David Ross

I would agree. Thinking about it more, I would put oats on a Fall fruit dish, like apples, but still in limited amounts.

And I thought I was the only "no-oats" person. Not that I don't like oats in cooking, but in a summer fruit crisp I think oats jumble things up and soak up too much of the warm juices that seep out of the fruit.

Sounds wonderful I'll try it. When I lived in Salem Oregon the blackberries grew wild everywhere. Some folks thought they were weeds but I knew better!

I like the orange peel idea

In Eastern Washington we usually don't see peaches until mid-August, and my tastes have always favored the September peaches. I really gulped 10 days ago when I heard the peaches were ready. How could a peach in this region be ready so early? I headed-up to a grower's cooperative on the slopes of Mount Spokane and asked for the best eating peach they had. Can't remember the variety, but they were huge, juicy and sweet. Delicious. I guess I can't rely on decades of knowledge when Mother Nature makes the final decision on when summer fruit is ripe.

If you look closely at my avatar, you'll see a huckleberry bush. And that's intentional. While I love almost all foods, (with the exception of canned peas, pickled beets and canned creamed corn), for my tastes the huckleberry reigns supreme. (I wrote about my relationship to the huckleberry with a piece for the Daily Gullet, below). This season I wanted to break out of my traditional huckleberry path and use the berries in a new dish, in this case a classic French clafouti. Every year in early summer when the season's crop of Washington Bing cherries arrives, I make a cherry clafouti. But I never made one with huckleberries, and I worried the berries would seep too much juice. How much sugar would I need to add and should I macerate the huckleberries in liquor like I do with cherries? In the end I just went with my instincts using my standard shortbread crust, a tart tin with removable bottom, the same custard recipe, and simply tossing the berries in sugar with no added booze or flavoring. My standard shortbread crust, (which also serves as a buttery base for lemon bars), is a mix of 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup melted butter and 1/3 cup powdered sugar. That will fit in an 8" tart pan, but I doubled the recipe for a 9" tart pan. (I like to have bits leftover to roll into shortbread cookies). Par-baked the shell for about 10 minutes in a 350 oven. Then in went about 1 1/2 cups of huckleberries tossed in a bit of sugar. (You don't need a lot of berries, they pack a lot of tart flavor, and you want to stretch out your stash since this lot cost me $50 bucks for a gallon bag). The custard base is from Joel Robuchon's cherry clafoutis recipe. 2 eggs, 1/2 cup sugar, 6 tbsp. heavy cream and 6 tbsp. milk. I added a tiny wisp of cinnamon and nutmeg. The key to Robchon's clafouti is to save the trimmings from the shortbread crust. Use those little bits of dough to scatter throughout the berries and custard just before baking. It gives a bit of texture and helps the custard set. Into a 350 oven for about 40 minutes until set. Out of the oven and let it cool a bit, I like it served warm, or chilled the next day. Dusted with powdered sugar and then a scoop of vanilla, (or huckleberry), ice cream on the side. This recipe works with any summer berry. Aside from cherries, I've made it with apricots, blueberries and peaches, but I think all the summer fruits would work well.

Raspberries, blackberries, loganberries, marionberries, gooseberries and huckleberries. Peaches, apricots, plums and pluots. And don’t forget the cherries. Pies and ice cream. In a cake, a clafouti or a cookie. Cobblers, crisps, compote’s and Betty’s. Whichever fruit you pick, whichever recipe you choose, there’s no denying the sweetness, the juiciness, the lushness of summer fruits. Yet we never limit our creativity at eGullet, so let’s go beyond the boundaries of sweet dishes and showcase the piquant notes of summer fruits in savory recipes. Blackberry jelly with grilled quail you say? Summer fruits evoke fond childhood memories—the ultimate expression of the words “farm-to-table.” And we each have our own coveted summer fruit recipes, and for me that means the huckleberry, the wild, elusive berries that grow in the high mountain reaches of my native Pacific Northwest. Summer fruits don’t need a lengthy introduction, no limitations on your creativity are necessary. I for one have a number of dishes I’ll be sharing, and I know you’ll enjoy me in tasting the bounty of summer fruits. See our complete Cook-Off Index here: https://forums.egullet.org/topic/143994-egullet-recipe-cook-off-index/

And a fresh huckleberry pie.

It doesn't seem right to have juicy, ripe, sweet peaches in Eastern, Washington, the third week of July. We usually can't get our hands on a good peach around here until late August, but their early arrival doesn't mean they aren't good. This is probably the tastiest peach crop in years.

Grilled Tri-Tip with Chimichurri Sauce. I went overboard on the garlic and red wine vinegar in the chimichurri, but it's always a wonderful condiment to grilled meats in the summer. This was my first try at cooking a tri-tip over charcoal. It weighed almost 4lbs. and took about 40 minutes to get to medium-rare.

Well, fresh huckleberries are here and they are about 3 weeks early. I cringe at the thought as the best huckleberries come in years where they are still being picked into September. But we can't fight Mother Nature. The prices vary widely right now, from $45 for a gallon bag at a farmer's market to $65 a gallon at a country store. I have a gallon of fresh berries, but haven't tasted them yet. Probably a traditional pie this weekend. Of course, the pickers want to scare you into buying now rather than holding out. According to them you have to get them now as they'll be gone next week. Doubtful on that front and I think we'll see fresh huckleberries for about 3 more weeks.

We were dumbfounded when two weeks ago a local market showed huckleberries available--in the first week of July! I get scared when I hear that as it means the weather through off the natural growing cycle, and I worry that the berries won't be around in September. But I think it's also a sort of gold rush days around here every year. Folks rush into the hills at the first sight of a huckleberry, yet folks like me hang on as long as we can to get the sweetest berries. I'm off to a farmer's market in North Idaho this afternoon and I'll report back on what I find.

Using up the last of the 2015 huckleberry crop. I freeze enough to use throughout the year, then time the last bit to be used just days before I head to the farmer's market to buy the season's fresh berries. By the way, the crop is very early this year. We are now seeing fresh huckleberries when usually we don't see them for another 3 weeks or so. I try to hold off as long as I can because the early berries are far too tart. First time using huckleberries in a clafouti. (The French spell it "clafoutis"). As is always the case with huckleberries, they were incredibly tart yet sweet, with a perfume and taste like no other thing on earth. Shortbread crust of simply butter, powdered sugar and a bit of flour- In go the berries tossed in a bit of sugar- The custard poured in, a blend of milk, cream, egg and a hint of vanilla. Oh and a trick from Robuchon, scatter in some of the crust trimmings to help thicken the custard- The baked huckleberry clafouti- I'll typically dust a clafouti with powdered sugar. Robuchon likes to broil it to caramelize the sugar but I just dust it with sugar. Best served warm, and of course with either ice cream or whipped cream.

After visiting an Indian restaurant in Sacramento last week, I'm now doing some experimenting at home. Last night I did baby back pork ribs in my smoker. Slathered first with a Madras curry paste, (which was mild), then in the smoker for 5 hours at 250 over alder wood. I typically use alder wood for salmon, and would have preferred something like oak or hickory but didn't have any. I couldn't get very close to duplicating the fragrant mint sauce the restaurant served with samosa's, but my version was quite good. About 2 cups fresh mint leaves, 1 cup cilantro leaves, one large clove garlic, 1/2 yellow onion, tamarind juice, sugar, salt, pepper, 1/2 a jalapeno, bit of lemon juice and some water. I'll stir some olive oil in tonight when I use the rest of the mint sauce. Had I used local pork, I suppose I could stretch the descriptor and call it a Northwest farm-to-table Indian dish.

I would so like to be there but can't, so I'll be reading from afar and anticipating your photo posts.

Posole with pigs feet, oxtail, pork neck and hominy. Garnished with radishes, cabbage, cilantro. I was so dang hungry I forgot the lime wedge!

The gathering in Cleveland was memorable and I've missed these ever since. I doing the job search trek right now, but I'll see what I can do to be there.

I rarely buy lobster, but one of our local markets has a special "lobster fest" twice a year with fresh lobsters flown in from a family operation in Maine. The prices are reasonable, and since we don't see much lobster in our stores around here, I bought three pretty large beasts. I've been dabbling with Mexican cuisine for a few weeks and had some freshly made verde sauce with tomatillos and some roasted poblano. I poached the lobster and served it chilled with the verde sauce. Pretty good but it could have used some diced, fresh jalapeno.

They are really tasty. Very good in salads and with chilled seafood.

Very nice, especially the Weisswurst.

You know, that's a good question and honestly I don't have a good answer. Certainly no scientific answer, but I can say that no one has ever gotten ill from the Indian Candy style of salmon I make. In the Northwest, it's just how we've always done it, which doesn't answer the question other than to say it's based in tradition. Freezing the salmon would seem to break down the structure of the meat. In some dishes I think frozen salmon can work, like in a stew or soup. But in smoking and curing, I've always felt that freezing the salmon breaks down the structure of the meat. Little shards of ice seem to form in the flesh, even if the fish is sealed in a tight plastic "food saver" type of bag. Those little ice crystals that form in the meat break down the fibers, thus when the salmon thaws it becomes somewhat soft and mushy. Again, not a scientific statement but my own personal experience. Using the salmon in my method ends with a firm fish, yet moist and juicy. The brining may prevent parasites or food-borne illness. The thing that probably surprises folks is that we pull the salmon out of the brine and let it air-cure, unrefrigerated, for about 4 days. One would worry about flies and such. I suppose it could be air-dried in the fridge for added safety. I dry the salmon on a rack in a back pantry and sometimes, not always, put a loose piece of cheesecloth over it. I have a close friend who is a member of the Duwamish Native American tribe from Western Washington, and they air-dry their salmon outside after brining and prior to smoking. This time of year temperatures during the day in the Seattle area can reach above 80, lows sometimes in the mid 40's. Sorry to not have given a better response to the question, but those are my methods and thoughts.

Pork Perfection.

Folks in the Northwest get all giddy when the first of the season Copper River Salmon starts running. It's incredibly rich, oily salmon and for my tastes worth the price since I only buy it a few times a year when it's in season. Some people prefer the Chinook's, (King Salmon), but I prefer the Sockeye since it has a better oil content which lends perfectly to smoking. When we started this Cook-Off in 2013, one of my dishes was "Indian Candy." It's a more rare form of smoked salmon from what most folks think of. I use the same recipe today that I did in 2013-the salmon is brined, then air-cured, then brushed with honey and slow-smoked. I prefer alder chips as that's one of the woods in the Northwest that have been used to smoke salmon for generations. The only change I made to the preparation this year is I cut the whole salmon into thick filets, leaving the whole fish intact with the skin. That way when the salmon was done I could slip off a large filet rather than chunks. I'm hoping some of you can help us re-generate this popular Cook-Off.

Using the last of the 2015 huckleberry crop, (I keep two gallons frozen to use throughout the year). Huckleberry tarte in puff pastry-

You know I agree with you. At least he did his best, and it was live. Much more worthy than the horrific crap that is being spewed out by Food Network Star.