February 2012
2 posts
5 tags
For the love of cookbooks
Back in November of ‘09 The New Yorker ran a piece by Adam Gopnik about a/our/his/my love of cookbooks. It’s a fantastic piece of writing and does an excellent job of breaking down the equation of our love of cookbooks divided by the recipes multiplied by our actual ability to cook and then equalling the fact that recipes in books aren’t the food itself. There’s a major gap...
January 2012
12 posts
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Ham & Bean soup. Or, as I like to call it, What in...
We cut a lot of ham at the bakery. And, of course, I use that “we” in a completely royal sense because I actually do no cutting of ham myself. We have a meat slicer (a device, not a person) and we get these giant hams in from one of our purveyors - and really, it takes a special person to do all that cutting - and I’ll freely admit that I’m not that special person. So,...
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I need more popcorn in my life.
I had completely forgotten about popcorn. Two weeks ago I was sorting through some of the (limitless) stuff in my office (the majority of it cooking/catering related) I found a never-before-opened-new-in-the-box popcorn maker! I had apparently purchased it, tucked it away and promptly forgotten about it. The receipt craftily tapped to the top of the box told me that I had done so approximately...
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Food + Math
Oooh! Wired recently posted a very clever and interesting and science-y piece on food. And cooking. And whether or not there are components of ingredients that make them more compatible with other ingredients. It sounds confusing coming from me, so you should just go read the article. The science guys explain it really well. Here’s a tricky looking diagram that supposedly explains the whole...
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In case you missed it
Not to bore you or anything, but I came across another must read piece - this time a not-so-flattering look at the Zagat empire. You know Zagat - it’s the dinosaur of customer-based restaurant reviews. Printed in actual books and only recently available on your handheld device…so quaint! Anyways, this bit of (seriously almost) investigative journalism comes from the Washington...
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Localbore
Don’t get me wrong. I completely-wholeheartedly-100% agree with trying to eat foods that were grown around here. That’s how I shop - it’s how I cook - it’s how I eat. That said, yesterday did I buy a package of heirloom quinoa that most certainly wasn’t grown around here? I did. Do I still occasionally have ice cream shipped across the country from my favorite ice...
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Resolutions. Goals. Delicious meals.
Like I said before, I don’t really make resolutions. Now that we’re in the third week of 2012, I’m mighty glad about that. Everywhere around me I’ve seen resolutions crashing and burning.
As for my goal of cutting out half & half? Well, the first week of it was really tough, but I did it. No half & half for a week. The second week I allowed myself two cups of...
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Recipes. What makes you want to try them?
There was an interesting bit in the Wall Street Journal over the weekend detailing the “rules of attraction” where recipes are involved. What makes a home cook want to try a recipe? Is it a short list of ingredients? Is there zero prep? Are there easy-to-obtain-yet-somewhat-exotic-ingredients involved? What about the way the food is described? Does the language of the recipe make you...
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Bon Appétit on Bacon
Found on the Bon Appétit blogs - the 4 most common mistakes made when cooking bacon. I thought you’d like to know…
click on the photo to learn all about it… And then, for your continued reading-about-bacon pleasure, a supermarket bacon taste-off also courtesy of the fine folks at Bon Appétit! Just click below to read all about it.
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A new flavor for chicken stock
My kid wants to cook. All the time. ALL THE TIME. Here’s an example: the kid and the husband are in the playroom staging a major ‘battle’ inspired by Star Wars. I walk into the kitchen and rattle a pot or a pan and the kid comes running - I WANT TO HELP YOU MAKE DINNER! Folks, when they start ignoring Star Wars battles in favor of learning to supreme an orange, I think that means...
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HOW many calories a day?!?!
I’m not addicted to coffee.
I am, however, addicted to coffee mixed with that magical elixir known as half & half. Sometimes, when falling asleep at night, I’m already thinking about my first cup of coffee in the morning. Usually it’s not the coffee I’m looking most forward to, but the half & half. Kind of sick, huh? Working as an early morning baker, it’s...
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portland, portland, portland.
we break this string of silent days to bring you this: important information about a (super awesome) food festival happening in my drizzly town of portland, oregon.
Feast is portland’s first ever actual big deal food festival - and it’s about time! this town is overflowing with food talent like you...
December 2011
1 post
3 tags
Hello! Hello!
it’s certainly been a while! i thought you, my loyal readers, might like to know that you can find me blogging here - some work stuff, some personal stuff - i think you might like it! follow me if you can, i’d love to have you along for the ride.
oh, and, you can also find me here…indulging my love of Mr. Steve Martin.
happy holidays and happy reading!
October 2011
2 posts
1 tag
what's going on?
we interrupt this string of blogless days with an update AND a suggested reading list. how lucky! actually, let’s start with the reading list:
first. the new york times’ most recent review of thomas keller’s per se. it’s no secret i love the man. it’s also no secret that i was lucky enough to dine at per se last year. this review puts into words so perfectly the per...
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shoes fit for a king
when i watch documentaries i always pay attention to small details. if it’s a documentary about nature, i’m always curious to see if i can spot the shadow of the helicopter responsible for the amazing aerial shots. if it’s about people, i always look for signs that the person in the documentary is just like me - from what’s on the kitchen counter to their thoughts on life -...
September 2011
11 posts
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must see tv
thomas keller: uncorked. thirty minutes of television that will make you wish thomas keller was your boss. or your uncle. or your best friend. or all three…
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speaking of figs...
in yesterday’s post i mentioned a fig & bacon compote i’ve been using at work. we’re also turning out a delicious fig bar with a maple & sea salt glaze. figs figs figs. everywhere! even here: thank you Yotam Ottolenghi (and the guardian) for this delicious sounding sweet potato & fig concoction! click on the photo for more…
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roasted shallot & green chile mac & cheese...with...
i kinda feel like i have a lot of balls talking (or typing) all that talk about salads and then - then - posting about mac & cheese. because, let’s be honest here, the last thing i need right now is a bowl of white noodles covered in cheese sauce.
but never mind all that. i committed long ago to not ever (ever) letting food make me feel guilty - that’s what parenthood and the...
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bacon + water = surprising results
a few weeks ago an enormous slab of bacon showed up at work. weighing in at approximately 13 lbs, i’ll admit right now it was the most bacon i’ve ever seen in one place at one time. it took two of us only a few minutes to break the entire slab down into manageable lardons - then just a few minutes more to package and label them all for storage in the freezer.
having 13 lbs of bacon...
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fruit desserts a la bittman
delicious + clever = mark bittman (as usual!) click through to the piece at the ny times site and at first you see a wonderful matrix of fruit desserts - but hover over each and ‘click for recipe’ pops up - you click, and the recipe appears. beautiful.
click below to visit the ny times and see for yourself:
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roasted shallot vinaigrette
all of a sudden it’s summer. school has started. it’s september. and it’s supposed to be 100 degrees today. thanks a lot, oregon. of course, i can’t complain. today is 9.11. there are major fires burning across the country. other areas of the country are flooding. if working too much and a stretch of hot weather is all i have to complain about, then i count myself blessed....
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campfire in a sugar forest...
some nice people say some nice things. one of the best things that’s ever been said about one of my baked creations: tastes like a campfire in a sugar forest. read all about it by clicking below:
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roasted shallots
one of my current obsessions is michael ruhlman’s new book, ruhlman’s twenty. it’s a book of basic kitchen techniques backed up with a handful of recipes using said techniques. it’s so clever and so useful and written so well…like i said, i’m obsessed.
while i definitely can’t say i’m anywhere near the genius mr. ruhlman is, i can tell you that...
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portland. new york. new portyorkland. what?
look people, portland is a city far, far away from new york.
new york is a city far, far away from portland.
don’t get me wrong, i love both of these cities, but i love them BECAUSE they are separate of themselves.
i vote we keep it that way. get a load of this piece in grub street. holy moses.
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salad deliciousness
i can’t believe i’m going to say this, but, sometimes i just want a huge salad for dinner.
generally i arrive to work at 4am. sometimes 4:15. or 4:17. in order to make this possible, my alarm goes off at 3:30am. at this time of the morning (which is, basically, still night,) the last thing i want to do is think about packing a lunch. because of this, right around 9am everyday i eat a...
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August 2011
15 posts
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woe is me.
i miss this here food diary. so much. not that it’s 100% necessary to tell you where i’ve been, but i’m going to do it anyways: i’ve been at work. it’s been relentless. literally 12+ hours each day. it’s awful to say, but when i get home after 12 or more hours of mixing, baking and recipe development i STILL have to make dinner. and get a 4 year old to bed. and...
at home with thomas keller...
today he talks to the wall street journal about at-home dinner parties. (an invite i’d give up my grandmother’s secret cream cheese icing recipe for..)
read all about it here.
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hooray for portland!
so proud of my hometown weekly paper for this great article on why everyone, everyone, everyone should just say NO to groupon.
i’m sending these guys some cookies! IMAGE: Mary Kate McDevitt
what i'm reading...
this great piece from publisher’s weekly explains just how cookbooks these days are getting made. fascinating. and my, how times are changing!
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diner contracts...what?
a new restaurant in washington dc requires diners to sign contracts upon making a reservation. what? thankfully the fine folks at eater have obtained a copy…
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choose your own blackberry 'n stone fruit...
wow. i’m gonna say it right now. 2011 might just be the best year for blackberries, ever. i mean, ever. ever. here in oregon i’ve had such good luck with the delicious gems. they’re huge. they’re the perfect balance of sweet & tart. and the farm stands are f u l l of them. hurrah!
a giant flat of blackberries showed up at the bakery and we set about turning them into...
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peeling peaches
in preparation for tomorrow’s post, i’m here now to give you a tip for peeling peaches! fantastic! (obviously if we’re talking peach-peeling today you should be looking forward to tomorrow!) first, let’s talk about why we peel peaches in the first place: of course for jams & preserves you want to peel peaches, right? right. the fuzzy-textured skins won’t break...
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the hits just keep on comin'!
a bit ago i posted about kids today & their lack of desire to, shall we say, apply themselves. since that post i’ve had quite a few people talk to me about their own experiences with younger people who would prefer that things simply fall into their laps instead of working hard for them. i’m here to tell you now: nearly everyone from customers to employers are sick to death of it - so, snap...
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hugh's magic beans.
speaking of summer tomatoes, how about summer green beans? yes please.
check out these get-to-the-market-now-and-make-these-tonight recipes. we’re having the feta-dill number tonight…and i can’t wait.
ps: as always, hugh fearnley-whittingstall, i love ya.
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you say tomato...
ah, summer. don’t tomatoes taste just like summer? they do.
mark bittman has some delicious ideas for heirloom tomatoes. makes me want to run to the farmer’s market right this minute. first up, bittman’s take on summer tomatoes with more than just salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
next up, an amazing interactive display of delicious tomato recipes. so pretty i just...
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5 days. no sugar. no dairy. no wheat. no meat.
and i feel exactly like i did before i started. honest.
i have a lot of friends who have done cleanses. and juice fasts. and diets. and other crazy stuff. and they always say how GREAT they feel after eliminating the evil that is sugar (or dairy! or wheat! or meat!) from their diets.
so, even though i own a bakery and work at that bakery 7 days a week, i decided to cut out sugar, dairy, wheat...
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take that, tip jar.
get a load of this bit that was in the uk’s the guardian…the history of the tip jar and why you should just say no.
yikes.
i’m not sure i agree. actually, let me rephrase that: i’m certain i don’t agree. if someone makes you a delicious espresso drink and you appreciate the time & effort that went in to making it, and you’ve got the money to do it, you...
July 2011
14 posts
6 tags
so inspiring...and a great way to save $60k
click image to go to story…
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kids these days
well, hello there. it’s been a while. and i’m sorry for that. you see, i think i may have underestimated just how busy our new bakery was going to keep me. since we opened (just over a month ago) i’ve worked approximately 600 hours. and by “work” i don’t mean just coming in to the bakery and kicking back with a cup of coffee. i mean i’ve been working. and...
wait a minute. what?
um, someone’s got some explaining to do. i drink and drink and drink water - all day long. and now we find out it’s unnecessary? what? read all about it here.
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bittman's ice pops.
click the photo for a link to the article. you seriously don’t want to miss it.
cherries. cherries. everywhere.
last year at this time i was completely, completely obsessed with strawberries. this year though, every local strawberry i’ve had kind of tastes like it was grown on a wet sponge in a dark room. and, to tell you the truth, most local berries were. so much rain (means the ground was all spongy) and a complete lack of sun (a dark room) produced berries that have a funny texture and no true...
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ewww, yuck.
you must read this. a mom spends her vacation charting dirty restaurant playlands across the country. in a word: nasty.
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i'm not usually one to toot my own horn, but...
…toot toot!
We’ve all heard the fable of the Phoenix–the Bird of Paradise is incinerated by a careless angel and reborn as something grander, glossier, and even more full of pastries than before. Or something like that. And so goes the story of new Saint Cupcake Galore–the downtown reincarnation of Portland’s beloved Saint Cupcake, which has moved to grander, glossier digs even more...