Seattle Cheese Festival Report
I attended the first ever Seattle Cheese Festival yesterday morning. It was sponsored by DeLaurenti’s and held at Pike Place Market. As with all first time festivals and events, some things were done really well and some things need some improvement.
There was a wonderful array of cheesemakers, types and styles of cheeses! Many sections of the US were represented, as were several countries from Europe. The people behind the tables were very friendly and interested in sharing information about their offerings. The samples were generous – I could have easily filled up on enough cheese to hold me the rest of the week! In addition to the cheeses, there were a smattering of other offerings to complement the cheese. Many of the products were available for purchase and the sizes/prices of the products were good. Also, kudos to DeLaurenti’s for bringing in people and/or types of cheese that they don’t necessarily stock. This made it feel much more like a true festival than a promotional activity for their store. I tried some really beautiful and interesting cheeses. Some were just interesting but many were products I now covet.
On the down side, the tables were way too close together, with each purveyor only having a sliver of a space. They had not elected to close the street, as they do for many events, so people were squeezed into a fairly narrow walkway running the length of the stalls. Because of the close proximity of the tables and the gregarious nature of many of the exhibitors, there were giant bottlenecks. People could neither get to the tables or get back out when they were done. And I arrived before 10:30 which was at the very start of the day. I can only assume as Seattle woke up and more people made their way to the Market that the crowds and resulting chaos increased. Not all of the cheesemakers were selling their product, which was a bit frustrating, although understandable. But many of them didn’t know who in Seattle carried their products! That was just wrong. If the idea is to make people aware of your product so that they will purchase, you definitely should know where to send them!
Even with that I managed to spend some money before I decided that a better tactic might be to note the cheese I liked for future reference. However, this proved to only partially be a good idea. Some exhibitors had materials and some did not. Since the conditions were so crowded I wasn’t really in the mood to pull out a notebook and take notes each time I found something. And since DeLaurenti’s does not carry everything that was being sampled (I asked several vendors) I don’t even know where I can go in and describe some of the things I sampled, hoping to find them. So that is a little frustrating.
About 11:30 I decided to quit jostling with the crowds and check out the wine tasting, hoping that since I was on the early side I might be able to get ahead of the crowd. Well, I was a little too much ahead of the crowd. I don’t believe the website and early information listed hours but the Wine Tasting was not yet open. I took a look at the sheet of events available at the festival and found that it didn’t open until noon. I guess that’s reasonable, but there are a few of us who don’t mind sampling a little earlier in the day so it would have been nice to see it open at least by 11:00.
I’m aware that this report sounds rather negative and it really wasn’t that bad. If you are thinking of going today you should! Just be prepared to go with the flow and think of a way to make notes to yourself so that you can remember things you liked. I’d really like to see them do this again next year and improve it with the things they learn this year.
At a minimum, I’d expect them to spread the tables and vendors out much, much more, preferably closing the street and giving people ample room to wander. It also would have been really nice to have not just a list of companies (which was provided) but a listing of their cheeses so you could have just marked those you were interested in – like the sheets that are often available at wine tastings. And the vendors should definitely have done their homework and know where their products are available – maybe even have sheets they can hand out with that info or include it on the tasting sheet.
So I’d give the festival an A+ for effort, but only a C for implementation.
(And if anyone from DeLaurenti’s happens to read this, I’d be more than happy to talk to you about how I can help you improve next year…) :-)
Strawberries
When Owen, selected strawberries as the Paper Chef seasonal ingredient last weekend. I was a little disappointed. Don’t get me wrong! I love strawberries and my history with them goes w-a-a-a-y back. It’s just that I hold off eating/buying them until the local strawberries are available.
I’m going to admit right now that I am extremely haphazard in my thinking and actions and, in many ways, it makes no sense at all, but there are some fruits and vegetables I just want to eat only when they are truly in season. I’ll eat asparagus, for instance, any time I can get them. But corn, apricots and strawberries – to name a few- are things I only eat in season.
Besides the fact that local strawberries just plain taste better they are also the ultimate sign that summer is here for me. When I was very young we didn’t have strawberries on our property but we would go out every June and "U-Pick" from local fields just outside of Salem. We’d normally pick them early in the morning and then come home and immediately make jars and jars of beautiful strawberry jam. And, of course, lots would be saved for strawberry shortcake that we’d eat over the next couple days.
The summer I was 11(or 11½, as I’m sure I would have said then) I begged my parents to let me pick strawberries as a summer job. You see, that’s what most of the kids in Salem did to earn some cash in the summer. You weren’t allowed in the fields until you were 12 unless you had an older sibling who would watch over you. Well, I was the oldest so I didn’t have an older sibling, yet it was really important to me to be out there. I’ve always been young for my school grade because I have an October birthday. So that year all my friends were going to pick. I begged until one day my mom worked a deal with one of our babysitters, Jane. She was 14 or 15 at the time and agreed to act as my older sibling. She was the youngest in her family and I think she thought it was fun to have a "little sister" to bring along. I was so excited.
We were up and on the bus prior to sunrise and would get to the fields just as the sun was coming up over the Cascade Mountains. I lucked out because Jane worked at the best farm in the area. It was a smaller, family-run farm, owned by the Fordyces. I still remember Norma Fordyce – she was such a nice lady! The Fordyces were great people and did all kinds of special things for us. First, they paid more than the bigger farms. I think at the time I made 55¢ a crate, sometimes called a flat. Crates were made up of 12 hallocks: little square boxes that held a pint of berries. If you picked every day of the season you’d get a bonus of 5¢ on every crate you had picked over the season. We picked six days as week, rain or shine, as long as there were berries. In fact, if rain were expected we might pick a little longer the day prior since rain will rot ripe berries. The season ran from early June to early July. On really hot days, they’d bring out barrels of pop for us and on Saturdays there were always candy bars! :-) If we picked on the 4th of July you got paid double and if you didn’t pick that day they didn’t hold it against your bonus.
The Fordyces had good fields and good berries, too. Strawberry plants only produce for about three years and then need to be replaced, at least commercially. They will actually produce for a really long time but after three years, the berries start getting really small and seedy. You can keep them longer in a home garden because they send out new little plants each year and by encouraging those you are always getting berries from younger plants but that’s not feasible in a commercial operation. Some growers would try to get an extra year out of their plants, but the Fordyces replanted their fields on a planned rotation and they were always trying the latest and greatest varieties. One year we had a field with berries that were so large you could only get about three in a hallock!
I picked up through the summer I was 15. It was a great way to make money back then – especially if you became a "good" picker. I was a decent picker – not one of the elite top echelon – but close. Most days I could pick over two crates an hour and when the berries were really good I’d do three – so that was between $1.20 and $1.80 an hour! We felt so rich! (For comparison sake, I also babysat during this time and the going rate was 50¢ an hour, with a little tip if you were lucky.)
Picking was also a very social event and with the bonus that the social circles and cliques from school were suspended while you were in the fields. You might start the morning picking with your friends but, inevitably, someone would get done with their row faster and they might choose to help finish off their friend’s row but if the berries were perceived to be better in the next section they might just move on. And even if you always picked with a friend or two, the people around you were always changing. The social order was determined by speed – the fastest pickers were king/queen of the fields and they would often pick together to help keep the rhythm and competition up.
One of the fastest kids was a boy named Danny Bauer. He was a year ahead of me in school and I thought he was so cute! I knew he liked me, too, because he’d always throw berries at me. :-) Throwing berries was, of course, discouraged but the row bosses would let us get a little in before warning us to "cut it out"! But most days we’d come home with our clothes and bodies covered in red splotches. Our hands were always stained with the red juice that would turn to purple-black by the end of the day. Sometimes we’d use lemon juice to try to remove the stains but mostly we just wore those dark fingers as a badge of honor. You had to pick with bare hands since you really need to feel the berries and because we stemmed them as we picked. You needed a thumbnail or to be able to really pinch the stems with your thumb and forefinger to cleanly remove the berry from the stem.
By the time I quit picking "professionally" my family had moved to their current acre+ property and had planted several rows of berries. These would be picked and frozen or made into jam throughout the season. I still prefer the early berries, as opposed to the ever-bearing, as I think they have better flavor. And that is what I have planted in my yard today.
Last year I actually tore all my berries out. They have a tendency to take over the yard if you let them. For the first couple of years I kept the runners in line but eventually lost the battle. Since I have a small yard I had planted berries as borders in other flower beds but they began choking out all my other plantings so I pulled them out intending to replant. Well, I didn’t get around to replanting last year but I missed a few of the errant runners and so this year I have plants all over the place again! And I am so happy about that. I have a few ripe berries on the plants now – I ate my first two yesterday! And in the next couple weeks lots of them will ripen. I’m so excited! I have berries that are specifically suited to the Northwest, Raniers and Hoods, named after two commanding peaks in the Cascades. They are so, so sweet and will be red all the way through and from tip to stem. I’m really looking forward to that first bowl of fresh, sliced berries with just a little whip cream. Yum!
So you see, strawberries mean a little more to me than just being another fruit in the market. They are part of what made me who I am. I learned a lot about responsibility, earning my way and the rewards of sticking with something, during those early summers in the commercial fields. I learned about treating workers with respect and how to work with all kinds of people who you might not otherwise encounter. Since my parents encouraged me but never forced me I had to do my own planning and preparation each day. You have to be pretty organized when you have to be up and out the door prior to 6:00 am! There were a lot of lessons that guide me today.
So strawberries are a ritual and a reminder. And you don’t want all of that tied up with just any old berry!
Weekend “To Do” List
Saturday
- 5:30: Get up and make tea (I know I’m one of those sick morning people…)
- 6:00: Write and post blog entry – Strawberries?
- 7:30: Fill bag for "Letter Carriers Food Drive". Use blue bag that was delivered a couple days ago and fill with non-perishable food.
- 8:00: Place bag by mailbox
- 9:00: University District Farmers’ Market
- 10:00: Cheese Festival – stop by Wine Garden!
- 1:00: Tune into KVI 570 for Chef Dan Thiessen‘s "Having Fun in the Kitchen" on the Tami Michaels show.
- 6:00: Meet C at "The Mitt"
- 7:00: M’s vs Sox! Let’s see some spark, guys!
Sunday
- 10:00: Bicycle Sunday (Burn off calories in anticipation of evening activities!)
- 1:00: Take a nap! Too much bicycling…
- 5:00 Taste of the Nation VIP Reception in the Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center
- 6:00 Taste of the Nation Main Event at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center
GSS: The Bookstore & Jasmine
Last night R and I visited two more Great Seattle Shake (GSS) participants. One, The Bookstore, was an old-time favorite and the other, Jasmine, was a newcomer. In February, we had tried to check out Jasmine after our Cocktail Club meeting at The W but the place was closed – at 9:00 pm. Since the GSS hours are 7 pm – 10 pm, we figured they’d have to be open this time, wouldn’t they?
So we started at The Bookstore, a place R used to frequent for lunch on when she worked in a nearby office. It’s located in the lobby of the Alexis Hotel and has remained a constant, even while other dining establishments in the hotel have come and gone. One of the things I like best about it is the little nook in the back. It’s cozy and discreet and the perfect place to park yourself on a gray Seattle day.
I arrived a couple minutes before R, took a little table near the bar and was promptly greeted by my server. Since it was still a few minutes prior to 7, I told her I was here for the GSS menu but understood I was early. To which she replied, "It’s close enough!", and brought over a menu. I ordered a "Pulp Fiction" (Finlandia cran vodka served on the rocks with fresh squeezed grapefruit juice) and then perused the clientele.
There were the normal groups of local business people, a young man writing fast and furiously in a notebook at the table next to me, a mature couple on a date and three bikers sitting at the bar. Interesting….. Not the type of place I normally associate with massive tattoos, leathers, and skull and cross-bone head scarves! Of course, this is Seattle.
My drink arrived and I took a sip – of heaven. I just wish it had felt a bit more like summer outside. The fresh-squeezed pink grapefruit juice was phenomenal. Really. This was the freshest, cleanest, most bracing drink I’ve had in a long time. I had to make myself sip it – no gulping allowed! I’d had just a couple sips when R arrived. She ordered the Cosmopolitan. I had seen a couple passing by while waiting for her and they were really beautiful drinks and, when R’s arrived, it was clear that the taste matched the beauty – it was a very well-crafted cocktail!
We had ordered the mussels as our appetizer. I was expecting a sort of mini-dish, as mostly happens with Happy Hours or "specials" but the bowl arrived and it was a full pound, or close to it, of steaming mussels! Oh, my, these mussels were excellent!
They were steamed in beer and loaded with bite-size pieces of bacon. At the time I thought the broth was really lemony but in reviewing the description I noticed they had been drizzled in orange oil, so that was actually the citrus I was tasting. The mussels themselves, from our local Penn Cove, were plump and tender, not too big and full of salty sea flavor. Our server had also brought us a plate of bread to go along with them and as we paid our bill I was thinking about how full I was. We’ve liked a lot of places but I think, to date, this was the best deal. Both cocktails and food were excellent and the food portion was very generous!
We then walked the three, uphill blocks to Jasmine (I couldn’t find a web reference – sorry!) . Well, it was open but painfully quiet. Not so much for us, as for the restaurateurs. Here it was about 8:00 on a Thursday night and there were three groups in the large bar – four when we arrived and no one in the dining room.
We walked past the hostess and into the bar, the hostess chasing us with menus in hand. We sat at the (very beautiful) bar and she placed menus in front of us. A quick glance showed that one was a dinner menu and one had wines and cocktails, but neither had the GSS menu.
While waiting for the bartender to greet us (she was dealing with another group, she wasn’t ignoring us) we took in the surroundings. This location used to be a Red Robin. For years it did a booming lunchtime business and had a decent after-work crowd. I’m not sure why they closed this location, probably a rent issue or maybe the owners wanted something more upscale to match the nearby Earth and Ocean and Sazerac. The long bar is made from a beautiful wood of some sort; the bars stools are comfortable with their white faux leather seats and white fabric backs; the alcohol sits on a back-lit shelf with various colors of glass in the red/orange range; there are U-shaped seating areas in the lounge that were unnervingly reminiscent of Ibiza, although to be fair I think Jasmine opened first; and there were various Asian influenced elements like dragon statues. The one remaining element from the Red Robin days were the iridescent tile-covered pillars that run the length of the space. All in all, it was a pleasant effect. There was just one thing that was a bit unsettling. There were three Siamese Fighting Fish, also called Bettas, on a shelf to the left of the bar. These fish were being kept in small containers – the type you often see in pet stores, that are not meant to be permanent housing – and they appeared extremely listless. Okay, actually they looked dead but on further examination turned out to be listless. They are beautiful fish and I understand the idea but the implementation was just wrong.
When the bartender came to take our order we asked for the GSS menu and she got a couple for us from the hostess station! Now, don’t you think the hostess might have thought to bring them to us as we were obviously sitting in the bar? While looking over the menu I heard the bartender telling the women next to us, that the GSS packages could not be split between two people; each person had to do two drinks and an appetizer. The women mentioned that the place they had just been to didn’t require that and the bartender offered to check with the manager but the women declined. So when the bartender came back to get our order I asked for clarification and was told the same thing. I mentioned that this was our tenth (woo-hoo we’re making a pretty good dent in these places!) stop and the first time we’d heard that, she again said she’d check with the manager. The manager said he’d offer that option for just one night. Now I understand that many of these promotions have "rules" but if you were the manager of a place that had no business on a Thursday night, wouldn’t you be breaking as many rules as possible to get people in? Especially since The W next door and the Sazerac across the street are also part of the promotion and I’m sure they’d be happy to have the business instead. Maybe that is one of the reasons the place is still empty after being open for about five months.
R and I had both ordered the Jasmine Martini which was a ginger-based concoction. Our bartender was really good and warned us that it was a bit on the sweet side and then gave us a bit of info about all the cocktails. We decided to stick with it anyway – the allure of ginger was too strong. :-) We also ordered Chicken Tikka as our appetizer. The martini was a little sweet but it had that nice little ginger-bite and I found it to be very pleasant. It went especially well with the slightly spicy tikka. The tikka was actually pretty bad. The chicken was both tough and fatty; the flavor was okay but was not very assertive. It actually gave me a bit of an upset stomach. :-(
Our decision on Jasmine? We wouldn’t go back. As R said, "There are so many good places in town, why would I waste time here?" I think that says it all. As a little side note: The bartender was very nice and the service she provided was great. But it’s not enough to carry the whole place.
Other GSS entries:
- The Great Seattle Shake
- The Matador and Hi-Life
- Palace Kitchen
- Frontier Room, Bada Lounge and Belltown Bistro
- Pink Door, Il Bistro & Bonus Del Rey Preview
The Bookstore, a Bar
1007 First Ave
Seattle
(206) 382-1506
Jasmine
1102 Fourth Ave
Seattle
(206) 382-2161
On Tuesday night R and I picked back up on our Great Seattle Shake (GSS) quest. Our plan was to visit The Pink Door and Il Bistro. Prior to meeting R at The Pink Door, I made a quick stop at Del Rey to check it out for an upcoming Cocktail Club meeting.
This Friday will mark Del Rey’s one month anniversary. A swank new Belltown spot, it is half-sibling to Capitol Hill’s Barça. Knowing that, I figured the place would be fun, but wanted to make sure it would accommodate our group of half dozen or so. Del Rey does not yet have a website and they are too new for much information to be available online, but I thought they might have a Happy Hour similar to Barça’s. So my plan was to swing by about 6:00 or 6:15 and check it out.
Sometimes even your best laid plans don’t quite pan out, especially when you live north of downtown and often use 15th Ave/Elliott Way to sneak downtown. This just happened to be one of those days when, as I approached the Ballard Bridge, the lights started flashing and the warning arms came down in preparation for an opening (or closing, depending on your viewpoint). This bridge actually opens quite often – it’s just low enough that even fairly small sailboats’ masts can’t clear it when closed. Normally, these events don’t take too long; sometimes the bridge doesn’t even open the whole way before it changes direction and begins to close again.
I parked my car, turned off the engine and enjoyed the beauty of the day. From this bridge you look over what I consider the heart of Seattle, Fisherman’s Terminal where the fishing fleet docks when in port. A little way past the terminal you come to the Hiram M. Chittenden (Ballard) Locks, the amazing "elevator" that moves boat traffic between the saltwater of Puget Sound and higher, freshwater of the Cut and Lakes Union and Washington. On the other side of the bridge are the ship repair and building facilities. I know many people like to think Seattle is a metropolitan city but really we are still a working city and this area is the center of it.
After sitting a few minutes I realized this wasn’t just the normal pleasure-boater opening; it was taking much longer. So craning my neck to see what was coming through I saw a tugboat guiding a barge filled with sand and gravel under the bridge. I love tugs – they are such workhorses and it amazes me how they can move and maneuver those giant barges! Well, the tug and barge finally passed, the bridge closed and I was on my way but I ended up getting to Del Rey later than anticipated, so didn’t have much time to spend in the place.
When I arrived the doors were wide open and there was a smattering of people throughout the place. I moseyed to the bar in the back, grabbed a stool and started chatting with the bartender and a woman sitting nearby. Del Rey does have a Happy Hour: several light bites at $4 – $6; a couple of tap beers; and a couple of wines by the glass at $4. There may have been other options but that’s where I stopped. I barely had time to down my wine before taking off to meet R at The Pink Door. But I liked the place and we will be having our Cocktail Club meeting there in a week or so – stay tuned for more information!
The Pink Door is one of my favorite summer places! There is nothing better than sitting on their rooftop deck, with a Pink Lemonade in hand looking out over Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. Ahhhh. I don’t get there as often as I should in the winter so I was really looking forward to this stop. If you haven’t been to The Pink Door, one of the fun things about it is that it’s a little bit hidden (while in plain sight) and so entering always feels like you’re just one of a few that knows the great secret! The doorway is in Post Alley, directly across from Kell’s and the Tasting Room. Other than the color (pink!) it’s a pretty non-descript door and there really isn’t signage to speak of. I couldn’t get a photo on Tuesday but I’ll try to add one in the next day or two I was able to get one on Thursday.
Once you enter you go downstairs into a dimly lit dining area but you don’t want to stop there! Continue through the dining room to the back where there is a bar and the entrance to the outdoor deck. On this night we chose so stay inside – the wind was a tad blustery.
We both decided to order Parfait L’amore for our cocktails and the Bruschetta Di Tonno for our appetizer. Even better than the anticipation of our cocktails and food, was the fact that Eugenia was in residence! Eugenia is a Tarot Card reader and a really nice woman, to boot. Now, I don’t live my life by the cards but I love having them read, especially by someone like Eugenia who is amazingly perceptive. So both R and I took a turn at having our cards read, she went first which allowed me lots of time to look around at what was going on.
The Pink Door is full of all kinds of funky decor – I don’t think it was actually planned; it just seems to have occurred but it’s fun. On this night, Eugenia and a clown making balloon animals and hats, added to the eclectic feel of this place. The wooden floors amplify the sounds of the crowd and so even with a few people it’s a lively and convivial place. It’s not large, although you can cram quite a few people into the space.
The crowd was comprised of several couples, a large work group taking advantage of the Great Seattle Shake specials, what appeared to be a wine-tasting group with several open bottles of wine on their table and R and I. All in all, an interesting bunch to observe, which I was doing so I wouldn’t look at R and disturb her reading!
I know – you want to know about the food and drinks, enough already! Okay, but the atmosphere is a big part of the experience here and it’s always a positive influence. About the drinks – they were too sweet and they were a bit more neon purple than I think they should have been so I wouldn’t order one again. The tuna, however, was yummy! The bread had been warmed and lightly grilled, covered with a dollop of freshly made mayo and then a large portion of oil-packed, flavorful tuna. My only complaint (why do places do this??) is that the serving was three pieces. Appetizers are normally shared and I would guess mostly by two people – why do places make things in threes or fives?? Now with this we could easily cut one piece in half but that isn’t always the case and I don’t understand the thinking. Silly people. We finished our food and had our memories of our readings and we moved on to Il Bistro.
I first visited Il Bistro in 1986 and at the time Murray, currently at the ZigZag was the bartender. He was making magic then and people would flock to the bar to spend time with Murray. The place was always full of politicians, the financial crowd and other slightly seedy characters. Always lots of color! Similar to The Pink Door, Il Bistro is hidden while in plain site. It sits below the main area of the Pike Place Market, down some narrow steps near Rachel, the pig. Once you enter you turn right to get to the bar. This is a room where it’s always dusk – too much light would not be good for the clientele!
After the 80s I sort of forgot about the place but in the mid to late 90s I revisited it as a guy I dated for quite some time liked to occasionally hang out there. Murray was still there and so it was a pleasure to become reacquainted with his beautifully crafted drinks. Well, it’s been a good many years since my last visit. It still looks the same but the life seems to have gone out of the place. Keep in mind this was a Tuesday night – but the "crowd" was sparse and not really compelling, I guess.
R and I both ordered a Lemoncello Lemondrop and we ordered Calamari for our appetizer. The Lemondrops were very tart. They were okay but not as good as they would have been if Murray had poured them. :-) This bartender seemed nice but distracted and even though Murrray has been gone for years, he’s still a tough act to follow… The calamari was yummy! Tomato-y, lemony and tender; it had a nice slow burn that soon dissipated. Very nice!
I don’t see this becoming a regular place but I do think I should stop by now and then. The food is good, the atmosphere seamy, but in a good way, and the location is great. It’s a fun place to stop in and take a trip down memory lane!
Other GSS entries:
- The Great Seattle Shake
- The Matador and Hi-Life
- Palace Kitchen
- Frontier Room, Bada Lounge and Belltown Bistro
- The Bookstore and Jasmine
Del Rey
2332 First Ave.
Seattle
206-770-3228
The Pink Door
1919 Post Alley
Seattle
(206) 443-3241
Closed Monday
Il Bistro
93A Pike St
Seattle
(206) 682-3049
WBW#9: Argyle Brut Rose
One of the wines I picked up on my recent Oregon trip was this 1999 Argyle Brut Rosé. When Sam, of Becks & Posh, announced that this month’s theme for Wine Blogging Wednesday was "Think Pink!", I knew that this was the wine I would use.
I invited R over for a Sunday afternoon tasting and kept my fingers crossed that we’d have nice weather, since rosé is a perfect warm weather wine. As usual I planned a few different bites to try with our tasting. I had some gorgeous lamb chops that would be perfect grilled on the barbecue; a new cheese – Rosemary Romao; grilled asparagus with Huile de Noisette and shaved Asagio cheese; grilled garlic bread – this is bread with cloves of garlic embedded; and my dessert entry for Paper Chef, which took place this last weekend. R contributed Onion-Artichoke Bruschetta made with fresh-from-the-market Walla Walla spring onions.
Just as R came in the front door, the sun broke through the clouds – perfect timing! We set up our little feast out on the deck and the tasting commenced.
The wine: 1999 Argyle Brut Rosé
The grape: 100% Willamette Valley Pinot Noir
Awards and Ratings:
- (1999) Wine Enthusiast – Best of the Year
- (1999) Wine Spectator – 90
- (1997) Wine Spectator – 87
The Tasting
This sparkler is full of bubbles! I think it has more bubbles than I have ever seen in any sparkling wine! And when poured in the glass the first rush of foam is the most beautiful shade of pink! It just makes you happy to see it. :-) In the glass it is a pale, just deeper than blush, pink.
The nose is sweet. I experienced a rush of sweet, summer cherries.
The taste is also of cherry with lots of strawberry. R thought there was a hint of citrus acidity. One of the things I really like about this wine is that it is not a heavy sparkling wine. The brightness really lends itself to many foods or for sipping on its own on a warm day. It won’t weigh you down.
With the artichoke in the bruschetta the citrus in the wine takes a backseat, the wine complements; there is no clash as sometimes happens with artichokes. The lamb had been marinated in olive oil, rosemary and garlic with a little salt and pepper. With the lamb the cherry in the wine came back out in full force. As was to be expected, the asparagus was not the best match, yet the combination was okay. The asparagus brought out more acidity in the wine.
The dessert and wine worked well together, with the slight exception of the chocolate. The chocolate was a bit too sweet to pair excellently but the rest of the dessert elements were wonderful with this rosé.
Both R and I found this wine to be a delight. I think it would be especially nice with a brunch, light lunch or for sipping on its own.
Update: Here’s an article on rosé from today’s Seattle Times.
Paper Chef #6 Roundup
Owen, at Tomatilla, has posted all the entrants for the Paper Chef #6 competition. There are some delicious sounding entries! I’m going to start making my way through them and you may want to do the same!
Paper Chef #6: Strawberry Ricotta Fool
On Friday Owen, from Tomatilla, announced this weekend’s Paper Chef ingredients:
- Strawberries
- Ricotta Cheese
- White Chocolate
- Almond Paste
Owen has been shooting for ingredients that would lend themselves to desserts and this was definitely a great line-up for that!
When I read the list two things happened. I groaned (just a little) because I have a policy (just a guideline not a rule) of not buying strawberries until the local berries are on the market. Here in Seattle we are still two or three weeks away from that fabulous event! Originally, this was due to shipped berries tasting pretty sad, even when they looked good. I have to admit, as the berries that are shipped here get better and better there is no real reason for this except that eating that first berry has always meant that we’ve really hit summer. So this wasn’t a big issue for me and I managed to get over it. :-)
The second thing that happened was my mind starting racing towards crepes! I love crepes and these ingredients just screamed crepes. I quickly threw that idea out, though. I’ve been making a lot of crepes lately and I wanted to think up something that was a bit different than what I normally do. That’s when a little kernel of an idea began to form – "What about a fool?" , I said to myself. And isn’t that cute how it works with my name? What an appropriate idea for the Culinary Fool! I love synchronicity! :-)
However, I couldn’t exactly remember what a fool is, so I checked out the definition, and decided I could make this work! A traditional fool is really just fruit and whip cream but the variation I had in mind would still be pretty true to the concept. I made a plan and decided to combine Paper Chef with my Wine Blogging Wednesday (WBW) tasting. I’d be thinking pink in more ways than one!
R was already coming over on Sunday for the WBW tasting so I let her know that I’d also be experimenting on her with a new dessert. Luckily for me, my friends are used to this sort of behavior from me so this really was no surprise for R.
Sunday morning I set about preparing the fool. I first cooked the strawberries so they could cool. Then, I started with the whip cream mixture, as it needs to have time to chill thoroughly and set up. After getting those two elements in the refrigerator I started on the cookie baskets.
A note about the baskets: From this recipe I made a dozen baskets and a dozen flat cookies so there is plenty of batter to experiment, if you’d like. You could easily halve it and still have plenty to mess with.
The baskets are actually pretty easy, you just need to make sure that you really let the cookie start browning before removing them from the oven, otherwise they are too soft to mold into shape. Once you remove the tray from the oven, let them sit just 30 seconds or so before you try to handle them. Don’t wait too long though or they will completely set.
A note about the chocolate: If you look at the pictures you may notice the chocolate is not white. Not white at all. :-( I started out with white but I must have had the chocolate longer than I remembered. It wouldn’t melt properly. It was very sad looking, so I ended up using Callebut semi-sweet instead. After tasting the dessert, the white may have been too sweet, anyway and visually the dessert would not have had as much contrast. So I broke the rules, but only accidentally and I think the result was probably better. In fact, next time I might use bittersweet chocolate.
Other than that I was pretty happy with this dessert and R liked it, too! One thing I might do next time is increase the amount of Ricotta to give it just a bit more body. But I think it’s personal taste and can be made successfully as in the recipe below or with up to twice as much Ricotta.
Strawberry Ricotta Fool in Almond Florentine Cups
Makes 4 servings
2 cups strawberries
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ sugar (depending on sweetness of strawberries, you may want to start with less)
1 cup sliced strawberries
½ cup ricotta cheese (drain, if using fresh)
1 Tbsp almond paste
½ cup heavy cream
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Fresh mint
In a saucepan, combine the strawberries, lemon juice and ¼ cup sugar. Cook over medium heat until the strawberries begin to soften, about 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Place the strawberry mixture in a food processor and process until smooth. Remove ¼ cup of the strawberry mixture for later use. Add remaining strawberry mixture to a bowl, mix in the sliced strawberries and place in the refrigerator. Chill for several hours.
In a bowl, cream the ricotta with the almond paste. (I found it best to soften the almond paste in the microwave for a few seconds prior to mixing with the ricotta.) Add the ¼ cup reserved cooked strawberries and mix thoroughly. With an electric mixer, whip the cream, 1 tsp sugar and vanilla until stiff. Gently fold ½ of the whipping cream into the ricotta. When incorporated, gently fold in remaining whipped cream. Chill for at least 4 hours.
Almond Florentine Cups
1 stick unsalted butter
¾ cup brown sugar
½ cup corn syrup
½ cup ground, toasted Almonds (see note below)
1 cup flour
4 oz chocolate
Preheat oven to 350° F. In a food processor, pulse the almonds until they resemble fine crumbs. Be careful not to over grind and create a paste. In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Add the brown sugar and the corn syrup. Bring to boil. Remove from the heat and add the ground almonds and flour. Mix well.
Drop heaping tablespoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet several inches apart, these cookies will really spread out. (Plan on 2 or 3 cookies per ½ sheet pan.) Bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until brown around the edges and lace-like in appearance.
Remove from the oven, let set for a few seconds then immediately and carefully shape the cookie over an upside down 8-ounce glass to form a small bowl. Allow to cool completely.
Once you have 4 “good” baskets, use the rest of the batter to make Florentine cookies. Use a scant tablespoon of batter for each cookie (you should be able to get 6 per ½ sheet pan). Bake as directed and then place flat on cooling rack.
Place chocolate in a small bowl. Place the bowl over a pot of barely simmering water, and stir until the chocolate is melted. Once the chocolate is melted, paint one side of the Florentine cups with a thin layer of chocolate. Place on cooling rack and allow the chocolate to dry.
Use remaining chocolate to coat a few strawberries for garnish or to dip edges of the cookies.
Note: Place blanched, skinned almonds in 350° F oven, for 10 to 15 minutes until just turning golden. Watch carefully, as once they start toasting they go quickly. To make ½ cup of ground almonds, you’ll need to toast more than ½ cup of whole almonds. Save any extra for garnish.
To Assemble
Place Almond Florentine Cups on dessert plates. Add a layer of the Ricotta-Whipped Cream mixture, top with some of the Strawberry mixture. Sprinkle a few toasted, ground almonds over the strawberry, if you had extra. Repeat.
Add a small dollop of the Ricotta-Whipped Cream mixture on the very top. Garnish with a whole strawberry, sprig of mint and a few more toasted almonds, if desired. You can also garnish the plate with some of the chocolate covered strawberries and fresh mint.
U-District Farmers’ Market
Some things I brought home from the Farmer’s Market:
- Rhubarb
- Green garlic
- Green Walla Walla onions
- Leeks
- Asparagus
- Herbed Chevre
- Green Zebra tomato plant
- Sun tomato plant
- Giant breadstick (actually it didn’t quite make it home…)
- Radishes
I had to hold off a bit on the purchases – bit of a busy, not-so-much-at-home week coming up.
In Western Washington, this time of year is pretty "green". We need a few more weeks to get to the colorful berries, flowers and such. But the days are getting really long and the nighttime temperatures are warming so soon the stalls will be overflowing with all manner of treats!
Chocolate Chip Cookies
I’ve been making Chocolate Chip Cookies for well over 25 years. They were the first thing my Mom taught me to make and the first thing she let me make on my own.
I love making them because they are so familiar and I get into the little rhythm that comes with doing something you love and that has become a part of you.
I’ve been craving cookies for a couple weeks and holding off making them because once I make them, well, I eat them. You know? But last night I finally gave in and whipped up a batch of chocolate chip cookies.
They are the worst cookies I’ve ever made in my life! How did that happen?? They are edible and not really that bad, but just not the perfect cookies I normally make. They look like they might be a batch made be a novice! I might have to re-think everything I take for granted. I mean if I can screw up chocolate chip cookies there’s no telling what else could go wrong in my life! :-)
Culinary Fool 