This recipe comes from J. Kenji Lopez-Alt. It works and is easy assuming you have an immersion blender. If you don't, run out and buy one right away; they are the best kitchen tool around. This is the best with steamed asparagus or over some delicious soft-boiled eggs. Ingredients: 1 egg yolk 1 teaspoon water … Continue reading Foolproof Hollendaise Sauce
OK, so you want to have a sphincter-clenching moment without dangling off a cliff from a nylon rope as the only fail-safe between you and the valley floor? This hike, the Upper Salmonberry River Trail in the North Coast Range of Oregon is the choice for you. The whole way was greasy, creosote-slippery, mossy wet, … Continue reading Upper Salmonberry River Trail
Sorry folks, we have been busy traveling and hosting guests for the past few weeks. We went up to visit James in Portland for his birthday and my niece Robyn came down by train from Vancouver B.C. to join us for a few days. Once we returned to Medford, we were joined by John and … Continue reading Tom Yum Goong Soup
Burger Spot is a fun place to go for a burger. They always have rock music playing (not too loud) in the background. Something about the meat they use makes the burger much tastier and their french fries are really crispy. Everything is made to order so you have to wait a bit, but that … Continue reading Burger Spot: Best Burger in Medford OR
We had some shrimp left over from the night before, when Laura made Cioppino, so I thought I would make Shrimp Bisque. I wanted to get the maximum flavor from the shrimp. Researching on the internet I saw that someone used the water from cooking the shrimp as a flavor ingredient, so I tried that. … Continue reading Shrimp Bisque
Every neighborhood in Portland has the local fancy coffee shop. It's practically enshrined in law here. In my former neighborhood, the local spot is Ross Island Grocery. Despite it's name, it is a coffee shop. It just happens to have various bit of groceries as well as a coffee shop atmosphere. I haven't gotten to … Continue reading Ross Island Grocery
Jim loves working in the kitchen. He's exceedingly good at teaching himself and learning more and more about food everyday. Our son (Chef James R. Kirkley, IV) was visiting us for several days this last week, in between hikes, James and Jim were in the kitchen all day. They have so much fun creating dishes … Continue reading Hitting a Threshold – Kitchen Appliances
Laura and I were traveling together. I was on a business trip and Laura was tagging along. It was pretty common for us to piggy-back on each others trips, especially if it was to a place we had never been before or if it was a place we enjoyed. I remember this event vividly. We … Continue reading Bangkok
This one is a bit of a old one since I took the hike about a month prior to actually writing this. But it quickly became one of my favorite hikes in the area, and after you see the photos you'll see why. It is also rather short and doesn't have a lot of vertical … Continue reading Getting Healthy the Oregon Way: Cape Lookout
As the weather gets cooler we find the idea of soup more and more appealing. This soup especially has that flavor, sourness, sweetness and heat that is quite comforting and opens up the nasal passages. The recipe is forgiving but you will need some special ingredients to do it right. You must use fresh lemongrass … Continue reading Tom Yum Soup
