Wright Eats

Last Saturday morning, we were awake at 3:45am so we could meet up with friends and head up to the Skagit Valley before sunrise.  We wanted to catch some photos of the tulips in the morning light.  I thought I’d be miserable and bleary-eyed, but it turned out to be a gloriously beautiful morning and it was great staying ahead of the crowds.  We were the only people in a massive tulip field as the sun rose over the Cascades.  What a sight!

We caught lunch in La Conner at the Calico Cupboard Cafe and Bakery.  They packed nine of us, including two kids, around a table in the corner.  Lunch was casual and the food was tasty.  We had to use willpower to avoid the yummy-looking baked goods in the display case.  We were trying to postpone dessert until the ride back to Seattle, when we planned to stop off at Snow Goose Produce.  Although we’ve passed by this place a number of times over the years, we’ve never stopped in.  But we wanted to try the ice cream that Catherine mentioned on her blog.

What she didn’t mention is just how enormous these waffle cones are!  We waited in a long line for at least 20 minutes before we got up to the ice cream counter, watching happy face after happy face disappearing behind gargantuan ice cream cones.  It was so worth the wait!  The waffle cones were made right in front of us, and were incredible with Lopez Island ice cream.

We also bought some of the Gothberg Farm Chevre that Catherine mentioned (she is the cheese goddess, after all), some Skagit pickles, and an extra bottle of Cornelia’s Apricot Syrup.  And on the way back, we stopped at Silvana Meats and picked up some of their gourmet jerky for the road.

Note: If you’re interested in seeing our tulip photos, they are here.

We had the dessert assignment at this month’s dinner club. Dinner club is a regular event with five other couples who I either went to graduate school with, or who know one of the couples I went to school with. We rotate between homes each time and bring one course for the meal.

Since Eric and I were still on a quest to try recipes from David Lebovitz’s Perfect Scoop ice cream cookbook, we tried to think of something involving ice cream. I think the cover of the March issue of Gourmet was somewhere subconciously in mind when we came up with profiteroles. There was a salted butter caramel ice cream I remembered seeing, so we decided to do that with a chocolate sauce.

Then I went looking for the recipe but couldn’t find it in the book. Eventually, I realized that I actually had seen the recipe on David’s blog, not the book. He describes there how it didn’t make the cut since the book already had some other caramel ice creams, and there was a salted butter caramel sauce in his first book. It’s a good thing I stumbled upon it online because I can definitively say that this is the best ice cream I’ve ever eaten.

If you want to make it yourself, the ice cream recipe is here. We used the Gourmet recipe for the profiteroles. And then we went with David’s recommendation of pairing the caramel ice cream with his mocha sauce from the book. Here was the result:

Don’t miss this weekend’s edible plant sale, put on by the Seattle Tilth each spring.  We go each year to pick up plants for our garden (although we will unfortunately miss this year’s sale!), and we’ve learned that you’ve got to get there early for the best selection – the line starts a good half hour before the doors open at 9am on Saturday, May 3.  Bring some empty plant trays, boxes, or a wagon to carry your stash, if you want to bypass the line for purchasing trays.

If you don’t have a garden but have been thinking about starting one, now is a great time to do so.  How much closer to eating locally can you get than walking outside your kitchen door?  Michael Pollan actually had a great column in the New York Times a week ago about climate change and this very topic.  And if you don’t have a green thumb, or want to learn how to work with an edible garden, contact Amy Pennington at Go Go Green Garden.  Amy is a foodie who has recently started her own business doing veggie garden consulting.  I met her when the Dahlia Bakery first opened, when she was the bakery manager.  Now she’s helping people connect with their food by growing it in their own yard.  She can help coach you in getting started, or if gardening really isn’t your thing, she can even plant your garden and harvest the vegetables, leaving a basket of goodies on your doorstep.

For a list of what’s available at this weekend’s plant sale, check out the plant lists.  They’ve got great tomato starts, and lots of herbs which we love to sprinkle about our garden.  We also always make sure we’ve got rose geranium so we can make Jerry Traunfeld’s incredible strawberry ice cream.  The rose geranium isn’t a prominent flavor in the ice cream, but instead enhances the strawberries immensely.  Purchase the rose geranium this weekend and then make this ice cream when strawberries are in season this summer!  Not only is it among the best ice creams we’ve made, but it has no eggs and less fat content than most ice creams, making it a light summer treat.

Strawberry Rose Geranium Ice Cream
From The Herbal Kitchen, by Jerry Traunfeld
Makes 1 quart, 8 servings

2 cups half-and-half
1½ cups sugar
8 medium rose geranium leaves
1½ pints very ripe strawberries

Bring the half-and-half and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan.  Stir in the rose geranium leaves, cover, and remove from the heat.  After about 10 minutes, strain the cream and let it cool.

Wash and hull the strawberries.  Puree them in a blender or food processor until fairly smooth.  You should have 2 cups.

Stir the strawberries and infused cream together and chill in the refrigerator or over ice until cold to the touch.  Freeze in an ice cream maker.  Scoop the ice cream out into a lidded container and store it in the freezer until serving time.

As Eric wrote last week, we are big fans of Espresso Vivace.  How about Espresso Vivace ice cream, though?  That sounds even more heavenly.  Check out Rebekah Denn’s blog posting about the new ice cream shop coming to Wallingford next month:

I know it’s 49 degrees, but can I please share this list of flavors anyway? It’s from the Molly Moon Ice Cream shop, scheduled to open in Wallingford (1622 1/2 N. 45th St.) on May 10, and I’m going even if the hail starts up again. (Free cones for kids from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.) Molly’s flavor list includes honey lavender (using Vashon lavender), salted caramel, Vivace Coffee, balsamic strawberry… but she had me at “cardamom.” Just as intriguing as the flavors is the news that Dana Cree, a chef who just gets more worth watching every year, will be making the toppings. Molly Moon is also going to offer two vegan sorbets.

I am so there on May 10.

When there is ice cream, there are macaroons.  For years, I wondered what to do with leftover egg whites after making ice cream or a custard dessert.  Then I hit upon David Lebovitz’s coconut macaroon recipe and no longer have this problem.  These macaroons are what you imagine the perfect macaroon to be – chewy inside, toasted coconut outside, with a touch of honey flavor.  Now, I sometimes find myself wondering what sort of egg yolk recipe I can make just so that I can have some leftover egg whites.

Since we made ice cream on Saturday, I made a batch of macaroons yesterday afternoon.  Dipped in chocolate, they’re about the best use of egg whites I’ve found.

Coconut and Chocolate Macaroons
From Room for Dessert, by David Lebovitz
Makes 30 Cookies

4 large egg whites
1¼ cups sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
2½ cups unsweetened coconut (see note)
¼ cup flour
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

In a large skillet, mix together the egg whites, sugar, salt, honey, coconut and flour.

Heat over low-to-moderate heat on the stovetop, stirring constantly, scraping the bottom as you stir.

When the mixture just begins to scorch at the bottom, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Transfer to a bowl to cool to room temperature.

(At this point, the mixture can be chilled for up to one week, or frozen for up to two months.)

When ready to bake, line a baking sheet with parchment paper or Silpat and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Form the dough into 1½-inch mounds with your fingers evenly spaced on the baking sheet. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until deep golden brown. Cool completely.

To dip the macaroons in chocolate, melt the chocolate in a clean, dry bowl set over a pan of simmering water (or in a microwave.) Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap. Dip the bottoms of each cookie in the chocolate and set the cookies on the baking sheet. Refrigerate 5-10 minutes, until the chocolate is set.

Note: We purchase our unsweetened coconut in bulk from Whole Foods.

If you are feeling cheesecake-deprived, despair not, for there is hope for you at The Confectional.  Paul Verano, the owner of this Pike Place Market bakery, clearly enjoys wordplay; his quote on the to-go packaging says, “Forgive me chocolate for I have sinned.  I have not yet had my daily confection.”

Puns aside, there is some seriously tasty cheesecake to be had at this year-plus-old market nook.  You can order a full-size cheesecake ahead of time, otherwise step up to the counter and pick out a few mini-cheesecakes to go.  Our favorites include Mexican Chocolate (be prepared for the spicy kick!), Cookies & Mint Chocolate (also the owner’s favorite), Triple Berry, and Peanut Butter & Chocolate.  The cheesecakes have kept us so occupied that we still have to try the chocolate-covered cheesecake truffles.

The display case at The Confectional.

The Confectional
1530 Pike Place, Seattle
(206) 282-4422

Cupcakes seem to be the trend nowadays.  Cupcake Royale was one of the first places around Seattle, and then new places started popping up left and right.  Our favorite so far (there are a few we haven’t tried, like Wink) is Trophy Cupcakes in Wallingford.

Our introduction to Trophy was when our friends called us up about a week after the place opened, February of last year.  They said that they were going to do a cupcake tasting there to decide whether to use Trophy for their wedding cake, and would we be interested in “helping” them taste the cupcakes?  Um, of course!

Something like nine cupcakes later, the four of us were on a complete sugar high, and I was completely hooked.  All of the cupcakes are great, but I usually go for one with cream cheese frosting.  Or the Chocolate Vanilla, which is also Eric’s favorite.

Needless to say, this was our friends’ top choice for their wedding cake.  The mini cupcakes were a huge hit!

Another reason to love Trophy Cupcakes is for their special holiday cupcakes.  Today they’re offering Chocolate Guinness Stout with Irish Cream Butter Creme.  Last year, we missed out on the marshmallow Easter cupcakes, but maybe they’ll have them again later this week!

Trophy Cupcakes
1815 N. 45th St, Seattle
Right in the center of Wallingford Center
(206) 632-7020

We’re lucky to live close to one of the biggest farmers markets in the area, in the U-District.  Open year round, it’s our favorite place to shop.  During the summer, the place is jam-packed and for some items it’s essential to get there before the 9:00 opening bell.  In the winter, however, the booths are fewer, which gives new vendors opportunity to set up shop while some of the long-time vendors are away for the season.

One new addition this winter is the guy we call the Toffee Man.  Ok, his name is really Pete Brogi, owner of Pete’s Perfect Butter Toffee.  We’ve seen him around at other markets, like Ballard’s, but when space freed up this past fall, he took up a post in the U-District.  He’s generous with his samples, and it’s pretty clear why because after you try a bite, there’s little chance that you’ll walk away without purchasing a container.  This stuff is addictive!

Last week, I walked by and he was offering his samples again.  I demurred, but then noticed a new item on the table.  He explained that he’s experimenting with toffee-chocolate covered pretzels – first a layer of toffee over a hard pretzel, and then a layer of chocolate.  I bought one, and he sent me off with a warning.  He said the first bite is extremely hard, so I should be careful not to break my teeth.

The next day, Eric and I split it.  Pete was right-on about the first bite – you almost need a knife or something to get it started, but after that it’s fine.  More than fine, actually – this thing was just as addictive as his toffee!  The salty pretzel was a perfect complement to the buttery toffee underneath the chocolate.  It was quickly gone and we were left wishing I had bought another.  It’s probably a good thing that we had to wait a week!  Pretzels were top on our market list today.  This time we got one dark chocolate-covered, and one milk chocolate-covered with white chocolate in the middle.

Skagit River Ranch eggs. Everyone gets excited when they get one of the rare green eggs (center).

Here’s a list of our other favorites at the U-District Market:

• Dried pluots and dried apple sticks from Tiny’s. A great snack food.
• Bacon from Wooly Pigs. The shoulder bacon is thicker than normal bacon and perfect with some organic Brussels sprouts.
• Cheese from Estrella Family Creamery.
• Cherry or apple strudel from Little Prague Bakery. We get one on every visit to the market.
• Wild mushrooms from Foraged & Found. The porcini are absolutely amazing!
• Chicken mole pie from Pies by Jenny.
• The best plums ever from Tiny’s. So many types, and free samples so you can choose your favorite. Peaches, too.
• Fresh (squeaky!) cheese curds from Appel Farms.
• Anything from Sea Breeze Farm: chicken, eggs, Pâté de Vashon, cheese, demi-glace, wine.
• Wild huckleberries from Foraged & Found. All of their berries are the most delicious berries you’ll find anywhere.
• Beef and eggs from Skagit River Ranch. The egg queue in the summer starts a half hour before the bell, and they sell out fast.
• Goat milk yogurt from Port Madison Farms. Delicious with some honey drizzled in.
• Jams, chocolate and caramel sauces, and even homemade pickles from Woodring. Free samples of everything.
• Anita’s Crêpes. She has been at the Ballard market for a while, but just showed up this month in the U-District!

What are your favorites?

U-District Farmers Market
NE 50th St. & University Way NE, Seattle
Saturdays 9-2

I have two words for you:  Thin Mints.  You’ve probably seen the Girl Scouts out and about this weekend – they’ll be around until March 16.  Spring is my favorite time of year, which has absolutely nothing to do with the appearance of these cookies.