The Trial for the Murder of Oregon Culinary Institute Instructor Daniel Brophy Has Begun

In 2018, Oregon Culinary Institute instructor Daniel Brophy was fatally shot, discovered inside the building of the now-closed cooking school. Brophy was a longstanding mentor within Portland’s culinary community, with decades of kitchen experience. Months later, his wife — romance novelist Nancy Crampton Brophy — was arrested and charged with murder. More than three years after her arrest, Crampton Brophy, the author of the 2011 essay “How to Murder Your Husband,” now stands trial for the murder of her husband, as opening statements began this week.

Prosecutors argued that Crampton Brophy killed her husband for financial gain: She was the listed beneficiary on Brophy’s multiple life insurance policies, according to prosecutors, and had purchased a Glock pistol at a Portland gun show to kill her husband; allegedly, Crampton Brophy swapped out the gun’s barrel to make the bullets harder to trace. Multnomah County Senior Deputy District Attorney Shawn Overstreet also noted that traffic cameras place Crampton Brophy’s minivan near the culinary school in the window surrounding her husband’s murder. Lead defense attorney Lisa Maxfield argued that, as an insurance salesperson, Crampton Brophy was incentivized to buy multiple policies; she also said that Crampton Brophy suffered financially and emotionally following the death of her husband. Maxfield has yet to address the alleged traffic camera footage, or Crampton Brophy’s whereabouts on the morning of her husband’s death. The trial will continue over the following weeks. Read more about the trial’s opening statements here.

Oregon Chef Matt Kuerbis Will Appear on a New TBS Cooking Show

Kuerbis, the co-founder of hot sauce brand Hoss Sauce, will compete as a contestant on Rat in the Kitchen, a new show featuring chef Ludo Lefebvre and comedian Natasha Leggero. On Rat in the Kitchen, contestants prepare dishes like they would on any other competitive cooking show; however, they also have to contend with an incognito “rat,” who will try to sabotage their work — basically Among Us meets Cutthroat Kitchen. Kuerbis’s episode airs April 14th.

Chef Alexander Diestra Helms the Kitchen at King Tide Fish & Shell

Chef Alexander Diestra has left the kitchen at Andina, taking over the burners at hotel restaurant King Tide Fish & Shell. Diestra, who also worked at restaurants like Saucebox and Clarklewis, recently made a splash for his Peruvian takeout pop-up Chicha, which won a 2021 Eater Award for best pandemic pop-up. At King Tide, Diestra plans to incorporate Japanese, Peruvian, and Pacific Northwestern culinary traditions, while focusing on seafood. Previously, King Tide was home to chef Lauro Romero, who has since moved on to Pearl District tasting menu hotspot República.