The Junior Chef Cook-off

What farmers market would be complete without a demonstration of cooking prowess?  Well, Montavilla Farmers Market went one step further.  Instead of showcasing just one chef...lets do three!  In a bid to even outdo having three chefs...lets have their kids do the cooking! 

Voila!  We have the first annual Junior Chef Cook-off.  (For more highlights of the Market season opener, visit http://musingsbypaul.blogspot.com/2011/06/vegetable-express-has-arrived.html

The Cook-off is the brainchild of Daniel Miller, who also has Duckspoon, a web site about food, cooking and general goings-on locally and in the region.  Daniel was also the Master of Ceremonies for the Cook-off.  (You can learn more about Duckspoon here: http://duckspoon.com/index.php)

As part of the opening day festivities, the MFM featured the culinary skills of the next generation of chefs. Three local restaurants donated their skills and time for a worthy cause. Voting for one's favorite team consisted of placing tokens or money into one of three boxes, placed at each of the three cooking stations.  The winner was determined by the amount of contributions in their respective box, and the proceeds went to the Dougy Center, a local grief counseling center. 

The competition also used produce or other stock that is available that day at the market, which was donated by the vendors.

A representative from the Dougy Center shared a few words before starting the competition.  You can learn more about the Dougy Center here: http://www.dougy.org/.

The three chefs who laid aside their knives and spatulas for their progeny were: Chef Tim Daly from Cheese Bar and his daughter Hannah, age 11.  (http://www.cheese-bar.com/)

Chef Kenny Hill from Trebol featured his daughters Helena Bockstadter (11) and Iris Roy (3 1/2).  Trebol's link is http://trebolpdx.com/kenny-hill/ (Iris was a little shy for the photo)

Chef Adam Sappington of the Country Cat (http://www.thecountrycat.net/about/adam-and-jackie) featured his sons Atticus (8) and Quinn (6)

Chefs Hannah and her sister work hard to cut those radishes just right.

Chef Helena adds a dash of this and a sprig of that...hey, remember I'm just  the photographer.  My role in the kitchen is usually limited to the sink and the dishwasher.  

Here a lucky judge samples one of Chefs Atticus and Quinn's offerings - a pancake with chocolate.  I think he likes it.

The winner of the 2011 Junior Chef Cook-off is...(drum roll, please), Chef Helena and her assistant, Kenny Hill!  Congratulations, Helena. 

Each Cook-off team received a trophy for their efforts.  Of course, the real winners were those of us who were fortunate enough to sample the delicious food...not to mention the contribution of almost $200 to the Dougy Center.

The Vegetable Express has Arrived

Many of us wait with bated breath for that day in June, when we can stride out of our homes, still pale from the gloom of winter and the dreariness of the rain-soaked Pacific Northwest into the June sun...and the first day of the Farmers Market.  Down the street we go, toting our reusable sacks or baskets, and if we live too far away we ride our bicycles...onward towards that Shangri-la of produce, provisions and perhaps a little partying.  Opening day for the 2011 season of the Montavilla Farmers Market has arrived!

 After the rains, we didn't know how to move about while our eyes are blinded by the brightness of the sun...yet we did, and we loved it.

 Groundworks Organic Farms is one of the Market's main vendors

 Zenger Farms also provides fine organic produce.

Sweet Chaos is the perfect stop for some sweets...dunno about the chaos, though.  They seemed pretty calm to me.

 Food Lush makes her debut to the market with varieties of cheesecakes

 Frog Meadows specializes in biodynamic farming practices.

Robert Richter is an energetic performer creating music that blends different genres from folk to blues to rock to Celtic played with passion and energy.

If one's musical tastes lean more towards the classical, then Vibe of Portland’s Creative Outlet gave us some  fun, market inspired art projects for the kids...and music.

It isn't just about produce.  Flowers to brighten one's home is also available.

A couple of our illustrious volunteers

For more information about the Montavilla Farmers Market, visit their web site at http://www.montavillamarket.org/market-programs/opening-day-celebration/.  You can also see photos of the Junior Chef Cook-off at http://musingsbypaul.blogspot.com/2011/06/junior-chef-cook-off.html

Musings on Memorial Day, 2011

Although I normally associate John McCrae's poem "In Flanders Fields" with Remembrance Day in Canada (where I grew up) in November, Memorial Day seems an apt day to read it once more. 

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

John McCrae, May 1915

 I visited a local cemetery (Riverview, in SW Portland) where there is a small area for those who served during the Spanish-American War, which occurred in 1898.  This being Memorial Day, the graves were decorated with small American flags.  Not all who are buried here died during the war, but served in that conflict. 

It is easy for us to remember those who died in the more recent conflicts, and for my generation it is our friends, brothers and cousins who were lost during the Vietnam conflict.  The Spanish-American war is one of those smaller skirmishes that lasted less than a year and focused mostly on Spanish holdings in Cuba and The Phillipines.  As a reminder that our National Guard has been mobilized for conflicts much earlier than our current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, so it was in 1898.  Most notable about the Spanish-American War was the sinking of the battleship USS Maine, and Teddy Roosevelt's charge up San Juan Hill.  It also signified the end of Spain's empire. 

As I wandered between the rows of gravestones, I could read the names of each who fought.  Some perished, and others returned home to resume their lives...though one cannot help but wonder how they may have been transformed though the experience.  One cannot escape the same question for those of our current generation.

I uttered a "thank you" to all of those buried here...and to all who served in other conflicts...like those who lay in the fields of Flanders.

(For related Memorial Day Musings, you can visit http://musingsbypaul.blogspot.com/2009/05/thoughts-on-memorial-day-2009.html)

Something Old...Something New

I have an affinity for old, abandoned buildings.  I always have, even as a child I remember an old house near where I lived in North Vancouver, British Columbia.  It was derelict, with the windows broken and walls kicked in by so many youngsters (and perhaps older kids) before me.  I couldn't bring myself to do more damage, but the result of the vandalism of others allowed me a glimpse of something new.  I think part of the fascination was seeing the guts of a building...the skeleton of the structure and the nervous system of the wires all played into the anatomical analogy.

So one can imagine my delight upon finding this abandoned powerhouse in Central Oregon.  Originally built in 1910, this hydroelectric plant took water diverted from the White River (at the White River Falls), before meeting the Deschutes River a few miles downstream.  It ceased operations in 1960 and fell into disrepair since.  Like the old house of my childhood, one can imagine all sorts of people coming in and perhaps kicking in the walls and stripping the old turbines and generators of their guts.  Personally, I tend to walk in somewhat reverentially...or perhaps cautiously so as to not fall through a hole.

This is what one sees from the viewpoint near the highway, as the White River threads its way through the canyon.

 Built of stone most likely obtained nearby, the building blends in with the bluffs in the background.  What I find particularly compelling is the process of decay, and how the structure continues to break down while the surrounding plants slowly encroach and take over.

Inside are the remains of the old Pelton water wheel turbines, the speed governors (just to the left of the turbine housing), and the generator.  Almost all of the equipment has been eviscerated of their innards, like the copper windings that lined the stators and rotors of the generator (seen below).

I tend to view something like this rather poetically, and as a glimpse into the past.  Of course the technology is primitive by today's standards, but one can certainly appreciate the ingeniuty of those who built such pioneering structures, that perhaps lit the first lightbulbs of the pioneer homes originally illuminated by candles and kerosene.

Close-up of the speed governor

Of course, General Electric supplied the equipment for many of the hydro plants built during this era.

Another view of the rusting hulks of the turbine housings

This is a view through one of several wall penetrations, looking up to the viewpoint from which the first image was taken, showing the canyon and the powerhouse along the river (at the top of this post).  I don't know if this was a window or where a pipe used to come through the wall.

Nature will eventually take over and the building will vanish, allowing the wildlife to return.

White River Falls is a spectacular and beautiful sight, seen here from the powerhouse.

As for the something new, Henry Shukman writes in his article "After the Apocalypse", about the environment around the Chernoble Nuclear Plant after it's meltdown 25 years ago in 1986 and how nature is reclaiming the land around the plant, not unlike the White River plant...save for a very profound difference in how the radiation has affected Chernobyl's surrounding flora and fauna.  To read more, see the link below:   

http://theweek.com/article/index/213498/after-the-apocalypse

For more information on the White River Falls site, click here: http://www.oregonstateparks.org/park_36.php

Off the Beaten Path - Part 2, the Sacred and the Profane

Second in a (random) series of my travels throughout the country.  A couple of weeks ago I had the occasion to travel to Spokane, Washington on business.  As it was, my work was completed earlier than i expected and I had some time to kill before my plane left to take me back to Portland...and I had my camera.  As I drove back to Spokane after my meeting, I noticed a church tower on the hills behind downtown and my curiosity was piqued.  I drove until I happened upon The Cathedral of St John the Evangelist, of the Episcopal Church.  Construction was started in 1925, the building is of classic gothic architecture and could easily be at home in England.  I started taking photos outside, but the rain prevented me from capturing any noteworthy images.  However, a bold moment and the generosity of church staff allowed me some shots of the beautiful interior.  For more information, here is a link: http://www.stjohns-cathedral.org/about/about_index.php

I love arches, especially when there are several in a row.

This is looking east, toward the Chancel and the Transept (Imagine a cross, and the transept is where the two parts cross.  The chancel is the end or the "top" of the cross, usually at the east end.)

From the lectern, looking over the Bible 

From Spokane I drove down west on Interstate 90 to the town of Ritzville, WA, a pioneer town that saw it's heyday during the growth of agriculture in eastern Washington.  It's shrunk in size and probably on it's way to becoming a ghost town. 

This is the Zion Philadelphia Church of Christ in Ritzville, built in 1888 and listed on the Washington Register of Historic Places.  This is also of a Gothic architecture, though decidely less grand than the Cathedral.

I also stopped in the town of Sprague, just off the freeway...and it was like the freeway let time pass by this little town.  There was the biggest collection of old cars and trucks from the 40's and 50's that I've seen.

 Mary Queen of Heaven Parish was established in 1882, and this building was built in 1883.

An old tow truck...I really did feel like I went through a time warp, driving through this town. 

Saturday Market - A Portland Tradition

Last Saturday was one of those seredipitous days, where I had originally planned to work in the office for a few hours.  A plaintive text message from our neighbor, asking for help in selecting a camera quietly but decidedly changed that...and certainly for the better.  After an hour or so at the photo store, and a freshly-purchased camera in her hand, we headed for town to learn the art of photography.  I am never one to pass up an opportunity for a photo expedition, especially during one of those non-rainy days that are so rare in Portland.

This particular Saturday also happened to be the beginning of the Saturday Market season, where one can wander by stalls of various arts and crafts and jewelry...while being entertained by all manner of musicians, performers and artists...and a host of interesting people.  Our visit wasn't planned, but such is the manner of serendipity.  The photo opportunities were...endless, as you will see.

I call this one Mr Silver.  He stands still as a statue until, at a given moment he comes to life and juggles a pair of glass balls, mesmerizing passers-by.

Not sure what this one is, but he/it sure does blend in nicely...wouldn't you say?

Portland is known for it's bridges, but we also have our fair share of fountains which attract kids even in an early March day.  Yes, I suppose we are all ready for Spring to arrive!

Most of us walk...or drive, or ride our bicycles.  For those of us who prefer not to do any of those, we can ride a pedicab...with a trailer.

Today's entertainment happened to be an Irish-type band who reminded me of Dropkick Murphy.  They were actually pretty good.  The guy in front with the blue shirt was not part of the band (duh!).  He was juggling sticks, and trying to match the band's rhythm.  It wasn't working, but he did capitalize on the band's attention.  It was all part of the atmosphere and fun to watch.

Portland's fashion scene has always been filled with those independent and eclectic sorts who march to a different fashion drum...or in this case, dance to an Irish band.  I like how her hat and pants sorta match.  Also, check out the guy wearing the balloon hat behind her.

...and what market would be complete without a balloon artist?

...or the street preacher reminding us of our sinful nature.  (If you were deafened by the volume of his oratory, you could still read his message.  Perhaps that's his "close-captions for the hard of hearing"?)

If the Irish band or the religious oratory didn't suit your tastes, there is always another musician to add his note to the music of the market.  The guy on the right was looking for anyone who would pose with him and his guitar...for a slight fee, of course.  I like his leather pants.

This one I will call "Art on a Bicycle"

Of course, what visit to the Saturday Market (or Portland for that matter) would be complete without a visit to the famous Voodoo Doughnut Store on Second Street, near Burnside?  Today the line stretched around the corner and down the block.  I'm afraid my own sampling will have to wait for another time. 

And finally...here is the proud new owner of a Nikon DSLR.  Congratulations, neighbor girl!