Happy St. Paddy's!

Oh how I love this holiday. I'm not Catholic, but there is just enough Irish in me to really get in to the drunken revelry of St. Patrick's Day.

I have a full bottle of Jameson's and a fridge full of Guinness, The Quiet Man- and in a few hours, a giant plate of food that will go straight to me'arteries.
The Menu:

Braised pork shoulder w/ grain mustard jus- so sue me, I'm not making corned beef. I forgot to start the brine and had to wing it. We'll have pulled pork sandwiches rather than reubens. I'm a little depressed about it, but I'm sure I'll pull through.

Colcannon heavy on the kale, for the sake of my lovehandles

soda bread that actually tastes good.

Guinness ice cream with whiskey caramel hence all of the open bottles of guinness- for the reduction...

I'll most likely not be blogging any of this. I'm just hanging out, waiting for the ice cream to finish churning and felt like sharing.

Grapefruit Campari Sorbet

As you can probably tell my the blinding girlishness of my blog, I unapologetically love pink.

The thing is, I in no way fit the personality profile of a stereotypical pink-lover.
My ipod and cellphone are not bedazzled with swarovski crystals.
I stopped wearing tiaras after grammar school.
If for some reason I am wearing a skirt, I can assure you that I will provide no opportunity for accidental peeping at my lady parts.
See? I'm totally 'one of the guys'.

But yeah. I admit that pink sort of puts me in my happy place. As does this pink grapefruit sorbet. I look forward to making it all year. Right about now, when the gargantuan Florida grapefruit are available is the best time to make it, but the Texas rio stars are also quite good. The Campari is key. While it may taste as bitter and evil as Slayer lyrics by itself- the oompf a little splash of it in citrus cocktails will deliver makes it a worthy investment. Plus you'll look totally suave with it sitting on your bar.



Do yourself a favor and candy the zest of the grapefruit before juicing them. Not only is it less wasteful in trying economic times like these, but it makes a tasty garnish as well.



This sorbet always does well at the restaurant. It's rare when a sorbet will outsell anything with chocolate in it, but this one will.
I love to imagine some alpha male on a first date accidentally ordering it.
While he is desperately hoping to appear manly- thus increasing the odds of mating, this pretty pink dessert on a doily sits before him.
It probably never happens, but I can always fantasize.



Grapefruit Campari Sorbet

5 1/2 cups freshly squeezed ruby red grapefruit juice (usually takes about 8 medium grapefruit)
1 quart grapefruit simple syrup*
6 oz. champagne, prosecco, or cremant (anything bubbly)
1 oz campari

Combine and churn in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions

*Grapefruit simple syrup:
1 quart water
4 cups sugar
grated zest of 2 ruby red grapefruit

Rub the zest into the sugar with your hands until the mixture resembles wet sand. Combine with the water and bring to a full boil. Remove from heat and strain. Chill overnight or in an ice bath.

Too stuffed for pie

Pear Riesling Sorbet

Happy Thanksgiving!!
I love Thanksgiving, it's my favorite holiday. Trevor and I have a tradition of keeping it a "just the two of us" event. Big family Christmas parties are just around the corner, so it's nice to relax and have a nice dinner for two- and then survive off the leftovers for the week and a half to follow.

Just because it's a small party, doesn't mean it's not a raging party. I bust out the nice dishes, set the table all Martha-like, light candles...the works. We just happen to celebrate in jammy pants, and I may have forgotten to put on a bra.

Trevor has set himself up with a living room-prep station, and is obediently snipping green beans on the couch, watching From Russia with Love. I'm taking a cocktail break from the kitchen...
oh yeah, and were both being thankful.

One thing we never really go wild about on this holiday, is dessert. Usually an assortment of shortbread cookies, depending on what dough I have in the freezer, and a glass of prosecco is all the dessert necessary after the Turkey Feed.


This year, however, I did have my fanciest of pants on. I had some yellowy golden pears, splotchy with little brown spots on the counter. They were primed and ready to be cooked down a wee bit, and pureed to become pear sorbet. A healthy amount of Riesling plays nicely with the pear, and a shot of cointreau adds a cozy, orangey warmth. Totally refreshing after a big meal. Rather than the tradish prosecco, I found a sexy pink cremant. She truly is a dirty girl, and will be glorious with the sorbet.


Pear Riesling Sorbet

simple syrup (refrigerate the leftovers for cocktails)
2 cups water
2 cups sugar

combine, bring to a boil. set aside to cool.

Pear puree (adjust sorbet recipe to how many cups your puree yields)

very ripe pears
lemon juice
water

peel and core pears. cut into chunks and place in a sauce pan. Add a few tablespoons of water and a squeeze of lemon juice. Cook, covered, over medium low heat, stirring occasionally. Once pears are beginning to liquefy, remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Puree in a blender (in batches if needed), Strain through a sieve into a large measuring pitcher


Sorbet base:

2 cups pear puree
1 cup simple syrup
3 or 4 oz. of decent quality Riesling (add more or less to your taste)
2 T fresh lemon juice
2 T cointreau

Stir together, then refrigerate until completely cold. Churn in an ice cream maker.

Flavors of a Suburban Childhood

Creamsicle Semifreddo

I've been a bit of a lazy blogger lately. I have been a very busy social networker though. In the past week or so, I have joined both twitter and foodbuzz. I think I have the whole twitter thing figured out. It's both kind of neat and pointless at the same time. I like being able to send immediate non-food related messages to fellow bloggers, but to be perfectly honest, I'm running low on witty repartee....

Why in god's name would anyone care what I'm eating for breakfast?
(Heritage Farms Flax Plus multigrain cereal. Keeps the digestive system on the regs...see what I mean?)

Foodbuzz still kind of confuses the hell out of me. The wine country blog I featured on my profile was accidentally posted twice and I can't figure out how to make one of them go away. And how do you get that nifty graphic to display on your blog? I'll get the hang of it eventually, as I usually do with these computer-related activities. I'm still kind of amazed that I keep a blog in the first place. I was born during the Carter administration, which means that growing up, Atari Pong was considered the penultimate in technological advances and mankind was just inches away from self-aware robots and hovercrafts. I realize that software techs in their forties are laughing their asses off at me, but yeah- when it comes to this interweb thingymajig, I'm on a bit of a slow learning curve.

Speaking of my youth- my dessert menu is experiencing a childhood kick lately. The fruit pies are always a big seller, mainly for their simplicity and the fact that it's hard to find a good slice o' pie in the city these days- but fruit pies, delicious and awesome as they are, are typically a favored by the "Jag" crowd.

It's time for a shout out to the young'uns- and to some of my favorite flavors as a kid. Memories of watching the Mariners lose at the now demolished Kingdome with my dad and eating chocolate malts became a malted chocolate mousse cake served with caramelized rice krispies. Mom taking us to McDonalds for an orange-vanilla swirl cone (which they don't sell anymore. Buttholes.) after going to the swimming pool has been translated to a creamsicle semifreddo.

Orange and vanilla has always been one of my favorite combos. It's right up there with burgers and beer. The semifreddo (which is basically just a frozen mousse- no ice cream maker required) has just a smidgen of an ingredient that I generally abhor: white chocolate. But when cut heartily with lots of cointreau and orange zest, you can barely tell it's there. It's minuscule- a whisper really, to help play up the vanilla bean and provide a really nice texture. White chocolate haters will most likely still enjoy this dessert.

On to the recipe:
Creamsicle Semifreddo

Mousse Base (can be made a day or two in advance):
1 3/4 cups whole milk
zest of 1 orange
2 T sugar
1 vanilla bean split and scraped
6 egg yolks
1/4 tsp salt
1 T fresh squeezed orange juice
2 tsp cointreau*
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

combine the milk, zest, and vanilla bean in a sauce pot. Bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover, and let steep to 2 hours.

whisk the yolks and salt together. bring the infused milk back to a simmer and temper it into the yolks. return mixture to pot and cook, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula over low heat until mixture thickens slightly. Strain though a sieve into a container and chill. Once cooled, stir in the vanilla extract, orange juice, and cointreau.
semifreddo:
mousse base
12 oz white chocolate, chopped
2 cups heavy cream
2 tsp sugar
2 T fresh squeezed orange juice
1 T cointreau

line a loaf pan with plastic wrap.
In the bowl of a standing mixer, whisk the cream, orange juice, sugar, and cointreau until very soft peaks form. set aside.
melt the white chocolate over a double boiler until no lumps remain. stir in the mousse base until smooth. fold in the whipped cream in 3 additions. continue folding gently until well combined. pour mousse into the prepped loaf pan and freeze over night. invert onto a frozen sheet pan and cut into 12 slices.

Birthdays!

Taking pictures of the food at this event was a complete afterthought. I had been drinking wine and making no attempt at capturing a quality photograph. Just fucking deal with it. Sorry if your eye balls start to hurt.

September is birthday month in my family. My husband Trevor had his 30th on Sunday, and my sister Brooke had her 27th on Friday. This year, my parents hosted the annual double birthday party with their "Joint Effort Lasagne". My dad is somewhat famous for his meat sauce. Pork and beef are lovingly ground in his own little meat grinder, then he drinks what is left from the bottle of red wine needed for the sauce while it simmers away*

* I'm pretty sure his recipe calls for about a cup. Leaving him with plently of happy-happy-joy-joy


Ricotta has no place here. We are a "strictly bechamel" people.
We also forget to turn off the flash.

Mom covers the rest of the prep, whisking up the bechamel (ricotta, while tasty in and of itself, is slanderous in their lasagne, as it should be in everyone's.) making the pasta, and layering it all together. She also takes care of the required giant caesar salad and caprese, for an Adams Family Lasagne Feed is not complete with out these valuable supporting roles.

Tomatoes picked from mom's garden minutes before making the salads- you can't see the candy-sweet sungolds in the caesar, but they're there, making it the best goddamn caesar ever....am I spelling caesar correctly?


Brooke and Trevor, both being very diplomatic and sharing the happy birthday song and candle blowing out ceremony. Personally, I prefer to be the center of attention and would hate it if my stupid brother-in-law was in the way. Brooke, you truly are and selfless being.

I made a triple layer chocolate cake iced with ganache and vanilla bean ice cream. We all made gluttons of ourselves, Trevor drank a healthy portion of the growler of beer Brooke and CK gave him, then we all went home early and passed from food comas.

It was a good day.

I should also mention that this here blog celebrated it's first birthday this month. Time has flown by, as I still feel like a complete noob at this whole food blogging movement.

Happy birthday the pie lady. Thanks y'all for reading.

Wino Country!

...Because you know you love looking at other people's vacation pictures.

I've been back for a week now, as many of you may have noticed my lurking on your blog. I just haven't had a moment to breathe, let alone unpack, until now. So between loads of laundry, why don't I regail you of the shenanigans that occured in Chelan, Washington's wine country? For those just interested in looking at the pictures- Highlights include getting the last two spots at an amazing wine maker's dinner, drunken karaoke (is there any other kind?), barfing at a farmer's market (I can now check that one off of my life's "To Do" list), and some hardcore Mother/Daughter-bonding/drinking.

The Lake Chelan Valley is located in the North Cascades National Forest and surrounds a 50 mile glacier fed lake. It is 1486 feet at it's deepest point and 1.5 miles at it's widest. Apple, pear, and peach orchirds are everywhere here. Recently, it was decided to replace a few of them with wine grapes. Good thinking! There are now just over a dozen wineries and more to come.

Vin Du Lac
This place is like France. Enough said.

sipping wine under the apple trees

little nibbles, enjoyed with the Syrah

Mom, in her element

Tsillan Cellars Winery (pronounced "chelan")
I am so pissed off at myself for never taking any pictures here. It is one of the most beautiful wineries in Chelan, looking like a little Tuscan Village. I had some really good reds here, and an awful rose- it was a just little too heavy on the strawberry. Who am I kidding? It tasted like kool-aid.

Tildio Winery
Right when we drove into town, we stopped at a little natural foods store for some cheese. We were trying to make our dinner plans and asked the ponytailed British Hippie shopkeep for suggestions. He pointed us toward Tildio, where we got the last two spots available at the last wine makers dinner of the summer. The meal, view, and company was perfect. However, it was the beginning of my downfall. I had already been to a couple of tastings, and had a few cocktails before this event, where with each coarse, we were served at least 2 full glasses of wine.
Here is the menu:

First:
Yellow and red tomatoes with julienne greens, mint, feta cheese, and green tomato vinaigrette.
Tildio 2007 Sauvignon Blanc

Second:
Zucchini fritters served with baba ghanouj, pesto, and lemons.
Tildio 2006 Chardonnay

Entree:
Grilled steak with sundried tomato relish, corn succotash and mushroom scented farro.
Tildio 2006 Syrah

Dessert:
Nectarine crostada with cherry sauce
Tildio 2007 Riesling


The view from our table




the sun set before I could get any pictures past the first course

mom enjoying the first course. I have to remember to email this picture to my dad. Grrrawl!

I don't remember the circumstanses of this picture, other than it was 7 or 8 glasses into the dinner. You can't take me anywhere.

After the fabulousness of that dinner, we decided to stop by the little sports bar next to our hotel, where karaoke was in full swing. After all that wine, I was ready for beer. Coors light in the bottle to be exact (what the fuck?????). After a few bottles, I grabbed the mike. I then proceeded to wail, yes, wail "Freedom" by George Michael. It's the first time I have ever karaoked by myself. Usually I have a gay guy next to me and it's "Islands in the Stream" Seth- you would have been so proud of me!


In a few minutes, I'm gonna get up there and turn that mother out.

So. If you're still reading, you may have guessed that I am completely sloshed by now. However, we had plans to get up early and check out the Manson Farmer's Market. We stopped for an awful latte (one thing about Chelan, there is nothing but Starbucks' and horrible coffee stands. Plan to go through withdrawl), and headed to the market. First off, let me just say that I NEVER puke. Never. That is my husband's job. It is my job to just have a slight headache and laugh at my puking husband. Well. I got my comeuppance for that. I started by puking up my latte AT THE FARMER'S MARKET. Any of you ever puked at a farmer's market? It is horrbile. It just does not mix with the little jars of jam and fresh fruit. At all.
I composed myself, bought a few jars of Apricot jam, and we went out to breakfast.
I managed to barf several more times over the course of the morning, including the few bites of hashbrowns I managed to eat. I almost never actually made it to the toilet. So glad I brought that febreeze.

The scene of the crime

Raaaaalph!!!

After some serious loafing by the pool, I magically started to feel like eating. By the way- thank you mom for putting up with this wretched behavior. We went on a quest for hangover food.

Oh yes. This looks promising.

And....hangover gone. The silo of diet pepsi in particular was like some sort of beautiful healing nectar.

better throw in a shaved ice for good measure.

Finally on the mend and holding down food, it was time for more wine!
KarMa Vineyards and Cave
This place was lovely, and had the best Gewurztraminer I have ever tasted. It was dry and had a mineral taste, rather than the syrupy sweet Gewurztraminers I am used to.


Coriander flatbread and tzatziki with our wine flight. Enjoyed on the patio next to the koi pond.



Nefarious Cellars
A cute young couple from Seattle and their dog run this place. Beautiful view from the patio where mom and I drank a glass and debated the best way to roast a chicken.


Chelan Estae Vineyards & Winery
There are no pictures of this place, because it is basically a shack on top of a hill. However, here is where my favorite wines of the trip are made. A 2006 Merlot Rose that had the flavors of a chicken dinner, and the Pinot Noir had a smokiness that I fell in love with. This is one of those little places that would be easy to pass up. But don't. You will end up leaving with cases of wine.

Benson Vineyards Estate Winery
Two blondes listening to Jimmy Buffet pouring a remarkable 8 tasting flight. For free. Plus an gigantic cheese platter, which we ate outside while the weather began to turn stormy. We took this opportunity to call our husbands. We both lied and told them it was 85 degrees and sunny. It was a delight to hear the envy in their voices as they told us that it was raining cats and dogs in Seattle.
We are such bitches.


Well folks, thats about it. I could go on forever, but it's time to wrap this baby up. I have things to do today, including getting my butt into the gym. My wasteline will be paying for this trip for the next month.

It was so totally worth it.

Thanks again Mom! That was the most fun I've had all summer.
Next summer: WALLA WALLA!!!

Pass it on....

I am sitting here on a lazy Sunday afternoon drinking vodka and listening to Soundgarden.....a lot of vodka. I am probably on my 4th or 5th shot of Luksusowa, plus a few mixed drinks thrown in there- which is a lot for me. Advanced apologies if this post is bloated with drunken ramblings and early 90's Seattle nostalgia. It's my f'ing day off, alright?
Anyway- I'm blogsurfing while Trevor is changing his guitar strings. He's at least 2 shots ahead of me. I don't know why that needs to be public information....this will all come together in the end- I promise.
So like I said, I'm cruising down my blog roll when I get to the very last one- wrightfood, which I must say is one of my favorite blogs out there. His most recent post is a crispy skinned salmon with purple potatoes and Dijon broth. I was drooling all over my keyboard when I remembered the droolworthy blogger award bestowed upon me by Marye a way long time ago for my sweet potato flan, and my promise to pass it on. "It is time", my inner jedi told me.

Let me tell you, dear readers, some of the many reasons why Matt's blog is one that I visit almost daily. First of all- the friggin' amazing recipes. Matt's take on food is completely in sync with mine: simple, local, seasonal. He is also a Seattleite, so it's fun to chat with him about restaurants, the weather, etc. Shameless plug- it's also super cool that he is an ardent supporter of my own place of employment: Crow- Hell yeeeah! Though he has yet to visit our sister restaurant, Betty. (Don't think I haven't forgotten that, Matt.) However, he and his wife do have a toddler toddling around, so his delay in making it over to Queen Anne to dine can be forgiven.
Every time I visit wrightfood, I am blown away. The food, the photography, the writing- this guy should have a cookbook. Oh wait, I forgot! He is currently working on one! I don't know exactly where he is at with that right now- last I heard, he was "publisher shopping", but I have seen advanced previews of it and it is definitely one every home cook should have- particularly those living in the northwest, as his recipes reflect a love for seafood. Having said that, he does give meat and veggies their due props with posts such as grilled leeks, and braised pork spare rib and belly.Another thing I love- Matt is British. Being the total yank that I am, and not knowing many Brits personally, I never get to hear terms such as "bloody" and "bloke" used regularly. I don't know why, but I get kind of a thrill out of it. I am SO. PAINFULLY. AMERICAN.
So, Matt- this shot of Polish vodka is for you. Snag this award and pass it on. You deserve it and then some. Readers- add Wrightfood to your blogroll. Cook up some of his recipes. You can thank me later.

Pie #4- Apple Quince: Flavors of the Pacific.....

Asian Pacific quinces team up with Pacific Northwest Apples

You guys didn't think I would hold out on you just before the peak of pie season, did you? You did, didn't you. Oh, ye of little faith, I know it's been a while since The Pie Lady has defended her title, but I would never abandon my readership before the holidays without at least a couple of pies for inspiration.

So, I am presenting you with my all time favorite. This is a bold statement. Choosing my favorite fruit pie is like choosing a favorite pet I've had over my lifespan. They are my babies and all of them are dear to me. You know when I crown a pie "favorite", that something about it is special.

Quinces can be spotted on many food blogs these days, and this is likely not to be the only apple quince pie you've seen. I can tell you that this one has been tested time and time again, and has a surprising taste. The quince is native to Asia and is related to both apples and pears. It's really fragrant and if uncooked, horribly bitter. After about 30 minutes cooking time, the bitterness dissipates and the floral and honey notes that are in the fragrance of the fruit come out it it's flavor as well. As a lucky bonus, the fruit also turns a gorgeous pink color and leaves behind a rosy, full flavored syrup....cocktails anyone?


The Asian quince will be crossing the pond...or Pacific Ocean, to the Pacific Northwest to snuggle up with some Washington apples. They packed a little treat in their carry on. Chinese 5 spice (which is a blend of cinnamon, anise seed, cloves, ginger, and fennel seed)-a staple in Asian cooking, separates this pie from all of the others in my arsenal. It wakes up the apples and fits right in with the quince, joining both fruits together in holy pie matrimony. Never, has a spice, so made a pie.



The choice of which apples to use in a pie is a controversial one, so I'll leave that up to you. It should, however be a blend of 2 apples. One should be tart and firm- I use granny smiths, and the other should be sweet and tend to soften more when cooked-I like Braeburns. They don't turn to complete mush and have a full, sweet flavor. The quinces must be poached ahead of time. They are a much firmer fruit than apples so by the time they are cooked, the apples have turned to sauce. Blegh. The good thing about poaching the quince first, is that once they are done cooking in the syrup, they will not continue to cook in the oven. I love the control that gives me. It makes me drunk with power...or maybe thats my quincemopolitan (see below). Another reason pre poaching is the bees knees: sadly, when quince is baked raw under dough, the don't turn that beautiful blush color. They just kind of look like apples. Pre poaching pumps up the color.

Raw Quince

Poached Quince

Apple Quince Pie
1# sweet apples (such as braeburn, jonagolds, or Macintosh)
2# tart apples (such as granny smith or newton pippen)
poached quince* drained (save the syrup!)
2 T quince poaching liquid*
2 T fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar
pinch sea salt
3/4 tsp good quality Chinese 5 spice
2 T cold unsalted butter
enough of your favorite pie dough for a double crust 10" pie
(Follow this link for my all butter pie dough)

Peel, core, and slice the apples. Toss with the lemon juice and the poaching liquid. Add poached quince and stir gently to combine. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, salt, and 5 spice. Add to fruit and toss to combine. Mound fruit into a dough lined pie plate and dot with butter. Moisten the overhang with water and apply the top crust. Seal the edges, trim excess overhang, and form into a crimped pattern. Slice a few steam vents in the top and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes. Rotate, lower heat to 325, and continue baking for 30 minutes.

Poached quince

5 quinces
3 cups water
2 cups sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped

Peel, core, and slice the quince. Dissolve the sugar into the water in a pot. Add the vanilla bean and bring to a simmer. Drop in the fruit and let cook on low heat for about 30 minutes. The liquid should be at a constant simmer, and use a plate to keep the fruit submerged. Let cool in the syrup. Drain and reserve the syrup for flavoring the pie and for the cocktail I will show you!


BUT WAIT!! Don't go anywhere!! Why not wash down that tasty pie with a "Quincemopolitan"? Two posts in one my friends, for it is Blog Party time, which is hosted every month by Stephanie of Dispensing Happiness and she has picked Fusion as our theme for November. For this virtual cocktail party, I am taking that pink nectar from the poached Asian quince, and fusing it with a New York cocktail made famous by that one show that I've never seen and don't think I'd like. But, I do like the drink. The bartenders serving them at my sister's wedding party can attest to that...Wow. I drank a lot that night.....they just go down so smooth!

Anyhoo, here ya go. Take this recipe and have a jolly old time. I'll be taking it to the blog party were we will be chasing fusion inspired bite sized appetizers with zany cocktails like this one. Check out the round up on Stephanie's blog on November 17th.

2 1/2 measures good quality vodka
1 measure cointreau
1 measure fresh lime juice
2 measures quince poaching liquid *see above
shake with ice and pour into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a cherry and a slice of lime.