The Pacific Northwest constantly and consistently amazes me. The abundance of fresh, flavorful foods that show up either on my own table and on friend’s tables makes me unbelievably thankful for it all. The abundance of berries, fresh salmon, peaches, apricots, heirloom tomatoes, garden herbs, and leafy vegetables are stunning–when you stop and think about it. My good friend and co-kitchen-conspirator, Leela, just got back from a nine month tour with her new husband around the world (lucky girl!). She and I are hosting a Taste the Place booth prior to the Pietopia event on August 5th at the Buckman Farmer’s Market. The entire premise of Taste the Place is to taste what grows locally here in Oregon. August is a great time for this because berries are in full force and stone fruits are hanging like gems from branches. But we decided to put a little twist on tasting the place and bringing some global flavors into the mix. Her trip was a total inspiration of sights, sounds, people–not to mention foods, tastes, flavors, textures! Her motto was “leave no masala dosa, bowl of bun, or bite of bakalava behind!”—now you understand why she is one of my favorite people in the world! Her enthusiasm and ability to enjoy life, in it’s present state, is contagious.
We each came up with a cool summer smoothie drink for people to sample at the market. Check her’s out here. I toyed with a blackberry orange blossom smoothie and a raspberry rosewater smoothie. The blackberry orange blossom was fragrant-heavy and smooth–it’s personality was tall, dark, guarded, and heavily perfumed. Maybe the blackberries didn’t pack enough punch, or maybe I’m just used to the sweet fruitiness of marionberries (not the ex-mayor), but it became all orange blossom and no berry. Even when I tried adding just 1/4 or an 1/8 of a teaspoon, it hit me in the top part of my nose and crept down the back of my throat no matter what I tried. By the end, I could have been just so used to smelling it, that I was over anticipating it and thinking it was too much. I think there’s potential here with this smoothie, but, it wasn’t the one for me. The raspberry rosewater smoothie, on the other hand, was like drinking a glass of smoothie-elegance. I am partial to rose–I love how they smell, how they look–the whole package. And the beauty of this flavor combination is that not one overpowered the other–they harmonized one another. The raspberry notes came first and then the subtle rose water essence followed suit. I added a touch of raw honey and this was my chosen contender!
Fear not, the blackberry certainly has it’s place in my heart and palate. I used it on a summer pizza the other night–fresh basil, heirloom yellow tiny tomatoes, fresh garlic, and fresh blackberries (all came from the farmer’s market), buffalo mozzarella, and an olive oil base….. I trail off here because words cannot describe this pizza’s deliciousness. And, I’m salivating. Thank you, summer.
Cheers!
Raspberry Rosewater Smoothie
2/3 cup fresh raspberries
1 tablespoon raw honey
1/2-1 teaspoon rose water
2 ice cubes
1/2 cup-3/4 cup filtered water
Blend until smooth, enjoy!
A separate post was in order for the abundance of amazing cooked foods that are at the Portland Farmer’s Market. I ran into a few friends there who specifically go to the farmer’s market to eat breakfast. I admit, that is a part of why I go each week. It’s really amazing eat a fresh breakfast made with the foods that you can then go buy! The chef’s who run their stalls are all genuinely happy to be there, chatting with customers between cooking and yelling out order names. Not only does market food taste better than most food because of the access to fresh ingredients, but I believe the market chef’s good nature and their happy energy honestly puts it over the top. It’s so true! Let’s do a little experiment–cook yourself something for dinner tonight that you really love and enjoy. Get into it–pour yourself a glass of wine, put on some of your favorite music, just let yourself be in your kitchen enjoying yourself. When you sit down to eat it, slow down. Notice how each flavor makes up the larger flavor of the dish. Notice them. Notice the textures and how they connect with the flavors. Then think about your experience cooking. Did you get upset? Did you get frustrated or irritated with something during the process? Or did you just let things be and went with the flow, allowing yourself into the flow? Now how does it taste? Still your favorite dish? Or are you thinking it could be better? I’d love to hear what happens if you try this!
I know that if my heart is not into making food, I don’t like it. It doesn’t taste good, it just makes me sad–my expectations are never met with how good a dish could be if I’m not present in the kitchen. Even if it’s something I really like to eat! If I’m not there, it can turn into crap really fast. But if I’m there and really present, and what’s even more fun is when Andrew is there too, we can cook up some pretty tasty meals together. One of his favorite questions to ask is “how much should I chop this?” and my usual response is “how do you want it to feel in your mouth?” And he always does it just right! Some things you want to have a little more bulk and be a bit bigger in your mouth, but some, you really want to finely chop, lending less texture but more flavor.
If you are in Portland, or ever happen to visit the Portland Farmer’s Market, my FAVORITE food vendor is the crepe-man. He lived in France for years learning how to cook. He and his wife (who is French) moved to Portland with their family but could not give up one of their favorite food from France: crepes. He’s in front twirling the batter on the hot griddles making the crepes and she’s in back directing and helping a few staff members making the copious orders of crepes for hungry market-goers. You’ll hear a smattering of French and English, both spoken fluently and fluidly at this booth, especially to their children and each other. But their crepes, you ask? How are they? Literally, to die for. They have two different batters they use: buckwheat (has a hint of lemongrass in it…but you only know that because I told you, it’s almost undetectable but does something incredible to the nuttiness of the buckwheat flavors) and a sweet-white crepe. I really enjoy either their seasonal fruit or their Deluxe. The Deluxe has a little bit of everything including bacon, sausage, tomato, onions, mushrooms, spinach, and mozzarella, topped with some greens a sprinkling of truffle oil. The truffle oil sends these things over the top! I’m making myself hungry now!
I’m out of town for the next few days, but I’ll be back next week with more. Have a great weekend, cheers!
Yesterday was the opening day of the Portland Farmer’s Market. It could not have been a more perfect day–the sun was shining, the air was fragrant and heated by the sun, and the farmer’s market itself has doubled in size since last year. I got their right as it opened and there were swarms of market-goers already shopping. It was amazing! I also had a field day with my camera–taking pictures of food is like a never ending story or an incredible meal. I could not get enough! I brought home with me two varieties of raab (or rapini), home made pappardelle noodles, fresh farmers goat cheese, line-caught from the ocean smoked salmon, fresh kale (but of course), and a crepe from my favorite crepe-man. The sweet tastes of a successful trip to the farmers market! I took quite a few pictures to give you a slice of this wonderful market, so you can have a taste too…
(This cheese farmer, looking a little worn out and weary, was telling one of his customers how he spent the whole night delivering twin goats. This is one of the best aspects to the market, knowing the sources of and faces behind your food!)
It’s days like yesterday that make me so thankful, so refreshed, so alive. Having the market back, filling my bag with an abundance of goodness, running into friends at each turn, and reconnecting with the vendors with a happy grin and a hearty “welcome back!” were all woven into my market day experience. So good! Below is a recipe for an excellent pasta dish I made with my homemade pasta from the market. It has a wonderful garlic flavor infused into the olive oil it was baked in and the mushrooms gave it lovely body. Great with a crisp rose or lemony sauvignon blanc.
Olive Oil, Garlic, Mushroom Pappardelle
2 whole heads of garlic (medium sized)
olive oil
fresh pasta–the wide noodle of the pappardelle was really nice but you could use fettucini noodles as well
10-12 whole fresh mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Take apart the heads of garlic so the cloves are separated. To get the skin off, use the side of your large knife–put a clove or two under the side of it and with your palm, press down until you hear a “crunch”. The clove will have been crushed and the skins are super easy to pull off now. Fill a 2-cup baking dish (like one you’d use for creme brulee) with the cloves and then fill with olive oil until the cloves are covered. Cover with a double-layer of foil and bake at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes.
Boil your fresh pasta for only 1-4 minutes. If it is from the box, follow the directions on the box/bag for how long to cook it. The fresher it is, the less time you need to boil it.
Using some of the olive oil from the garlic, put it into a frying pan and toss the sliced mushrooms into it. Cook until tender.
Using the same pan with a little more garlic olive oil, toss some greens onto it to sautee as a side dish. I used one of the rapini’s–it was excellent.
Then, toss together the rest of the olive oil, garlic, and mushrooms with the pasta. Serve with fresh grated Parmesan or Asiago cheese, enjoy!
