Making It My Own

Even to me it is still amazing where inspiration comes from. More often than not the final product has nothing to do with where the idea originated. Sometimes I will look at an ingredient and it may be at a certain angle, or in an unusual light and it will instantly remind me of something completely different; not even I could explain the connection, but I like to think of it as a "backwards muse". This past weekend was kind of like that.

Gary Snyder, my wife and I met up with some fellow culinary enthusiasts for a serious food adventure on Vashon Island at the highly sought-after Sunday dinner at Kurtwood Farms, which operates primarily as a creamery producing amazing small batch cheeses and is owned and executed by Kurt Timmermeister, a former Seattle restauranteur.

I'll spare you the complete lowdown, since there are already many compositions out there, including an article devoted to him in Food and Wine, but I do have to state that EVERYTHING you eat is produced on the property, minus a few basic pantry items. As a chef, I relished the level of quality that the meat, eggs and produce embodied, but what really blew me away was Kurt's glowing gratification of the fact that the foods that they were serving were quite literally the fruits of his labor.

Before going I was banking on inspiration from the intensity of flavor of local produce in season, but it was the aspect of "handcrafted" that truly exhilarated me. This stirred the desire to not only use the obligatory seasonal vegetables, but to forge the ingredients of my next special myself.

Now, of course, I cannot farm the produce for the restaurant on the balcony of my condo on Eastlake, so I'll source the vegetables from my purveyor Frank's Quality Produce (who has a stand in Pike Place Market) and do the rest on my own.

So I start with protein: I have been wanting to make my own sausages, so I incorporated a recipe I developed for wild game meatballs using coriander and juniper berries by using wild boar and some extra fat for succulence, and encased it by hand. I poached the coils, then finished them off on the grill before slicing into thin rings.

I found that corn has shown up abundantly early in the market so I grilled the kernels, saved them for the final dish, then grilled the cobs again, which I used to make a hearty grilled corn stock that I used as a base sauce for this dish.

Last, but certainly not least, I mixed fresh, blanched spinach with tangy sour cream, grated parmesan cheese, eggs, flour and seasonings that I shallow poached in batches to form pillowy soft dumplings that were combined with the grilled corn stock, tomatoes, reserved corn kernels and sausage, and finished off with fresh chopped dill and more parmesan.

Maybe not my prettiest concoction, but what a wave or flavor it delivers!

~ ~ ~

True to my style I decided to impose a twist on what has now become a cocktail staple in bars and restaurants across America, and even if you don't habla espanol, I bet you know this one word:

Mojito

Don't get me wrong, Me Encanta uno Mojito, but with everyone else doing it, why not do it differently? So, for this week only we are offering the Thai Mojito: muddled lime wedges and fresh Thai basil, with a lemongrass syrup and coconut rum, all shaken with ice and poured into a chilled martini glass and topped with a splash of club soda to lighten it up and tickle the palate.

Come and Enjoy the Fruits of MY Labor!!

With Love,

Cheffrey

Winning The Lottery

Not surprisingly, one of the most common questions asked of me as a chef is how do I come up with these specials. The ingredients are usually something that they are familiar with, but it's the composition of them that evokes a "Ah, ha!" or "Why didn't I think of that?!" sort of intimacy that they get from one of my dishes. Maybe food is a more tangible art form than, say, painting or woodcarving, but the process is usually still the same.

I will spare you the intricacies of the inner-workings of my mind (unless I run out of things to write about...), but at least for this week's special I can say in hindsight that it looked a lot like a lottery machine: basic ideas that haven't yet come to fruition flailing around until they are sucked up, usually out of order, revealing the final outcome, win or lose.

Well, not exactly. There is always a method to the madness, and there is also the fact that I HATE TO LOSE! - especially when it comes to the success of my food, so I guess you could call it a rigged lottery drawing....

So where do I begin? Well, there is a price point to consider. As a restaurant we pride ourselves on the fact that everything we offer on our menu is $15 or under, including full-sized portions of fish and steak, so more reasonable cuts of meat need to be featured without sacrificing flavor, and as past posts attest, I love the price and versatility of pork (but that doesn't mean some local wild salmon won't make an appearance soon....)

Also, as much as I hate to admit it, this blog has now played a contributing factor in my decision process. I have to stay on my toes. I can't just stamp out old ideas rehashed enough to fit the current trend with seasonal insertions - if I did this blog would read more like The Lawrence Welk Show transcripts more than anything else...

Finally, to be honest, my mother and step-father were in Seattle this weekend, so I tried to think of a dish that they would enjoy, from both an accessible standpoint as well as something that would intrigue the palates of world travelers.

So here are the winning numbers:

I started with a whole loin of pork, trimmed of any fat and cut into one inch thick medallions, which were marinated in a blend of extra virgin olive oil, shallots, garlic, lemon zest, lime juice, and a medley of herbs. After resting for a couple of hours I pounded each fillet into tender quarter-inch cutlets to be double breaded with sourdough soft pretzels that have been dried and ground into a fine powder, with a mixture of eggs and sour cream to both bind the breading, and to accent the subtle tartness of the sourdough pretzel crust, which is finished by pan-frying the cutlet to order in clarified butter (think of it as a pork pretzel Milanese).

Then I topped the crispy foundation with a salad of watercress - a leafy green within the mustard family that has a slightly bitter and peppery note to it - grilled Walla Walla spring onions, slow roasted tomatoes (a favorite of mine;), finely grated manchego cheese and dressed with a truffle mustard vinaigrette which complements the pretzel crust even more so than the watercress.

A dish even a Mother could be proud of!!!!

This week's drink special was inspired by a recent walk through of our local Asian market, Uwajimaya, a favorite muse of mine. I love strolling the aisles to mull on upcoming dinner specials for the restaurant, and for home as well. While there recently I had come across a bottle of organic hibiscus syrup sweetened with pure agave. Hibiscus is a type of flowering plant that has a wide variety of uses that are healthful such as a natural diuretic and a potential to reduce high blood pressure, but I have to be honest, my use of hibiscus is far from such intentions.

I love it's floral notes with a sweet and sour flavor that I could name ten uses right off of the top of my head, but the first thought that came to me was how beautifully it would work as a margarita. So with a healthy dose of Hornitos Plata tequila and an accent of lime and Triple Sec, the Hibiscus Margarita is here for your enjoyment!!!!!!

By the way, the first most asked question of me as a chef is "What's your specialty?". For this I only have one answer: To be a great chef I must have many specialties; to limit myself to just one would be limiting my guests to just one.


With Love,

Cheffrey

Concepts

As often as possible I like to create specials that really emphasize our restaurant's concept, though sometimes I find it too limiting and enjoy playing outside of it boundaries. What is our concept? It is a common question from those who peruse our menu, and even if I were to admit that it isn't blatantly obvious, it is still a concept by definition - not a theme. If you want a theme restaurant, try Epcot. No, what we have is something we like to refer to as New Americana; a slant on food that symbolizes American Cuisine. It is a double entendre that embodies us not only as who we are now as a country, but that of those foreign cultures that also comprises us. Without this influence we wouldn't have pizza, chicken fried steak - and yes, even what we all call Chinese food...

This time, though, I wanted to present a dish that is solely American and not a new generation of another; So this week, as promised in another post, I am featuring a variation on Buffalo Chicken Wings after months of requests for them.

At first I was reluctant to have wings as a special, even though I have toyed with the idea for some time now. For one thing, hot wings are a simple dish - only four ingredients comprise the entire ensemble, and barring a complete transformation of those key ingredients (i.e. by means that are known as "Molecular Gastronomy"), there is only so much that you can do with them. I wanted to create a faithful representation without compromising the original integrity of the iconic dish, while reflecting who we are as a restaurant, and implementing my personal style of cooking (Yes, sometimes those two are not always one and the same since I tend to push the envelope of what is expected from a restaurant of our type in order to create exciting dishes for both our customers... and myself).

How do I implement my style? Well, normally chicken wings are deep-fried for quick searing and to keep them moist, but since we only have one fryer - and a good following of vegetarians - I didn't want to blemish the purity of our frying oil by cooking meat in it, so instead I went on the other side of the spectrum and pan-fried the pieces in DUCK FAT!!! It is a medium that imbibes a subtle yet great succulence, and it takes an traditional method one step further without imposing on the dietary needs of other patrons. It's WIN WIN!!!!

Now for the heat - I was inspired by the harissa hot sauce that I made for a previous special, which in turn was inspired by our former incarnation as a Mediterranean restaurant known as El Greco, without which we would not be who we are today, and for which I owe for the great Tzatziki Sauce that I used to replace the blue cheese sauce that traditionally accompanies wings. Finally, I had to have celery; for reasons that span from garnish to added fiber, I couldn't get away from using this vegetable that I now publicly admit, I HATE; but it isn't about me, it is about the food, so I forwent the traditional sticks and finely julienned the ribs, then soaked them in ice water to create "curly cues" .


Hence, another slice of Americana!




Now, I know it has become cliched to feature another cocktail with the forbidden M word, but I have been waiting all winter long to utilize watermelon, and when it made it's first appearance at the market, I jumped on it! I have many plans for this big boy (more food foreshadowing...), but for now I couldn't pass up the opportunity to pun it up for a fresh start to entice the summer thirst!



With my trusty, yet erratic juicer in hand I mowed through the red flesh of a fifteen pounder with ease, and despite it being the first watermelon of the season, it didn't need a grain of sugar! So I splashed it with a bit of lime juice, doused it with a lot of vodka, and garnished the rim with a thick wedge of it just to prove it's purity.

Despite my way with words, my kryptonite is my lack of ability to name cocktails, so I am forced to settle on the obvious:

The Watermelon Martini.

I know that my cocktail naming abilities SUCK! But are you any better? Come in and give it a name, or mention this blog and it is yours for $4!!! You won't find a better deal on fresh-made cocktails like this anywhere in Seattle, and if you do, drop me a line - The first round is on me.

With Love,

Cheffrey

Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

One of the greatest things for me about being a chef and cutting my teeth in New York City is the array of associates that I have worked with over the years; a kaleidoscope of characters, who despite thousands of miles of diversities and cultures still consider each other "family" - one that is drawn from a different type of bloodline: restaurant workers.

Of those many, it is now not so subtly known that may of the faces you see in kitchens these days are from Central or South America, and more often than not they are from Mexico. I have worked alongside Mexicans for all of my career, and in the true form of friends I have adapted their ways, their mannerisms and their language, so much so that I have even absentmindedly responded to my wife in Spanish. So when we moved to Seattle there was a part of me that was afraid that I may be unable to continue that connection, until I joined this restaurant, and my cohorts: Alejandro and his cousins Alma and Pepe; some of the strongest and most dedicated workers that I have had the pleasure of working with.

My Rock, Mi Amigo, Alejandro

So when it comes to composing an idea to celebrate their heritage, I, um....., well, exploited the stereotype and went with a variation of the Margarita. I know, I know... but I validated myself when I handed Alejandro one of these cocktails and received an enunciation very specific to him: "Mmmm! Bery Goood!", and with that sweet smile of his, I knew that I had a winner.

For me, it was simple; the local grocery store had a sale on fresh mangoes. Our friendly Washington State controlled liquor store had a nice mango liqueur. So I stripped the fruit and simmered the pulp in water with some sugar and a pinch of salt to bring out the flavor, then once cooled I blended it into a fine puree with the mango liquor, resposado tequila and some fresh lime juice to brighten it up - but we at Table 219 like to push things just beyond the norm, so I stirred in fresh juiced jalapenos, minus the seeds, to enhance the flavor of the fruit without overpowering it with spiciness. It may sound a bit out-there, but think of it with the same affection as a drunken mango salsa....

Though it may not tie in with the "Cinco de Mayo" theme, this week's dinner special holds true to Table 219's concept of Americana... a thought that, to us, encompasses not only the history of food within our country, but that of the rest of the world via those who join us. Sometime I hone in on the classical dish by adding my own twist on it, sometimes I embrace our diversity and spin off into a different direction. With this approach in mind I chose to play with the idea of the flatbread.

To most Americans flatbread is mostly noted as a pizza, and many friends of mine run amazing pizza restaurants, so I am not trying to dispute their greatness here; instead I merely want to emphasize the possibilities of the medium that is fun, yet accessible.

I like to play with different shapes, so I worked a focaccia dough recipe that I have leftover from my time at the '21' Club into long, thin sheets and par-baked them into ready-made canvases 15 inches long and 5 inches wide. As a base I brushed the dough with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled it with fresh cut thyme, oven dried tomatoes, Bavarian Meats bacon (a local producer, and seriously the best bacon I have ever tasted in my life, EVER!!), with char-grilled red onions and creamy fontina cheese....finished with a spray of wild, organic arugula pesto.

In the end, I think that these speicals salute all of those that I have worked with, and all of us that have inspired each other. So I toast to you, my past and present brothers and sisters; with all of our differences, we are still the same...

With Love,

Cheffrey

A Derby Festival!

I grew up outside of Louisville, Kentucky, and late April/early May is a very special time of year there, with two weeks worth of festivities that culminates on the first Saturday of every May - The Kentucky Derby. To most, it is a one and a quarter mile horse race that last around two minutes, the first step of three to the "Triple Crown", but to those in Kentuckiana it is a celebration drenched in tradition... and bourbon.

FYI, it is often referred to as the "Run for the Roses" due to a blanket of 554 roses awarded to each winner. I've actually watched the intricate process of the blanket being made.....I'll stick with cookin'.

I was too young to go to The Derby before I headed off to culinary school and beyond, and I haven't yet managed to make it back yet to endure the infamous Infield; maybe I'll make into Millionaire's Row when I do finally return :). Still, though, there is a surge of warmth that rises within me when the Derby Festival nears, and while I have journeyed across this great country, I have yet to find an equivalent. Maybe I'm wrong - I have spent a lot of my time in kitchens and don't get out as much as I'd like to. So, if you have something in your Hometown, USA or have been to a small festival highlighting a local theme, I'd love to hear about it! I'm always looking for that regional touch and would love to feature a dish or concept about it at our restaurant as a special!! Please feel free to post them as a comment here, or email them to me, Cheffrey.
Let me start the theme off with this: nothing says The Derby more than the Mint Juilep (other than a horse, of course), so I decided to to combine it with one of my favorite bourbon cocktails that includes bourbon whiskey, pure maple syrup and fresh lemon juice. This is already a solid cocktail by itself, but when we use maple syrup instead of the simple syrup that is in the traditional mint juilep, the muddled mint swings the flavor of the maple over from fall into spring. Cocktails, like food, are all about balance, and I think that the Maple Mint Juilep has achieved perfection!

Before I get into the food portion of this blog I'd like to take a moment to remind you Seattleites that this Thursday, April 30 is the 16th year of Dining Out for Life for which we will again be a participating restaurant. Thirty percent of our proceeds for the night will go to the Lifelong AIDS Alliance which is committed to preventing the spread of HIV, and to providing practical support services and advocating for those whose lives are affected by HIV and AIDS. We still have a few tables available and would love to have you help us raise money for this great organization!! If you are unable to attend, please visit their website to make any kind of donation that you can.

Now onto this week's special: I did consider going with a Louisville-inspired dish, but since most of them are relived during Christmas time (i.e. Derby Pie, Bourbon Balls, etc.) I felt that they would serve me better during the holiday season. Instead, I chose a to push the limits of my culinary means to give some of the best of me, to you.

I Started out with whole chickens: methodically separating the succulent skin from the meat into one perfect sheet, then I removed the breasts, the wings (to experiment with for a future special, as promised in an older post below) de-boned the legs and thighs, for which I made a classic mousseline forcemeat by grinding and pureeing the leg meat with eggs, cream, a touch of chipotle powder and garam masala - a blend of spices found in Indian, Bangladeshi, and Pakistani cuisines. I then spread this mixture over the thinly pounded breasts, rolled them up tight, THEN wrapped them in the reserved skin, left to be pan roasted in the oven until crispy. I balanced the meat compilation with grilled pineapple, mustard greens and finished it all with a drizzle of saffron-infused honey.



To be completely honest, this dish kicks my ass... so come on in and try it. I don't mind that it kicks my ass and you shouldn't either; think of it as one of those festival games where you throw a baseball at a target that drops the clown into a tank of water; but no matter how many times you dunk me, I'll keep getting up, smiling, waiting for the next one;).

With Love,

Cheffrey

Spring is here!!

It's no surprise that after a long winter of staring at root vegetables and rubbing my chin in thought that the bounty of new ingredients that the spring brings is more than just a warm welcome. Don't get me wrong, I love crafting new and intricate dishes out of winter's deep, earthy vegetable goodness and pairing them with rich and hearty counterparts. In fact, some of my best dishes have been pulled out of me with a mere tuber for inspiration, but there is something special about the anticipation of a new ingredient palate, with new colors, textures and flavors. For me it almost rivals the warm, anxious feeling of Christmas Eve; only now I know what gifts will come... and that makes me even more excited.

Honestly, sometimes the hardest part is choosing what vegetable to use, since many of them are only available within a short window of time. I am often torn between one idea and another, which is hard enough as it is, but then to be faced with the chance that I may have to wait an entire year for it to become available locally!?!

And that's what brings me to this dish. Almost this time last year I whimsically thought up the dyad of white asparagus pureed with white truffle oil. In the right balance, it can be ethereal, but too much truffle will crash the flavor faster than a drunken pilot. I came across this realization at the tail end of white asparagus season last year and have since waited with bated exuberance to use it again... until now.

Now that I have the sauce as my foundation, the only problem is that I don't do subtly well, in food or in life; I love big, bold flavors that punch you in the mouth, and, I don't mind saying it: I'm good at it. So I start building from there and decided to envelope handcrafted porcini fettuccine noodles with it, made by adding pulverized dried porcini mushrooms to a basic, egg-rich pasta base, kneaded by hand, rolled by machine (hey, this isn't the Dark Ages), then cut roughly with a Chef's knife. I then added fresh shucked English peas for more seasonality and sweetness, roasted tomato for some acidity and color, and finally the meat - ground Moulard duck rendered at the beginning of the dish, and finished with some duck cracklin' on top to complete it.

One note on the cracklin': though pasta dishes pack great flavor, they usually have the same mushy texture, and even with the occasional pop of the English Peas, I decided to take it a step forward and complete the pasta with a crunchy yet airy preparation rarely found anywhere.

~~~

Of course, no indication of spring is more evident than the surfacing of fresh rhubarb on the market. I for one decided to skip over the traditional strawberry-rhubarb pie for something a little bit different. Instead I ran some fresh topped strawberries and stalks of rhubarb through my (now angry) juicer to end up with a thin, concentrated blend of sweet strawberry and tart rhubarb, then I swirled in a hefty amount of rum to complete what I call a Strawberry Rhubarb Punch!!!

I know, I know... it sounds a little too simple to be called a "punch", but by juicing the fruits instead of cooking it all down into a thick pulp, the cocktail goes down so fast, one Tuesday night regular said it was more like a "slap in the face"!

I still like to think that the term "punch" is still more accessible for some reason.

With Love,

Cheffrey

P.S. - The irony of it all: My allergies are acting up.

Stupid Spring......

Rich like Rockefeller

It is often assumed of me by those I meet outside of the restaurant that as a chef I only enjoy five star cuisine with cutting edge techniques and lavishly innovative dishes that venture into the bizarre and surreal, with a snooty indifference to traditional, or classical cuisine. While I do indulge in the conquests of great culinary minds (re: Grant Achatz of Alinea in Chicago) nothing satisfies me more than the simple foods (re:The Taco Bus, and chicken wings [coming soon ;)]. Of course it all has to do with the way I was brought up in NA,IN, as well as the way I came up in the culinary scene of NYC, but I truly have a deep affinity for the now traditional dishes that have reigned supreme for decades, which has ultimately led me to where I am now, and hopefully, you too!

I'll save my connection to New Orleans for a later post because that's not important here - what is important is the connection of Oysters Rockefeller to American cuisine. I'd be hard pressed to find someone these days that hasn't at least heard of it, let alone have sampled a variation or two, which originated in the fine city. In a restaurant that I was chef of in New York, ironically enough, I topped Penn Cove, Washington oysters with my variation of the traditional dish with great reception. Now I have decided to skew the concept into a new direction.

First, I needed a medium: For me, pork is my friend. It is versatile, cheap, and flavorful. What more can a guy ask for!?! So in this instance I decided to go for pork loin since it's a lean cut that could benefit by being a platform for a rich topping as such. Then, I decided to elaborate on my previous version of Rockefeller with the addition of oyster mushrooms (pun intended), as well as steamed baby artichokes, which are in season, grated Parmigiano Reggiano, spinach and fresh chopped tarragon in place of the Pernod, which I'll save for a future cocktail special!


To finish the dish I decided to add a touch of a steakhouse classic in the form of cream of spinach pureed with some freshly grated nutmeg. Old school style with modern technique - There's nothing like the satisfaction of nailing a catchy twist of an American dish in its adulterated form!!

Of course, I couldn't leave you without announcing the news about my new baby...

No, not the birth of Cheffrey Jr., silly... I'm much too busy for that!!!

Better yet, a smooth sipping cocktail built specifically to alleviate the tension of toddler tantrums, with a medicinal blend of freshly brewed lemongrass syrup, pomegranate liqueur, pomegranate infused vodka and a splash of fresh lemon juice, shaken until frosty an poured into a steep martini glass (I hate those squat glasses that spill more on me than into my mouth).


Behold the Birth of the Lemongrass Pomatini!!!

Please, feel free to kiss the baby!!!!



With a Labor of Love,



Cheffrey

Bring on the Drinks!

Even though I'm just getting started with this, I'd like to begin this week's post in a new direction...

Those of you who are familiar with me know that I enjoy an alcoholic beverage or two (quit snickering, please...), so I decided to introduce a new dynamic for me and our restaurant: The Cocktail Special!! Each week we will feature a new concoction, and believe me, you can't wait to taste what's next!


Don't worry, though - my dinner specials won't lack enthusiasm or thought due to these; I still know which side of my bread is buttered (sorry, culinary pun; I'm full of 'em).


So, where do I start? Easy. You can't go wrong with the bubbly! So I decided to infuse my own liqueur by steeping blueberries, ginger, sugar, vodka, and a touch of lemon juice, then top it all off with some nice Spanish Cava and a pinch of candied ginger for some added punch...YUM!!

I could think up many clever and/or stupid names for this drink but for now I'll keep it simple and call it a Blueberry Ginger Spritz. Feel free to offer up your own name in the comment section below. Who knows, maybe there will be a prize for the best one.....

Now onto the business end of my gun - this week's dinner special:

One of my favorite types of fish to cook with is lingcod, and while it is ugly as hell to look at, nor is it even closely related to a ling or a cod, it is quite tasty, flaky and versatile, so I decided to pan sear it slowly in the oven to develop a beautiful, deep crust, then flipped it over to baste it in butter and onion confit and set it onto a bed of sauteed pancetta, spring onion, fava beans, and tomato; all laid in a pool of rich bourbon shrimp sauce.

Of course, even that description still doesn't delve into the levels of love that I put into this dish. But don't take my word for it. Why don't you come in to see for yourself?

With Love,

Cheffrey


P.S. - Those of you who enjoyed the weather here in Seattle last weekend can thank my last dinner special post below - evidently the sun gods liked my shrimp cakes with sweet pea and goat cheese puree; I, on the other hand, still prefer the offering of cocktails! ;-)