Staycation

Today, it begins. We're taking five days off from regular life and going on vacation - at home. I am so excited. When Zack and I go on vacation alone its about the two of us being all about each other, not distracted by work, tasks or other relationships (however wonderful they may be). Well, we love our home and our city and we needed a vacation, but didn't want to leave. Our staycation was born. What will we do? The same things we do on other vacations. Sleep in, have long mornings over cappuccino's and baked goods, adventures during the day, leisurely afternoons and big nights out. This is our formula for perfect vacationing.

This staycation has the special note of beginning with the beautiful wedding of my precious friend Holly. It went unbelievably and our happiness for them has gotten our time together off on a wonderful foot. Plus, the weather is promising to continue to be sunny, clear and gloriously warm. Over the next five days we'll be doing some wonderful eating, hitting up some favorite spots like Senor Moose for brunch - unbelievable authentic Mexican food - and some new spots that we're super excited about, like a wine lunch at Pizzeria Pulcinella in Rainier Beach - a Neopolitan pizza wonder in the 'hood! We're also going to be attending an Indian cooking class at Blue Ribbon Cooking School. It's our first class at this school and Indian is a cuisine we love but I have no idea how to truly cook, so anticipation is high for that! We're going to see Star Trek at the Cinerama, go to a benefit show, take at least one road trip and do lots of laying around on chaise lounges in the back yard. Somewhere in there I'm going to try making my own ricotta.

I'm going to hold my husbands hand and hug him and kiss him a lot. We're going to talk about mushy stuff and stare into each others eyes. He tango danced with me on an EMPTY dance floor at the wedding last night. From that genius introvert to this raging extrovert, THAT was loving me sacrificially, I'm telling you! So, the next five days are all about us and I'm going to be all about HIM. I've never loved or adored him more. A wonderful wedding was a great reminder of my cherished marriage and how it really has just gotten better and better.

Wine Lunch!!

I love a cold, crisp white wine. In Italy, Zack and I would always order a quartino (quarter liter) of the house white wine with lunch, which was almost always a perfectly charred pizza to share. Wherever we were, the wine was brought well chilled and often it had a slight effervescence to it. These "wine lunches" are one of our favorite memories of our time in Italy and we try to recreate them here. The inexpensive Italian white table wine of our memory is not as easy to find here as one might imagine, but many varieties hit the spot; prosecco, vinho verde, albarino, and some sauvignon blancs to name a few. Recently though, I came across Albero, a Spanish sparkling white wine sold exclusively at Trader Joe's for $4.99 a bottle. To me, its the perfect combination of sparkles, light fruit and incredible value. It goes great with so many foods and just feels like summer. A definite perfect foil for one of my fresh pizzas. Try a bottle and tell me what you think! Here is my pizza method and a simple one I commonly make. The dough is absolutely awesome and is inspired by this one on my friend Dana's blog. It's great because it only has to rise for an hour, so I don't have to plan far ahead to make this meal. The crust is the soul of the pizza for me and this crust and this method of baking really come close to recreating the Italian pizza memories. Crisp, chewy crust, nice yeasty flavor and plenty of salty bite. Fresh mozzerella is really important here. It gives a completely different and much less greasy result than typical pasturized mozzerella. The reason I use parchment paper is because I can never seem to keep the pizza dough from sticking to the peel and making a mess when I try to transfer it from the peel to the pizza stone in the blazing oven. This alleviates that issue with great success and I always do it this way now.

Calabrese Salami & Oregano Pizza

For the dough

2 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp. sugar
2 cups bread flour
3/4 cup warm water plus 2 tablespoons
2 tsp. chopped fresh oregano or 1 tsp dry oregano
2 tsp. kosher salt

Toppings (obviously you can use whatever you'd like)

1/2 cup of your favorite marinara sauce (I like Barilla tomato basil or roasted garlic)
15 slices calabrese salami
4 oz fresh milk mozzerella, chopped into nickle size pieces about 1/4" thick
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp dry oregano (or fresh would be even better, in which case put 1-2 tsp on after baking)

1/8 cup freshly grated or shaved reggiano or grana padano

Method:

1. In the bowl of kitchanaid, whisk the yeast and sugar with 1/4 cup of the flour. Stir in 1/4 cup of the warm water and let stand until slightly foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the oregano, salt, and the remaining 1 3/4 cups of flour and 1/2 cup of water; stir until a dough forms. Put the dough hook attachment on your kitchenaid and turn on, kneading in the bowl for 6 minutes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a draft-free spot until billowy and doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

2. Meanwhile, place a pizza stone in the bottom of the oven, and preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Make sure the oven has preheated for at least 30 minutes.

3. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured very large sheet of parchment paper. Press and stretch the dough into a 15-inch round, nice and thin is good. Top with sauce, fresh mozzerella and toppings of your choice.

4. Slide the parchment paper with pizza onto the back of a cookie sheet and slide it from there onto the pizza stone in the oven. Bake for 12 minutes, until the crust is golden.

5. Top with reggiano and final fresh herbs if desired.

The King of Steaks

It's Memorial Day weekend in Seattle and an amazing thing is happening! Notoriously, this "beginning of summer" weekend is cold and rainy, but not this year! It is brilliantly warm and sunny. I woke up at 5:31am today, because despite closing every blind tightly, the room was still filled with creamy yellow light. Not only is it sunny today, but there is not a cloud in the forecast for four days. Glory to God it's thrilling!

This much sun calls for some serious grilling and I have the ultimate steak for you. I learned about this cut of steak and method about 5 years ago as I was researching an upcoming trip to Italy. It's most famous representative is Dario Cecchini, otherwise known as the "Butcher of Panzano" A wildly charismatic fellow, he owns a legendary butcher shop called Antica Macelleria Cecchini in Panzano, Italy. The cut he is most famous for is called Bistecca Fiorentina and traditionally comes from giant white Val de Chiana cows lovingly raised in Tuscany and found nowhere else in the world (to my knowledge). When Zack and I went to Tuscany almost 4 years ago now, a trip to Dario's famous butcher shop was essential and unforgettable, made even more wonderful by stumbling on a wonderful local outdoor wine tasting on the open square in his beautiful Tuscan hilltop town. That day, I could only gaze carnivorously on the giant cuts of meat. We had only the smallest kitchenette in the apartment we were renting and no grill on which to roast a 3 inch thick, 4 lb T-bone steak. It has held great culinary fascination for me since then. Here I am at this temple of beef!


Since then, the Bistecca Fiorentina has become one of my favorite really special company dinners. It is always impressive and delicious and its sheer enormity makes for definite wow factor. Because the heavily herbed rubbed steak is incredible thick, it must be cooked on a preheated grill for 12 minutes per side, ending in a crusty blacked exterior and a wonderfully rare to medium rare center.



If you like your steak more done, you can take it to medium by adding a couple minutes but please, I beg you, don't go beyond that. Once you've let it rest, carve it and drizzle it with black truffle oil or good olive oil if you prefer. The truffle oil option takes it to the next level.


Bistecca Fiorentina

Recipe:
Adapted from Mario Batali's Italian Grill, serves 4

1 3inch, 3-4 lb T-Bone, or for a larger piece of meat (as seen in the pictures above), ask for a porterhouse. With the porterhouse, you get a very large piece of filet, which is the most tender part cut of beef you can get. You will have to order this cut in advance. In Seattle, I always drive up to Mountlake Terrace and the incredible Double D Meats for mine. They are used to getting this order now as there are a number of us that place it regularly. I learned about this wonderful place from fellow friends and foodies, Tim and Beth, and I am ever in their debt. The meat is incredible as are the prices. Absolutely worth the jaunt up I-5!

For the rub:

1 Tbl chopped fresh rosemary
1 Tbl chopped fresh thyme
1 Tbl chopped fresh sage
1.75 Tbl kosher salt
1.5 Tbl freshly ground black pepper (a morter and pestle on peppercorns works well)

Method:

Remove steak from fridge 60 minutes before grilling. Rub with above mixture and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil, pressing the rub into the meat and making sure its damp with oil all over. Preheat a grill for about 20-30 minutes. It needs to be at least 450 degrees and hotter is better. Ideally 550 - 600. After meat has sat for 60 minutes with the rub, place on the hot grill. Cook for 12 minutes per side or until internal temperature hits 120 degrees for medium rare and 125 for medium. Remove immediately and let rest for 12 minutes. It will continue to cook quite a bit while it rests, so don't leave it on the grill past these temperatures. For true rare, take it off at 115 degrees internal temp. After the meat has rested, cut it from the bone and slice. Drizzle with your choice of truffle or olive oil and serve!

Restaurant Review: Cascina Spinasse Trattoria Pastificio Artigianale

A long and complex name for a small, quaint and authentic restaurant on Capitol Hill. A trattoria is generally a more casual restaurant in Italy and Pastificio Artigianale translates to artisan pasta and that is what this restaurant is most lauded for. Monday night, I celebrated a friend's birthday there and the pasta WAS perfection, but that was just one of the many reasons the experience was glorious. The ambiance, food and wine were suberb overall and the warm, overjoyed company of dear friends made everything taste, look and feel even better.

The restaurants decor is a whimsical collection of mismatched tables and chairs and pretty antiques. Lace curtains cover the front windows and a dining bar overlooks an open kitchen. It's comforting to see the restaurants well-known chef owner, Justin Niedermeyer, working feverishly in the kitchen. We truly had the best table in the house - a small round Cararra marble four-top in the restaurants front window. It's the only table that is not given to the currently very popular trend of communal dining, which means you might be dining with strangers. This is not something I am a big fan of. True, it can be fun meeting new people at dinner, but I would prefer to enjoy the company of the people I chose to go out with in the first place. I really want to focus all my attention on them and the meal. Anyway, so we three were more than delighted to find this perfect little table stood waiting just for us. Definite squealing commenced. Things were off to a wonderful start.

We all had a glass of the prosecco - Villa Sparina. It was lush, with more honey and body to it than most Italian sparklers I've had. We decided to forgo the family style courses option offered on the menu and pave our own way, sharing everything. We started with the Antipasto misto della casa. Roasted cardoons with toasted bread crumbs, anchovies with arugula pesto and firm egg yolk crumbles, thinly sliced poached veal with a rich tuna aioli (heavenly!), a chicory salad with roasted rabbit, prosciutto, lardo, soppressata and lovely lovely bread. It was the perfect combination of familiar and totally unique items and we were all very impressed and happy. Next, we had Tajarin al ragu. This hand-cut pasta is the most finely cut strand I've ever seen (think of angel hair cut in half!). The mouth feel was so wonderful and it was combined with a rich and classic bolognese style ragu. Another pasta was ravioli stuffed with ricotta, with shaved porcini, sauteed nettles and a butter sage sauce. Very nice, though a bit too subtle. Sauteed housemade sausages on lacinato kale were awesome. With the pastas and sausages we enjoyed an absolutely wonderful Barbara d' asti. This varietal is such a consistently delicious choice when picking from Italian wines and we all loved it.

I have to say, I personally did not like the dessert. It was a steamed chocolate custard that was infused with a minty flavor, but not in a familiar chocolate mint kind of way, but more in an herbacious soapy flavor way. I was alone in this impression at the table however, so it wasn't a matter of it being bad, simply that I didn't personally like it. The hazelnut meringue cookies we had alongside were better. Not too sweet and powerfully toasty nutty.

This is a wonderful, homey restaurant. There is nothing urban or modern in its feel. It is comforting and feels truly Italian, with great pride in ingredients and techinque on all levels. I highly recommend it.

Sunny sanity and strawberry sorbet

Yesterday was such a promising day in Seattle. Wow. Incredibly warm, sunny, and perfectly breezy. This is the kind of day that keeps you sane when you live here. In between the days and days of gray and rainy that add up to 9 months out of the year, there are days like this. Their rareness making them that much more cherished. I made lunch on the patio for my longtime friend Kacper and for dessert I made a simple strawberry sorbet. I love fruit sorbets because they are simply a chilly, lickable version of the fruit at its best. You can use this simple recipe with so many different fruits and will always have a good result and its so healthful to boot!

Strawberry sorbet
(makes 1 pint)

Ingredients
3 1/2 cups whole strawberries
1/4 cup simple syrup* (more if your berries aren't sweet very sweet)
2 tbls fresh lemon juice
pinch kosher salt

Special Equipment: Ice cream maker

*Simple syrup is just equal parts sugar and water, heated and stirred until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved

Method
Blend these together in a blender until well pureed
Pour into the frozen bowl of a home ice cream maker
Turn on and freeze for 20 - 30 minutes, according to manufacturers instructions
Place in container with lid and freeze for at least 30 more minutes before serving. It's best served between 30-60 minutes of freezer time, before it gets TOO hard. Or take it out for 10 minutes before scooping. Because it has no fat, it freezes very solid.

If you don't have an ice cream maker, consider adding one to your wish list. It is such a special treat to enjoy homemade sorbets, ice creams, gelatos and frozen yogurts and I swear, its incredibly easy. Here is the brand I have and it works great for the home cook.

Fluff in Stuff

The idea of homemade marshmallows always peeks people's interest. I recently made my first batch and have been sucked into the vortex. For my friend Holly's "Dinner at Tiffany's" themed bridal shower I made these Lillet marshmallows. I tinted them tiffany blue and was surprised and delighted when all worked out perfectly. They actually tasted deeply of Lillet, the unique French apertif which fuses white wine with herbs and always served ice cold. I can't say I LOVED these marshmallows, they were more of a novelty than anything, but I was hooked on the idea of making them and trying lots of flavor combination's.

Today, I made a more classic version, flavored with almond & vanilla extracts and dipped in dark chocolate. At the inspiration of my friend and baking ingenue Azurae, I added a little flaked fleur de sel on top and the resulting confection was heavenly. I like making marshmallows because they are unexpected and special. They'll make a perfect little gift or a fine addition to a dessert buffet. You can add any flavor extract, or use different liquids to dissolve the gelatin, thus imparting that liquids flavor subtly to the marshmallows. They are also very satisfying for their low caloric damage, which is of interest to me as I Weight Watcher my way to Holly's wedding. Two weeks left!

I just ate one, fluffy, soft, sweet, the chocolate still warm and oozy, the fleur de sel truly a surprising and perfectly savory note. Anyway, don't be scurred, make marshmallows. It's easy. I'll loan you my candy thermometer.


Vanilla Almond Marshmallows dipped in Chocolate
Adapted from Alton Brown, originally inspired to me by Not Without Salt

Marshmallows
3 packages unflavored gelatin
1 cup cold water, divided
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
.5 tsp almond extract
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
Nonstick spray

Special equipment: Candy thermometer

Chocolate Dip
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or equivalent chocolate using your favorite chocolate bar, chips, etc. You could also use butterscotch chips or whatever!
3-4 tbls cream (depending on how thick or thin you want the dip)

Method
Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water and the extracts. Have the whisk attachment standing by.In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.

Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.

Combine the confectioners’ sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Spray a 9 x 13 inch square metal (or glass if you must) baking pan with pan spray. (NOTE: I used a 9 x 9 pan to make the marshmallow in the picture above, but it was too big, so next time I'll use a 9 x 13 inch pan) Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use. When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel or sharp knife dusted with the confectioners’ sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary.

Method for chocolate dip
For chocolate dip, warm cream in the double bowler until hot, add chocolate chips, stirring to combine. When chips are thoroughly melted and mixture is smooth, dip marshmallows in, rolling to cover one end and ¼ up sides or as much as you’d like. Top with a few grains of fleur de sel. Allow to sit 2 hours uncovered to hardened. Although I definitely recommend you have one still warm!

Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

We'll call it Rustic Italian bread

Recently, my girlfriends and I went to Vancouver B.C. for a weekend of shopping, dining and total food delight. On Saturday afternoon, we made our way to the amazing Granville Island Public Market and spent three hours perusing it thoroughly and trying to decide what to make for dinner. That dinner ended up being very simple, but something we ladies always can agree on; a spread of artisan cheeses, 3 different types of prosciuttos and 2 types of salami, fig jam, fresh berries, caprese salad, walnut bread from the most incredible bakery and some fresh stuffed pasta with pesto. In our meanderings we met a man that sells balsamic reductions. The reductions were delicious and a perfect drizzle with the rest of our items but it was the bread he made that blew us away. I shouldn't have been surprised to find that it was a version of the now famous No-knead bread from Jim Lahey at New York City's Sullivan Street Bakery. I make his no-knead bread recipe at least once a week (with twice the salt he does) and find it to be incredible for all my bread needs. Not to mention it makes a simple, homey gift that is always sure to please.

So anyway, today I baked Mr. Reductions version of the bread (with a few modifications) and I love it. For sandwiches, I love a bread in the long, flat style of ciabata, sliced lengthwise. You can experience both the soft crumb of the bread but also the different flavor and texture of the crisp crust. Often though, ciabata is just too hard and too crusty, don't you think? Well, this bread offers me just what I want for sandwiches with the perfect balance of crust and crumb. Because it rests for 18 hours, the flavor is wonderful - yeasty, perfectly salted, it really is scrumptious. It's hard to believe how much flavor is imparted to a bread by these simple techniques.

Today, I'm going to slice it down the center and slather it with a sauce I made of blue cheese, sour cream, lemon juice, dijon and fresh ground pepper, cover that with slices of roast beef and then sprinkle on some arugula. A classic combination. I'm going to add some sliced medjool dates to the party for the sweet touch I like in many savory dishes. Another way I'd love it is sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and chocolate chips. Or pretty much any way I can get it into my mouth, it's good by me.

RECIPE: Rustic "Italian" Bread

Ingredients:

3 cups flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon yeast
13 fl oz lukewarm water

Special tools: Parchment paper, pizza stone

Method:

1) Mix dry ingredients in the bowl of your Kitchenaid, fitted with paddle attachment (or another large bowl). Slowly stir in water until it is fully incorporated and there is no flour on edges of bowl. The dough should be coming away from the sides but not forming a ball in the middle. This is a very sticky and loose dough. Scrape down the sides and leave the dough in the bottom of the bowl. Spray lightly with non-stick spray and cover with plastic wrap. Place bowl in a plastic bag (kitchen garbage bag works well), force out most of the air and tie securely as airtight as possible. Set this aside for 14-18 hours in a 67-74 degree place (pretty much anyplace in your house).

Suggestion: A great time to do this part is right before bed, say 10:30pm, that way it will be ready to fold at 5pm the next day, proof 2 more hours and bake for dinner at 7:30pm or 5:00pm if you are home during the day, allowing you a 10:00am fold and a noon bake-time for hot bread for lunch.

THE NEXT DAY...

2) Open the bag. With damp hands, so it doesn't stick to them, fold the dough over on itself 4-5 times. You are releasing the air from the dough. Cover it with plastic wrap again, put it back in the bag for another 2 hours.

3) After 2 hours, put a pizza stone in your oven and preheat your it to 400 degrees. Lightly dust a large piece of parchment paper (you must use this) with flour and dump the dough out onto it. The loaf will be soft and settle to about 1 - 1.5 inches tall all over. Flatten a bit with your hands if need be. The loaf will be freeform in shape and that is good. Dust the top with flour.

4) Pull the parchment paper with dough onto the back of a cookie sheet and slide it from that onto the pizza stone in the oven (this method is also awesome for pizza making - I can NEVER get the pizza to slide nicely off the pizza peel).

5) Bake for 40 minutes. Remove the same way you put it in and let cool on a baking rack for at least 20 minutes before you cut it.

6) Eat your heart out.

The Golden Piglet - Part Deux

So after a long hiatus, I'm back, with a new and broader approach. I found myself frustrated with my blog. It demanded that I write about restaurants and what if I didn't want to? What if I had an inspiring restaurant experience but I didn't want to write about it or what if I simply was inspired elsewhere? What if I cooked something amazing? What if I threw a happy party and was really excited about the way things came together? And so, the Golden Piglet is reborn. No longer exclusively restaurant reviews, I will write about anything that tickles my taste bud fancy. Reviews yes, but also recipes, parties, plans, products, whatever I darn well feel like! We'll see how far this approach takes us. This time I'm going to do it because I enjoy it and want to and not feel pressured to be spectacular. Just write and not overthink it. A Golden Piglet is still the pinnacle of foodie delight, but it could be a pie, a party, a cafe, or just about anything. Thanks for reading, all three of you, this blogs for you.

A special thanks to my dear friend Caitlin, of Roostblog, who created my nifty new look and inspires me with her writing and recipes every week.

More Wood-Fired Pizza is Never Enough

Seattle has seen an explosion of incredible artisan wood-fired pizza spots, lead by Tutta Bella and followed by ViaTribunali, Serious Pie, Mioposto, and Pizzeria Pulcinella, to name a few. “Bring it on” I say, followed closely by “I can’t get enough!” So, with great anticipation, I must make sure you are aware that slated to open in May, is Delancey, a project of husband and wife team Brandon Pettit and Molly Wizenberg (the latter of Orangette blog fame). It’s New York style pizza on 70th in Ballard, in a great little enclave of new dining delights, including Honore Bakery and A Caprice Kitchen. Read the latest update of the restaurants progress on Molly’s blog. It doesn’t take a crystal ball to predict that this place is going to be hotter than a cheese burn – WATCH out!

Reviews to watch for: La Medusa – I’m hitting this Seattle classic spot for the first time this Friday night to celebrate a dear friend. I’ll tell you all about it!

I Have Returned From Cloud Nine

The StarChefs event blew my mind. I didn’t even want to start writing about it because I knew I couldn’t do it justice. Culinary experiences are each to their own. I don’t compare a seven course tasting menu at Auberge du Soleil to brunching on sopas di tinga at Senor Moose. Both are spectacular in my mind, the best (for me) in their unique niche. StarChefs was that in the world of food and wine chef showcase events. Other events like this are Taste of The Nation or Taste Washington to name a couple. The StarChef’s revue blew these other events so far out of the water that they are still falling towards earth as we speak. For the first time at an experience like this, the food was just spectacular. The chefs spared no expense and pulled out every stop to serve the best from their arsenal, and under less than ideal cooking conditions. It makes sense that they did this. This event was attended by restauranteurs, wine makers, columnists and just plain old food lovers and awards new and up and coming chefs for their contributions to a cities dining landscape. Clearly, it was NOT the venue to serve goat cheese and sundried tomato crostini. This was the time to do it up and do it right and they truly did. The relatively small numbers also allowed for this, perhaps 750 people versus Taste Washington’s 3000+. In addition to the food being ridiculous, the wine was too. Premium wines, not a one of which did I taste and experience the shallow, somewhat spare experience that characterizes much of the wine my conscience affords me to purchase. I cannot begin to describe all that we ate and drank but I must point out a few standouts and based on them recommend these restaurants to you.

Chef Jason Wilson | Crush Restaurant: This chic elegant and definitely special occasion restaurant is in Madison Valley. Jason served Butter-poached lobster with gnocchi and white truffle cream. This insanely rich dish was brilliantly served with supremes of orange and leaves of arugula. The citrusy, peppery freshness of these additions brought this dish back from the brink of too rich and into the realm of perfection. As we stood there freaking out, they spooned more hunks of the lobster onto our plates. Love them, love them.

Chefs Brian McCracken, Dana Tough | SPUR: This is a fairly new gastro-pub in Belltown. I have never been but plan to remedy that immediately if not sooner. His dish was genius and a truly wonderful use of molecular gastronomy. Beef Carpaccio, Tarragon, Mustard Leaf and FRIED BERNAISE sauce. I can hardly describe this wonder. On top of perfect shaved beef tenderloin, sat a breaded and fried globe of something the size of a nickle. Gathering all the ingredients on the plate onto your fork, you put them in your mouth and the fried globe burst with warm, oozing, powerfully flavorful bernaise sauce! It was such a surprise, such a unique sensation and the flavor incredible.

Chef Stuart Lane | Cafe Juanita: This wonderful Northern Italian artisan restaurant holds a very special place in my heart. Stuart’s dish of Venetian Rabbit livers with carmelized onion, anchovy and currants, served with teeny tiny rabbit ravioli was savory and had such a play on texture. The rabbit livers reminded me distinctly of seared fois gras and the pasta was perfectly toothy as fresh pasta should be.

Chef Vuong Loc | Portage: This is another restaurant I haven’t tried, a French bistro at the top of Queen Anne. Vuong served me the best piece of lamb I have EVER eaten. A chop, stuffed with parlsey mousse, brussel sprouts and honey glazed bacon lardons. The lamb meat itself was so intensely flavorful and tender. Butter tender. How DID he do it?

Chef Adam Stevenson | Earth & Ocean at W Seattle: This one truly truly surprised me. Earth & Ocean has changed hands many times since it came to Seattle ten years or so ago and Adam is its best chef thus far. In my mind, his cuisine has revived the restaurant. His dish of wild day boat scallops with citrus braised endive, radishes, smoked bacon and garlic puree was so balanced and surprising. I stood there chewing, watching my friend chewing, our eyes communicated total surprised delight. This was no ordinary scallop dish and we agreed it was our favorite dish of the night. Adam also makes his own salami and I’m going to say the unthinkable – his fennel salami knocked Salumi’s out of the park, as did his hot soppressata. I’d go there just for the meat plate.

So those are a few of my favorites, although I didn’t eat one dish that wasn’t better than good. This was easily the best $75 I’ve ever spent on an event like this and honestly one of the best $75 I’ve ever spent on food and wine, period.

CANNOT WAIT FOR NEXT TIME! And I’ll be sure to give you all more advance notice!

StarChefs.com 2009 Seattle Rising Star Review

I LOVE these walk-around food and wine events. It is such a fun way to try a totally varied selection of items from different restaurants and the list for tonight includes some of my very favorite Seattle chefs, Mark Fuller, Ethan Stowell and Jason Wilson. StarChefs is a magazine for those in the professional culinary world and those that like to follow it. This is an annual event highlighting and awarding Seattle’s rising culinary stars. Obviously, this is NOT the way to fully assess and judge these chefs, but it is a representative taste and the atmosphere is always buzzing, no pun intended!

So, I’m headed there tonight and I’ll be back with a report tomorrow.

Representing this year:

Mark Fuller | Spring Hill

Stuart Lane | Café Juanita

Vuong Loc | Portage and Pig ‘n Whistle

Brian McCracken & Dana Tough | Spur

Colin Patterson | Sutra

Jason Wilson | Crush

Hotel Chef Award:Adam Stevenson | Earth & Ocean at W Seattle

Sustainability Award: Maria Hines | Tilth

Restaurant Concept Award: Joshua Henderson | Skillet Street Food

Restaurateur Award: Ethan Stowell | Union, Tavolata, How to Cook a Wolf

Pastry Chef Dana Cree | Poppy

Pastry Chef Matt Kelley | Rover’s

Sommelier Nelson Daquip | Canlis

Mixologist Jim Romdall | Vessel VIP

There might still be tickets, so if you’ve got the evening free…!

Restaurant Review: Anchovies & Olives: Italian Sea Specialties on Captitol Hill

I’m fresh off the Anchovies and Olives boat and eager to dish. I loved this place. It helps that I was so excited to try it. It’s pedigree is exceptional, as brother and sister to such favorites of mine as Tavolata and How to Cook a Wolf. This brother is the seafaring kind, focusing on seafood to some degree in every item on their menu. But I beg you, do not be put off by this. Within, you will find such subtlety and nuance of flavor, such pure and simple goodness. The American penchant for fried and overdone fish has destroyed this understanding for many of us. Anchovies and Olives asks you to try fish again, for the first time.

The menu is set up in four parts; crudo – a selection of raw fish served cured or treated in different ways, but raw none the less, appetizers, pastas and finally main courses. All the food is uncomplicated, often with 5-7 ingredients or even less, all with some seafood element, and of such pure and stellar ingredients that nothing more is needed. A piece of pristine pish, a pinch of fine salt, a drizzle of Trampetti olive oil, a crush of good herbs, and all is perfect. We started with Hamachi, sliced thickly, served raw with olive oil, crushed olives and pesto. Spectacular flavor. A mound of prosciutto served with olive oil marinated anchovies, served on a rustic wooden board. Columbia City Bakery’s perfect focaccia is $2 and you get half a loaf, which can be enjoyed underneath or alongside everything you order, or not, whatever you’d like. The grilled octopus is blackened and served with watercress, new potatoes and romescu. This is good but not my favorite. Definitely needs salt. There are a selection of oysters with interesting accompaniments like meyer lemon ice. Not my speed but interesting and lovely for you briny slime lovers out there. Next, we enjoyed the absolutely simple but perfectly toothsome spaghetti with anchovies, red chilies and garlic. I love this dish. The flavor is good but the chew and bite of the fresh pasta is even better. I love the mouth feel. Gnocchi is served stuffed with crab and served with lobster and roasted cauliflower! How interesting a combination and how decadent! Our food, overall, was wonderful. The company, a foursome of seafood loving, soulful ladies, was perfect.

And the service…lovely. Our waiter was attentive, informative and helpfully opinionated. He suggested a couple of different bottles of white wine to pair with our fishy feast and the one we chose from his selection was very good. Darned if I can remember the name, but it was $35 and had a wonderful peachy note to it. Ask them – they’ll know. The wines are all Italian and trusting Ethan Stowell (owner and chef) and his team, any of the waiters will offer you a great recommendation. Anchovies and Olives has a similiar aesthetic to his other two Italian restaurant spots. It is at once rustic and modern, urban and urbane. It is absolutely not a recreation of an Italian restaurant in Italy, but rather a reinterpretation, perfectly suited to todays trends, tastes and times.

It is not, for whatever reason, a Golden Piglet, but its just a few piglet-tail-hairs short, and if you appreciate the fru-ITS of the sea and the inspiration of ITaly, you must not miss it.

(Please forgive the lack of pictures. I took some, but my camera is absolute crap and they really looked awful.)

Restaurant Review: Cantinetta: Unforgettable Italian-A Golden Piglet

PIGLET NOTE: I wrote this review on January 10th of this year (2009), after my first incredible experience at Cantinetta, a restaurant which opened this year in the Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle. I have since gone back many times and dear friends have agreed, this restaurant truly is special. It now has the honor of being given the first ever “Official” Golden Piglet award. I dined there again this Tuesday and was wowed AGAIN, as was Zack and our dinner guest. I must admit, I am deeply biased towards Italian food and experiences, but whether you typically are or not, you can’t help but be moved by this little slice of delight.

___________________________________________________________________________

I was sure I was going to love Cantinetta before I walked in the door. The restaurant is on the corner of 37th and Wallingford avenue in what I call Wallingmont and its front and side are a wall of tall windows. The amber light from candlelight and hanging wrought iron and glass chandeliers feels physically warm to me as we drive past. You can see its interior very well in the dark and it looks like Italy to me. Which pretty much guarantees that on an ambiance level, I am going to love the place. I start clapping my hands like a kid and saying to Zack “Oh oh, I’m going to love this, I know it, OOOOHHHH, I’m so excited!”

We park easily on a side street and walk in. White walls, dark mahogany wood trims and beams, rustic tables, gilded mirrors, and well planned lighting is combined perfectly to feel at once casual and elegant. A special occasion you could enjoy every evening without feeling stuffy. Again, I feel I could be in a trattoria in Italy.

We’re joined by our friends Dan and Azurae, who are wonderful dinner companions and adventurous eaters. Together we will try as much as we can of a menu that offers too many enticing choices.

It is set up in the traditional Italian style with antipasto (appetizers), primi (pastas & risottos intended for 1st course), secondi (main dishes) and contorni (vegetable side dishes). This is not American Italian in any way. It is authentic in many ways, but also showcases local sustainable items and puts a contemporary spin on dishes, while still maintaining an unpretentious feel in the presentation.

For instance, we started with Grilled Pancetta wrapped dates with red oak and balsamic. Oh yum. Sweet dates, salty savory pancetta, roasted and served with a nice pile of red oak lettuce dressed simply in a balsamic syrup. Red oak was new to me and is an incredible little leaf. So much complex flavor! Peppery for sure, but as Zack noticed, it almost had a beefy note to it – I know, strange to call lettuce beefy, but it really did. The closest thing I’d compare it to would be arugula. Next, Trotter Milanese, essentially braised pig leg with the meat pulled to small pieces, formed into a meat loaf, breaded and deep fried (breaded and fried is what is meant by Milanese, or, in the style of Milan). This was unique and not as all gross, as one might fear. I enjoyed it but definitely needed my salt treatment. I’ll take a moment hear to say that I have a salt problem. My palette seems to require more and more of it the older I get. I think almost everything, no matter how delectable it is when served to me, is just that much better with a few grains of kosher salt or fleur de sel added. Nuff said.

We ate many items that night and let me say right here that the price is right. Antipastas and contorni range from $7-9 and primi and secondi from $14-$17 . The pasta is excellent. Handmade each day, the pasta itself is toothy in the right way and just as it should be. It is used in many interesting preparations and huge kudos to the chef for his many thoughtful combinations of ingredients. Unlike some restaurants, every single one of the dishes sounded good to us. The final products were all good, but some better than others. Goat cheese agnolotti with blood oranges and port was a little too much sweet and not fully balanced. The Black pepper tagliatelle with creme fraiche, farm egg and lemon was decadent and delicious. Kind of a carbonara without the bacon. Butternut squash mezzaluna (crescent shaped ravioli) with barbera braised oxtail and sage was delicious. The squash flavor was subtle, as the oxtail braised in that red wine was so flavorful and took the forefront. Savory and a touch sweet and so tender from what must have been a six hour hot bath in the wine. Hazelnut fed pork ravioli with ricotta, broccoli rabe and brown butter was also good, although maybe a little more brown butter than was needed. Contorni were beets, farro and fennel pollen, delicious, and an absolutely standout dish of the oft hated brussel sprouts, pairing them with duck confit and roman sea salt. Serious, serious yummage. No joke. Try them again, for the first time.

After all this, we found we were wonderfully comfortable, not full. The portions are nice. Not huge, but not the tiny little overly designed specks you find in more fine dining establishments either. We were able to all eat from each plate, which is good for four people.

We had room for dessert! Okay, this is a must. They have something called Zeppole. An Italian doughnut that I attempt to make at home but don’t even come close to this. Dark golden brown deep friend dough, which is clearly fortified with eggs and butter. They are at once dense and light, I loved the feeling of cutting through them with my fork. Steam is released, swirl it around in a pool of sweet espresso creme anglais, chew, repeat. A perfect end to our meal, with a nice shot of espresso (Cafe Vita).

So ends our foray to this lovely new restaurant. It is just a week old as I write. They are surely still working out some kinks, but we didn’t really experience them. The service was warm and attentive, the food interesting, flavorful and satisfying, the ambiance one of my favorite around town, though admittedly it got pretty loud by the time we left. Surely the effect of good wine, scrumptious food and an environment that lulls you into truly enjoying them.