Welcome to beautiful Orcas Island, WA

This weekend, my husband and I slipped away to Orcas Island to celebrate our friends’ Jamie and Chelsea’s wedding. We arrived just before 9pm on Friday, after a stressful six hours on the road and the ferry. (Traffic from Seattle to Anacortes during the summer season is as bad as you’ve heard!) But…look at that view! Orcas Island is simply spectacular during the summer months, and it’s our favorite of the San Juan islands.

a split of Duval Leroy NV Brut chilling

Four years ago, Henry took me to Orcas Island on our third date. We enjoyed dinner at sunset at Christina’s restaurant, which was sold and became Allium restaurant mere months ago. From what I’ve heard–both from locals on the island, and foodies in Seattle–chef Lisa Nakamura has been packing the dining room night after night. (With a pedigree that includes renowned restaurants such as The French Laundry and more recently, The Herbfarm, it is no wonder.)

fava bean cakes with Dalmatian figs and lime

My husband made a reservation for us, and was asked whether I would still be participating in Meatless Week for this meal. (I guess Lisa reads this blog–if so, hello!) He said I would be, but he was not. We came in expecting just to order off the menu, but we were pleasantly surprised when Lisa sent out two different tasting menus with paired wines.

Henry’s seared scallops with Dalmatian figs and lime

Wine pairing: Duval Leroy NV Brut champagne

Our first courses mirrored each other’s in appearance: He had two beautifully seared sea scallops on sliced Dalmatian figs. Instead of scallops, I got two crisp and creamy fava bean cakes. Hidden under the fava bean cakes and the scallops were tiny supremes of lime.

sweet corn ‘polenta’ with truffles and white truffle oil

Wine pairing: Couer de Terre 2008 Pinot Gris

Our second courses were the same: a generous portion of sliced truffles with truffle oil, over sweet corn polenta. We both really enjoyed this course even though neither of us are huge fans of summer truffles. It was that good.

Black Dog farm carrots and Maple Rock tomatoes with basil pesto

There are few things I don’t like to eat, but I’ll admit that until recently, I was not a huge fan of carrots. This changed in the last couple of years, when I found myself really enjoying the more complex, more intense flavor of heirloom varieties. (It should be no surprise that the bear little resemblance to overgrown, sacchaine ones you’d find at the supermarket.) These Black Dog farm carrots had such flavor–and not from over-caramelization. The tiny Maple Rock tomatoes were meticulously peeled, and the basil pesto was a fresh burst of summer on the plate.

Henry’s salmon chops a la French Laundry with tomatoes and basil pesto

Wine pairing: Dusky Goose 2007 Pinot Noir

My husband had the same tomatoes and pesto with salmon “chops” a la French Laundry. As you can see, one salmon yields two “chops”, cut from near the gills. Henry couldn’t stop raving about this dish. He talked about it multiple times the next day, too, to give you some indication of how much he loved it.

King oyster mushrooms, Maple Rock artichoke hearts with potato gnocchi

Wine pairing: Chateau Vaugelas 2007 Corbieres

Henry’s roasted squab breast, confit leg, with foie gras and brioche

Our main courses took a more decadent turn: Henry received roasted squab with a thick slice of seared foie gras on house-made brioche. I received a jumble of beautifully seared Oregon mushrooms with artichoke hearts, and gnocchi. The chef also sent out an extra portion of something in case I wanted to cheat on Meatless Week…

yes, that is a really nice, extra piece of foie gras on brioche *shakes fist!*

My husband couldn’t stop laughing at me trying to ignore the slab of foie gras sitting next to my plate of gnocchi. Oh, did it smell like heaven! He ate his own foie, then speared what was mine and waved it in front of my face.

“You can have a bite! Who am I going to tell? No one will know…” he said, in a teasing manner.

And he’s right–the dining room was emptying out at this point, and I could easily have enjoyed one of my favorite foods on the sly.

“Yes, but I would know,” I said.

But I thought about the readers who are following me during Meatless Week, and how disappointed I would be in myself if I slipped up. So…I passed. Which meant my husband had–for the first, and probably the last time in his life–more foie gras than he could eat.

gold-dusted chocolate and hazelnut mousse cake

Wine pairing: “Nectar” Jerez de la Frontera

My husband is not a huge sweets person, and he especially dislikes chocolate. But even Mr. Chocolate Naysayer couldn’t stop exclaiming over the lovely texture of this chocolate hazelnut mousse cake. The flavor of the hazelnuts were so intense, I was sure there was some sort of extract in it. (The server asked the pastry chef, and assured me there wasn’t.) I scraped the plate clean.

We left agreeing that this was a glorious meal that exceeded our expectations.

(And thanks to all my Orcas Island readers who emailed me with praise about this restaurant before our visit! The food was as lovely as you all claimed. Trust, I had no natural light since we were dining so late, so the photography doesn’t quite do Lisa and Anna’s food justice.)

Vegetarian Yuba Rolls stuffed with Shiitake mushrooms and Bamboo

Yesterday marked the end of Day 3 of Meatless Week–a one-week challenge to lessen my carbon footprint by going vegetarian. I felt a little more energetic yesterday, and managed to do a training run despite the heat. The temperature here in Seattle climbed up to 83 degrees by late afternoon, and all I wanted to do when I got off work was eat ice-cream with frozen berries.

Before dessert, I whipped up a quick, high-protein dinner of vegetarian yuba rolls. Yuba is also known as tofu skin. When soy milk is boiled, a “skin” forms at the top. This “skin” dries into a yellow sheet, and is renamed yuba. You may have eaten yuba rolls (seen jook guen) at dim sum restaurants–it is often wrapped around mushrooms and bamboo shoots. It’s first fried, then steamed. In Shanghainese restaurants, yuba rolls are often served slightly chilled, with a sweeter soy sauce marinade. (The combination of sugar, soy sauce, and Chinese black vinegar is one of the flavors combinations you’ll find in much of Shanghainese cuisine.)

Deep-frying at home is something I only do every month or so–we don’t have a powerful kitchen fan, and the smell of oil lingering in the air is not too appetizing. So instead of deep-frying these yuba rolls, I simply pan-fry them, then steam them by pouring a liquidy sauce into the pan and covering them for a couple minutes. This is an easy way to replicating a restaurant-style dish at home.

You should be able to find yuba at any Asian supermarket. They are sold fresh (refrigerated) or dried (in the aisles, usually in the same area you’d find the dried shiitake mushrooms.) The dried sheets come folded in a package, and you will have to reconstitute them in cold water for a few minutes until they are pliable.

Vegetarian Yuba Rolls

4 sheets of yuba (softened til pliable in cold water if dried–about 2-3 minutes)

2 cup dried shiitake mushrooms, reconstituted, stems removed and finely sliced

1/2 cup dried wood ear mushrooms, reconstituted and finely sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

3/4 cup finely slivered bamboo shoots, preferably fresh

3 tbsp vegetable oil, divided

For the marinade:

2 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tsp light soy sauce

1 tsp dark soy sauce

1/2 tsp sugar

1 tsp cornstarch

1 tbsp Shao Xing wine (or dry sherry)

1 tsp Asian hot sauce, like sambal oelek (optional)

dash of pepper (white, preferably)

1/4 cup finely chopped green onion

1 tsp sesame oil

For the steaming liquid:

1/4 cup vegetable stock (or chicken stock, if not making vegetarian version)

2 tbsp Chinese black vinegar

1/2 tsp sugar

If the sheets of yuba are large (i.e. more than 10″ in diameter) slice them in half, length-wise, to make 8 sheets.

In a bowl, combine the shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, bamboo shoots, garlic, and all the ingredients for the marinade to make the filling. In a small bowl, combine the stock, sugar and black vinegar and set aside.

In a skillet, heat 1 tbsp of oil over high heat. Stir-fry the filling mixture until cooked through, about 4-5 minutes. Set aside.

Spoon 2 tablespoons of filling onto a piece of yuba. Fold the ends inwards, then roll up the yuba so that the filling is secured inside (just as you would a burrito.) There is no need seal the yuba roll–it will seal itself. Repeat with the remaining filling and yuba.

In a clean skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Pan-fry the yuba rolls seam side down for 2-3 minutes per side, just until golden brown. Then, add the stock mixture to the pan. (The mixture will bubble up and begin to evaporate. Cover the skillet for about 5 minutes to allow the yuba to steam through, until all the liquid is absorbed.)

Slice the yuba rolls in half and serve as is, or with extra hot sauce or soy sauce for dipping.

Salted Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies from Food52

It’s Day 2 of Meatless Week on The Cookbook Chronicles. I felt extremely fatigued today, and had to take a nap after work. Also, I didn’t have the energy to go on a run, despite some serious carbo-loading. I felt similarly tired during my last Meatless Week back in May, when I was training for a half marathon. Even after my nap, I felt exhausted by 9pm and will be heading off to bed as soon as I hit the “Publish” button on this blog. I’m hanging in there for the full week, though, and I know I’ll feel better in a few days once my body adjusts to the lack of meat protein.

Other than the fatigue, today was a fun day. I made Foodblogga’s delicious Salted Double Chocolate Chip cookies off Food52, and let me tell you–these sweet-and-salty badboys are incredible. The amount of cookie dough I ate this afternoon before baking was ridiculous. I brought a plate of cookies to a neighborhood block party this evening, and they were the first dessert to disappear from the table. Here’s the original recipe. (And here’s Foodblogga’s beautiful blog if you want to check it out, too.)

At our neighborhood block party, my husband and I looked longingly at the beef kabobs, hot dogs, and burgers on the grill. We filled out plates with potato and grilled onion salad, crostini with mozzarella and heirloom tomatoes, a black bean, avocado, and tomato salad, deviled eggs, and creamy pasta salad. We had wine, and peach cobbler, and a very moist and creamy coconut cake. Definitely plenty of good food…but oh, those beef skewers smelled delicious, and were awfully tempting…

I made a few changes to Foodblogga’s cookie recipe. Here’s my version below.

Salted Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies (adapted from Foodblogga)

• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder (note: I like Valrhona, Pernigotti, or Hershey’s Special Dark)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt (plus a touch more, for sprinkling)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cups creamy peanut butter (note: I used Skippy)
• 1/2 cup unsalted peanuts, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate, or chocolate chips
• coarse sea salt for sprinkling cookies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar together with an an electric mixer on medium-high speed. Beat in the eggs and vanilla, then the peanut butter until just combined. Add the dry ingredients, and beat until just combined. Stir in the chopped peanuts and chocolate (or chocolate chips.)
4. Scoop a heaping tablespoonful of dough, and roll it between your palms to form a sphere. Drop on the prepared cookie sheets, leaving 2″ of space to allow for spread. Sprinkle a few grains of sea salt on top of each mound of dough.
5. Bake cookies for 12-13 minutes, until the edges are firm, but the centers are still soft. Allow the cookies to cool completely directly on the pans–they will firm up. Transfer the cookies to a plate once they’ve cooled, and enjoy.

flaky daikon pastries for Meatless Week

It’s Day 1 of Meatless Week here on The Cookbook Chronicles. Despite a rather heavy Monday workload, I managed to get into the kitchen and recreate one of my favorite Shanghainese dim sum items: daikon pastries.  These golden brown parcels of goodness consist of soft, sweet, shredded daikon, folded into a flaky crust. Normally, I dice up tiny bits of Chinese sausage for flavoring, but since it is Meatless Week around here, I opted instead for a dribble sesame oil, a tiny bit of green onion, and a few chile flakes for a bit of kick. My husband–who loves these pastries as much as I do–agreed that the vegetarian version was even better than my usual Chinese sausage version!

Because the actual rolling out of the dough takes a bit of practice, I took step-by-step photos in case anyone needed addition clarification. Basically, you make a rough laminated dough for the crust: the outer dough is very lean (i.e. contains only a small amount of fat), while the inner dough is very rich. The two doughs are rolled together, to form a Chinese-style puff pastry called so pei. If you don’t want to go through the trouble of making this type of dough, frozen puff pastry you can purchase from the supermarket is a good substitute.

Flaky dough for Chinese pastries (so pei)

Dough #1 (the outer, lean dough)

2 cups all purpose flour

½ cup cold water

½ cup lard (vegetarians: substitute butter, or shortening)

1 tbsp sugar

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix it together until the dough forms a ball. Cover the dough, and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare Dough #2

Dough #2 (the inner, rich dough)

1 ½ cups cake flour

1/3 cup lard (or substitute butter or shortening)

2 tbsp vegetable oil

Mix all the ingredients together, and allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes.

Method:

On a lightly floured surface, roll out Dough #1 until 1/4″ thick. With your hands, roll up Dough #2 until it becomes a round ball. Place Dough #2 directly on top of Dough #1, and wrap up, sealing Dough #2 completely inside Dough #1. (It may help to imagine Dough #2 as a dumpling filling, and Dough #1 as the outer wrapper.)

Roll out the dough out, and pat it with your hands so it forms a rough square shape, about 1/2″ thick. Then, roll the dough up into a cylinder, as pictured below.

Roll the dough up into the shape of a cylinder, like so. (It’s not necessary to square off the edges like I did. I just wanted to get a neater photo.)

Cut the cylinder into 2.5″ long pieces with a knife, and stand them up on their ends, as pictured above left. Press down lightly on each cylinder with your fingertips to flatten, as pictured above right. (This is so the layers of rich dough and lean dough can bake up in a pretty spiral pattern on the top of your pastries.)

Step 4: Roll the dough out until it’s about 1/4″ thick on a lightly floured surface. Lay the pastry out on a baking sheet and allow to rest in the fridge while you prepare the daikon filling.

Daikon filling:

2 medium daikon, peeled and grated

3/4 tsp kosher salt, divided (or more, to taste)

small pinch of MSG (optional, but integral if you want that savory “restaurant” taste)

1/4 cup finely diced scallion

1 tsp dark sesame oil

2 pinches of red chile flake, or 1/8 tsp of ground white pepper

Place the grated daikon in a fine-meshed strainer, and add 1/2 tsp of salt. Allow the daikon to sit for 10 minutes, then squeeze out as much water as you can. Empty the daikon into a mixing bowl, and season with the remaining salt, the MSG (if using), scallion, sesame oil, and chile flakes.

To assemble:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Spoon a bit of daikon filling into the center of one piece of pastry. With floured fingers, pinch the edges of the dough together to seal in the daikon. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Place the rounds onto a lined baking sheet, and bake until the pastry is golden, about 30-35 minutes. Let cool slightly before eating.

Mmm…these pastries are perfect for breakfast, or for an afternoon snack.

My husband and I finished off a batch of ten pastries tonight…the rest were left unbaked, wrapped well, and went into the freezer for future noshing. (You can bake them from frozen, though they will take slightly longer than 35 minutes to cook.)

Hope you’ll give these Shanghainese daikon pastries a try at home. I haven’t found these available in a Seattle Chinese restaurant yet, but now I can make them whenever the craving strikes!

Ohagi (red bean in pounded sticky rice)

Good morning, dear readers! Today marks Day 1 of Meatless Week here on the Cookbook Chronicles, where I’ll be eschewing my favorite food group for a full seven days in an effort to decrease my carbon footprint. (You may recall I did a Meatless Week on the blog a few months ago, and you can catch up on those entries here. To read my Meatless Week interview with Kim O’Donnel on True Slant, click here.)

My favorite type of ohagi are the ones covered in kinako (roasted soybean powder)

This round of Meatless Week couldn’t have come at a better time. This past weekend, I took a group of friends up to my hometown of Vancouver B.C. for a whirlwind Chinese food eating tour. For 2 ½ days, we gorged on Cantonese, Shanghainese, and Hunanese food. Our itinerary basically revolved around restaurant visits, and I’ll be posting about some of those experiences in the next while. I was also inspired to recreate some of the delicious dishes I ate in the next week—meat-free, of course.

Some of my friends who did Meatless Week with me last found the challenge relatively easy. I must admit it wasn’t easy for me—I felt fatigued and bored with my food choices for the first few days, and had to stop training for my half marathon because my body somehow didn’t respond well to the switch. It took about five days before I felt like myself again. I’ve since run my second half marathon, and am currently training for my first full marathon in late November. I hope to have the energy to continue with training this week, and I’ll add a brief update each day or answer any questions regarding my energy levels if anyone is curious.

what a delicious way to start Meatless Week

In addition to some home-cooked vegetarian Chinese fare this week, I’m heading to Orcas Island on Friday to dine at Allium restaurant. The main purpose of our trip, however, is to attend our friends Jamie and Chelsea’s wedding. I’ll be taking photographs there to share with you—along with shots of what I’ll be noshing on at the celebration! I can’t think of a better way to end Meatless Week than with the union of two of the nicest people we know.

To kick off Meatless Week, I have been indulging in a wonderful Japanese dessert made by my friend Yoshiko. This dessert is called ohagi, and it is a sticky rice ball usually filled with anko (red bean), and sometimes covered with kinako (roasted soybean powder). I enjoy having ohagi not just as an afternoon sweet, but for breakfast, too! Here is a great recipe for ohagi via Just Hungry.

Interested in joining me for Meatless Week? I’d love to hear your experiences, and your favorite meatless meal ideas in the comments!

crisp-crusted Margarita pizza on the grill

This past weekend was a full of incredible eating: I judged a burger contest (photos to come), attended a fun wine event in Bellevue hosted by El Gaucho, had dinner at How to Cook a Wolf with my neighbor, and went to a pizza grilling party at a friend’s house. I have only grilled pizzas a few times in my life, but I’m always amazed at how easy it is, and how perfectly crisp the crust gets. Want to learn the secrets to this perfect summer-time meal?

lamb and garlic sausage pizza with fresh sage, caramelized onions, and goat cheese

First, gather your toppings. You can be creative–our friends made one pie with fresh pineapple, prosciutto, roasted garlic, and basil. We had a classic Margarita with anchovies. We did one truffled cheese and mushroom pizza. Our contribution was lamb sausage from A&J Meats, caramelized onions, sage, and goat cheese. If your toppings are raw, make sure you cook them on the stove-top first. Set the cooked toppings aside.

stretch the dough into a 12″ circle lightly with your fingertips

Secondly, you’ll need dough. Nowadays, I see fresh pizza dough readily available everywhere. Even the Safeway across the street from our house sells it in their refrigerated case. If you live in Seattle or Portland, you can also pick up fresh pizza dough at Grand Central Bakery. We’re lucky in that our friends made fresh dough. The recipe is as follows:

James’ Easy Pizza Dough

1/2 tsp dry active yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm water

1 cup all-purpose flour

pinch of salt

Mix the yeast and water together in a mixing bowl. Let it sit for a few minutes until it gets frothy. Then, mix in the flour and the salt until combined. Cover and allow the dough to rest in a warm place for several hours until it almost doubles in size. It’s now ready to use!

in about 15 minutes, you have grilled pizza

To make Grilled Pizza:

Preheat an outdoor grill to medium-high. Meanwhile, flour a kitchen surface (or clean cutting board) lightly. Stretch out the dough with your fingertips until it becomes a rough 12″ circle. Place the dough carefully on the grill and allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes.

Flip the dough, and on the cooked surface, spoon some tomato sauce overtop. Top with your cooked toppings. Cover the grill, and allow the pizza to cook for about 12-15 minutes, checking periodically to make sure the pizza doesn’t get overdone.

Lift the cooked pizza off the grill, and allow it to cool for 2-3 minutes so the sauce has a chance to set up. Slice, and serve.

let the pizza sauce “set up/cool off” for 2-3 minutes after it comes off the grill before slicing

prosciutto-wrapped shrimp with sage is a quick and tasty appetizer

As we waited for our pizzas to cook, we dug into some fantastic prosciutto-wrapped shrimp with sage, and helped ourselves to various limoncello cocktails. (Temperatures reached 90+ degrees here in Seattle that day, so our cocktails were a delicious way to cool off!)

hummus, olives, and cheese nibbles before dinner

diced cantaloupe salad simply dressed with lime juice and mint

salad

Guinness ice-cream floats

By the end of the night, we were entirely too full of pizza, but none of us could turn down a Guinness ice-cream float. The chocolate/coffee flavors of the beer was just delicious with plain vanilla ice-cream. Also, the beer is much less sweet than your typical root beer or cola, so the combination was really refreshing.

Thanks Cynthia and James for hosting such a great evening!

Country-Style terrine, pg. 80

(all photos in this post were taken by the talented Jackie Baisa)

Way back in January of this year, a group of friends and I formed a cookbook club, the premise of which was simple: the host chooses an interesting cookbook, and we all select one dish to prepare and share at a monthly potluck. So far, we’ve cooked through Giorgio Locatelli, Mario Batali, David Waltuck (of the famed Chantrelle restaurant), Claudia Roden, and more. This month, it was my turn to host, and I added Fat, by Jennifer McLagan to the parthenon of great chefs we’ve previously highlighted.

there’s the birthday boy!

Part of the fun of this month’s gathering was that we were also planning a surprise birthday party for our friend, Marc. He didn’t know it, but we’d spent the month co-ordinating an event that would be befitting to celebrate such a kind and thoughtful friend.

duck fat biscuits with cracklings, pg. 141

Due to the number of guests–about 40 in all–we were at a loss as to where to host this surprise birthday. Luckily, photographers (and friends) Lara Ferroni and Clare Barboza generously loaned us their beautiful, sun-lit photography studio “Spare Room” so we could eat, drink, and laugh well into the night.

food photographer Lara Ferroni, who shares this studio with…

food photographer Clare Barboza (far right)–thanks ladies!

bacon baklava, pg. 119

Due to the festivities that night, not all the food we cooked got photographed. Apologies to Matt Wright, Marc Schermerhorn, and Jeanne Sauvage–I can’t seem to find photos of the delicious pork rillettes (pg. 79 in the cookbook), faggots in onion gravy (pg. 104) and salted butter tart (pg. 57).

(And yes, you read that correctly–there really is a dish called Faggots in Onion Gravy in this cookbook, along with a lengthy explanation of the origin of the word. Essentially, “faggot” comes from an old English term that means “bundle”. This recipe was a pork “bundle”–meatballs, wrapped in caul fat–covered in a savory onion sauce.)

Marc’s birthday gifts were all hilarious, vintage cookbooks

bacon and onion kugelhopf, pg.110 (spiced butters in background)

Scott (aka “Seattle Food Geek”)

it isn’t a party without libations!

look how happy Becky and I are to be eating (she’s the one in the cap)

bacon fat spice cookies, pg. 118

Matthew Amster-Burton (author of Hungry Monkey)

Marc’s better half, David

Yoshiko, Brian, and Joe

Kim and Jenise dig into the salad

Birthday banana cake with salted whiskey caramel (recipe here) and Spicy Buttered Popcorn (pg. 30)

I think I speak for all of us when I say we really enjoyed cooking out of Fat. It was my first time making a pork terrine, and I was surprised how easy it was. (Let me know if any of you are interested in the recipe, and I’ll post it later today.)

Gluten-free banana cakes

With more and more friends eliminating wheat from their diets, I’ve taken to baking more gluten-free items for parties. It is nice to be able to serve a birthday cake without fear that someone might fall severely ill, or suffer any discomfort after sharing in a special moment for a friend’s big day.

moist, light, and perfect warm out of the oven

Gluten-free baking, I’ve found, is actually quite simple if you use the right flours. There are many great blends out there. I enjoy using both my friends’ Shauna and Jeanne’s formulas (of Gluten-Free Girl and Four Chickens fame, respectively.) I stay away from the pre-mixed gluten-free flours you can purchase at supermarkets, because they often contain a bean flour, which imparts an unpleasant bean taste to your baked goods.

But before we get to the recipe, I’d like to announce the second round of Meatless Week. Some of you may remember my experiment with going Meatfree for one week back in May. (Missed it? You can read my whole week’s worth of entries here.) In essence, I went meat-free for one week back in May to help reduce some of my carbon footprint. At the end of the week, I vowed to do it once more in August, when the farmer’s markets here in Seattle are at their peak.

My original proposed week of abstinence was for the week of the 16th. However, Food Network Canada contacted Seattle Magazine last week and asked for a representative to speak about some of the wonderful street food we have in the city. Part of the filming will include taking bites of (meat) sandwiches on camera. (Since my Seattle Magazine food editor Ali Scheff prefers to remain anonymous, I volunteered.) The filming takes place on the 16th and 18th, so I simply can not go vegetarian next week. Instead, Meatless Week is scheduled for August 23rd-29th. Will you join me?

On Aug. 23rd, I will have just finished a whirlwind eating trip in Richmond/Vancouver B.C. with some friends, so Meatless Week will be a wonderful way to get back into the kitchen and cook a little healthier, a little lighter. I will be sharing mostly easy Chinese vegetarian recipes, similar to the dishes I cook most often at home. On Friday Aug. 27th, my husband and I will be dining at Allium, a relatively new restaurant that opened on Orcas island in the old Christina’s space. (We had our third date at Christina’s, and I still remember the incredible view, so I am excited to revisit. A quick look at the menu confirms that Allium has a number of exciting veggie-friendly items.) On Saturday Aug. 28th, we will be celebrating the wedding of two friends, Jaime and Chelsea, on Orcas Island. I will be happy to share photos of what I’m certain will be a beautiful wedding. I can’t think of a better way to end Meatless Week than on such a festive note!

If you’d like to join me in doing a small bit of goodness for the environment, and go Meatless from Aug. 23rd-29th, please leave me a note in the comments section. I would be honored to link back to your blogs that week.

Gluten-free banana cake with salted whiskey caramel and cream. Photo by Jackie Baisa.

(And now, here’s what you’ve been waiting for: Gluten-Free Banana Cake)

3/4 cup brown rice flour

3/4 cup white rice flour

½ cup tapioca flour

½ cup potato flour

1 tsp guar gum

3/4 tsp kosher salt

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 ½ tsp baking powder

1 ½ tsp. cinnamon

2/3 cup vegetable or canola oil

1 cup light or dark brown sugar

3 large eggs

¾ cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups over-ripe bananas, mashed (about 5 large bananas)

1 cup buttermilk

*variation: to make a regular banana cake, simply substitute 2 cups of all-purpose flour for the brown rice, white rice, tapioca, and potato flours. Eliminate the guar gum.

**to make banana-lavender cakes, eliminate the cinnamon and instead use 3/4 tsp of dried lavender buds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, mix together the flours, guar gum, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon.

In a separate bowl, stir together the oil, sugars, eggs and vanilla extract. Add the mashed banana, and the buttermilk. Dump the flour mixture into the batter, and stir until well-incorporated (i.e. no white streaks of flour.)

Line and grease muffin tins, or three 8″ or 9″ cake pans with parchment paper and oil or butter. Fill the tins or pans 3/4 of the way with batter. Bake until the tops are golden, and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Depending on the size of your muffin tins, this will take between 20 (for small muffins) to 30 minutes (for large muffins.) Cakes baked in an 8″ round cake pan will take around 35-40 minutes, and cakes baked in a 9″ round cake pan will take about 25-30 minutes.

To make a trifle, you need 3 cooled cake layers.

Salted Whiskey Caramel & Bananas for Trifle

1 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup water

1 cup heavy cream

1 stick unsalted butter

1/2 tsp kosher salt (or more, to taste)

1 tbsp whiskey, bourbon, or rum

6 medium bananas, sliced into 1/4″ pieces

Have you cream, butter, salt, and whiskey measured and close at hand.

In a heavy bottomed skillet, add the sugar and water and swirl it around so the sugar begins to dissolve. Melt the sugar on high heat without stirring. (Swirl the pan periodically if you see one area of the sugar turning golden faster than another.) The sugar will begin to melt, and turn golden, then a light brown, then a deep amber. Immediately turn the heat to low, and pour in the heavy cream. (The mixture will bubble up, then subside.)

Stir in the butter, the salt, and the whiskey, cooking for another 2 minutes or so until the caramel thickens up a little bit. Add in the sliced bananas, and turn off the heat. Stir the bananas into the caramel to coat.

Whipped Cream for Trifle

3 cups of heavy cream

Beat the cream in the bowl of a stand-mixer on high speed until it holds medium-stiff peaks. (I chose not to sweeten the cream in this recipe, since there is already plenty of sugar in the cake and the caramel.)

Layer the cake, caramel, and whipped cream in a trifle dish, alternating between layers. Refrigerate until ready to serve. The trifle will keep for 1 day in the fridge.

Happy Anniversary

to the love of my life.

(Taken in Chicago on our first anniversary…)

(We had five lunches, and a dinner that night. What a way to celebrate!)

Taken a week ago. Photo by Jackie Baisa.

Looking forward to a lifetime of meals with you.

the flakiest egg tarts at Empire Seafood

One of the fondest memories I have growing up in Richmond B.C. is sitting around the dim sum table with my family every week. The noise and excitement of it all was enough to make any child dizzy. My siblings and I would watch wide-eyed as the ladies in their notched, Mandarin-collar shirts yelled out names of tempting dishes as they pushed the steaming carts past our table. We were always on the lookout for our favorites: ha gao (shrimp dumplings), wo gok (crispy taro pastries filled with minced pork), or zeen duy (fried sesame-covered orbs filled with lotus seed or red bean paste). The instant gratification of having your chosen dish ready to eat as soon as the ladies stamped your ordering ticket was just a bonus.

my favorite congee: razor clam and geoduck

The dim sum experience was not just a delicious belly-filler, but full of learning lessons, too. My parents were born in China, and held onto a number of traditions from the old country. As my siblings and I grew up, we were expected to pour tea for my parents as a sign of respect. Failure of expectations would result in silent disapproval. Other objectionable actions included: taking the last morsel of food before offering it at least once or twice to everyone seated; placing your used chopsticks directly on the table; scooping food from the side of the plate not nearest to you; picking through the dish to find the “choice bits” for yourself, and so forth…

pan-fried file fish

egg tofu with crab sauce

And though this set of behavioral rules may seem rather strict to the casual observer, dim sum was always a joyous occasion. During these weekly excursions, I became exposed to the more unusual foods I now eat with gusto. It was here that I had spicy steamed tripe for the first time—a dish that remains one of my must-order dishes to this day. It was here that I watched my aunt pick up a chicken foot, deftly chewed the skin off each toe, and spit the tiny bones onto her plate. Plink! Plink! Plink!

(Soon, after I got over the visual, I was enjoying chicken feet, too.)

shu mai with shrimp and scallop

At dim sum is where I think I learned how to critique food as I do. My parents kept a running commentary throughout these meals; they’d debating the flakiness of the egg tarts, the evenness of the pleats in the bao, the crispness of the spring rolls, the lightness of the salted egg yolk buns, the fineness of the slivered ginger that sat in the tiny dishes of black dipping vinegar. I learned not just to stuff my mouth with food, but to appreciate the entire experience. I learned how to be more discerning, to note the delicate interplay of textures and seasonings. I learned how to savor really good food.

cold chicken and jellyfish salad with sesame

Last night, my family and I celebrated my mom’s 58th birthday. We went to a nearby Cantonese restaurant, and my mom ordered one of their set banquet meals. As I stood and divided portions of marinaded jellyfish and slices of cold pork terrine onto each person’s plate, my mom laughed and said: “Oh, I see Lorna has taken over my job now!”

I guess she taught me well.

red bean and condensed milk shaved ice

Someday, my husband and I hope to instill the same sense of tradition and appreciation for food in our own children. Until then, we’re content just to escape up to Richmond every three weeks or so to fill out mouths with the flakiest egg tarts, and our souls with the feeling that only eating dim sum with family can bring.