portlandy's Profile

Two shiny new baking sheets, one crummy old one -- yep that's us. Mainly we keep the old one around because my partner won't let me use the newer ones. Also great for toasting nuts.

I don't know that I can trust the arch-nemesis of Jason Bourne, Wolverine and Max Fischer. Even on matters of proper Scottish pronunciation.

Huh, I've actually only been there for brunch so far since they opened. Looks like I'll have to check them out for dinner.

There's a lot of picking and choosing from an unclear prehistorical record involved in defining this "paleo" thing.

First of all, how far back are we going here? Is 10,000 years enough to be considered paleo? Or are you not truly paleo if you're not ignoring developments since 500,000 BCE? There seems to be some significant fuzziness there.

Secondly, evolutionary arguments are pretty sketchy. People have been eating grains for at least 15,000 years, with rice, today, being the most important staple on the planet. I think we've adapted. Similarly, cow's milk has been cultivated agriculturally for at least 7,000 years, and Europeans, at least, have relied on it so heavily that a vast majority of people of European descent have adapted to it. The first settlers of Japan had a rough time adapting to the local foliage, which is why many of them are uniquely able to metabolize seaweed today.

As slowly as evolution occurs, animals adapt pretty quickly to food shortages. Those individuals that don't figure out a way to find nourishment during a famine die and fail to reproduce. Those that do live and procreate. Easy as that. Arguments that we weren't meant to eat certain foods are all well and good until every other source of food vanishes, and then you may need to expand your options.

I'm on board with eating only naturally derived foods and avoiding dairy and generally taking care of oneself, but claiming some kind of justification based on an unknowable historical record is as douchey as a pin-striped blazer on an athletic gray tee shirt.

Wow, this is so perfect. Here I am looking for a meal to cook for my partner after her return from vacation, and the answer I need is five posts from the top on thekitchn.com. This site rules.

Braised pork shoulder over herbed spaetzle with a pear & frisee salad, and apple-pear-fig-cranberry pie for dessert.

Hell yes.

I'm all about trying new things this weekend. And hoping my apartment doesn't burn down in the process.

1. Giving Emma's beer marshmallows a try.
2. Taking my newly purchased Himalayan salt block for a test drive, trying it out on some bacon.

Oh good lord, I'm doing that. But I have some questions.

1. What kind of beer did you use? It seems like a bourbon barrel aged stout would work really well.
2. Do you think adding a bit of coffee to the chocolate coating would be appropriate, or would that add too much complexity?
3. Do you think nuts might work as a substitute for pretzels? Or bacon?
4. How long do you think they would keep after making them?

I have many more questions, but I'll stop there. Thanks.

There are some great Austrian lagers that served as gateway beers for me when I was just starting out -- Stiegl, Gösser, Puntigamer.

Nowadays, though, I always recommend a low-IBU amber ale to get friends through the door. Alaskan Amber, in particular.

Microwaves are more energy efficient than the conventional heating appliances in my apartment, so I use mine a lot. Heating milk for my breakfast muesli, thawing frozen chicken broth, etc. My grandma always used to microwave my ice cream for about ten seconds to soften it up a bit, and I do that for myself now and then when I'm feeling nostalgic.