I’m in the Spotlight over at The Local Food Service. Thank you, Joe Harvey, for thinking of me. I’m glad you guys like my blog!
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 morel hunter We finally got a little rain, temperatures are more stable and its starting to feel like spring in beautiful Western Pennsylvania. Mushroom foraging is a favorite activity of mine, and Glen Wantje was kind enough to take me with him on a early morning a couple of days ago. It was a very successful foraging expedition. Our findings included both yellow and black morels. At one point while I was concentrating on looking around the ground I happened to look up to see a shy but curious raccoon watching me from behind a tree only a few feet away from the mushrooms–maybe I was taking her breakfast. I’m sure there were plenty of mushrooms we didn’t find, plenty for everyone. Finding wild eatables is something I enjoy very much. Thank you Glen!  yellow morel (Morchella esculenta)  black morel (Morchella elata)  Glen sneaking up on some mushrooms  This woodland creature is very interested in our activities. We are trespassing on her mushroom hunting turf!  a nice haul!  Breakfast of champions!  chefs at Fat Club This week I, along with a few of my colleges, had a chance to think about our culinary careers. I reevaluated years of working in kitchens in different countries and innumerable life changing experiences in order to accomplish one goal: a single dish that would represent me as a chef. One dish?! How about a whole meal?! Maybe six to eight courses…maybe twenty tapa dishes? Nope, one dish! My mind went blank for two days, and the next two days I felt like one of those old computers rebooting. Hundreds of old menus were scrolling in my mind’s eye while I stared into the wall. When I finally gave up thinking, the ocean and the mountains–a large part of my life growing up–were a constant, so it had to be a Mediterranean “surf and turf” of sorts. Salt pork became my base, because pork is the king of tasty, as many would agree. The next layer had to be something that would scream Spain–an almond, garlic and olive oil mousse then–and the perfect fish selection: sardines. I used a raspberry vinaigrette to help cut the fattiness of the dish, and to bring one more wild, sustainable element to my dish.  My Mediterranean "surf & turf"  Sam's pork belly and polenta This was a great exercise. Dishes from the other chefs included pork belly, a tough menu item, but a favorite. Simple but well executed dishes with gnocchi and a side of cold butternut squash soup topped with sage cream. Raw, lightly seasoned, organic grass-fed beef made for delightful “cannibal burgers.” Local deer meat was also featured in a tasty venison chili. Basil lemonade served as a palate cleanser was a nice addition to the varied menu. It was a great culinary peek into the souls of a few great local chefs.  Chef Dan and a cannibal burger
 Mike's gnocchi Sam and I will be sharing a little behind the scenes action on Tuesday, April 27th at 7:00 p.m. Come and be part of a hands-on experience in the kitchen! Let us share the culinary philosophy we practice daily. Fresh and local will be the focus. The Menu: Appetizer: House Made Duck Prosciutto with Melon For reservations, call 412-761-9500 Vivo  Chefs cookin' up something mysterious at Fat Club We all have heard of the underground dinner sites in DC or the extravagant, secret foodie gatherings in Seattle. All these have the same thing in common–they are “by invitation only” and any other details are vague. Pittsburgh is no different. Chefs around the city have always that favorite delicacy they want to share or those items that perhaps aren’t ready to serve to the public, and the place to do it is Fat Club. What’s Fat Club? Well…What’s the first rule of Fat Club?–You are correct! I can’t talk about it. What I can tell you is that a few weeks ago when the last gathering occurred, beer pairings were in the minds of the chefs.  there is no Fat Club (*burp*) Maybe as a final farewell to winter many hearty dishes were featured at this event. Rabbit stew, lamb and pork all had a part in this feast. Chicken cooked in beer and even beef honeycomb (tripe) and pigs’ feet. Pretzels made from scratch shortly before dinner. Pickled, locally picked mushrooms and other veggies. And–of course–incredibly tempting desserts, such as a “car-bomb sundae” with Guinness ice cream and Jameson’s whiskey sauce, tiramisu…and much more. As I said, I really can’t talk about it. But I can’t wait until I get invited to the next one.  a delicious selection of Serendipity Spreads I am a strong supporter of everything local–I will do whatever possible to make sure most of my ingredients are locally grown. With this said, once in a while I like to see what other people are doing with their local produce and ingredients. My friends from Serendipity Spreads in Santa Cruz, CA are a great example. Family tradition, many years of experience and only the best ingredients are the components to these great products. Kristen Cederquist sent me a sample of a few of their great offerings. Brandied Apricot Preserves; Spiced Tangerines; Spiced Carrot Jam; Blood Orange and Meyer Lemon Marmalade; Caramelized Onion, Fig, and Balsamic Spread; East Meets West Peach Preserves; and Salt Preserved Meyer Lemons. All of them look great and taste even better. These would make an excellent gift for any foodie.  CA spiced tangerines and PA red cabbage I had so many options here that I didn’t know where to begin, so I went with the Spiced Tangerines. I was using red cabbage for one of my side dishes that night and I decided to finish it off with the Spiced Tangerines. Something so simple elevated this side dish to another dimension–my Pennsylvania red cabbages were touched by sunny California Spiced Tangerines and together they were delicious. For more information on Serendipity Spreads, visit: http://www.serendipityspreads.com/Home.html or Kristen@SerendipitySpreads.com  Picture recipe for desarme, a traditional Asturian stew Maybe because of this time of the year, or perhaps because I can eat it anytime–fish is on my mind. Salted cod to be more specific, which brings me to this recipe. Salted Cod with Garbanzo Beans and Spinach, known in Asturias and probably all of Spain as “Desarme,” is one of the most typical salted cod recipes of the Asturian region, and a dish that brings me back with every bite. Every year in October, Asturias celebrates war triumphs of the past with this dish. Desarme itself is a culinary triumph. It’s called “desarme” because it supposedly was so good that it “disarmed” opposing forces: they laid down their guns to enjoy a bowl of this soup. This dish reminds me of how good something so simple can be, anytime of the year. Enjoy!
Soak the garbanzo beans in plenty of cold water over night. Follow the salted cod directions for soaking and preparation. Some salted cod might require an overnight process. Drain and rinse the garbanzo beans. You could use canned garbanzo beans, but I wouldn’t recommend it for this recipe. They don’t make as good of a stock for your soup. Cover the garbanzo beans with warm water. The garbanzo beans should be below the surface of the water by at least two fingers of water–about an inch and a half. Pour a tablespoon of olive oil onto the water, add the bay leaves and bring to a boil. Cook your eggs until they are hard boiled. Cool and set aside. In a sauté pan add two tablespoons of olive oil. Fry the bread on both sides, remove from pan and put in a food processor. Lightly toast the garlic cloves making sure they won’t burn, and add to the bread. Add the parsley. At this point the garbanzo beans are probably boiling. Reduce to medium heat and skim off the white foam from the surface of the water. Add a little extra oil to the same pan where you cooked the bread and garlic, and sauté the onion. Add the pimenton to the onion and mix in for a few minutes. Pour the sauteed onion mixture in the garbanzo pot. Remove the egg yolks from the eggs and add to the food processor. Add a half of a cup of the garbanzo stock to the food processor and blend until you have a creamy paste. Once the garbanzo beans are tender, tear the cod into small pieces with your fingers and incorporate into the soup. Stir in the bread and egg yolk paste into the soup and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and add spinach. Allow it to cook for at least ten more minutes for all flavors to come together.
 Chef Daniel "supervises?" Much has been written about the DiBattista family. Bellevue has enjoyed this family’s ventures for many years and very few in the food industry in Pittsburgh have not heard of them. I grew up in a restaurant much like this one. I have known and worked with these folks for a few months now. In this short period of time I have witnessed their strong commitment to good food, good service, and a special warmth that keeps everyone coming back for more.
 An informal gathering in the Vivo kitchen Sam, Vivo’s patriarchal figure and chef, would agree with me when I say that restaurants like Vivo are abundant in Europe, but not in the States. The menu changes daily, pleasantly surprising the dinners with the freshest ingredients available.  Whenever a group of restaurant people -- particularly chefs--get together, we like to eat! When "Fat Club" convened at Vivo, there was an amazing array of food, from parmesan bread pudding with berry/balsamic coulis to homemade soprasetta to chipped beef sliders! This brie en croute was one of the snacks we enjoyed that evening, brought by chef Dan from Toast! on Baum Boulevard.  Making your own dessert is almost as fun as eating it! Seeing Lori, Vivo’s matriarchal figure and pastry chef, working in the kitchen or interacting with the customers brings back many fond memories. I have turned around to find Lori assisting children of guess at the restaurant make their desserts and later on I encountered the parents of these children thanking both Lori and Sam for another great meal. And you’ll always have great service from Martina and Danina, the younger generation of Vivo, they’ll make you feel like a regular from the moment you come in. Even local chefs from other restaurants (including me!) can’t resist when a chef/foodie gathering is organized by these great people. This passion for our most basic of needs–food–is well understood here, so please, come spend a little time with us, share with us and I can promise you that you will go away with more than a great meal.  Marrow bones served as an appetizer at Vivo--delicious! VIVO  Charlie Adler's book, I Drink on the Job First of all, I want to mention that it’s really great that Daniel is using local resources as his ingredients. It’s really sad that people are so urbanized and removed from nature that they don’t even trust the fruit that grows on their local trees! Just like Daniel used the local quinces for the Yinzer torte recipe, I have often thought about using the ginkgo “stinky” fruit that falls from the female trees that are common all over Washington, D.C. Stinky Gingko Fruit – unfortunately, it is SO stinky, that it will probably never happen! The first point I want to make is that I am not a proponent of pairing dessert wines and dessert. The way I see it, there’s a missing synergy. In my book, I Drink on the Job (www.idrinkonthejob.com), I have a complete chapter on pairing wine and food, and the principle that comes to mind is “1+1=1/2″. It seems weird, but when you put a sweet food in your mouth and then you drink a sweet beverage (it could be any beverage – fruit juice, cola, etc.), the sweetness is significantly reduced. The pairing rule I often learned was that the wine should be at least as sweet at the dessert, but I don’t see how it makes a difference–sweet and sweet mostly cancel each other out! Another point is that the Yinzer torte is made with highly acidic quince fruit turned into a butter emulsion. So now you have acidity – and yes, you do want to match acidity in a dish with an equally acidic wine, or the wine will taste really flat! You could easily pair this dish with a traditional dessert wine like a Sauternes or a Hungarian Tokaj, and that will do just fine. But let me throw you a few curve balls:
Consider yourself paired!  Picture recipe for Yinzer Torte
ingredients
instructions For this recipe you don’t need to toast the nuts. Put them in a food processor and grind them as fine as possible. Add the Maria cookies to the nuts and grind them all up. In a separate bowl cream the sugar and butter. Add the egg, and as you mix pour in the vanilla. Zest the orange and lemon into the butter mix, and then add the ground nuts and cookies. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Quickly combine. When every ingredient is uniformly mixed, add the flour and baking powder. Mix to achieve a cookie-dough-like consistency. Make into a loaf. If at this point the dough is too soft, put it in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes. Divide the dough into two parts, one a little larger than the other. The larger portion will be the base of the torte. As you can see, I couldn’t find my torte pan so I used my springform pan. But of course you can use a torte pan. Evenly distribute the larger half of your dough on top of your pan. Work quickly, or it will get too soft and difficult to work with. Then spread the fruit jelly over the dough. The final decoration of the torte is really up to you. I illustrated the most common way to go about it, but you can be creative with this step. I did use my pasta cutter, but a knife will do. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 to 25 minutes or until the dough turns light golden brown. Let it cool down and dust it with powdered sugar. Before you serve and enjoy, don’t forget to check out Charlie Adler’s wine pairing for yinzer torte! Buen provecho! |
 I was raised in Asturias, northern Spain, in a family that loves to cook. My culinary development started early, watching my grandmother cook... [More] |
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