Tamales & Fish Tacos at Por Que No?

About a week and a half ago I had a mom/daughter date with my 10-year-old girl.  The plan was to go hang out at Powell's on Hawthorne, maybe get some good reads, then find somewhere to grab a bite for dinner.

After helping each other find good books and window-shopping around Hawthorne street for a while, we started to get hungry and headed up the street to Por Que No.  When we entered, the place was very crowded and there was quite a line to order.  We looked at the menu and quickly decided to share a tamale plate and two fish tacos.  We grabbed out number and headed out to the back, where the makeshift covered seating (think corrugated plastic roofs) and decoration was quaintly reminiscent of Dia de los Muertos kitsch.

Our food arrived, and the tamale plate looked AMAZING.  It was artistically arranged over banana leaves, and included two sauce-topped pork tamales garnished with crema, a small side of Mexican rice and pinto beans to boot.  The shredded cabbage, cilantro and fresh pico de gallo on the side were a tasty touch and the perfect cool/fresh contrast to the hearty meal.  The tamales themselves may have been delicious to someone NOT intimately familiar with authentic Mexican tamales (not to mention Nicaraguan Nacatamales, Peruvian tamales and other varieties).  To me, however, the masa resembled more of a spiced polenta than a true tamale dough.  The meat was tender, but lacked some spice.  Unfortunately, the sauce served over the top did not make up for this.  The true highlight of this combo was the rice.  It was like Mexican rice on garlic steroids.  The garlic flavor was strong and aromatic, and made up for the lack of flavor of the tamales.  It made me wish I'd ordered a bowl of rice rather than this pretty ensemble.

The fish tacos, on the other hand were definitely something to write home about.  The small, soft tortillas had a real homemade maiz flavor.  They were so fresh, I expected to see an abuelita grinding corn in a molcajete.  Instead, I got a forward-thinking flavor combination that fused a crispy cornmeal crust on flaky Alaskan cod topped with salsa verde, crema, shredded cabbage, pineapple, and of course - onion and cilantro. The effect was a gourmet twist on the island tacos I'd had in in Maui this past May.  ANYTHING that brings me back to those days is A-Okay in my book.

Plum Harvest: Peruvian Chicken with Plums & a Tasty Tart

We've been living in our rental house in Southeast Portland since the end of October last year, and realized just a couple of weeks ago that there are two plum trees in our front yard.  To our delight, we found out right in the middle of the sweet sweet ripening season.  Day after day I've been sending the kids out to pick the juicy little treasures.  First, my youngest to gather from the lower branches, then my boy to get whatever he could reach, and finally, my 10 year old (who is almost taller than me) to reap the fruits from as high as she could reach.

With such an abundance of plums, I figured I'd better find some interesting things to do with some of them.  First off, I tried to figure out what variety they are, but had no luck.  The fruit is oblong, dark purplish-burgundy in color on the outside and golden yellow on the inside.  The pit is easily removed when the plum is halved.  Maybe somebody can comment and advise on the type?

Anyhow, I started by making plum jam, which was pretty easy and tasty on toast and pancakes.  This was a no-brainer, and I made enough that I could use some in other recipes.  What I really wanted to find, however, was a way to incorporate plums into a savory dish. I searched high and low for recipes containing "chicken and plums" and found Peruvian Chicken with Plums to be the most interesting.  Of course, I made some substitutions and modified the recipe to my own taste/pantry but you can Google it if you want the popular version (it's pretty much the same on all sites that feature it).

Peruvian Chicken with Plums


1 tbsp olive oil
6-8 chicken thighs - skin removed
salt & garlic pepper to taste
1 small diced onion
2 Anaheim peppers, seeded and diced
1 tomato, diced
1/4 tsp turmeric (original recipe calls for saffron)
2 cups of chicken broth
1 bay leaf
8 small plums, halved and pitted
4 cups of cooked rice (recipe calls for brown, I used Jasmine)

First I sprinkled the chicken with sea salt and garlic pepper.  I heated the oil over medium-high heat and then browned the chicken pieces on both sides (about 4 minutes per side). Next I added the onion and sauteed for about two minutes before adding the peppers and garlic.  I sauteed everything for another two minutes, and then added the tomato, turmeric, chicken broth and bay leaf. This is where you turn the heat up and bring the whole pot to a boil. Next, I covered the pot, turned the heat down to medium and simmered for about 10 minutes.  Next, I added the plums and cooked for about 5 minutes before stirring in the rice.

The end result was divine.  It was reminiscent of a Cuban Arroz-con-Pollo but with a unique flavor and that sweet plum flavor to provide a surprising contrast.  Divine.  Seriously.

Then, on to dessert.


Simple Plum Tart

1 stick of butter, softened to room temp
1/4 cup of sugar
1 cup of flour
6-8 small plums sliced into thin wedges
3 tbsp plum jam

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Then cream butter and sugar together with a whisk.  Slowly add in the flour and continue to whisk together until only your hands will do to integrate the mixture.  Roll the dough out with your hands onto the counter (or on a cutting board) and form the shape of a large cookie.  Carefully peel the "cookie" off the counter and place onto a greased (or sprayed with cooking spray) pie tin or cookie sheet.  Next, arrange the plum slices in a spiral shape starting in the center of the dough and outward, leaving about an in to an inch and a half of dough uncovered.  Fold in the inch of uncovered dough over the outer edge of plum slices.  Then spoon plum jam over the slices of plums to cover them evenly.  Bake in preheated oven for about 30 minutes, keeping an eye on the color of the crust.

Easy, Quick Vegetarian Dinner - Spaghetti Squash & Roasted Root Veggies

I had some beautiful beets and radishes that came with my last Organics to You order.  I also had a large n' lovely spaghetti squash that we got at the Learning Garden last weekend.  Since we are going camping this weekend I knew I better make good use of these vegetables before Thursday or else figure out who to give them away to (probably Sabrina, though I'm not sure she'd be glad to have them, lol).  So, here's what I came up with: first, I figured that with a name like "spaghetti squash," there must be a way to make this into a very pasta-esque dish.  I don't have a ton of experience with this type of squash, but a quick Google search confirmed my suspicion.  I learned that spaghetti squash can be cooked in the microwave, which might seem sacrilegious to someone like my brother Sebastian, but suits me just fine after a long day of working hard and zooming over to Target to buy some last-minute back-to-school stuff.  But, I had to start with the root veggies, since they'd be roasted in the oven and take a bit longer.

Roasted Root Vegetables

6-8 medium/large beets (trimmed)

8-10 radishes (trimmed)

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 tsp fresh thyme

pinch of garlic powder (optional)

First, I preheated my oven to 400 degrees.  Then, I placed all the root veggies on a sheet of aluminum foil and drizzled the oil over them evenly.  Next I sprinkled the seasonings and herbs over the veggies and wrapped the all up in the foil.  I put this foil package onto a cookie sheet and placed on the top rack of my preheated oven.  I set the timer for 30 minutes and got started on the spaghetti squash.

Spaghetti Squash

1 3 lb spaghetti squash

2 tbsp butter

1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes (I used the fire-roasted ones from Hunts)

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 cup shredded cheese

First, I stabbed the squash all over with a sharp knife and lined my microwave with paper towels.  I placed the squash on top of the paper towels and microwaved it on high for 12 minutes.  When it came out, I let it cool for a bit, then trimmed of the end and stem, then halved the squash lengthwise.  After removing the seeds from the center, I used a fork to scrape out all of the squash's "meat." This left me with a lovely golden mound of deliciousness that resembled cooked spaghetti.  At this point, I heated up a large skillet over medium-high heat and melted the butter in it.  I added the can of tomatoes, then the squash, and mixed everything together.  I sprinkled some salt and pepper in, and let it cook for about 8 minutes, until some of the liquid from the tomatoes began to thicken.  At that point, I sprinkled the shredded cheese over the top and turned off the heat.

Prepared in this simple yet delicious way, spaghetti squash can TOTALLY be a main dish.  I sliced the root veggies up and served them on the side to complete a healthy and colorful dish.  The best part: my kids ATE IT UP.  And loved it.

Foster Burger: Fostering a Better Burger

The first time I heard of Foster Burger was from my sister Sabrina.  I'd driven by the new place on Foster Road and noticed it, but she actually beat me to the punch and then raved about the burgers there.  Next, I heard from my friend Risa that Foster Burger is her husband Josh's (he is a Chef/Teacher at Oregon Culinary Institute) favorite new burger joint.  So.  I finally made my way there. 

The inside of Foster Burger was surprisingly dark, with dim lighting overhead and small lamps on tables giving off reddish-orangeish light.  Concert posters (for bands such as Suicidal Tendencies, Public Enemy, Sleater Kinney, Dancehall Crashers, Cherry Poppin' Daddies and the Dandy Warhols to name a few) covered every inch of wall surface.  For a minute I was nervous that I'd taken my three literate children in there - but no harm done.  During the time we spent there, music by The Smiths and Morrissey played the entire time.  To my delight there was a full bar, and it had a beautiful antique-looking mirror hanging over it to amplify the experience.  Overall my impression of the place was "so Portland."

But - on to the important part.  The food.  I ordered the Foster Burger (had to try their signature item).  I learned from the menu that burgers are served on buns baked right next door at An Xuyen Bakery.  It just doesn't get more local than that.  When the burger came, I was not disappointed.  I hope nobody (most importantly Sabrina or Josh H.) takes offense to this, but I would almost compare it to an In 'n Out burger, if In n' Out burgers were more homemade, bigger, less greasy and not mass-produced.  The patty was perfect (burgers are served "medium" unless you specify otherwise).  The high-quality of the beef was evident in each mouth-watering bite.  The sesame-seeded bun was lighter than most and toasted to a pleasant crisp.  The burger was topped with lettuce, tomato, onion and sweet pickles.  Hand-cut fries (with the skins on and also somewhat reminiscent of In 'n Out's) were on the side, as was a yummy "special sauce" which seemed to consist of ketchup/mayo mixed with minced pickles.  Delicious on the burger as well as a dip for the fries.  All of this for $8.00.

Here's something I thought was cute: my 7-year-old daughter ordered her burger topped with blue cheese instead of traditional cheddar (a girl after my own heart) and after tasting it described it to us as "powerful." (I'm tellin' ya.)  Anyhow, Foster Burger's no-nonsense approach to food dictates that meals be served in red and white checked paper-lined baskets.  On the other hand, kids' cocktails (Shirley Temples and Roy Rogers) are made with Foster Burger's proprietary grenadine and topped with a single black cherry.  As for me, I washed my burger down with a pint of Terminal Gravity IPA.