Happy Friday!

Outstanding in the Field

Cooking outside.  It’s something I grew up doing in Hawaii since most of our meals were cooked on a grill.  I’ve always found being outside very comforting.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a “roughing it” kinda gal BUT sitting outside and sipping a drink while Kyle fires up the grill is my perfect day off.

Outstanding in the Field is hands down our favorite event of the year!   It pairs chefs with farmers and holds a dinner for about 200 guests on the farm.   It doesn’t get more farm-to-table than that!  The dinner is served family style at one LONG farm table.  I love how bountiful the table looks when we send 60 platters of food to the table.  Then people eat and drink until we practically need to roll them home.   It’s a beautiful thing!  As the sun sets lanterns are brought out so guests can enjoy the cool breeze while they enjoy dessert and after dinner drinks.

For a 2nd year in a row we were fortunate enough to host our dinner at The Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture.    It is a non-profit farm that is near and dear to our heart.  Kyle and I spent many hours with the farmers and our cooks  weeding, planting, and foraging at Arcadia and we are always excited to expose new people to it.   Arcadia brings young children to the farm to teach them about healthy eating.  They also run the Mobile Market, a bright green bus that brings crates of farm fresh food to otherwise underserved neighborhoods and helps educate communities about how to prepare nutritious food for their families.  Plus, there are 5 bee hives there that I get honey from for desserts at Birch and Barley so I like to have a reason to visit the farm to check on the bees 🙂

The weather was perfect, Kyle and I were surrounded by some on our favorite people and the guests seemed to really enjoy their meal.  Greg was there to pair beers, which always blows people away…  A few of the standout dishes were a farro salad with radishes and grilled cucumber that was to die for.  Kyle also made a beautiful dish of seared skate served over lightly dressed baby dandelion greens.  It was so fresh and flavorful.  For dessert I prepared birthday cake with a twist.  It was a cake layer with carrot cake, parsnip cake, cream cheese mousse and toasted walnuts.  It was served with carrot caramel and ginger ice cream…

Outstanding in the Field comes to the DC area every year but they travel all over the US so be sure to get on their mailing list and if they come to your town I recommend buying a ticket.  It’s a splurge but it’s a wonderful event.

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Apples Apples Apples

I’m embarrassed to say that until I turned 18 I actually thought I didn’t like apples.  I grew up in Hawaii and almost only ate muchy, mealy  red delicious apples.  I hated them.  Bland, soggy, bleh.  It wasn’t until I moved to NY and experienced an apple picked straight from the tree that I really got it.  It was a gala apple, still my favorite pie apple to this day.  I’ll never forget to way that apple tasted and the way it made me feel.  I was in upstate NY at an apple picking party complete with hay ride and cider press.  I had never seen anything like that before.  Until the moment I ate that apple I thought the whole idea of an apple picking party seemed silly but in one bite I totally got it.

This is the season when every market and menu has an abundance of apples.  I love apple pie!  Not as much as Kyle, who has been known to eat a full pie in a day by himself, but I sure do look forward to apple pie time of the year.

But my favorite apple flavor isn’t the caramel-sugary goodness of apple pie…  It’s the tart, refreshing flavor of green apple.  I love green apples diced, made into sorbet, soda, chips.  You name it.  As long as it retains that crisp flavor.  In a new dessert at Birch and Barley I’ve combined all my favorite tart ingredients.  A baked-to-order lemon cake, green apple sorbet, diced green apples, yogurt panna cotta, passion fruit gelee and passion fruit curd.  In a time of year when everyone is focused on transitioning to rich winter food I wanted to keep it refreshing and light.

Maybe Next Year

Having made it to the group of 20 semifinalists for the James Beard Award for Best Pastry Chef I have spent the last month or so feeling honored, nervous and excited. Today I found out that my journey on that list ends here this year. I didn’t make the top 6 list. Of course I am disappointed but I am inspired to work harder and be better. I know chef’s are supposed to be tough but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t really want this. So I’ve got another year to get better. The first step to achieving my dream of making the short list with James Beard happened when I got on the long list. Just need to keep pushing!

Congratulations to everyone that made it to the semifinals and beyond. We all work so hard it’s nice to have people notice and I’m sure everyone on that list has dreamed of it too. You should all be very proud of what you’ve achieved!

Inspiration…

“Follow your heart, minute by minute and day by day. Let the course of the river run as it will, instead of tying yourself up in fears that you may never realize”  R.A Salvatore