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Chef Blair King’s Pacific Northwest Bouillabaisse

Back in the day, “The Brooklyn” was one of  my top spots for the 5:00 O’Clock pop with friends.  In fact, I liked it so much that I make it a point to stop in every time I come to the city.  The oysters – check, the happy hour – check – the service – check, the vibe ~ DOUBLE CHECK.  Long before I gave much thought to the back of the house, I could name every bartender in the joint.  Whether or not they remembered mine is fodder for another day… Now, lucky me, I know the Executive Chef, too!  Blair King joins me on the show today and was kind enough to share his Pacific Northwest Bouillabaisse.  Not only a taste of Seattle, but a bonus from The Brooklyn. 

Ingredients:

  • 2 oz.    Olive oil
  • 2 oz.    Chorizo, fresh
  • 1T.    Garlic, minced
  • 1T.    Fennel bulb, diced
  • 10 ea.    Penn Cove Mussels
  • 10 ea.    Treasure Cove Clams
  • 3 oz.     Alaskan King Salmon 1/2 in. cubed
  • 3 oz.    Alaskan Halibut 1/2 in. cubed
  • 1 oz.    Columbia River Sturgeon, 1/2 in. cubed
  • 6 ea.    Prawns, 41-50 count
  • Fennel-Saffron-Tomato Nage (recipe follows)
  •  1 ear    Roasted corn, removed from ear
  •  1 oz.    Oven dried tomatoes
  • 1/4 c     Spinach, fresh
  • 2 oz.    Butter, unsalted, cubed
  • Pinch    Sea salt, to taste
  • 3 oz.    Crab Risotto
  1. Brown chorizo in sauté pan over medium heat.
  2. Add garlic and fennel and sweat for 1 min. Add all seafood and toss to coat.
  3. Add nage, oven-dried tomatoes, and roasted corn. Cover and simmer for approximately 5 minutes until all shellfish are open.
  4. Remove bouillabaisse from heat. Fold in butter and spinach; season with sea salt.
  5. Pour into heated bowl and garnish with a Dungeness crab risotto.

 

Fennel-Saffron-Tomato Nage

Ingredients:

2 T     Fennel seed, toasted
2T     Coriander seed, toasted
3     Bulbs Shallots, rough cut
1 Lb     Fennel Bulb, quartered
2 #    Heirloom tomatoes
4 oz    Tomato Paste
4 oz     Garlic Cloves
2 c     Pinot Gris
4 c     Clam Nectar
8each     Saffron Threads

Roast shallots, fennel bulb, tomatoes, garlic, celery in 350 degree oven for one hour until soft but not charred.  Deglaze roasting pan with pinot gris.  Combine with remaining ingredients in stock pot. Add water to cover vegetables and bring to boil.  Reduce heat to simmer until nage is half of its original volume.  Strain and reserve for Bouillabaisse assembly.

 

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The Weekly Whet: “The Wrath of Grapes”

Courtesy of Ray Pearson and the Montanya Rum Distillery, Silverton, CO

In all the time Ray Pearson has been contributing to intotheSoup.com and into the Soup radio, I’ve secretly been waiting for a giant box of knick-knacks, magnets, and key chains to arrive in my mailbox from his extensive travels. At last, my heart is content because in place of knick-knacks and silly things, Ray sent me some lovely cocktail recipes to share! Here’s my favorite because, well, I really like Steinbeck, and I really, really like rum.

 Ingredients 

  • ½ fresh squeezed lemon
  • 1 oz rosemary simple syrup
  • 2 oz Platino rum
  • 3 muddled basil leaves
  • 1/3 cup grapes

1.) Muddle grapes and basil in a cocktail glass

2.) Add lemon juice, simple syrup, and rum to a cocktail shaker and shake well

3.) Pour contents of shaker over muddled grapes and basil

4.) Top off with soda water and give the cocktail a good stir. Enjoy!

The Geographer’s Cafe: Mexico City, Mexico

By RF Burton

So I am on a plane to Stockholm, which will be the second stop on a journey that will take me to almost 60 countries. You see, I recently got a job with a company that has offices around the world and part of my gig is to get to know them all. This is an exceptional opportunity that has its challenges, not the least of which is a lot of time away from family, yet I can’t help but believe this is one of those lifetime opportunities that you can’t pass up. I am looking forward to sharing the fun, non-business parts with you. So let’s back up to my first stop – Mexico City.

I chose to start in Mexico because it was “geographically desirable” (a.k.a reasonably close to my point of departure,) but still culturally very different from the US. I knew I could get a feel for the challenges of international operations. Upon my arrival, I was greeted by our office manager and a tour guide, Sergio Perez.

Sergio was a top-notch guide. He was worldly and fluent in both English and French. He seemed to know everything about Mexico City, though he conceded that if he didn’t know the particulars of something he could easily “make up a good story.”

Massive Organ at the Catedral Nacional

Our first stop was Zocalo or Plaza de la Constitucion at the heart of the city. The Plaza is built on top of the ancient Aztec city now under excavation. While it doesn’t look like much, you can get a glimmer of the old structures and carvings in a corner of the plaza.

I arrived on a Sunday so many popular attractions like the Palacio Nacional were closed, but we did get to tour the Catedral Nacional which actually deserves a full day of tour on its own.

The Catedral Nacional

I love cathedrals. They’re a contradiction of sorts– public and yet sacred and they all come with tons of legends. My favorite tale from this one was the story of the “poison crucifix”. Supposedly, a bishop had the habit of kissing the feet of a Jesus on the crucifix when he arrived each day. One day, an enemy of the bishop’s placed poison on the feet of the statue in and effort to off the bishop. When the bishop knelt at the feet of the statue, the statue came to life and raised his feet. While this action saved the bishop from the deadly kiss, the poison penetrated the white marble of the crucifix turning it black. Whether this account is legend or fact, I’ll leave to your personal beliefs; but either way, it’s a wonderful explanation for the statue’s unique ebony appearance.

The Palacio Nacional

While the the opportunity to tour the city was limited, the food was abundant. Unfortunately, Mexico City is too massive and confusing for me to give you precise directions to the restaurants. Add to that the fact that we needed a driver who, apparently, was formerly army and our protection, and I decided it was best to keep my head down and not ask too many questions.

Business meetings take place over meals in Mexico City and I was treated to the “best of.” The first night, we went to a Mexican fusion restaurant, Pujol, in the Polanco area, where we enjoyed an eight course tasting menu. We drank Don Julio Reposado with a tomato juice taster, so the incredible spread was more like an incredible blur. You know what they say; “One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor.” That probably explains why the highlight for me was the first dish. It came in a large clay pot filled with corn husks for flavor. Inside, baby corn on sticks were served in a coffee-based sauce. I also remember liking a mushroom dish covered in mole. Luckily, my host grabbed the bill because I think it was beyond my bank account.

The next evening we had another “business meeting” at a true Mexico City establishment, Hacienda de los Morales. This is a gorgeous place that takes you directly to colonial Mexico. Built in the 16th century, it is like stepping out of the city into a different world. Like the architecture, the food was traditional. I had pork medallions in a guacamole sauce and a local merlot, and since it is taboo to talk business at these introductory business meals, we had some good conversation as well.

Experiencing this taste of the real Mexico was quite an eye-opener. The people I met were sophisticated, intelligent and very civilized in their approach to business.

Next Stop: Stockholm, Sweden

Moroccan Chickpea-Couscous Salad

Couscous has to be one of the greatest ‘make it quick’ inventions of all time. This salad has an interesting (I would have to say ‘mouthwatering’!!) blend of chickpeas, cinnamon and dates—hitting all of those sweet/savory notes. Make it for yourself and let us know what you think!

Moroccan Chickpea-Couscous Salad

Serves 8 (side dish)

Ingredients:

  • 3 green onions, chopped
  • 7 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, divided
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 package (10 ounces) couscous
  • 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 1 can (19 ounces) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 2 cups shredded carrots (3 to 4 large carrots) OR 2 cups sliced, parboiled carrots
  • 1 cup dates, pitted and coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
  1. Reserve green parts of onion for salad. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in medium saucepan on medium heat. Add white onion pieces; cook and stir 5 minutes. Stir in broth, cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon of the black pepper and cayenne. Bring to boil. Add couscous; cover. Remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes.
  2. Make vinaigrette by mixing remaining 6 tablespoons oil, vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt in small bowl with wire whisk until well blended.
  3. Fluff couscous with fork; spoon into large bowl. Add sliced green onions, chickpeas, carrots, dates, almonds, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon each salt and black pepper; toss lightly. Add vinaigrette; toss again. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

 

The Weekly Whet: Blue Bark Rickey

This week’s whet comes to us from Anu Apte – owner and “bartender wondergirl” at Rob Roy in Belltown (Seattle), WA.  If you’re looking for that ‘take you back to a simpler time’ kind of joint with those ‘simpler time’ kind of drinks ~ they do that, too!  However, if you’re lookin’ for a really funky joint to sit down, relax, take a load off and sample some kick ass cocktails with some really unique um…kicks; go visit Anu and give one of these Blueberry Bark Rickey’s a try – go summer!

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 oz gin, a London dry works best
  • 1/2 oz turmeric syrup
  • 1/4 St. Germain Liqueur
  • 1/2 oz Fresh lime juice
  • 8 muddled blueberries
  • topped with soda

Muddle blueberries in a shaker, add all liquids, add ice.  Shake and then strain into a Collins glass filled with fresh ice.
Garnish with a blueberry and a lime wedge.

Chef Tomer Shneor’s Corn Soup

Our hats are off to Chef Tomer Shneor of Branzino in Seattle, WA (Belltown, to be exact).  He entertained us with stories and some of the best gnocchi EVER!  We also got a little taste of this outstanding Corn Soup – silky, smooth ~ just delish!  Thanks, Tomer!

Corn Soup

Makes 4 Liters

Ingredients:


  • 10 corn ears, kernels removed (save corn cob for corn stock)
  • 2 TBS Olive oil
  • 2 Onion, diced
  • 3 Cloves garlic, smashed
  • 8 Thyme sprigs
  • Corn stock, to cover
  • 1/4 cup Heavy cream
  • Salt, to taste
  • Black pepper, to taste


  1. Place corn kernels and thyme into medium size stock pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and cook for 45 minutes; strain stock and set aside.
  2. Sweat onions in olive oil on medium low heat until translucent; add garlic and cook for 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low,  add corn kernels and continue cooking  for 10-15 minutes, making sure to stir constantly.
  3. Add corn stock, increase heat to high and bring soup to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer, and cook corn soup for 45 minutes.
  4. Remove corn soup from the heat, ladle soup into blender (only a small amount at a time) and puree until smooth. Repeat until all soup has been pureed.
  5. Pour pureed soup back into pot,  and slowly bring it to a boil. Whisk in heavy cream and season with salt and pepper.

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