Eat

Sustainable West Seattle, CoolMom and BALLE Seattle will host the 6th Annual Eat Local Now! fundraising dinner at the West Seattle Masonic Hall on Sunday Oct. 11 from 5 to 10 p.m.

The evening includes dinner, speakers active in the local food movement, exhibitors, a silent auction, music and dancing. According to a news release from the organizers, it’s an opportunity to enjoy a locally produced dinner while celebrating the people who grow, cook and support the local food movement. 

The star attraction is a menu of fresh local food prepared by talented area chefs. Locally and sustainably produced beer, wine and fresh cider will be available at a cash bar. 

Dave Muehleisen from 21 Acres Farm in the Sammamish Valley will speak about the challenges facing Puget Sound farmers. Exhibitors will present information on many local food related organizations, with a silent auction offering donated items from restaurant gift certificates to CSA subscriptions.

The Jeff Fairhall Local Food Hero Award will be presented to a person working to promote local food in the community at the event. Local Food Heroes can be nominated by sending an e-mail to info@eatlocalnow.org.

Delancey
1415 N.W. 70th St., 838-1960
Wednesday - Sunday 5 - 10 p.m.

Delancey's pizza is a labor of love chronicled on the owner's, Molly Wizenberg, award-winning food blog, Orangette.

For several weeks they've been inventing, conceiving, tweaking, experimenting, adding, subtracting and polishing. Intriguing from the beginning, Delancey continues to fascinate us.

Local ingredients are key here, and they know the guys who grind their flour (Shepherd's Grain, an alliance of Pacific Northwest farmers).

Most among us have a personal relationship with pizza. The Ballard Food Police remember our first taste -- at Shakey's in Salem, Ore. The crisp crust, the flavor of the tomato sauce (with spices mom didn't use at home) combined with melted cheese, the novelty of pepperoni -- heavenly.

Twenty-eight teams competed for the title of grand champion in the Pacific Northwest Barbecue Association competition on Sunday, Sept. 20.

The teams came from as far away as Vancouver B.C. and central Oregon to compete in the event, now in its sixth year. The association, a recognized affilliate of the world famous Kansas City BBQ Society, was formed in 1991 by a group of barbecue cooks in the Pacific Northwest. Over the years it has grown from 20 members to more than 400 internationally.

Thousands of people attended this years event, which had contestants vying to be the best at pork shoulder, brisket, chicken and ribs.

Michael Stevenson, of Lynnwood, who normally photographs the event was in his second year of the competition. He uses apple juice as a secret ingredient and sprays it on his baby back ribs right on the grill.

"It keeps them moist and gives them flavor," he said.

Ty Staley, who took home the title two years ago was back this year with a new $16,000 barbecue grill. He said the secret to good barbecue is to cook, "Low and slow."

There may be nothing quicker for dinner than a carton of food you pick up at the supermarket and pop in the microwave, however, usually there is more salt packed in that pretty little box than you should have in a whole day.

How do you keep the salt out and still fix a quick meal? One answer is a technology from the past: a slow cooker such as a Crock-Pot.

Pull out that 1980s answer to the pressure of time. Slow cooking gives food time to develop that meaty, brothy taste called “umami” that chefs love.

By cooking foods slowly, you will increase flavor and decrease the need for salt. Put the ingredients in your slow cooker before you head off for work and when you get home, dinner will be ready.

Island Beef

2 pounds beef top round steak, fat trimmed and cut into thin strips
2 onions, cut into wedges
1 20-oz. can unsweetened pineapple chunks, juice reserved
½ cup water
4 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
¾ tsp. garlic powder
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch squares
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch squares
Rice

My small Ballard garden has been very kind this year, delivering fresh greens, kale and collards to my table, providing snacks and meals of green beans, squash, some radishes, herbs and one beet.

I haven’t raided the potato bin yet.

Any failure to produce has been entirely my fault for being too busy to properly care for my garden. Oh, we had big ideas last winter, very big. Seeds were purchased, a place in the basement with lights prepared - but you know how life is.

Today, we shelled some gorgeous purple beans that by all rights should have been eaten long ago. I love that purple beans turn green when they cook, just so you know they really are green beans.

The fresh beans were blanched, dried and put into the freezer for soup-making. I picked out the largest beans to set aside for next years crop.

Of course, as soon as we finished shelling the beans I read up about how to save them for seed and soup. Wouldn’t you know it, we should have left them to dry in the pods and had to prepare them for the freezer instead. That’s what happens when you don’t read the directions first.

The PCC Market at 2749 California Ave. S.W. was handing out free burgers, salad, cake, lemonade, yogurt and falafel during cooking and product demonstrations to celebrate its 20th year in its West Seattle location on Sunday, Sept. 13.

PCC cooking classes are held in fully equipped teaching kitchens in some of its markets, including West Seattle.

Portage Bay Café
2821 N.W. Market St.
783-1547
Daily, 7:30 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Fresh, local, sustainable. That's what matters to Portage Bay Cafe.

Making meals made with the freshest ingredients possible from organic farms is the goal. While the University District location has been popular for a while, the restaurant is new to Ballard. We're thrilled the old Grace's Kitchen space did not go to waste or turn into more condos, even though some of our best friends live in condos. OK, one person we know does.

The cavernous industrial space at Portage Bay Cafe catches the eye of those interested in building structure, but at the same time manages to seem cozy and like it's been there for years. While spaciousness abounds, most of it is in the kitchen, and the table seating area reminds us a little of livestock pens.

But Portage Bay offers eggs from free range chickens and meat from grass-fed animals, so it's a little contradictory to feel penned-in while the food is from an animal that was not.

Ample counter seating is available, too, but some adjustments need to be made. The stools are too low.

Washington produces almost 100 million boxes of apples every year – and more than half of all apples eaten in America come from our state.

Today you can find more than 20 types of apples in most local markets. Some apples are great for eating fresh, while others are best for pies or baking, and some cook into the most wonderful applesauce!

Apples ripen six to 10 times faster at room temperature than if they are refrigerated. For best storage, try keeping apples at 35 degrees to 40 degrees in the refrigerator crisper drawer, or in a cool basement if you have a whole box. Below are some great apple recipes – and a chart that tells you which apples to use when. Enjoy!

How to eat apples

Fresh:
Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Jonathan, Ida Red, Rome Beauty, Winesap, Honey Crisp, Pink Lady, Braeburn

Pies:
Granny Smith, Winesap, Rome Beauty, Fuji

Baked:
Rome Beauty, Gala, Winesap, Granny Smith

Applesauce:
Gravenstein, Jonagold, McIntosh, York, Rome Beauty, Winesap, Honey Crisp, Fuji

Caramel Apples:
Rome Beauty, Winesap, Granny Smith

Baked Apples

It's the last day of business for GreenGo Food, the tiny restaurant at 5402 20th Ave. N.W. But, the mood in the fast, healthy food purveyor is anything but funereal.

There are two reasons for this. One, the restaurant is hopping on its last day, keeping owners and sole employees Heidi and Dylan Stockman busy and breathless.

Second, and most importantly, after GreenGo closes its doors Aug. 28, the Stockmans, including their 4-year-old son Cypress, will be packing up and moving to Mexico to work on a farm, fulfilling a life-long dream.

Dylan said GreenGo, which opened in February but was operational at farmers markets before that, was originally started so that they could eventually sell it and use the money to start a farm.

"When our friend came to us and said, 'We have a farm,' that was a no brainer. That was easy," he said.

Heidi said the restaurant isn't closing for a lack of business, though it always could have been better. ("OK, we failed miserably at marketing. We accept that," she said.)

The main reason for the closure after half a year in business is the toll owning and operating the restaurant was taking on the Stockmans.

Smokin' Pete's BBQ
1918 N.W. 65th St., 783-0454
Monday-Wednesday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Thursday-Saturday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday: 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Smokin' Pete's is one of those places we've overlooked for quite some time, based on a long-past visit that yielded little pleasure. We pass the former butcher shop regularly and talk more among our selves about the custom handbag shop across the street.

Maybe it's because we really liked the old butcher shop and never really made the adjustment to Smokin Pete's. We wondered who Pete was and why he smoked. But, for whatever the reason, this place was off our radar.

When driving by recently, we noticed an incredibly rich, sweet and smoky aroma. We commented that if the food tastes anything like it smells, we'd best get ourselves in again for a return date with some barbecue.

So in we went, and when we spotted a soccer mom and another soccer mom with their soccer children, sitting quietly and working studiously through big plates of brisket and links, washing it all own with pints of micro, we felt the endorphin factory kick in.