garrett berdan's Profile
Deborah Madison in PDX
I'm stoked that the prolific vegetarian cookbook author, Deborah Madison, is coming to Portland, OR at the end of November. She is re-releasing her classic title Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone as a 10th anniversary edition with updates.
I first heard Deborah speak at Book Shop Santa Cruz a few years back. She is such a good story teller and has a super quick wit. Aside from being an overall fun lady, she writes fantastic recipes and is a strong advocate for eating locally.
Check her out at New Seasons Market in Beaverton on Thursday, November 29th from 6:30 to 8:30. Buy the book and try the Millet and Chickpea Pilaf with Saffron and Tomatoes (if it made the re-release cut).
trout, plain and simple
Jake's Gill in Portland serves up a perfect plain and simple Idaho red trout on their dinner menu. I had some out-of-towners visiting Friday night and we needed an easy place to dine with a reservation. Jakes Grill came through.
As I waited for my guests over a Jameson at the bar, I watched the bartenders serve up many shaken cocktails with fresh-squeezed citrus. I hear the lemon drops are top-notch.
The menu is Northwest seafood and steak style with a good range of options. It was a toss up between the medallions of tenderloin or Idaho red trout. Our server helped me off the fence by mentioning that many customers say it is the best trout they have ever had.
The simple baked whole trout was indeed the best I ever had. Still tender and moist, the flesh flaked onto my fork with only a gentle nudge of a knife. The fish was stuffed with ciabatta crumbs and a generous allotment of Dungeness crab meat. I'm certain the only seasoning was salt and fresh cracked pepper. Crispy fried capers and a side of garlic mashed potatoes were the perfect briny and creamy complements to the fish.
Try it at home:
Salt and pepper the flesh and skin of one whole dressed trout. Stuff with crab meat and bread crumbs, perhaps mixed with a little mayonnaise and Italian parsley. Bake in a moderate oven until flesh is firm to the touch near the backbone. Let me know if this works.
morning buns
The Tartine cookbook may have a recipe for morning buns. It is a gorgeous book with many pictures. It is not yet on my bookshelf, but will be soon. Tartine is a French bakery in the Mission in SF. Check it out next time you there, but go at odd times to avoid the line.
Morning buns are as Sophie described on March 18th. It is basically croissant dough with a light dusting of cinnamon and sugar between the layers, rolled up, cut and baked. I do enjoy the sticky bottomed buns that are so common with morning buns.
Fage yogurt - can I get it in Vancouver?
I'm not sure if Trader Joe's exists in Vancouver, but they carry this product. Greek style yogurt, such as Fage, is nothing more than strained regular yogurt. You can make this yourself. Here's the play by play:
1. Place a basket-style coffee filter into a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl that will fit into the refrigerator.
2. Place plain yogurt of choice into the coffee filter, cover the sieve and bowl, and refrigerate over night.
You should have deliciously thick yogurt by mornin' time to enjoy with crunchy granola and fresh fruit. I like to sweeten plain yogurt with a little honey or real maple syrup.
PDX loves posole [moved from Pac NW board]
Over the snowy Pacific Northwest weekend I was back home with a friend for a ski extravaganza. After a long, tiring day of swooshing through new powder our chilled bodies and sore muscles needed some warming comfort.
Rick Bayless came to the rescue with his posole recipe from Mexico One Plate at a Time. However, I had to adapt the recipe a little with canned hominy and chicken instead of pork parts. This posole was hearty with shredded chicken and toothsome hominy, and a beautiful vibrant red from the pureed ancho chiles. Fresh embelishments and a squeez of lime make this Mexican soup a meal.
It's super simple, try this out:
4 chicken breasts
4 dried ancho chiles, rinsed
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large white onion, small dice, reserve 1/2
2 28 ounce cans of white or yellow hominy, drained
Mexican oregano
1/2 head Napa cabbage, cleaned and shredded
Fresh lime wedges
Avocado, diced
Radishes, sliced
Yellow corn tostadas
1. Poach the chicken breasts in enough water or chicken broth to cover. Shred cooked chicken and reserve poaching liquid.
2. Meanwhile, hydrate the dried ancho chiles in enough boiling water to cover, weighing down the chiles with a small plate.
3. In a large stock pot, sweat the onions and garlic in the vegetable oil. Add the hominy, chicken, and chicken poaching liquid. Bring to a simmer.
4. Remove the stems from the chiles and place in a blender with the soaking water. Blend on high until well pureed. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into the stock pot with the other ingredients.
5. Add a large pinch of Mexican oregano, adjust the salt, and simmer for about 30 minutes.
6. Serve the posole in big bowls with sides of Napa cabbage, fresh lime wedges, diced avocado, sliced radishes, and crunchy yellow corn tostadas. Keep a bottle of Tapatio on the table to spice it up a bit.
morning buns
Ever since my friend Dana introduced them to me in culinary school I have been hooked. She would pick them up from Tartine in the Mission district in SF. The soft and crisp flakes gave between my teeth with the scent of butter in every bite. A sprinkling of sugar within the laminated dough made pastry chewy, but not teeth-sticking, and sweet, but not Voo Doo Doughnut Apple Fritter sweet.
This morning after church I walked a few blocks up to Ken's Artisan Bakery on NW 21st in Portland, OR, for a coffee and a pastry. If there are ever morning buns, you bet yours I'll order one. Ken's morning buns are modest and perfect in size. Instead of being baked in a muffin tin, the sliced, rolled dough must be placed on a baking sheet. They were shaped as if the spiral of dough rose and then toppled to the side a bit, almost snail-shell in shape.
With my first bite a subtle taste of orange zest complemented my cup of Stumptown coffee. It was not an overpowering orange, like when using candied orange peel. The orange colored shavings flecked the white pastry while the crust was caramelized to a crisp chestnut brown. Plenty of butter made for a tender and...not moist, but....appropriately damp pastry. Let's just say I didn't need to chase each bite with a sip of coffee.
I relished Ken's morning buns and will certainly return.
