Madrid for the Toro Bravo Cookbook

In late September I was lucky enough to get to go on an eat/drink pilgrimage to Madrid and Barcelona for the Toro Bravo Cookbook with Toro Bravo's chef-owner John Gorham, our McSweeney's Books editor Rachel Khong, the book's photographer David Reamer, the restaurant's chef de cuisine Kasey Mills and charcuterie manager Josh Scofield. We hit the ground running and only slept a few hours a night the entire trip so we could maximize or eating/drinking/exploring time.

The last time I'd been to Spain was in 1996 when I'd I worked on a culinary herb farm via WWOOF for three months a couple hours outside of Madrid in the Extremadura region. At the end of my work stay I traveled around a quadrant of Spain -- to Toledo, Cordoba, Sevilla, Cadiz, Malaga, Granada and more -- with my mom and grandma who came to visit me there. It was a magical time for me and I was so excited to find out that I would get to return 16 years later with the brave bulls for the cookbook.

And just a word on how extremely generous Toro Bravo chef-owner John Gorham is: he bought all of our tickets, paid for our hotels, paid for a major meal every day during the trip and then some. Forever grateful. Incredible.

I'm going to let the photos that I took speak for themselves. After this post about our time in Madrid I'll post about Barcelona. Without further ado...

Langoustines on ice at the Mercado de San Miguel just across the street from our hotel near Plaza Mayor.

First bites and drinks at the same market fresh off the plane.

Meaty goodness at one of Madrid's many Museos del Jamon -- a cured meat chain there.

John took us later that night -- still no sleep -- to the Argentinian steakhouse De Maria Parrilla for their grilled sweetbreads and chimichurri that he'd loved on a previous trip to Madrid. Josh (next to John) liked them a lot and so did we.

Kasey serving up Taberna Maceiras' house specialty arroz marineiro for brunch the next day.

Funny menu at a cafe in Retiro Park. One of my favorite parks in the world. Went here every time I visited Madrid when I was in Spain in 1996.

David is not about to eat that entire roasted suckling pig on his own. Dinner at Sobrino de Botin -- the oldest restaurant in the world. Open since 1725.

Churros and chocolate at Chocolateria San Gines. Where all the staff hates you if you aren't Spanish but you don't care because you are still slightly drunk from the night before.

This was taken at the end one of the best meals that we had in Madrid. That bottle is filled with a really tasty housemade peach liqueur. Go to Portobello if you're in Madrid -- some of the best food of the trip.

Of course we went to a bullfight on our last night in Madrid.

The procession at the beginning...

Can't think of a better closing shot for the brave bulls' trip to Madrid.

Stay tuned for the next installment -- Barcelona!

Wordstock 2012 + Toro Bravo

Did you go to Wordstock this year? I go every year. I love it and look forward to it every fall. I've had a lot of milestones at Wordstock -- my first book Food Lover's Guide to Portland was born at Wordstock and a lot of other good fortune and good times have come to be for me at festivals past.

This year I tabled all day Saturday and Sunday at the Hawthorne Books booth. I've been an editor and publicity director at Hawthorne since late summer/early fall of 2009. Three years! I got to hang out with a lot of our authors (and sneak away for a couple of their cool events) as well as with publisher Rhonda Hughes and senior editor Adam O'Connor Rodruguez. Good times.

I also got to spend time with the publishers of the book that I am currently writing with John Gorham -- the Toro Bravo Cookbook: The Making, Breaking and Riding of a Bull. We are so happy to be doing this book with McSweeney's. Dream come true.

I hosted the McSweeney's folks during Wordstock this year so that meant late night karaoke, 20 boxes of books in my front room, plum wine on the front porch and a lot of fine eating and drinking at Toro Bravo, of course (we had a huge dinner where cava and txakoli flowed freely and we tried a lot of the new dishes inspired by our recent trip to Madrid and Barcelona), Biwa and Tasty n Sons to name a few spots that we went. They even had to break into my house once while they were here. I won't give you all the details on that but it worked.

AND I got to finally meet our high-rolling, ass kicking literary agent Kimberly Witherspoon. We're very lucky to have Kim on our side and it was great to finally meet her in person. She moderated a panel this year at Wordstock and while she was in town she got to have a really nice meal at Toro.

Our literary agent, Kimberly Witherspoon, of InkWell Management moderating a panel at Wordstock 2012.

So, if you didn't get to Wordstock this year please try to make it next year. It's an incredible annual Portland event for readers, writers, editors, publishers -- basically all book lovers. And it might just visit some very good fortune on you as well. You never know...

Wordstock www.wordstockfestival.com

Yard Fresh Pt. 24

It's been awhile since I've done one of these and to tell the truth I've been so busy meeting our final deadline for the Toro Bravo Cookbook (WE DID IT!) amongst several other big deadline projects I really haven't been cooking all that much. That said, I've made a few tasty thing lately and I'm going to share them with you here. Have you cooked anything really good in the past few weeks?

First roasted bird of the season -- stuffed with lemon and seasoned with a lot of olive oil and smoked paprika.

Last batch of spicy garlic dills. Didn't go overboard this year like I tend to with these...

And the last haul from the garden -- mostly went into soup...

Made twice as much plum wine this year -- all from the Brooks plum tree in the front yard. Should have about 100 bottles come spring!

Potato tacos became potato tostadas for breakfast. One of my favorite breakfasts...

Grilled sockeye that my neighbor caught (I'm so lucky) with grilled cauliflower and stewed green beans.

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Sandor Ellix Katz at Powell's November 14th and Contest!

Sandor Ellix Katz aka Sandorkraut is one of my favorite people and so I'm very excited that he's coming back to Portland for an Edible Portland sponsored Powell's Books event for his newest book The Art of Fermentation on Wednesday, November 14th (National Pickle Day!) at 7:30pm at the downtown Powell's. Over the years I've been lucky enough to travel to Nashville to interview Sandor for The Sun Magazine and also invite Sandor to speak along with festival co-organizers at our inaugural Portland Fermentation Festival in 2009. This time around I even get to host Sandor at my home while he's in Portland. Yes! I have so much to be grateful for.

Sandor Ellix Katz and me at Short Mountain Sanctuary, a couple hours south of Nashville, in January 2009.

Sandor's newest book -- which follows his other two titles: Wild Fermentation and The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved -- is an in-depth cultural, anthropological and deeply personal look at fermented foods with loads of DIY inspiration and detailed info. on crafting everything from miso and sake to fish sauce and high meat.

Chelsea Green -- Sandor's Vermont publishing house extraordinaire -- has sent me a copy of the book to give away here as a promo. for the downtown Powell's event. I'm going to run this contest like I always do. I've choosen a lucky number and that numbered commenter gets the book. I'll bring it to the reading on the 14th to give to you and then you can get it signed by the author himself and hopefully we can get a photo of you with Sandor as well.

Here's what I'd like you to comment about for a chance to win -- what's the best fermented food or drink that you've ever had and why? It can be a ferment that you made -- sauerkraut, homemade wine, miso, cheese etc. or it can be something that someone else made or that you bought. I'll start the conversation with my answer -- my homemade fruit wines. So good.

See you at Sandor's book event on the 14th!

The Art of Fermentation By Sandor Ellix Katz Published by Chelsea Green 528 pages $39.95

Downtown Powell's event with Sandor Ellix Katz for The Art of Fermentation Wednesday, November 14th, 2012 7:30pm www.powells.com

Cocotte Contest

Have you checked out this year's Willamette Week Restaurant Guide that came out last week? I look forward to it every year. Partly, because I always get to review restaurants for it but also because it's a great compass for Portland dining and always makes me hungry to try more places.

This year I wrote three reviews for the guide -- Ocean City, Bamboo Sushi and Cocotte. I'd never been to Cocotte and loved it and think you might too. Here's a bit of what I wrote:

"For all of the complaints that Portland doesn’t do seafood right beyond a few sushi spots, let’s have a drum roll for Cocotte. This pretty little corner bistro on Northeast 30th Avenue’s restaurant row (neighbored by Beast, Yakuza, Autentica and DOC) is all about small plates and entrees from le mer. The smoked salmon salad over a fallen potato soufflé with tarragon aioli is topped with farm-fresh greens, moist and not too smoky salmon, and slivers of radish in a lemony shallot vinaigrette. It’s perfect..."

Read the full review

Cocotte's co-chef/owner, Kat LeSueur, sent me two $25 gift certificates for a blog contest so I've chosen a lucky number and that numbered commenter gets both gift certificates. This is what I'd like you to comment about here -- what's one of your favorite dishes to prepare solo at home when the days get shorter? When the weather gets cold a lot of times we tend to want to make big pots of stews and soups and braises -- enough to feed a small army. What's a smaller dish -- just for you -- that you love cook in the fall and winter?

Cocotte 2930 NE Killingsworth Street Portland, Oregon 97211 503.227.2669 www.cocottepdx.com

Portland Food Lover's Suite Airbnb

I'm really sorry for the long delay in writing here but so much has happened this summer that I had to drop a couple things and unfortunately blogging was one of the casualties. I'm back though and I hope that you will forgive the silent treatment.

I recently got introduced to Airbnb -- do you know about it yet? If not check it out because it's a great way to travel around the world and stay in folks' homes usually for very little $. I'm doing it with the entire second floor of my home and I'd love it if you or a loved one or even an acquaintance would come and stay at my food lover's suite. I'm including a copy of my book for those who stay four or more nights. It's $70 a night.

The second bedroom/reading room attached to the bedroom.

I hope that you are doing well and, of course, eating well!

Here's the description that I have up on Airbnb:

airbnb.com listing

The 400+ square foot entire second floor of my house has hardwood floors, sloped wooden ceilings, a queen bed, a full bed/couch, two closets, dressers and reading nook along with an attached office/reading room and private bathroom with bath at the base of the stairs. It's perfect for one to four people. There's a TV with DVD player (for DVDs or VHS, no TV stations) and free WiFi. Cozy and clean, no pets please. Check in/out time is flexible, please inquire.

North Portland's Overlook neighborhood has all sorts of restaurants (Mextiza, Pause, Mio Sushi, food cart pod with 10 carts), bars (Old Gold, Palace of Industry, Barlow's, Hop & Vine), cafes (DiPrima Dolci), coffee shops (Blend) and parks all within a short walking distance of my 1907 cedar shake bungalow with front and back edible gardens and a comfortable front porch with chairs.

I'm a local food writer and editor and I've lived in Portland for 10 years. Included in the cost of a four day or more stay is a copy of my book, Food Lover's Guide to Portland. It will help you find all that is delicious throughout the city! I'm more than happy to offer eat, drink and be merry suggestions to you during your stay.

Guests can easily travel the city without a car from my house. The light rail line is five blocks away and takes you to/from the airport, downtown, the Rose Quarter and all over Portland. A bus to the Alberta Arts District also runs by my house and gets you there in 10 minutes. There is plenty of street parking available and it's a quick car or bike ride to downtown, Alberta Arts District, Mississippi Avenue, and all sorts of other great Portland neighborhoods.

You're more than welcome to use my fully functional and equipped kitchen (French press, refrigerator, oven, shelf space etc.), living room, as well as the washer and dryer and there is wireless throughout the house.

Please help share this with anyone that you think might be interested. Thanks so much!

For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 7

There's a lot going on right now so I'm sorry to do two of these types of posts in a row but such is life. We had an incredible eat/drink trip to Spain last week for the Toro Bravo Cookbook and hit Madrid and Barcelona hard. Three hours of sleep a night hard. We only had a little less than a week in Spain total so we felt like sleep should be the last thing on our agenda. While there we ate old cuisine such as roast suckling pig and Cocido Madrileno, new cuisine at Ferran and Albert Adria's restaurant Tickets, drank all sorts of tasty cava, cider, wine and spirits and we had some true blue adventures some of which I'll describe in detail in future posts and some of which I never will. When in Spain. I plan to do a series of posts with photos from Spain in upcoming weeks. I hope that you're doing well!

www.torobravopdx.com For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 6For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 5For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 4For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 3For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 2For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 1

For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 6

We leave this week for our week-long trip to Spain for the Toro Bravo Cookbook (McSweeney's Fall 2013) and I'm so excited! I've been looking forward to this trip for a while and to have it come at the end of the cookbook writing process not long before our final deadline is perfect. John Gorham, Toro Bravo chef-owner, got us all tickets and rooms (incredibly generous) for this eating/drinking pilgrimage. Going on the trip: John, the book's photographer David Reamer, myself, the book's editor Rachel Khong from McSweeney's, Toro's chef de cuisine Kasey Mills and Toro's charcuterie manager Josh Scofield. I'm probably not going to post for a few weeks because of the trip and everything going on when I get back but I thought you might like this peek into the book. We only have 10 recipes left to test! Hope you're doing well and enjoying the last bit of summer.

www.torobravopdx.comFor Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 5For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 4For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 3For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 2For Your Viewing Pleasure Pt. 1

Hillsdale Paella Party 2012

Last year I wrote about the Hillsdale Paella Party here and I'm doing it again because there's a 5 foot paella pan involved (!) and all sorts of other tasty food and drink and I really like the community behind this Hillsdale Main Street, a non-profit dedicated to revitalizing Hillsdale, second annual event.

I'm going to pull all of the most important info. from the press release below. If you're interested in attending I suggest getting a ticket sooner than later (purchase tickets here) because last year's event sold out. From the press release...

This Saturday you're invited to eat, drink and be merry for a great cause with the largest paella offering in the Northwest -- cooked up by James Beard Award-winning chef Greg Higgins. Desserts will be by Portland's Baker & Spice Bakery, with executive baker Julie Richardson who just released her new book Vintage Cakes. Latin music will be by Ojos Feos. This year more 300 Portlanders will attend to support this annual fundraiser.

On September 15th, guests will escape to Spain in an outdoor summer setting here in Southwest Portland, enjoying Spanish wines, live music, gourmet tapas and desserts, along with traditional paella. "When added to the outstanding tapas, still raved about after last year, and the decadent desserts created and donated by Hillsdale’s own Baker & Spice Bakery, this year’s event will be one-of-a-kind.”, says Hillsdale Main Street Executive Director Megan Braunsten.

While attendees dance to Afro-Cuban and South American style music, enjoy wine and tapas and, they will also be entertained by the making of the paella. The paella dinner, a tradition in Valencia, Spain, is a means of bringing the community neighbors together to connect, share in the meal and have fun. The paella is a traditional Valencian rice dish including saffron, shrimp, chicken, sausage and vegetables, cooked in a large round pan (a paella) outdoors for large groups of people.

Sponsors include Wyse Kadish, Willamette Week, Baker & Spice Bakery and Food Front. Hillsdale Main Street, one of the three Portland Main Street programs, is a program of the Hillsdale Community Foundation, a 501c3 whose mission is to make Hillsdale a better place to live, learn, work and shop by fostering community building and by raising and distributing resources. A portion of the proceeds will also go to benefit the Neighborhood House Emergency Food Box Program. Neighborhood House now serves approximately 14,000 low-income children, families and seniors around the city each year through programs that educate children and parents, feed and house hungry and homeless families, and assist seniors so that they can continue to live independently.

Hillsdale Paella Party Saturday, September 15th, 2012 6-9pm In the Hillsdale Business District in the big tent next to Bank of America at 6309 SW Capitol Hwy., Portland, Oregon 97239 $100 per person (Proceeds benefit Hillsdale Main Street and Neighborhood House Emergency Food Box Program) Purchase tickets Contact Tamairah Boleyn for more information: tam at korkagewine dot com 503.679.8699

Portland Garagistes Pt. 1

When I was a full-time freelance food writer I got used to rejection. If you can't accept the lack of a timely response too often eventually followed by rejection then you shouldn't freelance because that's unfortunately the nature of the beast most of the time. I learned how to spin very different pitches for the same story as well as restructure stories for numerous local and national publications. Now that I've published a book, am working on another book due out fall 2013 and am editor and publicity director at a publishing house I have less patience for that process so I mostly just write stories that I'm asked to write or put things that I'm interested in up here on my blog.

A while back though I met one too many people in Portland crafting delicious foods and drinks in their garages and decided I should write a story about it. I set up interviews and spent a good amount of time in garages throughout Portland talking with folks about the delicious foods and drinks that they craft in them -- a dessert maker, a cider maker, a winemaker, a beer brewer and a Persian pickle maker. I learned a lot and had a great time.

When it came to pitching the story the process took much longer than I remembered. I know that editors are very busy and receive an never ending, steady supply of pitches -- some good, many bad -- so I understand their often delayed responses to a certain degree. This is all a long way of saying that I tried and failed a few times to get this story published nationally and locally and I don't want to try to spin it any more. I'm doling it out to you in five installments here over the next several weeks because I love these people and think what they're doing is inspiring and important and, of course, delicious. I should have put this up here in the first place because it would have been a longer, more developed story if I hadn't tailored it so much. Stop complaining. Without further ado...

Portland Garagistes

In the Bordeaux region of France the term "garagiste" was coined in the mid 1990s when a group of winemakers began a movement of small batch wines, often made in their garages, that bucked the Bordeaux standard. I like the name "garagiste" and think it fits in spirit with what the five Portlanders featured here are doing -- making tasty stuff in their garages.

Sure, a kitchen is for cooking but they can get cramped and sticky hot -- especially when you've got a five-gallon homebrew pot simmering on the stove top for hours. I don't cook anything in my garage but in the past several years I've moved a lot of my food and drink ferments into the utility room at the back of the house. That's where I make and store crocks of miso, carboys of homemade fruit wines and hard ciders and buckets of kraut and sour pickles. More and more Portlanders are taking that kitchen extension one step further and into their garages.

I spent time with five such folks checking out their set-ups (all of their garages are average-sized at 250-350 square feet) and tasting what they make. Some are crafting commercial products and see their garage as an affordable space to work with while others just enjoy the larger square footage and freedom to be a little dirtier, a little scrappier, and a more isolated and less distracted by the outside world. Portland is fairly temperate so the home garage never gets too hot or cold. Nothing a couple space heaters or fans can't fix.

Stay tuned for Portland's "Garagistes" to be featured in five upcoming installments:

Pickler Charles Attarzadeh Sweetmaker Cheryl WakerhauserCidermaker Nat West Homebrewer Aaron Cohen Winemaker Jan-Marc Baker