Newport Seafood and Wine Festival

Mary Bellando of Wines by Joe is always happy to share her knowledge of wine

If you like wine, or if you like seafood (I happen to love both), there is only one place to be next weekend: The 33rd Annual Newport Seafood and Wine Festival.
The Oregon coast will be buzzing with activity next weekend for one of Newport’s busiest weekends of the year. The Newport Seafood and Wine Festival is one of the biggest and most well attended festivals of its kind in the Northwest taking place the last weekend of every February.
The festival is produced by the Newport Chamber of Commerce and will have a multitude of craft vendors selling anything from pottery to jewelry, art to wine accessories. Even if you’re not a fan of seafood and wine the people watching and craft vendors might make it worth your while.
The food at the festival is about as fresh as it comes, from the crab dinners, freshly shucked Yaquina Bay Oysters, to the fabulous and famous clam chowder from Newport Café. There are also vendors selling products like the garlic stuffed olives from the Garlic Gourmay, and packaged smoked salmon that you can take home with you.
Perhaps the biggest draw though is the wine; the festival has over 60 wineries with the chance to taste hundreds of wines from all across the state. It’s the opportunity to sample Pinot Noirs (Oregon’s premier grape) from different regions, side by side. Don’t like red wine? That’s ok, the festival has Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Gris and some sparkling wines for those who like their bubbly. Rogue Brewery will also be pouring beer for those who aren’t interested in wine, and there is even a booth serving Sake.
Tickets can be purchased for $25 for the three day pass, or you can buy tickets for each day, Sunday’s price is as low as five dollars. Tickets can be purchased on-line at http://www.newportchamber.org/, or purchased at the event, just be expected to wait in a long line if purchasing tickets at the door.
According to a volunteer they are expecting around 15,000 people for this year’s event.
Shuttle service runs frequently from many locations which is recommended as parking can be a nightmare. Some things you might want to consider; take plenty of cash, last year there were only two ATM’s and people were waiting in line for hours to take cash out, drink plenty of water, it can get a little muggy in the tents and you’ve got a full day of drinking in front of you. Expect large crowds, this is a very busy event and the tents will be packed and the atmosphere is just short of a frenzy. Every time a glass hits the ground the crowd erupts in cheers, this is standard practice.
So if you’re looking for something to do next weekend take a trip down to the Oregon coast and try out some local flavors, do some people watching and maybe try out some new wine, and don’t forget about the chowder.

Newport Cafe's famous Clam Chowder


At a glance:
What: Newport Seafood and Wine Festival
When: Feb. 26,27,28
Where:The South Beach Marina Parking Lot, near the Rogue Ales Warehouse, 2320 OSU Drive, just south of downtown Newport.
21 and over only

Deconstructed Beef and Broccoli

This week to put a twist on the ten dollar budget, I asked my friend to pick one mystery ingredient that had to be incorporated into the meal. He picked flank steak. Yikes! Flank steak is great, one of my favorite cuts, but a touch expensive when doing things on a budget. That’s ok I like a challenge. I’ll just have to be creative and use some things found commonly in the kitchen and don’t add additional cost…to go packets! You know the kind; everyone has some lying around in a kitchen drawer.
Beef and Broccoli:
Shopping list:
1 lb flank steak $5.99
¾ lb broccoli .99
1 cup rice, basmati or jasmine @$1
1 onion 52 cents
8 cloves garlic 50 cents

1 packet crushed red pepper from any pizza place
3 packets honey
7 packets soy sauce
2 packets Chinese hot mustard

For marinade: add four cloves of sliced garlic, crushed red peppers, four packets of soy sauce and one packet of honey, add to meat and marinade for at least two hours up to overnight.

In a heavy skillet (I use cast iron) on medium high heat, cook flank steak so it gets a nice sear, about 5-6 minutes on each side. Let rest five minutes before slicing against the grain.

Sauté onions in ½ tablespoon of olive oil until translucent, add two cloves sliced garlic, three packets of soy sauce, two packets of honey, two packets of hot mustard and 2 tablespoons water. Cook until slightly thickened.

Drizzle the sauce over garlic-sautéed broccoli and sliced beef and serve over a bed of rice.

Wild Mushroom Risotto

Wild Mushroom Risotto

Risotto is one of those dishes that I usually only order at an Italian restaurant, I know how to cook it but it can often take longer to prepare then I care to spend. The classic way of making risotto entails stirring the Arborio rice constantly while slowly adding warm stock or broth. Since I always have a bag of Japanese rice on hand and it is very glutinous and similar to the Arborio rice used in Risotto, I used it. I even have a rice cooker so preparation is that much easier.
2 cups rice $1.00
½ lb. wild mushrooms $6.00
3 green onions $.40
½ cup half and half $.75
½ cup parmesan $1.25
2 Tbs. butter
1 Tbs. olive oil
Total: $9.40

Prepare the rice according to package directions, use a rice cooker if you have one. Use short grain white rice for best results.

Use a variety of mushrooms which can be found at local farmers markets or if you prefer you can use mushrooms found at your local grocery store. I picked Lion’s Mane, Morels and Black Trumpet mushrooms, but most mushrooms would work. I submerge them in a bowl of cold water and gently agitate them to remove any dirt.

Sauté the mushrooms in one tablespoon each of butter and olive oil over medium high heat for a few minutes, I cook each type of mushroom separately to avoid crowding the pan. Remove from pan and set aside.

In the same pan mushrooms were cooked in, add remaining tablespoon of butter and sauté sliced green onions for about one minute, add cream, rice and parmesan cheese. Stir until all ingredients are completely incorporated then gently fold in cooked mushrooms.

If you don’t like mushrooms, asparagus or seafood would make a great substitution.