by Emily
13. September 2008 16:34
I was running so hard to make it to all the food booths between chef demos and writing that I was only able to take notes while they were still open! So I'm writing this up after *sniff* all the adventurous chefs packed up all the beautiful food and headed back to their kitchens.
Silvio’s pizza – as always, Silvios had fantastic pizza and gnocchi. The pizza was suffering a little today from the humidity, but it’s still hard to beat that hand-tossed crust with the fresh toppings. One of the pizzas not only featured local ingredients, it was “beyond organic,” meaning that the ingredients not only meet the letter of the organic certification laws, but also stay true to the spirit of sustainable agriculture practices that are not codified by the USDA.
Zingerman’s whipped up a trio of local delicacies. First, chicken paprikash over Al Dente noodles. I asked about the wheat for the noodles – it is certified organic, and comes from the Dakotas. You really just can’t buy good pasta wheat in Michigan, it seems. But still – shipping a truck full of wheat berries or flour is much more efficient than shipping the finished noodles, because you can fit a much larger weight in the same volume truck. So back to Zingfood: Paw Paw Gelato! And potato leek soup! I didn’t have the soup, but the gelato was quite interesting. Paw paws are a native fruit that seems almost too tropical to grow in this part of the world. The paw paw puree gave the gelato a fruity sweetness reminiscent of peaches. I also learned – contrary to my assumption – that gelato actually has proportionately more milk than cream.
Carson’s American bistro had perhaps the most innovative serving technique of any food: salad on a stick. This featured greens, grape tomatoes, and house-made mozarella cheese threaded onto a skewer and drizzled with a balsamic reduction. Carson’s was also serving fresh fruit smoothies, and a cold watermelon soup topped with jalapeno salsa!
Vinology featured a number of local products in their dishes. I was most intrigued by the buckwheat crepes filled with goat cheese. They get their goat cheese from Four Corners Creamery in Tecumseh, which in turn buys their milk from what I believe is the only certified organic goat dairy in Michigan.
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