Mark your calendars for the Portland Culinary Alliance’s second annual “Eat My Words” culinary book event and luncheon, which takes place on Saturday, October 2, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Cookbook authors signed on for the day include Vitaly Paley and Cory Schreiber (both from Portland) and Ethan Stowell (from Seattle). The trio will offer their insights on cookbook writing from a chef’s perspective, followed by lunch featuring their recipes.

Hosted by cookbook author Diane Morgan and chef/owner Adam Sappington of The Country Cat Dinner House, this year’s event will include renowned Portland and Seattle chefs and culinary entrepreneurs, including:

Vitaly Paley and Robert Reynolds, “The Paley’s Place Cookbook: Recipes and Stories from the Pacific Northwest,” Ten Speed Press

Cory Schreiber and Julie Richardson, “Rustic Fruit Desserts: Crumbles, Buckles, Cobblers, Pandowdies, and More,” Ten Speed Press

Ethan Stowell, “Ethan Stowell’s New Italian Kitchen,” Ten Speed Press

Piper Davis and Ellen Jackson, “The Grand Central Baking Book,” Ten Speed Press

Mark Bitterman, “Salted: A Manifesto on the World’s Most Essential Mineral, with Recipes,” Ten Speed Press

This accomplished panel of author/chefs will each discuss their unique experience in cookbook writing, including such topics as:

· Conceptualizing the book idea

· Landing a book deal

· Working with a professional writer

· Balancing the hectic schedule of running a thriving business while tackling a book project

· Recipe development, writing, and testing

· Formatting restaurant recipes for home cooks

· Photography and design

· Promoting the book

Following the discussion, the audience is encouraged to participate in a question-and-answer session in which the authors will “tell all” about the book-writing process. Then, Gracie’s Chef Mark Hosack and team will prepare lunch featuring recipes from the featured authors’ books.

Eat My Words will draw chefs and culinary entrepreneurs interested in having their own book published, as well as writers, cookbook collectors, and fans of the Pacific Northwest epicurean scene.

The event will be held at the Hotel deLuxe located at 729 SW 15th Avenue in downtown Portland.

Tickets are $65, or culinary professionals are invited to become a member of the Portland Culinary Alliance and receive a discounted ticket price of $50. Price includes morning coffee and pastries provided by Piper Davis of Grand Central Bakery, admission to the symposium, and lunch featuring recipes from the chefs’ cookbooks. To request more information, visit pdxca.org, or e-mail Andrea Slonecker at info@pdxca.org.

On July 17, one of our favorite places to visit in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley, Mission Hill Family Estate, kicked off its Reserve Concert Series, which will feature noted jazz artists and highly acclaimed Canadian operatic and symphony performers throughout the summer.

According to a press release, “The concerts afford a unique opportunity to enjoy a live performance in an unrivalled natural setting. The outdoor amphitheatre provides a stunning view of the Monashee Mountains and Lake Okanagan, sure to enchant audiences on a fine summer evening.”

The Midsummer Magic Okanagan Symphony Gala, celebrating the OSO’s 50th anniversary, kicked off the summer music series. On August 7, musician Wil Campa will perform his unique blend of Afro-Cuban jazz music. On Labour Day Weekend–Friday September 3–Juno award-winning jazz guitarist Jesse Cook will look to repeat his previous 2008 sold-out show at the winery. The finale to the season is a benefit concert on September 18 by the Canadian Tenors with their eclectic mix of classical and contemporary pop, in support of Voices for Bulembu, a Vancouver-based charity doing transformational work in Africa.

Special pre-concert dinner packages to celebrate the cultural festivities will be offered at the Terrace Restaurant, which offers guests breathtaking vistas of the vineyards and lake and has been honored as one of the Top-Five Winery Restaurants in the world. Gourmet fare and Mission Hill’s award winning wines will also be available for sale in the Wine Shop. Save-the-date and more information for the concerts are on the winery website.

Also as part of the summer celebration, Mission Hill is introducing a late-afternoon “Tastes of the Estate” small-plate, shared-experience menu. Complementing this will be a new Affinities Tour, with guided tours of the winery grounds, Estate Varietal Kitchen Garden, underground barrel cellar, and sampling a Tastes-of-the-Estate dish along with wine pairing. The Terrace Restaurant’s innovative cuisine is prepared by up-and-coming young Chef Riley Bennett under the direction of Executive Winery Chef Matthew Batey. Riley was a finalist in the recent Bocuse d’Or Culinary Competition in Toronto. Riley continues Mission Hill’s Cuisine du Terroir philosophy, a seasonal and regional approach to dining that is meticulously crafted around the wines and local artisanal ingredients.

Also scheduled for this season is the winery’s popular Sommelier Saturdays classes, led by the Sommelier team of Jesse Harnden, Mike Lee, and Brent Belanger. These fun and informative tastings help hone taste buds and refine palates with a comparative tasting of Mission Hill wines alongside international counterparts of various regions and styles.

All in all, there are many opportunities to taste and enjoy Mission Hill Family Estate on your next visit to the Okanagan!

Kerry Sear, executive chef at ART Restaurant & Lounge, is known about town for his amazing sliders—vegetarian, beef, and salmon—that he originated while still chef/owner of Cascadia restaurant and now serves during ART’s super-popular (and incredibly reasonably priced) happy-hour (Sunday through Thursday, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.).

But during our recent remodel, when the offer of dinner at the new Bin on the Lake (BotL—get it?) followed by an overnight stay at the Woodmark Hotel on Kirkland’s Carillon Point was especially welcome, the media types around the table all agreed we had found a worthy contender.

Executive Chef Scott Lents’ amazing Scallops P.L.T. (layered with prosciutto, Bibb lettuce, and cured tomato and served on puffy, fluffy, housemade brioche buns gently kissed with garlic aïoli and topped by a leaf of fresh basil) are a revelation. The plumpest, most prime Diver sea–its edges wrapped in a fine layer of prosciutto, was seared and caramelized to golden-brown perfection. Non-pork eaters (such a yours truly) can ask for the P.L.T. without the P, no problemo.

We enjoyed the P.L.T. almost as much on a subsequent visit, and our table mate (who had never experienced them, but had enjoyed chef Kerry’s iteration) agreed they were grand.

Deception Pass on Whidbey Island

If you’re in search of new adventures this summer (and who isn’t?!?!), then look no further than Washington State Tourism’s new online forum.

A recent press release from the good folks at Washington State Tourism touts the group’s newly launched “Excellent Washington State Adventures” Web site, which features the new online forum–“Excellent Washington State Adventures”–where travelers share their favorite destinations and experiences around the Evergreen State.

Inn at SageCliffe near George, Washington

“We Washingtonians love our state, and love to share it with others.That makes Washingtonians some of the best travel guides to help visitors discover the best places and activities across the state,” said Marsha Massey, Executive Director for Washington State Tourism. “We hope residents and visitors alike will want to log on and share their trip memories, and in turn inspire others to plan a trip and experience the wealth of travel adventures our great state has to offer.”

Visitors to the Excellent Washington Adventures site will find a wealth of trip suggestions and personal stories about destinations around the state, such as Mount St. Helens, camping on the Olympic Peninsula, and exploring the Bavarian town of Leavenworth.

The site helps travelers plan trips to Washington by inspiring them through the experiences of Washingtonians and past travelers who have posted stories, recommendations, and photos. Travelers can browse for adventures based on “top rated,” or by category, such as “Wine and Cuisine,” “Arts, Culture and Heritage,” “Beaches” or “Family Fun.

Sharing your own adventures on the site is as easy as creating a profile and uploading photos and memories, the press release concludes.

On Friday and Saturday, July 30 and 31, you can wine and dine in the pines at Suncadia, a year-round mountain resort community located just 90 minutes east of Seattle. The third-annual Wine in the Pines event invites guests to enjoy a superior array of Northwest wines and cuisine while unwinding amidst Suncadia’s natural beauty.

Above and below are some shots we’ve taken on several memorable visits to the lofty Grand-Lodge-inspired resort. 

“We are delighted to continue a regional tradition with this year’s Wine in the Pines,” said Andrew Wilson, executive chef and director of food and beverage at Suncadia. “With the participation of award-winning wineries, an exceptional selection of food and live entertainment throughout the weekend, Wine in the Pines once again promises to be a highlight of the summer season.”

Suncadia Lodge’s outstanding Pan-Seared Swift Water Trout with Haricots Verts and Almond Brown Butter served at Portals restaurant

This year’s festival boasts more than 30 participating wineries and a packed schedule of events. The complete schedule of festivities is as follows:

Friday, July 30, 2010
2 – 5 p.m.
Winemaker’s Reception – Theo’s Chocolates, Glondo’s Sausages, Beecher’s Cheese and Efeste Wines are presented at Wine in the Pines’ kick-off reception held in the Great Room at the Lodge. Free for resort guests.
6 – 9 p.m.
Wine in the Pines Preview Night – Held at the Suncadia Village Amphitheater, this event features a casual crab feed and outdoor reception with Northwest winemakers, along with VIP seating for the evening’s Summer Nights in the Village concert. Cost: $50.
7 p.m.
Summer Nights in the Village with Handful of Luvin’ – Friday night’s free concert is sponsored by the Suncadia Fund for Community Enhancement and is part of Suncadia’s summer concert series.

Saturday, July 31, 2010
12 – 2:15 p.m.
Wine in the Pines Workshops – Four entertaining and educational workshops offer guests the opportunity to learn more about wine and winemaking from regional experts. Cost: $35
12 – 1 p.m. – Rhone Blending
Sean Gilbert of Gilbert Cellars will lead a Rhone-blending class giving attendees the chance to create their own blend from Gilbert’s barrel samples.
12 – 1 p.m. – Cabernet & Terroir
Tony Rynders of Swiftwater Cellars will lead a wine-tasting tour through three of Washington’s top American Viticultural Areas (Red Mountain, Horse Heaven Hills and Walla Walla).
1:15 – 2:15 p.m. – Malbec Mania
Sommelier David LeClaire, founder of Seattle Uncorked!, the Northwest’s largest wine club, will hold a discussion on the growing popularity of the Malbec grape.
1:15 – 2:15 p.m. – Aging Wines
Sommelier Tim O’Brien of Salty’s on Alki will present on how wines age, which wines age well and why certain wines age better than others.
4:30 – 7 p.m.
Wine in the Pines Grand Gala Tasting – Participating wineries and culinary delights provided by Theo’s Chocolates, Picasso 717, Lentines and Suncadia will be highlighted at this elegant tasting event. Cost: $65.
8 – 10 p.m.
Wine in the Pines Winemasters’ Dinner, “The Pacific Northwest Collection” – Suncadia’s Executive Chef Andrew Wilson and special guest chefs from Sunriver Resort, Skamania Lodge and Swiftwater Cellars collaborate to create a magnificent five-course meal. Winemakers will be seated at each table, and an auction of overnight packages and dream getaways will be held to benefit the Education Foundation for Cle Elum-Roslyn (www.cleelumedfoundation.org). Cost: $125 per person or $240 per couple.

Tickets to Suncadia’s Wine in the Pines events are available online at www.ticketweb.com. A limited number of tickets will be available at the door for each event. For more information about Wine in the Pines or to make reservations with Suncadia, please visit www.suncadia.com or call (866) 904-6301.

Our friends and Sooke Harbour House Hotel owners, Sinclair and Frederique Philip, recently received a big hono(u)r–Lifetime Achievement Award at Vancouver Magazine’s 21st Annual Restaurant Awards, along with the award for Best Restaurant on Vancouver Island.

You may remember that the couple, along with Sooke Harbour House, were prominently featured in the Vancouver Island chapter of Pacific Northwest Wining & Dining: The People, Places, Food, and Drink of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia, along with their recipe for Coriander-Crusted Albacore Tuna with Spicy Buckwheat Noodle Salad.

“Long before the 100-Mile Diet, before Bishops and Ocean Wise and the word ‘locavore,’ there was Sooke Harbour House,” says Christina Burridge from Vancouver Magazine. “And while regional cuisine is now garnering much media attention, “every proponent of regional dining owes a debt to the locavore granddaddy Sooke Harbour House.

“Sooke Harbour House has been celebrated by everyone from Condé Nast Traveler to Wine Spectator, and has drawn discerning guests from around the world, but it’s the Philips’ three decades of infusing visitors, chefs, and staff with their knowledge of place that has helped define West Coast food and earned them this award,” Burridge said.

For the Philips, serving seasonal, regional foods at Sooke Harbour House was never about being in vogue.

“In 1979, when we started to serve local food, we had no idea that eating regionally and seasonally would become as popular as it is today,” says Sinclair Philip. “When we opened, we simply thought, with such an abundance of high-quality regional ingredients, why would we need to bring in foods from anywhere else? We weren’t trying to start a trend, it was just common sense, and also the way we used to eat when we lived in rural France.”

Over the past 31 years, almost all of the food served at the Sooke Harbour House has come from its own certified-organic gardens and farm, local-area farms in Sooke and Metchosin, and the ocean around their doorstep.

“We still have some of the same suppliers we have worked with for the past 31 years,” says Mr. Philip. “We have established a regular supply of free-range lamb from across Sooke Bay at Silver Spray Farm, local rabbits, Tamworth pigs, suckling kid, Vancouver-Island bison, pastured Cowichan Bay chicken, and we serve rare-breed animals from our area. On top of this, we were perhaps the first restaurant in Canada to make widespread use of edible flowers, grown outdoors, twelve months of the year.”

Over these 31 years, the Philips and their team at Sooke Harbour House have learned to work with roughly twenty different types of local seaweeds and large numbers of indigenous plants, berries, wild herbs, and mushrooms.

The Philips have always tried to showcase the best foods from Vancouver Island.

“From the very beginning, we realized that it is important to support the production of small-scale, artisan cheeses from Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. I even have a cheese named after me; that is St. Clair, from Hilary’s Cheese. We can now serve sheep, cow, goat, and water buffalo cheeses most months of the year so why would we bring in cheese from the outside?

“We have also worked to sustain local wines, spirits, ciders and vinegars, as well as meads from Tugwell Creek Meadery and Honey Farm in Sooke.”

This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award also marks the 21st consecutive year that the Sooke Harbour House Hotel has received the award from Vancouver Magazine as Best Vancouver Island Restaurant. The Philips credit much of this to their staff at the Sooke Harbour House.

Frederique Philip says, “I am very proud that our kitchen team has once again been honoured with this distinction for their hard and consistent work. It is very hard to maintain this level of quality day in and day out and I really admire them for their ongoing creativity and consistency. It is a pleasure to work with artisans who come up with new dishes that reflect the rhythms of the seasons, and who respect the intrinsic nature of the ingredients from our certified organic gardens and the sea nearby. We have been very fortunate over the last thirty years to have been able to work with such outstanding people.”

City dwellers pack up the car and head out to Arlington, Washington, this weekend (June 19 and 20, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) to Biringer Farm‘s Strawberry Fest. It’s located on the new Red Rooster Route, a collection of half a dozen small family farms, at 21412 59th Ave NE, Arlington, WA, 98223.

Think of this as a strawberry paradise. Ride the Jolly Trolley out to acres of fresh strawberries to pluck and eat right from the vines. You’ll never get them any fresher!

Enjoy the open wide spaces, get back to nature, meet the farmer, and see where your food comes from. Picnic in the vintage covered wagon next to the historic barn or bring a blanket and picnic on the grass.

Festive Activities: Pony Rides, Giant Strawberry Ride, Kiddy Slides, Puppet Shows, Inflatables, Pennies in the Hay, Story Time, Barnyard Croquet, Pig-Butt Bowling, and more.

Barn Market: Ready-picked strawberries, containers of fresh-sliced and sugared ready-to-eat strawberries, local honey, shortcakes, cold drinks, and (of course!) fresh strawberry shortcake.

This is an experience in this traditions are kept, treasured memories are made, and luscious fruit goes home with family and friends. . .until they return again.

How best to use your fresh-picked strawberries? Here’s a complete Northwest menu. . .scroll down for the recipe for Merry Berry Medley.

As many of you know (and any of you who are familiar with my seventh book, Pacific Northwest Wining and Dining: The People, Places, Food, and Drink of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia), Idaho is fast emerging as a major wine-producing state. With the long, hot days available to growers and Idaho’s rich volcanic soil, grapes are being grown and made into award-winning wines.

Idaho Wine Month focuses attention on this burgeoning industry, and brings people together for all of the tastes and treasures that Idaho has to offer. With the promotion of Idaho wine during Idaho Wine month, local restaurants, retail stores, and wine shops will be offering specials for those who purchase wines produced and bottled in Idaho during June.

Another way to celebrate Idaho Wine Month is by attending the second annual Savor Idaho, Idaho’s Premier Wine & Food Event, hosted by the Idaho Grape Growers and Wine Producers Commission. Focusing on Idaho wine and food, Savor Idaho will be held at the Idaho Botanical Garden on June 13th from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. It will feature many local wineries, restaurants, and exhibitors.

The proud winner of $100 (me!) holding a crisp new Ben Franklin dispensed from the cash machine

On Saturday morning, we decided it was time to get our poor car (which sits in the garage most of the time since we live, work, and play downtown) out on the road.

Amazingly, we’d never made the trek over I-90 to the (relatively) new Snoqualmie Casino, although we’d heard good things from fellow foodie friends (Kathy and John Casey) about its Monday-evening Dungeness crab buffet, and were curious about it’s upscale restaurant–Terra Vista.

Turns out Terra Vista is open for dinner only, but luckily there were several other dining options.

We opted for the lunch-time buffet, although we could also have chosen the good-looking Kindai Sushi and Noodle bar or the more casual Box Car New-York-Style Deli.

Behind the Falls Buffet line, we watched a cadre of Chinese chefs huddled over the Mongolian grill, were tempted by all the usual breakfast/brunch items one could ask for (scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, Eggs Benedict, Belgian waffles), a nice assortment of salads (one quibble–several of the leaves in my spinach salad were wilted to the point of slimy–a BIG no-no in my book!), standard lunch items such as meatloaf and chicken parmesan, and some really good desserts.

We tried the sugar-free peanut-butter cookies and peppermint cheesecake (which were really good and didn’t taste at all artificial), the chocolate torte (several to choose from–ours was dense as fudge and studded with bittersweet chocolate chips), and the swirl-your-own French Vanilla, soft-serve ice cream (which is as much a treat for big kids as younger ones).

After gorging our way through the buffet (reasonably priced at $17.95, especially for the wide selection of offerings and the fact that you can go back as many time as you can “stomach” it), we decided a coupla turns at the slot machines was in order.

The $20 we pumped into the Lucky 7 machine, wasn’t so lucky. But after moving on to a nearby machine, on the third pull, we won $100! After playing that up to $120, then back down to $100, we stepped away, determined to walk away with something in our pockets. A final $20 stop at a penny slot near the Men’s room that I figured would be “hot” wasn’t very. . .

We figured out that after the $60 we put into three slot machines, plus the $38 we spent on brunch buffet ($17.95 per person, plus a $3 tip), we went home with $2 in our pockets.

The handsome dining room at Terra Vista, along with sweeping mountain views outside and a thoughtful regional and seasonal menu from chef Bruce Dillon (King Salmon Trio–Pacific Northwest, Scottish, and New Zealand) piqued our interest, and had us vowing to return SOON!

In a culinary sense, Portland has recently become known as one of the United States’ most cutting-edge cities. Of course, we Northwesterners have known that all along.

In late April, our neighbors to the south proved their expertise to the rest of the world when they pulled out all their food, wine, and hospitality stops as they welcomed the International Association of Culinary Professionals 32nd Annual Conference.

Among many memorable moments was a tour of biodynamic and sustainable vineyards in the Willamette Valley. The vines were just undergoing bud break (pictured above) and the air was full of fresh scent of the earth reawakening after a long winter.

The wines we sampled–Oregon’s famed Pinot Gris, Blanc, and Noir, as well as Dijon-clone Chardonnay–were all drinking exceptionally well even in spite of negative early-on reports by national wine writers about the 2007 vintage. The photo above shows the dried herbs (such as stinging nettle and valerian) as well as the cow’s horns filled with compost that biodynamic farmers plant in the fields during certain times of the year (depending on the moon’s cycles) to create healthy soil.

In addition to outstanding wines from Soter Vineyards, Montinore Estate, and Anne Amie Vineyards, we were treated to a “snout-to-tail lunch” offered up by Thistle restaurant located in nearby McMinnville. This über-local “Modern American resto” (which sources most everything it serves from within a 35-mile radius and changes its menu daily) was a delight for some, while somewhat of a nightmare for non-pork eaters in the crowd (including yours truly).

Here is the poor animal’s head just waiting to be devoured.

And here’s its heart, blithely draped over the most beautiful farm-fresh local eggs (I ate two of those sans the pork!).

Luckily, in addition to the carefully coddled eggs, there were slabs of a nummy triple-cream cheese on the table, as well as a perfectly dressed salad of baby greens and a platter of pickled veggies and cornichons, so the more faint of heart of us among didn’t go hungry.

Here’s a shot of the complete groaning board, which one of the hosts described as a spread “like something from King Henry the VIII’s table.” You can see all my fellow foodies scurrying around the table trying to find the best camera angles. No doubt some of them, like Spencer, had been in Delores Custer’s food-styling class earlier in the week.

Dessert was the coup de grace for all to enjoy. . .a dense almond polenta cake with a crown of unsweetened whipped cream. Wish I’d saved enough room for two slices of that.