Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Pumpkin donuts...so much easier than you'd think!


Thanks to my friend Cherie Burbach, a woman of many many talents, I found out that Real Simple magazine has a recipe online for baked Pumpkin Donuts!  I've been wanting to make donuts again ever since I was a kid and Mom and I spent an enjoyable afternoon deep frying a ton-load of plain sugar donuts.  The biggest problem (besides the mess and the extra calories) was that they tasted soooo much better when they were still warm.  Thus, one on the plate, one down the hatch.  Repeat all afternoon!

Yikes!

Baked donuts are (usually? always?) of the cakey variety, which are my favorite anyway.  I'm not a big fan of Crispy Cremes...please don't yell at me, they're just not my thing.  But this recipe looked promising, and indeed, it was awesome.  I plan to use the base of this recipe to try some Apple Cider Donuts and maybe some other cake types.

Wilton Donut Pans, 2 of them stacked

They don't turn out perfect like deep fried donuts...
the batter is more like muffins

Plop them on a pretty plate...

...and add the glaze

You can eat them before the glaze hardens if you want,
and actually, it's pretty hard not to!

Monday, October 14, 2013

Grilled tuna with watermelon-feta salad


As watermelon season ends, grab the chance to include one last ripe slice or two into your meal.  The tuna was grilled to medium rare, and then I proceeded to butcher it while slicing.  It tasted great, but I'd like to do a better cutting job next time...

The recipe for both can be found in Hannaford's Fresh magazine.

Friday, October 11, 2013

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

On the trail of great food in Portland Oregon - part six

What we brought home...

Rose petal black tea, Portland rose soap, huckleberry jam and marmalade
lavender jelly,  lavender tea

Kokeicha green tea and Glendale OP black tea
from The Olive and Vine

Ghost pepper salt (oh yes she did!) and pink peppercorns


Rosebuds and juniper berries from Pat's Pantry in Astoria...
soon to be opening a second location in Portland!

Monday, October 7, 2013

On the trail of great food in Portland Oregon - part five

Our last day, we went in search of multi-cultural fun...Cuban and Indian!

Fabulous Cuban breakfast at Pambiche



Picadillo Cua-Cua with eggs, avocado, fruit, rice, and fried plantains

Cuban French toast with almonds and fruit

Bistek - steak and eggs






And an equally fabulous Indian dinner at Swagat!


Braised goat, on the bone

Friday, October 4, 2013

Coffee


Wednesday, October 2, 2013

On the trail of great food in Portland Oregon - part four

St John's Pub and Theater (McMenamin's)

The gold-domed building was originally built for the 1905 Lewis and Clark Exposition, Portland's World's Fair, and was meant to last just 6 months.  It has been relocated and used for many purposes, both sacred and profane ever since!  In 1998, Mike and Brian McMenamin restored it to run it as a pub/theater).






I knew nothing about Nitro taps until visiting here.  Nitro makes everything better!


Grateful Veg Burger with cajun tater tots and peppercorn ranch.