MIX Magazine April 2013

PoRtLAnd, oRegon / APRIL 2013

Eat • Drink • Get Out • Get Together MIXPdX.CoM

HOW TO MAKE PRETZELS • KOMBUCHA’S SOUR POWER BEST BEER AND WINE LISTS • YEASTS GONE WILD

APRIL 2013

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editor’s note We had to do it. It was only a matter of time (this is Portland after all) before we dedicated an entire issue to fermentation.

It might sound terribly unsexy at first. But if you think about it, fermentation is the cornerstone of so many things we love to eat and drink.

Obviously, there’s beer and wine and, by extension, spirits. There’s bread, cheese and charcuterie. There are umami-packed condiments, like miso and pickles, kraut and kimchi. Life would be so boring without them. So why not celebrate the microbial life force that makes these delicious things possible?

Besides, fermented foods — I’m talking about the funkier ones — are going through a renaissance across the country.

They’re “living” foods, packed with healthful probiotics. Plus, we’ve all become better eaters, more open to global flavors and world cuisines — and the funk of fermentation is a common flavor around the world.

Although we have microorganisms like yeast and bacteria to thank for some of our

favorite foods, it’s really the artisans taming them who deserve our deepest gratitude — and luckily for us, Portland is teeming with them. In this issue, we shed a light on just a tiny fraction of those artisans, and the delicious things they make through the magic of fermentation. Their willingness to experiment with yeasts and cultures, flavors and ingredients, have helped make Portland ground zero of the new fermentation movement. We hope it inspires you to give something new a try, too.

Danielle Centoni, editor dcentoni@oregonian.com

Correction: In the March issue, Savanna Ray was misidentified as the sommelier at Meriwether’s restaurant. She’s the sommelier at Wildwood.

PHOTOGRAPH by REED DARMON

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Pre-ferment: David Barber of Picklopolis Pickles and Three Square Grill is the self-proclaimed King of Brine. For this issue, he turned an avalanche of brussels sprouts and garlic scapes into a flavor-packed fermented slaw / Page 39

Starters

Eat

Drink

Get Out

11 Cheese guru, charting the grilled cheese possibilities, homemade miso, blue cheese powder, wood-fired bread, brewing in pink boots

39 Pickles: Veggie ferments to add punch to your plate

16 scene: Wine and beer for every mood

55 calenDar: What to do this month

46 technique: How to make authentic soft pretzels 49 cheese for Dinner: A springtime menu

23 GooD for you: Kombucha 26 Wine: Wild vs. tame yeasts 31 Beer: The story behind Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales

Get Together 34 kitchen: Marco Frattaroli blends form and function 56 i.D. Liz Alvis of Portland Creamery On THe COVer: A trio of fermented vegetables, ready to add punch to your next dinner.

PHOTOGrAPH BY dinA ÀViLA

MiX is 10 issues a year! it’s easy to subscribe online — go to mixPDx.com and click on “subscribe.”

You can also find past articles, restaurant reviews and all our recipes at mixPDx.com, so get clicking and start eating.

contributors Cookbook author and food writer ivy manning grew up in Wisconsin, so her love of good cheese is practically a birthright. Ask her what her favorite rainy afternoon activity is and you get this answer: “I like to hit a few shops and chat with the cheesemongers to find out what’s good right now. They always know when something is at its bloomy best.”

For this issue, she parlayed her passion for cheese into three delicious springtime recipes, which start on page 49. Ivy’s latest book, “Crackers and Dips” (Chronicle Books, $19.95) hits bookstores next month.

A wine-geeky assignment like our feature on wild versus tame yeasts (page 26) is right up katherine Cole’s alley. “I had always heard that inoculated and wild-yeastfermented wines are markedly different, but I’d never had the chance to sit down and compare them until now.

The winemakers were just as curious and engaged as I was. I think we all learned something from the experience.” In addition to writing for MIX, Katherine is the wine columnist for The Oregonian and creator of “Oregon Wine, the App,” for iPhone, iPad and Android. She is also the author of two books: “Voodoo Vintners: Oregon’s Astonishing Biodynamic Winegrowers” (Oregon State University Press, 2011) and the forthcoming “Complete Wine Selector.”

other contrIbutIng WrIters: LUCy BUrningham, grant BUtLer, aBigaiL ChipLey, Liz Crain, sasha davies, traCy saeLinger, raeCheL sims, andrea sLoneCker

Portland-based photographer wendi nordeck specializes in products, still lifes, food and interiors.

For this issue, she had the good fortune of shooting the charming and affable Marco Fratarolli in his inviting home kitchen (page 34). “His warm hospitality made shooting his kitchen such a pleasure. Plus, I was able to steal some great ideas for the kitchen in my new studio.

But the highlight of the day was Marco’s generous offer of homemade salumi and guanciale, which my husband immediately put to use on homemade pizza that night.”

You can see more of Wendi’s work at nordeckphoto.com

other contrIbutIng photographers/Illustrators: dina ÁviLa, thomas Boyd, BenJamin Brink, reed darmon, kyLe froman, ross wiLLiam hamiLton, miChaeL LLoyd, Beth nakamUra, motoya nakamUra, John m. vinCent

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index where to find the reCipes in this issUe: Breads • Traditional Soft Pretzels, p47 entrees • Agnolini with Portland Creamery Chèvre, Brown Butter and Peas, p53 side dishes • Mixed Green Salads in Gougères With Ancient Heritage Dairy’s Hannah Cheese, p50 Components • Lost Arts Kitchen Sour Beets, p43 • MoonBrine Fennelimoncello!, p40 • Picklopolis’ “Brussels Kraut,” p45 • Sauerruben (Sour Turnips), p43 • Spring Cleanse Borscht, p43 dessert • Cherry and Fresh Fromage de Brebis Tarts, p54

onLine extras at mixpdx.Com  video: Watch Andrea Slonecker make her Traditional Soft Pretzels  Read more of our interview with Liz Alvis of Portland Creamery  Get Biwa’s recipe for homemade miso paste  Learn how to make your own sourdough bread starter with a recipe from Tabor Bread

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THE ONLY THING WE OVERLOOK IS THIS

VoLUME 7 / ISSUE 3

mixpdx.com DANIELLE CENTONI / EdIToR

dcentoni@oregonian.com

REED DARMON / dESIGNER

rdarmon@oregonian.com

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Mixed grill We asked chefs from five eateries for their go-to grilled cheeses, and got five very different — and very delicious — answers. But no matter which of these grilled-cheese masterpieces you choose, Cheese Bar owner Steve Jones tells us that the secret to good grilled cheese is lots of butter and a cast iron pan. His other secret move: using a partially full teakettle as a makeshift panini press to accelerate the crisping. “My wife hates it. Whenever she makes tea, there’s butter on the bottom of the teakettle, and the house fills with smoke,” he says. “But it’s a small price to pay.” — Tracy Saelinger BREAD

CHEESE

CoMPonEnTS

BEvERAGE PAIRInG

Steve Jones, Cheese Bar

Lovejoy Bakers’ wheat levain

Equal parts raclette and comté or gruyere

Beer- and mustardbraised leeks; speck (optional)

a French white wine, like a Savoie or Jura. or a malty beer.

Derek Coughlin, Brunch Box

texas toast!

american

Bacon

Dr. pepper

Adam Dunn and Colleen Schroht, Savor Soup House

grand Central Bakery Como (white Italian bread)

tillamook cheddar and creamy chèvre

thinly sliced granny Smith apples and truffle oil

templeton rye whiskey

Mike Bender, The EastBurn

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roma tomato and honeycured smoked bacon

Belgian beer

Matt Breslow, The Grilled Cheese Grill

Sourdough

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Dry salami, pepperoni, sliced tomato and our in-house chopped oliveand-giardiniera tapenade

a good Italian red. or root beer — all grilled cheese goes great with root beer

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APRIL 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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starters, cont.

raIse a GLass: sasHa, CYrIL’s aND CLaY PIGeON

pHotograpH By Motoya NakaMura

When I first met Sasha Davies, she was in the throes of writing her second book “the Cheesemaker’s apprentice,” which came out last fall. She was a passionate cheese expert who had traveled the country interviewing dozens of farmstead cheesemakers, worked in some of the most famous cheese shops (Murray’s in Manhattan), and helped make cheese for one of the country’s best cheesemakers (Beecher’s in Seattle).

I was thrilled when she agreed to write for MIX (her most recent piece is on page 56).

But I had no idea this cheese writer had much bigger plans in the works.

Last November, she added restaurateur to her résumé as the co-owner with her partner, Michael Claypool, of Cyril’s at Clay pigeon Winery.

“I had been trying to figure out some kind of cheese- and food-related business to open since I moved here,” says Davies. “It just took a long time to figure out what it would be.”

Five months in, she’s still figuring some things out. at first glance, Cyril’s

seems to be a trendy wine bar. the industrial-chic space was created by orange Design, which also designed ava genes and the Woodsman tavern. the menu features a tight, wellcurated selection of wines, cheeses (of course) and charcuterie.

But then you notice the smart little things that make simple categorization difficult: there’s Claypool’s small urban winery tucked inside; it serves lunch, including rustic soups and salads; it’s open, cafe-like, all day; it offers classes, public and private events, and even a cheese-buying club.

It all adds up to deeply communitydriven hangout, something you’d expect to see in a cozy neighborhood, not the unresidential Industrial Eastside.

“It’s still a work in progress,” says Davies. “We’re still learning what people want, trying things out to see what the response is. It’s really exciting.”

— By Danielle Centoni Cyril’s at Clay Pigeon Winery, 815 S.E. Oak St., 503-206-7862, cyrilspdx.com

eat Here: tabOr breaD

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Back in the day, every village or valley had its own signature loaf, thanks to different wheats and grains and baking philosophies. “But all that culture and variety has been kind of lost,” says Cory Mast, head baker at tabor Bread (5051 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd., taborbread.com), which opened last fall. that’s a big part of why Mast moved to portland for the job — to turn out wood-fired breads like the red Fife boule, a naturally leavened whole-grain bread made with heirloom wheat. It’s something akin to what oregon trappers or loggers would have eaten a century ago. there’s also a true dark rye — not white bread with caraway seeds — and all the bakery’s grains are milled in-house. “a lot of bakers start with the idea of what they want the finished loaf to be like, and work backward,” Mast says. “For me, it’s about figuring out what grows well in the Northwest and seeing how I can make healthy bread that tastes great but also best expresses the character of that specific grain.” —Tracy Saelinger

 ONLINe eXtra: Get Cory Mast’s secrets to making your own bread starter at MIXPDX.COM

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starters, cont.

Think Pink

MakING MIsO WItH Gabe rOseN Of bIWa

Contrary to what you might think, the pink Boots Society has very little to do with snazzy footwear, although its official website does offer many suggestions for where to pick up a pair of pink boots if you’re so inclined. Instead, this fledgling nonprofit seeks to promote female beer brewers through meetings and networking events throughout the united States. If you’re looking to start or advance your brewing career with classes, the pBS also maintains an ongoing list of current beer-industry scholarships geared towards women, including one of their very own. requirements are straightforward: either be actively employed in the brewing industry, seek re-employment in the brewing industry, or be retired after a 15 year-plus career. pink boots are optional but a definite plus. — Emma Ramsay pinkbootssociety.org.

By aNDrEa SLoNECkEr You make your own miso at Biwa. It is difficult? oh my gosh, making miso is really simple. We mash cooked soybeans with salt and koji (a type of mold; sold at Steinbart’s) in plastic five-gallon buckets, and then let it ferment in a warmish place with weights on top for four to six weeks. It goes faster in the warmer months. taste determines when it is done.

We monitor the temperature (mostly so it doesn’t get too cold), but not super carefully, and there’s no humidity control.

those who love blue cheese’s pungent, salty, creamy wallop of umami can now add the flavor to everything from popcorn to fried chicken with rogue Creamery’s Blue Heaven powder. It’s pure dehydrated blue cheese, made from four of the creamery’s best-selling blue cheeses, including Crater Lake and oregonzola. It’s currently available online, or look for it in portland stores by the end of the month.

— Danielle Centoni $9.99 for 3 oz.; roguecreamery.com

pHotograpH By MICHaEL LLoyD

trY tHIs: bLUe HeaVeN bLUe CHeese POWDer

Why did you start making it, rather than buying it?

We like to make as much as we reasonably can from scratch. It’s rewarding, the products are generally better and the cooks enjoy it. We think the craft side of cooking is pretty important. a cook who left us to pursue a food science and microbiology degree loved these kinds of projects and helped set up a lot of them, particularly ones involving fermentation.

Do you make different varieties? there are a lot of varieties of miso. they primarily differ by age and, by extension, color, from white miso, which is mild and not long aged, to red, which can be very strong and salty and long aged. We’ve been making an all-purpose yellow miso for about a year, but we’re working on letting the batches go longer to see how they develop.

Biwa, 215 S.E. Ninth Ave., 503-239-8830, biwarestaurant.com

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DRINK In the mood: Whether you’re looking for wine bargains or experimental beers, these lists have you covered You do know you’re spoiled, right? Living in the heart of Beervana and just a stone’s throw from world-renowned vineyards, you have easy access to more fantastic beer and wine than almost anyone else on the planet. But you already knew that, didn’t you? What you might not know is where to find the best cheap bottles, or where to get a pint that doubles as dessert. In a town where you can drink phenomenally well on almost every block, it’s easy to drown (albeit happily) in choices.

Consider these lists your life raft.

winning wine lists By raeChel SIMS

Best “Secret” Bottle list: The Uptown Billiards Club

I love a good pool hall; I also love a bottle of 1998 Château Lafite Rothschild Bordeaux.

While these two indulgences rarely intersect, there is a wondrous exception in the form of the Uptown Billiards Club in Portland’s Nob Hill neighborhood. Combining vintage pool tables, classic jazz and an enviable whiskey selection,

Metrovino

the 18-plus-years-old institution also offers a “Five-Course Affair” — a popular, biweekly themed dinner with optional wine pairing. But the true gem of the UBC lies in its sprawling, comprehensive bottle list: stalwarts of Burgundy, pioneers of Napa, single-vineyard Oregon pinot noirs, esoteric Italians. There are nearly 200 labels in all. It’s an excellent place to suggest a “loser-pays-for-the-bottle” wager — assuming you’re the pool shark at the table.

120 N.W. 23rd Ave., 503-226-6909, uptownbilliards.com

Best Self-led Wine Education: Metrovino

There were several incidences during my time tending bar at Metrovino when a student of the Court of Master Sommeliers sat down, slid a $20 bill across the bar and said, “Surprise me.” And who could blame them? Nowhere else in Portland can one sample a whopping 100-plus wines by the glass, as well as by the taste — 1½ ounce pours for sherry, 1¾ ounce for still wine and 2½ ounce for sparkling, to be exact. And what did I surprise those sommeliersin-training with? Anything from Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault to Aldo Conterno Barolo — essentially whatever had struck owner and wine director Todd Steele’s fancy and landed on the city’s most eclectic wine list. Rarely did anyone leave with a perfect score (would you recognize a Nicolas Joly Coulée de Serrant?). But they all found something that sated their palates.

1139 N.W. 11th Ave., 503-517-7778, metrovinopdx.com

photographS, left By JohN M. VINCeNt, rIght By roSS wIllIaM haMIltoN

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Uptown Billiards Club april 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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wine and beer, cont.

a Trip To Wine Country Without leaving portland: Wildwood restaurant

Oregon pinot-heavy wine programs aren’t exactly a rarity in Portland, but Wildwood’s comprehensive and lovingly curated list sets the bar, citywide.

Sommelier Savanna Ray picks anywhere from seven (Ribbon Ridge) to 22 bottles (Dundee Hills) to represent each sub-AVA, plus another 26 for the general Willamette Valley. An Oregon Pinot flight includes such luminaries as Beaux Frères and Soter; a vertical of Cristom’s famed “Louise” vineyard is available from 2006 through 2009 — and at a $20 discount when the four bottles are purchased concurrently.

Love the valley but not a pinot fan? Each varietal subsection of Ray’s list offers a “local” portion, showcasing everything from Adelsheim Auxerrois to Westrey Pinot Gris.

Don’t get me wrong, a trip to the valley is always a treat, but so is Wildwood’s wine list, and saving some gas money never hurt anyone.

1221 N.W. 21st Ave., 503-248-9663, wildwoodrestaurant.com

D RY F LY

Xico Most Unique Wine program: Xico

Isn’t it wonderful when separate elements come together to form something greater than the sum of their parts? This is how I feel about Xico, the Southeast Division brainchild of Nostrana alum Kelly Myers and Liz Davis. Want an organic, chilerubbed chicken for dinner but don’t feel like cooking? Order one of Xico’s rotisseried masterpieces for pick-up.

Craving the best margarita in town? The Classic Xico Margarita spurs flashbacks of Playa Del Carmen vacations gone by (and pays for the staff ’s health insurance,

true story!). The 8-month-old restaurant also boasts the most outside-the-box wine program in all the city. Instead of relying on South American and/or Spanish selections traditionally paired with Mexican cuisine, Xico has assembled a small but precise list that’s heavy on Italian lambruscos and rieslings from all corners — ideal accompaniments to roasted chiles, grilled goat chops and anything that includes the delicious house-made masa.

Salud, mis amigos!

3715 S.E. Division St., 503-548-6343, xicopdx.com photograph By roSS wIllIaM haMIltoN

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Best Beer Bets By lUCy BUrNINghaM

Best tap list: apex

apex Bottles on the (Super) Cheap: le Bistro Montage Remember that one time you went to The Montage when you first visited/ moved to Portland? And how the server screamed your oyster shooter order to the kitchen and later wrapped your leftovers in foil sculpted into the shape of a giant sword? Somewhere between stumbling in from whatever bar you were at before or trying to shout over the dining room’s constant din of speed metal, you probably didn’t get a good look at the wine list. And that’s quite a loss, because there are some smokin’

deals. A 2006 Louis Jadot pinot noir for $31? An ’08 Ponte Barbera d’Asti for $25? Let me blow your mind even further: Most of these bottles are half-off Mondays and Tuesdays until midnight, (bubbles and 375 ml format excluded).

So even if you want to get super-fancy and pair the 2004 Fattoria di Petroio Chianti Classico alongside your beloved Spicy Mac, it’ll only set you back $55 instead of $110. Party on, Portland; you’re welcome.

301 S.E. Morrison St., 503-234-1324, montageportland.com

Beer lovers have their own definitions of the perfect tap list. Maybe yours is the one closest to your house. For us, perfection means depth, variety, constant rotation and that always-fresh beer list online. That’s why Apex wins. The Southeast beer bar, with its unapologetic no-kids, no-food, no-credit cards policies, trumps other Portland bars with sprawling tap lists. Many of the 50 beers on tap are special one-offs from Oregon brewers; some are coveted imports from Belgium and even New Zealand. Plus, the online tap list means you can choose your after-work pint before stepping foot in the bar.

1216 S.E. Division St., 503-273-9227, apexbar.com

photograph By JohN M. VINCeNt

Wear Art!

It’s no surprise that the motto at Mainbrew 23596 N.W. Clara Lane, Hillsboro; 503-648-4254; www.mainbrew.com is “All Things Beer.” The 4,000-square-foot warehouse is filled with a huge selection of beer and beer-making supplies.

Located just 13 minutes from downtown Portland off U.S. 26, Mainbrew stocks more than 600 constantly refrigerated bottled beers. You’ll also find more than 100 commercial kegs ready to rent, five rotating taps for growler fills and more than 30 hand-selected bottled meads for sale.

Ready to make your own brew? Mainbrew has an impressive variety of grains, hops, yeasts and homebrewing hardware to help you craft just about any kind of beer you can imagine. In fact, its friendly staff of experts can also help you make your own wine, cheese, mead, soda and kombucha.

927 SW YAMHILL • 503.223.3737 T H E R E A L M OT H E RG O O S E .C O M

Courtesy of Mainbrew Beer, Kegs and Homebrew Supplies. april 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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wine and beer, cont.

Best place to have a flashback: Hair of the Dog tasting room

What you were doing in 1994? Wearing acid-washed jeans and watching a new show called “Friends,” perhaps?

Reminisce at the Hair of the Dog tasting room, where a long list of the brewery’s vintage beers includes the 1994 Adam, Batch #3. It’s a rich old ale that was the first beer brewed at HOTD (the 12-ounce bottle costs $50). The range of vintage beers, which includes Flandersstyle reds and a barleywine aged in bourbon barrels, can be consumed only on the premises, in an attempt to discourage illegal resales among beer collectors. Currently, all vintage beers besides the Adam were brewed during this millennium.

61 S.E. Water Ave., 503-232-6585, hairofthedog.com

Best restaurant beer program: Higgins

Breakside Brewery he’s insisted his restaurant maintain the kind of beer program other Portland restaurants should be modeling. Beer

It’s no secret chef/owner Greg Higgins loves craft beer, and thankfully for us,

sommelier Jason Button curates the extensive bottle list, which veers heavily into Belgian territory with notable

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Best place to try something odd: Breakside Brewery & Taproom

Base Camp Brewing cheese-friendly, wild beers, including the Oud Beersel Oude Geuze Vieille. What’s that? You’d like to pair mussels steamed

Belly up to the bar at this new taproom in Milwaukie for the full lineup of experimental beers from Breakside, which recently expanded here from a pint-sized brewpub in the Northeast’s Woodlawn neighborhood. During the past few years, head brewer Ben Edmunds has collaborated with many Portland chefs to create everything from a French fennel farmhouse saison (a Gabe Rucker invention) to the Toro Red, an amber ale made with piment d’espelette (the John Gorham touch). Upcoming beers include a one-off brewed with seaweed, shiitakes and miso, plus a unique homage to Porktown USA — an ale made with pig

marrow and bones.

5821 S.E. International Way, Milwaukie, 503-719-6475, breakside.com

Best dessert beer: Base Camp Brewing S’More Stout In this new brewpub, where chair backs are strung with climbing rope, carabiners create the under-bar hooks and an old metal canoe hangs from the ceiling for ambiance, a s’mores themed-beer perfectly completes the outdoorsy picture. The stout, which is brewed on site, is served in a tulip glass and garnished with a marshmallow singed with a mini blowtorch behind the bar. The beer offers notes of smoke and chocolate syrup, while the marshmallow adds all the burnt sugar sweetness you’d expect, plus a touch of vanilla. It’s best enjoyed next to the brewery’s outdoor fire pits.

930 S.E. Oak St., 503-477-7479, basecampbrewingco.com £ photography By roSS wIllIaM haMIltoN

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W W W. D K P O R T L A N D. C O M april 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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Thank you!

Our generous sponsors, donors, guests, volunteers and many others helped us raise over $2.9 million for children & families at this year’s Classic Wines Auction.

2013 ClassiC Wines auCTion sponsors PRESENtING

Leslie B. Durst Lucky Limousine and Towncar Regence BlueCross/ BlueShield of Oregon BIDDING CARD

LEAD AND WINEMAKER DINNER

American Family Insurance WINEMAKER DINNER

MIX Magazine, from the Oregonian MAIN AND AMBASSADoRS DINNER

GLASSES

Fred Meyer Stores MEDIA

GRAND CRU

The Campbell Foundation Connie and Lee Kearney Delta Airlines Digimarc Corp.

Fred and Gail Jubitz Fred Meyer Stores KeyBank New Avenues for Youth Board of Directors Precision Castparts Corp.

PREMIER CRU

Benson Industries LLC Columbia Vista Corp Knowledge Universe

Alpha Broadcasting Corp.

KGW Media Group OregonLive.com Portland Business Journal PREMIER

A to Z Wineworks/REX HILL Becker Capital Management, Inc. The Campbell Group Columbia Credit Union DFV Wines/SWS Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Franz Bakery Fred Meyer Stores Friends of Randall Children’s Hospital The Greenbrier Companies

Howard S. Wright Ida P. Colver and Roger C. Ray Jim and Michelle Fitzhenry Legacy Health Lithia Auto Stores Marcia H. Randall Metropolitan Family Service Board of Directors Miller Nash LLP/The Cellar Door Moss Adams Nike Pacific Power Phoenix Industrial Rain Dance Marketplace Randall Children’s Hospital The Randall Group Skanska USA Building, Inc. Southern Wine & Spirits of America Stimson Lumber Company Stoel Rives LLP TMT Development USI Northwest Vesta Corporation Wally & Paula Rhines and Keith & Sharon Barnes Washington Trust Bank YWCA Clark County Board of Directors YWCA Supporters

GRAND VIN

Chez Joly E & J Gallo Winery Ernst & Young First Republic Bank/AKT Friends of the Children Board of Directors Gerding Edlen Development Gevurtz, Menashe, Larson & Howe, P.C./Geffen Mesher Gevurtz, Menashe, Larson & Howe, P.C./Slinde Nelson Stanford King Estate Winery KPMG LLP MergerTech New Avenues for Youth Supporters Pacific Continental Bank Packouz Jewelers Pihl/Munch Regence/The Campbell Foundation Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt Ste. Michelle Wine Estates Taylor Made Labels and Crush Creative Packaging UBS Financial Services, Inc. Young’s Market Company YWCA Supporters

Proceeds support the Classic Wines Auction and its benefiting charities: Metropolitan Family Service, New Avenues for Youth, Friends of the Children–Portland, YWCA Clark County and Randall Children’s Hospital at Legacy Emanuel

good for you

Kombucha: The mysterious elixir goes mainstream

BY ABIGAIL CHIPLEY

I

n the past five years, kombucha has gone from an obscure, weird health drink to a mainstream beverage here in Portland, bubbling up everywhere around town. You can find an array of flavors by several local brewers at most grocery stores. And, increasingly, you can find it on tap at cafes and bars.

This being Portland, it was probably only a matter of time until mixologists

PHOTOGRAPH BY REED DARMON

discovered it and began pairing the tart, strong-flavored beverage with liquor.

Witness The Old Gold Bar’s El Diablo, a tequila-based cocktail made with Townshend Tea Company’s Brew Dr. Lemon-Cayenne Kombucha.

And then, of course, there are the untold numbers of locals who are brewing the stuff in Mason jars in their home kitchens. Suffice it to say: Portlanders

groove on kombucha.

Though its origins are unclear — some say it’s been made in China for centuries, others trace it to Russia — this fizzy, sour drink, made from sweetened black tea that has been fermented with a combination of yeast and bacteria, has long been considered a health tonic. That’s because the beverage contains probiotic bacteria, similar to yogurt, which may aid digestion. aPRIL 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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Where shopping is an art

good for you, cont.

It’s also high in B-vitamins, which could account for the energizing effect that many people claim to experience while drinking it.

But the health claims don’t end there.

Fans of the drink say it can help you lose weight, boost your immune system and help manage any number of digestive issues, from acid reflux and heartburn to constipation. It’s also touted for its ability to detox your liver, rid your body of candidiasis, heal eczema and even cure a hangover. Unfortunately for enthusiasts, none of these claims has been substantiated by scientific studies on human subjects.

There isn’t any dispute, however, that kombucha is low in calories, sugar and caffeine — making the drink a healthful alternative to soda or beer.

“Kombucha is a recreational drink, not a health remedy,” says Rebecca Asmar, a naturopathic physician who practices at Bambú Clinic in Southwest Portland. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t think the drink has value. In particular, she says that people suffering from any type of allergy,

KomBucha BrewIng classes Salt, Fire & Time saltfireandtime.com Lionheart Kombucha lionheartkombucha.com Mr. Green Beans mrgreenbeanspdx.com

including eczema, might benefit from the drink, and mentions that it’s often used to good effect by people on detox diets.

That’s because the drink contains various organic acids, which may aid the liver in ridding the body of toxins. However, she says, “Lots of questions haven’t been answered yet. The theories are good, but the validation is not.”

Local makers of kombucha, though obviously aware of the drink’s beneficial reputation, seem more focused on flavor. Certainly, the drink lends itself to tinkering. In addition to black tea, kombucha brewers around town are adding green and oolong tea, along with medicinal herbs, and flavorings like

LOCaL BREWS Brew Dr. KomBucha Sold in old-world-style medicine bottles, this brand dominates the local market.

You’ll find it bottled in large and small grocery stores, and on tap at Townshend’s Teahouse locations, at most area Whole Foods, Alberta Street Co-op, and some local cafes and bars. Their kombucha-brewing starter kits, at a reasonable $10 a pop, are available from some Whole Foods locations and Townshend’s Teahouses. brewdrkombucha.com

Tasty raw kombucha made with Townshend’s high-quality organic teas, organic medicinal herbs, organic sugar and no artificial nonsense.

Available bottled and on tap in 7 refreshing flavors:

CLEAR MIND • LEMON GINGER CAYENNE NUTRITONIC • LOVE • SPICED APPLE KAVA SUPERBERRY • WHITE ROSE townshendstea.com | brewdrkombucha.com /townshendstea 24

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InvIsIBle alchemy Brewed under an alcohol license (though it contains only a trace amount), look for this brand in the beer case of Food Front, People’s Food Cooperative, area Zupan’s Markets, as well as the Black Cat Cafe. invisiblealchemy. com

eva’s herBucha Made from green tea and medicinal herbs, Eva’s Herbucha is sold at many small and large natural foods stores, including New Seasons and Whole Foods, and is available in kegs directly from the company. It’s also sold bottled and on tap at some local cafes. Eva’s starter kits are available at Pistil’s Nursery. herbucha.com

lIonheart KomBucha A relative newcomer on the Portland scene, Lionheart Kombucha is available bottled at many local stores, including New Seasons, and on tap at New Seasons 7 Corners, Modern Love Cafe and Warehouse Cafe. The company’s starter kits, sold at Warehouse Cafe, are pricey ($25), but include tools, recipes and “lifetime” email help from the owners. Less expensive “starter packs” of the culture are available at local brewing shops, including F.H. Steinbart Co.and The Homebrew Exchange. lionheartkombucha.com

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ginger, cayenne pepper, flower petals and fruit juices. Some varieties contain a bit more sugar than others, but none of them tastes remotely like other bottled tea products on the market.

“I hated the stuff when I first made it,” says Jared Englund, co-owner of Lionheart Kombucha, a brewer in Southeast Portland. “But now it’s pretty much killed my taste for sweet, and I can appreciate sour flavors more.”

Other brewers around town mention that its flavor profile — tart, lightly sweet and bubbly — makes it a natural replacement for sugary soda.

“Kombucha is my Coca-Cola,” says Eva Sippl, the owner of Herbucha, located in Southeast Portland. For years, she’s been drinking about a quart of her own kombucha — made from green tea and medicinal herbs — per day.

It’s also gaining a reputation as a good alternative to beer, since it contains only a trace amount of alcohol, usually under 0.5 percent, which is a by-product of the fermentation process. “It’s an adult drink, with substantial flavor and a good bite to it that lends itself to sipping, which is great if you are not in the mood to get buzzed at a bar,” says Matt Thomas, the owner of Townshend’s Tea, which makes the Brew Dr. brand.

If your local watering hole isn’t offering kombucha just yet, there are plenty of stores selling it (see sidebar).

Some local stores are offering it on tap so you can take it home in a growler jug, a greener alternative to buying it in bottles and a way to save a little cash.

But if you’re curious about brewing it up at home, many brewers offer starter kits and classes to help you refine your technique. Making it at home is a DIY project that even a beginner can handle, armed with a simple recipe and a kombucha “mushroom,” or “SCOBY,” as the experts call it.

(That stands for Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast). But coming up with something that is really delicious and doesn’t taste like apple cider vinegar is another matter.

“Turning grape juice into alcohol is easy, but it will probably taste terrible unless you have somebody show you the tricks,” says Englund. Kombucha is no different. Luckily, class options abound in this kombucha-crazed town. “Taking a class is a jump-start toward making it awesome,” he says. £

You’ll be surprised how affordable master craftsmanship can be!

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effortless style

aPRIL 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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drink / wine

wine, cont.

Oregon vintners know when to go wild

BY KATHERINE COLE / pHOTOgRApHY BY mOTOYA NAKAmuRA

W

ine is fermented grape juice.

Fermentation requires yeast.

And yeast is everywhere.

Scientists tell us that birds and insects — most notably, wasps — deliver yeasts to grapes as they hang in the vineyard. Winery cellars, too, are teeming with yeast cells.

When crushed grapes macerate in an open vat at room temperature, these wild yeasts spontaneously launch the fermentation process. But from here, things can go awry. The juice could turn to vinegar; it could get “stuck” and only ferment halfway; or if it does go all the way to wine, it could be stinky and unpalatable. It’s much less risky to avoid these pitfalls by killing off the wild yeast with hydrogen sulfide, then inoculating the juice with a hardier strain of cultured yeast that isn’t bothered by the sulfur and won’t quit in the middle of fermentation.

Since the first commercial winemaking yeasts hit the market in the mid-1960s, 26

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many winemakers haven’t looked back.

With the ability to choose yeasts that complement the quirks of a particular vineyard, or the style of wine they hope to create, vintners can sculpt their wines by hand rather than trusting them to fate.

This boon has resulted in a backlash, of course. Over the past couple of decades, artisanal producers have embraced the “natural” winemaking movement, which calls for minimal cellar intervention in the manner of traditional family-run wineries in Europe’s classic winegrowing regions.

As long as I’ve been covering wine in the Willamette Valley, I’ve known vintners who allow their wine to ferment spontaneously, trusting wild yeasts to do their thing. But when fermentations get stuck or a tank of pricey grapes starts to go south, do those winemakers reach for a yeast packet? You bet they do.

In fact, many producers experiment with both styles of fermentation, blending

the two together. Winemakers tell me that spontaneous fermentation tends to be slower, building a more characterful (and sometimes flawed) wine.

Inoculating with cultured yeast results in a quicker fermentation and a cleaner wine, albeit one that might not be so soulful.

Oregon winemakers tend to be open-minded and curious about their work. So when I asked around to see who might be comparing wild with cultured-yeast fermentations, I received heaps of enthusiastic responses. Turns out that vintners all over the state are playing around with wild and cultured yeasts, hedging their bets by doing both. So we gathered up as many wines and winemakers as we could fit into the drop-dead-gorgeous private dining room at Penner-Ash Wine Cellars and went to work, tasting samples of wildyeast wines against otherwise-identical cultured-yeast wines.

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THE TaKE-aWaYS 1. Cultured and wild yeasts live up to their names. Overall, the wines that had been inoculated with cultured yeasts tasted more polished, linear, mineral and, in some cases, kind of uptight and boring. The native-yeastfermented wines were unpredictable but more fun, with lively fresh fruit notes accompanied by quirky, funky characteristics that ranged from rustic to problematic.

2. Spontaneous fermentation is a total crapshoot. Wild yeast can create a more complex wine, or it can create a hopelessly flawed wine. Our group of winemakers agreed that if you’re working with an imperfect or unknown batch of fruit, you’re probably better off inoculating with a cultured yeast that you know will get the job done.

“That is a risk when you do native fermentation: You get this little extra activity, which can result in ethyl acetate or volatile acidity. Taken by itself, it’s an issue. But blended with another lot, it can add a layer of complexity,” says Lynn Penner-Ash. “The behavior and metabolism of this whole microbial ecosystem is going to be much different than an inoculated fermentation, which is a much more controlled environment,” adds Sarah Cabot.

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3. Wild and cultured yeasts aren’t so different, actually. “All commercial yeasts were originally in a wine cellar and were collected and propagated from there,” points out Howard Mozeico. “So this whole conversation about ‘wild’ is sort of disingenuous.” In fact, Sarah Cabot at Omero Cellars makes her own “wild” yeast by harvesting yeast cells from the skins of grapes hanging in her vineyard, because “completely uncontrolled ferments in the Carlton Winemakers Studio (where up to 12 producers work side-by-side) make me incredibly nervous.”

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4. Dogma is overrated. There’s a group of critics and “natural” winemakers who preach that any vinous fermentation that’s not spontaneous will result in overconstructed, inauthentic wines.

Our group of winemakers wondered among themselves what these diehards do when fermentation gets stuck, threatening the viability of a whole vintage. “The issue is the honesty behind it,” says Ron Penner-Ash. “Come on!”

5. For pinot noir, blending spontaneous and inoculated fermentations is a solid strategy.

As our group tasted through wildand cultured-yeast pinots side by side, we found that the two often complemented one another. “I’m very pragmatic,” says Lynn Penner-Ash. “I have a hard time saying yeast or don’t yeast.” Ron Penner-Ash agrees: “They way I look at it, the yeasted wines are mentoring the non-yeasted wines.

There is a mentorship, and you need both.”

The Willamette Valley is known for its world class Pinot Noir.

Our valley is home to more than 200 wineries and tasting rooms. Request a copy of our touring map and guide at willamettewines.com

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6. Wild-fermented riesling is a wine to watch. We loved the aromatics we got from the Love & Squalor riesling that had gone through spontaneous fermentation.

It had aromas of “floral dried grass,” according to Melissa Burr, and “apple skins — that’s a note I never get from cultured yeast,” says Julia Cattrall. We’ve been reading a lot about the move toward wild yeast among riesling makers and we’re excited to taste more of these intriguing wines.

THE TaSTiNG aND THE VErDiCTS We tasted two samples of each wine listed below: one that had been allowed to ferment spontaneously and another, otherwise identical, wine that had fermented following inoculation with cultured yeast. All the wines except Enso’s were barrel samples, or wines that have not yet been bottled and released.

2012 love & Squalor ana Vineyard Tiki Block Dundee Hills riesling (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: WILD “There was quite a difference aromatically between the two. The aroma was way more expressive in the first one (wild). As it was in the glass longer, the second one came more alive.”

— Dai Crisp

2011 Torii Mor Bella Vida Vineyard Dundee Hills pinot Noir (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: SpLIT “I found the fruit to come forward more quickly in the first one (wild) than the second one. The second one is more linear.” — Sarah Cabot “The second was more perfumey to me, maybe with a bit more minerality. I don’t know that I preferred the fruitiness of the first one.”

— Ryan Sharp 2012 penner-ash Wine Cellars Elevée Vineyard Dundee Hills pinot Noir (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: WILD “I got more earth and forest floor and a bit of funk on the second (cultured) one, which kind of surprised me. The first was just high-toned raspberry.” — Ryan Sharp “I really loved the aroma on the first one; it had very pretty high-toned fruit. The aromatics on the second wine are tighter and more herbal, not as expressive.” — Howard Mozeico

2012 Eisold Smith Willamette Valley Chardonnay (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: CuLTuRED “I kind of hate this wine (wild) on its own. I almost didn’t want to bring it. The commercial one was a way more controlled situation. But while on its own, the wild was a problem child, it’s really essential because it adds that extra something to the chardonnay blend as a whole family. I’m going to keep doing native ferments until I can’t stand it anymore.” — Adam Smith

2012 lumos Temperance Hill Vineyard, North Block, Eola-amity Hills pinot Noir (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: CuLTuRED “I prefer the lushness of the palate on the second (cultured) one. It’s more fruit-driven than the first. The palate seems more forgiving and mature.” — Ron Penner-Ash

2012 Stoller Estate Dundee Hills Chardonnay (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: SpLIT “What I’ve typically seen with native fermentation is it brings lighter, honeyed, more floral notes to chardonnay, while cultured tends to be more firm and focused.” — Melissa Burr “They’re really delicate, both of them. They have this wonderful restraint to them.”

— Adam Smith

2012 Omero Cellars Omero Vineyard, pommard Clone, ribbon ridge pinot Noir (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: WILD (sort of) “There’s a striking difference between the two.

The inoculated wine is a lot more tannic; the nose, intensity and mouthfeel in the spontaneous is just lovely.” — Howard Mozeico “To tell the truth, everything gets inoculated; I just inoculate with the yeast that grows in

pANELISTS Melissa Burr, winemaker, Stoller Vineyards, stollerfamilyestate.com Sarah Cabot, winemaker, Omero Cellars, omerocellars.com Julia Cattrall, co-winemaker, Lumos, lumoswine.com; assistant winemaker, Dominio IV, dominiowines.com; cellarmaster, Ransom Wines & Spirits Dai Crisp, winemaker/owner, Lumos, lumoswine.com; manager, Temperance Hill Vineyard, temperancehillvineyard.com Howard Mozeico, winemaker/ co-owner, Et Fille, etfillewines.com

lynn penner-ash, winemaker/proprietor, penner-Ash Wine Cellars, pennerash.com ron penner-ash, proprietor/ sales and marketing, penner-Ash Wine Cellars, pennerash.com ryan Sharp, winemaker/owner, Enso, ensowinery.com adam Smith, winemaker, Eisold Smith, eisoldsmithwines.com april 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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2012 Et Fille Holmes Gap Vineyard Willamette Valley pinot Noir (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: SpLIT “The first (wild) one had this freshness and just lovely purity of red fruit, more on the delicate side. The second was more perfumed dark fruit, more tannin.”

— Melissa Burr

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2012 Troon Varner-Traul Vineyard rogue Valley Malbec (barrel samples) The WiNNEr: WILD “The first one (wild) had tremendous aromas of bacon and chocolate compared with the second one, and it had some nice balance. I got a really prickly thing in the second (cultured) one.

It was much more short.” — Dai Crisp

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my vineyard. But the fermentation in the second one was just not going.

The cap was getting autolytic (which can create flaws in wines) and I started freaking out, so I inoculated it. It went kinda slow and ended up being on the skins 10 days longer than the first.” — Sarah Cabot 2012 Eisold Smith Meredith Mitchell Vineyard McMinnville pinot Noir (barrel samples) THE WiNNEr: CuLTuRED “I’d had numerous amazing results from spontaneous ferments when I was working in California with Russian River Valley fruit. Everything, no matter what you did to it, always smelled pretty. I can’t bring myself to say ‘vegetal’ about this (wild sample) — I’d say ‘tobacco’ and ‘dry tea leaves.’ But in this case, the commercial fermentation just worked better. I just prefer the second one so much more.”

— Adam Smith

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2011 Enso BellaGrace Vineyard California Mourvèdre ($35) and Mourvedre Winemakers’ reserve ($40) The WiNNEr: SpLIT “I have a preference for the wild: You get all these balsam notes and there is a lot more complexity of aromatics. These characteristics seem like they’re coming from a spontaneous place.”

— Julia Cattrall “The first one is really vivid aromatically — it leaps out of the glass. But the second one has very light, delicate aroma that I find very compelling.” — Dai Crisp £

drink / beer

David Logsdon brings farmhouse ales back to the farm

by Lucy burningham / photography by beth nakamura

O

nce you leave Hood River, you won’t see stoplights or freeway exits on the way to Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales. Instead you’ll pass pear and apple orchards, under the glare of Mount Hood’s glaciers, before ascending a twisty road that must become treacherous during the winter. Finally, you reach a pasture filled with five Scottish Highlander cattle — each named for a whiskey — and a small orchard planted with sour cherry trees imported from Belgium.

The giant copper brew kettle, glinting inside a red barn, announces you’ve arrived at a brewery. Here, farmhousestyle ales are brewed inside an actual farmhouse, which was part of the valley’s original homestead from 1905.

The brewery is named after brewmaster and director David Logsdon, who raised his three daughters here. He still lives in a house near the brewing facilities with his wife, Judith Barnes, a Flanders native who met Logsdon at a beer event in Belgium in 2007. The beer industry isn’t new to Barnes; her family was in the beer-and-wine-making supply business.

Logsdon is a founding father of Oregon’s craft brewing scene. In 1985, he opened Wyeast Laboratories, which went

Logsdon Farmhouse ales, which specializes in belgian-style saisons, has no employees, only partners, including head brewer charles porter (left), Judith barnes and her husband, founder David Logsdon. aPRIL 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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on to become one of the most prominent suppliers of brewing yeasts in the U.S. (I dare you to find a home or commercial brewer who hasn’t made a beer with at least one of Wyeast’s yeasts.) In 1987, Logsdon co-founded and brewed at Full Sail Brewing in Hood River. He left the brewery a few years later to focus on Wyeast.

Twenty-five years later, Logsdon realized he was tired of telling other people how to brew great beer with yeasts from the lab. He wanted a turn. He decided to develop a new palate of yeasts for his own brewery, which he did by traveling extensively in Europe.

“I isolated a handful of yeast strains I hadn’t worked with before, and started building a new collection,” he says. Because of his experience, Logsdon knew he had the know-how to avoid the mutations and contaminations that become more common when combining multiple yeasts in a single beer. “We found that by combining yeasts, we could create a broader and fuller flavor profile,” he says, “and it’s really all about flavor.”

He decided to establish his new brewery as a cooperative with no employees, just partners. Their first brew was February 2011. Today, Logsdon Farmhouse Ales has six cooperative members, including Logsdon, Barnes, John Plutshack, on sales and distribution, and head brewer Charles Porter, who brewed at Deschutes and Full Sail. (Porter has been brewing

tart and sour ales for the past decade.)

The team produces and distributes beers that Logsdon categorizes as Belgian saisons, which, historically, are maltforward beers with a subtle fruitiness and a dry, tart finish.

“Saisons are open to interpretation, and ours express more malt and fruitiness than what’s been traditionally done,” Logsdon says. “I’m looking for more drinkability and flavor.”

For example, Logsdon’s Seizoen, one of three year-round beers, is made with four or more yeast strains and is carbonated with pear juice, which creates an effervescent and complex beer with a surprising amount of malt body. The Seizoen Bretta, which is the Seizoen with the addition of the barnyard funk-inducing Brettanomyces yeast strain, has more acidity, an extra dry finish and a hint of fruit.

Logsdon calls them “clean beers” with very little astringency and a roundness of flavor and body. “I don’t like a thin beer,” he says. But he does like a high amount of carbonation and a soft hint of hops, the textbook Saison profile.

One-offs include the Cerus, a West Flanders red brown ale, that has tartness and acidity balanced with a caramel malt sweetness. The Far West Vlaming comes from aging the Cerus in oak with local organic sour cherries.

Last year, the fresh peaches for Peche ‘n’ Brett — Seizoen Bretta fermented

VIsItIng Logsdon Farmhouse ales doesn’t have an official tasting room onsite. but, certain beer tours offered by beervana and Wanderlust tours make the brewery a stop. or call the brewery directly during the summer to arrange for a visit farmhousebeer.com

tastIng most Logsdon beers are bottled and distributed widely in oregon, plus three other states. the brewery also releases a limited number of kegs. Find Logsdon beers on tap full time at raven & rose, and less frequently at riffle nW, bJ’s restaurant and brewhouse in hillsboro, belmont Station, Saraveza, the beer mongers, cheese bar, Victory bar, Fire on the mountain, Wildwood and bailey’s taproom.

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with the fruit — arrived at the same time as fresh hops for the brewery’s fresh hop beer. Both crops needed to be added to the beers-in-progress immediately. “We didn’t get a lot of sleep that week,” Barnes says.

“It’s hard work, but what we want to do is brew for flavor,” says Logsdon. “Flavor comes from being organic, handling the grains gently, using only whole cone hops and fermenting in the bottle.”

Eventually, every member of the co-op will release a beer under his or her own label. First up? Porter, the head brewer, who will release Aberrant this summer. The beer will be modeled after a Belgian golden ale — light on the palate with moderate hops and a floral, fruity finish. “Now I’m making the kinds of beer I want to make, in small batches,” Porter says. “It’s not a factory production where numbers are the only thing that matters.”

In the future, the brewery plans to make lambics, sour ales that are made through spontaneous fermentation.

Instead of introducing yeast directly to the beer, the beer-in-progress becomes exposed to naturally occurring wild yeasts and bacteria while resting in a coolship, an open-topped vessel. Some of those lambics will be made with the farm’s organic cherries (the imported Belgian trees should fruit in the next two to three years) and other fruit.

When I visited the brewery on a sunny day in February, a minivan filled with seven guys from L.A. and one from Ireland showed up, unannounced.

They were on vacation and had found the brewery on Google maps. Before they left with a mixed case of Seizoen Bretta and straight up Seizoen, one of them squinted into the sun and said, “As much as I love brewpubs, this is the way to go.” £

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kitchen

For chef Marco Frattaroli, form is just as important as function

By RAECHEL SIMS / pHotogRApHy By wEndI noRdECk

I

f you’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting chef and restaurateur Marco Frattaroli, you probably know that he likes to do things his way.

Between his 20-plus years at Nob Hill staple Bastas Trattoria, or his new Division hotspot Cibo, Frattaroli’s unique combination of ultra-authentic Italian cuisine and personal sprezzatura is apparent in all that he touches. So it should come as no surprise that instead of making do with the charming but small kitchen that originally accompanied his 1920s Woodstock bungalow, Frattaroli decided to embark on a complete, self-designed remodel.

“Believe it or not, the entire aesthetic for the kitchen was based on the cabinet handles,” Frattaroli

says. “It’s a very simple design from the ’70’s, made from standard European stock aluminum, cut and polished. I start with something I like and then add to it.”

The handles in question are sleek and modern, yet utilitarian and timeless in their simplicity — much like the rest of the extended galley layout. “I wanted a modern but cozy kitchen that was easy to clean. It had to be compact, efficient, yet spacious enough for entertaining and still unique.”

Frattaroli’s natural eye for design is revealed in the space’s details: custom cabinetry painted a gorgeous terracotta red; a small prep island covered in fossilized Italian marble and paneled with Oregon black walnut, which he cut into planks and installed himself.

But then there are the elements that could only be curated by a true chef: the six-burner Garland range with customized stainless steel hood and pot-filler tap; the large, april 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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kitchen, cont.

deep-set stainless steel sink with extendedhose faucet; the custom-slotted (and well-equipped) knife drawer; the rollout, vertical pantry flanking a Sub-Zero refrigerator. His favorite feature? “The commercial dishwasher. 190 seconds a load, and if they’re really dirty, run it twice and you’re still ahead. Great for all the wine glasses!”

Located directly above the sink is a moderately sized square window, hinged in the center so it can act as a pass-through to Frattaroli’s deck. That’s where you’ll find his outdoor cook space, featuring a barbecue, smoker and portable burners that “I can hose down when cooking large animals and the like.”

When it comes time to feast, guests find

themselves seated around a large, reclaimed banquet table on Frattaroli’s cozy front porch.

“I’m not a designer by trade,” says Frattaroli, “but I feel comfortable approaching a project this way: by what I know and by how I would make my guests feel at home.” £

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eat

Real live food

Three pickling experts show us the virtues of flavorful, probiotic-rich fermented salads

By LIZ CRAIN Portrait photography by THOMAS BOYD Food photography by DINA Ă VILA

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CuCumbeRs and Cabbages aren’t the only veggies you can ferment. it’s high time we started thinking beyond sour dills and sauerkraut. any vegetable can be fermented into tangy goodness. not only that, if you grate, thinly slice or chop your vegetables, you can have the rich tang and probiotic goodness of veggie ferments in a week or less. if you’ve been wary about do-ityourself fermentation, it’s time to give it a try. it’s as easy as packing vegetables into a jar with salt and letting it sit for a week. You can use fermented vegetables as a condiment, side dish or component to add umami-rich funk that’s great with everything from roasted chicken to roast beef sandwiches. and you can customize the flavor profile by adding your favorite fresh herbs and dried spices.

We asked three Portland fermentedpickle experts to surprise us with recipes for inventive spring veggie ferments. They came up with several bright and flavorful slaw-like creations anyone can make.

Stewart Golomb of moonbrine Pickles whipped up what he calls fennelimoncello — a citrusy ferment with thinly sliced fennel, lemon, carrots, celery and onion. according to golomb, “my wife, sandi Quatrale, suggested the limoncello element based on her family’s tradition of finishing dinners with that italian liqueur.”

Chris Musser of lost arts Kitchen went all out with two ferments – sour beets and sauerruben (sour turnips) and she also gave us her recipe for a quick borscht that incorporates both. When asked for fermentation advice musser replied, “minced ginger is my secret ferment ingredient. it brightens the flavor of everything.”

David Barber of Picklopolis, bingo sandwiches and Three square grill went germanic and crocked up a batch of garlicky kraut using brussels sprouts. “it’s my favorite kraut for spring and early summer,” says barber. “and it’s great with roast pork.”

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Stewart Golomb

moonbrine fennelimoncello!

Makes 2 to 3 quarts

this pretty, flavorful mix of fermented vegetables is a great way to perk up roast chicken. stewart Golomb recommends drizzling it with olive oil right before serving.

Vegetables: 2 to 3 heads fennel, thinly sliced 2 to 3 spring onions or other sweet onion, thinly sliced 3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced 3 celery stalks, thinly sliced 1 to 2 lemons, thinly sliced 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns Brine: 8 teaspoons kosher salt 6 cups cold water

To make the vegetables: Combine the fennel, onion, carrot, celery, lemon, garlic and peppercorns in a glass or plastic 6- to 8-quart container.

To prepare the brine: In a large bowl or measuring cup, dissolve the salt in the water.

Pour the brine over the vegetables. Make sure there is enough brine to cover the vegetables by at least 3 inches. Put a plate on top of the vegetables in order to weigh them down and keep them below the water line. (keeping your vegetables submerged during the fermentation process is very important) allow to ferment at room temperature for 1 week, tasting them periodically as they ferment. When finished, pack into jars, along with the brine and refrigerate for up to 4 weeks.

— Stewart Golomb, MoonBrine Pickles

“it’s an italian-inspired ferment, complete with the after-dinner digestivo.

The lemon adds a surprising spring kick to the delicious fennel and onion combo.

Pickle down italian style!”

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Chris Musser spring Cleanse borscht Makes 2 quarts

according to traditional Chinese Medicine, beets and turnips detoxify the liver and cleanse the blood, making this an ideal soup to “get out the gunk” after a long winter. to retain the live culture present in ferments, do not cook them, but add them just before serving.

1 1 1 1 1

to 2 tablespoons butter or ghee onion, diced to 2 cloves garlic, minced teaspoon dill weed quart broth (beef is traditional, but lamb, chicken or vegetable work well) 1 cup sour turnips (sauerruben) 1 cup sour beets 1 cup sauerkraut Optional addition: leftover cooked meat cut into bite-size pieces Garnish: yogurt, fresh dill

lost arts Kitchen sour beets Makes about 1 quart

Vibrant-hued and piquant with ginger, these fermented beets are delicious in salads and sandwiches.

2 pounds fresh raw beets, peeled 3 tablespoons sea salt 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger Optional seasonings: ½ teaspoon anise seed, caraway seed, allspice or juniper berry 2 to 3 sprigs fresh dill, chopped Grate the beets by hand or in a food processor.

In a large bowl, mix them with the remaining ingredients. Pack the mixture into a widemouth, glass quart jar, pressing on the beets with your hand, a potato masher, or the back of a wooden spoon until they express enough liquid to cover. If there isn’t enough liquid, add a brine made with 2¼ teaspoons sea salt dissolved in 1 cup of water.

Leave 2 inches of head space in the jar to allow for expansion (beets ferment heavily and will overflow out of the jar without sufficient headspace). Cover loosely with a lid and place the jar on a tray or plate in order to catch any overflow while the beets ferment. allow to ferment at room temperature for 4 days, then refrigerate.

— Chris Musser, Lost Arts Kitchen, Portland

“With these pickles in your fridge and some broth on hand, you have all you need for a practically instant soup. Peppery turnips and the tang of pickle provide the high note in this soup, while earthy beets bring in the bass. The herbs and spices in the ferments are like the little flavor packets that come with ramen noodles, except they taste good.”

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed pot set over medium-high heat. add the onions and sauté until translucent. add the garlic and dill and sauté for 1 minute, then add the broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. add the meat, if you are using any, and heat until the broth comes to a simmer. remove from heat and add the sour turnips, sour beets and sauerkraut. Ladle into bowls and serve with yogurt and fresh dill.

— Chris Musser, Lost Arts Kitchen, Portland

sauerruben (sourturnips) Makes about 1 quart

adding caraway seeds to this earthy slaw gives it a flavor that’s perfect for roast beef on rye.

2 3 1 1 ½

pounds turnips tablespoons sea salt tablespoon minced ginger teaspoon caraway, cumin, dill or fennel seeds teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

Grate the turnips by hand or in a food processor.

In a large bowl, mix them with the remaining ingredients. Pack the mixture into a wide-mouth, glass quart jar, pressing on the turnips with your hand, a potato masher, or the back of a wooden spoon until they express enough liquid to cover. If there isn’t enough liquid, add a brine made with 2¼ teaspoons sea salt dissolved in 1 cup of water.

Leave 2 inches of head space in the jar to allow for expansion (turnips ferment heavily and will overflow out of the jar without sufficient headspace). Cover loosely with a lid and place the jar on a tray or plate to catch any overflow while the turnips ferment. allow to ferment at room temperature for 4 days, then refrigerate.

— Chris Musser, Lost Arts Kitchen, Portland

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David Barber

A PortlAnd trAdition Since 1994 “The classic Portland combination of elegance, informality and history.”

- The Oregonian- A&E Diner

Makes 1 GaLLon

You’ve likely had sauerkraut. Well, this version with brussels sprouts and garlic scapes (the green tops of young garlic plants) is even better. try using it in a choucroute garnie with sausages and ham, or simply serving alongside pork tenderloin.

thinly slice the brussels sprouts and fennel and place in a large bowl along with the garlic scapes. sprinkle with the salt and pepper and toss to combine. (the salt pulls water out of the vegetables, which creates the brine. the salt also keeps the ferment crunchy).

Pack the mixture into the crocks, a bit at a time, tamping down hard using your fists or

a sturdy kitchen tool to help force water out of the vegetables. Cover with a clean plate or lid that fits snugly inside the crock on top of the vegetables. Place a clean weight on top to help force water out of the kraut and keep it submerged under the brine. every few hours, press down on the plate to help force water out of the vegetables, until the brine rises above the plate. this can take up to about 24 hours. If there isn’t enough brine by the next day, add salt water to compensate (about 1 teaspoon salt per cup of water).

Cover the crock with a cloth to keep dust and flies out. allow to ferment for 4 to 10 days, checking on it every day or two. sometimes mold appears on the surface, just skim off what you can but don’t worry about it. the kraut is protected by the brine. the kraut generally starts to be tangy after a few days, and the taste gets stronger over time. refrigerate when it tastes the way you like it. In winter, kraut can be left in a cool cellar and keep improving for months. but in a heated room or in summer, its life cycle is much shorter. It will begin to soften and taste unpleasant.

— From David Barber, Picklopolis, Portland; the fermentation process is adapted from “Wild Fermentation” by Sandor Katz.

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eat / technique

authentic soft pretzels anyone can make

By AndreA Slonecker

H

PhoTogrAPhy By moToyA nAkAmUrA

 ONLINE EXTRA: Watch Andrea Slonecker make pretzels and get the full recipe at mIXpdX.cOm

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ave you ever tasted a genuine soft pretzel? I’m not talking about those spongy, tasteless versions from the concession stand. I’m talking about a real soft pretzel, with deep, dark, burnished skin and a yeasty, chewy middle. If so, then you know that authentic German pretzels are much more than twisted bread.

In the last few years, I’ve noticed a growing interest in this iconic food, with artisan pretzel bakeries popping up across the country, pretzel bread becoming de rigueur for sandwiches, and restaurant chefs putting pretzelized creations on their menus, like pretzel dumplings, pretzel-dusted calamari and pretzel schnitzel. Seeing artisan pretzels everywhere got me tinkering with pretzel-making in my home kitchen, which inspired me to write my new cookbook, “Pretzel Making at Home,” which hits bookstores this month.

I discovered you don’t have to rely on a bakery to get your hands on a real-deal pretzel. It’s true that to get the all-important dark, leathery crust you have to dip them in a food-grade lye solution before baking. But don’t be intimidated by this step. Lye is a naturally occurring alkaline substance that has been used for hundreds of years to produce foods like hominy, Chinese noodles and cured olives. The lye wash breaks down the protein and starch on the surface of the pretzels, so that when they are placed in a hot oven, the gelatinized exterior solidifies into a deep brown, glossy crust. Chemically, the sodium hydroxide (lye) reacts with carbon dioxide to form edible sodium carbonate. When you’re done dipping, add a few tablespoons of vinegar to neutralize the pH of the lye solution, and then pour it down the drain.

Food-grade lye is hard to find in stores, but it can be ordered online from companies like Essential Depot (essentialdepot.com). If you aren’t up to the challenge of sourcing and working with lye, there is a suitable alternative: baked baking soda.

To bake baking soda, spread it out on a small baking dish and place in a 250 degree oven for 1 hour.

The heat of the oven chemically alters the baking soda to make it behave similarly to lye, and it will keep indefinitely in a covered container at room temperature.

There’s another key step in making excellent pretzels: slow fermentation. Make the dough a day in advance so it can rise slowly in the refrigerator. In a cold environment, the activity of the yeast is slowed, allowing the flavor and structure of the dough to develop gradually, which produces delicious complexity. The result is richness with a yeasty tang, not the one-dimensional flavor you taste in dough that rises quickly at a warm temperature.

Making pretzels is a fun project for home cooks.

Though there is a little chemistry involved in achieving that genuine flavor and texture, it’s well worth the effort.

Step-by-step

1

In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix ½ cup warm water (between 100 and 115 degrees) with 1 tablespoon barley malt syrup or 1 tablespoon firmly packed dark brown sugar. Sprinkle 1 package (2¼ teaspoons) active dry yeast over the water and allow to sit for 5 minutes until foamy (indicating yeast is alive). Attach dough hook. on low speed, mix in 3¼ cups unbleached bread flour, ½ cup cold pilsner or lager-style beer, 2 tablespoons cubed and softened unsalted butter and 2 teaspoons fine sea salt. Increase speed and knead dough until it forms a ball (or knead by hand on an unfloured work surface). Feel the dough: it It should be tacky, but not sticky; firm but not dry. Adjust the consistency by adding a little more flour or water, as needed. Transfer to a lightly greased bowl large enough to contain the dough after it has doubled in size. Wrap bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, preferably overnight.

2

Turn the dough out onto an unfloured work surface and press to deflate. cut dough into 8 equal portions.

3

Pat one portion of dough into a roughly shaped rectangle (keep the other portions covered so they don’t dry out. Tightly roll it up into a little elongated loaf and pinch the seam together.

5

4

roll the dough against the work surface into a rope, working from the center out to the ends. keep the center of the dough (the belly) fat, and taper the ends (the arms). once you can feel that the dough doesn’t want to stretch any farther, set it aside to rest, covered, and begin shaping another piece. (If the dough is becoming too dry to roll, moisten your hands and the work surface with a little water.)

When all the portions are rolled into ropes, return to the first dough rope and continue rolling it out to a length of 24 to 28 inches. At this point, you want to avoid the center and just work on thinning the ends. This will give the baked pretzels two distinctly different textures: tender, bready bellies and cracker-crisp arms. create the classic pretzel twist by positioning the dough in a U shape.

8

Prepare the alkaline dipping solution in a shallow, stainless-steel pot wide enough to maneuver the pretzels. Wearing rubber gloves and with the hood vent on high, place 2 tablespoons food-grade lye or ¼ cup baked baking soda (see introduction) in the bottom of the pot, add 6 cups of water and heat it just until hot but not simmering. Turn off heat when you see a wisp of steam (avoid standing over the steam — no one needs a lye facial). cool the mixture just until the steam subsides. now you’re ready for dipping.

9

6

Twist the arms together twice, about 3 inches from the tips.

7

Fold them down to meet the belly at about 4 and 8 o’clock. Press the tips in to secure. Arrange the shaped pretzels on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper, 4 pretzels per tray. cover and set the pretzels in a warm spot until they have increased in size by 50 percent.

one or two at a time, place the pretzels in the dipping solution and soak for about 20 seconds total, using a large stainless-steel skimmer to flip them halfway through. return dipped pretzels to the baking sheet. (If you are using baked baking soda rather than lye, after dipping the pretzels, brush them with an egg wash to get a glossy finish) Top the pretzels with coarse salt, or get creative with other toppings, like cheese, seeds or spices.

10

The pretzels must be baked immediately after dipping, in a 500 degree oven. rotate the pans about halfway through, and bake until they are deep mahogany in color. cool the hot pretzels for about 10 minutes, but be sure to eat them while they are still warm from the oven for optimal flavor and texture. april 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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Guess Who’s Coming?

We’ve set the table. You bring the food.

The Food For Thought Festival presented by Jewish Federation of Greater Portland will make you think, laugh, listen, eat and maybe even dance. Throughout the city, we’re bringing together noted writers, thinkers, artists and performers to share their wisdom and their work. We invite you to join us in celebrating culture, literature, food and music. And be sure to bring a donation of non-perishable food for the Oregon Food Bank.

For ticket information and a complete schedule of events, please visit FoodForThoughtPDX.org

Presented by

April 18-21, 2013

®

503.245.6219 | www.jewishportland.org

benefiting the

OREGON FOOD BANK

From left to right: Amy Ephron, author, David Steinberg, comedian and TV director, Ken Gordon, owner Kenny & Zuke’s & columnist, Giuliano Hazan, chef, Lisa Schroeder, chef/owner Mother’s Bistro & Bar, David Sarasohn, columnist, Laurel Snyder, children’s author

From cheese plate to dinner plate Our spring menu puts local cheeses front and center

Recipes by IVY MANNING Photography by DINA Ă VILA

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T

he Pacific Northwest may not be ideal for, say, growing citrus fruits or keeping your golden tan aglow, but when it comes to cheese, it can’t be beat. We’ve got no shortage of lush, green pastures, well-tended animals making rich, flavorful milk, and a growing group of passionate artisans dedicated to the craft of cheesemaking.

It all adds up to a delicious array of local choices at the cheese counter — so many that it’s getting ridiculously hard to choose between them. You can only eat so many crackers and cheese in a week, right?

Well, maybe it’s time to think outside the cheeseplate and let these local beauties add depth to the dinner table. There’s no reason why smallbatch artisan cheeses can’t shine just as brightly in a dish as they do on their own.

With that in mind, we asked cookbook author and recipe developer Ivy Manning to create a springtime menu using three local cheeses. To start, a tender salad tucked into savory, eggy puffs made with an ample shower of Ancient Heritage Dairy’s Hannah, a semi-firm sheep- and cows’-milk cheese. Next up: delicate fresh pasta filled with chive-spiked chèvre from Portland Creamery and bathed in browned butter. And, finally, gorgeous shortbread-crusted tarts filled with a mild, fresh sheep’s milk cheese from Black Sheep Creamery and topped with garnethued cherry compote.

It’s the perfect menu to celebrate spring in all its soggy glory.

After all, these rainy days and sunbreaks are a big part of why our local cheeses are so good.

Mixed Green Salads in Gougères With Ancient Heritage Dairy’s Hannah Cheese ServeS 4 (MAkeS five 2½ to 3-inCH GouGèreS)

think of these like cheese-y popovers. they’re so good, you might want to double the batch and make little ones to have on hand for snacking. Gougère dough comes together quickly; make sure to have all your ingredients prepared and measured before starting. the eggs must be room temperature; warm them quickly by soaking them in their shells in a bowl of warm water for 15 minutes.

For the gougères: ¼ cup whole milk ¼ cup water ¼ cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1 ⁄4 teaspoon salt ½ cup (2½ ounces) all purpose flour 2 large eggs, room temperature 1 cup (3 ounces) coarsely grated, aged cow’s milk cheese, such as Ancient Heritage Dairy’s “Hannah” (cow and sheep’s milk blend) For the salad: 1½ tablespoons sherry vinegar 4 tablespoons walnut or extra-virgin olive oil ¼ teaspoon truffle oil 3 cups mixed baby salad greens Fleur de sel, or sea salt Freshly ground pepper

To make the gougères: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside. in a medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, butter and salt to a boil. remove the pan from heat and add the flour all at once, stir to combine. Place the pan over mediumlow heat and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon to dry out the dough, 3 to 5 minutes. the dough is ready when it is glossy and stiff enough to hold a spoon upright. transfer the dough to a large bowl and beat with a wooden spoon or hand mixer until it is no longer steaming, 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until the dough is thick and shiny, adding the second egg only after the first one has been completely incorporated into the dough. Add the grated cheese and stir to blend.

Quickly spoon the dough into five 2½ to 3-inch mounds on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

Place the baking sheets in the oven, and bake 5 minutes.

Decrease the oven temperature to 375 degrees and bake until puffed, browned and cooked through, about 25 to 30 minutes. test for doneness by quickly retrieving one gougère from the oven. Let it sit for 30 seconds on a cutting board. if it starts to deflate within 30 seconds, let the remaining puffs bake for a few more minutes to finish cooking. remove the gougères from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. (the gougères can be baked several hours in advance. reheat in a 350-degree oven for 10 minutes to re-crisp them before proceeding with the recipe.)

To make the salad: in a small lidded jar, combine the vinegar, walnut oil and truffle oil. Screw on the lid and shake vigorously until combined. toss the lettuce with just enough dressing to coat the leaves. Season with fleur de sel and freshly ground black pepper.

To assemble and serve: With a sharp paring knife, cut a 2-inch diameter round out of the top of each gougère. remove the “lid” and scoop out most of the soft dough (about 1½ to 2 tablespoons) that remains in the centers, discard, or nibble on them as you work. Stuff the gougères with the salad and serve immediately.

— From Ivy Manning

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starters, cont.

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Agnolini with Portland Creamery Chèvre, Brown Butter and Peas MAkeS 4 ServinGS

in these half-moon shaped ravioli, chives add a bright springtime note to a decadent filling of Portland Creamery’s luscious chèvre. agnolini: 8 ounces Portland Creamery fresh chèvre 1 egg yolk 4 teaspoons finely chopped fresh chives 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest ¼ teaspoon salt 1 ⁄8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 32 fresh gyoza wrappers Sauce and peas: 7 tablespoons unsalted cultured butter, such as Organic Valley 1 pound fresh English peas, pods removed (or about 1 cup frozen peas, defrosted) Coarse finishing salt, such as fleur de sel Freshly ground black pepper

To make the agnolini: Dust 2 rimmed baking sheets with flour. in a medium bowl, combine the chèvre, egg yolk, chives, zest, and salt and pepper. Beat to combine. Lay 4 gyoza wrappers on a clean work surface. Place 1 generous teaspoon of the cheese mixture in the center of each wrapper. Dip your finger in water and run it around the edges of the wrappers. fold the wrapper over so that the edges meet to create a half-moon shape. Press with your fingertips to chase out any trapped air and push firmly to seal the edges together. Place on the prepared baking sheets and repeat with the remaining filling and wrappers. (the agnolini can be prepared up to 3 hours in advance, refrigerate until ready to use.)

To make the sauce and peas: Heat a large pot of salted water until boiling. While the water heats up, place the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat and cook, swirling the pan from time to time, until the foam subsides and the butter begins to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. remove from heat.

When the pasta water comes to a boil, add the peas and cook until tender, 2 minutes. use a small sieve or slotted spoon to fish the peas out of the water and transfer them to a bowl. reduce the heat on the pasta water to maintain a very gentle simmer (vigorously simmering water will cause the agnolini to burst). Add half of the agnolini. Stir very gently once, and cook until the pasta floats to the top and is al dente when a corner is tested, about 2 minutes. using a small sieve or large slotted spoon, fish the agnolini from the water a few at a time, drain well, and add to the pan with the browned butter, toss gently to coat, and place the pan over the lowest possible heat.

Carefully transfer the finished pasta in the pan to 2 shallow bowls and cover to keep warm. repeat the process with the remaining agnolini. toss the second batch of pasta gently with the remaining butter in the pan and transfer to shallow bowls. Sprinkle the peas and any remaining browned butter over the pasta, sprinkle with fleur de sel and freshly ground black pepper and serve immediately.

— From Ivy Manning

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Cherry and fresh fromage de Brebis tarts MAkeS 6 (4½-inCH) tArtS, or one 9-inCH tArt

fresh fromage de brebis is a soft, young sheep’s milk cheese similar to chèvre, but with a milder, sweeter flavor. Black Sheep Creamery in Adna, Washington, makes a beautiful version seasonally from early Spring until August; you can find it at the Cheese Bar and new Seasons Markets. fresh farmer’s cheese or mild chèvre can be used in a pinch. if you don’t have individual tart pans, simply make one 9-inch tart.

Tart dough: 1½ cups plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) xxxunbleached all purpose flour, plus xxxmore for rolling ¼ cup granulated sugar ¼ teaspoon salt ½ cup cold unsalted butter cut in ½-inch pieces 2 egg yolks Compote: ¾ pounds (about 1½ cups) frozen, pitted cherries 3 tablespoons water ¼ cup granulated sugar 2 teaspoons cornstarch ¾ teaspoon almond extract 2-3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (preferably Lucini Gran Riserva) Filling: ¾ cup (6 ounces) creamy, fresh sheep’s milk cheese, such as Black Sheep Creamery’s Brebis, room temperature 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar To make the tart dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, salt and butter. Blend with paddle until the butter has broken down into pea-size pieces. in a small measuring cup, whisk together the egg yolks and enough cold water to make ¼ cup of liquid total. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and blend until the dough just starts to come together.

Gather the dough into a ball and knead a few times on a lightly floured surface until the dough is smooth. Shape into a disc that is about 1-inch thick, wrap in plastic, and chill for at least 30 minutes, or up to 4 days.

To make the compote: Combine the cherries, water, sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Bring to simmer over medium-high

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heat and cook, stirring frequently, until the cherries have released their juices and they are thickened and bubbly, 4 minutes. Pour into a medium bowl, stir in the extract and vinegar. taste and adjust with more vinegar if preferred. refrigerate until chilled.

To make the filling: in a small bowl, beat the cheese and brown sugar together with a wooden spoon until the sugar is completely incorporated. if not using right away refrigerate. Bring back to room temperature before using.

To bake, assemble and serve: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. if making individual tarts, divide the dough into 6 equal pieces. Working with one at a time, roll out the dough into a circle 1⁄8 -inch thick. Gently lay dough into a 4½-inch tart pan with a removable bottom

and press so that the dough fits snugly into the pan and around all the edges. run a rolling pin over the top to trim the edges. repeat with the remaining dough. (if making a 9-inch tart, roll out all the dough at once.)

Place a piece of foil over the tart shells and fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake for 20 minutes. remove the foil and beans/weights and return the tart shells to the oven until they are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Cool the tart shells on a wire rack until ready to serve. remove the tart shells from their pans and place on a large round platter. using an offset spatula spread the cheese mixture into the bottom of the tart shells.

Spoon the cherries over the cheese and serve within 1 hour of assembly.

— From Ivy Manning

calendar Our picks for what to do when COMPILED BY GRANT BUTLER

TAYLOR MADE

APRIL 4-6: Dance-maker Paul Taylor is a favorite with Portland audiences, and White Bird brings his company back to perform two of his masterworks, along with his latest piece, “The Uncommitted.” Making this even more special, the company will dance for the first time in the intimate Newmark Theatre. whitebird.org

GET CRACKING

APRIL 6: Tradition has it that a chef’s hat has one hundred pleats — one for every way that a chef should know how to cook an egg. In Sur La Table’s “How to Cook an Egg” class, you’ll learn how to cook perfect eggs every time, from simple scrambles to trickier poached eggs, plus soufflés and master sauces like hollandaise. If your egg cookery is more broken yolks than sunny side up, this one’s for you.

surlatable.com

FEST MAKES MOST OF COAST

APRIL 26-28: Heading to Astoria is a perfect day trip. It’s a beautiful two-hour drive from Portland, much of it along the majestic Columbia River. And once you’re there, the 31st annual AstoriaWarrenton Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival awaits. It’s the largest seafood and wine festival on the Oregon coast, featuring live music and gourmet food along with plenty of beer and wine to drink. oldoregon.com PHOTOGRAPH BY BENJAMIN BRINK

WHAT A FEELING!

A TASTY TRIP

APRIL 23-28: Grab your leg warmers

MORE PEAS, PLEASE!

APRIL 7: Oregon

powells.co

portland.broadway.com broadwayrose.org bustersbarbecue.com PHOTOGRAPH BY KYLE FROMAN

cookbook author Sarah Matheny made a big splash a few years back when her debut cookbook, “Peas and Thank You,” cracked the New York Times best-sellers list. Now she’s back with her follow-up, “More Peas, Thank You,” which continues her exploration of making vegetarian dishes that appeal to children without boring adult palates. In a Q&A at Powell’s with Oregonian food writer Grant Butler, she’ll talk about creating delicious, healthy meals for the whole family and the tricks to getting kids to love their veggies.

and torn-up sweatshirts and get ready to unleash your inner “Maniac” with “Flashdance,” a musical adaptation of the guilty pleasure 1980s film about a stripper who dreams of being a ballet dancer.

In addition to songs from the original soundtrack, the show features 16 new songs and elaborate production numbers.

It may inspire you to head out for drinks at a racy nightclub afterwards.

APRIL 27-28: Take a long weekend in southern Oregon to indulge in A Taste of Ashland, an unusual food festival that teams 17 art galleries with 17 restaurants and 17 wineries.

During a long afternoon, you’ll stroll from gallery to gallery, eating Northwest cuisine and drinking wine from the Ashland and Jacksonville area. The event ends in plenty of time to take in one of the plays at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, including the world-premiere musical “The Unfortunates,” which features music combining gospel and blues. atasteofashland.com osfashland.org APRIL 2013 MIXpdX.coM

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For Liz Alvis, cheesemaking isn’t a job, it’s a passion by sasha davies

W

hen Portland Creamery owner Liz Alvis sold her first batch of chèvre in October 2011, there were already eight cheesemakers in Oregon alone making the fresh goat cheese, that’s not even counting producers in nearby Washington and California. “Why would I bring sand to the beach, right?” Alvis says with a laugh.

But for Alvis, it didn’t matter that the market was already abundant with the product she planned to make. She had fallen in love with cheesemaking, and chèvre appealed to her because of its simplicity and purity — it is a direct expression of the milk used to make it.

She found a private dairy farm in Molalla with a herd consisting of award-winning Saanen, Alpine and La Mancha goats. It was the ideal start-up arrangement: She could focus entirely on cheesemaking and leave the dairying and milking to the seasoned dairy farmer.

But how did this 36-year-old go from selling corks to starting her own creamery?

Turns out, it had a lot to do with her mom.

So you started your career in the wine industry selling corks. How did you get into cheesemaking?

I loved the production side of winemaking so it was a very natural progression to go into cheesemaking. I did think at the beginning of my journey that I’d be producing wines, but after working with my mom I was like, “That’s it for me. I want to make cheese.” your mom, jean Mackenzie, owns Mackenzie Creamery in Hiram, Ohio.

Did you grow up working in her creamery?

It was actually a fairly recent thing. She only started doing it in 2005. She was raising goats already, but they were meat goats. Then she took a cheesemaking class.

When she said she was going to make cheese we were like, “Of course!” It was so logical. She’s very crafty and really good in the kitchen. Her company really hit the ground running. It provided a wonderful learning experience for me because I was part of it from the beginning. I’m really

grateful for her. Most of what I learned to start my business I learned from my mom.

Was there anything you learned from your years in the wine industry that has carried over into cheesemaking?

The artistry of it. The other thing is the sourcing of really good grapes, or, in my case, really good milk. That’s the foundation of your product, that’s what it comes down to. Also, I saw a lot of winemakers who were able to really focus on the winemaking and leave the vineyard management to someone else. I’d love to invest in a farm, but I’d like to leave the actual herd management to someone else. That way, you’re involved, but you’re letting people do what they do well. You’re giving them that freedom and creating that partnership.

What are some of your future plans?

My vision is to bring the creamery urban.

I would like to be doing the cheesemaking in the city so people can be educated about the process. I’d have a cheese tasting room and an aging room. That’s when I’ll develop an aged cheese-making program.

Also, I recently took over a commercial kitchen space in town so I can make more cajeta (goat milk caramel). Hopefully I’ll be able to sell it beyond the farmers markets.

What’s your favorite part about being a cheesemaker?

Getting people to try something new.

Some people think that goat milk cheeses are goaty. Having them try it and realize it’s not, that it’s fresh and bright and delicious and healthy. That’s really fun.

What’s the worst part?

Delivering cheese in the rain. That’s totally worst thing. It always seems to be raining on my delivery days. But, really, there’s not much negative about making cheese. I feel very lucky. £ Portland Creamery chèvre is available in all New Seasons stores and a couple other retail shops around Portland. If you want to meet Liz herself, head to one of the many farmers markets she’s participating in this season.

Check portlandcreamery.com for details. photograph by ross william hamilton

 ONLiNE EXTRA: Read the full interview with Liz Alvis at miXpdX.cOm 56

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