So this really is chicken, but it looks dark because I marinated it overnight in a mixture of soy sauce, minced ginger root, fresh basil, lemon verbena leaves, garlic, coarse kosher salt, some fresh lime juice, and a little honey. The chicken is alternated with red and green bell peppers and sweet Walla Walla onions. The cherry tomatoes on the ends are fresh from the garden. Soak wooden skewers for at least 20 minutes prior to barbecuing so they won't catch on fire. They turned out very delicious! (The kabobs, not the skewers)
Friday, July 30, 2010
Chick-a-bobs!
So this really is chicken, but it looks dark because I marinated it overnight in a mixture of soy sauce, minced ginger root, fresh basil, lemon verbena leaves, garlic, coarse kosher salt, some fresh lime juice, and a little honey. The chicken is alternated with red and green bell peppers and sweet Walla Walla onions. The cherry tomatoes on the ends are fresh from the garden. Soak wooden skewers for at least 20 minutes prior to barbecuing so they won't catch on fire. They turned out very delicious! (The kabobs, not the skewers)
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Grillz
Had some Korean BBQ ribs at Rontoms last night. Served on a large chunk of grilled lettuce with some charred edges. Does EVERYTHING get 20 times better if it's cooked on a grill? I'm about to go on a all-grill diet.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Labels:
Noël,
Portland,
Restaurants,
summer
Monday, July 19, 2010
Rachel screams for homemade ice cream
Not that it's been that warm here (haha... in your face, Feli!), but we couldn't wait to try to make some stuff with our new ice cream maker. First time we tried, the maker's bowl didn't get cold enough in our freezer, and we ended up with warm custard. Had to pack the freezer with some ice and salt in order to get a hard freeze.
Spiced Banana. Like a banana eggnog, almost.
Mixed Berry frozen yogurt.
Spiced Banana. Like a banana eggnog, almost.
Mixed Berry frozen yogurt.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
A Baker's Dozen!
My friend Abby and I went to take this class on decorating cupcakes. Feast your eyes upon these babies!
Labels:
CUPCAKES RULE,
desserts,
I'll try anything once,
Rachel,
San Francisco
I swear I don't eat that many burgers
Willamette Weekly just put out an article with a run down of the top ten burgers of Portland. Knowing how Paris has his Seattle Hamburger Project and is making his rounds, I thought perhaps he could be persuaded to expand his feeding frenzy. Not to mention, most of these are sorely tempting to myself. Making number 4 is Foster Burger, which you may remember I have already mentioned. I am ashamed to admit that Foster Burger is the only burger I have had so far on this list. Aghk. Also making the list though is Wildwood - hoo boy!
I've stolen some shots from the article- with this double decker cheese monster being number 1. Although I am sure it probably sicks Moni out, James is intrigued, to say the least.
Labels:
Hamburgers,
Noël,
Portland,
Restaurants
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Sainthhood
The cupcake urge is still strong with me. Checked out Saint Cupcake the other day (here in P-town) and have been enjoying them immensly. Not quite Butter Lane good, but pretty freaking awesome. So awesome, in fact, that I ate two that belonged to some strangers once, and Monico got embarrassed and pretended he didn't know me.
Side note- just got this app, and can't figure out how to do links or tags... Uh...
Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Labels:
CUPCAKES RULE,
desserts,
Noël,
Portland
Saturday, June 26, 2010
the midnight meat train
James got me a meat grinder attachment for Christmas (so romantic!) and we've been pretty excited about making some deluxo burgers. Our first was chuck steak burgers, with lots of blue cheese crumbles melted on top. SO GOOD. Patties had a tendency to crumble very easily though- Maybe meat was so lean that there wasn't enough fat to hold them together? Really very good though. My mouth is kind of watering just thinking about them. 
The other day we ground up some new york steaks (I think? they were on sale, whatever they were) and topped them with roasted garlic, avacado and grilled poblanos. I also added an egg to the patties, hoping the combat the crumbly texture. Then I got carried away and added another egg (you know me, all about the eggs) and then before I knew it, the patties were cooking in some sort of omelet substance and were more crumbly than before. Still an ok burger though. Also, a bit too well done, but it's a learning process. All good. All good. 
Aaaaaand I checked out Foster Burger the other day, where I haz burger w/pork back fat added to the patty. Which led me to the conclusion that what MY burgers need is some duck fat! (Did you know you can order this shit, get it mailed to your door? the duck fat, that is. NOT the foster burger.) Side note, while at Foster Burger, James had a burger with pickled beets and an egg on it. I took a pic, lost it, and then stole a pic from their facebook so you can see the crazy bastard for yourself.
Interestingly- I do not eat that many burgers. I feel like I need to put that out there. Just so you know. Also, I know Paris has been grinding some meat of his very own- including a fascinating encounter with ground chicken. What up, Paris?
Labels:
Hamburgers,
homemade,
Noël
Thursday, June 17, 2010
She's My Cherry Pie!
Cherries are in season! I love this season, and with all the great great fruit available ask yourself why you haven't made a fruit pie yet, seriously!
1 recipe double-crust pie dough:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoons salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces and chilled
1/2 cup vegetable shortening, cut into 4 pieces and chilled
1/4 cup vodka, chilled (do not substitute water, vodka cooks out and helps to make the dough easier to roll out, will be moister than most pie doughs but inturn will require up to 1/4 cup flour to roll out)
1/4 cup ice water
1. Process 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar and salt together in a food processor until combined. Scatter the butter and shortening over the top and continue to process until incorporated and the mixture begins to form uneven clumps w/ no remaining floury bits, about 15 seconds.
2. Scrape down the bowl and redistribute the dough evenly around processor blade. Sprinkle the remaining flour over the dough and pulse until the mixture has broken up into pieces and is evenly distributed around the bowl, 4 to 6 pulses.
3. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. Sprinkle the vodka and water over the mixture. Stir and press the dough together, using a stiff rubber spatula, until the dough sticks together.
4. Divide the dough into 2 even pieces. Turn each piece of dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and flatten each into a 4-inch disk. Wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Before rolling the dough out, let it sit on the counter to soften, about 10 minutes.
Now the insides:
6 cups fresh sour cherries, pitted
1-1 1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
pinch salt
1 egg white, lightly beaten
1. Roll out one disk of dough into 12-inch circle on a lightly floured counter, then fit it into a 9-inch pie plate, letting the excess hang over the edge; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate about 30 minutes.
2. Roll the other disk of dough into 13 1/2 by 10 1/2-inch rectangle, then transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Trim the dough to a 13 by 10-inch rectangle w/ straight edges, slice it lengthwise into eight 13-inch-long strips. Separate the strips slightly, cover with plastic wrap, and freeze until very form, about 30 mins.
3. Toss the cherries and 1 cup sugar together in a large bowl and let sit, tossing occasionally, until the cherries release their juices, about 1 hour. Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position, place a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet on the rack, and heat oven to 425 degrees.
4. Drain the cherries thoroughly through a colander, reserving 1/4 cup of the juices, In a large bowl, toss the drained cherries, 1/4 cup reserved juice, cornstarch, cinnamon, almond extract, and salt together until well combined. (If cherries are too tart, add up to 1/4 cup more sugar.)
5. Spread the cherries into the dough-lined pie plate and weave the chilled strips of dough over the top into a lattice. Let the strips soften for over 5 to 10 minutes, then trim, fold and crimp the edges. Lightly brush the lattice with the egg white and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
6. Place the pie on the heated baking sheet and bake until the top crust is golden, about 25 mins. Reduce the oven temp to 375, rotate the baking sheet, and continue to bake until juices are bubbling and crust is golden brown, 25-35 more mins. Let the pie cool on a wire rack until the filling has set, about 2 hours.
I know, I know, lots of directions, but look at all the work I put in to letting you know about this amazing recipe. It's really not that hard, just takes patience and thinking ahead to pull this one together. Try it, you'll be sooooooo glad you did. Enjoy!
1 recipe double-crust pie dough:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoons salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces and chilled
1/2 cup vegetable shortening, cut into 4 pieces and chilled
1/4 cup vodka, chilled (do not substitute water, vodka cooks out and helps to make the dough easier to roll out, will be moister than most pie doughs but inturn will require up to 1/4 cup flour to roll out)
1/4 cup ice water
1. Process 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar and salt together in a food processor until combined. Scatter the butter and shortening over the top and continue to process until incorporated and the mixture begins to form uneven clumps w/ no remaining floury bits, about 15 seconds.
2. Scrape down the bowl and redistribute the dough evenly around processor blade. Sprinkle the remaining flour over the dough and pulse until the mixture has broken up into pieces and is evenly distributed around the bowl, 4 to 6 pulses.
3. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. Sprinkle the vodka and water over the mixture. Stir and press the dough together, using a stiff rubber spatula, until the dough sticks together.
4. Divide the dough into 2 even pieces. Turn each piece of dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and flatten each into a 4-inch disk. Wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Before rolling the dough out, let it sit on the counter to soften, about 10 minutes.
Now the insides:
6 cups fresh sour cherries, pitted
1-1 1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
pinch salt
1 egg white, lightly beaten
1. Roll out one disk of dough into 12-inch circle on a lightly floured counter, then fit it into a 9-inch pie plate, letting the excess hang over the edge; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate about 30 minutes.
2. Roll the other disk of dough into 13 1/2 by 10 1/2-inch rectangle, then transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Trim the dough to a 13 by 10-inch rectangle w/ straight edges, slice it lengthwise into eight 13-inch-long strips. Separate the strips slightly, cover with plastic wrap, and freeze until very form, about 30 mins.
3. Toss the cherries and 1 cup sugar together in a large bowl and let sit, tossing occasionally, until the cherries release their juices, about 1 hour. Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position, place a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet on the rack, and heat oven to 425 degrees.
4. Drain the cherries thoroughly through a colander, reserving 1/4 cup of the juices, In a large bowl, toss the drained cherries, 1/4 cup reserved juice, cornstarch, cinnamon, almond extract, and salt together until well combined. (If cherries are too tart, add up to 1/4 cup more sugar.)
5. Spread the cherries into the dough-lined pie plate and weave the chilled strips of dough over the top into a lattice. Let the strips soften for over 5 to 10 minutes, then trim, fold and crimp the edges. Lightly brush the lattice with the egg white and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
6. Place the pie on the heated baking sheet and bake until the top crust is golden, about 25 mins. Reduce the oven temp to 375, rotate the baking sheet, and continue to bake until juices are bubbling and crust is golden brown, 25-35 more mins. Let the pie cool on a wire rack until the filling has set, about 2 hours.
I know, I know, lots of directions, but look at all the work I put in to letting you know about this amazing recipe. It's really not that hard, just takes patience and thinking ahead to pull this one together. Try it, you'll be sooooooo glad you did. Enjoy!
Labels:
America's Test Kitchen,
Cherry pie,
Rachel,
summer
Monday, June 14, 2010
It's BAAACK!
Wednesday night marks the beginning of season 7 of Top Chef!
We all like food and some kind of sports, well this is food sports! If you've never watched an episode now is the time to start. The great thing is you don't have to start with the first season or the first episode to get in to Top Chef now. If you don't get cable, that's okay, download it, watch it online, do whatever it takes. Then we can all chat about it or post on here, or even engage in a friendly wager as to who will be the finale winner?! The possibilities are endless, so watch it.
This segment is from last season:
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