Good As ‘Gold’ A New Cookbook By The Junior League Showcases Regional Cuisine For A Good Cause

There’s a new crop being harvested in the Inland Northwest this fall.

Along with the apples and lentils that traditionally signal summer’s end comes “GOLD’n Delicious,” the first cookbook from the Junior League of Spokane.

The seeds were sown three years ago, when the women’s volunteer organization decided to follow in the footsteps of Junior Leagues across the country and produce a cookbook to raise money for charitable causes.

From an initial collection of 2,000 recipes, league members methodically weeded out all but the 260 triple-tested recipes that appear in the classy-looking book.

It’s a celebration of regional cuisine, starting with the title - a word play on Golden Delicious apples - and the salmon in parchment, wild rice with mushrooms and marinated asparagus pictured on the cover.

Salmon also shows up in phyllo, in ginger butter and with a yogurt dill sauce. Apples appear in everything from a smoked salmon appetizer to soup to cream sauce for chicken. Huckleberries grace salad dressing, pork chops and coffee cake.

There’s a Walla Walla Sweet Squares appetizer on a cornmeal crust, Shrimp and St. Maries Wild Rice Soup, Steptoe Butte Lentil Soup and Catch & Keep Grilled Trout, stuffed with a shrimp and cornbread mixture and cooked in corn husks.

“We wanted fresh ingredients, things that said the Northwest,” says Kathy Friedlander, the cookbook committee chairman.

“People have been saying they wanted a cookbook from the Spokane league forever,” adds previous chairman Kris Mason. “There’s not too much out there that relates to our region.”

Junior Leagues have been marketing home-grown cookbooks for more than 50 years, starting in Charlotte, N.C., in 1940. Ann Glendening of Spokane has more than 20 of them in her cookbook collection, from simple, spiral-bound versions to elaborate coffee-table books.

“It’s very interesting to see the way that a community presents itself,” she says. “It seems there’s a concerted effort by all of these (league) chapters to outdo what’s already out there.”

Over time, Glendening says, the books have evolved from collections of heavier, higher-calorie dishes to more nouvelle cuisine - a trend reflected in “GOLD’n Delicious.” You’ll find sun-dried tomatoes, goat cheese, even a Thai-style pizza, but nary a can of cream of mushroom soup.

“A lot of (community) books, everything is cream of mushroom soup,” says Friedlander. “This is a book for the ‘90s, for the way people are cooking now.”

That doesn’t mean the recipes are complicated. For every Palouse Pheasant with Mushroom Sauce, there are such speedier, everyday dishes as Baked White Fish with Pesto and Mexican Skillet Chicken.

And while some recipes will help pack on the pounds - like a rich Browned Butter Sauce for pasta - there are plenty of healthier offerings like Hearty Lasagna, made with nonfat cottage cheese, reduced-fat mozzarella and extra-lean ground beef.

That’s one of 81 recipes - almost a third of the book - certified as Lite n’ Hearty by the Heart Institute of Spokane for containing less than 30 percent of calories from fat. (Some come in considerably below that, including a fat-free Chocolate With a Conscience cake that’s as tasty as it is easy to make.)

Helpful as that is, a complete nutritional analysis of each recipe would be even more useful. Percentage of fat doesn’t always tell the whole story, particularly with dishes that are relatively high (or low) in calories.

And “GOLD’n Delicious” puts little emphasis on meatless meals, although a dozen vegetarian entrees (primarily pastas) are indexed and other recipes could be adapted by substituting vegetable broth for chicken or beef broth.

Consider those as suggestions for the next book - a possibility Friedlander and her fellow league members aren’t eager to think about right now.

Their first order of business is selling the 15,000-copy first printing, which is being distributed mainly in the Northwest. If all goes well, within a year or two, a second printing for national distribution will follow, and cooks from coast to coast will see what Spokane has to offer.

“Because we will go national, we wanted to spotlight the area,” says Judy Rogers, the incoming cookbook committee chairman. “The menus are probably my favorite part of the book. They show off Spokane so nicely.”

“GOLD’n Delicious” offers eight complete, locally themed menus, two for each season: a Carbo-Load Bloomsday Dinner and Mother’s Day Lilac Brunch for spring, Easy Sailing Appetizers and a Carrousel Birthday Party for summer, a Harvest Moon Celebration and Autumn on the (Centennial) Trail for fall and an Apres Ski Warm-Up and Symphony Dessert Buffet for winter.

Following are the recipes for the Harvest Moon Celebration dinner. The stew and bread both contain less than 30 percent of calories from fat; the green beans and salad do not, because of the nuts in those recipes, but both are relatively low-calorie to begin with.

Brandied Beef Stew

2 pounds boneless beef bottom round, trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 cup brandy

3 (12-1/2-ounce) cans low-fat beef broth, divided

1 cup (about 1 large) onion, finely chopped

1/2-cup shallots, thinly sliced

1/2-teaspoon salt

1/2-teaspoon black pepper

1/4-cup plus 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, divided

3/4-cup (about 3 medium) carrots, cut into 1/2-inch slices

12 small new potatoes, halved

1/2-tablespoon butter

1/2-pound small mushrooms, quartered

1/4-cup dry red wine

Combine beef, brandy and 1/4-cup broth in a wide 4-quart pan. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes.

Add onion, shallots, salt and pepper. Cook, uncovered, until most of the liquid has evaporated and juices and onion are browned, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1/4-cup mustard and remaining beef broth, stirring to loosen any browned bits. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until beef is almost tender when pierced, about 1 hour.

Stir in carrots and potatoes, cover and continue cooking until vegetables are tender, about 45 minutes.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and wine and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are soft, stirring often. Blend in remaining 1 tablespoon mustard. Stir mixture into stew and serve.

Yield: 6 servings.

Herbed Green Beans with Pine Nuts

1/3-cup pine nuts

1 pound fresh green beans, ends snapped

1/4-cup olive oil

1/4-cup tarragon vinegar

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2-teaspoon dried basil

1/2-teaspoon garlic salt

1/4-cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Toast pine nuts in a shallow pan at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until light brown.

Cook beans in boiling water until tender-crisp, about 5 minutes. Plunge in cold water, drain well and set aside.

Combine oil, vinegar and spices in a saute pan over medium heat. When liquid is hot, add beans and nuts and heat thoroughly. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings.

Autumn Salad with Spicy Walnuts

Walnuts:

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4-teaspoon cayenne pepper

Dash hot pepper sauce

1-1/4 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped

Dressing:

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/2-cup olive oil

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Salad:

2 heads red leaf lettuce, rinsed and torn

1 Granny Smith apple, cut into bite-sized chunks

8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

Combine butter, salt, cinnamon, pepper and hot pepper sauce. Add walnuts and stir to coat. Place nuts on a cookie sheet and bake at 300 degrees for 15 minutes. Cool on foil.

Combine dressing ingredients and mix well. Just before serving, toss lettuce, apple, cheese and nuts with desired amount of dressing.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings.

Golden Harvest Bread

2 cups water

1/3-cup vegetable oil

1/4-cup honey

1/4-cup raisins

5 tablespoons brown sugar, divided

2 packages yeast

1/4-cup warm water

2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, divided

3 cups whole-wheat flour, divided

1-1/2 cups rye flour, divided

1/2 cup instant nonfat milk powder

2-1/2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons cornmeal

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Combine water, oil, honey, raisins and 4 tablespoons brown sugar in a blender or food processor and blend to liquefy. Dissolve yeast in warm water and stir in remaining 1 tablespoon brown sugar.

Combine 1 cup unbleached flour, 2 cups whole-wheat flour, 1 cup rye flour, milk powder and salt in a large bowl. Add honey mixture and yeast mixture and beat with mixer on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Combine remaining 1-1/2 cups unbleached flour, 1 cup whole-wheat flour and 1/2-cup rye flour. Gradually stir in enough of remaining flours to make a soft dough that leaves the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto floured surface and knead until smooth and satiny, about 10 minutes.

Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to coat. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1-1/2 hours. Punch down dough and let stand for 10 minutes. Shape into 4 round loaves and place on 2 lightly greased baking sheets which have been sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover and let rise again until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Bake at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven, brush with melted butter and cool on wire racks.

Yield: 4 loaves. , DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Color Photos

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: BUY THE BOOK “GOLD’n Delicious” is available at bookstores, selected department stores and specialty shops, or directly from the Junior League of Spokane, 910 N. Washington, Suite 228, Spokane, WA 99201-2260 (phone, 328-2166; fax, 328-1827). Price is $22.95 plus tax; there is an additional $3 shipping and handling charge for mail orders. Gourmet gift baskets featuring the book are available from Simply Northwest, 11808 E. Sprague (927-8206).