Local toffee flight

I had a craving for something sweet the other day.  I remembered my mom had given me a box of Oregon Filberts/Hazelnuts when we were in Bend. I have been wanting to make something with them so, no time like the present. (I have always wondered why they have two names. So if you have too here is a link on all you want and need to know about Filberts. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hazelnut)
My craving went beyond just sweet I really wanted salty too, and maybe spicy or chocolatey! There is a salt shop called The Meadow http://www.atthemeadow.com/shop/in Portland that I had just visited so, I was excited to try some of my purchases. How can I combine all of my desires into a one recipe? A toffee flight! I used a basic toffee recipe I found online and made the necessary substitutions to make the flight of 3.

The three toffee were finished with 3 different salts from The Meadow.  I bought the small Meadow package shown in the tins. I added some cayenne and chili powder and Alaska Pure salt to one of the toffees, some local Oregon Dagoba brand chocolate with the Marlborough Flakey Salt to another and lastly was plain with the Sel de I'lle de Re`salt

 

Ingredients

    1 pound unsalted butter (preferably Plugrá)

    1 cup white sugar

    1 cup brown sugar

    1 Tbsp. corn syrup

    1 1/2 to 2 cups raw almonds , chopped finely or ground loosely (with skins on)

    2 tsp. vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean (scraped or split so the seeds will come out inside the toffee)

    1 tsp. salt

    Salt for finishing (optional)

    Melted chocolate , for dipping (optional)

Directions

Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed pot on stove top. In separate bowl, mix together white sugar, brown sugar and corn syrup, add to melted butter. Add 1/4 cup water. Cook mixture on medium-high heat, stirring with a wooden spoon. Using a candy thermometer—most can clip onto the pot—cook until 240°, stirring hard and fast to make sure nothing is sticking to the pan and your toffee doesn't burn. At 240°, add the almonds. At 260°, lower the heat and finish cooking until your candy thermometer reads 300° and reaches the soft ball stage. It should take about 15 to 20 minutes total to reach the 300° mark. The mixture should be a beautiful, bubbly, golden brown color. At 300°, turn off heat immediately.

Add vanilla (if adding vanilla beans, you must fish them out when you pour the toffee before it cools) and add the salt. Stir quickly. Pour the mixture out onto a marble slab that has been greased with butter, or grease 2 rimmed baking sheets (10" x 15" or around that size). Smooth out the toffee to 1/4-inch thickness. After about 5 to 10 minutes, you can score the toffee with a knife in order to break it up later. Using hot water and wiping the knife clean after every slice can help in scoring the toffee. You may now let the mixture cool. When cool, you can sprinkle with a dash of fleur de sel (French sea salt), break them up and wrap them in cellophane or an airtight container to maintain the freshness.

They came out fantastic! My favorite was the one with cayenne and chili. The sweet crunchy nuttiness with a bit of spicy and salt was awesome! I think the toffee envelope cold be pushed farther by adding herbs maybe sage or lavender? I will keep playing and experimenting with these it is easy and tasty!

Oh Portland, you are just the greatstest city ever!

Home again, home again, and I'm doing my jiggity jig! I have to say, I might find it hard to blog very often for the next couple of weeks we have a lot going on.  There are people to see and business to take care of while we are here for the next month.
It is SO nice to know where I am going when driving around town.  I can throw that GPS in the glove box for awhile. I was running all over town yesterday it was so nice to see some of my old favorites!  Made a trip to Voodoo doughnuts http://voodoodoughnut.com/index.php, Bernie's Southern Bistro http://www.berniesbistro.com/  and Park Kitchen http://www.parkkitchen.com/for a late evening cocktail and snack with a couple of friends. I will continue to post my pictures and links of cool places. For those food lovers out there who have never been to Portland you should really make an effort to get over here and check out all of the great restaurants.
I am really going to need to make sure I get some exercise while I am here, or we are going to have to get a bigger motor home; because I want to get in every last bite before we hit the road again in August!

Are eggs now designed by NASA?

Happy belated 4th of July all!  I am still in Bend visiting my family.  I had an interesting experience this weekend and wanted to run it by you all.   My mom has a friend that was throwing a little BBQ for the holiday weekend and my mom volunteered me to make deviled eggs.  I love them and have had great reviews over my version, but what a pain in the butt to make; especially for a party that is expecting 25 guests. I don't know if I am just going crazy or if NASA is getting into the incredible edible egg industry, but eggs seem like they are getting harder and harder to peel. The membrane that is between the whites and the shell is like thick space-grade rubber and the shell seems thinner.  It is almost impossible to peel without damaging the outside of the white.  Now, I'm pretty sure I know how to how to make a hard boiled egg and here is what I do...

*Place the eggs (mine organic) in a pot and cover with about 2" of water.  Bring to a boil and then shut off the heat and let them sit for about 15 or 20 min. Rinse with ice cold water until cooled.

Round one became egg salad because I could not get the damn egg membrane to separate from the whites so they were not presentable for deviled eggs... (Side note: we are T minus 1 hour to the party and I am frantic). I get online to see if there is some magic trick I don't know about and, thank God, I find this video.

 

I am like "no way he just did that; Woo Hoo baking soda in the water!" I run to the store buy two more dozen eggs, add the baking soda, get them rolling, and cool them off.  I started to peel the eggs and NOPE it didn't frickin work. I was so crushed and frustrated.  I have never had this much trouble before.  Well, I did once and a friend of mine said you shouldn't use really fresh eggs. It's best if the eggs are least a week or two old. The first batch I had attempted met that criteria and were a disaster as I already mentioned, so that wasn't the issue.

Thankfully, we got enough peeled to get the dish together. Baking soda appears to have helped a bit,  but I am a perfectionist and I wasn't doing back flips over the presentation, if you know what I mean. Fortunately, they were delicious, so no one really looked at them before gobbling them down and they were gone in a flash. 

If you know of any tips of ideas please let me know.  Have they added something to the hen's feed to make that membrane stronger and thicker for shipping? Does organic make a difference? Should I boil them in smaller batches?  Hit me back with you best egg disasters or tip and tricks. Thanks!

 

UPDATE: House Hunters RV Edition

Well, we heard back from Pietown Productions and we are not going to be in the upcoming episode of HGTV's House Hunters RV edition.  They picked someone that was in line in front of us. Originally, we were a part of the casting call for a season of the show but they decided to just do one episode for now so they went with there fist pick.  We are still on the radar as first runner up if they decide to do more than one episode! So, we'll just have to wait and see what happens. I will keep you posted.

joolz, in Bend Oregon

As you may know we are now in Bend OR. This is the town of my birthplace, where we bought the motor-home and where my mother, brother and sister currently reside. If you have never been to Bend you should definitely check it out http://www.visitbend.com/! If you are into food, shopping, skiing, boating, hiking, fishing, camping, and especially golf, Bend Oregon is a place you should add to your travel itinerary.
 We had dinner at Joolz http://www.joolzbend.com/ last night.  It's the kind of place you want to hang out all day and nibble on small plates and do wine parings with their extensive wine list. There are many local fresh ingredients done to perfection.  The food is best described as Mezza meets Mesa. The first plate we had was Hummus on the Range (hummus with pan seared local Elk) followed by Kibbe (lamb meat balls with roasted tomatoes and garlic) and the  Halloumi cheese sun kissed Tomato appetizer. Delicious oven roasted cauliflower was to follow and finally a date cake with warm caramel sauce that was simply out of this world good,good,good! I am by no means a baker but this cake really makes me wish I was and may even make me try. (again) My brother had the lamb and chicken kebabs. The lamb was tender, juicy and perfectly cooked.

We will for sure be back to Joolz before we leave town.  Anyplace with such a great happy hour is always on my list of places to frequent!

Roadshow in the sky!

RMS On-The-Road is flying the friendly sky's. This media interview will be on the Delta radio Executive Report on over 5600 flights reaching over 5.2 million passengers in November and December 2011.  Chris' interview with them will give you an idea of why we are on the road, trying to help small local business's compete in this big business world. I hope you will take a listen.

I will get back to the food part of this my next post! I just thought this was pretty cool so, I wanted to pass it along. 

Thanks!

http://server.rm-solutions.com/RoadShow\AltitudeMedia.mp3

New article on our trip!

Chris just had another article published about the RMS Roadshow (http://www.facebook.com/pages/RMS-On-The-Road/100903816656538).  The latest article was published in Computer Talk which is pharmacy trade magazine. The more people we touch and the more we continue to do well on the road, the longer we get to live this awesome dream life! So, I am very excited and proud of her/us. I have never been a big self promoter, but it is just really nice to see the risks we've taken to change our lives pay off.  We really wanted to make our life about living today and not waiting until we are retired to do it.  A lot of people thought we were nuts to do this.
Additionally, we are on our own little campaign to help these small local independent pharmacies stay in tune with the changes in technology, enabling them to compete with the huge corporate chains (Walgreen's Wal-Mart and CVS) that put them out of business daily. So, I guess for today, I am self promoting and giving her/us a little round of applause!  RMS roadshow is also on twitter!

 RMS Roadshow blog  http://www.rms-ontheroad.com/

 Computer talk link
 http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/90ffceeb#/90ffceeb/18

We are always about voting with our dollar and supporting small business' on our journey we hope you will join us in that.

Hey Eugene!

We made it to Eugene today.  Overall it wasn't a very noteworthy day. I was in the mood for soup, well Chris was really, she is a soup lover.  I really should make it for her more often.  So, I went for my first shot at Hungarian mushroom. It looks great and smells great which is usually a good sign; too bad I didn't write down what I did. If it is as good as it smells, I will try it again and make a note of it. Here are a couple of pictures of our new camp spot and my soup...Enjoy!

Hail to the hippies!

We are in Canyonville right now; it is a tiny little town in southern Oregon.  There isn't much here other than the Seven Feathers casino, which has a very nice brand new RV resort, and a quaint little main street with some local shops. I needed to grab a few things from the store. I was sort of dreading the grocery store I might find and then, to my surprise, I stumbled across the coolest little organic market! So, I thought I would share it. Promise Natural Foods is the type of local business I love to find and support in the small towns we visit. Most everything was organic and locally sourced.  They even had there own bakery and a very well stocked herb room. I really enjoyed  chatting with the owner and taking pictures of their store. She was excited that someone has taken an interest in their passion and is going to put it on a food blog. We head to Eugene tomorrow so we will see what new finds that will bring so stay tuned! 

Home in Portland 1st stop the Screen Door.

We drove up to Portland Saturday for a little surprise visit to some family and friends we haven't seen for the 6 months that we have been living on the road.  It was so nice to see everyone even if just for a quick trip.  Our very first stop was to have breakfast at the Screen Door. www.screendoorrestaurant.com

This is one of my most favorite places to eat in Portland and I have been missing it. This is saying a lot because there are a ton of really great restaurants! We started with the sticky buns. Wow! is all I can say about that bun of utter love. Honestly, I am not usually a sticky bun kinda gal, but something told be to give it a try and boy am I glad I did. Moist, sticky, gooey, so perfect I swear I could have eaten an entire pan of them. As if that wasn't enough caloric intake for the day, I ordered the corned beef hash with spinach and mushrooms drizzled with a light creole mustard cream sauce. The flavor was outstanding with the mustard sauce really bringing it all together.  Everything was very well balanced and cooked perfectly.  I love my corned beef to be cubed so it gets really caramelized on the grill. 

Chris had the fried chicken and waffles, so how can you go wrong? The chicken is very juicy and  has a crispy spicy crust. You get three HUGE boneless fried chicken breasts and a malted Belgian style waffle.  She dug in before I could get a picture of the presentation so the picture is of it deconstructed. If you order this you will for sure have left overs. The Screen Door is very good and very consistent which is one of the hardest things to find. Yes, there can be a long wait but I have found you either have to get there right when they open or wait until around 11:00 am when the morning rush is starting to thin out.

The food is Southern and the setting is casual. Everything is very fresh, mostly organic and locally sourced. The dinner menu is fantastic as well.  They always have a few really great specials as if what is on the menu is not enough.  They even have a seasonal sides menu (often vegetable dishes and salads) you can add to any of your other menu choices. It is also very vegetarian friendly.  I have been going here for years and the owner always remembers me and says hello even if I haven't been in for a while (6 months just recently). 
 Once you try the Screendoor, I'm sure you'll be a lifetime fan like me!

Rooster stew with frog leg dumplings?

Well I am blogging at 4:00am because I am wide, wide awake! Why you ask? Great question! Well because apparently I am unknowingly in an episode of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom Vacaville CA style. To clarify, there is a rooster behind our campground that is obviously unaware that we are on Pacific Standard Time and is cock-a-doodle-doo’ing to the top of his very well developed lungs about every 5 minutes!  There is also a small pond on the resort and 2 bullfrogs that are having a croak as loud as you can contest or maybe their version of the Voice. Honestly, they must be the size of watermelons, and survived the last ice age with their prehistoric sounding throaty whales back and forth. So alas I am awake...WIDE awake! Normally being a very good, and very hard sleeper I sit here on the couch with envy that Chris (Who normally sleeps with one ear and eye open.) is resting peacefully like a little baby. Which is making me have visions of parading up and down the motor home shaking a tambourine until carpel tunnel sets in.  What does any of this have to do with a food blog? Another great question...Nothing really, just thinking up recipes and a way to incorporate a “Rooster stew with frog leg dumplings” into my cookbook!

Sangria Recipe!

Sangria

Fruit

1 Orange

1 Peach

1 Lime

3 or 4 strawberries (if you like)

Spice

1 chunk/1tsp Crystallized Ginger

Liquids

2 bottles cheap red wine (I use Gabbiano Chianti)

1 cup brandy (substitute bourbon if you like)

½ cup Pimms liqueur

¼ cup Triple sec

Soda (you can substitute ginger ale or 7up if you like it on the sweeter side)

Prepare

Quarter the lime, orange and peach (removing the pit) half the strawberries.

Use half of the lime and orange and save the others for garnish.  Squeeze the citrus juice into your container/pitcher and toss the remains in with it. Then add the entire peach, strawberries and crystallized ginger. Add the wine and other liquids and stir. Let sit for at least 3 hours (overnight is best).

Serve

Serve over ice in tall cooler style glass or mason jar with a “splash” of soda (or to your liking) garnish with orange and lime slices!  (A mint leaf makes it even prettier)  Enjoy!

Audition video for pie town productions for HGTV House Hunters RV edition.

Napa Valley/Update

We are staying in Vacaville CA just outside of Napa and its lovely but hot. Tomorrow we are heading to Napa for food and wine tasting and I am looking really forward to it! Generally things have been going really great and we have continued to get press.  We were told that we were 95% in on the HGTV House Hunters RV edition but haven't heard anything in the past two days but I am sure these things just take time.  I had a great interview/chat with a cookbook publishing company and it got me inspired to blog more. I have gotten in a bad habit of only writing when we get into a new town or leave it. So, I am turning over a new leaf as of today to blog daily!Also, I am going to post our videos of our audition for HGTV and a tour of our motor coach! So look for that in the video section.

Goodbye Salt Lake Hellooo California (again)

Well, we are pulling the anchor and heading back to Cali today! I am excited to get moving again.  Especially, because we are heading West which brings us closer to home.  I have missed you Portland Oregon home of Portlandia (well except for the rain). It will be nice to see my friends again I haven't been home in 6 months. I miss my favorite restaurants like the Screen Door, Country Cat, Lincoln and Pok Pok.
Salt Lake City is a lot cooler than I thought it would be, and has some really great restaurants.  It seems very local as far as community support.  You don't see a lot of chain restaurants or chain anything really. Sure you have your Target and Wal-Mart as an option, but small business is very much in charge here and it shows in their local economy.  I don't know if the Mormon presence plays a part in it or not.  I expect that it does because they are known to be a communally supportive organization. The parks are plentiful and well kept they have a great public transportation system and a lot of construction going on which are all indicators of a strong vibrant community. It just goes to show when you keep your dollar in your community your community benefits not overseas stock holders.  Not to mention it is absolutely beautiful here. If you visit SLC make sure you check out the Sugar House neighborhood, it reminded me a lot of home. We will be back for sure! Thanks Salt Lake!

Chris is getting some attention...

I am proud to announce that Chris has had two magazine articles released recently. I am very proud of her and very proud of us actually making this crazy idea work! It has been a long haul but it is starting to pay off. We made a decision that we wanted to live our lives differently, now we are and are having a blast doing it!

Road Warrior, Stores Magazine: http://www.stores.org/STORES%20Magazine%20June%202011/road-warrior

Living Life to the Fullest, RV Life: http://www.rvlife.com/Digital-Edition/rv-life-digital-edition.html

Tweeting in Twitterland and Urban spooning

Local Chow is now on Twitter. I am a little new at linking all of this stuff so bear with me! It is a HUGE social media world out there! So many great links to cool things and cool people it throws my O.C.D and A.D.D into overdrive at warp speed! I also am starting to write some reviews on Urbanspoon so check that out as well! It is all under Local Chow.  Hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day! We are in SLC Utah and it has been cold and rainy for 2 days.  I have secretly been enjoying it after months of sunshine and 80 degree weather. I am still an Oregonian and I and just not used to all of that sunshine! So we stayed in and I made a root vegetable beef stew with Guinness beer and watched movies it was perfect and delish!

Zion and ostrich eggs

We are right at the base of the Zion National Park in Virgin Utah. It is a breathtaking place. We are headed to the park today for some hiking and sightseeing. I am looking forward to sharing some pictures of our trip on FB.  Its funny that I have no cell service but there is what appears to be an organic grocery store up the road a just few miles. I was on a bike ride the other day and drove by an ostrich farm where you could buy fresh ostrich eggs.  I have never had an Ostrich egg and quite frankly I have a little weirdness about eggs in general. They have always kind of given me the creeps. So, I cant imagine eating one the size of a cantaloupe. Anyway, I will post more on this later. Happy Memorial Day!

Interesting info...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eatingwell/natural-meat-myths-busted_b_852541.html

Phoenix AZ

Joe's Farm Grill

This place is so cool! We went here several times while we were in Phoenix AZ. It was featured on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives! The food was unbelievably fresh and local and organic. Most everything is grown on the premises at their own 10 acre farm or locally sourced from other farmers in AZ. I had the pulled pork huevos rancheros and Chris had to BBQ ribs and waffle on our first trip there.  The BBQ chicken pizza is amazing as are the onion rings!
http://joesfarmgrill.com/

The Duce

We stumbled upon this place on the way to a Diamond Backs baseball game. We were looking for parking and I saw their cool sign. We went in and were totally blown away.  Upon entering there was a vintage clothing store and behind that a boxing ring with classes going on.  Around the corner from that a 1940's bar will a long list of organic vintage cocktails.  Beyond that was an large outdoor patio with an old travel trailer that is being used as an outdoor kitchen.  There is a Southern feel and Southern menu serving breakfast and lunch during our "brunch" a local band strolled in and started playing. It was super cool and I highly recommend stopping in.
http://www.theducephx.com/