Camp Joy Harvest Dinner 2010: "Served Family Style" Part 2

Camp Joy Harvest Dinner 2010: "Served Family Style" Part 1

PFM Chef in the Market with Jenn Louis of Lincoln Restaurant

This past Saturday I had the pleasure of hosting the Portland Farmers' Market Chef in he Market with Jenn Louis, chef and co-owner of Lincoln Restaurant, a gem of a local spot in North Portland on North Williams, and owner of Culinary Artistry, the wonderful Portland caterer. Jenn and I made Ribollita, a hearty stew-like soup with a name that means "re-boiled" and is perfect for cool fall days like today, with rich flavors of beefsteak tomatoes, summer squash, sweet onions, cabbage, and all topped with the infamous Redmondo cheese from Juniper Grove. It's the only hard cheese at the market, so we use it in what seems like EVERY demo... I didn't get enough of Jenn at the market, so my sister Casey and I stopped by Lincoln for dinner that night.


We had some great cocktails, including the Don Draper (Bourbon, muddled orange, brown sugar, and bitters - I'm going through a whiskey/bourbon phase) and the Rhubarb Pisco Sour (Rhubarb liqueur, pisco brandy, lemon juice, egg whites, and bitters) and some out of this world appetizers, as well as some truly tasty entrees. We got:

• Baked hen eggs with cream, castelvetrano olives and herbed breadcrumbs - Perfectly baked eggs with yummy green olives and grated cheese, perfect for dipping with their AMAZING french bread. Seriously, Lincoln's bread was so unexpectedly good it stopped both of us mid-sentence. How many times to you hear me say that about a slice of white bread?
• Bari cucumbers with oil-cured olives, mint and sheep’s milk feta - Ok, I'm going to admit it, Casey ordered this one and I was skeptical. Ten bucks for some cucumbers? Sure, they were fancy cucumbers, but still. And then I took a bite, and quite my snarking, because OH MY GOODNESS these weren't just cucumbers. They were so intensely spicy, sour, sweet, and just plain flavorful, I was actually sad when the plate was cleared. (Oh, and in case you're wondering, Bari cucumbers are those ridged, pale yellowish cukes at the market.) I would really love the recipe for this dish, and hope its on the menu next time we stop by.
• Malloreddus with rabbit ragu and chicken of the woods mushrooms - This was the ultimate comfort food dish... I kept trying to compare it to something, like my mother's spaghetti, gnocchi from Austria, mashed potatoes and gravy from Mimi's Cafe or IKEA, and in a moment of weakness, to Chef Boyardee. Malloreddus are these small, dumpling-like noodles, cooked in saffron broth and topped with this great, meaty sauce. I'd like to describe how fun this was to eat, but it involves describing kind of intricate tongue maneuvers that maybe don't belong on a food blog...
• Pork chop with crispy potatoes, rosemary, roasted peach conserva and vin cotto - This was the only "meh" thing we ordered - well, other than the ill-advised lemon and rosemary house soda. The potatoes were a bit underdone, and the pork didn't have a lot of style. It was kind of just a big hunk o' meat, which would be great for some people, but it overwhelmed the awesome peach sauce and greens.

All in all, a tasty meal. Jenn's husband and Lincoln co-owner David Welch sat us in a rather sad little corner table, and we didn't realize until we were leaving that Lincoln has a gorgeous open kitchen with bar seating that would have set the night over the top. I'm just happiest in a restaurant when I can see the action, talk to the chefs and staff, and generally be a part of the hubbub instead of it being hidden away. I made a mental tally of all of my favorite restaurants in Portland, and without exception all of them have quite visible kitchens, while the restaurants I love to hate hide the cooking "mess" from the clientele. Put me on a stool in front of a hot grill and I'm a happy, happy girl. A cute chef doesn't hurt either.

Oh well, next time we'll be sure to sit at the bar and order twice as many Don Drapers...

Though the weather on Saturday still had that summery heaviness to it, I'm writing this wrapped in blankets in my living room, looking out on the rainiest day this season, drinking hot chai with a cat curled up on my feet. It's perfect weather for a slow, flavorful soup full of end-of-summer flavors, but its hard to let go of the days of perfect tomatoes and basil salads. It seems that this time of year the weather is so unpredictable that I'm tempted to keep my pantry and fridge stocked with everything - ingredients for comforting, warm meals as well as light, no-heat meals - just in case the Portland weather gods decide to throw another heat wave at us. I'm headed down next week to Santa Cruz, California to my family farm, Camp Joy, for the annual Harvest Dinner. You can almost guarantee the weather will be deliciously warm, perfect for dinner outside with friends and family under the stars. I promise I'll take too many photos and notes to share with you, but until then keep eating well, and enjoy the rest of these photos of Jenn Louis and the Saturday Portland Farmers' Market.

Ribollita de Lincoln Restaurant
Recipe from Jenn Louis, Lincoln Restaurant
"Ribollita means re-boiled. Make this soup, put it in your fridge overnight, and re-warm to serve."

Ingredients
1 medium onion, small dice
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 bulb fennel, small dice
2 bay leaves
2 inch piece rosemary
pinch chili flakes
8 large beefsteak tomatoes, peeled and seeded
3 medium summer squash: zucchini, crookneck or patty pay, medium dice
16 oz shell beans, canned or fresh: cannellini, borlotti, or corona work well
1/2 medium green cabbage, sliced thinly
Fresh herbs: oregano, basil, parsley, roughly chopped

Directions

• Slowly sauté onion, garlic, fennel, bay, rosemary and chile until vegetables are soft, but not colored
• Add summer squash and continue to cook until squash is tender
• Add chopped tomatoes and their juices and cook over medium heat, until sauce starts to thicken
• Add beans and cabbage, cook until heated through and season to taste
• If needed, thin with vegetable or chicken stock
• Stir in fresh herbs when serving
• Finish with pecorino or other hard grating cheese, drizzle with olive oil, and serve with crusty bread, brushed with olive oil and toasted.

Portland Farmers' Market Photos: Saturday at PSU 8/14/10

Chef in the Market with David Anderson of Genoa

Yesterday I had the pleasure of hosting a demonstration at the PSU Portland Farmers' Market with Chef David Anderson of the newly-reopened Genoa and its sister restaurant Accanto, and we had a really great time. This weekend's weather has been a bit confusing, starting off cool and cloudy and slowly burning off to a gorgeous sunny day, so our audience started a bit on the small side. Once people around the market started smelling frying pancetta and caramelizing apricots, however, we had quite the crowd. David was great, sharing stories from Genoa's past and present and explaining how the menu has been "traveling through Italy" as the seasons change in Portland.

Every month, the restaurant features a five-course prix fixe menu highlighting the specialties of a single region in Italy, and David selects the region based on the pairing of authentic ingredients with what's available in the markets in Portland. This month the menu features Chef David's interpretation of dishes from Abruzzo and Molise, a region nestled at the border of Northern and Southern Italy in the highland foothills of the Apennine mountains. The mouthwatering offerings include:

• Scamorze allo spiedo: Creamy scamorza cheese (a stretched cow's milk cheese similar to mozzarella) skewered on rosemary stems, pan seared and served with marinated baby artichokes and pickled asparagus.
• Farfalline con pisselli e fave: small hand-made pasta butterflies tossed in a savory San Marzano tomato sauce with Viridian Farms peas, fava beans, lemon zest and fresh sheeps milk ricotta.
• Pasta alla chitarra con ragu d’agnello: fresh egg and semolina pasta cut on a traditional chitarra or “guitar” tossed with a ragu of Cattail Creek lamb and sweet peppers.
• Scapece di salmone alla vastese: salad of wild Oregon Sockeye salmon marinated in champagne vinegar, white verjus (a very acidic juice made from pressing unripe grapes), saffron and aromatic vegetables served over baby spinach, sweet basil and Yukon gold potatoes.
• Dentice e calamari in purgatorio: Line caught pacific rockfish and calamari sautéed in a spicy sauce of onions, white wine, tomatoes and dried chiles.
• Coniglio alla grigliata misti: Mixed grill of rabbit; tender loin skewered with house made rabbit sausage and kidney served with airy potato croquettes and caramelized baby fennel.
• Lombatine pepate e fiamma: Grilled Pepper and herb crusted strip loin steak flamed with strega liquor and served with a saffron risotto stuffed pepper and a raw zucchini and mint salad.

David told us that he loves featuring regional cuisines because it gives him a chance to learn about the ingredients, culture, and history of a region, as well as pick up new techniques and traditional combinations. It's great to know that even Portland's top chefs continue to learn about food and regional cuisine long after they've established themselves as knowledgeable and skilled in the kitchen. There's so much rich food tradition out there that it'd be impossible to know everything before you begin - so get out there and start some hands-on learning. You're in good company.

Start your culinary tour of Italy via Oregon's farm-fresh bounty with what may be the perfect summer salad: Crispy pancetta cubes, sweet and tart apricots with a perfect sear in butter and honey, peppery arugula and fresh basil leaves, and a sprinkling of the Oregon favorite, Marionberries, and fresh, creamy ricotta cheese. Chef David provides a step-by-step guide for making this delicious dish, which would make a great summer meal on its own, or serve as the starter for your next five-course supper party extravaganza. Eat well, or perhaps more appropriately, buon appetito!

Caramelized Apricot Salad with Arugula, Basil, Pancetta, Marionberries, and Fresh Ricotta
Recipe courtesy of Chef David Anderson of Genoa and Accanto, 2010
Serves six as a starter or four as a light meal

For the vinaigrette:
1 pound pancetta, cut into lardoons (bite sized chunks)
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar, preferably 12 year
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to Taste

1. Place the pancetta and the olive oil in a small sauté pan and slowly bring up the heat to render out the fat. Leave over a low flame until the pancetta starts to color.
2. Drain the pancetta reserving the fat into a separate bowl. Keep the pancetta lardoons warm or at room temperature.
3. Put the pan back over the heat and add the shallots. Sweat for a few minutes until soft then deglaze with the balsamic vinegar.
4. Whisk in the reserved fat and taste for seasoning.

For the apricots:
6 apricots, ripe but firm, cut in half vertically and pitted
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons honey
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat butter slowly in a wide sauté pan. As soon as butter foam subsides add the aprictos cut side down.
2. Raise the heat and lightly caramelize the apricots. Add the honey and toss well. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
3. Cut into wedges and taste for seasoning.

For the salad:
3 bunches of fresh arugula, washed and stemmed
1 bunch of basil, stemmed, leaves roughly torn
1/4 pound fresh ricotta, crumbled
Reserved pancetta cubes
Marionberries
Apricots
Vinaigrette
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large mixing bowl toss the apricots, arugula, and basil with enough of the vinaigrette to coat. Taste for seasoning and garnish with pancetta, berries, and ricotta.

Market Photo Report: Bacon Pickles and the Perfect Corn

Yes, you read that correctly. Bacon pickles. Unbound Pickling is satisfying that seemingly insatiable Portland pork hunger with a hickory-smoked dill pickle that would be happy on any burger, though there isn't actually any bacon in the brine. Sneaky pandering marketing? Brilliant idea? Either way they are damn tasty.

The PSU market was intimidatingly busy, as per usual, but it was worth braving the crowds for the first corn, colorful cauliflower as big as my head, great walla walla sweet onions, and the piles and piles of carrots reigning over the rest of the early summer bounty. Check it out for yourself next weekend, at the South Park Blocks on the PSU Campus, 8:30 to 2 pm. See you there.