Welcome to Riley’s Recs! A place for people who love to talk about what they eat, cook, and do in Portland, Oregon. This is “Staying In,” a Sunday newsletter with recipe ideas for your week ahead. Every other Thursday I also publish a “Going Out” edition where I review a restaurant, bar, or activity here in Portland. Want even more recommendations? Check out pdxrecs.com and follow RR on Instagram at @rileysrecs. Enjoy!
This rain is a drag, especially on a long holiday weekend. But I hate letting the rain “win.” So on Friday I took my chances and drove up to Mt. Hood to hike along the Old Salmon River Trail. And it was totally fine!
If you’re reading this and also want to brave the gloomy weather, go on this hike. The trail is 6 miles roundtrip with lots of parking options along the way, making it easy to pick your ideal distance. Or bail if the weather gets nasty.
Before the hike, I stopped at Sincerely, Bagel — a newish spot in the Providore food complex. It’s on the east side of the building in the space that used to be occupied by Tails and Trotters (my all-time favorite sandwich shop/butcher that closed in 2022). I got a gruyere and onion bagel with plain schmear. The texture was perfectly chewy and much better than Henry Higgins a few blocks away.
This coming week, I’m going to be making a lot of salads. And pairing them with proteins like New Seasons rotisserie chicken. One of the salads is inspired by a dish I ate at Katy Jane’s (full review here!), the new oyster bar that operates out of Coquine Market. It uses tonnato sauce — a classic Italian sauce that combines tuna and anchovies with mayonnaise and garlic — which was new to me and wildly addictive.
Enjoy!
Riley
✨ Inspo ingredients for the week: tonnato sauce, goat cheese, and peaches ✨
DINNERS
Baked Radicchio & Brussels Sprouts With Tonnato | Rotisserie Chicken
The Greenest Green Salad | Rotisserie Chicken
Arugula Salad with Peaches, Goat Cheese, and Basil | Tonnato and Radish Toasts
Mushroom, Kale, and Goat Cheese Quiche
BREAKFAST
Strawberry Smoothies
DESSERT
Peach Oven Jam & Vanilla Ice Cream
Notes:
Peaches are used in the salad and for jam; goat cheese is used in the salad and in the quiche; and tonnato is used in a salad and again for radish toasts.
Recipe for peach and goat cheese salad here.
To make the tonnato and radish toast, mix sliced radish and chopped parsley with some white wine vinegar, a little bit of olive oil, and pepper and then put on top of toasted bread slathered with tonnato sauce.
The quiche recipe is a repeat. I’ll swap in goat cheese instead of feta since that’s what I’ll have on hand.
For the smoothies, I’ll blend together strawberries, frozen blueberries, yogurt, milk, and honey.
Baked Radicchio & Brussels Sprouts With Tonnato
Emily Ziemski | Food52
Like I mentioned in the intro, this salad is inspired by the spring veggies and tonnato dish at Katy Jane’s, the new oyster bar in Coquine Market. I’d never had tonnato before, but now I want to eat it on everything. This recipe from Food52 uses tonnato as a base, but unlike the version at Katy Jane’s, it swaps out fresh spring vegetables for a heartier mix of winter ones like Brussels sprouts and radicchio. Think of it as a warm, “baked salad.” Just clean the vegetables, toss them with olive oil, salt, and pepper, spread on a sheet pan, and roast for about 15 minutes. It couldn’t be easier.
Note: the recipe calls for using crushed cereal as a crouton of sorts. I have Chex Mix on hand so I’m going to try that.
The Greenest Green Salad
Jessica Battilana | Serious Eats
I made this green salad last week after reading
’s exhaustive backyard party recipe ideas post (which you should bookmark and return to over and over again. There are so many good ideas!). Green salads always make me feel good about myself — look at me! Eating salad for dinner! And this one delivered on flavor, texture, and green-ness.
Oven Jam
Alison Roman | Sweet Enough
A 2-lb bag of peaches is on sale for $4.99 at Fred Meyer right now. It’s the perfect excuse to make jam. I’ll use this oven method because it’s faster and easier than making jam the traditional way. It won’t last forever, but the jam can live in your fridge until it starts to mold (around 2 months). I’ll mix into vanilla ice cream or put on toast.
INGREDIENTS
4-5-lbs of stone fruit, pitted
2 cups of sugar
1/4 cup lemon, lime, or orange juice
Aromatics like thyme or rosemary (optional)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 325.
Place fruit in a 3-quart baking dish (9x13). Toss with lemon juice and sugar.
Roast for about two hours until you reach the desired consistency and you see large, slow bubbles. Smash the fruit with a spoon from time to time so that everything falls apart.
To store, spoon into mason jars or plastic containers and put in the fridge. Be careful not to burn yourself!
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