The Oregonian Cookbook: Best Recipes from Foodday
When I returned to Oregon to open Wildwood Restaurant in 1994, the restaurant scene had not drastically changed since my great-grandparents opened their restaurant, Dan and Louis Oyster Bar, in 1907. Built on a foundation of local and seasonal food, oysters were harvested from their Yaquina Bay oyster farm, bay shrimp and Dungeness crab from the waters of the Pacific Ocean, and Willamette Valley strawberries topped the ice-cream sundaes. In 1994, Portland was just beginning to emerge as a metropolitan area with a growing reputation for its restaurants, chefs, and abundant agricultural and wild food sources. It was a time of change and transition one that combined the ethos of days past with a new conversation about Pacific Northwest cuisine: how committed cooks could partner with local producers to create compellingly delicious food from the source. At the heart of this partnership are Oregon s ranchers, fisheries, foragers, farmers and dairies, who are focused on the quality of the food and the integrity of the ingredients. Those closest to their harvest speak of weather, climate, animal diet, soil for the plant, or cycle of the moon as points of determining the essence of flavor. This understanding of the land is a seasonal reminder of why the producers work so hard to preserve its precious bounty and continue as stewards and guardians of what cannot be replaced or replicated. Chefs, and their interpretation of these quality ingredients, have helped drive the enormous growth of Oregon s culinary reputation over the past two decades. You can see some of their inspired creations starting on page 311. But while a recipe can provide a framework from which to build a dish and combine flavors, the ingredient selection remains the decisive point, one that can both inspire the chef as well as determine the outcome of a dish. The land, food producers, and chefs have all contributed to make the Pacific Northwest a culinary destination. But it is in the enjoyment of the eating and how we embrace its place in our lives that truly transcends and defines this bountiful place we call Oregon. For thirty years, the writers and contributors of FOODDAY have given readers a window into the skills and minds of our great cooks whether they work in a restaurant or a home kitchen. In turn, these cooks have greatly enriched our lives. The Oregonian Cookbook celebrates this connection with our community. With its vast variety of recipes, it is a contemporary glimpse into how these talented cooks interpret ingredients. The infusion of influences from around the world is now a common part of their repertoire, and it demonstrates that there are multitudes of ways to create Northwest Cuisine. It also serves as a bookmark for our culture of food, and a reflection on how it remains built on the foundation to what generations of Oregonians have embraced. I hope you embrace and celebrate how fortunate we are to continue on this path of exploration as we enjoy the fruits of so many who came before and anticipate the contributions that we have yet to see. Â Cory Schreiber Founding chef, Wildwood; culinary artist-in-residence, The International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Portland --Foreword by Cory Schreiber"Katherine Miller has gathered the 'best of the best'--a tasty collection of more than 350 recipes culled from FOODDAY's extensive archives. Flipping through this culinary treasure is like seeing old friends who have withstood the test of time. This is one book every Oregon cook will want on the shelf rgiht next to their store" --JANIE HIBLER, award-winning author of Dungeness Crabs and Blackberry Cobblers and The Berry Bible