Sandor Ellix Katz Powell’s Books Event for Wild Fermentation 2nd Edition

I’ve been very lucky over the years to get to be “in conversation” with all sorts of incredible food and drink people such as Mark Bittman, Dana Cowin and now Sandor Ellix Katz at my favorite bookstore on the planet — Powell’s Books. Sandor was in town mid-February for various events on his book tour for the second edition of Wild Fermentation and I was the lucky one who got to spend the night asking him questions in front of a full house in the Powell’s Books Pearl Room. Thank you life.

For those of you who couldn’t make the event I uploaded the audio of it here:

Also, Sandor did some radio and TV segments while in town and you can check out his KATU News AM Northwest spot here and his KBOO Healthwatch show feature here.

Below are bunch of photos from the standing room-only excellent Powell’s event. Thank you Powell’s Books, Sandor and everyone who came out and made the night special.

Full house of Sandor fans and fermentation enthusiasts!

Before the event Sandor served up some of his delicious fermented daikon that he makes every year from a Tennessee neighbor’s cover crop. So generous, so yummy!

Sandor talking about everything from his 55-gallon bourbon barrels that he’s used in the past to ferment vegetables to his recent travels in Asia and all of the ferments that he tried and learned about while there. Photo by Loly LeBlanc.

So cute! And look at all of those beautiful life-changing books. So colorful and inspiring inside and out. Photo by David Barber.

We got through my questions and then opened it up to the audience. When an audience member asked Sandor about the potential spirituality of fermentation he summed it up after thinking about it for a moment as — “unseen forces can be very powerful.” So beautiful and true. Photo by Denise Pasquinelli.

Long line of folks after waited to talk to Sandor and get their 2nd edition of Wild Fermentation signed.

At the very end Dane Fredericks of Powell’s had Sandor and I sign a bunch of books. Such a treat. Such an honor. I am officially the luckiest.

Thank you so very much Sandor & Powell’s! And thanks to everyone who came out for the event.

Purchase the 2nd edition of Wild Fermentation.

Northwest Fresh Seafood, Lentil Underground, Cuvee Weekend

There are three tasty events coming up -- two of which I'm directly involved in -- that I want to tell you about. I also want to acknowledge that I do realize that I haven't done a Yard Fresh installment in far too long. One excuse, over the summer and early fall I got my kitchen remodeled by my amazingly talented friends at St. Johns Design Build (see some photos of my kitchen remodel here!), beyond that life has been full. Anyway, I haven't forgotten about that series and I'll add to it again soon enough. For now, here are some upcoming food/drink events I'm hoping that you might come to and if not that you will help spread the word about. Thanks!

Saturday, March 7 @ 2-6pm at Northwest Fresh Seafood Newberg, Oregon BUBBLES & BOOKS

A month ago Zach Elliott of the Newberg seafood market Northwest Fresh Seafood asked John Gorham and me if we'd come out to the market for a spring food/drink/books event and we agreed right away. John and I are both seafood lovers and always up for a fun excuse to get out to Oregon wine country. The result is an afternoon and evening event hosted by these great folks with oysters, bubbles, signed copies of Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipes. No Bull. AND Food Lover's Guide to Portland, live music by Kent Smith and a Q&A with John and I ALL for $65. I hope you'll come out for it and even if you can't I hope that you might help spread the word. It's going to be great. Tickets are available here.

Monday, March 9 @ 7pm at Powell's Portland, Oregon Liz Carlisle, author of Lentil Underground: Renegade Farmers and the Future of Food in AmericaREADING

Working as a book publicist at Hawthorne Books, and having covered food and food books since 2003, review copies often come my way. They're usually from Chelsea Green, which is one of my favorite publishing houses, but sometimes they're from other publishers -- in this case Gotham Books. Liz Carlisle is coming to Portland mid-March for a reading for her book Lentil Underground and if you care about food as much as I do I think you're going to want to go to this Powell's City of Books reading. I've only begun reading it and I'm inspired by the depth of Carlisle's research into renegade farmers and sustainable agriculture as well as the tenacity of her subjects and their dedication to new ag. business and cropping systems and a sustainable ag. future. GENTLE PORTLAND LENTILS, please pick up a copy of the book and come out for Carlisle's Powell's reading and become a part of the Lentil Underground! If my endorsement isn't enough...

"What does it take to farm sustainably–and make a living? Liz Carlisle tells the engrossing story of the ‘audacity rich, but capital poor’ Montana farmers who thought lentils were the answer and stuck with them until proved right. Anyone who dreams of starting a farm or wants to know how organic farmers can overcome the obstacles they face will be inspired by this book." --Marion Nestle, author of Food Politics and professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University.

Look at that fuzzy gentle lentil behind the book! Rubin is my favorite photo bomber.

Saturday, March 21st @ Noon at The Allison Inn & Spa Newberg, Oregon Cuvee Weekend PANEL

In celebration of Women's History Month The Allison Inn & Spa in Newberg is hosting an inaugural Cuvee Weekend on the weekend of March 21st. Couples are invited to purchase weekend packages and attend everything from a cooking demo. by Kristen Murray of Portland's Maurice and a 4-course winemakers' dinner with Tamara Murphy of Seattle's Terra Plata to a guided vineyard tour and a panel discussion on women in food on Saturday, the 21st with me, Kristen Murray, Tamara Murphy and Veronica Vaga of Deschutes Brewery. Please help spread the word!

The Allison Inn & Spa rated #1 Hotel Spa in the Continental US by Travel + Leisure.

Cooking the Toro Bravo Book Party Pt. 4

I finally got to host our Toro Bravo cook the book party last night (check out the first, second and third here) and it was really nice to do it in my newly remodeled kitchen. My kitchen has been pretty much done since early November but there were a couple final details and now it's complete! It's a beauty and I'm going to post about it here soon. I couldn't be happier with it. My friends Brian McVay, Clarence Jacobs and Rude Graves of St. Johns Design Build are so incredibly talented. And you'll know they're good people when I tell you this -- I was genuinely sad to see them go when my kitchen was complete. I truly enjoyed the entire remodel process and having those awesome fellows in my home. I miss having them see me in my pajamas. Wink.

It was really, really fun to have a whole bunch of friends packed into my kitchen last night for our fourth eat, drink and be merry cook from book party for Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipes. No Bull. We've now passed the halfway point having cooked 60-plus recipes from the book. I'm guessing we'll complete the book after three more dinners. Quite the feat. We've even started talking about which book we'll cook through next. Potentials discussed: Yottam Ottolenghi'sPlenty, Jerusalem and the Pok Pok cookbook. I mentioned that I'd love to cook through a comprehensive Southeast Asian cookbook. Unfortunately I think Pok Pok requires a bit more pantry building than our group is up for.

Another sweet thing -- Shane Welch founder of Brooklyn's Six Point Brewery recently moved to Portland and he gifted us (he's friends with my friend and contractor mentioned above -- Brian McVay) some of his Bengali IPA for the party which is super tasty. Really sweet of him. We also poured a lot of cava, various Spanish wines and we drank some of my early plum wine that I pulled off over the weekend while racking it. So crisp and tasty.

Anyway, I'll let the photos tell the tale as usual. Happy 2015! I hope you've been cooking and eating well. I bet you have.

Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipes. No Bull. dinner party menu

Toro Martini and Fried Anchovies, Fennel and Lemon with Romesco Gazpacho Charred Bread with Chanterelles in Sherry Cream Chard and Eggs Chicken and Clams Cataplana Lamb Ragu with Eggplant French Kisses and Pickled Beets and cheeses Sherry Chicken Liver Mousse Apple and Pear Clafoutis

NO ONE in Portland is carrying fresh anchovies at the moment so the super sweet John Gorham gave me a pound from Toro for the Fried Anchovies, Fennel and Lemon dish from the book.

They were deeeeelcious with Toro's romesco.

We started the night off right with my piping hot anchovies and chilled Toro Martinis. Not too shabby.

Next up was Nancy's super yummy Toro gazpacho.

Really nice to have so many friends around the kitchen table.

Alec charring the bread for...

Toro's Charred Bread with Chanterelles in Sherry Cream.

Dana cooking up Toro's...

Chard and Eggs.

Sara and I in our animal shirt finery -- giraffes and stags.

Loly and Faulkner cooking up Toro's Chicken and Clams Cataplana.

Soooooo good! With Olympic Provisions cured meats.

Left to right: Loly, Nancy, Faulkner and Jim. The best.

Super Tasty Six Point Bengali IPA. YUM!

Tom and Heather's (just engaged!!) deeeelicious Lamb Ragu with Eggplant.

Chris assembling Toro's French Kisses -- foei gras torchon stuffed brandy-soaked prunes. Perfect.

Tom overseeing. He approves.

Dana and Oliver's apple and pear clafoutis. Mmmmm.

Aaaand the final dessert plate -- Sara's sherry chicken liver mousse, Chris's French Kisses and Spanish cheeses. We are so lucky.

Cheers to 2015! I hope you are in good company and having a fine time of it.

Katrina Blair author of The Wild Wisdom of Weeds at Reed College for free & open-to-the-public event this Thursday

A fine fellow in my life called me a hedonist in a sweet and loving way this weekend -- it was my birthday weekend after all -- and I agreed wholeheartedly before adding that I do well by my happiness-above-all-else and pleasure-seeking ways because I genuinely love the natural, wild side of life in addition to my less wholesome proclivities.

When it comes to food and drink that means that I favor whole foods and quality ingredients, homegrown fruits and veggies, homemade ferments and most importantly here -- wildcrafted foods. (I especially love wildcrafted Munchos. I forage these in this region primarily from Plaid Pantries.) I started foraging when I moved to Portland in 2002 and every year I seem to add a couple more foraging favorites.

Some things that I look forward to harvesting from the wild annually in the Pacific Northwest include morels and chanterelles, stinging nettles, dandelions, miner's lettuce, sorrel, blackberries +++

I'm so lucky to have received an advanced copy of Katrina Blair's book The Wild Wisdom of Weeds just out from Chelsea Green. My friend and food hero Sandor Ellix Katz wrote the intro. and I agree with him when he writes: "In our contemporary society, most people grow up with minimal connection to the natural world around us. Most of us can identify many more corporate logos than plants. Yet plants are incredibly important and without them we could not exist."

Katrina's book is a very personal, dig deep look at 13 of the world's most common wild edible plants that includes all sorts of DIY projects and recipes (100+) for the plants including info. on fermenting, dehydrating, making oils from and sprouting these wild edibles: dandelion, mallow, purslane, plantain, thistle, amaranth, dock, mustard, grass, chickweed, clover, lambsquarter and knotweed. Half of these wild edibles are already my friends and the other half I want to become more acquainted with. I'm looking forward to using this book as my guide.

Katrina is in town this week for a fun, free and open to the public event at Reed College. Maybe I'll see you there?

When: Thursday, November 13 from 4-6pm Where: Meet at Eliot Hall Room 314 Reed College What: Go for a wild plant walk with Katrina Blair, wild-foods advocate and author of the new book The Wild Wisdom of Weeds: 13 Essential Plants for Human Survival. Return to the Aspen Utility Room for a presentation and wild green juice sampling. This event is hosted by the Reed Outing Club

Coverage of Food Lover's Guide to Portland 2.0

Well, it's been three weeks since the second edition of my book launched and it's been a wild ride of press and events. All of both have been great which is something I'm definitely not taking for granted. Nothing but gratitude these days for the big bear hug that Portland -- particularly Powell's Books -- has given me. And all of the folks who came out for my book launch party. Nothing but love there too.

I'm including links here to all of the coverage for the book so far. Next step is adding all these links to my website buuuut this is as much as I can muster at the moment so this step will help when I get around to that. My favorite coverage so far has been all of the radio interviews. I love radio (especially this new Portland station -- XRAY.FM) and it's really fun for me to be on the airwaves. I've put the radio links at the top of the heap.

I hope that you're doing well and enjoying the seasonal shift. I really am. I'm happy things are settling down a bit now starting this week and I can do things like stay at home on a Monday -- today -- and can tomato sauce from the garden before I set to work. Life is pretty fucking great these days. Without further ado...

Radio interview, KBOO Food Show

Radio interview, Carl in the Morning on XRAY.FM Get Lit

Tasty Tuesday radio interview, Portland Radio Project

Guest essay, Powell’s Books

Signing books at Powell’s, Powell's Books Tumblr

Q&A With Liz Crain On Portland's Food Scene, Zester Daily

Feature and review, Portland Tribune

Get Outside and Eat Before Summer's End, Portland Monthly

Portland Fermentation Festival, Portland Monthly

Launch party photo gallery, Hawthorne Books

Book review, The Register-Guard

Book review, Portland Mercury

Book review, Cooking Up A Story

Book review, Portland Food and Drink

Book launch party video, YouTube

Mini review, Booklist

Book review, Food Carts Portland

Book review, Good Stuff NW

Book teaser, Rose City Reader

Thank You Portland! Food Lover's Guide to Portland 2.0 Launch Party

For the past five years, in addition to food writing ++ I've worked as editor and publicity director at Hawthorne Books. Hawthorne published the second edition of my book Food Lover's Guide to Portland so I wrote a blog post over there all about last week's book launch party. It seems like a big old waste of time to do the same thing here so here's the link to all kinds of photos and words about the night. CLICK HERE!

Rachel Smith: Editorial Assistant Extraordinaire 2nd edition Food Lover's Guide to Portland

I just want to quickly introduce the lovely lady pictured above. I first met Rachel when she interviewed for the fall 2012 internship at Hawthorne Books -- the publisher of Food Lover's Guide to Portland and where I've been publicity director and an editor since 2009. Right away, Hawthorne publisher, Rhonda, and I knew that Rachel was in. She's bright, passionate, always curious, has a great sense of humor and is just a genuine pleasure to be around.

Rachel kicked ass during the 10-week internship and we were sad to see her go. When we decided to do a second edition of Food Lover's Guide to Portland I was in the thick of completing Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipes. No Bull. and felt a little overwhelmed but knew that the time was ripe and that the book needed an update. I thought about how to best manage my time, how to lessen the stress of another book project as much as possible and then I had the bright idea to hire an editorial assistant. Rachel was my number one choice and she said YES!

During the insanity of updating Rachel did everything from fine-tooth combing all of the contact info. throughout the book and making sure addresses, hours etc. were up to date to interviewing new subjects and writing the respective listings. I couldn't have done the second edition without her. She was on top of every project every step of the way, and most importantly, she was really fun to work with. Love you Rachel! Without further ado...

Sweet, sweet Rachel Smith on food, travel and working on the second edition of Food Lover's Guide to Portland:

When I was 6 years old, I used to pretend I was allergic to pizza and spaghetti sauce—not tomatoes—just pizza and spaghetti sauce. I disliked mushrooms, melted cheese, and loathed mustard. Strange textures and peculiar flavors were a no-no. I could barely choke down cooked vegetables. Sausage, meat on the bone, and meat cooked rare made me gag.

Eventually, as it happens for most of us, my taste buds and I began to grow up. Traveling became a priority in my life, and being a picky eater doesn’t go along well with it. I came to learn that one of the best parts of going abroad is experiencing the food. I also realize, when I travel, I desperately miss the food at home, and when I’m home, I crave the food from abroad.

Portland is a food-obsessed city. We know it, we love it, we partake in it. My head could explode thinking of the incredible variety of restaurants we have, the locally sourced vegetables and meats, the microbreweries and markets. As Portlanders, it’s in our veins. Outside of Portland, this isn’t as common—no news flash here. Yet every time I travel, I notice I have forgotten this. What, your bar doesn’t serve food? Your grocery store closes at 6? You don’t have any Mexican restaurants, because I could kill for a burrito right now.

I don’t mean this out of ignorance; I mean it is as a fantastic appreciation of what we have at home. It wasn’t until assisting Liz that I came to understand this even more.

As I write this, I’m on the brink of my third month visiting Switzerland. I’ve been eating melted cheese on the regular, devouring pizzas the size of my face, and obsessively ordering sausage. I recently tried horsemeat (and though it’s a horrendous thought to many people, and I vowed I would only try it once, it was quite good). But my stomach is rumbling at the thought of eating chorizo tacos from Uno Más or fresh sashimi from Bamboo Sushi. The idea of a Painted Hills burger with blue cheese and applewood-smoked bacon is enough to make me weak in the knees. Whining is not part of my intention here—I’m thoroughly enjoying the food and the experience, yet I do miss the access to variety.

Eating well in Switzerland...

Sweet Rachel in France...

Working on the second edition of Food Lover’s Guide to Portland was a reminder of our access and diversity. We have the ability to go straight to the source and pick fruit on Sauvie Island, go crabbing at the coast, or take a drive into wine country. We can feast on Vietnamese, Thai, Cuban, African, or Japanese food any day of the week. And we’re really lucky to have that—not only in restaurants, but in our grocery stores too. Did you know how many ethnic grocery stores we have? Or that Cheese Bar sells raclette so I can get my fix when I’m missing Switzerland?

My point is: the delicious world of food is at our fingertips right here in Portland. We can find just about anything we’re after. And when I’m home in 3 weeks, the first thing I will be doing is hunting down and demolishing the tortilla-wrapped goodness of a marinated pork burrito.

Pre-order the 2nd edition of Food Lover's Guide to Portland from Powell's Pub. date September 1, 2014 $17.95

I Love Powell's

Our first official book event for Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipes. No Bull. was over the weekend at Powell's and it was great! Thanks to everyone who came out for it and to the Powell's folks who made it so great esp. Darcy, Morgan, Gin and Jeremy. If you weren't one of the lucky ones to get a pre-release copy of the book at it (we only had 18 copies and folks entered a raffle to get to buy them) Powell's will be locked and loaded with plenty of copies in a couple weeks.

After the reading. Before the bourbon. Sort of...

Signing on the dotted lines.

The official launch date for the book isn't until October 15th after all. (And that's the night of the book launch party at Toro from 5-10pm! Open to the public.) This Friday tune into OPB's Think Out Loud if you want to hear us talk about the book. And if you're around the weekend of October 5th we'll be at Wordstock that Sunday doing the same thing. Our incredible publishing house will be there too!

Hope you're doing well & burning the candle on both ends too. Because that means you're living life to the fullest. Love you.

Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipe. No Bull pub. date Oct. 15th $35, McSweeney's Books Buy from Powell's

Upcoming events & tour schedule

Toro Bravo Cookbook Events

It's real! I got my first advanced copy of Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipes. No Bull and I couldn't be happier about it. Two and a half years in the making and it's finally here! The launch date is October 15th but you can pre-order copies from Powell's, McSweeney's and Amazon now.

We're going to seven cities so far for the book tour this fall -- New York, D.C., Baltimore, San Francisco, Boise, Seattle and Eugene. Below are events that we've already slated in Portland and beyond including the book launch party on Wednesday, October 15th at Toro. I'll keep updating with posts here as we add new events. If you're interested in having us visit for a book event or any sort of media please contact McSweeney's director of publicity Isaac Fitzgerald. You'll like him. He's really nice.

New York City James Beard House dinner + Toro Bravo cookbook previewEssence of Spain: Tapas to Sherry Thursday, Sept. 19th 7pm $130 for members, $170 otherwise Call 212.627.2308 to reserve a seat

Portland Powell's City of Books reading and signing Saturday, Sept. 21st 4pm

Portland Wordstock panel -- On and Off the Menu: PDX Chefs Sunday, October 6th noon John Gorham, Liz Crain, Gabriel Rucker & Meredith Erickson for the Toro Bravo and Le Pigeon cookbooks Moderated by Karen Brooks Wordstock event description: "Two famed Portland chefs. Two books hot off the cutting board! What does it take to convert perfect food from restaurant plate to cookbook page. These panelists are shaken not stirred."

Portland Farmers Market Cookbook Fest PSU Farmers market Sat., Oct. 12th, 9am-1pm

Portland Toro Bravo book launch party at Toro Music. Food. Drinks. Books. Partaaay! Tuesday, Oct. 15th, 5-10pm

San Francisco Omnivore Books on Food Toro Bravo dinner at Contigo + book signing Wednesday, Oct. 23rd Fixed price TBD

Brooklyn Powerhouse Arena book event Tuesday, Nov. 19th 7pm

Mario Batali thinks you should PRE-ORDER THE BOOK!

Toro Bravo according to him:

"These guys make Portland one of the most exciting restaurant cities in the world today." -Mario Batali

One of David L. Reamer's many amazing photographs in Toro Bravo: Stories. Recipes. No Bull.

Back of the book with all of the fantastic blurbs from Mario Batali, Cheryl Strayed, Gus Van Sant, Carrie Brownstein, Paul Bertolli and Karen Brooks.

And the beautiful spine. Love!

Toro Bravo Blurbs

I've been a little cross-eyed with work lately -- both of my current book projects' final deadlines are June 17th, next Monday! -- but I'm not letting the stress kick me especially not when we've been getting the most incredible feedback for the Toro Bravo cookbook (McSweeney's, October 2013) lately. Many of these blurbs below made me cry. I'm not embarrassed to share that. After working on the book for 2 1/2 years getting all of this praise from people I hugely admire, cultural heroes, is tears of joy inducing. I'll let them speak for themselves. The book comes out in October -- so soon now...

"John Gorham is a chef with a unique personality; he is magic. In his book Toro Bravo, he puts all his passion and soul into sharing Spanish cuisine with Americans. I'm certain both professional chefs and home cooks will love it."--Ferran Adrià, head chef at ElBulli

"Having gone to high school in Spain, some of my most vivid food memories are conjured by Spanish flavors. Gorham's dishes are not replicas of those in Barcelona or San Sebastian but their flavor and sensibility are as Spanish as anyone’s. These guys (and their stories) make Portland one of the most exciting restaurant cities in the world today."--Mario Batali

"John Gorham's cookbook is as outrageously delicious as his food, as lively as his restaurant (my second home in Portland), and as personable as he is. It is a shining testament to authentic cooking. Paying homage to the Spanish tradition and expressed in personal terms, John's cooking is entirely unique."--Paul Bertolli

"John Gorham seemingly mind-reads what we want to eat: comfort and craft popping with salty, sweet, spicy flavors. No one better translates Portland's raging gustatory desires and DIY spirit. This book captures the joy of Toro Bravo; all heart, no bull." --Karen Brooks, author of The Mighty Gastropolis

"Here in Portland, Toro Bravo carves an uncommon niche—simultaneously adventurous and comforting. This cookbook, like the restaurant itself, tells the story of one restless spirit's search for home. These are recipes you'll want to both cherish and share." --Carrie Brownstein, creator of Portlandia

"I’ve known John Gorham for over a decade, since I first got to town and he turned me down for a job. Since that fateful rainy morning, we've cooked together, confided in each other, commiserated (read: partied) together, and grown up significantly. Toro Bravo is the greatest expression of who John really is: nostalgic, spirited, brutally honest, fun as hell, and one of Portland's all-around-greatest chefs. The Toro Bravo cookbook captures his vision, ferocity, determination, and hilarity."--Jason French, chef-owner Ned Ludd

"So many of my Portland friends have recommended that I eat at Toro Bravo, over the years, that I couldn't ignore their suggestion. I've loved the restaurant's many ferments, amazing food, and entire aesthetic. In the Toro Bravo cookbook, Chef John Gorham, collaborating with writer Liz Crain, has not only made the flavors of Toro Bravo accessible to home cooks with excellent, easy-to-follow recipes, but shared fascinating stories of his journey to the helm of some of Portland's best restaurants. This book is filled with culinary inspiration."--Sandor Ellix Katz, Wild Fermentation and The Art of Fermentation

"You're gonna love this cookbook. Toro Bravo brought something special to Portland when it opened, and still does: easy-to-love, Spanish-style food in a non-fussy atmosphere."--Stephen Malkmus, Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks

"Toro Bravo is so much more than a cookbook (though it does a damn fine job of being just that). It’s a passionate story of how one great chef found his way by following his heart and trusting his gut. It’s a moving memoir and a gastronomic map. It’s a practical guide and a culinary cri de coeur. It’s the book I’m going to press into everyone's hands." --Cheryl Strayed, author of Wild

"Toro Bravo is the amazing story of a man's life and the building of a great restaurant. I loved it."--Gus Van Sant

“The Toro Bravo cookbook is unique in its storytelling: John’s personal story, the stories of the restaurant's evolution, the stories behind the recipes. Toro Bravo's magic lies in its ability to seamlessly merge the art of cooking with the commerce of dining: these are small plates, with big ideas."--Andrew Zimmern, co-creator and host of Bizarre Foods

Pre-order the book!