This summer I co-hosted our 12th Secret Supper with Danielle Firle, and Mona and Jaret of Tournant. The supper took place out at Hama Hama Oyster Farm outside of Seattle, Washington on the hood canal on one of the sunniest days of the summer. The weather was perfect; warm with a slight breeze that brought the fresh smell of the salty sea air to the forefront. Mona and Jaret created an incredible menu that incorporated the local seafood and seasonal produce into each course, starting with oysters fresh from Hama Hama. They paired raw oysters with with a cucumber mignonette and their Grilled Hama Hama Oysters with a homemade seaweed butter. Our guests were greeted with these goodies, as well as a generous pour of Alit wines champagne. When it was time for them to take a seat around the table, they discovered that a little chocolate shaped like an oyster shell was waiting for them on each of their plates. Each one was handmade by our friend and incredibly talented chocolatier, Joseph F. Rodriguez, who made them special just for our secret supper guests.
For the first course of the secret supper, we served Tournant’s northwest clam chowder, complete with Hama Hama clams, smoked salmon, marble potatoes, and a fennel nage. To make it extra special, we served the chowder in a cast iron pot and placed hot stones in it at the table to bring it up to a boil and quickly cook the clams to ensure their flavor was as fresh as possible. It was quite the beautiful and steamy surprise for our guests. This was followed by a refreshing summer BLT salad with little gem lettuce, heirloom tomatoes, french dressing, and salt block bacon cooked until crispy in cast iron Finex skillets over the fire. For the main, there was delicious grilled cedar-planked halibut, summer succotash, malt vinegar aioli, and potato chips fried in California Olive Ranch Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The last course was an olive oil cake that I made with lime curd between each layer, vanilla buttercream on the exterior, and roasted stone fruits on top. The cake was made with California Olive Ranch extra virgin olive oil and the buttercream was made with delicious cultured butter from Vermont Creamery. Every course was paired with delicious wines from Alit winery, except for the dessert, which we paired with Steven Smith Teamaker iced teas and Stumptown cold brew coffee, depending on the guest’s preference between the two.
Gwen of Botanically Inspired made the most beautiful floral arrangements, and she and Danielle also created little driftwood centerpieces from shells and wood foraged from the shores of the canal. Amy Rochelle Press designed and printed beautiful custom menus for our gathering, which she hand-painted with a streak of silver to match the opalescence of the oyster shell’s interior. The table was set with handmade ceramic plates from Carter & Rose, and we used beautiful serving pieces from Crate & Barrel to plate each of the family-style dishes that was brought out. At the end of the evening, each of our guests got to take home a bottle of their very own California Olive Ranch extra virgin olive oil to use at home in their own kitchens. We hope that this supper helped inspire them to get cooking with seasonal and local ingredients once they got back home 🙂
A huge thanks to all of our volunteers for making this secret supper a reality and venturing up to Washington with us for our first out-of-state supper. Sofia, Jeanette, Gwen, Stephanie, Maki, Selene, and Sidney, you are all amazing and we couldn’t have done it without you! As of right now, we’re working on planning out the suppers for 2018 and I can’t wait to dive into all of the creative possibilities with these folks. Danielle, Mona, & Jaret are a dream to work with and I’m very much looking forward to seeing where the next year takes us in our supper adventures!
Thank you to our sponsors for making this gathering possible!
Hama Hama Oyster Farm | Venue
California Olive Ranch | Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Amy Rochelle Press | Menus
Joseph F. Rodriguez | Handmade Chocolate Oysters
Stumptown | Cold Brew Coffee
Steven Smith Teamaker | Iced Tea
Vermont Creamery | Creme Fraiche, Cultured Butter, Goat’s Cheese
Alit Winery | Wines
Menu
Oyster Social
Hama Hama Oysters on the halfshell
with cucumber mignonette
Grilled Hama Hama Oysters
with seaweed butter
Northwest ‘Clam Chowder’
Hama Hama clams, smoked salmon, marble potatoes, fennel nage
BLT Salad
Little gem lettuce, heirloom tomatoes, french dressing, salt block bacon
Fish + Chips
Grilled Halibut, summer succotash, malt vinegar aioli, olive oil fried potato chips
Naked Summer Layer Cake
Olive Oil Cake with Lime Curd, Buttercream, and Roasted Stone Fruits
Totally in love with this atmosphere. These pictures are like a precious thread that embroiders memories. Even those who are not with you have the perception of living those moments. <3
Thank you so much Rebecka!
Oh I love this idea! It seems like such a great gathering theme and beyond fun! Also, those photos are extremely gorgeous. All-in-all, wish I was there! xoxo
I wish you were there too! Would love to have you join us someday <3
What a stunning event!
Kari
http://sweetteasweetie.com/apple-garnacha-wine-sauce-pork-tenderloin/
Thanks so much Kari!
I know I sound like a broken record but these are such gorgeous captures and memories. My heart literally and actually leaped and these might be some of the most beautiful photos I’ve ever seen!!!! <33 And Eva, you are so blessed to work with these kinds of creative souls.
You are so incredibly sweet Ellie!! Thank you so much for your kind words <3 And yes I am so incredibly lucky to work with such creative and inspiring people. They are the best!!
What an amazing night, that’s to your pictures, it’s almost like we were there with you ! Can’t wait to see the new secret supper dates, I will definitely join you in the future !
I’m so glad you felt captured by the spirit of the supper, Valerie! Would love to have you attend!
Wow! This is so beautiful!. I love the styling of the whole supper and your photos. x
Awwww thanks Stefanie!! Hope you are well my dear <3
It was a fabulous night. The food was amazing. The atmosphere was unforgettable-but these images are stupendous. Love, love them.
Thanks so much for joining us Nora!! We had the most amazing time hosting 🙂
love oysters and your setting, I’m jealous since I’ve always wanted to put this very dinner party together, at least this provides lovely inspiration, so thank you for sharing this beautiful event!
Your secret suppers in the out of doors sound wonderful. Nice to see the PNW value their seafood like we do here in Boston. Wish we were closer, to be part of one . Your sea side fish and seafood supper cooked over wood and stone soup style chowder looks so yummy I could eat it right now, especially the chowder and planked halibut sounds out of this world. At least your shore side temps must be comfortable. I see lots of long sleeves, shirts and long skirts and no cheeky shorts. I hate heat and humidity. Keep writing about these secret suppers, I will enjoy reading about them. Fair well from frigid Boston,MA in January.(PS.pumpkin pancakes and butternut Chile recipes saved, sound yummy especially in Winter Cold.)
This dinner looked amazing!!! Is it possible for you to share the recipe for the Naked Olive Oil cake?? Would love to make it for a late summer dinner.
Thanks
I have read all the secret supper posts and this one is my favorite. I especially LOVE smoked salmon and oysters. Thanks for sharing Eva!
These pictures are like a precious thread that embroiders memories. doodle jump
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