Taters? Not entirely

Travel to some parts of the country and it’s easy to dive into the local culinary traditions, from barbecue in Kansas City to baked beans in Boston.

So when the Smithsonian Institution’s “Key Ingredients: America by Food” traveling exhibit begins this month at the Hayden branch of the Kootenai-Shoshone Area Libraries, it could spark an interesting conversation: What is the cuisine of North Idaho?

“That’s the discussion we’d love to hear people having,” said Karen Yother, the Hayden branch’s “Key Ingredients” project director. “What is our local food? What is the food of Idaho? The food of the United States? What is it that is our trademark?”

In addition to the exhibit itself, which will feature displays and artifacts examining food culture and history in America, the library will host a dozen events related to “Key Ingredients” beginning this week.

As Yother and the staff at the Hayden Branch Library began to plan their programming around the exhibit, they did a little exercise.

When you say Washington, what do you think of? Apples.

Chicago? Hot dogs.

Florida? Orange juice.

Idaho? Potatoes, right?

“When you get more centered, when you say ‘the Hayden community,’ what do you think of? And I went, ‘hmmm,’ ” Yother said. “A lot of people are into the fresh foods here. But as far as one specific recipe, we don’t have one that we’re known for in this area, one that at least has come to my attention,” she added. “If someone knows one, I would be very interested to know what it is.”

Sarah Gates and her daughter, Kimber, don’t know what that one recipe might be, either. But they have an idea that the cuisine of North Idaho is to be gathered in the outdoors.

The Gateses, who co-own Coeur d’Alene Cellars, think a lot about food; specifically, how to pair food with wine. They’ll host a session on pairing Northwest-crafted cheeses and wine as part of a “Key Ingredients” event on June 23. For them, many food traditions stem from heading into the wilderness and getting the food themselves – whether it be game or wild mushrooms.

“That really is a longtime tradition for a lot of people,” Sarah Gates said. “It really has to do with being outdoors.”

“I know in the fall, in my family, we always had a lot of duck, goose, pheasant,” Kimber Gates said.

Rick Schultz, culinary arts instructor at North Idaho College in Coeur d’Alene, agrees.

“Anytime you think about the Northwest, you think about the outdoors,” he said.

Schultz pointed to the availability of farm-raised game in the region. The college hosts an annual fundraising dinner based on game, while restaurants such as Beverly’s include it on the menu, he added.

“People come to Idaho and they really like (the game),” Schultz said. “Even though it’s raised on a farm, it’s something that’s different to a lot of people.”

North Idaho’s cuisine certainly is about more than those famous potatoes, said Robin Chisholm, Coeur d’Alene Cellars sales and events manager. She’s found that North Idaho’s food trends tend to gravitate more toward Spokane and Seattle, rather than Boise and Southern Idaho.

“It’s not about potatoes and it’s not about corn. We have a shorter growing season up here,” Chisholm said. “It’s more about wild things here.”

Game, fowl, wild mushrooms, salmon, trout and huckleberries all find their way onto North Idaho’s menu. Add Dungeness crab from the Pacific Ocean, Walla Walla Sweet onions, wild rice from St. Maries, cheese from Priest River, the bountiful orchard fruit from the Spokane area, produce from local farmers’ markets, wheat from the Palouse and top it off with a local wine, and you’ve got the makings of a tasty regional feast.

Food traditions certainly take on an individual flair. For Kimber Gates, she’s developed a fondness for Asian pears – a fruit not all that common in the Inland Northwest. One of the Washington vineyards that provides grapes for Coeur d’Alene Cellars also has a pear orchard. Each fall, the vineyard owner sends boxes of pears along with his grape shipment.

“I think the Asian pears are just so representative of the Northwest,” she said.

While the outdoor tradition is a significant one for many families, it’s not the only place people can find natural foods. The area farmers’ markets are revved up for the season, offering a variety of locally grown, organic produce, while most of the region’s grocers offer a variety of organic products.

It’s a trend that can’t come to North Idaho soon enough for Chisholm.

“I think people are ready for it,” she said. “People want real food, not fake food.”

Angelo Brunson, owner and chef of Angelo’s Ristorante in Coeur d’Alene, would second that. He estimates that his kitchen is about 90 percent organic. He even bought a ton of organic wheat berries; at Angelo’s, they grind their own wheat for bread.

“I do get a lot of business from people who know that they want (organic food),” Brunson said.

With that in mind, and with an eye to the higher cost of organic produce, Brunson is branching out. He’s setting up a greenhouse on a friend’s land in Post Falls, where he will grow organic and hydroponic herbs, tomatoes, lettuce and other produce for the restaurant. He hopes to get his first crop planted this summer.

Call it the ultimate in quality control. For Brunson, this is the best way he can ensure that diners enjoy fresh, ripe and local food.

“It’s going to be picked ripe and it will be coming to us that same day,” he said.

While the Italian cuisine of Angelo’s Ristorante doesn’t obviously lend itself to a lot of Northwest ingredients, the Seattle native uses them when appropriate. Salmon has a place on his menu when in season, and huckleberry cheesecake is a popular dessert. Still, when Brunson and his fellow chef, Brian Seibert, participate in the “Key Ingredients: Chefs of Idaho” demonstration on Saturday morning, they’ll be thinking in Northwest terms. The duo plans to prepare gnocchi.

“We’ll do three gnocchis and three different sauces,” he said. The three varieties will include potato – in keeping with the Idaho theme – carrot and arugula.

“The arugula Brian has growing in his garden,” Brunson said. “It’s coming up really well right now.”

They’ll also likely bake some rosemary focaccia, he added, using the organic wheat from the restaurant.

The free event begins at 10 a.m. at the Hayden Branch Library, 8385 N. Government Way, Hayden, with a demonstration from sous chef Michael Carl of the Coeur d’Alene Casino in Worley. Brunson and Seibert will cook from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and Bill Hilbish from the Lake Place in Hayden Lake will be on from 1 to 2 p.m.

On May 31, NIC’s Schultz will bring a group of students to the library for a similar demonstration. While he’s not yet sure what the menu will entail, there’s a good chance it will include the most prominent North Idaho ingredient – huckleberries.

If the students can locate a good supply of frozen berries, they may prepare greens purchased from local farmers’ markets with a huckleberry vinaigrette. They also might turn out a huckleberry dessert, Schultz added.

“Huckleberries, now and all through history have been important in the Northwest,” Schultz said, “for everyone from bears to people.”

Fish-Stuffed Grape Leaves

This recipe comes from Coeur d’Alene Cellars’ Sarah Gates. Gates often posts recipes on the winery’s Web site – www.cdacellars.com – and suggests a wine to serve with the dish. This recipe would pair well with viognier, she said.

Finding fresh grape leaves might be tricky; you likely won’t find them in the store. Preserved grape leaves found in the store are not a good substitute. “It’s part of the gathering thing,” Gates said. Even leaves from concord grape vines would work well, she added.

4 large freshly cut grape leaves with 3 inches of stem (any kind of grape is fine, as long as the leaf is large enough)

1 1/2 pounds fresh fish (salmon, cod or halibut)

Olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons sour cream

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Nonstick cooking spray

Brush olive oil on fresh grape leaves. Place a 2-by-3-inch piece of fish on leaf. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Combine the sour cream, mayonnaise and Dijon mustard; smear on the fish. Fold up grape leaf to make a packet and secure with the stem (like a toothpick). Brush all sides of packet with olive oil and spray grill with nonstick cooking spray.

Place the packets on indirect heat of medium-hot barbecue, stem side up, covered, for 10 to 12 minutes. Serve with rice and vegetable.

Yield: 4 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 272 calories, 12 grams fat (3 grams saturated, 43 percent fat calories), 36 grams protein, 1 gram carbohydrate, 62 milligrams cholesterol, less than 1 gram dietary fiber, 613 milligrams sodium.

Potato Gnocchi

From Chef Angelo Brunson

2 1/2 pounds organic potatoes, russet or Yukon Gold, peeled

2 organic eggs

1 tablespoon kosher salt

Black pepper

2/3 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, grated

2 cups organic unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting

Boil the potatoes in salted water until tender. Drain them well and place in the refrigerator until they’ve cooled enough to handle with your hands. When cooled, mash with your hands.

Dust a flat surface with flour and make a mound of the potatoes. Make a well in the middle of the potato mound and place the eggs, salt, pepper and cheese. Using your fingers, combine to form a rough dough. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and combine gently. Knead the dough for about 8 to 10 minutes.

On a clean work surface, take part of the dough and roll it with the palm of your hand back and forth to make a tube about 1 inch to 1 1/4 inches wide and 18 to 20 inches long. Dust the log with flour and repeat with remaining dough.

Cut the tubes into pieces about 1 1/4 inches long. With the back of fork and your thumb, push each gnocchi to form a dimple. Try not to handle the dumpling too much after you’ve shaped it.

Cook in boiling salted water until they float to the top. Serve with Gorgonzola Cream Sauce (recipe follows).

A serving is 8 to 12 gnocchi; any uncooked gnocchi can be frozen for up to a month.

Yield: Varies

Approximate nutrition per 5-ounce serving: 254 calories, 4 grams fat (2 grams saturated, 15 percent fat calories), 10 grams protein, 43 grams carbohydrate, 59 milligrams cholesterol, 2.6 grams dietary fiber, 466 milligrams sodium.

Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1 to 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Kosher salt

Pinch garlic power

1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated

1/4 cup gorgonzola, crumbled

Place cream in a sauce pan over medium heat. After about two minutes, add the butter, salt and garlic powder. Continue reducing the cream until it begins to slightly thicken. Add the cheeses and stir. If the sauce is too thick, thin it with a little water. Toss with gnocchi and serve.

Yield: 2 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 563 calories, 54 grams fat (34 grams saturated, 86 percent fat calories), 16 grams protein, 4 grams carbohydrate, 193 milligrams cholesterol, no dietary fiber, 837 milligrams sodium.

Pork Tenderloin with Wild Huckleberry Sauce

This recipe only looks as if it has “Northwest” written all over it. It comes from Gail Kyle of the Jordan Hollow Farm Inn in Stanley, Va., and was featured in a recent episode of the Food Network show “FoodNation with Bobby Flay.”

Don’t let the dish’s Southern roots fool you. Set it aside for when huckleberries come into season. You’ll be glad you did.

1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin

2 tablespoons olive oil (garlic-infused oil will yield more flavor) plus 1 tablespoon for the pan

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves, plus 2 sprigs, for garnish

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage leaves

1 tablespoon kosher or coarse ground sea salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cups fresh huckleberries or blueberries

1/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar

1/4 cup white wine

Lightly rub the pork with the olive oil. Combine the chopped herbs, salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Roll the pork loin in the herb mixture. Refrigerate.

In a medium saucepan, combine the huckleberries, sugar, vinegar and wine and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until slightly thickened.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and sear the pork on all sides until golden brown. Place in the oven for about 12 to 15 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees.

Transfer the pork to a serving platter and spoon a generous amount of huckleberry sauce over the pork. Garnish with springs of rosemary.

Yield: 4 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 397 calories, 13.5 grams fat (3 grams saturated, 31 percent fat calories), 36 grams protein, 29 grams carbohydrate, 100 milligrams cholesterol, 2.7 grams dietary fiber, 653 milligrams sodium.

Pear and Huckleberry Crisp

From Mark Tarbell from the former restaurant Barmouche in Phoenix, as posted on foodtv.com3 pears, Bartlett or Bosc, cut into 3/4-inch pieces

1 cup huckleberries

1 teaspoon sugar

2 cups flour

1 1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 pound butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss fruit with sugar and transfer to a cobbler dish. In a separate bowl, mix flour with the brown sugar. Add butter and mix with a pastry blender until crumbly. Spoon on top of fruit and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving, based on 10: 396 calories, 19 grams fat (11 grams saturated, 42 percent fat calories), 3 grams protein, 55 grams carbohydrate, 47 milligrams cholesterol, 2 grams dietary fiber, 199 milligrams sodium.