18 Things I Loved in 2008

Today's FoodDay section of the Oregonian is dedicated to the "100 Things We (Absolutely) Love," highlights from 2008 chosen from the submissions of staff and contributors. They picked 18 (!) of my faves and, listed by category, they were:

• Things we like to read, watch and click on: Documentaries made by Cooking Up A Story; the movie "King Corn"; and Mark Bittman's blog Bitten.
• What you'll find in our cupboards: Spices from Fiji Emporium; and castelvetrano olives marinated in fennel pollen, orange zest and olive oil.
• What we love from the farms: Organic Amish Butter and Pink Beauty popcorn from Ayers Creek Farm; papalo leaves and fresh garbanzo beans from the Amaro Brothers Produce at the Forest Grove Farmers' Market; and collard tops from Osmogaia at People's Farmers' Market.
• Places we like to visit when we leave our kitchens: Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB).
• What we like to find in our glass: Suzanne's gimlet at 50 plates.
• What we like to eat when we're not the ones cooking: Pork belly and scrambled eggs at Toast; Cellar Door coffee; devilled eggs at Evoe; chicken wings at Vindalho; and whole fried anchovies at Clyde Common.
• What we reach for in the kitchen: Our Weber smoker.
• The mélange of favorites: Cheesemaking classes at Kookoolan Farms; Frank Morton of Wild Garden Seed in Philomath.