Recipe for Community
In the bustling kitchen of Trish Smith, a gastronomic journey spanning continents, cultures and kitchens unfolds. Her debut cookbook, Feeding My Friends: Your Guide to Easy and Elegant Ways to Treat Your Family and Friends, is an intimate glimpse into a world where food is the ultimate connector.
Raised in the Yakima Valley among farmers and foodies, Smith was introduced to impossibly fresh food and culinary improvisation by her mother and grandmother. “Those early memories of food and family
laid the groundwork for this book,” she mused. Studying abroad in Florence, Italy, broadened her culinary horizons, immersing her in a culture where food was a bridge for connection and celebration. Smith’s path was also profoundly influenced by Julia Child, who transformed cooking from a mundane chore into a joyous adventure.
Since making Bend their home in 1970, Trish Smith and her late-husband, Bill, were central to the community’s growth and transformation. Their collaborative efforts turned a sleepy mill town into a vibrant destination. Smith’s dedication to civic initiatives, her passion for teaching and her legendary dinner parties significantly shaped Bend’s culinary culture.
A LOVE LETTER TO FOOD, FAMILY AND FRIENDSHIP
As much a personal memoir as it is a cookbook, Feeding My Friends charts the journey of the community’s transformation, intertwining Smith’s own adventures with those of the people and places she’s encountered along the way. A feast of stories traverses Bend’s gastronomic landscape, highlighting iconic landmarks such as the Pine Tavern and emphasizing the significant influence of Central Oregon Community College’s Culinary Institute on the local food scene.
Feeding My Friends presents a curated collection of more than 200 beloved recipes, each reverse-engineered from memory and meticulously adapted for the home chef. Smith’s culinary philosophy is a lively dance of creativity, tradition and inevitable kitchen chaos. It invites readers into a world where every meal becomes an opportunity to share a piece of their journey with others.
FROM FIRST SIPS TO LAST CRUMBS
Smith’s recipes extend across the culinary day, from dawn’s first light to the night’s last bite. The winding journey through meals and flavors is punctuated by family favorites, such as the Lamborghini lamb patties, inspired by a sun-drenched patio in Northern California, and the irresistible Lemon Pudding Cake, a dessert so delightful it won the heart of Gordy, the family’s discerning dog.
Feeding My Friends celebrates the tactile, often chaotic joy of cooking. Smith elevates the cookbook beyond simple sustenance, peppering the pages with lagniappes—charming tidbits that merge insight with levity, highlighted by revelations such as GRITS, used as an acronym for “Girls Raised in the South.” She encourages even the most hesitant cooks to dive in to recipes with the reassurance that culinary excellence isn’t about perfection. Instead, it’s a joyful journey into the heart of community and connection. Find your copy at Kara’s Kitchenware and the Ticket Mill in the Old Mill District.
PORCHETTA RECIPE
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds pork loin
- 4 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped
- 2 heads of garlic, halved crosswise
- 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh rosemary, plus 4 sprigs
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel pollen (optional)
- Red pepper flakes to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 lemon, zested
- Kosher salt to taste
- Black pepper, coarsely ground to taste
- 4 slices bacon
Instructions:
Toss the chopped garlic, rosemary, fennel seeds, fennel pollen, red pepper flakes and lemon zest together in a bowl and stir to combine with one tablespoon olive oil, plus kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Rub seasonings over the pork loin and let marinate in the refrigerator until ready to cook.
Heat oven to 425 degrees. While the oven warms, scatter the rosemary sprigs in a large baking dish. Wrap the bacon around the tenderloin, tucking the ends underneath so they stay put, and place the tenderloin on top. Nestle the garlic halves around the meat, and drizzle everything with the remaining olive oil.
Roast meat for about 40 to 45 minutes until it reaches a 145 degree internal temperature. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
BEET, ORANGE AND GOAT CHEESE SALAD RECIPE
Ingredients
- 3-4 beets, red, golden or striped
- 2 navel oranges
- 2 Cara Cara oranges
(for its red-colored flesh) - 3-4 ounces high-quality goat cheese
- Fresh baby arugula
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
- 1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar
- 1-2 tablespoons local honey
- 1 tablespoon shallot, finely diced
- ¼ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- Kosher salt to taste
- Black pepper, coarsely ground to taste
- Lemon juice or vinegar to prepare beets
Instructions
Trim beets and boil in a large pot of water with two tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice for about 45 minutes to an hour until knife-tender. Drain into a colander, running cold water over them to cool. Once cooled, cut the top and bottoms off. The skin should slide off easily under running water. Dice beets by slicing them horizontally into ½ inch slices, then cutting in opposite directions to form cubes. Set aside.
Slice off both ends of the oranges. Use a sharp knife to remove the skin and white pith, moving from top to bottom and working your way around the orange. Either section the oranges or slice them into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
For the dressing, combine olive oil, orange juice, Champagne vinegar, honey, shallot and mustard, and whisk to emulsify. Assemble the salad in rows, lengthwise, starting with the orange-colored beets, then red beets, goat cheese, arugula, navel oranges and Cara Cara oranges. Lightly salt and pepper the entire salad. Drizzle dressing over the top of each row. Serve cold. (NOTE: This versatile salad can be made with other ingredients tailored to a diner’s preferences and/or allergies. Toasted pine nuts or sunflower seeds are an optional topping.)
SALTED CARAMEL & APPLE TARTE TATIN
Ingredients
- 1 Pillsbury pie crust, thawed
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¾ cup sugar
- 6-7 crisp red apples (such as Gala or Honeycrisp), peeled, cored and quartered
- 1-2 teaspoons large-grain sea salt
- 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for an egg wash
- For serving: French vanilla ice cream or crème fraîche
Instructions
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out pie crust on a board dusted with flour until crust is thin.
In a 10-inch nonstick, oven-proof frying pan, melt the butter. Add the sugar and stir to combine, about two minutes until it’s just starting to brown and is a bit lumpy. Arrange apple quarters—round sides down—at the bottom of the pan until they fit snugly in a single layer. Generously sprinkle with large-grain sea salt. Reduce heat and cook until the caramel is brown but not burned. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for another five minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Raise oven temperature to 450 degrees.
Carefully fit pie crust over the cooked apples, using fingers or a small knife to tuck the excess pastry inside the rim of the pan. Make the egg wash by briskly stirring in one tablespoon of cold water until combined. Using a pastry brush, gently paint the crust without leaving puddles on top. Bake until crisp and golden brown, about 20 minutes. Carefully remove from the oven. Run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the tarte. Place a 12-inch serving platter upside down over the pan. Wearing oven mitts, quickly invert the pan and platter together. Be careful of the hot pan and juices. Lift off the pan and voila! Cut tarte tatin into wedges and serve with ice cream.