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9/30/2007 Time Out I will get back to talking about my trip to France but this is just a short intermission to bring you a little peek into what's going on at the local Farmers' Markets. Fall is really settling in here in Seattle - it's been raining (that is just a little too early, if you ask me!); the overnight temps are down in the 40s; and the days seem to be getting shorter in leaps and bounds. But there is one good thing - fall produce.
I love the earthy colors, the rich and hearty flavors, the solid weight of it.
This weekend while stopping at the U-District Farmers' Market I found lots of treasures: pumpkins and squash that will find their way into soups, pasta and maybe quick breads; eggplant for baked dishes like moussaka; corn to eat right off the cob. Even the lettuce I picked up was a bright red - as if choosing to wear its fall wardrobe, too. Pears and apples were also in abundance. Yes, it's definitely fall.
9/29/2007 Rue Mouffetard One of my favorite places in Paris - or at least a place I'm always drawn to - is Rue Mouffetard. This old, narrow winding, cobblestone street used to run all the way to Rome! Now it is the heart of a vibrant neighborhood scene with lots of little cafés, a myriad of specialty food shops, interesting clothing and accessory stores and a farmers' market. The farmers' market is open everyday but on Fridays, I think it is, it quadruples in size.
 On my previous visit to Paris I was lucky enough to spend a couple days with friends who have a house in the 13th. One night to thank them for putting me up I shopped Mouffetard and made dinner. That was such a fun experience - to actually be able to shop the market and cook all the treasures!
 This time I was not so lucky, but still just strolling the street and enjoying the abundance of beautiful foods is a great way to pass a little time. Window shopping at its finest!
 It's going to take me a couple weeks - maybe more - to get through all my photos. Many of them will be posted here on the blog but you can see the full set here or as a slideshow here.
9/26/2007 A Taste of Things to Come Well, the blog has been awfully quiet the last couple weeks but with good reason - I have been eating and drinking my way around France but have now returned home. Once I get a bit caught up on work - that kind that pays - I'll be posting lots about my adventures in France and even about a quick trip to San Sebastian, Spain.
In the meantime I'll leave you with this photo of a canele - a lovely pastry that I had never met before! Canele is popular in Bordeaux, where it originated, but you will also find them in other areas of France. The inside is dense, spongy and sort of a solid custard - heavy with vanilla and rum flavors. The outside has a burnt sugar caramel coating - it adds the perfect note to keep the treat from becoming too sweet yet adds a rich element of flavor. The one pictured was purchased in Saint Emilion, a lovely little town in Bordeaux
I don't know where these guys have been all my life but I'm going to be looking for a recipe to see if I can replicate them!
 9/11/2007 Two New Chefs Join VeilI've been super busy - news is super easy.... but I thought this was interesting primarily because Dana Cree seems to be bouncing around like a ping-pong ball...
9/10/2007 Bread Salad You may notice "some" repetition in my meals lately..... that's what happens in tomato season! Another fresh and easy meal that takes advantage of all the tomatoes coming out of your garden is Bread Salad.
There are as many versions of this salad as there are cooks, I think. You can find lots of variations on line but here's what I did for my most recent version.
9/9/2007 Sip for A Cure Coming up this week: Sip for a Cure • Thurs. Sept. 13, 2007 • Beer, Wine & BBQ Festival! • 6:30-9 pm • $35
The Current State of Tomatoes The explosion has taken place.... two varieties still waiting to ripen. 9/8/2007 Summertime Pasta Although the days of summer are starting to fade we still want to eat lighter meals. At this time of year a super-simple, easy thing to make is a fresh from the garden summer pasta.
Simply place a handful (per person) of cherry tomatoes in a large bowl. Squeeze them gently with your hands (careful of squirting seeds and juice!), add some roughly torn basil, a few slice of chives or scallions, grated Parmesan (or other hard) cheese and toss that all together.
Cook pasta until al dente (I like to use angel hair since it cooks so quickly), drain it, then add it to the big bowl with the tomatoes. The heat from the pasta will gently warm the "sauce". Place the pasta in serving bowls, drizzle with a little olive oil, add salt and pepper and use a potato peeler to slice some very thin slices of your cheese to top it off.
Pour a glass of wine and you are ready to go! 9/5/2007 F&W Selects Best American WinesThis is straight from the horse's mouth.... Congratulations to Long Shadows! I had the opportunity to taste several of their wines about a year ago and was really impressed. Currently most are in limited production but I'm sure that will be changing, at least somewhat, over time. I'm also very happy to see one of Oregon's Chardonnays make the list. They are doing some great things with Chardonnay in the Willamette Valley, which I think has been a bit of a surprise to everyone!
9/4/2007 LA: Pizzeria Mozza Over the weekend I took a quick trip to the Orange County/LA area. It was too hot and humid to do too much eating but I did manage to make a stop at one of Mario Batali's new LA places, Pizzeria Mozza. (His other place, Osteria Mozza is right next door.)
I arrived early - my plan was to get in before the crowds and then get done early and get back to the ocean for sunset photos. I was only partially successful with either of those ideas....
 When I arrived there was a little line outside but I was able to snag a seat at the bar overlooking the pizzamakers and the wood-burning oven. The interior of the place is warm and welcoming, there is a constant din from the diners but yet it's not so loud that you couldn't carry on a conversation. In the pizza area the workers are busy running a smooth, organized assembly line and actually do more than just pizza as many of the dishes on the menu use the wood oven in some way.
Once seated I was presented with a folded paper containing crispy breadsticks. A nice little crunchy munch while looking at the menu. I wish I had been traveling with someone as there were so many things I wanted to try but one person can only eat so much! (I was envious of the couple sitting next to me. Throughout their meal they would each order something, eat 1/2 of it, then swap plates!)
 I was craving something green so started with their Insalata Mista. It arrived looking like a giant haystack! It was a big salad and could easily have been split - even between three people. All of the greens were the fashionable micro-greens, tender and cute. There was a nice mix of lettuces including a hint of bitter greens. And it was perfectly dressed with a lemony vinaigrette. I ate part of it and put it aside in case I wanted more after my pizza.
I'd ordered the Coach farm goat cheese, leeks, scallions & bacon pizza and it arrived looking just beautiful. I liked the combination of leeks and scallions. That added a sort of two dimensional yet mild onion taste to the dish. I'm assuming that Coach Farm is a local cheesemaker and that's why it was called out, but I can't say for sure.
 I ate about 1/2 my pizza but wanted to save room for a little dessert. I ordered a glass of Moscato, assorted Biscotti and tea. I was amazed at all the cookies on the biscotti plate (even if most of them were technically unscotti not biscotti... but who am I to split hairs?). There were eleven little delicious bites, ranging from actual biscotti to a roasted hazelnut and slivered almond cookie that was held together with honey - almost a candy, really. Yum!
 I took my leftover pizza and cookies with me when I left. The pizza provided a snack at the airport later that night and the cookies became "breakfast" at home the next morning!
There are a few more photos here.
Pizzeria Mozza
641 N. Highland Avenue
Los Angeles 323.297.0101
 9/3/2007 Dinner at Crush A couple of weeks ago I ran into my friends EE and BR at an afternoon Garden Party. We hadn't seen each other for awhile and had some catching up to do. While the food at the party was great (it always is!) we decided to go some where we could sit and chat for a bit. So we headed out to Crush.
I had been wanting go to Crush but had been avoiding it as I had it pegged as a pretty romantic little spot (it's located in a little house in Madison Valley) and hadn't had the right person to take along with me. So I jumped at the opportunity to go since EE and BR, while not romantic dates for me, are very good company and fun dining partners!
 This always popular place was already packed when we arrived around 5:30 or 6:00. We snagged a couple of chairs at the counter overlooking the chefs in the open kitchen - probably my favorite place to sit - and started our dining experience. While we were perusing the menu a dish of marinated olives was brought out for us. As a recent convert to the olive world, I enjoyed nibbling on the different varieties.
 BR and I ordered glasses of wine and EE tried one of their specialty cocktails, of which they have both alcohol and non-alcohol offerings. His cucumber-fresh drink was very good! Once I saw the menu I knew I was going to be at least semi-bad in my choices. Foie gras was on the menu and besides that fact that I love it, I live in sort of an ongoing realization that if some people have their way it will be pulled from all menus and no longer be available. So I pretty much order it every time I see it. Sort of a "make hay while the sun shines" attitude! This version of the seared delight was on a cornmeal waffle and topped with fresh blackberries in a port sauce. I love the tangy fruit with the richness of the foie gras!
 BR and EE both ordered the Melon Soup with Oregon Shrimp Salad. Again, amazingly refreshing for a summer day. And a very beautiful presentation. And since I'm originally from Oregon I'm always a little partial to Oregon shrimp. Those little babies are so sweet and succulent!
 We each ordered something different for an entrée. In trying to gain back a bit of ground after the foie gras, I ordered the Wagyu Flank Steak Salad & Black Truffle Vinaigrette: first it was also an appetizer so the portion would be smaller than a full entrée; second it was a salad; and although it was a meat salad, Wagyu flank steak is a fairly healthy version of meat! Right?
 BR had an amazing piece of halibut on a fresh corn succotash, and EE ordered a maple-sausage stuffed chicken breast - I should have given him a bad time for ordering something healthy (chicken breast) and then undoing that with the sausage stuffing! ;-)
 All of our entrées were really good - the presentations were beautiful, the ingredients amazingly fresh, the preparations creative and respectful of the intrinsic elements of the fish/meat/chicken.
BR still had room for dessert and ordered a beautiful trio of house-made ice cream sandwiches. Each with it's own type of cookie and ice cream. They were small - just two or three bites each - and a nice way to experience a variety of flavors.
 Although the food was great, there were two other things that really made this a great dinner; sharing it with BR and EE (thanks for picking up the tab!!!); and the fact that I realized that Crush is great for dining with anyone who loves food - romantic interest or not...
Crush
2319 E. Madison Street
Seattle
206.302.7874
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