Auction of Washington Wines 2010

Auction of Washington Wines held their annual charity event at Ste. Michelle Winery again this year which raises money forSeattle’s Children’s Hospital. I had the opportunity to work at this 3 day occasion which featured food and wine from Washington State. They raised $1.4 million this year! On Thursday, August 19 the first event opened with the Barrel Auction & Picnic with the Winemakers. This event featured many Washington wines, and creative food selections provided by the chefs of Tulalip Resort under Executive Chef Perry Mascitti.

Ste Michelle

Tulalip’s Blackfish Wild Salmon Grill (which I oversee) featured a lightly smoked sockeye salmon with a rub made of five peppercorns, orange peel & anise, and finished with an Apple Glaze for a cooling affect. This was served over a fresh homemade spring roll filled with diacon, bean sprouts, English cucumber, apple, carrot, Thai basil, zucchini, napa cabbage and laced with a sauce made of hoisin & gochujang (a Korean red pepper paste). I had intended to have a 3” chive for a garnish but forgot to load it on the truck.

5 Pepper, Orange Peel, Anise Crusted SalmonFive Pepper, Orange Peel, Anise Crusted Sockeye Salmon wtih Apple Glaze & House Spring Roll

Working in the Blackfish tent we ran into a little problem shortly after opening a 4:00. We had a beautiful $5,500 outdoor Viking grill (I want one for my backyard!), which suddenly stopped working on three quarters of the cooking surface. Last year, the Viking grills worked perfectly, so we were caught off guard when it went down this year. We quickly rolled another grill into the station, and we limped along until that grill came up to temp. It’s always nice to have people lining up for your food, but not when it’s due to faulty equipment. Thankfully the guests were very gracious and engaged in conversation and wine tasting while they waited a few extra minutes for us to get back on track.

I loved hearing from people, “We were told that we had to come try your salmon!” And I saw a number of faces coming back for seconds and even thirds, which is always a nice complement. Knowing the caliber of the Chefs here I know that all of them received similar adulations for their food as well.

We do a lot of off property events each year in order to contribute to various charities as well as to promote the resort. Two years ago when we were doing the food show circuit I heard a lot of comments like, “You guys really do this kind of food in a casino?” But this year at events I’m hearing more and more often, “We’re always glad when we see Tulalip is one of the food providers. You guys always do such a good job.” That puts a big smile right on my face. It makes me proud to work for a company which provides us with all the resources, both in product and labor, which we require to do a fantastic job.

Everything was made by hand for this event.

Prosciutto wrapped Chicken with Pecan Crust
Chef Brent Clarkson of Cedars prepared Pecan Crusted Chicken wrapped in Prosciutto over Raspberry Beurre Blanc accompanied with Micro Greens
Star Anise scented Lamb
Chef Dean Shinagawa of Tulalip Bay prepared Star Anise Braised American Lamb over Macadamia Nut-Cherry Jasmine Rice with Thai Curry Sauce and Crispy Taro-Green Papaya Salad

 

Tulalip’s banquet Chef Gerry Schultz and Garde Manger Chef John Pontichelli

prepared an assortment of delicious side dishes–

Skewered Caesar Salad
Skewered Caesar Salad – very classy, all the ladies loved this one!
Angel hair Birds Nest
Angel Hair Bird’s Nest with Sesame Dressing
Summer Watermelon CocktailWatermelon Cocktail with Yellow Watermelon Parisian garnish Baby Pear stuffed with Exotic FruitExotic Fruit & Ginger filled Baby Pear
Yellow Gazpacho Cucumber Shot
Yellow Gazpacho Cucumber Shot
Tri-color Potato Baskets
Potato Salad stuffed tri-colored potatoes, featuring Baby Red, Baby Yukon Ggold, and Baby Purple potatoes carved and stuffed

 

Pastry Chef Nikol Nakamura featured an assortment of desserts–

Red Velvet Cupcakes
Mini Red Velvet Cupcakes
Goober Bars
Goober Bars
Brownie Cheesecake PopsBrownie Cheesecake Pops Lemon Whoopie Pies
Lemon Whoopie Pies
Each Chef prepared 1000 servings of their dish, plus several of us prepared 500 items for the Gala Dinnerevent a few days later. We had an army of skilled crew who worked a ton of overtime with us this week to pull it off and still keep regular business running. Many thanks to all the crew who worked so hard to make it happen. Homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts
Homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts

All the above took place at the Barrel Auction & Picnic on Thursday. Then there was the Gala Dinner event a few days later on Saturday. Chef Perry had designed a gorgeous plate called “Two Lambs Dancing in the Moonlight” which featured Lamb Shank wrapped in Filo over smoked Peach Coulis and a Lamb Napolean layered with Safron Potatoes over Pea Puree with Onion Jam and Mint Foam. I brought my camera but we got way too busy trying to serve 500 people from 2 ovens! This made for an extreemly stressful and painful evening. We had several other things go wrong on us just before the time to start plating. In the end we were successful at pulling this off, but it was brutal getting there. Since I didn’t have time to take pictures, here are a few teasers.

Gala Dinner Tent
Gala Dinner Table Gala Dinner Menu
Sugar Snap Peas
Prepped 550 of these beautiful little bastards! We asked two different produce companies if they could do this for us and they both basically said, “Oh, hell no!”
Snap Pea Prep

 

 

Comments from before Site Migration

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BRUCE [173.53.85.30]    [ Aug 26, 2010 ]

KUDOS

I heard about those pop-tarts, but the wow factor on all of the food is over the top! All the Chef’s did an Outstanding Job.

Regards, From Central Virginia

MAGICOFSPICE    [ Aug 26, 2010 ]

What a wonderful event, and I am so pleased to hear that so much was raised for such an important cause. The food looks amazing 🙂

TANANTHA @ I JUST LOVE MY APRON [173.10.111.70]    [ Aug 26, 2010 ]

Oh WOW wonderful event for good cause! That’s a lot of $$ they have raised. Kudos! The food looked fantastic and sophisticated. I’m in Seattle too 🙂

A SPICY PERSPECTIVE [97.95.239.249]    [ Aug 25, 2010 ]

Wonderful dishes! Everything looks just lovely!

 

Posted In:Food and Wine


Dungeness Crab Stuffed Shrimp

August 4th, 2010

Dungeness Crab Stuffed Shrimp

Dungeness Crab stuffed Jumbo Shrimp over Blackberry Beurre Rouge with Zucchini wrapped Sunrise Blend Rice

I love the presentation on this dish… simple yet rather elegant. It’s essentially one long line with variations of color and shape along the way. The rice is a gourmet blend wrapped in a zucchini ribbon (rather than just being mounded on the plate) and baked to re-therm the rice. And on top of the rice is a variation on ratatouille (removed the eggplant and tomato, added edamame).

If available, I highly recommend using Alaskan Spot Prawns instead of regular shrimp. The Spot Prawns are so much more tender and flavorful. They are the “lobster” of the shrimp world. And if you get some with the gorgeous orange-red roe… you’ve scored! The roe can be lightly brined and smoked for an awesome garnish. It has great flavor, but only use the roe if they are solid individual eggs, not mushy or broken (which sometimes happens when they are frozen).

 

Dungeness Crab Stuffed Shrimp

12

2

1

1/2

1/8

1 1/2

1 1/2

2

3

1/2

Pinch

Pinch

3

Oz

Tbl

Tbl

Tbl

Tbl

Tbl

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Tbl

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Oz

Dungeness Crab meat lightlypressed

Shallots, minced

Fresh Chives, minced

Fresh Parsley, chopped

Fresh Tarragon, chopped

Red Bell pepper, brunoise

Yellow bell pepper, brunoise

Dijon

Panko

Mayo (Bestfoods)

Kosher Salt

Cayenne

Fresh Scallop, side muscle removed, pureed

Procedure for Stuffing:

Flake the crab so the leg meat is shredded.

Gently fold all ingredients together.

20

1

6-8

2

Each

Cup

Oz

Tbl

13/15 Shrimp, P&D, Tail-On

Leeks, thin sliced into discs

Dry White Wine

Whole Unsalted Butter, chilled

Procedure for Shrimp:

Preset oven to 375 degrees.

Form the stuffing into 20 equal balls, about 3/4 oz each. Place the shrimp on your cutting board w/ the cut side down, add a portion of the stuffing, fold the tail over the top, fanning the tail. Repeat all.

You may need 2 pans to cook this amount. Layer the leeks onto the bottom of the pan. Gently add the shrimp, add wine around edges of pan. Add butter.

Bring to a simmer, cover, finish in 375 degree oven until the stuffing is cooked through (about 10 minutes). Discard leeks & wine.

Arrange Shrimp over Blackberry Beurre Rouge.

Notes:

  • 13/15 Shrimp P&D Tail-On means: Jumbo shrimp (13 to 15 per pound), which you have Peeled & Deveined but have left the tail portion of the shell on.
  • Beurre Rouge is a red wine butter sauce.
  • the purpose of the scallops is to add texture, binding power, and complexity of flavor.

 

Blackberry Beurre Rouge

1

2

4

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8

2-4

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Shallots, sliced

Unsalted Butter

Blackberries

Merlot

Raspberry Vinegar

Heavy Cream

Unsalted Butter, chilled, cubed

Honey

Sea Salt

1) Sweat

2) Add, reduce au sec

3) Add, reduce to consistency (by about 2/3)

4) Slowly add, whisking constantly over low heat.

5) Finish TT

The rice is a Sunrise Blend Rice from Inian Harvest Company. I made zucchini ribbons by slicing long, thin strips of zucchini on the Mandoline, placing two ribbons in an 8 oz souffle cup (oiled), and filling it with the hot rice. Bake it for about 7 minutes at 350 degrees just to soften the zucchini. Gently flip onto the plate and let the contents slide out.

Add sauce, shrimp, serve!

 

My recipe style disclaimer:

I have decided to leave my recipes in their original format rather than convert them to standard cookbook language. Recipes written for a professional kitchen use different verbage than recipes written for cookbooks. Professional kitchen recipes assume that the cooks have a solid understanding of culinary terms and techniques. My recipes are written in this “Chef’s Shorthand”, meaning that clear culinary terms are used for procedures where possible. This cuts down on a lot of extra words and makes for quick reading in the kitchen. For instance, most cookbooks will have the following phrase for cooking onions, “in a pan over medium heat add oil and cook onions without caramelizing until translucent”. In Chef’s Shorthand this entire phrase is replaced by “sweat onions”. That’s it, short and sweet! And it means exactly the same thing.

If you are a professional cook, or have been to culinary school, then you should be familiar with most of the terms. If not, then follow the link to the Food Lover’s Glossary for the terms you are unfamiliar with and enjoy learning something new! Or post a question, I’d love to respond.

 

Comments from before Site Migration

Add a Comment!

FOODSHO    [ Aug 07, 2010 ]

Really Nice!

NORAH [97.124.233.222]    [ Aug 05, 2010 ]

great recipe!!  who doesn’t love crab and shrimp!!  thanks for sharing.

https://theepicuriosity.wordpress.com

RAVIENOMNOMS [159.245.32.2]    [ Aug 05, 2010 ]

This looks fantastic! Love crab and even more when it is stuffed in shrimp! Thanks for the recipe!

DAVID BUCHANAN    [ Aug 04, 2010 ]

Thank-you Lemons & Anchovies for the feedback on my recipe style.  I have been hesitant to post them this way.

Cooking Canuck… sounds like you’re due for another trip south!

HTTP://WWW.COOKINCANUCK.COM [67.166.124.113]    [ Aug 04, 2010 ]

What a beautiful preparation!  I have fond memories of enjoying steamed Dungeness crab on the Oregon coast with my family.  This makes me yearn for that again.

HTTP://LEMONSANDANCHOVIES.WORDPRESS.COM [69.181.209.42]    [ Aug 04, 2010 ]

This is an absolutely beautiful dish.  I appreciate the organization of your cooking instructions, too.

 

Posted In:Recipe