Canlis Two-Day Pop-Up Restaurant
This Sunday and Monday, February 27th and 28th, Canlis’ chef Jason Franey, a potential Food and Wine Best New Chef, will cook at a pop-up restaurant in Macrina Bakery. Seating is very limited and the reservation line opens Thursday February 24th at noon. Here’s the information I received:
Dinner Details:
WHO: Chef Jason Franey / Hosted by Mark and Brian Canlis
WHAT: Pop-up restaurant “Hearth & Home” – 5 course dinner (cost $45)
WHEN: February 27th and 28th – (Seating begins at 7PM)
WHERE: Macrina Bakery – 615 West McGraw Street
WHY: Because it’s fun. Come as you are, no dress code required
HOW: Reservations can be made by calling Heather at Canlis at 206-283-3313 beginning at noon on Thursday, February 24th. Space is limited and reservations will be granted until seating is full. Sorry, no walk-ins.
Dine Around Seattle – March 2011
It’s just about time…. Dine Around Seattle is back! The promotion starts March 1 and runs through the 31st. $30 will get you a 3-course dinner. Some locations also offer $15 lunches. The offer is valid Monday – Thursday only.
There are 45 options in the Seattle area with several East side options. The site has a list of all the participating restaurants and some already have their event menus posted. You can also book a table through the site using Open Table.
A couple of places that caught my eye: Art; Barking Frog; Lecosho; and Nishino. Is there somewhere you’ve been wanting to check out? This might be your perfect opportunity!
Make Your Own: Crème Fraîche
The first time or two I needed crème fraîche for a recipe I substituted sour cream. It’s basically the same thing, but there are subtle differences. Eventually I wanted the real deal. At the time, I couldn’t find it in any of the local grocery stores, so decided to make my own.
At some point crème fraîche became readily available in local stores. I tried it a time or two but preferred what I’d been making over the commercial version. Now, the only time I use commercial crème fraîche is if I forget to mix up a batch a few days before I need it. That’s the one disadvantage to making your own; you have to plan ahead. But if you have time, making your own crème fraîche offers a few advantages over purchasing ready-made.
First, crème fraîche is so easy to make that you won’t believe it – but there is one thing that makes some people a little squeamish. We’ll talk more about that in a minute. Homemade is more crème fraîche-y than what you can purchase. Okay, that’s probably not a real term, but when you make your own it’s a little more tangy and a little softer and creamier, which are two of crème fraîche’s best characteristics.
It’s less expensive to make your own and it’s a good way to use leftover whipping cream. I often buy Costco’s 1/2 gallon of whip cream for various recipes or for parties. It’s a beautiful heavy, rich whip cream and at Costco prices buying 1/2 gallon can be more cost-effective than buying a smaller amount from the grocery store. But there’s generally quite a bit leftover and making crème fraîche is one way of putting it to good use.
And did I mention that making your own is very easy?
Meyer Lemon and Blood Orange Marmalade
A few weeks ago I came across this marmalade recipe in the New York Times. I’m not exactly sure what motivated me to save it. I’ve never been a huge fan of marmalade, although I use it as an ingredient sometimes. I think it was probably two things: I love Meyer lemons and think blood oranges are beautiful; and I really want to like marmalade. That second part is based, I think, on some romantic notion of high tea and sunny, summer brunches. And the article this recipe was part of supported that notion. Also, while a commercial version of something might not suit my taste when I make it myself I sometimes find that a homemade version is so much better.
So this morning I made Meyer Lemon and Blood Orange Marmalade. The recipe is very easy to follow and I found the cooking times to be spot-on, which is always nice. The finished marmalade is beautiful! Sweet but with a hint of bitterness that the rind contributes. I tried a bit of it on a piece of baguette and also with a little bit of cheese. I liked both, although I think where this marmalade will really shine is with a scone or baking powder biscuit and with chicken or pork. I think the right cheese will work, too. I tried an extra-sharp cheddar this morning and neither did the other justice. I think a milder cheese would be nice, though.
Both Meyer lemons and blood oranges are readily available in markets at the moment, so take this opportunity to make a little batch of this marmalade.
Spaghetti ala Fridge
I don’t know about you but I find that my cooking comes in ebbs and flows. I’ll find myself making the same thing over and over because I love it so much. Then one day I won’t remember the last time I made that dish – and if I do remember it could have been months or sometimes even years before. That’s the case with this recipe, which is not even really a recipe but more of a concept than anything.
A couple of weeks ago when I was visiting M in Los Angeles we decided to have a quiet evening at home on Saturday night. I’d noticed a partial package of spaghetti on her counter. While we were out and about I suggested we pick up just a few things to turn the spaghetti into a simple meal. We were at the Farmers’ Market at The Grove so you’d think this would have been the perfect place to round out our ingredients. However, this farmers’ market is more historical than actual and is mostly a covey of little restaurants and shops. We were able to grab a few items from Monsieur Marcel and then gleaned through the few actual fruit and vegetable stands for a couple more items. Although the resulting dinner was decent it wasn’t great – partially due to my lack of recent practice and partially due to the less than satisfying shopping experience. So I’d been thinking about that dinner ever since.
Earlier this week an unexpected night home was the perfect opportunity to try again. And this time I’d be working from my own refrigerator and pantry which always holds little bits of treasure. The resulting dish was much more satisfying and there was enough for two dinners this week, which was a nice bonus. I’ll give you a rough recipe but the best way to make this meal is to let the things you have on hand frame what you put together. Have fun!
Tuna Tapenade
I’ve really been giving Ina Garten’s new cookbook a workout! For the Soup Swap I recently hosted, I used several recipes from the cookbook. I really liked this appetizer which brings a new twist to a tuna sandwich. And who doesn’t like a tuna sandwich?
This also gave me a chance to finally try a brand of tuna that I tasted last summer and really liked. I was at a food-related conference and Tonnino Tuna was handing out samples at one of the booths. I brought a jar of tuna home that night and decided this tapenade could really showcase it. The tuna is really gorgeous. Packed in oil, the taste resembles some of the fine Italian tunas that are available here. The jars are packed with approximately 3″ long pieces of filet. They’d be really nice topping a salad, too. For this recipe I used the plain Yellowfin but they offer several varieties enhanced with herbs or other flavorings. They also have Alaskan Sockeye which I may try at some point.
The recipe uses a food processor for blending the ingredients but the mixture is soft enough that you could also use a fork to mix it all together. If using a fork, mince the parsley before adding it to the rest of the ingredients.
Read more…
Venice Ale House
Being from Seattle I tend to take every opportunity possible to be outside when the weather is nice. Especially in the middle of winter. That goes for dining, too. Something about eating outside makes the meal so much more pleasurable for me. So on my recent trip to the Los Angeles area with sunny days and temperatures in the high 60s to low 70s there was no doubt that I’d be eating outside as much as I could.
After landing at LAX early on Friday morning I meandered my way up the coast towards Marina del Rey, Venice and Santa Monica. I strolled around the marina, along the Grand Canal in Venice and then navigated my way to Santa Monica for a quick appointment to pick up the keys to the friend’s place where I’d be staying for the weekend. With my “business” completed I headed back to Venice and the beach.
Many of the restaurants along the boardwalk are touristy and the food is okay but not really great. Mostly you’re paying for the location and view of the boardwalk, the beach and the ocean. But since my last trip to the area a few new places have opened and they seemed more promising in terms of quality.
The Venice Ale House has been open a little over six months now – not quite long enough for them to have full alcohol privileges yet. Neither the friendly server nor I could remember what used to be at their location, where Rose Avenue intersects the boardwalk, but I am sure that the Venice Ale House is an improvement. After grabbing a table I looked over their organic menu offerings including a “brunch anytime” section, salads, sandwiches and a section devoted to items that paired especially well with the beer.
re:public restaurant and bar
Or maybe it’s re:public Bar and Restaurant – the website says one thing the menu the other! Either way, it’s a place you want to know if you don’t already.
There’s a two-block area of Westlake Avenue that is quickly becoming the heart of the restaurant/bar scene in the South Lake Union area. Starting at Westlake and Harrison and traveling north you’ll find: Flying Fish, recently moved from it’s original Belltown location; Tom Douglas’ second Serious Pie and the newly opened Dahlia Workshop Biscuit Bar, which share space with Soul Wine; and re:public, owned by the guys behind Post and Mission. Those are the big names in the area but you’ll also find smaller, more casual shops in the mix.
I need to give the new Flying Fish another try and in my book, so far anyway, Tom Douglas can do no wrong but I was really excited to see something that seemed like it could be more of a hang-out spot. I’ve visited re:public three times now and it’s going to be a regular spot for me. The feel of the place is welcoming with the brick, warm wood and interesting light fixtures. There are booths, dining tables and several tall bar tables as well as a nice, long bar – my favorite spot, as usual – in the large, open space. The times I’ve visited the crowd has been a nice mix of ages and business versus casual types; skewing a little younger but still enough variety that no one should feel out of place.
Art of the Pie
Kate McDermott is a local celebrity who is well-known for her delicious pies. Not only is she a great pie baker but she also shares her knowledge and techniques in small, hands-on classes. Ruth Reichl praises her class, as do several other food professionals and, even better, many home cooks for whom Kate has unlocked the pie puzzle. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Kate a couple of times and I can tell you that she is a very nice, caring and sincere person, too.
She’s recently announced a new series of classes and you can find the schedule and more information on her Art of the Pie site.
I’ve signed up for a class and am really looking forward to it. With just four people to a class I know there will be lots of individual attention. I hope that some of you can take advantage of these classes, too. Maybe I’ll see you there!
Soup Swap!
Some time in late December or early January I read something about soup swaps. It may have been an early article about National Soup Swap Day or it may have been something more generic but it got me thinking about hosting one. By the time I’d recovered from the end-of-year holiday activity and started planning I realized that National Soup Swap Day was on January 22 but knew I couldn’t pull my event together in time to meet that date. Although it would have been fun to align with other swaps it didn’t deter my plans.
I polled some friends to find those interested in participating and a date that would work for them. When checking the interest level I included the “rules of engagement” so that people would understand what they were getting themselves into. Here’s an abbreviated version of the rules I presented:
- I’ll be inviting 8 soup-makers (including me)
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Couples count as 1 unless both want to contribute – let me know ASAP
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Each soup-maker will bring 7 quarts of soup in individual containers that can be frozen
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Soupmakers will take home 6 quarts since my contribution will be the food that night
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- There will not be restrictions on what people bring so there’s a chance someone could bring something you don’t eat
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If you are part of a couple, maybe your S.O. will eat it ;-)
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If you are a single, maybe you can share it with someone else
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If this is a big concern for you, it might be best if you don’t participate ;-{
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Everyone will email me their recipe a few days prior to the event and I’ll compile them
- Recipes should be suitable for freezing
The restrictions rule was the most important. Among my friends there are vegans, vegetarians, pescatarians, nothing-with-four-legs-atarians and those with allergies. Not to mention those watching fat or carb or some other intake. Trying to negotiate all the ins and outs of people’s diets is often challenging. Setting up all the restrictions would have limited the variety of the soups and, in some ways, penalized those who don’t have any restrictions. Now before anyone gets upset with that last remark, let me say that I often cook things that would be suitable for most, if not all, of the restrictions and no one feels penalized. In fact, the soups I made for the dinner that evening were suitable for all in attendance. Well, except for one mistake because I was confused about what the person included in their diet. (Sorry PDG!) On the other hand, many of the group enjoy meat and I didn’t feel they should be forced to only eat food that meets the restrictions of others. Another way around this would be to invite only those who have matching eating habits.
This is where the packet of recipes is very important, though. Since ingredients are not always obvious, having the recipe allows everyone to ensure the soup works for them. And, of course, it also allows people to make any of the soups they like again.
But onto the event… and a recipe after the jump.
Culinary Fool 