PDX burgers: Lumberyard Rotisserie & Grill

so while this spot is technically not in Portland, it's within driving range so i'm throwing it under the PDX burger category. we decided to drive out to the Pacific coast one day to check out the area, and needed to try the best burger around (for strength, of course). we were in Cannon Beach (which is gorgeous and site of some film scenes from The Goonies if you're ever in the area), and The Lumberyard Rotisserie & Grill came up as the #1 contender.  

we ordered the EPIC Lumberyard Burger, which consists of a "decadent 7 oz. hand-pattied, double ground, seasoned beef patty", on a toasted fresh baked bun pepper bacon, fried egg, and grilled onion in addition to the standard lettuce & tomato fixins. this burger was TALL - i.e. the type where you need to take a bite of the bottom half, then a bite of the top half unless you can somehow unhinge your jaw. the flavors were all really good - good beef, great toppings, but it was slightly off in the execution unfortunately. while we requested medium rare, it was overcooked a tad to a solid medium (boo hoo, i know... but that makes a big difference), and the egg was cooked all the way through vs. being a nice runny drippy fried egg. the burger still was juicy even though it wasn't the idealized temp. you could tell it was all great ingredients, and if they were cooked just right this burger would jump from good to great. we could have used a bit more substantial bottom bun as it was almost nonexistent mid way through the burger.

PDX burgers: Little Big Burger

so. since touching down in Portland for the first time, i've been to Little Big Burger not once, not twice, but three times. i saw LBB flagged by Serious Eats as one of their favorite burgers for $5 and under across the U.S., and seeing as this chain is dotted all over my new hometown i could not be anymore excited to try them. 

Little Big Burger's premise is simple. they offer a menu with about 6 items - burger, cheese burger, fries, soda... you get the drift. simple stuff, but the important stuff. each of those items is then made from the best ingredients they can get their little big hands on, and priced at an amazingly reasonable price considering what they deliver (spoiler alert: they deliver delicious). it truly is like getting a gourmet fancy pants burger in a fast food setting. 

recipes: marinara sauce & italian meatballs I

while the hubs was out of down recently i decided to be a good wifey and made a huge batch of meatballs, sauce, and soup. some good home cooking for our new fridge. although i've made both a few times, i was surprised i didn't have any stock recipes for marinara or meatballs on my blog. and didn't have a go-to recipe saved either. so i quested out for the best of the net for new recipes to try. i went with Best Marinara Sauce Yet and Chef John's Italian Meatballs, both from allrecipes.com which is pretty trusty for good/solid classic recipes based on the reviews. i adapted both recipes slightly, but both came out really good - especially with some delish bakery bread and crispy cab sav on the side. mmmmm!

ingredients list: marinara sauce: (makes enough for 3-4 dinners for 2 people)
- 2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes
- 2 (6 oz) can tomato paste
- 4-5 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 bay leaf
- 3-4 tbsp olive oil
- 1/3 cup finely diced onion
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup red wine (i used a cab)

recipe: slow cooker honey garlic chicken

so i haven't been on here in forever... moved to a new coast, with endless amounts new restaurants and new burgers (and a city full of food carts... aaah!) in all the chaos not a lot of cooking as happened, except for the last few weeks as i finally start to settle in here. 

i tried the Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken recipe from justataste.com, found after i was searching for a delish but easy Asian slow cooker recipe. i adapted it slightly, but found that the original amount of hoisin sauce in the recipe was a bit too much (1/4 cup)... if i make it again i'll decrease that amount to help the honey and garlic flavors balance out a bit more (the recipe below reflects a decreased amount). it doesn't taste like standard Chinese take out, but it is really good especially considering how quick it is.

ingredients list: 
- 2 large chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup blackberry jam
- 1/8 cup hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup diced onion
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Asian 5-spice powder
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (omit if you don't want spicey)
- 1 tsp chili oil (also omit if you don't want spicy)
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- sliced scallions
- toasted sesame seeds

skewed brewing

lunch today at Skewed Brewing in Watertown NY - The Daddy Oh pizza, with shredded duck, caramelized onions, bacon, apples & brie. um... yum. the dough was nice and charred but still super soft. i'm a huge fan of the apple/onion/bacon combo in pretty much anything, and this bad boy did not disappoint. total mouth party. 

they had a lot of yummy apps on the menu, and i wish i was able to try all of them (duck wings, perogies with bacon-bourbon jam (YUMMM), fried tofu with wasabi coconut reduction)... definitely a fun little pit stop.

recipe: apple crumb muffins

i've made these blueberry muffins (the To Die For Blueberry Muffins from allrecipes.com) a few times, and they are by far my favorite blueberry muffin recipe. we had some apples in the house and i modified them this weekend to make mini-apple muffins. since the apple isn't as potent as the blueberry you taste more of the crumb topping than the apple, but they are still a damn good lil muffin, and a good base recipe to mess around with other flavors. to give the apples more of a pop, i might try to soak them in hard cider or amaretto next time and see how that does... 

ingredients list: (makes about 8 large muffins)

- 1 & 1/2 cups flour

- 3/4 cup white sugar

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 tsp baking powder

- 1/3 cup vegetable oil

- 1 tsp vanilla extract

- 1 egg

- 1/3 cup milk

- 1 & 1/2 cups fresh diced apple (or blueberries if preferred)

- 1/2 cup white sugar

- 1/3 cup flour1/4 cup butter, cubed

- 1 & 1/2 tsp cinnamon

to make: grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners. preheat oven to 400 degrees.

make crumb topping by mixing together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 & 1/2 tsp cinnamon. mix with fork, and set aside. 

in a large bowl, combine 1 & 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt, and baking powder. place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg, vanilla, and enough milk to fill the cup. stir this into the flour mixture. fold in the chopped apple, and fill the muffins cups right to the top. sprinkle the crumb topping over the top of the muffins.

bake for 20 - 25 minutes in the preheated oven or until a toothpick test comes out clean.

roasted pork shoulder

tonight's Sunday dinner -- which could be the first pork -shoulder- roast that i've ever cooked. we've done a lot of pork loin, pork butt... but no shoulder i can remember. it's a fairly fatty cut, and even though i did end up over cooking it a tad (the final temp was 160F instead of my target 145F), it was beyond juicy and according to Kyle one of the best pork roasts we've ever made. i used the rub from Serious Eats, adding in some citrus and extra spices and removing the onions. the rub made a nice sweet & spicy crust and the OJ made the fatty meat even more juicy. definitely would use this one again for a loin or shoulder. 

ingredients list: 
- 1 3-lb pork shoulder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1.5 tsp paprika (the SE recipe calls for both smoked and hot paprika)
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp cracked black pepper
- 1 tsp cayenne 
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 cup (or more) orange juice

to make: rinse meat and pat dry; using a sharp knife, score the top of the meat with wide cross hatches. 

mix together all of the spices, and rub them all over the roast. place in fridge and allow to sit a few hours or overnight.

preheat oven to 350F degrees, and pour orange juice over roast, making sure it gets deep into the cuts on top of the meat. roast in the preheated oven 1.5 hours (roughly 30 minutes per pound) or until the internal temperature reaches 145F degrees. allow to sit 15-20 minutes before serving. 

pumpkin coffee

finally tried pumpkin coffee for the FIRST time (ever) this fall. it seemed like a quintessential part of the season based on all the rants & raves i always hear about it, from everyone. after tasting it for the first time, i pretty much lost respect for... everyone. YUCK!

i had brewed a cup of coffee in my head before getting to Dunkin Donuts and had my idealized flavor before my first sip of the real deal... a robust coffee with a rich undertone of pumpkin and a few touches of cinnamon. what i was accosted with at first sip was a cup of sugar water with an aftertaste of funky nutmeg. i HATE sweet coffee. pumpkins are naturally a little sweet... fine. but THIS. this was NOT coffee. i could not taste any coffee. my tongue was lambasted with sugar sweet nutmeg funk... AAACK. i think i was dreaming if i thought maybe they could do -flavor- without -sweet shit-. 

sticking to Fresh Market flavored beans... Almond Amaretto, Creme Brulee... rich coffee, subtle undertone of a flavor. the type of coffee that does not get poured down the drain after driving 2 hours at 6am and still only being able force down only a few sips... bah humbug! 

turkey with pumpkin ale and sage

impromptu thanksgiving feast for Sunday dinner yesterday. as part of 'clean out the freezer' mode, why not cook a massive 9-lb turkey for dinner for the 2 of us? we have had these old Smuttynose Pumpkin Ales in our fridge for no joke 2 years now that nobody liked (sorry Smuttynose!), so it seemed like a good time to use one of them... we poured half the ale inside the turkey along with a huge sprig of fresh sage and 5 garlic cloves, and used the remaining ale to fill the pan and baste the turkey.

served with corn bread, baked potatoes, corn, and Stella Artois Cidre (which we tried for the first time this weekend -- DELISH drink). the pumpkin ale beer flavor didn't really come through the turkey except for some portions of the dark meat, which was so good. if we wanted to jimmy-rig the beer can chicken stand, that probably can be used with the turkey as well ... something we may have to try for next time if we're feeling risqué enough to balance that beast. YUM!

The Dutch Pot

i've been wanting to go to the Dutch Pot Jamaican restaurant in Albany ever since driving past it a few months ago. the stars finally aligned this Saturday when we were in the area for Lark Fest and all needed a lil nosh. 
i ordered one of their small plates which comes with a meat and 2 sides -- i had the Curried Goat with sides of Rasta Pasta and Sweet Potato Fries. i don't know what curried goat is -supposed- to taste like since i shockingly don't eat it everyday (i think i've only had goat once before when eating Indian food), but i thought it was great... the goat was gamey, but in a really good way, not a funky way. the curry was spicy enough to give me a mild case of the sniffles, as was the rasta pasta which was a like a alfredo-based cajun pasta. across the board we all loved this place and gave it a "would go back". they have a small menu with a number of dishes i'd come back to try -- good stuff. 

national cheeseburger day!

yesterday, 9/18 was national cheeseburger day. a holiday that comith once a year, and to a burger aficionado is the equivalent of Christmas. it also fell on "healthy week" start since i've been eating like a HOSS and vowed eat light this week and lose a few L-Bs. i was not going to celebrate. i had chicken breasts marinating in the fridge. i was going to run for an errand. come home. go for a run. grill said chicken. 

as you would have it... errand was in the viscidity of New World Bistro Bar. NWBB has been rated one of the top burgers not only in the CapDis, but in all of NY. and i love it. K was in my passenger seat. K is a bad influence. net/net... no run, no grilled chicken, but yes a delicious cheeseburger. we split it to make it not "as bad" along with the Purple Haze Shrimp and some Blackened Stringbeans for him. 

it was... even better than i remember. perfectly cooked, well respected medium rare meat, peppered bacon, cheddar, grilled onion, chipotle aioli, pillowy soft fresh baked bun. total mouth party. the red onion was thicker cut and just grilled enough... which i really liked and will do moving forward. it gave it a nice lil crunch but was cooked down enough to have no onion "bite" to it, but still more flavorful than thin-cut carmelized onions. aaaah heaven. now today i will be healthy.... :o) 

recipe: funfetti cake batter cheesecake

i needed a lil nosh to bring to a party this weekend, and haven't baked anything and/or searched recipes in a while sadly. i had this recipe saved on foodgawker.com from Teenage Taste that seemed like the perfect lil fix. they were very easy to put together, although unfortunately did not come out as cute as the ones on TT's site - although i used less food coloring than recommended, the green i made was a tad more of a minty hue. no harm, no foul, but i personally hate overly food-colored deserts. i prepped it verbatim otherwise, adding in a bit more sprinkles and some of the mixing process. they still did taste really good which is mostly all that matters though.

ingredients list: 
- 1 & 3/4 cups vanilla cookie crumbs (Nilla wafers)
- 6 tbsp butter, melted
- 16 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp granulated sugar, divided
- 1/2 cup yellow cake mix
- 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp milk
- 1 & 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 - 1/2 cup sprinkles
- 3-5 drops green food coloring (the original recipe has 5 drops blue, 3 drops green... i added 5 total and found that to be a touch too much)

to make: preheat oven to 350 degrees F. grease a 9-inch baking pan, line with parchment paper, and set aside.

stir together cookie crumbs, 2 tbsp sugar, and melted butter. press into the bottom of the prepared pan. bake about 8-10 minutes, until crust just begins to brown.

beat cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. add remaining sugar and beat until smooth. add the milk, vanilla, salt, and cake mix and beat again until completely combined and smooth. stir in the sprinkles and add the eggs, gently stirring until combined. 

pour batter over the prepared crust, and bake until just set, about 40 - 45 minutes, using a water bath if preferred. allow to cool 30 minutes in the open oven, then 30 minutes at room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours before slicing and serving. 

recipe: philly cheese steak bites

i've made these little buggers a few times and usually eat them so fast i forget to take a lil pic and put them on here. they are super-easy to put together and beyond delicious. i always use horseradish cheese for a lil zing, but if you wanted to keep it a traditional philly regular cheddar (or whatever else) can be used. 

ingredients list:

- 1 package of Pillsbury crescent roll dough

- 1/4 lb of shaved steak or deli-thin roast beef. diced

- 1/2 cup of red onion, very finely diced

- 1/2 cup of green pepper, very finely diced

- 1/2 cup of horseradish cheddar, shredded

- salt & pepper to taste

- 1/2 tsp garlic powder

- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper 

to make: preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

prep a mini muffin pan (24 muffin-count) with Pam spray or grease. roll out the package of Pillsbury crescent dough onto a non-stick surface. the dough should be pre-sliced into 8 triangles; take each of the 8 triangles and slice each triangle into 3 evenly sized pieces. place each of the sliced dough pieces into the mini muffin tin and set aside. 

in a medium bowl, mix together all remaining ingredients. spoon filling into the prepared muffin pan. bake for 10 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden brown.