People love the Market for myriad reasons: the farmers, musicians, restaurants, good smells. . .even the daily rummage sale.

And now the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority (PDA), the organization that manages the Market, wants to learn all the wonderfully different reasons, from well-known to quirky, in prose or poetry. Creativity is encouraged.

Each week a new photo and caption will be featured with a link on www.pikeplacemarket.org and will be highlighted on social media sites.

It’s easy! Just take a photo of yourself at the Market and write a caption of up to 25 words that evokes your personality and why you love the Pike Place Market.

Love the Gum Wall, street performers, bakeries, the fishmongers, or mini-donuts? Other loves? Let the PDA know your confessions of true love for the Market.

Email your photo, caption, name, where you live, and phone number to ilovepikeplacemarket@pikeplacemarket.org. Write “Your Market, Your Story” in the subject line.

Bring on the photos.

Salmon Fillets Baked in Grape-Leaf Wraps

Varietal: Dry Rosé

Serves 4

In this original recipe of mine, which appears in the wonderful compilation cookbook, “Cooking with Les Dames d’Escoffier: At Home with the Women Who Shape the Way We Eat and Drink” (Sasquatch Books, 2008), I illustrate how to use grape leaves to protect the delicate flesh of salmon fillets as they bake. The leaves add an earthy look, as well as a pleasantly salty flavor and a bit of suspense as guests unwrap their entrée and discover a rich paste of fresh basil and sun-dried tomatoes topping the salmon inside the packets. You can choose to eat the grape leaves or not. Wine pairing is a bit complex due to the brininess of the capers and grape leaves, but you can’t go wrong with a silky Washington or California dry Rosé with lots of notes of fresh strawberries, raspberries, and rose petals.

Olive Oil

3 ounces (about 1/2 cup) sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil

1/2 cup firmly packed fresh basil leaves (about 4 to 5 sprigs of fresh basil, stemmed)

4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

4 teaspoons capers, drained and rinsed

24 preserved grape leaves (about half a 16-ounce jar)

Four 6-ounce salmon fillets, 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick, skinned and boned, rinsed, and patted dry

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

8 teaspoons unsalted butter, cold (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly brush a rimmed baking sheet with olive oil. Drain the sun-dried tomatoes and reserve 1 tablespoon of the oil. (Some oil will continue to cling to the tomatoes; this is okay. If draining the tomatoes does not yield 1 tablespoon of oil, add olive oil to make up the difference.) Coarsely chop the tomatoes and add with the reserved oil to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the basil, garlic, and capers, and process until the ingredients are finely chopped and form a thick paste. Scrape down the sides of bowl two or three times as needed to blend the mixture completely. Scoop the tomato-basil paste into a small bowl and set aside.

2. Lay out 6 of the grape leaves on a large cutting board so they form a patch approximately 10 by 10 inches. The dull side of the leaf (the side with the protruding veins) should face up so the shiny outside of the leaf faces out when fillets are wrapped. The grape leaf patch should be large enough to accommodate a salmon fillet, with enough overlapping to wrap the salmon completely.

3. Place a salmon fillet in the center of the grape leaves. Lightly sprinkle the fillet with salt and pepper (about 1/4 teaspoon salt and 4 grinds of black pepper per fillet). For each fillet, cut 2 teaspoons of cold butter into 4 pieces and dot evenly over the fillet. With a spatula, spread one quarter of the tomato-basil paste over the top of the fish. Fold the grape leaves, first from the top and bottom, then from the right and left sides toward the center, overlapping. Place the salmon packet on the baking sheet seam side down. Repeat this process with the remaining grape leaves and fillets.

4. Cook the packets for 8 to 12 minutes, depending on the degree of doneness desired. To test for doneness, cut into the center of a packet with the tip of a small, sharp knife and pull the salmon apart gently. If it is still slightly translucent in the center, it is cooked medium rare. If it is opaque in the center, it is well done. Be very careful not to overcook, as the salmon will continue to cook after you remove it from the oven.

5. Place the packets on dinner plates and serve immediately, allowing guests to open their own packets. Or you can open the packets part way so that just a bit of the steamy fish peeks through.

Cook’s Hints: (1) The recipe uses about half of a jar of preserved grape leaves. Those not used can be rewound and repacked into the jar with their brine; add water if necessary to cover the leaves. (2) The packets can be prepared up to the point of cooking early in the day and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature for about an hour, then bake immediately before serving.

Recipe reprinted from Cooking with Les Dames d’Escoffier: At Home with the Women Who Shape the Way We Eat and Drink (Sasquatch Books, 2008).

Enjoy sustainable salmon and help children in Alaska at the same time when you visit Elliott’s Oyster House. During the month of June, the popular waterfront restaurant welcomes in salmon season with its annual Salmon Gone Wild promotion that celebrates fresh, sustainable wild salmon.

Dungeness Crab-Crusted Salmon

Salmon Gone Wild features special salmon menu specials, drink and happy-hour specials, and much more. During the promotion, Elliott’s will donate 25% of every Yukon Keta salmon entrée purchase to the Boys and Girls Club of Emmonak, Alaska, which is the region where Yukon Keta are caught.

WHEN: Now until June 30^th

WHERE: Elliott’s Oyster House, 1201 Alaskan Way, Pier 56, Seattle, (206) 623-4340

Please find More Sample Menu Items for Salmon Gone Wild at  Elliott’s Oyster House

Happy Hour Items (more offerings and details online):

Alder-Smoked Salmon Fritters

House alder-smoked king salmon mixed with fritter batter, peppers, onions and corn.  Tossed in Cajun seasoning and served with tangy remoulade sauce.

Sockeye Salmon Satay

Salmon marinated in ginger and garlic then grilled and based with orange hoisin sauce.

About Elliott’s Oyster House

Elliott’s Oyster House has been Seattle’s classic seafood house for nearly 35 years. The award-winning restaurant features a 21-foot-long oyster bar and 30 varieties of oysters. Elliott’s highlights natural flavors of the finest seafood in the Pacific Northwest. Elliott’s is Seafood WATCH ®-compliant and actively participates in the Henderson Inlet Project, The Humane Society, and Wild Salmon Supporters. Located on the renowned Seattle waterfront on Pier 56, Elliott’s Oyster House is open Sunday- Thursday from 11a.m.-10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. For more information, call (206) 623-4340 or visit: www.elliottsoysterhouse.com.

About Kwik’Pak Fisheries LLC

Elliott is proud to be partner with community owned Kwik’pak Fisheries LLC, which purchases and processes the Wild Yukon River Salmon.  The company was formed in 2002 to support the livelihood of the Yupik Eskimos through employment, training and educational opportunities.  As part of their commitment to the Yupik people, Kwik’pak is dedicated to preserving the environment.  The only seafood company to receive membership in the Fair Trade Federation, Kwik’pak is also a member of the Marine Stewardship Council and FishWise.  What’s more, the fishery works with Trace Register, which verifies the origin of every registered product.  In fact, Kwik’pak is the only wild salmon company in Alaska to offer 100 percent traceable salmon.

I was very concerned to hear that one of the pillars of the Pike Place Market community, The Pink Door’s founder and owner, Jacqueline Roberts, was recently diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), a chronic and often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system.

But leave it to Jackie to do her darndest to focus awareness on this complex and unpredictable disease by throwing a Festa Per La Salute! or “Party for Health” on Sunday, June 27, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Festa Per La Salute! will feature a sumptuous feast of fresh Northwest seafood, Pink Door Lasagne, grilled veggies, and overflowing wines. . .along with The Pink Door’s usual cacophony of trapeze artists, jazz musicians, accordions, modern dancers, prosciutto slicers, and bodacious beauties passing oysters. . .and, of course, those beautiful views of Elliott Bay from the deck.

Roberts has pledged 70 percent of all proceeds from the event to the University at Buffalo Neuroimaging Analysis Center (BNAC) and its groundbreaking MS-Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency (CCSVI) research.

Further details:

WHEN: Sunday, June 27, 2010
5 p.m. - 9 p.m.

WHERE: THE PINK DOOR, 1919 Post Alley, Seattle

COST: $100.00 per person. Additional donations for research very welcome and much appreciated!

TICKETS: Tickets must be purchased in advance by phone at 206.443.3241 or in person at The Pink Door by Friday June 25, 2010

Representatives from the University at Buffalo will be at The Pink Door to discuss their studies of the possibility that symptoms of MS result from the narrowing of the primary veins outside the skull, a condition called Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency, or CCSVI. The BNAC’s 1,700-person research study will verify Dr. Paolo Zamboni’s ground-breaking CCSVI theory on which he based his balloon angioplasty procedure to treat venous constriction. Dr. Zamboni has found that the majority of his patients experienced a decrease in MS symptoms. In fact, Zamboni’s wife, who had MS for 17 years, is free of symptoms four years after treatment.

To learn more about BNAC and MS research, please visit http://www.bnac.net.

About The Pink Door
In 1981, a whimsically inclined 20-something Italian-American ingénue put her creative hooks and inspiration from travels abroad into a surreal cellar of a space that became equal parts Bohemian loft, Trattoria, and Pigalle cabaret. “La Padrona” Jacqueline Roberts wasted no time filling the space with nuances, a seasonally changing menu of hearty, honest Italian food and wine, spirited service, and eccentric alluring entertainment. Some 27 years later, The Pink Door remains a Seattle favorite with a fresh, constantly changing seasonal menu and eclectic nightly entertainment.

The Pink Door Entertainment
There will be a stilt walker welcoming people in the alley, the Master of Ceremonies will greet people at the door, and there will be lots of live music as well as fabulous food and drink!

The movers and shakers of the alternative medical world will be in attendance, including Dr. Joseph Pizzorno (who founded Bastyr College). Dr. Cora Ibarra (Jackie’s bio-integrative doctor, who will travel from Nevada), and many other renowned specialists.

A heads up that “KCTS 9 Cooks: Northwest Favorites” will rebroadcast tomorrow (Saturday, February 13), from noon to 4 p.m. So if you missed watching me cook up Alaskan Spot Prawns with Saffron Couscous the first time and in subsequent rebroadcasts, you’ll have another chance to view my segment (first in the show) and buy a copy of the companion cookbook.

twitter test…thanks for the patience.