Beets--I just can't get enough of them lately. Here is a simple, yet tasty recipe I've been enjoying:
Beets, Quinoa, and Goat Cheese Salad
3-5 beets, including green tops
oil
garlic
1/2 cup quinoa
1/2 cup goat cheese
1. Remove green tops and wash beets. Cover beets in water, bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer for about 40 minutes, or until beets can be pierced with a fork. Once beets are cooked, peel skins and dice into bit-size pieces.
2. Wash and chop about 1/3 cup of beet greens to saute.
3. Saute oil, garlic, and greens until wilted. Remove from heat. Add diced beets, quinoa, and cheese. Toss and serve.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Foraging; and an ode to egg salad
Hello family!
As of late, I've been getting into foraging. It started with a conversation with a coworker who'd experienced the unheard-of: Being let in on an acquaintence's secret morel location. We got to talking about morels (I hadn't known you could hunt them in Oregon), which segued into the topic of fiddleheads, and again onto dandelion greens and nettles.
The fiddleheads are no more, but there are plenty of nettles and dandelion greens in the park by my house. Last week, I brought some twine up to the park with me, and came back down with two big bunches of greens. I brought them home, checked the cupboard for whatever legume was on hand (in this case, it was split yellow peas) and threw them into a pot with some herbs fresh from my back yard. A true forager's feast! The tomatoes, I'll admit, came from a can.
On an unrelated note, a friend and I impulsively bought some Easter egg-dyeing kits (on clearance, of course) with the hope of using them for a rapture party. The party plans took off, but not the egg portion. As a result, I was left with a couple dozen hard boileds and zero motivation to use that egg dye. Solution: Egg salad! I can't remember the last time I had this, but I'm going to make a point to get into the habit.
Happy spring!
As of late, I've been getting into foraging. It started with a conversation with a coworker who'd experienced the unheard-of: Being let in on an acquaintence's secret morel location. We got to talking about morels (I hadn't known you could hunt them in Oregon), which segued into the topic of fiddleheads, and again onto dandelion greens and nettles.
The fiddleheads are no more, but there are plenty of nettles and dandelion greens in the park by my house. Last week, I brought some twine up to the park with me, and came back down with two big bunches of greens. I brought them home, checked the cupboard for whatever legume was on hand (in this case, it was split yellow peas) and threw them into a pot with some herbs fresh from my back yard. A true forager's feast! The tomatoes, I'll admit, came from a can.
On an unrelated note, a friend and I impulsively bought some Easter egg-dyeing kits (on clearance, of course) with the hope of using them for a rapture party. The party plans took off, but not the egg portion. As a result, I was left with a couple dozen hard boileds and zero motivation to use that egg dye. Solution: Egg salad! I can't remember the last time I had this, but I'm going to make a point to get into the habit.
Happy spring!
Friday, May 6, 2011
First barbecue of springtime!
Last week, my college roommate and her boyfriend came to visit for a few days.
True to form, we ran ourselves ragged around Portland, ate at all my favorite places (Lindsey, a once-a-day waffle eater, said Waffle Window was the best she's ever had. Dave, a dude who's eaten his fair share of pizzas, said the radicchio pie from Ken's was the best he's ever had. I, a former groupie of Ken's olive pizza, have to agree with him.), drank at all my favorite bars (as various other public and private places throughout Western Oregon), attempted and failed to get into a show at the Doug (still went to the upstairs bar), drank coffee, took hikes and watched sunsets.
It was a quality few days with good people I haven't seen in quite some time. They left town at 5 a.m. on Monday, but not before one last hurrah. After a full day at the beach, we capped off a rare cloud-free day in Portland with a backyard barbecue (I'm in love with my back yard) and a few Portland friends. Most of them were meat-eaters and brought brats and burgers, making me miss a more familiar back porch -- that of Van Stone Drive. Especially since many of the Haack clan were likely gathered on that very porch at the very same time, celebrating the one and only Reyn Haack.
All told, the bbq was a success. We scrambled home just before the guests arrived and whipped up some cole slaw (mom's recipe), a balsamic-dijon pasta salad, dilly roasted potatoes and veggies, and a killer tzatziki dip made with herbs from our backyard (did I mention we have herbs in our backyard?!) There was apricot beer, laughter, breaking news (Osama), a new leftie-stringed guitar for yours truly, and many instances of over-sharing as Linds, Dave and I related our college adventures to the group.
I'll track down photos from a friend who has a good camera and was snapping up a storm at the bbq. In the meantime, sorry for the semi-irrelevant post, and here's to the return of porch sitting, flame grilling and bonfire singalongs. Much love to all.
 |
| This isn't the bbq, but it's Linds. Stuffing her face on a farmer's market breakfast burrito. |
True to form, we ran ourselves ragged around Portland, ate at all my favorite places (Lindsey, a once-a-day waffle eater, said Waffle Window was the best she's ever had. Dave, a dude who's eaten his fair share of pizzas, said the radicchio pie from Ken's was the best he's ever had. I, a former groupie of Ken's olive pizza, have to agree with him.), drank at all my favorite bars (as various other public and private places throughout Western Oregon), attempted and failed to get into a show at the Doug (still went to the upstairs bar), drank coffee, took hikes and watched sunsets.
 |
| Ken's! The pictured pizza (olive) is the bomb dig. But nothing compared to the newly-discovered radicchio. |
It was a quality few days with good people I haven't seen in quite some time. They left town at 5 a.m. on Monday, but not before one last hurrah. After a full day at the beach, we capped off a rare cloud-free day in Portland with a backyard barbecue (I'm in love with my back yard) and a few Portland friends. Most of them were meat-eaters and brought brats and burgers, making me miss a more familiar back porch -- that of Van Stone Drive. Especially since many of the Haack clan were likely gathered on that very porch at the very same time, celebrating the one and only Reyn Haack.
 | |||
| Also not the bbq, but earlier this week we had our first picnic of the year on Mt. Tabor! Dom and I kicked it off with happy hour on my front porch. |
All told, the bbq was a success. We scrambled home just before the guests arrived and whipped up some cole slaw (mom's recipe), a balsamic-dijon pasta salad, dilly roasted potatoes and veggies, and a killer tzatziki dip made with herbs from our backyard (did I mention we have herbs in our backyard?!) There was apricot beer, laughter, breaking news (Osama), a new leftie-stringed guitar for yours truly, and many instances of over-sharing as Linds, Dave and I related our college adventures to the group.
 | |
| This guy makes about 500 burritos every Saturday. I probably annoyed him with my incessant chitchat, but I got some good info. He can crack 1,000 eggs in under 40 minutes, the green stuff is chili, not tomatillo, and he'll start selling in the NE Portland market when it opens. Oh, and those other hawkers are his kids. Precious. |
I'll track down photos from a friend who has a good camera and was snapping up a storm at the bbq. In the meantime, sorry for the semi-irrelevant post, and here's to the return of porch sitting, flame grilling and bonfire singalongs. Much love to all.
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