Just bought this cookbook called The Food Lab by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt. It was expensive at $35.00 on Amazon, but I had heard good things about it on Reddit and elsewhere. I am really enjoying it and highly recommend it. Think about it as a gift to someone on your list who is a burgeoning … Continue reading Boom Goes the Blender
I have a few mainstay recipes that I make frequently and I've mastered. I prefer more Southern food, like Gumbo which I'll write about, and one of my favorites, Chicken pot pie. I forget why I originally chose this recipe to master. But I've been making it for years and it's gotten better every time. … Continue reading Chicken Pot Pie
I've recently begun CrossFit once again, which I will write about later. What I will say in a brief bit is it's a really intense workout that leaves me really hungry afterwards. On such a day, I found myself on the East side near one of my favorite spots. Boke Bowl is a ramen house, … Continue reading Boke Bowl
The picture above was taken at about the time James got interested in cooking. Here is is eight years old sitting on the porch with Jim after pumpkin carving. The Complete Illustrated Step by Step Cookbook was published in 1989 by Gallery Books. The contents included cooking sections on: French, Italian, German, Greek, Polish, Spanish, … Continue reading Garnished Pepper Steak
I've written a lot of stuff about little known spots in Portland that don't get a lot of touristy stuff written about them. I think that's great to have a more local perspective. However, with this being said, I also lived in Santa Barbara for about 14 years without seeing any of the tourist destinations. … Continue reading Powell’s City of Books
There are a few well known spots in Portland. Powell's Books. Deschutes Brewery. Stumptown. Voodoo Donuts. All of these are great places that rightly deserve their reputations. But there's one that is frequently left off this list of venerable institutions in PDX and to me that's a damn shame. I've been going to Guardian Games … Continue reading My Favorite Spots: Guardian Games
I had a major craving for pastrami recently. One of the best places to eat in Santa Barbara was Norton Pastrami. One of the most popular sandwich shops in town, Norton's obviously specialized in that wonderful salty meat. Usually they just served it on a squishy roll after dipping it in au jus. It was … Continue reading Pastrami Zombie
I've been writing a lot lately. But I don't think I've ever written about my cat, Scrabbles, who shows up in a lot of my other posts. So I'm going to fix that today. I picked up Scrabbles at the Oregon Human Society maybe about 8 years ago. He had formerly belonged to a family … Continue reading Scrabbles the Cat
Had a hankering for Beef Stoganoff last night so we made it. Served it over egg noodles with some braised Brussel sprouts. It was mighty good. Author: Laura Kirkley Serves: 6 Beef Stroganoff INGREDIENTS 2 pounds, sirloin steak, trimmed - sliced 1/4-inch thick 1/2 cup, butter 2 cups, onion - coarsely chopped 6 cloves, … Continue reading Beef Stroganoff
Laura and I were in the grocery store a few days ago. We were behind two ladies who were discussing buying a pre-made Teriyaki Sauce. I kind of walked on by, but when we were out of ear-shot I told Laura why would you waste your money buying Teriyaki Sauce when it is so easy … Continue reading Teriyaki Sauce
