11.05.08
Posted in cool beans, food at 12:42 am by Megan
So, twice now we’ve been given the gift of free wild mushrooms by customers at our day job. The first time was last summer, when I was working down in Burien: an older gentleman who regularly visited our store came in one busy sunday clutching in his hands a huge tan and chartreuse fungus. He smiled at me when our glances met, baring his many missing teeth. “Do you know what this is?”, he asked me. I had no clue upon sight. “Well this is what some folks call a boletus mushroom”, he informed me. Upon hearing the name boletus, my mouth watered. Boletus are common in the Northwest, but they were rare where we used to live, and I had yet to try this delicacy, commonly known as porcini.
I brought the mushroom home, intrigued, delighted, and downright terrified. We looked up pictures and articles online to help us identify it, but I just wasn’t sure if I could trust the foraging of a nearly toothless septuagenarian and some pages found from a Google search. So it went bad. And I tossed it. And then I went to my local Farmer’s market and spoke with the gent at Foraged and Found Edibles, and saw that yes, in fact, I had been given a *real* boletus, and that it probably would have cost me $6-10 if I had paid for it. And I let it go to waste. Never again!
So the other night, when Mark came home clutching a brown paper sack FILLED with a pound of golden chanterelles gifted to him by a customer/forager, did we let them go to waste? Heck no! I made the most of them- first with a pizza of the sauteed chanterelles, shallots, bacon, thyme, and gruyere. The first bite was scary, even though I was sure they were safe. Scary, but thankfully safe, and crazy delicious.
I also made a chanterelle and gruyere tart the next night, but I didn’t take a photo because the camera battery was dead and we were hungry. Here’s a photo of a similar tart I made with a mix of wild mushrooms last year.
Would you eat foraged fungi given to you by a stranger?
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10.15.08
Posted in house at 7:38 pm by Megan
So, I know it’s been a few weeks since I’ve posted ANYTHING. I’m really disappointed in myself for this, but I’ve been absolutely consumed by the whirlwind of life. So the economy crashed, and even though loans are hard to come by, Mark and I actually managed to score a good honest fixed rate loan and have an accepted offer on a HOUSE.
Here’s a mere portion of the backyard (where we hope to place some raised planting beds):
Now comes the real fun, the inspection.
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09.28.08
Posted in food at 2:06 pm by Megan
Last night, my friend Kletia and I trekked down to Tacoma to go to an “apple party” on our co-worker Andrea’s family farm. They have a huge spread of land with apple, pear, walnut, and hazelnut trees everywhere. Each year they celebrate the harvest by renting an apple press, inviting over friends, and spending all day making pies and pressing cider. I have to admit, Making cider was even more fun than I had anticipated. Makes me want to rent the equipment myself and do the same thing.
The Krook’s house was thankfully stocked with the fantastic book Cider by Annie Proulx (yes, that Annie Proulx of Brokeback Mountain fame). The book was jam-packed with information, from the basic steps, to the more esoteric blending of flavors in your cider. Our cider was made with equal portions elnath, jonagold, and with a hearty punch of red gravenstein thrown in. Most of the apples were grown there on the Krook’s farm.
The first step is to quarter your clean apples (cores, stems, seeds, and all) and dump them into a grinder. You then laugh as you grind the apples down to a pomace, and avoid getting hit in the eye by the tart apple shrapnel. That pomace gets dumped into the press, which is lined with a cheesecloth-like netted bag, to prevent (for the most part) chunks of apple getting into the cider.
The pomace getting transferred to the press.
Kletia at the wheel, with Andrea’s sister assisting.
You then turn the crank on the press, and resist the urge to put your mouth on the spout as the golden waves of apple delight flow out. It’s really insanely cool.
And there you have it! Fresh pressed cider- unpasteurized, delicious. You must consume the cider immediately, pasteurize it, or freeze it for later use. I was going to use some in a recipe (cider pancakes maybe?), but the stuff was so darn good we’re just drinking it alone (or diluted with some sparkling water).
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09.22.08
Posted in food, work at 11:34 am by Megan
With this Wednesday comes September’s installment of The Lab at Velocity Art and Design, everyone’s (in Seattle) favorite creative meet up. I am now officially a sponsor of this monthly event, which is super-awesome! I’ve so enjoyed participating and meeting so many fabulous and talented people, like Jessie from Cakespy and my namesake, Megan from Not Martha. I’m really looking forward to this next one. Mark unfortunately could not get the day off of work, so I’ll be flying solo (but bolstered by the help of some friends, I’m sure).
Here’s the menu I’m bringing in tow, which is influenced by the Fall harvest.
*grilled local squash and white bean dip
*sweet-n-spicy popcorn
*thyme scented palmiers
If you’re in Seattle and you’re free this Wednesday, 9/24, from 6-8 pm, you should definitely come on by. The address is 251 Yale Ave N., in SLU, right behind REI.
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09.19.08
Posted in food at 3:36 pm by Megan
So it seems that the sunny season is officially over here in Seattle, and I’ll admit, I’m sad to see it go so soon*. My favorite farmers market ends next week. It’s cloudy and cold and it’s supposed to rain tomorrow. So instead of just sealing it with a kiss, I said goodbye by buying the most impossibly tiny and impossibly delicious strawberries yesterday and served them a top some silky vanilla ice cream. A perfect farewell.
*I was, however, delighted to see local brussels sprouts at my market yesterday. Something to look forward to.
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09.18.08
Posted in food at 11:46 pm by Megan
*UPDATE: My score has gone up two more after last nights awesome dinner at Quinns. #’s 4 and 40 are new.*
I first ran across this meme on Chocolate and Zucchini. It was started by a blogger over in England, Andrew Wheeler, from Very Good Taste. He laid out some ground rules for participating.
1. Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4. Optional extra: post a comment on Very Good Taste, linking to your results.
I think it’s pretty cool, even if it is a bit braggy. I’ve yet to see some one say yes to roadkill and Kaolin.
The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea does it count if it’s in my shampoo?
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue-
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart Bacon wrapped street dog outside of the Hollywood Bowl. Heavenly!
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle- alas, only the oil and salt…
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries Huckleberries, blackberries… oh the bounty of the northwest!!
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl I grew up in Monterey, CA. This may be our regional claim to fame. After calamari.
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk And I made goat cheese with it. I like it better as cheese.
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi Ate this in Japan after being prodded by my host family. They got a kick out of seeing my face curl in disgust!
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine Canada’s greatest gift to mankind, indeed!
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads Drool…
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict What I judge all breakfast joints by. I’m picky about my hollandaise sauce.
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake
Score:63 65. I’ll admit, I’m a bit disappointed in my score. There are things on here that I’ve been wanting to try- like steak tartare, black truffles, and, of course, a tasting menu at a three star michelin restaurant (French Laundry, anyone?!?). I’d like to see how high I score next year. I’ll also note there are only two things I won’t eat- but there are quite a few I’m in no hurry to try (carp and whole insects, par exemple).
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09.13.08
Posted in cool beans, food at 1:38 am by Megan
image courtesy of Creative Juices
Mark and I watched Ratatouille today. People had been telling me to watch it for a year now, and now I know why. This was the greatest movie I have seen in a long time- it moved me to tears a few times. It really properly conveys the power and meaning that food can have. Not only was the story fantastic, but the art direction, score, and voice acting were phenomenal. I was particularly taken with the closing credit 2-D animation, which evokes the old Disney work of Mary Blair. I need to own this movie.
image courtesy of boing boing
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09.10.08
Posted in cool beans, house at 10:33 pm by Megan
After being sick and doing nothing for 5 days, I guess I had some pent up energy. I organized our office yesterday- a major feat. Mark and I have been slowly working towards this end result, but I was a cleaning dervish yesterday. It feels wonderful, like all of those “evil demons” have been exorcised from my house. Clutter affects your mood for sure. The challenge now is to keep it this way, which is why we’re trying out a schedule for household chores. The inspiration came from this post on Shelterrific.
Mr T., pitying fools who have bills!
Sandcast paperweight by Melodie Beylik (my aunt)
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09.06.08
Posted in food at 4:33 am by Megan
A few weeks ago, Mark’s parents were in town for a visit, and I was dead set on making them a nice dinner. We went to the farmers market and the fisherman’s terminal, and bought all of the best ingredients we could find. I made a full four course menu that balmy summer evening, but in my opinion, the best part was dessert. I found the most resplendent berries: loganberries- a deep purple in between the color of a raspberry and a blackberry, so juicy they were bursting upon contact.
I’d been reading about clafoutis lately, and figured it would be a good and easy match with the berries. A clafoutis is a cross between a pudding and a cake in consistency, usually containing fruit. I have read opinons that state that a clafoutis must be made with cherries. Made with any other fruit, it would be known as a flognarde. So call ‘em whatever you want to, but I personally find the word flognarde unappealing.
Loganberry Clafoutis (makes 6 individual desserts)
2 pints loganberries (or blackberries, or any other fruit)
1/4 c agave syrup
For the batter:
-3 eggs -1/2 c turbinado sugar, plus more for the ramekins
-1/3 c APF -3/4 c heavy cream
-3/4 c milk -1 tsp vanilla extract
-pinch of salt
Toss loganberries with agave syrup. Let macerate for 15 minutes. Prepare ramekins by greasing them and dusting them with sugar. Line bottoms of each ramekin with an even layer of berries, making sure to reserve some for the top of the ice cream.
Preheat the oven to 375.
Beat eggs until foamy, add sugar and beat until thick. Add flour and beat until smooth, then add dairy, vanilla, and salt. Pour the batter over the fruit, and bake for 20 minutes or until clafoutis are browned and risen, but still slightly soft in the center. Don’t overbake! Serve warm with your favorite ice cream, and drizzle remaining macerated fruit over the top.
I was not ambitious enough to make my own ice cream, so I paired this with some awesome creme fraiche gelato from Snoqualmie Gourmet Ice Cream.
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09.04.08
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:39 pm by Megan
this picture is small.I couldn’t get it any bigger.
I have something going on. Is it the stomach flu? Food poisoning? Possesed by a demon?
Anyhoo- I can’t stand the smell of food, the thought of food, anything right now. This makes me sad. Mark made me eggs the other day and I couldn’t eat them. Boo. I’m trying to ride it out, but it’s been 3 days now and I want my life back.
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