Seattle Bon Vivant

Weekend notes...

Letter to Warsaw
Monday, May 10, 2004 7:30 p.m.
World Premiere by Thomas Pasatieri commissioned by Music of Remembrance
Guest Conductor: Gerard Schwarz
Guest Soprano: Jane Eaglen
Introduction: Bret Werb, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Single Tickets: $25 each

A reminder that tickets for Music Of Remembrance are going fast. This concert promises to be a wonderful evening of music with purpose. The concert was specifically composed for Jane (probably my favorite Diva and a Seattle resident) What a great opportunity to experience her amazing voice at our beautiful Benaroya Hall.

This afternoon on KUOW, The Beat's Dave Beck interviewed British concert cellist Steven Isserlis who will be performing tomorrow night at Benaroya Hall. Mr. Isserlis is not only a fabulous cellist but also a children's book author and a comedian. I don't remember ever listening to Steve Beck laugh more than he did yesterday while interviewing Mr. Isserlis. It was contagious! This concert is not be missed!

Bruckner's Third Symphony
Asher Fisch, conductor
Steven Isserlis, cello
Seattle Symphony
David Stock: Symphony No. 4 (World Premiere & Centennial Season Commission)
Schumann: Cello Concerto
Bruckner: Symphony No. 3
May 1, 2004 8:00 PM

A quick laugh, courtesy of slate.com and NPR...

While driving to an appointment, on KUOW's I had to LOL when I heard David Plotz (deputy editor of slate Magazine) chat with Alex Chadwick, host of Day To Day, part two of his "Guide to Gurus" .

When artichokes are too beautiful to eat...

you use them as centerpieces. :-) These purple artichokes were so gorgeous I had to purchase a few to decorate my kitchen counter.

Cockodoodledoorico!

It finally arrived! My Williams Sonoma Vertical Chicken Roaster in yeterday's mail. And just in time before it went MIA on the site, forever, apparently. It reads "no longer available so' I guess I was lucky. I was planning to go out for Dine For Life but I have so much work to do I rather cook myself a lovely dinner as a incentive for all the work ahead of me tonight and of course, because as any self-respecting curious cook I MUST experiment right away with this new toy. So, on my way home from work stopped at Whole Foods and purchased all kinds of beautiful vegetables to make tonight for dinner.

Here is a pic of the aforementioned chicken, veggies and all, in the Vertical Roaster in about 30 minutes into cooking.

Roasted chicken with vegetables

Portobello mushrooms, courgettes, Vidalia onion, Roma tomatoes, aubergine, the most beautul slim and long carrots, worthy of Thomas Keller. Half a yellow pepper. 3 White potatoes cut up. One bunch radishes. I rubbed the chicken in Cape Herb Piment Fort blend (red, blackand sweet peppers, ginger and ginseng), 4 cloves of garlic ground to a paste with the last of the Ittica d'Or , a beautiful fine Sicilian sea salt I got at chefshop.com some months ago. A little olive oil went in there too. Juice of a small orange. 400 degrees. 1 hr in 400 degree oven or until thermometer registers 170.

I'll see how the roaster performs and report later tomorrow.

Dahlia's pink rose cupcake

Between appointments I stopped, on my way home at my neighborhood's boulanger, Dahlia's Bakery to buy lunch and one of their gorgeous and yummy baguettes for tonight's dinner. Picked a grilled vegetable sandwich with cheese (roasted red onions, peppers, butter lettuce, cheese (looked an tasted like Havarti) and garlic alioli on soft ciabatta. Delish! However, the cup cake is soooo pretty I can't bear to eat it just yet...

Miss F cooks dinner...

Got a call from my friend F to have dinner at her place tonight. Not only is she a great cook but, like me, she loves garlic and spicy foods. I've yet to have a meal prepared by her that I have not enjoyed, always going for seconds and cleaning my plate. Tonight was no different. A chicken dish cooked mostly in the oven with lots of garlic, pepper, tomato sauce, mushrooms, carrots, potatoes. Green onion? Jalapeño? The most beautiful, perfect shade of green and cooked al dente to perfection asparagus I've had in a long time. Of course, I loved it. Dessert was amazingly simple yet scrumptious: the freshest, most plump strawberries I've seen so far this season served with a mascarpone, condensed milk, vanilla extract concotion that was to die for. Creamy, thick and sweet. I've could have had a bowl of this for dessert.

Rosemary

My rosemary does know it yet, but I have many plans for her in mind over the next few weeks...lamb chops, rack of lamb and roasted chicken in my new Italian chicken roaster.

Ballanchine on Film Part I

What a delightful evening of film, music and dance. The first installment of Ballanchine on Film offered the audience a chance to see rare, silent amateur video taken of early recordings of La Valse and La Source. Watching the great Tanaquil LeClercq and Nicholas Magallanes in La Valse (1951) and Violette Verdy and Edward Villella in La Source (1969) dance to PNB's own, pianist Dianne Chilgren was an amazing feat of technology and a labor of love for the staff of The George Balanchine Trust and The New York Public Library. This 1995 joint project made it possible to synchronize Ms. Chilgren's piano to the origninal silent films. The results are just brilliant and so moving!

The second portion of tonight's installements was Balanchine's "cowboy ballet" Western Symphony filmed in Paris on 1956, just a week before Tanaquil LeClercq contracted the polio that destroyed her career as a ballerina. Watching her long legs, neverending energy and smile, one could only but feel but sad and nostalgic for her amazing talent and for all the promise Tanaquil held. Of course, watching Francia Russell, one of Pacific Northwest Ballet Artistic Directors, dance during this number was such a treat for the audience. This film, a transfer from 16mm to Beta had arrived only but a week ago from NY Public Library, seen for the first time tonight. How lucky we are in Seattle to experience these wonderful films.

Tickets for the 2nd and 3rd nights of Ballanchine on film are still on sale. Do not miss this rare opportunity to experience all things Ballanchine by attending to this film series.

Next Tuesday:

New York City Ballet. 1965
Filmed on 1965 for WNET television Balanchine talkes about dance. Suzanne Farrell and many others are featured.

Balanchine Lives!
1997 documentary about Balanchine's legacy. Francia Russell, Suzanne Farrell, Sara Leland, Violette Verdy and many others discuss staging and preserving Balanchine ballets.

Tickets are $12 per evening, at the door. Lesholm Lecture Hall Entrance. McCaw Hall.

Email from my friend V regarding potatoes...

"Your Spanish potato salad has earned much love in these parts and I have discovered another way to improve it by using my Persian stepmother's technique of soaking onion in vinegar and a touch of sugar before adding it to the rest of the salad.  I used my nice sherry vinegar and it made the already delicious onion taste even better. I skipped tomatoes altogether.

My stepmother usually cuts the onion and adds enough vinegar to coat the pieces evenly. For this purpose I would not use super stellar vinegar, since you are going to drain the onions afterwards. However, good quality vinegar is important (well, this is not something I should tell you, since I know that you are using excellent products).  Then she would add 1/2t sugar (for a large onion), however it really depends on how sweet your onions are to begin with. For the salad recipe I add two large pinches of sugar, just a bit to allow onions to give up their sharpness and to mellow in sugary juices.  I let my onions sit for at least 20 minutes, however you can leave them for as long as an hour.  (N.B. If you keep them overnight, then you will have a nice side dish for kebabs).  Then I drain the onions and toss with the rest of the ingredients. "

Thanks V! I'll try your variation next time I make it. With Seattle weather rapidly warming up I'll be making Papas Aliñás often. ;-)

Las papas: Segundo Capítulo

I missed the tomato. The parsley, oil and vinegar and extra salt in the potato boiling water made all the difference. Parsley needs to be chopped finer next time. I should have used the mezzaluna. PS: The Saffron was a Trader Joe's find. Beautiful. Imported from Spain and only $2.99! I purchased three but plan to go back for more to send foodie friends