now that's trust (sushi kappo tamura, eastlake)

Seven years ago, I summoned my adventurous side and tried more kinds of raw fish than ever before. Tuna (maguro) and fresh water eel (unagi) were pretty standard for me, but that night I sat at the sushi bar and was convinced to try yellowtail (hamachi), albacore tuna (shiro maguro), salmon roe (ikura), mackerel (saba), sockeye salmon (benizake), and some others I can't quite remember. I left the ordering up to the whims of my dining partner and the guidance of the sushi chef, Taichi Kitamura, as I indulged in the options appearing in front of me.

Fast forward to the present, and I'm still putting my trust in these two when it comes to sushi. The three of us reunited last night at Sushi Kappo Tamura, Taichi and co-owner/manager Steve Tamura's current sushi and omakase venture in Eastlake. It exudes a similar modern vibe as his previous sushi restaurant, Chiso, and a more welcoming atmosphere than his now-closed, omakase-only restaurant, Kappo. (Taichi sold Chiso about two years ago, but he still owns the former Kappo space upstairs now operating as Showa -- an 80s-inspired bar featuring Japanese-style small plates).

Sushi Kappo Tamura: 2968 Eastlake Avenue East

Sushi Kappo Tamura has been named Seattle Magazine's Best New Restaurant of 2011, and recognized by Seattle Metropolitan on their list of top 25 Best Restaurants of 2011. This week, the restaurant was featured on the television show Check, Please! Northwest. For those of you who have been here, it's no surprise why they've garnered so much attention -- with its excellent quality of fish, friendly and attentive service, and contemporary decor, this is a place that you'll want to revisit again and again.

Last night, Taichi was standing on the opposite side of the bar from us preparing his thoughtfully-created and locally-inspired Japanese cuisine. He suggested that we start with a half-dozen oysters, and we happily obliged. These small oysters from Willapa Bay were prepared with a ponzu sauce and topped with scallions to create a crisp and pleasantly acidic flavor to complement the mildly briny and sweet oyster.

Willapa Bay oysters in a light ponzu sauce.

Next, we were presented with a beautiful platter of vibrantly colored sashimi (sliced raw fish). All of it was amazing, but the thick slices of tuna, albacore tuna, and king salmon, were my favorites -- the fish practically melted in my mouth. New for me this evening was the raw geoduck. Despite geoduck being Taichi's favorite, I have to admit that it's a bit too firm and briny for my taste. Perhaps with time I'll come to appreciate it as he does.

Sashimi platter.

We ended our meal with a few pieces of nigiri (sliced raw fish on a small piece of rice), again selected by Taichi. For this, he chose blue shrimp, fatty tuna (toro), mackerel with a thin slice of pickled turnip, and fatty albacore tuna. Both fatty tunas were delightfully rich and soft -- in fact, we requested a second order of the albacore to end our meal (along with my standard last bite, the sweet egg omelet or tamago).

Nigiri sushi.

My only complaint about Sushi Kappo Tamura is about the physical set up of the sushi bar. There seems to be an extreme height difference between the seating and the fish display, as well as the counter where the chefs prepare your sushi. I don't know if this design was intentional, but it always feels like I'm looking up towards Taichi rather than gazing directly across the bar at his face. Also, it's a farther reach for him to set the plate down in front of you, so it's often handed directly to you instead. Obviously, this doesn't affect the quality or taste of the food, but the view of the sushi preparation is limited.. and to me, part of the fun of sitting at the bar is looking at and talking about all the different types of fish offered that day.

I do appreciate Sushi Kappo Tamura's nod towards sustainability, clearly marking the most sustainable fish options on the menu and allowing you to make ocean-friendly choices based on that information. At the same time, less sustainable options are still available to you, so you can satisfy your craving for shrimp tempura (not an option at Mashiko's in West Seattle).

hhf says: I trust Taichi Kitamura to prepare and serve outstanding fish, and you should, too. Oh, and did I mention that Taichi was trained under Shiro Kashiba of Shiro's in Belltown? And Shiro trained under the same mentor as 3-Michelin star sushi chef Jiro Ono? So that's awesome.

Gucci GG fabric kitten-heels.

Shoes: Gucci GG fabric kitten-heels with gold horsebit detail.

easy as pie (loveless cafe's sweet potato pie)

Last night I happened upon a recipe for sweet potato pie from my new cookbook, Desserts from the Famous Loveless Cafe, and couldn't resist whipping up this recipe when I got home today.

Recipe for The Loveless Cafe's Tennessee Sweet Potato Pie
(also written below).

A quick stop at the store for a bag of dark brown sugar, and I was all set to go. Or so I thought. I soon remembered that the sweet potatoes would need at least 45-60 minutes to cook, so I stuck them in the oven at 400 degrees and then settled in for some couch time while I anxiously waited for the sweet aroma to fill the room.

An hour later, I was impatiently scooping out and mashing the bright orange flesh from the sweet potatoes, ignoring the warning from Loveless (and general common sense) about waiting for them to cool. What's a few scorched fingertips when there's sweet potato pie to be had?

I plugged in my trusty Cuisinart electric hand mixer and began whisking in the butter (the Kitchenaid mixer seemed unnecessary for this recipe). It turns out that using hot potatoes means you don't have to melt the butter ahead of time! Genius. Then went in the brown sugar, honey (raw star thistle honey from Cascade Natural Honey Co., to be exact), cinnamon, and nutmeg. My store-bought pie shell was also partially baking at this point, so my kitchen was smelling quite heavenly.

Adding the honey, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

After whisking in the eggs and heavy cream, the filling was done (note: the potatoes should no longer be hot, otherwise the eggs will start to cook).

Mixing in the heavy cream. (I realize that I'm not using the whisk
attachment.. I"m actually not sure that I've ever used it with this mixer.)

I poured the sweet potato filling into the partially baked crust, set the timer, and went back to the living room for more couch time.

Waiting. But check out the shoes! Charcoal grey
cashmere ballet slippers from Restoration Hardware.

Forty-eight minutes later, and the pie was done!

Finished pie in the oven.

I let the pie cool, made some freshly whipped cream, and then sat down to enjoy a slice. YUM.

Slice of sweet potato pie with freshly whipped cream.

Update: For those of you who haven't had sweet potato pie... well, you should walk run over to my house right now and try it before it's gone (I admittedly had a slice for breakfast, and I even debated whether I should pack another for lunch!). If you happen to live far away (say, Indiana) and can't make it over tonight, then I guess you'll have to make one for yourself. It's akin to pumpkin pie (except that it's made from and tastes like sweet potatoes, obviously), and has a warm molasses flavor resulting from the dark brown sugar. It can be as creamy and smooth as you want depending on how well you mash/blend the sweet potatoes -- Loveless recommends using a food mill, ricer, or even a food processor.


Recipe for The Loveless Cafe's Tennessee Sweet Potato Pie

2 to 3 medium-large sweet potatoes, about 1 1/2 pounds
9-inch pie shell, partially baked
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons sorghum or wildflower honey
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
3 eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
Whipped cream or sorghum (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the sweet potatoes in an ovenproof dish and bake for 45 minutes, until very soft. When cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and mash the flesh well so there are no lumps. Measure out 2 cups and let stand until tepid. (I clearly disregarded everything in Step 1.)

2. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Set the pie shell on a sturdy baking sheet. (The recipe expects that your pie shell is already partially baked. Instead, I baked mine while mixing the pie filling.)

3. In a large bowl, whisk the sweet potatoes and melted butter together. Gradually whisk in the brown sugar. Add the sorghum (or honey), cinnamon, and nutmeg; mix well. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well and scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions. Blend in the cream. Scrape the sweet potato filling into the pie shell. (I followed this step pretty well.)

4. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the edges are puffed and the center is almost firm but still flat. Let cool completely before serving. Garnish with whipped cream or a drizzle of sorghum, if desired. (What else would you do with the extra heavy cream other than make whipped cream? I don't particularly care for the taste or texture of whipped cream, but the pie looks pretty boring without it..)

a morning with anthropologist-turned-culinary-expert gail simmons (book larder, fremont)

Nope, that's not a typo. Culinary expert and Top Chef judge Gail Simmons studied anthropology and Spanish as an undergraduate at McGill University in Toronto, and she's darn proud of it. I had the chance to meet Simmons this morning at an event hosted by the Book Larder, the lovely community cookbook store in North Fremont, where she unapologetically explained how majoring in anthropology and Spanish has found its way into her life as a food expert -- all while preparing her own recipe for a savory cheese soufflé and promoting her new memoir, Talking with My Mouth Full: My Life as a Professional Eater. Many often chuckle as this morning's crowd did when she tells people about her undergraduate studies. But Spanish, she tells us, is the essential language of a kitchen. And anthropology? It's the study of humans and culture, and what's more central to our culture than food? She ended that topic with a big "nana, nana, boo boo, Mom," laughing as she explained how her mom also questioned her choice of study in her earlier days.

New memoir by Gail Simmons.

Simmons is just as entertaining in person as she is on Top Chef. She speaks with conviction (especially about eggs -- more on that later), is full of energy, and is actually rather funny. Confession: I secretly wanted to hug her and ask her to be my new best friend. Oh, and did I mention that she can cook?

For this morning's event, Simmons chose to make a savory cheese soufflé in honor of Carla's failed attempt during the finale of Top Chef Season 5. The conversation proceeded as you might expect -- a little discussion about the show and last night's finale, some explanation about what she was mixing.. until someone asked whether the kind of eggs used makes a difference in the recipe. And then we got to see a glimpse of how passionate Simmons is about her eggs. She likes her eggs free-range, organic, and vegetarian-fed (although, as one audience member pointed out, chickens are natural omnivores, Simmons would prefer to eat eggs from chickens who ate grains rather than possible entrails from cows or pigs). You know, happy chickens. And of course the chickens should be happy because clearly their eggs make her happy. She describes eggs as the "most versatile" and "magical" ingredient in cooking. Their use in the kitchen is practically limitless, and they can be transformed into so many different things, including the soufflé she was whipping up before our eyes (the overhead mirror is genius).

Adding egg yolks to the mixture.

In an earlier season of Top Chef, Simmons was served a disappointing egg dish and said something like, "There's nothing I hate more than poorly cooked eggs." It was so memorable for me, and I still quote her all the time when I'm served something unsavory. On the surface, the statement seems so curt and harsh. At the same time, there's a feeling of sadness that the dish (and the chef) disappointed her in a way that saying, "This dish is terrible!" wouldn't convey. And who would want to disappoint this adorable anthropologist / culinary expert?

By the way, her soufflé was amazing. Served hot out of the oven, it was light, fluffy, and full of flavor. You can find the recipe here.

The finished product.