Scandinavian Salmon

Varietal: Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Melon

Serves 6 to 8

I was skeptical when the owners of Panther Creek Cellars in Oregon’s Willamette Valley suggested Scandinavian Salmon could be paired with Pinot Noir, but the earthiness of the dill and in the fish (be sure to use wild salmon not farm-raised!) works well with similar notes in the wine. Pinot Gris and sparkling wine are other suggested pairings, although Melon—the same grape as France’s Muscadet, also known as Melon de Bourgogne—is a more intriguing possibility. According to the winery’s Web site, “The dry, yet fruity wine finds a passionate following among lovers of shellfish and seafood. In the nose of this varietal you’ll often find pear, citrus, and peaches. On the palate, it’s richly textured, with flavors of pear, peach, and apricot, and just a touch of sea salt.” The wine’s slight salinity helps it pair perfectly with seafood, especially the Northwest’s own native fish, salmon.

1 English cucumber

3 pounds wild salmon fillet, rinsed, drained, and patted dry

2 lemons, very thinly sliced

1 large bunch of dill

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2. With a vegetable peeler, peel the cucumber in long strokes and save the skins. Cut the cucumbers into thin rounds and reserve.

3. Line a large baking sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil, placing one sheet of foil crosswise across the baking sheet, allowing enough excess foil on both sides to be folded across the fish. Run another sheet of foil lengthwise, again allowing enough excess foil to fold over the fish. Place the salmon skin side down in the center of the foil. Cover the fish with the cucumber skins, placing the white portion of the skins toward the fish.

4. Cover the cucumber skins with half of the lemon slices and top with half of the dill. Bring the ends of the lengthwise foil up around the top and bottom of the fish, fold neatly to seal the fish, then repeat with the other ends of foil until the fish, cucumber, lemon, and dill are completely enclosed.

5. Place the baking sheet on the center oven rack, and cook 50 to 55 minutes, or until the fish is opaque throughout, depending on the thickness of the fish and the desired doneness. Remove the packet from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Open the foil carefully to allow the steam to escape. Scrape off and discard the cucumber skins, lemon, and dill. Using a long, thin spatula, position the side edge of the spatula against the fat layer between the salmon flesh and skin. Move the spatula through the fat layer so that the flesh comes away from the skin. Transfer the salmon to a large serving plate and discard the skin and foil.

6. Just before serving, season the salmon to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with the reserved cucumber slices and the remaining lemon slices and dill, and serve family style.

Cook’s Hint: If desired, the salmon can also be cooked on a gas grill over medium heat.

Recipe reprinted from “Pacific Northwest Wining & Dining: The People, Places, Food, and Drink of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia” (Wiley, 2007, $34.95) by Braiden Rex-Johnson.

Looking for something fun and different to do with the kids (big or small) this weekend? Something that says spring is in the air?

Then venture out to local farms and pick out this year’s bedding plants and garden starts for your garden. This spring on the Red Rooster Route, Garden Treasures Nursery & Organic Farm is introducing its newest farm festival–The Happy Soils Festival–on Saturday, April 16, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Happy Soils Festival allows youth and adults to learn about the key ingredients to building up tilth in the soil.

Free demonstrations on the farm show how adding compost and the right fertilizer creates an organic space that defends itself from disease and predators. Farm walks will also be organized throughout the day, allowing visitors to learn how a system of food production and distribution promotes healthy living and nurtures the environment.

“Our farm is committed to organic food production and promoting a sustainable lifestyle,” owner and farmer, Mark Lovejoy says. “The goal of our Happy Soils Festival is to take the mystery out of organic gardening and natural soil health.”

Not only does Garden Treasures Nursery & Organic Farm celebrate spring with a variety of nursery items and organic vegetable garden starts, but a host of seasonal produce such as spring mix greens, asparagus, and spinach are available. The farm also features a gift shop, garden center, nursery, CSA box program, and organic-only farm market stand.

This third year of the annual Red Rooster Route will also host a variety of upcoming spring and summer festivals including The Flower Festival during Mother’s Day weekend on May 7 and 8 at Foster’s Farm, The Strawberry Festival on June 18 and 19 at Biringer Farm and Garden Treasures Nursery & Organic Farm, Red Rooster Route Days on July 16 and 17 at all the farms on the Red Rooster Route and The Blueberry Festival on July 30 at Bryant Blueberry Farm & Nursery.

Offering a self-guided tour through the greater Arlington area, the Red Rooster Route is rich with pastoral views and plenty of recreational and u-pick opportunities. To learn more about the farms on the Red Rooster Route and to download a tour map, visit the group’s website.

Additional Information:

Happy Soils Festival, April 16 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Free Admission (donations gladly accepted).

Garden Treasures Nursery & Organic Farm located at 3328 State Route 530

Open Daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Red Rooster Route, off Exit 208 on I-5, is a non-profit association of small, family-friendly farms in the Arlington, Washington, area of Snohomish County. The farms are open to the public during the harvest season.

For more information and to learn about individual farms visit the website.

Photos Courtesy of The Red Rooster Route

In the mood for a little weekend travel?

The third annual North Willamette Wine Trail Weekend is set for this Saturday and Sunday, April 9 and 10.

The self-guided weekend tour is hosted by North Willamette Vintners, a nonprofit organization comprised of wineries, vineyards, and other wine-tourism partners in Oregon’s North Willamette Valley.

With stops on the tour in and around Washington County (just minutes from Portland), the weekend’s events are designed to appeal to wine enthusiasts of every level.

Twenty-four wineries will host tastings exclusive to the Wine Trail Weekend, including offerings of reserve labels, new releases, and barrel tastings. And in keeping with Oregon’s food (and foodie) culture, wine pairings with food will be a major emphasis of the event.

Just a few of the many event highlights that will occur alongside wine (and food) tastings include: an exhibition of canvas paintings by Robert Schlegel at Apollini Vineyards, concerts by “Portland’s French Troubadour” Eric John Kaiser at Montinore Estate, “Mystery of the Bottle” discussions at Oak Knoll Winery that discern why certain bottles are used for different varietals, and cooking demonstrations at Helvetia Vineyards hosted by Chef Dave Clark.

The event is priced at $45 ($10 for designated drivers). All guests will receive a reusable wine tote filled with a commemorative wine glass and a variety of special discounts and offers. Designated drivers will receive the same tote–with a stainless steel water bottle instead of the wine glass–along with snacks and non-alcoholic beverages.

Tickets for the North Willamette Wine Trail Weekend are available online at the North Willamette Vintners website until the event sells out, and in the tasting rooms of participating wineries through March 28. When purchasing tickets, guests are asked to decide at which winery their tour will begin, and then are instructed to bring their receipt to that location on April 9 or 10 to pick up their ticket, wine glass or water bottle, and their map/brochure.

Click here to download an online brochure, the perfect starting point to help plan your weekend journey.

Photo courtesy of North Willamette Vintners

Varietal: Syrah

Serves 8

This warm and filling vegetarian soup comes from the award-winning Rogue Creamery in southern Oregon. It uses Oregonzola, a Gorgonzola-style cheese, to add a creamy texture (much like heavy cream or half-and-half in more traditional soup recipes) as well as a distinct salty/tart taste. Oregonzola is aged a minimum of 120 days in the creamery’s caves, which results in a sharp, Old World-Italian flavor and a velvet-like texture. When paired with a simple green salad, crusty bread, and a bottle of hearty Syrah, it’s the perfect wintertime–or any time–repast.

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3/4 cup chopped white or yellow onion

1 cup peeled, chopped russet potato

1 1/2 pounds trimmed broccoli, coarsely chopped (about 7 1/2 cups)

2 cups vegetable stock plus 2 cups water, or 4 cups water

4 ounces Oregonzola blue cheese or other high-quality blue cheese, crumbled

Freshly grated nutmeg

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Walnut oil, for drizzling

1. Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and potato, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is slightly softened but not browned, 5 minutes. Add the broccoli and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the 2 cups of stock and 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 15 minutes.

2. Strain the vegetables, reserving the cooking liquid. Put the cooked vegetables in a food processor and moisten with a few tablespoons of the cooking liquid. Pulse until very smooth. With the motor running, gradually add the rest of the cooking liquid. Work in batches as needed.

3. Transfer the soup back to the saucepan. Reheat until almost boiling, then remove from the heat.

4. Stir in the blue cheese. Add nutmeg, salt, and pepper to taste.

5. Ladle the soup into 8 warm soup bowls and drizzle with the walnut oil.

Recipe reprinted from Pacific Northwest Wining & Dining: The People, Places, Food, and Drink of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia (Wiley, 2007, $34.95) by Braiden Rex-Johnson.

On a recent visit to South Seattle Community College for lunch at the Alhadeff Grill and a tour of the culinary, baking and pastry, and wine facilities, I happened upon this incredible Washington-themed diorama made by one of the college’s talented pastry students.

As someone who’s terrible at baking and crafting, not to mention working with chocolate and marzipan, it really spoke to me with its whimsy and utter charm.

To celebrate its 85th anniversary, Lake Quinault Lodge in Washington’s Olympic National Forest will be offering a three-course, pre-fixe menu for two for $85. The meal includes an appetizer to share, two entrées, a dessert to share, and a bottle of Lake Quinault Lodge’s signature red or white house wine by Maryhill Winery. Diners can choose among several entrée options, including a vegetarian dish, created by executive chef Patrick Norris, who sources local ingredients to create innovative Northwest cuisine.

Additionally, the Lodge will offer $85 room rates to celebrate the lodge’s rich history, which includes President Franklin Delano Roosevelt visiting in 1937 before officially proclaiming Olympic a National Park. The Roosevelt Dining Room stands today to commemorate this honor.

The anniversary promotion is available from January 2nd through March 12th, and some blackout dates apply to room rates.

Yesterday, my latest article for The Seattle Times Pacific Northwest magazine ran. Entitled, “In the Spirit of Tradition,” it chronicled the career of Berle, a.k.a. Rusty, Figgins, a successful winemaker turned craft distiller.

Here is Rusty pictured at The Ellensburg Distillery in (you guessed it!) Ellensburg, Washington.

And here are his award-winning products–El Chalán Peruvian-Style Grape Brandy, Gold Buckle Club Frontier-Style Malt Whisky, and Wildcat White Moonshine.

The spirits pick up color and flavor as they age in oak barrels (just as wine does). Rusty’s Gold Buckle Whisky rests in new American Oak for one year!

Photos by Spencer Johnson

After the perfect voyage from Seattle to Victoria, British Columbia, during which we were surrounded by two super pods of Orca whales who danced around our boat for several magical minutes, we had worked up quite an appetite.

So, after checking into our hotel, The Magnolia Hotel & Spa, we made a beeline for Pescatores Seafood & Grill, located in the Inner Harbour right across from the venerable Fairmont Empress hotel.

We’d eaten there on our last trip to Victoria and had fond memories of the place with its 20-foot ceilings, dark wood paneling, attractive bar, and five-blade, eight-foot-in-diameter chain-and-pulley ceiling fans turning lazily.

This visit, all three dishes we tried were good, from Pescatores Manhattan Clam Chowder (full of toothsome chunks of clam) to Pescatores Famous Seafood Salad (the salad and seafood–marinated scallops, mussels, clams, prawns, shrimp, and Dungeness crab–corralled by a long strip of cucumber so it looked like a frilly hat) to the Fish + Chips.

But it was the Fish + Chips that really shone, the freshest of fresh halibut cooked in the lightest of light tempura-style batter made with one of the three beers on draft–Sea Dog Amber Ale. The thin-sliced French fries were fluffy and not at all greasy; the tartar sauce delicious and whimsically served in a huge Pacific oyster shell, which we’d not seen done anywhere else before.

A couple of glasses of Mission Hill Family Estate 2008 Chardonnay from the Okanagan Valley, and we were well-stoked for some afternoon sightseeing and shopping in the cool autumn air.

Whenever we are in Victoria, British Columbia, we make it a point to visit the venerable Bengal Lounge in the even more venerable Fairmont Empress hotel. The Empress is a fixture on Victoria’s Inner Harbour. It seems every tourist in town wants to take tea there (and you should definitely have that rarified experience at least once in your life).

But for those who have been there, done that before, nothing beats a drink or a meal in the Bengal Lounge. A couple of Sundays ago, with a roiling tummy and fuzzy head after a hard night of wine drinking, we rolled out of bed in a leisurely manner and walked (gently) to the Empress for the Bengal Lounge’s famous Curry Lunch Buffet (an all-you-can eat deal for $30; it’s also offered at dinner time for two dollars more).

Here’s the groaning board on the day we visited, replete with seafood chowder, fresh greens with buttermilk dressing or balsamic vinaigrette, naan bread, and peppery papadams as starters, not to mention mango chutney, hot-hot tomato salsa, and thick cucumber raita as accoutrements.

Main courses included Butter Chicken (warm and super-rich, and a signature dish at the Bengal Lounge), lamb curry, tandoori chicken, vegetarian curry, spinach bhajias, and basmati rice. A veritable feast, and good with the chutney and salsa.

There were even bowls of peanuts, coconut, and raisins to embellish the curries to taste!

Dessert was special–Cardamom Crème Brûlée. A tummy full of food, lots of water and iced tea to hydrate, and a little hair of the dog–a cool, crisp glass of Tantalus Riesling from the Okanagan Valley–and I was set for several more hours of sightseeing before the Victoria Clipper whisked us back to Seattle.

This weekend we made the journey from Seattle to Victoria, a charming English-styled city on British Columbia’s Vancouver Island, for a spot of research for an upcoming column for Wine Press Northwest.

Taking the Victoria Clipper, a visually beautiful and relaxing 2 3/4-hour ride, is always a good way to begin mentally moving from city to island time.

And although we were a bit apprehensive when the boat slowed considerably as we crossed from Washington state into Canadian waters, we were thrilled to discover the reason why: we were surrounded by Orca whales!!!

The captain said he spotted two “super pods.” They danced around the boat–left, right, and straight ahead. It was funny to hear the oohs and aahs and watch the tourists move from side to side of the boat as they spotted the huge breeching mammals (and one baby).

But it also seemed like a fortuitous sign of the trip to come.

Of course, The Fairmont Empress hotel is the fixture that many associate with Victoria. . .the place many choose to stay and also the place where you have to “take tea” at least once in your life.

We actually prefer to have a curry buffet, or at least a drink, in the venerable Bengal Lounge since it isn’t nearly as touristy and the food is reliably good.

The Empress is located on Victoria’s Inner Harbour, the town’s bustling center of activity rife with hotels, restaurants, seaplane docks, shops, government buildings, museums, and all manner of sightseeing attractions.

But our purpose was to explore Vancouver’s environs, and we enjoyed a full day of wine touring in the Cowichan Valley, Vancouver Island’s famous farm belt.

“Fresh From the Island” signs were everywhere that local products were farmed or produced, including Cherry Point Estate Wines, one of the first producers of blackberry wine on the island.

Cherry Point was one of the pioneer wineries in the Cowichan; here are some of the gorgeous grapes farmed on the winery’s 24 acres.

And here is a sign highlighting the fresh produce and mushrooms available at Saison Market Vineyard.

This wonderful new bakery/market/vineyard is located just north of Averill Creek Vineyard, one of the island’s draw-card wineries.

In season this time of year?

Chard and chanterelles. . .

Succulent squash. . .

And sheaves of wheat and lavender.

Here’s a lovely Farm-Friendly Salad made of totally island-grown produce we enjoyed over dinner at Camille’s Fine West Coast Dining.

Even Canadian dogs are smart. Here’s a handsome doggie we spotted “driving” a car just outside our hotel, The Magnolia Hotel & Spa, in downtown Victoria.