I am back in Portland, enjoying getting back into a daily routine and allowing my creative muscles to flex in a familiar environment. Not being able to get into the kitchen (or have access to my other art supplies) for over two weeks was difficult! But now that I am back, it has been nice easing back into a routine with my kitchen and collection of “stuff” I can make things with at my fingertips.
My friend Chelsea, (also a fellow MFA student and classmate), and I are working on a collaborative book together. We wanted the book to be a work of art in and of itself. Hand drawn illustration, special typography and font choices, all screen printed and hand bound with unusual materials used for the covers will make each book a special edition and an individual piece. We are working under a pen name, which will be announced shortly. Stay tuned for more on this lovely project!
For the meeting, Chelsea made a Peach Pie from peaches she has froze from this summers bounty. It was amazing! I literally inhaled two huge pieces and licked my fingers when I was done. Tasting those peaches in the dead of winter was truly a gift and really gave me the optimistic boost I was needing in this cold, dark climate. She didn’t use a recipe, but threw it together by making a basic pie dough, then she tossed the peach slices with big slices of ginger, no sugar, nothin’, just peaches and ginger, and baked it at 350 until it bubbled. If you have any frozen fruit from this summer’s bounty, try making yourself a pie this month. It will bring to life those long-past memories from summer and make these short winter days seem a bit more bearable.
The Uprooted event has come and gone, it happened so fast I am in a minor state of disbelief! Never the less, it was wonderful. There were friends from all walks of my life, old and new, totaling about 30 people. It was great to see people who would not normally be together in one room have lively conversations and really enjoy themselves. I also gave all the guests a gift at the end of the night. The guests all submitted a recipe to me before the event. I took these recipes and made a small recipe box with the Taste Matters logo on top. Upon opening the box, the recipes were in a neat little stack, waiting to be flipped through. However, there was a fake bottom in the box in which underneath was a suprise package of snickerdoodle cookies with a story about the significance of these cookies to me. On the backs of all the recipes, I letterpressed Uprooted and the date. I will post all the recipes from my guests soon, they are not to be missed!
My photographer for the event, Meghan Holmes, was amazing. She took close to 800 photos, all of which I have been sorting through all day today…
And Team TM was fantastic and I could never have done this without them! Thank you Gwenan, Thom, Meghan and Leela!
Reflections of the event are still simmering, but give it a few days and the words will start flowing. The recipes from the dinner were centered around root vegetables. I started with knowing what I wanted to cook with (pumpkin, greens, root vegetables…) and then went through some of my favorite cookbooks and found what I needed. Here is what was made:
Orecchiette with Pumpkin, Pecans, and Shallot Sage Brown Butter
5-6 oz orecchiette pasta
7 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced fresh sage
3 cups cubed, cooked pumpkin
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped, toasted pecans (toast at 350 F, 6-10 mins)
freshly grated parmesan
Cook pasta in lots of boiling water until tender. Meanwhile, heat butter over medium flame in large skillet. Add shallots, garlic, and sage; cook until butter just begins to brown. Reduce heat to low and stir in pumpkin. Serve immediately with freshly ground parmesan. Makes 4-6 servings.
Cranberry Relish with Grapefruit and Mint (bon appetit 2008)
2 large pink grapefruits
1 cup sugar
2.5 cups cranberries (about 20 ounces)
5 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
Using vegetable peeler, remove peel (pink-yellow outer layer only) from 1 grapefruit in strips. Cut peel into 2-inch-long, 1/8-inch-wide strips (about 1/2 cup). Squeeze 1 cup juice from grapefruits. Stir 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add grapefruit peel; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until peel is soft, about 15 minutes. Add 1 cup grapefruit juice and cranberries; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until berries burst, about 10 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl. Stir in mint. Cover; chill until cold. Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.
Black Eye Peas with Swiss Chard, Kale and Green Beans
3 cups black-eyed peas
butter or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoons thyme
2 bay leaves
2 large bunches of swiss chard, kale, or spinach
1-2 cups fresh green beans
salt and pepper
Put peas on to cook in water. Heat a little oil in a skillet. Add onions and garlic; sauté with thyme and bay leaves until tender. After cooking peas ½ hour, add the onion mixture and chopped greens. Cook ½ hour longer. Remove bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Makes 6-8 servings.
Cornbread Dressing with Roasted Fall Vegetables (bon appetit 2008)
1 10-ounce bag pearl onions
3 cups 1/2-inch-thick diagonal slices peeled carrots (about 1.5 pound)
3 cups 1/2-inch-thick diagonal slices peeled parsnips (about 3/4 pound)
3 cups 1/2-inch cubes peeled rutabagas (about 3/4 pound)
1, 1/3 cups olive oil, divided
1 pound crimini (baby bella) mushrooms, stemmed, caps halved
7 large garlic cloves, peeled
2.5 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried crushed rosemary
2 teaspoons dried rubbed sage
6-7 cups 1/2-inch cubes Cornbread for Dressing
3-4 large eggs, beaten to blend
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 425°F. Cook onions in small saucepan of boiling water 2 minutes; drain. Cool slightly; trim and peel. Place onions, carrots, parsnips, and rutabagas in single layer on large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle 1/3 cup oil over and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Place mushrooms and garlic on another rimmed baking sheet; drizzle with remaining 1/3 cup oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Roast root vegetables until tender and brown around edges, stirring every 15 minutes, about 1 hour. Roast mushrooms and garlic until tender, stirring once, about 30 minutes. Place root vegetables and mushrooms in large bowl. Place garlic in small bowl; mash with fork until pureed. Add pureed garlic, thyme, rosemary, and sage to vegetables; toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Vegetable mixture can be made 1 day ahead. Cool vegetables, cover, and chill. Bring mixture to room temperature before continuing.
Place cornbread cubes on large rimmed baking sheet. Let bread cubes stand at room temperature to dry slightly, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter 13x9x2-inch oval baking dish. Add cornbread cubes to vegetables; toss to distribute evenly. Add eggs; toss to coat. Drizzle with melted butter; toss to coat. Add broth and stir to combine (mixture will be very moist). Transfer mixture to prepared dish.
Bake dressing uncovered until lightly browned and crisp around edges, about 45 minutes.
Persimmon Pudding (Alice Waters, Chez Panisse)
About 1 1/2 pounds Hachiya Persimmons
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
whipped cream or creme fraiche for serving
Preheat oven to 325 F. Butter an 8-9 inch springform pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and then butter the parchment. Slit the skin of the persimmons and scrape the flesh into a food processor, discarding any seeds. Puree until smooth. Pour into a large bowl, add the sugar, eggs, milk, cream, and honey, and stir until smooth.
In another bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. The mixture will be thin at first, but set it aside and allow it to thicken for about 20 mins. Then add the melted butter and stir well.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the pudding until it is set when pressed gently with a fingertip and the edges begin to pull away from the sides of the pan, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for about 30 minutes.
Remove the pan sides and slice the pudding onto a serving plate. Serve warm or at room temperature. The top will be a glossy brown and needs no more embellishment than a little whipped cream or creme fraiche.
Simple French Bread
2 cups warm water
1 teaspoon yeast
2 teaspoons salt
4-5 cups unbleached all purpose flour
In a small cup or bowl, combine 1/2 cup (from the total 2 cups) warm water and 1 teaspoon yeast. Whisk it a little with a fork and let stand for about ten minutes or until the yeast turns foamy. In a big bowl, combine the flour and the salt. Add the yeast and remaining 1 1/2 cups warm water. Stir. Kneed the dough for about 6-8 minutes until it is has a firm feel, like a smooth baby’s bottom. Let rise until double, about 1 hour. Divide dough into four pieces and shape into mini baguettes. Place on a pan or bread stone and let rise again until double, about 1/2 hour. Score the tops. In a small cup or bowl add an egg and a few teaspoons of cold water. Whisk with a fork and using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the loaves with the mixture. Bake for 20 mintutes at 450, turn down the temperature to 400 and bake for 5-10 minutes more, until tops are brown. Place a small dish with about 2 cups water in the oven with the bread to keep it moist while baking.
Almost a month ago, I flew back east to be in my best friend Kiija’s wedding. On my drive from BWI, I got lost in the abyss known as Northern Virginia. However, the stars had aligned and I came across this great Pie shop in a small town on the way to Shenandoah National Park. Mom’s was filled with home made baked goods, baked on site in the kitchen that crept right up to the cash register and glass case in the front. The two young girls working there looked like sisters and had a wholesome and unjaded friendliness that can be hard to find in urban centers. The short amount of time I was in there, deciding between the fresh pumpkin muffins or a slice of just-baked apple pie, several locals came in to say hello to the girls and have a cookie. It was on a “busy” corner in the town, anchoring it as a community meeting spot. It was the perfect welcome after a long trip across the country.
The wedding was beautiful and I was so honored to be a part of it. I have never seen two people more in love or deserving of each other. As individuals, they each have so many admirable qualities that only make their relationship richer and deeper. The wedding was held on the Appalaichan trail and the reception afterwards was held in an old lodge hall in the park. Fresh local foods were in abundance as were tearful toasts of joy and happiness for the newlyweds. The cake was made by a local cake maker, using Kiija’s grandmothers cake-topper as her own. Layers of the families personal history and memory were incorporated into the wedding. It was not only a celebration of the love Kiija and Brent have for eachother, but a rejoycing of how that love has connected two families and multitudes of their friends.
