This has been a fabulous weekend for food. Friday night, I enjoyed a chicken curry sausage dog at Good Dog, Bad Dog. You have to love a place that makes all of their sausages by hand. Yum!
Saturday I got my arm twisted into brunch at Nourishment on SE Division. Wow. I had the chicken apple sausage strata with leeks and stoneground dijon topped with Hollendaise. Side of roasted potatoes. Garnish of perfectly in-season cantalope. Wow. After I emptied my plate (licking it clean was considered) I wanted to sneak into the kitchen and run off with the chef’s recipe notes. Denise was impressed with her Eggs Benedict, although she also refrained from licking her plate clean.
Making a decision on what to order in the first place had been difficult, and I’m sure I would have been happy with anything I had ordered. They primarily use local farmers for produce and poultry, and many items were organic. According to the menu they also make their own tofu-based “facon” for vegetarians or those who like to order like them. I had heard (later) that Nourishment had gotten mediocre reviews for food and service, but we had no problems with either. Excellent food, reasonably priced, decent service, and best of all, no waiting for a table, a miracle in the town of typical two hour waits for brunch. I’ll have to enjoy this place before the rest of the foodies discover it and stick me at the end of a long waiting list.
Later that afternoon, cruised by Staccato Gelato on 28th between Burnside and Glisan. Craving a little something desserty but not too heavy? This is the place. A scoop of hand-crafted Honey Lavender gelato in a cone is a bargain at $2. The selection included other flavors such as crema (vanilla), pistachio, torrone (almond nougat), and a whole bunch of others I wish I remembered. Thinking I need to swing down there sometime and pick up a pint to take home with me.
This morning I did something I haven’t had a chance to do in ages – I made brunch at home! Invited a friend over so we could talk shop, but my secret agenda was really to lure someone over to my house so I could indulge my craving to cook. Since the weather is warm and so many terrific fruits are in season right now, I pulled my crepe maker out of the pantry and served homemade crepes with fresh fruit, vanilla sauce, and toasted almonds. (Recipe to follow)
Out of all my kitchen toys, the crepe maker may not be used the most often but it is definitely one of my favorites. I bought it for myself as a housewarming gift two years ago because making crepes in a frying pan drives me batty. Much easier to dip, wait 45 seconds, release, and dip again.
Crepes with Vanilla Sauce
Crepes:
1 cup all-purpose flour pre-sifted
3 eggs
1 cup 1% milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
In order listed, add all ingredients to blender. Blend 30 seconds, then scrape down sides. Blend additional 30 – 60 seconds until smooth. Cook crepes using crepe maker, and keep crepe plate on the counter under a layer of foil to keep crepes warm and moist until ready to serve. (No oven needed!)
Vanilla Sauce:
2 containers Tillamook Vanilla Bean Lowfat Yogurt
1 tablespoon of real vanilla extract (If you have the artificial stuff in your pantry, please get rid of it and buy some real vanilla extract)
Several dashes of cinnamon
Dash of nutmeg
Combine well and chill until ready to serve.
Almonds:
1 small package sliced almonds
1 tablespoon sugar
Spray frying pan lightly with cooking oil. Heat pan to medium high and add almonds. Stir until lightly toasty and add sugar. Stir for a minute until sugar melts then remove from heat and transfer almonds to a serving bowl.
To Serve:
Bring crepes, fruit (I used a salad of cantalope, mango, raspberries, mandarin oranges, and nectarines), vanilla sauce, and almonds to table. Nutella is good to have on hand as well. If needed, provide butter and syrup for the unadventurous.
Put a crepe on your plate; top with fruit, vanilla sauce, and almonds; roll up and enjoy!