Post -- Liz Crain

Food Lover's Guide to Portland Blog...

began as a collection of some of the research, recipes, images and culinary adventures that went into the making of Food Lover’s Guide to Portland. The first edition came out in 2010 and I started the blog in February 2009 as a companion piece to it and to help organize my thoughts while researching and writing it. The second edition came out in September 2014 from Hawthorne Books. The blog is now home to all different food, drink and beyond things I want to show and tell.

I didn’t think I’d like blogging when I first started this, but it turns out I really do, mostly because I get to shout out people and things that I love.

I'm still enjoying this incredible summer as much as possible (trips to the river, plum wine, dancing, reading, camping and much more) and working less than usual before the Toro Bravo cookbook storm hits. Right now we're in the planning stages for the tour that commences in one short month. (You can pre-order the cookbook now from Powell's and Amazon.) We'll be heading to New York, DC, Baltimore, San Francisco, Seattle, Boise and Eugene this fall for the book! I'll post more details about that soon as well as about the cookbook launch party. For now, save the date for it -- the evening of Tuesday, October 15th at Toro Bravo. If you've never been to a Toro party before expect to stay late and party hard. It's going to be crazy fun.

The garden is growing and in full swing and mostly I'm getting a lot of tomatoes which are my favorite in the summer. I could eat them for just about every meal -- in a scramble for breakfast, sliced with a little salt on toasted bread with mayo for lunch, chips and salsa for a snack, in a sauce or saute for dinner. I never get sick of garden fresh summer tomatoes. I also have pickling cukes, green beans, zucchini, grapes and all the herbs and more going strong now. Life is good.

Here's some of what I've cooked and eaten lately. What have you been happily eating?

I've wanted one of these for awhile and now I finally have one! Fizzy water around the clock. Mostly I just drink it straight up but it was pretty tasty with the rhubarb syrup.

Harvested the 90 or so softnecks and left it to cure a little too long. Pretty dry but that's ok. I think I'll roast some and store it in oil.

Butter lettuce, Choi's white kimchi (homemade), boiled egg, radish, scallions and miso lime vinaigrette. Really good salad.

First tomato haul with some of the early Concords.

River snack. Cottage cheese, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Simple and perfect.

Late night camping trip bar prep of gingery Bloody Mary mix and margarita mix made with two bags of limes.

Sweet pea tomatoes or, as Kylie likes to call them...TINY TOMATOES!

Salame rolls with chipotle, preserved lemon cream cheese and a cornichon topper.

First spicy garlic dills of the season! Many more to come.

Food Lover's Guide to Portland Blog...

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