Mary Eats | Plant Strong in PDX

Watch These: 3 Foodie Documentaries.

By: Mary

20-05-2013

Jiro Dreams of Sushi

“Once you decide on your occupation… you must immerse yourself in your work. You have to fall in love with your work. Never complain about your job. You must dedicate your life to mastering your skill. That’s the secret of success… and is the key to being regarded honorably,” Jiro Ono

Last year you couldn’t scroll down your facebook stream without seeing a promotion for the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi, but believe you me, this movie is worth every ounce of promotion. I love a good documentary for putting you in a time, place and issue seamlessly; no nerdy story line to follow, no peirod costumes, just a virtual plane ticket and front row seat to reality. Jiro Dreams of Sushi reminds me most of the book Letters to a Young Chef by Daniel Boulud, a hard-nox-here’s-the-facts-kid about the dedicaiton, passion and diciplin it takes to lead a 3 star Michelin restaurant. Jiro’s story is brimming with a sad beauty. This man grows up alone, lives a shell of a family life, instead chasing perfection in every grain of rice, every sheet of toasted nori, and the daily routine of his restaurant.

Forks over Knives

A lot of us KNOW we should eat better, cut out the crap (I say this as I just polished off three cookies), and many of us love to see the fantastical results of a show like The Biggest Looser, but Forks over Knives starts at a place often ignored: the numbers- BMI, blood pressure, cholesterol levels. Forks over Knives brings healthy eating out of the place we have culturally reserved for those who shop at co-ops with their own bulk containers and shoot wheatgrass instead of espresso into the grasps of everyone hungry (excuse the pun) for knowledge about the foods that will free their body of pain and disease I truly believe this movie saves lives, it isn’t preachy, but eye opening, and I swear it will probably change at least one thing about the way you consume food (those cookies I ate were gluten free).

El Bulli: Cooking in Progress

Before loosing it #1 Restaurant in the World Status to NOMA, before closing it’s doors in 2012, El Bulli pushed conventional dining experience into a transformative space. When we consume food in restaurant, we ooh, and ahh, we say “oh- you have to try this,” but I don’t know how many of us pick apart the process. How did these raw ingredients turn into whisps of smoke or orbs filled with liquid. El Bulli: Cooking in Progress, illustrates the transformation of food from painstaking process of testing the limits of ingredients and how they come together for the final presentation to the diner. This documentary is mostly silent, in that there is very little talking, and wow does it have an effect: the intensity, the pressure is palpable. The business of creating food that literally blows your mind is SERIOUS business!

Recipe: Shaved Sunchokes, Dates, Apples, and Such. Insired by Ave Genes.

By: Mary

16-05-2013

PDX Eats, Plant Strong PDX Eats, Recipes

Ava Gene’s, the new-ish Italian joint by Stumptown founder and Woodsman Tavern owner Duane Sorensen, is a restaurant often on my mind. It is so Portland in that it is immaculately curated from the tiered frosted Edison light bulbs to a healthy marble bar, stylish servers, and dining soundtrack featuring Nirvana and the Fleet Foxes. I’m always quick to suggest it to friends looking for a new place to try.

And then there is the food. So very very good.

My last trip I stuck to veg sides; a carrot and pistachio salad composed only of roasted carrots and pistachios, grilled asparagus, and the sneaker hit, a sunchoke, date and radish melange.

I thought wistfully of this paper thin sunchoke and radish salad punctuated with bits of date a lot over the next few days, eventually picking up the ingredients to make it at home.

I don’t have much experience with sunchokes, or as they are also know, Jerusalem artichokes. I do, however, know they are as polarizing a vegetable as Brussels sprouts; folks either love’em or hate’em. At first glance, they resemble misshapen fingerlings rejects. Unlike potatoes, sunchokes can be eaten raw or cooked, and, well, have the same gastro effect as beans (just putting it out there).

Sunchokes turn quickly, and if preparing raw, best to cut them straight into acidulated water. You might already have known this. I didn’t, so, my salad was browned, but not for the worse.

The recipe, quite simple, goes a little like this:

Squeeze half a lemon into a bowl. Take 4 medium-sized sunchokes and give them a good scrub. Position a mandolin over the bowl of lemon juice. Slice the sunchokes straight into the bowl. Follow with radishes from a bunch. Cut and core a tart apple, such as a granny smith. Cut the half the apple into batoons (french fry shape) and add to the bowl with the radishes and sunchokes, eat the other half or save for another use. Pit 8-10 oil cured or kalamata olives and cut into slivers. Add to the sunchoke mixture. Repeat the pitting and slicing with 3 dates and add to the bowl. Toss together with a few shakes of sherry vinegar, or, more lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. If you have some chives growing in your garden, mince those and toss them in too. If you insist on olive oil, drizzle a bit of your absolute best olive oil over the salad and toss one more time. Enjoy!

If you are looking for more ways to use sunchokes, hop over to my PINTEREST board where I’ve collected a few yummy recipes from the interwebs, including the Saveur recipe for shaved sunchoke and apple salad that served as the inspiration for this recipe (reference it for measurements if you need it).

Enjoy!

2013 Resolutions, 105 Cookbooks

By: Mary

07-03-2013

Modern HomeEc

For the past two years I’ve made a resolution that dodges and weaves my most earnest intentions and efforts. It isn’t to loose weight or save more money -though I famously fail at both every year. No, the biggie for me has been to cook one recipe from every cookbook I own.

Doesn’t sound terribly difficult, right?

I own, 105 cookbooks give or take a few out on loan. There are 365 days a year, 1085 meals not to count snacks in a year, so seriously, how hard could this be?

IT IS REALLY EFFING HARD

Why? I feel a deep responsibility to these books I’ve lugged around the country with me, building my collection since high school. Moving to the east coast, and back; heavy boxes of cookbooks I’ve moved all over Seattle and down to Portland. Narrowing all the wisdom and excellence between a hardcover to represent to represent a chef, a restaurant, a country, or cuisine with a single recipe is not a task to take lightly.

Take Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles, a book stained with oil, vinegar, and bourbon. A book I attribute to teaching me how to really appreciate eating meat, I just don’t eat that way any more. It seems dishonest in a way to choose Fennel and Tomato Soup as the one recipe I document to celebrate this book.

Every year, this is my stopping point, where I overanalyze my selection and give up under pressure to return to epicurious and wholefoods.com for all my meal inspiration.

Clearly, my goal needed a little tweaking, so instead of seeing this challenge as one recipe to rule them all, I am simply going to use one recipe as inspiration, as a jumping off point for a plant strong diet (which I should clarify includes meat, just less than 3oz per serving).

If I run across a recipe that fits my current diet, I’ll make it, I’ll share it. But no more trying to vegan-ise Dorie Greenspan’s love letters to butter cream and more butter. Those recipes don’t need me to tool around with soy margarine and coconut butter- there are far better recipes out there written to use these ingredients in a way that makes them shine. And that little piece of freedom sets this goal with in my reach.

So here is to 2013. To my goal/resolution that took 2 months to think through. I’m feeling pretty confident about achieving it this year, even if I only make 105 different plant-strong salad dressings.

Oregon Inspired Roasted Brussels Sprouts

By: Mary

17-11-2012

Recipes

I owe David Chang a huge thank you. A trip to his restaurant in 2007 started my love affair with Brussels sprouts.

At Momofuku Saam, sprout halves roasted to within an inch of their life, crunched between my teeth like popcorn. Bathed in fish sauce and topped with spiced puffed rice cereal, I couldn’t get enough. Lucky for me, Gourmet published the recipe in October that year, and I’ve never looked back. Until last month.

At Jamison restaurant in the Pearl, I met a new Brussels sprout dish that captured my tastebuds. While dining with my boss and a few community partners, a plate of lightly roasted Brussles, quartered and dressed in a mustard cream sauce topped with Parmesan made its way around the table. I should have been networking, talking about common interests, opportunity for partnership. Instead, as my dining companions chatted, I mentally broke down how I would make this dish at home. I’d use a similar roasting process to the Momofuku sprouts, replace the cream with cashew cream, use an Oregon mustard, and finish the dish with toasted Oregon hazelnuts.

After a couple tests with the cashew cream sauce- don’t let it get too hot, don’t make it too thick, and don’t use too much salt, I ended on a dish that will be appearing on this year’s Thanksgiving table, and many more winter nights to come.

Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Hazelnuts in a Whole Grain Mustard Cashew Cream
Serves 6

2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
2 tsp canola oil
1/2 cup cashews soaked in 1 cup of water for at least 2 hrs or overnight in the fridge
1 Tablespoon of whole grain mustard
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup hazelnuts

1. Heat your oven to 450 degrees with the oven rack positioned in the middle.
2. Toss the Brussels sprout halves with the canola oil in a large bowl. Place on a baking sheet cut side down. Roast in the oven, on the middle rack for 25-30 minutes, rotating pan once halfway through.
3. While the sprouts roast, drain the cashews. Place in a blender with 1 cup water and blend on high for 30-60 seconds until smooth and creamy. Transfer the sauce to a small sauce pan. Heat over medium for just a few minutes to warm the cream. Be careful that you don’t let the cream get too hot or keep it on the stove for too long as the cream will thicken- if this happens, add water by the tablespoon until you get the desired thickness. Off the heat, add the mustard and salt and taste for seasoning. Transfer the sauce to a large bowl.
4. Remove the sprouts from the oven. Turn one over, it should be golden brown and crisp on the bottom. Transfer them to the bowl with the mustard cream. Add in the hazelnuts and toss to combine. Taste again for seasoning. Depending on the strength of your mustard, you might want to add some lemon juice or a little black pepper.

Oregon Cranberry Sauce for Thanksgiving

By: Mary

15-11-2012

Recipes

Earlier this week I started a draft of a soapbox post on healthy for the holidays. My ramblings got the best of me, and, well, it remains a draft. The gist, simply, was where in the holiday meal to concede to caloric bombs in all their glory, and where to try and make healthy substitutions your friends and family won’t groan over (do not use silken tofu for creamed spinach. Just don’t).

Cranberry sauce is one of my favorite holiday sides. The bright color and acidity cleans the palate between bites of creamy mashed potatoes and cloying gravy. I’ve always made mine from scratch, but even the homemade kind is high in sugar. On their own, cranberries are both acidic and bitter, and desperately seeking sweet. While replacing the sugar all together may be a stretch, I’ve found a ripe Bartlett pear can help cut the amount in half. It does, however result in a saucier texture than a gel.

Cranberries, like concord grapes and blueberries are one of the few native fruits to the US. One family farm near and dear to my heart is Vincent Cranberries. Tim and his wife Dani are the third generation to work the Vincent bogs. Like many small farmers, they’ve looked to creating a value added line with their products enabling them to drive a stronger profit from their business instead of selling to a middle man or co-op. Their expanded line included raw cranberries, dried cranberries and cranberry and fruit juices. Tim is so passionate and proud to carry on his family’s linage, you can’t help but feel pride in taking part in the process. Look for them in grocery stores around town.

Oregon Cranberry Sauce
Makes 2 cups

2 cups Vincent Family Farms Cranberries
1 cup water
1 bartlette pear, peeled and diced
1/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup toasted freddy guy hazenuts, toasted and chopped

In a medium sauce pot, combine the cranberries, water, pear, and sugar over medium-high heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Bring mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer, cook 10 minutes. Using a potato masher, mash the sauce to break the cranberries and pear. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in hazelnuts. Enjoy on just about any and everything

LEFTOVERS!! Just some of the ways I’d use up leftovers.
Mix into your oatmeal or yogurt
Serve with stuffed squash
Brush on chicken breasts/tofu and bake
Stuff in wontons with cream cheese substitute for dessert wontons
Freeze into incube trays for a seasonal sangria or NA Cranberry lemonade
Serve on top of baked yams, garnished with chopped green onions

How do you expand the life of leftover cranberry sauce?

Oregon Pear & Honey Sparkler, A Cocktail for the Holidays

By: Mary

11-11-2012

Recipes

Last year for Christmas, the mister presented me with a sweater, and a bottle of Clear Creek Pear Brandy. It was not unexpected. The same gift is exchanged every year. We both pick out a sweater, something nice, and a bottle of the drink. He had, however confused the Pear Brandy, with Pear Edu de Vie, a liqueur I had been raving about all fall.

I didn’t really know what to do with the pear brandy, it isn’t something you just add soda water to and kick back. It is strong, very strong, with a bouquet of Bartlett pears that sends you straight into a boozy pear orchard with one whiff.

I’ve used some in baking, great, and tried sipping it straight, pretty good, but found the brandy really sings when dressing up a flute of sparkling wine.

I tested this recipe several times and found a few things to note: watch that your sparkling wine isn’t too sweet. If it is, the honey syrup will be overkill. Also, have a light hand with the brandy, a little goes a long, long, long way.

I’ve included two variations of the recipe. A single serving, and a mix for 8. Ideally, I’d serve this as my guests are arriving to the holiday soirée, and switch to wine for the rest of the evening.

Oregon Pear & Honey Sparkler
Makes 1

1 tsp pear brandy
1 tsp Honey Thyme Syrup* recipe follows
4 oz or so Dry Sparkling WIne
I thin slice Bartlett pear

Add the brandy and honey-thyme syrup to a flute glass. Top with Sparkling wine and drop in a thin slice of pear for garnish.

Recipe for a Crowd
Serves 8

3 Tablespoons pear brandy
3 Tablespoons Honey Thyme syrup
1 Bottle Dry Sparkling Wine
8 thin slices Bartlett Pear

In a small bowl, mix the brandy and honey thyme syrup together. Evenly distribute between 8 flutes. Top off with sparkling wine and garnish with pear slices.

Honey Thyme Syrup
Makes roughly 2/3 cup

1/2 cup local Oregon Honey
1/2 cup water
2-3 strips lemon zest, each about 2-inches long and 1/2-inch wide
a handful of thyme sprigs, 8-10

Combine the honey and water in a small sauce pot over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, and remove from heat. Add the lemon peel and thyme sprigs. Let the aromatics steep until the mixture is at room temperature. Store sealed, in the refrigerator for a week or so.

Oregon Fingerling Potato and Vegan Feta Salad

By: Mary

24-10-2012

Recipes

Fall came and went quickly in Oregon. And by quickly, I mean we maybe saw a couple days of picture perfect crisp & sunny fall weather sandwiched between 80 degrees and sunny and 45 degrees and rainy. With this colder, wetter weather our side dishes have moved away from baby greens dotted with seasonal fruit or roasted cherry tomatoes and toasted nuts, to heartier, carbier offerings.

Fingerling potatoes are all over the farmers markets right now and rather than roast them (which, honestly, I don’t always nail), I worked them into this late summer side dish. Despite Siri’s near perfect predictions, I’m not ready to give up on better weather.

This recipe really depends on excellent ingredients to make it sing. Otherwise, what do you have? Potatoes, cheese, olive oil. There is a small Q&A at the bottom of the recipe where I soapbox it up on WHY I think shelling out a few more bucks for star ingredients is worth it. I won’t be offended if you skip it.

Fingerling Potatoes with Feta, Olives, and Mint

inspired by Epicurious and Oregon Producers

Serves 3-4 as a side without leftovers (if you do have leftovers, it would make a killer filling for an omelet)

1 lb fingerling potatoes, picked through and washed
1 sprig of mint, leaves chopped- about 2 tablespoons
1/3 cup HeidiHo Feta (or any dairy feta), crumbled
10 or so, oil cured olives- the really wrinkly ones off the olive bar, pitted and roughly chopped
1/4 preserved lemon, flesh removed, discarded and peel minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
Splash Sherry Vinegar
Finishing Sea Salt (like Jacobesn Sea Salt!!)
Pepper

Place potatoes in a pot and fill with cold water. Bring to a boil over medium high and cook until potatoes are fork tender. Drain potatoes, and set aside for a hot minute.

While the potatoes are cooking. In a small bowl, combine the mint, feta, olives, and lemon peel.

Once the potatoes don’t completely burn your finger tips, but are still hot-ish, cut them into chunks, 3/4-inch -1 inch. Place potatoes in a large bowl with the olive oil and just a good splash of sherry vinegar (like a tablespoon or less if you want to measure). Toss that together and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper, keeping in mind the salty olives, feta, and lemon peel that are about to join the party.

Taste the potatoes for seasoning then fold in the mint, feta, olives and preserved lemon mixture. Taste again for seasoning and serve!

Questions and Answers

Do I really need the preserved lemons? They only come in jars and they are pretty expensive and I don’t know what else I’d do with them.

YES!! Well, no, not really. The dish would be fine without them, but preserved lemons add a sultry salty lemon flavor that can’t be replaced with lemon zest. I encourage you to purchase that jar (though I have seen them in bulk around town in Portland on olive bars) then use that chopped lemon peel anywhere you’d use lemon zest in a savory recipe- in a grain salad, as a garnish for cooked fish, or on hummus, ect.

Can I just use regular cheese?

Yes. Absolutely. I don’t eat a lot of diary for various reasons, it hurts my stomach, it makes me really mucousy, and dairy totally gives me gas. Just a heads up. Personally, I’m weary of consuming dairy products, and after reading the China Study, believe everything I thought I could only get from dairy, I can get elsewhere. Except the taste. I’m not a huge fan of diary free cheese, but HeidiHo’s Feta Crumbles are a great stand in for feta’s powerful flavor. It isn’t as creamy, but it packs the salty, lemony punch.

Why with all the fancy salt?? Won’t my table or Kosher salt do just fine?

If will do fine, but it won’t do great. Building flavor when I cook, I absolutely use kosher salt. But for finishing a dish, I want something more, a more dramatic flake, that crunches when I bite into it. I used to be a huge fan of the Murry River Pink Salt, and I still am, but since discovering Jacobsen Salt, it is my go to finisher.

5 Essential Smoothie Ingredients

By: Mary

14-10-2012

5 Thoughts On, Recipes

You can not escape the green smoothie trend.

Why? Read any women’s interest magazine or take it straight from Dr. Oz’s green-tinted smoothie mustache, the more greens you can get the better. High in folic acid, vitamin C and minerals, they aren’t called super foods for nothing. Daily consumption of about a cup of greens has been linked to everything from higher energy to weight loss. Isn’t that something you could use? Enhanced energy?

The real question is how to take the plunge when a green smoothie looks, and smells, like the bottom of the lake. I’ve got this- I haven’t won over my mom, yet, but I’m confident my 5-must-have-green-smoothie-ingredients will have you drinking green, and liking it.

My morning green smoothie routine is straight forward, down and dirty. It is quick, tasty, and like any breakfast, a balance of protein and carbs. There are a million and one smoothie recipes out there (google green smoothie, I dare you), to keep it simple I stick to my five basics, and a 6th for extra credit.

#1 Greens: 1/2 cup. Frozen chopped kale (found in the frozen section) is simply way to chill down your smoothie without adding ice. I love how easy and convenient it is, as I shouldn’t be handling knives at 6AM before coffee.

#2 Frozen Fruit: 1 handful Frozen mango, blueberries, raspberries, just about any fruit will do, even frozen cantaloupe chunks add sweetness. To save on frozen fruit, which can get pricy, look out for deep discounts at the supermarket on fresh seasonal fruit. Prepare fruit by peeling, dicing and/or removing pits. Place the fruit on a baking sheet or cookie tray and freezer for a couple hours. Once the fruit is frozen, you can transfer it from the cookie tray to a air-tight freezer bag.

#3 Flax Meal: 1 spoonful Omega3 and a little fiber all from these tiny silky seeds! I recommend already ground flax seeds for ease. Keep them in the fridge as the natural occurring oils can cause the ground flax to go rancid quickly if left out at room temperature. Why not flax oil you ask? Flax oil is 100% fat. Not a terrible thing, but using the meal gets you all that great fiber whereas the oil leaves you with a lot of extra calories.

#4 Almond Butter: 1 dollop Don’t skip the protein I happen to prefer almond butter over peanut butter, but you could try cashew butter, hazelnut butter, tahini, sunflower butter, whatever strikes your fancy- be judicious with the amount, as 2 tablespoons of Almond butter has around 180 calories.

#5 Non Dairy Liquid: 1-1 1/2 cups Almond milk, soy milk, rice milk, hazelnut milk, hemp milk, even coconut water will do! My current goto is SoDelicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk. It is low in calories, sugar and sodium, and has a very neutral flavor

**#6 (for extra credit) Chia Seeds, Macca Power, Amazing Grass: 1 teaspoon Most days I add a scoop of Greens Plus for a little energy boost. I will admit it gives my smoothie a, freshly cut grass flavor, but I kinda crave it.

So I’ve mentioned calories a few times, I’m not a calorie counter, I promise, but they add up! You can quickly create a 700 calorie smoothie monster if you aren’t careful.

Are you a green smoothie devotee? What are your smoothie staples?

5 Take Home Lessons From a Vegan Dinner

By: Mary

08-10-2012

PDX Eats, Plant Strong PDX Eats

When it comes to eating out, I eat out with intent

My goal is not to annoy everyone I’m with by insisting everyone WAIT!! until I’ve snapped a photo of the food, grammin’it,. I take photos of my food to note a few ideas to try out at home, and yes, grammin’it.

I have a running list of restaurants I’d like to visit in my notes app. Restaurant names are listed alphabetically, accompanied by notes about the chef, their style or particularly exciting dishes on their menus. Though I’ve been to Departure a few time now, Gregory Gourdet remains on that list.

A few weeks back an I approached his Vegan’s Summer’s End dinner with Portobello Chef Aaron Adams serious as a co-ed with a freshly sharpened No.2 pencil. What I hoped to glean from this dinner was an inspired approach to transforming vegan ingredients into dishes that celebrated plants in flavor.

I picked up more than I bargained for. Read on for tips you can use at home to elevate just about any dish, vegan or not.

Course One: Macadamia Nut Cheese with Coconut Jam & Watermelon Rind Mostarda AND Vegetable Terrines with late Summer Pickles (not pictured).

Lesson: Presentation is King

Have a look at this photo, and that wee piece of vegan cheese. It doesn’t look like much in size, but the accoutrements and the styling of the food turned a 2/3 bite dish into something I wanted to savor in spoonfuls smaller than what my toddler can manage. Extend the life of a small plate with styling and garnishes.

Course two: Matasutake Broth with Pine Nut Dumplings Ginger and Wasabi

Lesson: Mushrooms = Meaty, Ginger = Levity

The bit about mushrooms being meaty, I already knew that. What really caught me by surprise was a jolt of ginger cutting through the weighty broth. Simmer slices of ginger in broth to infuse a little light into a heavy winter soup.

Course three: Farm Lettuce and Vegetable Composition with Candied Fruits and Crispy Herbs

Lesson: Accessorize with Herbs

Basil, cilantro and flat leaf parsley are regular tenants in my refrigerator, but I routinely use them for flavor building aromatics in salads and soups. Add a variety of herbs to a salad mix or bowl of baby spinach to enliven a mealtime mainstay.

Course Four: Vegetable Nut & Seed Bulgogi

Lesson: Family Style Makes for Great Conversation and a bit of Competition.

An engaging dining experience is bound develop anytime you set down 10 or so dishes at a table for a group to pick at, rate, laude, push to the edge of the table or fight over the last bite of whatever. Up until this course my table of mixed company remained each caught up in the beauty of their individual plates. It was now, passing the bowl of rice, I met the people next to me. Handing over the place of bibb lettuce, I smiled at the people across from me, and making eye contact with the woman at the end of the booth, I was sure to get the last bite of kimchi.

Dessert Course: Ginger-blueberry Financier with Thai Basil Ice Cream

Lesson: It isn’t dessert unless there is ice cream.

Well, you’ll have to trust me. It was reeeeeeeealy good.

Feast Portland. What You Need To Know

By: Mary

20-09-2012

PDX Eats, This is Portland, Oregon

Good morning Portland. You know it is fall with the air is cool and the world is still dark at 7AM. Today Feast Portland begins and I am incredibly excited for this event.

If you live in Portland, you probably know about this event from all the flyers, posters, and tweets around town, and if you don’t live in Portland, well you’ll probably want to move here after this weekend.

Here’s the skinny. For the next three days, the city is running amuck with culinary talent and sips, nibbles, classes, and dinners all at your fingertips.

What I love about this festival is the accessibility to events (some tickets start at just $30), the feeling of community between chefs, event organizers, media and producers, and the all out excitement to see our city’s best in tasty action.

Knowing that the Bon Appetite team and a few Food Network Celebs are in town only adds to the excitement.

Hopefully, you already have your tickets as many events are sold out, but if you are still wavering on what to see and do, here’s my must see Feast List.

Thursday
Sandwich Invitational (I hear there are only a few tickets left!)
5:30 PM. Looking at you Jason French, Ben Bettinger, Jen Lewis, Molly Moon and Ethan Stowell. Can’t wait to taste all that creativity between two slices of bread.

Mark Bittman at the Schnitz
7:30 PM. Does Mark Bittman need an introduction? I am so grateful for his influence on the eating public at large when it comes to consuming more plants. Looking forward to tweeting nuggets of wisdom from this event tonight!

Friday
Coffee that Rocks, Director’s Park
10AM. Bon Appetite’s Andrew Knowlton and PDX coffee. ‘Nuff said.

The World of Sake, DIrector’s Park
1:45PM. Oregon is a great producer of Sake, and my friend Colleen Nielsen will be showing you how to pair sake with cheese!

Oregon Grand Tasting at Pioneer Square
2PM. The feeding frenzy you imagine when the words food festival pop into your head; Oregon’s best producers and chef stage all in one delicious spot

Asian Night Market at Ecotrust
6PM. If you’ve been to South East Asia, you can picture the scene: crazy energy, tea lights, steaming carts of unidentifiable food stuffs, furious cooking on woks, and bandanas holding back a forhead of sweat from passionate cooks. Tonight a little square in Portland transforms into an Asian Night Market with great food from some of my favorite Portland Chefs: Hank Costello of Andina, Patrick Fleming of Boke Bowl, Gregory Gourdet of Departure, Gabe Rosen of Biwa and Johanna Ware of Smallwares.

Saturday
Wine vs. Beer at Director’s Park
12:30PM. What is a little competition between good friends?

Whole Foods Market Speaker Series at the Gerding Theater
12:30 PM. Ok- this is my company’s event, but I am so looking forward to this TEDx style speaker event, curated by Portland Monthly’s Randy Gregg, and featuring food thought leaders such as Bon Appetite’s Adam Rapport, Francis Lam, and Walter Robb.

Andy Richter’s Thai Street Food Class at Director’s Park
1:45PM. Very excited to expand my Thai culinary know how beyond Panang Curry.

High Comfort at the Multnomah Athletic Club
6:30PM. Comfort food pushed out of comfort and onto the high street. Looking forward to seeing how many ways one can class up Mac and Cheese. Crossing my fingers that someone took on my childhood favorite- Sloppy Joe’s

Sunday
Bike and Brunch,
8:30 AM. A 50 mile bike ride around Sauvie Island with cycling enthusiast Chris King, Chris Cosentino, Jason French and Chris Diminno before brunch.

What are you planning on seeing at Feast? I’ll be running around projecting managing our events. Say hi if you see me, and tell me all the tasty thing you’ve been eating.

Watch These: 3 Foodie Documentaries.

Recipe: Shaved Sunchokes, Dates, Apples, and Such. Insired by Ave Genes.

2013 Resolutions, 105 Cookbooks

Oregon Inspired Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Oregon Cranberry Sauce for Thanksgiving

Oregon Pear & Honey Sparkler, A Cocktail for the Holidays

Oregon Fingerling Potato and Vegan Feta Salad

5 Essential Smoothie Ingredients

5 Take Home Lessons From a Vegan Dinner

Feast Portland. What You Need To Know

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