Culinary Fool

Tomato Harvest

08-Sep-2009

I am generally blessed with gigantic tomato plants that grow amazingly tall and produce like crazy. Although I take very good care of my tomatoes and have a great spot to plant them, I know some of it is luck because of one very specific thing. Tomatoes deplete the soil pretty extensively and, especially in our damp northwestern climate, they are subject to all kinds of maladies and diseases. So they should never be planted in the same place two years in a row.

Well, I have a small yard and don’t really have room for crop rotation. In fact, other than herbs that are planted throughout the yard, strawberries that have managed to spread everywhere, and a few things grown in pots on my deck, tomatoes are the only crop I grow. So there’s nothing to rotate them with. This means that I’ve been planting them in the same exact place for over ten years. And yet each year they grow so tall and produce so emphatically that I find myself searching for new ways to support the vines and hand out tomatoes like crazy to anyone who expresses even a passing interest in them.

But this year the spell was broken. Last fall I didn’t amend the soil as well as I normally do. And I planted very late this summer. There were a few other things that slipped this year, too. Although I don’t have the bumper crop that I’m used to I still have lots of tomatoes. I’ve been eating them like crazy and even with that they are gaining on me. I planned to can a few jars this past weekend but had a little stove incident late last week and so have to hold off until I can get the stove serviced. Keeping my fingers crossed that it’s back to normal tomorrow… And I’ll continue to have tomatoes ripening well into October. Some years it’s been into November!

In the meantime, I love looking at all the beautiful colors and shapes and sizes. I plant several different varieties since each has their own special use. Some are better for slicing, some for sauce. Plus, I love to create colorful recipes that use several varieties. It’s nice to have some that ripen earlier in the season, and yet I love the heirlooms that take a little longer to achieve their full flavor and color. In my garden this year I had two red varieties, Early Girl and San Marzano; a prolific yellow Roma style called Golden Rave; the giant Yellow Brandywine, which is actually orange colored; the striped Green Zebra; and a purplish-red variety that was marked as Vintage Wine but appears to be something entirely different. Each has their own flavor and texture but all have that wonderful fresh from the garden tomato taste.

If you have not planted vegetables in your yard before I encourage you to make a plan now for next year. You don’t need much room to grow. The area I use for the tomatoes is about 2’x12′. Select an area that gets a lot of sun. For many people the planting strip between the sidewalk and the street works well. If you want to grow tomatoes they will benefit from a location protected from wind and that holds the heat. For instance, I plant mine next to the south-facing side of my house. The area stays warmer overnight as the heat accumulated in the wall of the house releases once the sun has left the area.

Once you’ve chosen your location you can take steps this fall to give your plants a head-start in the spring. Weed the area so that nothing is pulling nutrients from the soil over the winter. Amend the soil with 2" to 3" of good compost so that it has a chance to become part of the growing medium. Cover the area with something to protect the soil from our winter rains. I generally use leaves that I’ve picked up with my lawn mower, so that they are cut up into smaller pieces thereby breaking down easier than whole leaves. But whole leaves will be fine, as is straw. In the spring you’ll remove this cover and add it to your yard waste or compost pile.

In the spring you’ll be rewarded with nice, rich soil ready to support whatever seeds or plants you select. A little work now pays off later. So start your planning so that you are ready to go in the spring!

Trophy Cupcakes

07-Sep-2009

I’m not exactly sure why, but carrot cake is a fall thing for me. Which I think is rather odd, because I look forward to carrots in the spring and throughout the summer. Maybe it’s because carrot cake generally has walnuts and sometimes grapes and those items make it feel like autumn to me. Or maybe it’s because the richness of the cream cheese frosting is too much for warm summer days. Or perhaps it’s just one of my many idiosyncrasies. That’s probably the most likely explanation.

I was at U-Village on Saturday and remembered that Trophy Cupcakes had recently opened a location there. I popped in and picked up a carrot cupcake to go. This new location does not have any sort seating inside, although on a nice day there is a lot of outdoor seating nearby.

The cupcake was deliciously moist and tender. The cream cheese frosting was a tad bit too sweet but by removing a little of it the cake and frosting came back into a nice balance. It was just what I needed with an afternoon cup of tea.

Trophy Cupcakes

2612 NE Village Lane

University Village

Seattle

206.632.7020

Brunch at Rover’s

31-Aug-2009

I have no real complaints about my life. It’s a very good life no matter how you slice it and dice it. But sometimes in the midst of all that goodness I find that I’ve overlooked something I would have liked to do. And that was the case on Sunday. I made it to Rover’s final Sunday brunch of the year – something they have not offered before and there is no guarantee it will ever be offered again. I wish I’d indulged a couple of more times over the summer but at least I made it to this last one.

J and I arrived for our noon reservation and were seated at a white linen covered table in our section of the dining area. If you have not been to Rover’s it’s located in a house turned restaurant so the dining area is a charming set of small rooms each with just a few tables. This lends an intimacy and feeling of coziness to the dining experience. We ordered Mimosas, made with freshly squeezed orange juice and a rosé cremant. The color of the wine intensified and altered the orange juice color making it reminiscent of a sunset. Cremant is a softer sparkling wine than Champagne so the resulting drink was flavorful and smooth with a hint of celebration.

Rover’s is known for its prix fixe dinners and offered both a two and three course menu for brunch. There was also an a la carte section of options. While sipping our Mimosas we perused and negotiated and strategized wanting to make the most of this one-time event. We wanted to pick the best of the best (at least according to our palates) and to squeeze in as much as possible without stuffing ourselves silly. It was a tough decision but we finally decided on three a la carte dishes that we would share. Our waiter was great at helping us orchestrate the order of our courses.

We started with Hudson Valley Foie Gras. This is a favorite item on Rover’s menu and is always offered, I believe. However, what is served along side it changes regularly and always includes some luscious seasonal ingredient. On Sunday the foie gras was perfectly seared so that each bite was a rich, melt-in-your-mouth experience. It exemplified the kind of food that makes you want to close your eyes so that nothing distracts from the flavors and textures you’re experiencing. On the plate was a roasted, thinly sliced, fresh peach along with a sprinkling of blueberries, the pan juices and stripes of harissa hollandaise. Adding any of these items to the foie gras enhanced it. Using bread from the basket provided, we didn’t let the plate go until we’d completely cleaned it.

In some ways I wanted to just end there and savor the flavor of that first dish for the rest of the day. But soon it was followed by the next plate we’d ordered, Two Poached Eggs over Braised Pork Belly, Sauteed Spinach and Harissa Hollandaise. I really need to learn how to poach eggs. I can do it but when I experience one that is expertly done I know how much mine are lacking. The eggs used at Rover’s come fresh from a local farmer which is probably a big part of the secret to their success. Silky on the outside and filled with a liquid gold that sauced the pork belly, spinach and toasted baguette it elevated this take on bacon and eggs to a new level. It was time for another little pause to savor what we’d just enjoyed.

We ended our meal with a continental finish, the day’s cheese platter. As I have mentioned before I love when I get to really participate in my food and something like a cheese platter is a lot of fun for me. You have the cheese and other little treats to mix and match with it. I can’t really do justice describing this dish since I don’t know all the names of the cheeses. There were five varieties each with their own special quality. Some were local, some imported. Cows, sheep and goats were represented. All provided a unique flavor or texture so that the plate was a little treasure chest of jewels.

So, sadly, the brunches are over – at least for the time being. However, the Friday lunches continue and, of course, so do dinners. I think it’s time to remember to get out to Rover’s more often!

Rover’s

2808 East Madison Street

Madison Valley

Seattle

206.325.7442

Cranberry-Zucchini Muffins

29-Aug-2009

I was craving something sweet this afternoon and trying to decide what might satisfy me when I remembered I still had quite a bit of zucchini from a friend’s garden. At first I was thinking of a quick bread but came across an interesting recipe in Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook

for Zucchini-Cranberry Muffins.

This is a super quick and easy recipe and in no time at all I was enjoying one of these light and moist muffins. The zucchini provides the moisture, of course, and the cranberries add a great zing! There’s a little cinnamon and vanilla included to add more interest. They are sweet but not overly so. They are so easy to pull together I think they may find a place at one of my next brunches!

Zucchini-Cranberry Muffins

adapted from Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook

1¾ cup flour,
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp salt

2 extra-large eggs
1 cup sugar,
½ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla

1 generous cup shredded zucchini

¾ cup cranberries

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a 12 serving muffin pan.

Mix all dry ingredients in small bowl and set aside.

Put all wet ingredients in bowl and whisk by hand or mix on low speed in an electric mixer. Add the zucchini and blend until evenly distributed.

Add the dry ingredients all at once. Stir just until moistened. Add the cranberries and gently stir until incorporated.

Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, just until tester comes out clean. Cool the pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then remove muffins from pan and let finish cooling on the rack.

Back to (Night) School

27-Aug-2009

I’ve had a fascination with cocktail culture for years. Every now and then I talk about cocktails on this blog but for a little over a year I edited and wrote for another blog called The Spirit World and spent quite a lot of time immersed in that culture learning, experimenting and writing about all things cocktail related. Once I left that blog my interest in writing about everything I had to drink waned, mainly due to lack of time, but my interest in learning has remained. So I’m always looking for new cocktail bars that open and ways to expand my knowledge.

There’s a new series of classes in town that brings the best of mostly local mixologists into a classroom of sorts – the bar in The Hunt Club at the Sorrento Hotel. These classes are known as Night School. The idea and classes have been pulled together by an interesting group of people. Michael Hebberoy, the catalyst behind OnePot.org seems to be doing the scheduling and recruiting of the mixologists; Foodista.com documents the classes with photos, recipes and commentary; and The Hunt Club provides the classroom.

Classes are small, just twelve seats around the bar, although others are encouraged to watch from the "back row", otherwise known as the table seating in the bar. The atmosphere is convivial and light with questions and interactions encouraged and the "lectures" are occasionally broken with outbreaks of lively banter.

The night I attended Murray Stenson, who has been at the Zig Zag Cafe for several years, was holding court. Anyone who has any sort of serious interest in cocktails knows of Murray. Not only has he been a Seattle fixture for around thirty years but in that time he has trained or mentored many of the other serious mixologists in town. When I was writing for The Spirit World he was my go-to guy for all kinds of topics and information. Not only is he a great bartender, he’s very generous with time and information. It was a pleasure to see him at work but under more relaxed conditions. He knows his craft, but it’s not just the quality of his concoctions that draws people to Murray. His easy going laugh and his keen ability to make it seem as if you’ve known him (or he’s known you) for years are the real attractions.

The class was attended by an interesting mix of people. There was a group of bartenders on one side of me, a group of friends of Micheal Hebberoy on the other side and a few assorted others – at least one other blogger – at the other end of the bar.

Murray concocted three drinks for us and while doing so gave us background information about the liquors being used (sweet Vermouth was originally Italian and dry Vermouth French); useful tips for mixing (if a drink is primarily made of liquor it should be stirred, if made with fruit juices then shaken); and commentary (St Germain is to bartenders what bacon is to chefs).

We started with a simple and refreshing drink, the Cin Cin, which is simply equal portions of dry and sweet Vermouth served over rocks. Next we moved on to what Murray described as a light Manhattan, the Bianco Bulleit. The name nearly gives you the recipe as it’s made with Bianco Vermouth and Bulleit Bourbon. A lemon twist finishes it off. Our final cocktail of the night was a Murray original, the Hot Charlotte, apparently named after a woman of Murray’s acquaintance. This last drink had a little bite to it from a few drops of hot sauce and was primarily composed of gin and St. Germain, hence the quote above.

Throughout the evening little bites from the kitchen were brought out to accompany the cocktails. All of the food, prepared by Chef Matthew Mina, was interesting and I mean that in a good way. There was a carpaccio and cheese combination; a crab and corn stuffed springroll; and, my favorite, a creamy, roasted chanterelle soup.

There are several more classes on the schedule with an interesting lineup of personalities. I hope to take one or two more of them and will perhaps "audit" a couple others. Classes are $50 and fill quickly. You can find more information about them here.

All food and cocktail recipes from this session can be found on Foodsita here.

A few more of my photos are here.

To visit Murray in his natural environment you can visit him at the Zig Zag Cafe.

The Hunt Club

Sorrento Hotel

900 Madison

Seattle

206.343.6156

Starbucks VIA Cocktail Mix-Off

26-Aug-2009

Although Starbucks‘ new instant (or as they call it "ready-brew") coffee, VIA, has been in the Seattle market for several months it seems Starbucks is working on raising interest as they prepare for the national roll-out. Understandably, a ready-brew/instant coffee could be considered a gamble for the company and so last week they took an interesting tack in promoting the product.

They assembled four bartenders from the Seattle area known for creating technically perfect, interesting cocktails. By technically perfect I mean that they are part of inner circle of mixologists who adhere to the standards set by the fathers of the cocktail combining elixirs in a way that results in a perfect balance of flavors, acidity and interest. Anything that tastes or looks like a Jolly Rancher candy would never be mixed or even considered by these folks. (I love Jolly Rancher hard candy – just not in my glass…)

These bartenders were challenged with creating a cocktail that used VIA as an ingredient. Last Thursday they met in a "mix-off" competition judged by four food and beverage professionals: Jennifer Shea (Trophy Cupcake), Eric Tanaka (Tom Douglas Restaurants), Jessica Voelker (Seattle Metropolitan), Ann-Marie Kurtz (Starbucks).

The gathering took place on the Garden Terrace of Hotel 1000. This was a fun venue as it sits on the southwest corner of the 4th floor of the hotel, giving you city views, the impression of being outside (even though it’s completely glass enclosed) and an intimate space for a group. Fewer than 100 people were on hand to view the proceedings and I was happy to be included.

Prior to the actual competition Howard Schultz explained the history of VIA, how Starbucks came to even consider making an instant coffee, and how this all led to their current R&D department and strategy. I found the information really interesting and it also put a human face on the product. I wish they had the story somewhere on their site – if they do I couldn’t find it – as I don’t think I can represent it properly from memory. I will say it started with one man who approached Starbucks years ago with a sample of an instant coffee. His idea eventually landed him the first R&D position at Starbucks and was the beginning of the department. While unable to bring the product to market during his lifetime, the seed he planted has been realized in the VIA product.

After Schultz’ opening remarks the competition began. Kelly Moore filled the MC role and Andrew Bohrer provided the color commentary. The four competing mixologists were: Erik Hakkinen (Zig Zag Café), Keenan Ahlo (BOKA Kitchen + Bar), Andrew Friedman (Liberty), Anu Apte (Rob Roy). Cocktails were prepared in two rounds. In the first round Friedman and Ahlo mixed up two very different cocktails. Friedman was first with his Kentucky Coffee, a straight-forward drink with whiskey as the base and lemon adding a nice citrus zing. And, of course, all of the cocktails included VIA as an ingredient. This was my second favorite cocktail of the evening.

Ahlo’s entry named, Starbucks VIA India, was a much more complex concoction featuring gin, benedictine, coconut milk and curry. It was almost a dessert. I enjoyed the hint of the exotic the curry and coconut milk brought to the drink.

There was a short break before round two featuring Hakkinen and Apte. Hakkinen’s entry, the Beccacino, included bourbon, benedictine, Irish mist, amaretto and orgeat. He layered it for a nice presentation. It was by far the strongest drink in the competition – and my favorite of the bunch.

The final entry from Apte was the Columbia Coffee Fizz and was another fairly complex drink. Her drink really highlighted the VIA using more than any of the other drinks. It also included aged rum, green chartreuse, whipping cream and Dry Soda vanilla.

The cocktails were judged on creativity, taste and their "VIAriffic" quotient. The judges all received full cocktails and while they were judging smaller sampling portions were distributed to the crowd. The contestants were competing for a $5000 prize that would be donated to a charity of their choice.

After the final round the judges’ scores were tallied and it turned out there was a tie between Apte and Hakkinen. The tie-breaker was based on crowd applause and Apte won quite resoundingly. Based solely on the fact that her cocktail really was VIArrific I think this was the right result but I still preferred both Hakkinen’s and Friedman’s cocktails.

The evening was enjoyable and it was a fun and creative event. I had just one small disappointment with the evening. While the guests were assembling prior to the activities I spotted Howard Schultz standing at a table and being ignored by most of the group. I approached him and asked if he thought featuring VIA as a cocktail mixer was in any way confusing or would detract from the company’s line of liqueurs. His response and attitude were dismissive which I found unsettling. He basically said, "totally different" and slightly turned away. While the products are totally different, featuring VIA as a cocktail ingredient brings them into the same arena. Even if he thought it a "stupid" question, which apparently he did, you’d think he could come up with a more eloquent answer than that. As I customer I was interested. As a stockholder I was even more interested. As a blogger I would have liked to understand his thoughts. I did not represent myself to Schultz as any of these things but I would think that in Seattle he would assume that there was a good chance I was a customer and, since this was a PR event, he might have guessed I had some "news" perspective. I guess I was surprised at the response and so it is sticking with me.

I’m not sure that I will ever use VIA in a cocktail – perhaps to make a coffee drink while camping – but I would use coffee liqueur and since I have a bottle of Starbucks Coffee Liqueur on hand, I think Starbucks wins either way.

VIA is currently available in Seattle, Chicago and London.

Caffe Vita Public Brewing School

25-Aug-2009

This sounds interesting….. From a Caffe Vita press release:

Caffe Vita is proud to introduce a new public brewing class taking place in Caffe Vita’s bean warehouse. Patrons will be able to further their knowledge of coffee brewing methods including the use of Melitta, French Press, Vacuum Pot, Bialetti and more.

Caffe Vita’s Public Brewing School will be directed by Caffe Vita’s Barista Trainer Andy Kent who will demonstrate in depth each brewing method for the optimal cup of coffee.

$45 Includes: Caffe Vita Public Brewing Course, 1 Melitta Coffee Brewer, a fresh bag 12oz Bag of our Farm Direct Coffees and a Vita Diner Mug.

To Register Please Contact:
Andy@caffevita.com // 206.709.4440 Extension*177

www.caffevita.com

Date: Thursday, September 3rd, 2009 & Thursday, October 1st, 2009
Location: Caffe Vita Capitol Hill Location 1005 Pike Street,Seattle, WA
Time: 6:30PM
More Info Please Email: andy@caffevita.com
Price: $45
Limited Space Available

I’ve joined the flock

23-Aug-2009

You can now find me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/CulinaryFool

Chinook’s at Salmon Bay

09-Aug-2009

When summer comes to Seattle we all want to spend as much time outside as we can. Not only do we want to be outside but many of us also want to be on or near the water. Luckily water is in abundance in our beautiful city. Finding somewhere to eat outside near the water can sometimes be more challenging but we do have several great locations.

One of these places is just a bit hidden unless you happen to live in Magnolia or, perhaps, spend time at Discovery Park. Chinook’s at Salmon Bay is located in Fisherman’s terminal, has an outdoor deck and the benefit of easy parking in their large lot.

On nice days they open their outdoor patio which is protected from the wind, dotted with umbrellas to provide dappled shade and overlooks the marina that houses the working fishing fleet as well as many leisure boats.

A friend and I had a Friday off a couple weeks ago and after a good walk around Discovery Park we dropped into Chinook’s for lunch.

We are so lucky to have access to the freshest of fish and seafood here in Seattle. Many of our restaurants serve beautiful dishes based on the local water’s bounty but it seems to me that Chinook’s has some of the freshest with their direct access to the fishing boats at their doorstep. MO and I started with two cocktails slightly customized to take advantage of in-season berries. She had a Berry Cosmopolitan and I had a Blueberry Drop. I was a little disappointed in with my cocktail as the only fresh berries were those on the pick. I’d thought that blueberries would be muddled in the drink but instead a blueberry-flavored vodka was used. Her Cosmo made much better use of fresh raspberries.

We both ordered Shrimp and Crab Caesar Salads, which not are generously topped with fresh seafood but are also wonderfully crispy and refreshing and made us feel like our walk wasn’t totally in vain. (Never mind the calorie count in the dressing, thank you!) I love when seafood still has it’s natural sweetness and both the crab and shrimp on our salads exhibited that quality. I didn’t want to let any little piece of crab or shrimp get lost in the romaine!

I noticed that they had razor clams on the menu. Razor clams are not on many menus and are generally seasonal so when I see them I have to order them. These were deep-fried, which is the most common way to serve them. The breading was just thick enough yet let the clams shine, crispy and a little chewy they were a great counterpoint to our salads.

In addition to the full service restaurant you can find a little fish bar, Little Chinook’s located in the same building. Nearby you’ll find outdoor picnic tables or you can take your order to one of the local parks like the one that overlooks the locks, just a short drive away.

Chinook’s at Salmon Bay

1900 West Nickerson Street

Magnolia

Seattle

206.283.4665

Art

08-Aug-2009

Art is the restaurant and lounge in the new Four Seasons Hotel. The building also houses private, luxury condominiums. The restaurant name comes from the hotel and restaurant’s proximity to the Seattle Art Museum. Many of the dishes are served in ways evocative of painting or other creative endeavors. Kerry Sears, the former chef/owner of Cascadia is now at Art after closing his own place. We miss Cascadia but are happy that he continues to bring his creative combinations to to the table.

Thursday before starting our stroll through galleries and studios open for Seattle’s First Thursday Art Walk, M and I stopped by for sustenance to fuel our walk. The lounge (and I believe the dining room, too) are on the West side of the building where there are views of Puget Sound broken by some industrial buildings along Western Avenue. I liked the yin/yang of this arrangement, sitting in a plush lounge while looking at a nitty-gritty view, as I think it’s a part of what makes Seattle, Seattle.

We arrived for the start of happy hour in the lounge, which offers several small plates and drinks for $5. Always a sucker for an interesting sounding cocktail, I ordered a Bellini Martini which combines elements from both drinks into one peachy libation. Made from vodka, pureed peaches and Prosecco it was refreshing and tasted of summer. M had a lemon drop (not on the happy hour menu) and said it was wonderful, too.

For our first course we sampled the Blue Shrimp which is served with Horseradish and Bloody Mary Dressing. The combination was outstanding. The shrimp was so fresh it tasted as if it had been just brought in especially for our order. Horseradish is finely grated over the shrimp (be careful if you are not a horseradish fan) and the dressing is served in a tiny little glass, complete with a sprig of celery. I actually took a little swig of it and it would have made a perfect aperitif, too.

It was hard deciding what else to choose but we opted to try the tuna roll and sliders, something Kerry was famous for at Cascadia.

Of course everything here comes with it’s own little twist. The tuna roll was elevated with jalapeños, crisp garlic, daikon shoots and wasabi cream. The presentation was beautiful as was the tuna and the overall taste combination. We ended with a plate of sliders, which are available in either beef or in a vegetarian style. The condiments for the sliders were served as if they were paint on a pallet, which was both beautiful and fun. The only slightly disappointing note of the evening was that we’d ordered a side of mushrooms with our sliders and they were overlooked. Not a big deal at all, but I call it out only because I think the servers here had a few too many tables to handle which showed in a couple of other small ways, too. It’s understandable that with the low prices for this quality food that Art is watching costs.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Art. The ambience of the lounge is plush without being fussy. I think it will be a nice, cozy place to hang out when the darker days of winter set in, too. Happy hour is an outstanding deal. I’ll need to get back to sample an actual dinner here some time soon.

Art

Located in the Four Seasons Hotel

99 Union Street

Seattle

206.749.7000