Oddly, for me, July is for baking - July 6, 2004—
Maybe it's because I was born and raised in Oregon but spent most of my culinary development on the humid East Coast, but for some reason, come June and July, I have this crazy urge to bake.
My psychosis is your gain. I've added a bunch of new recipes to the kitchen page.
Adding herbal remedies to the recipes section - June 25, 2004—
Today I started adding some herbal remedies to my recipes section of the web site. The first is for St. John's wort infused oil. St. John's wort grows like a weed all over the Northwest, as I discovered after picking up a copy of the excellent northwest herb lover's handbook at the library.
Why should you care about St. John's wort? The oil is an excellent remedy for all kinds of skin ailments, including bruises, sunburns, and even ulcers and strained backs.
The story of my full circle with Gmail - June 11, 2004—
As we're working on a product that is quasi-competitive with Gmail, Big IMAP, I wanted Gmail largely for the insights into its inner workings. Let's be honest, though, I mostly wanted it for the cache, and the thrill of the chase.
When Al from Blue Hole announced his coming invites on ORblogs, I was one of the first to respond with options guaranteed to tempt his tastebuds: shrimp jambalaya, or an organic French chocolate torte. From reviewing Al's archives, I was pretty sure my picks were on the money.
My version of the 10 things you'll love about Portland - May 23, 2004—
On Friday, About Portland published its guide for Portland newcomers. I thought it could use a mama-style rewrite: here are my 10 favorite things about Portland.
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8. Coffee shops and other caffeinated spots. How can I count the ways Portland coffee shops charm and impress me? From the local favorite, Stumptown, with its three convenient locations and perfectly roasted coffee delivered all over, to the cute holes-in-the-wall like Tiny's on 12th and Hawthorne and the Ugly Mug in Sellwood, to the local meeting places for radical and high school students alike, like the Red & Black Cafe on 21st and Division and Palio's in Ladd's Addition, to the family-friendly places that treat you right, like Haven on 35th and Division and Urban Grinds in NE 22nd and Oregon, I love them all. You will, too. Not a coffee drinker? You won't be disappointed. In addition to the plentiful excellent tea choices at the coffee shops - most offer a selection of loose teas in addition to bagged teas - there are some great tea shops too. Check out The Tao of Tea on 34th and Belmont, you'll be truly amazed.
Recipe box with RecipeML - April 15, 2004—
Today I found this great Recipe Markup Language, RecipeML. It's created by FormatData, and it's free to use.
I love to cook as many of you know (and hey, this IS cafemama, after all). RecipeML was a great inspiration to create a stylesheet for my recipes and start uploading. I'll try to post to the feed when I've added a bunch of new recipes. I'll start with my "perfect" chocolate chip cookies. The index can be found via the navigation bar (kitchen).
Restaurant review: Gretchen's Kitchen, 940 SE Morrison, Portland - April 7, 2004—
I thought I would start giving some raves to my favorite eating establishments, and making some "mommy" notes for those of you who are with child. I am a picky eater, and a very critical observer of business models, so if you live in Portland or are visiting, I hope these will be useful to you.
Gretchen's Kitchen is tucked in a tiny storefront next to a "$7.00 a whack" barber shop, and would have gone completely unnoticed by me and my family were it not for the intriguing floral sign - not at all greasy-spoon-ish. So one day, operating on a whim, I stopped in to pick up lunch.
I waited behind a few "regulars" and soaked up the ambience. Gretchen, it is obvious, is quite the socialite. She is an exuberant woman whose joy in life speaks through her decor, her wrinkles, and most of all, her food. She typically prepares the food while her assistant helps customers, except of course for Gretchen's plentiful group of friends, to whom she usually suggests specials - the meatloaf sandwich one day, a Reuben the next.
The huge portions of amazingly delicious food are the star, but Gretchen hardly takes a back seat. A vibrant portrait of her is displayed on the tiny wall, and one day, birthday cards overflowed the counter from her many friends and most of the customers were recounting the revels of the night before.
