7 posts tagged “food”
I picked this up in January and it has become a favorite very quickly. It is simple recipes with great background for understanding the food.
What's your favorite thing to shop for?
Submitted by JadedButterfly.
There are two things I really enjoy shopping for, books (particularly used books) and food (particularly at farmer's markets or knowledgeable grocers). Both of these are shopping experiences that in their preferred settings inspire sharing of information and knowledge. I enjoy interacting with people whom are passionate about what they are selling.
I have strong interest in books, which includes great writing, but also great bookmaking with wonderful paper, care with typography, and careful book binding. Used bookstores is often where I run into people who understand these details and talk intelligently about the items on their shelves. Smaller book shops occasionally also have this shared passion and care. The smaller stores can dive deeply on a subject, like cooking, gardening, mystery fiction, design, etc. and expose me to something that is in line with my interests or will take a tangent from an interest and open up a whole new realm for me to learn and explore.
Food shopping is one of those things that is similar. The farmer's markets are great places to connect with those who have passion and understanding of their products. The learning about the food and how they are grown and the tips and even deep knowledge that is shared with regards on how to masterfully cook the elements is something that is not easily gained in books, or it is quite rare to garner this knowledge in this manner. Learning why a certain variety of apple has slightly different properties grown in local soil and climate is interesting. Gaining the understanding of why the texture and cooking methods need to be slightly altered is really wonderful to have at one's fingertips.
I also enjoy going through grocery stores when I travel to look at products that are similar and different. I am fascinated by the packaging, types of products, and variations in breadth of stocking. Finding organic dairy is common in certain cultures in their regular markets, there are 20 or more varieties of dry meat sticks, non-pasteurized dairy is a highly regarded product, or various cheeses that are seemingly common as well as those held up as "special". The differences in fresh fruit and vegetables that are available as well as the relative price differences from what I am used to.
One things that is intriguing is how different cultures let the customer interact with various foods before buying. In Britain it is rare to be able to feel fruits and vegetables before purchasing (it is getting to be more common to touch items, but it still does not approach the US high touch purchasing culture). Other countries will offer to let you touch meat or fresh pasta prior to purchase (usually the purchase is considered done when you touch the product).
The display of meats is interesting as in some countries and markets the meat is still live (as in a walking and breathing animal) or had not been skinned and is still whole. While yet other cultures will highlight certain elements of the animal (rabbit head cut in half to show the brains are fresh and ample). This things are still a shock to me and makes considering a purchase or even consumption much more difficult, but that is the lovely American way of removing a hint of the source of the product from the packaged product manner in which I grew up.
This past Spring we won a Dutch Pancake Dinner at a silent auction for our son's school. Last night we finally we able to arrange the dinner and have our pancakes cooked and get the real Dutch apple cake.
The cook is moving back to the Netherlands with her husband and family later this week. She cooked us a batch of the pancakes with the Koop Maas mix from the Netherlands, which can be found on the Internet or in stores in the Netherlands. These pancakes were slightly eggy and very much like crepes, but about 2 or 3 times the thickness of crepes. We had them with apples and raisens, cheese, and bacon in them. They were served and we could put powdered sugar and or syrup on them. They were very good, to say the least.
She then made a second batch with Aunt Jamima mix and just thinned it down. They were doughy and had large bubbles and were no where near as good. We had them with the same items mixed in.
I am a big pancake fan, particularly thin eggy ones like my grandfather used to make (who was 100% Dutch, but missed being born there by not too long). These pancakes last night took me right back to sitting at the counter in his house as he cooked the pancakes. My son likes pancakes of any kind, but my wife was not a fan. Well, she was not a fan until last night.
If you could open any sort of restaurant, what would it be like?
I would like a cross between a comfy coffee house with stacks of books on the wall and a French Bistro/Cafe. It would have killer croissants and scones to go with the coffee and teas. Coffee can be brewed or french press and teas steeped or french press. Espresso can be made with any of the roasts and varieties/blends. The espresso machine will require a well trained barista that understands perfect grind, press, outside pressure and humidity for that perfect shot.
The French cafe would focus on Lyonaise cooking with good sausage with onions, the house salad would would have frisse with lardons and a poached egg on top with mustard vinegarette or a peeled fresh grapefruit wedges, grilled onion, toasted pine nuts and goat cheese on mixed greens with a berry mustard vinagarette. It may even have a pallea dish on the menu, but you would have to wait for it as it has to cook properly. Quiche, omlettes, and the croque family will be on the menu. A cassolette with meat or vegetarian version would always be available. Fruit tarts would be the deserts and when the weather is cooler fresh chocolate truffles (the fresh soft kind with real dairy and dark chocolate). Everything on the menu would be organic and locally grown as much as possible.
The coffeehouse side would have deep chairs, comfy sofas, and reclaimed wood tables for games and drawing/writing. Free wifi would be around the whole place and have its own IRC channel. The cafe side would be reclaimed wood booths and thick round tables with wooden chairs. It would have some of the feel of Le Nimrod in Paris (on Cherche du Midi) as it is a real local bistro/cafe.
This would be in Portland, San Francisco, Berkeley, England, or anywhere sort of north but moderate.
What was the highlight of this past weekend?
Hanging out with friends I don't get to see enough while in Portland, Oregon, having great food and coffee and talking. I did not want this trip to end. It was too hot, but had great Thyme iced tea at StumpTown roasters, many great iced americanos, incredible Hot Lips Blackberry and Raspberry sodas, and fresh Blackberry Gelato.
I have had a great stay in Portland again. This one may have been the best in a long time. Today I essentially walked from 9:30 am until 5. I bounced around the Pearl District then up to Nob Hill walking both areas from Burnside to Lovejoy or beyond. I had great coffee and amazing baked goods. Lunch at Ken's Artisan Bakery on 21st was fantastic. I looked around Kitchen Kaboodle, which was my parents favorite store when we lived here, was one of the better cooking stores I have been in (the Sur la Table) in the Pearl was one of the better versions of that store I have been in.
Oh yes, I did go to Powell's, but did not go overly nuts. I found good deals on some things I have been wanting for a while and picked up a new cookbook. I wandered up around Pioneer Square and then back to Stump Town roasters on 3rd. It was a little cooler today, but I found many stores and cafes that I want to visit on my next trip or many next trips. Now I just need to get back again.
I am going to miss Portland deeply when I leave tomorrow morning.
Yesterday started at 3:30am for me just out side of Washington, DC and ended at nearly 11pm in Portland, Oregon. Yes, 22.5 hour day (this is for me to help me realize how long these days are when I travel so I understand why I am a wee bit tired after a few days of it).
I spent time growing up in Portland and it is one of my favorite cities. Yesterday it became a little more enjoyable. I hung out with some locals with what I thought was going to be a quick visit at Platial world HQ. It turned out I spent the afternoon with a few other locals and had a great afternoon geeking. I am huge fan of Platial and they are going to be a great product to watch.
Following that I went and dropped the bag at the hotel and went to meet some of the folks in town for WebVisions, like Jered Spool, Brian Oberkirch, Nick Finck, Kit Seebold, (please excuse spellings it is early) etc. It was a very good time to sit and chat over food and beer at Henry's Tap Room, in the old Henry Weinhard's brewery.
I did not last too much longer when I got back to the hotel (Lucia). The room is not big, but it has WiFi, it has a nice moden (Dwell-ish) design, and a killer bed. Did I say killer bed? The bed flat out rocks. Not only is the mattress comfy, but there are layers or duvet which made the slightly chilly room really enjoyable. I could stay in that bed all day.
