Life's a Banquet
'...and most poor fools are starvin to death!' ~Mame

Link: http://www.waterfrontbakery.com

We had 3 days off! It is so rare for us to have more than one day off and usually when we do we still have too much to do, but this weekend: we mostly played! Saturday morning we were in Port Orchard by 9:15 and wandering through the farmer's market while we waited for our friends to meet us. We took the foot ferry across to Bremerton so we could watch the Kitsap Cup regatta, though it was not something you could exactly 'watch'. We wandered through the classic cars up on Pacific and ogled the yachts for sale down on the Marina. So many beautiful boats! You may not know that Mark and I were saving up for a boat and moorage when we bought the cafe. Now we love our lives more than we ever did before, though we are landlocked and so it was really fun to daydream amongst those yachts.

We tried to end the afternoon at the mobile BBQ truck at the P.O. Farmer's market so we could impress our friends with the best bbq in Kitsap, though we were too late. Mr Brown (see last week's post for more info) was sold out of everything but some pulled pork, which we gladly shared amongst the 6 of us. Mark and I headed to the cafe to finish a project that needed doing and ended up back in Port Orchard for an early dinner. The Bay Street Ale House is one of our favorite places to grab a pizza and a great beer. We will often stop in there on our way home on Saturday because it is a friendly, relaxing atmosphere and they have rotating beers on tap that are always interesting and excellent. Their pizza dough is made at the bakery down the street from them, their ingredients are good quality and fresh, and even though it is just a little conveyor belt oven, the pizza is always very good. We have had some of their odd yet wonderful flavor combinations and one of our favorite pizza combos ever was theirs originally: Pepperoni, pepperoncini and pineapple. MMM it's good! We had a pint and a piece and took the rest home. The Sounders tied again, though their playing was much stronger this week than last, so I was happier with the outcome.

On Sunday my friends Loren & Tami picked me up and we headed to Woodinville. I haven't been in years and I was shocked at all the wine tasting rooms there! We started at Purple Cafe & Wine Bar which is a place I have wanted to try (albeit I only knew about the Seattle location) and boy am I glad we did! Since it was Sunday they offered a brunch menu and I opted for the mimosa flight to go with the pate and cheese flight that we ordered. Orange, peach, grapefruit and apricot juices with sparkling wine. They were yummy! It was SUCH a treat to have Loren be the designated driver and not have to even think about what I tasted. We started at Brian Carter Cellars, went to J. Bookwalter and then over to an industrial area that had dozens of tasting rooms. Mark Ryan, Guardian, Page, and Patterson are all fun places that we hit and tasted. They all charge a tasting fee, though nearly all of them will waive it if you buy any wine, which Tami did and I did not. My favorite pour of the day? Guardian Cellars 2006 Gun Metal. I really liked that wine! Loren had me home by 5:30 (we stopped at Pizzeria Fondi in Gig Harbor for sustenance on the way home. YUM!)and I had an early bed time.

Monday Mark grilled some pork chops we had in the freezer and we enjoyed them with one of our better bottles of wine. Ensemble Cellars is made in Walla Walla by Craig Nelson, who was the original owner of Gig Harbor's wine store, Water to Wine. (If you don't buy wine from me you should definitely buy it from them!) Craig makes one wine a year. He is in pursuit of a fine Bordeaux style and he makes fabulous wine. We have a bottle of the first release and we aren't sure where we got it, but thank you whoever gave it to us! And now we have the third release as well. It's the kind of wine that, when I swirl and smell it makes me smile. Then I sip... and I relax immediately, knowing I am in for a treat and that It Is Good. And believe me, It Is.

So the new salad that I made this week for a catered dinner party is going on our permanent catering menu (when in season). Mom and dad went to Walla Walla to visit my grandma last week and they brought me several pounds of asparagus fresh off of the farm. For the other ingredients I went to the Silverdale Farmer's Market on Tuesday. I am giving you this as the recipe of the week and I am happy to admit that I got the idea from my favorite celebrity chef Anne Burrell. This salad is easy, seasonal, super fresh and oh so yummy! This recipe will make a side salad for 2-3 people, just use more of everything to make more of it.

Raw Asparagus Salad

1 bunch of thin, fresh asparagus, with every bit of the tough stalk cut off. You could snap it, though cutting it in half works too. (You are eating it raw so no tough stuff is allowed at all! Don't worry, it is fabulous!)

1 spring onion or shallot(or a small red onion, or a small bunch of green onions)

1 small bunch of pea tendrils (aka pea greens or pea vines)

1/4-ish cup Pecorino Romano cheese (aged; you could use parmesan or asiago)

excellent quality olive oil

red wine vinegar

salt & pepper to taste

Mixed salad greens (whatever you like or is fresh is just fine)

Chop the asparagus into pea sized pieces and put into a bowl. Chop the onion to match, and the pea vines as well. (If you can't find pea vines, just leave them out, it's ok.) Grate the cheese into the salad: add as much or as little as you like, though the flavors should balance well and nothing should be predominant except the freshness.

Pour in a drizzle of olive oil, probably 2-3 tablespoons, and an equal amount of red wine vinegar. Toss it all with the salt and pepper. Let it rest for at least 1 hour, although we liked it even better the next day than we did the first day.

Lay a handful of the salad greens out on each plate and top with the asparagus salad. It is perfect just like this. We ate ours without the salad greens and it was just as yummy. This is great for a dinner party because it seems fancy, and yet is so simple. The fresh flavors will wow everyone and no one will expect to be fed raw asparagus! It is SO good though!

Link: http://www.waterfrontbakery.com

I know you are loving this weather! It has been gorgeous and it even got Mark and I out on our day off, which is oh so rare these days. Saturday we got out of the cafe before 1, so we hit the Port Orchard Farmer's market where I picked up beautiful bunch of lilacs (the last of the season I am told) and they are fabulous on my sideboard. Mark got some kettle corn (it's been ages since we had any and it is so good!) and we chowed down on Kitsap's best BBQ done by the amazing Ken Brown and his boys, at Grillside Mobile BBQ. His mobile bbq unit is the only true bbq around here, in my opinion, and it is in large part due to his sides.

I have not eaten at every bbq joint in Kitsap (by the way, I know of three, and the one I have not had is in Poulsbo.) The other two (one is a national chain and the other is not) do meats that are tasty, though not near as good as Ken's, but their sides are sorely lacking. Lacking in flavor, lacking in texture and are mushy, and a real lack of imagination. Ken Brown does greens!!! Collard greens are an essential part of the bbq experience and NOBODY else does them around here. There is something very wrong with a bbq place that does not offer greens. His chicken & ribs are fantastic, his brisket is hands down unbeatable and then there are the brats and hot links. Oh. My. The hot links are too hot for many (read: Mark), though I LOVE THEM. Ken could put just about anything in his smoker and I would eat it. He does lots of fairs and festivals, is almost always at the PO Market and the Olalla Bluegrass Festival (I go for his food!) and you can rent him and his rig for your own parties and events! Please invite me if you do.

After that we went to the Gig Harbor Farmer's Market and Mark bought his very own heirloom tomato plant. Watch out Jared and Sarah! My favorite find was the Willapa Hills Farmstead Cheese stand. Samples? Why yes, thank you! Oh baby, is their cheese good. I wanted them all; I got away with buying 3: Baw Faw Peak Yogurt Cheese-sheep/cow mix (whimper-with-pleasure good!); Whey Fresh Ricotta-sheep/cow mix (moan-with-remorse-that-it-will-soon-be-gone good); and Little Boy Blue-all cow (oh-my-gawd good). Just wait 'til you hear what we did with our cheeses. Oh yea!

On Saturday night we had a simple salad: Arugula (still fresh from the Port Orchard Farmer's Market last weekend) tossed in premium olive oil and balsamic, and salt & pepper was the base. On top there was chopped tomatoes, a bit of red onion, rare roasted beef tenderloin, and the Little Boy Blue cheese. A bit of toast topped it off nicely! We watched the Sounders all the way to their floundering end (a tie, but weak for them). We ended our evening on a stronger note than they did: Fresh strawberries, the Baw Faw Yogurt Cheese, and a few drops of the best aged balsamic I have ever tasted (I brought it back from Italy) took the simple dessert to heights far beyond anything you can imagine!

On Sunday we went for a gorgeous drive, went out Forest Service Road 2340 and ended up at the High Steel Bridge. I even walked on it (I get anxious on bridges, especially when they move!) and we took a little hike down one of the trails to get some fabulous pictures of the bridge from down stream. It is called "high", and mind you this thing is 100 years old and 420 feet in the air! The river rushed far below, seeming to be in a hurry to get to the canal. That cold water was filled with silt and it really made the surrounding forest lush and green. On the way back we stopped at Hunter Farms' General Store in Union. We enjoyed some Olympic Mountain Ice Cream (the BEST in the WORLD!) from Shelton, and picked up some local oysters and smoked salmon from Elma. It was a sunny drive home.

Mark fired up the grill for the oysters and we had us a M&M style tapas party! I took some sea salt crackers and put a schmear of the Baw Faw Yogurt Cheese on, then topped it with the smoked salmon. This was so amazingly good that I kissed myself! Seriously, who needs creme fraiche or sour cream when you have the lovely and amazing Baw Faw from Willapa Hills. I sliced tomatoes (this dish will be way better when they are fresh and in season and heirloom tomatoes; I cannot wait!) and topped them with the Whey Fresh Ricotta. A drizzle of premium olive oil and a dash of salt & pepper, and it was hard to stop eating those babies! A few mixed olives thrown in a ramekin and we were in business! Until... oops! The grill ran out of propane. I threw a pan on the stove and turned on the fire, put a touch of water in and Mark finished the oysters there. As they popped themselves open he loosened them out of their shells and they were fantastic! Briney and fresh and really wonderful. They did not need a thing added to them.

I ate too much. It was SO good! The foods of Spring/Summer/Fall are so wonderful and we love eating like that-a meal of many small tastes. Nearly everything was local and fresh and full of fabulous flavors. We really need year round farming here, don't you think?

Link: http://www.waterfrontbakery.com

My team (you may have heard me refer to them as 'The Girls'. This is a loving term of endearment to this group of fabulous women who work with me. Plus it makes them feel young and happy, which is a good thing!) likes to laugh at my old fashioned attitudes and sayings. Things like: the fact that I refuse to text, as I think it is a waste of money, energy and time. I do not have caller ID or call waiting on my home phone for some of the same reasons, plus I think call waiting is rude. (Oh wait, this other call might be better than talking to you...)I do have it on my cell phone since it isn't an option not to, though I usually ignore it. A couple of years ago they all wanted me to do a My Space page so I did one up mainly for them. Leslie is kind enough to update it on occasion for me, otherwise I would just let it sit. So now there is Facebook and Twitter and who knows what else. I don't have the time for these things and when I take on such a project I tend to feel overly responsible and that just adds to my workload and stress. Why do it?

I have been bugged by many to get on Facebook lately. So I finally signed up and I have reconnected with friends from my past, which (I will admit) is rather fun. Mostly it is annoying with many people (you KNOW who you are!) who feel the need to update their status every 30 minutes or so. I have given myself permission to not be overly responsible with it and just plain ignore it some days. My Google homepage tells me if there are updates on it so I can check it without even going to the web site, which is convenient for me. I plan to keep it entirely personal and not use it as a business tool because the enjoyment I am getting out of it stems from friends from my past lives. I tell you all this as background to get here: We are now on Twitter. Leslie can be persistent and irksome with her techno-geekiness and yet she knows of what she speaks. So I listened. She knew I had been wanting to keep the web site updated with the daily specials and that I needed an easier way to do that than opening my site management program each time. Now I just go to my Google home page, type the specials into my Twitter box (now THAT sounds funny!) and it automatically updates our web site and facebook. Leslie can text the special in herself from her phone, too, which is a big help.

Sigh. So there I am. I have to say that I think this Twitter thing is a great business tool. I do not understand on any level (here is the old fashioned thing again) the desire to update, or be updated on, anyone's life, several times a day. Most of us are not that interesting. This blog was a stretch for me and usually about the time I wonder if I am wasting my time talking to myself (cathartic as it can be), one of the three of you who reads this will send me a message about it and it makes it all seem worth while. Plus it is kind of fun thinking that maybe someone would get something interesting out of it. So I will keep it up for now. My web site is the true work of art for me, and our email newsletter is the other form of communication that I work hard on. Those are the best reflections of us and our business, and I find them to be 2 of the most valuable tools in my toolbox. Once in awhile someone will give me fabulous feedback about one or the other, and it feels great! I really pour my heart and soul into our cafe, and when others get a glimpse of and really SEE that, it feels good.

I haven't had any fabulous meals out lately, though we did provide some amazing food for some special orders that we did this past week. Pink peppercorn encrusted beef tenderloin, and brie en croute were served at one mother's day table this weekend. She may or may not have taken credit for it, and I think they were very happy with the meal. Our Mother's Day meal was a brunch served to both my parents and Mark's, as well as my sister and my sister-in-love who came all the way up from Bingen, WA to spend the weekend with mom. We had several things out on the table, though the frittata was the main course, and a big hit with everyone. I went to the Poulsbo Farmer's Market to see what I could find for it and found arugula and broccoli rabe, as well as eggs. Frittata is an easy dish that doesn't need constant tending, so it is perfect for a party or a busy work night. You can make as little or as much as you like, and if you like leftover eggs the more you make, the more meals you will have. Here is the recipe I used to feed 8 people and send leftovers home with all. Remember, I don't measure stuff so these are estimates and you can cut it way down for fewer people. Drop me an email if you want more guidance with this or any recipe.

Spring Veggie Frittata

1 onion, chopped
olive oil
salt and pepper
4 small bunches broccoli rabe (also known as rapini)
a couple of hands full of arugula (you could use spinach, or any green you like)
2 tsp garlic, minced
18 eggs
4 cups milk (I mixed 2% and 1/2 n 1/2 to make whole milk. Many use heavy cream instead)
bunch of fresh parsley, chopped
any fresh herbs you like, chopped
grated pecorino romano (or parmesan, or asiago)
grated sharp cheddar

I used a heavy bottom, 12 inch, deep sided skillet with a lid.
Saute the onions in the olive oil with some salt and pepper until they begin to be transluscent (3-4 minutes)
Tear the rapini off of the stalks and drop that in, salting it a bit more. Stir in until wilted enough to have some room to add the arugula.
Add the arugula, a bit of salt, and stir it around. All those greens will wilt into the pan and you will know when it is time to add the eggs.

Meanwhile whisk the eggs, salt and pepper them, and whisk in the milk. Make sure it is all combined before you pour it in. Reduce the heat to low, spread the greens all around the bottom, scatter the parsley in on top with the garlic and fresh herbs, then pour the eggs in. Use a wooden spoon or a spatula to stir it all around and make sure everything is combined nicely. For the first 5-10 minutes stir the bottom of the mixture, scraping it all up as if you were making scrambled eggs. After the first bit of cooking do not stir the eggs again.

Put the lid on the pan, leaving it askew just a bit so the steam can escape. Make sure it is on low (I have a gas stove; electric may be different)and let it cook. I did not time the frittata, you will want to check it every 5-10 minutes or so, and it will take close to 30. Do not stir the eggs. When the eggs are mostly set, (you can tell by giving the pan a little shake) with just some wet eggs on the top layer, turn off the stove and heat up your broiler. Sprinkle the cheeses over the top (as much cheese as you like) and set the pan under the broiler, on low, for about 5 minutes. Keep an eye on it; you want the cheese melted not crispy. The eggs will be completely set by then.

Now here is where you can get real fancy or, if you are like me, you just serve it out of the pan. We put it on hot pads on the table, covering the handle with more hot pads, and cut wedges into it, like serving a pie. It came up very easily that way. If you want to be fancier let the frittata rest for about 10 minutes. Run a paring knife around the edges of your frittata, loosening the sides as best you can. Invert a plate over the top of the pan, suck in your breath and hold it, then flip the pan and plate so they are reversed: the plate is now on the bottom, the pan is on top, and if you are good the frittata came out of the pan and landed on the plate in one glorious piece. You can either serve it like that, cut into wedges, OR invert yet another plate on top of the frittata and flip it again, so that the cheese is back on top.

In Spain they eat this sort of thing at room temperature. I like it hot. Of course, if it gets to looking messy, just serve it up as fancy scrambled eggs and no one will ever know. It will still taste fabulous!

Link: http://www.waterfrontbakery.com

Seattle's own Maria Hines (Tilth Restaurant) won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)and that is so FABULOUS!!! Congratulations to Maria and her entire crew for this wonderful esteem being bestowed upon them. Though her competition was strong, it does not surprise me that she won. It's so exciting, and perhaps all the more so because the James Beard Foundation theme this year was "Women in Food".

I had a jam-packed week and I am not sure where I got all the time to do the things I did, but I am sure glad I did them! Last Friday I was lucky enough to be invited to the Mathis Guild charity luncheon and what an experience that was! Hundreds of ladies were in attendance at the Kitsap Golf and Country club, and this was a high falootin' event (by my low falootin standards, anyway!) I was greeted with a glass of champagne and that is a nice way to be greeted! The Mathis Guild is a part of the Harrison Foundation, and it benefits Harrison Hospital... and from what I saw they do a darn good job of it. The ladies who put it on should be so proud of the work they do, it was very impressive.

Friday night I poured wine at a Relay For Life fund raiser put on by the Body ReForm Pilates Studio. About 70 people were there nibbling on light hors d'oeuvres, and sipping wines. The Pilates Studio team raised some money for the American Cancer Society and it was really a fun even to be a part of. It was in fact so much fun that I will be finding ways to volunteer for other events like that one.

Saturday we had 3 special events/caters and I was glad to get home and snuggle in to watch the Sounders tie the Fire. Freddy should NOT have been red carded for that! Mark and I were talking and I have decided that I want to get my very own yellow card. I will flash it at people when I want to warn them... like in traffic and such! Isn't that a great idea? It would make me feel better and most people won't know what it means, so it is innocuous and fun all at the same time.

On Monday I went to the Small Vineyard's place in West Seattle to sample their new line of Spanish wines. Mom went with me and we had a really nice time together. We enjoyed some antipasti and went through about 15 wines. Spanish wines are definitely different from Italian wines, and it was a very interesting time. Since we are doing a Spanish wine tasting for the Kitsap Wine Society on the 21st of this month we have been tasting different Spanish wines for about 3 weeks now. I am finding that most of them seem short on the finish, even those at the higher price points. Maybe this is strictly a personal taste thing, and we certainly have not come close to experiencing all the different regions yet, so I am keeping an open mind about that. I really want to love the Spanish wines, because I have a Basque heritage. I guess I will have to taste some wines from the northern regions; I don't think I have done that yet.

So today is Cinco de Mayo and each year we ask Betuel to prepare some food that is authentic from his region of Oaxaca, Mexico. This year he did chicken enchiladas with cotija cheese (they are SO good!), pico de gallo, and flan. Mark made Mexican spiced chocolate cupcakes with espresso butter cream frosting to stay in the Mexican theme. We will probably have some leftovers for seis de Mayo as well, which is a good thing! His food is very yummy.

For today's "stretch your food budget" recipe I thought I would give you an idea for leftover chicken. For dinner one day you roast up a whole chicken, or several pieces of chicken, and you want a new idea for it the next day. Have it for breakfast in a hash, or have breakfast for dinner! This easy reuse is satisfying and fresh tasting and completely changes the bird.

Ingredients:
the equivalent of 2 whole chicken breasts
6 TBS unsalted butter or olive oil
2 lbs boiling potatoes, scrubbed and diced large (you can peel them; I don't)
1 large onion (or 2 medium), either red or sweet are best-diced large
Salt and pepper (I use coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper)
2 bell peppers (I use red, green are usually less expensive)-diced large
1 tsp paprika (smoked is ok if you have and like that)
1 TBS tomato paste (If you buy it in the tube you can use what you need as you go; otherwise it freezes for later uses)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp fresh thyme, pulled off the stems or chopped
4 scallions, all parts minced
handful of flat leaf parsley, rough chopped
Some yummy cheese, shredded (whatever you like! I combine parmesan/romano/asiago, you can use cheddar, mozzarella, pepper jack (yum!) or anything)

To do:
Pull the meat off of the bone and dice it, or tear it up into large chunks. Set aside.
Melt the butter or pour the olive oil in the pan, and saute the onions for a few minutes on medium heat.
Add in the potatoes, (I add chili flakes here, too), paprika, salt and pepper and tomato paste. Stir and saute for about 5 minutes.
Add the peppers and garlic, let it go, giving an occasional stir. Keep on cooking until the potatoes are tender and it has all sort of melted together.
Toss in the chicken, parsley and thyme until it is warmed through.
Top with the cheese and scallions, cover it and turn off the heat. If you want to fry up a couple of eggs to toss on top of it now is the time to do that. Otherwise let it rest for 3 or 4 minutes and then serve it up. The cheese will be melty and of course you can top it with salsa or hot sauce if you are like me.

What do you think of this one?