Memento Brunch

This morning, Dan & I headed north for our supper club - Memento.

Due to a difficult period, we missed the last event at Marcy & James place, so were extra excited for today's.  Not only was it our return to Memento, but it was the last Memento of the 4th season, and very likely the last Memento for Gerald & Robyn - who moved to Tuscon, Arizona shortly after hosting the TEOTWAKI Memento in June.  They're back in town right now for their wedding & bachelor/bachelorette parties - so we were lucky to get to finish out the season with them in attendance.  And if all that wasn't enough, it was our very first Memento brunch!




Anna & Jason started us off right with an espresso, presented with a lump of sugar and some mini chocolate chips.  Officially awake, we then dug into their trio of bagels with cream cheese.  The first variation on this ubiquitous breakfast fare was a seasonal offering on pumpernickel bagel:  prosciutto, green apple, and sage.  Next was the traditional bagel toppings of  lox, tomato, capers and red onion.  And last, but not least, was an adventurous bagel with garlic cream cheese, red chili pepper, anchovy, and cilantro.  Each was completely different than the others, and all were delicious.



Anna's signature, if you will, is fresh fruit and herbs or edible flowers garnishing the plate.  Today was no exception, with mango, watermelon and honeydew sliced thin and cut in perfect circles (as was everything on the plate), accented with a sage leaf from their garden.



Our second course was presented by Tricia - now a Memento veteran, this being her third time as a guest chef.  She got a helping hand this time from Caleb - a friend of Gerald's in town from Australia for the wedding - who showed off his USMC culinary know-how by helping with the beautiful plating.
 


Alongside a well garnished Tennessee Bloody Mary (that's with bourbon, not vodka) was their Bacon and Banana Bread French Toast, with a slice of Bacon, a slice of mango, and the most smartly cut grape I've ever seen (sliced top and bottom so it perched perfectly atop the mango, itself atop the french toast).  Such a simple alteration to a grape, but it made me question if it was a grape.  I love me some architectural food, so loved the look of their plate.  And the taste didn't disappoint, either.  The toast was rolled in bacon before being fried, giving it a savory/sweet balance that was enhanced by a side of warm maple syrup.

Tricia's heading back to her home state of Georgia early next year, to spend some time with family and follow her dreams of being a make up artist.  As a huge fan of make up effects, I'm eager to hear about her experiences and maybe score some tips.  And if you're reading this, Tricia - I'd happily shave my beard if you ever need a model to practice making life molds.




I was wondering what a brunch salad course would look like, and Carolyn & David kept me guessing.



First to come out was a small shot of something brownish.  I thought it might be caramel (you'll see why in later courses), but then I smelled it.  It was a fruit puree of some kind.  When the Moscado sparkling wine came out, the genius of their deconstructed cocktail made sense.  We added the nectarine puree to our glasses and topped it with Moscado for a bubbly brunch classic - the Bellini.
 


Also deconstructed was their salad of sliced bananas, mango, pineapple, and kiwi, with shredded coconut, macadamia nuts and fresh whipped cream.  David talked about how most fruit salads blend everything together so much that the flavors of each type of fruit get lost.  It was definitely nice to experience each fruit on it's own, or paired with one or two other items.  A little banana with crunchy, buttery mac nut.  A bite of slick mango with earthy coconut on top.  Pineapple with whipped cream.  Every bite was something bright and new. 



 It was also nice to have such a light course, before all that was still to come.



The tropical flavors of the salad course bridged perfectly to our Banana Mimosa (orange juice, sparkling wine and banana liqueur), and to our take on Loco Moco - a Hawaiian creation usually made with steamed white rice topped with a hamburger patty, a fried egg, and brown gravy.  The hamburger patty is sometimes switched out for Spam, and we've seen variations with everything from kobe beef to mahi mahi. 

 

But taking our queues from the next course (in true Memento fashion), we made our Loco Moco with pork belly (my first time cooking it).  I braised the slab of pork in our crockpot overnight on low, swimming in chicken stock seasoned with LOTS of brown sugar, chunks of ginger root, star anise, salt, and a little liquid smoke.  I cooked down the braising liquid with some cornstarch for the gravy, with the brown sugar lending a sweetness - though I think it was well balanced with the savoriness.  Lots of clean plates seemed to point to agreement.

I infused the rice with subtle flavor by steaming it with fresh banana.  On it's own, it was noticeable, but with all the other strong flavors it got lost.

I'm terrible at cooking eggs (impatience gets the best of me), but Dan is a master at the art - proving his skills by pulling off a dozen over-medium eggs (courtesy of our hens, Huli and Teri).



Despite not having a home base kitchen to work out of, and Gerald getting into town just last night, they put together a complex and very satisfying "second entree" course that contained many of the key inspirations for the preceding dishes.

They baked a savory/sweet casserole made with Challah bread, topped with bananas, pecans, bacon and a brown sugar caramel sauce, with a side of bacon.  Although I complain about TV cheftestants relying too much on it, I absolutely love bread pudding, and this was one of the best I've had.

As our liquid accompaniment, Robyn found a Lake Chelan hard apple cider I really liked (and will be trying to track down).  It wasn't too dry or too sweet - but a perfect middle ground between the two.  And it comes in a swing-top style glass bottle (my favorite, as they're great for bottling homemade booze).



And what was the original inspiration for the entire meal?  The final dish, planned first?  The brunch dessert that rounded out our banana/mango/pork/brown sugar goodness?



 A float!  Marcy was turned on (no, not like a certain someone and a certain giant mollusc) to a creme brûlée stout.  Combined with a scoop of salted caramel gelato, it became a modern, adult-beverage take on an old fashioned soda shop ice cream float.  And it was a great end to a meal that started at 10am and lasted til mid-afternoon.



With Gerald and Robyn now living in the land of bad sushi and life-changing Latin food, the future of Memento is not yet clear.  I'm tempted to call it 'uncertain', but that word seems too loaded with doom and gloom, and I'm optimistic.

Memento meals have been an amazing opportunity to try new foods and new techniques, flex creative muscles, collaborate with my husband, gain hosting experience, and build a wonderful bond with a great group of people we might never have met without Anna & Jason, or have become so close with were it not for Memento.  As I grow older, and after moving to what many of our peers consider the suburbs, I find it takes a lot more to maintain friendships.  And my chronic migraine issues don't make committing to events or late nights always possible.  Memento has given me something to look forward to every couple months that I can even attend if I'm not feeling my best.  I know from experience that this special group of people, and this unique meal, always makes me feel great.

Homemade Blackberry Glazed Cake Donuts

A few weeks back, a coworker gave me a copy of the new Top Pot cookbook - Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts: Secrets and Recipes for the Home Baker. I've been wanting to try my hand at donut making for awhile now, and this was just the nudge I needed. Apparently, it was also the nudge I needed to get back to blogging a bit.

I procured the ingredients I needed, and last night made the surprisingly simple batter for cake donuts, which then rested in the fridge overnight.

This morning, I got up bright and early (for me) and got to work, first on the glaze - which I made from some failed freezer jam I tried to make using blackberries foraged from our neighbors overgrown yard. Then I started on a batch of four dozen chocolate chip cookies (for my students on the last day of class this afternoon), and finally on the donuts themselves.

It turns out cake donut dough is more like batter, and very difficult to keep in a specific shape. I executed one actual donut shaped donut, before resigning myself to making donut holes. Problem with those is they roll around in the oil, and it can be difficult to get them to cook evenly. Finally, I figured out that a hole poked in the middle of a donut hole would make it a little like a mini-donut.

What I realized I really need is one of these things. Next batch I make, I'll invest in one.

After getting glazed* and cooling a bit, I packed up the donuts and cookies and headed to work - where the donuts went fast and received a great response. It felt good to spend the morning working hard to create something for people to enjoy. Maybe there is a future in baking for me someday.

Simple Cake Donuts
315 g cake flour
1 tspn baking powder
1 tspn salt
130 g sugar
2 Tbspn shortening
1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
2/3 cup whole milk
Canola oil for frying

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl, and set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the sugar and shortening together for 1 minute on low speed, until sandy. Add the eggs and mix for 1 more minute on medium speed, scraping the sides of the bowl if needed, until the mixture is light colored and thick. Add the dry ingredients to the wet in three separate additions, alternating with milk, mixing until just combined on low speed. The dough will be very sticky. Transfer the dough to a clean bowl, cover directly on the surface of the dough with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 to 24 hours.

Heat your oil to 370 degrees F. Gently roll the chilled dough on a counter floured with 1/4 cup cake flour, rolling to 1/2 inch thickness. Be sure to flour the rolling pin, and flour the top of the dough before rolling to avoid sticking. Cut into doughnuts and holes - just a few at a time - transferring them to the oil with a metal spatula. Try to shake off excess flour before adding them to the hot oil - a few at a time. Once they float, fry for about 60 seconds per side. Flip them over when you see a deep golden brown color creeping up from the bottom. Remove from oil and place on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet (to capture oil and eventually the glaze).



Blackberry Glaze
350g confectioner's sugar
1 1/2 tspn light corn syrup
1/4 tspn iodized salt
1/2 tspn vanilla extract
1 Tbspn berry jam
1/3 cup hot water

Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and all the sugar is incorporated. If the glaze seems too thick, add more hot water, 1 tspn at a time.

To glaze donuts, dip one side of each hot donut into the warm glaze then invert and place on the cooling rack to dry.

*Per advice in the book, I stuck with a glaze because I didn't have time to let the donuts cool - which is required for icings. Glazes are applied while the donut is hot and the glaze is warm, so they create a thin coating of sugary goodness.

Fancy Brunch at Verve

Gettin' Our Ken's Fix

So THIS is what First Class is Like!

Due to big projects on both our plates throughout Spring/Summer/Fall 2010, followed by the Holiday peak season at my work, we weren't able to sneak in a real vacation until 2011. So we decided if we had to wait that long to get back to Hawaii, we deserved to splurge a bit.



First on the splurge list was our introduction to flying First Class. Hawaiian Airlines is already rated #1 among US airlines, so my expectations were high for a great experience in the 'big seats' at the front of the plane.



Things kicked off nicely with a glass of champagne while we waited for the folks in the 'cheap seats' to load into the plane - though I was a little disappointed that while I sat in my aisle seat, I got kind pummeled by over-sized luggage that was clearly not carry-on appropriate. Did I mention the champagne came in a glass. A real glass, glass?



Next up, one of our flight attendants laid a tablecloth over our tray table, and brought us a ceramic bowl of mixed nuts and dried fruit, and a glass of water. Again, a GLASS of water, with a wedge of lemon.



After a little while - but before Coach even got their $5 mini bottles of wine - we were brought our brunch, featuring a dishes by Honolulu Chef Chai Chaowasaree.

I dug in first to the Scrambled Eggs "Magda" with toast points and sausage.



Then I dug into the Bananas Foster Crepe Bundle with Maple Rum sauce. And then I started dipping the fresh fruit plate into the leftover rum sauce. I wanted to try a little of everything, so I had a bite of my muffin - which was just a simple bran muffin with raisins. Soon after, my flight attended decided I was done, and took away my plate without asking (a little weird for first class, no?).

The food was delicious, and I'm very much looking forward to the trip home, when I know what to expect and will get to enjoy some dinner and cocktails on our trip home.

Breakfast at Salish Lodge

Before we checked out, we all regrouped in the dining room for some brunch, starting with a couple bloody marys for Dan & I.



I went for the Smoked Salmon Hash, topped with an egg, which was really bursting with flavor.

Dan's Birthday Breakfast at Geraldine's Counter

After the Thanksgiving feasting and karaoke in our tiki bar, Dan's folks stayed the night in the guest room. This morning, we all got up and headed to Columbia City for some brunch.

Dan had hoped to go to Verve, but forgot that since it was a Friday, the brunch options would be limited - and not include Verve, it turns out. We ended up at Geraldine's Counter.

I got the biscuits and gravy, and Dan got the Emerald Scramble. I've definitely had better biscuits and gravy elsewhere, and was bothered that the servers cut between our table and the next one, bumping my chair (which was as pushed in as I could get it) every few minutes.

I'm still baffled why they have a line out the door every weekend for brunch, when Verve & Lottie's Lounge offer better service and (IMHO) better food. I guess I'll count myself happy that the places I like to go aren't busy, huh?