Blind Tasting Bingo #2 with Kim Boyce of Bakeshop

 5351 NE Sandy Blvd & 54th Ave • bakeshoppdx.com • 503.946.8884

Hours: Wed-Sun 7am-2pm

Just a few weeks ago, I attended my first Blind Tasting Bingo event with Nostrana’s Cathy Whims, hosted by Edible Portland. It was a super fun, completely strange experience, eating blindfolded and then trying to guess what it was you just ate. While that meal was delicious, I was particularly excited about the second Blind Bingo I was going to attend with Kim Boyce, an amazing James Beard winning pastry chef.

Not only did I figure I could guess baked goods better than Italian dishes like head cheese (eek), I obviously was excited about a giant dinner of pastries.

(Side note: As I couldn’t take any photos – well I tried to take one blindfolded but it just was a blurry mess- below are a few photos from previous Bakeshop visits.)

Bakeshop’s Sweet & Salty Cookie

I particularly loved her savory pastries like the Cheese Straw and the Bacon Cheddar Scone, made with graham flour of all things. The Pig n Blanket was a fantastic twist on a classic American snack for kiddos. According to Kim, this was made as a slight joke in the bakery. But with their croissant dough and Olympic Provisions mini sausage, it is seriously delicious.

On the sweet side, my favorites included the Raspberry Crumble Bar with a tart filling with a sweet, brown sugar topping and the Kamut Sand Cookie, which was very similar to shortbread. I had never heard of Kamut flour before, so it was great trying this ancient grain made from khorasan wheat, known for its buttery, nutty flavor.

Perhaps to satisfy my never-ending chocolate craving, I also really loved what Kim dubbed the “Cookie with White Flour” on our bingo boards. Essentially this was the mistaken cookie. The bakers were trying to make their awesome Sweet & Salty Cookie, complete with chocolate chips, raisins and sunflower seeds, but they accidentally added white flour instead of whole-grain. As a result, they didn’t sell it in the shop but brought it in for our dinner so we could taste the comparison between white and whole-grain flours.

I did so much better than the Nostrana dinner – only got 3 wrong!

Fortunately, most of these items can all be found at Kim’s NE bakery. And luckily for you, you can actually see with your own eyes what you’re going to eat! You can also find Bakeshop’s fabulous pastries at numerous cafes around town, such as Salt & Straw for when you’re craving more than just ice cream or the Daily Cafe, which serves one of my favorite Sunday brunches (in big part to Kim’s incredible scones).

Looking awesome with our “masks down.” It was slightly awkward looking at a camera, not knowing actually where it is.

Kim has a wealth of knowledge about whole grains. If you’re interested in learning more, like how to better incorporate whole grains into your baking or what flours go best with what kind of items, I highly recommend checking out her cookbook, Good to the Grain. It also includes the recipe for her famous Figgy Buckwheat Scones!

Molly got a BINGO and won a bottle of tequila! Woo hoo!