The cake images are in! (Thanks Kei and Shoko for documenting the event!) It was a lovely day, a beautiful wedding, and a very tasty cake. Below are the final steps of my adventure…passed along to you so that you can learn from my mistakes! The cakes were baked in my tiny NY kitchen ahead of time, then transported in a cooler with the frosting and ganache up to Cape Cod. Everything was assembled on site the day of the wedding:

Step 1: Prep. I began by just taking everything out of the fridge (cakes, ganache, buttercream) and arranging everything I would need out on the counter space (pastry knives, rags, paper rounds, etc.). I let the cakes and frostings warm up a bit before beginning work, then whipped up the ganache again in an effort to soften it.

Step 2: Cut the cakes. While the cakes were pretty level thanks to the cake strips I used when baking, I still had a bit of trimming to do to make sure everything was going to turn out perfectly level when all the layers were stacked up. A good knife is key here, so I brought along my own.

Step 3: Stack and chill. A paper round was placed on the lazy susan first, then my first large cake round went down. A layer of ganache was spread on, then another large cake round was placed on top. Instead of doing one very tall cake, I decided to essentially create two two-layer cakes — so at this point, another paper round was placed, then another 2-layer cake was assembled on top. While all this chilled, the small cake was created separately and placed on it’s own paper round for easy removal (and storage, since this was to be the “saved slice”). A note here about the assembly: While I had planned to use cake rods to help stabilize in the cake…I forgot to place them in. Fortunately, it was a really dense cake, and we didn’t have any trouble with tipping or drooping, but if we had gone with a lighter cake, we certainly would have depended on the center rods during transport.

Step 4: Frost. The small cake was placed on top and I made my first attempt at rejuvenating my buttercream. This is where I started to lose a bit of momentum. I had never really worked with buttercream that had been chilled before, and so my first attempt at bringing it back to life was not a success. The lesson here is that if you’re ever using buttercream that has been chilled, let it come all the way back to room temperature before working with it — otherwise it’s grainy and weird, and might start to break up on you. Once I figured this out, all went smoothly.

Step 5: Decorate. Once the cake was completely frosted, I let it chill as long as I could before the ceremony began….then transported it down to the dance hall. I had prepared a handful of topper options ahead of time, so once I saw how the cake was going to sit amongst the other desserts, I tinkered with the top arrangement until I was satisfied. I brought along a little pastry knife so I could cover up any blemishes I created.

Thanks again Jen & Kevin…and congratulations!

My husband and I have just returned from two glorious weeks in Italy.   The concept of eating local, seasonal food is just a part of the life of an Italian. There is an amazing pride in the land that you can taste in every bite.

We began our trip driving through the countryside of Umbria.  It is the region that is bordered by Tuscany to the West and Le March and Abruzzo to the East.   The gorgeous green hills are dotted with picturesque villages and towns filled with farmer’s markets, regional museums and of course surrounded by farmland.  We stayed with good friends in the lovely hillside town of Trevi. They took us on two days of incredible eating, drinking and fresco viewing.  One day for lunch, they led us to an unassuming family run restaurant in the village of Spoleto.  We learned that it was black truffle season, known as the tartufo nero. We ordered the homemade tagliatelle with truffles, risotto and the porcini and farro soup.   The photo above was my husband’s dish, after a very generous shaving of fresh truffle, unheard of in our local restaurants in NYC (or costing upwards of $100 a pop).  I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so wide-eyed in my life! You can only imagine how amazing it tasted.

I’ve always been a girl who loves a good challenge, so when my friends who got married last weekend said that they had decided not to make their own wedding cake as originally planned, I decided to offer to give it a go. From the beginning, Jen and Kevin wanted me to know that I had no obligation to deliver (this was to be my first-ever wedding cake attempt), but I assured them that it would happen. In order to deliver on my promise, though, I knew I’d have to plan well. I will be posting pics of the final product soon, but I wanted to give a brief run-down of the process that got me from being a relative cake novice to baking, assembling and serving my first wedding cake…just in case anyone else out there wants to give it a go!

Step 1: Research. I spent several hours watching videos online about how to properly line a pan, cook efficiently, and store, assemble, and elegantly frost the perfect cake. (The bride and groom are going with a very home-spun look to the wedding, so no real need to learn about fondant and royal icing, though I did find some great tutorials on those as well.)

Step 2: Find a great cake recipe. I spent another couple hours researching cake recipes, reading reviews and trying to decide between the simple stand by and the knock-their-socks-off zinger. We decided to go with a dark chocolate cake with orange chocolate ganache and orange buttercream. (Zinger, for sure.)

Step 3: Gather materials. Probably the most fun part of the process was visiting NY Cake here in Chelsea. The place is incredible, and packed floor to ceiling with anything you could possibly ever need to create the perfect confection. Dowels, paper rounds, a lazy suzan, pastry knives, and cake pans were all on the list.

Step 4: Do a test run. I made 1/2 the original recipe and tried out my two pan sizes to make sure I could get a nice result in my tiny oven. Fortunately they both turned out great, and I assembled a little test cake for Jen and Kevin to try. Kevin came back for more. Success!

Step 5: Re-evaluate the amounts. The last thing I had to do in preparation for the final cooking day was make sure I was going to have enough batter, frosting and filling for my needs. The cake we chose didn’t rise much, so I ended up doubling the recipe for the cake, making 1 1/2 times the amount of frosting, and leaving the filling amount as it was. From here I was able to make an accurate shopping list (cake making can be seriously expensive) and reduce waste where possible.

Step 6: Plan the look. I had Jen send over a few images of cakes she admired and we talked about the materials she was using for decorations. From there I came up with a plan based on my (relative lack-of) cake decorating abilities and the desired look.

Next up, the result of all this work!

This morning I was woken up by the most wonderful box of fresh garlic. The mailman’s buzzer at 8am had me a little out of sorts, but when I realized what he had delivered, I forgave the early wake-up call. Korrin & Caleb of the Roots CSA had sent me a gorgeous spread of three of their garlic varieties — Music (spicy, large cloves), Killarney Red (developed in Northern Idaho, good raw), and Chesnok Red (excellent for cooking, stores well).

Though I’m heading out of town for the weekend, I’ll definitely be putting these to the test upon my return. In the mean time, here is a recipe for my favorite way to enjoy fresh garlic, courtesy of Alice Waters:

Whole Roasted Garlic (from Chez Panisse Vegetables)

Use garlic that is in season that has not begun to sprout. Select good-looking, firm heads (allow one per person). Peel just the outer skin from the upper half of each head; arrange the heads, root end down, in an oven-proof dish just large enough to hold them snugly in a single layer. Add enough stock or water to reach about 1/4″ up the sides of the dish, drizzle the heads with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt. Cover tightly with foil, and roast in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Check them to make sure that there is still liquid in the bottom of the dish. They should be fairly soft at this point; if not, re-cover and roast a little more. Add a little more olive oil and let them continue to roast, uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately with grilled bread and a little goat cheese. Diners pull apart the cloves and squeeze out the puree within.

Over duck burgers at Tilth in Seattle a few weeks ago I got to know my cousin’s fiancé, Luke. He’s the son of two of the Organic movement’s primary moving forces from the 70’s. He’s an amature chef and a foodie whose personal history is linked more directly to our country’s fight for a sustainable food system than anyone else I know.

Over our delicious dinner, I learned that Luke’s parents, Woody & Becky Deryckx were part of the formation of the Tilth conference. Tilth began as a means for advocating for agriculture that respected the land and the communities that lived there. It was one of the first sparks that started the Northwest’s organic movement.

Woody has continued as an organic farmer in Washington state, and has, over the years contributed in many ways to the support of sustainable agriculture. Tilth, meanhwile has grown drammaticlly and it’s chapters have created models for organic and sustainable practices, research, certification, composting, gardening, farmers markets, education, and more.

It was ironic and wonderful that we were discussing the history of this amazing organization that was founded by the family of the son I dined with at the restaurant that bore it’s name.

If so inspired, you can learn more about the history of Tilth here, and I encourage you to check out the restaurant Tilth if you’re ever in the Seattle area.

Elton Turcotte is one of those friends that maintains a certain level of fame within our family. A holdover from when my parents were young and wild, Elton has maintained his child-like antics well into adulthood. From the first time I could understand who Elton was, I was terrified of him. He swore like a sailor, dressed like a logger, and left no child untortured — even if she was quiet and skiddish and clearly uninterested in adult banter.

There are plenty of characters in northern Idaho, but Elton has long been our character. As socially incorrect and foul-mouthed as he can be, Elton is one of the sweetest and most genuine people we know. Always willing to lend a hand while you butcher your deer in his “clean room”, or offer space in his envious machine shop, Elton is the go-to guy when guys in the Northwest need to get stuff done. He’s a bit of a homesteader, having raised beef and chickens on his land and most interesting to me, he keeps bees. Elton has been keeping bees since the 1970’s and has long supplied our family and other lucky friends with fresh Turcotte’s Bees honey. I could never quite understand how the same man who threatened to hang me by my socks also created the key ingredient to my favorite sandwich (peanut butter and honey).

While home for July, I asked my dad to contact Elton. Not sure if this was a good idea, I prepped myself for the imminent barrage of insults and barbs. But when we arrived, Elton seemed milder…he’d found a new woman. She’s wonderful! We had a fantastic chat about his hives (which also suffered greatly in the recent bee blight), his visits to the local elementary schools to give bee tutorials, and of course the details of his hives and the process of extracting the honey. Unfortunately, the bees weren’t ready to hand over their combs yet, but I’m hoping to get my hands on a jar of Turcotte’s Bees honey as soon as it’s available.

Thanks again, Elton!

As a follow-up to my Barn Art post, I thought I’d pass along a bit of the inspiration that led to the designs we did for the CSA. These gorgeous posters were designed in the 1940’s as part of the government’s effort to publicize health and safety programs, cultural programs, travel and tourism, educational programs, and community activities. Personally, I love the idea that we might be able to support artists while promoting important cultural messages. Functional art has just as much right to be beautiful as fine art…and it would be great if some of our important public education communications could get the same kind of treatment as the commercial messages we see every day. You can see more of the old posters at the Library of Congress and even pick one of a few designs up at Cafe Press if it fits your decorating style. ReadyMade magazine also did a piece last year where they commissioned artists to create WPA-like posters. There are some pretty beautiful examples here.

Oh, and I should also mention that Coeur d’Alene’s local paper did a piece on the Barn Art project. Check it out!

Vermont seems to be one of those states that is home to the local and seasonal movement. Gorgeous red barns, rolling green hills and everywhere you turn you can get local cheese, grass-fed meats, fresh bread, delicious corn, arugula and of course, blueberries.

This past weekend, I met my husband up in Burlington. On Friday night, we splurged and ate at the Inn at Shelburne Farms. It was absolutely incredible.  Before we even opened the menus our lovely waitress, Emily, explained that over 60% of the menu is not only local, but grown or raised on the premises of the farm.

We started with their Feast of the Fields appetizer that changes nightly. This was a selection of whatever was harvested from their land that particular day.  Friday night was a mix of roasted zucchini and eggplant, radishes, three different types of cucumbers, cheese and a homemade eggplant spread. Super beautiful and delish.  We also began with a locally smoked cavendish quail that sat atop a warm corn salad.

For entrees, he ordered a wild striped bass in a roasted cherry tomato and roasted zucchini ragout and I had a grilled pork tenderloin with a blueberry sage sauce and a cauliflower-vidalia gratin.  My husband was doubtful about the fruit sauce with the meat but when he took his first bite all doubts immediately disappeared. Our dessert was a raspberry lemon curd tart and a trio of homemade ice creams and a sorbet:  a scoop of each corn and cheese ice cream and a raspberry sorbet.

We needed to work off dinner the next day so we climbed to the summit of Camel’s Hump mountain and then headed to the famous Farmer’s Diner in Quechee.  The entire menu is a based upon what they can source from within 70 miles and the restaurant is in an old Airstream trailer. The food was great and it was fun.

So if you head to Vermont anytime soon, you will have plenty of great eating to do, most of which is effortlessly local and seasonal.

I’ve been working a little work into my play lately by putting some time toward a mural for Community Roots, the organization that is using a part of my parents’ land as a CSA farm. After seeing the giant sunflowers I did on my family’s barn (see below), they asked me if I’d be willing to paint something for them on our neighbor’s old barn.

Inspired by the old WPA artwork of the depression era, we decided to go with a series of oversized “posters” — each with it’s own look and it’s own message. It was such a fun project, and it even seems like everyone involved is pleased with the result. Now I just hope the CSA members like it as much as we do!

(Panel 1: Eat Fruit Be Healthy, Panel 2: Support Community Roots, Panel 3: Visit Family Farms, Panel 4: Rise with the Sun/Get More Done, Panel 5: Enjoy Veggies Daily)

And here’s the one I did on my parents’ barn last week:

First stop, Seattle: I ate very well in Seattle. In fact, I don’t remember doing much of anything else. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I started right off with lunch at Emmer & Rye, then later that evening moved on to dinner at at Tilth — also a favorite for seasonal cuisine. We had duck burgers with homemade potato chips rendered in duck fat. Need I say more? Over the next two days, I visited the farmer’s market where I ate the largest snap pea I’d ever seen, tried my first cheese curd at Beechers, visited The Seafood Festival in Ballard and snacked on the most delicious garlic fries ever while watching the sun set as the Mariners actually BEAT the Yankees.

Then, Olympia: I spent most of my time in Olympia enjoying the view from my friend’s amazing cottage on the Sound. We ate raspberries from the garden, No Woman cheese we picked up at Beecher’s the day before and amazingly fresh salmon grilled on a wooden plank. The little time I spent in town, was mostly confined to little French pastry and coffee shop called The Bread Peddler. It reminded me of the little bakery around the corner from my place in NY, so I felt compelled to sample their coffee, pastries and a baguette (to go with the cheese, of course).

The final stop, Portland: The first thing I have to say about Portland — which is clear to anyone who has ever visited is that FOOD CARTS ROCK! These mini food havens allow for experimentation that has clearly led to a unique food culture — and a cult-like dedication among many of the locals. While I could have camped out behind Garden State eating their Chickpea Sandwiches my whole visit, I did venture out to see what the rest of the city had to offer. Here’s what I found: Pastaworks for amazing bread, cheese, salami, sweets and high-end packaged goods, Powell’s Books for Home and Garden (imagine Powell’s, then strip away all the stuff you’ll never read), Townshend’s Tea for a great respite from all the eating, The Meadow for the most incredible selection of salts imaginable (plus a healthy selection of chocolate..and flowers), Ruby Jewel for design-your-own ice cream sandwiches, and of course Pistils Nursery for all your urban farming needs. When I wasn’t eating, I was either drinking at one of the countless brew-pubs in the city or taking in one of Portland’s wacky evening adventures like Filmusik (take an animated film, remove the sound, then have local sound artists, voice actors, and musicians do the sound live…while you watch the movie).

Thanks again to everyone — it was a fantastic time!