten how much I love Martha Stewart Living magazine. I was a charter subscriber and renewed for many years but then, as often happens with magazines, one year’s issues seemed an awful lot like the previous year’s and the year before that. So I cancelled my subscription and some time later gifted all my saved copies to some one who couldn’t believe their luck at scoring all those original issues. I was happy they were going to some one who appreciated them.
A couple of weeks ago I picked up the July issue and fell in love all over again. This magazine inspires me to start creating immediately – that can be food or a craft project or some decorating idea. And so it was with this July issue. One of the articles that captured my imagination was all about chilled, summer soups. As I read the recipes I planned a lunch party.
I chose two recipes from the half a dozen options. Since I was serving two I decided to serve them as soup “shots” so that everyone could try them both and still have room for the rest of the meal.
The Avocado, Radish and Basil soup was rich and creamy with the radish adding bites of spice. The Cantaloupe, Lime and Chile was refreshing with the chile adding an unexpected hit of heat.
Both soups come together in no time at all and are really beautiful as well as being tasty.
The recipe for the Avocado soup is here. I doubled the amount of radish in this recipe and would recommend you do that, too.
The recipe for the Cantaloupe soup is here. I did not have sambal oelek on hand but I did have other Asian chile sauces. Instead of buying another version of chile paste/sauce I used a little Thai Sweet Chili Sauce
Culinary Fool 