7.29.2013

birthday shenanigans

As you all know I celebrated my birthday this weekend. Minus the fact that I am officially old ballz 25, I couldn't have asked for a better weekend. On top of the Nike Fuel Band that Brad got me, he also made me cook my own dinner on Friday night at the Portland Culinary Workshop... and I had a blast. 


We attended a 4 course cooking class that featured a Sommelier and wine pairing with each course. 


The kitchen was adorable (and had exposed brick, my favorite!). 


Melinda Casady and Susana Holloway are the owners of PCW and here is what they have to say about the place on their website:
We could wax poetic on how we LOVE food, LOVE to teach and are a hoot to hang with, but the nitty gritty of it all is that we are two smart, hilarious women who talked over a breakfast one morning and knew what we had to do. We had to follow our dream of teaching our way…for you.


Susana was our instructor for the evening and she did a fantastic job of balancing teaching techniques and sharing kitchen tips, with letting us learning on our own.  


These mashed potatoes were lovely, in case you were wondering. 


Check out that form. 


We were paired up with another couple for the evening and they were super friendly, which made the experience more enjoyable, since we did have to share equipment and food with them. 


My favorite dish of the evening, besides the Pork entree, was the Huckleberry and Rhubarb compote over ice cream. 


It was paired with a sweet port and it was fantastic. 


Do you have these must have items in your pantry? If not, get on it! 


Once we were done prepping our food, the whole group (24 of us total) sat down family style for the meal, while the Sommelier, Maxine Borcherdine, explained each of her wine pairings. I found that portion of the evening super informative, because while I know my way around a kitchen fairly well and have worked in a restaurant, I am by no means a wine expert. 


Like I said, how cute is this space? The tables were made from doors and that brick, I want! 


Plus we got to take home goodie bags that each featured a 10 inch chef's knife. Yes please! 

Needless to say, I had a great evening and a great birthday weekend and I HIGHLY recommend checking out one of PCW's classes if you're in the Portland area or ever want to come visit me and cook together!!!! 


Cheers to 25! 

<3 BB 

29 comments

Anonymous said...

sounds like an awesome birthday weekend! pics look amazingggg..

and if you're 25 and feel old, i'm 37..imagine how i feel! :D

Katie said...

happy birthday! what a cool experience.

i want to live thereeeee

Rachel Sedaker said...

What a cool way to celebrate your birthday! Sounds like fun :)

Nini Kat said...

Sounds so much fun! When I read "made me cook my own dinner" i thought "RUDE!" lol But then I kept reading. I definitely want to do something fun like that too for my bday!

Erin said...

Happy belated birthday! Looks like a lot of fun. I think I should visit.

Karoline said...

That sounds like SUCH a fun way to spend your birthday!! That place looks awesome!

LG @ thelaurelgazette.com said...

What a great gift!!! Looks like you guys had a blast. Happy belated birthday!!!

Motormouth Macey said...

You guys are just too, too cute together! Looks like a fun way to celebrate turning 25!

henning love said...

oh my gosh what a fun birthday activity!! you and your man are the cutest by the way. i love those glasses you are wearing. heres to 25!!

Unknown said...

This looks like soooo much fun! It would be a perfect birthday gift/meal for me and my hubs. 25 was one of my favorite years yet. I hope yours is just as good!

Kalyn P said...

That looks like so much fun! I took a Hawaiian themed cooking class a few years ago, and it was tons of fun! Something I would definitely do again.

Lauren said...

Oooh, Brad did a great job! The setting and menu are fantastic and I enjoy meals so much more when they are intentionally paired with a specific wine.

Anna @ A Dash of Quirky said...

That looks like so much fun!! Just found your blog via Passionfruit - hello from a fellow Portlander!!! :)

Life of Whimsy said...

This post makes me hungry. Loving the fancy mashed taters. Birthday greatness!

Tami said...

Welcome to the old ballz club! This is an excellent birthday present. So fun.

Jill J. said...

OMG, I hate potatoes and before I knew that's what those were, I almost liked them. Scary.

Hope you had a fab birthday!!!

Jill
Classy with a Kick

Create/Enjoy (@suzannahstanley) said...

Cooking class sounds so fun!!!! My husband and I would totally love to do something like that, I'll definitely check them out! Happy birthday!

Anonymous said...

happy birthday! and.. those mashed potatoes look like art. delicious.

Jenn said...

25 is old.. uh oh then I am ancient! Happy Birthday! Hubs and I have been looking for a good cooking class. thanks for the review!

Morgan said...

That is probably the coolest place I have ever seen. I love food. I love wine...I'd say it's a match made in heaven! Now if I only lived closer..

Emmett Katherine said...

Happy Birthday :) This is such a creative and fun way to celebrate your birthday! Your mashed potatoes look fabulous, although at first glance I thought they were whipped cream!

Em

❤ Meghan said...

happy belated birthday! looks like you guys had a great weekend!

Sara Elizabeth said...

Um that looks like SO much fun! Great food and wine, what else is there on a birthday?! More wine, probably...duh. I keep looking into classes at Sur and Viking, maybe we will finally go for it!

JumpingJE said...

Oh yeah girl squeeze those mashed taters.

Bad Luck Jenn said...

How friggin fun was that?! Sounds like a fabulous birthday!! Do I have any of those must haves in my pantry? Umm... worchestire I think is it! Is that bad??

Unknown said...

I have ALWAYS wanted to do that! It looks like so much fun!

OrangeMew said...

I love the idea of a cooking class- you get to learn something and do an activity with someone, but you also get to EAT!

Kasey Lynne said...

25?? Girl, I have three years on you. Nice try :P

A cooking class? How fun! I would suck at it, but it would be fun! Love your glasses, btw. And if your hair is naturally that wavy/curly, I'll just start hating you right now.

Aubrie said...

Happy Belated birthday. Sounds like you had fun, I'll have to check out PCW.