Portland Culinary Alliance

A small but enthusiastic group of members and guests celebrated Bastille Day in a tasty way by joining Chef Robert Reynolds July 14 to shop for ingredients at Portland Farmers Market and later to prepare a blue, white and red (bleu, blanc et rouge, like France’s tricolor flag) brunch in honor of the French holiday.

Walking amidst the pyramids of colorful produce was a sensory delight to begin with; on top of that we heard Robert’s spontaneous thoughts on ways to prepare kohlrabi, zucchini, tomatoes, beets, gooseberries and other items displayed. All the while, we were gathering berries, bread and veggies for our brunch.

Back at Robert’s studio kitchen we all pitched in to prepare cauliflower soup and tomato soup, risotto with Rogue Creamery’s Oregon Blue cheese (in honor of their award from the French for the best blue cheese) and a sponge cake for jelly roll served with lemon mousse and berries. We were all madly taking notes on our printed recipes, trying to capture Robert’s nuggets of culinary wisdom.

We toasted our efforts with a glass of rose wine and sat down to enjoy our delicious food. It was a delightful way to spend a summer Saturday morning. Robert’s warm introduction to his world of savored food memories and accumulated wisdom and technique kindled interest in his cooking classes. For more information, click on http://www.thechefstudio.com.