Monthly Archives: October 2021

The Woodmark: A Lakeside Hotel with Great Dining Options

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On the eastern shore of Lake Washington, at the site of what was once a shipyard, an independent, boutique hotel tempts visitors and locals alike. Every half hour, dockside carillon bells ring out their welcome to gulls and boaters alike. Out of town visitors come for a room with a view and all the luxurious hotel amenities, but many Seattle-area residents flock to The Woodmark for food, spa services, and weddings.

Two waterfront restaurants, Carillon Kitchen and Beach Café offer diners fresh, organic, local foods with a backdrop of Lake Washington and, in the distance, the Olympic Mountains. Executive Chef Brian Doherty, formerly of the Fairmont Olympic and The Four Seasons Seattle, oversees both locations. For twelve years, Doherty’s responsibilities included catering events in the Spanish Ballroom, pretty much the gold standard for private events.

Carillon Kitchen is a chef-driven, community-oriented restaurant offering mouth-watering healthy options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. “Our goal is to make sure everything is fresh and that we’re producing the highest quality product that we can,” says Doherty. “We partnered with Macrina and Olympia Provisions and came up with a beautiful menu.” Other local highlights include Fonté coffee, Beecher’s Handmade Cheese, and Ellenos Yogurt. When Covid-19 shut down other dining options at the hotel, Carillon Kitchen’s grab-and-go concept soared. Locals come in for readily available snacks and meals or order ahead for pickup. Hotel guests enjoy high-quality foods they can eat in their room or take to the beach. Carillon Kitchen is currently open daily for limited dining and takeout from 7:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M.

Beach Café is a casual dining waterfront restaurant with an innovative, seasonally influenced menu featuring daily seafood specials and signature dishes. “It’s a seafood-driven menu focusing on fresh, local ingredients in a beautiful setting,” says Doherty. The lakeside patio fills up fast in good weather, but many interior tables also offer water views. While specials usually feature fresh catch straight from the docks, signature dishes like the Smoked Akaushi New York Strip or Roasted Rack of Lamb will tempt meat lovers. Currently, the restaurant is open Wednesday to Saturday from 5 P.M. to 9 P.M. Doherty aims to be fully open by the end of the year.

The Woodmark is also one of the top destinations in the state for weddings. Doherty, who has earned the chops to produce high-quality meals for large events, oversees the catering department. “The Banquet Department has taken off,” says Doherty. “We’re booked up almost to the end of the year of Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Five to six weddings a weekend. It’s a beautiful venue.”

Just fifteen minutes from downtown Seattle, Beach Café and Carillon Kitchen are waterfront dining options for anyone who loves excellent food in an idyllic PNW setting. Whether you’re interested in grabbing a casual lunch to eat by the beach or looking to linger over an elegant meal with a sunset view, head to Carillon Point in Kirkland and check out The Woodmark.

Italian Cream Cake

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This Italian Cream Cake has three light, buttery sponge cake rounds layered with vanilla pastry cream and conserve and is frosted with sweetened whipped cream. Choose your favorite jam or conserve. Raspberry and blackberry are two of our favorites. You’ll enjoy this cake the first day, but don’t feel like you need to finish it—it’s even better the second day as the sponge cake moistens absorbing the pastry cream and conserve. Keep the cake refrigerated and it’ll keep for up to five days.

INGREDIENTS

Makes one 9-inch cake

SPONGE CAKE
1⅓ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
6 Tbsp (¾ stick) unsalted butter
⅓ cup water
1½ cups sugar, divided
3 eggs, beaten
3½ tsp pure vanilla extract, divided
1 cup favorite jam or fruit conserve
1½ cups heavy cream
1 Tbsp powdered sugar

PASTRY CREAM
4 eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 Tbsp cornstarch
½ cup + 1 Tbsp sugar
1½ cups milk

DIRECTIONS:

SPONGE CAKE
Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush a 9-inch cake pan with oil and line the base with a custom-cut circle of parchment paper. Dust the oiled sides of the pan with flour. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Add the water, mix, and let cool.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add 1¼ cups sugar. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the eggs and 2 tsp vanilla. Whisk at high speed for 5 minutes. The mixture will be light in color and frothy.

Remove the bowl from the mixer. Using a spatula, fold in the flour mixture in 4 additions. With the last addition, add the butter mixture and stir until just combined, ensuring there are no lumps.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake on the center rack for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 30 minutes. Run a paring knife around the edge of the cake. Invert the pan to remove the sponge cake. Let cool to room temperature.

PASTRY CREAM
In a medium bowl, crack the eggs and whisk together with the vanilla, cornstarch and sugar. Ensure no lumps remain.

In a medium saucepan, scald the milk (bringing it just to a boil). Remove it from the heat and slowly ladle the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Transfer the egg mixture back to the saucepan when you have three-quarters of the milk whisked into it. Over medium-low heat, whisk the mixture to prevent it from sticking or curdling. When the mixture has thickened to a pudding-like consistency, pour it into a clean bowl. Cover the top of the pastry cream with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Note: If you spot any lumps in the pastry cream, strain it through a fine-mesh sieve before cooling it.

ASSEMBLY
Using a serrated knife, cut the cake horizontally into 3 equal layers.

Place the bottom layer on a prepared cake board or plate. Spread the conserves over the first layer. Top with the second layer. Spread the chilled pastry cream to the edges. Top with the remaining layer and gently align the edges. Refrigerate the cake for 15 minutes to firm it up.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the heavy cream, remaining 1½ tsp vanilla and remaining ¼cup sugar. Whip to medium-firm peaks.

Cover the top and sides of the cake with the sweetened whipped cream. Use a wet spatula to smooth it out. Garnish the top of the cake with a dusting of powdered sugar and fresh berries if you’d like.

Enjoy!