Weekend Finds 2:9:14

February 9, 2014February 9, 2017

This edition of weekend finds is full of seriously useful articles and tips. Not just fun restaurants to try, but things that are actually good to know. Also, the polar vortex has hit Portland. Let’s get to it.

1. How to prep lemongrass

Lemongrass prep tips from Bon Appetit on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — Lemongrass prep tips from Bon Appetit

This little tutorial would’ve been helpful a couple of weeks ago for that slow cooker Asian pork. Is it time yet for a second attempt?

2. How do you send back a dish?

How to send a dish back, from Food Republic on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — Also, when I did a google image search for “how to send a dish back at a restaurant” this was the hilarious picture I found.

I don’t know that I’ve ever sent back a dish at a restaurant. Members of my family, who will go unnamed, definitely have. I honestly don’t know if I could have the gumption to do it! But now that I work at a restaurant, I realize how often it happens, simply via miscommunications and misunderstandings. Let me tell you, your server will be way nicer, and is way more likely to comp you a dessert or something, if you are kind about sending a dish back.

3. Keep your pan on the stove to clean it

Best way to clean those tough pans from the Kitchn, on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — Get all the bits from the bottom of your pan with this cleaning tip.

Jonah and I have recently become big fans of this method of cleaning our pans (though we usually take the food out of the pan first, and sometimes even add a little soap to help with the really nasty ones). It makes such a big difference in cleaning our stainless steel pots and pans, and saves us time and elbow grease.

4. Butter chicken recipe/Indian food blog

Butter Chicken recipe from Quick Indian Cooking on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — Butter Chicken recipe from Quick Indian Cooking on Weekend Finds

I have long been looking for a good resource for Indian food. I’ve been hurt (only emotionally) by internet recipes many times in my search for a Murgh Makhani recipe that mildly resembles the heaven that Swagat makes (if you haven’t been, I recommend it). Not only does this Butter Chicken recipe look good, but a lot of her recipes look good. Maybe it’s time for another try?

5. What wine to bring to a dinner party when you have no idea what’s for dinner

What wine to bring to dinner? From the Kitchn on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — I have spent far too long in the wine aisle at the grocery store staring blankly at all the bottles.

This is a serious issue. Very serious. Everyone experiences it. You’re going over to a friend’s house for dinner, you ask what you can bring, and they say, “Oh, just bring a bottle of wine!” And then you want to text or call and say “What are we having?” “Red or white?” “Do you like Riesling? Dry or sweet?” But then you’re pestering them while they’re slaving away making you dinner. I don’t know that I would ever bring sparkling wine over for dinner, unless it’s a special occasion, but I love these recommendations for what wines go with most things. And as far as lighter reds go, this Underwood Pinot Noir from Union Wine Co. in Oregon is one of my (very affordable) favorites right now.

Gougères

February 7, 2014February 9, 2017

I recently had a serious gougères craving. Which is not a normal craving. Normal people crave… I don’t know what. But my guess is not cheesy little dough puffs. Right?

Also, I’ve discovered I have a lot of cookbooks. I knew this. But when I was looking for a recipe to use for these gougères, I realized I have a few cookbooks that I have never even opened. Mostly these are ones I got for free. For example, I have about 5 old James Beard cookbooks. How many different recipes for one thing can the man really have? I think I need to do a little research and then pick one or two to keep. Because also, my cookbook bookshelf is officially overflowing. Books are starting to get piled on top of books, so you can’t see what they are, and everything falls out when you pull out your selection. Not good.

I also decided that I want to be the kind of person that writes notes in my cookbooks. In pencil. But still. Rather than attempting to remember what I liked about a recipe or what I did differently or what didn’t work, I should just write myself little notes in the margins. Or be like my Aunt Elise, who has layers of post-its all over her favorite recipes.

So, my February resolutions: clear out some cookbooks, or at least USE the ones I haven’t used yet and if I don’t like them, think about getting rid of them; and make notes in the margins. Totally doable, I think.

Gougères

Ingredients

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk (I used 2%)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 cup flour
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups grated Gruyère cheese OR 1 cup grated gruyère and ~1/2 cup grated Parmesan
a pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tsp of dry mustard (optional – I didn’t add this, but wished I had afterwards, as my gougères were missing a bit of bite to them)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine water, milk, butter, salt, and pepper; Cook until the butter melts. Add the flour in one batch, and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula. The mixture will become this strange, shiny, kind of gelatinous mixture, and will pull away from the sides of the saucepan. Remove the pan from the heat, and add the eggs one at a time, stirring after each addition. It will seem, for a short while after you add each egg, that it won’t incorporate. I promise it will. There will be a magical moment where all of a sudden, the egg and the flour decide they like each other and want to be the best of friends. After adding all of the eggs, the dough should be nice and glossy. Add 1 cup of the grated Gruyère, dry mustard if you are using, and cayenne, and combine thoroughly.

Butter a baking sheet or line it with parchment or silpat, and drop the batter on by tablespoon. Sprinkle the tops with the remaining grated Gruyère or Parmesan. Bake for 25-35 minutes, until puffed up and golden brown. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes before indulging, as they’re full of steam and can be very hot.

Restaurant review: Brunch at Ataula

February 5, 2014February 7, 2017

Brunch at Ataula // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler

I am writing this post while on hold with my health insurance company. I just thought you should know that. And it’s snowing outside. Little bitty flakes, nothing like the giant snowball-like flakes that fell for approximately 10 minutes yesterday here in Portland. But still. Snow.

A couple of weeks ago, when my dad and Darla came to town, we had to have the famous “where will we eat” discussion. Brunch was a big deal for us because I work on weekends, so brunch was the kind of normal meal we could eat. (We ate other normal meals, they were just very late, much later than normal dinnertime.) I had heard great things about Ataula, a new-ish tapas restaurant in NW Portland, and after glancing at their brunch menu, decided we should try it.

Having heard great things about Ataula, I expected it to be full – I mean, you know Portland at brunch. Or maybe you don’t, so I’ll just say that sometimes people wait an hour and a half or two hours for a good brunch. Seriously. Anyway, I was surprised and a little saddened that upon arrival at around 10:30, there were plenty of open tables. I nabbed one, and while we waited for Dad and Darla to arrive, we admired the space. The room is very open, and very bright thanks to two big skylights. I loved the decor, particularly the light fixtures – it felt like a kind of funky little bistro. Once my parents arrived, we got down to examining the menu. (Please forgive the crummy iPhone photos.)

We started healthy, with a light salad, and then moved onto the croquetas, or salt cod fritters, with aioli. The salad was dressed perfectly, and a great little start to the meal. The croquetas were lovely – really salty and fishy, perfectly crispy on the outside, and the aoili brought a nice touch of heat to the bite.

We got two “tortillas,” which were like a small frittata: one potato for the vegetarian among us, and one chorizo. Both were delicious, but I certainly preferred the chorizo, as I found the potato to be a little bland. The chorizo was better, with some spice and lots of flavor. I also really enjoyed the toasted bread rubbed with tomato that the tortillas came with.

We also enjoyed a sausage dish with catalan beans, shoestring fries, and pickled onions. I am not generally a big fan of sausage, but I really liked this dish. The sausage was cooked well, not too fatty, and very rich. The beans were delicious – I could’ve eaten a whole bowl of them, and the fries and onions were a nice little touch on the side.

Lastly, we went for something on the sweet side: churros with dipping chocolate. The churros didn’t have the crunch I usually like, and could have done with a bit more frying time. But the combination of the warm doughy churros with the dark, almost bitter dipping chocolate with fleur de sel was a great way to end the meal.

While I certainly enjoyed some aspects of the meal – namely the sausage dish and the croquetas – a few of the dishes seemed like they could benefit from a little more seasoning. I’m not sure I would go back for brunch, especially with the plethora of options in Portland for that weekend meal, but I would certainly like to try it again for dinner.

Weekend Finds 2:2:14

February 2, 2014February 7, 2017

I’m writing this weekend finds quickly as I bake my cornbread for the Superbowl party. This past week was a busy one! It included 3 really good meals (chile rellenos for Grandma’s birthday, steak with balsamic reduction sauce, and cleanse chicken), and lots of new adventures. This morning, I also had breakfast (at The Sugar Cube, one of my favorite places) with some lovely Portland bloggers, specifically Rachel from Love, Rachel, Brooke from Babbling Brookelyn, Spencer from 12 oz Beehouse, Sarah from Will Run for Pasta, Erika from A Tiny Rocket, and Erin from Bakery Bingo. I love slowly getting to know more people in this community I am now a part of – everyone is so friendly, and it’s really nice to be able to talk shop with some of these ladies. Here are some of my discoveries from this week:

1. Superbowl

Superbowl food madness on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — At least I’m not making a stadium out of deli meats…

What are you making? I gotta say, I wasn’t really wanting to attend a Superbowl party, but then the restaurant decided to close (notoriously one of the slowest days of the year), and now I find myself making cornbread to take to a friend’s house. What a bizarre day that is just as much about football as it is about food.

2. Sarah Illenberger

Sarah Illenberger on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — Three of my favorites of Illenberger’s work.

I love her imagination and use of food! I WILL have one of these in my kitchen one day. I swear. You can buy prints of her work here.

3. Kayden + Rain

Kayden + rain video on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — This Kayden + rain video is the sweetest. My new go to for when I’m feeling down.

I know this has nothing to do with food, but this video is perhaps the most heartwarming thing I’ve ever seen. A little reminder to enjoy the simple things in life.

4. Cleanse Chicken

Cleanse Chicken on Weekend Finds // Serious Crust by Annie Fassler — Beautiful cleanse chicken, roasted to golden perfection.

Jonah made this cleanse chicken, and it was really really good. I think we decided that next time we’d add a little salt and minus a little cayenne, but the long marinade (we went for close to 48 hours) made it so incredibly moist.

Miso Creamed Kale

January 28, 2014February 7, 2017

I’ve posted about this miso creamed kale before, in a Weekend Finds post back in October. This recipe was recommended to me by a foodie friend, whose tastebuds I respect. So I was excited when I finally got around to making it. Easy, super flavorful, and wintry (most creamed veggie dishes are, in my opinion).

Miso Creamed Kale

Ingredients

3 Tbl unsalted butter (divided)
1 large shallot
2 cloves garlic
Salt and pepper
1 bunch lacinato kale, stems removed, roughly chopped
1/2 cup shimeji mushrooms with stems or shiitake mushroom tops, sliced into strips
1 Tbl soy sauce
1/4 cup dry vermouth
1/2 cup heavy cream or half & half
1/4 cup white miso paste

Instructions

In a large pan or skillet, melt 2 Tbl of butter over medium heat. Thinly slice the shallot and garlic, and add them to the pan, along with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Turn heat to low, and let the garlic and shallot cook for a few minutes until they’ve got a bit of color. Add the kale, and cook until it’s wilted.

While you’re cooking the kale, in another pan, melt the remaining 1 Tbl of butter over medium high heat. Toss in the mushrooms (whichever kind you’re using), and cook until… well until they’re cooked through and soft. Add the soy sauce to the mushrooms, cook for another minute, and remove from heat.

Increase the heat under the kale to medium high, and add the vermouth. Cook until it is just evaporated, then add the cream/half & half and the miso. You’ll have to do a fair amount of stirring to break up the miso and make sure everything is evenly distributed and combined. Turn your heat down to medium and cook for a couple more minutes, until the sauce is slightly reduced and thickens up a little bit. Top with mushrooms, and serve.