Posts Tagged ‘Il Corvo’
Il Corvo mushroom farm harvest dinner at [storefront] Olson Kundig Architects – Pioneer Square, Seattle
Posted on: Monday 19 March 2012
A collaboration between CityLab7, Olson Kundig Architects and Schuchart/Dow, the mushroom farm was installed at [storefront] in Pioneer Square.
Funded by Invoking the Pause, the Fertile Grounds project by CityLab7 partnered with local cafés, Caffe Umbria, Starbucks and Zeitgeist, to reuse coffee grounds to grow oyster mushrooms.
One of the events of the pop up concept was a mushroom farm harvest dinner hosted by Il Corvo.
A trough displayed the coffee grounds at the front window.
The structure is built with reclaimed plywood and cocooned in plastic.
22°C (71°F) temperature and 88% humidity, the subtropical atmosphere within the tent was calibrated for growing oyster mushrooms.
Bricks of coffee grounds were inoculated with mycelium and the spores germinated into fairy floss (cotton candy) like fibres, weaving a web on the surface of the caffeine soil.
Clusters of oyster mushrooms sprouted through the perforated skin.
The oyster mushrooms grow exponentially towards the end of the six week period.
These wide gills were ready for harvesting.
An illustrated mind map of urban food systems connections.
‘Counting and cultivating co-benefits of coffee culture.’
Handwritten comments were tacked on the wall.
Can you decipher these cute, neat notes? ‘I like to plant blueberries. I like to plant strawberries.’
And in an elegant script, ‘eating is the life’!
[storefront] is a bare space for creativity and thus a mobile kitchen was a couple of portable gas cookers.
The dining table and benches are made with salvaged wood, lovely lumbers that accentuated the sustainability theme.
We sipped Cava (Spanish sparkling wine), and nibbled on porcini and Parmesan grissini.
We settled into our seats and bottles of Elena Walch Schiava were poured. The first course was a simple salad of leafy greens, fennel, pine nuts, raw oyster mushrooms and vinaigrette. It was fresh and zingy, the crunch of the lettuce and pine nuts paired well with the firm and meaty mushrooms.
‘Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.’
Chef Mike Easton stirred the pot of risotto with an oar wooden spoon.
Cooked in porcini stock, seasoned with thyme and a bottle of wine, the oyster mushroom risotto was superb. A viscous bowl of comfort food, we savoured each spoonful of the vegetarian main dish.
Chewy discs of chocolate hazelnut cookies concluded a special meal. 1.5 kg of Nutella was in the batch of cookies for twenty people!
Sincere thanks to CityLab7, Il Corvo and Olson Kundig Architects for a unique experience!
- In: Learning
- 4 Comments
I attended my first Foodportunity yesterday evening at the Palace Ballroom, a networking event founded by the inimitable Keren Brown.
A screen projected the live Foodportunity Twitter feed.
The lovely Keren spoke briefly to thank Foodportunity’s sponsors and supporters, and drew the winners of the business card raffle.
My first taste was at Metropolitan Market, the main sponsor of Foodportunity. Imported wheels of Zola Gouda were stacked on the table.
A generous portion of creamy macaroni and cheese was sprinkled with bread crumbs and Parmesan.
I interspersed savoury dishes with desserts. Next was Fat Cat Fudge, a smooth chocolate fudge that was moderately sweet.
I spotted The Coterie Room in the corner and happily crunched on a decadent snack of ham crackling dipped in black truffle fondue.
In the same area was Inn at Langley. On a wooden paddle was a disc of smouldered spruce panna cotta with truffle honey foam and pine nut sugar.
The Chef in the Hat was momentarily absent but the silver forks of coffee cured salmon with celeriac by Rover’s were scrumptious.
One of the few restaurants with signs of their food, Local 360 had a rustic chalkboard written in cursive script and illuminated by tea light candles.
Except I didn’t notice the sign until after I ate the bacon wrapped rabbit saddle with cheesy grits and maple truffle jus. I don’t eat rabbit. But the meaty cylinder topped with a jelly cube was an appetising pairing.
Mike Easton was resplendent in a customised apron and demonstrated artisan pasta making.
Cooked on an induction stovetop at the stall, the malloreddi alla Siciliana was exceptional.
Fumie’s Gold had silver platters of sweet treats. I sampled the green tea cookie and it had a balanced matcha flavour.
The profiteroles and tiramisu were tempting!
My first loop concluded at the entrance where Mt Townsend Creamery was. Cirrus is a favourite and there were nibbles of Seastack.
Light and citrusy fromage blanc was spread on apple crisps.
I meandered back to the restaurants I had skipped due to crowds. At Blackfish from Tulalip was house smoked sockeye salmon with chèvre cucumber purse on a bamboo square. The salmon was surprisingly dense, tempered by the mandolined cucumber and goat cheese.
On a wooden board at Volunteer Park Café was crimped puff pastry with caramelised onion, a smear of chèvre and black trumpet mushrooms. I have fond memories of their grilled figs at Keren’s book launch party and these morsels were a highlight too!
The last dessert was by Main Street Cookie Company. Made with quality ingredients, the chocolate chunk and dark chocolate cookies were perfectly baked.
I hovered at Lucky Palate, curious about the contents of the paper cups. A vegetarian meal delivery company, the quinoa and farro were both textured and healthy.
A scarlet tablecloth greeted us at Tipu’s Chai. Steeped in herbs and spices, chai is a traditional Indian beverage.
A stainless steel and glass dispenser poured the Tipu’s Chai Now, a vegan instant chai. It was soothing and aromatic.
The penultimate was Tabby Cat Pickling Co.
Jars of pickles were scooped into bowls and the curried cauliflower floret was piquant.
And just before I exited, a friend‘s mother recommended the sizzling sausage by Tom Douglas.
Fluffy buns encased a spicy pork belly and octopus chorizo with fennel. It was a warming conclusion to a fun first Foodportunity.
Sincere thanks to Keren for connecting the Seattle food community!
- In: Learning
- 5 Comments
On a balmy Saturday evening a few weekends ago, a group of eight descended the Pike Place Hill Climb and into Il Corvo for a Sardinia pasta and wine class with Mike Easton and Jerry Tide.
Unlike my previous visit, Procopio Gelateria was empty.
Stools were moved outside, wines were chilling and decanted, and pasta machines lined the communal bench.
As usual I was early so I assisted with the antipasti. I heaped spoonful of braised squid and octopus onto sliced and toasted baguettes while Mike spread roasted and puréed eggplant, chilli and garlic onto another platter of bread.
Meaty and tender, the braised squid and octopus were mixed with capers, garlic, smoked paprika and lemon juice, and sprinkled with fresh parsley. The eggplant was smoky sweet, with a hint of heat from the chilli.
We sipped on Prosecco as Mike explained that we would be making fresh pasta in pairs. He printed copies of the recipe and emphasised the importance of taking our own notes on techniques.
Flour and egg makes pasta! Thankfully Mike prefers the metric system as I’m bad at imperial conversions. The basic ratio for making pasta is one hundred grams of flour and one egg for one person.
We carefully measured the flour on a metric scale imported from Australia, made a well and cracked the room temperature eggs in the middle. We gently whisked the eggs and slowly stirred in the flour to form a sticky dough. Our hands dusted with flour, we kneaded the dough until it was smooth and firm. The key is to rest the dough for at least half an hour to let the gluten relax. I was concerned about over-kneading the dough but Mike said you cannot do that with pasta!
Mike commented that ‘French food is about process and discipline; Italians cook because they love to eat’. Mike’s philosophy is to do less but use quality ingredients to create ‘simple and thoughtful combinations’.
We flatten the dough with the palms of our hands and Mike demonstrated how to roll the dough through the pasta machine. There’s a rhythm to this – dust dough with flour, feed in widest setting, fold in thirds, adjust dial, dust dough with flour, feed in next setting. This process was repeated six or seven times. The dough had softened with time but was relatively sturdy to handle. You’ll know when the dough is ready by touch and feel, it’ll be different each time you make it.
We breathed in the fresh aroma of the dough and were looking forward to tasting our handiwork.
We switched from the dough roller to the pasta cutter. The dough was cut into shorter pasta sheets. We cranked the handle and strands of fettuccine emerged at the bottom.
It was a delight to watch the pale strips of cascading dough. Just as the last inch of dough disappeared into the machine, you gently bunch the fettuccine to ensure it doesn’t tangle.
I dangled the freshly made pasta on my hand, like swinging tassels on a curtain.
And of course we made too much pasta so we each took a container home. It can be stored in the fridge for up to five days or frozen. I like that it doesn’t have to be defrosted before cooking!
Mike makes fresh pasta every day. The lunch menu changes daily at Il Corvo – short pasta, long pasta, filled pasta and gnocchi. He brought out a plate of cavatelli, a short curled pasta made with semolina flour.
Making cavatelli is a labour of love. The antique handheld tool produces one vavatelli with each rotation!
The star of the show was the pasta which cooks in ninety seconds. Mike simmered bruised cloves of garlic and chilli in olive oil.
The glistening ribbons were tossed with the infused olive oil and grated bottarga.
There was a collective sigh as we each had our first mouthful of artisan pasta. Cooked al dente, the slippery fettuccine was the perfect balance of the salty and briny bottarga, the mellow and aromatic garlic, and heat from the chilli. It was so delicious that I replicated the recipe at home with the leftover pasta.
While we were cleaning up and wiping flour from every surface, Mike was cooking our secondo – pesce arrostiti alla Sarda. Seared then baked, the whole trout was served with potatoes and olives.
In between all that, Jerry poured us glasses of Vermentino and Cannonau (Grenache). The Vermentino was light and summery, and the Cannonau was a pleasant pairing for the fish. There was also Lambrusco and I discovered I was partial to a nip of Amaro!
Hands-on and casual, it was a fun three hours. Sincere thanks to Mike and Jerry for sharing their passion and expertise for food and wine. Salute!
- In: Eating | Pike Place Market | Seattle | USA | Washington
- 2 Comments
I got lost driving from Redmond to Downtown Seattle last week. I realised I was going the opposite way when I passed Marymoor Park. My second mistake was taking the north exit for Vancouver. I was really flustered when I finally arrived home, frustrated that there were no signs when I needed one and when there was one, I took the wrong exit. Instructions such as ‘turn left at this landmark’ or ‘head south for three blocks’ only confuses me as I lack spatial awareness of my surroundings and distances. Thankfully my map reading skills compensate for my sense of direction. And it is with this that I found Il Corvo!
Il Corvo is within Procopia Gelateria on the Pike Place Hill Climb. Winding down the stairs, it’s on the right, next to a souvenir store. There is a small courtyard for al fresco dining and inside is a custom made granite table where the pasta is made in the mornings and evenings. I love that there is discreet lettering underneath the long communal bench, an obscure place to sign a restaurant name.
The pasta is freshly made and the dishes cooked to order. The menu changes daily and the owner happily details what each item is. Behind the gelato counter, there are simmering pots of sauces and pans being stirred. I was fascinated by how the pasta is cooked – it’s like a deep fryer filled with boiling water and the pasta is placed in a wire basket, dunked in for a couple of minutes and strained.
There were four types of pasta on the menu – bigoli, fideos, cavatelli and maccheroni. Bigoli is tube shaped long pasta, served with cured tuna heart, chilli and parsley. Fideos y morcilla is broken spaghetti with blood sausage. Cavatelli is gnocchi shaped pasta, paired with Romanesco broccoli, anchovy, chilli and bread crumbs. My choice was the maccheroni all’arrabbiata, short hollow pasta cooked in a tomato sauce with chilli, garlic and olive oil. I sat by the window, warmed by the sun and eavesdropped in the convivial group seated at the granite table.
The maccheroni all’arrabbiata was a vibrant dish. The chef was kind enough to adjust the amount of chilli in the sauce as I don’t take much heat or spice in my food. The pasta was cooked al dente, if a little firm. The sauce was a lovely balance of tomato, chilli, garlic and olive oil. It was a good portion for lunch and if I wasn’t so full, I would have mopped up the leftover sauce with their house made bread. Literally and figuratively, the maccheroni all’arrabbiata was sunshine on a plate.
I will definitely be returning for the friendly and quick service and the seasonal specials!
