Executive Chef Erik Slater, of Resurrection Roadhouse Restaurant, Seward Windsong Lodge and Kenai Fjords Wilderness Lodge, has been honored as one of the country’s top culinary talents in the inaugural edition of Best Chefs America. This is the first-ever peer review guide of U.S. chefs, who were chosen after extensive interviews [...]
Executive Chef Erik Slater, of Resurrection Roadhouse Restaurant, Seward Windsong Lodge and Kenai Fjords Wilderness...
http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/20130509/top-alaska-chefs-battle-seafood-crown-right-represent-state (Link provided...
On Friday, November 30, Chinooks had a special dinner menu called Argentina Inspiration. Thought I would share some pictures of the five courses served and just say thank you to the folks and chef at Chinooks for doing this event dinner. The menu was very different, presented well and tasted wonderful! I choose to do the wine pairings and felt like I got a ‘wine tasting’ with my dinner adventure, Argentina Inspiration. For those that did not get a chance to go, here is the menu:
Course one: House-cured Lonza, grilled rustic bread with membrillo, 8 month mancego cheese, chili-infused olive oil. Paired with Mairena Espumante, a sparkling Brut, Mendoza.
Course two: Grilled Alaska spot Shrimp with wild mushroom hash, mustard/tarragon gribiche, smoked paprika. Paired with a dry white, Martinsancho, Verdejo-Spain.
Grilled Spot Shrimp
Course three: Brick-cooked quail, marinated endive salad, hazelnuts, mint and orange chimichurri. Paired with a white, Tomero Torrontes, Mendoza.
Brick cooked quail
Course four: Braised beef shortribs, parsnip/potato puree, crisp kale, red peppers, red wine sauce. Paired with a red, Weinert Malbec, Mendoza.
Course five: Ricotta Tartlet, fig compote, candied persimmons and spiced butternut squash puree & dulce de leche ice cream. Paired with a sweet white Errazuriz, Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc, Chile and a Durigutti Malbec, Mendoza.
Ricotta Tartlet
This was a delight to have on a dark, cold, November night. Hats off to the chef and owners of Chinooks! Well done. May there be more coming!
by: Mary Tougas
By Heidi Zemach for SCN
He Will Provide Food Pantry volunteers were amazed and delighted this week when someone with the Alaska Marine Ferry Tustumena, in town this winter for service at Seward Ships boatyard at Seward Municipal Industrial Center, phoned to ask whether they could use any food donations. Could they ever! The pantry’s shelves were practically empty because the volunteers that normally make the trip to Anchorage to pick up food for Thursday’s pantry were unable to do so for a variety of reasons.
The ferry had three large pallets worth of food of all kinds to offer including immense hams and bags filled with fat blueberries–enough to fill more than three freezers at the pantry, and plenty of shelf space and boxes. The Trusty Tusty’s crew would otherwise have had to have thrown it all away.
Volunteers eagerly and thankfully went out to SMIC and picked up the grub.
Want to help your neighbors who have fallen on hard times? Consider donating a turkey to the pantry. They are currently about 10 turkeys short for filling Thanksgiving orders. Some 90 families have pre-signed up to receive traditional Thanksgiving meal fare next Wednesday, including turkey, bread rolls, potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce and pies. The food pantry plans to donate turkeys for Christmas too this year.
The food pantry serves between 100-120 local families weekly. It relies on money or food donations from churches, residents, local charitable organizations and businesses. It also purchases items it needs in bulk from places like Costco in Anchorage, or from the Food Bank of Alaska, then breaks it down into smaller portions.
Call Sean Hansen at 491-1235 to donate or for more information,
The Academy Café will open on Thursday, Oct. 25 and be open till Thursday, Dec. 13. Reservations need to be made online and link will be open for reservations starting on Monday, Oct. 8. The theme of the café this fall is Tour of Latin America. To make reservations visit www.avtec.edu and under hot topics click on the link to Academy Café reservations.
4pm-1am Friday September 28th
12noon-1am Saturday September 29th
12noon-6pm Sunday September 30th
The Schedule of events:
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 28:
5-5:45: Superfrequency
6-6:45: Rick Brooks
7-7:45: the Barroom Roses
8-8:45: Art in Motion
9-10: Orion Donicht
10:15-11:15: Woodrow
11:30-12:30: Ghost Hands
12:45-1:45: Historian
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 29:
11:30-Noon: Seward Kids Dancers
12:15-1: Hawkins Wright
1:15-2:15: In the Belfry
2:30-3:15: Jackie Schafer and the Standard Deviations
3:30-4:15: Luna Dance Circle
4:30-5:15: Tomodachi Daiko
5:30-6:15: Tammy Whynot and the Divorcees
6:30-7:30: Melissa Mitchell and Rik Nielsen
7:45-8:45: the Super Saturated Sugar Strings
9-9:45: Feeding Frenzy
10-11: Nervis Rex
11:15-12:15: Pros and Cons
12:30-1:30: Yet to be announced…a special guest DJ!
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 30:
12-12:45: Janessa Jacqueline
1-1:45: Michael Howard
2-2:45: Kaleido World Percussion and Dance
3-3:45: Seth Boyer
4-4:45: SJ Stephens
4:45-5: Mark Chase Band
Only one week left to get your tickets to the ASFA Phoenix Chapter fundraiser dinner cruise taking place on Fox Island!
Set sail with us on Saturday, August 25, 2012! All proceeds directly support firefighter and EMT training in the Seward/Moose Pass area.
For more information about the Phoenix Chapter and how to buy tickets, visit http://sewardcitynews.com/2012/08/phoenixchaptercruise2012/
All proceeds benefit the Phoenix Chapter of the Alaska State Firefighters Association. The Phoenix Chapter is a combined effort of Bear Creek, Moose Pass and Seward Fire Departments, and the Seward Volunteer Ambulance Corps in a joint association for advanced training and education of our emergency responders to better serve our communities.
ONLY 140 TICKETS- DON’T MISS OUT!
Dessert Night and Silent Auction
June 9, 2012 7pm to 9pm
Hotel Seward Banquet Room
Price: $10.00 per person purchased in advance
$15.00 per person at the door
Desserts by Amy Mow and Judy Odhner
The price of your ticket includes a trip through the all you can eat
Dessert Buffet, coffee, and punch.
Alcohol will be available for purchase
You can purchase tickets from Veronica Wilde 491-1161 or funnywilde1@yahoo.com
Veronica Wilde has been chosen to spend a year in Bolivia as an ambassador for the National Rotary Youth Exchange
All proceeds from the evening will help her achieve those goals
Unavoidable circumstances led a late-season neglect of most of my garden. Imagine my surprise that, upon my return home in the fall, many vegetables which should have been long past their harvest date where actually primed and ready to pick. While the kohlrabi was lost to slugs and the second harvest of broccoli had flowered a very pretty flower, I might add; I will use any extra starts in my flower garden next year just to enjoy the yellow buds the kale was ready to pick, the turnips were large and only slightly slug-ridden, peas that normally are ready in July were fresh and ready for a late-season salad, even some of the lettuce had not yet bolted. Limited on my physical activity, I enjoyed the harvest day from my blanket in the sun, while hubby Jack searched through the many weeds to find the meager bounty that now sits in our fridge.
I guess we can thank the cool weather and abundance of rain for such a late harvest. Its not just my garden either; a friend stopped by two days ago with fresh tomatoes out of her greenhouse, finally ripe. Normally, she has red ripe tomatoes by mid-July. We shrugged and enjoyed the unusual September freshness as I quietly thanked God for supermarkets: While a meager, late garden means no veggies put up in the freezer and a few more trips to Safeways frozen food section this year, someone who relies upon their garden for a large part of their food supply would be facing a pretty tough winter.
Weve left the carrots and potatoes in the ground for a bit longer; these two veggies can withstand a bit of frost, and are usually later bloomers anyways I figure the longer they have to grow, the better.
If youve already harvested the last of your garden its time to start thinking about readying it for winter. In my household, there are the ideal steps I would take: Pull out all stalks, weeds, etc. and compost elsewhere; turn soil; add fresh manure; top with a heavy layer of already-composted material and possibly a bed of straw to help with the defrosting in the spring. Then there is what will actually take place: The bare minimum. Jack will do a once over pull of stalks and weeds, left in place to compost in the garden (pulling is helpful, as one doesnt really want all that chickweed to go to seed). Thats it. Next spring there will be a need for rototilling the half-composted materials into the soil and an added layer of compost (many who chose the first list of garden prep will still want to add a second layer of compost, for nutrients sake). Whether you choose the work now or later, we can all look forward to another growing season and hope for a little more sunshine next year! Happy gardening.
Stirring the sauce
Brittany McCallister checks the sweet potatos
Luke Hardesty and Jason Keith oblique carrots
New Training Kitchen at Culinary Arts Academy
AVTEC Culinary Arts students have begun learning knife skills, and cooking in the new building’s two sparkling training kitchens. They now have all new, state-of-the-art equipment to use, under the firm direction of instructor Cheryl Lewis. Only those who saw what they used to have to work with can truly appreciate the difference!
Forget the fair – we’ve got two events this weekend and next you don’t want to miss!
Due to popular demand, the ASFA Phoenix Chapter Rummage / Quilt / Bake Sale is being held over to this Saturday!
Location: Seward Elks Lodge
419 Fifth Avenue
Date: Saturday, August 28
Time: 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Weve got something for everyone
Also remember that the Phoenix Chapter thanks to Kenai Fjords Tours is also hosting a dinner cruise to Fox Island next Saturday, September 4! For only $50 you get a cruise to Fox Island PLUS prime rib dinner! Visit www.alaskafireconference.com for details and to purchase tickets.
Statistics show that one out of every three children is overweight or obese in this country. The Kenai Peninsula Borough is not exempt from this trend, and we, as a family, community, district, state, and nation need to do all we can to halt this trend and raise our children to be healthy, happy kids who can run and play comfortably, and grow into healthy adults.
With three children in three schools of the Kenai Peninsula School District, I am aware of the school lunch menu and the foods sold a la carte during the school lunch periods in our schools. I am appalled by the a la carte foods sold, and although the School District is well aware that the majority of these foods do not comply with their own nutrition standards (AR 5141.6), the District continues to sell them. The people who can make a change and get these foods removed from the schools are our Principals. Several Principals in the Homer area schools have pulled these foods our schools lunch periods already, and the others need to hear from you as parents.
I encourage you to visit your childrens school lunchroom and see what is being sold. Talk with your Principal and ask them to remove foods that are not promoting student health and reducing childhood obesity. We, as adults, are responsible for the nutritional education and health of our children. Our schools need to take responsibility as well, doing everything possible to educate children on nutrition and ensure that our schools are not contributing to the negative health of the students they serve.
Karin Sonnen
Homer, Alaska
The red runs on the Kenai and Kasilof Rivers are in full swing, and the Soldotna/Kenai area is flooded with Alaska visitors ready to net their share of fish for the 2010 season. Ive dip netted for years, sometimes coming home with my limit, other times with only a fraction of what the state says I can take. Personal use is a great gift we have here in Alaska; five years ago while living in Iliamna I had the chance to run a personal use set net, and my husband and I enjoyed salmon all year long (an easy way to get protein in an area where you otherwise had to pay to ship it in).
But in all honesty, red salmon is not my favorite as is salmon to feast on. Of course if we had pulled in a king it would have made it to the grill that evening, but as far as reds go my family prefers them either smoked or canned. The idea of smelling salmon canning for any amount of time makes this pregnant lady want to gag, and so we decided on less fish this year limiting ourselves to only 15 for smoking, though the state limited us at 45 for a household of three (25 per head of household and 10 per additional member). Id rather fill the freezer with slivers later in the season for things like BBQs and baked fish or my personal favorite, salmon Pad Thai. Plus, someone has to process all those fish in my household, that someone inevitably ends up as me.
They do come in cleaned and filleted, as my husband enjoys that part of the process as well as the fishing. Or at least he realizes the need for such. But then the fillets need to be dealt with. Years ago in 1980′s small-town Seward, when ”Al’s” smokehouse was regularly available to our family, we use to smoke everything up at once we use to get a lot more fish too, as the ease of processing made it easy to consume more of the tasty treat. But my husband and I only have a small smoker, and so we freeze the fillets as is, defrosting as many as we can fit in the smoker at a time when the mood strikes. I use a home vacuum sealer to seal out any air I suggest this route, and remind you that a green-minded and prudent person would also save the bags from last years catch and reuse them. This morning I cut a few new bags and for the rest crossed out 2009 and wrote 2010 on the recycled bag. My freezer now has enough reds to enjoy smoked fish throughout the winter, still leaving room for silvers, halibut and, God-willing, the ever-elusive moose we hope to harvest this fall. (If not, an acquaintance is raising heifers and Ill purchase meat from him before winter).
About half of our reds are processed and in the freezer, ready to be smoked when needed.
A note on harvesting: I realize some families do actually consume 25+ reds per year, but I feel as if many do not and a lot of freezer-burn fish end up wasted come the following summer. Regardless of what the state law says, planning your own personal limit before stepping foot in the water (or, if youre lucky, on a boat) helps prevent you from taking more than what your family actually needs. Once youre in the thick of it, pulling in fish after fish, especially on a hot sunny day, it can be hard to stop. Dont let the enjoyment of catching the fish mask into an overtaking of our natural resource! Enjoy eating ALL the fish you catch this year, and help make sure we have plenty more to catch in the future.
Ive been enjoying some of my first harvest this week radishes straight out of the ground, cucumbers out of a friends much-coveted greenhouse. This is also a great time to enjoy the wild plants popping up in your yards and along trails. This week my family feasted several times on Thai fresh spring rolls with an Alaskan flair – I used chickweed as part of the veggies, enjoying the diverse greenery that lives in my more-than-grass yard. For this weeks post, I encourage all of you to get out and harvest a bit of the yummy green yourself (early morning, after the dew has dried, or later in the evening is the best time to harvest) and enjoy a taste of wild and garden veggie Thai salad staple, or just saute it up with a little butter for a yummy side dish if Thai food isn’t your thing.
Jens Thai chickweed spring rolls and peanut sauce
Sauce ingredients:
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 3/4 cup coconut milk
2 Tbsp red curry paste
¼ cup fish sauce
3 Tbsp sugar
Roll ingredients:
Cucumber, peeled and sliced into strips
Outer tender leaves from your growing lettuce plant
**Fresh chickweed leaves (flowers are fine too)
Sprouts
Cooked Jasmine rice
Other fresh veggies to your liking
Rice paper sheets
To make sauce:
Combine all ingredients in saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring constantly.
To make rolls:
Soften rice paper sheets by holding thin kitchen towel or paper towel under warm running water. Squeeze out excess moisture and lay flat on kitchen counter. Run warm water over both sides of a sheet of rice paper and lay flat on top of towel. Layer with another moist towel; repeat. Let sit for five minutes.
To assemble rolls remove top layer of towel. Arrange ingredients in center of paper, laying lettuce leaf first, then rice, chickweed, sprouts, cucumber and other veggies. Fold outer side layers of rice paper in, then roll from the closest end, squeezing gently as you roll. Cut in half; serve with peanut sauce for dipping.
**Use a plant guidebook while harvesting chickweed; be 100 % sure of any plant species before using any wild plants for food or medicinal use.
By Jen Ransom for Seward City News
By now many of you have planted. If you havent, its not too late. Many greenhouses still have vegetable starts available; many look much healthier than mine. Yet I dont mind putting the long, leggy starts of broccoli and less-than-tight clusters of lettuce into the ground: My experience has been come harvest time, Ive got plenty even with meager starts. Plus, I just love the experience of growing directly from seed. (The leggy starts, by the way, are a result of growing seeds in a window instead of direct overhead light or a greenhouse the plants have to reach toward the light more).
This past week I grabbed from my hardening-off porch and started plunking things into the ground. Maybe not that haphazardly, but I do remind myself not to get too serious when planting. After all, this is supposed to be a relaxing hobby for me, as well as a serious summer food source for my family. I suggest viewing your garden in a similar way. Perhaps your starts too are a bit leggy and lopsided; typical of at-home seed starters are plants that grow sideways. Dont worry the plant most likely will recover. Ive had very little die off over the years, especially when hardened for a week. The key to those less-than-perfect starts is to plant them a little deeper in the ground and fill with dirt around some of the leggy-ness. This is especially true if you have a start that takes a 90 degree angle early in the starting season, as all of my broccoli did. Just plant the deep and sideways, so that the start stands upright with the support of the soil.
Once youve got your starts and any seeds planted this years newbie seeds for me include green beans and turnips the most important thing is to keep seeds wet until germinated. But not too wet. You dont want water soaking the ground so much that it creates runoff or crumbles the edges of your raised beds. Many a June rain can hold a garden over, but its worth having an irrigation system set up for those occasional hot, sunny days. This can be as simple as walking around with a hose, but for those gardeners who have less time or energy, a semi-permanent, strategically placed hose and sprinkler will often do the trick. I water the front flowers individually, but for the back I invested in a hose splitter so I would have both a fixed watering system in the garden and a movable hose for the lawn, other flower beds and the kiddy pool. On sunny days I just head outside, turn water on and let it do its job for a half hour or so. (Often longer, or twice a day, as it gets hotter in July). Im constantly checking our dogs water on days like that, so it takes very little effort to check the garden at the same time.
As you finish planting make sure you set aside a little space for succession planting, if only for radishes throughout the summer. Every few days plant another section for a kid-friendly, easy-growing vegetable. I dont even bother setting a row aside in the main garden for this veggie anymore; my herb garden, flower beds and, later, open spots that become apparent in the main garden all become filled with the crisp, red treat. You cant plant enough, as neighbors are always happy to enjoy your extra harvest! So is the local food bank.
Weed Update:Pushky. Uhk. So far here are suggestions I’ve received: First, make sure you wear rain gear when dealing with the pesky plant that likes to leave welts. Goggles aren’t a bad idea if using a weed eater. And if you are going the mechanical route, especially a string weed eater, make sure you run it at a low speed. Otherwise, the plant will shoot out everywhere. Another option is to wait until it grows big, then whack the bottom of it with an ice chipper. None of these options will eradicate the weed, but they will keep them knocked down and hopefully not such a problem. I’ll keep searching for ideas on how to more permanently remove the plant.
Happy Gardening!
This is the perfect week for starting broccoli indoors to have the yummy crucifer ready by mid-summer. Four weeks before planting is a great time table to have the starts hardened and ready to plant by June 1st possibly a week earlier if the evening temperatures cooperate. This plant loves cool nights, and so in my opinion is a must in any Alaska garden even a few plants on a sunny porch container garden can yield some incredible food. If you enjoy broccoli, you will love fresh broccoli. I didnt purchase any for a few months after our last harvest in 2009; I just knew the flavor wouldnt compare. There is just nothing like serving broccoli 20 minutes from being harvested.So this week all you need to do is pull out one flat, fill with damp soil and spread an envelope of tiny broccoli seeds on the top. Some spread a light amount of soil on top of the seeds I dont bother. Spray with water and keep moist. Thats it! I typically use a plastic cover over the flat for the first few days until I see green my south facing window can still get a little chilly this time of year. Let these starts grow about a week (the picture below shows broccoli I started one week ago, Ill transplant later today as they are more than ready). Next weekend transplant the individual plants into pots and save the flat for next year. Keep the broccoli in a warm sunny window or greenhouse until you are ready to harden the plants outside. (This takes place a week or so before the final plant date; Ill go into more detail next month).
Bark from winter wood chopping makes a great mulch for bulb and perinnial beds.
Broccoli loves 18 to 24 inches per plant, so make sure as you work out your garden plans and beds you allocate enough room (remember zigzag planting can increase your yield per square foot of garden space). These plants also enjoy plenty of compost; if you are like me and have a limited supply from last season, make sure the broccoli area gets plenty and let areas like carrots and peas go without. These veggies like a pH around 6.0 to 7.5; if youve got ashes left over from your wood stove spread them around your broccoli bed instead of using lime to raise the pH if it tests too low (typical of Alaska). This is also a good time to use up any bark in your wood cutting area, either as a brown addition to your compost pile or as mulch to avoid chickweed and other weeds in your perennial flower beds. Just cover beds with damp newspaper, mulch with the bark and let the flowers grow the flowers are strong enough to grow through the bark, the weeds are not. This is especially effective in bulb gardens, my mulch from last year is keeping weeds down now, but not spring bulbs see photo below. I’m on my way outside now to clean out the little amount of weeds that grew, but with such little effort compared to the beds I didn’t mulch. If you’ve got the bark, it’s worth the effort. Newspaper and peat moss will work also, for those who don’t use a wood stove. Happy gardening!
The AVTEC Annual Guest Chef Dinner will be held on Saturday, April 17 at 6:30 p.m. AVTEC holds this dinner once a year and proceeds from dinner provide scholarships to help fund culinary students training at AVTEC. This year the Guest Chef is Chef Eric DuBey from Thirty Six Bistro in Anchorage. This years dinner will be paired with Alaskan brewed beers. There will be both a live auction and a silent auction during event. Seward local, Steve Lemme will be the auctioneer for live auction. The cost is $75 per person for meal only or $100 for meal with beer included, cash or check at the door or by credit card by calling 800.478.5389. RSVPs required. RSVP to 224.6153 or via e-mail to Linda Carpenter, linda.carpenter@alaska.gov.
Thanks.
