Kodiak's 1st Birthday

KW, union boss sans peer,  had his first birthday a couple of weeks ago, so of course we threw him a party.  He hated his hat and, surprisingly, wasn't terribly keen on his b-day cookie at first.  He eventually warmed up to it and scarfed if down posthaste once he decided it was to his liking.

Liam's - University Village

A number of new restaurant's opened in University Village over the last few months, Liam's is one of them.  Despite the name, it's not an Irish bar or otherwise Irish themed at all.  Suppose that's for the best, as the food is quite tasty.  

We enjoyed brunch on our visit.  Country Girl had the smoked salmon cake benedict  and I had the biscuits and chicken gravy.  Both were super delish.  The biscuits had great flavor and were a bit crispy in consistency.  The crispiness was both unusual and very welcome.  They held up in the gravy exceptionally well.  The hollandaise on the benedict was was rich and flavorful without being overwhelmingly so.

Adding to the great food was the very nice decor.  Despite an interior on the darker side, the place is quite bright thanks to loads of large windows and a covered patio area just off the main eating area.  I don't particularly recall the service one way or other, so it likely wasn't awful.  Chances are we may try Liam's again in the future. 

Chicken Kebab, Rice Pilaf and Grilled Pineapple

Sounds good, right?  Yeah, it was awesome.

Meatballs with Chianti Tomato Reduction

While discussing dinner plans with a friend one morning, mentioned my plan to make meatballs that evening and didn't know what to do for sauce.  I'm not terribly keen on tomato sauces generally nor heavy cream sauces.  My friend suggested making a reduction using red wine, stewed tomatoes and broth as a base.  I was duly intrigued as she described how she makes it and felt confident enough that it was something even my limited cooking skilz could handle. 

KW, union boss, checking out the supplies

Modified a recipe from Country Girl's Joy of Cooking for the meatballs using beef and turkey.  Knowing mostly nothing about wine, went with a Chianti for the base.  Included stewed tomatoes, chicken broth, onions, garlic, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  

While I don't have photo evidence as much, the reduction turned out brilliantly.  The meatballs were my best effort to date as well.  Will certainly give this another go.

Seattle Works Day 2014

The whole fam was kind enough to join me for at the Kubota Garden for Seattle Works Day.  Kubota is an immaculate, multi-acre Japanese garden deep in the south end.  Country Girl and I had been once before, enjoying our tour of the grounds tremendously.  Seattle Works Day is a volunteer bonanza with several events set out around the city involving 1,000+ volunteers culminating with a party at Seattle Center with free food, drink and music for participants.  

During the event, we learned that there are several more undeveloped acres adjacent to the garden.  There, we removed non-native blackberry and ivy.  We finished off with a smile by planting some brand new native plants.

Grilled Lamb Burger

Topped with a fried egg and paired with grilled veggies.  Once again, Country Girl absolutely knocked it out of the park.

Mamma Melina - Ravenna (Redux)

We went again, this time for lunch, and it was awesome again.