The Portland Pickle

Registration is now open!

Click here for detailed menus and class descriptions for the Spring Intermediate Hands On Cooking Series that I’m co-teaching with chef Hank Sawtelle.  Check out his popular “Ask Hank” column on Culinate.  Shoot me an email with any questions.

Take a peek at my growing list of spring cooking classes.

I enjoy teaching technique based classes that emphasize method.  Anyone can follow a recipe verbatim.  But freedom in the kitchen comes when you realize that a recipe is a jumping off point – a good idea that can be tinkered with to custom fit your own tastes.  To get to this point you must arm yourself with an understanding of basic cooking techniques like good knife skills, sautéing, braising, sauce making, etc..  (For further reading on this topic consider Tom Colicchio’s Think Like a Chef or Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind Everyday Cooking by Michael Rhulman.)

An article titled “How to Improvise in the Kitchen” in the Atlantic Monthly fits this philosophy exactly.  Her example?  Chocolate cake!  The author compares a bare bones chocolate cake recipe to “a little black dress” that can be “improvised on endlessly to create different effects”.  She encourages exotic flavorings like lavender, chili powder, orange zest and earl gray tea.

The timing of discovering this article (thanks, John!) could not have been better – I’ve been trying to get rid of a vast surplus of chocolate chips.  Even better, every other ingredient I needed was in-house.  I added a heaping teaspoon of instant espresso to mine.  The result:  I’m telling you this recipe is killer.  And ridiculously simple.  Click HERE for the recipe and tell me if you agree.

Hint:  It’s imperative that you not over cook it.  Like the recipe says, the cake is finished when a skewer inserted one inch from the edge comes out clean.

In recent months I’ve been fortunate to have many remarkable students in the Foundation Cooking Series that I teach at In Good Taste.  Some were excellent home cooks looking to brush up on their skills.  Others were new to cooking and brought with them curiosity and an eagerness to learn.

For six Wednesdays in a row they came, after their day jobs, to prepare a multi course meal (with wine) based on classic cooking techniques.  Classes ranged from knife skills and sauté to grilling, braising and stewing, soups and quick breads and desserts.

A few students from the last two series are involved in ‘the food industry’ in important ways on a daily basis:

A basket of fresh eggs from Rainbow Egg Farm

I always knew Portlanders were crazy for fresh eggs – evidenced by the growing trend of backyard chickens within city limits.  But David and Teresa Bishop have built a business on eggs – albeit on the other side of the Columbia River.  Eggs laid on the Bishop’s Rainbow Egg Farm in Hockinson, Washington come in a rainbow (literally!) of gorgeous natural colors.  $5 to $6.50 a dozen.  They also sell soy-free chicken feed and will soon offer home-roasted coffee.

Another Washingtonian and student in the series was Dr. Phillip Tirman author of the James Beard nominated book The Wine and Food Lovers Diet: 28 Days of Delicious Weight Loss.  Phillip is among the nation’s leading sports medicine physicians.  His love of food, experience as a doctor and extensive work with athletes give him a unique outlook on what works and what doesn’t when trying to loose weight.  Think low-glycemic foods. . . even beef tenderloin and peanut butter soufflés with chocolate sauce are ok!  His French mother must have had a little influence.

Student turned chocolatier Stacey Miller is about to launch her new business called The Bake Shop in Canby, which will specialize in handmade chocolates and desserts.  More to come on that later!

The next Foundation Series begins Tuesday, March 2.
Stay tuned for info on the Spring Intermediate Series!

The Portland Meat Collective is offering three trial classes at Zenger Farm.  Camas Davis, the writer/butcher behind the new business, studied butchery in France.  She’s recruited Country Cat chef Adam Sappington and self taught butcher Levi Cole to lead the classes.  If you’re jazzed about the growing DIY butchery movement in Portland then you’ll dig this.

Classes include:

- Basic Butchery (you’ll take home $100 worth of pork) $200
- Real Coq au Vin (chicken slaughter) $75
- Easy Home Curing (make your own pancetta and corned beef) $75

PDX Eater spotted this article about how to determine if you’re eating in a snooty restaurant.  Hint – octagonal plates and bathroom escorts.

Author Max Watman will stop by Powell’s on Burnside, Monday, March 1 at 7:30 PM.  He wrote Chasing the White Dog: An Amateur Outlaw’s Adventures in Moonshine. The book is still on my reading list. But if my Kentucky roots are to be trusted, I’m pretty sure “white dog” describes a spirit after it’s been distilled but before it’s barreled, aka moonshine?  I tasted some at Buffalo Trace Distillery recently. If you’ve ever lit your mouth on fire, white dog tastes very much like that. Maybe there will be a tasting after Watman’s reading and signing. Yikes.  Once you have some you’ll realize the accuracy of the term “white lightning”.

I’m excited to announce my 2nd Annual Spring Break Kids and Teens Cooking Series at In Good Taste. Kids classes will be held March 22, 23 and 24.  Foods from Asia, Mexico and Italy will be our themes each day.  While teen classes on March 25 and 26 will focus on knife skills and pasta making.  Click HERE to see detailed menus and registration info!  All classes are held in the Lake Oswego location.

Give me a shout if you have any questions: louisa@louisaneumann.com

Featured speakers for the 32nd annual International Association of Culinary Professional’s Conference have just been released.  Lucky us, the conference is in Portland this year!  Noted speakers include culinary royalty Ruth Reichl, Judith Jones, Michael Ruhlman, Madhur Jaffrey and many more.  The theme of this year’s conference, April 21 – 24, heralds innovation and creativity as “the new culinary order”.  The PDX food scene is still sizzlin’ hot and this conference will prove it.

Conference events will be held all over town from The Nines Hotel, Le Cordon Bleu, Oregon Culinary Institute, Art Institute to the convention center, The Hilton, The Chef Studio and Sur La Table.  Many events will be unique to Portland: Urban Bike and Bite Tour, Pork and Pinot Tour, Salmon 101, Oregon on Tap, Early Morning Bakery and Food Cart Tours, and brand new Night Owl Sessions.  Registration isn’t cheap, but less expensive day passes are available.  If you’re working in the industry, the networking and educational opportunities here are huge.  A couple events may be open to the public – more on this later.

My friend Ashley introduced me to Foster & Dobbs today. I know, what took me so long?  Their hot-melty smoked gouda, bresaola and fig jam sandwich hit the spot after a steep hike in the Gorge.  The shop’s giant case of cheese and meat, hand picked selection of fine wines and beer, chocolate, and artisan crackers make it the ideal place to gather goods for your next cocktail party.  But wait! They offer classes, too.  Upcoming class topics include: sherry, pinot noir around the world and intro to IPAs.  Most classes are $25.

Foster & Dobbs 2518 NE 15th Ave. 10am to 7pm

Here’s a fun alternative to the obligatory valentine’s night candlelit dinner.
Click here to get deets on the Ace Hotel’s valentine’s day afternoon blowout.  Food, drink, vday crafts, live music.  Tickets $20 in advance.