PDX burgers: Grain & Gristle

my most recent burger in the PDX burger collection. i had Grain & Gristle on my (too long) must-try hit list, and was in the area during what was a 30-ish mile bike ride, so needless to say i was beyond hangry by the time i got there. this burger was like an angel fell down from heaven and right into my face. i honestly ate it too quickly to pay attention to what made it SO great, i just know it was juicy and  salty and the bacon was perfectly sweet, and the cheddar cheese was shockingly gooey and drippy and one of the best melty-cheddars i've had on a burger. it was PERFECT for what i needed. 

PDX eats: Langbaan

Langbaan. there is nothing i can say about this place any better than what's already been said - a) i don't know Thai food well enough to even begin to describe what i ate, and 2) everyone agrees, it's GD delicious. after waiting i think 4 months after making my reso, i was so happy to find that it was worth the wait - i had a blast trying things on the tasting menu i've never had before (or would never normally order), and flavors i would never conceive of putting together. mouth party! 

we sat right up against the kitchen 
and were able to watch these uber-organized, calm prodigy chefs assemble these crazy dishes. almost as entertaining as it was yummy:

 

recipe: ravioli stuffed with prosciutto, spinach, mushroom, ricotta in brown butter shallot sauce

i was house-bound for a day, which was the perfect opp to finally make ravioli. since i don't make pasta often (*ever), i don't have a pasta maker or any fancy equipment, so i was going at it old school. while i was a little intimidated by that part, the fillings part was exciting... prosciutto, spinach, mushrooms, homemade ricotta...basically ever type of ravioli i love, all rolled into one. YUM. 

the ravioli dough was easy enough to make, but impossibly difficult to get a thin as i'd like it. most sites recommended about 1/16 of an inch, mine was... a little thicker than that. the flavor was fantastic, although in the end i would have preferred a more delicate/thinner ravioli casing. it was more like a hearty gnocchi married a ravioli than a thin little pasta pocket. damn tasty though, so i wasn't a total fail... just something that def needs a bit of work.

the recipes online are nearly identical, so i didn't use anything specific, although next time i may futz around a bit to make a softer dough that's easier to roll thinner (mine was super-elasticy and tough).

ingredients list - pasta:  

- 4 cups all-purpose flour

- 4 large eggs, beaten

- 1 tsp olive oil

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1-2 tbsp water, if needed

recipe: ricotta cheese

i finally had the courage, and the time, to try to make ravioli. knowing the amount of work ahead of me, i was not going to skimp on any of the filling ingredients, so it decided like the perfect time to test out what i heard was "oh so easy" homemade ricotta cheese. 

it seemed like one of those things that people say is easy, but is not, and turns into a time-consuming epic failure. i was delighted to find out that it really was damn easy, AND did have a noticeably different taste/texture than store-bought ricotta, in the best way. 

every site i looked at had different proportion of milk/cream/acid, but i landed on the version of epicurious that seemed like a good in-between of all of them:

ingredients list:
- 2 quarts whole milk (1/2 gallon)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp lemon juice or distilled white vinegar (i used half of each b/c i couldn't decide)