Sara Perry Online

Taste Maker Recipe Archive

We're in the process of listing the Taste Maker recipes featured in The Sunday Oregonian's Living Section. If you're unable to find what you're looking for, please feel free to email me at sara@saraperry.com

Appetizers

Campagne’s Sweet Onion and Parmesan Gratin topped with a salad of watercress, arugula and verjus - Campagne’s Sweet Onion and Parmesan Gratin topped with a salad of watercress, arugula and verjus is one of the Gordon’s specialties of the house. His inspiration for this dish came from one of his meals in Paris at Alain Passard’s renowned L’Arpège on the rue de Varenne. The creamy gratin with its spark of crispy greens is sophisticated yet homey and down to earth. Served as an hors d’oeuvre, it sets the tone for the exquisite meal that is yet to come. Like many fine recipes, the ingredients are simple, but it is the way in which Gordon coaxes the best from each ingredient that lifts it from the ordinary to the sublime.

Soups

ArtSpace Seafood Chowder For A Crowd - One of art dealer Trisha Kaufman’s nourishing standbys is ArtSpace Seafood Chowder For A Crowd. Never one to follow a recipe, Kaufman makes it a little different every time. If there’s another kind of fresh seafood in the frig, she’ll use it. If it’s already cooked, even better; just warm it up at the end. No 2 per cent milk? Use more half-and-half. And so it goes. But in the end, it’s always steaming hot and tasty. If a picture is worth a thousand words, her soup is worth a second helping.

Salads

Cuban-Style Potato Salad - Every bite has a bite. Smoky bacon, crunchy pickles, snappy olives do their best to tantalize your taste buds, but it’s the dressing that wins you over.

Pastas and Grains

Baked Pasta with Ragu and Gorgonzola Sauce - Mary Davis’ ragu is rich, hearty and complex, and it’s worth the extra time it takes to prepare. She likes to use a combination of meats, especially lamb, because she savors the way the meat suits the Pinot noir that is used in the sauce and enjoyed with the meal. What makes this dish such a winner is its versatility. The meat-from-the-bone can be flaked off and used in the sauce or enjoyed alongside as its own course. The Gorgonzola-infused pasta can be topped with the ragu before its final baking or can be presented at the table in its crusty splendor and topped with the ragu according to each diner’s preference.

Ten-Minute Bolognese - Thirty years ago, every university student had a version of this sauce. This is Sheryl Julian and Julie Riven's ten-minute streamlined recipe. It’s a light, fresh-tasting sauce. Make it in quantity and freeze it in plastic zipper bags. Dip the bag into a bowl of cold water, and the sauce should defrost in a few minutes.

Paolo's Spaghetti with Meat Sauce and White Sauce - Every night at Caffe Allora, Paolo Parrilli has a choice of one of two pastas and both are always tempting (and priced well too at $8 a serving). Recently he concocted a tomatoey meat sauce, which he served over pasta and dressed with a creamy béchamel-style white sauce. With freshly grated Parmiagiano-Reggiano, a crackling of pepper and a glass of Parrilli-recommend wine, it's one of Portland best simple pleasures.

Breads, Pizzas and Sandwiches

Theo's Egg Salad Sandwich - Even though eggs are in just about every refrigerator in America, they still seem to bewilder people when it comes to using them raw to make an emulsion and hard-cooking them to perfection (After all, there's no way to see inside an egg or insert a thermometer for doneness). So, follow Ken’s Artisan Bakery’s Theo Taylor's simple instructions and remember what Oscar Wilde once said: "An egg is always an adventure."

Poultry and Fish

The Best Roast Chicken "It’s the simple things done well and the use of good ingredients that create the best flavor and taste."

Coq au Vin - Dawson's rendition of Coq Au Vin, the classic French dish in which chicken is braised with onions, herbs, smoky bacon, and red wine is a great winter dish and pure comfort food. She adapted this recipe from one used by Robert Carrier, a well-known English cookbook author and TV personality.

Halibut "Iron Chef" This recipe is recommended for the savvy sidewalk sous chef.

Spiedini di Pollo (Chicken Skewers) This recipe is recommended for the beginning cook.

Penn Cove Mussels One of Rawle Jefferds’ favorite ways of serving mussels is to make double the amount he needs for one meal so that there are enough left over to marinate and serve as an appetizer whenever the mood strikes. When he serve them, Jefferds lets neophytes know they can eat their mussels with a fork, but they’ll find it a lot easier to use the shells as a scoop and a ladle.

Roasted Red Pepper Pesto with Smoked Chicken Quesadilla David Hickenbottom’s Roasted Red Pepper Pesto is a treat to the senses. The sauce’s lovely color and lively taste makes it an excellent accompaniment for Southwest foods such as corn chips, chili, tacos, enchiladas and quesadillas. (It’s also great with Italian polenta.) For readers, he also offers a recipe for a smoked chicken quesadilla that is quick to assemble. Just be sure to save enough pesto to lace the finished dish.

Lauro Kitchen's Grilled Wild Salmon with Cracked Wheat Salad and Hazelnut Tarator Sauce One of David Machado’s stands-out is his grilled wild salmon, which he rests atop a flavorful cracked wheat salad accented with pomegranate syrup and fresh mint, parsley and green onions. At the restaurant, he toasts and grinds cumin, coriander and allspice to lightly perfume the salad and finishes the dish with a toasted hazelnut sauce known as tarator.

Halibut with Grapes and Red Wine-Port Sauce Eric Ripert’s Halibut with Grapes and Red Wine-Port Sauce is one of the richly complex and relative easy recipes in his book, “A Return to Cooking,” (Artisan, 2002, $50). It also was one of the dishes featured on The Heathman Hotel’s dinner menu the night Ripert was in town. The fish is delicate yet crisp on one side. The sweet grapes are peeled (you can do it!) and gentle in their texture, but as Ripert writes, “The real pleasure in this dish, though, is the sauce, a classical red wine reduction, and in its deep red color and mirrorlike shine.”

Chicken Provencal Chicken Provencal is so simple to prepare and so delicious that it is one of the dishes Nicole Aloni serves most often to company. This is essentially a two-step recipe: marinate and bake. The chicken Ali Bab variation is an exotic blend of sweet, sour and salt that she finds addictive. Both recipes create such luscious juices while cooking that it’s a crime to serve them without jasmine rice or couscous to soak up the flavors. This is outstanding followed by a dessert of cheese, dates and almonds.

Meat

Carlyle Beef Brisket - On the Fall dinner menu at the Carlyle is one of owner Bruce Goldberg’s favorite dishes and one he remembers his grandmother fixing for the Shabbath. Its savory braising liquid is full of flavor and with a few simple techniques becomes a rich caramelized onion sauce that’s good to the last drop. Also, Goldberg suggests that like all pot roasts, this brisket benefits from being made a day ahead.

Tabla Braised Short Ribs and bread pudding - Short ribs are one of those delicious and comforting dishes that make winter worthwhile. Johnson’s recipe tenderizes organic, Oregon-bred Painted Hills ribs in red wine and beef broth with a mirepoix (that’s a mixture of diced onions, celery, carrots and herbs) and plenty of garlic creates a darkly fragrant sauce that fills the kitchen with a wonderful aroma. At Tabla, each serving tops a crusty helping of bread pudding spiked with sun-dried tomatoes, fresh basil and garlic. Together they make a marriage of great tastes and flavors.

Seco de Res - Beginning after Thanksgiving, 2003, Andina's Sunday brunch will become a family-style Sunday supper where, along with chef Villaran's inspired dishes, Doris Platt's stews, known as secos, will be offered. "Guests at a poor or wealthy table would consider themselves honored to be served "seco," writes Platt at the top of his mother's recipe. He goes on to explain that "seco" in Spanish means "dry" and it applies to this dish probably because of the way it is cooked over low heat until the liquid has reduce to a thick succulent sauce.

Beans and Vegetables

Potato Gratin with Balsamic Onions - A gratin is any dish that is covered with cheese or bread crumbs and heated in the oven until it is browned into a savory crust. With vegetable gratins, a cooking liquid is often added to tenderize the filling.

Desserts

Clear Creek Plum Granita - Adapted from a "Bon Appetit" recipe, Clear Creek Plum Granita is a delicious light, refreshing summer dessert or intermezzo between a several course meal.

Ants in the Snow/A Goat with No Name - At Story House Coffee, homemade ice cream is a holiday tradition that goes back generations, using an old-style hand crank ice cream maker. Todd and Esther Cowing add their signature by creating a creamy concoction flavored with an organic Peruvian coffee and flecked with bits of coffee bean. And, during those long winter nights when Rudolph's on the prowl, they'll snuggle up with steaming mugs of a Goat With No Name, a grown-up hot chocolate ice cream float laced with Southern Comfort.

Banana Sundaes with New Mexican Chocolate Sauce - What’s America’s most decadent dessert? Strawberry shortcake? Coconut cream pie? Steve Raichlen’s vote goes to the hot fudge sundae. Drowning in hot chocolate sauce and snowy with whipped cream, the sundae stands as a monument to the spirit of excess. It’s about to get a lot more decadent with the addition of smokily grilled bananas and a cinnamon-scented New Mexican chocolate sauce spiked with chile powder. Don’t be intimidated by the length of the recipe—it’s really just a set of simple steps, many of which can be done ahead of time.

Dutch Oven Pear Apple Crumble - Whether you’re kayaking with the orcas on a Rivers & Oceans expedition or having a backyard barbecue with the kids, this is a fun and delicious dessert to make over hot coals. There’s also a rich and great-tasting whipped cream topping that will dress up any fruit dessert—and it’s so simple.

Pies, Tarts and Pastries

Gert's Finger Apple Pie - When it comes to mom and apple pie, Gert Boyle is a pro. Fifty or 60 years ago, she was given an apple pie recipe from her husband's cousin, Cuttie Boyle and she has fixed it every since. Sweet with white, brown and powdered sugars, spicy with cinnamon, ginger, allspice and cloves, it's a pie made to nibble, one bite at a time. That's why Boyle calls it Finger Apple Pie.

Cookies and Cakes

Snow White Bunnies or Chocolate Brown Bears "What could be better than two gifts in one? Here is everybody’s favorite no-bake rice cereal treat stashed inside an animal-shaped cookie cutter."

"All I Want For Christmas" Gingerbread - Molasses-rich gingerbread cake with your family’s favorite toppings

"Don't-Even-Think-About-The-Calories" Chocolate Chip Cookies - The cookie is worth every calorie---and then some.

Banana-Coconut White Chocolate Coffeecake - Moist and rich with banana flavor, the cake surprises you with cool chunks of creamy white chocolate.

Anarchy Cake - Faith Willinger improvised this unusual cake when she had a rather empty larder and company coming for dinner. It was immediately christened Anarchy Cake because, she writes, "With recipes, as with so many things, Italians are basically anarchists." You might think the anarchy is in putting salad dressing ingredients-olive oil and balsamic vinegar-in the cake, but it goes beyond that. The idea is that you act like an Italian, which is to say you pretty much do whatever you want and it will still come out beautifully-the sign of a really good recipe.

Big 'Ol Chocolate Cake - Three cheers for Jeanne Subotnick's Big Ol' Chocolate Cake. It is one of the truly great chocolate cake recipes. This recipe makes a delicious double-layer 9-inch cake with frosting.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Surprise Cupcakes - Find any excuse to make one or both of these cupcake recipes. DeVault’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Surprise Cupcakes combine the two most important food groups—chocolate and peanut butter—and both are in good supply (Oh yes, then there’s that surprise in the middle.)

Cranberry Orange Ginger Cupcakes (vegan, wheat-free) - Even though it’s wheat-free and tailor-made for vegans, there’s no need to be on a limited diet to devour every last crumb of the Cranberry Orange Ginger Cupcakes and the pastel mounds of fanciful frosting. They are yummy and ideal for holiday entertaining.

Wacky Cake With Frosting To Match - What could be better than the tried-and-true Wacky Cake of your childhood and everyone else who has ever been a Brownie, Bluebird, Cub Scout or home ec student? It’s a stir and lick with your fingers, mix with a fork kind of cake that actually tastes great. If anyone wants frosting, sprinkle some milk chocolate or bittersweet chocolate chips over the warm cake and let them melt before spreading into an instant frosting.

Twilight Kitchen's Gingerbread Men - While these cookies are made to be eaten, they’re also perfect for using as nametags on Hanukkah presents or for hanging on a Christmas tree or using as place cards at a holiday get-together or birthday party. You also can make simple puzzles. First, cut a large square of rolled-out dough—or use a heart-shaped cookie cutter—and, with a sharp paring knife, divide it into several pieces before baking. (Never has a broken heart been so delicious.)

Eggs, Breakfast and Brunch Dishes

Sidewalk Brunch for a Bunch This recipe is recommended for the savvy sidewalk sous chef.

Carlyle Granola Chef Kajsa Dilger’s Carlyle Granola is one that gets great raves from morning joggers and weekend breakfast lovers. Easy to make, full of great flavors, it’s a tasty snack on its own, or served, as they do at the Carlyle, with fresh fruit and yogurt.

Abeja French Toast with Honeyed Apricots and Fresh Fruit The secret to Abeja French Toast with Honeyed Apricots and Fresh Fruit is the choice of bread and innkeeper Dottie Knetch’s technique of allowing the bread to marinate overnight in the rich, vanilla-scented custard instead of the normal 10 to 20 minute dunk. Knetch, owners Ginger Harrison and Molly Galt all agree that the artisan-style bread picked up at the local Albertson’s is exceptional. They have tried several of the artisan varieties and their first choice is usually the semolina raisin loaf, although any of the freshly baked styles seems to garner guests’ approval.

Summer Lake Inn’s Polenta and Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes Crepelike, with a delectably crunchy texture and a sweet bite of blueberry, these pancakes are delicious stacked and drizzled with warm maple or fresh fruit syrup or on their own rolled like a wrap and eaten out of hand.

Blue Eggs, Bacon and Corn Scramble Blue Eggs, Bacon and Corn Scramble is a dish fresh egg dealer Brad Blue’s mom, Karen first started fixing for her grandkids whenever they would come to visit in Lewiston, Idaho. Soon, the grown-ups started asking for the flavorful combination and now it’s a family favorite. These well-chosen additions make the recipe a great one for breakfast, lunch or even dinner.

Sauces and Salsas

Beverages

Miscellaneous

Vacation Snacks for the Back of a Motorcycle - With an on-the-road assignment in mind, it was time to update our motorcycle's stash of snacks. So, what better source than three Portland chefs who know the thrill of the outdoors and how to pack long lasting flavor in tight places. First, there's Greg Higgins, owner and chef of Higgins Restaurant, who's been racing and cycling since he was a kid. These days, he also likes to tour along with his wife on their bikes through the scenic Yamhill countryside and its wineries, and his Spicy Cheddar Crackers with Tomato Jalepeño Jam makes the journey even better. Next, there's Vitaly Paley, owner and chef of Paley's Place. He's been cycling for about 3 years. "Sort of a mid-life crisis. It was either a Porsche or this—I made the right choice!" he says as he swings off his bike and grabs a squeeze bottle filled with a pretty purple liquid. "I like to crush berries with ice and ginseng extract, then add it to drinking water for extra flavor and an energy boost," he adds. "Dried fruit like figs and cranberries mixed with hazelnuts works well too. And on long rides, I plan a trip around some good lunch spots like the Helvetia Tavern and stop for a ham and cheese with light beer, for that protein and carbo boost. That's my story." And, finally, the sweeter side of life: Wildwood Restaurant's Gretchen Glatte's Chocolate Chip and Currant Molasses Cookies. Glatte, a pastry chef and surfing fanatic knows nothing's better on her weekly, summer Monday morning drives to the coast, with her long board on board, than a dozen of her mom's molasses cookies that she's doctored with bittersweet chocolate chips and currants. They're sweet, they're chewy and full of zip thanks to spices and a good dash of pepper.