TASTEMAKERS

My husband and I attended Salt Lake Magazines first ever Tastemakers event this past week (May 19 and 20, 2011 5pm-10pm). It was quite the event and also quite a success for a first time and for SLC! Salt Lake Magazine sold 1000 tickets (the maximum amount) and even in chilly, dreary and rainy weather, everyone came and made the most of what I hope will be an event that becomes tradition.

The idea was a kind of "stroll" through different food tents and restaurants throughout the city where you tasted mini bites from local vendors and got a passport stamped as you went along. The tickets were reasonable ($20 with an optional $10 wine/beer pairing). We made the absolute most of the event and got our passport stamped in full. We bumped into friends throughout the stroll, chatted, ate, sipped and had a great time! It was exciting to see our city support this event and to see so many people having fun eating. Below you can find a list of all participating restaurants and their offerings as well as some photos:

IN THE TENT:

Blue Lemon Bistro~ Salmon BLT Canape
Caffe Niche~ Grapefruit "Brulee"
Easy Street~ Lobster Mac & Cheese (my favorite!!!)
Gracie's~ Gracie's Crown Rib's (served with a veggie mac)
Martine Cafe & Tapas~ Morgan Valley Lamb Kibbe
Meditrina~ Scottish Salmon Crudo
Talisker On Main~ Ballard Farms Pork Loin Medallions
The Downtown Farmers Market~ Tastings from Liberty Heights Fresh, Tulie Bakery, Rico Brand and Cali's Natural Foods

AROUND THE CITY:

Benihana~ Sushi Roll Sampler
Caffe Molise~ Pollo Alla Gratella
Christopher's~ Stuffed Tenderloin of Beef
J. Wong's Asian Bistro~ Salted Baked Shrimp
Market Street Grill~ Maryland Lump Crab Cake
Metropolitan Restaurant~ White Albacore Crudo
Naked Fish~ Sashimi Trio
Ruth's Chris~ Prime Slider
Squatters~ Mussles and FritesThe top food photo is the offering from Metropolitan. Delicious and simple. The rain REALLY hit once we entered the restaurant so we got comfy, ordered a glass of wine and watched it pour while we nibbled on the albacore crudo. Photo #2 is the prime slider from Ruth's Chris. It was my second favorite offering. Generously portioned and incredibly flavorful, we were seated at the bar and served these sliders. As completely stuffed as we were... I probably could have downed 5 of these... YUM! Photo #3 is the sashimi sampler from Naked Fish. How beautiful is it?!? I say it gets the award for most lovely presentation. It was also super tasty!

If you want "juicy" comments... I don't have many. Let's see... I felt horrible for Meditrina. The 1st night, the Salt Lake County Health Dept. shut them down for trying to serve "raw fish" (crudo) that the health department had already pre-approved. They were there on night 2 and the crudo was light and perfect! Every glass of red wine served was ice cold so I think the vendors could have put more care into that and... some of the restaurants got so incredibly busy with their regular evening service and us at Tastemakers that they treated some patrons poorly... that's a kink that absolutely needs to be ironed out by next year. That's it. It truly was delicious and a lot of fun! Way to go SLC and Salt Lake Magazine!

Whipped Key Lime Curd Tarts

I feel like we may be officially ready (?) to welcome spring here to Utah. It's been a wacky season so far... lot's of snow, rain and hail storms. No one has had a chance to plant a garden that will survive but this 1st day of May brings sun and warmth and hope that we'll get at least a month of spring-like weather before the hot summer hits us! I made these tarts for Easter and they were creamy and delicious. I am such a fan of key lime and have a favorite key lime tart that is made by a local bakery, Cafe Normandie, here in Salt Lake. I have been trying to nail down their recipe for years... these tarts come close. A lot of times I feel like people's key lime ends up tasting what I imagine Pine Sol would taste like... they have a sort of cleaner smell and taste. This gives key lime a bad name because it's truly one of my personal favorite flavors... when done right. I made these mini and with a graham cracker crust (graham cracker crumbs, butter, sugar and a little cinnamon). Normandie makes theirs in a shortbread crust and I've had delicious key lime in a chocolate crust. Do as you wish but please... make these soon! You will love them!

Whipped Key Lime Curd Tarts

For the Lime Curd
1/2 Cup sugar
2 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
the juice from 10 key limes
the zest from 4 key limes
6 Tablespoons butter

Place the sugar, whole eggs, egg yolks, juice and zest in a medium pan and whisk to combine. Heat and continue to constantly whisk until the mixture turns pale and thickens (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and whisk in the butter. Store in jars or an airtight container for up to one month.

For the tarts
2 Cups key lime curd
2 cups whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 Tablespoons sugar

Whip the cream until it thickens quite a lot (about 5 minutes) then add the vanilla and sugar. Fold the lime curd in with a rubber spatula and fill desired shells/crusts. Chill 2 hours then top with additional whipped cream if desired. Allow to come to room temperature for 10 minutes before serving.