What a lovely way to spend a weekend! I was invited to give a cooking demonstration and blog about Fairchild Garden’s 2nd Annual Food and Garden Festival.
I hope you’ll make it to this event next year, it was a lot of fun meeting people who also enjoy fresh local produce and getting to know the farmers. In the meantime, I encourage you to shop at your organic and farmer’s market or visit Redlands if you live in Miami before it gets too hot! My post on Seasonal Foods has lots of meal ideas and tips.
I was a bit upset I didn’t end up buying any produce because I’d just given a cooking class and always have leftovers. My parents went through a war so we were always taught never to waste food. It drove me crazy to see all the food and not get any.
There was a lovely variety of farm produce. I will be posting a series since there is so much to share. This first one will give you a little peak.
What I love about giving live presentations is that it gives me a chance to interact with people. It’s a great way to find out the problems people have with stir frying in a wok!
I prepped in Fairchild’s lovely kitchen and practiced what I preach, see the chopping board with grocery bag for the trimmings?
My demo was very well attended with over 60 signed up for my free newsletter, thank you for your interest! There were a lot of questions posed mostly by guys! Thanks to Fairchild staff and volunteers.
In an upcoming series, I’ll share a video of Food Network Celebrity Chef, Simply Delicioso Ingrid Hoffman making a fabulous mango and papaya dish as well as many more wonderful food stalls.
Mother's Day, Asian Pacific Heritage Month, Miami River Wall
I’m very excited to announce Miami River Wall is my newest venue to host my Wok Star cooking classes and just in time to celebrate Mother’s Day and Asian Pacific Heritage month which is in May. I want to dedicate this month to my mom who is responsible for teaching me wok cooking and introducing me to using a lightweight, cast iron wok!
So, what is Miami River Wall? Peter Kastan and Bob Pelligrini started their first vertical plant wall based on Frenchman, Patrick Blanc’s concept. Here’s a small segment of Peter last weekend at Fairchild Tropical Food and Garden Festival during his Pecha Kucha talk.
But they took it one step further and recently added a new wall with herbs, chilies and edible flowers – all grown hydroponically i.e. no soil, just water and nutrients. How perfect for my cooking classes because I like to use fresh ingredients.
Even though I put my cilantro in a jug of water and put a bag over it to keep it longer, I still can’t use it fast enough. How I would love to have a fresh herb, chili wall. Well, at least on days I’m giving my class, I’ll get to spend time with it.
Come join me for a Wok Star cooking class where I show you my simple, NO-RECIPE technique using my Wok Star Kit. And with only a few fresh ingredients and seasonings, dinners are easy and quick with very little cleanup! There’ll be 4 stir fry combinations savored with Gancia Prosecco and Fiji Water.
If you love to express yourself, show off to your date, or learn a new approach to making weeknight dinners, this class is for you! Cooking is more than just about food, it’s about creating experiences and memories with family and friends…
Click to book your class, buy a Mother’s Day gift certificate, view menu and more class details
Red Light Miami, Haiti Relief soiree
Maud and Everett thank Chef Kris Wesselfor hosting a Haiti Relief Soiree
at his restaurant
Red Light little river
7700 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, FL 33138
“Don’t Forget Haiti” donation table, lots more on the side wall.
It was perfect weather, no rain or humidity.
I forgot I had my camera so I missed the delightful “Pass Arounds”:
Assorted grilled cheese finger sandwiches
Oyster pies & ceviche minis
Met some wonderful foodies at my table.
Starters:
BBQ shrimp in worcestershire sauce with crusty bread
This was nominated as a top 100 favorite dishes
in Best of Miami, New Times. I picked the one!
Can you tell I enjoyed those? In Asia, we like to suck
the heads but I didn’t feel I should do it
in public, a bit noisy.
Creamy leek soup with absinthe whip & golden crab.
Spring salad, fennel, citrus, goat cheese & almonds.
Mains:Local Mutton Snapper, lemon pan braised with
pink lentils & baby spinach.
Grilled New York strip, white cheddar soufflepotatoes & green veg steam.
Sour orange roasted chicken on the river grill,corn hash & vinegar green beans.
(The chicken was so tender and tasty,
not oversalted)
Sweet:Florida lemon pie
Bourbon pecan pie w/chocolate gelato(it was a perfect end to a fabulous dinner)
Enjoying a bit of dancing.
Thanks to Maude and Everett for organizingthis foodie event. Maude is obviously in her element.
Visit Maude’s blog on her take of the event.
Also thanks to Joan for sharing some great photos.
I’m working to upload more people shots on Facebook.
What I like most about Red Light is the way Kris has put
his heart and soul into making it cozy and relaxing.
Reminds me a little of Key West, he’s kept it rustic.
If you ever want to experience local color and personality,
this is the place. I had a quiet, leisurely lunch there
and saw 7 manatees swim by, amazing!
Keep up the good work, Kris.
Take a look at his website, it will immediately make you want to go!
Red Light little river
If you visit Miami, definitely try
Red Light little river, you won’t be disappointed.
Food for Thought wrote a lovely review on Red Light as well as many restaurant reveiws in Florida and beyond. I really respect his judgement and have visited restaurants based on his reviews.
Lots more on Kris at New Times.
New Times food critic, Lee Klein chats to Chef Kris Wessel about his James Beard nomination. He didn’t get into the finals but he sure deserved to be nominated.
I hope to post more on restaurants I’ve frequented on my travels. These are not meant to be reviews or critiques, just observations and maybe tips on what to order that I’ve personally tried and liked.
Foodies: if you were there that night, feel free to add links to any photos, posts in your comment.
